by Tara Rose
Galatyn grinned, and Nadine had to blink a few times to clear her head. These two were so damn sexy she was surprised the air around them wasn’t glowing right now. Her face felt flushed and her pussy was now soaking wet. Images of being bent over the spanking bench in the Jargonian dungeon, with Austin and Galatyn both standing over her, dressed in leather and holding floggers, raced though her mind.
“We don’t mind your asking. But I hope your reaction is different than your cousin’s was when she asked.”
Nadine glanced around the room, but Kirsten was no longer in it. It was a big house. She didn’t want to dwell on where she might be right now, or with whom. “What did she say when you told her?”
“She was disappointed that we lead such ordinary lives.”
Nadine laughed. “She does have rather interesting priorities, doesn’t she?”
“That’s one word for it,” said Austin, in a tone that conveyed more disgust than amusement. Once again, Nadine resisted the urge to pump her fist in the air.
“We’re part of the police force in our village,” said Galatyn, “but we don’t patrol it or hand out traffic tickets. We work behind the scenes, ferreting out League members and others who would exploit our shape-shifting communities. Close to what Gary’s jaguars do, but more covert.”
“That sounds fascinating. How do you find all this information?”
“We’re computer geeks.”
“I see. The brains behind the brawn. I love it. Are you allowed to show me any of what you’re working on, or is it top secret?”
Galatyn’s eyes bored into hers, and it was all Nadine could do to keep breathing as he leaned closer. There were flecks of gold in his eyes that she hadn’t noticed before. “We can show you some of it, but then you’ll be sworn to secrecy.”
Austin leaned closer, too, and Nadine couldn’t tear her gaze away from his face. “And you’ll owe us something, of course, for taking you into our confidence.”
Nadine glanced around, but no one was close enough to hear them. “What will I owe you?” Whatever it was, she’d give it to them, no questions asked. Her face felt like it was on fire now. Images of being tied to the St. Andrew’s cross in the basement flashed through her mind. What did these two leopards look like underneath those pressed shirts and jeans?
And what difference would it make in the long run? They lived in Arizona and were leopards. No matter how much teasing and flirting they did, she knew it wouldn’t go anywhere. They’d return to their own village one day and she would go back to serving drinks to everyone in town.
“You mentioned that you haven’t played yet in the dungeon downstairs. We’d like to change that.”
Austin’s penetrating gaze held her trapped. She couldn’t have looked away if she’d wanted to. No jaguar man she’d ever met had this kind of mesmerizing power over her emotions. She should be afraid, but she wasn’t. She wanted to fall into the green and golden pool of light inside his eyes and never resurface. “All right.” Her voice came out breathy, as if she’d just run a few miles. Breathing was suddenly difficult.
“How about tomorrow night? Are you working?”
Was she? She had no fucking idea. If someone had asked her the simplest question right now she wouldn’t have been able to pull the answer out of her head. “I don’t remember…” The small noise Austin made in the back of his throat cleared the fog in her brain. Was he laughing at her, or reacting to the obvious confusion that must show on her face? “I’m not. I’m not working tomorrow night.”
“Good. Then we’ll see you here after dinner.” He cut his gaze toward Galatyn for a second, and Nadine swore they spoke without words. The exchange of emotions that crossed their faces was almost palpable. She’d never seen anything like it. “On second thought, why don’t you come over to the house next door around six? We’ll make dinner and then bring you here together.”
She swallowed hard. “All right. Okay. Thank you.” Calm down. She sounded like a babbling idiot. If she didn’t quit now while she was ahead, they’d think her as big a fool as Kirsten.
Austin touched her arm. It wasn’t a gesture that anyone watching would have deemed sexual in nature, but the result was to force a small moan from her throat and send electric shocks to her nipples and throbbing clit. If a simple touch on her arm had this effect on her, what would happen tomorrow night? From the way his half-smile suddenly became a full-blown grin, coupled with the soft chuckle from Galatyn, they’d obviously noticed her reaction.
