“And I’m not a sweet, fragile swan that needs coddling.”
He wondered if she’d ever met his brother’s secretary. The swan’s cheerfulness irritated the shit out of him, but she sure wasn’t weak. That bird had a backbone of steel.
And, he realized, so did his mate. He should let her see him now. At his most dominant, his most possessive. There was no way to temper those traits. No way to ease her into his life. Not that he’d been doing that. So he fucked her. Hard and fast. Until her cunt clenched tightly around him and she screamed her release like an eagle’s battle cry. Seconds later he roared his own release.
He sensed her withdrawal almost immediately. Rolling over, he pulled her across his chest, anchoring her to him the best way he knew how. She wasn’t hiding. She wasn’t running. He refused to allow it. She was his.
Chapter Four
Ajax woke to weak daylight reflecting off the window, the cloud cover hadn’t abated during the night, and languid sensual heat. The big cat who’d invaded her life and home was pushed close, his chest against her back, one thigh between hers and an insistent erection against her ass. Her head was pillowed on one thick biceps. His other arm was wrapped tightly around her waist.
His breathing was deep and even with sleep, but she didn’t dare move, didn’t try to exit the bed. She told herself it was because she knew any movement on her part would rouse him, but a secret needy part of her mind recognized the lie. She liked being held in his embrace. She hadn’t felt so safe, so protected, in years.
An unfamiliar ring tone jarred her from the disturbing direction of her thoughts. His cell phone was on her nightstand and she reached for it, hoping to answer before the shrill tone woke him. He got to it first.
“Yes?” he barked.
She bit her bottom lip against a smile while rolling to her back. Clearly, her big cat didn’t like having his sleep disturbed. He leaned over her, and she traced the stubble on his chin. The man on the other end of the line said his name and Nico jumped up, pacing to the other side of the room. He kept his back to her, one hand on his hip and stared out the window. Part of her mind registered that the snow had stopped, but she was so distracted by his scrumptious ass she missed the first part of the conversation.
Wereeagle ears were sharp and even standing several feet away and murmuring she heard the relevant parts. No wonder he thought his father was still alive. The conversation ended quickly, and he turned to face her, body rigid and eyes flinty.
“You heard?”
“Some of it.”
“If he’s alive, there’s a reason he’s not contacting us.”
She knew anger made her eyes the angry slits of her bird. “Surely you’re not suggesting my people are keeping him captive.”
She barely restrained herself from emphasizing my people, reminding herself just in time he didn’t know he was accusing the royal heir of holding his father hostage, but even she heard the edge of doubt in her voice. She only knew one person gutsy enough to make that kind of move without her approval. Her cousin was already on her shit list. She was almost positive he’d hired the ocelot assassin Ramon Guerra to kill Lyra Leonidas, formerly Lyra Marcus and incidentally the niece of Michael Lycaon, the werewolf Alpha, and pretty certain he bankrolled a werewolf named Derek’s attempt to oust Michael and install himself as Alpha. But if he were behind the disappearance of the wereleopard leader even being family wouldn’t save him. She’d rip his throat out herself. She took a deep breath and forced herself to calm down, to think. She had her own concerns about that crash. Concerns she’d have to share soon.
Rising from the bed, she reached for the robe tossed across a chair and pulled it on. When he opened his mouth to speak, no doubt to protest the covering, she held a hand up for silence. She was amazed when he complied. Out of shock more than anything else probably.
“I’m not rushing to any judgments. After breakfast we’ll go to the other enclave and see what they know.”
She exited the room and walked down the long hall, sensing him following close on her heels. In the kitchen she got out bacon and eggs.
“You could fill me in,” she suggested while cracking and beating eggs in a large bowl. Silent and broody, he started the bacon sizzling in a cast iron pan and glared at her.
“You heard.”
Exasperation finally won. She threw her hands up in the air and paced. “That’s my fault? You were in the same room. You know my hearing’s as sharp as yours. I don’t have the background knowledge to go with what I heard.”
