ALIEN SHIFTER ROMANCE: Alien Tigers - The Complete Series (Alien Invasion Abduction Shapeshifter Romance) (Paranormal Science Fiction Fantasy Anthologies & Short reads)

by Tanya Jolie

  “It’s Kameko,” the Asian woman whispered in a tight voice. “Simon is in danger, Anna. Umbra has lured him to the club in order to kill him. I need you to warn him.”

  Anna tightened her grip on the phone. “Where are you?”

  “I’ve been shanghaied by my billionaire, I’m afraid. Don’t worry, I can manage him – but you have to get to Simon before Umbra does.” She caught her breath sharply and added, “I must go now. He loves you, Anna. Good-bye.”

  The line went silent, and Anna dropped the phone as she hurried into her bedroom to retrieve the metal briefcase on her bed before she ran for her car, using her mobile to dial the office and then the condo where Simon lived. Both numbers went to voice mail.

  “Damn, damn, damn.” She tossed down the mobile and flipped the locks on the briefcase. Inside, packed in cushioning foam, were five hand guns of various calibers, a pair of razor-sharp daggers, several vials of drugs, and a dozen smoke grenades.

  Anna picked up the nine millimeter, popped the clip and began to load it with shaking fingers. She glanced at herself in the rearview mirror, and saw the terror in her own eyes.

  “No, not again,” she murmured, beginning the breathing exercises she’d learned during her training. “Never again.”

  Once she had loaded the weapon, she tucked it in her purse along with the other weapons. She then drove as fast as she dared to the street behind the club. Panic kept punching her lungs as she slipped through the shadows. Anna fought back the terror, knowing it wouldn’t help her get to her lover.

  I am not going to lose Simon.

  When she walked up to the front of the club, the armed guards both gave her a sour look. “You cannot come in alone,” one of them told her.

  “Charles called and said he needed me.” Anna put on her best confused look. “I’m to entertain one of your important VIPs.”

  The men exchanged a look before the second guard said, “Charles said nothing about this.”

  “Well, if you wish to explain this to Mr. Umbra, I’m sure he’ll understand.” Anna almost laughed as they quickly opened the doors for her. “Or not. Thank you, gentlemen.”

  Inside the dark, smoky club, she spotted Charles talking with a pouting blonde dressed in black leather. She went directly to him and tucked her arm through his.

  “Ah, the sweet girl.” Charles’s expression turned lecherous. “Did you come back to see me?”

  “Of course. Excuse us,” she said to the blonde before she drew Charles toward the stairs. “Actually, I’m here to meet Simon. Would you take me to him?”

  The islander’s dark eyes became slits. “Simon is not to be disturbed.” He went still as he felt the gun she pressed into his ribs. “You do not wish to do this here, sweet girl. My men will tear you apart.”

  “Yes, they will, but first I’ll shoot you and every important-looking man around me,” Anna assured him. “Now, take me to Simon, or I start firing.”

  Charles stomped upstairs with her, and took her to a room at the end of the corridor.

  “Tell them to go downstairs,” Anna murmured as they approached the two men guarding the door. “Nothing more.”

  “Go downstairs,” Charles said to the men. When they didn’t move he added a sharp, “Now.”

  Anna smiled at them both as they reluctantly went off, and then had Charles unlock the door and shoved him inside before she followed.

  Simon, who was tied to a chair and had a hood over his head, sat up straighter. “Come on then. Get on with it.”

  Anna locked the door, and then used the gun to club Charles at the base of his skull. Once he collapsed, she stepped over his body and went behind Simon’s chair. “You’re always so impatient. I think all rich people are, which makes no sense because you never have to really wait for anything at all.”

  “Anna?” When she pulled the hood from his head Simon stared up at her. “What the devil are you doing here?”

  “Rescuing you, sir.” She cut through the cords, and pressed the blade in his hand. “Kameko contacted me. She’s been taken by her billionaire, but she said she’ll be all right, which also makes no sense to me. Where is Umbra?”

  “He’ll be here any minute to torture me,” he warned her as he got to his feet.

