Roman's Gold (Underground Heat, Book 1)

by Ann Gimpel

Tanaka shook his head. He beckoned for Devon to step closer and spoke in his ear. “I have shifter blood, too. Not much, maybe twenty-five percent. There are so many scents, it’s confusing. Can’t sort them out. It might help if I could sleep… As soon as I drop off, a wolf chases me…”

  “Maybe you should drop by the doc’s office.”

  An odd look crossed the other man’s face. “Uh, no, can’t do that. The department doc would think I’m nuts. If I took another psychological, I’d probably fail. I can’t afford to be booted off the force.”

  “Hmph. I can see where you’d be worried.” Devon stepped back a pace. He wanted this conversation to be over. He couldn’t help Tanaka without revealing he'd crossed the line and shifted and he wasn’t ready to do that.

  “Please.” The other officer gripped his arm hard. “Don’t say anything.”

  “I won’t.” Devon stuck out his hand. Tanaka shook it.

  “Sorry I bothered you.” Tanaka trotted back to the cordoned line and started dismantling it with some other officers.

  Devon clicked his mike back on and told Command Central he was leaving. Normally, he’d have asked for permission, but he didn’t want to risk them saying no. If they canned him, it would save him the trouble of quitting.

  He loped to his car, got in, dragged the black market computer out of the console, and texted Kate. When he didn’t hear back from her immediately, he drove up and down side streets until he found an out-of-the way parking spot. While he waited for her to text him back, he thought about Tanaka. The man obviously had a similar reaction to the series of infusions. Lots of people had shifter blood. How many of the elite Tracker force had come into their own as shifters because of the series of treatments?

  Devon got out of the car and opened its trunk. He had civilian clothes stashed in it. Better to get out of his uniform and riot gear. People would be less likely to notice him. Dressed in jeans, shirt, and a vest, he crawled back into the driver’s seat.

  He must have drifted off. The computer’s squawking woke him. He’d have to scroll through the menus to see if he could come up with a less obnoxious ring/text tone.

  He glanced at the display. It read, My office in forty-five minutes. Use the alley door.

  He texted he’d be there and dropped the computer back into the console between the seats. Devon rubbed his temples. Kate’s office wasn’t far. He’d have time to scare up some coffee. Tired as he was, the thought of seeing her again brought a smile to his face. At least parking shouldn’t be a problem at this hour.

  He leaned against the wall of a building in Kate’s alleyway and waited, foam cup in hand. He’d left his regular wrist computer, microphone, and earpiece in the car, blocks away. The coffee was bitter. It had obviously been sitting for a while since it was brewed, but it was better than nothing.

  He glanced around the narrow back street. It was clean, which surprised him. Most alleyways overflowed with filth and were filled with homeless people. A single car garage was tucked under Kate’s office, right next to the steps he’d come down the previous afternoon. He snorted. Private parking was virtually unobtainable. How had she managed to swing office space which included parking?

  Headlights lit the night. He flattened himself against the wall, and drew his pistol. It was probably Kate, but he believed in being ready for anything. A silvery electric car slowed. The garage door screeched as it ratcheted upward. Devon holstered his weapon.

  The car slid into the garage and Kate got out. She walked toward him, heels clicking on asphalt. When she emerged from the garage, the door started to close. Either it was on a timer, or some sort of beam activated it.

  “Sorry if you had to wait. I had to plug in to juice up the battery. I don’t drive much. Come on.” She passed her palm over a recessed pad and the door at the bottom of the staircase clicked open. He trailed after her up carpeted steps.

  “How’d you get lucky enough to find an office with a garage?”

  “I own the building.”

  Devon’s eyes widened; he stepped through the upper door. She shut it behind him. “It’s none of my business, but if you have that kind of money, why work?”

  Kate flipped a switch and the small room behind the bedroom where they’d made love was bathed in pale light. “How about if we go into the front office and sit for a bit?”

  “Sure.” By the time he got there, she’d drawn the shades.

