by Fel Fern
Now that she’d mentioned it, he could see the passing resemblance between Lars and her.
“Lars is your brother?”
“Are you fucking retarded? If you’re not going to tell me where he is, then fuck off.”
Gods, this woman loved to swear far too much for his liking. “Just wait a second. I never said anything about not helping you.”
“So you’re going to tell me where he is?”
“Even better, I’ll bring you to him.” Noah nodded to the car parked next to her bike. “My car’s right over there. Get in.”
Suspicious gray eyes narrowed at his words.
“Sweetheart, you have some serious trust issues going on.”
“Don’t call me sweetheart.”
Noah grunted. “I’ll keep calling you what I want until you give me your name.”
“It’s Lex.” She managed to find a spare helmet and shoved it hard against his chest. “And we’re taking my ride, Noah.”
Chapter Three
Lex wasn’t a person who easily balked at anything, but she hesitated just outside the apartment door where her brother was holding his pard meeting. All her life she’d made damn sure to stay away from pards, now here she was crashing the party of one.
Still, she wasn’t immune to the metaphysical pard bonds surrounding the space. She’d never felt anything like it. It thrummed steadily with power and solidarity. None of the pards she’d come across ever felt like that.
It felt like the Leopold Pard’s leaders were intimately connected to all their cats. They were, in every sense of the word, like one single body, and it grated on her nerves. It was there, tempting her, teasing her, reminding Lex of things she’d never experienced.
The Leopold Pard bonds brushed against her own metaphysical bonds, testing and a little hostile. She didn’t think too much of it. It probably reacted the same way to any other outsider. Noah’s words echoed back to her, making her grit her teeth. “You don’t feel like you’re connected to any pard, so you don’t know what it’s like.”
Fuck this, but if I bolt now, this dominant cat is never going to let me hear the end of this. Lex was stumped. Why the hell would she care what Noah thought?
“Scared, kitten?” Noah drawled in that deep masculine voice of his.
Lex could feel her body reacting to his voice, making her aware of how close he was standing to her. How good he smelled. Oil, sweat, musk, and the subtle mind-wracking smell of pine.
During the short ride to Lars’s apartment, all Lex could think of was the hard, warm press of his muscles scraping against her back. Noah didn’t keep his leopard away. The curious beast kept baiting her own beast, rubbing, caressing, and teasing her she-leopard until the tension between their human bodies became unbearable.
If the bastard wanted to play and tease, then Lex could play just fine.
They didn’t speak about it. They just rode in silence. Noah kept his thick-corded arms respectfully around her waist, not going any lower, but occasionally Lex could feel him scenting her like a cat would scent a potential prey or mate.
“Yeah, right. You want me to wait here?” Lex asked.
“Nah, let’s go right in. The meeting’s about done.” Without waiting for a reply, Noah knocked on the door.
Seconds later, a sandy-haired man in his late twenties answered the door. Lex could hear relaxed voices in the room, but they were all drowned out as she focused on the man in front of her. He wore a plain white tee and an old pair of jeans. While he wasn’t padded with muscles like Noah, he had a lean whipcord frame that told Lex he’d seen his share of work and some time under the sun.
“Noah, you’re late,” the man said in a disapproving voice, but there was fondness there.
Lex could feel Noah’s metaphysical cat brushing against the other man with familiarity. The beasts brushed and entwined around each other just as the sandy-haired man leaned toward Noah for an unabashed, deep, lingering kiss.
This man, she guessed, was someone special to him. His mate, perhaps? If he was happily mated, then what the hell he was doing flirting with her?
“Mason,” Noah murmured, parting from the kiss.
Mason’s eyes became guarded when he caught sight of Lex. His eyes, Lex found out, were a nice shade of hazel green. They looked startled in the lean angles of his face, and the surprise there swiftly turned to something else. Something close to what Lex sensed from Noah, but less sharp and gentler.
Hunger.
