Hunter's Prey, A (10 page)

“No,” Damian admitted, “but
she
is not a shifter. She can't protect herself.”

“No, she's not. But she
can
have more protection.
True
protection,” Dominic coaxed, driving the point home. Damian understood the message:
he
could give her a mate's protection. He could mark her and tie her life to his. Which was the problem in the first place!

“Look. I just need you to know what you're getting into. She's human and she doesn't know about the bond between mates. And unless you show her, she's not going to know at all. If you don't step in, someone else will.”

Damian's shoulders tensed at the mental imagery, his nerves sending sharp impulses of pain and pressure.

“Can you even picture her with another man? Fucking her? Giving her children? She can have children without you – it's
you
who can't have them without her. Do you want another man claiming her womb and her body for the rest of her pathetically short human life?”

Damian snapped.

Unconsciously turning into a wolf, he snarled and jumped at his brother, who barely had time to turn into his mirror image before leaping away. The two wolves stood sizing each other up before Damian attacked, clamping his fangs around one of his brother's front legs. The injury stung, but Dominic managed to kick the other wolf in the head, confusing him for a moment, before he turned back into a man. Still hazy, Damian found himself naked and human, kneeling on the cold floor with his brother standing before him. Looking around him, he noticed the damage they'd done. Though nothing was irreplaceable, the lab would take days to fix and weeks to recreate some of the tests he had been working on.

“Goddammit,” he cursed, accepting his brother's uninjured hand to rise to his feet. “It's going to take two days to get this lab back in top shape.”

“You own a pharmaceutical research company,” Dominic teased as he grabbed some towels from the bathroom, throwing a couple to his brother before wiping himself of sweat, blood and chemicals. “Make use of the other labs, why don't you?”

“Yeah, like the ones Dr. Japanese Genius took over?”

“You're just jealous he knows her better.”

Finishing to pat himself dry, Damian opened a drawer and pulled out spare clothes for him and his brother, incensed by the last remark.

“I though I chomped enough of you for today.”

Lifting his injured arm, Dominic scoffed. “What, this? I can't even feel it.”

“Don't push it, Dom.”

Recognizing his brother's non-bullshit mode, Dominic nodded.

***

The 40 year-old-looking man adjusted the collar of his trench coat to keep his profile hidden from view. Sitting in his car parked across the lavish Café, he listened to the conversation carefully, proud of himself for having tapped the right person. The information he was getting was golden, worth billions of dollars. It could mean the slow crumbling of the Hunter empire, if the cards were to be played right by his employers.

The people that had contracted him – they were not only pros, but geniuses, as well. With all his experience as a PI he hadn't been able to trace the call or identify the voice. He had received $2,000,000 for this very single session, and also insurance that covered the costs of a lawsuit in the case there would be one, as long as he didn't involve his contractors.

Pushing a couple of buttons, he turned up the volume to hear better, recording everything at the same time.

The two women were in his direct line of vision. He had paid Diane Jameson exactly $300,000 in order to agree to set up this meeting and conversation. He had provided the outline for her 'questioning', giving her a free hand as to how to approach it. Of course, he had not given her his name or any lead that could be traced back to him. Instead, he had contacted her anonymously, offering her the deal of her life.

The truth, he'd found, was that everyone had a price. Especially a young woman who had never amounted to anything in her father's eyes, always in the shadow of the accomplished elder sister, always compared to her. Getting MedFuture's CEO's sister to betray her sibling had been surprisingly easy and cheap.

He couldn't wait to hear the confident woman incriminate herself. The equanimity the Hunters always managed to maintain in their business life was about to be throttled.

***

“So why don't you start telling me?” Denise said conspiratorially, her eyes twinkling as she sipped her cocktail. Smirking herself, Zoe regarded her sister with an innocent feature.

“I don't know what you're talking about, sweetie. How's school going?”

