by Desiree Holt
“You’re a mixed, aren’t you?” he asked.
Leo nodded. “Leopard mother, panther dad.” He chuckled. “Like you and the sweet, hot leopard hanging out with Max’s wife.”
“So it works?” Seth asked.
“Oh, yeah.” He winked at Seth. “Damn well. Look what a great specimen they produced.” He pointed at himself.
Seth laughed. “And humble, too. So how’d you end up here as a bouncer?”
Leo shrugged. “I was between…opportunities, saw the ad in the paper and Max hired me. So. How’s it coming with The Shredder? You guys have any leads at all?”
Seth shook his head. ”I only wish. Right now every woman who comes to The Litter Box is at risk and I hate that.”
Car doors slammed in the parking lot. “I think that’s my cue to go back to work,” Leo told him. “Let me know if you get anything on this guy.”
“Will do.”
Leo held the door open for the giggling group of women approaching from the parking area and Seth fell in behind them. He wondered unhappily if one of them would be The Shredder’s next victim.
* * * *
It was last call and the killer let his eyes roam around the room, seeking the ideal prey for tonight. Three nights had passed since his last kill, three very long nights, and the level of unsatisfied lust had risen to new proportions. His inner cat roared loudly, clawing for release, and wouldn’t be denied much longer.
The pickings tonight were prime, a selection of panthers and leopards who teased and tempted the shifters around them. And some mixed breeds that made his cock twitch and his balls ache…and the blood lust surge through his veins.
He looked at his watch. Not much longer until closing. He’d wait until the last one was out of there, making his selection at the last minute. He’d slide out casually after he’d chosen his prey and wait in his car until she pulled out. He made it his business to chat with the females enough to find out where they lived. And how dumb was it of them to tell him. Then he’d take a faster route to their home, beat them there and be ready when they got out of their car.
He’d be right behind them when they walked to their front door. And if they recognised him? He’d simply say he was so attracted to her, he’d had to find a way to spend a few minutes alone. Time to make a real date. Women were so gullible. All he had to do was smile at them, compliment them and their guard was down. And even with everything he’d been doing, they still hadn’t learned.
He smiled to himself. If he was lucky it would stay that way for a good long while.
Okay. His chosen target for the evening was just heading out the door. She was chatting with three friends, so he knew it would be a few minutes before she got in her car and left. Time enough for him to get ready.
His cock was already throbbing with anticipation.
* * * *
Besides Max, the last ones left in The Litter Box were Seth and Kendall. He’d watched everyone leave, doing his best to make sure all the females had one of Max’s little warning notes, then had shaken hands with Leo, who’d headed out the back door. Now he was ready to take off, especially since Aisha had left ages ago, meaning he’d be following Kendall home and spending the night in her bed.
“Thanks for hanging around,” he told her. “I know you have to get up early.”
“Actually, tomorrow I don’t. I’m taking a personal day.” She gave him a slow, sexy smile. “I need to catch up on my sleep.”
He brushed the soft golden hair away from her neck and placed a kiss on the slender column of her neck.
“Then I won’t feel so bad if I keep you up until dawn, right?”
She leaned into him. “Don’t you have to get some sleep? You’ve been pulling double duty as well as taking very good care of me.”
“Well, we’re both lucky because I don’t have to be in until noon tomorrow.” He turned to his brother as Kendall slipped off the stool. “See you tomorrow night, Max.”
“Listen.” Max dried his hands on a bar towel then held one out to Seth. “You can’t possibly imagine how much I appreciate you doing this. I know it doesn’t leave you much time for sleep.” He grinned at Kendall. “Or much of anything else.”
“Don’t worry,” she assured him, and winked. “We manage. Anyway, we should be thanking you, because if not for Seth’s hanging out here, we’d never have met.”
“Something good comes from everything.” Max shifted his gaze back to Seth. “Any leads yet on who this might be?”
