Tiger Tail: Shifter Romance

by Sky Winters

  “Tabitha Stewart,” she told her, giving her back the cool glare she was receiving.

  “I don’t have a reservation in that name,” the gir l replied.

  “You’re kidding me. This just gets better and better.”

  “It’s in my name. Look for Matt Helford,” her guide said as he returned to the front desk with her bags. He dropped them on one of the rolling carriers and stood waiting while the girl looked it up on her computer.

  “Ah, yes. Room 208. How will you be making payment?” she asked.

  “American Express,” Tabitha replied, pulling the magazine’s business card from her bag and handing it to the girl.

  “Excellent. Since you are only staying one night, the full price of the room will be charged upfront,” she told her without a hint of a smile.

  “That’s fine,” Tabitha replied. The girl scowled and ran her card.

  “Well, that’s me done for now. I’ll see you at six in the morning,” Matt told Tabitha. The girl behind the counter suddenly lost her frown and smiled broadly in his direction. It just annoyed Tabitha that much more.

  “You aren’t going to help me get my bags up to my room?”

  “No. You should learn to pack a bit lighter. This isn’t a Las Vegas vacation,” he said flatly.

  Tabitha watched him walk back out to his vehicle in disbelief. What a complete jerk! She was definitely calling and having him replaced. Turning back toward the girl, she noted the smirk on her face and felt like slapping it off. She wondered if that would cause an international incident.

  “Here is your room key and your receipt. Check out is at eleven a.m. tomorrow,” she told her.

  “Fine.” Tabitha tucked the key and receipt into her purse and maneuvered the large metal baggage rack toward the nearby elevator.

  Inside her room, she collapsed on the bed. She was already emotionally and physically exhausted and this was just the beginning. How was she ever going to make it through this? Already, she was second guessing her agreement to come on this assignment. It took every bit of her strength just to get up and make her way to the bathroom. She splashed cold water on her face until she felt half alive and pulled out her phone, hitting speed dial.

  “Do you know what time it is?” a sleepy voice said from the other end of the line.

  “A bit after seven p.m.,” she replied, glancing at her watch.

  “Try again. It’s barely past five.” Her boss sighed. “I take it you got there in one piece?”

  “Yes, but I can’t work with this jackass you’ve set me up to follow around,” she told him.

  “And why is that?”

  “He’s just impossible. He’s rude and obnoxious,” she said.

  “He’s British. What do you expect?”

  “I know plenty of Brits that don’t behave like that,” she protested.

  “He’s the best at what he does, Tabitha. He’s not just a guide. His field of expertise is in the area of tiger conservation. The sanctuary he’s taking you to will be a perfect place for you to get an insider’s take on the situation. Make friends with him. Pick his brain.”

  “I’d like to pick his brain…with a pick axe!” she blurted.

  “That’s my girl. Always so spirited. Now, use that attitude to go out there and get me a fantastic story,” he told her.

  “I will, but I’m not happy about it.”

  “Noted. I’ll save you some of the butt-hurt cream I keep in my office for such situations,” he remarked.

  “Very funny. If you don’t hear from me again soon, you’ll know I’m in an Indian prison for murder.”

  “I don’t think the magazine covers bail money in foreign prisons. I’ll see if I can get a collection started around the office just in case.”

  “You do that,” she said, ending the call in a huff.

  “Wine. I’m going to need lots of wine,” she muttered to herself.

  Freshening up a bit, she made her way back downstairs into the hotel restaurant and waited to be seated. A meal of lamb kebabs, accompanied by a full bottle of merlot, improved her mood considerably. Several more glasses in the small bar that adjoined the restaurant sent her wobbling back to her room, the beginnings of a wine headache already beginning to form.

  “Lock and load,” she mumbled as she fell asleep across the bed, not even bothering to change into her night clothes or get under the covers.

  Chapter Three

  Tabitha awoke the next morning with a start as the alarm sounded violently from the side of the bed. She looked around wearily, momentarily confused by her surroundings. Her head pounded and she felt a bit ill. What had possessed her to drink so much wine when she had to get up so early this morning?

  “Ugh,” she said to her puffy-faced reflection in the mirror.

  She showered and dressed for departure, taking her luggage back down to the lobby to transfer back into his vehicle. Though she would never admit it to him, he might have been right about how much she had brought with her. She hadn’t even opened most of it during her first night, but she still had a long way to go, didn’t she?

  “At least you’re on time,” he said, picking up her bags and putting them in the rover. We don’t have much time. Plane takes off in an hour.”

  “Plane? I thought we were going into the wild?”

  “We are, but first we have to get on a plane to Jessore and then drive down to Mongla. Your hotel there will be on the water. It’s a lovely little place. I’ll let you explore on your own and we’ll head out first thing tomorrow morning for Sunderbans. You’ll probably want to wear something a little more suited for the trip,” he said, eyeing her clothing.

  “What? What do you mean? I bought this for the trip.”

  “I figured that much. The tag is still attached to your jacket,” he said snidely.

  Tabitha felt herself blush bright red. Would he be humiliating her the entire trip or was he getting it all out of the way up front? She said nothing for a moment as she tried to calm herself down.

