Ciaro (Big Cats Book 3)

by Crystal Dawn

  Once she arrived, she did one project, removing the countertop and old sink from the cabinet in the guest bathroom. She carried it to her back yard. It was still in good shape and she considered reusing it in a barn or shed if she needed one set up that way or maybe she could donate it to Habitat for Humanity Restore. She was a big believer in that charity and others like it that helped people help themselves.

  Now she hurried back in to get ready for bed. She was in her sleep shirt and ready for bed, but not tired yet. Grabbing a wine cooler out of the fridge, she put on a movie to watch as she sat sipping her wine. Before the movie was done, she shut it off and turned in. Thankfully, she was asleep in seconds.

  When her screeching alarm went off, she was awake immediately. She hit the button to shut off the noise. It was ten, she never slept that late. Oh, yeah. Today she was being picked up and made over. Heaven help her where her interfering family was concerned. She loved them, though. But not for one minute did she believe this would be fun when she was the one all the attention would be on.

  Chapter 3

  The Trouble with Females

  Ciaro did was glad to see the progress on the party house, but he hated to see Mairi leave. His couple preferred to go to their cabin since Mairi had given them a simple task and told them just put in ten hours on it at their own pace and they’d be good. It wasn’t like there wasn’t plenty of work to do on her property and the cabins.

  He drove them there dropping them off until Monday. They were panthers in excellent condition and could walk anywhere they needed too. If they were hungry, the woods around them teemed with game. It was a great place for a big cat shifter to live.

  Driving home, all he could think about what his mate. Yeah, he suspected that’s exactly what she was. Even though to be certain, he wanted to be with her. One night would tell all. Tomorrow his wild woman would be going out with the females where the males hung out looking for someone to take home.

  That was something he had to nip in the bud. He called Sebastian. “Hello?”

  “Sebastian?”

  “Yes, Ciaro?”

  “Is Andi going out with the female’s tomorrow night?”

  “She was invited. I didn’t want her to go with a cub on the way and she’s had morning sickness, but not always in the morning.”

  “Do you know where they will go?”

  “They usually go to Junior’s. Are you familiar with it?”

  “Yes, is there any other place they go?”

  “Not that I know about. Maybe Beth would know.”

  “Thank you, Seb.” He hung up before Seb could ask any questions.

  He pushed another button. “Titus!”

  “This is Ciaro. Do you know where the females go on their nights out?”

  “Usually Junior’s. Sometimes Shooters or Hangers. They are both on the way to Springfield.” Titus hung up on him. He’d say that was rude had he not been aware he’d interrupted something.

  Now he had a list for tomorrow. He’d listened in on their plans so he knew Mairi was getting this make over thing. The trouble with females, or at least one of them was they often seemed to speak a second language. Some mated males could speak it to some extent, but he knew no males that truly understood it or the females.

  If he and Mairi mated, how would he communicate with her? She was a rare female in that she liked many typically male undertakings, but she was still a female. If he ever captured her interest, how in the hell would he keep it? Ciaro rubbed his head trying to avoid a headache. It was a new problem he’d developed since he’d met Mairi.

  His plan was simple. He’d leave home at seven and troll the three bars until he found his woman. Using charm, he’d take her home and finally, they’d test compatibility. Certain it would support the conclusions he’d already drawn, he hoped she would agree to mate him. Sadly, he had a boatload of doubts. So far she barely seemed to tolerate him and then only when they did business together. Luckily, if trying to get personal didn’t work for him, there was a lot of business they could do together.

  Checking his emails before going to bed, he saw his brother would be there Monday. His sister might be there tomorrow. Three families would be there next week sometime. He was relieved to be through all the emails and ready to turn off his computer. It was a great tool for running businesses, but so many messages could be overwhelming.

  He sent Ariel a text message:

  Please help! I need a PA.

