The Panther King (A Billionaire Shifter Romance)

by Amanda Jones

  * * *

  I was still recovering from my encounter with Jonathan when I emerged into the living room twenty minutes later. My body was still thrumming even though I had tried to tamp those feelings down. I had managed to brush my teeth and my hair, so I wasn’t a complete mess, but I definitely didn’t feel my best. And my arm was hurting.

  Jonathan was cooking something that smelled divine in the kitchen and I took the opportunity to really check out the apartment. It was elegant and modern, obviously very expensively decorated. All of the furniture was minimalist and white or gray, with glass tables strewn about. But there were homey touches too, like colorful throw pillows and vases of fresh flowers on almost every surface, and gorgeous landscapes on the walls. There was not a single photograph, though. How odd.

  “My decorator comes in every few days and brings new flowers,” Jonathan said from the kitchen and I turned around and smiled at him. He looked so unbelievably sexy cooking at the stove, with his shirt rolled up to his forearms, revealing his powerful muscles. His face was pink from standing in front of the heat and his hair was slightly wavy, and I felt butterflies in my stomach. Heal quickly and get out.

  “Come over and eat,” he invited, as he walked over to the kitchen table with two steaming plates of food. I was starving and very happy to see a plate of fluffy eggs, crisp bacon, and sautéed potatoes placed in front of me. On the table already were a plate of sliced fruit and a jug of chilled orange juice.

  “Coffee?” he asked from beside me, and I looked up at him with a grateful smile, only to get lost in his golden eyes again. Time was suspended for a few moments as we continued to stare at each other. Finally he shook his head and poured the coffee into the mug in front of me.

  I dug in and realized how utterly famished I’d been. I ate everything on my plate, plus some fruit, and two cups of coffee before I finally sat back. Neither of us had spoken during the meal but it was a companionable silence.

  “That was amazing. Thank you so much,” I said gratefully as I rubbed my stomach.

  “You’re welcome,” he said with a small laugh. “I did promise to take care of you, remember?” My heart picked up again at his words, because I wanted his words to have a different meaning than just a man helping out an injured person. But I shook it off.

  “I have my first physical therapy appointment this morning. Can Mike drive me?”

  “I’ll drive you.”

  “Oh, no. You don’t have to do that. Don’t you have to work?” He laughed out loud at that.

  “My company pretty much runs itself at this point,” he said with a small smile. I decided not to question why he wasn’t hiring anyone to help me. I wanted to be around him.

  So that started what became our daily ritual for the next week. He would help me get dressed in the morning, ramping both of our libidos up, but he always left my room like a gentleman. Then he would cook me a filling breakfast and take me to physical therapy. We would come back and we’d have a late lunch and invariably I would need a nap. In the late afternoon I would read in the living room while he answered calls and worked on his laptop. And after dinner we would watch movies on his huge TV while we sat oh so close on the couch, or we would play board games and I would mercilessly try to cheat but I’d still lose every time.

  “I’ll buy Park Avenue and you need to give back the $500 you stole from the bank,” he said dryly after our first week together. I laughed and slapped the money into his palm.

  “You are the worst cheater I’ve ever seen,” he said with a smile. “You do it so much that I’d think you might be good at it by now, but you’re terrible.”

  “Not all of us can be Mr. Moneybucks, you know,” I said while I laughed and he rolled his eyes at me.

  “This is Monopoly, Beth,” he reminded me as he placed lots of red buildings on his properties.

  “I know. But I’m just a simple music teacher so what do I know about money?” I responded and suddenly we were both quiet. I had been enjoying my time with him all week, so much so that I hadn’t given a thought to what I would do when I was healed and I had to go back to my normal life. Unfortunately, my normal life wasn’t there for me anymore.

  “You okay?” he asked softly, the light from the fireplace making his skin glow in the darkness.

