Destined Mate (Catamount Lion Shifters #4) (2 page)

Her mind returned to the present, Hayden’s palm warm on her back, his other hand cupping her elbow. She’d convinced herself her recollection of the heat she felt with Hayden in Montana was an overblown figment of her imagination. But now, with him near, she wondered if she’d underestimated it. Somehow, she kept it together while he walked her to a black sports utility vehicle and helped her inside. The vehicle was blessedly warm.

Hayden turned to her. “Where to? The only directions I have are to Dane’s place.”

“Lucky for you, I live in the guesthouse on Dane’s property.”

He arched a brow. “Oh? Okay then. We’ll just let my GPS tell us where to go then. You can let me know if there’s a quicker way.”

“What brings you out here? Last I heard, things were mostly resolved with the smuggling network in Catamount.”

He nodded as he slowly pulled off the side of the road. “That’s what I’ve heard from Jake and Dane. Problem is, things are still running hot out in Montana. Dane suggested maybe I could get some info from the guys here sitting in jail while they wait for their cases to go to court. The federal prosecutor in Montana is working with the office in Portland to see if they can work out a deal if these guys will help us out on the other side.”

“Oh. Well, that makes sense. I hope you can get somewhere with it.” Hayden almost passed the entrance to Dane’s house. “Hey, turn…”

His GPS intoned its instructions just when she started to speak. He caught her eyes and chuckled before slowing and turning abruptly.

Shana took in the familiar landscape as they drove down the winding lane leading to the estate. Dane lived in their childhood home, which was an old colonial farmhouse, stately and lovely. After Callen died, it was all she could do to even walk in the home they had shared. Dane and his new fiancée, Chloe, had offered to let her stay with them in the main house, but Shana needed privacy. She’d moved into an old renovated barn, which had been converted into a modern guesthouse.

She directed Hayden to the guesthouse, a good mile away from the main home. He parked the car and leapt out. Before she had a chance to move, he was opening the passenger door. She started to move, too fast for her stiff hip, and gracelessly fell against him. Hayden’s arms caught her easily. Her eyes slammed into his. Time stopped. Her pulse quickened, her breath became shallow. The pull she felt toward him was so strong, she was powerless to resist.

He froze in place, though she could feel his heart pounding where her breast mashed again his rock-hard chest. His eyes darkened and flicked to her mouth. With thought impossible, she acted on instinct, lifting her free hand and stroking it through his golden brown hair and down along his cheek, savoring the rough stubble. His breath hissed before his lips crashed against hers. The ice inside her melted into liquid heat pulsing through her veins, twisting in her core. His lips feasted on hers, his tongue diving in, sweeping through her mouth. Her tongue tangled with his as she pressed closer, desperate for the heat he offered, the intense feeling he stoked inside of her.

Sensation prickled along her skin, slivers of fire. Wet heat built between her legs, and she shifted restlessly. Finally feeling something after so long was so unbelievably good, she could hardly stand it. It didn’t help matters that Hayden kissed like no other. Soft and slow, rough and fast—the combination drugging her senses, taking her breath away, making her want more and more. He abruptly tore his lips away.

She wasn’t ready for him to move yet, and he didn’t. He hooked an arm on the doorframe, his breath coming in gusts against her cheek. She closed her eyes, savoring his warmth, his strength. Sensation pinged low in her belly, warm and sweet. She almost sobbed in relief. After the emotional chilly years of her marriage and trying to adjust to Callen’s death, her emotions had dulled. She’d so desperately wanted to know she could feel again and now she did.

“I shouldn’t have done that,” he said, his voice tight.

She opened her eyes to find his trained on her. His pulse beat visibly in his neck. “I started it,” she whispered. “It’s okay.”

For a second, she thought he might kiss her again, but he slowly straightened. Her eyes flicked down and saw the bulge in his jeans. She resisted the urge to stroke him through the denim. She couldn’t help the tiny thrill of knowing she had an effect on him.

“Maybe so, but I know you’ve been through a lot this year. You don’t need me acting like an idiot.” He took a step back. His mouth curled up in a wry smile. “You’re so damn beautiful, it makes it hard.”

