Stray Cats [High-Country Shifters 2]

by Melody Snow Monroe

  “Only if you’re experienced. Want to try?”

  For once he experienced Will’s enthusiasm. “You’re on. Let’s face away from each other like we did before in case our energies interfere with each other.” Not that he had any idea if that was what would happen, but he didn’t see the need to chance it.

  “Smart.”

  Gage chose a tree and placed the light in his pocket, believing that as a lion, his eyes would have no problem seeing in the dark. The moon was, after all, fairly full. He closed his eyes and tried to imagine Malik and Cavon’s instructions. He pictured his body growing heavy and his arms becoming strong. Once more, the flash of light shocked his closed eyes, and he fell forward. A roar bubbled up inside his chest that managed to escape.

  He opened his eyes, and once more he was a foot off the ground. The air was redolent with moisture and dead leaves.

  He wondered if Will had been successful.

  I’m here.

  Shit. I heard you, Will.

  How spectacular is that?

  For once, he had to agree that being able to communicate using only his mind was perhaps better than being able to leap tall buildings and fly like Superman.

  Leaves rustled. A squirrel leapt from one tree to another. Something inside him seemed to snap and he charged at the animal that was now running up the tree trying to escape. He followed the little bugger. Branches broke, and sharp edges scraped through his fur to his skin. He didn’t care. He wanted that squirrel. Only when the damn thing moved to the end of the branch did Gage realize he weighed too much to go after him.

  You were lucky this time, little fellow. He turned around and skidded down the tree.

  You didn’t get him? Will was looking around as if he wanted to try to catch some prey, too.

  Not this time.

  For some undetermined time, they raced around, climbing trees and jumping over downed limbs. He was having the time of his life, but immediately stilled when he smelled a human.

  Will. Someone’s coming.

  Quick. Change.

  Thrilled that he and Will finally agreed on something, he ducked behind a tree, closed his eyes, and changed into a human right away. He blew out a breath. They hadn’t been discovered. He was hot, but not sweaty from all his exercise.

  Will raced up to him. “Jesus Christ. That was beyond description.”

  “I didn’t even think when I went after the squirrel. Some internal chase mechanism clicked on, and I just ran after him.” His breath came out fast, and the surge of adrenaline coated his insides.

  “This has to be the best feeling ever.”

  “I know. My heart is still pounding.” At this moment, he’d never felt closer to Will. He wrapped an arm around his brother’s shoulder. “Good call on taking a run.”

  “Yeah.”

  When they got back to the hotel, Gage called the shower first. Some of the adrenaline rush had worn off as reality was beginning to seep in. If he embraced his heritage, the life as he’d known it would be gone. In a way, it was too bad he’d have to keep his status a secret, but clearly the world wasn’t ready to learn about shifters. If they were, everyone would want to know what it was like to be part lion, part man, and he’d lose all privacy.

  While he washed, he tried to figure out the next step. The biggest problem was that he lacked all of the facts. The only person who might be able to help him was Sella. After he showered, he wrapped a towel around his waist and stepped back into the room. Will was on the bed watching the tube.

  “I’m going to talk to Sella.” He put on his jeans, a T-shirt, and comfortable sneakers.

  Will smiled. “Be careful. She’s a little lioness in her own right.” He winked.

  “I’m not going over to have sex.” Though the thought crossed his mind only about a hundred times a day.

  “Tell her hi for me.”

  Gage didn’t bother answering before he left.

  * * * *

  Sella had showered and changed into her bedclothes when someone knocked. From the way her stomach reacted it was either Gage or Will. She knew who she wanted it to be. When she pulled open the door, Gage was there. Yes! Her skin prickled in anticipation.

  “Hey. Come in.” She searched his face for clues as to whether he’d gone on the run. From the fact his hair was still wet, he’d recently showered, which might imply he had taken her up on her suggestion to go into the forest.

  “I’m sorry to bother you, but I’ve just had the most amazing experience.”