  “No,” I admitted and he stopped playing the game to listen. “I have no job to go back to. The physical therapy is going well, but I’m never going to be able to play an instrument again. I can never be a music teacher.” I looked into the fire, realizing that this week with Jonathan was my fantasy come to life and soon it would be over. He was the perfect man, sweet and kind and honest. I don’t think there was a single thing he would lie to me about. The trust I felt with him was something I had never felt before. He had become my safe place.

  “You don’t have to figure that out right now, Beth,” he said gently from where he lay beside me in front of the fire. “I’m so sorry that you won’t be able to play an instrument again. There’s nothing I can do to make that better. But you can still teach music somehow, maybe singing lessons or something.” I looked at him and knew that I was in love with him. Madly, deeply, forever in love with him. He was everything I’d ever wanted in a man, and I dreaded the day I would have to leave him.

  “You know how I feel about picking yourself up and dusting yourself off,” he said. “You’re just like me; you can do anything you decide to after a loss like you’ve experienced.” He was referring to the death of his parents and sister. He had told me that they had been in a terrible car crash ten years ago and died. He was left an orphan with no family at all, but he had taken the pain and turned it into a work ethic that had made him tremendously successful.

  “I don’t think I’m exactly like you,” I said with a small smile.

  “Sure, you are,” he insisted and his face was so earnest that suddenly I felt so overwhelmed by my feelings for him that I had to get away.

  “I’m going to bed,” I announced, struggling to my feet. He seemed surprised at my abrupt departure but he didn’t protest.

  “Good night,” he said to my back as I walked down the hall.

  Chapter 11

  JONATHAN:

  I watched Beth walk down the hallway to her room and wondered why she had abandoned our game so suddenly. She must need some space to think about how her injury is going to affect her life. But I don’t want her to worry about that, I thought as I started cleaning up the board game. My instinct to protect her was a million times stronger than it had been a week ago.

  She had quickly become the most important person in my world. The most important thing in my life. I wanted her forever, but I was afraid it was too soon to tell her that. We hadn’t even kissed yet, and I had no idea how she felt about me. I knew she was attracted to me, but that wasn’t what I cared about. I wanted her to want me like I wanted her.

  Suddenly, I heard a thudding noise coming from down the hall. I sprinted to Beth’s door and banged on it.

  “Beth! Are you okay?” I yelled and heard no response. I tried to open the door but it was locked. I didn’t wait, I just hit the door with my shoulder and it crashed into the frame.

  “Beth?” I called out and all I heard was water running from the bathroom. I ran over and skidded to a halt in the doorway. She was standing next to the bathtub, completely naked and utterly delicious. She glanced up at me and froze. I couldn’t tear my eyes from her. I felt my claws start to emerge and I forcibly relaxed my body, but I still didn’t leave.

  “Are you okay?” I said in a gravelly voice I barely recognized. She didn’t try to cover herself.

  “I’m just…I’m trying to take a bath,” she said with defeat in her voice. I saw that the bath was almost full. I walked in and turned the faucets so they were off. In the silence I ran my eyes hungrily down her curves, taking her all in, and my cock strained at the front of my pants.

  “I don’t understand,” I said gently, looking at her beautiful face.

&nbs
p; “I’ve been taking sponge baths for the past week, because I can’t bathe myself or take a shower, and I just feel so grimy that I thought I would take a bath…but I can’t manage it,” she said and my heart sped up in my chest.

  “I’ll give you a bath,” I said before I thought better of it. How the fuck am I going to touch her and not drag her to the bed?

  “Okay,” she agreed softly and I was so shocked that I just stood there for a few moments not moving. This was going to change our relationship. There was no going back from what was about to happen. But I wanted this, I wanted her, and if I told her that and she rejected me, then at least I knew I had tried instead of spending the rest of my life living with regret.

  I lifted up her naked body and placed her gently in the tub, making sure her cast stayed out of the water. My shirt was soaked already, so I quickly stripped it off. Her eyes ran all over my chest, arms and stomach and I wanted her so much I thought I might come right then.

