by P. Jameson
“Give me a minute.”
“Yeah, hurry.” The line went dead.
There was no reason to believe Magic’s call had anything to do with his mate, but without knowing her whereabouts—or anything at all about her—he couldn’t shed the feeling of dread.
He finished packaging her food and then filled a cup with their special harvest sweet tea and a chunk of lemon.
Eagan sighed. It wasn’t enough, but it would have to do.
Pulling her notebook from his back pocket, he jotted her a new note.
I can’t return your book. If I do, you’ll steal from someone else, and I can’t be part of that. I will get you anything you need. Make a list.
Quickly, he shoved the dirty dishes in the washer and started it up. Then he turned off the main lights and hurried to Magic’s office.
He found his leader and Gash huddled over his computer monitor.
“I think we caught her this time,” Magic murmured, his squinting eyes never leaving the screen.
Eagan’s steps faltered.
Gash nodded his head, grinning. “Run it back again.”
Eagan rushed forward to see the video they were reviewing. A woman wearing jeans and a dark shirt shown through the grainy footage as she walked quickly away from the lodge and disappeared into the line of trees that bordered the parking lot. Her hair was down and flowing freely this time, but there was no doubt this was the female he’d caught in the kitchen.
“When was this?” Eagan asked, his eyes taking in every blurry feature. There wasn’t much of her face. Just a brief glimpse of her profile. Magic and Gash would never be able to pick her out of a line-up.
“Last night,” Gash said.
“Anything go missing?” Please say no.
Magic frowned, finally pulling his gaze away from the screen. “No, actually. Nothing.”
Eagan sighed in relief. “Then maybe this isn’t our thief after all. I mean, obviously if this is her, and she was here last night, she would’ve taken something. Don’t you think?”
“Whatever, man,” Gash scoffed. “This is the Woman of the Woods. Layna doesn’t recognize her as a guest, and you know she never forgets a face.”
Eagan shrugged, trying for nonchalance. “Maybe she’s here with someone else. An overnight guest. Layna doesn’t keep track of who our visitors are fucking does she?”
Gash looked to Magic, who seemed to be contemplating the situation.
“So why was she rushing out to the woods?” Gash asked, throwing his hands in the air.
“How the fuck would I know?” Eagan laughed. “I’m just saying, this isn’t evidence. Especially since nothing was taken from the lodge last night.”
“The camera didn’t catch her returning from the woods,” Magic argued. But it was half-hearted.
Eagan shrugged. “Probably came back another way. Look, we can’t be getting all up people’s asses in our quest to find whoever’s taking shit. People come here expecting a modicum of privacy. We start monitoring their every move, that’ll be as bad for business as a thief.”
His heart pounded in his chest and he hoped the others couldn’t hear it. His logic was sound, but still, it stung him to be leading his brothers in the wrong direction on purpose.
Magic sighed, yanking his floppy man-bun down and redoing it. When it sat tight atop his head again, he muttered, “Eagan’s right. Shit.”
Gash nodded reluctantly. “But I have a feeling about this. Something isn’t right about this female.”
Eagan ground his molars at the cat’s impression of his mate.
“Fucking hell,” Magic grumbled. “I guess it’s time to start patrolling. If the cameras can’t do the job, then we’ll have to.
“You mean night security?” Gash asked. “Should we hire someone?”
Magic shook his head. “No. We do this ourselves. Can’t bring anyone else in on this. We have our secret to protect. It would be hard to do that with an outsider. Besides, we don’t know how much this thief knows about us.”
Gash nodded.
“I’ll take the first watch. Tonight. We’ll take turns. I’ll get Renner and Owyn to help.”
“And Mason.” The cat was too mellow for his own good, but Eagan knew he wouldn’t hurt the female if he caught her. If it came to that. Which it wouldn’t because he was going to catch her himself.
