ACougarsDesire

by Marisa Chenery

  An image of Jase rose inside her mind. He was a hunk, there was no question about that. All that remained to be seen was whether or not he ended up being as bad as the rest of the men she’d gone out with. The very small part of her that still held on to the hope of finding the one man who would be perfect for her prayed he’d be different.

  Katarina sat back and smiled. At least she’d get to see how he passed her first test, which would be what they did on their date tomorrow evening. She’d come up with something he’d either be able to handle, or would send him running.

  Chapter Two

  After he returned to his car, Jase tried the computer program once more to see if Caleb had used his cell while Jase had been with Katarina. To his disappointment, his prey hadn’t. With nothing left to do, he started his vehicle and drove to Blaise’s place. His cousin would be expecting to hear how Jase’s meeting with Draven had gone.

  A mental picture of Katarina—threatening him with her bat—made Jase chuckle. For her lack of stature, she came across as one tough woman. He figured her being the superintendent of the apartment building, and given the area she lived, she would have to be.

  At his cousin’s family’s house, Jase parked in front of the four-car garage before he knocked once on the front door, then let himself in. He called Blaise’s name, who answered from the living room.

  Jase walked into that room to find his Aunt Mara, Uncle Nate, Blaise, his mate Harley, his other cousin Taylor and his mate Aspen there. He looked at his uncle. It’d only been a few days since Harley, who was a lab technician, had found the poisons in Nate’s blood work, but the leader of their family group had greatly improved. No longer did he have the debilitating symptoms of his “illness”. He was still a bit weak and too thin, but that wouldn’t last long. Being a cougar shifter would make his recovery swift. They healed a lot faster than a human. And if Nate had been one, he would have died from the poisons long ago.

  Blaise greeted him first. “Hey, Jase. How did things go with Draven?”

  Jase crossed the room, then sat in the empty armchair. “Good. He gave me a program that tracks Caleb each time he uses his cell phone. It isn’t up to the minute, but it’s close enough.”

  “Did you find him?” his uncle asked.

  He shook his head. “I came close, though. I did find where he was hiding. He rented an apartment in a low-income building in a not so great part of Anchorage. He must have heard me talking to the superintendent, who lives across the hall. I ended up kicking in his door, but he’d jumped out the window and gotten away. So far he hasn’t used his cell phone again.”

  “You’ll catch him eventually,” Nate said. “He obviously is staying in the city for some reason. I would have thought he would be long gone by now.”

  To be honest, so had Jase. He’d been all prepared to catch a plane to wherever Caleb ended up. So far his prey had done two dumb things—using a traceable cell phone and staying in Anchorage where he would be hunted the most.

  “I guess Caleb won’t be returning there any time soon,” Taylor said.

  “He could. I didn’t get a chance to look through the apartment since the super was with me and not pleased that I’d kicked in the door, but it appeared as if Caleb left a lot of things behind.”

  “He might just walk away from it all,” Blaise added. “We now know where he’s been staying.”

  “I’ve asked Katarina to let me know if Caleb returns before I can track him with the program.”

  “Katarina?” his aunt asked.

  “She’s the superintendent of the building.” Jase decided to get everything out in the open in case things did work out between him and Katarina. “And before you can ask, because I know you will, I’m taking her out on a date tomorrow evening.”

  “I take it she’s human,” his uncle said.

  “Yes.” Jase looked Nate straight in the eyes when he said it, almost daring him to say something negative, but he didn’t, much to his surprise.

  “If she ends up setting off the magic in your pendant, she’ll be just as welcomed into our family group as Aspen and Harley have been.”

  Everyone in the room appeared to be as shocked as Jase was by that statement. At one time, his Uncle Nate was very vocal in the fact he thought humans were beneath cougar shifters. He really hadn’t been all that thrilled when Taylor had become mated to Aspen.

  Nate looked at each of them before his gaze settled on Harley. “I no longer think the way I did in the past. If it wasn’t for Harley, I could very well be dead right now. I owe her my life.” He then looked at Jase. “I’ll stand by any male who has a human female as his mate. Taylor is right, it’s time to make changes to the laws and mores we follow.”

  Jase turned his gaze on Taylor to find his cousin staring at his father with his mouth hanging open, a look of incredulity on his face. Never in a million years had any of them expected Nate to say it was time for such a major change in their family group. It was thought they wouldn’t come to be until Nate had passed away or stepped down as group leader and Taylor had taken his place.

  Aspen chuckled as she put a finger under her mate’s chin and pushed his mouth closed. “You’ll be catching flies soon if you’re not careful.”

  Taylor shook his head. “I can’t believe it. I didn’t think…” He shook his head again.

  His uncle smiled at his oldest son. “I know you didn’t. From what Caleb did to me, and the fact both my sons have forged their own paths in life, I’ve been able to see the error of my ways. We have to move with the times or be left behind.”

  Mara, who sat next to Nate, turned his head toward her and laid one hell of a kiss on him. Both in their sixties, they were far from old by cougar shifter standards, which allowed a lifespan of around two hundred. So this display of affection wasn’t out of place for people their age. When Nate had been so sick, Mara wouldn’t have been so enthusiastic with her kiss, but now that he was recovering, it seemed that was no longer the case.