  Anna pursed her lips. “We’d better give him someone else to hurt.” Together they tied Charles to the chair and pulled the hood over his head. “Right. I’ll flank on the left, behind the door.” She offered him the gun and then opened her purse. “Would you like some smoke grenades?”

  “Bloody hell.” Simon looked from the gun to her purse to her face. “You’re not a secretary.”

  “Actually I am, fully-qualified.” She stepped back behind the door. “My handler felt it was important to be the role rather than act it, but you’d know that better than anyone.”

  He took a position to the right of the door. “So Gareth wasn’t the only one working for MI-5, I take it.”

  “It’s how we met.” She winced as someone tried to open the door, and then slammed into it from the outside. “Here we go.”

  The men who burst into the room hurried toward the unconscious Charles, and were followed by a short, reed-thin man with a scarred forehead and a big, ugly grin.

  “There you are, Simon Denning,” the little man said. “I am so happy to meet you at last, but I think you will not be the same for Umbra.”

  “Think again.” Simon quickly shot each man around Umbra before he aimed at the assassin’s head. “Hands where I can see them.”

  Umbra pulled out a large pistol. “Can you see this?”

  Without thinking Anna threw her dagger, which landed in his thigh with a meaty thump. As he screamed and stared down at the blade Simon shot the pistol out of his hand.

  “Anna, collect all the guns, if you would,” Simon told her as he moved to stand over Umbra. “Now, old chap, let’s talk about the visit you’ll not be making to Hawaii.”

  * * *

  Forty-eight hours later, Anna walked into Simon Denning’s office with a tray of freshly-brewed tea. “Gentlemen, would you care for some sandwiches? I can order in anything you’d like.”

  “Thank you, no, Anna,” one of the London agents said. “By the way, your old boss sends his compliments. I think after this op, he may even have Simon drop an extra pound in your pay packet.”

  Anna left the men and went to tidy up the kitchen and finish her filing. The London agents had thoroughly debriefed her and Simon over the weekend, but she didn’t mind. Umbra had been neutralized, along with his plot to kill the American president, all of which had been a major blow to the cartel.

  Simon escorted out the agents and then regarded Anna for a long moment. “My office, now, please.”

  She went in and sat down, helping herself to a cup of tea as Simon vented.

  “All this time you were an MI-5 operative, sent to babysit me.” He paced around her chair. “I can’t believe it. Why?”

  “I wasn’t sent to you,” she corrected gently. “I fled here after Gareth died because I couldn’t do my job anymore. They simply asked me to help you maintain cover by being your secretary.”

  “You could have told me, Anna.” He crouched down in front of her chair, trapping her in it with his arms. “Why didn’t you?”

  She hated the truth, but he deserved to know. “Then I would have had to admit that Gareth died because he borrowed my car one morning. The bomb that killed him had been intended for me.”

  Simon studied her face. “Then you weren’t just a data analyst for MI-5.”

  “Gareth was.” She couldn’t help caressing his cheek. “I was his section chief. I’m sorry, Simon. You’re right. I should have said something a long a time ago.”

  “I’ve never allowed myself to be involved with any woman for long.” He stood and walked to the window. “I never wanted to put anyone in danger. Especially you – and now you tell me you running a section for MI-5. Anna, you must have as much training as I do.”

  “I
do. I’ve also made some very bad enemies.” She rose and went to him. When she touched his arm, he dragged her up against him and kissed her thoroughly. Once he finished she gasped, “Simon, we really shouldn’t.”

  “I know.” He touched his forehead to hers. “I have as many enemies as you do. But you’re done with MI-5, and I’m rather tired of getting tied up and shot. So, I think we both should retire from field work. Anna, if you’re willing, we can make a real go of it.”

  “Oh, I’m willing.” She wrapped her arms around his neck. “And I’m yours, Simon. Always.”