Magic tipped his head. “Keep your eyes peeled and your noses scenting. We’ll find this person. And when we do…” He ended with a growl that left chills on the back of Eagan’s neck.
But they wouldn’t learn of her. Not if he had anything to do with it. Because somehow, he was going to stop her. And he was going to do it without mating her. Somehow.
Somehow.
Chapter Eight
Clara read the words over and over again. The cook wasn’t giving her book back. Not without a fight. But she didn’t want to fight him. She stared at the food he’d left for her. Again. What did it mean, him feeding her like this? Once was charity, which she both appreciated and loathed. But twice? Twice was something else.
Clara crumpled the note into a ball and tossed it away. She looked around at the empty kitchen contemplating her next move. She really didn’t want to do this, but she didn’t see another way.
Her shoulders sank with defeat. She was going to fight. Fight the kind man who would feed her instead of turn her over to the police.
Yeah. This was the only way to get back what was hers.
“Be strong, Clara,” she whispered. “Be tough. Be the badass you’ve always been. You can do this.”
With a deep breath, she rushed over to his desk. She had to find something of his. Something important. Something to hold for ransom. She’d start here, and if she didn’t find anything, she’d locate his room. Tear it apart until she had him by the balls. He’d give her book back then. He’d have to.
She rummaged through the drawers, not bothering to keep quiet. There was no one around. If he’d meant to catch her, he would’ve done it already. With her hip, she shoved the drawer closed to move on to the next one. She might be thinner than before, but her hips were still broad, and they sent the drawer soaring home with a loud slam.
Shit.
She hesitated for only a second before she began shuffling through the next drawer. There were papers galore, pens and markers, rubber bands, but nothing personal. Nothing that she could use against him.
Clara yelped as a hand wrapped around her mouth from behind.
“Shhh,” a mouth hissed at her ear. “You have to trust me right now, okay?”
He didn’t wait for her to respond. With his other hand, he reached forward, sweeping his arm along the surface of the desk and knocking everything to the floor. In a swift move, he twisted her until she was facing him, and lifted her to sit on the desk like she weighed no more than a feather.
“Wrap your legs around me,” he urged.
Clara barely found his face for the way her head was spinning. It was her cook. His dark brows furrowed over slate gray eyes. His expression was urgent, demanding. What was happening? She was caught, she knew that much. But what the hell?
“Do it.” He shot a look over his shoulder to the door. “Follow my lead.”
Grabbing her legs behind the knees, he pulled them up around his hips, and for some reason, she did exactly what he’d told her, locking her heels in place. Like this, they were too close. Too intimate. The hard planes of his chest pressed against her stomach, stealing her breath. His steely arms banded around her waist, pulling her in even closer until there was only a breath separating them.
Touching. They were touching. She was touching another human being. Something she hadn’t done in ages.
Her breath came stiffly. Too much. Too little. Too much…
He touched her face. So carefully, even though the rest of his actions were urgent and rushed.
“Shit,” he said under his breath, his eyes closing for a moment. When they opened, he looked resigned. “I’m sorry.�
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Clara tried to find her voice. “For wha—”
His lips crashed down on hers, cutting off her rasped question. They were firm and demanding, and hers gave way to his easily. His hot tongue swept inside her mouth like he was trying to taste her, and the sensation was so decadent, she didn’t even try to fight. Hand under her jaw, he angled her head so he could push in farther, bending her backward over the desk.
She’d never been kissed like this. Not ever. Sure there had been lovers before she’d taken to the woods. Several. But none of them had ever kissed her like they needed to consume her to survive. Like she was simply… everything.
The door to the kitchen swung open with a bang and Clara tried to pull away, but her cook held her steady against his working lips.
An agitated throat cleared, and he lazily broke their kiss, sucking at her lower lip on his way out. His gaze burned into her, eyes swirling with emotion she couldn’t read. He seemed to promise her something with just that look.
“Go away,” he growled, and she jumped at his sharp tone. But his eyes softened, and she could feel his thumb sweeping a soothing pass over the pulse in her neck.