  She grinned, loving how his excitement washed over her and filled her with warmth. “I’m thrilled. You went with Will?”

  “Yes, but now I’m more confused than ever.” He stabbed a hand through his lusciously dark hair. His heritage must be quite old if his hair was so dark. Most Anterrans were fair.

  She’d hoped he’d enjoy his shifter experience, and she wasn’t surprised he was confused. “Sit down and tell me all about it.”

  Gage pulled up a seat while she sat on the bed. “You did tell me that our shifter abilities lessen the farther we get from your alignment point, right?”

  It wasn’t her alignment point, nor did she have firsthand experience to know the exact nature of the truth, but that was what she’d heard. “If I can believe Malik and Cavon, then yes.”

  He rubbed his fingers together as if he weren’t sure if he liked the answer. “To be able to scale a tree, have smells be ten times the intensity, see well at night, and chase after an animal at what seemed like sixty miles an hour was the most sensational experience I’ve ever had.”

  Prickles of excitement filled her again. Being able to experience even secondhand what it was like to find out about this other hidden talent was something she’d cherish forever. “But?”

  “With all that power comes responsibility.”

  She hated the amount of sadness in his voice. “True.”

  He leaned forward. “If I have children, the males may get the shifter gene, right?”

  “Yes, but if you live in Miami, they will be as ignorant of their talent as you and Will were.” The thought of having his children filtered into her mind’s eye. Talking with him about other women upset her stomach, but she wanted to help set his mind at ease.

  He inhaled. “You said your brothers are head of security of Anterra. What do they need to guard against there? Just wolf shifters?”

  “There are real bears and bear shifters, real wolves and wolf shifters. There’s a big difference between them. None of the bears bother us unless we get between a mother bear and her cubs. The handful of bear shifters don’t bother us either. In fact, we are allies. As for the wolf shifters, they want to take over all of Anterra.”

  His brow furrowed, though the concept shouldn’t be foreign to him. She’d read there were cultures that had the same agenda.

  “Will told me that a lion can fend off maybe three and even four wolf shifters.”

  “Only if the lion is very skilled.”

  He stabbed a hand through his hair. “Sella, I’ll be honest. I’m scared.”

  His admission turned something on inside her. Never would she have expected him to bare his soul. “Why?” She kept her tone as soothing as possible. She wanted to pull him against her chest and reassure him because he looked so lost, but she figured Gage’s pride would prevent that.

  “I love my life in Miami. I’m afraid there might be other alignment points. Can you be sure there aren’t?”

  She wanted to console him, but she refused to lie. “No.”

  “What if I shift when I don’t want to? I would be branded a freak, considered a danger to society, and tossed in a zoo for people to pay to gawk at.”

  Surely, human society wasn’t that prejudiced and unreasonable. “I doubt it would come to that, but you do have control over shifting. You just have to be vigilant.”

  “I hope you’re right, but what if Will convinces me to come back here? No offense, but I don’t want to live in Anterra. We live in a large condo on the
Atlantic Ocean. We have every luxury money can buy, and we run a thriving business that I’m proud to call my own. We have friends and a great life.”

  The poor man looked like he was being torn in two. She wished she had answers to all of his questions, but she’d never been outside of Spirit. “Come sit next to me. You look like you could use a good massage.” He didn’t move. “You’ve been through a traumatic experience. Everything you’ve known to be true has been altered. It’s understandable that you don’t know where to turn.” She patted the bed again in the hopes he’d seek comfort from her. “You can’t figure out everything tonight. You need to sleep on it.” Preferably next to me.

  Gage blew out a breath, stood, took two steps, and sat on the end of the bed with his back to her. He dropped his head into his hands. Her heart nearly broke. Sella knelt behind him and placed her palms on his shoulders. Without giving him a lecture about his responsibilities or even claiming to understand what he was feeling, she rubbed the tight muscles.