Seth shook his head. “No, and I’ve got a bad feeling he’s about to strike again. I asked the captain to increase the residential patrols, but hell. We’ve got a whole city to cover.”
“Go home,” Max told him. And chuckled. “To somebody’s home, anyway.”
* * * *
The drive home had seemed interminable and they were barely inside Kendall’s apartment when Seth grabbed her and pulled her into him.
“I need you more than I can possibly tell you,” he growled softly and licked the soft surface of her lips. “Sometimes this is a crummy job, Kendall. I see things that give me nightmares. But until I met you I had no place to rest. To clean my mind and my soul. Maybe it’s been fast, but it’s real. I promise you that.”
“I-I feel the same way,” she murmured.
The kiss began as a gentle one, but the moment he traced the seam of her lips and thrust his tongue into the welcoming heat of her mouth, it took on a hotter, deeper dimension. His tongue glided across hers, dancing with it, drawing it into his mouth while his fingers threaded through the golden strands of her hair. She was like silk everywhere, her taste intoxicating, the feel of her unbelievably erotic.
He nipped her ear lobe and licked the tender spot behind her ear. His lips slid across the smoothness of her cheek and down her neck, nipping lightly then soothing with his tongue. Kendall wound her arms tightly around his neck and her soft breasts were pillowed against his chest, sending messages directly to his cock. He stepped back a little and lifted her in his arms.
“We need to get to the bedroom now.” He heard the edge of lust in his voice. “I’m not going to take you in the hallway standing up.” Then he grinned at her. “At least not tonight.”
They undressed each other with a new familiarity, touching and caressing as flesh was exposed. Seth paused to cup Kendall’s breasts, hefting them in his palms, and bent his mouth first to one taut nipple then to the other. He pulled each in turn with his lips, grazing his teeth over the pebbled surfaces and swirling his tongue around them.
Kendall’s small hands slipped down the muscles of his back, brushing over his ass before moving between them to take his shaft in one hand and his balls in the other. He sucked in his breath, on fire with the need her touch always evoked. Her thumb slipped softly over the head, pressing down lightly on the slit while her other hand rhythmically squeezed his balls.
Oh Jesus!
He gritted his teeth, determined to hang on until he could pay attention to her. The problem was she always aroused him to a fever pitch just by being near him. He wondered if they’d ever get to the point where he could take it slow and easy…without having to have fucked her three or four times first.
Grabbing her wrists, he lifted her hands and kissed her fingers, tracing her knuckles with his tongue before placing her carefully on the bed. Her eyes glowed with the same heat he was feeling and the ink flush of desire suffused her body. He knelt between her thighs, running his hands over every dip and swell, every curve and indentation. Her tummy, the graceful sweep of her legs and the curve of her hips. Her breasts, their tips now a deep rose, pebbled as lust consumed her.
Bending down, he opened the lips of her pussy, inhaling the fragrance of her scent before flicking his tongue across her clit. She jerked in response, widening her knees and lifting her body to him. When he pulled her clit into his mouth, little whimpers of pleasure rolled from her lips. He stroked the wet flesh with his fingers before sliding two of them inside her, curling them to hit her swe
et spot.
She rocked against his hand, nearly sobbing under the dual onslaught of his mouth and fingers. She was dripping wet and as ready as he was. Sliding his fingers from her quivering pussy, he grasped her hips, poised at her entrance and drove into her in one forceful thrust.
Oh God!
Being inside her, with her tight walls gripping him, was so intense that Seth had to clench his jaw to hang onto his control. If there was a different definition of heaven he didn’t know what it was. He could spend forever buried deep inside her just like this.
“Seth.” His name floated out on a long exhalation of breath.
He lowered his head to take her mouth, plunging his tongue inside the way he’d driven his cock inside her beautiful cunt. And then he began to move. Long, slow glides at first, in and out. In and out. The thickness of his shaft dragging against her tight, wet walls.
