by Leah Brooke
Dealing with Marc and James, however, left her shaken.
She’d known what they wanted from her—at least she thought she had—until last night when they walked away from her.
Now she wasn’t so sure.
Blowing out a breath, she opened her eyes again, determined to do what she’d come here for, get back to her bar and get on with her life. She blinked, and then blinked again, not quite believing the sight in front of her. She froze, sucking in another breath, her heart in her throat.
Holy hell!
Swallowing heavily, she forced herself to remain perfectly still when every instinct screamed at her to run.
Two huge black panthers stood unmoving only about ten yards away, their unblinking stares sending chills up and down her spine.
Shit, they really lived here and were far more terrifying up close than she could have ever imagined. Knowing they could pounce at any second, she swallowed heavily, her mind racing as she tried to remember everything she knew about panthers.
Not much.
They were big, dangerous cats. That was about all she knew, other than the fact that they stared at her as if they wanted to take a huge bite out of her.
Fighting back her panic, she weighed her chances of getting back to the car before either one of them could strike.
She’d never make it. She’d come too far into the woods, but even if she’d been close, she wouldn’t make it more than a few steps before one of them pounced.
But, she sure as hell wouldn’t go down without a fight.
Keeping her movements slow and as steady as she could despite her shaking, she reached out a hand toward her bat, hoping that if she managed to hit them hard enough, she might just have a shot of getting away.
She never took her eyes from them, stunned when they looked at each other as though trying to figure out what to make of her.
Or trying to figure out who gets the first bite.
Gathering her courage, she took a deep breath and grabbed the end of the bat and whirled around, tripping over the flashlight and those damned roots before she could take more than a step and hitting the ground hard.
Shit. Shit. Shit.
Scared out of her mind, she tried to scramble to her feet, but fear had made her too clumsy to accomplish it. Expecting to feel sharp teeth sinking into her at any moment, she screamed, rolling onto her back with the bat held out on front of her and braced herself for an attack.
“Easy, sweetheart. No one’s gonna hurt you.”
Bailey sucked in a breath and blinked again, wondering if she was hallucinating.
Marc and James stood over her, as naked as the day they were born.
James smiled, his eyes holding hers. “We’re going to have to tell her the truth now, whether she’s ready for it or not.”
Marc nodded, seeming unconcerned with his nakedness, his cock lengthening and getting harder as he stared down at her.
He reached out to touch her cheek, frowning when she jerked away. “I hadn’t planned on scaring her to death before we did it. Let’s get her back to the house and get her calmed down. I’m not discussing it out here.”
Whipping her head around, Bailey scanned their surroundings, getting that sick feeling in her stomach again.
“What the hell’s going on? Where are they? Did you see the panthers?” Scrambling to her feet, she picked up her bat again and looked around in search of them, scared they would jump out from behind a tree trunk and attack at any moment.
She still couldn’t make sense of the fact that both Marc and James seemed to have appeared, stark naked, in the middle of the woods.
Was she dead?
Relieved, but more than a little surprised that she didn’t see either one of the huge, black cats, she grabbed Marc’s arm with her free hand, holding the bat at the ready with the other.
“Hurry up! My car’s on the road. They have to be close. What the hell are you two doing out here naked? Forget it. I don’t want to know. Move, damn it! I swear I saw them. There were two of them. Let’s get to my car before they get back.”
Turning, she raced away, looking over her shoulder. “Hurry up, damn it! They could come back any second.”
To her surprise, Marc reached out and grabbed her arm, pulling her against his naked chest, whipping the bat out of her grasp and tossing it aside, all in one smooth move. He shook her once, lifting her to her toes, his eyes hard and glittering like blue chips of ice. “Calm down, damn it. Nothing’s going to hurt you. The panthers are gone. Come on. Let’s get back to the house so we can talk.”
“Talk?” Struggling to get out of his arms, she pushed against his naked chest, trying not to notice how firm it felt under her hands or that it seemed wider without being covered.
She didn’t dare look down at the cock, hard as steel against her belly.
Christ, even with the threat of being mauled by a panther, she wanted him.
“You really are crazy, and you’re making me crazy right along with you! You’re in the woods naked and want to stand around talking when there are panthers on the loose. Let go of me, you maniac!”
Shaking her again, he bent low, getting in her face. “We’re not crazy. Settle down.”
Trying to look around his shoulder, she brushed off James’s hand over her back. “How the hell can I settle down when they could come back any minute?”
James moved to stand behind her and rubbed her shoulders, his cock pressing into the small of her back. “I’ve got news for you, baby. They’re already here.”
Bailey stilled, keeping her voice at a whisper. Tightening both hands on the bat, she whipped her head around. “Where?”
Marc gripped her chin despite her struggle and brushed his lips over hers. “We’re the panthers, Bailey. No, don’t look at me like that. We’d never hurt you, and we’re not crazy. Let’s go back to my house so we can talk.”
