Read Online Taken By Lust by LeTeisha Newton - Free Book Online Page A

her and turned to see her koaurteto coming up.
    Beth, Adelis, Drea, and Lauren, her constant companions, curled on the couch around her. They were never too far from her either and she found that the four women had forged a bond with her that was beyond their duty. She didn’t know what she would do without them at her side. Beth had turned into her stalwart confidant, the human-turned-leopard who understood her questions when she had them. Lauren was always cheerful and knew how to make her laugh, no matter how irritated Selene was. Drea was her wildcat, the one who’d turn the music up loud, dance around the house with her, and sang like a song bird. Adelis was a mystery. She had a nearly sisterly influence on Selene. More often than not she’d stopped Selene from stirring up a hornet’s nest with her smart mouth. Her friendship pool had grown immensely and she couldn’t say she regretted a second of it.
    “I was just relaxing,” Selene said.
    “Happy now?” Beth asked.
    “Yes. More than I thought was possible.”
    “Told you so,” Lauren added, smiling.
    “I think I told her, actually,” Drea argued.
    “Or we all were right,” Adelis added.
    “Or her mate did all the work and we just said the words,” Maddy answered, joining the group.
    “Well, it looks like the gang’s all here,” Selene said, laughing. She wouldn’t be having any quiet time now.
    “You love us,” Maddy said, blowing a kiss.
    “I guess now is as good a time as any,” Selene continued.
    “For what?” Beth asked, tossing her dark hair over her shoulder.
    “Smell,” Selene said instead of answering. All of the women, except for Maddy who was human, did as Selene directed. She waited until she saw their looks of amazement and then laughed.
    “What?” Maddy blurted, looking from one woman to the other. “Tell me what the hell is going on.”
    “All hell is going to break loose,” Beth commented.
    “Oh, this is going to be so fun,” Drea added, laughing at Maddy’s swinging head.
    “The men are going to be hell to deal with now,” Lauren said.
    “Can I tell Pietr?” Adelis asked.
    “Tell Pietr what?” Pietr asked, coming up behind the couch. He rubbed Selene’s shoulders. It was always like that. Whenever they were in the same room they were touching, reaffirming their connection.
    “You can tell me,” Maddy interrupted, her voice nearly a yell. Selene cringed, the sound striking her ears like a battering ram.
    “Tone it down,” Selene reminded Maddy. Maddy had the grace to look sheepish. They’d had to remind her several times to be careful of shifter ears when she got excited.
    “If you’d just spit it out I wouldn’t have to yell,” she grumbled.
    “She’s pregnant!” Selene’s koaurteto said in unison.
    “Way to take the pleasure away from me telling him guys,” Selene tossed playfully. She didn’t get a chance to see their reactions. She was suddenly airborne and turning into Pietr’s arms. He pulled her close, face burying in her neck over his mark that had never disappeared from the day he’d bitten her and told her he loved her. He took a deep inhale and when he looked at her his odd-colored eyes were misted with tears.
    “Baby. You’re going to have a baby,” he whispered and then roared.
    It was different than any roar she’d heard before. She felt the call, the demand to come forth. If she hadn’t been near him she’d have come running. Around her, over the ledges of the other floor, leopards appeared, roaring into the air until she was surrounded in their song. Coming out of a room on the top floor were Karen and Laius. Their roars joined the others and Maddy jumped on the couch when Connor pulled her into his arms.
    “What is going on?” Maddy asked Connor, her whispered words easy for Selene to hear.
    “I think your friend’s mate just did an alpha’s call, or the leopard version of it. He called the leopards to him to share his joy. Even my wolf, though not submissive,