Once Bitten Twice Smitten: BBW Werewolf Shifter Menage Romance by Ariana Hawkes Read Free Book Online

her, taking a hand each. Aspen looked from one to the other again, her fear growing by the second.
    “Ok, spit it out,” she demanded. “I’m listening.”
    “Before we moved up here, we used to live in a small town in New Mexico,” her father began.
    “Yes, I know that,” Aspen said, irritably.
    “Do you remember that just before we moved, you were very sick?” her mother asked.
    “I think so. I was in hospital, right? I remember tubes going everywhere, and I was really hot, like burning hot.”
    “You nearly died, sweetheart,” her father said. “But the doctors did an amazing job and saved your life.” Her mother’s eyes glistened with tears at the memory.
    “What was wrong with me?”
    “You were bitten. By a wolf.” Her father indicated the scar that lay beneath her new tattoo. She’d always hated it and covered it up at the first opportunity. It was a jagged, zigzag shape.
    “But – you told me it was from an accident in the playground?”
    “We didn’t want to freak you out,” her mother said. “The truth is that we took you and Venus to play in a national forest. She was being a bit of a handful, and we got distracted dealing with her. You were running around as usual, and, somehow, we lost track of you for a moment. The next thing we knew, you’d been attacked by a wolf. Your clothes were all torn, and it had bitten your arm.” Tears started to roll down her mother’s face.
    “So? It doesn’t make you sound like parents of the year, I agree, but what’s the big deal?” Aspen demanded. Her father took over speaking.
    “We took you straight to the hospital, and got the wound stitched up and you had some shots. You should’ve been fine after that, and for a couple of days, you were. But then you started to get really sick. You had a burning fever, you were having hallucinations, and you were getting weaker by the minute. The doctors couldn’t explain it. It wasn’t rabies or blood poisoning. According to all the tests, you were perfectly healthy. We feared the worst. But, five days later, you pulled through. You woke up and you were fine again. We were so relieved to have our baby back.”
    “But we were also terrified about what your serious illness and spontaneous recovery indicated,” her mother said. “In that region of New Mexico, people believe there are creatures that live in the forest, which are half-human and half-wolf.”
    “Werewolves?” Aspen said.
    “Yes. They live among the wolves. And occasionally, they attack humans, and bite them. Most of the time, people die from the bite, but a very few recover.”
    “So you think I was bitten by a werewolf. And?” Aspen said. Her father squeezed her hand more tightly.
    “The legend goes that the people who survive the bite become werewolves themselves,” he said, his voice a whisper. Aspen looked at him in disgust.
    “And you believe this crap?”
    “The people who live around Gila believe it very strongly. We’d grown up hearing these stories, and kind of believed them, but thought it was the kind of thing that would never happen to us.”
    “But then you got bitten,” her mother interjected.
    “And the way you recovered was incredible, just like the legend says. People believe that the transformation process brings you near to death, as it’s a very difficult thing for your body to cope with. But when the transformation is complete, your body receives a huge burst of energy, and you are immediately restored to full health.”
    Aspen looked at each of her parents. This was crazier than any of the fairytales they’d told her as a kid, but they had never looked more serious.
    “So, what is this pain I’ve been having?” she asked.
    “Your father and I have been worried that you’re coming up to your first change.” Aspen shook her head.
    “What do you mean, my first change?”
    “Apparently, people who have become werewolves take on their wolf form for the first time when they’ve gone through