Sari

by Middleton, Rose

  “Really?” Kai smiled, laying on his side and leaning on a bent elbow. Despite the drop in temperature, Kai lay atop his sleeping bag in only his bottoms. His large, solid chest, dusted by a light smattering of dark hair, messed with her libido. “Do tell. What am I thinking?”

  “This isn’t a game, Kai.”

  “I know.” He reached out and slid a fingertip down her forearm. Sari shivered. “You don’t think I understood that when you turned into a cat right before my eyes?”

  “I should have told you earlier.”

  He gave a single nod. “You should have. Whether I would’ve believed you is another story. Telling me and showing me are two different things.”

  “It doesn’t freak you out?”

  His eyebrows arched high on his forehead, disappearing beneath that foppish fringe. “That you can change into a cat? That you have feline DNA mixed with yours? I’ll be honest with you, Sari, I was shocked. Shit, I still am. I want to know how this happened.”

  “Well, if I’d had any say over it, it would never have happened. Do you hear me? Never. I didn’t let this happen, didn’t volunteer my body to science, didn’t give them permission to lay a fucking hand on me.”

  Concern filled his brown eyes, making her want to spill her guts. How did he do that? Make her want to drop every guard and let him in? Whether he knew he possessed the power to render her defenseless against him, she didn’t know, but he owned the ability and it left her vulnerable in his presence.

  Could she really trust Kai? Probably a dumb question since she’d shifted in front of him, but she wasn’t completely unable to protect herself. And she hadn’t told him everything, yet.

  “I thought maybe you did,” he confessed. “That you chose this life.”

  Which was exactly what she suspected he thought. “No. If I could’ve escaped before They did this, I would have. But when They pump you full of tranquilizers and sedatives and chain you to a table, your choices are limited.”

  Kai sat up, worry written all over his handsome face. “That must have been horrible.”

  “A nightmare.” She hugged her knees and tried to ignore his hand on her arm. “Worse because it was real.”

  He rubbed a hand over his face. “Okay, I understand gene splicing and how it’s used to treat genetic disorders. What I don’t understand is how they inserted feline DNA into yours.”

  Sari swallowed. After she escaped, she’d researched the technique over the internet. Seeing the words written in black and white on scientific websites, words often used to celebrate and hail breakthroughs in the treatment of disorders, she’d grown angry and bitter. Why didn’t anyone realize the technique was being abused? That she was being abused? Science made her this thing and yet if the industry knew the truth, they’d want to cut her up to figure out how it had succeeded.

  The odds were always against them. The number of subjects who died proved it. Too many didn’t make it out of the surgery to begin with, and then there were the complications no one could foresee. Like Mystery’s aging problem. And Pitch’s eyesight. Feline DNA was supposed to improve it, only it had nearly made him blind.

  “Sari?”

  She jumped when Kai squeezed her forearm. His touch was gentle, but after so long without the kind of contact she desired, it took her by surprise.

  “It’s complicated. Gene splicing is a chemical process, but because it was so radical and involved almost every body organ, they kept us unconscious. I saw my medical chart when I escaped. They induced a coma and kept me that way for six months. I think that’s why I survived. One day I was human, the next, I woke up a cat with a whole bunch of aftereffects.”

  He frowned and slid closer, his thigh brushing against her hip. “How did you end up in their hands?”

  She shook her head. “There are some things I’d rather not discuss.”

  Kai studied her for a long time before he touched her cheek. She leaned into the warmth of his skin. “They kidnapped you, didn’t they? Why did no one report you missing?”

  It was her turn to frown. “My parents were dead. My uncle didn’t want me in the first place, so he didn’t care. My aunt was angry at me because I’d run away. I’d had some problems while living with them.” Understatement of the year.

  Not wanting to look at him, Sari closed her eyes to hide the truth. Her past was a disgrace. There were things she’d been unable to control and things she’d chosen not to control. Like the addiction to the pain meds. Why would she have done anything about it when the painkillers helped her forget the beatings? Kai wouldn’t understand. Coming from privilege and money, he’d condemn her decisions and judge her by her choices. No, he couldn’t find out about those.

