by Aubrey Rose
“What I need is for you to accept reality,” she snapped, “and stop teasing me with things that can never be.”
He turned her around, frustration sculpting his expression. “In reality, the only one keeping us apart is you.”
“I won’t be your whore!”
“I would never ask that of you. I love you, Dyauna. I want you to mate with me. I want us to —”
She raised her hand, stopping his passionate declaration as trepidation tore through her being. “Something’s wrong.” She tugged at the suppression collar as her leopard tossed within her. “Take this off me now!”
His gaze narrowed, sharp and assessing, then his head snapped up and he sniffed the air. “We’re not finished here. Consider this an intermission.”
They rushed to shore, and he retrieved the remote from his backpack. The band released with a soft pop. She tore the band off and tossed it aside, rubbing her irritated skin. Her leopard surged, refusing to be denied any longer. With no other explanation, she shifted and bounded off through the trees.
Chapter Six
Maddox snatched a geron off the stack by the cavern’s entrance and wrapped the simple garment around his waist. Shouts and growls led him to the large, central chamber of the rebel camp. Six Barbary males faced off with the snarling leopards. Dyauna stood between the two groups, attempting to maintain order.
Releasing his cat enough to roar, Maddox drew the attention of both groups. “What the hell is going on here?” He motioned toward Ulli, the strongest sentinel in Barbary pride. “Who is protecting the village if six of my best fighters are here?”
“Serengeti pride reinforced the perimeter before we took off. This is important.” Pain flashed through his anger and then he said, “You didn’t see her, sir. This cannot go unanswered. No one will stand for it.”
“Who was harmed, and why do you presume my men are to blame?” Dyauna took a step toward the lions, but one of her men blocked her path. He took up a protective position in front of her, obviously determined to keep her safe. “That’s enough, Brette.” She slipped around him then motioned him back. “We have to get to the bottom of this.”
“Ulli, and only Ulli, explain why you’re here.” Maddox moved closer to his men, watching closely for any flare of anger or potential outburst.
“The forest patrol found Genna down by the spring house. She’d lost so much blood she was lucky to be alive. According to her, a couple of leopards grabbed her and dragged her off into the forest. They beat her and… tortured her.”
“Did she see her attackers?” Dyauna asked. “Can she help us identify who did this to her?” Gasps and mutters of protest rippled through the leopards. Why would she even consider the accusation? The question was clearly written on every leopard face.
The sentinel shook his head. “They put a cloth bag over her head. She never saw them.”
“Then it could have been anyone!” Brette stepped up beside her again.
She raised her hand, warning him back. “What made Genna think her attackers were leopards? Is she able to smell different breeds?”
The talent was fairly common, but it required concentration and practice. Maddox crossed his arms over his chest, content with Dyauna’s progress and direction. She was remarkably calm in the face of these accusations.
“They made damn sure she knew why they were hurting her.” Ulli paused, color slowly bleeding from his face. “They carved ‘hell no’ across her chest. You tell me what else that could mean.”
Maddox had heard enough. He moved in front of his men, commanding their attention with his posture and his gaze. “Someone went to a great deal of trouble to implicate the rebels, but there’s a serious flaw in their strategy.”
“My people know nothing about the alliance,” Dyauna put in. “I haven’t told them yet.”
The lions exchanged confused glances then Ulli asked, “Who would do such a despicable thing? What do they gain by tormenting an innocent woman?”
“There are only two possibilities,” Dyauna said.
“Two?” Maddox looked at her, far less comfortable with her nudity than she was. He hated that his men could see all of her, wanted to reserve the privilege for himself. “I can only think of one. Izak.”
“Izak is far more likely to remain at large without every cat in the colony looking for him,” she agreed. “But the keepers also benefit from preventing an alliance.”
“That presumes that they’re aware of the negotiations,” Maddox countered.
Challenge raised her brow and she turned toward him. “Do you honestly think a spontaneous development of this size could take place without the keepers’ knowledge? How did you explain the gathering in the council hall?”
He couldn’t argue with her logic. “All right, so we have two suspects: Izak and the keepers. Izak has avoided punishment for too long already. He moves to priority one. It will be harder to prove keeper involvement, but I won’t rest until this is resolved.”
“It works to our advantage to let them believe they succeeded.” Dyauna joined her men. On the surface, the gesture was casual, but Maddox understood the deeper meaning. She was sending him away — again!
“Does this mean you’ll explain the alliance to your men and allow them to vote on a breed minister?”
“There is no harm in discussion.” Her protective aloofness was solidly in place. Maddox wanted to shake her. “I’ll send a messenger with our decision.”
He’d been dismissed! His claws dug into his palms as he stared at her stoic expression. He’d been so close to reaching her, so close to penetrating this façade. “I’ll dispatch scouts. There are only so many places Izak can hide.”
“What about the keepers? How do we determine if they’re involved or not?”
“I’ll launch an investigation. We have friends among the keepers. I’ll find out what they know.”
