by Tonya Brooks
***
Ryker de Lyon didn't know what shocked him more. Finding Aylese Delacort at the Pussycat Palace or seeing his brother stalking her around the pool deck in his jaguar form. Although he'd envisioned having the stunningly beautiful woman wrapped around himself a time or twelve, this was not what he'd had in mind.
The only reason he'd never tried getting her in his bed was that damn allergy. The idea of having sex with a woman who was allergic to him was just off-putting. Not to mention she wasn't the type of woman to indulge in a brief, torrid sexual encounter. No, the Purity Princess was the marrying kind, unfortunately.
So what the hell was she doing at a hedonists lair like the Palace? A thunderous roar echoed around them and understanding dawned with brutal clarity. Because Jett had just issued a challenge. A fight to the death for his mate. Which meant that Aylese was the mystery woman. And she was currently in the wrong shifter's arms.
Oh. Fuck.
"For fuck's sake, Jett, control your cat," Ryker growled as he tried to loosen the death grip she had on him. "You're freaking her out."
The answering snarl assured him that his brother was in a mating frenzy. Until Jett had marked her, he wouldn't tolerate having another male near his mate. Right now he was all primal cat, enraged and ready to kill. There was only one way to end this without bloodshed. Ryker yanked Aylese off of himself and threw her into the pool.
Before he could do more than brace for impact, two hundred pounds of pissed off pussy slammed into him at full bore. Ryker kept a tight leash on his own infuriated cat and didn't even try to struggle. No way in hell was he shifting to fight a man he considered a brother. This situation needed to deescalate as quick as possible.
Allowing his body to go limp, he hit the concrete deck with the jaguar standing astride him, mouth open in a snarl, massive jaws poised to crush his skull. Ryker reached up with both hands and grasped the other shifter's head. Locking eyes with the enraged cat, he allowed his lion to shine in his gaze.
Being the king of the beasts did have its perks. Forcing other alphas to submit to his will was one of them. Unfortunately, Jett was one of the few that wouldn't back down from anything. But it did buy him enough time to wrench the jaguar's head to the side so he could focus on the woman floundering in the pool.
"Your mate can't swim, Jett. If you don't save her, she'll drown," he pointed out urgently. "Shift or she dies." With a roar of anguish, the black jaguar leaped into the water, shifting back to human form in mid-dive. Ryker rose lithely to his feet satisfied that his brother would no longer be out for his blood when he emerged.
However, Aylese would probably kill him.
***
Aylese kicked and clawed in pure panic mode, trying to force her body above the surface of the water. No matter how much she fought, it was a losing battle. She was going to drown. There was nothing that she could do to save herself. Just as she was about to give up all hope, a pair of strong arms lifted her out of the water.
"Shh, it's okay," a sinfully seductive voice soothed. "I've got you."
Both of her arms locked around his shoulders, pressing her even tighter against a rock hard chest. Aylese coughed, choked and sucked in gulps of life-giving air. As the panic began to recede, she lifted her head to see Jerrett Black's handsome face. He'd saved her! The relief she felt was staggering, and her trembling body went limp against his.
Then she remembered the jaguar and her entire body stiffened again. Her wild-eyed gaze searched the surrounding area, but the very large, very scary cat was gone. If he'd even been there, to begin with. If she'd had a doubt that she was bound for the loony bin, which she hadn't, this would have dispelled that foolish notion.
"Oh, God," she breathed shakily. "I need help."
"I'll help you, love. Anything you want. Everything you need," he purred against the sensitive skin of her neck. "You smell so fucking good." Then he licked her. A slow, tremble inducing sweep of his tongue that pulled a groan from his chest and had her nipples hardening to rigid peaks. "And you taste like heaven."
His voice was as sensual as chocolate melting on her tongue.
Decadently dark and delicious.
