When An Alpha Purrs(6)

He grabbed her hand and brought it to his mouth, placing a soft kiss on  the top of it. "I already do refer this shop and have for years." He  hummed the words against her skin.

She yanked her hand away. "Um, you know what, I should go and do something. Like fold towels." Or change her panties. Or …

She blinked as he said, "You and me. Dinner. Six p.m. I'll return to pick you up."

Before she could refuse, he left, broad shoulders barely fitting through  the shop door. She could only stare at him as he hit the sidewalk. He  paused and shot a glance at her through the window. He shot her his  deadly dimple and winked.

She might have stood there staring dumbly for a while if her uncle  hadn't come in and startled her. He'd used the alley entrance to access  the hair shop.

"Kira, you're here early."

She whirled to face him, hoping nothing strange showed in her  expression. "Yup, I'm here early because I need to leave early. Can you  take my five o'clock?" Because she needed to be gone from here before  Arik arrived and she did something foolish, like hope he kissed another  part of her body. Forget her hands, he should embrace another part, a  more appreciate part, like her lips.





Chapter Five


A sharp whistle stole Arik's attention from his task.

"Look who's a pretty boy again." Hayder strode into his office and immediately honed in on the new look.

A vain creature, not something he ever denied, Arik couldn't help but  preen and show off. "Like it? I think it makes me look rather  distinguished."

"And a total chick magnet too, dude. The girls on the telecom floor are  all talking about it. Maybe I should think about getting a trim. Who did  it?"

"A certain scissor-happy woman."

"No way. Don't tell me you stuck to your plan and confronted the broad who scalped you?"

"I did. Turns out she's quite talented when I'm not pissing her off."

Hayder whistled. "I'll say. I wouldn't mind letting her put her hands on me."

Arik clamped his lips before a growl could escape. What was wrong with his lion? "She's pretty busy."

"So? I'm making an appointment. What's the girl's name?" Hayder asked.

"Mine." Who'd said that? Surely not him. Arik almost looked around to  see who else was in his office, but judging by Hayder's dropped jaw,  there was only one culprit. His damned cat, who seemed to harbor a thing  for the human girl.                       
       
           



       

Okay, maybe he should share the blame because his lion wasn't the only  one intrigued by Kira. While he'd initially gone to the hair shop this  morning and lain in wait for a certain mouse as part of his revenge  plot, he'd since had a change of mind. A drastic change of mind.

The haircut helped. She'd taken what he'd pissed and moaned about as a  disaster of epic portions and turned it into a positive. If only he'd  given her a chance yesterday before stomping home and ranting to anyone  who would listen.

In retrospect, he might have overreacted. He could even almost feel  guilty that he'd spent an evening alternating between roaring at his  female family members who offered to tear Kira into chunks, to snarling  at cousins, who almost peed on the carpet they were laughing so hard.

But the fantastic haircut wasn't the only reason for his change of mood.  The sizzle of attraction between them, abetted by the scent of her  arousal, which she couldn't hope to hide from a predator, had evaporated  his initial ire into …

He wasn't sure what he felt, other than a need to see more of Kira.

Yes. More Kira. Naked. With lots of licking involved.

"Mine? That's an odd name?" Hayder mused aloud. "I don't think I've ever come across it. Is it foreign?"

"Don't be an idiot. Her name is Kira, but I don't want you going near  her." Because Hayder was a ladies man, and he'd hate to have to kill his  beta. But he would if he had to.

No touch. Mine.

Oops, he might have growled that part aloud.

Hayder laughed. "Holy smokes, dude. What the hell happened this morning?  Yesterday you were all ‘vengeance is mine,' and today it's all ‘she is  mine'."

Arik resorted to a white lie. "I can't have my proper revenge if you're  meddling. So stay away from her. I'll let you know when I'm done."

Which will be never.

He really needed to have a talk with his feline side. It was getting territorial about the girl, which wasn't an option.

As alpha of his pride, when Arik did settle down, it would be for  political reasons and with someone carrying the felidaethropy gene. In  other words, another lion, or at least a feline shifter, like him. It  was what shapeshifters did to keep the bloodlines pure.

It wasn't that humans and shifters couldn't marry and have babies. They  could, and did, but there was a catch. Only about ten percent of these  mixed matings would bear offspring with the animal gene. Given their low  population numbers, they couldn't afford their strongest to hook up  with humans.

Even if they were tempting, and cute.

However, with all that said, it didn't mean he couldn't play with Kira.  Cats did so enjoy teasing and toying with mice. Grab her sweet tail and  make her squeak.

Thing was, no matter how many times he reminded himself of the  impossibility of them having a relationship, he spent the day thinking  about her. And the more he thought about her, the more it occurred to  him that the feisty woman he'd met wouldn't necessarily behave like  others.

Arik was used to having females throw themselves at him. If it wasn't  his wealth that attracted them, then it was his power, and, no, it  wasn't vain to admit that he wasn't hard to look at.

When it came to the opposite sex, Arik didn't lack for attention.  However, even he had to admit Kira wasn't like the women he usually  dated. For one, she tried to stand him up.

Parked in a chair in a café, with a clear view of the barbershop, he saw  her exit just before five, furtively peeking in both directions.

Was his mouse hoping to escape him?

Not this time. Throwing some bills on the table, Arik left the café and  shadowed Kira, instinct having him duck behind bus shelters or inside  shop doors just before she craned to peek over her shoulder.

Being a human didn't mean her instincts didn't try to warn her she was  being stalked. However, she couldn't tell for sure because she was  dealing with the king of predators. Arik knew how to blend in and track  his prey. He also knew when to pounce, which was when she least expected  it.

"Running somewhere?"

She squeaked and stumbled but didn't fall, as he shot out a hand to grab her.

She whirled to face him. "What the hell are you doing?"

"I could ask the same of you. I thought the plan was to meet at the  shop. Yet here you are picking up fish? Got a date with a cat?" He loved  the irony of his words but hated her reply.

"I'm actually more of a dog lover."

"Cats are nicer."

"They're snotty creatures who think they own you."

How well she already knew his breed.                       
       
           



       

"And they're always hacking up hairballs. No thank you. I'll take an obedient dog any day."

Obedience was overrated, unless it was from his underlings. Arik  preferred to be the one giving the commands. She'd soon learn that. "Am I  to assume you were planning to get changed and return before six for  our dinner date?"

Judging by the expression on her face? No.

"Listen, Arik. You're a nice guy and all, and I'm glad we worked things  out, but I really don't think we should be going to dinner."

"How remiss of me. Of course not."

"So you understand."

"Perfectly. After a long day of work, you're probably tired and want to just relax in something comfortable on your couch."

"Exactly." She appeared so relieved, which was what made his next words so enjoyable.

"Fabulous idea. We'll order in instead." He used the tip of a finger to  lift her hanging jaw. "Any preference? Chinese? Indian? Italian?"

"I think you misunderstand."

He leaned in, totally and intentionally invading her space, close enough  to hear the rapid flutter of her pulse and to see her eyes dilate as  she stared at him. As for her scent? He could have drooled as anxiety,  and anticipation, heightened the aroma of her musky arousal. "I  understand that you are trying to avoid me. Problem is, I won't let that  happen. We are going to eat together. The question is, will we do it in  the privacy of your apartment, just the two of us, alone with a bed  nearby? Or will you be a frightened mouse and insist on somewhere  public?"

She sucked in a breath. "I am not scared of you."

"So we're dining in?"