She nodded and a fist closed around his heart. There was nothing more to say. He’d run out of excuses to linger. “I’ll let you know the moment I learn anything.”
Her second nod was even more stilted.
He motioned his men toward the cavern’s entrance and reluctantly followed them out.
———
Amara paused, composing her expression before she entered Izak’s hideout. After they’d finished with the lion female, Amara had stayed near the village to observe the response once the girl was discovered. It hadn’t taken long, and the outcry was everything Izak could have hoped for and more.
Barbary pride had been ready to raze the mountain camp and end the rebellion once and for all. There was no way Dyauna and her followers would be able to talk their way out of this one.
Maybe this was the best time for her to end her association with Izak. She could return to the village and —Izak grabbed her arm and yanked her into the hideout. “Why are you lurking in the shadows like a ghoul?”
“I was just catching my breath.” He snorted. “The trail isn’t that steep. I climbed it with the dog slung over my shoulder.”
Well, good for you. She wisely kept the sarcastic response to herself. But he was really starting to grate on her nerves. “Your plan worked beautifully. Six Barbary sentinels stormed off through the forest with bloodlust glowing in their eyes. I won’t be surprised if they slash throats first and ask questions later.”
“Where was Maddox? Did he lead the charge?”
“I’m not sure where he was. He wasn’t one of the six.” Izak made a rumbling sound, but didn’t elaborate. “This is what you wanted. Why aren’t you pleased?”
“I will be pleased when you return with confirmation that they did more than argue.”
Amara heaved a frustrated sigh and planted her hands on her hips. “You want me to run all the way over to the rebel camp? I just came from the village. You’re going to wear me out.”
He snorted again, a sound she was coming to hate almost as much as she hated the creature who made it. “You were worn out long before I took you on.
Now go make yourself useful!”
———
“I didn’t expect to see you back so soon.” Maddox glared at his sister then sighed. “I didn’t expect to be back so soon.”
“The plan didn’t work as well as we expected?”
Jizette meant well, but he really didn’t want to review the details of his encounter with Dyauna. Especially not with his baby sister. “She’s stubborn and she’s afraid. If it was easy, she never would have left.”
“What is she afraid of? Haven’t you told her how much you love her?”
“She knows. Trust me, she knows. But her mother was shunned by Barbary pride and the leopards weren’t any more accepting. She knows I’m expected to have full-blooded cubs to carry on my line, and she knows she can’t give them to me.”
“There are options for any pride leader. Adopt one of the orphans or —”
“Our bloodline is prolific. That’s one of the most important biological characteristics. It’s my responsibility to keep this pride strong, and growing.” He paused for a frustrated sigh. “And there is no way in hell Dyauna would be happy if I claimed more than one mate.”
“So approach the primary mate of one of the fertile females. It’s unusual for pride leader to be a secondary mate, but there is no rule against it. The lioness would already have a primary family, so your interaction in her daily life could be minimal.”
Cubs born to secondary mates were often raised by their fathers. It prevented conflict with the cubs of the primary mate, not to mention the primary mate himself.
He was pride leader. The thought of becoming a secondary mate had never entered his mind. But Jizette might be on to something. Could Dyauna love and nurture his cubs if another female gave birth to them?
The fertile female’s primary mate would be honored by her connection to the pride leader. And if she already had cubs by her primary mate, she would be expected to release his cubs as soon as they were weaned. It wasn’t ideal, but it was as close to a resolution as he’d found so far.
“It could work.” The hope in Jizette’s eyes stabbed into his heart. She wanted him to be happy as badly as he wanted to find a way to be with Dyauna.
“If Dyauna could accept me having sex with another female.”
“That, unfortunately, is unavoidable.”
———
Sensing another presence in her private room, Dyauna jarred awake, muscles tense, senses instantly on guard.
“Relax,” Maddox’s deep voice reached out from the darkness, “it’s just me.”
“How did you get past my guards?” She sat up on her pallet, heart thudding madly in her chest. The leopard inside her stirred, anxious, ready to surface and pounce, while the woman was thrilled that he’d returned.
“I explained that I had information for your ears alone, and they let me pass.”
“They should have awakened me and asked permission to…” He joined her on the bed and she forgot what she was saying. Crawling toward her, hair framing his handsome face, he appeared feline despite his human features.
“We need to talk, but first we’re going to finish what we started at the waterfall.” He urged her onto her back and arched over her, weight balanced on his knees and forearms. “No more excuses, no evasions, and no more running away.”
“But I —” His mouth interrupted her protest. His warm lips sealed over hers and his tongue gently teased. He was stubborn, perhaps even more stubborn than she was. She’d told him all the reasons they couldn’t be together, and he kept coming back, kept showing her all the reasons they shouldn’t be apart. She opened wider, welcoming him inside as she slid her tongue over his.
Any female in the village would die to be in her place, so why was she resisting him so determinedly? She ran her hands through his hair, the soft strands tickling her sensitive fingers. His taste was familiar, rich. Her body ripened and warmed in response.
