by Lisa Kessler
He was mine. My mate.
I pushed him over, rolling on top of him without coming up for air. He growled into the kiss as I straddled his waist, my hips writhing against the hard bulge fighting to break free of his boxer shorts. Waves of pleasure shot through my body until I was wet and aching for him to slide into me, but I wanted to savor every second. This kind of passion was new to me. I’d never really initiated intimacy or yearned for it like I did with Adam. His attention empowered me, and I was hungry for more.
Finally I broke the kiss and sat up, staring down at Adam as I worked my hips against him. As slowly as I could, I unbuttoned my shirt, drinking in the hunger in his stare. My pulse raced seeing him watching my every move and feeling his urgent response between my legs. When my shirt fell away, I slid my hands up my body, my fingers reaching for the front clasp of my bra.
“You’re so sexy, Lana.” Desire filled his gaze, heating my skin.
I smiled as I tossed my bra across the room.
I moved down his body, tugging his jeans free and dropping them to the floor before wriggling out of my own. The slick silk of my black panties was the only barrier left between us. I knew if I took them off now it’d be too easy to lose control. This time, I wanted to enjoy the passion that burned between us until we were both about to combust.
Okay, so I wanted him to beg me to take him.
Looking down at Adam’s perfectly chiseled body, not to mention his amazing green eyes and dangerous sexy smile, made me hot and anxious to feel him deep inside of me. But right now my attention was being drawn to the fine line of dark hair running down below his navel. I wet my lips.
My pulse raced as I laid back over him, moaning as my breasts met the heat of his chest. His kisses were hot and hard, demanding. Our tongues danced, and I rocked my hips against him until he moaned into the kiss, his teeth pressing against my lips. We couldn’t get close enough.
Breathless, I kissed my way down his neck, nipping at his shoulder as I made my way lower. Adam’s fingers tangled in my hair, and I felt his breath catch as I licked his nipple slowly before kissing my way downward. I looked up at him, and his gaze locked with mine as I slowly took him into my mouth. Adam’s hands clenched my hair as his hips rocked up.
When he groaned my name, I hummed around him, teasing his chest with my fingernails. His hips worked in an urgent rhythm against my mouth until I could feel him pulsing, his fingers tightening in my hair. Slowly, I pulled back. His fingers came free of my hair, and I stood up, peeling my underwear off while he watched.
“You’re driving me crazy.” He sounded breathless.
“Good,” I whispered as I tossed the black silk aside.
I crawled over him, kissing my way back up his chest. When our lips fused together, my hips instinctively tilted toward him. I let out a satisfied moan when he filled me. Our bodies fit so perfectly together that I felt every muscle shiver with pleasure. His strong hands moved down my back, his fingers splayed out until he clasped my hips, pressing me against him as he thrust deeper into me.
Breaking the kiss, I sat up over him, working my hips faster, feeling him reaching sensitive places I didn’t even realize I had. I’d always been comfortable in my own skin, but never in my life had I felt so sexy and powerful as I did right then. Seeing Adam look up at me like I was the most desirable woman in the world made my heart race. I reached for his hands and guided them up from my hips to cup my breasts. His fingers teased my nipples, and my back arched as my muscles clenched around him. Adam’s hips rocked harder and faster until he followed me over the peak.
I collapsed against his chest, completely out of breath and unable to stop smiling. Adam rolled us over without letting our bodies separate. His thumbs caressed my temples and he kissed my lips, tender, soft, lingering kisses.
“I love seeing you smile,” Adam whispered.
“Feels good to smile.” I rested my forehead against his. “Whatever we find out tomorrow, I’m ready.”
Chapter Twenty-Six
Adam
I rolled my shoulders back, trying to loosen the tension knotting between my shoulder blades. We’d met the PI for Lana’s file, and now she sat in the reference section of the San Antonio library culling through archives of the newspaper for any mention of a baby wrapped in a sweatshirt with the Nero logo on it.
