Here Kitty, Kitty!

Chapter Eight

Angie had to admit, she’d never slept so well before in her life. Between the fresh smell of real pine trees, the wonderful bed she currently slept in, and the soothing sounds of absolutely nothing, Angie found herself catching up on any sleep she may have missed over the last few months.

She rolled out of bed sometime around eleven. Took a quick shower, and changed into a comfortable pair of denim cut-off shorts and a T-shirt. Then, barefoot, she headed to the kitchen. A fresh pot of coffee waited, and Nik had even put out a mug for her.

Damn him. Why he suddenly felt the need to be so nice she would never know. On the drive back from the party, he didn’t say anything to her unless she asked him a question. But he did keep smiling. She hated that smile. True, it was gorgeous, but that wasn’t the point. It was a cocky, I-own-the-world smile. And it annoyed the living shit out of her.

He heard her bare feet slapping against the marble floor as she headed back to the stairs.

“Hey. Angie. Could you come here a sec?”

He knew using her name would freak her out, but he needed to keep her a little off balance. She didn’t answer him or move for a good minute. He bit the inside of his cheek to keep from laughing. And when she gave a big dramatic sigh, he had to bite down harder.

She walked into the study.

“Well? Where are you?” she demanded.

He raised his arm so she could see it over the couch. She walked around the huge sofa, and stopped to stare at him.

“Is there a problem with the couch?”

“No.”

“Then why are you sitting on the floor?”

He shrugged. “I like it.”

“Whatever. What do you want?”

“Come here.”

“I am here.”

He patted a spot right next to him. “Here.”

Grumbling curses, she stomped over to the front of the couch and sat on the floor. But she still kept her distance.

“What?” she asked.

He grabbed the loop on her denim cut-off shorts, quickly snatching her over to his side. Just as quickly he released her before she could start hitting him.

“Now, that’s better.”

“What do you want,” she bit out between clenched teeth.

“To talk.”

“About?”

The temptation to say—while staring deeply in her eyes, of course—“About us” so that he could watch her lose her mind, almost overwhelmed him. But he really did have a purpose here. His purpose became clear as soon as he pushed her up against the car last night. His no-human rule didn’t matter anymore. Nor did it matter she had a whole Pack of hounds protecting her. Or that the woman made being mean a lifestyle choice. He wanted her. More than he’d wanted anything before in his entire life. First, though, he would have to find a way around the wall of ice she built up.

Tigers were all about waiting for their prey, though. She would be no different.

And when they had their fill of each other, when he’d fucked her senseless and could no longer remember his name, he’d send her back to her pound puppies and he’d go back to looking for the right tiger females to bear his cubs.

“I wanted to discuss our conversation from last night.”

She sighed. Another big, dramatic sigh. “There’s nothing to discuss. Really.”

“See, but I think there is.”

And another sigh. “Fine. Let’s just get it over with.”

Good. He got through the hardest part. Getting her to sit and listen being a major triumph.

“So, I was thinking…”

She opened her mouth to say something, but seemed to think better of it. “Too easy,” she muttered.

He kept going, “…about what you said. And I wanted to ask you if you’re okay with not wanting to be touched?”

She frowned in confusion, then shook her head. “Yes. I’m fine. Can I go now?”

“No. We’re not done.” He worked hard not to smile. When this cranky, she reminded him of a snarling kitten. She didn’t make it easy but she made it fun. “You see, I think it’s about control for you?”

Her head snapped around to glare at him, her eyes dangerously narrow, and he knew in that moment he’d been absolutely right.

Oh, baby, this is going to be fun.

“What?”

“Well, I just thought you didn’t like to touch or be touched. But you don’t like anyone touching you, but you can touch anyone you want. So it’s about control and trust for you.”

Once again she opened her mouth to say something and, again, apparently changed her mind. Instead, she growled, “What do you want, hillbilly?”

Got her! “To try a little experiment.”

No. No. No! She did not like the sound of that. The last experiment she’d become involved in she’d lost all her hair for three weeks and had beaten Miki Kendrick within an inch of her life. She was twelve at the time, and she’d grown intelligence-wise since then.

So, she would not be tripping down experiment lane with this big idiot.

“I’m leaving.”

She went to stand up, but he grabbed the belt loop on her shorts and yanked her back down.

