Tempting the Jaguar. Katie Reus
bright it stunned him. But then it was gone and she nodded sharply at him, her face a mask of confusion. “This way.” She led him down a short hallway and motioned inside the first door on the left. “Since you can stand I’m sure you can take care of...everything else. I’ll see what I can find for you to wear,” she murmured, careful not to touch him as she skirted past him and disappeared down the hallway and into another room.
He wondered if she’d gone into her bedroom. That thought brought up visions of her splayed naked on a giant bed as she waited for him. Rainer scrubbed a hand over his face. What the hell was wrong with him? He was reacting to this female like a randy cub.
During a very quick and cold shower, he washed all the blood and grime off his body and was pleased to see all his skin had knitted back together. After he was done he found a pair of large sweatpants and a T-shirt folded neatly outside the door. They were definitely a man’s because they were too big for her and that thought made an unwanted emotion ripple through him. Jealousy.
By nature he was territorial but he hadn’t felt jealous over a female in centuries.
The shirt was snug but it was dry so once he was dressed he headed back the way she’d led him to find her walking in the front door carrying the bloody quilt. He cringed inwardly at the mess he’d made, but she didn’t seem concerned.
“Are you ready for me to take you back to your truck?” she asked as she dropped the quilt into a bundle next to the door.
“Eager to get rid of me?” When she didn’t respond he continued. “I told you we need to talk about those vamps.”
She shrugged and wrapped her arms around herself as she leaned against the closed front door. “So talk.”
Okay, she wasn’t going to make this easy on him. “Whose clothes am I wearing? Boyfriend’s?” He hoped the question would take her off guard.
She blinked those big dark eyes in confusion, then snorted. But she still didn’t give him an answer.
Damn if that only rankled him even more. “Can we sit somewhere and talk?”
After a pause she said “sure,” and nodded to her right and stepped into a cozy room with a couch, loveseat and giant pillows tossed around an intricate teak coffee table. The bright reds and oranges should have been garish but the splashes of color in the room complimented the many sculptures. Rainer had followed Estrella from the art show and realized she was friends with the artist when he’d seen her in the parking lot. Now he wondered...”Are you an artist?” He sat at one of the couches while she dropped down onto one of the overstuffed pillows.
“I’m a sculptor but I don’t want to talk about that. Were you following me? And what’s the deal with those...vampires?” She still seemed to struggle with the concept.
“You tell me. I’ve been hunting them and they were most definitely hunting you.”
She actually laughed, the sound so rich and vibrant it was like a punch to his senses.
“I’m serious,” he said quietly, injecting the truth into his words.
She froze, her darker skin paling to the point he felt guilty for being the one to scare her. “What?” It was a whisper.
Rainer made a split second decision to tell her everything he knew. There was no point in lying and something told him he’d get a lot further with this woman by being truthful from the start. “My Alpha and oldest brother are away because of the peace treaty being signed between shifters and vampires.”
Estrella stared at him blankly. Either she was the best actress on the planet or she really had no clue what he was talking about.
He continued. “On orders from my Alpha, I’m part of the team patrolling Huntsville and the surrounding area because of issues with a group of vampires who recently descended on the city. I’ve been tracking them and they’ve been tracking you.”
She shook her head, those gorgeous curls swaying around her face. “That’s insane. Why would vampires give a crap about me?”
“Exactly. Why would they care about you? Who are you and where are you from?”
Estrella’s jaw tightened and he didn’t blame her. He was a strange male in her home demanding answers.
But whatever was going on, they needed to figure it out before those vampires came back for her. And he knew they would. They would probably get reinforcements then come back tomorrow night. It was standard operating procedure. “I’ve been honest with you but if you need more, I have three brothers: Alaric, Conrad and Hardwin. We’ve all been part of Knox’s pack for close to three hundred years and—”
Her eyes widened. “Three hundred.... Are shifters immortal?”
Oh, shit. “How old are you?” he asked.
“Twenty-six.”
“Do you not know anything about your kind?”
She visibly bristled at the question. “I’m an artist and a human. That’s all I need to know,” she snapped as a tremor rolled over her.
“You’re not completely human and you know it. Earlier you said you didn’t know what an Alpha was so here’s a quick lesson. Knox recently expanded his territory and now rules all of Alabama. When you crossed into this state you should have told him you were here and by the looks of it, you’re living here on a semipermanent basis.”
She swallowed hard and a wave of fear rolled off her. He could scent it, so potent, and he realized it was because of him. He was leaning forward, his hands on his knees, staring at her hard. He probably looked like an asshole. But he’d wanted to get some things straight with her. Easing back in his seat, he forced himself to relax.
Estrella pulled her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them as she began to talk. “My parents died when I was five. I got put into the foster system and was eventually adopted by a very nice older human couple who couldn’t have kids. They never knew anything about my shifter abilities. I grew up in Miami, went to college there, and only recently moved here with my best friend. Living here is a lot cheaper, there’s a growing art market and I have no one to return to in Florida anyway. My adoptive father died of a heart attack about two years ago and my adoptive mother died six months later of heart problems. I don’t think she was able to live without him.”
“Miami,” he murmured, her lack of knowledge making sense now. There were no packs living in central or south Florida and vampires never made their homes in the state. Not even day walkers. Living in a place called the Sunshine State just went against their nature. “Have you ever met any of your own kind before?”
She shrugged, the action jerky. “I met a couple wolves in college.” Something else rolled off her then that made his inner wolf still.
“Did someone hurt you?” He knew too well what could happen to an unprotected female shifter in this world. It wasn’t as bad in modern times but centuries ago, you either lived with a pack or you didn’t survive for long.
Her spine straightened. “They tried.” There was a snap of anger in her words that made him smile, even while the thought of anyone attempting to hurt this beautiful woman made him see red.
He started to respond when his senses went on high alert. Without thinking, he turned off the lamp, sending the room into darkness. Light from the moon streamed in through the sheer curtains and with their extrasensory abilities they could see fine.
“What’s going on?” she asked quietly. Estrella had dropped her arms from around her knees and was tense with anticipation.
He held up a finger to his mouth as he listened carefully. With his hearing, he had no problem picking up outside sounds. Normally he tuned everything out but it had suddenly hit him that he didn’t hear anything outside. This time of year crickets in Alabama were bad and he’d heard them when they arrived.
Now, silence.
Which