Primal Song (16 page)

He could almost feel her slipping away from him. When he thought about how perfect things had been before they fell asleep the second time, he wanted to bang his head on the window. He should have asked her to marry him then, but he’d been too charmed by her dream of being a model and outraged on her behalf. Oh, and drained from the amazing sex.

What was wrong with the people in this town anyway? Why couldn’t they see what a treasure she was? Not that he would have wanted her to show off her amazing body on a runway for thousands of people to see. And she wouldn’t have been the same person without being a cop. Just like he wouldn’t have been the same person if his dad hadn’t been such a douche.

Ram sighed and turned to look out his own window. She might be furious and embarrassed now, but he’d get around it. She belonged with him and neither Ram nor his lion were about to let her go.

Chapter Nine

Daisy glared over at Ram in the next holding cell. He’d stretched out on the long bench, his big body relaxed. He’d gone to sleep as soon as her daddy locked the cell door behind him, leaving Daisy to sit in silence. She glared at the camera above the door leading back to the offices.

God, what was she going to do? The love she felt for Ram was a hundred times stronger than anything she’d ever felt for Kyle. She wanted to marry him, she was pretty sure she did at least, except he hadn’t asked her. He’d only mentioned marriage when her daddy showed up with his gun riding his hip.

A loud yawn and groan broke into her thoughts. She glanced at Ram to see him stretching on the bench. “Sleep well?” she asked in a tight voice.

He swung his legs around and sat up on the bench. “You wore me out last night.”

The distant sound of snickering and laughter floated from the direction of the station. Her coworkers no doubt loved this, seeing Daisy Picou locked up with a male because of illegal use of parish property. Her cheeks burned. Before bringing them into the holding cells, her dad had tossed Ram a bright orange jumpsuit. Thank god because sitting next to him in the car with him wearing nothing but his boxers had driven her insane.

“So, have you made up your mind yet?” Ram asked around another loud yawn.

Daisy jumped at the question and stared at him hard. “What do you mean?”

He peered at her with raised eyebrows. “Marry me or stay in jail? Have you decided which you’re going to do?”

She clamped her lips shut and refused to answer, looking away from his perceptive amber eyes. She refused to marry anyone who was forced into it. That would be just as bad as mating someone who mated you on accident.

Sure, Ram had seemed happy to wake up with her this morning but that had been the aftereffects of great sex. It didn’t mean he still wanted her as his mate. Forever. Her brain kept hearing his husky voice whispering that word over and over again. She wanted forever and happy-ever-after and everything. But she wouldn’t have it if his hand was forced.

After a while he stopped asking her questions or trying to talk to her. She breathed a sigh of relief. Maybe he’d go back to sleep and she could somehow talk her dad into acting like a police officer instead of an outraged father.

Silence descended, punctuated by the ticking of the clock against the far wall of the cellblock. Daisy fought the urge to look at Ram, despite sensing his gaze on her. If she looked at him, she’d cave and beg him to marry her.

Then he started singing softly, the words a bare whisper of sound. Her body instantly heated as he sang
Three Little Birds
in his husky voice, reminding her of what they’d been doing before he sang it for her last night.

She twitched with the need to move closer. They were under surveillance by her coworkers and probably her parents. They were in jail because her father wanted him to marry her. She couldn’t trap him that way. She refused to.

“Please stop,” she whispered, tormented by the sheer sensuality of his voice and the lyrics.

The song stopped abruptly, leaving a charge-filled silence behind.

“I’m so sorry,” Daisy whispered.

Ram hadn’t taken his eyes off her since the moment he’d awakened. She hadn’t moved the entire time, sitting on the bench with her knees pulled up to her chest and her arms clinging to her legs. The baggy sweats and oversized T-shirt she wore made her look petite and somewhat fragile.

“For what?”

She waved her arm. “This.”

He shifted on his bench in a bid to get comfortable. “Why are you sorry? You didn’t call them, did you?”

She’d acted distant from the moment they’d been loaded in Thomas’ car, as if she wanted nothing to do with him. It hurt like a son of a bitch.

Her eyes widened. “Of course not! I have no idea how they even found out, unless they saw your car.”