“Like hell,” the man at the door seethed. She couldn’t see him, but she knew he was angry. “What do you think you’re doing?”
“What does it look like?” her cook snapped, and then flashed her a warning look. Clara bit her lip as he peered over his shoulder at the other man. “Do you mind?”
“Fuck yes, I mind. The kitchen isn’t exactly the place to bone a rando, Eagan. Get a goddamn room.”
His grip on her tightened.
“Serious cock block, Magic, I swear to god.” He pulled her off the desk and let her slide down his muscular body until she stood on her own shaking legs.
Holy crap. What was happening to her?
“You know,” the man said, “I expect this shit from the others. But not from you. Since when do you hook up with guests?”
Eagan kissed her head, his palm on the back, keeping it tucked against his chest. God, he smelled good. Something woodsy and dark like leather. And garlic.
“Come on, baby. Let’s get out of here.” He squeezed her close to his side with one last press against her head. She got the hint. Keep your head down.
She let him walk her toward the door. They were almost free, but then what? What would her cook do to her then?
Clara felt the moment when things changed. The air in the room went utterly still just before it crackled with energy. It reminded her of the atmosphere right before a thunderstorm. Tense with foreboding.
“Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me,” the other man—Magic? Was that his real name?—snarled. His voice was like a roar in her ear even though she was feet away.
Before she could think to run from the danger, Eagan, shoved her backward, behind him.
“What the fuck is this, Eagan? You covering for a thief? Someone who stole from your clan? Your family?”
“She’s not stealing anymore,” Eagan spoke carefully, but the muscles of his back were tensed as if waiting to strike. “Let this go, Magic.”
Clara peered around him to look at the other man. He had shoulder length dark hair that hung in his face, causing his dark eyes to look dangerous. He was angry. Maybe even confused.
“Let this go? What is wrong with you?” Magic shook his head, pulling his phone from his pocket.
“Magic. Stop.” Eagan seemed to vibrate with fury.
Shit, she was in trouble. If she escaped this, she’d go back to the woods and never come back. She’d forget about her book and making amends and the man who helped her.
“No,” Magic barked, shaking his head and pressing the phone to his ear. “I’m calling the others and we’re going to deal with her.”
“Nobody will deal with her,” Eagan roared, stepping forward, his fists clenched. “She’s mine. That means I will deal with her. Me. So put the damn phone away.”
Mine? His?
The conversation was like a foreign language, but whatever Eagan said, it worked. Magic slowly pulled the phone away from his ear.
“What do you mean she’s yours?”
Yeah. What did that mean?
“She’s my mate,” Eagan said, not even tripping over the words. “And I’m claiming her.”
Ah. This was more of the act. Damn, he was good at this. If it worked, she’d say her thank-you by never coming back to the lodge again.
“You’re what?” Magic asked, his brows flaring. “What the fuck was that? I think I heard you wrong.”
“I’m claiming what’s mine,” Eagan spoke clearly. “And that means no one touches her. Anyone tries, I shred them.”
Magic looked like he’d been slapped, but Eagan hadn’t gotten close enough to touch him.
“Bullshit. You won’t break the pact.”
“You bet your ass I will.”
Magic shook his head in disbelief, and then his troubled gaze met hers. “What’s she got to say about this? Huh? You ready to let this cat fuck you like some prized pussy?”
Clara gasped.
“She doesn’t exactly have a choice does she?” Eagan ground out, and Magic’s gaze snapped back to him.
“You can’t do that.” But those words weren’t snarled as the others were, and instead, he looked broken. Crushed, really. For a split second, Clara felt sorry for him.
“Of course I can. I’m a goddamn male werecat. Not only can I, I’m supposed to. And I will.”
The room fell silent. There was only heavy, angry breaths, and Clara’s terrified ones.