  “So they had you all to themselves,” he surmised. “Sedated you, experimented on you. Turned you into a cat.”

  “A melanistic jaguar, to be precise.” She kept her eyes closed. “But according to Zimmerman, I’m one of the Failures. There are others, like Pitch and Mystery.”

  “What does he call the ones who succeed?”

  She sniggered, picturing the great Rex Zimmerman petting his pride and joy. “They’re the Hunters. Before my generation, he had a lot of problems with the technique. A lot of the subjects didn’t make it. We were the second group to survive.” She shook her head and covered her face with her hands. “For what good it did. Every one of us has problems. Pitch can’t see in the dark. Mystery ages five days for every one that actually passes.”

  “Did it hurt?”

  She shrugged, still locked in her self-enforced darkness. “I was out cold the whole time. It’s a long, slow process, Kai. They have to work on every organ and make sure the cells reproduce with the new DNA fragments. But with us, they perfected a lot of things. They identified particular genes, and they perfected the technique. Hardly any of the new generations, the Hunters, malfunctioned. They’re fucking perfect, and if Zimmerman gets his way, he’ll build an army of them.”

  He was quiet for a moment, probably trying to digest the bizarre science-fiction tale she told. Did he believe any of it? She’d have to open her eyes and look into his to find that out, but she didn’t have the strength tonight.

  “Why do you purr when jaguars don’t?”

  Sari shrugged, enjoying the dark behind her eyelids. “Some side effect coming from the combination of human and jag vocal abilities, I guess. The only thing I know for sure is that the purring freaks Zimmerman out.”

  The memory of Zimmerman yelling at them to stop purring brought a smile to her lips. He’d threatened to kill one of them but never followed through.

  “So, how exactly did you escape?”

  “The ventilation tunnels. The Facility is riddled with these big tunnels that give access to each level. Huge, gigantic wind fans.” She shuddered, remembering the cold air. “Don’t want to get caught up in those things. They’ll shred a grown man into bite-sized pieces.”

  Kai was silent again, maybe wondering what the hell he’d got himself into. After a few tense moments, he took her hands from her face and held them in his. “Open your eyes, Sari.”

  She struggled with his request. He couldn’t pity her; she didn’t want that. Whatever her nightmarish past, she wasn’t sickened by the cat within. Lord knew it had saved her life more than once. The heightened senses were, for the most part, very useful, even if they did drive her round the bend occasionally. Like the urges to rub against furniture. Or now, when she could smell Kai’s empathy and his arousal. The man was insatiable.

  “Please, Sari. I want to see you.”

  Slowly, she opened her eyes. “Don’t pity me or feel sorry for me. This might sound weird, but I’m okay with what I am.”

  He held her two hands with one of his, and used his free hand to stroke her cheek. “And what are you, exactly?”

  “I’m a shifter, a hybrid. It’s helpful and it’s useful, except when it’s not.”

  He smiled. “And when is it not helpful?”

  “When I can’t cont
rol it. There are certain situations that make it very difficult to stay human.” Like now, with her body on fire and craving his.

  “Have you been with a man since you became a shifter?”

  Her eyes widened, but she sensed he knew the answer already.

  “Is that one of those times it becomes difficult to stay human? When you’re turned on and aroused? I’d think that would make it easier. That way you can enjoy the attentions of a man.”

  “It’s not that simple. Sexual desire brings out the cat.”

  Kai’s sly smile almost made her pant. Had the temperature gone up in here? “So what would happen if I did this?”

  He leaned in and licked her neck from collarbone to ear. His tongue seared her skin and her heart rate skyrocketed. This was not the time for hanky panky. They were supposed to be having a serious discussion, but it appeared her hybrid existence turned him on.

  “Well?” he whispered in her ear, the heat of his breath shooting straight to her loins.