I wandered the aisles, never straying far from the reference section. My nerves were on edge. We’d been in San Antonio for almost twenty-four hours. Long enough for Sebastian to pick up our trail. Especially if Nero knew about Lana’s records in San Antonio. It wouldn’t be a huge stretch to figure Lana would look for answers about her parents. Once I satisfied myself that the interior of the library was clear of any trace of Sebastian or some other jaguar, I wandered back over to the table where Lana was working.
“Did you find anything?”
“Maybe.” She shrugged. “There’s a story from September 1988 about a Baby Doe left on the steps of the San Fernando Cathedral downtown. According to the paper, her parents didn’t come forward.” She looked up at me, and the urge to kiss her welled up inside of me like a dam about to burst. She was sexy even doing research.
“It could be me,” she continued. “There wasn’t a picture with the article so Nero never would have seen the sweatshirt I was wrapped in. Maybe that’s the only reason I vanished from their radar.”
I hated thinking about Lana being abandoned, no idea she was a shifter. No family to teach her. What if someone had stolen her off those church steps? I didn’t realize I was grinding my teeth until she reached up to caress my cheek.
“I’m okay, Adam.”
I shook my head. “You could’ve died.”
“Maybe they thought that’d be better than me being a science experiment.”
I nodded, but I didn’t agree. Family wasn’t something to be tossed aside. The irony that I might need to walk away from my own didn’t escape me. But if Lana’s father really was still alive, wouldn’t he have checked on her at some point? Lana ended up spending her life growing up in foster homes, moving from place to place. She could have been abused or worse. I didn’t want to think of the other outcomes. The fact that she grew up and sent herself to college was very lucky. The odds weren’t in her favor.
“No trace of Sebastian inside, but I’m going to check around the perimeter. Stretch my legs a little.” I stood up, scanning the room again. “You’ll stay right here, right?”
She glanced up at me. “I’m planning on it.”
“All right.” I bent to kiss her and headed toward the main desk of the library.
When I stepped outside the hot, stale air wrapped around me like a blanket. I could feel my shirt sticking to my skin already. I wiped the sweat from my eyes and started off to my right. The San Antonio library’s modern architecture and bright peach color made it stand out from its surroundings, and without much vegetation around it, any stray jaguars would have a tough time surprising me. I breathed in clues to the people who had already passed by. I picked up the scents of children with fresh wads of bubble gum, old women who smelled faintly of mothballs and hairspray, and even a few dogs. I rounded the second corner and my whole body jolted to attention.
I knew that scent. Fuck. Sebastian was close by.
I circled slowly, looking into every shadow, searching for any indication of someone watching me. Not seeing any sign of trouble, I closed my eyes and inhaled deeply. When I opened my eyes again I gave myself over to my animal instincts.
I walked, sometimes jogged, and finally came to a stop behind the library. The scent was coming from a park across the street. I hustled that direction, adrenaline pumping. Instinctively, I reached down to my belt, brushing my fingers over the hilt of my knife. My gun was at the hotel, but I couldn’t fire on him out here anyway. The last thing we needed was for me to be arrested and leave Lana unprotected in San Antonio while I waited to be bailed out.
As I got closer, blood mixed with Sebastian’s scent. My heart pounde
d as I made my way over to the slide. The scent of blood and jaguar was getting stronger. The tip of an adult-sized black shoe stuck out of the long shadow cast by the slide.
I moved closer, squinting into the shadows. “Sebastian?”
He leaned out to look at me, and I frowned. His face was all beat-to-hell. His mangled shirt barely covered his bruised ribs, blood oozed from his corner of his mouth.
“Jesus. What the hell happened to you?”
“Where is Lana?” he wheezed through his split lip.
“None of your concern. She’s safe.”
His eyes widened. “You left her alone? You stupid wolf. I warned her that if I didn’t bring her back soon Nero would send another.”
