Reluctantly releasing his hold on Sage, Lian rolled off the mattress and dug his phone out of the pocket of his jeans.
“Damn,” he muttered, reading the text message.
Sitting up, Sage modestly tugged the sheet up to her chin. As if he hadn’t kissed every satin inch of her pale skin.
“What’s wrong?” she asked.
“Our escorts are almost here.”
A satisfying hint of disappointment darkened her eyes to charcoal.
“So soon?”
“They were coming from Bossier City,” he said, not sharing the information that they’d been traveling through the south to gather families of the Pantera and return them to the Wildlands.
He’d already terrified her enough, thank you very fucking much.
“Oh.”
Lian watched in amusement as she scrambled off the bed and hastily began to jerk on her clothes.
Clearly she was embarrassed by the thought of getting caught in bed during the middle of the day.
He dressed at a much more leisurely pace, anticipating the pleasure of challenging that modesty on a regular basis.
Not that he would ever change her.
His shy, scholarly beauty was perfect.
But Pantera were openly affectionate creatures who craved touch from their mates. And of course, his family was extremely high maintenance when it came to demanding attention.
It was going to be interesting to watch her adapt.
Crossing the short space, he smoothed her hair behind her ears and dropped a kiss on her forehead.
“It’s okay. They’re going to wait for us in the garage,” he assured her, a stab of fear twisting his heart as he felt her stiffen beneath his touch. Lifting his head, he studied her with a growing concern. “Hey, are you okay?”
Her lashes lowered to hide her expressive eyes. “Why wouldn’t I be?”
Blatant deflection.
His thumbs brushed the inside of her wrists, monitoring the unsteady pulse.
“Because we both know things just changed between us,” he said, unwilling to try to pretend their time together was anything less than life-altering.
She kept her head lowered. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
He clicked his tongue, releasing her hands so he could gently tip her face up to meet his wry smile.
“For the record, you’re a piss-poor liar.”
She heaved a small sigh. “I need time to…process.”
He wrinkled his nose, sliding a finger down the length of her jaw.
“I’m pushing again.”
“Yes.”
“Sorry.”
She arched a brow, her lips twitching with a burst of humor.
“No, you aren’t.”
Relief jolted through him. She might be stunned by the force of their attraction, but she wasn’t frightened.
At least not yet.
“Busted,” he admitted with a chuckle, rubbing their noses together. “It’s my nature to go for the kill, but anytime you need me to back down just tell me, sweetheart.” He stole a soft, lingering kiss. “I don’t ever want you to feel overwhelmed.”
“Hmm.” She gave a tug on his hair. “I suspect you overwhelm most people.”
True. He didn’t have the brooding intensity of a Raphael or Parish, but his feral power tended to make most people avoid pissing him off.
“Not you,” he swore, holding her gaze. “Never you.”
Unexpectedly she reached up to thread her fingers through his hair that he hadn’t bothered to braid.
Hell, he might never braid it again if Sage liked it loose.
And if that made him pussy-whipped…good.
“Only in the best way,” she assured him in husky tones.
On cue his entire body went up in flames, his erection pressing painfully against his zipper.
“Oh hell, Dr. Parker, you might be a genius, but your timing sucks,” he growled, wrapping his arms around her so he could press her tight against his aching cock. Then, knowing it was going to leave his balls blue, he kissed her with an urgency that had both of them panting before he reluctantly released his tight hold and headed toward the door. “Wait here,” he muttered.
Promising himself an entire month alone with Sage once the scrolls were translated and the threat from Shakpi ended, Lian made his way through the safe house into the attached garage.
He caught the scent of the waiting Hunters before he ever pushed open the door. Which meant he was prepared to discover Mercier standing in the center of the cement floor. The dark, sable-eyed male had a broad, heavily muscular body that was currently covered by a white tee and camo pants. It took a second, however, to locate the other Hunter who was hidden beneath Jean-Baptiste’s Lamborghini.
“Any problems?” he asked Mercier, ignoring the older male’s narrow-eyed gaze.
