by Rosanna Leo
Nina eyed Charlotte and her growing belly as Bart helped her into the water. She couldn’t believe how much the wolf shifter showed for someone who was less than three months along. However, as Bart had explained not long ago, shifters tended to show earlier than humans, which meant Charlotte had a long few months ahead of her. Heck, she was already as big as a human woman at six months. She eased onto her bum and Bart sat next to her, smiling like a proud papa already, his arm around her.
It seemed to Nina conversation stopped then. Ryland still stared at the water, seemingly shell-shocked, while Lia rubbed his arm. On her other side, Gioia had her head on Soren’s shoulder and he stroked her hair with a pensive touch.
“So, Ryland,” she said, trying to start a conversation. “Killian showed me the watch towers you guys built. They’re amazing. It’ll be impossible for someone to pass by unnoticed.”
Ryland’s face turned white as he raised his head to look at her.
“Ry?” she prompted.
He didn’t say anything for a moment, and then he blurted, “We’re pregnant!” He gulped. “I mean Lia’s pregnant.”
Every mouth in their circle hung open. Several staff members on the deck rushed over, including a grinning Percy and Byron.
Lia swatted him but then hugged him. “Ry! We weren’t going to say anything yet.” She looked at the rest of them. “I’m only a few weeks along. We just took the test today.”
Gioia squealed and launched herself out of the water like a bullet. “Congratulations!” She ran over to hug her in-laws.
Soren followed, clapping a big hand on his brother’s shoulder. “Dude. You always have to do things first, don’t you? I’ve been trying to knock up my own old lady for a month now.”
“Soren!”
Laughing he swooped Gioia up into his arms and wrestled her into the water. When she emerged, he gathered her into his arms and they smiled at the happy couple.
Nina and Killian offered their congratulations, and once again Nina experienced the rush of protectiveness that she’d felt when she first met the pregnant Charlotte. She hugged Lia, feeling so close to the bear woman and whispered, “How do you feel?”
“Happy,” Lia replied, her eyes misting. “And scared and nervous all at once. And my poor baby bear daddy is a wreck.” She glanced at Ryland. “He’s concerned about the timing. With the threats from the Alpha Brethren, Ry is insane with worry. He’s already a worrier, but now…”
Nina placed a hand on Lia’s abdomen. “We’ll all take care of you. Lia, I swear it. You’ve been so kind to me. And you know any of us would put our lives on the line for your baby bear and Charlotte’s little wolf man.” She gulped back a sob, but it escaped anyway in a loud squeak.
Killian put his arm around her, his own eyes watering. He grinned at Ryland. “See what you did? You’ve turned us all into sniveling wrecks.”
And despite the laughter, Nina realized something very somber passed among the shifter friends that night. No words were spoken, but in their intense gazes, she witnessed many promises being made. As Soren once again clasped his brother’s arm, she saw the look he exchanged with Ryland. As Charlotte and Lia patted each other’s tummies, she saw Bart’s protective stance and the clench in his jaw. Even Percy and Byron bowed their heads in quiet conversation as they regarded Lia and Ryland.
The love around the pool made Nina want to fall to her knees.
Killian warned her emotions might feel a bit raw at the beginning. Shifters tended to get affected by their powerful feelings, in a way a human wouldn’t understand. Even as Nina looked at her mate, ferocious love bubbled through her. She realized in that moment she wanted the same things with Killian: a long life, lots of love and fluffy jaguar babies.
He turned to her, as if hearing and understanding, and offered her his beautiful smile. He clasped her to him as the water swished around their thighs. “I want all those things, too. I’ll give them all to you, anything you want. I love you, Nina.”
“I love you, too.”
And as they sank back into the pool to enjoy the rest of a very momentous evening, Nina was comforted by the greatest sense of peace she’d ever known.
Until Charlotte spoke to Lia, her loud voice echoing all around the pool. “Oh my God, I finally have someone else to complain to about these fucking sore nipples.”
Everyone there burst into some much-needed laughter.
