by Terry Spear
He waited until the place was open for business, then drove his truck around to the entrance and parked.
What was he going to ask them? Seen any really big kitty cats around lately?
***
Wade thought David looked a hundred percent better after having slept on Maya’s couch the night before. The gash on his head was just a white line against his tan forehead now, the colorful bandages gone. They’d shared lunch with Everett and Huntley, who afterward had gone to their own terminal to wait for their flight to Brazil. Now he, Maya, and David were waiting to take their flight to Belize.
Maya had acted anxious most of the day, wringing her hands, pacing, and not paying attention to conversations that had included her. Wade knew she was worried about the hunters and her brother and Kat.
He finally pulled her into a seat and wrapped his arm around her shoulder, trying to relax her. “So tell me, what is your favorite food?”
She looked up at him as if he was crazy, then gave him the warmest smile and nestled her head against his shoulder. “Ice cream. Coffee-flavored, covered in hot fudge topping.”
“Sweet,” he said, meaning she was, just like her choice of food.
“Yours?”
“Juicy red steak.”
“Hmm, sounds yummy,” she said.
David looked up from the romance novel he was reading. “Fried chicken.”
Maya laughed. “Fried foods are not good for you.”
“I run it off.”
She glanced in the direction of the gate next to them where passengers were beginning to take their seats. Wade and David followed her gaze. A woman with hair as long, blond, and full as Lion Mane’s was talking to another woman waiting for a different departure. Wade noted that every person with long, blond hair had caught Maya’s eye.
But Lion Mane wouldn’t be flying anywhere, he didn’t think, and he couldn’t get into the terminal without a plane ticket.
“Favorite color?” Wade prompted.
“That blue chambray shirt of yours.”
He kissed her cheek. “Thanks for trying to get the blood out.”
She looked at him with her beautiful golden eyes. “Sorry it didn’t work.”
David said, “Turquoise, like the Caribbean water.”
Wade thought for a moment, then smiled. “Golden like your eyes, Maya.”
David snorted. “I didn’t know you had a romantic bone in your body.”
Wade glanced at him. “Aren’t you reading something?”
David grinned back at him. “It’s hard to read when I’m more interested in…” He paused to take a look at another blond-haired woman.
Maya sighed. “Did you think it was Lion Mane?”
“Yeah,” David said.
“You didn’t happen to get his name when you danced with him, did you?” Wade asked.
“Of course not. Then he would have really thought I was interested in him, more than just his hair. Besides, after Bill Bettinger came to the nursery, we should be more concerned about looking for him showing up here.”
“Everett tore into him good from what Huntley told us. I doubt you’ll have any more trouble with Bettinger,” Wade said. He hoped to have taken Maya’s mind off her worries, at least for the moment. “What do you like to do that’s fun?”
“Swimming.”
That made him think of her wearing the black lace bra and panties again, swimming in the Amazon. Did she pack those this trip? He smiled.
“What?” Maya asked, observing his expression.
David looked at Wade.
Wade said, “The chase.”
Maya purred, “I just bet you love that.”
David shook his head.
They both watched him.
David closed his book. “I like to read, swim…” He grinned. “…and chase things.”
“Wade said you were reading a romantic suspense story. Do you really like them?”
David smiled. “I’m learning what it takes to get the girl during a high-action adventure.”
Maya chuckled and rolled her eyes.
***
Maya had tried to hide her nervousness about leaving for Belize, but she hadn’t been able to. Now that hunters could be in the area, she was more than anxious to get there. She had to warn Connor and Kat about the hunters. She was certain her brother and Kat would have made a couple of treks into the jungle already, exploring and marking their territory—it was just instinctual.
Maya prayed that they were fine. She wished she could have reached them by phone, but that was one of the problems with going to remote places. Yet the remote places were just what they needed so they could shift and run in the wild.
She was grateful that Wade had tried to take her mind off her worries. She swore she’d seen Lion Mane and Bill Bettinger at the airport earlier. The blond guy’s hair had been pulled back in a ponytail, which had changed his appearance, but the redhead—well, she had to admit they’d been really far away.
Still… the way the blond had caught her eye and looked startled had caused a shiver to run up her spine. When she tried to get Wade and David to verify who she’d seen, neither had caught sight of them. She guessed her mind was playing tricks on her.
“About last night…” Wade began. His whole body posture was saying she was his—his girlfriend—his thigh touching hers, his head leaning close to hers, his arm slung over her shoulders with tenderness, even the way his eyes swallowed her up. That all made her resolve—to date lots of other shifters before she settled on one—melt at the edges.
“You were out of your head.” Maya leaned back against her seat. “I understand.”
His mouth quirked up a little, his darkened eyes smiling. “You don’t really believe that, do you?”
No, she didn’t. She wanted to run with Wade in the jungle, wanted to see more of him. Wanted more of his kisses. And just… more. From the dark gravelly tone of his voice, he sounded like he already knew that.
Yet, she was afraid of… making a mistake. Her mother had made one with their father. Would she also? Daughter like mother?