While she moved, the robe’s makeshift tie loosened. She scowled at him, remembering what he’d done to the other one, but wasn’t quick enough to prevent the lapels from falling open. She knew she should pull them closed, but was arrested by Nico’s sharp inhalation and the heat that flared in his eyes. So much better than cold anger.
“Hector, my father, had a private bank account no one knew about. I only discovered it a couple of months ago.”
He approached her with feline grace. Smooth. Silent. His hands settled on her hips and, leaning over, he nipped at the sensitive skin under her ear. Gasping, she let her head fall back. He took full advantage of the increased access and bit his way down her neck to her collarbone then licked his way back up. His rasping tongue set her blood on fire.
“Someone’s been transferring money out of that account,” he murmured between nips of his sharp teeth. “We finally traced it to a local bank. A bank owned by a bird conglomerate.”
“Oh,” she moaned, not sure if it was a response to his words or the fingers that teased her nipple into hardness.
His lips continued their southward track, and he sank to his knees to suck her other nipple between his teeth. She grabbed onto his shoulders, holding on for dear life as sensation flooded her. He paused a moment and looked up into her face.
“Aren’t you going to share now?”
“I thought I was,” she teased. He bit her in response, but she doubted it had the effect he wanted. She groaned and hung onto him harder. He growled when her fingernails dug into his skin, but it was a sound of pleasure not protest.
“We carry messages in bird form as you know and also own the werekind airline.”
“Mmm hmm,” he murmured while his tongue swirled around her navel. He licked a straight line down her belly to the curls hiding her pussy. Spreading the lips, he found the hard nub pulsing there. Licked. Bit. She groaned. God, he was going to kill her. His voice, mouth pressed so close, hummed straight to her core. “You were saying?”
“The crash was ruled an accident, but one of my mechanics doesn’t believe it.”
The change was so abrupt it was like flicking a light switch. He stood, all sensual play gone, gripping her hips so hard she knew he’d leave bruises. His normally green eyes became narrowed amber slits. Totally cat. She realized the leopard had taken over too late to get out of the way.
“Why weren’t we informed?” The demand was harsh, guttural.
She made her body go soft, non-aggressive, and her voice coaxing. “I don’t know who to trust, Nico. Until I know something for sure, my people will continue to investigate quietly.”
His eyes still glittered severely, angrily at her. Lifting her hand, she stroked the side of his face. Tried to soothe, tried to placate. Instinct told her she wasn’t out of danger yet.
“The last year…it almost looks like someone’s instigating a war between the leopards and wolves. My Messengers have been dragged into the middle of that. It threatens our neutrality.”
She continued petting him and breathed a sigh of relief when his eyes returned to normal. He was still furious, but he was in control. He let go of her hips, but before she could move away grabbed her shoulders with a small shake.
“You should have told me,” he growled.
“I can’t trust anyone with this. Not until I have answers.”
The whisper was a harsh reminder that they may be mated, but they didn’t know each other. He let go of her lik
e he’d been scalded and stalked off, paced around the connecting areas of the living quarters.
“Is there anything else you’ve neglected to tell me?”
His voice was coldly furious, and he kept his back to her. She ached to go to him, to rub against him, offer what meager comfort she could. Viciously, she forced the urge down. Too many secrets left to go, and surely he’d turn against her when he learned them all.
She was beginning to get a sense of him, of how black and white his world was. Of how fierce his pride was. When he learned who she truly was he’d reject her. Maybe not because of her position, but because she’d kept it from him. She opened her mouth, but then snapped it shut. She wasn’t ready to lose him yet.
Turning away, she walked to the counter and finished breakfast. He joined her when it was ready. Silent. His mood dark. She didn’t break the silence, quietly cleaned up when they were done, steeling herself against what was still to come.
“The enclave we’re going to is like a…military outpost.”
