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"I don't know what happened in there when I shifted," he whispered, "but I do know that when I returned to my normal self, I had a hard-on you wouldn't believe."
Pressing his lips against my hair, he murmured, "Delilah, I want you. I don't care if you're not a Were by blood. I don't care if you're half Fae, or half zebra. I don't care what my clansmen say. I just want you… under me, in my bed, in my arms. I want to see your face when you come, to know that I was the one who brought you to passion. I'm going to leave it up to you when—or if—anything happens between us. But don't wait too long."
And then his lips met mine, and I lost myself in the kiss. He pushed me against the wall, filling every nook of my body with his own. I could feel how much he wanted me; he was rigid and hard and demanding. And yet—and yet, I knew he'd stop in a heartbeat if I only whispered the word. So why wasn't I whispering?
The sound of the door startled us out of our embrace.
I turned to find Chase standing there. I couldn't read his expression, and I wasn't sure I wanted to, but the look of betrayal on his face stabbed me in the heart, and my mother's blood hit home. I stumbled away from Zach as, without a word, he strode down the stairs and over to his truck. As he climbed in the cab, I turned back to Chase.
"Chase… we have to talk," I said. "Nothing happened—"
"You call that nothing? Wow, different dictionary than I use." Frowning, he tried to shrug it off. "I should have known better. First time I play straight with a woman, and she screws me over."
His self-righteous tone set me on edge. "Excuse me? We've never talked about having an exclusive relationship. As for Zachary, I kissed him. Yes. Twice, if you want to know. But that's it."
"Am I supposed to applaud now? Clap my hands that you've only been toying with the guy?" He grabbed me by the shoulders and pulled me into his arms. "Delilah, he can't give you what I can. That guy's trouble, and he doesn't know you like I know you."
I had no desire to deal with this now, especially with all the demon and werespider warfare going on.
"That's enough," I said, shaking him off. "You're right. You do know me. You know all about my background and heritage and what it means. And you damned well better know me enough to realize I don't sleep with every man who crosses my path. There's just something about Zachary… I can't explain it."
Chase glared at me, then let out a long sigh. "Yeah, I know. I know, but that doesn't mean I have to like it."
I gave him a long look and took a stab in the dark. "What about you? Are you usually exclusive with your girlfriends? Have you ever cheated on a girl?"
He blinked and looked away.
"You have, haven't you? You might tell them you're playing square, but I'm guessing that you've messed around plenty of times.">I felt my breath go shallow, and my pulse began to race. The room shimmered as I began to shift. "Then I'm going to die?"
"No, that's not what I mean!" She rushed over and knelt beside me, taking my hands. "Stay with us, Delilah, don't change—it's not like that!"
I struggled to focus on her words, struggled to keep my form, but the cat magic called me. But this time, something was different. My body felt oddly heavy as I slid into a vortex, the nexus where self met self and exchanged places.
The scent of tropical flowers rose heady and thick. All around me, I could see vines and tendrils and trees that grew so high they obscured the night sky. And I was there, crouched on a tree limb, watching below for prey. Something on the path below caught my attention.
A feral pig wandered along the leaf-strewn trail. As I watched the creature, a hunger rose up in me so great I couldn't resist. I stood, all ten fuzzy pounds of me, but within seconds I shifted again. Now my paws were enormous, jet black and gleaming, and a rush of power raced through my body as I leapt out of the tree to land next to the pig. It let out a squeal and began to run. I gave chase, the exhilaration of the hunt coursing through my blood.
A low growl rumbled out of my throat, and I coiled myself to spring, but then a voice intruded, breaking through the haze that clouded my senses. I tried to shake the noise off, tried to focus on the pig, but the voice was so insistent that I finally turned, intent on showering my frustration on whoever had interrupted me.
There, in the glow of the moonlight, stood a golden puma.
"Delilah, come back to us. You have to come back to us. This isn't you, Delilah, not right now—it's not time. Come back," he said, his voice imperative. I wanted to ignore him, to run after the pig, but I couldn't. The puma smelled like an alpha, and I had to listen. Reluctantly, I began to follow him through the jungle.
As my bloodlust died down, my head began to pound, and I swayed, unable to keep my focus. Where was I? What was happening? I started to call out for help but couldn't get the words out of my mouth. The next thing I knew, everything went swirling into blackness.
* * *
CHAPTER 13
"Great Mother Bast, what the hell happened to me?" I asked, sitting up, not sure if I'd actually shifted form. I remembered something about blood and a pig and…
Iris knelt beside me. When I tried to get to my feet, I lurched, my balance dangerously off. She forced me to slow down, helping me to stand and then move over to the sofa.
I looked around, a frantic feeling rising in my chest. "Zach? Where's Zachary? Is he okay?" Why I was worried, I didn't know, but the fear that something had happened to him was there.
"He's right over there," Iris said as she went bustling out of the room toward the kitchen. At that moment, a large puma came padding out from behind the tree. I swallowed. Hard. It was Zach. He walked over to the sofa, sniffed me, then turned and followed Iris.
Morio followed him. "I'll go with him, just in case he needs any help when he changes back," he said.
