On the Prowl

by Desiree Holt

  A Total-E-Bound Publication

  www.total-e-bound.com

  On the Prowl

  ISBN # 978-0-85715-905-2

  ©Copyright Desiree Holt 2012

  Cover Art by Posh Gosh ©Copyright March 2012

  Edited by Stacey Birkel

  Total-E-Bound Publishing

  This is a work of fiction. All characters, places and events are from the author’s imagination and should not be confused with fact. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, events or places is purely coincidental.

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any material form, whether by printing, photocopying, scanning or otherwise without the written permission of the publisher, Total-E-Bound Publishing.

  Applications should be addressed in the first instance, in writing, to Total-E-Bound Publishing. Unauthorised or restricted acts in relation to this publication may result in civil proceedings and/or criminal prosecution.

  The author and illustrator have asserted their respective rights under the Copyright Designs and Patents Acts 1988 (as amended) to be identified as the author of this book and illustrator of the artwork.

  Published in 2012 by Total-E-Bound Publishing, Think Tank, Ruston Way, Lincoln, LN6 7FL, United Kingdom.

  Warning:

  This book contains sexually explicit content which is only suitable for mature readers. This story has a heat rating of Total-e-burning and a sexometer of 2.

  This story contains 54 pages, additionally there is also a free excerpt at the end of the book containing 10 pages.

  Cat’s Eyes

  ON THE PROWL

  Desiree Holt

  Book two in the Cat’s Eyes Series

  For Seth Rogan and Kendall Raines it’s explosive attraction when they meet, but can he protect her from the killer stalking female shifters at The Litter Box?

  Homicide detective Seth Rogan agreed to spend his evenings at his brother’s club, The Litter Box, hoping to catch the rogue shifter who’s attacking and killing single female patrons.

  When he meets Kendall Raines, it’s twice as hard to focus because the chemistry between them is off the charts.

  The killer has left no clues and the bodies of his victims are piling up. Seth needs to find the murderous cat in a hurry so he can keep Kendall safe and mate with her for life.

  Dedication

  This one is for my real kitty cats, especially the black one who is always ‘on the prowl’.

  Trademarks Acknowledgement

  The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of the following wordmark mentioned in this work of fiction:

  Facebook: Facebook, Inc.

  Chapter One

  Seth Rogan leaned against the end of the bar and popped a handful of peanuts into his mouth. The Litter Box, the main gathering place for cat shifters in the city, was very full for a night in the middle of the week, mainly because the owner—his brother, Max—had decided to extend Happy Hour on Wednesdays until nine o’clock. He had also added three food choices. That meant all the panther and leopard professionals that usually left by seven o’clock were still hanging around.

  Normally he’d just be happy that business was good for his brother. But right now there was a predator loose—a leopard with genetic flaws who preyed on the female cats at The Litter Box. He followed them home, broke into their places, raped them and then killed them by ripping out their throats.

  Which was why Seth, a homicide detective, was spending his off duty hours at The Litter Box scoping out the crowd. And wishing like hell all these women would go home…safely.

  “Don’t look so sour,” Max told him as he handed him a soft drink. “You’ll scare away my customers.”

  “I’d like to scare them away permanently,” Seth growled. “At least until we get this bastard leopard taken care of.”

  “No kidding.” Max’s face sobered. “He’s got to be new to the area because I have a hard time believing it’s one of my regulars.”

  “You’d have to be the one to spot a newcomer. I don’t get in here enough.”

  “And whose fault is that?” his brother asked. “You have no social life.”

  “Not all of us can be lucky enough to find a gem like your wife.”

  Max grinned. “And I had to work damn hard to get her.”

  Max had recently married Aisha McClellan, a woman he’d loved for a long time before circumstance had finally given him the opportunity he’d needed to let her know. Now he grinned like a fool every time someone mentioned her name.

  “Speak of the sweet little devil.” Max nodded towards the front door.

  Aisha had just stopped to greet Leo, the bouncer, before heading towards her husband. But it was the woman with her that caught Seth’s attention and nearly made his heart stop beating. She was small, like Aisha, but where Max’s wife was dark, she was a honey blonde. Thick, wavy hair cascaded past her shoulders. Black jeans and a hot pink T-shirt clung to a trim but lushly curved figure.

  His cock instantly hardened and every nerve in his body went on red alert. Desire coursed through him, tightening his balls and sending erotic messages to his brain.

  What the hell?

  Seth had definitely had his share of woman, but never before had there been such a strong, instant connection.

  Beside him, Max, who was also watching the two women approach, gave a low chuckle.

  “Be nice to me and I might introduce you,” he told his brother.

  “Who is she?”

  “She works with Aisha. Her name is Kendall Raines.” He nodded his head towards them. “Mind your manners.”

  Aisha took a seat on an empty bar stool and leaned across the polished wood for a kiss from her husband. Max winked at his brother as he put a lip lock on his wife. Seth didn’t care about watching his brother and sister-in-law make out next to him. He was much more interested in the woman sitting down next to Aisha. He stared at her and tried to pull his tongue off the roof of his mouth.

