Big Cat Mates Leopard Territory (2 page)

Tanner’s gaze shifted to the financier also. His smile dimmed for a heartbeat before resuming its full brilliance. “Mr. Adar, sir, I didn’t know we had an appointment today.” He turned slightly, positioning his body with his back partially facing Jeanine, giving the billionaire his full attention.

Jeanine’s shoulders slumped. She stepped backward, ready to fade into the furniture as she’d been trained to. Disappearing as any good receptionist would.

Adar wrapped one of his arms around his mate’s waist, preventing her retreat, biting back his anger at the disappointment reflected in Jeanine’s beautiful face. “We didn’t have an appointment,” he coolly informed his rival. “I dropped by to ensure you were still attending tonight’s party.” He lied. His only goal had been to see, touch, smell Jeanine, his cat restless and needy.

“A party?” she whispered.

Adar frowned. Putting his management team in place had absorbed time he’d rather have spent with Jeanine. Another delay due to a miscommunication was unacceptable. “Everyone was invited.” The sole reason for the party was to provide a venue where he could woo his mate. “A confirmation for eleven was sent to my assistant.”

“Eleven members of our upper management, including myself, are attending.” A streak of red colored the youngest Leone’s irritatingly perfect face. “Surely you didn’t mean to invite
everyone
.”

And she calls me a bastard
. Adar gritted his teeth. “I
did
mean to invite everyone but Jeanine is not
everyone
,” he growled, hugging her closer to him. “She’s the face of Leone Media. She’s the first being I see when I arrive, and the last person I see before I leave.” His small human mate’s spine straightened, her chin lifting. “She was and will always be invited to any event I host.”

Tanner’s gaze flicked from Adar to Jeanine and then down to Adar’s hand resting on Jeanine’s hip. “I see.” He swallowed hard, his Adam’s apple bobbing. “I’ll extend the invitation to the rest of our team.”

“No, don’t.” Adar raised his free hand and the cub flinched, the chicken shit expecting a blow. “You go wherever you had planned to go. I’ll talk to Royce and straighten this mess out.”

“I’ll inform him that you need to see him.” Jeanine twisted out of his arms and hurried to her desk, her legs long and lean, perfect for wrapping around his waist. She leaned over to grab the phone’s receiver, and her skirt pulled tight across her perky ass, accentuating every curve.

Adar dragged his attention away from that appealing view and met Tanner’s gaze. “I mean what I say. Don’t ever presume to interpret my words again.”

“I won’t, sir.” The young lion’s face flushed deep crimson.

He’s weak, unable to protect anyone
. Adar wrinkled his nose in distaste.
And this is the cat she wants
. He dropped his voice to below human levels. “You’d be wise to treat Jeanine as you would treat me.”

Tanner’s eyes widened, the cub not as dumb as he looked. “Yes, sir.”

Adar smiled slowly, and the lion shifter took a step backward, smiling not something Adar did often. “That will be all.” He coolly dismissed his rival and smothered a laugh as Tanner almost ran out the door.

“What did you say to scare him?” Jeanine glared up at him, her small fists resting on her shapely hips, adorably unafraid of him.

“My driver is waiting to take you wherever you need to go.” Adar ignored her question. “I like you the way you are.” She looked as though she’d been thoroughly fucked, her hair mussed and her lipstick smeared. His cock twitched, remaining semi-hard from their previous encounter, and his balls ached. “But I assume you’ll want to do that cold brittle perfection thing and that has to take time.”

“Oh.” Her mouth rounded. “I have to get ready for the party.” Jeanine glanced at the front door and then at the office entrance. Her gaze returned to him, where it belonged, and his cat purred with satisfaction. “I should show you into Royce’s office first. He’s expecting you.”

“And I should walk you to the car.” Adar pulled her into his body, savoring how they fit together, her slight curves melding with his muscle. His cat rolled over onto his back, basking in her proximity. “I know the way to Royce’s office.”

“I know the way to your car.” Jeanine tilted her head back, her straight dark hair cascading over her shoulders, the soft tendrils teasing his fingers. “Do you really want me at your party?” She stared up at him, a touching vulnerability in her brilliant green eyes.

It would be so easy to hurt her
. “I do.” Adar tightened his grip, wishing to protect his delicate mate from everyone, including himself. “Did you think I had excluded you?”