  I used a pitcher that was beside the tub to wet her hair. I shampooed it, massaging her scalp until she closed her eyes. I rinsed her hair with clean water and told her to lean back.

  I put some sweet smelling body wash in my hands and started washing her body, beginning with her feet. They were small and delicate and I rubbed them, giving her a mini-massage. She sighed and leaned her head back on the tub ledge. I continued up her calves and thighs and her breathing quickened as I approached her pussy but I didn’t touch her there.

  I used more body wash on her left arm and shoulders, and then I moved on to her neck and collarbone. I swept my fingers over the tops of her luscious tits but I avoided her nipples. I washed her stomach and rib cage under the water and she bit her lip and closed her eyes.

  “Beth,” I whispered and she opened her eyes. Her nipples were hard under the water and she was moving her thighs slightly, I’m guessing to ease the ache she was feeling. It was time.

  “I have never seen a more beautiful woman than you are right now,” I said softly as our eyes met and held. She reached out with her left hand and put it behind my neck. She ran her fingers through the back of my hair before she pulled me toward her. Our lips met and she moaned, and I felt a current of electricity run straight from her mouth to my cock. I slipped my tongue inside her mouth and her lips and tongue were so soft that the tension in my body increased to an unsustainable level.

  “Make love to me, Jonathan,” she said when I pulled away so I reached back into the tub and picked her up, getting water everywhere. I stood her up and rubbed her dry quickly with a thick, soft towel, going gently so as not to hurt her arm. Then I picked her up and walked into her bedroom, placing her on the bed and then standing back to remove all of my clothes while she watched. I worried that I wouldn’t be able to hold the panther back while I touched her, but I had to have her.

  I climbed on top of her and the feeling of her soft skin against mine was almost my undoing. “Beth,” I groaned against her neck. I felt her smile and then I was kissing her again, our tongues tangling in a hot, wet kiss that made my whole body tingle. I ran my hands down to her breasts and finally gripped them firmly. She was making little noises in her throat, all breathy and urgent and it turned me on more than I’ve ever felt before. I wanted to pleasure her more than I wanted to get off, and that was new for me.

  I twisted her nipples gently while I kissed her hard and ground my groin against her soft pussy. I knew she was wet, I could feel it, but I couldn’t wait to get my hands and mouth on her. I left her mouth and kissed my way down her body, stopping to suck on her nipples.

  “You’re so fucking sexy,” I groaned as I kissed my way over her stomach and she was writhing beneath me at that point. When my face was between her legs I didn’t touch or lick her right away. I simply breathed her in, her fragrance so sweet that I wanted to smell it and taste it every day for the rest of my life. I spread her lips with my fingers and swiped my tongue down her center, licking up the wetness that I had made her feel. It was heady to realize that I turned her on this much that she would be so wet that the bed was already soaked underneath her. As I thrust one finger inside of her, she stuttered out, “Jon…Jonathan,” and the claws on my other hand came out and I pressed them into the bed, leaving five holes before I forced my claws back. She wasn’t ready for bonding yet.

  I licked up to her clit and she came in a glorious display of femininity, and I watched her beauty with pride, knowing that I had done that to her. I pushed my way on top of her again as her body was still shuddering and I kissed her, letting her taste her sweet essence.

  My hard dick was at her entrance and as I slid inside of her, I stared into her eyes the whole way. When I bottomed out we were both already sweating and breathing hard and I had never felt anything even close to this kind of pleasure in my life. The panther was pacing inside of me, desperate to get out, but I held him back again with force.

  “I love you, Beth,” I said softly and her eyes filled with tears. She bit her lip as a tear escaped one eye and slid down to her ear. I leaned down and licked the tear away and she whispered, “I love you, Jonathan,” and I could feel her heart thudding in her chest where it lay against mine.

  I moved her legs up to wrap around me, and then I put my hands under her head and kissed her as I started to move. At first we were slow and soft, but soon we were faster and harder until I couldn’t hold back anymore and I was slamming into her over and over again.