* * * *
“Nina, you’re not listening.”
“It’s not that,” she said, squirming in her seat on the bench behind their cabin. “But you have to admit, the subject matter of our conversation is a little off-putting.”
Killian strode in front of her, completely nude, hands on hips. She tried not to look at his package while he glared at her, but it was hard not to acknowledge his bobbing member with even a small glance.
“You need to learn how to kill. I need to know you can defend yourself.”
She grimaced. “But won’t I just do it instinctually? I haven’t even shifted yet and you want to teach me how to eats brains like a zombie cat.”
He narrowed his eyes. “Jaguars don’t eat brains. Well, maybe the wild ones do, but that’s not what you need to learn. Jaguars have the most powerful jaws and teeth of any great cat. When we kill, we pierce right through the temporal bone in the skull.” He touched her head. “Right here, by the ears. In doing so, we shatter the skull, piercing the brain. In the wild, jaguars have been known to bring down huge animals this way. Tapirs, caimans. We can even destroy the hard shell of a sea turtle.” He crouched before her, his hand on her thigh. “So help me God, Nina. I will turn you into an apex predator if it’s the last thing I do, but I need you to listen to me. Will you try or are you going to be a squeamish girl forever?”
“You did not just call me a squeamish girl.”
“Prove yourself to be the opposite.”
“How? I don’t know how to shift.” She’d tried that past few days. God only knew she’d tried, giving herself numerous headaches in the process. All she wanted was to be able to rip through her clothes like her mate and transform into a mighty beast, but she remained a rosette-free woman.
“Okay,” he said, giving her a shrewd look. “So your jaguar is hiding. We need to coax it a little bit.”
She gave his body a slow once-over, feeling heat rise to her face. “What did you have in mind?”
“I think we’ve been going about this the wrong way. Yes, jaguars are vicious killers, but they’re also effective stalkers. We’re experts at ambushing prey, so maybe I need to give you something to ambush.” He grinned. “You’re going to get naked, my pretty kitten, and you’re going to stalk me.”
“But…”
“No buts, Nina.” He began to back away toward a wooded path. “Take off your clothes. Find me and show me how you’d attack. If you’re a good little jaguar, maybe I’ll even let you catch me.” With that, he was off.
“Killian, come back here!” Stammering, she watched as he disappeared into the forest. She stood up, straining to see his white ass as he ran away, when she realized something.
No matter how far away he got, his scent lingered in her nasal passages, filling her brain and inspiring her body to act. And that scent, so pleasing and masculine, roused her fingers into action. Before she knew it, she had unbuttoned her blouse and was already on the way to slipping out of the rest of her clothes. Driven by shifter bloodlust and hunger for her mate, a chain of reaction initiated in her body, starting with a crackle at her toes. Sucking in his delicious fragrance, her bones began to pop, like a thousand knuckles being cracked. As her muscles lengthened and readjusted, she fell to her knees, and realized she landed on padded paws instead. Marveling at the brisk changes, she felt sharp points descend from her gums, and wondered if this was how it felt when she cut her first teeth as a baby. She let out a cry, but heard the halting “uh uh uh uh” of a jaguar’s growl. Worried she might startle anyone who happen
ed to be near, she turned her furry head, but only saw one thing.
Rosettes. She was covered in rosettes. Incredible.
Flaring her nostrils, opening her mouth to breathe deeply, Nina swallowed Killian’s scent. With a roar that shocked even herself, she pounced into the woods and chased after him.
Somewhere along the path, she noticed his scent changed. No longer the alluring smell of a recently-showered human man with a hard-on, it had morphed into something different, something richer. As she wound past a copse of maple trees, she realized she now smelled his lush coat and appealing animal breath. And underneath it all? Killian’s warm blood, spurring her onward.
She picked up her pace, rounding easily around boulders and through caves. His scent lingered, always up ahead, but she grew closer with each step. Her heart pounded. Her blood raced. Just as the fragrance hit her full on, Nina slowed to a crawl, enjoying the hunt.