Maya rested her hand lightly on Wade’s thigh. She hated that he had to run off and confront smugglers, even though his brother would be with him. She wished he could vacation with her.
“I want to see more of you, Maya. I’ll be at the resort if I can make it.” Wade kissed her softly on the mouth. “Just get word to your family. David and I have to stop these men.”
She wanted to see more of him, too, but she didn’t want him to think she was desperate. Not now that she knew others of their kind existed close to where she lived.
“Connor could assist you in locating the hunters. He won’t want to leave Kat alone, but once I’m there with her, he can help the two of you.” She didn’t want just Wade and David dealing with however many men were behind this operation.
“If we can’t track them down, we’ll ask Connor to join us.”
She didn’t believe Wade was being honest with her. She was certain he had no intention of asking Connor for his help. Macho guy thing.
“In the meantime, see the caves, take a boat ride, enjoy the jungle, but as humans. All right, Maya?”
She nodded.
Boarding call was announced and they all made their way to their seats on the plane, David taking hers. Maya was sitting beside the window, Wade in the middle, and a nice grandmotherly lady in the aisle seat.
Ever since Wade had told her about the possible danger to Connor and Kat, she’d been fighting the worry. Once she took her seat, she closed her eyes as the flight took off. She couldn’t do anything until she reached the resort. At least the flight was fairly short. The bus ride was nearly as long, though. Connor and Kat would meet her once she arrived, so they wouldn’t be running around as jaguars until after she got there. Tonight.
***
When they arrived in Belize City, they took a bus for the three-hour drive to the resort. What was supposed to be strictly a vacation could very well turn into a nightmare.
“We’ll watch you get off and join your brother and Kat,” Wade told her, squeezing her hand. “We’ll be in touch if we stop these guys before your vacation ends. When we have word, we’ll let you know.”
“I wish you could stop and visit, but it’s late and—”
“Connor won’t like seeing us,” Wade finished for her. “We need to get checked into our place.”
When the bus came to a halt, he stood and gave her a hug and a kiss—not sweet in the least, but more of a promise he’d be seeing her again, soon. David gave her a brief kiss and a hug that was just as comforting.
Wade slugged him in the shoulder. “Enough.”
David had the nerve to grin at him and released her.
“Are you going to be okay, Maya?” Wade asked.
“Yeah. Be careful, both of you.” Maya hurried off the bus as the driver unloaded bags.
“She’ll be fine,” David said as they retook their seats.
“Yeah.” Wade watched as Connor greeted Maya, then frowned at her and looked up at the bus. “Her brother smells us on her, and he looks pissed.”
“You know she wants to see other shifters, don’t you?” David asked, his voice sympathetic as the bus continued on its way.
Wade nodded. He wanted to say it didn’t matter to him. That if it was important to her, he’d be happy for her.
“You’re not going to let her if you can help it, are you?” David raised his brows, trying to look serious, but a smile was begging to appear. “I’m serious,” David added.
Wade wanted to protect her from her brother, Connor, who would give her a hard time for having been with so many shifters. He knew she carried their body scents because she’d hugged them all soundly.
Wade looked out the window. “She lives in Texas with her brother and Kat. We live in Florida. Kind of hard to keep her from seeing anyone else.”
“So? You know she really has a thing for you.”
“Yeah, and that’s why she danced with the blond guy.”
“She’s scared.”
Wade frowned. “Of me?”
“Of getting too close, falling in love, and marrying a shifter who would take off like her father. Everett told me that’s what her father did.”
Wade ran his hand through his hair. “I wouldn’t be like that. If I found the right woman…”
“I know that. She’s interested in you. She kissed you like there was no tomorrow. She wants you. Hell, even that woman, Jeanie, that you thought you would marry, never kissed you like that.”
Wade smiled.
“Or danced with you like that. You’re not going to let Maya date a bunch of other shifters and make a mistake with one of them, are you?”
Wade shoved his hands in his pockets.
David folded his arms. “Okay, if you’re not going to stop her from dating other shifters, I will.”
“The hell you will.”
David grinned and slapped Wade on the back. “That’s what I wanted to hear.”
Chapter 8
As soon as she got off the bus, Maya saw Connor. His brow was furrowed, but then he smiled a little. Where was Kat?
Trying not to anxiously drum up worst-case scenarios, Maya took a deep breath and hurried to give Connor a hug. “Where’s Kat?”
“Sleeping. She was feeling tired and nauseated.”
“Oh.” Maya wanted to say “good,” only because she was so grateful Kat was safe. But Connor wouldn’t understand. She opened her mouth to tell him right away about the hunters, but as soon as she embraced her brother, his somberly pleasant expression soured. She realized he had to have smelled Wade and David on her… and two other male cats, her cousins, who had given her hugs before they left her for their terminal.
She and Connor were walking along a path that seemed to be taking them straight into the jungle until it opened up to reveal a group of treetop cottages half hidden by jungle vegetation.