  “What should I be wearing?” she asked.

  “What you have on is fine, it’s just not properly worn in and too tight. You’re going to chafe in those pants and your boots are going to put blisters on your feet. If you think I’m going to carry you through the trees, you’re sorely mistaken.”

  She glared at him, fed up. “You know what? What is your problem? You were hired to be my guide and you’ve been nothing but a condescending prick since I arrived.”

  “I wouldn’t have taken the job if I’d known they were sending me someone with zero experience in trekking through the kind of terrain we’ll be traveling. You are the poster child for a New York socialite who runs around interviewing celebrities for a living.”

  “I’ll have you know that I’m a very serious journalist. I’m one of the top women in my field!”

  “If you say so, sweetheart,” he told her sarcastically.

  “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  “You’re wearing enough makeup to star in a Broadway musical. Your hair is down and you’re wearing brand new clothes recommended by some clerk at your local sporting goods store who told you it was exactly what you needed when he’s probably never stepped one foot out of Manhattan.”

  “What is wrong with taking a bit of pride in my appearance?” she asked, making a point of looking disapprovingly at his disheveled hair and noting he had on the same clothes as yesterday.

  “There is no place for it where we are going. You should be in loose, light clothing, and a ponytail. Plus, the makeup was a waste of time. You might be okay today while still in tourist mode, but it’s just going to melt down the sides of your face tomorrow. All those bags you brought are just going to be sitting in an empty hotel room without you.”

  “Well, how was I supposed to know? This is my first assignment like this,” she said defensively.

  “Precisely my point,” he told her.

  They rode in silence the rest of the way to the airport and only spoke to o
ne another during the rest of the trek to Mongla when necessary. Once they had arrived at her hotel, she took all of her bags into her room and emptied them out on the bed, studying the things she had brought. Since she was on her own for the rest of the evening, she went downstairs to the front desk and asked if there was a local guide available for her to talk to. The man there directed her to a small building down the street.

  “Can I help you?” a pleasant young local said as she stepped inside. She was glad that he spoke English, as the little Bengali she had learned would do little more than get her to the nearest bathroom or restaurant.

  “I certainly hope so. I need the proper clothes for a safari. I’m afraid that what I brought with me isn’t quite right.”

  “Ah, you’ve come to the right place!” he told her, turning to call to someone in the back room behind him. A woman, who she assumed was his wife, stepped out and looked at him impatiently. He spoke to her in their native tongue, and Tabitha couldn’t understand a word they said. Finally, the woman nodded and smiled, holding out her hand to Tabitha and guiding her toward the door. Tabitha looked at the man, confused by what was happening.

  “Where’s she taking me?” she asked.

  “There is a shop down the street. She will take you there and make sure you get what you need. Her English is not as good as mine, but she knows some words,” he said.

  “And she understands what I will need for the safari?”

  “Yes. Do you also need a guide for your trip?”

  “No. I already have one, unfortunately.”

  “Who is it?” he asked, seeming a little puzzled by her response.

  “A British man named Matt Helford,” she told him.

  “Yes, Mr. Helford is an excellent guide, but I understand your lack of enthusiasm.” He laughed. “He is not known for his charm.”

  “That is an understatement,” she replied. “Anyway, thank you for loaning me your wife to help me. I really appreciate it.”

  Making her way down the street, it struck Tabitha just how far out of her element she truly was. Why had she let herself be talked into this just for the sake of escaping her poisonous reality at home? Now, she was stuck here doing this. She would see it through of course, but that didn’t mean she was going to like it at all.

  Tabitha looked around at the shop they entered. At first she thought it was a mistake. It looked more like some sort of massive flea market than a place that would sell outdoor clothing. Then, the woman began picking up items and handing them to her. Looking around, Tabitha realized it was a surplus store. The items here were previously worn and thus, worn in. It made perfect sense. She wasn’t thrilled about wearing used clothes and wondered if they had been laundered properly, but it was less of a concern than proving Helford right by getting chafed or looking like something out of a magazine ad for Chad’s Sporting Goods.

  With several bags in hand, she thanked the woman and paid her a fee as if she were a personal shopper. The woman nodded and smiled, heading back to her husband’s shop while Tabitha returned to the hotel. She was pleased to find that everything seemed to fit perfectly. The woman had been spot on with selecting sizes. Hopefully, this would please her ruthless guide.

  “Good morning,” he said to her when she met him in the lobby of the hotel the following morning.

  “Good morning,” she replied, feeling a big smug as he took in her clothes and said nothing.

  She was wearing only some moisturizer and a ponytail to compliment her well-worn gear, with only the necessities the woman had recommended in a large backpack that she had to admit was much more comfortable on her back than the smaller, stiffer one she had previously purchased for the trip. She would take his lack of commentary as a win for her on this particular issue. Apparently, he was only capable of criticism and not so much on praise. It didn’t really surprise her at all.

  “Well, let’s get going then. We’ve a long day ahead of us,” he told her.

  “Where are we going?”

  “Sunderbans National Park,” he told her.

  “A national park? That doesn’t sound like much of a wildlife excursion,” she told him.