“Fantastic. We’re looking forward to it.”
Galatyn touched her other arm, and although she was prepared for it this time, the sensations were no less arousing. “Thank you. This is going to be fun.”
She nodded. It was all she could seem to do. Movement to her left caught her attention, and she turned her head to watch her grandfather approach, his face all businesslike. He didn’t look upset that she was with the men, rather that he had something important to tell them, and he didn’t care that they were in the middle of a conversation with his granddaughter.
“That’s our cue,” muttered Austin. “We’ll see you tomorrow night.” He smiled again and Galatyn winked, just before both men strolled toward Gary. She watched for a few seconds to make sure her grandfather wasn’t about to give them shit for talking to her, and then when she was convinced whatever he wanted with them had nothing to do with her, she let out the breath she’d been holding.
This party couldn’t possibly get any better, so Nadine left the house and walked home in the brisk December air. She barely felt the cold. Tomorrow night she was having dinner with Austin and Galatyn. And then she was going to play in the Jargonian dungeon with them. The leopards had caught the attention of every female in the village, attached or unattached. That is, if the gossip this past week in The Lair was to be believed, and it usually was.
Both men were sexy beyond belief. Why were they still unattached? She had to find out more information before tomorrow night, and there was only one person who knew everything in this town and wasn’t averse to spilling it to anyone who asked.
Nadine took her cell phone out of her pocket and called Teddi Chedrow. She already knew Teddi hadn’t been at the party, but wasn’t sure why. Her phone went to voice mail, which probably meant she was busy with one of her many boyfriends. Teddi was Kirsten’s best friend, and came in a close second to Kirsten as the town slut. Nadine left her a message, hoping she’d call her before 6:00 p.m. the next day.
Tomorrow was either going to be the most erotic night of her life so far, or the most embarrassing.
Chapter Two
Austin and Galatyn followed Gary outdoors to stand on the deck behind the Jargonian home. It faced the lake, and that only made it colder. Austin wouldn’t have minded the bitter air if he was in leopard form, but as a human he hated it. There was no one else outdoors, and he knew that’s why Gary had led them out there. “What’s so important that you had to speak to us right now?”
Gary took a step toward him and Austin almost backed up. The man might be thirty years his senior, but he was still intimidating as hell and few men would dare cross him. “I’m only going to say this to you two once. If you hurt my granddaughter, and I mean that physically or emotionally, I will forget the part you played in helping us capture Reynard Bellecote. Do I make myself clear?”
“We’d never hurt her,” said Galatyn, his tone implying great insult that Gary had implied they would do so. “We’re experienced Doms. You know that.”
“And she’s a naïve virgin. So I guess it’s obvious what you want with her.”
“It’s not like that,” said Austin, grateful for the low light out here. Nadine was of age, but Austin wasn’t stupid enough to believe she’d defy her grandfather like her cousin did, or that Gary had any doubt he and Galatyn hoped to introduce Nadine to many new experiences, including sex if she consented, of course. “We’re making her dinner and then taking her to the dungeon so she can play.”
Gary na
rrowed his eyes. “Her father is dead and my other son can’t even control his own daughter. Nadine has no one else to look out for her.”
“We know that. I promise you our intention is not to use her or hurt her in any way. Nothing sexual was implied when we asked her to have dinner with us and then play.” It might not have been overtly implied, but Austin hoped it would happen anyway.
“Those had better be your intentions.”
“Is that what you dragged us out here in the fucking cold to say?”
Gary shook his head. “You’ve been sitting behind a computer for too many years if you can’t stand a bit of winter wind. No, that's not what I want to talk to you about.” He cut his gaze toward the house for a second. “What have you two been able to find out about Kingston or Winetown?”
“Morris Kingston is definitely with the League,” said Galatyn. “We found his name on a hand-printed roster that one of the Rosens had passed around at a meeting in Colorado over a year ago. Someone was careless enough to have scanned in the roster and then posted it online, on a message board that has since been taken down.”
