Marc closed his eyes. He could feel it.
The calling, weak as it was, was unmistakable.
Kelly was pregnant with his cub, and he didn’t even know her last name.
Fuck.
Swallowing the rest of his scotch, Marc got up. He had a lot of work to do, and he needed to find his mate as quickly as possible. He went to his room and pulled on his clothes even as he began to dial Reid’s number.
Reid answered before the first ring was even complete. “Where did you disappear to last night?” he asked.
“I found my mate,” Marc said. There was no sense in beating around the bush on the topic.
A silent pause. “Yay? So you’re normal after all? You’re not shooting blanks all this time?”
Marc’s jaw twitched.
If he was talking with Reid in person, he’d have slugged his half-brother in the face. His last relationship with a jaguaress lasted more than two years. They fucked more often than rabbits on steroid and yet, there was no sign of his future heir. It got the rest of his clansmen talking behind his back. He got irritated to think that maybe there was something wrong with him. He knew now that it wasn’t meant to be. His mate was Kelly. A female human. “But she’s gone this morning. We need to get Juan on this immediately. Find out where she is.”
“Okay, okay. Did you remember to ask her name, at least?” Reid asked, tone still mocking.
“Yes, Reid. I asked her name. Kelly,” Marc said. “Her name was Kelly.”
“What’s her last name?”
Marc tsked in annoyance. He felt so stupid.
“Oh-ho, no last name, well, well, well,” Reid was having a ball on the other end of the line. “Why am I not surprised?”
“Why have I let you live all these years? Get cracking.”
Reid ignored him. He laughed merrily. “You didn’t think this was going to be more than a one-night stand, right? You thought it was going to be your usual fuckaroo, but instead, you found the one. Priceless.”
Note to self: strangle Reid the next time I see him. “Enough. Get on it already.”
There was a short pause in the other end, and that told him Reid thought that he should know something more considering this was his mate. But how was he supposed to know that at the time? He had thought she was just another random girl helping him kill time in the most pleasurable way.
“Okay, okay. Don’t worry, I’m on it,” Reid finally said.
“Good. Call me when you’ve got something.”
Marc clicked off and thought about the situation even further. Kelly had done more than occupy his attention for the evening. After their first time, he had taken her several more times. It was as if she had as much energy as he did, which was rather unusual for a human female. They both just couldn’t stop. Now it made sense to him. She had been open and willing to him because fate had already known their destinies.
He finished getting dressed and made his way to his office, which was just outside of downtown Vegas. He had an executive bathroom there where he planned to shower and change. As soon as he arrived, though, he heard a knock on his office door. Juan entered a moment later. Juan was Marc’s cousin and one of Marc’s most trusted advisors in the family. His specialty was tracking things. People or objects, it didn’t matter. Juan could find anything if given enough time.
Marc motioned for Juan to come closer when he saw that Juan had a file in his hands.
“For the search that you asked for. Can you confirm that this is who you’re looking for?” Juan handed the file to Marc.
Marc flipped the file opened and saw several black and white pictures, clearly from the casino’s CCTV of Kelly standing at the craps table. She looked beautiful. He, on the other hand, look like a besotted idiot across the table from her. He was amazed that no one had said anything to him the night before when he had been so clearly intrigued by her.
“That’s her,” he hissed. The jaguar inside him excited. “I take it the hotel is fully cooperating?”
“Did you expect anything differently?” Juan asked. “You are a Vegas VIP.”
Marc thought that might be a slight exaggeration, but it wasn’t far from the truth. “Was she staying at the hotel then?”
“No. That would have made this easy,” Juan said. “But don’t worry. I’ve got my sources, and it’s almost a certainty she was staying on the strip. I’ll find her.”
Marc nodded and sent Juan on his way. In the meantime, he needed to keep his alter-beast under control.
But to his dismay, the search wasn’t going as fast as he wanted it to be. It took three days to find her. Apparently, she still traveled under her previous married name, which had slowed Juan down. It bothered Marc to know that she had been married before, but as long as she wasn’t married now, that was all that mattered. He’d already begun his plan for flying out to find her. New York was halfway across the country, but he was certain that he’d be able to convince her to come back to Vegas.
It would be her new home.
Forever.
CHAPTER FOUR
Back to present…
In her panic at finding Marc on her doorstep, Kelly had overreacted. Her immediate thought was to try to simply stop him from continuing with his far-fetched story. She wasn’t sure why clobbering him across the side of the head with a shovel was the best idea, but it was the only thing she could think of at the time. As soon as he was unconscious, she took her phone back out of her pocket again and called the police.
She sat on the other side of the yard, shovel in hand, as she waited for the police to arrive. Just before they did, she saw the first stirrings that Marc was waking up. She kept the shovel gripped tightly in her hands as he slowly slid upward into a sitting position. When he spotted her, the most unexpected thing happened. She’d expected that he’d go berserk or threaten to file battery charges against her, but he just smiled. Not a creepy smile; it was as if a parent was chiding his misbehaving child.