Mason didn’t look at her like a potential threat even as he raked his eyes across her. Lex could feel her own traitorous body reacting under the heat of his gaze, her black leopardess shifting its stare from Noah to his mate with unconcealed interest.
“Who…?” Mason trailed off, his expression fixed on her.
A thin growl cut across the chattering crowd, and then it grew to an authoritative brass rumble. Immediately, the chattering leopard shifters in the crowded apartment fell silent as a tall, muscled, angry and inked dark-haired man in a leather jacket prowled to their direction.
“Lars, hold on a second,” Noah interrupted, using his body as a shield to block Lex from the man’s line of the sight.
If the enforcer thought Lex was going to cower behind him, he was dead wrong. She pushed past his muscled frame and leaned against the doorway, arms crossed, and greeted the Leopold Pard’s king.
“Hello, Lars. Not happy to see me?”
He was as menacing and angry as Lex remembered. By his shoulder was a tall shifter with shrewd green eyes.
“What the fuck are you doing in my city?”
If Lars had been considered a powerful werecat before, he was ten times more now. The pard bonds around him pulsed and reacted to his every word. Lex wasn’t standing in front of the outcast brother she’d grown up with.
She was standing in front of a leopard king. Her own black panther recognized that. Any other lesser female in his pard would bow their head in submission, but Lars wasn’t her king and had no control over her.
“So Leopold City is your city now? Pretty arrogant, don’t you think?”
A large rough hand placed itself on her shoulder, but Lex snarled at Noah. “Stay away from this.”
“Everyone, I think there’s no reason to be hostile. Lars, introduce us to this”—the green eyed shifter beside her brother and gave a quick raking glance—“charming lady.”
The way the man leaned close by Lars shoulder, and the casual way he touched Lars’s back, told Lex he was close to her brother. Was this man his consort? Leopard pards didn’t function like wolf packs. A triumvirate ruled them. By a king, queen, and their consort. Lex just never figured her brother for someone who’d settle down.
“Des, this is my sister, Lex.” Lars never took his hard and unforgiving gaze off her. “Never thought you’d come crawling back asking for my help, Lex.”
Lex had a hundred insults on the tip of her tongue, but a gentle voice interrupted her.
“Lars, there’s no reason to put everyone else on edge. Come, introduce your sister properly to me, Des, and the pard,” a female voice said.
Lars glowered at her, but he breathed in deeply. “Fine.”
“My pussy brother, whipped by a woman.”
“Oh, fuck.”
Lex thought it was Noah who muttered those words, but she didn’t see, because Lars grabbed a hold of her shoulders and shoved her against the wall. Lex bit in a cry of pain, not wanting to show weakness.
“Lars, I don’t think she means you harm,” Noah said sternly.
“This is personal family business, so unless you happen to be my sister’s mate, fuck off, Noah.”
“Lars,” the same female voice spoke again, more gently this time.
The pretty and petite red-haired woman who came by Lars’s side didn’t by any means look physically intimidating, but Lex could sense a quiet strength about her. The way she ran her fingers across Lars’s arm, and the way they both looked at each other, made Lex sick with envy.
Holy shit. The rumors hadn’t lied. Her brother was happily mated both to the Leopold Pard’s queen and consort.
“Noah’s right. She doesn’t seem to mean you harm and she smells hurt.” Concern appeared on the smaller woman’s features.
“I don’t need anyone to defend me, least of all you,” Lex told her stiffly, staring her down, but she didn’t flinch from her gaze.
“I can see that. If you made the effort to come here, wouldn’t it be better to talk about this in a more comfortable matter?”
“Forget it, Cas. Lex doesn’t do civil,” Lars interrupted.
To prove her annoying brother wrong, Lex ignored him and addressed his queen. “Cas, huh? Yeah, sounds good.”
“Good, then.”
Lars blinked, looking at his queen, then at Lex, finally letting her go.
“You want to talk? Fine, we’ll talk tomorrow, no arguments,” he said in a warning tone when he noticed Lex was about to disagree.