“Because what I’m thinking is,” he continued without missing a beat, “we give this a try. See if it works. If not, we never discuss it again.”

That sounded reasonable and a quick way out of this hillbilly nightmare.

“Will you leave me alone if this doesn’t work?”

“Yes.”

“Will my hair be involved?”

“Um…not unless you want it to be.”

“Fine. Let’s get this bullshit over with then.”

“Good.” He jumped to his big tiger feet. For a large man, he was quite spry.

He pulled off his T-shirt and went for his jeans as he began walking around the couch.

“What are you doing?” She didn’t bother to hide the panic.

“This experiment requires me to get naked.”

He disappeared behind the couch.

“No! No! No naked required!”

She tensed, ready to bolt at the first sign of his massive cock. Damn him. If she saw it again, she really wasn’t sure she’d be able to keep her mouth off it this time. She didn’t know what he thought he was playing at, but she’d be damned if she’d play along.

But when he came around the corner at the opposite end of the couch, she found she couldn’t move. She pushed herself up against the sofa and let out a whimper.

What the fuck was he playing at?

The son of a bitch had shifted. He had to be ten feet long from nose to tail and his paws were as big as her head!

She’d just begun to hyperventilate when he lay down. She wondered if she’d make it to the exit in time if she bolted now, when he suddenly rolled onto his back. And, like an enormous kitten, he brought his paws up and swatted at the air.

Then she suddenly understood. Understood what the hell he was up to.

She laughed. Crazy fuckin’ hillbilly cat.

Angie covered her mouth to stop from laughing and stared at him for a good while. He didn’t move.

He waited for her to make the first move. She liked that. It made her feel in control, even though her rational mind knew better.

Leaning over as far as she could without moving her lower body any closer, she carefully slid her hand across his paw. The pads were rough against her fingers.

So weird. So freakin’ weird.

Unable to stay away, she scooted closer to him. When would she ever get a chance again to be this close to a tiger and not have to worry he’d bite her head off?

She ran her hands over his flank and across his chest. He closed his eyes and made that puffing noise again. That must be his happy noise, because he looked quite comfortable at the moment.

Angie moved a little closer, until her knees touched his side. She petted him on his big barrel chest for a few more minutes. Then she became braver.

“Turn over.” He obliged immediately and she leaned into him, running her hands over his back and digging into his fur. She rested against him, taking a big sniff. Sara did that all the time with her dogs. She said they had a “puppy smell” she loved. But Angie only smelled Nik. She had to admit, though, she really liked how he smelled.

She crawled onto his back, laying face down across the fur. She stretched her arms out, her fingers rubbing his head and marveled at the fact her feet didn’t even come close to his tail. She sat up, her legs straddling his mid-section.

I could ride this motherfucker to Utah.

She slid off his back and crawled forward, grasping one of his paws. She held it up against her hand. It completely dwarfed her long fingers. She smiled. Oh, yeah. This had to be one of the coolest things ever.

His enormous head nuzzled her gently under the chin. Without even thinking about it, she nuzzled him back. He puffed air out and then he purred.

“Stand up a sec.” She wanted to see how tall he stood on all fours. He pushed himself up and, still smiling, she reached up and ran her hands over his face. His black markings were so striking, she wondered if they meant anything. Why did tigers have them? And the white hair that rested behind his ears as human now formed perfect circles on the back of his tiger ears. But why? All sorts of questions raced through her brain. Miki-type questions.

He walked forward, nudging her with his head. She leaned back, resting on her elbows, as he towered over her. He lowered his head and she reached up with both hands, grasping either side of him. She let her weight hang off him as she rubbed her fingertips in lazy circles through his fur and his eyes closed.

She became so lost in what he allowed her to do, it took her a minute to realize he’d begun to lower himself onto her. The thought of seven hundred pounds of tiger flesh, sitting on her size-twelve body did not give her ease. But before she could go screaming into full-blown panic, Nik shifted again. Just like that. He went from tiger to man in a few seconds, and suddenly Nik the man was on top of her. Specifically between her legs, his gold eyes burning into hers.

His arms braced on either side of her body, he didn’t attempt to bring himself any lower. Instead, he waited for her to once again make the first move.