Mark got up and dusted the dirt from his suit, acting as if nothing had happened. His movements were sleek and full of elegance. He gingerly touched his head where the shovel had connected with his temple. “To be honest, I didn’t see that coming, but I’ve always said I liked my women feisty,” he mused.
Huh? Feisty? She was in a homicidal mood for criminy sake. She had been sitting there asking herself the whole time why he would have tracked her down. Goodness knows it had been the best sex she’d ever had in her life, but she figured for a guy like Marc, their encounter was a dime a dozen. She didn’t think there was anything special about her. That was why she had left while he was still asleep the morning after. It would have been incredibly embarrassing to have him escort her out during the morning-after walk of shame. It was much better to be able to leave on her own terms. She had regretted not saying goodbye, but after what had transpired between them, she figured it was the best way.
Having him show up and say they were meant to be together was too preposterous to be true. Was he a stalker? A serial killer?
“Kelly, we need to talk. What are you doing over there?”
“I’m doing fine over here. Thank you.”
“Kelly… “ Marc plucked out a white handkerchief from his suit pocket and wiped his temple.
She thought she saw blood on it. Yikes! A surge of guilt seized her heart. Oh my God, what did I do? Poor guy. I didn’t mean to hurt him that bad. Maybe I was too hasty to judge him…
“Kelly, this is getting ridiculous. Can we talk like civilized adults?” Marc pleaded. “I will overlook this juvenile prank because you’re my mate.”
Wha-what? She perked up, couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Excuse me? He will overlook? His chauvinist tone made her irritated. I was wrong. I should have hit him harder, that son of a—
A cop cruiser pulled in front of her building.
Thank God! Kelly sighed in relief. Two police officers responded to her nine-one-one call. She stood up, but Marc remained still. She saw the corners o
Two uniformed cops approached them. The older one sported a big mustache and his partner—who seemed like he was a rookie straight out of the academy—trailed behind.
“Were you the one who called, ma’am? Are you all right? You said you had an intruder on the property? Is this him?” Officer Mustache asked her.
Now that she had a little bit of time to get used to the idea of Marc being there, she started to feel a little foolish. She had overreacted. But now that this was happening, she didn’t know what to do.
“Yes, an intruder,” she said, but there was a waver in her voice that didn’t hold any confidence.
“Do you know this man, ma’am?” the other officer asked.
Marc slowly held his hands up, showing the police officers that he didn’t have anything in them. “I’m sorry that you’ve wasted your time coming out here, officers. Kelly and I were just getting reacquainted, and I think she had a bit of a fright when I arrived unexpectedly. It was a simple overreaction and misunderstanding.”
His tone had changed, she noticed. It was soothing, deep, and practically hypnotic. She was even more surprised when the officers slowly relaxed. Their eyes vacant. Their face blank. Granted, that was ultimately what she wanted. She didn’t want any violence on her account, but she didn’t understand why the cops seemed to be so accepting of Marc’s story.
“Isn’t that right, Kelly?” Marc asked her. “A simple misunderstanding between two old friends.” He winked as he emphasized the word “friends.”
She ignored his question.
Officer Mustache nodded sagely. “It’s no problem. You should always err on the side of caution, ma’am. We’ll leave you to your reacquaintance then.”
Kelly’s mouth fell open as the two police officers moseyed to their cruiser. “Wait!”
The rookie turned around. “Yes, ma’am?”
Marc cut Kelly off. “Go on, Officer. Get into your car. There’s nothing to see here. You and your partner will drive around the neighborhood one hundred times and go straight to your precinct. You will not respond to any calls for the rest of the day,” Marc beamed as he commanded.
“Yes, yes, of course.” The rookie followed his partner’s suit. The doors slammed and they left a second later.
Kelly was dumbfounded. “What was that all about?” she asked. “That felt a little too easy. What did you do to them?” She was outraged. Her gaze swung back to Marc, and she saw that his expression had turned to one of amusement.
That wacko was smiling. “I have a gift—the gift of persuasion. I can command people to do anything my heart desires.”
Yup. A certified wacko. One hundred percent, non-fat gluten-free free range humanely-raised wacko. “Gift of persuasion, my ass. Are you a magician? You know, like Chris Angel? You can hypnotize people, can’t you? Admit it!”
“Kelly, dear, I’m just a humble businessman, but I can be very persuasive when I want to be,” Marc drawled. “Now, can we go inside and have that civil conversation?”
Kelly hesitated.
He sighed. “Look, Kelly, I came here as soon as my brother found your address. Whether you’re ready or not, we will have that conversation. If you’re planning to call the police again, I will simply turn them away like I did before. Or I might make them do a crazy dance for my entertainment. Or perhaps, you’d like to see that?”
He can do those things? Kelly blinked in disbelief. Putting people under hypnosis by simply commanding them? This man was dangerous.
“We have a lot to catch up on,” he pressed.
Kelly bit her lower lip. There was still something so strange about the situation, but she should be willing to at least listen. The guy had flown a long way just to see her, which when she thought about it, was rather flattering. Kinda. Okay, a lot. Like, seriously.
Defeated, she gave out a long sigh. “I guess I can make you some tea. But you have to promise that if I don’t like anything you say, you’ll leave.” She held up the shovel in warning, although she felt foolish enough about already using it the way it was.
