The pack gathered together at the end of a successful hunt. Flopping down to rest in a clearing, their bellies matched the curve of the full moon overhead.
It had been a good hunt, a good night, a good month. They should have been relaxed and playful until the sun sent them on their way. But they weren't.
One of their number was missing. The hole in the pack was an ache that pulled at them. Instinctively a space had been left where he should be. At the kill, those below him in rank milled about uncertainly when it should have been his turn to eat. Those near him in rank snarled and snapped, seeking to establish precedence around the hole his absence left. He was one of them, but not one of them and the pack was broken.
Sitting apart from the others, the pack leaders surveyed the world, ever alert for possible threat. But the greatest threat came from within. A quick glance, a flick of an ear, and a decision was made. It was time.
David breathed a sigh of relief as he pulled his old Jetta in between an equally battered pickup truck and an immaculate Miata. Two weeks away from his adopted not-quite family was too damn long. But the full moon was for family only, and when it fell over a weekend... well, that's the way it went.
Depending on who carpooled, there'd be a half dozen or more cars parked on the flat spot in front of the old hunting lodge before the night was over. Stepping out of his car, David stretched out fully, allowing the silence of the Appalachian forest to sooth city-tight nerves.
"David!" Raul called from the door, "Got your skinny white ass in here, chico. We've missed you."
Later that evening, David was relaxing in a corner of the couch and staring into the fire, trying to ignore the tension in the family around him. His friend John sat on an ottoman next to him and Melissa sprawled on the floor between them, trying not to draw attention to herself. The rest of the family had spread across the room, however they were comfortable. Dinner had been a tense affair, and only the respect everyone had for Raul and Olivia kept it from spilling into open fighting. In the two years since John had introduced him to the family, David had never seen anything like it.
Just as the charged undercurrent was beginning to get to him, an arm wound itself around his neck. Jules whispered in his ear, "Would you be willing to share my bed, David?"
Butterflies began twining in his stomach. If he went with her, he was putting himself fully in her hands. Somehow over the past year the family had determined where he fitted within their hierarchy - and Jules outranked him. She would have full control from the moment he agreed until the moment she was done with him.
Nervous as he was, he didn't need to think about it. He stood. "As the lady wishes."
"Don't be long, Jules," Raul said, "Olivia and I still have a few announcements to make this evening."
"Yes, sir." Jules winked and led David from the room.
"Undress me." Jules closed to door to one of the many bedrooms in the lodge and turned to face David.
He carefully unbuttoned her shirt, sliding it over her shoulders and off her arms. The light camisole she wore in place of a bra went next. She hummed every time his hands brushed her skin, making him flush like a school boy.
Away from the rest of the family, the tension wasn't as obvious, but it remained. A shivery feeling that added to his growing arousal.
Jules pants had no fly and slipped easily over her hips and down to the floor, as did her white cotton underwear. Like the rest of the family, she wore no shoes or socks indoors - or any other time she could do without them.
"Now yourself."
David felt her eyes on him as he pulled off his shirt and scrambled out of his jeans. Freed of the tough fabric, his erection became instantly noticeable, and Jules' grin just made him blush more.
"Yum."
In spite of his embarrassment - or rather, because of it - he managed a flourishing bow saying, "What you see is yours, ma'am."
She laughed. "Is it now?" She walked over to the bed and yanked the cover off, revealing leather cuffs attached to each bedpost.
He nearly swallowed his tongue, but had to admit a part of him found the idea exciting. He started to lie down on the bed, but she stopped him.
Lying down herself, she said, "Strap me in."
He was so surprised it took him a few moments to understand what she wanted. Feeling a bit as if he was in a dream, he buckled the cuffs around her wrists and ankles. When he was finished, she stretched and writhed, pulled against the restraints, but they held fast.
"There's a blindfold by the bed." Her voice, low and velvety, caused desire to knot inside of him. "Put it on me."
Hands trembling, he obeyed. Then stepped back from the bed and stared fixedly at the wall. He had never wanted anything so much as he wanted to jump on top of her and take from the temptation she deliberately spread before him.
"Now, David, what are you going to do?"
"Wh-whatever you want me to."
She laughed. "Oh, you truly are one of us, aren't you?" She rattled the chains attaching the cuffs to the bed. "Consider this an order then: do what you want."
He was on her almost before she finished speaking.