  “I’ll leave the lights out. This room is shielded, plus I’ve added magic. It would take pretty sophisticated surveillance equipment to hear our conversation.” She settled into an overstuffed chair and gestured for him to take the one across from it. “The short answer to your question is I bought this building shortly after it was constructed—”

  “But it’s over a hundred years old.”

  “A hundred twenty-three to be precise. I actually purchased it a few years before I moved here. Shifters live a long time; we learn to plan ahead. But that’s not what you need me for.”

  Devon dropped his gaze and gathered his scattered thoughts. “Right. Shifting. How can I control it?”

  She cocked her head to one side, expression serious. “Nothing like practice. Set down your coffee, stand up, take your clothes off, and visualize yourself as a cat.”

  “You just want to see me naked.”

  She nodded. “That, too, but I promise I’ll keep my hands to myself. This is important.”

  He shinnied out of his vest, jeans, boots, and shirt and imagined himself a cat. Nothing happened. His face heated. He tried again. “Maybe this isn’t going to be as big a problem as I thought,” he muttered. “If I can’t will myself into my other form, it won’t get away from me.”

  She snorted. “Don’t be so sure of that.” Kate licked her lips. She got to her feet and walked close to him. In a single, fluid motion, she dragged her top over her head. Her lush breasts with their rosy nipples were inches from his chest. His cock stiffened. It remembered what it felt like to be inside her. He groaned and filled his hands with her breasts.

  She leaned into his hands, amber gaze never leaving him. Kate trailed her fingers over his erection. “Mmmm … let’s go have some fun with that.”

  “Yes!” Her cat screeched so loud Kate flinched. “Let’s fuck him again and make him ours. Forever. I’ll talk with his cat.”

  “You’ll do no such thing.”

  “Are you all right?” Concern underscored his words. “I could have sworn I heard someone else talking about fucking and ours and forever and no such thing.”

  She nodded. “Just a little discussion with my cat—”

  “Your cat talks with you?” Devon pushed against the boundaries of his preconceived notions about how the world worked. It wasn’t easy.

  “Of course. She obviously wanted to include you in the conversation, or you wouldn’t have heard her. Your cat will talk with you too, once you learn to hear his voice. They’re wiser than we are in lots of ways.” Kate rolled her eyes. “Maybe if you’re lucky yours won’t be as opinionated as mine.”

  “I heard that.”

  “Be quiet. I agree with you about him, but let me handle this my own way.”

  “Hmph.” Devon quirked a brow. “I see what you mean. She’s a bit on the bossy side.”

  “You don’t know the half of it.” Kate grinned at Devon. “We can talk later, but there’s a reason we’re so attracted to each other.”

  “Good. I like reasons.” He twirled her nipples until they lengthened into stiff peaks. His cock got even harder. He thrust his hips forward. Her hands closed over him. “What about teaching me to shift?”

  She shrugged. “Ever heard of playing the ball where it lays? We can always work on shifting. Besides, once you’re more relaxed, it will be easier.” Kate turned. He followed her swaying hips to the bed. Lust made every nerve ending feel like it was on fire. He couldn’t wait to sink inside her. He’d fuck her until both of them couldn’t walk.

  She slithered out of her jeans and slipped a co
ndom over him. Kate turned away and bent over the bed, feet planted firmly on the floor. The well-formed globes of her ass separated revealing a slick, wet pussy framed by red curls. She didn’t need foreplay any more than he did. He wrapped a hand around himself and guided himself inside her.

  As the heat of her body closed around him, he almost lost it and came right then. He’d never been this hot before. His dick was so sensitive it almost hurt. He pulled out and drove himself deep once more. Her ass slammed against his thighs.

  Devon placed his hands on her hips and set a rhythm. The harsh sound of their breathing was loud in his ears. He felt himself swell even more. He had to come soon, or—

  “It worked,” she crowed. “Open your eyes. We’re shifting. We’ll finish as cats.”

  He was so lost in lust it was all he could do to pry his eyes open. Fur covered them both. His vision was strange just like last time. Her scent hammered him. He dropped his body atop hers and closed his mouth over her neck. His cock plumbed her. She drove hard against him, making a wonderful growling sound, which only made him hotter.

