Total pages in book: 136
Estimated words: 128413 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 642(@200wpm)___ 514(@250wpm)___ 428(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 128413 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 642(@200wpm)___ 514(@250wpm)___ 428(@300wpm)
Mliss’s gaze gleamed leopard gold at him. He could almost hear her voice in his head: I’m not the one walking through the gates of the Scott compound.
He waited until she’d turned the all-terrain vehicle around and was on her way before allowing the guard to lead him inside. The compound was spacious but not huge. One main dual-level building painted a crisp white with dark gray trim, multiple other single-level houses, all with decorative touches like scrollwork on the eaves that clearly came from another era; overall, it gave the impression of being a refined old estate.
Underneath that first impression, however, was intense modern security. The guards with their visible earpieces were just the start—and given that more subtle earpieces were standard for security work, these had been picked on purpose, to warn off anyone thinking to infiltrate the estate.
Then there were the wrought iron fences Remi had clocked were wired with motion sensors, the generator somewhere on the property that was a mild but distinctive hum to his acute hearing, the internal alarm systems he couldn’t see but had no doubt existed, and external motion sensor lights designed to appear a natural part of the house.
Those lights weren’t needed tonight as the pathway through the compound was well illuminated with tall standing lamps that matched the iron fences in their design. As he’d expected, he had no chance to look inside the house itself, because the guard took him around the building and to the very back—where Auden stood with Charisma beside a chopper on a launching pad.
Charisma Wai’s face was stiff with disapproval, but she was polite enough to Remi. “Thank you for acceding to Auden’s request. You have an unusual work and skill history for a changeling alpha.”
No surprise that Wai had looked him up. “Misspent youth,” he said casually, then turned to Auden. “Are you ready to go, Ms. Scott?”
“Yes.” She got into the chopper’s passenger seat with help from a step that had already been placed beside it. The seat, he saw when he went around, had been pushed all the way back.
It was still a tight fit for her belly.
Frowning, he took his own seat, wanting her out of this machine and more comfortable as fast as possible. Small as the chopper was, his shoulder brushed hers as he took the controls after putting on his headset.
A shiver from his passenger before she settled, and maybe it was his imagination, but it felt as if she was leaning into the contact rather than away from it.
Happy to have her in his care, he began takeoff procedures, and when the bird lifted, saw Charisma Wai staring after them with a grim look in her eye.
Chapter 25
Remi Denier: Alpha of the RainFire leopards.
Never say we don’t keep you in the loop, our dear wild women. Because it appears our friends in RainFire have been hoarding this gorgeous feline specimen all to themselves. But our intrepid journalists go where even bears fear to tread in order to keep you informed.
Eyes of a pale brown shot with gold and filled with light, a charming smile that makes us want to rip off our panties, and hair so many shades of brown that it’s a leopard’s fur in human form, Mr. Denier is a tall bite of gorgeous hunk.
Rawr.
And yes, ladies, the man is single. Not only that, but he’s got serious claws if he’s set up a pack and held it against all comers—including multiple other predatory changeling packs in the region. Surely he needs a mate to keep him warm on those cold mountain nights.
Who here is ready to volunteer for this onerous, onerous task?
—From the “Scary but Sexy” column in the September 2083 issue of Wild Woman magazine: “Skin Privileges, Style & Primal Sophistication”
REMI’S PRESENCE WAS a primal pressure against Auden’s skin, a prowling heat that discomforted and comforted at the same time. She could’ve shifted to break contact, but she did the opposite…and he didn’t appear to mind from the small smile he shot her after they were aloft.
She wanted to drink in the sunshine of his attention, was greedy for more of it, but she had to warn him. “What was Charisma referring to, regarding your history?” Formal tone, cool intonation.
From the way Remi’s jaw tightened, he understood her warning: this vehicle wasn’t safe, might be bugged. Auden wasn’t, however, worried about visual surveillance. Too difficult to pull that off in such a tight area with so few controls.
“I drove race cars from roughly twenty to twenty-five,” Remi said, his voice that rumble, familiar and deep. “Fell into it, really—changeling speed and reflexes are a good fit for that career.”
“Is it a difficult field to join?” Auden asked, as any other Psy might ask about the dangerous sport—but she was compelled by Remi, wanted to know all of what had shaped him into the man he’d become.