Loving the Tigers

by Tianna Xander

  “Uh-oh. She just saw me and she’s pissed.”

  “Can you blame her? She’s been hiding from us and here we are.” Derek tipped his glass back, draining the contents. “I don’t know about you, but I don’t want my drink tossed in my lap.”

  “Good idea.” Zach followed suit, drinking the last of his tea.

  The bell on the door jingled as it slammed open and she stalked through the door, her temper clearly written on her face.

  “Ha, ha!” A man at the bar chortled. “Someone’s in the dog house. That’s for sure.”

  “Shut up and mind your own business.” Kelly stopped and glared at the man until he stopped smirking.

  “Just funning around.” Turning back to the bar, he waved to the waitress. “Check, please.”

  It took every ounce of self-control for Zach to remain where he was. Now that she knew they were here, he wanted nothing more than to gather her in his arms and kiss her fears and worries away. Just one sniff of her wonderful scent, sent his heart into overdrive and the mating heat—which had been simmering in his gut for the last three months—turned to a boil, once again.

  “What are you two doing here?” she said as she stopped by their table, her toes tapping against the checkerboard-tiled floor. “You’re not supposed to know where I am!” She stomped her foot. “I can’t even blame Jessi for telling you, can I? Even if she called you right after our conversation, there’s no way you could have gotten here in less than an hour.” She narrowed her eyes, meeting each of their gazes in turn. “How long have you been here?”

  “Not long,” Zach replied and slid toward the window. “We haven’t even ordered yet. Care to join us?”

  “Now you’re being deliberately obtuse.” She waved her arm. “You know what I meant.”

  “If you want to know how long we’ve been in Rhode Island,” Derek replied. “We’ve been here quite a while.” He also slid toward the window, leaving her space to sit.

  “How long is a while and how long have you been in the Newport area specifically?” She frowned at them each in turn. “And stop smiling at me like that. I didn’t come in here to see you. I was out of milk and just happened to see you sitting here while I was crossing the street to buy a cup to go.”

  “I’m not sure what you mean. Smiling at you like what?” Zach grinned as she sat down next to Derek and huffed out a sigh.

  “Don’t give me that crap.”

  The waitress picked that time to bring a pitcher of tea over to refill their glasses. “Can I get you anything, sweetie?”

  “I’ll just have whatever they’re having.” Her stomach growled and her cheeks bloomed red.

  “Well, I’ll be having a bacon double cheeseburger, heavy on the bacon, add the works and a side of fries,” Derek said, his foot hitting his with more force than necessary.

  “Same here,” Zach added. “And add a third for the lady. She looks hungry.”

  “No!” Kelly cried as the waitress smiled and walked away. “I’m on a diet, damn it!”

  “Not anymore.” He let his gaze wander over every inch of her that wasn’t hidden by the table. “You’re wasting away, baby, and we can’t have that. We need you strong and healthy.” He waggled his brows. “The stronger, the better.”

  “Strong and healthy is one thing.” She scowled. “Fat is something else, altogether.”

  “You are not fat. You have never been fat.” Zach slammed his fist on the table, making her jump. “Even if you were what humans deem overweight, you have never been anything less than perfect.” He narrowed his eyes. “Even now, when your curves are less than they once were, you are still perfect. You have always been perfect... for us.” He leaned back when the waitress returned with another iced tea and placed it on the table. “Thank you, Carly.”

  “You’re welcome, sugar.” She gave him a smile. “Your burgers will be out in a few minutes.” She glanced at Kelly. “I had the cook make yours a single. You don’t look like you could eat much more than that. Besides,” she said with a wink, “If they’re paying, why not leave room for dessert?” Spinning around, the waitress headed back toward the kitchen.

  “Thank you!” Kelly called out after the waitress before turning her attention back to them. “Okay, what are you two doing here? And why have you been in Rhode Island for several weeks?”

  “You can’t guess?” Derek turned in his seat, resting his back against the window.