“You know how hard it is to find a place to crash this late?” Lex snarled.
With a killer stalking her, she didn’t want to stay long in the city. As much as it galled her, though, she couldn’t deny she needed Lars’s help, and the damn bastard was only going to give it to her under his own conditions.
“Don’t worry about a place to stay, sweetheart. You can stay with Mason and me,” Noah offered.
“Are you sure? She’s a handful,” Lars told Noah as if she wasn’t there.
Lex slumped against the wall, too tired to care. Besides, all her aches were acting up and she knew she was going to fall unconscious any time soon.
“Come with me, we’ll tend to your injuries before you go with Noah and Mason,” Cas told her in a soothing voice.
The other woman led her to a quiet room.
“You used your abilities as a leopard queen to influence my mind,” Lex protested, but all her protestations died away when the other woman gave her a severe look.
Besides, there was just something about Cas that made Lex trust her. If the woman could tame someone like her brother, then Cas could probably know how to handle her.
“Take off your jacket and shirt so we can see how badly injured you really are.”
Lex grumbled something, but let the smaller woman help her undress. Cas looked concerned about her injuries, but she had brushed it off. Lex had been in worse scraps before and in the end, all she sustained were deep gashes and rake marks, which were already healing.
“There you go, it wasn’t so hard, was it?” Cas patted her bandaged wrist somewhat affectionately.
“Why are you being so damn nice?” Lex asked suspiciously, startled by the sound of a baby crying.
A baby? Lex stared, only noticing the crib in the room as Cas picked a sniffling baby up.
“This is Jana. Say hi to your Aunt Lex, Jan.”
Lex froze, staring at the chubby little angel who had quieted down and was now staring at her with huge, drowning eyes. Jan had her mother’s curls and her brown eyes, but her nose and mouth were definitely her brother’s. Something felt hot and stuck in her throat.
She could see the baby’s metaphysical cub, and it had no spots.
“Would you like to hold her?”
“No,” Lex whispered.
The thought of children never occurred to her. She’d rather die first then let a child experience what she’d gone through growing up, but her brother, her whoring asshole brother, had managed to father a sweet little child.
Gods above, she was losing it. The smart thing was to flee, but it wasn’t so smart leaving when she didn’t get what she came for.
“Maybe another time, then.” Cas pressed the little girl to her chest, murmuring soft words to her, before the baby curled up against her. Then she looked at Lex. “Lars seldom talks about his family, but I know he regrets cutting his ties to you.”
Lex snorted. The door to the nursery opened, revealing her brother’s face. “Everything good here?”
“Yeah. Yeah. I’m going, see ya, Cas.” Lex met her brother’s eyes. “We’ll talk tomorrow?”
“We’ll talk,” Lars agreed.
Lex could feel the burn of his stare until she was out the door. Noah and Mason were waiting for her when she came out of the apartment building. Both men looked alarmingly attractive, leaning against an old pick-up. They also both looked uncommonly serious and in deep discussion when she arrived.
“Scared you two yet?” Lex asked.
“Kitten, it’s going to take a lot to scare us away,” Noah drawled, hooking his fingers into his jeans. Lex gave the bulge in his jeans a critical glance, making him laugh.
“If you’re hurt, it’s safer to ride with us,” Mason added, nodding to the truck. There was genuine concern in his voice.
“Forget it, lover. She’s going to take her ride. Besides, I don’t cherish being all scratched up by the time we head home.”
Ignoring Noah, Lex addressed Mason. “I’m already healing. Your queen tended to me quite good.”
“Cas is a sweetheart,” Mason agreed. “It’s just a short ride. Let’s get going. You look like you’ve traveled a long way, Lex.”
Chapter Four
“Are you sure, Lex? The couch isn’t as comfortable as a bed,” Mason said, offering her a fresh comforter.
Lex reached out for the comforter, lightly brushing at his hand. “You’re sweet, Mason, but no. It’s safer for me to stay out here.”
