Shay, Ashley and Hunter, Josie - The Lady Takes a Pride [The Shifters of Catamount, Texas 1] (Siren Publishing LoveXtreme Forever)

by Ashley Shay

  Tyler nodded his agreement. “We’re going to need replacements, but Cougar and Tomcat 6 can see to that. In the meantime, let’s try to live our lives as normally as possible. This could be a long siege, and we don’t want tempers flaring and stress to affect our judgment.”

  “I’ll call the office and tell them I have a family emergency,” Gabe said. “That way I can be around if I’m needed.”

  Even though the family session was over, everyone lingered, and once again, Gabe watched Carly fall into her duties without conscious effort.

  “Let’s all head to the kitchen for a snack with the kit,” Carly suggested. “She must be nervous about everything going on, and we need to reassure her. We also need to keep up our energy and stay focused. I’ll brew a pot of coffee and have Lucia whip up a plate of sandwiches. Though, knowing Lucia, she’s already got it covered.” Carly chuckled, and Gabe fell in love with her all over again.

  Gabe watched as everyone headed for the door at once.

  “That’s my girl,” he murmured.

  * * * *

  “But why can’t I go horseback riding?” Suzie asked petulantly. “I always ride every day.” She stuffed a wad of peanut butter sandwich in her mouth and glared at Tyler.

  “Honey, you just can’t,” Tyler said. “Don’t argue with me today, okay?”

  “But why?”

  Carly touched Suzie’s hand. “There’s a bad man that wants to hurt us.” Suzie’s eyes grew round, and she stopped chewing. Carly reached out to push a curl back behind her ear. “Until your daddy and Cougar can catch the bad man, we all have to be very careful.”

  Carly knew all the men were staring at her, but she remained calm and kept her voice neutral. “Suzie’s a big girl now, and she needs to know what’s going on. Don’t you, kitten?”

  Suzie nodded and took a drink of milk. She set the glass down two-handed, taking a great deal more caution than she normally did. Carly assumed that was her way of showing everyone she was indeed a big girl now. “I’ll be careful,” she said. “I’ll play in my room.”

  Carly smiled at her. “I don’t think you have to stay in your room, sweetie, but you need to make sure you’re with one of us all the time. Don’t go outside by yourself.”

  Dusty and Shane looked at each other for a moment before finishing their roast beef sandwiches. When Tyler, Cougar, and Gabe all left the room, Dusty and Shane stayed behind, obviously wanting to talk.

  Lucia took Suzie’s hand. “Would you like to have a cup of ice cream now with old Lucia?” Suzie nodded happily. “Come with me to the pantry. I have several kinds in the freezer.” Lucia led her away with a wink at the three of them.

  “We need to do something to feel useful,” Shane said. “Ty’s got too much on his plate as it is, and Cougar’s as tense as a coiled spring. Right now, I can’t imagine what we could do to help, but there must be something Dusty and I can do to help ease the situation.”

  Dusty nodded. “You’ve been closer to Tyler lately, Carly. What do you think we could do to help out?”

  Carly looked into the brothers’ eyes and saw they were just as tense as the others, but they had no way to release that tension. “Why don’t you help out by keeping the kitten busy? With both of you around, she could go outside, or go for a swim. It would help out an awful lot just to know Suzie’s safe and happy. Ty would be grateful for that.”

  Dusty nodded. “Yeah, we can do that. If they need us on patrol, they can yell.”

  Carly nodded toward the closed pantry door. “Not only does Suzie need you close, Lucia, Rosa, and I will be here at the house. We’ll have guards, but a little more muscle can’t hurt.”

  Shane leaned over to give Carly a kiss on the cheek. His expression was grateful. “Thanks, Carly. We’ll take care of the cub and watch the house too. If you need anything, let us know.”

  “Will do,” she answered to their broad backs as they made their way toward the pantry. She suspected they might both have a little ice cream with Lucia and Suzie before taking on their new duties.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  “One more point, Suze!” Shane shouted. “Just one more, and we’ll have his ass kicked good!”

  “Uncle Shane! You can’t say ass.” Suzie’s delighted giggle drifted through the open doorway.

  “Can too,” Shane said. “You can’t say ass.”

  “I just did!” Suzie burst into laughter.