Chocolate was her greatest weakness. His voice may well be her Achilles heel. But even if she were a few French fries short of a happy meal, she knew she shouldn't be in the middle of a pool being seduced by her nephew's father. Even if he did have the most sinfully erotic voice she'd ever heard.
"Stop. Please stop," she pleaded raggedly and much to her surprise he instantly complied. Aylese gasped in surprise as she was lifted even higher and placed securely on the pool deck. Jerrett levered himself out of the water and stood before her in one fluid and very impressive movement.
Rivulets of water ran down his muscular chest and washboard abs, drawing her attention to the delicious vee where… "You're naked!" She exclaimed in shock.
"And you're shivering," he replied as if his nudity were of no concern and handed her a towel from a nearby stack before wrapping another around his lean hips.
She was trembling all right. From sheer unadulterated lust. The man was so hot that he should come with a warning label. Aylese had only seen two men naked, and neither of them had looked remotely like this. They'd both been anatomically correct, but this one was built to absolute perfection.
In all the right places.
Their gazes met and held as desire burst to life. His amber eyes almost seemed to glow as they locked with hers. They were so compelling that she wanted to sink into them. Into him. To bask in his sheer animal magnetism. His nostrils flared as he inhaled, a low growl parted his lips on an exhale.
Her breathing became shallow, her body softening in preparation for his complete possession. He closed the distance between them, one big hand cupping the back of her neck, tilting her chin up. He was going to kiss her and Aylese wanted it. Desperately. She ached for the feel of his lips on hers.
Yearned for it in the depths of her soul.
Her eyelids fluttered closed as his head moved lower. Heart hammering wildly she waited expectantly for his mouth to touch hers. "Ah-choo!" She jerked her head to the side just in time to prevent sneezing in the man's face. The sound of laughter snagged her attention and released her from the spell of desire that he'd woven around her.
She saw Ryker standing off to the side, hands in his pockets. The devilishly wicked expression he wore reminded her that the insufferable ass had intentionally thrown her into the pool. "You," she hissed furiously and narrowed her eyes at her former friend. "How dare you?"
"Now, Aylese," he began in a placating tone that did nothing to cool her ire.
"You know I'm terrified of water," she accused as she wrapped the towel around herself. "Why the hell did you throw me in?"
"It's just five feet deep," he pointed out in a completely reasonable manner that only served to infuriate her even more. "All you had to do was stand up."
"I am so going to kick your ass for this, Ryker," she practically snarled and took a step toward him.
"Allow me to handle that for you, love," that decadent voice offered in a low growl as Justis's father stepped between them.
Ryker shook his head and held both hands up in a gesture of surrender. "We're friends, Jett. Just friends, no benefits."
"You mean we were friends," she shot back and wasn't about to forgive him for almost drowning her.
"Aylese, you wound me," he sighed heavily. "I knew Jett would save you, but if he hadn't, I would have."
She snorted her contempt for that idea and folded her arms across her chest. "If you hadn't thrown me in I wouldn't have needed saving."
"Except from the big black cat that was stalking you," he reminded with a wicked grin.
Aylese gasped and instinctively moved closer to the man beside her. "You saw it?" She asked in astonishment.
***
Jett slid his arm possessively around her waist, drawing his mate's deliciously curved body against his. His cat liked the way she ha
d moved closer to them for protection. So did he. Seeing her in Ryker's arms had enraged both man and beast. He'd have to mark her as soon as possible, so everyone knew that she was his.
Because if the lion shifter hadn't thrown her into the pool, he would have killed him, brother or not. Then again, his fiery-tempered mate just might do it herself. She was royally pissed with Ryker, which pleased both man and beast greatly. As did the fact that the pair had never been more than friends.
But his cat was not pleased that he had frightened their mate, and he was demanding that Jett reassure her, so it didn't happen again. "My cat would never hurt you, love," he assured her in a silken purr. "You have no reason to fear him."
She stared up at him as if he were insane. "You have a pet jaguar?" She demanded in astonishment.