He cocked an eyebrow and waited for her to go on.
“Our clans are broken down by species, but we’re all ruled by one queen. There’s a lot of inter-clan bickering and the queen is always an eagle. The eagles are the only ones who can really keep everyone else in line and cooperating.” She shook her head. Some of the other breeds were ridiculously childish, their issues with each other stupid and petty. The others were…dangerous, covetous. And she was supposed to be the referee. It could really suck being at the top of the food chain. “Right now, we have a Regent. One of her cousins.” She should have said one of my cousins, but still shied away from the inevitable.
“I knew this already.”
“Right.” Of course he did. “Anyway, this particular enclave belongs to several members of the Royal Guard. They live there. Train there. I haven’t been there in years. I’m not sure what we’ll find.” Hopefully they wouldn’t give her away but she wasn’t holding her breath. “You have to be careful there. Let me do the talking.” She frowned. “And we’ll have to go in were form. It’s too difficult to get to in human form. You’ll need clothes.”
He scowled. “What about you? You won’t need clothes?”
“They’ll have something for me,” she replied. She could see the question in his eyes, but he didn’t ask why. After a few seconds he nodded.
“I can handle the clothes.”
He disappeared down the hall and came back a moment later with the backpack he’d been carrying when they met. He pulled jeans, a sweatshirt and a small bag out. Rolling the garments up, he stuffed them inside and zipped it shut. He held the bag up. It was half the size of his backpack and had two straps.
“You’ll have to put it on after I shift.”
He showed her how the straps would wrap under his shoulders to snap into place, then he stepped back and changed. She held her breath as she watched. She’d seen leopards before. They were big, powerful cats. Beautiful. She’d never felt such awe at seeing one. But this was different. He was hers. He butted his head against her thigh until she knelt and dug her fingers through his fur. He purred, let her explore a few minutes before stepping back and picking the pack up between his teeth. He dropped it at her feet and, sighing, she strapped it on him.
She wished she could delay this meeting and enjoy her cat for a while, but she could read the impatience in his gaze. She removed her own clothes and stepped out onto to the deck, shutting the door behind them once he followed. He jumped onto a tree branch, then a lower one and another until he waited on the ground below her. He grunted, and she realized she’d been staring. It was hard to rip her gaze away and concentrate on her shift. He was stunning.
Once she’d embraced the change, became the bald eagle her other half was, she quit thinking of Nico. Quit worrying about his leaving or clan business. Since he didn’t know where they were going she stayed under the canopy, following the trail as far as it would take them. She let the exhilaration take her over, wind rushing under her wings as she flew dangerously fast just feet above the ground. He was forced to run to keep up but it was no hardship. His lope was strong, ground eating fast, and she felt an inexplicable pride in him. Her mate.
Too soon she had to slow her crazy flight to turn off the trail. There was only a narrow path going up the steep incline on the side of the mountain to the Guard’s enclave. Normally she’d go above the treetops, but she wouldn’t be able to lead Nico if she did.
The higher they went, the more she had to pull in her wings and slow her flight. He scrambled up the rocky mountainside easily, and in moments, they were standing on the huge ledge that led into the enclave. As soon as they came into sight, a sentry whistled, and she shifted, knowing news of her presence would spread quickly.
She bent to unbuckle the snaps holding Nico’s pack on. He was standing and dressed when someone rushed out to meet her with clothes. She hurried to get into them before a crowd gathered. Patrick was first on the scene, and she inwardly groaned.
Nico recognized the man as the one who’d spoken to Ajax the previous afternoon. His every step was aggressive, territorial. He glowered at Nico. Nico wasn’t sure if that was because of his presence in a place few were allowed or because of the woman at his side. Maybe the stranger thought he had rights to her. When he reached for Ajax, Nico growled and shifted his position to stand in front of her. He didn’t know what the hell was going on here but no one was laying a hand on his mate. She shoved at his back and tried to step around him. He simply moved with her.