  Ciaro had heard she could match jobs with the people made for them. It was his greatest hope that was true. The full weight of this undertaking was beginning to make itself known and he felt foolish for not taking Seb’s and Titus’ advice sooner. He had hope there was still time to prepare as needed.

  Right now, he was tired and needed rest. As he turned in for the night, he could think of nothing, but the lovely Mairi. In his dreams, she was completely his. Ciaro was on top of her as he slid into place between her thighs. He kissed her then worked his way down. As he tasted her skin, he felt her shiver with need. Her sweet scent filled the air making him want her even more.

  His female moaned then pressed up against him. Switching back and forth between her breasts, until she groaned with need, he then continued his way down. All Mairi did was rub his hair massaging his scalp with her fingernails as she made encouraging noises while she pressed against his talented mouth.

  Waking with a start, his heart hammered in his chest as he remembered the sexy dream that left him hard as a rock. Had the difficult female been present, he would have given them both relief and immense pleasure. Now it was morning and he was all by himself. Even his dream was disappearing as he struggled to remember details no longer found in his mind.

  As he made his way to the shower, he set the water cold enough to make his hard cock disappear and hide as far back as it could go. It would still only take one look or a good whiff of Mairi to bring it back in all its glory. Finishing up, he dried, dressed, and headed to Sara’s where all the good food was. He’d go to Ariel’s, but he’d not been invited.

  Pulling into Sara’s, he saw a familiar SUV. Once he entered, he saw Roger was there with his mate. Roger waved him over. “Want to sit with us? It’s packed here right now.” Roger invited.

  “Yes, thank you.” Ciaro replied.

  “This is my mate, Suki.”

  “It’s very nice to meet you.” Ciaro said.

  “Suki, this is the panther leader.”

  “I’ve heard a lot about you and I’m glad to meet you too.” Suki answered.

  “I hope some of it’s good.” Ciaro said with a smile. “Who has been talking about me?”

  “She and Mairi are close.” Roger explained.

  “So none of it’s been good?” Ciaro teased.

  “She likes doing business with you.” Suki teased back.

  “Only when I’m buying.” He admitted.

  “Her business is all about selling just like my mate’s is.” She agreed.

  Their food came, including his even though he’d not placed an order. Looking at it, he had to admit it was what he wanted. They barely talked then, all of them concentrating on their food. It occurred to him that Suki would have some insight into Mairi, but he doubted she would share much. Since he was nearly through with his food, he gave it a shot.

  “You going out tonight on this mysterious girl’s night out?” He asked.

  “Not this time. I went last time and Roger missed me too much. Even Ariel doesn’t go every time.” Suki admitted.

  “Is it like when males go out as a group?” He asked curiously.

  “Maybe not as different as I like to think. Some of the single girls hook up at the end of the night. The mated ones gossip and all of us complain about males. That sound the same?”

  “Minus the spitting, cussing, fighting, and game playing, yes.” Ciaro said with a grin.

  “Mairi and Beth are going so they might do some of that.” Suki giggled.

  “We have to go. I have a
house to show.” Roger said.

  “Don’t forget me if anything comes up within ten miles of the party house.” Ciaro updated. Yeah, he went from five to eight and finally to ten miles hoping to find places for his people.

  “I may have something for you Monday.” Roger observed. In a flurry of goodbyes, they left each going in their own direction.

  It made him wonder if Mairi was right and adding just two miles could give him so many more choices. He would see Monday, now he wanted to use this weekend to stalk his prey, his mate. The problem was he had a hell of a lot to do and several hours before his hunt could begin.

  Once he was home, he started with his phone looking at the messages. Ariel had texted him back. She would send someone to him Monday morning. His reply was can’t wait. Once he had an assistant things would be better.

  It was time for him to contact Jase. He’d been in town for over a week getting settled in. His brother and sister were both planning to work for Mairi, but he didn’t know if they’d started yet. This was why he needed an assistant. Ciaro had given Jase sometime to settle in and just completely forgotten about him. He pushed the button and the phone rang.