  “It’s not because of me.” She shook her head, her tongue darting out to wet her lips. “If that’s the case, why would you stay in town and not tell me you were here?” She shook her head. “Nope. I don’t believe it.”

  “Believe it, honey.” Zach leaned forward, took her hands in his and kissed each of them. “I’ve waited months to touch you again.” He closed his eyes and sighed, loving the way her soft, brown skin felt beneath his fingers. “We’ve been through hell sitting in this small town, watching you and waiting for you to want us.”

  “I’ve always wanted you. That was never the issue.”

  Tears filled her eyes and Zach immediately regretted his choice of words.

  She pulled her hands from his. “Sometimes, I think I’ve wanted you too much.” Resting her elbows on the table, she covered her face and sobbed into her hands. “I’ve missed you. I—I’ve needed you, so much.”

  “Then why didn’t you call us, or tell Jessi where you were?” Derek asked.

  “Why didn’t you tell me you were here?” she countered, watching him intently.

  “We wanted to.” Zach slid his thumb over the back of her hand. “You have no idea how much we wanted to tell you. But you wanted space. You needed to reach out to us when you were ready. We could only wait. Pressuring you was not the answer and it was not the message we wanted to send.” He gave her a one-sided grin. “Besides, it’s against our laws.”

  Chapter Seven

  “Okay...” Kelly said as she threw her keys down on the table just inside her door. “Now that we’re done with lunch and you managed to get me to eat more in that one meal than I usually do in a day, I want to know what you two think you were doing spying on me all this time. There are human laws against that, you know. It’s called stalking.” Kelly tried not to think about how small her apartment seemed with them in it. She rested her hands on her hips and stared up at them. “And sit down. You’re putting a freaking crick in my neck.”

  They each took a seat, Derek on the sofa and Zach in the easy chair.

  “Don’t think I don’t know what you’re up to, mister.” She gave Zach a narrow-eyed glare. Spinning around, she stalked over to the dinette and grabbed a chair. “I’ll just sit here, thank you very much.” Seated, she placed her hands on her lap and stared the guys down. “Well?”

  “We wanted to make sure that you were all right.”

  “Hmph...” Crossing her arms, she refused to look in their direction, in case they managed to give her one of those damned smoldering looks that melted her insides to mush. “And?”

  After a few moments of silence, her curiosity got the best of her and she looked at them and followed their line of sight straight to her chest and the long line of cleavage exposed when she’d crossed her arms.

  “Oh!” Immediately, Kelly uncrossed her arms. “Will you two stop looking at my boobs?”

  How would she ever get a straight answer out of either of them if they couldn’t manage to concentrate on the matter at hand?

  “Uh... sorry,” Zach said with a grin.

  “Yeah, sorry about that.” Derek didn’t appear any more contrite than his partner.

  “You two look about as remorseful as Merlin.” She gestured to the corner where her gray tabby sat, licking himself.

  “Well... we are cats.”

  “I know.” She glanced at Derek. “Don’t remind me.”

  “Though, I will say I have never licked my own balls,” Derek said with a wink.

  “I am so not touching that one.”
She shook her head.

  “So, that’s what your problem is. We’re not human,” Zach said with a sigh. “I suppose there’s no getting around that, is there?” He glanced at Derek. “Perhaps we should just leave her alone and go back to the cascade.”

  “Like I’d believe you’d do that.” She snorted. “You’ll just hang out at the diner even longer until I either move again and you follow me, or until I change my mind,” she said with a shake of her head. “Why don’t I just save all of us some heartache and tell you that I’ve already changed my mind.” She shrugged. “I think.”

  They both sat forward in their seats. “You have?”

  “Well...” Her face burned as she tried not to notice their broad shoulders and the impressive packages they both had hidden beneath their zippers. She also tried not to think about her worn out sex toys in the other room. Hell, her old dildo was still sticking head-first out of the trash can next to the bed where she’d thrown it in a fit of frustrated rage after it quit that morning. Of course, she’d rushed out to the nearest novelty store and bought a new one but not before screaming in a fit of frustration as it sputtered out at precisely the wrong time.