  “Doesn’t it turn you off, that I’m not human? That I’m not normal?”

  He jerked backward, fear flitting through is eyes momentarily. Damn, she wished her ESP was as developed as Mystery’s. “I never said that.”

  But you did think it. At least once.

  “Be honest,” she insisted. “You can’t play games with me.”

  The hand stroking her cheek slipped under her chin to hold her to him. “You are the sexiest woman I’ve ever met, and damn, you’re beautiful as a cat. I don’t find you disgusting, and I will not reject you.”

  She searched his eyes, looking for the truth. As much as Sari wanted to believe his words, she needed tangible proof.

  “Kai, what if I turn into a cat while we’re…well, you know?”

  “You won’t. I’ll keep your mind occupied.”

  “And what if I wake up with whiskers in the morning? Or a tail? What then?”

  He chuffed and went back to nuzzling her neck. A purr started deep in her chest and while she wanted to hide it, she decided to throw him a hurdle and see what he did. Pressing her lips to his ear, she let the purr vibrate across his skin. His whole body hardened and he bit her neck, his teeth marking her skin. The smell of want oozed out of his every pore, and she knew if she reached for his cock, he’d be hard as a rock.

  “We won’t know anything until we try, Sari.” His lips trailed along her skin, his tongue darting out to flick against her. “Do you want to try?”

  She swallowed, confused by the lack of attention he paid to the seriousness of the issue. Clearly his body sidetracked him and he was no longer thinking with his brain. She should pry them apart and talk some sense into him, but his hands curved around her waist and pulled her against him. His heat slipped into her blood, the scent of his arousal playing havoc with her restraint.

  “I do,” she gasped. “I’m just not sure now is the time.”

  He pulled back, a wicked light in his eyes. “Now is definitely the time. Say, has it changed the way you orgasm?”

  She blinked. He was asking how she orgasmed? “Um…”

  He chuckled and brushed his lips over hers. “From that response, I’ll take it that it’s made things a whole lot more exciting.”

  Sari gulped. She had no idea how she’d react when his cock filled her pussy, or even what would happen when he touched her. Would he find her wetness arousing? Or was she too wet? She wished she knew.

  “Don’t fight it,” he said, his voice a growl. “If you want this, then let it happen.”

  If she wanted it? She grabbed his hand and laid it over her chest. From the look in his eyes, he registered her erratic heartbeat and smiled. It was only a short distance from the center of her chest to her breast and he made the journey in a flash, palming her nipple until it hardened into a bullet. Sari crawled out from her sleeping bag, her cotton pajamas barely hiding her need.

  With his hands as guides, she straddled his hips and brought her center to his groin. He groaned and nodded and pulled her closer, thrusting his cock against her. His hands threaded into her hair to pull her mouth down to his, the kiss cementing her decision to go through with this. If something unexpected happened, they’d deal with it.

  “We don’t need to rush this,” he whispered as her lips vibrated in a purr against his ear. With his hands full of her ass cheeks, Kai enjoyed the strong muscles and the ripple of them when she rolled her hips.

  No matter how hard he tried to settle her frantic pace, she persisted in driving them both insane in a hurry. What drove her to force them together at such a pace? Did she fear he’d change his mind? That she would change hers? Or was there something else causing her to snatch the moment while she had it?

  Kai slid his hands over her hips to find each of hers. Their fingers entwined and when she leaned back to take a breath, he rolled them over, wrestling her hands to the ground above her head. Lying between her spread thighs, it was impossible to ignore her heat. The air in the tent hung heavy, saturated by their combined need. He couldn’t deny the waves of desire rolling within him, urging him to take advantage of the speed and claim her. But he had to know why she wouldn’t slow down and until then, he refused to think about his throbbing cock or how it would feel sliding into her wetness.

  He groaned. The thoughts, the anticipation, the expected feel propelled him forward. Dipping his head, he kissed her hard, pushed his tongue into her mouth and squeezed his eyes shut at the sizzling passion that greeted him. But he was playing into her hands.