  Carly walked out on the balcony to check on the three musketeers frolicking in the pool. Shane had Suzie on his shoulders, and Dusty was shooting a ball toward the hoop. Shane leapt into the air, and Suzie reached up, catching the ball in her tiny hands. Shane hopped his way toward the hoop, trying desperately to stay on his feet as Suzie bobbed and swayed, laughing her little head off. When Suzie tossed the ball and it fell through the netting, she lifted her arms in the air and beamed like an NBA champion. Just before she closed the door, Carly heard Dusty shout, “Give her to me. It’s my turn to be on the winning team.”

  She laughed as she padded across the plush carpeting, kicking off her flip-flops and dropping her lacy cover-up as she went. She had just enough time for a quick shower before dinner. She’d smelled the enchiladas as she strolled through the kitchen earlier, and she thought she’d make a pitcher of margaritas. If she could get Cougar and Tyler to relax even the tiniest bit this evening, she’d feel like she’d accomplished something. Surely with the first batch of new recruits from town, they could take an evening off. Despite everything going on around them, they still had a new relationship to work on, and she was determined to get Cougar into their pride bed in the very near future.

  She smiled as she remembered the afternoon in Clandestine. Her pussy clenched just thinking about the feel of the flogger’s tails as they caressed her skin, but when she imagined the sting as it came down on her ass, her clit began to throb. She’d never considered BDSM in her other life. In fact, it had been so off her radar she marveled at how isolated she’d really been. Every day she thanked her lucky stars for her cougars and coyote.

  After untying the straps of her bikini top, she laid the damp cloth on the sink counter. She plucked at the strings of her bottom and the cool wet cloth dropped to the floor, leaving her naked. She stared at her body for a moment in the mirror, twisting this way and that as she examined herself. Despite eating Lucia’s marvelous cooking every day, she’d slimmed down a bit. Not too much. She still had plenty of curves, and her breasts were more than enough for any one man, let alone five. But she looked a bit sleeker than before, more toned, healthier.

  She ran her hands up her flanks, feeling the swell of her hips then the dip of her waist. When she reached her breasts, she held the heavy globes and let her thumbs flicker over the nipples. They tautened immediately, becoming hard and pert like pink stones beneath her gentle caresses. She pinched them, and the sharp sensation caused moisture to leak from her pussy. She smelled her own arousal in the air and wondered at her blossoming senses. Had falling in love made her more aware of her body, her smell? Each touch on her skin brought pleasurable sensations she’d never been aware of before. Each soft whisper in her ear made her shiver with excitement. Each kiss made her nearly die with longing.

  Even the thought of her men, her mates, made her pussy ache with desire and her clit throb with need. It throbbed so much she couldn’t help herself. She reached between her legs and pinched her clit, arching her back at the thrill that shot up her spine. She watched herself in the mirror as she ran her fingers between her pussy lips and dipped one inside. The moisture coated her finger, and she withdrew it to smear on her clit.

  She rubbed in slow, gentle circles, watching as a flush spread over her skin and her eyes became bright with anticipation. As her breath caught and she began to pant, she rubbed faster and harder, her body tensing. She held her breath as her clit grew hard and hot beneath her finger. Her legs buckled as the orgasm slammed through her. Her pussy pulsed wildly, and her body trembled violently. Holding herself up by
clutching the edge of the counter, she continued to rub, harder and harder, stealing every bit of pleasure she could until, finally, the sensations began to taper off. Her body released one final shudder, and she dropped to the bathroom floor, trying to catch her breath and basking in the tiny aftershocks that flickered through her clit.

  “I really needed that,” she said with a sigh.

  Now lazy and content, she thought of foregoing her shower and lying down for a nap instead. The thought of her men, however, had her pushing herself off the floor.

  She nodded to herself in the mirror. “Margaritas, remember? And maybe a nice leisurely lovemaking session after.”

  She reached for a comb to detangle her damp hair, but it clattered into the sink as nausea swept through her. She clutched her stomach and gagged as bile enveloped her throat and threatened to fill her mouth. She swallowed convulsively, leaning toward the sink in an effort to keep control. She took several deep breaths, drawing them in and holding them as she struggled to keep down the iced tea she’d had at the pool. Her temples began to throb, pounding in a relentless rhythm. She pressed her fingers against the pain and squinched her eyes closed.