  “You feel so good,” she cried and I grabbed her hips and thrust relentlessly into her until she came again with a scream, her tight passage squeezing my dick so hard that I came too, pouring my life into her. I collapsed on top of her and we held each other. As far as I was concerned, we were already bonded, and I was never letting her go.

  Chapter 12

  BETH:

  Jonathan lay on top of me and I had never felt such bliss. His heavy body pushed me down into the bed and I never wanted him to move. He was more than I’d ever hoped for in a man, and I loved him so much. I ran my fingers through his hair while my right arm rested on his back. His head was pillowed on my breasts and every minute or so he would kiss or lick one lightly.

  Suddenly he tensed up so tightly that I thought he would squeeze me in half. Then he was off of me in an instant, grabbing his clothes beside the bed and quickly putting them on.

  “Jonathan? What’s wrong?” I asked, bewildered at his change of mood. He looked at me as if he was surprised to see me, and his eyes were glowing gold, much brighter than they normally were.

  “I’ve got to go,” he said gruffly and he ran out of the room. I heard the elevator open and close and I lay there wondering what the hell had just happened. I didn’t think he was having cold feet or second thoughts. It was as if he was outside of his body, totally engrossed in something that I couldn’t see.

  I got up from the bed and struggled into a plush bathrobe, not caring that I was about to follow him outside practically naked. I needed to know what was wrong.

  When the elevator doors opened in the lobby he was nowhere to be seen. I walked outside in my bare feet and looked both ways, but still I didn’t see him. Well, he has to come back sometime. So I leaned against the front of the condo building and waited, freezing in the November night.

  About a half hour later, I sensed something down the street coming toward me. It was pitch black and well after midnight; I hadn’t seen another person the entire time I was standing outside. I strained my eyes in the dark as the person came closer.

  But it wasn’t a person. The first thing I could see was golden eyes, and I knew that it was Jonathan. My memories of the alley came back to me. He had been there but I’d heard purring and felt an animal next to me. But I’d seen his eyes. And a couple of times now I had heard growling or purring when we were together but I’d dismissed it. But I couldn’t dismiss this.

  A beautiful black panther walked up to me and stared into my eyes. He was huge and strong and I might have been proud if I wasn’t so angry. He walked
into the side street beside the condo and I watched as he changed himself from the panther to the Jonathan that I knew and loved. It was an amazing sight to see, an awesome display of man versus nature. When he was done he stood naked in front of me, staring at me again with those golden eyes, pleading with me for understanding.

  “You lied to me,” I said and turned around to go back into the condo. A few seconds later he was walking next to me in the lobby with his pants back on.

  “Please just listen to me,” he said softly but I ignored him as we got back onto the elevator.

  “I trusted you!” I finally yelled at him in the tiny space before the doors opened and I rushed into the living room.

  “I know and I’m sorry,” he pleaded. “I wanted to tell you, I swear I did. But you have to understand that I’ve hidden this part of myself my entire life.”

  “You could have told me in the hospital, or any day this week!” I didn’t know what I was going to do. I was in love with him but I felt like I couldn’t trust him now.

  “I was afraid of scaring you away,” he said as he took a step toward me. I backed away and he stopped, a look of defeat in his eyes.

  “This is why I never tell anyone,” he said in a monotone. “I have no family because another panther became jealous of my father’s power and influence in our pack, so he killed him. And my mother and sister. The only reason I’m still alive is because I killed him before he could finish me off.” He sat down on the couch and put his head in his hands with his elbows on his knees.

  “Since then I’ve led a solitary life. Yes, I’ve built a business but I have no friends or family. I designed my life like that on purpose. I didn’t want my panther side to even exist. But I found that was impossible because it is a part of me. So I figured out a way I could use my panther side to help people, and I go out at night and save women when they need it.” I sank down on a plush chair next to him, all of the fight gone from my body. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. But I knew it was the truth.