"Yeah, he's just a great big pussycat," Ryker choked out in amusement. "Totally domesticated."
Jett leveled the other man with a lethal glare and barely resisted the urge to bare teeth. Allaying his mates fear was no joking matter, and the lion shifter should know that. "He's not a pet, love. He's a part of me. My animal half," he told her seriously.
A frown marred her delicate brow as she queried, "Like a spirit animal?"
"No, not like that," he denied with a tender smile. "Just like the baby changes into a cub, I become my jaguar form. I'm a werecat, love."
Both man and cat anxiously awaited their mate's reaction, but she was just staring back at him with a blank expression that gave nothing away. Then her eyes narrowed, and she placed her hands on her hips. That was a classic pissed off woman pose he knew all too well. Which meant he was so screwed.
"Oh, ha, ha," she fumed sarcastically and glared sheer venom at him. "Make jokes all you want, but trust me when I tell you that an insanity plea for murder does not scare a woman who already has a one-way ticket to crazy town."
He stared at her in astonishment because she obviously didn't believe him. "But… you saw the baby shift into a cub," he insisted.
"Which is exactly why I'm having myself committed," his mate practically growled. "Ah-choo! Where the hell is Justis?"
"He's fine. Don't worry. I made sure he was taken care of," he assured her and was stunned that she didn't believe what she'd seen with her own eyes.
"I need to see him," she insisted and turned to walk toward the house. "And I want my clothes."
"Your suitcase is in your room," he pointed out as he caught up with her.
"And that's another thing," she interjected and whirled to face him. "Why the hell am I at the Pussycat Palace?"
"Because this is where I live," he admitted with a frown of confusion because he knew that she had driven herself there.
A shocked gasp escaped her as she accused, "You're Jett Black."
"I am," he confirmed and wondered why she seemed surprised. Then he recalled that she'd called him Jerrett when she'd arrived, which was damned odd since he always introduced himself as Jett.
His mate muttered something incomprehensible about murdering a harp as he ushered her to the French doors that led into her room. He offered to take her to the cub when she was dressed, and she slammed the door in his face. Jett greedily inhaled her lingering scent before he walked to another entrance.
The further away from her that he got, the more lucid his thoughts became. His mate's scent was more potent than catnip, and he was too intoxicated by it to think clearly when she was near. Now that his brain was functioning again he pondered the one question that he could not seem to comprehend.
How had she had his cub when he'd never met her?
Her delicious scent would have given her away, and that was something that he'd never forget. Unlike her name. What was it that Ryker had called her again? Alice? Alicia? No, Aylese. Which reminded him that his brother knew his mate a hell of a lot better than he did. A fact that both man and cat planned to rectify as soon as possible.
CHAPTER THREE
What the hell had Harper gotten her into this time, she wondered as she stalked into the bathroom and turned on the shower. This debacle was exactly the kind of situation that her irresponsible sister was famous for. Getting tangled up with the wrong kind of man was at the top of that very long list.
Aylese should know. As the oldest of her siblings, she was the one who always had to get Harp out of these situations. Usually with the aid of their half-sister Marlow, the family attorney. Low would probably develop an aneurism over this one. Especially when she had herself committed. Yeah, that was going to be a PR nightmare for sure.
Psycho Purity Princess.
Not even wanting to think about how her mental instability would affect the company or the stock market, she stepped under the spray and hoped the steaming water would wash her cares away. It didn't work, of course. She was just as crazy when she stepped out as she had been when she got in.
Because the scratches on her chest had completely disappeared. Which was impossible. They'd been too deep to heal that fast. And she knew they'd been there earlier. Jerrett had seen them too. Right. Like that proved anything. As far as she was concerned, a world-class manwhore was not a reliable source.
This situation just kept getting more insane by the minute.
The sooner she found Justis and got the hell out of there, the better. She'd just have to turn the baby over to Marlow and let her track Harper down. Low would make suitable arrangements for the child's care. Aylese had arrangements of her own to make. Like an extended stay in a sanitarium for the mentally insane.