Marc put up his hands again and gave her a short nod. “I promise that if you don’t want to hear anything else, I’ll leave. I’ve learned my lesson. Scouts honor.”
She stuck her finger out at him. “And don’t try pulling any of that persuasive crap that I just saw you do with the cops. I’m not falling for any of that funny business.”
She was surprised again when Marc threw his head back and laughed. It was a deep, throaty laugh that seemed to rumble the ground beneath her feet. She could feel the vibrations of it even in her chest. She couldn’t help but smile back at him even though she had no idea why. His laugh was infectious.
Kelly put her shovel down and stowed it behind the big flowerpot. Marc waited for her expectantly. She dusted her hands as she walked past him. “Come in.”
“Ladies first.”
“No hypnotizing crap!”
“You have no worry of that, babe. Unfortunately for me, you will always be the only person who is immune to my persuasive gifts. I guess I will just have to charm your pants off the old-fashioned way.”
Goodness. He was flirting with her, and strangely, she found that she didn’t mind at all.
Feeling the rise of heat in her cheeks, she turned and motioned for Marc to follow her inside straight to the kitchen. He pulled up a chair and sat elegantly like he owned the room. Once there, she sensed that he was inspecting her space as she made them a pot of tea. She wasn’t sure what kind of tea that he would like, and he didn’t strike her as a tea drinker to begin with, but he said nothing as she put the cup in front of him. He thanked her and fiddled with the saucer.
Kelly sat across him. “Okay, I’m ready to listen. Why did you track me down?”
Marc took his time sipping the tea with such grace it was like he belonged to a tea club of upper class socialites. He set the cup back down. His facial expression changed to one of seriousness. “I told you that I came for you. A bond was created between us that night that cannot be broken. Wherever you are, that is where I want to be, too. And not only for me, but for the one that you carry inside of you.”
Huh? Was he even speaking English? It was like she was spirited away in some bizarre alternate reality from the Twilight Zone. Ridiculous. He must be nuts. Like, chipmunk lost its nut kind of nuts. Kelly let out a chortle at his words. He didn’t seem pleased to hear it.
“Sorry. You’re saying I’m pregnant?”
“Yes.”
“You’re serious?”
“Do I look like I’m joking to you? ‘Cause I have to tell you, it isn’t funny. You didn’t take me seriously.”
“I’m pregnant from that night in Vegas?”
“Exactly.”
“And how do you know that I’m pregnant? Are you a psychic?” she mocked.
Marc took no offense. “Kind of, but not quite.”
“No, no.” Kelly shook her head. “You can’t be more wrong, Marc. I’ve been on birth control. Besides that, it wouldn’t make a difference anyway. My ex-husband and I tried to get pregnant for years. We went to countless specialists and infertility clinics and we failed. Eventually I discovered that I was the one who had the issues. I can’t get pregnant. Barren, that’s what my ex said.”
“No. You’re wrong. It’s not only possible, but it has happened,” Marc said. Voice was firm and full of conviction.
Kelly wasn’t sure what to do with this conversation. “Okay, let’s try again. Even if that was true, how could you possibly know already?”
“Ah. This part is going to be difficult to digest. I know that I’m throwing a lot at you right now, but it’s important that you understand everything. I have never shared any of this with anyone outside of my family before. The only reason I’m doing so now is because we’re meant to be together. You may not believe it now, but I know somewhere deep inside of you, you can feel it too. That’s why you’re not throwing me out of your house and calling me a crazy person, despite your initial reaction.”
I already think you’re crazy. Kelly opened her mouth to disagree and found that no words came out. Her logical brain processed all of this and confirmed that Marc had to be crazy. But there was something else. Her emotions were not matching what she was thinking in her mind. She was afraid, but not of Marc doing anything to physically hurt her. She was more afraid of what would happen if he walked out the door, and she never saw him again. How freaking absurd.
She exhaled a deep breath.
It was completely at odds with her logic, but in some ways, he was right. There was something about him that drew her to him like moths to a flame. That was why the last four days had been even more miserable than the first few months after her divorce. She had felt like she had left a part of herself in Vegas. She couldn’t stop thinking about Marc. Couldn’t stop thinking about the passionate lovemaking they shared, the way he made her scream in pleasure—more pleasure in one night than in her entire marriage. She rationalized that she felt that way because Marc was exceptionally handsome and an exceptionally skilled lover. After a dry spell during the last several months of her marriage and staying celibate after that, it was normal for her to fall for a man who granted her the best fuck of her life. She said to herself she’d get over him. Eventually.
But now Marc was here with the most outlandish excuse in the world. Mate. Pregnant. Gift of persuasion. What the hell, man?
She leaned back in her seat and crossed her arms. “Let’s assume for one minute that I might believe a small piece of what you just said. How do you prove it?”
Marc stood up, and she wondered if he was going to leave. He slowly began to remove his clothes.
“Wait, wait, wait. What the hell are you doing?” she demanded.
He gave her a “duh” kind of look. “I don’t want to ruin my suit; especially when I didn’t carry any changing clothes.”
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