Damn. He didn’t mean to shift like that. This exercise in touching was supposed to last until she became completely comfortable with him, but hopefully before she had to return to her people. Yet he never expected her to respond so immediately or eagerly to him as tiger. And having her hands all over his fur, only made him yearn for those hands on his flesh.

Now here he lay. Between her thighs. Completely naked. The only thing between him and her amazingly hot pussy, a pair of denim shorts he could tear off in seconds. Of course, his dick decided at that moment to stand up and say “hey, y’all”.

Great. Now she’d never trust him. Stupid, stupid hillbilly!

Angie stared up at him. A range of emotions passing over her face. Anger. Distrust. Fear. Then a shudder passed through her body. He knew he should move. Get off her. But he wanted her to tell him to go. He needed her to tell him to go.

She didn’t.

First, her fingers moved deeper into his hair, tightening the strands around them. Then, using him as leverage, she pulled herself up until their mouths were barely centimeters apart. So close their breath mingled and he realized she’d begun panting. Soft, quiet little pants.

“Angie,” he whispered against her mouth. She gave the tiniest whimper, seconds before her lips touched his.

He should hold back. He really should—but he didn’t. He couldn’t. Not with the sweetest mouth God ever created at his disposal.

Nik kissed her back. Hard. He used one arm to pull her flat against him. The other he braced flat against the floor to keep them right where they were. He didn’t want anything breaking this spell.

He slid his tongue past her teeth and rubbed it against the inside of her mouth. She shuddered again, and her tongue touched his. He groaned and sucked the sweet muscle into his own mouth. He wanted to taste her. Wanted to know what that tongue of hers could do.

He settled the weight of his lower body against her and, in response, she spread her legs wider.

It suddenly hit him. She wanted him. Holy hell! She wanted him as much as he wanted her. He forced himself to remain calm. He wasn’t going to blow this. He rocked his hips into her and she rewarded him with a groan. He slid the hand that held her up under her T-shirt, rubbing her back in slow circles. She didn’t try and pull away, instead, it made her hotter. He could smell her desire. Feel the way her entire body pulsated at his touch.

There were so many things he wanted to do to her, he didn’t even know where to begin. She held herself against him with her arms. So, he dragged his fingers across her flesh until he hit the lace of her bra. He snapped the clasp at the front and moved that damn annoying piece of material out of his way. His hand molded itself to her breast and squeezed.

She finally pulled her mouth away from his, but only to let out a soft groan as her head fell back.

He couldn’t stand it anymore. He lowered them both to the floor. He needed both hands for this. For her.

Lowering his head, he pushed her T-shirt up, and ran his tongue over and around her nipple, loving the feel of it against the sensitive muscle. He played with it at first, making her crazy. She gripped his head hard and tried to force his mouth on her while her entire body squirmed beneath his. But he kept playing with her for as long as he could handle, which, to be very honest, wasn’t very long. He finally needed her in his mouth as much as she needed him to be there.

He held her nipple between his teeth, holding it still while his tongue teased it a few more times. Until he sucked on it.

Angie’s whole body jerked, her back arching off the floor. “God, Nik!”

She said his name. His real name. And he knew, based on her body’s reactions, he could make her come by doing exactly what he was doing now. And he wanted to make her come. He needed to feel her fly apart beneath him.

She would, too. He was going to make sure of it.

“Nikolai?” He frowned. He just got her to use Nik, he somehow doubted she was ready to dive into his Christian name. “Nikolai, darlin’? Could you tell me where that sweet little girl is at?”

His head snapped up in time to see his mother come swinging around the couch.

“Holy fuck!” Angie scrambled out from under him, yanking her shirt down. “I…uh…” She glanced between mother and son. Then, with a groan of pure embarrassment, she bolted. Over the couch and out the door. Kind of like a gazelle.

Still lying stomach down on the floor, Nik reached up and grabbed a blanket from the couch. He snatched it down and covered his ass with it.

“What the hell are you doing here?”

“Ah, ah, ah. Don’t talk to your mother that way. I know I raised you better than that.” His mother nodded toward the door. “I’m here to see Angelina. I need to talk to her. So why don’t you go get her.”

Through gritted teeth, “I can’t exactly get up right now.”

His mother cleared her throat, but she couldn’t hide that damn smile. “I see. Well, why don’t I wait in the kitchen and when you’re ready, send her my way.”

“You’re not leavin’?” Damn, did his voice actually crack on that question?