“Oh, good God. Nico. You’re making me look bad,” she hissed. Sharp talons scratched his back. He got the feeling if anyone else had dared block her she would’ve attacked. It pleased the cat that she held back with him. “Move.”
Reluctantly, he stepped aside, closing his hand around her forearm. He didn’t know what was going here, felt unexplained undercurrents, high tension, and growing anger. It seemed directed more at him than her, but he wasn’t taking any chances.
She stood straight and tall next to him, glaring at the gathering crowd. Proud. And very, very angry. The scent rolled off her in waves. But other than that she showed no outward sign of any emotion. He almost growled. He was sick of seeing this façade of remote control. Then the other man moved and her control broke. She wrenched free of Nico’s grasp and stepped forward. His heart literally stopped beating. Toe to toe. Nose to nose. With a man much bigger than her. Probably faster. No doubt stronger. He was planning a counterattack when her voice rang through the clearing.
“Back off, Patrick. Now.”
The other man cocked an eyebrow. “You don’t have the right to order me around, Ajax.”
There seemed to be a collective gasp from the crowd and then it waited, breath baited for her response. Nico frowned. What was he missing?
Ajax crossed her arms over her chest and smiled. It was the coldest, most chilling thing Nico had ever seen, and he had a damned hard time reconciling this woman with his mate.
“Is that right?” Her gaze swept the crowd. “Need I remind you, all of you, that oaths were sworn? Blood oaths.”
Patrick tilted his head to one side. “Conceded. But you haven’t lived up to your side of those oaths either.”
She took a deep breath, and he had to force himself to focus on her face and not the way the action lifted her breasts. “That time has passed.”
A ripple rushed through the crowd. He smelled their exhilaration. Their approval.
“We need to speak. Privately.”
The man, Patrick, inclined his head. “Of course, Majesty. This way.”
He turned and walked towards a building carved out of the mountain. Three others peeled out of the crowd and followed before Ajax took a step forward. Nico stopped her with a tight grip on her elbow, but forced himself to release her and follow. He wanted to throttle her. To yell and rail at her. She’d had plenty of time to tell him that she was the queen. Right on the heels of anger was confusion. Why was a Regent ruling in h
er place? Why had she led him into this blind? What else was she keeping from him? His cat prowled the confines of his mind. It wanted answers now, and following four strange men into a building to talk was not likely to get them.
He was the last inside and pushed the door closed behind him with a little too much force. The sound echoed. Ajax wasn’t able to repress a wince. Good. She should understand how pissed off he was, how dangerous it was to anger a predator cat—and her mate—so much. He watched her move through slitted eyes and though her back was ramrod straight, her attitude screaming for a fight, he knew this wasn’t the time. He took a calming breath and looked around.
It was a large room with a long meeting table in the center. He’d expected it to be dim as closed in as it appeared to be, but huge skylights carved into the ceiling filled the place with light.
The four men sat at one end of the table and Ajax joined them. Nico prowled, too restless, too furious, to sit still.
“Nico,” she said softly, the slightest edge of command under the tone. He turned to glare at her.
“Don’t push your luck, Alexandra.”
She raised both eyebrows and sat back, again crossing her arms over her chest. This time he recognized it as a calculated move, something meant to convey ease, but he smelled the exact opposite. She was nervous. Anxious. Why? He concentrated. No fear so why the worry? Unless she thought this news would make him reject her. He snorted. That was impossible. Even if his father’s fate didn’t hang in the balance, she was his mate. Leaving would be like cutting off his right arm.
“Careful, Ajax,” one of the other men said softly.
She turned to look at him, waited for him to go on.
“Cat. Bird.” He shrugged. “Might want to watch how far you push him.”
“I thought you had more spine, Jack.”
They exchanged a long look, a look filled with history. “I have plenty of spine,” he said quietly.
“Point taken. I apologize.”
Renegade Passions: Forbidden Passions, Book 4 Page 4