Rise of the Jaguar

by Elizabeth Kelly

  “You have every right to be pissed that I took you from your sister, but -”

  She growled again, and fuck if his cock didn’t stiffen just a little. Christ, what he wouldn’t give to have her back in his bed.

  “I’m angry because you left me! You just left without saying goodbye, and you didn’t call me or -”

  “I don’t have your phone number,” he said.

  She growled a third time, her eyes flashing jade-coloured fire, but the growl ended in one of those sexy little trills that heated his blood.

  “Stop it,” she muttered. “I don’t care how fucking good he smells. I said no.”

  He grinned at her, and she curled her lip at him. “How did you know I was at Kat’s office? Did you somehow bug me again?”

  “No. I’ve been watching the security firm. I figured Kat would take you there at some point. I’ve been inside the office before, so I knew the hum.”

  Yeah, when you kidnapped her sister. Taking Emerson was a mistake. One that will get you killed. There’s no way Kat hasn’t told her what you did. Do you think Em isn’t going to rip your intestines out now that she knows what you did to her sister?

  Em yanked her phone out of her pocket.

  “Who are you calling?”

  “My sister, before she freaks the fuck out and really does try to kill you.”

  She held her phone to her ear, and he could hear a faint ring before Kat answered.

  “Kat, I’m fine,” Emerson said quickly. “Honey, I’m perfectly fine, I promise.”

  She listened and then said, “I don’t know where I am.”

  “You’re still in the city,” Clay said, “At my apartment.”

  “I’m at his… yes, he said his apartment. No, you are not coming over here. Kat… no. Because. Because I’m fine. No. It isn’t… look, I appreciate your eagerness to help, but I am perfectly capable of slicing him into tiny bloody bits myself.”

  Clay laughed, and Emerson shot him a dirty look before saying, “If he pisses me off, I’ll burn his shit, and you can follow the smoke to his place, all right?”

  She paced back and forth before sighing loudly. “Why do you want to talk to Clay? No, it isn’t… Kat!”

  She glanced at Clay, who held his hand out. “I’ll talk to her.”

  She handed over her phone. He winked at Emerson and said, “Hello, Katarina.”

  “If you hurt her, I will slice out your liver, barbeque it, and make you watch as I eat it for my fucking dinner. Do you understand, you asshole?” Kat said.

  “Perfectly,” he said. “I won’t hurt her.”

  “Give me the address of your apartment,” Kat said.

  “I can’t do that,” he said.

  “Motherfucker, do not fuck around with me,” Kat growled. “I will fucking kill you.”

  “Kat!” Emerson had crowded close. He resisted the urge to cup her perfect ass, to lean in and nibble at her collarbone until she was making those delightful purrs he’d missed so much.

  “Kat, enough,” Emerson said as she put the phone on speaker. “Clay isn’t going to hurt me. Are you, Clay?”

  “No,” he said.

  “You need to trust me, Kat,” Emerson said.

  “I do, Emmy,” Kat said.

  He could hear the deep breath that Kat took before she said, “Is there any possibility that Wilson and his men know where you live in the city?”

  “No,” Clay said.

  “You positive?”

  “Yes. No one knows I have this apartment, not even my brother,” Clay said.

  “Okay. Can Emerson stay the night with you?”

  “Yes.” He decided not to mention that he’d planned to keep Emerson with him overnight anyway. Hopefully in his bed.

  “What the? That’s quite the flip, Katarina,” Emerson said.

  “You can’t be at the house, not when they attack,” Kat said.

  Clay stiffened. “Wilson?”

  “Who the fuck else?” Kat said. “They had someone scouting my house today. We expect an attack tonight.”

  “Emerson is not going back to your house,” Clay said.

  “Yeah, that’s what I just said, dick for brains,” Kat said in exasperation.

  “They’ll be watching your house. If Emerson doesn’t show up, they won’t attack,” Clay said.

  “Good,” Emerson said.

  “Hold on a second,” Kat said. “What was that, Mal?”

