Dean knew women better than he knew himself. They liked flowers, candy and compliments. He gave them attention and didn’t look at other women when with a special girl. A one-at-a-time man who knew how to have fun. But Stacey was different. To her, flattery was an insult. She had beauty, brains and money. Everything a successful woman might want.
The thought depressed him, until his cat reminded Dean she didn’t have him.
He’d sensed earlier what she hadn’t said, so he’d said it first. But he knew. The woman was lonely. Her family loved her, but they were family. She needed a lover, someone to care for her and her alone. And who better than Dean to give her what she needed?
He cast a glance in her direction. She paced alongside him, haughty, sexy and not as strong as she’d have him think. He never would have believed it if he hadn’t seen it with his own eyes, but Stacey Bermin had doubts. She worried, she loved. But could she love him was the question.
Not sure about how much they’d shared, Dean felt as if he’d missed something important. Their scents mingled—as close as they’d been and as much as he’d come inside her, they’d blended. Physically, and on his part, emotionally. Of all the women he’d made love to—and there had been more than a few—none had left him breathless and eager for so much more.
He liked looking at her. Touching her. Seeing through her eyes the world around them. She brushed against him as they moved, and the glide of her fur over his just felt right.
He couldn’t explain it, but he was ready to mate her. He’d paid particular attention to Burke and Grady when they’d talked about claiming a female. Not wanting to bond with any of his former girlfriends, Dean had kept his emotional distance. But with Stacey, he was ready to give over his heart. Almost.
Once he’d tricked her into loving him, then he’d tie them together. No way would she ever believe she’d fallen for a plain, lowly Chastell. He had to find a way to look bigger and better in his eyes.
Saving her sexy ass from Lex would be a good start.
“So what exactly happened between you and Lex, anyway?”
She tripped over a tree root.
“So graceful, princess,” he murmured, amused when she flashed him her teeth.
“Lex is a jerk. He saw me and decided he wanted me. I mean, I understand his reasoning. He wanted the best.”
Dean rolled his eyes.
“But he never asked—he tried to take.”
“So if he’d asked, you’d have said yes?”
“No. But he still should have asked. Instead, he bullied me at every turn. Then he pawed at me and would have done more if Miles hadn’t interrupted.”
Dean flexed his claws, wanting to kill something. “I thought you were tough enough to take care of yourself?”
She huffed. “I know when I’m overpowered. He’s as big as you are.”
A compliment?
“The big oaf outweighs me by a hundred pounds at least, and he’s a brute.”
Dean didn’t like the comparison. “I thought you liked it rough.” Not the nicest thing to say, but he didn’t like her acting as if he and Lex were one and the same.
“I didn’t want to be raped, you nimrod,” she growled at him.
“Are you saying I raped you?”
She stopped in her tracks and frowned at him. “I’m talking about Lex.”
“What about me? What did you think about my technique?”
He wouldn’t have believed it if he hadn’t sensed it, but her embarrassment smelled sweet on the wind.
“You were okay, I guess.”
“Okay? You came like a rocket, baby.”
“Yeah? Well so did you,” she snarled. He imagined smoke coming out of her pointed ears.
“Of course I did. You’re—”
“Beautiful. I know.” She sneered at him. “Come up with something original, why don’t you.”
“I was going so say you’re the best lay I’ve ever had. You have the hottest, sweetest pussy of any cat I know. But beautiful is good too.” He laughed when she swiped at him and dodged when she would have attacked flat-out. “Cut it out, Stace. I’m sorry. You’re ugly and mean and stupid. I promise not to flatter you anymore. There, we good now?”
“Not even close,” she snapped at him and turned in a huff, not seeing the danger until it was almost too late.
But Dean saw. He dove between her and took the bullet aimed for her. The bullet burned through his thigh, but the threat of danger whipped up his fury and adrenaline. He ignored the pain and nudged her to run.
They raced into the woods, away from Big Mountain, and steered clear of the trails.
Had to be Hunters. He couldn’t imagine Lex’s cats not digging in with their claws and teeth. They might be assholes, but they were animal predators. Rifles belonged to humans who loved nothing more than to kill.
“Dean, are you okay?” she asked when he slowed, listening for some sign of their pursuers.
“I’ve been better. But I think we lost them.”
Except they hadn’t. The area suddenly filled with men and mountain lions, a mixture of Hunter and Ac-taw, a travesty of everything their kind stood for.
“Nice one you tagged, Mark.” One of the Hunters spat a stream of tobacco and smiled. The grin didn’t reach his eyes.
The men carrying weapons looked fit, camouflaged and familiar with the hunt. Nearly a dozen men stood with half as many felines, just waiting to engage.
“I take it these aren’t Quince’s cats?” Dean asked on a private pathway designed for Stacey, not a common Ac-taw link. He hadn’t realized he’d forged it, but when she answered, her essence wrapped around him in a way that was more than vocal, but spiritual as well.
None of the others around them so much as twitched.
“No. These are Lex’s guys. I recognize them.” The fear in her voice shook him, giving him the strength to ignore the pain and stand up to their foes.
He let out a scream of warning and closed the remaining distance between himself and Stacey. When the first cat attacked, he was ready. They clawed and ripped until the cat fell dead.
The second and third cats met the same end but had done some damage. Between the bullet and his new wounds, he felt ready to drop. Unfortunately, the enemy’s sense of fair play had ended. The rest of the felines charged him en masse. He saw Stacey try to help, but a bullet impacted the ground ahead of her. Then a cat stole his attention by leaping at him. He swatted the bastard down and warned her to stay back when he could catch his breath.
Two of the cats jumped on his back. He felt teeth at his legs and the nape of his neck. Powerful jaws clamped around his neck, and he realized the third cat hadn’t quite been as injured as he’d hoped.
And then the world turned black.
Chapter Seven
Dante and John Crow. Two bastards she wished she’d never had to see again. The brothers grinned at her through bloodied teeth and licked their lips free of Dean’s blood.
She glanced at his unconscious body as the Hunters dropped him on a tarp. One of the men threw jeans, shoes and a shirt at her. “Change.”