Fast and the Furriest (3 page)

He lifted his gaze and opened his mouth, issuing a rough hiss.

His best friend jerked back, eyes widening, but he didn’t immediately drop his gaze. Not like his other tigers. Braden was his second and a fierce feline in his own right. If he hadn’t chosen to follow Ares, the male would have a pride of his own. Instead, he stayed at Ares’s side, helping him control the national prides through knowledge, violence, and bone-deep perseverance.

“What the hell?”

Ares fought for control, digging his fingers-turned-claws into the solid wood of his desk. He wasn’t going to let the beast out. Not now, anyway. He had too much riding on the night.

It was the first full moon after their outing. The town was filled with single females, and more than a few males, looking for tiger tails. They had no idea what they would be doing by snatching one without permission.

A violation of the soul.

“Zoe.” He fought for air, fought to shove the tiger down. “Is in town.”

“Oh. Fuck.” Surprise stole over Braden’s features.

“Exactly.”

“I’ll get rid of her.” Braden turned as if to leave, determination in every line of his heavily muscled frame.

Ares’s reaction was instantaneous. “
You will not touch her!
”

Braden froze and slowly turned to face Ares. “Oh. Fuck.”

He knew what his second saw. Orange and black fur coating his cheeks, sliding down his neck and emerging to slink over his arms to human fingers turned into deadly claws.

Oh fuck, indeed.

Well, no one had killed her. That had to be a plus, right? Considering the alternative was death by striped kitty. Right. So, still breathing, and now comfy in a small room at the local inn. She wondered if someone would sneak in and slit her throat overnight.

Of course, that was something she should have thought of, oh, before
driving up the mountain and planting herself in a pride of tigers.

Right, she might be panicking a tiny bit.

But panicking was bad. It was like fear. Or it was fear? Fear’s cousin twice removed? It didn’t matter. The point was, it changed her scent. Some—most?—loved the scent and it piqued the average shifter’s predatory interest.

Zoe didn’t want anyone’s
interest
so she took a deep breath and released it slowly. She silently counted to ten and again and then…

She was ninety percent sure the owners of the Wilden inn were tigers. She knew Flynn was, along with Ares. Connecting dots, she assumed Claire and Braden were as well. She’d met someone named Hawke, too. Hawke. A bird name for a tiger. That thought smashed through the panic, and she finally took a full breath. It’d be okay. And even if it wasn’t okay, there wasn’t much she could do about it. She’d tossed herself into this situation, and it was time to ride it out. Whatever happened, there was no way she could be anywhere but in the middle of Wilden. That weird part of her would allow nothing else.

It wasn’t until she’d crossed the border that she’d finally been able to take a full breath. Not until she’d rolled to a stop beside Flynn that she’d been able to think beyond the bone-deep need to get back to Ares. And Flynn knew Ares. Ergo, the itchiness abated enough for her to think and make a demand of her own.

Zoe padded to the window, her steps quiet as she strode over the plush carpeting. The inn was surrounded by trees, hidden from those passing on the road, but her room allowed her to look beyond them and on to the town below.

Dammit. The small space was overridden by cars, horn blasts poisoning the air. Women filled the sidewalks and streets, uncaring of the trouble they caused. Well, the trouble Zoe caused and they perpetuated.

She wasn’t sure how she could fix things. She just knew she couldn’t stay away.

A phone rang, the sound shrill and damn surprising in the quiet though she wasn’t sure why it startled her. It was her own cell phone.

“I like big butts and I cannot…”

Zoe sighed. Obviously her BFF Veronica—Ronnie—got a hold of her phone again during one of Zoe’s
Does this make my butt look fat?
moments.

She dug the phone out of her purse and swiped her thumb across the screen before placing it to her ear. “Hello, dahling.”

“Hello, whoreface.”

She chuckled and smiled widely, her drama momentarily forgotten. “What’s up?”

“Nothing, simply checking to see if the kitties ate you in a non-happy way.”

Zoe snorted. “There is no eating, nor will there be any eating, happy or otherwise.”

“Uh huh. Says the woman who went into the tiger’s den, chasing after a hot hunk of striped goodness.”

She sniffed. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Liar.”

“Bitch.”