  Ripping his mouth away from hers, he stared into her intense blue eyes, remembering what they looked like peeking out from under jaguar eyelashes and the black fur on her face. The blue circles were filled with a rousing combination of hunger and need. She wasn’t frightened by his move, perhaps confident she could wriggle out from his hold without too much trouble. He remembered her strength in carrying the pile of books back in the lab, and the numerous times she’d freed herself from his grasp over the last day and a half. Maybe he should be worried.

  “Dammit, Sari. Why the hell are you rushing this?”

  Her eyes flashed amusement. “I have to explain it?”

  “Yeah. You do.”

  “Why?”

  “Because I think you’re worried about something you’ve yet to tell me. That being with me this way is only part of your plan.”

  Her eyes widened in surprise. Aw, crap. He hadn’t meant to make her sound so calculating. “You think this is part of a plan?”

  He sighed, released one of her hands to rub his over his face. “That came out wrong. I just think you’re afraid.”

  Her free hand cupped his chin. “Those are two very different explanations. I admit, I intended to have you on my side, but winning you over with sex wasn’t part of it.”

  Moving to the side, he rested his hip and shoulder on the ground beside her. “So then you’re afraid of something?”

  She didn’t hesitate. “Hell yeah. You’re right, I haven’t been with a man since they did this to me, but I have explored my new hybrid sexual response in private. Every damn time I’ve shifted, either in whole or part, and it scares me to death to think it could happen with you.”

  “And you think fast-forwarding through the sex will save us both?” She nodded and he smiled, repositioned himself over her and shook his head. “I told you. I will keep your mind occupied.”

  Though she smiled, she didn’t look convinced. “It’s not about my mind, Kai.” Lifting, she pressed a kiss to the corner of his mouth. “It’s all about the physical and the hardwiring of my body. Neither you nor I can control that.”

  It was tough to think she didn’t have complete control over the shifting yet. Would she ever be able to exert total control? Or was that her weakness, the reason why this Zimmerman character called her a Failure? God, he couldn’t bring himself to see her as anything less than perfect just the way she was. It crossed his mind to ask why she was classed with the Failures, but he couldn’t make his mouth form the words.
Sari couldn’t change what they’d done to her, nor could she control what had gone wrong.

  “All you have to do is let me know if you feel the stirrings of a change, okay? We’ll go from there.”

  Her hesitant nod tugged at his heart, and he knew then that sex with Sari would never be about two bodies enjoying a physical connection. The tenderness in her eyes and the slight quiver in the touch of her fingertips told him otherwise. Silently, he promised to do the right thing by her.

  Lowering his head, he brushed his lips over hers. His cock jumped at the warmth of her breath and her hand beneath his jaw squeezed him once. It slipped down his neck, over one of his pec muscles and then around to his back. Her nails scraped over his skin, trailing up his spine and down again. At the waistband of his pajamas, her fingers burrowed underneath to continue their exploration of the cheek of his ass. He flexed the muscles there; she squeezed and teased, tentatively gliding along the sensitive crevice of his butt.

  Kai kissed along her jaw and down her neck, nipping her once before following the V of her shirt to the top button. It was easy enough to dislodge with his teeth, and his nose was quite capable of pushing the material aside, but he stopped when his lips touched bare skin. She shook beneath his body. Her lips pressed to his ear urged him on with soft whispers.

  Letting go of her other hand, Kai used both of his to unbutton her shirt all the way. The gentle swells of her breasts lifted when she inhaled, enticed his mouth and tongue and it took no further encouragement for him to taste. The salt of her skin tingled on his tongue, and when he finally exposed her right breast, his tongue tingled for a whole other reason. The puckered nipple stood high in the air, calling his attention, daring him to resist. He wasted no time, sucking her into his mouth and massaging her with tongue and lips. A slight nip to the tip made her gasp. Her hands slid into his hair and grabbed a hold of him, maneuvering him to the other breast.

  Equal attention, at your service.