Oh shit. “I’ve been watching, but your scent is the only jaguar I’ve found.” My blood ran cold and in spite of the Texas heat, I felt a chill.
“Trust me.” He wiped blood from his nose. “Sasha’s here, another assassin. Get Lana and keep her safe.”
I nodded, and then I ran. I ran like I was about to lose the most important thing in my life.
As I rounded the west side of the large library, movement and the metal clanging of trashcans in the alley across the street caught my attention. I glanced over and my heart stuttered.
Aren. Being held at gunpoint.
Dammit! I wanted to shield my family from Nero, and now Aren was mixed up in it too.
I took a silent step closer. The woman dressed in black with a handgun pointed at my brother’s head must be Sasha. For the first time in my life I wished I was telepathic. I wanted to tell Aren I was there, that I’d take her out. But instead I stayed silent. I crept from a dumpster to a parked car, watching and praying I’d catch her off-guard.
“What kind of jaguar hunts with a gun?” Aren jibed.
“The kind of jaguar who knows she’s smaller than a big dumb wolf. Where is your girlfriend?” Her gloved finger gripped the trigger, and silently I begged my brother to shut the hell up.
“I put her on a plane,” he said. “She’s probably in Reno by now.”
The jaguar slammed her knee into his groin so quick that I winced. Aren’s legs buckled, and he fell to the ground coughing. She squatted down beside him and raised her hand, but before she could clock him with the butt of her pistol she leaned in a little closer taking a deep breath.
Suddenly she straightened up, her brow furrowed. “Her scent is all over this town, but it’s not on you.”
“That’s because I’m her boyfriend.” I stepped out from behind the metal trash bin.
The woman pivoted and pointed her gun right at my head. Aren didn’t hesitate. He reached out and grabbed her ankles, yanking her feet out from under her. A gunshot echoed through the alley as Aren wrestled with the jaguar. He slammed her hand against the pavement until the gun skittered across the blacktop. I ran over and tucked the gun in my belt before she could reach for it.
I waited for an opening to help my brother, but the petite woman in head-to-toe black leather was holding her own. The two rolled over so many times it was tough to tell where one ended and the other started. Suddenly she head-butted Aren, stunning him long enough to break free of his grip. She struggled out from under him and scrambled free, leaving my brother dazed. The other end of the alley was a dead end. She only had one exit. Through me.
She stared me down for a second before she sprinted toward me, throwing a nasty elbow into my ribs. I caught her arm and jerked her in close. “Where the hell do you think you’re going?”
“To finish my mission.”
“Your mission is over.”
I could see the goose egg forming on her forehead. She might think twice before head-butting a thickheaded werewolf again. Aren stood up, wiping the blood off of his face with the bottom of his shirt as he made his way over to us.
“Her mission is aborted.” Aren kept his gaze squarely on her face, but he still looked dazed and maybe a little confused.
She glared at him. “Wolves aren’t my mission.”
Before I realized it, the jaguar spun to the right, breaking free of my grip on her arm. Aren started to chase after her, but I called him back.
“Aren, let her go. We’ve gotta get to Lana.”
“What?” He was still looking in the direction the jaguar ran. Finally he turned toward me, his nostrils flaring. “You’re not serious. You still trust her after this? Come on, Adam, that jaguar thought I was you, and she attacked me.”
“Because she wants Lana. I don’t have time to explain right now. Just help me protect her.”
Aren cast one more glance in the direction his attacker went and then shook his head, muttering under his breath, “It’s you I’m worried about protecting.”
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Lana
I finished with the newspaper archives and started reexamining what was left of my foster care records. I entered a couple of notes on my laptop, but before I could digest the information I caught the scent of blood wafting around me. My entire body went on full alert. When Adam rounded the corner with his twin, I frowned. Aren’s nose was bruised and swollen, and he had blood all over his shirt.
“What happened?” I looked Adam up and down, relieved to see he didn’t look injured. I glanced at Aren. “What’s he doing here? Have you been following us?”