  “I’d be lying if I told you I haven’t thought about you two these past months.” That was an understatement. She’d thought of them every damned day and lonely night. How many times had she wondered where they were and what they were doing, realizing now that they had been right here in Middletown, watching her? “In fact...” She sucked her bottom lip between her teeth as she wondered exactly how much she should tell them. “I’ve thought about you two often.” She stared at the floor, her cheeks burning. “Sometimes, I’ve even regretted making such a hasty decision and leaving so quickly last year.”

  If they rejected her for that, she wouldn’t blame them. How many men would take a woman back after deserting them the way she had? Maybe she hadn’t known them. Hell, she still didn’t. Not really. All she knew was that no one could hold a candle to either of them, let alone the two of them together.

  She’d been a fool to run out on them. Taking a deep breath, she decided that she wouldn’t make the same mistake twice. This time, she was jumping up, grabbing that brass ring and holding tight.

  They glanced at each other for a moment before they turned their attention back to her.

  “We’re glad to hear that,” Derek said.

  He watched her intently, his light blue eyes staring deep into hers.

  “You have no idea how pleased we are to hear it,” Zach agreed. He smiled at her, flashing a dimple, before he winked.

  Rising from his seat, he knelt before her and grasped her hand. With his gray eyes staring into hers, he kissed the back of her fingers. She took notice of the difference of their hands. His were so large and light, hers smaller and dark. Because of her mixed heritage, the contrast wasn’t stark, but it was noticeable. Were those differences what attracted them so much?

  The back of her hand tingled where his breath brushed her skin and she shivered as goose bumps raced up her arms. Her stomach flipped at the thought that, after so many months of running, these two men still wanted her.

  “I don’t believe you two can forgive me so easily.” If what Jessi had told her was true, and she knew her friend would never lie to her, they had spent the last few months in pain—horrible pain. Yet, they sat here smiling at her as though nothing was wrong, that her decision couldn’t condemn them to a half-life or no life at all. “What kind of man waits that long for a woman to make up her mind?”

  Was she asking them that question, or herself? Kelly met Zach’s gaze and then Derek’s as he slid his arm off the back of the couch and joined his partner on the floor in front of her.

  “Why aren’t you mad at me for running away?”

  Chapter Eight

  Derek took a deep breath, loving the smell of her soap and the underlying scent of his mate that drew his cat to her like a thirsty beast to water. “Because you’re our mate.” He held her attention. “Full animal tigers don’t care what female they mate with. They’re driven by the scent of a female in heat and mate with those available. On the other hand, shifters, like us, mate for life.”

  “Something within us draws us to the people who can make our lives complete. Sometimes it’s one person. Other times it’s two, three or even four.” Zach smiled when she gasped and covered her mouth with her hand.

  “Four?” She shook her head. “Uh... no. I hope you’re not telling me there’s two more guys out there waiting for a go-ahead, because wanton slut or not, I draw the line at two men at a time.”

  “Stop that!” the two men said together with a growl.

  “We will not have you tearing yourself down. You are our mate, the most precious person in the world to us. No one speaks badly of our mate.” Derek thinned his lips as his eyes stared deep into hers. “Not even our mate, herself.”

  “Uh... okay.” Kelly licked her lips and gently pulled her fingers from his grip. “I’ll try not to say things like that anymore.” She glanced around the room as though not sure of what to say. “So... what happens now?”

  Derek fought the urge to smile at her apparent embarrassment. Her cheeks reddened when she glanced at them, her gaze nervously darting between them before sliding down to their obvious erections.

  “Whatever you want.” He glanced at Zach. “We won’t move forward unless you tell us that is what you desire.”