  Finally he cleared his throat and Max slid a glance at him. Seth frowned and tilted his head at the blonde.

  “Okay, okay.” Max chuckled and looked at Aisha. “How about introducing Kendall to Seth?”

  Aisha looked at him and raised an eyebrow. “The dark prince actually wants to meet someone?”

  “Very funny,” Seth growled.

  Aisha turned to her friend. “Kendall, meet Seth Rogan, my brother-in-law. When he’s not working as a homicide detective, he stands around and glares at people. Seth, smile nicely and say hello to Kendall Raines.”

  Kendall smiled at him and something inside him turned over. He wanted to bury his cock deep inside this woman and keep it there forever. As blonde as she was, he had a feeling when she shifted it was into leopard form. That was okay. He and Max had a lot of friends who had crossed breeds to mate.

  “Nice to meet you.” He smiled. “Can I buy you a drink?”

  “Don’t be too impressed,” Aisha told her. “He gets them for free from Max.”

  “It’s the thought that counts,” Kendall told her in a low, musical voice. She looked at Seth. “Thanks. That would be nice.”

  Seth wedged himself in between Kendall’s stool and the one next to her. “What’s your pleasure?”

  “Vodka martini on the rocks, please.”

  “I’ve never seen you in here before,” he commented while he waited for Max to fill their orders.

  “I don’t usually go out during the week,” she told him. “But Aisha’s been telling me about this place for ages. Tonight both of us had to work late and it just seemed like a good idea to stop by here on the way home.”

  Seth spotted a small table in the corner being vacated. “Let’s move over there”—he stared down his b
rother and sister-in-law—“where we can get acquainted in some form of privacy.”

  “Um, sure. I guess.”

  She sounded tentative, but she still slid off the bar stool and let him guide her through the swaying mass of bodies on the dance floor. He wanted to grab the table before someone else could claim it.

  “The atmosphere in here usually doesn’t lend itself too well to conversation,” he told her, leaning close to speak directly into her ear as the thumping music reverberated in the room.

  Her perfume invaded his senses, a slightly exotic flavour, like the blooming flowers of the jungle. His cock flexed slightly and his hormones went wild. Seth hoped he could control himself enough not to frighten her away. If he hadn’t promised Max he’d stay until closing, he’d find a way to whisk her out of there.

  “Aisha told me this is how she met Max.”

  Seth nodded. “She came in here for a long time before Max finally found the nerve to…be with her.”

  Kendall laughed. “Are you referring to the night my friend got stinking drunk and Max kindly took her home?”

  “Oh. So you know the story.”

  Kendall nodded. “Aisha and I have worked together for a long time. We’ve gotten to be pretty tight.”

  Seth cocked an eyebrow. “Yet you’ve never come in here before.”

  “And you know that because you spend all your free time here?” she teased.

  “Not really. But I’d know if you had because Max would have mentioned anything to do with Aisha’s friends.”

  The waitress wriggled her way through the crowd, balancing a tray over her head, then deposited their drinks in front of them. Seth watched as Kendall lifted her glass with slender fingers and took a sip of the drink with her full, sensuous lips. For an instant Seth imagined those lips around his cock and the arrow of heat that shot through him nearly fried his balls. Hastily he took a swallow of his club soda to cool himself off.

  “No alcohol for you, Detective? I didn’t think you were on duty right now.”

  He set his glass down. “Not technically. But I’m hanging out at The Litter Box after I get off to help Max out with a situation.”

  Her face sobered instantly. “Aisha told me about the leopard shifter who’s been preying on the single women here.” Sadness filled her eyes. “I hate that it’s one of my breed who’s doing it.”

  Seth automatically reached out and closed one hand over hers. “We all feel that way when one of our kind goes rogue. But Max and I are convinced it’s a genetically flawed shifter, perhaps the result of the mating of two different species.”

  A delicate shudder raced over Kendall’s curvy body. “I read a story about what he does to them. God…those poor women.”

  “You need to be very careful, Kendall.” He hadn’t moved his hand and was very aware that she hadn’t withdrawn hers from his touch. He cleared his throat. “So. Tell me about what you do at work?”

  “I’m an IT project manager. Like Aisha.”

  “You enjoy it? I can’t imagine spending all day sitting at a computer.”

  She tossed her head slightly, her hair flowing like waves of gold. Max had to grit his teeth to keep from reaching out and running his fingers through them. The nearness of her body to his had him hungering to touch every one of her sweet curves. To dip his fingers into the V of her sweater and feel the creamy swell of her breasts.

  To bury myself in her body and never come up for air.

  Whoa! What the hell’s happening here?

  Seth had a healthy sexual appetite, but he was always cautious, always selective, always in control. He was stunned by his instantaneous reaction to Kendall Raines. The air was rich with the scent of her pheromones and both Seth’s human and panther senses were on full alert.

  Go slowly. Don’t scare her off. And remember, you have a job to do here.