  Just like last time, the heat of his climax shook him to the end of every nerve ending. Coming as a human wasn’t nearly this intense. Her muscles milked him. She screamed, feral and untamed. He rammed her again and again until her body quieted.

  Devon started to withdraw, and then hesitated. He didn’t want to hurt her. He licked her neck. She arched her back against him and purred.

  “It will be all right,” she murmured deep in his mind. “Pull out nice and slow.”

  Once he was out of her, he dropped to all fours. She joined him. “Take time getting used to how this body feels. Walk around a bit. Last time you were so freaked out you couldn’t wait to be human again.”

  He padded into the front office, then back to the bedroom. He cleared the bed with a single leap, landing on the other side. Laughter bubbled up. It came out as a growly purr. “Wow! This is pretty neat.” He leaped over a small table and sidled up next to her.

  “Yes, it is. Now think about your human body. Visualize shifting back into it.” Her cat form shimmered as if to demonstrate. In a moment, she was human.

  He did the same thing. Devon moved toward her. She shook her head. “No, do it again. Back to cat. Then back to human. Think about how it feels going each way.”

  After half an hour, she let him stop practicing. He sank onto the bed. Sweat dripped from him. “Not as effortless as you make it look.”

  Kate grinned. “No, but it really does get easier. Here.” She walked to him, bent, and skinned his foreskin back so she could dig the remains of the condom out of its folds. “Shifters don’t really need condoms. We decide when we get pregnant. And we’re not susceptible to human diseases.”

  “So why put one on me?” He quirked a brow.

  “Because I didn’t have time to explain before.” She squeezed him lightly. He felt himself harden in her hands.

  Devon rolled his eyes. “I don’t get it. I haven’t been this horny since I was fifteen.”

  Kate tossed back her head and laughed. “Shifters love sex. We live for it. You asked why I work. I do it to look normal and because it gives me unlimited access to men. Now, if I had a shifter partner,” her gaze locked with his, “I wouldn’t need all those other guys.”

  “Well, why don’t you?” His muscles tensed. Her answer was important. He was pretty sure he was falling in love with Kate. The last thing he needed was a woman who ran around. That had been the death knell for his marriage.

  “Why don’t I what?”

  He gestured impatiently. “Have a shifter partner?”

  Her hand stopped moving on his shaft. He was fully erect again. Kate looked away and nodded. She seemed engaged in an internal conversation. He didn’t want to prod her into answering before she was ready. His cock throbbed. It was tender, but it wanted inside her again.

  She let go of him and sat on the bed. “We’re animals as much as human,” she began. “We can’t mate with just anyone.” She shoved her hair back over her shoulders, exposing her breasts. Their generous curves and glowing nipples took his breath away. “I’m not explaining this very well. We can have all the sex we want with human partners, but it’s only a teaser. It doesn’t resonate in here.” She tapped her breastbone. “Only shifter sex can do that.”

  He smiled. “Yes, I understand that loud and clear. But I still don’t know why you don’t have a shifter partner.”

  “We don’t get to choose. Either your mate shows up or they don’t.” Her voice ran down. “Not that we don’t, uh, practice with other shifters hunting for the right one. When you live long enough, though, sometimes you just sort of give up.”

  Devon digested what she’d told him. Hope speared through him; he batted it aside and cleared his suddenly dry throat. “Does that mean what I think it does … that we’re somehow meant for each other? Is that the reason you talked about earlier?”

  Her gaze held his, amber eyes alight with something he didn’t have a name for. She nodded and held out her arms. He tangled his body with hers. They ended up lying on the bed cradling one another.

  Emotions so deep they rocked him to his core filled him: love, protectiveness, tenderness for the woman lying in his arms. Nothing bad would ever happen to her. Not on his watch. His cat purred agreement. It took a while before Devon could talk. “Say more about us being linked. I feel it, but I’m trying to understand.”

