Chapter 16
Liam woke two hours later to the soft tones of the alarm he’d set. He sat up, coming instantly awake and oriented in the way he’d learned in the Navy. Combat naps were a real thing he’d become expert in during basic training and had used to his advantage ever since.
He could hear movement from Lina’s room.
She was up too, getting ready. The soft sounds stirred his libido, but he tamped it down ruthlessly.
The taste he’d gotten of her kiss had awoken his mating instincts in a big way, and he wasn’t altogether certain he could wait until after the mission was complete anymore.
He had to have her. He had to know if she was truly his one and only perfect mate. He wanted that more than anything.
She might not be a lion, but as a fellow cat, he wondered if she was feeling the same sort of tug toward him.
Goddess, he hoped so. She was a fascinating woman, and he could see cherishing her and bathing in her warmth for the rest of their lives.
He’d never be bored. Never want another.
If she was truly his mate, which was something he was beginning to believe with every fiber of his being, then he’d count himself as the luckiest man alive.
They just had to get through the showdown with Mrs. E. He’d been confident he could hold back the increasing attraction until after their mission was complete, but that was before he’d kissed her. Now? He’d be lucky if he could keep his hands off her in the next hour or two.
Damn. He had it bad, and at the worst possible time.
Liam rolled off the bed and went into the attached bathroom.
He paused to splash cold water on his face, then changed into dark clothing suited for a night operation.
Black cargo pants with plenty of pockets filled with useful things, a dark long-sleeved shirt, and his sturdy black boots.
He wouldn’t be wearing the clothes for long, since he’d been instructed to prowl in his lion form, but he needed to get onto the grounds without being seen, so the night gear was necessary.
He’d take it off once he was in the woods on the property, then stash it somewhere he could retrieve it later.
Nowhere in his clothing was there anything that could identify him or link back to him, just in case he had to abandon the fabric if something went wrong.
He knew Lina had taken the same precautions.
All shifters were careful about that sort of thing.
When he went downstairs, Liam found Lina already in the kitchen, dressed similarly in dark clothing that managed to look both practical and appealing on her sexy curves. She’d pulled her hair back in a tight braid, and her expression was all business.
But when their eyes met, something electric passed between them. There was a hint of their shared kiss. A reminder of what had happened in this very room just a few hours ago.
“I made sandwiches. We can either eat here or take them with us,” she told him, pointing to the soft cooler on the countertop that was loaded with individually wrapped sandwiches in plastic baggies.
“Thanks for doing that. Let’s take them with us. I don’t like to eat too much before the action starts, but a light meal is a good idea.”
“I was thinking the same thing. It’s no good to go into a fight with a full belly, but we do need to eat something, so we don’t get distracted by hunger during our watch,” she agreed, zipping up the soft cooler bag and tossing the strap over her shoulder. “Ready?”
“Ready,” he confirmed, moving toward the door. “Let’s go hunting.”
Once in the SUV and on their way, Liam made a few calls, confirming that Rich and Billy had been watching the camera and sensor feeds, and would be monitoring them all night.
The brothers were taking it in shifts from the tactical center they’d set up in Rich’s basement.
Rich had suggestions for the placement of one or two additional sensors, but said the camera coverage was good as it was.
He just wanted one camera tweaked a little to the left, but that was easily fixed once they got to the location.
Rich also checked in with Mike, finding that the SEAL backup group had multiplied. They still had some selkies watching the waterway behind the house in Center Moriches, but Mike and his team were geared up to encircle the Wardenclyffe property in human form, carrying conventional weapons.
In fact, they were already in position, having formed a perimeter ring around the property at a discreet distance. They were holed up in their vehicles and would go into the woods to move their ring of protection closer as soon as Liam and Lina arrived.
They each ate a sandwich as they drove along, though the mood was quiet in the car. Both were contemplating the work ahead, it seemed.
Liam drove past the Wardenclyffe site on arrival, stopping out of sight on one of the side streets that wove around the perimeter of the property.
They would leave the SUV there, under cover of the tree-lined suburban street and go into the woods on foot.