“No. I’m not. So get yourself together there, boy.” She headed toward the door, muttering, but he could make out every word.

“I swear. One second you’re like me and the next…you’re like your daddy.”

Angie couldn’t move. She simply stood there. Her head resting on the door, her hands braced against the hard wood. She’d torn into her room and slammed the door after her. She laid her head against the heavy wood, trying to get herself under some kind of control. But that wouldn’t be happening anytime soon. Not when her clit kept pulsating like that. Over and over. Thump. Thump. Thump.

She knew what it wanted. It wanted her to get her fat ass back downstairs and finish what the hillbilly started. But she couldn’t. His mother had walked in on them. For the first time in her entire life, she felt like a teenager. She never felt that way before, even when she was one. His mother had found them on third base and rounding into home.

She took a deep breath, but it went in shaky. Like she’d run for her life. Hell, maybe she had. The poor rodeo clown received a full-on bitch slap when he tried to hold her hand in public. The look of horror he gave her still stuck in her mind. But Nik had been all over her and she didn’t care.

In fact, she still didn’t care. The only thing she cared about was that goddamn thumping.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

Really, who knew a clit could make that kind of racket? Christ, could the neighbors hear?

Could his mother?

A soft knock at the door almost had her diving out the window.

“Angie, sugar. Open the door.”

She almost screamed, “Are you fuckin’ nuts?” But, instead, she took another shaky deep breath, and pulled the door open.

The hillbilly stood there, a brown blanket wrapped around his hips.

“Can I come in?”

She was staying in his house and he was asking her if he could come in.

Only in the South.

Angie nodded, not sure if she could create an intelligent sentence if she decided to speak, and stepped away from the door. She went and sat down on her bed, then jumped back up again.

Sitting on bed…not good.

Nik closed the door and slowly walked over to her. When she stepped back, he stopped.

“You okay?”

She finally spoke, unable to hold it in any longer. “In less than twenty-four hours, your mother has seen me break a man’s nose, hit him with a chair, and molest her son. No, I’m not okay.”

Grinning, Nik took a step toward her. She jumped back, slamming into the bed. She held her arm up. “Stay!”

He laughed. “Aw, sugar. That only works with dogs.” Then he was right there. Right in front of her. She put her hands down at her sides to prevent herself from rubbing that amazing body all over.

“It’s not a big deal. Really. My momma don’t care.”

“I do. That woman probably thinks I’m a whore. A dangerous, psychotic whore.”

“Naw. Daddy has twenty-eight stitches where Momma mauled him one time. Trust me. In my family, this is nothin’.”

He couldn’t believe how beautiful this woman was. She wore no makeup, her thick hair still damp and tangled from their roll on the floor, her clothes a simple T-shirt and shorts. Yet to him she was ten times more beautiful than she had been the night before when she’d gotten all fancy. At some point, he’d tell her never to wear makeup again. She didn’t need it. It actually stole some of her natural beauty. And she was a natural.

One of his hands held the blanket. The other reached up to touch her face. She took another step back. Or, at least, she tried to. But the bed got in her way.

Nik waited until she stopped moving, and he lightly touched her cheek. To his surprise, she didn’t swat him away this time. Instead, she closed her eyes and made that sexy little whimpering sound.

“Okay.” Her eyes snapped open and focused on him. “Let’s get this over with.”

“Get what over with?”

“You. Me. Let’s just fuck and get it over with.”

She had to be the most entertaining female he’d ever met in his damn life. Where the hell had she been hidin’? Were all the women in Texas like this?

“What?”

“Look, hillbilly, I want you. You want me. Let’s just bang this out and go on about our day.”

Nik shook his head slowly. “No.”

She frowned, then nodded in understanding. “I see. You don’t want me.”

“Sugar, you must be kidding.” He grabbed her hand and wrapped it around his cock, the blanket the only thing between them. “Feel that? You did that. You keep doin’ that to me.”

“Oh.” She stared down at where her hand connected with his body. Then those beautiful brown eyes snapped up to his. “So what’s the problem?”

“There will be no banging out anything.” He stepped even closer to her. “When we do this—and we will do this—I don’t plan to rush a goddamn thing. We’re not something to ‘get over with’.”

She stared up at him, brown eyes wide, “We’re not?”