“I didn’t think anything. I didn’t know about your party.” Jeanine played with the lapels of his jacket, her fingers long and slender. “I never know about company events until all of them leave the office together, smiling and laughing. They don’t do it to be mean.” She rushed to her coworkers’ defense, his mate extremely loyal. “It’s simply that I’m out here, alone, and they never think of me.” She pulled at a loose thread, unraveling his independence, strand by fragile strand. “But tonight, I’ll be one of them, won’t I?”

“No,” Adar rumbled. “Tonight, you’re mine.” He held onto her, needing her more than he’d ever needed another being, not wanting to let her go, to be alone again. “Join my meeting with Royce,” he offered impulsively, uncaring what the Leone Media CEO thought of his receptionist joining their loan renewal negotiations.

“You’d include me in your meeting?” Jeanine gazed up at him with wonder, and Adar mentally kicked himself for not including her sooner. “But the party…” She nibbled on her bottom lip, an action she undertook when worried.

Adar skimmed his lips over hers, stopping the abuse, tasting mint and willing female. “The party is important to you, and there will be other meetings.” He reluctantly released her, forcing himself to be patient. He’d claim her… soon, tonight. “I’ll pick you up at six.”

“Six?” Jeanine squeaked. “Oh gods.” He watched with amusement as she hustled to grab her purse from underneath the desk. “I won’t have time to get my hair done and put on my makeup and dress.” She fluttered her hands, his normally composed female adorably frazzled.

“Then you should hurry,” Adar advised with a smile, counting on her not having time to dress, knowing he wouldn’t make it through an entire night without making her body his.

“My driver will take you anywhere you need to go,” he added.
Ensuring I know where she is at all times
.

“Six,” Jeanine repeated. “Oh, I’m going to a party. A party, Adar.” She flung herself into his arms, her slight shoulders shaking with excitement.

“You are… with me,” he stressed, holding her close -- his mate, his female, his future.

Jeanine gave him another hug, her eyes shining. “Thank you.” She released him and flew down the hallway, blasting through Leone Media’s stained glass front door, the hemline of her skirt lifting with each stride, flashing long lithe tanned thigh.

She’s not thinking of that young cub now
. Adar slid his hands into his pants pockets and fingered the red silk of Jeanine’s panties. He breathed deeply in and out, in and out, her scent centering him, focusing his thoughts.

Time to protect what is mine
. He surged through the entrance to the office, searching for Royce, determined to eliminate any possible threat to Jeanine’s safety. Her current situation alarmed him. Employees scattered before him, his well-earned reputation frightening everyone except his mate.

Adar located the hard-working marketing mogul in his office, the large space smelling of sex and Royce’s voluptuous mate. As he entered, the lion shifter raised his head from the mountain of paperwork piled on the desk before him.

Royce sniffed loudly, his nostrils flaring, and he groaned. “Jeanine is a great employee, Adar.” He raked one of his big paws through his shaggy blond hair. “And now --”

“And now, I’m adding a security guard at the front door.” Adar lowered himself into the leather guest chair. “And a panic button under Jeanine’s desk.”

“You want a security guard, and a panic button installed at my firm’s reception.” Royce’s forehead wrinkled, the CEO acting too damn casual about his employee’s safety. “How am I to explain this to the others?”

She doesn’t feel safe, jackass
. Adar maintained his blank expression, concealing his rage, determined to share his messy emotions with only one other being -- his mate. “I’m protecting my investment.”

Royce blinked, that expression of surprise more human than cat. “Jeanine is purely business for you?”

“She’s my number one investment.”
She’s my mate, the future mother of our cubs
. Adar kept that information to himself. Royce didn’t need to know his personal business. “I’ll do
anything
to protect her.” He met the lion shifter’s gaze, ensuring his message was relayed.

Royce hesitated for a heartbeat, and Adar fought the urge to claw some sense into the lion. “I see.” The CEO nodded. “Then we hire a security guard and add the panic button.”

“I hire the security guard,” Adar corrected, not trusting Jeanine’s safety to anyone else. “And my people will add the panic button.”

Royce twisted his lips. “You’re a controlling bastard, Adar. Why did I ever do business with you?”

Adar allowed himself a small smile. “Because you had very little choice and because I treat your investments almost as carefully as I do my own.”

