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Secretly Mated(16)

By:P. Jameson


He swallowed, his thick throat working and causing his tattoo to bob. “Won’t happen.”

“But if it does… what then?”

“Magic, our leader, he’d never allow it. If you met him, you’d see. Anyone who wants to mate has to leave. And even then, never against a female’s will. He’d kill a cat before he allowed a female to be forced into anything.”

Cleaver nodded. “It’s true, Doc. I know this leader. We have history.”

She narrowed her gaze at Owyn. “Your females are allowed to make their own decisions?”

He nodded once. “Always.”

“And your animals allow this? Your cats support this way of life?”

He opened his mouth, then snapped it shut with a clack of his teeth.

“Answer me. Do your cats fight this?”

“Sometimes,” he gritted. “But it doesn’t matter. We’re human as much as we are animal. And the animal listens when we command it. If we can’t control ourselves, we have a clan to hold us to it. But that’s never happened.”

“Yet,” she countered.

His gaze dropped to her mouth. “Yet.”

Cleaver spoke in hushed tones even though they could all hear him.

“I think this is a good idea, Doc. For the both of you. Take the panther and go make a home in the mountains where your mate can’t find you.”

Christina stared at Owyn. His eyes flickered with unknown feelings on the matter. She couldn’t read him, but he’d answered her questions, and truthfully it seemed.

“This is your best chance, girl,” Cleaver whispered. “Tucked away in a shed behind a bar? That’s no home for you. No place for a smart female. And I couldn’t live with myself if I ever found you like this.” He gestured to the injured panther.

Damn it. Cleaver was making a case she couldn’t say no to.

Even if the Ouachita clan couldn’t live up to their promises, she’d be better off leaving the bar. Staying in one place too long would make her easy prey. She could take a chance on Owyn’s clan, and if they were full of shit, she’d find a way out. Cleaver and his bears would help her if there was ever need.

Shit. Okay. She was doing this.

“I can’t let her go alone. If you want Tana, I come with her,” she told Owyn.

Slowly he nodded. “Fine.”

“I’ll be ready to leave by morning.”





Chapter Five



Owyn stared at the doctor as she tucked a blanket around the female panther. Christina was her name. It fluttered around in his brain like a tempting little fairy. He wanted to say it out loud, test it out on his lips. Let his tongue feel the syllables.

She’s ours. She’s mine. My female. Want her.

His panther was right. The doctor was his mate.

When all the adrenaline left his system and the cat he’d found in the woods was safe, his senses returned. He’d scented the doctor properly in an attempt to figure her out, and the answer was like a brick to the face.

His mate, and she didn’t even realize it yet. Cleaver’s words burned in his memory. Take the panther and go make a home in the mountains where your mate can’t find you.

The doctor was hiding from her male. Hiding from the horrible future she envisioned with a werecat, not knowing she’d just agreed to live with him in a secluded lodge in the mountains.

Owyn had to tell her.

He had no intention of acting on their mating—he’d never break Magic’s pact, never ruin the beautiful doctor’s heart—but he had to tell her before she scented the connection herself.

No. His animal bristled. Mine. Keep her. Always.

She gathered her bags and walked over to talk to Cleaver. But Owyn wasn’t listening to what they said. Instead he cataloged her every move, the emotions playing out on her face. The way her hand worked to push a strand of hair behind her ear.

There was his female. The one meant for him. He was half in awe of her, half terrified.

He wanted to know everything about her. He wanted to know nothing.

He wanted to touch her, maybe on the cheek. He wanted to stay far away.

He wanted to alleviate her fears. He wanted to scare her off.

But most of all, he wanted to keep her safe. He wanted her secured at their lodge, under the protection of his clan.

Which meant he needed to tell her.

Owyn caught her as she was ducking behind the bar. “Can I have a word with you, doctor?” He glanced at the bears stationed near the pool table. “In private.”

Christina frowned, looking uncomfortable.

“Please,” he urged. “There’s something you need to know before you come with me.”

She seemed to measure him up, determining whether he was a threat. He’d learned one thing about his mate already. She was thoughtful. She didn’t make a move without first evaluating the situation.