  Nate pulled away first, then surged to his feet. He reached down and took his mate’s hand before he pulled her to stand next to him. With his gaze still on Mara, he said, “I have to discuss something with Mara upstairs. Right now.”

  His uncle hurried out of the living room, taking Jase’s aunt with him. The sound of Mara giggling reached his ears once they disappeared from sight. It wasn’t too long before a door on the upper level closed.

  Jase burst out laughing. “I guess someone is definitely feeling better.”

  Blaise groaned. “I’m not sure if I’m going to like this new Dad. Having to see displays of affection like that, which end up with them going upstairs to have sex, might scar me for life.”

  “Poor baby,” Harley said with a laugh. “Isn’t that a bit of the pot calling the kettle black? Since I moved in here with you a couple days ago, I think we’ve done the same thing more than once.”

  “Try four times,” Taylor said.

  “You were counting?” Aspen asked, a smile playing on her lips.

  “No, not really. It’s kind of hard to ignore when it happens right in front of me, though.”

  Jase interrupted before that topic could go any further. “I guess I’m going to go see what Grady is up to. At least I don’t have to worry about my brother being distracted by a mate since he doesn’t have one.”

  “I’ll walk you out,” Blaise said and stood when Jase did.

  At the front door, his cousin asked, “So what did you think of Draven?”

  “You told me he was a computer geek, but you neglected to tell me he sure as hell doesn’t look like one. The guy is the biggest cougar shifter I’ve ever seen.”

  Blaise laughed. “I know he doesn’t look the part, but he’s a whiz when it comes to anything to do with computers. He might come across as intimidating, but once you get to know him, he’s a great guy. I’d trust him with anything.”

  “He said you mentioned to him that Grady and I like to go out to human bars to look at the women. Draven
wants to go out with us sometime.”

  “It might only be Grady now that you’ve met Katarina,” Blaise said with a grin.

  Jase shook his head. “I only have a date with her. And you have no idea how hard it was to get her to agree to even that.”

  “Wow, that’s a first. I don’t think there’s been a woman you haven’t been able to charm enough to get her to agree to sleep with you. Did it hurt your ego?” His cousin laughed.

  “Har, har. Laugh it up. No, it didn’t hurt my ego. I was more afraid she’d use the baseball bat she threatened to take to my head.”

  That just made Blaise laugh even harder. Once he got himself under some control, he asked, “Why did she do that?”

  Jase sighed. “It might have had to do with the fact she thought I was trying to break into her apartment.”

  That set Blaise off once more. “What did you do to make her think that?”

  “I didn’t know which apartment was Caleb’s at first, okay? I was trying to pick up his scent trail. Forget it. I’m leaving. I’ll call if I manage to corner Caleb somewhere.”

  Blaise waved him off. Jase walked outside, then closed the door on his cousin’s laughter. He was pretty sure he’d go through the same thing with his brother Grady when Jase told him the same story.

  * * * * *

  Katarina sat in her car in the parking lot of the Alaska Zoo. It was the first activity she’d planned for her and Jase’s date. She’d changed it from starting in the evening to the middle of the afternoon. She hadn’t known if he would have been okay with it, but he’d quickly reassured her the time change wasn’t a problem.

  She got out of her vehicle and locked it. Since Jase didn’t know what she drove and she didn’t know what he did, Katarina figured it would be better if she was more easily seen. Pushing closer to late fall, the days were definitely cooling off. She zipped up her jacket, then shoved her hands into the pockets.

  The parking lot wasn’t overly full since it was later in the day and the zoo closed at five. Katarina watched each car that turned off the road and into it. At exactly three o’clock, the time she’d wanted Jase to meet her, a flashy black sports car appeared at the entrance.

  At first, she didn’t think it was Jase. For some reason she’d assumed he would drive a car like hers—not new and definitely not expensive. Katarina soon realized it was indeed him when the vehicle drove toward where she stood and parked in the empty space next to her. There was no mistaking him as the driver.

  Jase got out, then walked around to where she waited. “Hi, Katarina. I made it just in time.”

  “Yeah, you did.”

  Much to her dismay, Jase was even better-looking than she’d remembered. She didn’t have high hopes that this date would end up going well. The last really good-looking guy she’d dated had had a wandering eye that soon led to his hands doing the same.

  “Are you ready to go into the zoo?” Jase asked.

  “Sure.”

  As they walked side by side to the entrance, he asked, “I was a bit surprised when you decided on coming here. I thought you would have picked something else.”

  She peered at him. “And what would that be? The regular dinner and a movie or going out to a bar?”

  “No. I had a feeling you were going to pick something different. I was all prepared to do whatever you decided on, even if it happened to be making me jump out of a plane to go skydiving. I would have pissed my pants on the way down and would have had to excuse myself to change once I hit the ground, but I would have done it.”

  Katarina couldn’t hold back a smile as she thought of Jase screaming like a girl as he jumped out of a plane. She chuckled. “Why would you think I’d choose that? No one could pay me enough money to go skydiving.”