She tried to recall the last time any man had called her beautiful. Callen had largely ignored her the last few years, her self-esteem draining slowly away. He’d never been the most attentive man, but once the newness of their marriage wore off, Callen had carried on his life as if she was a mere afterthought. If he had a priority for their relationship, it was that they kept up the social image of a happy couple. Bitterly, she considered how his actions had torn his social image to shreds after his death. She batted the memories away and met Hayden’s eyes. She couldn’t help her return smile.

***

Shana’s slow smile nearly undid him. He had to yank the reins of his control to keep from kissing her again.
Fuck.
He was in serious trouble. He’d conveniently forgotten how insanely tempting Shana Ashworth was with her glossy honeyed locks that fell in waves halfway down her back, her smoky silver eyes, and her sensual, full mouth. Adding to the temptation, her body was all lush curves and strength. Hayden had spent his life around mountain lion shifters. Female shifters were renowned for their beauty. Shana took it to another level, primarily due to her natural sultry manner and complete obliviousness to how delectable she was. He recalled meeting her in Montana and being relieved he’d been seated at a table. He respected her brother and knew she’d been through a lot, so it absolutely wasn’t okay for him to be battling a hard on every time he got near her.

When she mentioned where she lived, the wheels in his brain started spinning. Dane had said Hayden was welcome to stay in the guesthouse. Dane couldn’t have meant for him to stay with Shana. Hayden was ashamed to admit the idea took his mind down the paths of some wild fantasies. The kiss just now had set him on fire inside. But he couldn’t go there.

Hayden came to Catamount to see if he could find a chink in the armor around the shifter smuggling network in Montana, not to get caught up in fantasies about Shana Ashworth. He glanced back at her, and her smoky eyes nearly shredded his control. He took a breath and another step back.

Shana’s eyes broke from his and she started to climb out of the car. Her breath hissed, her face barely tightening, when he recalled there was a reason he’d ended up with her in his arms. She was hurt.

He moved swiftly, carefully sliding his arm around her. She went stiff, but she didn’t shove him away.

“Let’s take it slow,” he said.

He felt the deep breath she took. Glancing down, her expression was controlled. She nodded quickly.

“Right. Slow seems to be the way to go. I didn’t realize how hard I landed.” Her voice was husky and sounded surprised.

Though Hayden couldn’t say he knew her well, he sensed her to be a woman who rarely showed weakness. Her brother had intimated as much when he talked about his worries about the effect of her husband’s death and the trail of misdeeds he left behind for her to clean up. Hayden wanted to know her, wanted to peel back the brittle layers around her, and find the woman he sensed underneath. Which was insane.

They made it inside the guesthouse. Shana limped inside. He had to force himself to ease his grip on her. His body didn’t want to move away. He wanted to pull her close again for another kiss. When she turned to face him, lust jolted through him. He held still, trying to force his body under control.

Her silver eyes met his, the corner of her mouth kicked up. “I didn’t think I needed a ride, but obviously I did. Thank you.”

“No problem.”

“How long will you be visiting?”

He shrugged. “Not too sure. At least a week or more.”

She nodded, her eyes thoughtful. “Well, I’m sure I’ll see you again. I’m supposed to have dinner with Dane and Chloe tonight. Where are you staying?”

A flicker of heat flashed through him. The mere thought he might end up staying anywhere near her set his pulse racing. “Not so sure. Dane actually mentioned staying at the guesthouse, but I’m assuming he means another one.”

She flushed and bit her lip.
Holy hell
. She needed to
not
do that. It brought his focus right to her lips and nothing else. Now he knew what they felt like under his, well that wasn’t particularly helpful for getting his body to cool down.

She shrugged and rolled her eyes. “He probably meant here. Dane, uh, well he conveniently forgets to mention some things to me, especially if they have anything to do with my late husband. We never would have met you if it hadn’t been for everything Callen set in motion, so Dane was probably worried about telling me you’d be here.”

Hayden’s heart tightened. He didn’t know what to say, but he knew it must be painful for Shana to come to terms with the man her husband had been.