“Whoreface. See how we always circle back to the beginning? It’s the cycle of verbal life.”

Zoe chuckled and padded toward the bed, the sound slowly blossoming to an all-out laugh. She flopped onto the soft surface, staring at the canopy above her. “Oh god, I needed that.” Another giggle. “So much.”

“That bad, huh?”

She closed her eyes and shook her head. “No, not really. Not yet. I know…”

“What’s coming.”

“No one knows what’s coming, but I
do
know it won’t be good. He’s gotta be so angry, Ronnie.” More than angry. So much more.

“It’s not your fault, Z. We talked about that.”

But it was.

“I know,” she whispered.

“So I’m not sure why you’re there.”

Zoe sighed. “I need to be. I can’t be…”

“Anywhere else.” Ronnie huffed. “I could come out there?”

She snorted. “Uh, no. I’m not sure if I’m more afraid of the tigers or the women.”

“Eh, it’s all pussy and I know yours is, like, gold plated.” Ronnie hummed. “Oooh, I bet it’s platinum. Gives it that nice reflective surface so Mr. Purrington gets a nice look at himself while he’s lapping up all that…”

“What the fuck are you
talking
about?” That’s what she got for zoning out on her best friend.

“Your glorious vagina?”

“I don’t know what to do with you.” Zoe didn’t know what to do
without
Veronica, either. They were always side by side when they faced the hard stuff, but this was something she’d have to deal with on her own. No leaning against the big bad werewolf for help this time around. “I miss you already.”

“I know.” Ronnie popped her gum. “But you wouldn’t let me come with, sooo… my sympathy bone is broken. I think I need to see a doctor, even. Got any good docs in Wilden?”

She imagined her best friend waggling her eyebrows and found herself smiling widely again. “I’m sure there are, but we should make sure I don’t get eaten before you show up, huh?”

“Good eaten or bad eaten? Because I’ve seen your tiger’s ass and—”

The sound came from nowhere, yanked from deep within Zoe’s chest.

A hiss. Like a damned cat, she hissed into the phone. “
No.
”

She clacked her teeth together, swallowing the next word that ached to escape.
Mine
.

“Tou-chy. Damn girl. Talk about a little bitchtastic there. I’ll keep my eyeballs to myself, but that would be easier if you hadn’t taken those pics, you know?”

Zoe growled. “I thought we agreed that wasn’t my fault.”

“That’s what
I
said! I’m glad we’re on the same page.” Ronnie sounded way too proud of herself, and Zoe discovered… she’d gotten lost somewhere in the conversation.

Zoe slapped her hand across her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose. “Ronnie…”

“Yes, dahling?”

“I love you even when I hate you a little bit.”

Her best friend snorted. “You love me always.”

“This is tru—”

She was gonna say true. Really. But somehow the cell phone magically left her fingers only to slam against the far wall, shattering into a million tiny pieces.

And by magically, she meant Ares snatched it from her hand and threw it across the room. She met his stare, unable to look away, unable to do anything but drink in his appearance.

He looked the same. She wasn’t sure why that surprised her. They hadn’t been apart for long. Just enough for the bit of happiness she’d found to be destroyed, squashed beneath thin paper and printed words.

His long black hair still curled at the ends even if it looked wild and wind-blown. His brown eyes blazed, transitioning between the chocolate hue and the gold of his tiger. His chest heaved as he fought for breath, expanding and contracting, drawing her eyes to their breadth. She’d touched him there, stroked his pecs, and slid her fingers down his carved abdomen and farther to the rest of him. To his hardness, the proof of his desire for her.

Her. Zoe Reynolds. She still wasn’t sure what she’d done to catch this man’s eye, but she had, and then they’d enjoyed two weeks of passion, laughs, and… what she’d thought were the beginnings of love.

She hadn’t realized her work-provided cell phone was accessible by the newspaper she wrote for. She wasn’t sure why the thought never occurred to her, but it hadn’t, and here they were.

“Ares.” She swallowed hard, stomach fluttering with a sudden bout of nerves. She’d sorta thought she’d control the timing of their reunion, and she so wasn’t prepped for this moment. “Hi.”

“Who do you love?” he rasped, a growl filling the words.