Mason could feel his pulse racing under his skin at the mere touch of her hand. He wrenched his gaze from the ink peering underneath the sleeves of her jacket and curling up her slender fingers, and snapped his attention back to her alluring face.
She coolly returned his gaze, her eyes a deep and unsettling color. “Is there anything else?”
Mason thought if he lingered long enough and made excuses, he could see more of her skin. Gods, she must’ve looked like a brilliant piece of art under her clothes.
While waiting for her outside Lars’s apartment, Mason had spoken at length to his mate about the female panther. They laid the bare facts out in the open.
Lex was dangerous and more trouble than she was worth.
After years of estrangement, she had come running to her brother for help. They didn’t have a clue what sort of threat she was running away from, but Mason could see Noah wasn’t the least bit logical or interested in backing off. Well, neither was he, but he’d disagreed with Noah about trying to claim her straight away.
Lex didn’t look like the kind of woman anyone could easily scare away, but Mason would prefer a willing woman than a hell cat, which was how he suspected Lex would react once she found out their real intentions.
Noah had admitted his guilt about wanting Lex not just for a quick fuck. Mason had a feeling his mate didn’t just want to have Lex to scratch an itch, but for something else. He wasn’t entirely sure he’d feel the same way about a stranger, but Mason couldn’t deny Lex’s strength. Her contrasting vulnerability also called to him on so many levels.
After establishing mating bonds with Noah, Mason didn’t think he would want anyone else. Noah wasn’t just his lover. He was his anchor and his savior after his overly religious family threw him out of their home when he was sixteen after finding out he’d been bitten and was capable of turning into a leopard. Noah and the Leopold Pard gave Mason a home and a new family.
Mason couldn’t ask for any more, but like his mate, though, he couldn’t draw his eyes away from the inked, pierced, and injured female standing in front of him.
“Mason.” Lex said his name again, making him blink.
“Yes, sorry. Are you sure you’re comfortable here?”
Her rich laugh tasted and sounded like honey, stirring his cock in his jeans.
“You already asked me that.”
“Why are you so afraid to come have a night of harmless fun with the two of us, sweetheart?” came Noah’s deep voice.
Mason’s mate was leaning against the doorway of the bedr
oom, dressed only in a pair of boxers, his hair still wet from the shower. While Mason didn’t appreciate Noah’s bluntness, he could appreciate the hard muscles lining Noah’s body and the light dusting of hair disappearing down his shorts. He didn’t have as much ink as Lex, but he had his share across his back and shoulders.
If Lex’s voice stirred his cock from his sleep, it was definitely alert now.
“Who’s afraid?” Lex demanded, crossing her arms.
“You are, baby. Let’s quit playing games. You can smell both our arousal and we can smell yours.”
Mason gave his mate a warning look, but he had a feeling Noah couldn’t care less about playing it slow tonight. He thought Lex would buckle and fight more. Mason was ready to throw in the towel, to give her some space, and sort out his muddled feelings about adding a third to the mix.
“It’s been a while since I had a threesome.”
All of Mason’s conflicted feelings cleared the moment she said those words. It was easier to feel and to experience, rather than spend too much time thinking and debating.
“In my opinion, sweetheart, you’re wearing far too much clothes,” Noah said, showing his teeth.
Mason wondered for a second if Noah knew what he was doing. He was no less relieved when Noah gave him a secret wink, as if he knew what Mason was thinking.
What if a single night could set off and start something they weren’t sure they could see to the end? Noah made it clear he wanted to keep Lex, but Mason had a hard time seeing the road vagrant being permanently affixed to one place. Then again, wasn’t their king once the same? Could he and Noah be what Cas and Des were to their king?
“I agree with Noah,” Mason observed, treated by the sound of her laughter again.
“Sure. I’ll give you boys a strip tease, but I want to see the goods first.”
Following those words, Noah mutely stepped out of his boxers, revealing the impressive, thick, and meaty erect length Mason was familiar with. Even now, looking at his mate sizzled heat inside of his belly.