She saved him from having to formulate a reply. “It’s fine for you to stay here. There’s plenty of space. There’s a separate apartment on the other side. Why don’t you go on over to Dane’s and check in with him? I’ll probably see you tonight at dinner.”

Moments later, Hayden pulled to a stop in front of a lovely old farmhouse another few minutes down the road. His brain was fuzzed from his encounter with Shana. He grabbed a water bottle and splashed the cold water on his face, the activity jolting his brain off of Shana. He wiped his face with a towel and climbed out of the car. Somehow, he had to get his focus on why he was here. Though if Dane truly intended for him to stay in the guesthouse, even in a separate apartment, his will was about to be tested to the max.

Chapter 2

Shana stared at her reflection in the mirror. The face looking back at her appeared weary, or perhaps that was her interpretation because that’s how she felt most of the time lately. Before Callen died, her life hadn’t been amazing, but it had been stable and predictable. Well, as stable and predictable as life for a mountain lion shifter could be. She’d been born and raised in Catamount, the town founded centuries ago by her family and a few other shifter families. Catamount was mid-sized and bustling now, busy spring through fall with tourists trekking up to Maine for a taste of “The Way Life Should Be,” the official state motto. The Appalachian Trail meandered its way through Catamount, so the town was host to many hikers and others. Though Maine relished its reputation for having protected its wilderness better than many eastern states, it made money hand over fist with tourists. Catamount catered to them with high end shopping, arts, and plenty of restaurants. The only thing they didn’t have was their own ski lodge, although there was one in a neighboring town.

Little did those tourists know they were surrounded by mountain lion shifters. Shana had grown up steeped in the lore of her family and absorbed the belief she would marry another shifter. When Callen Peyton started flirting with her in college, he seemed exactly the shifter she was expected to marry. He came from another founding family and was handsome and popular. Though Shana didn’t feel too much of a spark with him, he was attentive and charming at first. She couldn’t quite come up with a reason not to marry him, so she did. At thirty-one years old now, looking back on their marriage through the knowledge of the man Callen really was, she saw what she couldn’t see then—a young woman uncertain of her place in the world who wanted to please her family. If only she’d had the courage to say she wasn’t ready.

By the time Callen died, Shana had given up thinking she could find a way to make their marriage better. They hadn’t been intimate in almost two years. She knew he had casual dalliances with women on his many trips out of town because he didn’t bother to hide them from her. He was careful never to have affairs with anyone local because image mattered to him, and he wanted to keep up the image that they were happily married. She had been working on building the courage to tell her friends just what the truth was when he died. Only then had she learned how little she knew about his life.

With a sigh, Shana turned away from the mirror. She’d had just about enough of introspection lately. Walking through the bedroom, she grabbed a scarf off her dresser and slung it across her shoulders. After Hayden had dropped her off this morning, she’d called Dane. He hedged and acted as if he’d ‘forgotten’ to tell her Hayden was visiting.
 

She mentally armored herself and headed out the door to dinner. After a hot shower, the pain had eased in her hip enough she could walk with only a slight limp. Her body was taut with anticipation at seeing Hayden again, while her mind swung wildly between self-doubt and recrimination. She didn’t know when there was a ‘right’ time to be open to anything resembling a relationship, casual or more, after one’s husband died. Were there rules for this and were they different if your husband hadn’t touched you in years and any semblance of love had been long gone?

***

Hayden leaned back in his chair, carefully keeping his eyes from landing for too long on Shana. He’d spent the day with Dane and Jake, mostly reviewing what they’d learned over the course of their investigation in Catamount. Dane planned to take him to the police station tomorrow. In the meantime, Dane and Chloe insisted on inviting him for dinner. Shana joined them, and Hayden became deeply aware of how weak his control was when it came to her. All she had to do was sit across the table from him, and his body hummed to life.

Chloe turned to Hayden with a smile. “So Hayden, when does the snow melt in Montana?”

Hayden shrugged. “Sometime between April and June.”

Chloe grinned. “That’s about the same answer you’ll get around here. This is my first spring in Maine, so I feel foolish thinking the snow should be gone for good by March. I suppose it’s about the same in most of the northern states.”