Sugarplum: Canine Christmas Read online

  Joy glanced at the scar on Jake’s thigh. Last year he’d been involved in a shoot out with drug dealing gang members and took a bullet.

  “I’d rather be shot than have you reject me.”

  “You’re the best present ever. Come here.”

  Jake shook his head. “I think we need to address the werewolf issue. I’m going to shift. Remember, although I’m in wolf form, I’m still Jake. My shape changes, my senses are heightened, but in my mind, heart and soul I’m still the man who is in love with you.”

  His declaration slammed into her heart, mind and soul with blinding intensity. He loved her.

  Then he shifted. His form wavered, his features changing, blending man with wolf. His nose and ears elongated, his skin sprouted dark fur and his height shrank. Arms and legs altered, hands and feet became paws.

  In a flash, he’d morphed into a huge, dark wolf.

  “Let me touch you.”

  Jake ambled over to her and laid his head on her lap.

  She stroked his head and ruffled his ears. She looked into the wolf’s eyes and saw Jake. “It’s you. It’s so amazing.”

  The wolf lifted its head, then trotted over to her birthday tree and picked up the gift wrapped in purple paper with its teeth, brought it to her and dropped it in her lap. The wolf sat and waited.

  Joy opened the package and found a smaller, black velvet box. She flipped open the box and gasped. The diamond sparkled with a crescent moon of tiny rubies surrounding it. “Ohmigod.”

  The wolf placed his paw on her knee.

  Tears welled in her eyes. “It’s beautiful.”

  The wolf tapped her knee with his paw.

  Joy looked at the wolf and saw the uncertainty in Jake’s eyes. Her answer surged from the heart. Jake was the one. “Yes, Jake. The answer is yes.”

  His wolf tail wagged, then Jake morphed back into human form. Kneeling before her on one knee, he plucked the diamond from the box and slid it onto her finger. “I love you, Joy. I have for years. This ring was my mother’s. Wolves mate only once and this ring is my pledge to you for a lifetime together.”

  “I love you, Jake.” She threw her arms around his neck, hugging him tight. Then she kissed him, soundly.

  “I think it’s time to go upstairs.” He slipped off her shoes, then stood. He took her hand and helped her to her feet. He scooped her in his arms, carried her upstairs and placed her in the center of the bed.

  “This is the way I always envisioned you, naked and wearing my ring. I like it.”

  Joy opened her arms and Jake covered her body with his. Mind, body and soul, Joy melded with Jake. They kissed, they made love, ripples of energy flowing between them, bonding them werewolf and woman.

  Epilogue

  Joy lifted the camera and using a long-range lens snapped a photo of Jake running along the ridgeline. His dark fur gleaming in the bright sun, he leapfrogged several boulders before jumping back onto the mountain trail. Ears back and tail straight, Jake trotted along a narrow ledge to where Joy sat on a smooth, flat rock.

  Jake shifted, his features blurring as he changed from wolf to man, a visual experience Joy still found utterly mesmerizing.

  His transformation complete, Joy’s gaze slid appreciatively over Jake’s fit physique. Although fascinated by Jake in wolven form, she loved the feel of his strong arms around her and the languorous kisses they shared.

  “How was your run?”

  “Exhilarating. I love running on pack land. No worries about encountering dogs, only an occasional fox, deer or mountain cat.”

  They’d visited Jake’s pack on several occasions and with each visit Joy became more comfortable in the pack environment. Respectful of his pack, Jake had officially requested permission to take a human mate. He did not have to abide by the elders’ decision, but pack affiliation was important to him. Joy was relieved and Jake ecstatic when after three days of waiting, the elders had given their consent.

  Jake sat down beside Joy. “So, have you decided?”

  Now that Karin’s big day had come and gone and the elders had sanctioned the union, Joy felt free to plan her wedding. “I’d like a winter wedding. In February right before the full moon. I’d like the moon full and bright during our honeymoon.”

  Jake hooked a finger beneath her chin and kissed her. A slow, hot kiss that managed to sweep aside their wedding plans, almost.

  “Where shall we go for our honeymoon?” Jake asked.

  “Let’s go back to Lake Tahoe, rent a house with a hot tub. We’ll ski all day and…”

  “Make love all night?”

  Joy rose to her knees and wrapped her arms around Jake’s neck. “Let’s rent a two-story house with a hot tub, and a stairwell.”

  Jake laughed and reached for the button of her shorts. “Talking about stairwells makes me hot.”

  She looked into his eyes, blazing with heat. “I love you, Jake. I want this to last forever.”

  “I’ve loved you for so long another sixty years or so shouldn’t be a problem.”

  Joy kissed him, a quick peck sealing the deal. “Sixty years. I’m holding you to it.”

  B. J. McCall

  A multi-published author of contemporary and futuristic sensual romance, B.J. McCall is a West Virginia native now residing in Northern California. Thanks to an older sister who was a librarian, reading became B.J.’s favorite pastime. B.J.’s idea of the perfect way to spend a rainy afternoon or a day at the beach is reading a romance novel.

  The phrase “Do what you love,” applies to B.J. -- she loves to write and each story is special. She hopes her readers will enjoy each and every one of them. Visit her website at www.BJMcCall.com.