  He smiled. “Well, you did come across as a tough woman yesterday. I got the impression you might have a daredevil side too.”

  “Nope, I don’t. I’d more than likely be pissing my pants right along with you.”

  Jase laughed, the sound of it causing Katarina to smile bigger. At least he appeared to have a sense of humor, something she liked in a guy. Once they reached the entrance to the zoo, he paid for their admissions. With maps in hand, they started their tour.

  As they headed for the first attraction, which was where the river otters and harbor seals were, a group of kids came running toward them. Given as how they were carrying party favor bags, Katarina guessed they’d been part of a birthday party there.

  The kids didn’t seem to slow down once they reached her and Jase. He put his arm around her shoulders and pulled her against his side before he stepped out of the way. The small group ran past, laughing and yelling at each other. Four adults chased after them, calling for them to slow down.

  The heat from Jase’s body soaked through Katarina’s jacket and into her. Being this close to him, she easily smelled the aftershave he’d used. It was spicy and all male. And pressed up against him, there was no mistaking how hard his body was. Hers reacted to his nearness as her nipples grew taut. She hated to admit how much she liked the fact she fit perfectly under his arm, or how small he made her feel.

  Jase got them walking again, but kept his hold on her. He matched his strides to her shorter ones so she didn’t have to feel as if she had to run to keep up. Katarina should have pulled away, but she liked having him against her.

  He looked at her. “Is there any animal in particular you want to see?”

  She nodded. “Actually, there are a couple. I like watching the tigers and snow leopards. The big cats are my favorite.”

  “I have to say I’m partial to them as well.”

  “Is that why you have a cougar head pendant? I noticed it yesterday.”

  Jase pulled it out of the front of his jacket. “I guess you could say I feel more for the cougars than any other large cat.”

  “Too bad they don’t have any here.”

  “The tigers and snow leopards are just as nice.”

  They walked in silence for a bit until they reached the first set of animals. As they went from one attraction to the next, Katarina found her gaze drawn to Jase’s pendant from time to time. The cougar’s ruby eyes would flash in the sun when it hit it just right.

  It took Katarina and Jase about twenty minutes to reach the tigers. They had a large open grassed area to roam. At first, she couldn’t see any, but one came running up to the edge of the enclosure, then snarled once he reached the fence. It appeared as if he looked right at them.

  “I’ve been here a few times and not once have I seen one do that,” Katarina said.

  Jase chuckled. “Maybe he thinks another big cat has come to threaten his territory. I wonder what he’ll do if I growl back at him.”

  Before Katarina could say anything in response to that, Jase let loose with a cat growl that almost put the tiger to shame. The big cat went completely still, then took off the way it’d come.

  “Not so tough after all,” Jase said with a laugh. “I guess I’m the head cat around this place.”

  She looked at him. “That’s quite a talent you’ve got there. I don’t think I’ve met anyone who could perfectly sound like a big cat as you do.”

  Jase stepped closer, bent his head and nuzzled the crook of her neck. “I can also do this.”

  He purred, the sound vibrating along her skin. He continued to do so just like a real cat as he dragged his lips down the column of her throat. Katarina shivered, her pussy clenched as a surge of pure desire shot through her. She became instantly turned-on. She put her hands on Jase’s waist and leaned into him. She couldn’t help herself.

  Jase didn’t seem to mind. He cupped her cheek and turned her head toward him before he brought his mouth down to hers. The kiss started out as just a simple meeting of lips, but that quickly changed. Katarina clutched him tighter and sighed as it became far from chaste.

  She tried to push even closer, even though she was basically as close as she could get to him. Jase licked the seam of her mouth, see
king entrance. Katarina opened and sucked his tongue inside. Arousal pulsed through her. A throbbing ache deep inside her pussy demanded her attention. It increased as he purred once more.

  The sound of a child’s laughter instantly brought Katarina out of the haze of pleasure that had surrounded her. She jerked back from Jase and looked around him to see a little girl no more than six or seven years of age watching them. The girl’s mother grabbed her hand, then led her from the exhibit.

  Katarina took a few steps away from Jase and turned to face the tiger’s enclosure. She’d completely forgotten where they were. Being caught necking in such a public place wasn’t something she was prone to. She wasn’t one for putting on displays. The way he’d kissed her, she hadn’t thought of anything else but how good it was to have his mouth moving over hers. If not for a child breaking the mood, she had a feeling that kiss would have lasted a lot longer.

  Chapter Three

  Jase looked at Katarina as she turned her back to him. Had he gone too fast for her? He hadn’t intended to kiss her quite this soon on their date, but having her so close to him, and the scent of her skin filling his nose, he hadn’t been able to resist.

  “Did I do something wrong?” he asked as he came to stand beside her.

  “No. The problem is me.”

  “How so? I have nothing to complain about with that kiss.”

  Katarina turned her gaze his way and gave him a small smile. “Neither do I. The problem is I liked it too much and forgot where I was.”

  Jase grinned, put his arm around her shoulders and kissed the top of her head. “There’s nothing wrong with that. It shows you’re into me just as much as I’m into you.”