  “Too much sun,” she murmured. “I’m not used to this Texas heat yet.”

  She filled a tumbler with cold water and sipped at it, trying to calm her stomach from its somersaults. Her face, recently rosy with the flush of orgasm, now looked pale and drawn. Sweat dotted her brow and trickled down her temples.

  “Maybe a cool shower is what I need.”

  She reached in the glass enclosure to turn on the water. As she touched the knob, a small shadow shimmered across the stainless steel fixture then pricked at her hand like tiny claws scampering across her skin. She shook her hand, and once again, nausea consumed her. She doubled over, trying not to vomit, and caught a flash of red drop past her eyes toward the shower tile. It skittered toward her, a hard, crusty body with eight legs, claws open and ready to pinch. As it reached the lip of the shower, the creature raised its tail, curling it up and over its body.

  A scorpion. But she’d already figured out this was no ordinary animal.

  “Texas heat, my ass,” she growled. “You’re a shifter.” She took a deep breath, trying desperately not to vomit. “And a pretty bad one at that.”

  Carly gagged as she reached behind her. As the creature launched itself over the edge of the shower toward her bare foot, Carly gripped the tumbler and slammed it over the scorpion, sealing it in a glass prison.

  The scorpion scrabbled and clawed at the glass, its pinchers scraping and sliding against the tumbler. With each movement, the tiny prison moved a few inches along the floor, but the scorpion wasn’t heavy enough to tip the glass over.

  “Go ahead and shift,” Carly said. “I dare you. My guess is you can’t. Not without really hurting yourself.”

  She slid to the floor and then lurched toward the toilet. She’d held on as long as she could, but she couldn’t hold on any longer. She puked her guts out, her hand clenched against her stomach as it roiled in agony.

  She lifted her face and stared at the angry little creature spitting and fuming inside the glass. “Try the toilet next time, you bastard. You might have caught me off guard.”

  She gagged again.

  “Oh God, Carly, are you okay?”

  Carly twisted her sweaty face toward the door. Rosa flew into the room and grabbed a washcloth from the cupboard. After wetting it, she fell to her knees beside Carly and pressed the cool cloth to her forehead.

  “Too much sun?” Rosa asked.

  Carly shook her head and nodded weakly toward the glass moving inch by inch toward the door. She’d have laughed at its determination if she didn’t feel so sick.

  “We should have warned you about scorpions,” Rosa said. “They’re all over Texas.” She pulled the hair away from Carly’s face and stared intently into her eyes. “It didn’t sting you, did it?”

  “No, I’m okay.”

  “They can give you quite a scare if you’re not prepared.” Rosa reached toward the glass. “I’m used to them. I’ll just get rid of it for you.”

  “No!” Carly lurched to her knees and grabbed Rosa’s wrist. “Get on the intercom and call Cougar and Ty. My stomach tells me that’s no ordinary scorpion.”

  * * * *

  Cougar stood at the kitchen table looking at the scorpion shifter trapped under glass, along with everyone in the house, including Suzie.

  Suzie wrinkled her tiny nose. “He’s ugly, and he’s not very big. I’d have stomped on him with my cowgirl boots.”

  Gabe snorted a laugh, and the sides of Tyler’s mouth twitched as he tried not to smile. Cougar remained stone-faced and focused on the glass. “We’ve got to get this son of a bitch to shift so we can ask him a few questions.”

  Suzie’s ears perked up at the language, and Carly shot Cougar a warning look, which he ignored.

  Lucia stood in the background with her trusty broom in hand as if waiting for her own chance at the scorpion. After what had happened with Tomás, she apparently wasn’t taking any chances.

  “Get Suzie outta here,” Cougar ordered Rosa. “It’s about to get ugly. Six?”

  Tomcat 6 stepped up, and Cougar noticed the glance he shot at Rosa before focusing on the scorpion. “Yes, sir?”

  “I know you did a stint of interrogation in Special Forces. You got any suggestions?”

  Tomcat 6 waited until Suzie and Rosa were out of earshot. “I suggest a few sticks with a sharp object. A needle would do in his present form. Easy enough to slide under the carapace and do a little damage. Probably feel like an ice pick going in.”

