Chapter 5 #2
She understood the dangerous tenor of her thoughts. She was thinking about sleeping with him. And she was acknowledging, at least in her own mind, that she would probably do so after some acceptable period of time had passed.
Oh, boy. She wasn’t sure if she was more excited or appalled at her own thoughts.
Mark was enchanted by everything about Shelly.
The way she spoke. The way she moved. The bright intellect behind her elegant facade.
She was every inch the lady, yet the way he caught her looking at him when she didn’t think he was watching made the inner predator in him purr in triumph.
She was thinking about pouncing, and he was all for that idea.
Of course, by human standards—the standards Shelly had been raised with—it was way too soon.
Shifter culture was a bit more understanding of the needs of the flesh, and there weren’t the same stigmas attached to sex as in human culture.
Of course, there was also the mate imperative that said, when a shifter was blessed enough to find their one true mate, then they were completely unaffected by any other being.
Single cats liked to roam. That was for sure. But once a feline shifter had found their match, they settled down into a devoted relationship for the rest of their life. It was a dream to strive for. Something everyone wanted to find but wasn’t really guaranteed to get.
That Mark had found Shelly—at long last—was a blessing he wasn’t about to let get away.
He would court her in whatever way she needed.
He would give her time to come to him, if necessary, but he wouldn’t leave her alone.
Never that. No, now that he’d found her, he’d insinuate himself into her life and her work.
He’d be always underfoot until, at some point, he won her over completely.
Failure was not an option.
“I’m going to put extra security around your house tonight.” He tried to phrase it as diplomatically as possible, but he knew he was being very Alpha with her at the moment.
She’d have to get used to it eventually, because he was the jaguar Alpha, after all. But he was going to try his best to remember she was human and go as slowly as he could. This was a first test to see how she would react.
“Do you think that’s really necessary?” She didn’t sound pissed, which was a good sign. Her tone indicated a bit of annoyance shaded with concern. Good.
“I always hope for the best but prepare for the worst. I believe you got away clean—except for that little encounter in the elevator—but I’ve learned it’s best not to take chances.
” And that went double for his mate, though she wasn’t quite aware of her special status yet.
“Don’t worry. You won’t see them unless there’s a problem.
You live far enough back in the woods, and have a large enough property, to easily conceal the people charged with your safety. ”
“Just how many people are we talking about?” Now, her tone had echoes of challenge. He liked that spirit.
“More than one,” he admitted with a grin he hoped would calm her.
“And less than?” she prompted, clearly waiting for his response.
“Less than an army?” he asked, enjoying the banter. She was quick, was his mate. That was good. As a cat, he liked games of any kind, and she was a quick-witted player, which was perfect for him.
“Surely, you can be a little more specific than that.” Her gaze danced with lights of amusement, even as she continued to challenge him.
“Less than twenty?” he tried.
She looked appalled. “Twenty? That really is an army.”
He gave a long-suffering sigh and pretended to give in. “I can do ten, if that works better for you, but I don’t like it.” He shook his head comically, making a tsk-ing sound.
“I don’t see how ten men are going to blend into the little strip of woodlands surrounding my house. The trees aren’t that dense.” Now, she just sounded puzzled.
“Oh, querida, you’re not seeing the bigger picture. We’re cats. We slink. And we can shapeshift. Not everyone will be walking on two feet.” He smiled as her eyes widened in surprise.
“Jaguars?” Her voice rose in astonishment. “You intend to let your people wander round Westchester County as jaguars? Someone’s bound to see one of them and call animal control or the humane society or PETA, for goodness sake!”
He laughed outright at her increasing concern. “Calm yourself,” he told her gently. “We’re professionals. We do this all the time.”
“We?” Her gaze pinned him. “You mean you put yourself at risk along with your men?”
He suspected the look in her eyes was measuring him in some way. She didn’t seem upset with the idea, more curious.
“I lead from the front,” he told her. “As Alpha, I would never ask any of my people to do something I wasn’t willing to do myself.”
“A noble philosophy,” she complimented him with a slight nod of her head. “But seriously, you’re not going to be prowling around outside my house all night, are you?” She smiled and shook her head. “I don’t honestly think I could sleep knowing you were out there.”
He moved closer, seeing an opening he’d be a fool not to take. “Well, I could always stay inside and protect you up close and personal.” He reached out, stroking her hair away from her face with the lightest of touches.
He felt satisfaction run through him when she shivered in response. She was very sensitive to his touch. That would be utterly delightful to explore in detail…later. First, he had to get her more used to him.
He didn’t honestly think she’d agree to sleep with him on such short acquaintance. Not his Shelly. Fiercely independent. Stubbornly rigid in some ways, he’d been surprised to discover. And all too human, with human sensibilities about such things.
She was what they called a good girl. She didn’t sleep around. In fact, the in-depth background check Nick had run on her hadn’t found a recent boyfriend in the picture at all. Not for several years.
Something about that both concerned him and made his inner cat want to growl in triumph. She would be his. She just didn’t know it yet.
“You could always invite me in,” he told her in a low purr that wasn’t completely controllable. She affected him deeply.
She laughed. It was a blow to his pride, but a gentle one. She seemed to think he was joking. He wasn’t, but she didn’t know his moods yet. In time, she would learn. As he would learn all about her. He couldn’t wait.
Mark leaned back casually, as if she hadn’t just rejected his overture. He’d be a cool cat from here on out, if that’s what she needed. He wasn’t good at patience, but for her, he’d cultivate some.
“You must think I’m a really cheap date,” she went on, oblivious to his inner consternation. “Come to think of it, this isn’t even a date. It’s a business meeting. I don’t usually seal business deals by inviting the client to sleep over.”