Looking up into his glittering blue eyes, Bailey swallowed heavily and carefully stepped to the side, tightening her grip on the bat. She didn’t know what kind of trick they were trying to pull and didn’t know why, but she wanted no part of it.
“Uh, no. That’s okay. I’d better get back into town.” Christ, she had to get out of here. She kept both of them in her line of sight and, holding her hands out in front of her, started to back away.
Oh, God. They were more than just a little crazy. They were certifiable.
James lifted a brow. “The bar’s closed today and tomorrow. You have no reason to rush into town, unless, of course, you’re planning to go to Officer Brown and report a panther sighting?”
Since she’d planned to do just that, she fought not to look guilty, not even sure why she did feel guilty, and managed two more steps backward. “No, of course not. I just have things to do.”
Marc rested his hands on his hips, drawing attention to his cock, which seemed to grow larger by the minute. His eyes held hers as he took one step forward for every one she took back. “Liar. What are you doing here? Looking for the panther? You like danger, honey?”
His eyes and half smile told her he’d be willing to give her as much danger as she could handle.
Lifting her chin, she took another step back, feeling like she’d stepped into some kind of dream world.
“No, I, uh, was looking for my necklace.” She took another step backward and then another. “I didn’t realize until this morning that I lost it, and I knew it had to be here. Look, I’m sorry. I really have to go.”
James shared a look with Marc, smiling as he turned back to her. “Did you find your necklace?”
She kept scanning the woods, listening for any sound that a panther might make. “No. Look, I don’t know who owns this land, but—”
Marc’s brow went up. “I do.”
Of course, he did.
She gulped and looked in the direction of her bat.
“The panthers were here. Two of them. I can’t believe you want to stand around and talk. We have to get out of here.” She kep
t looking behind them, expecting the panthers to reappear any minute. Maybe Marc and James’s appearance scared them off, but she took several more steps in what she hoped was the right direction.
It happened in the blink of an eye, so fast she could only stare in shock as a black panther appeared, standing next to Marc in the spot James had occupied only seconds ago.
That funny feeling in her stomach turned cold and heavy as the panther leapt away, leaving her alone with Marc. Her knees turned rubbery, and she had to lock them to remain upright.
She stared after it, turning her attention to Marc to find him watching her intently. He didn’t even seem alarmed, even though she knew he had to have seen it.
What the hell was going on?
Turning back to stare in the direction the panther had disappeared, she took another clumsy step backward, remembering James’s claim that they were the panthers.
She’d never believe something so outrageous, but couldn’t figure out what the hell they hoped to accomplish by telling her such a blatant lie.
Or how they’d made a panther appear and James disappear at the same time.
She would just get the hell out of here as fast as she could and ask Gun and Ricky to come back out here with her another day.
“Bailey, look at me.”
Shaking her head at Marc’s low demand, she gulped and took another step backward, her mind going numb as she stared in the direction the panther had disappeared.
“Bailey, look at me. Now.”
Unable to ignore the steel in his tone, she lifted her gaze to his, struck by the warmth and affection she saw in the eyes that had appeared so cold only moments ago. Trying not to look at the hard lines of his amazing body, she took another step back, shaking her head, but still couldn’t look away.
“No.”
He smiled and took a step closer. “Yes, Bailey. I know it’s hard to believe and will be even harder for you to understand. James and I are shifters. We’d never hurt you. We couldn’t.”
He smiled wryly. “It appears you’re our mate.”
She stiffened at the word—the same word James had used last night at the bar.
“Mate?”
She gasped and watched in horror as the black panther came into view again, its powerful body moving toward her.
Marc moved so fast she couldn’t react in time to get away before he wrapped his arms around her from behind and pulled her against him, effectively holding her in place.
Frozen with fear, she couldn’t have moved anyway.
His hard arms tightened around her, his breath warm on her cheek.
“Don’t be alarmed. Look. It’s James. He wouldn’t hurt you. It appears he has something for you.”
His calm tone got through to her, as did the feeling of warmth and security that surrounded her like a blanket, his ability to soothe her so easily a little startling.
She sucked in a breath as the panther took another step closer.
“Let go of me. Oh, God.”
Marc nipped her earlobe. “Look. In his mouth. Is that your necklace?”
She plastered herself against Marc’s naked body, unable to take her eyes off of the black panther’s slow approach.
Her terror subsided somewhat when she saw how cautiously the panther moved, almost as though it didn’t want to scare her. As soon as he stopped several feet in front of her and lifted his head, she saw the glint of gold dangling from the panther’s sharp teeth.
Marc nuzzled her neck from behind, sending a shiver through her, and tightened his arms around her.
“Look. See? He’s trying not to scare you. That’s James. Is that your necklace?”
Holding on to Marc’s strong forearms, she stared openmouthed at the gold heart dangling from the panther’s mouth.
Her necklace!
Keeping her voice at a whisper, she dug her feet in to the soft earth as the panther came to stand directly in front of her. Pushing back against Marc, she tried to ignore the hard cock pressing against her back. “Yes. That’s it. I can’t believe he found it. Tell him to put it down and go.”