  “You’re looking at me so strangely,” she remarked during a momentary lull in the music. “Do I have dirt on my face? Is my mascara running down my cheeks? My lipstick smudged?” She grinned. “Have I sprouted alien antennae?”

  Seth gave himself a mental shake. “No. No, you’re fine. Sorry about that.” He squeezed her hand he was still holding. “Just thinking how lucky I am that I was here tonight when you came in with Aisha.”

  Her smile was suddenly shy. “Me too.”

  He shifted slightly in his chair. “I hate to do this, but half of me still has to pay attention to what’s going on here. I promised my brother.”

  “No problem. I feel a lot safer, actually, knowing you’re keeping an eye on things.”

  “Which means,” he went on, reluctantly moving his hand away from hers, “I should probably take a better look at who’s here. Check out the single guys to see if our predator is scoping out the scene.”

  “No problem.”

  He smiled as a thought popped into his brain. “How about dancing with me? That way I can enjoy myself and still pay attention to business.

  I hope.

  “Oh.” She looked momentarily startled. “Well, sure. That would be nice.”

  But once they were on the floor, Seth wasn’t sure it had been the best idea. For one thing, having Kendall in his arms made him harder than stone. The immediate connection that had sizzled and snapped between them gripped everything from his brains to his balls. Her scent teased at his nostrils, the silk of her hair brushed his cheek and her lush, firm breasts pressed into his chest. Just having her in his arms was sending images of her naked and aroused dancing through his brain.

  Nice, Rogan. Get your brain out of your pants.

  With a deliberate effort, he forced himself to look around the room. The bar was still crowded, the dance floor full and every other available space filled with people talking, sending out signals…looking to hook up. He wanted to shake each and every woman he saw and warn her that the man she was talking to might not be as safe as she thought.

  The bad thing about the rogue leopard was he left no traces at all and no one had any idea who it could be. He was apparently clever enough to maintain an outward appearance that gave off no warning signals. He could actually be any of the men Seth was eyeing—looking relaxed, casual, out for a good time and nothing more.

  The song ended and Kendall made a move to step back from him and off the floor. But the press of the crowd held them in place and in any event, Seth wasn’t quite ready to let go of her. The next song kicked in and Seth pulled Kendall more tightly against him, their bodies barely swaying on the dance floor, but the limited movement was enough to arouse him almost to the point of desperation.

  “I need to check with Max about something,” he muttered, startling Kendall as he lowered his arms and grabbed one of her hands. “Come on.”

  He moved them through the crowd like a man on a mission.

  “My drink is over there,” she shouted over the loud music.

  “Max will get you another one.” They were back at the end of the bar by now. “Right, Max?”

  “What he said,” his brother responded over the din.

  Seth held up two fingers, pointed at Kendall and himself and at Max, who nodded.

  “I thought you wanted to talk,” Kendall reminded him when the song ended. “Isn’t that why we went to sit at the table?”

  “Obviously this is no place to talk,” Seth grumbled.

  Or any place to hold a woman I want to strip naked and fuck senseless.

  At that moment Aisha hopped off her stool and came around to the end of the bar where Max had paused for a moment.

  “We’re heading out,” she told her husband, giving him a kiss.

  “You came together?” he asked.

  “Uh huh.” She grinned. “We dropped off my car and Kendall drove. She wanted to have me as an excuse if someone came onto her too strong.” She winked at her brother-in-law. “That wouldn’t be you, would it, Seth?”

  He ignored her. “Fine. I’ll follow you home.”

  “That’s not necessary,” Aisha protested.<
br />
  “I agree,” Kendall added. “Besides, aren’t you needed here?”

  “Not until closing, really. If we leave now, I can be back in time.” He took each of them by the arm. “No arguments, ladies. Never disagree with the police.”

  He hustled them out before they could protest any further, nodding to Leo on the way.

  “I’ll be back soon,” he told him.

  Leo just grinned.

  The two cars pulled out of the parking lot in tandem. Seth followed closely behind the women, waiting when Kendall dropped Aisha off until his sister-in-law was safely in her house. When they got to Kendall’s apartment building, he pulled into a vacant parking space and walked her inside.

  “Isn’t this a little overkill?” she asked with a smile. “My own personal police protection?”

  “It’ll make me feel a lot better. Besides, I wanted to do this.”

  Before he had a chance to second-guess himself, he pulled her into his arms and took her mouth in a hungry kiss. Her lips felt just as full and soft as they looked, pliant under his after a bare second’s hesitation. He ran the tip of his tongue over the closed seam of her lips, unrelenting until she opened for him. When he glided inside and her wet heat enveloped him, his entire body caught fire. He pulled her tightly against him, the thick rod of his cock pressing against the softness of her body, her breasts burning into his chest. As he danced his tongue against hers and gripped her head to hold it in place, he had to make a conscious effort to restrain his cat, the panther that always growled deep inside him.

  I want to mate with her!

  Where did that come from?

  But even as he asked himself, he knew that it was true. They might have just met but the bond was so strong it was almost visible. When they came up for air and he looked in Kendall’s eyes, he saw that she felt it, too.