  THE END

  The Mogul’s Fantasy

  Bound to the Alpha Billionaire

  Book 3

  (Can be read as a standalone book)

  By: Author Name

  The Mogul’s Fantasy

  Chapter One

  Jake Silvar stood at the wall of glass enclosing his penthouse office, commissioned specifically to provide dazzling views of midtown Manhattan. “How was your visit to the Bahamas?”

  “Hot,” his captive replied.

  Moving Silvatech’s headquarters to New York City had been one of Jake’s smartest decisions, as it had allowed his corporation to grow and thrive in the very hub of American commerce. Occupying the same neighborhood as some of the most famous buildings in the world also pleased him on several levels.

  Starting out as a brilliant engineering prodigy who wasn’t afraid to take chances, Jake had devoted his life to making his designs a reality. They in turn had made him wealthy, powerful, and one of the world’s leading innovators in aerotech design.

  None of that matter to him right now, either. Tonight he was on a very different mission.

  The woman sitting in front of his glass and chrome desk hadn’t spoken a word since being brought in, but Jake could feel her watching him. He could also smell her delicate scent, which seemed to curl around him like invisible tendrils. He’d had Kameko Saito investigated before he’d hired her to be his personal assistant, and he knew everything about her – or thought he had.

  They’d worked together for six months before she’d left her resignation on his desk and walked away. It might have made sense to Jake, if she hadn’t been the best assistant he’d ever hired. Every day she had worked long hours without a single complaint, creating an atmosphere of calm harmony in everything she did. She had become so adept at anticipating his wishes, he often wondered if she’d somehow been able to read his mind. To his everlasting regret, he hadn’t been able to read hers.

  Tonight he didn’t have to. Tonight he’d use other methods to find out why she had betrayed him for money.

  When Jake finally turned around to look at her he felt the burn of outrage in his gut. Kameko regarded him with the same serene expression she’d always put on in his presence. Slender and coolly beautiful, her exotic onyx eyes and precisely-cut, midnight hair gave her a mysterious air. That darkness also emphasized the purity of her flawless golden skin and refined features.

  At least now he knew that nothing about Kameko Saito was pure or refined.

  Jake moved to lean against the edge of his desk. “Do you know why you’re here, Ms. Saito?”

  She seemed almost amused as she tilted her head to look up at him. “You wanted me, obviously.”

  Oh, Jake wanted her – that was the other problem. Even before she’d left Silvatech he hadn’t been able to stop thinking about her graceful body or her luscious mouth. The quiet need he sometimes glimpsed in her dark eyes had utterly fooled him. “What were you doing in the islands?”

  “I was on vacation.” Her lips pursed, as if she was trying to keep from laughing.

  She thought this was funny, did she? “So you didn’t go there to sell the designs for the new CloudWatch satellite?” When she showed no reaction he added, “Where are they?”

  A flicker of hurt passed over her face. “I don’t know.”

  “The design schematics for the prototype disappeared on the same day you quit working for me. The only two people who had access to the computer where they were stored were you, and me.” He straightened. “I have no reason to steal my own designs.”

  “Neither did I,” she said, still looking slightly wounded.

  “On the contrary. They’re worth billions.” He bent down, clamping his hands on the armrests of her chair to keep from grabbing her. “I also know a bit more about you now that you didn’t include in your C.V., such as your very interesting personal life. To whom did you sell my work, Ms. Saito?”

  “No one. I didn’t take your design schematics.” She turned her face away from his. “If that’s all, I’d like to go now.”

  “Did you think I had you abducted and brought here for my own amusement?” Jake gripped the short chain of the steel handcuffs binding her wrists. “Until I get some answers, you’re not going anywhere.”

  #

  After being grabbed, cuffed, and dragged to a private landing strip, Kameko Saito had prepared herself for the worst. The extensive training she’d been given by British intelligence included how to cope with capture, interrogation and torture. She knew how to endure pain and provide convincing but false information. Her instructors had even shown her ways to kill herself if the ordeal proved too much.

  Nothing prepared her for the moment when her kidnappers had forced her to board the very same private jet she had flown on while working for Jake Silvar.