She held her breath as the panther stopped directly in front of her and sat, tilting his face upward and opening those strong jaws. The sight of his razor-sharp teeth with the precious gold chain dangling from them had her shaking even harder.
She sucked in another breath. “Marc?”
Marc chuckled. “First of all, he can hear you. Panthers have excellent hearing. That’s how we knew you were in trouble that night. Second, it’s James. He won’t hurt you. He understands everything you say. Take the necklace from him.”
Shaking her head, she tried to back away, but Marc wouldn’t let her. “No. I’m not sticking my hand in his mouth. That’s not James. Why are you doing this to me?”
Marc sighed and cursed under his breath, but his tone gentled, much the way it had the morning she’d woken up in his bed. “Watch the panther, Bailey. Don’t blink. Don’t close your eyes. Don’t look away. Go ahead, James.”
Bailey’s jaw dropped as the large panther became James. It happened so fast. It happened too fast for it to be some kind of trick.
Even though she’d seen it with her own eyes, she couldn’t believe it.
James smiled, took the necklace from his mouth, and placed it in his hand.
“Now would you take it?”
Bailey snatched the necklace and tried to back away, but Marc held strong.
“No. It’s not true. You’re magicians or something.” She just wanted to get out of here. She could handle things she understood, things that made sense. But this…
Marc turned her in his arms and slid his hands to her shoulders, his eyes gentler than she’d ever imagined they could be. It tugged at something deep inside her, something that she didn’t want to look at too closely, something that brought tears to her eyes.
“No, darling. We’re not magicians. We’re panther shifters, and you’re our mate. You’re the woman who we’re fated to spend our lives with.”
Shaking her head, she tried to pull away.
“No. This is crazy. Leave me alone.”
He pulled her back, looming over her, the unmistakable glint of lust and determination in his eyes.
“I wish to hell I could. Now we’re going to the house. You can walk, or I can carry you. One way or the other, you’re going, my mate, so we can calm you down and talk about this. We’re not going to let you push us away the way you did last night. It’s time to tell you everything.”
Chapter Six
Bailey paced back and forth on the deck of Marc’s house, cradling the thick mug of coffee he’d given her only minutes before. She’d hoped it would warm her, but the cold came from inside, a cold so deep that it made her bones ache.
Unable to keep her gaze averted from where they sat sprawled on the padded deck chairs, she took another sip, trying to hide the fact that her hands shook.
At that moment she felt a difference between herself and the rest of the world more acutely than at any other time in her life. The loneliness she experienced looking out at the mountains in the distance hit her hard, bringing tears to her eyes, tears that stung in the cold breeze that kicked up.
Blinking, she carefully kept her gaze from the two men behind her, feeling their eyes on her back as she leaned against the railing.
None of them had spoken since they’d forced her into her car and driven the short, winding road to get here, each apparently lost in their own thoughts.
She sensed their attention however, and no matter how lost and confused she felt, she couldn’t deny the warm, safe feeling of sitting between them, as though they surrounded her protectively while she struggled to regain some sort of calm.
After what had happened in the woods, she had a lot she wanted to say, a lot of questions she wanted to ask, but didn’t even know where to begin. The events of the last several minutes had left her thoughts so jumbled that she couldn’t even get her questions in any kind of order.
&
nbsp; Need for both of them, especially after sitting between their naked bodies on the way here, tugged at her, making them the only grounded thing in a world suddenly gone crazy.
Now that she’d managed to put a little physical distance between them, she’d thought she would be able to establish a little emotional distance, but the connection remained, one that made her aware of their every movement, and more than that, aware of the fact that they wanted her.
She felt like prey, much like she had in the woods when the two panthers had appeared.
Panthers Marc and James wanted her to believe they could become at will.
She took another sip of coffee, not daring to turn around. Putting a hand to her throat, she rubbed the gold heart on her necklace with her thumb, a nervous habit she’d had as long as she could remember. She probably shouldn’t have been surprised that it didn’t calm her the way it usually did.
Taking a deep breath, she blew it out slowly, rubbing the charm even harder.
“It’s not possible. You’re not panthers. I don’t know what you’re trying to pull, but I’m not playing your fucking games.”
From behind her, James sighed. “It’s not a game, honey. I know it sounds far-fetched, but we aren’t lying to you. We need you to trust us.”
The steel in Marc’s low tone carried easily over the several feet that separated them. “We’re the ones you can trust more than anyone, Bailey. We’d never do anything to hurt you.”
She whirled on them, her coffee sloshing over the side of the mug and onto her hand, her anger spiking at their relaxed positions.
“Yeah, I can trust two men who want to get into my pants and tell me they’re shape-shifters.”
The punch of lust to her system staggered her, and she had to grab the railing to steady herself.
“Damn it. Would the two of you please get dressed?”
Despite the chill in the air, both sat on either side of the small round table, sipping coffee, seemingly unconcerned at their nakedness.
The cool air had no obvious effect on other parts of them, either, judging by the thick cocks rising from their laps.