Royce grinned. “True.” The lion shifter looked toward the open doorway, his mate’s desk positioned in front of his office, where she was safe and protected. “And some investments are worth dying for.”

Knuckles rapped against wood.
He came
. She straightened and set her hairdryer down on her bathroom counter.
I’m truly going to the party
. She ran in place, indulging in a naked victory dance only she could see, her bare feet smacking against the tiled floor.

“I hear you, Jeanine,” Adar rumbled, his deep voice edging her excitement with arousal. The doorknob rattled. “Open up.”

“I’m coming,” Jeanine squeaked. “But you’re early.” She wrapped a white terrycloth robe around her body as she walked through the small apartment. The rented space was smaller than Leone Media’s front lobby.

“I’m right on time.” The rattling stopped. “You smell delicious, clean, and wet.”

Jeanine’s face heated. “My neighbors can hear you. You shouldn’t…” She opened the door and stared, her protests obliterated by the intensity in Adar’s eyes. “Hi,” she whispered, feeling as giddy as a teenager on her first date.

“Hello, kitten.” Adar’s presence filled the apartment hallway and sucked the air from her lungs. He was dressed in his standard black suit, white shirt, black tie, his face grim, yet something about him had changed. He’d become more striking, more hers, and her body vibrated with awareness.

Adar broke a piece of wood off the frame. “I’m having your door replaced tomorrow.” He shut the door and slid the deadbolt home, the ringing metal signaling his intentions.

He plans to fuck me
. Trembling with need and want and anticipation, Jeanine stepped aside as he pushed forward, fate as unstoppable as her arrogant male.

Adar prowled around the room serving as her kitchen, dining room, and bedroom. “The balcony doors will be changed also.” He glanced upward at the hideous cottage cheese ceiling. “And new fire alarms installed.”

“Anything else?” she asked, unable to hide her sarcasm.

“I vowed to protect you. I’m protecting you.” Adar removed his jacket and hung the expensive garment on the back of her thrift store chair. A gun holster accessorized his white shirt.

He’s a dangerous male
. A shiver of fear ran down Jeanine’s spine. “From whom? And why does a financier need a gun?” She played with the belt of her robe, aware that she wore nothing underneath the terrycloth.

“I don’t lend to humans.” Adar placed the gun and holster on the table. “Shifters can sometimes be… excitable.” He slipped off his tie and unbuttoned his shirt, revealing tanned skin marked with silver scars, some of them round like bullet holes, some of them striped like scratches.

Jeanine’s mouth dried as Adar shrugged out of his shirt, folded the white cotton neatly, and set it on the table beside his gun. “What are you doing?”

Adar paused, his abdominal muscles flexing, all of him chiseled and unrelentingly hard. “I prefer to fuck with my clothes off.” His lips quirked upward. “Though I’m open to other suggestions.”

Her face heated as her body pulsed. “We’re not having sex.”

“You can’t lie to me, kitten.” He chuckled, the sound deep and arousing. “I smell your hot cream.” Adar breathed deeply, his nostrils flaring. “You’re gushing for me.” She pressed her slick thighs together, striving to smother the scent. “I can’t decide whether to eat you or fuck you first.” He unbuckled his belt and casually unfastened his pants.

First
. She licked her bottom lip as he dropped his pants. His long thick cock sprang free -- rich, black hair covering his base.
To have that cock inside me
… “Adar.”

He moved with a daunting speed, his body blurring. He caught her as her knees buckled. “Is this a vote for eating first?” Adar swung her into his arms and carried her easily to the bed, his skin warm against hers, his musky cologne filling her nostrils.

“No.” She gazed up at him. He wasn’t Tanner with his golden hair and laughing eyes. Adar was dark and intense and so much more. “This is a vote for fucking.”

Adar placed her carefully on the bedspread. “Fucking first.” His eyes gleamed, his gaze thrillingly possessive. He looked at her as though she belonged to him.

For this moment, I’ll belong
. “We’ll be late for your party.” Jeanine untied her robe and spread the terrycloth open, shamelessly showing her body, hoping he found small breasts and narrow hips attractive.

A rumble rolled up his chest, the primitive noise exciting Jeanine. “Fuck the party.” Adar threw back his head and released a mighty roar -- his fists clenched at his side, his cock hard, spots shimmering over his body.