Wrapped in a towel, she stared at her reflection in the mirror. The dark circles were still there but covering them with concealer would be a waste of time. Allergies involving itchy, watery eyes were not conducive to keeping makeup intact. She'd given up the battle with mascara and eyeliner days ago.
The same morning that she had conceded defeat and accepted the fact that she was insane. There really hadn't been any other explanation. Because she'd gone to check on Justis and discovered a cat in the cradle instead. After searching the entire house, she'd found the baby back in the cradle again, and the cat was gone.
Ecstatic with relief, she'd picked him up and hugged him to her chest, raining kisses on his little cheeks. Then to her complete astonishment, he'd morphed into a cat and sunk his sharp little teeth into her breast. She had screamed and dropped him back into the cradle, quickly putting the width of the nursery between them.
The cat had yowled and clawed at the antique wood rails until he flipped the cradle over and made a mad dash for her. Aylese had panicked and climbed atop the changing table to stay away from the wee beastie. The cat had continued to cry plaintively as it tried in vain to climb the chest to get to her.
Fearful that the animal was going to hurt itself, she had left the safety of her perch and knelt down to pet the cat. The tenacious little bugger had climbed her like a scratching post and wrapped its furry little body around her neck. She quickly discovered that the only time it stopped crying was when she held it.
Which wreaked havoc with her allergy.
It also convinced her that her elevator obviously wasn't going all the way to the top. After that, she had no choice except to do as her sister had asked and seek out Justis's father. So she'd loaded the car with all the baby paraphernalia that it would hold and punched the address into the navigation system.
If she'd known that Jerrett Black was Jett Black, the infamous Prince of Pussy, she never would have made the trip. Because it had been nothing except a monumental waste of her time. There was no way that she could leave an innocent child in this bordello or with a man who was clearly unfit to be a father.
It was time to hand the situation over to her attorney and get the help they both desperately needed. That thought firmly in mind, she quickly dried her hair and found her clothes hanging neatly in the closet. Once dressed and filled with determination, she opened the door and came face to face with her nemesis.
He was leaning casually against the wall on the opposite side of the ha
ll. Long legs crossed at the ankles, hands in his pockets, completely at ease. He reminded her of a lounging jungle cat. Right before it swooped down and snagged its prey. For some absurd reason, the imagery left her neglected girly parts all atingle.
She felt the heat from his stare as those amber eyes raked over her from head to toe and back up again. A slow, wicked smile curved his lips as if he liked what he saw. The man had a lethal smile; she'd give him that. It set her pulse to racing because even fully dressed, Jerrett was a delicious specimen of manhood.
"You look… edible," that decadent voice practically purred.
The comment served to remind her that he was also an insufferable ass. Stepping into the hallway, she said coldly, "I'd like to see Justis now."
"Right this way, love," he said as he straightened, placed his hand on the small of her back and led her to an elevator.
There was nothing inappropriate about his touch, but she felt the heat of his hand through her clothes. It made her wonder how it would feel to have those big hands caressing her bare flesh. Gah. Better to stay away from thoughts like that. There was no way she'd get tangled up with one of her sister's exes.
Even if he was hotter than the fires of hell.
"Ah-choo!"
***
Jett's heart leaped, and his jaguar purred when their mate appeared in the doorway. Aylese looked less exhausted than when she'd arrived, but the dark circles under her eyes attested that she wasn't fully rested yet. Taking care of his mate was his responsibility now, and he planned to rectify that situation immediately.
Caring for his cub had obviously taken a toll on her. After witnessing how much trouble the little devil could get into, he understood why. If his pride didn't want to babysit the furball, he'd hire an army of nannies to do it. Nothing was more important than ensuring that his mate was healthy and happy.
"Would you prefer to have dinner before or after we check on the cub?" He queried as they stepped off the elevator and into his private apartment.