  “Jase!”

  “This is Ciaro. I called to see how you are settling in.”

  “The place is a dream. My brother and sister started with Mairi Thursday. I’m waiting for a new nanny to arrive then I can start work.”

  “I need you on Monday for a least part of the day.”

  “I’ll find a way. Same address as before?” Jase asked.

  “Yes, I’ll see you then.” Ciaro hung up relieved to have something decided and ready to get Jase started on the work ahead of them.

  He’d killed about half the time before his mate hunt. Ciaro was beginning to feel excited about the possibility of catching Mairi in a situation where he could approach her about them having sex. In his mind, he could imagine having her in his arms. It was so real, he could smell her amazing aroma and it was almost as if her soft skin was under his hands. This rush of feelings had never happened to him before.

  Never had he felt so strongly about a female nor had he ever considered claiming one. Mairi was a remarkable female in many ways, even more so since she was human. He decided to get ready since he couldn’t do anything except think about her and what he wanted from her. Taking a shower, he let his body relax and tried to calm his mind. The hunt mentality needed to take over so he wouldn’t make any mistakes.

  Once he was clean and relaxed, he finished his shower, dried, and considered what to wear. Junior’s wasn’t a fancy place, although he’d heard there might be people dressed anywhere from rough to casual, to dressy. The other two places might refuse entrance to someone dressed too casually.

  Black dress pants matched with a silky black shirt would usually work anywhere. Black shiny leather ankle boots finished him off. He liked black, the color matched his cat. Grabbing his wallet and keys, he was ready to go, but it was early. Since he’d not eaten lunch, he decided to check out a steak place about ten miles away.

  When he walked in, he felt all eyes on him. Many of the males looked away when his eyes caught theirs. The females, they looked at him with desire, but he wasn’t interested. This was nothing new for him, he had the charisma of a shifter and he felt cat shifters were suave unlike wolves or bears.

  A waitress took his drink order and left him with a menu. When she returned he ordered a rare steak to give him the energy for the hunt ahead. The food was good and he would come here again. The waitress brought out a dessert tray so he ordered carrot cake. It was one of his favorites. By the time he was finished, he had the right attitude for the task ahead.

  Once he was through paying, he was ready to head to Junior’s first. He’d heard about the bar from some of his males, but he’d not gone there yet. As he pulled into the parking lot, it seemed rougher than he’d anticipated. The parking lot wasn’t even paved. It looked like creek gravel. A wide variety of vehicles were here, but most were old pickups.

  The building looked like one of the old metal types made thirty years ago. The lighting in the parking lot was poor, he couldn’t see how the humans saw at all. Someone came out through the front door and he could see there was some light inside.

  He entered and all the typical bar scents hit him. The smell of cooking food covered some of the smells, but not all of them. Ciaro grabbed a table against the wall and right away had to fight off two women looking for sex. They were even willing to share him. Firmly, but politely, he told them no. One of the women shrugged and grabbed her friend’s hand dragging her off.

  They were talking to another guy minutes later. He caught the scent of wolf, that male would have a happy night. Now he ordered a beer and sat down to wait. Sipping his beer, he searched out all the females in the bar with his eyes. None of the ones he knew were here. It was possible they wouldn’t show up.

  His eyes searched the room as he sipped on the bottle of beer in his hands. He was the impatient sort, but this was important. A noise at the door let him know someone was coming in. It was the first of a group of pretty well dressed females. The bartender went to greet them and gave out hugs. It was obvious they were well known to him.

  Ciaro released the breath he’d not been aware he’d been holding when he saw Ariel. Mairi was right behind her and his breath caught once more. She was drop dead gorgeous in an extremely feminine way. He’d never seen her like this before. His heart beat like a drum and his breath came rapidly. Frozen to the spot for a moment, he was unsure what to do until some man came up hugging her. A growl forced its way out of him, but with the loud music playing, no one heard.