There was no disguising the scent of sex that clung to his body, but he wasn’t prepared to discuss his bonding with Sage. Not until she’d accepted that she belonged to him.
With a shrug, Mercier conceded to the unspoken warning.
“Nothing obvious, but…” The male scowled, giving a shake of his head. “Something’s out there.”
Lian knew exactly what he was talking about. It wasn’t a precise smell, or a tangible sound. Just a vague sense they were being watched.
“Yeah, I’m getting the same vibe,” he muttered.
Dammit. He wasn’t afraid of his enemies. But how the hell did you fight them when they lurked in the shadows?
There was a muffled growl before Rosalie was sliding from beneath the car, holding her hand up.
“I found it,” the tall, golden-haired beauty proclaimed, her pure green eyes smoldering with grim satisfaction.
The two males moved to inspect the tiny tracking device that’d been hidden on the undercarriage.
“Shit,” Lian muttered, wondering if it’d been attached to the car while he was at The Cougar’s Den or if it had happened while he was in Sage’s cottage. Either way, he now knew how they’d followed him. “That didn’t come from Radio Shack.”
“No.” Mercier’s expression was hard as he plucked the device from Rosalie’s fingers to inspect it with an expert eye. He was one of the Hunters who worked closely with the Geeks to develop weapons to protect themselves in the event the magic surrounding the Wildlands ever failed. “Military grade.”
“Our enemies seem to have stepped up their game,” Rosalie said, her puzzled expression reflecting her companion’s growing confusion.
The disciples of Shakpi had always shown a preference for low tech, using the mystic power of their evil goddess to destroy the Pantera.
When had they gained access to this sort of equipment?
Lian made a sound of annoyance. “What the hell are they up to?”
“I don’t intend to find out,” Mercier snapped, taking charge. “Rosalie and I will drive your car along with the tracker and head west. Wait an hour, then go south with your cargo,” he commanded. “We’ll meet you back at the Wildlands.”
Lian resisted the urge to argue. As much as he hated putting anyone else in danger, he had to concentrate on making sure that Sage was safe.
Besides, there were few things the two Hunters couldn’t handle.
“Don’t take any unnecessary risks,” he ordered.
“Moi?” Mercier widened his eyes with a faux innocence. “Would I do that?”
“Don’t worry,” Rosalie said before Lian could remind his fellow Hunter of the day he’d leaped in front of a human poacher who’d been about to shoot a red fox who was nursing her young. Mercier had taken the shot to his chest, but had never halted as he grabbed the gun from the human and broke it in two. “He does anything stupid and I’ll put his balls in a vise.”
Mercier sent his a companion a heated glance. “I have a better place for my balls.”
Rosalie leaned forward to nip the male’s chin with an astonishingly intimate gesture.
“Keep it up and you won’t have any,” she warned in a throaty voice.
“Ouch,” Mercier breathed, looking as shell-shocked as Lian felt.
Holy hell.
He hadn’t seen that coming.
“Just be careful,” he said, not surprised that neither noticed when he walked out of the garage and headed back to his waiting mate.
Chapter 6
The morning sunlight streamed through the open windows as Sage made her way down the narrow staircase of the large three-story house.
It’d only been two days since she’d arrived at the Wildlands, but she’d already been overwhelmingly welcomed into Lian’s family, even as he’d been condemned to reside at the communal home of unmated Hunters.
She smiled at the sound of half a dozen voices all speaking at once that greeted her before she ever stepped into the large kitchen.
She’d lived alone for so long the noise and constant chaos that filled the Pantera home should have been overwhelming. And, at times, she couldn’t deny it did make her head spin. But overall, she savored the warmth and companionship that surrounded her.
Sensing her arrival, the crowd of people that included Lian’s grandparents, his parents, his eldest sister and her mate, all turned to regard her with blatant interest.
“Here she is,” the silver-haired grandmother said, wiping her hands on a flower-patterned apron.
Lian’s father moved forward to press a cup into her hand, his lean face that reminded her strongly of his son wreathed with a kind smile.