Gary tilted his head. “The same Rosens we found two months ago?” Gary and his jaguars had discovered a cache of League members living in a village above Steamboat Springs, Colorado. Saffron Estampado, a leopard shifter who had been found by cougars Nevada Ruiz and Landon Sterling while trying to escape her village and an unwanted mating with two of the Rosen brothers, had given Gary not only the location of the village, but the names of every resident who had participated in rituals she was never part of in her uncle’s home, where she’d been living.
Although Nevada was a cougar shifter, he and his mother, Mancie, were long-time friends of the Jargonians and assisted the jaguars of this village in hunting down League members from time to time. He and Landon now lived with Saffron, their sub and mate, in the hills above Passion Peak, Colorado.
Rosen was not an uncommon surname among League members, but Gary had been hunting down that particular family branch for years. While Saffron, Nevada, and Landon had taken shelter in this village, the jaguars had rid her home village of the remaining League members, except for a dozen who had fled and hadn’t yet been found. Morris Kingston and Harold Winetown were two of those.
“What about Winetown?” asked Gary.
“We’re working on it,” said Austin. “We have several leads but nothing concrete yet.”
Gary’s expression softened somewhat, although in all the years he had known the man, Austin couldn’t say he’d ever seen Gary look relaxed or jovial. “I appreciate all the hard work you’re doing for us. But I’m not kidding about Nadine. I don’t want her hurt.”
“She won’t be. You have our word on that.”
Gary went back inside the house after staring at Austin and Galatyn in turn for long moments. Austin was no longer cold. He took in large gulps of the frosty air as he pictured the pretty blonde jaguar with the big green eyes. Most of the women in this village had blonde hair and green eyes, as did most jaguars, for that matter, but there was a vulnerability in Nadine that he hadn’t seen in most of the unattached females in this village. Not since he’d looked into Katarina’s dark eyes had he seen such openness. In many ways, Nadine reminded him of Katarina.
“It’s fucking freezing out here.” Galatyn’s voice snapped him out of his reverie.
“Yeah. Too fucking freezing. Want to go back inside, or have you had enough partying for one night?”
“I’m done if you are.”
They went back inside just long enough to say goodnight to their hosts. Austin glanced around for Nadine, but she wasn’t in sight. Had she gone home as well? They should have offered to walk her back, even though she only lived a few streets away and this was one of the safest villages he’d ever visited. But still, that would have been the polite thing to do. They spotted Stephen before they found Drake, so Austin shook his hand and thanked him for the party.
“I’m sorry you can’t stay longer. This party is for you two, you know.”
“I know. We’re just tired and old.”
Stephen laughed, and a pang of jealousy shot through Austin’s body. He was happy for the man. He was happy for both him and his brother. But Austin couldn’t help but wonder if he’d ever find that kind of contentment with a woman again. “Old? You’re only six years older than me.” He cut his gaze toward Galatyn. “And you’re only five. Do you mean to tell me that when I’m thirty-four or thirty-five I’ll be cutting out on parties early to go to bed?”
“Yes,” said Austin. “And you’ll need a cane to walk, too, smart-ass.”
“Ignore him,” said Galatyn. “He’s not happy unless he’s in front of his computer screen.”
“Oh, so that’s why you’re going home early. You two have work to do.”
“We always have work to do,” said Austin.
“Gotta have some fun, too. I saw you both talking to Nadine Richardson earlier. Something going on there?”
Austin chuckled. “As a matter of fact, we need to know if it’s all right to use your dungeon tomorrow night.”
Stephen raised his eyebrows. “That was fast.”
“Just so she can play. Don’t start any rumors, okay? We’re making her dinner and then bringing her over, if that’s all right.”
“It’s fine, but it’s open for play tomorrow, so you won’t be alone with her.”
“All the better. She can experience it with others around, and her grandfather won’t freak out that way.”
