Mated to the Billionaires

Book 3 of the Mating Season series.

Raised in a cult and cut off from the outside world for her entire life, April dreams of getting out. That is, until her escape crash lands at her feet in the form of two giant werewolves. The price of freedom: her complete submission to their mating claim.

After a lifetime of hacking, fraud, and forgeries, Evan and Lawrence live on the outskirts of society and the law. Nothing could have prepared them for the woman they capture from a farm in the middle of nowhere. With no past and no identity, it would be so easy for them to keep her forever. She is the perfect mate for them to breed and claim as their own.

They can train her to crave their brutal and insatiable touch, but will they ever capture her heart?

This is a standalone story with a HEA. Each book in the Mating Season series features a new billionaire werewolf MMC duo and new FMC. All of the Mating Series books can be read independently in any order.

Excerpt

APRIL

Thwack. Thump.

The sounds of the end of summer harvest flowed in through the open windows of the laundry house. A hint of chill in the air hinted that autumn was just around the corner, and soon after, a long dreary winter. There was much to do before the arrival of the first snow of the season. Most of the men were out working in the fields, while the women were busy in the kitchens, preparing for the upcoming harvest feast.

This year’s feast was special, as it was also a farewell celebration for the upcoming split in our settlement. Whenever our population reached 200 members, a group would split off and form their own settlement. With all the extra work that came with preparing for the feast, it meant that most of the women were assigned to the kitchens and dining hall.

My favorite chore at the settlement was working in the laundry. Most of the other girls hated being around me, saying that I was too curious for my own good. I didn’t mind it, as that meant I usually got to work alone. Sometimes, all I had with me were my thoughts. Other times, if I was lucky, I would have the company of a book I smuggled in from the outside.

Books from outside the settlement were forbidden, especially for women. A woman’s place was to serve God, her husband, and the settlement. There was no need for outside knowledge. We were only taught to read so that we could follow recipes and read the book of worship.

I patted the book hidden under my apron and looked around to make sure I was alone. The type of reading material I had in front of me was strictly forbidden. Even though there was no one else in the laundry house with me, my heart raced as I pulled it out.

The last time I was chosen to go on a shopping trip with the matron, I came across a box of old paperbacks in a box near the entrance of the grocery store. The cover with two bare-chested muscular men holding a woman between them caught my eye immediately.

I shouldn’t have done it. The risk of getting caught loomed over me. Yet, I couldn’t resist the call of the illicit material. Luckily, the matron was distracted by a friendly cart-boy who offered to help us unload our groceries into the van. I managed to grab the book and hide it under my dress before the matron noticed.

I placed the book down on top of a pile of folded linens and cracked it open to the page where I had slipped in a dried leaf as a bookmark. The acts described in the romance novel made my cheeks heat up. To say the subject matter of the book was indecent was putting it lightly. A secret part deep inside of me tingled with delight as I devoured each word with greedy eyes.

I couldn’t believe some of the acts and positions the main female character got herself into with her two male love interests. Were such things even anatomically possible? Living on a farm, where we had plenty of livestock, I was familiar with what happened during breeding season with the larger animals like the horses and cattle. Still, applying such actions to a man and a woman was difficult, even with an imagination as vivid as my own. And with both of the male love interests at the same time!

I couldn’t even fathom such things. Here on the settlement, men and women lived separate lives, defined by guidelines from our book of worship. Even husbands and wives had to obey strict rules of conduct. Influences from the outside, their technology, wicked ideas, and carnal expressions of desire did not exist in our plain and humble world.

The creak of the door interrupted my reading. Heavy footsteps fell on the old wooden floors leading to the main area of the laundry house. From the sound of the steps, I knew it was the matron’s heavy boots. I slammed my book shut, as if she could see the filthy words on the page from across the room. Sliding the book into a stack of folded linens, I spun around just in time to meet the disapproving glare of the matron.

“Girl, why are you still in here folding? Preparations for the feast have already begun. Your help is needed.” The matron’s cheeks were flushed an angry purple red as always and her eyes bulged bug-like as if her tight braids were pulling her forehead away from her eyes.