Denise shrugged, her eyes darkening for a moment. Zoe knew that anything career-related was a sore spot for her sister, who had never felt quite adequate despite possessing above-average wit and IQ. “Oh, you know. On my way to being a lawyer.”

“Not just
any
lawyer,” Zoe teased, taking a moment to relish a spoonful of Semifreddo. “A Harvard-schooled one.”

“Yeah, well... anyway. Tell me about
you
. You look... different.”

Moaning around another bite of dessert, Zoe raised her eyebrows.

“Different, how?”

“I don't know. Radiant. Like you've been less stressed, which seems counterintuitive, since you're a CEO now. Oh my God, honey, good for you.”

“It's why we're celebrating, yeah?” Zoe asked, smiling warmly, her chest expanding with love for her younger sister. It was the only thing left untainted in her family, the only
sane
bond.

“Damn right, it is.” Taking a huge gulp of her cocktail, Denise raised the glass in a mock toast. “For my sister – the first CEO on the HUNTER Holdings board. To many years of secrets and loads of cash.”

Laughing wholeheartedly, Zoe nodded in agreement.

“And as few enemies as possible.”

“And that, yeah,” Denise concurred. “So... let's address the elephant in the room. You've been fucked.”

Choking, the young CEO put the spoon down and downed a few gulps of water.

“Oh!” Denise grinned toothily. “I hit the jackpot, didn't I? So who's the lucky dick?”

“Denise!”

Wiping her mouth with a napkin, Zoe decided her conversation with her sister was too unpredictable for her to risk eating during it at the moment.

“Yes, I've been having sex. No, that's none of your business.”

“It so
is!
You have not found a man in
how long
?”

“Denise! You're making me seem like an old maid.”

“Well... I think I had more sex at twelve than you've had these past two years combined.”

Eyes gaping open, Zoe pursed her lips. “When did you lose your virginity?”

“I can't believe you don't know that about me.” Denise frowned. “At eleven. Duh!”

“Duh?! What the hell were you doing, having sex at eleven?”

“Honey, you are getting off-subject. We were talking about the handsome, mysterious guy you're screwing. Don't make this about me. Is it one of the Hunters? Please tell me it is! I'd so screw Damian, he's so yummy.”

Narrowing her eyes, Zoe fumed. “You would so not. He's off limits.”

“So he's the one? Gosh, I knew it!”

“Denise, I can't talk about this in public.” Her tone was chiding, though her sister seemed to miss it.

“But you're gonna tell me all about it in private?”

Nibbling on her lower lip pensively, Zoe pondered whether she should say yes or refuse. There was a lot at stake, but as long as they were out of public perusal, they could talk about almost anything. She would never betray the Hunters by offering information about their companies or their Club, but she
could
discuss her sex life with her dear sister – her favorite person in the world.

“Sure. As long as you keep your mouth shut.”

“You know me, sis.” Denise smirked, taking a long draw of her cocktail. “Just one thing. I was right about Damian, wasn't I?”

“Maybe.”

“
Maybe
is not an answer. Gimme the yes or the no. Have you fucked him?”

Sighing, Zoe was half-tempted to laugh at the crazy notion. “Trust me, honey. That could never happen. That man will never allow it. But
he
fucked
me,
yes. And it was mind-numbing and earth-shattering, but that's the last I'm telling you tonight. Now, how
is
school, really?”

***

Damian couldn't take it anymore.

He thought of her daily, obsessing about her safety, wondering about her activities, the way she was coping with being a CEO. He'd heard from his brothers she was marvelous in strategizing and negotiations, and desperately wished he could see her in action. Her wit and incredible confidence aroused him greatly, making him wish he could make her his woman, drag her into his bed and have her every single night.

So often he'd entertained the fantasy that if he fucked her enough times he would be rid of his ridiculous desire for her. He'd always imagined he'd want an ordinary woman. A sweet, beautiful one who would bend to his every will. He'd never felt attracted to powerful women, but then again – the heady rush of possessing one got to him in a way nothing else ever had. And not any woman – one in particular.

