Total pages in book: 172
Estimated words: 155984 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 780(@200wpm)___ 624(@250wpm)___ 520(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 155984 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 780(@200wpm)___ 624(@250wpm)___ 520(@300wpm)
“I will be asking you questions, Flambé, and I expect prompt, truthful answers. Do you understand me?”
“Yes.”
“You saw me at the club?”
“Yes.”
“How did I not see you?” Deliberately he walked behind her, taking care to place his feet, walking so softly it would be impossible for her to know where he was, even with her superior leopard hearing.
“I was working there, planting the garden of paradise for Cain.”
He remained silent for a brief moment, drawing out the tension. “Why didn’t you tell me immediately that you had seen me at the club?”
She hesitated. Usually a prelude to a lie. Her shoulders straightened. Usually a determination to tell the truth. He needed her to give him the truth always. That was the only way they could build a partnership.
“I was afraid to. I hadn’t made up my mind what I was going to do. I thought if I could have you for one night like those other women, I would be satisfied, but then Franco scared me and I ran here and you were very different than I thought. Everything happened too fast. My leopard began acting up and your leopard claimed mine before I really had time to think things through.” She hung her head. “I’m not trying to make excuses. This is my fault. I should have been up front with you from the start.”
“Yes, you should have.” He poured harshness into his voice. Cold. Clipped. He wasn’t going to let her think that he excused her, although he thought she had every reason to be confused when Franco and his leopard had run her off the road and then chased her like she was their prey. She had a nasty bump on the head and her leopard had made the decision for her.
She shivered but she stayed straight. Unbending. That made him inexpicably proud of her. “You saw me at the club and didn’t tell me. You cancelled meetings with me on two occasions. And tonight, you were planning to leave after my leopard claimed your leopard. I even very carefully went over the rules of our world with you before I allowed Shturm to claim Flamme. Are those things all true, Flambé?”
She nodded. He remained silent. Waiting. He could wait for a lifetime. Eventually she figured out what he was waiting for.
“Yes. All of those things are the truth.”
“Your female is my male’s mate. He cannot do without her. You belong to me. Do you understand me, Flambé? You aren’t going to sneak off in the middle of the night and make me track you down. You will marry me and settle down right here on this piece of property and make it a home with me just like we discussed. We’re shifters, not humans, and we don’t have the luxury of changing our minds because we get nervous. Do you understand me?”
Flambé wanted more than anything else to turn her head and look at him. Her room had seemed so warm. Hot even. She couldn’t stand clothes, let alone blankets. His room was very cold, yet the longer she stood there with him looking at her, not knowing exactly where he was or how far away he was from her, the hotter the fire between her legs seemed to grow.
“Yes, I understand,” she said in low tone, knowing he was expecting an answer.
“Take off your shirt, fold it and hand it to me.”
His voice was low and totally mesmerizing. The sound played along every nerve ending, sparking little electrical currents that played over her skin and through her body. She obeyed him almost automatically, her nipples so sensitive that when the material slid over them, she nearly cried out. Very carefully, she folded the top, feeling a little helpless, not knowing where he was. She wanted this. She had waited for this. For him. Her body was on fire already, shaking with need, burning for him, and he hadn’t done one single thing.
Then his breath was on the nape of her neck, causing a shiver of awareness to run down her spine. His arm stretched out past her ribcage, his hand palm up so she could place the top in it before he withdrew once more. She took a deep breath and let it out, bringing up her arms to wrap them around her body in a comforting hug.
“Keep your arms down.”
His tone was low. Velvet soft. Moving over her skin. She actually felt those notes caressing her body. Goose bumps rose. She dropped her arms to her sides immediately.
“Are your panties damp? Or are they soaked, Flambé? You watched me tie those women and you wanted to be one of them. Now that you’re here with me, is it better than you hoped?” He was suddenly right behind her again, his warm breath in her ear this time. “Which is it? Damp? Or soaked?”