He kept his eyes open, watching her, seeing her skin flush with desire and her eyes darken with lust.
Mine! Mate!
As he increased the pace of his strokes, her breathing became more uneven and her hands clutched at his shoulders. As he rode her harder, her fingernails dug into his skin and the sounds of pleasure that so aroused him spilled from her mouth.
In. Out. In. Out. Faster, faster, faster.
He could tell by watching her exactly when her climax was about to grip her and with a final plunge, he took them both over the edge. He collapsed forward, being careful not to let the full impact of his weight fall on her, and sprinkled kisses along the line of her jaw, wondering if it was his heart or hers he felt pounding against his ribs.
A long time later, when they’d showered and crawled back into bed, he held her in his arms. Soon he would shift, and insist that Kendall shift with him. They would mate as cats and be permanently bound together.
Just as soon as this rogue leopard was caught and captured. Or killed.
Chapter Four
The killer was moving in human form, cruising the street where his current target lived in a small bungalow. He’d managed to discover her address in his usual manner, raced through the darkened streets to arrive there before she did then sat down the block with his headlights out. The moment he saw her pull into her driveway, he turned on his lights, accelerated and pulled to the kerb in front of her house. She turned when she heard the slamming of his car door.
“Oh!” She was obviously startled. “Hi! What are you doing here?” She was standing at the steps leading up to her porch, key ring in hand.
“Just wanted to make sure you got home okay.” He deliberately kept his voice low and even. Comforting, he hoped. And reassuring.
Her smile was tentative. “Well, thanks. That’s very nice of you, but I’m fine. Honestly.”
“Can’t be too careful,” he reminded her, gently placing his hand on her elbow and urging her up the stairs. “Come on. I’ll feel better when I get you inside.”
A lot better, my pretty little prey.
She hurried up the stairs, her dark red curls bouncing as she moved, and inserted her key in the lock.
“I’m good now.” She smiled up at him. “Thanks again.”
“No problem.” Be smooth here. “But I’ll feel a lot better when you’re actually inside.”
He reached around her to turn the knob and push the door open. She stiffened at the threshold, trying to use her body to block him, but he was faster and stronger. Gripping her arm, he shoved her inside then slammed the door behind him, flipping the lock.
“What are you doing?”
The fear in her voce was an aphrodisiac. The more frightened they were, the more aroused he became.
“Helping myself to a tasty treat,” he growled and began tearing her clothes from her body.
He loved it when they struggled. It only incited him more. When he’d overpowered her with his superior strength and had her stripped naked, he tore her bra and used the pieces to bind her wrists. He wadded her panties into a ball and shoved them into her mouth to stifle her screams. Then, shedding his own clothing, he was on her in seconds, spreading her thighs and lapping to lubricate her. In another moment he was inside her, fucking her, spurred on by the bright fear shining in her eyes and the terror on her face.
In seconds the brutal act was finished. She lay sobbing on the floor, branded by his bite marks. Staring down at her, he momentarily closed his eyes, inhaled and shifted. And then he attacked.
* * * *
The ringing of his cell phone woke Seth. He groaned and reached across Kendall’s sleeping body to pick it up from the nightstand.
“Rogan.”
“Get your ass dressed and get down here.” His partner reeled off an address.
“Yeah, yeah, what’s going on?”
“We’ve got another one.” His partner sounded shaken. “Seth, we gotta get this guy.”
Seth looked at the clock. Three-thirty in the morning. “How come she was found already? Normally we don’t get called until the following day when they miss work or something.”
“This one had a friend from out of town staying with her. The friend was out on a date, came home and found her. Of course, now she’s a basket case, and understandably so. She’s damn lucky this maniac wasn’t still here.”
“Okay, I’m on my way.”
He pressed ’end call’ and tried to slide out of bed without waking Kendall, but she stirred as he inched away from her.
“What’s the matter?” her voice was thick and soft with drowsiness. “Where are you going?”