He was close, and he sensed her as well.
Good job, my mate. You make a very sexy jaguar woman.
Where the hell are you? Her animal gaze darted everywhere.
Now, now. What fun is there in just giving it away? Come find me.
I will, Killian, and when I do…There was a movement to her left, nothing more than a shadow, but when she turned her head, the scent intensified. Faced with a massive oak, she allowed her gaze to travel up the trunk. Jaguar Killian lounged on a branch about twenty feet high. She could almost swear his feline lips parted in a grin.
Seriously? I have never climbed a tree in all my whole city-dwelling life.
You’re about to, his voice sounded in her head as a sexy lull. I’ll make it worth your while, sweet thing.
You’d better keep to your word, you catty bastard. I don’t climb trees for just anyone, you know. She appraised the knobby tree trunk. Sure, she boasted claws now but the trunk might have been as smooth as a polished marble wall, it looked so hard to scale. How would she ever get purchase?
Well, she’d go nowhere without trying.
Her claws extended, she called upon the ancient wisdom flowing through her veins, passed down from generations of jaguars. Even as she pounced onto the trunk, latching on, her paws seemed to land in all the right places. They seemed to know exactly where and how to grip. Within seconds, she neared Killian’s branch, thrilled with her progress.
She looked over at him, intending to give him a cat-like glare, only to find him on all fours, leaping down to a lower branch. As swiftly as she pursued him, he flew to the ground, unharmed. Following, she hesitated at the lower branch.
Falling from such a height would make for a frightful tumble. She’d never been much of a heights girl.
You can do it. Her mate stood still below her, as strong and elegant as one of Byron’s animal sculptures.
Taking the biggest leap of faith yet, Nina inhaled and jumped, trusting her body knew what to do. Trusting Killian. As she soared, she wished she could feel the breeze in her human hair, although this sensation proved just as exhilarating. Her limbs moved with finesse and strange grace. Her strength, an utter rush.
With a rumble of approval, Killian huffed as she hit the ground running. Not giving him a chance to sprint, she leaped once more and pounced on him. Without intending to hurt him, she opened her jaws wide and clamped down on his skull in a show of power, just as he’d taught her. Instead of piercing his brain, she retracted her teeth and gave him a big lick.
Gotcha.
So you did. With lightning speed, he toppled her, landing on top of her, once again the apex predator. With a dangerous growl, he lowered his big head and licked her face.
God help her, her body responded, even in this form. Killian? Are we able to…do it as jaguars?
His bright eyes narrowed in interest. Of course. It can be a lot of fun, but let’s stick to baby steps for now. Okay?
Okay.
Sliding off her, he shifted into human form. “I’m proud of you.”
Concentrating on his change, she began her own transformation, shaking out her arms and legs as her fur disappeared into her pores. Catching a breath, as a tingle of anticipation traveled into her sex, she smiled at her disheveled mate. “Thanks. What was that about making it worth my while?”
Killian strode toward her and clapped his hands on her bare ass, pulling her up against his considerable erection. “Race me back to our cabin and I guarantee you a good time.”
Our cabin. How quickly her belongings had drifted into Killian’s space. Sure, she didn’t have many with her, but her toothbrush and clothes looked right next to his. The inadvertent move into his larger cabin seemed symbolic of their hurried, yet comfortable, relationship. The most baffling, and yet most reasonable, transition she’d ever made. “You’re on.”
They shifted with simultaneous ease and tore across the wooded horizon. A few minutes running and they arrived at home. He shifted first, opening the door for her. Still unaccustomed to baring her all in public, as all shifters seemed to glory in doing, she entered as a jaguar, not shifting until he’d locked the door behind them.
Once she was back in human form, he smoothed his hand around her waist. “You’re perfect, Nina. So beautiful. I couldn’t be happier with how you’ve transitioned.”
She gazed at the man she’d initially likened to a golden Apollo. His generous mouth bore a smile of contentment and his eyes sparkled like peridot gems. “I wouldn’t have been able to do it without you.”