  They waited patiently for a minute or two, listening to the muffled sound of Kat’s voice and the others before Kat came back on the line. “We need you to bring Emerson back to the office.”

  “No,” Clay said.

  “Fuck you,” Kat snapped. “Keep your mouth shut and listen to what I have to say, you asshole, or I really will slice out your fucking liver.”

  Clay was glad Kat wasn’t there to see his grin. She’d probably slice him open just because of it. Emerson looked embarrassed, but he understood why Kat acted this way. He acted the same way about Owen.

  “Bring Emerson back to the office. She’ll go home with me after work so that Granger’s men see her at my house. You can teleport into my fucking house again later tonight and then teleport Emerson out.”

  “You’re using her as bait,” Clay said.

  “Yes.” Kat’s voice was flat. “We are.”

  “Kat, no,” Emerson said. “Let them think I’m gone, all right? There’s no need to put you or your friends in danger.”

  “He’ll keep hunting you until he finds you,” Clay said.

  “Clay, hush,” Emerson said. “Kat, I can leave. I can leave and -”

  “What if he takes your sister? Or your brother? Or your parents?” Clay said. “Em, he’s not going to stop.”

  She stared at him, her bottom lip trembling and a look of horror on her face. He hated that he was scaring her, but she needed to know what Granger was capable of.

  “He’s right,” Kat said. “We need to show Wilson Granger what happens when he fucks with a Frost woman, okay? Taking out the men sent to kill you will send a clear message.”

  “What if you get hurt?” Emerson said. “I can’t live with that, Kat.”

  “I won’t get hurt, Emmy. Don’t worry,” Kat said. There was a pause and more muffled voices before Kat said, “Ronin, I’m not leaving my house, I’m not… we’ll talk about this later.”

  She returned to the phone call. “Emmy, everything will be okay. Clay, bring her back to the office now. The office closes at six. We’ll drive home with Ronin so the assholes can see her entering the house. It’s doubtful they’ll make their move until after midnight. You can teleport in just before then and take Emerson back to your apartment.”

  Not willing to give up any time with Emerson, Clay said, “She’s safest here with me. I’ll bring her back to the office at six.”

  “Motherfucker, bring her back right now or -”

  He ended the call and handed the phone back to Emerson. She slapped it down on the table and crossed her arms over her chest as her phone immediately chimed with a text notification. “Kat’s going to kill you for that.”

  “She’ll have to catch me first.” He grinned charmingly at her, but she had picked up her phone and was firing off a message, no doubt to her sister.

  She set her phone down and stared at him. “Why did you bring me here?”

  The bluntness of her question threw him off. He tried to think of something that sounded remotely plausible. “I wanted to know what you told Kat about my brother and me.”

  “Bullshit,” she said. “Why did you take me? Tell me the truth, Clay.”

  “I am telling you the truth,” he lied.

  She stepped closer, and when her jaguar first trilled and then purred, it destroyed his willpower. He slid his arm around her waist and pulled her in tight against his body before kissing her. He expected her to sink her claws into him. Expected her to pull back and slice him open for touching her despite the way she had purred and trilled, but to his surprise
, she returned his kiss eagerly.

  He deepened the kiss, urging her to open her mouth. He groaned when she parted her lips, and he could taste her sweetness again. He cupped her jaw, smoothing his thumb over her cheekbone as their kiss turned frantic.

  He pulled away before he bent her over the table and fucked her right there. She hissed at him. Her dark eyes had gone green with narrowed pupils, and he could see the tips of her fangs peeking past her kiss-swollen lips.

  He pressed his forehead against hers. “I brought you here because I missed you.”

  He was shocked by his admission. He hadn’t meant to say that. But she squeezed his hips and brushed her mouth against his before saying, “I missed you too.”

  He studied her for a moment, his thumb rubbing idly across her cheekbone as she met his look unblinkingly. He wanted to take her to his bed, he wanted to worship her body the way it was meant to be worshipped, but a few kisses and an admission that she missed him didn’t mean she would ever allow him between her smooth thighs again. Not a man like him. Not when –

  “I want you to fuck me. Will you?” Emerson said.