  “Trust me. This isn’t like going to Yosemite.”

  “If you say so. I’m ready,” she replied. He wasn’t the only one capable of being snide.

  “Let’s get going then, princess,” he quipped back.

  Tabitha ignored the barb and climbed into the rover. They began their journey toward the park. She was surprised when they stopped at the park entrance to get some sort of permits and were joined by armed park rangers for the next segment of their trip.

  “What’s going on?” she asked.

  “We aren’t allowed to go down the river without them,” he told her.

  “River? What are we doing on the river? Do tigers swim there?” she asked, baffled.

  “As a matter of fact, sometimes they do. It’s the best way to see tigers roaming in the wild, as well as other animals, and it gets us closer to our destination without having to go the whole way on foot. I would think you’d find sitting on a boat preferable to getting sweaty on foot.”

  “But we will be getting out of the water at some point and on the actual land with the tigers?”

  “Yes, w e will be, your highness.”

  Tabitha noted that both of the park rangers were trying not to laugh as they looked away to hide the fact that they were amused by the exchange. Great, now not only did she have the uppity Brit to deal with, she had two local park rangers that seemed to have just as little respect for her as he did. This trip was getting longer by the second and she was getting angrier along with it.

  Just when she thought she might hit the roof with annoyance, Matt motioned for her to look at a large open pool of water ahead of the boat. Tabitha followed the direction of his finger as he pointed and was surprised at what she saw there.

  “Gangetic river dolphins. They swim freely in these waters, along with the turtles you see over there on the bank,” he said.

  “They’re incredible,” she breathed, lost in the vision of animals she had never seen in person before.

  There was silence as she continued to watch them frolic in the water, passing very close to the boat as they moved through the water and past them. She almost felt like she could reach out and touch one of them as they seemed to chatter happily amongst themselves as she had often heard dolphins do, but this was the first time she had ever witnessed it firsthand.

  Chapter Four

  The day seemed to pass quickly as they made their way through the mangroves and into the Sunderbans. It was a bit unnerving that this portion of the trip required armed park rangers, but she supposed it was just a precaution rather than due to any real danger. Surely being in a boat in a river was enough protection against the wild animals that roamed the large forest surrounding them.

  “Miss Stewart, come look at this,” the Brit called out to her, pointing toward the edge of the water on the left side of the boat.

  “What is it?” she asked, but he only waved her over, pointing toward the water again.

  Tabitha looked to where he was pointing and caught her breath. It looked almost prehistoric as it sat halfway in the water and halfway on the bank of the wetlands they were approaching. She caught her breath as it suddenly turned, its long tail whipping about as it slid fully into sight on the edge of the water.

  “Saltwater crocodile. The ones here are some of the largest you will find in the world,” he told her.

  “It’s incredible.”

  “Yes, it is. Incredible and deadly. Don’t fall out of the boat,” he said dryly.

  “I’ll try not to,” she replied, rolling her eyes at him.

  Her gaze returned to the crocodile, watching as it slid into the water and swam off. Her heartrate sped up a bit as it headed directly toward the boat. She was relieved when it suddenly turned and headed downstream.

  “Intimidating, huh?” Matt said, noting her discomfort.

  �
��A bit. I suppose I best get used to seeing animals that view me as prey where we are going,” she said.

  “They mostly view other animals as prey. They don’t usually bother humans unless they make a nuisance of themselves or fail to keep a healthy distance,” he said.

  “I fully intend to do just that.”

  “Ready for some lunch? We have some sandwiches packed for today. After that, I’m afraid it’s all dry goods, condiments and water until tomorrow, so enjoy the fresh food while you can,” he said.

  She swatted at an insect that landed on her arm. “Fantastic.”

  “Here. You’ll need this too.” He tossed her a small cylinder with roll-on insect repellant. “It’s warming up, those will be swarming soon.”

  Tabitha began coating herself with it while he pulled open a small cooler, fishing out bags and containers with sandwiches, chips, and bottles of water and handing them out to her and the park rangers. It was quite a feat to consume the sandwiches while keeping the insects at bay, but everyone seemed to manage it just fine as the sun bore down heavily on the water that surrounded them.

  A short time later, they pulled up to an embankment and the rangers tied the boat off, helping them get their gear off before stepping back onto the vessel. Tabitha watched as they began pulling up anchor, now feeling a bit of alarm at being out in the wild. It was one thing to have been observing the wildlife from afar, from the safety of the boat, but now she would be in the middle of it and alone with an utter jackass for a guide.

  “Ready, princess?” he asked, as if to punctuate her thoughts with confirmation.

  “Absolutely,” she replied as confidently as she could manage, though she felt anything but that.

  “Let’s go then. We don’t have much daylight left before we’ll need to take shelter for the night. I want to get across this plain and into an area less populated with night life,” he told her.

  “Where are the rangers going? To refuel? How will they know where to find us?”

  “The rangers? They aren’t coming with us. Their job was just to get us down the river. They’ll pick us up a bit farther along the river in two days to take us through some of the narrow river beds, and then we’ll be on foot again for the rest of the trip.”