I dipped my head in a show of deference. She had a mean backhand. Defiance and backtalk were not tolerated.

“I’m sorry, ma’am. I’m almost finished with the laundry. I will put this away and head to the kitchens.”

She let out an annoyed tsk. Her lips pursed in disapproval as she placed her hands on her hips. “Well, what are you waiting for, girl? Stop standing here stupidly. Get to it!”

“Yes, ma’am.” I grabbed the pile of sheets I had just folded into my arms, making sure the book was tucked safely inside. I made it almost across the room, but before I could dump the pile into the laundry cart, something fell out. It hit the top of my foot before landing on the floor with a heavy thud. My heart dropped to my stomach. Even without looking at what had fallen out, I knew the book was on the floor in plain sight.

The matron’s boots stomped out a terrifying beat as she walked towards me.

I clenched my eyes shut and grimaced. Why did I have to be so clumsy?

She picked the book and stared at it silently, her face grim. “What is this?”

“I-I don’t know,” I stammered.

“A liar as well as a filthy whore,” she snarled. She struck me with a vicious backhand that caught my lip. My vision filled with stars as I fell to the floor from the force of her blow. I landed on top of the pile of laundry, but it did little to cushion my fall. The bitter, metallic taste of blood filled my mouth.

Before I could catch my breath, rough hands wrapped in my hair, yanking until my neck was bent and my head was on fire. The matron shook me violently as she dragged me to my feet. I tripped over my feet as I struggled to keep up with her brisk march. She had an iron-hard grip on my hair and through my tears, I could make out that we were headed toward the supply house.

“Please,” I cried.

“Your disgusting mind will bring ruin to our settlement,” she snarled.

The first blow knocked me off my feet when it came. She punched me in the stomach in rapid blows, knocking the wind out of me. I gasped for air as my vision darkened. With a hard shove, I fell in a sprawling heap on the ground of the supply house. My hands grasped at the straw on the ground as I sucked in ragged breaths.

“Every last one of those carrots better be peeled by the time I come back in the morning. If I find one unpeeled carrot, I’m going to the high priest with what I found, then you’ll be sorry, you little harlot.”

Finally catching my breath, I pushed myself up onto my knees.

The matron’s face twisted into an ugly snarl. “Remember, you’re of marrying age, now. Maybe the high priest will marry you off to old man Jedediah as his fourth wife.”

My stomach roiled at the thought. Bitter bile rose in my throat, burning as I swallowed it down.

“Did you know that Jedediah and his brothers all share their wives? A whore like you would like that, wouldn’t you?”

The matron leaned in and grabbed my wrist in her meaty hand. She squeezed hard enough that my bones crunched.

“Not that a hard-working and honest man would want a harlot for a wife. You’re only fit for the demons.” She dragged me across the room by the arm. I landed in a heap next to the sacks of carrots stacked high against the wall. If I were standing, the pile would be the same height as my chest.

“Pray that the demons don’t come for your soul tonight.” She slammed the door shut. The sound of the turning lock sealed my fate.

“No, don’t leave me here. I’ll be good, I promise!” Frantically, I tugged at the door handle, willing it to open. Screaming for mercy until my throat was raw and my voice was hoarse, I prayed for somebody to come save me.

I had to get out. There was no way I was going to survive an entire night alone in the dark. Everybody in the settlement knew that they had to be home, in a building painted with the protective symbols, before nightfall.

The dead of night was when the soul eaters came. Trapped in the supply house, I was a sitting duck, served on a platter for the demons.

Fueled by desperation, I kicked at the door, then clawed at the wood until my nails tore. Bloody streaks painted the wood by the time I collapsed on the floor. It was no use. The heavy door was never going to budge. There was a small window next to the door, but it was made of thick glass and not the type that could be opened or smashed easily.

I tried yelling for help again, but it was no use. The supply house was all the way at the edge of the fields. Nobody could hear my screams. Even if they did, nobody would dare cross the matron, for fear that they would suffer the same fate. I was all alone.

I was going to die tonight.