They didn’t take much with them. Just the two sensors Rich wanted placed.
They moved through the darkness, staying low and quiet as they entered the tree line at the north edge of the property.
Liam led the way, picking out the safest path through the underbrush.
Behind him, Lina moved with the liquid grace of her lynx, barely disturbing a leaf.
He was impressed by her field skills, and just about everything else about her.
Damn. The woman was fine. He’d always found tactical competence in a woman sexy. On Lina, it was downright irresistible.
Once they were deep enough into the woods to be invisible from the road and the visitor center, Liam stopped by a large oak tree. Moonlight filtered through the canopy overhead, painting everything in silver and shadow.
“This should be far enough,” he said quietly, setting down the sensors he’d carried in.
Lina nodded, her eyes scanning the area before settling on him. In the dim light, her gaze was luminous. “We should stash our clothes together. Easier to find when we shift back.”
“Sounds good.” Liam’s voice came out rougher than intended.
The atmosphere was charged as they both began to remove their gear. Liam pulled off his boots first, then his shirt, hyper-aware of Lina doing the same just a few feet away. The rasp of fabric, the soft sounds of movement—every noise seemed amplified in the quiet woods.
He’d seen plenty of shifters naked over the years. It was part of the culture, nothing to be embarrassed about. You couldn’t shift without losing your clothes, and modesty was a luxury they couldn’t always afford.
But this was different. This was Lina.
He tried to focus on folding his clothes, on finding a good spot in the crook of the oak tree to tuck them away. But his peripheral vision caught flashes of pale skin and curves that made him want to growl in approval. Suddenly, the temperature in the woods felt about twenty degrees warmer.
“You okay?” Lina’s voice held a note of amusement. She’d already stripped down completely and was tucking her clothes into the tree hollow, apparently unbothered by her own nudity.
Liam dragged his eyes away from her and focused on removing his pants with more care than the action required. “I’m fine. Just making sure everything’s secure.”
“Uh-huh.” The smirk in her voice was unmistakable.
He finished undressing and moved to the tree, acutely conscious of his body’s reaction to her nearness.
His lion was pushing at him, wanting out, wanting to claim what it recognized as theirs.
The mate bond that had started to form with that kiss earlier was pulling tighter with every moment they spent together.
As he reached past her to tuck his clothes into the hollow, their bodies nearly touched. He could feel the heat of her skin, smell the clean scent of her that drove him wild. She didn’t move away, didn’t put distance between them.
Instead, she looked up at him, her green eyes dark with something that matched the hunger coiling in his gut.
“After,” she whispered, the single word a promise and a plea all at once.
“After,” he agreed, his voice barely more than a growl. “But Lina, you should know. I’m almost certain that you’re mine. I don’t think there’ll be any going back for either one of us.”
“I’m starting to think the same,” she admitted, her breath catching in her throat.
The confession hung in the air between them, huge and terrifying and exactly what his soul needed to hear. But this wasn’t the time or place. Not with a witch about to attempt a catastrophic summoning, not with danger minutes or hours away.
Liam stepped back, away from the temptation of her beautiful bare body. “We should shift.”
“Yeah.” Lina’s voice was unsteady, but she nodded.
The shift was always easier when emotion ran high, and right now, Liam’s feelings were a tangle of desire, protectiveness, and battle-ready focus. He called on his lion, felt the familiar surge of power as his body began to change.
Bones restructured, muscles reformed, and senses sharpened even more. Golden fur rippled across his skin as his hands became massive paws tipped with lethal claws. His face elongated, powerful jaws forming as his lion surged forward fully.
Within seconds, he stood on four legs, a full-grown male lion in his prime. His tawny coat gleamed in the moonlight, his mane thick around his face. He shook himself, settling into the form, and turned to look at Lina.
She was in the middle of her own transformation.
He watched, mesmerized, as her body flowed into her lynx form.
Smaller than him, she emerged as a beautiful spotted cat with distinctive ear tufts and a short tail.
Her coat was silver-gray with dark markings, and her eyes—still that striking green—fixed on him with feline intensity.