  It had been less than two weeks since she’d resigned as Jake’s personal assistant, and still she couldn’t keep her eyes off her former boss. Jake kept his copper-red hair trimmed close to his skull, and with his craggy features and broad, powerful build looked more like a gladiator than an engineer. People who didn’t know him assumed he was a bodyguard or a brawler, not one of the most brilliant men in his field.

  Kameko hadn’t made that mistake. From the first time she gazed into his sea-colored eyes she’d sensed his enormous intelligence, and ruthless focus. In the end she knew she couldn’t go on deceiving him for much longer, which had been one of the reasons she’d abandoned her assignment to watch over him.

  As for the other reason she’d run from Jake Silvar, not even torture would make her admit it – even to herself.

  “Kidnapping and false imprisonment are serious felonies in this country,” she told him, breathing through her mouth to avoid being aroused by the hot, dark scent of his skin. “However, I realize this must be simply a terrible misunderstanding. If you’ll release me, right now, I won’t pursue charges.”

  “Perhaps I wasn’t clear.” Jake used his grip on the handcuffs to haul her to her feet. “You will tell me who you really are, and what you did with those schematics. Tonight.”

  Resisting him while she was restrained didn’t seem wise, so Kameko allowed him to march her out of his office. Jake took her down the hall to the luxury apartment he used when he worked too late to make the commute to his home in the Hamptons. As soon as they stepped inside, Kameko noted everything she could use in the room to disable him. As soon he freed her hands, she’d knock him out and be boarding a plane to London before he regained consciousness.

  Jake didn’t uncuff her, but guided her back into the bedroom and switched on the lights. Kameko froze as she saw that the room had been renovated from top to bottom, and most of the furniture replaced with far more exotic equipment.

  In the center of the room stood a black padded X-frame fitted with side extensions, buckled straps, hooks and looped lengths of narrow leather and glittering silver chain. On the walls racks of pleasure toys had been hung, ranging from feathered teasers to leather-tressed crops. Glass cases on pedestals held more intimate implements of pain and delight. Even the king-size bed now sported black silk restraints tied to the headboard, and matching satin sheets.

  “It took some time, and a lot of money, but I found out why you never had a boyfriend when you worked for me,” Jake told her as he led her to the platform. “You’re a professional sexual submissive.”

  So he knew. Of course
he did; since he believed she was a thief, he’d probably had her background rechecked with a microscope.

  “You offer your services to men and women, often for a hefty fee.” He sounded more detached than disgusted, but she heard the edge of anger clipping his words. “You allow them to abuse, humiliate and stimulate you. While you draw the line at having actual sex, you let them do whatever else they want to you.” Jake tossed a file filled with pictures on the X-frame.

  Kameko stared down at the grainy photos someone had lifted from a security video. She remembered the op at the BDSM club, where she had allowed Simon Denning, another agent, to spank her bare bottom in front of an important cartel chief. They’d managed to gain his trust, which had led to them successfully shutting down a notorious drug route.

  All Jake saw was her draped over Simon’s lap and being beaten in public, naturally. It was embarrassing, but it meant that the second layer of Kameko’s phony identity remained intact. A relief, and a curse, for now he thought she was a whore as well as a thief.

  Jake grabbed up the photos and held them in front of her nose. “You’re going to explain this to me, damn it.”

  “Am I?” Kameko wished she could. “Why is my personal life any of your business?”

  “Fine. Then tell me what you did with my designs.” Jake jerked her closer. “Or tonight you’ll be submitting to me.”

  Chapter Two

  Jake watched tiny beads of sweat pop out on Kameko’s face. Her fear filled the air between them like a shivering phantom, and yet when she spoke she sounded bored.

  “Mr. Silvar, I'm not your submissive. I'm your former employee, and currently your captive.” She held up her cuffed wrists. “I don’t intend to cooperate, either, so you’ll have to rape me.” She smiled. “And you’re not a rapist.”

  “You’re right, I’m not.” Jake took out the key to release the handcuffs, which he pocketed as he watched her rub her wrists. “How does a quiet, reserved woman like you end up selling herself to be abused by kinky perverts?”