  She nodded and raised her gaze to meet his. “It’s not linked. It’s mated, though I suppose they mean about the same thing. There were lots of reasons I had a hard time believing it. When you were here earlier, you seemed disgusted with your animal form. Beyond that, there was no way I was tying myself to one of the enemy. But the more I thought about it, the harder it was to deny the attraction between us. I shifted spontaneously when we first made love. That’s a dead giveaway. We do that when our mated one shows up. My cat had to remind me. I’d forgotten.”

  She bit her lower lip. Her amber eyes glowed golden. “When I saw you lounging against the alley wall and all I wanted to do was jump you, wrap my legs around you, and take you inside me, I knew my cat was right. You truly are my mated one.” She sucked in a breath. “You’ve been thinking about me, too.”

  “Obsessed would be more accurate.” His face split into a broad grin. He was so happy, his body couldn’t contain it. Joy spilled over, casting the room in a numinous glow. “I even jacked off in the shower after I left you. Couldn’t figure out why I needed to come again.”

  Her hand reached between them. She cradled his cock and rolled onto her back so he could slip inside. “Let’s stay human this time.” Her legs wrapped around him.

  “And how will I manage to do that?” Devon stroked her hair back from her face, and then balanced himself on his arms, looking down at her. Love for her branded his soul. So did lust, though how he could still even be capable of fucking was beyond him.

  Kate’s eyes twinkled. “Now you’ve shifted a few times, you know the feel of your human shape. Keeping your eyes open helps, too.”

  “That part won’t be hard. You’re gorgeous.”

  She crinkled her nose. “Bet you say that to all the girls.” Her muscles tightened around him. So did her legs. She rocked her pelvis.

  Devon drew back and slowly sank inside her again. “You feel so good,” he murmured. He wanted to go slow, really slow, so she’d come over and over again. After about twenty long, slow strokes, her face contorted in ecstasy, her nipples peaked, and color suffused her face. Her hands gripped his hips and pulled hard. She ground herself against the base of his cock; her pussy clenched again and again.

  He couldn’t tear his gaze away. She was the most perfect, the most amazing creature he’d ever seen. Now he knew what to look for, the feline cast to her eyes and cheekbones stood out clearly. It lent her an exotic look. He inhaled the musk of her arousal. Suddenly he didn’t want to wait. His penis jerked deep inside her, taut with need. It wouldn’t take
very much to bring him to another climax.

  Kate gazed up at him and licked her lips suggestively. She jackknifed out from under him, rolled him onto his back, and knelt above him. Her mouth closed over his cock. One hand cradled his balls, the other pumped his shaft. He buried his hands in her magnificent hair and showed her what he needed. The orgasm spooled deep in his belly. His balls tightened and then he was coming and coming and coming, spasming hard into Kate’s magical mouth. His cock was sensitive almost to the point of pain. It intensified his pleasure beyond anything he’d ever experienced before. Breath caught in his throat. His heart thudded against his ribs.

  She moved up his body till she lay next to him and kissed him deeply. He tasted himself on her tongue. It got him going all over again. She reached for his still-hard cock, but he pushed her hand away. “You’re going to be the death of me.” He hugged her. “Besides, I have to go to work. It must be at least seven. Light’s filtering in through the drapes.”

  She kissed him tenderly, then extricated herself and sat cross-legged on the bed looking at him. “Remember what I said about dancing on both sides of the street?”

  He nodded somberly. “Yeah.” His brows drew together. “Your people had something to do with last night’s robbery, didn’t they? You must have told them about the effect the drug had on me.”

  Kate dropped her gaze. He took one of her hands and stroked it. “I’m in love with you, Kate. Maybe it’s the mated one thing, but I’ve never felt this strongly before about anyone or anything. You have nothing to fear from me. I’d die before I’d hurt you. Or before I’d let anyone else harm you.”

  She shook her head, not looking at him. “You’re still a cop. You’ve been one long enough that’s where your first allegiance is.”

  He started to say no, then realized it would take time for him to walk away from a fifteen year career. “I really do plan to quit the force.” He laughed bitterly. “Not that I have much choice, but I’ve been thinking about it for a while now. Came close after Mom died. Probably would have, but I didn’t know what else to do. Still don’t.” He gazed at her intently. “Would you really want me if I’m destitute and have no visible means of support?”