“How come I smell four different male cats on you?” Connor asked, his tone accusing as he frowned at Maya. He motioned with his head to one of the cottages as they made their way along the treetop walkway. “That’s our cottage.”
“I’ll tell you when I’m unpacking. I’ve got to warn you and Kat that hunters are in the area. They’re looking for jaguars.”
“That’s always a possibility.” Connor did not sound the least bit concerned.
“It’s a certainty.”
As they continued on their way along the path, she noted that the lush tropical foliage hid each of the cottages from the others, giving them privacy. Maya loved the way the trees surrounded them, reminding her of the hut where they’d stayed in the Amazon.
“How do you know this?” Connor asked while she unlocked her door.
She carried her backpack in while he rolled her large suitcase into the room.
The five-hundred-square-foot cottage was spacious, featuring a living area and a raised bedroom with a king-size bed covered in a white duvet and jungle-print pillows partially hidden by mesh netting. She glanced at the floor-to-ceiling windows that wrapped around three sides of the cottage, offering a view of the bright green jungle. A couple of beige couches and chairs decorated in jungle-print pillows filled the living area, and a tree grew off center through the floor and the ceiling, giving the room its treetop feel. She adored the place.
“Wow.” A wooden railing dividing the living room from the bedroom gave the cottage a more open feeling. She instantly thought of Wade with her in that bed. She shook her head at the notion, but she couldn’t rid herself of the desire—just like Connor sharing his bed with Kat.
“Maya, what makes you so certain the hunters are here? You just got here. And why do I smell four different male cats on you?”
“Cousins,” she said. She mentioned them first so that Connor wouldn’t be too upset with her. “We’ve got family. Huntley and Everett Anderson. And Tammy, their sister, but I didn’t get to meet her this time.” She couldn’t hide her enthusiasm as she grinned at Connor. Her expression quickly changed to concern when Connor folded his arms and looked at her with disbelief.
She sat on the edge of the bed. The mattress was soft and comfy, and again she was thinking of what it would feel like to have Wade naked in her bed.
Connor rested his butt against the dresser, still looking peeved.
“Do you remember Wade Patterson?”
Connor was already scowling, but now his expression turned feral.
She quickly said, “He’s with a secret jaguar agency that polices our kind.”
Connor’s scowl turned to disbelief. “And you believe that crock of bull? Next you’ll tell me he’s part of some Special Forces group—that he’s a SEAL or some damned nonsense. Do you know how many real SEALs there are and how many men claim they were one?”
She cast him an annoyed look and folded her arms. She should have known her brother would think Wade was making it all up. “No, listen. Our cousins, Everett and Huntley? They’re also working for this organization.”
“Maya…”
“It’s true. We kept ourselves isolated from others just like our parents did. And probably their parents before them. We knew there had to be more of us. We’ve never met any shifters in our area, so all we see are humans. The others are city jaguars, not… well, wild like us. They don’t visit the jungle like we do. They had to make up a police force to keep shifters in line who don’t follow the rules. Regular police wouldn’t do because of the problem with jaguars shifting.”
“We don’t even know what these supposed rules are so that we can follow them,” Connor said. “If what you’re saying is true, why haven’t these peo
ple come knocking on our door before?”
“We’re law-abiding citizens. We don’t do anything that would cause this police force to bother with us.”
Connor narrowed his eyes. “So you hugged our two cousins, which is the reason for their scents on your skin. What about the other two?” He had to know one of the others was Wade Patterson, since he was the only other male cat she’d been talking about.
“Wade and his brother, David Patterson.”
Connor shook his head and moved toward the one chair in the bedroom. “I think I’m going to have to sit down to hear the rest of this.”
As she unpacked and noted all the niceties in the cottage, she explained everything—the brothers, the cousins—but not the brawl—and as much as she hated to admit that Connor might have been right about advertising their nursery by featuring a jaguar, she told him about the zoo man, Thompson.
Connor let out his breath in exasperation. “Don’t tell me you want to see this Wade Patterson further.”
Why wouldn’t she? He’d been such a help to them before, took care of her at the club, and watched over her at the house. He was really sweet, if she didn’t think of the moves he made on the dance floor or while kissing her on the couch. Then he was hot and sexy and all the more intriguing.
She shrugged. “He lives in Florida. But yeah, maybe.”
She didn’t believe she could be interested in a jaguar shifter who wouldn’t visit or feel comfortable in the jungle.
What if she found a city jaguar who she thought she could acclimate to the jungle, and he hated it? Or was afraid of the rainforest? A man like that wouldn’t appeal. So even though she had more of a choice now, the notion that some didn’t visit the jungle limited her options.
“What about Kat?” Connor asked, his eyes narrowed.
“He’s not interested in her.”
Connor harrumphed.
Maya opened the door to the deck.
“The cottages are actually built on the side of a hill with walkways winding through the trees. The deck leads to stairs and another path to the main lodge where meals are served,” Connor said.
“We’re not catching dinner as jaguars?” She wasn’t surprised, not with the layout of these cottages. Their hut in the Amazon was much more primitive, with no restaurant within walking distance.