  “I have to tell you?” Her face reddened even more. Pulling her hands from theirs, she covered her face. “I—I can’t do that. I can’t tell you that I—”

  “That you want us?” Zach moved closer.

  “That you need us?” Derek pressed against her side and leaned toward her, his lips nearly touching her ear. He breathed gently into the delicate whorl, aching to taste her, but too afraid to scare her into rejecting them again.

  After a year of holding his tiger on such a short leash, he wasn’t certain he could watch her walk out of their lives again. As much as he wanted to pull her into his arms and show her in no uncertain terms that he desired her more than he had ever wanted a woman in his life, he knew that he must take things slowly, lest he lose this chance at having her in his life—in their lives.

  “You must at least let us know that what we do doesn’t frighten or hurt you.” Derek leaned closer still, burying his face in her fragrant hair and licked the side of her neck.

  The taste of her sweet skin burst over his tongue. He couldn’t wait to take her into his arms, strip her naked and bury his face between her legs. Still, he managed to keep a tight rein on his beast, he didn’t want to frighten her into running away again.

  Derek’s stomach burned and cramped as it had done constantly since the day they’d met. His tiger snarled its rage at not completing the mating bond. It took every ounce of willpower within him to hold the raging beast at bay.

  Reaching up, he cupped her chin, gently turning her to face him. He met her brown and gold gaze, the slight blue mixing in, making it a beautiful amalgamation of sunlit sky and chocolate. Her tongue darted out, wetting her lips as she stared back at him, unblinking.

  This was the reason he and Zach had managed to hold on for three long months. She was the reason they had held their beasts and the burning of the mating heat within them for so long while waiting for her to decide they could have a life together.

  Her scent, her smooth skin, and the softness of her body called to them—wait for me, I’m worth it—and she was. One glance from her was worth waiting every excruciating second. The last several months of pain was nothing compared to one smile from those lush lips, one look from those beautiful eyes, or one touch of her silken fingers against his forearm.

  Slowly, Derek moved closer and closer still, until his lips were but a mere hairsbreadth from hers. He searched her face for censure or fear and found only excitement and anticipation. The scent of her arousal struck him hard and he wanted nothing more than to take her right here, ri
ght now.

  As gently as he knew how, he pressed his mouth against hers, his tongue tracing the thin line between her lips. Her eyelids fluttered down, her breathing stopped as she kissed him back, her lips opening when he traced the seam with his tongue.

  Wrapping his arms around her, he pulled her tight, delving deep into her mouth. He tasted her sweet breath and reveled in the way she melted into his embrace.

  Skimming his hands over her back, he molded her body to his. Standing, he pulled her up with him, his fingers sliding down to cup her ass, pulling her hips tight against his erection. He wanted no doubts in her mind that he wanted her, that they wanted her.

  As tenderly as he knew how, he broke their kiss, unable to stop himself from pressing little kisses to her nose, cheeks and eyes before he stepped away. If he didn’t stop now, he might not be able to quit kissing her until he made love to her and there were so many more things that needed said before either of them could claim her.

  Derek held her until she stopped swaying on her feet. She wriggled her hips a bit in a cute little dance, rubbing her thighs together in a way that made him want to smile. Still, he held it in check, lest she mistake his smile for ridicule. Their mate was a fragile flower and he wanted nothing more than to nurture her gently.

  She took a deep breath. If he wasn’t mistaken, it was the first she’d taken since he’d kissed her. Pressing two fingers to her mouth, she opened her glazed eyes and met his gaze. “You sure know how to kiss.”

  Chapter Nine

  Kelly stared up at Derek, her lips still tingling. She hadn’t forgotten that little bit about them. In fact, that had haunted her day and night while she lay in her lonely bed and cried herself to sleep until the pain of their separation finally faded.

  She held her fingers to her lips, not wanting the sensation of his mouth pressed against hers to go away. After waiting all those months to feel it again, she wasn’t in a hurry to lose it.