It was a slow build from broken to shaking with fury, but when Magic reached fury, Clara felt it like an explosion in the room.
“You…” He shook his head, swallowing disgust so he could speak. “You would hurt your female like that?”
“I’m protecting her.”
Magic’s fists clenched and opened, clenched and opened. “After all these years… I thought I knew you. But you’re no better than the other males, the ones we grew up under. You just needed your fucking female to come along and turn you into a monster. You make me sick.”
Eagan’s jaw ticked with each word.
“I want you gone.” Magic pointed a threatening finger at him, backing blindly toward the door. “You’re done here. Hear me? I want you gone, before I kill you.” He looked at Clara and his face flashed between pity and warning. “You better run, little girl. You’d better hide.”
With one parting look of disgust at Eagan, Magic disappeared through the door, leaving it swinging on its hinges.
Clara was breathless with the seriousness of his warning. She looked at Eagan. Werecat. Not human. Kind, or not. She didn’t know. Couldn’t tell. Maybe he was only gaining her trust with his kindness so he could prey on her.
Fuck her like a prized pussy.
Oh, shit.
Fear clawed her throat, strangling her breath.
Run. Hide.
His back was to her. She could run like before. Out the back door. Get lost in the building like before while he chased her outside. Would he fall for that again?
Her eyes fell to his jeans. Something rigid stuck out from the back pocket.
The notebook. Sweet Jesus, it was her notebook.
She saw the path, and how easy it could be. Grab the book, run like hell, reach the creek and swim so he couldn’t track her. She could do it.
On the count of three.
One.
Two…
Chapter Nine
Eagan stared at the swinging door, his chest aching with regret. Shit, Magic was hurt. He couldn’t miss the look in the panther’s eye. Fear and disgust and… pain. They were like brothers. For him to think Eagan was a monster who didn’t give two shits about his mate’s heart was the fucking worst feeling ever.
But it was necessary.
If the clan thought he was going to claim her, they wouldn’t hold her accountable for what she’d done. He just needed a little time. He’d find a way for her
to work off her debt and then she wouldn’t be on the run anymore. Hopefully he could explain things to Magic, and he’d understand.
Shit, this was bad.
A tug at his back pocket grabbed his attention, and he turned in time to see his little female make a run for the door, notebook in hand.
Ohhhhh, no she wasn’t. Not after what he’d just done to cover her ass.
Eagan lunged for her, but she was a hair too fast, pushing through to the dining room. With a growl, he ran after her. She was fast, even with her short legs, but he caught her at the edge of the parking lot, just steps away from the trail that would take him to his cabin.
In one motion, he scooped her up and tossed her over his shoulder, his steps not faltering as he found the dark trail into the woods.
“Put. Me. Down.” She smacked his back and kicked her feet, but he wasn’t deterred. “Help!” she screamed, and his heart lurched.
She actually thought he was the threat? If she only knew.
He swatted her ass hard enough to make her yelp, but not hurt.
“No one’s going to help you except me. So stop it.”
She went still. “Help me? Is that what this is? Because it doesn’t seem like help. It seems like kidnapping.”
Her judgmental tone left him smirking. “So what. You’re a thief and I’m a kidnapper. Wanna cast the first stone?”
She went limp as he continued down the path, the darkness enveloping them.
“Please. Just let me go and I’ll never come back here, okay? I’ll go far away. Find some other forest to live in. Just… please.”
“No.”
“No? But why not? I promise I won’t steal anymore. I’ll… I’ll…”
“No. I helped you just now, and look what you did. You ran from me.”
The idea both turned him on and infuriated him. It wasn’t supposed to be like this. He wasn’t supposed to lay claim to her or hurt his clan or any of this shit. He’d just wanted to feed her and keep her safe and somehow help her make restitution for her crimes so she could be at peace.
“He told me to,” she grumbled low enough she probably thought Eagan hadn’t heard.
“That’s because he thinks I’m going to hurt you.”