  When he moaned, she pressed harder. Lion shifters often had a hard time making the full transition from lion to man without some extra testosterone staying in their bodies that seemed to shoot straight to their muscles.

  “That feels so good.” He looked up and straightened his back.

  Sella leaned closer and pressed her breasts against him in the hopes he’d want to make love with her. She adored Will, and he was a fabulous and considerate lover, but she got the sense that Gage would be more aggressive and take what he wanted. He seemed willing to share his soul with her, and that meant the world to her.

  “I can do a better job if you take off your shirt.” And your pants.

  He lifted his T-shirt over his head and tossed the material on the floor. His back muscles bunched into knots. “You’re so tense.”

  “I’m not surprised. My stomach is in knots, too.”

  She wanted to tell him to stretch out and that she’d lick away the tension, but from what she’d seen on television, American men liked to make the first move. Hell, the Anterran men did, too.

  With Will, she’d been a little more forward. Answering the door half naked probably was Will’s deciding factor in agreeing to be tied up. Their seduction had been mutual.

  She slipped her hands over Gage’s shoulders and palmed his pecs. They tensed, and sparks of need raced through her. She wanted him. “Why don’t you lean back, and I can take better care of you?” The poor man needed help, and she knew the kind of help she could give him would help release some of his built-up frustration. She slid to the side to give him room. “Maybe lie on your stomach.”

  He did so then toed off his sneakers. His feet dangled off the end of the bed, so he placed his head on folded arms. If she straddled him, she’d be able to rub her pussy over his rough jeans. Riding him like a horse, she placed her hands on his shoulders and gave him the best massage she knew how, making certain to rock her butt back and forth as often as possible.

  After she kneaded his shoulders, she trailed her hands over his shoulder blades and down the middle of his back then massaged the kinks out from his spine. When she got to his lower back she leaned over and placed her lips close to his ear. “Why don’t you roll over?”

  The man would have to be dead not to know what she was asking.

  “You going to massage every inch of my body?” The teasing tone made her inwardly shout for joy.

  “Let’s just say my hands aren’t the only thing good at relieving the tautness lacing your body.”

  Gage’s laughter lit up every nerve. He rolled over, forcing her to get onto her knees.

  When he was on his back, he popped open his jeans. “I’ll have to take these off so you can reach all of me.” He winked.

  Dear heavenly gods. She wasn’t sure she’d ever be able to forget this man when he left. Her stomach soured, and her muscles clenched. She knew then that she didn’t want him to leave. Ever.

  Chapter Eight

  Sella scooted to the end of the bed and pulled off Gage’s jeans. Throughout the tugging process, she couldn’t keep her gaze off his cock peeking above his underwear. He appeared to be bigger even than Will, which she thought would have been impossible.

  “You like what you see?”

  She laughed. “It’s kind of hard to tell. Perhaps if I uncover him.”

  Gage leaned back and wrapped his arms under his head. “Be my guest.”

  She wasn’t sure where this relaxed man had been for the last few days, but she liked that he was putting aside his worries and letting his happier inner self come out, even though it was that inner beast she wanted to draw out. Sex with a wild man turned her on.

  Taking her time, she crawled up his body until she knelt over his knees. She leaned over and planted her hands on either side of his taut waist. Dipping her head, she swiped a lick across the top of his cock, and he jerked.

  “I give.” Gage lifted his hips and dragged his briefs down his legs.

  She reached behind her and helped him get rid of them. His phrase, I give, confused her. “What are you giving me?”

  He laughed. “I’m giving in and doing what you want. I don’t know about your Anterran men, but we weak Earthlings don’t hold out on a beautiful woman who licks our dicks.”

  He thought she was beautiful? She flipped back her hair and decided it was too hot in the room to be wearing a top. She unbuttoned the pajama top that had belonged to Lara and let it slide down her arms. “I thought you’d feel more comfortable not being the only one naked.”