  Desire pushed past the shock from her request. Afraid she might immediately change her mind, he said, “Yes, Em,” and took her hand, nearly yanking her out of the kitchen and down the hallway toward his bedroom.

  They were barely in his room before she was pulling at his clothes, making those soft purrs that drove him insane.

  “Em, baby, slow down,” he said as she unbuttoned his jeans.

  “I don’t want slow, and you don’t either. Do you?”

  “No,” he said.

  “Good.” She unzipped his jeans and then stepped back, reaching for the hem of her shirt. “Get those clothes off, Clay.”

  He laughed and stripped off his clothes as she did the same. He’d forgotten just how glorious her naked body was. He stared hungrily at her as the sunlight through the window sent crisscrossing beams of light across her skin.

  She purred to him before kneeling on the bed and planting her hands on the mattress. He stared at her wet pussy, his mouth watering and his dick dripping precum, as she trilled loudly and said, “Don’t make me wait any longer, Clay.”

  He joined her on the bed, kneeling behind her and pressing the head of his cock against her entrance. She pushed back, sheathing him halfway, making them both moan as her wet warmth slid down over his dick.

  “Fuck, you feel so good.” He gripped her hips and buried himself to the hilt inside her tight pussy.

  “You too,” she panted before trilling. “I need you to fuck me. Please.”

  He made a few leisurely thrusts despite the way his body screamed at him to move faster. Emerson stared at him over her shoulder and growled and bared her fangs at him. “Harder, Clay.”

  New lust washed over him at her demand. He gathered her long hair into a ponytail and gripped the top of her shoulder with his free hand. “Whatever you want, baby.”

  He fucked her hard, smiling at the way she cried out, and then purred. He tugged her head back until she stared at the ceiling and pressed down on the small of her back, forcing her to arch more for him as he slid in and out of her perfect pussy.

  She met him thrust for thrust, low growls and purrs mixed in with soft trills as the sound of their mating echoed in the room. He managed to fuck her for nearly five minutes, managed to at least act like he hadn’t wanted to immediately fill her up with his come before he couldn’t control himself any longer. He reached under her and rubbed her swollen clit in small hard circles. “Come for me, baby.”

  He sounded desperate, but truthfully, he was. He was so fucking close already. Being back in Em’s tight pussy was his slice of heaven. His ability to last even a few minutes longer in her pussy had utterly abandoned him. If she didn’t come soon, he’d come before she did, and he’d really fucking embarrass himself.

  To his immense relief, her body stiffened, and she came around his cock with a growling purr that sent shivers up and down his spine. Her pussy squeezed tight, and he gripped her ass, shoving in deep as his climax washed over him.

  He moaned her name, sliding rapidly in and out of her as her pussy took all of him and demanded more. When her shaking arms gave out, she collapsed on the bed. He went down with her, falling on her with a heavy thud.

  She made a low groan. Clay immediately rolled off of her, turning onto his back and staring up at the ceiling as he reached for her with one arm. She curled up against him.

  “Sorry,” he gasped out. “Didn’t mean to crush you.”

  She half-laughed, half-purred. “It’s fine. You okay?”

  “Yeah, you?”

  “Hmm,” she said. “Much better.”

  He traced his fingers up and down her spine as they relaxed on the bed. After a few minutes, he said, “Thank you for saving my life.”

  “You’re welcome.” She kissed his chest.

  He smoothed her hair back from her face then rubbed her back again. “I shouldn’t have left so abruptly, but I was confused as hell when I saw Kat and Ronin.”

  “I know,” she said.

  He hesitated. “Kat told you what I did to them.”

  “Yes. I know you didn’t have a choice. Wyatt had your brother.”

  He should have kept his mouth shut. But he wanted Em to know the truth about everything that happened that night. “I didn’t know that when I kidnapped Kat.”

  She sat up, staring down at him with what could almost be compassion in her eyes. “I know. Kat told me everything, Clay. Including the part where you saved her life and Ronin’s life.”

  He looked away from her gaze, but she cupped his face and made him turn back to her. “You didn’t have to save them, but you did, Clay.”