He bent down to kiss her as he buttoned his shirt. “We got a call-out. I have to go.”
She sat up in bed and pushed her hair out of her face. “Another victim of The Shredder?”
Seth nodded. “I want you to lock the door behind me and not leave the house until it’s light. Got it?”
“Yes, of course. But he never attacks if the victim’s already home. And anyway, he’s done his deed for the night.”
“Just humour me, okay?” He kissed her again. “I’ll call you at work about lunch. Let you know if I’m still tied up.”
She caught his head between her palms. “Don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine. You just take care of yourself and catch this lunatic.”
“Believe me.” He gave her a brief kiss, taking an extra moment to run his tongue over the softness of her lips. “No one wants to catch him more than I do.” Listen…” He tucked his shirt in his pants and picked up his holster and gun. “Maybe you should go right home from work today. I’m not sure I like you coming to the bar until we catch this guy.”
“Seth.” She smiled at him. “He never attacks until after the bar closes and if I stay until closing then I’m with you. I’m not going to miss spending time with you.”
He sat down on the edge of the bed and pulled her into his arms. “When this is over, I’m going to tell you exactly how much you mean to me. And then we’re going to do something about it.”
She tilted her head back. “We are? Don’t I get a vote?”
He held her gaze with his. “I didn’t think there was a question about that. Am I wrong?”
She laughed softly. “No. Not at all. And life’s too short for me to play coy.”
“Good. That’s good.” He pushed himself off the bed. “And if I don’t leave now I’ll be right back in that bed with you.” He reached for his blazer and shoved his arms in the sleeves. “I’ll talk to you later.”
“Seth?”
“Yeah?”
“I just wondered. Wouldn’t these women have noticed if he was trailing them home? Maybe driven to a safe place instead? I know I’d be very aware if there was a car behind me on these residential streets, especially after the first two or three killings.”
“We’ve thought of that. Especially when he gets out and approaches them. He has to be someone they know. Someone they’ve hooked up with at The Litter Box.”
“And someone who still appears safe to them after all that’s happened,” she added.
“That’s something else we’ll be working on.” He gave her a last quick kiss. “Gotta go. Call you later.”
Kendall grabbed her robe from the chair where she’d tossed it and followed him to the door, locking it and the deadbolt as soon as he left.
* * * *
“We’ve got to approach this from a different angle,” Seth told his partner, Cord Chandler.
“Like what?” Cord still looked a little green around the edges. He’d arrived on the scene while the kill was still fresh.
“Kendall pointed out that women are usually aware if someone’s following them in a residential area, especially late at night. Also,” he continued, “he has to get out of his own car to approach them before they get in the house. No one’s going to open their door after two in the morning.”
Cord nodded. “So it’s someone they know. Someone from The Litter Box.”
“That’s what she thinks. Someone who can still present himself as friendly and safe even after all the killings.”
“Jesus, Seth.” Cord ran his fingers through his already rumpled hair. “That means taking names and running checks on every male who’s been there more than twice.”
“I’ll get my brother to help me. He can pull names from credit card receipts to begin with, and I can run them through the system. Also check to see how often they show up.”
“And hope they don’t pay cash,” Cord pointed out in a sour voice.
“And thanks for your optimism,” Seth groaned. “Well, let’s finish up here, see what the uniforms got from questioning the neighbours—if anything—and head out. I’ll give Max a call.”
Cord made a face. “He’ll be real excited about that. He’s probably been asleep a whole hour.”
“That’s okay. He wants to catch this guy as much as we do.”
* * * *
The killer had parked one block over and crept through the high hedges in a yard to hide behind two thick oak trees and watch the proceedings. He’d been startled when his police scanner had alerted him that the body had been found already, but it gave him an opportunity he usually didn’t have—to observe the scene in progress. Normally he was at work by the time that happened, so tonight was a real treat for him.