Stephen frowned. “Watch out for Gary. He protects Nadine like she’s his own daughter.”
“We found that out already,” said Galatyn.
Stephen clapped them both on the back as the three headed for the front door. “Don’t worry. Micah and I trust you both, and we know you won’t do anything to embarrass us.”
“Thanks,” said Austin. “Good to know. We’ll see you tomorrow, then.”
Once they were back at the house next door, both men sat down at their computers, which were in the same room. A third one was on but the screen was dark at the moment. The Internet connection here was only slightly worse than in their village back home, but that wasn’t due to a lack of effort on Drake’s part. It was the mountains and the remoteness of most shifter villages that lent themselves to slow speeds, but Austin and Galatyn were used to that and made do with what they had, wherever they traveled.
“He’s right you know.”
Austin glanced at his cousin, annoyed that he’d interrupted a search of documents on a popular occult site. “Who is right about what?”
“Stephen is right about us. We’re pathetic. There’s a party right next door, it’s not even nine o’clock, and we’re in front of our computers.”
Austin turned his head back toward his screen. “This is our job.”
“What do you think of Nadine?”
Austin’s dick twitched again at the mention of her name. “What do you mean what do I think of her? Isn’t it obvious? She’s beautiful, a bit naïve but not so much that I’m afraid to touch her, and she’s a sweet girl.”
“Right. And let’s not forget her hot body and a thirst for more.”
“More what?”
“Cut the shit. Your tongue was hanging out.”
Austin sighed and turned his chair around to face Galatyn. “So was yours. What’s your point?”
“My point is that she’s Gary’s granddaughter. Maybe we should rethink this?”
“Seriously? You’re going to go all noble on me now? Since when have you thought farther ahead than the next play date with any woman?”
“You make me sound like an asshole. I never led anyone on. They each knew what I wanted up front.”
“You’re right. Which brings me back to my point. Why are you suddenly so worried about this one?”
As Galatyn averted his glance, a strong wave of jealousy coursed through Austin’s body. Was it even possible that this jaguar had affected his cousin in the same way? They�
�d shared a sub before in play, but it had never gone further than that. Not that Austin expected them to both be fucking Nadine tomorrow night, but maybe he’d better bring up the subject now, just in case? He’d never seen Galatyn look so off balance over a girl. The man didn’t let himself get close to a woman, although what he’d said was true. He’d never led a girl on or toyed with her affections. Austin had no reason to assume he’d do so with Nadine.
The Jargonians were their hosts, and Gary had already made his feelings known. Galatyn would never dishonor Drake nor Gary, and he wouldn’t intentionally hurt any woman, including Nadine. Something else was going on. Austin waved a hand in front of his cousin’s face “Want to tell me what’s going through your head here?”
* * * *
Galatyn glanced up as Austin waved his hand. How could he explain it to Austin when he didn’t understand it himself? The moment he’d first spotted Nadine last week in The Lair, wearing a black apron with the bar’s logo on it, and her hair pulled back into what was supposed to pass for a ponytail, he’d been smitten. Just like that, and exactly that fast. It had never happened to him before, and he’d been trying for days to get a grip on it and make some sense of it.
“We don’t know how long we’re staying and she’s an inexperienced sub. Hell, I’m not even sure she knows what a sub is. Not really. For all we know, she thinks BDSM is all about play and nothing else. I don’t want Gary and Drake to run us out of here with pitchforks and torches.”
Austin shook his head. “That won’t happen if we both keep our wits about us.”
“You invited her to dinner. Which we now have to cook, by the way.”
“You’ve cooked food before.”
“You’re deliberately missing my point.”
“No, I’m not. You’re making a big deal out of nothing. All we’re going to do is make dinner and take her next door. We won’t even be alone with her in the dungeon. We’ll walk her around, let her ask questions, try anything on her she wants us to, and then we’ll come back home alone so we can each beat off in private until we finally fall asleep.”