Then there was the fact that she was his mate. He had no doubt she was. What he felt for Zoe Jameson was too strong to be qualified anything else but a mate bond. Soon he would not be able to help himself anymore. If he took her one more time he feared he'd mark her, binding her to him in an irreversible way. The idea pleased him so much that he realized he needed to distract himself completely.

Grabbing two towels, a bottle of water and an energy drink, Damian headed to the gym room, activating the speaker call before leaning back on a bench press machine, starting his workout to release some pent-up frustration.

A cling sounded and he realized the call was activated.

“Jackson?” he asked, pushing the weights off his chest, then lowering them back again.

“Sir. Permission to report.”

“Granted.”

“Miss Jameson met with her sister today,” Jackson said. “They had a couple of drinks, after which she met with Gerard Cruise.”

Stopping abruptly, Damian nearly hurled the weights through the roof of the gym room, heat and pressure building in his temples until he thought he'd explode. Grabbing the water bottle and sitting up, he drank greedily, angrily, pissed off beyond reason. He had half a mind to go beat the shit out of Cruise, but Dominic's words of wisdom rang loud in his ears.

Right now, Zoe was fair game to anyone. She wasn't his – he had no real claim on her. The only thing he could do, for now, was to convince her she didn't need anyone else to satisfy her sexual needs. Eventually, she'd come to need him as much as he needed her.

Jesus, am I so deep in?

Exhaling, he realized he'd been ignoring Jackson.

“You there? Sir?
Are you there?
”

“Just keep an eye on her. Where is she right now?”

“Murdoch is the head of the team shadowing her right now. He's got the details. I'm not sure. Last I saw of her she was still with Cruise.”

Looking at the clock on the wall, Damian frowned. Eleven thirty.

“And when was that?”

“Half an hour ago, Sir.”

“Shit.”

Wiping his mouth, he grabbed a towel and rubbed his neck, realizing rivers of sweat had pooled there. He was getting too anxious, worried she might let Cruise drive her home. And if she did, maybe she'd let him in for a drink. And if that happened...

The liquid-filled bottle popped in his hand, startling him.

“Jackson, instruct Murdoch to cut their date to an end. I'm on my way to her house. Make sure she's there within the hour.”

“An hour, Sir?”

Sighing, he stretched his shoulders, preparing to shift. “I have to ease some tension first.”

“Yes, Sir.”

***

He came to her at night.

She'd taken a gamble and it had worked, but never had she realized she' had the power to make him so livid, so inhuman. There was nothing he wanted more than to pin her to the wall and fuck her, she realized. Maybe she should fear him, especially since he looked so fearsome, but the raw edge she sensed in him electrified her. Made her gush with warmth and moisture, the way she knew would drive him crazy.

She'd invited Cruise for a late dinner, knowing her security team would be informing him of her decision and hoping to make him jealous, but she hadn't counted on him keeping up with her in real time, being updated constantly about her whereabouts. That spoke more about her effect on him than words ever could. It meant they had a chance together.

Ever since she had found out he wasn't human she'd only wanted him more. Learning bits and pieces about his past, discovering him from his brother, Dominic, who was extremely generous with information, had been very rewarding. She felt a sense of connection with this not-quite-human man that she had never felt with anyone, and she knew it could not be faked or reproduced. Even though men like Gerard Cruise would satisfy her in bed, if she ever accepted their offers, they would never sate her spirit.

Damian was wild – a creature unrestrained. He had the power to seduce her, to dominate her mind, as well as her body. He was so twisted inside, so filled with guilt and pain and so many other feelings – but then, so was she. They complemented each other in such a natural way that she wondered how she'd found such a perfect match.

In every way.

This time she didn't move from her place on the couch, watching him warily. She was wearing her silk robe, having decided on being naked under it. She planned to give him a show this time, entice his mind, as well as his body. She needed him to want her, to need her so badly that he'd take the leap with her. A leap of faith.