  “I’m not a good guy,” he said. “Don’t start thinking that I am, Emerson.”

  She shrugged. “I can think whatever I want to think. You’re not the boss of me.”

  That made him laugh, and she leaned over and pressed a kiss against his mouth. “I’m glad your ability to teleport has come back.”

  “Me too.” Glad didn’t begin to describe the sheer overwhelming relief he’d felt when he heard the hums again, but he didn’t know how to articulate it.

  “Do you remember anything that happened after we left the cabin?” she said.

  “Not much,” he admitted. “I’m assuming you had Ronin heal me.”

  “I knew he was the only one who could help. I didn’t realize it would bring back your teleporting abilities too, though. Did you go back to the cabin?”

  “Yes. The bodies are gone. Wilson must have sent in a cleaning crew.”

  Her face paled a little. “I’m sorry I couldn’t go back to kill Dax. I just -”

  He sat up and cupped the back of her neck, pulling her in for a kiss. “I know. You don’t have to explain.”

  She released a shuddering breath. “Maybe he died anyway. He was shot twice in the chest, right?”

  “Maybe,” he said.

  “But we have to assume he didn’t,” she said.

  “I went back to Wilson’s house.”

  She stiffened, her eyes widening and a surprised growl falling from her lips. “You did what? Clay! Do you have a death wish? Is that it?”

  “I didn’t go back into his house,” Clay said. “Just outside.”

  “Oh, that makes it so much better.”

  The sarcasm in her voice made him grin. She hissed and poked him in the chest. “You’re lucky he didn’t capture you. You know that, right?”

  “I had to go back, Em,” he said. “I needed to…”

  “To what?” she said.

  “To see if there was even a chance that I could find Owen in his house.”

  The anger faded from her face. “Honey, it’s impossible. Even before he knew you had found Owen, Wilson kept him under tight security. It’ll only be worse now.”

  “I know,” he said. “You think I don’t fucking know that?”

  He winced and raked his hand
through his hair. “Shit. Sorry.”

  “I get it.” She took his hand. “I know you want to save Owen. I want that too. But you can’t do it alone, Clay.”

  That was easy for her to say. She had family and friends who loved her. He had Owen, and that was it.

  “I’m not alone,” he said. “I have a guy helping me.”

  “Who?”

  “His name is Saul.”

  “Is he a teleporter as well?”

  “No, he’s human and a… hacker. He’s the one who helped me figure out that Wyatt had given Owen to Granger.”

  “Okay,” Emerson said. “So, he’ll come in and save you if Wilson captures you. That’s what you’re saying?”

  He didn’t reply. Em leaned over, forcing him to meet her gaze. “Will he or won’t he, Clay?”

  “Saul isn’t a… friend. He works for me, nothing more.”

  She growled again. “So, if Wilson captures you, which he probably will, you’ll be his prisoner until you die.”

  He sat up and swung his legs over the side of the bed, staring moodily at the wall. “Give me some fucking credit, Em. I’m very good at what I do.”

  “I know that,” she said. “But Wilson has a lot of men and now a serum that can stop you from teleporting. You really think you can rescue Owen on your own?”

  Before he could reply, Emerson’s stomach growled. He stood and grabbed a pair of shorts out of the dresser. “Get dressed. I’ll make you some lunch.”

  “Clay, you can’t -”

  “You need to eat,” he said, “and so do I.”

  Chapter 18

  Emerson stared out the floor-to-ceiling window that dominated one wall of Clay’s living room. His penthouse was in the middle of downtown. She stared into the distance at the tiny ribbon of blue winding its way through the woods that flanked the north side of the city. Clay’s scent drifted into the room only seconds before she heard him enter.

  He stood behind her, as silent and pensive as he’d been all through lunch.

  “This view is incredible,” she said. “You can even see the river from here. I guess that’s what happens when you live in a penthouse.”

  He stepped closer. Emerson could feel his breath stirring her hair, feel the brush of his pelvis against her ass. She gave in to what she wanted and leaned against him, hoping like hell that he didn’t pull away.