“We’ve gotta get out of here. Now.”
He had me by the arm so quickly that I almost didn’t get a chance to grab the envelope and my laptop from the table. “What’s going on? Did you see Sebastian?”
“Yes,” he said, scanning the library.
We headed for the doors. Adam was in front, I hustled up behind him, and Aren was right after me. If I hadn’t been terrified, I would’ve laughed to find myself in the center of a werewolf sandwich.
When Adam opened the door to our floor, his shirt rose up and caught on something. I didn’t realize what it was until I walked past him.
“When did you get a gun? What’s going on?”
“Let’s get to the hotel first. Then I’ll explain”
We got outside and Adam frowned. “Dammit. We took a cab here. Who knows how long it’ll take to get one.”
Aren yanked keys from his pocket. “I have a rental in the lot straight ahead.”
Adam grabbed the keys, and we all ran toward the lot. Aren took the lead with Adam and I close behind. The automatic locks popped open as we neared a white Lexus. “I’m driving. You could have a concussion.”
“I don’t have a damn concussion.” Aren grunted, but he climbed in the back seat just the same.
Once we were in, Adam pulled out and got us back to the Fairmount without incident. “Stay together,” he commanded. Adam made sure I was directly behind him in the parking structure, and I rolled my eyes.
“We know what Sebastian looks like. It’s not like we wouldn’t see him coming.”
Aren nudged me forward to follow Adam to the elevator. Ugh. Men.
Safely inside our hotel room, I set my laptop and file on the table and turned. “Okay, one of you start talking. Did Sebastian do this? And where did you get a gun? I thought you left it here in your bag.”
They looked at each other. Aren shook his head, stalking over to the window. I guess he still didn’t want to be anywhere near me. Great.
Adam pulled the gun out and laid it on top of my envelope. “This wasn’t Sebastian. Nero sent another jaguar. Sebastian’s pretty beat up, too.”
I took a deep breath, trying to stay calm. “Did you get a good look at him? Do we know who we’re watching out for?”
“It’s a woman, Lana. She’s the one who cracked Aren’s nose.”
My eyebrows rose, and I looked over at the back of Aren’s head. I was pretty proud of myself for biting back the comment I wanted to make.
Something struck me, and I looked up at Adam. “Wait…it was a woman? I know they were trying to breed female jaguars, but Sebastian told me they still weren’t being born into their powers.”
Aren fin
ally turned around. “She wasn’t born into her power. Someone converted her.”
I glanced over his way. “How do you know that?”
He pointed to his shoulder just above his collarbone. “She had a scar right here. I saw it while we were scuffling on the ground.”
I shook my head. “So why would they send her out on missions? Sebastian made it sound like they capture females and convert them for breeding.” My gut twisted at the thought. Knowing I was a product of one of their sick breeding experiments didn’t help. “From the records we read and Sebastian’s cryptic comments, it doesn’t sound like the women who go inside Nero ever come out again.”
His voice echoed in my mind telling me my mother was “eliminated.”
“She was well trained and fast.” Aren glanced over at Adam from the window. “And that pistol is police issue.”
“You think she’s a cop?” Adam looked as surprised as I felt.
“I think she used to be.”
“Before someone bit her?” I shook my head. “Why would a police officer start working for a covert corporation? Are you sure she was from Nero? Why would she beat up Sebastian if she’s on his side?”
“Who knows?” Adam replied. “But she had that same tattoo—that lion with the ‘N’ on the forehead. I saw it on her wrist when she elbowed me.”
“It doesn’t make sense. She’s got to know they kill people.” I still couldn’t wrap my brain around a police officer working for Nero.
“They could have threatened her family.” Adam shrugged. “Maybe she was in love, and after she got bitten she still wanted to work? It doesn’t really matter right now. We’ve gotta get back to Reno.”
Aren looked out the window again. “I’ll stay behind and slow her down.”
Adam shook his head. “No way. We go together.”