  The glass scooted an inch as the scorpion slammed against his prison.

  Lucia made the sign of a cross and scurried out of the kitchen.

  “You too, Carly,” Cougar said. “You don’t need to see this.”

  Carly held Cougar’s gaze for a long moment before following the other women out of the room.

  Cougar looked at his brothers. “Is this acceptable to you, Alpha?”

  Tyler nodded. “You’re head of security, Cougar. I trust your judgment.”

  Cougar went to the cabinet to retrieve Lucia’s sewing kit, and the glass on the table began rocking violently, so hard it nearly turned over.

  “I think he wants to say something,” Tomcat 6 said with an amused expression on his face.

  Cougar went back to the glass and stared at the scorpion circling around and around inside his glass prison. “I’m going to raise this glass now, and you’re going to stay put. If you try to run, or attack, I’ll follow my niece’s advice and squish you under my boot. Got it?”

  Cougar slowly raised the glass, and the scorpion quivered but remained in the center of the table. When Cougar stepped back, he said, “If you’re going to shift, now’s the time.”

  The large oaken table groaned under the weight of the man who appeared naked, sprawled uncomfortably on the bare wood. He looked around him defiantly but didn’t make a move to get off the table. Instead, he settled himself into a seated position.

  “Who sent you here? Viper?” Cougar asked.

  The man’s beady eyes widened. “You know about the snake?”

  All the men exchanged looks before Cougar spoke again. “Yeah, we know about Viper. What did he send you in for?”

  The man curled his lips into a smile that looked more like a snarl. “What do you think he sent me in to do, kitty cat? I didn’t come here to play nice.”

  “Was your order to kill Rosa?”

  His forehead scrunched, deep lines radiating across his sunburned skin. “You mean the Mexican bitch?”

  Cougar fisted his hands and took a step forward. The man held his own. For such a tall, skinny bastard, he had temerity. Cougar had to give him credit for that, even as he ached to plow his fist into the shifter’s face. The guy smirked as he glanced down at Cougar’s hands.

  “Relax, cat. I meant, of course, the beautiful dark-haired lady.”


  “Much better,” Cougar growled.

  “Well, no, I wasn’t sent here for the Mexi—I mean Rosa. Was I in her bathroom?” He shook his head sadly. “You cougars are really some dumb fucks, aren’t you?”

  Cougar ignored the man’s taunting, but Tyler lurched forward, grabbed the man’s throat and yanked him across the table. “You’ve just about gotten on my last nerve here.”

  The man laughed. “I really ain’t afraid of you, alpha.” He nearly spat the last word. Tyler pushed him back to the table, and the shifter sat up straight, folding his naked legs Indian-style. “There’s not a thing you can do to me that I can’t handle.”

  “Suzie’s boot is looking better and better,” Shane said.

  “Go ahead and shift back, Scorpion,” Dusty said. “Make it easier on us. No point in messing up more than one pair of boots.”

  Gabe tilted his head. “I’m not sure he deserves such a quick and easy end. He did go after our woman after all.”

  The shifter’s eyes grew wide. “All of you share that tasty morsel? Mmm-mmm…How do I get in on that action?”

  “You don’t,” Cougar snapped. “And you won’t. So now that you’ve failed in your mission, what’s the backup plan?”

  The shifter shrugged. “You’d have to ask the snake.”

  Tyler growled. “Is he the one in my kitchen? ’Cause all I see is you. You scorpions must really be some dumb fucks.” He gave the shifter a scary-looking smile, and the two men stared at one another silently. Cougar knew if they didn’t get some information soon, Tyler was going to lose his shit. That wouldn’t be pretty.

  “Hey, asshole,” Cougar said. The shifter’s gaze settled back on him. “Do we have to make this painful to get information? ’Cause we can do that.”

  The man held up a hand. “You can beat the hell out of me, threaten me all you want, and poke me with every needle in that kit. Won’t make a bit of difference. I don’t know a damn thing about Viper’s plans, and even if I did, I’d be more worried about his retribution than yours. Jesus, you’ve obviously never met the man or you wouldn’t be wasting your time even trying.” He stared at each man in turn, and it was clear to Cougar he was telling the truth. The man didn’t give a rat’s ass about their threats. “All I know is he wants your females dead, and he usually gets what he wants.”