“Or they heard me when I came,” he said helpfully, delighting in her blush. “And I’d do it all over again. Handcuffs included.”

She cleared her throat and looked away. Muffled laughter sounded from the front of the station again.

Ram decided to change tactics since she didn’t seem ready to talk about last night. “Did I ever tell you how fucking sexy you look in your uniform?”

She stared at him, her dark eyes wide. “You’re joking, right?”

“Hell, no. In fact, I wasn’t lying when I said you need to get a bigger size.”

A look of feminine fury crossed her face. “Are you trying to tell me my ass looks big in my uniform or something?” she gasped

“Fuck no, baby, I just don’t want anyone else to see you in it.” He winked. “You can wear the one you already do when we play cops and robbers.”

“Idiot,” she muttered in what he hoped was an affectionate tone.

Their banter died off, leaving behind a more comfortable silence than the one they’d had since they’d gotten into the car. Ram didn’t know what game her parents were playing but he wanted to hug them for it. With the bars between them, they would be forced to talk. Not that Ram was the one with the conversational issues. But now there was nothing else to do but talk.

“Are you sorry?” he blurted after the silence had gone on too long, cursing himself silently when she jumped at the unexpected sound.

“Sorry about what? Being locked up?”

“No, about last night.”

She shrugged one shoulder and her cheeks flushed again. “No, it was fun.”

He shook his head. “That isn’t what I mean. Are you sorry about marking me, or that I marked you? Again?” And made this permanent, he wanted to add, but figured he’d ease into these uncharted waters.

She said nothing for a long time, staring at her arms as if she couldn’t figure out who they belonged to. “I don’t want to be mated to a lion,” she finally whispered. She glanced up, her eyes wide. “I’ve been down that path before and only got out because I wised up in time. You…” Her hand flopped at the air. “You have the power to hurt me a hundred times worse than he did.”

Well fuck. He supposed he should be relieved she’d finally confessed some of her past to him, but on the other hand, he didn’t like knowing she believed he could so easily hurt her. His fucking chest ached.

“You didn’t want to mate with a lion, but are you sorry you did?”

She cleared her throat a couple of times. “No,” she said slowly. “I just…”

“You just what?” he pressed, feeling as if his head was about to explode. “You don’t care about me?”

“I don’t know why you wanted it so badly,” she admitted. “You’re this…rock star and I’m just a deputy with plans to become sheriff one day. And I don’t want you to
have
to marry me because my parents are pressuring you.”

He wanted to beat his head against the wall. He was an idiot. He was pretty certain he’d told her he loved her last night, almost positive he had. He growled. “I love you, woman, and I can’t imagine my life without you.”

The look she gave him was so disbelieving he squirmed. All this touchy-feely shit was not his way. He should’ve just kept her locked up and fucked her into doing whatever he asked. Damn.

“I’ll never be part of a pride,” she finally stated with a glower. “And if you even think to ask, I’m going to cut your balls off.”

“God, woman, do you honestly think I could keep up with a pride with you in my bed? Did you, or did you not drain me so dry I didn’t even notice your parents were in the house?”

More laughter sounded from the other room.

Her face flushed again but she doggedly pressed her case. “Yeah and what happens a few years down the road when you get bored with me?” She dropped her legs and crossed her arms over her chest. “I’m not going to sit at home while you fuck your way through every groupie in the United States, Ram.”

His fury escalated. “I don’t want any goddamn groupies!”

“And another thing, where are we supposed to live, huh? My home is here and yours is in California. I had plans, big plans before you showed up and wrecked them.”

Now he was pissed. Ram sprang off his cot and stalked to the bars separating their cells. He grabbed them in a white-knuckled grip to keep from strangling his mate. “I bought a house, you know,” he said in a deliberately low tone. If he started shouting at the stubborn woman, he wouldn’t stop. “I was hoping my mate would want to live with me in it. As for California, I don’t really need to go back except for meetings and stuff.”

A crease formed between her eyebrows. “You’re quitting the band?”

He stared at her. “What?”