A growl. Because he was a tiger. Right.

“I…” Zoe furrowed her brows. “Huh?”

“Who…” he bent at his waist and placed one hand on the bed to her right, looming above her, “do you love?”

Not a question she’d expected. Maybe, ‘what are you doing here?’ Or, ‘are you an idiot?’ Those answers she could provide. This though?
Huh? “
I don’t understand.”

“The question is a simple one, Zoe.”

He lowered farther and then some, slowly easing atop her until she was held captive by his presence. She instinctively spread her thighs, giving him space to get even closer.

She knew he was angry, could see the fury in his expression, but she still remembered the feel of him. The sensations of his heavy weight pinning her and crowding her in a way she loved. She resisted the urge to arch her back and press her breasts into his chest, to soothe the sudden ache his nearness caused.

Zoe acknowledged he was angry, but her body didn’t care. She recalled the feel of him sliding in and out of her pussy, of his mouth on her breasts, his fingers stroking her skin and exploring her curves.

Ares had worshiped her lush form, taking all she had and giving as much as he stole. They worked in complementary rhythm, trading snippets of pleasure until they reached their peaks, both coming with a shout or deep moan.

Yes, she remembered all that.

Ares breathed deeply, caressing her hardened nipples with his chest, and released a deep rumble. A purr. He purred for her. Then his dick hardened, filling and pressing against her pussy. She heated, center warming and aching with growing need. She knew he was angry—might even hate her—but there was no denying the attraction.

“Zoe,” he whispered against her lips, his hips pressing his cock against her cloth-covered slit.

“Ares,” she couldn’t resist letting his name roll off her tongue.

He brushed his mouth across hers, a gentle caress. Once. Twice. On the third, he lingered, tongue coming out to flick and tease her until she opened for him. He slipped past her lips, stroking her with a gentle wave and she did the same, tasting him for what could be the last time. She’d take advantage of this moment, cataloging every sensation so she could remember it forever. He’d realize he hated her in a minute, but she had a few seconds so she took them.

Zoe kissed him with abandon, throwing every ounce of emotion—love—that she carried in heart into the connection. Their tongues tangled, tasting each other as their passion rose. Their kisses ranged from desperate need to simmering desire, increasing in urgency and then slowly ebbing to a gentle meeting of mouths.

But the rest of their bodies burned hot and desperate. Ares continued the rolling flex of his hips, caressing her with his hardness, stoking the flames of her need. Tingles enveloped her body, the first hints of pleasure overtaking her in ever-increasing waves of sensation.

Her pussy ached and pulsed, her center knowing exactly what she desired, even as her mind knew it was impossible. She wanted to be filled by him, stretched taut around his hardness. He’d slide in and out of her wet pussy, caressing her inner walls with his thick shaft, the head of his dick rubbing that delicious spot inside her that would force deep moans from her chest.

It’d be slow at first, a stoking of her desire that increased in speed and force as their mutual passion rose. It wouldn’t be long before careful thrusts turned into rough slams, their hips meeting in powerful slaps of skin on skin. They’d be sweating, bodies glistening as they fought to reach the ultimate pleasure. And then…

Ares wrenched his mouth from hers, but he didn’t retreat. No, his hips continued their mind-blowing movements. Zoe found herself matching his tempo, sliding her pussy along his length, meeting him thrust for thrust. Her body didn’t care there was cloth separating them. It knew pleasure, and it wanted more.

And now the incessant itching was gone.

Gone.

Because Ares had come to her.

God, what had he done to her?

She didn’t have a chance to worry about the results of their relationship. Not when he whispered against her lips, his voice so seductive she was ready to agree to anything he asked if he’d kiss her again.

“Who do you love?” he whispered.

She pried her eyes open, working past the overwhelming passion that clouded her mind. “Huh?”

Smooth, Zoe, real smooth.

“Who do you—”

Heavy pounding on the room’s door cut him off, and she didn’t miss the fury that crossed Ares’s features. It was more than annoyance. It was
rage
. At being interrupted? She’d never seen him like this. Then again, she hadn’t known he was a tiger either. Maybe he’d been pretending before, and this was the real him. The one whose eyes flashed yellow and orange and white fur peppered his cheeks when angry.