Since she seemed quite content to keep a healthy hold on his growing erection, he moved his hand back up to her cheek. He brushed the smooth skin with the tips of his fingers—and she let him.

“Nope. We’re not. We’re going to take this slow and easy, sugar.”

“We are?”

He pressed his body against hers, her hand caught between them. “Oh, yeah. We are.”

“Why?”

And she meant it. She had no idea why he wouldn’t just throw her down on the bed, come, and go on about his day. That Nik had no intention of rushing anything where Angelina Santiago was concerned. This was a woman you savored. Enjoyed. Fucked. Hard, long, and as often as possible.

No. She’d have to forget about “banging out” anything.

He had other plans. Bigger plans. And they all involved her coming all over him.

“Because, sugar—you make me purr.”

She had men say many things to her over the years. Some nice. Some sweet. Some thoroughly disgusting. But no one had ever told her she made them purr. And she never knew it would have the kind of effect on her it did.

Angie wrapped her hand tight around his cock and squeezed. Nik closed his eyes, leaning down until his forehead rested against hers.

“Damn, darlin’. That was plain mean.”

“I don’t like to wait, hillbilly.” She really wanted to beg. She wanted to scream, “Please don’t make me wait!”

But, dammit, a girl had her pride. Didn’t she?

He smiled, even though she got the feeling she might be killing him. “But you’re gonna wait.” And it was an order. A delicious order she felt all the way to her toes. “You’ll wait for me.”

In the big scheme of things, it wasn’t like she really had a choice.

“Damn cat.”

He chuckled, his free hand playing along the bottom edge of her T-shirt. The air changed around them. Going from playful to serious in a heartbeat. He tugged on the shirt.

“Pull your shirt up.”

Normally, she’d ask what the fuck for. But they both knew that wasn’t going to happen now.

Unwilling to release his cock anytime soon, she gripped the end of her shirt with her free hand and brought it up over her breasts. She’d never had time to fix her bra, so they were bare, the nipples hard.

Nik tucked the blanket he wore into itself, so that it stayed on his hips. Then he took both his hands and ran them up her ribcage, his fingers gliding along her flesh. The thumping became more desperate. Like a dog banging his tail, waiting for a treat.

Thumpthumpthumpthumpthump…

Nik’s big fingers circled her breasts and both she and Nik let out a shuddering breath. She no longer found his hands on her annoying. Not in the least. She had the distinct feeling she could easily get used to this. Used to him touching her, fondling her, making her squirm.

He gripped each of her nipples between thumb and forefinger. Her squirming intensified, the ball of her right foot pushing into the floor.

He rubbed his lips against hers, but he didn’t kiss her. She wondered if he was afraid to. Afraid he wouldn’t be able to stop.

With a deep sigh, he released her breasts, and grabbed hold of her bra. Gently, he re-hooked the lace over her, took the T-shirt from her hand and pulled it back down. He still had his forehead against hers and she watched him struggle with his decision to pull away.

Finally, and with obvious reluctance, he stepped back, unwrapping her fingers from his hard cock.

“We’re not doin’ this now.” He brought her hand to his mouth, turned it over and kissed the inside of her wrist, right below her palm. He ran his tongue along the veins. Once he had her squirming again, he stopped.

“Slow and easy, sugar. That’s what the South is all about.”

“I’m beginning to hate the South.”

Jesus Christ, who knew a girl could get so wet? Her panties must be sopping. She’d have to change them before she went anywhere or she’d catch her death of cold.

“You need to go, sugar. My momma’s waitin’ downstairs for you.”

“You must be kidding.”

He shook his head, his black hair falling in front of his gold eyes. “Nope. And it must be important for her to come traipsin’ onto my territory. So, don’t keep her waitin’ long.”

He let her hand go and stepped away from her.

“Where are you going?”

“The lake. I need to go to my lake—it’s cold water. Nice and cold.”

He backed up to the door, his eyes never leaving hers. The thick blanket around his waist unable to hide the hard-on pointing out at her, he grasped the handle as soon as he reached it and opened the door.

Nik stared at her for a moment. His eyes sweeping down and back up her entire body. When he returned to her face, he shook his head. “Damn, girl.”

Then he was gone. The door quietly closing behind him.

Angie went to sit on the bed, but crash landed on the floor instead.

She didn’t even feel it.