  Not sure what to do, he approached her carefully. Males fled, fearing him more than they wanted her. Mairi looked up, her eyes slightly glazed with a half-smile on her face. Their eyes caught and held, both of them were unable to look away. Once he was near enough, he took her hand leading her on the dance floor. A space on the dance floor suddenly cleared of couples as others surrounded them in a circle like during a fight.

  That was alright, he knew he would have to struggle to claim this female permanently. She would be well worth the fight, but at least she wasn’t fighting him now. They were holding each other for the slow dance they had begun. Her scent wrapped around him, and he was lost in his need for her.

  Chapter 4

  Ciaro

  Mairi was ready when Moe pulled up to get her. Her cousin looked ready to drop her pup at any time. She’d started calling the baby a pup when she realized it bothered Moe so much. Wasn’t it the duty of relatives to tease each other mercilessly? Even if it wasn’t, it was so much fun! When she giggled, Moe looked at her suspiciously.

  “I must admit, you’re taking all this much better than I expected.” Moe offered.

  “It’s a done deal. No point in fighting it now.”

  “That’s never stopped you before.”

  Mairi grinned at her sometimes aggravating cousin. She was right, there was no arguing that. “Maybe I’m maturing.”

  “Heaven help us all.” Moe declared. They both giggled as they made the rounds picking up Imogene, Lucille, and Cassie.

  “Everyone comfortable back there?” Moe said as she pressed on the accelerator.

  A chorus of yeses filled the air. They were headed out to meet Ariel at the dress shop Jazz owned. It was a great place to go for the nicer items a girl liked to wear and all of them went here from time to time to buy something special and see Jazz. She wasn’t a cousin exactly, more an adopted member of the family.

  Jazz was a witch and had a particular talent for picking the perfect items for any woman to wear for whatever event was coming up. “Hello Ladies. Who is my victim, er customer today?” She knew they would all buy something, but they usually came for one of two people specifically and those were the ones she would see to first.

  “Mairi and Harry are your two main customers.” Moe said enjoying herself too much.

  “Mairi?” Jazz said her excitement ob
vious. It made Mairi more nervous that Jazz was so excited about getting her hands on her. “I have the perfect dress.” She turned and ran away grabbing a rolling rack as she went.

  When she returned, she rushed Mairi into the dressing room and Moe pushed her way in as well. “So what? I’m going to have a front row seat.” Moe said when Mairi shot her a look.

  “I have two very different looks. Try this first.” Jazz insisted.

  “OMG!” Moe yelled.

  The outfit was amazing. It was a black leather dress with a diagonal zipper. That fit like a glove and it made her look sexy, but dangerous. The zipper was silver in color, so her black purse and high heels had silver on them too. Yeah, she was going to take it. The next dress was blood red. It was strapless and hugged her breast. A brooch was pinned in the center drawing attention to her boobs. There was no shoes or purse since the new ones she already had would work with both.

  Jazz knew she didn’t buy a lot of clothes or things of that nature. Now the underwear came next. It was black with red stitching. Bra, panty, and garter set with sheer black thigh high hose, it was just gorgeous. Now that she was done, others picked things out until Harry swept in like a celebrity.

  “Hey, Doll! What are you doing here? You’re already gorgeous.” Mairi teased.

  Harry shot her a sad look. “If only. I’m the cute one that reminds them of a sister.”

  “I’ve got just the thing for you.” Jazz said as she dragged her back to the dressing room. Mairi sat back there with her.

  Jazz pulled out a rack hidden behind the one Mairi’s dresses had been on. “Try this one first.” It was all leather, but it was red. At first it seemed a one piece but it was two. The fit was skin tight and looked sweet, but sexy.

  “I’m ready to take you out on a date. Goddess, you look amazing.” Mairi said.

  “Here’s the other one.” It was purple and black. The front looked like scarves that parted every once in a while giving a peek of Harry’s legs. The top showed a lovely view of cleavage making the most of what Harry had.