His gaze dropped, lingering on her bosom with a grin of appreciation, then drifting toward her pussy. His nostrils flared, and she envisioned his hungry jaguar. How she wished she could feel its teeth upon her skin again.
“Do you want me to bite you again, sweet cat?”
She tried to swallow to ease her debilitating thirst, but her throat felt as gravelly as the banks of Lake Gemini. “I want so many things.”
He ran a slow finger over her stomach toward her mound, letting it find a home between her moist lips. How could her mouth feel so dry when the rest of her body wept for his touch?
“Do you want me here?”
“Yes.”
One golden brow arched as he stroked her, making her knees buckle. “Tell me how you want me.”
“I want.” Stroke. Stroke. “I want…oh. Killian, please.”
He removed his hand. “Tell me.”
Fighting the urge to pout like a wallflower at the school dance, Nina summoned her new cat’s hunger and its bravery. “I want your face between my thighs. I want your tongue in my pussy. I want you to fuck me against the wall. I want you to make me come, like, seventeen times.”
He stared at her, unmoving for a few seconds. But when the slow grin of lusty worship crossed his face, orgasm number one almost barreled through her. Even without touching her, the man held absolute sway over her body.
With another man, it might alarm her. With Killian, well, she could get used to this.
“Seventeen times, huh?” He put his hands on her shoulders and moved her toward the bed. She lay back, parting her legs for him, and he knelt on the floor between them. “Let’s make it an even twenty.”
She was so ready for him, so sore and needy for his touch after their run, that by the time he touched his lips to her pussy, she was already on her way. His first, soft licks set the charge. As soon as he applied more pressure and sucked her clit, she exploded into exquisite shards. She clutched his hair, holding him close. He lapped at her juices until her writhing ceased and then he looked up with a wet grin.
“That’s one.”
Oh, hell. Leave it to him to count down. With increasing worry her body wouldn’t survive the night, she closed her eyes and surrendered all power to him.
Besides, he wouldn’t really make it to twenty, would he?
She cracked an eye open. He gazed at her pussy with sensual focus. As he touched a finger to her quivering skin, he caught her gaze and winked.
I’m in big trouble here.
> *
I’ll make it to twenty if it’s the last thing I do.
Killian licked at her pussy, drinking her first orgasm, tasting her second on the horizon. A few more licks, a gentle suck on her juicy lips and…bingo. Number two. He glanced at her, only to see her head turning on the sheets, her eyes squeezed shut.
Yes.
She released her hold on his head and her hands fell to her sides. “That was amazing.”
“I’m not done.”
She lifted her head and regarded him through sleepy eyes. “But…”
“You just keep counting.” Before she could object, he flipped her over onto her belly and urged her onto all fours, grinning when he spied the shakiness of her limbs. Drawing her close to the edge of the bed, he spread her legs, casting his roving gaze over her swollen lips and pretty ass.
Oh, he’d claim her every which way tonight. He’d put his mark on every inch of her.
By the time he was done, his sexy mate wouldn’t be able to stand. She wouldn’t be able to breathe. But she’d thank him.
He buried his face in her pussy, determined to please and so grateful for her new stamina. So help him, they would break in Nina’s new shifter body in a way she’d never forget.
Delicious minutes passed, stretching into segments of an hour. Three.
Four.
Five.
Unable to hold back any longer, Killian climbed onto the bed behind her and drove into her like a man possessed. Her channel, so tight, as if made for him, constricted his cock, making him burn in the best way. Jesus, don’t lose it. Give her a few more first.
Six.
He turned her over and slung her legs over his shoulders. Her eyes grew wild, but he still saw hunger in their depths. This time he entered her with languor, inch by inch. He teased and tormented, withdrew almost to the point of no contact, and then penetrated her sweetness with patience. He moved so slowly, he might not have been moving at all. And even though it almost killed him in the process, he heard her anxious moans and felt her tighten. One more slow thrust and…