She inhaled his scent and moved her hands to his shoulders then his back. His body was amazing, and he frequently denied her the pleasure of touching him, so she took full advantage of his distraction.
It didn’t last long. As he kissed his way down her neck, he pulled her arms above her head and pressed them into the blankets. He stroked and suckled her breasts, while she arched and whimpered. He knew how hard to squeeze, how deeply to suck to send sensations ricocheting through her body.
Even her breasts didn’t hold his attention for long. He was on a quest, and nothing would keep him from his goal. Scooting down along her body, he used his shoulders like a wedge. Then he caught the backs of her knees and opened her farther. He paused, his face framed by her thighs. His lips parted as if he would speak then he shook his head and looked into her eyes. All the fire and tenderness she could ever want was waiting for her if she was brave enough to accept it.
Maintaining eye contact as long as he could, he bent toward her pussy and inhaled. Desire rolled through her body, pooling between her thighs. Her core contracted and she raised her hips in silent invitation. Words had become a distraction, so they let their bodies communicate.
He parted her folds with the tip of his tongue. She held her breath, trembling in anticipation as his exploration led him ever closer to her clit. His tongue found the swollen nub and she gasped.
His hands slid down her thighs and under her ass. He cupped her bottom and raised her toward his mouth. Desperate for more of his carnal kiss, she held her legs open and pushed up. Tension gathered low in her belly, encouraged by the circular motion of his tongue. Her abdomen quivered and her breasts ached, the nipples still hard from his attention.
“Please, sir, may I come?” She whispered the words out of habit, shocked at how naturally they came to her lips.
He managed a subtle nod without breaking the rhythm of his caress. His lips closed around her clit and she cried out with his first tender suck. Sensations shot up her spine and down her legs, leaving her trembling long after the spasms faded.
Leisurely moments passed as she savored the afterglow; then he pulled her up so they knelt together in the center of the bed. He framed her face with his hands and kissed her, filling her mouth with the proof of her pleasure.
“This is the last time I will ask this, so consider your answer carefully.”
She didn’t like how this was starting. Though worded as a caution, it sounded too much like an ultimatum.
“I love you and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. If there were a way I could fulfill the expectations of my pride and still have you as my mate, would you bond with me?”
Chapter Seven
Amara crouched in the bushes, staring up at the cave entrance. The rebel camp was quiet. A small hunting party had departed shortly after she arrived and one of the guards had passed a short distance away without even realizing she was hiding.
Unfortunately, she’d been unable to see or overhear anything that indicated whether or not there had been a brawl with Barbary pride.
She should assure Izak his plan had worked and be done with it. Without being able to interact with the leopards, she had little chance of finding out the answer to her question. And she sure as hell couldn’t ask someone. How would she explain her interest in the event?
A twig snapped on her right and she whipped her head around. Shit! One of the guards rushed toward her, shifting back to human form as he charged.
“Who are you and what do you want…”
The rest of his demand was lost as she turned and bounded off through the underbrush. Fear drove her faster than she’d ever gone before.
An angry feline cry assured her the leopard followed. She zigzagged and doubled back, determined to blur her trail. There was no time for more elaborate measures. She had to keep moving.
Another cry rent the cool night air, closer this time. Branches scraped her face and poked into her sides as she barreled through dense bushes and exploded into a small clearing. A brook meandered along in a natural culvert. She charged into the water and ran
upstream.
Water splashed her face several times before she realized her frantically pumping legs weren’t the cause. She glanced skyward and a raindrop connected with her nose. Not pausing to celebrate her good fortune, she ran on through the night.
———
“Is your question hypothetical or have you figured out a way to have your cake and eat it too?”
Maddox smiled. Dyauna sounded cautious and a little bit annoyed, but considering her potential for volatility, her reaction was rather mild. “My sister reminded me of a custom that could offer us a way to have it all.”
“Do I even want to know what Jizette suggested?”
“I hope you’ll be pleasantly surprised.” He took a deep breath and chose his words carefully. This negotiation meant more to him than any other. “The ratio of females to males within Barbary pride is better than the colony average, but we still have more males. If I became a secondary mate to a fertile female, we could raise the cubs and my bloodline would be preserved.”
“You would be a secondary mate as opposed to being primary mate to more than one female?” He nodded. “But secondary mates are males who have been unable to secure a primary mate among the fertile females. If I’m your primary mate, doesn’t that disqualify you?”
“I’m pride leader. I could cover every female in the pride if that’s what I wanted, which it is not!”
She smiled and her lashes swept down, concealing her gaze. “You’d have to cover at least one.”
It wasn’t a question. Still, he felt obligated to respond. “I would only mount her in cat form, and only as many times as it took to impregnate her. Morph females don’t orgasm in cat form, so —”
“I’m a morph female. I’m well aware of the distinction.”
Tension swirled around them, heating his skin and compressing his chest. He placed his hands on her hips and leaned in close, his mouth hovering over hers. “Is it an acceptable compromise, or are you willing to find another? I’m willing to consider other options as long as we’re working toward an eventual joining.”