She glared, coming to her feet and stomping up to him. “How are you going to cut albums and go on tour if you’re living here, dammit? How are we supposed to have a fucking life together if you’re never here?” She poked him in the chest through the bars. “How am I supposed to compete with all the females—”

He gripped her by the back of the head and pressed her face to the bars, his lips reaching for hers. It was awkward to say the least, but sufficient to quiet her. Their tongues dueled, the bars pressing against Ram’s cheeks. He didn’t care, he needed her, needed her to know they were meant to be together.

Remembering the cameras aimed at the cells, he broke off the kiss, breathing like a winded horse. He stared into Daisy’s stunned eyes.

“I love you.” She stared at him blankly so he gave her a little shake. “I
love
you, Daisy. Do you think this is easy for me to say? I’ve never said that to anyone except my mom. I grew up watching her try to cope with pride life. I watched my father hurt her every time he took another female into his harem and I swore I’d never do that to a female. Even before I met you, I knew the only way I’d mate anyone was if they were everything I wanted. You’re everything I want, Daisy. You. No one else.” He swallowed hard. “I want to marry you and only you, forever,” he whispered hoarsely.

She searched his gaze as if she were trying to read his mind. After an unbearably long time, her face softened and a warm glow lit the gold flecks of her eyes. “I love you too and…” she swallowed hard, “I want to give it a try.”

Ram shook his head. “No trying. We’re going to do this and we’re going to succeed.”

Her smile was a little shaky but she nodded. “Okay. We’re going to get married.”

Fierce joy sent Ram’s blood pressure skyrocketing. He dragged her back to the bars and kissed her with everything he had. He didn’t care what happened from here on out, she was his and always would be. She kissed him back eagerly, soft moans pouring into his mouth.

His mate.

The door leading to the cellblock creaked open, signaling someone had finally decided to approach them.

Ram reluctantly pulled away from Daisy but couldn’t let go of her. He glanced over to see her father’s face red and disgusted, but there was an unmistakable gleam in his brown eyes.

“Well? Have y’all worked things out?” he asked in a gruff tone that didn’t fool Ram for a minute. The old bobcat had been watching and waiting for this moment all day.

“We’re…” Daisy paused and took a deep breath. “We’re getting married, Daddy.”

Thomas’ face softened for his daughter. “I’m glad and I think the lion will make you very happy.” The
or else
was implied. “Now we just need to give him enough time to grow his mane back before the wedding.” He stepped forward to unlock their cells. “Can’t have him meetin’ the whole family lookin’ like that, can we, boy?”

Ram had given up trying to explain his hairstyle last night when he had dinner with Thomas and Claudette. “I’ll do my best, but I’d like us to get married as soon as possible.”

The sheriff pulled open his daughter’s door first. “I just bet you would, but you’ll let my little girl have the wedding she deserves, right? Claudette’s really lookin’ forward to getting everything organized and we have to get Kitty down from New York to make the dress.”

Daisy stepped out of her cell in a daze. Was she really doing this? She glanced over at Ram who was still trying to convince her father that the marriage should happen much sooner. The parish-issued jail uniform strained to contain the bulge of his shoulders and chest. His mane fell into his eyes as he looked down at her dad, working his charm to no avail since Thomas refused to let him out of the cell without agreeing to a spring wedding.

Ram glanced up and caught her staring at him. The annoyance and frustration in his amber eyes softened when he looked at her, causing everything in her to still. No male had ever stared at her with such longing, lust or yes, love. Her heart leapt into motion again, thudding harder than ever as she realized he really did love her, flaws and all.

She didn’t know what expression she had on her face, only that Ram reacted with a loud purr. Her dad followed Ram’s gaze, staring at her over his shoulder. His face softened.

“I’ll talk to Claudette and see if we can move things up to around Mardi Gras,” he muttered as he quickly unlocked the cell.

Ram didn’t respond to Thomas’ concession, brushing by him without a glance, all of his attention on Daisy. The love she felt for this amazing male made her skin feel a hundred times too small and her heart swell.

He snatched her off her feet, his mouth brushing over hers in a series of soft, promising kisses. Daisy threw her arms around his neck. Her legs wrapped around his waist when he cupped her butt. It was inappropriate, but who cared? This male was her mate. Hers. A part of her still wanted to urge her to use caution, to hold something back, yet Ram had proven to her and her beast that he could knock down her walls. And the best part was she wanted him to.