  In one quick flip, she was on her back, and he was on top of her. His aggressive kiss came out hard and fast almost as if he hadn’t kissed a woman in years and this was his only chance. She wrapped her arms around his massive back and pulled him close, pressing her tits against his chest. Pleasure bubbled up everywhere. This glorious man made her skin prickle and her pussy pulse.

  He opened his mouth, and she followed suit. When he gently probed her mouth, her taste buds exploded from his tangy toothpaste. She loved how he smelled and how smooth his skin was under her fingertips.

  His cock pressed between her legs, and even through the thin pajama bottoms, the head nestled up against her wet opening. Ripples of wonderment cascaded down her body, and each time his tongue probed her mouth, she imagined his big, throbbing cock penetrating her pussy and driving her to new heights.

  As suddenly as he began his exploration, he pushed downward, dragging his thick chest across her nipples and over her belly. When he nabbed her nipple in his mouth, electricity sizzled her skin, causing her pussy to gush even more.

  “You have the most perfect breasts. Are all Anterran women so well endowed?”

  She never gave it a thought. All day long women walked around naked. Breasts were just another characteristic, but if he found hers special, then perhaps she’d have to work harder to keep them nicer. She imagined a lot of push-ups in her future. “As your American television actors would say, I refuse to answer on the grounds it will incriminate me.”

  He chuckled. “That’s okay. It doesn’t matter to me. You’re the one who’s here with me, not another Anterran woman.” He drew the tip deeper into his mouth and sucked hard.

  Pricks of ecstasy radiated down her breasts. She spread her legs wider, hoping he’d want her so much that he’d fuck her right then. Her need was growing too fast. His lips moved to the other side and he warmed the first wet nipple with his palm. She didn’t know where to concentrate. Between his cock edging open her pussy lips, his mouth teasing one nipple, and his fingers rubbing and pulling on the other breast, her mind was losing the battle to staying focused.

  “I want to suck your cock.” Not only would it give her a chance to calm down, but she would love teasing him.

  “In a moment. I have so much more to taste and touch. I know your pussy needs my attention, but I can’t help but want to feast on all of you.”

  Not that she ever wanted to compare men, but the Anterrans were more about satisfying themselves than
the woman they were with. Okay, if she believed her sister-in-law, Taryn and Kellum might have been exceptions. She just might not be good at picking the right men, until she’d found these two. Her mind embraced Will’s image and tried to picture what he’d be doing to her body if he’d come. Having two men at once would be the ultimate high.

  Her mind blanked as he pressed one nipple hard, and the erotic pain took her breath away. Waves of blissful spasms coursed down her inner walls, forcing her to clench her stomach tight.

  “It’s not fair,” she panted.

  He lifted his head. “What’s not fair?”

  “Everything you’re doing is bringing me closer to my climax, and I so want to come with you.”

  He grinned. “You can have more than one climax, you know.”

  Perhaps her memory was faulty, but she only remembered climaxing once with Will. Was it possible to recover before he came? “Okay.”

  With his free hand, he managed to cup her cheek and make her feel like a worshipped princess. His rough palms reinforced that he was a man who could handle himself under any circumstance.

  One pinch and one suck was all it took to heat her pussy to the breaking point. When he rubbed her nipple and gently bit down on the other tip, she gave up and welcomed the rush of her orgasm. Her guttural cry sounded too feral even to her, but she let her climax claim her.

  Gage looked up and smiled. “See? That wasn’t so hard, was it?”

  “No.” It was almost embarrassing, though, for her breaths to come in short pants.

  “Now we can get down to more serious business.”

  She hoped that meant some cock. He placed a knee between her legs and pulled off her bottoms. “Jesus.”

  Had she disappointed him? “What?”

  His grin returned. “You’re naked.”

  “You took off my pants. What did you expect?”

  He ran a finger across her pussy lips. “I like it.”

  Ahh. He had the same reaction as Will. Perhaps Earth women didn’t remove their hair. She’d never thought to ask Lara. “I’m glad I please you.”