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Tasting the piquancy of it on his tongue, he decided he liked it "All alone with a big, bad cat who’s rethinking his policy on biting"

Arousal colored the air again, and he sucked in a breath to contain his most primal instincts "Look ahead," he said, voice husky

"Oh!" Her eyes went huge "It’s a buck," she whispered, as if afraid the anie"

Zach slowed the vehicle to a crawl, but the buck caught his scent and shot off into the trees "Sorry

They tend to scatter the instant they smell leopard It’s why I look after the predators--it’s hard for me to check data on the nonpredatories"

"They know they’re prey" She looked at hilanced at her

"Can you handle knowing that?"

"I teach a lot of little cats," she reht not be an expert on changeling behavior, but I’ve picked up enough to know that when in ani to the needs of the animal"

He couldn’t help hi her juan to chuckle, her eyes narrowed "You’re as bad as Bryan

He does that to Katie all the time"

"Odds on, he has a crush on her"

Her lips twitched "That’s what I think, too Was the fight about Katie?"

"Sneaky, Ms Kildaire, but I’ at the face sheat her pony tail "You up to a small hike?"

Shadoept across her face "You don’t think I can do it?"

He parked the vehicle off to the side of the track and turned "I don’t know your limits yet," he told her honestly "That’s why I’"

She colored "Sorry I’ed "If I think you can’t do so it" Protecting the vulnerable was instinct Protecting Annie would probably beco it?" The arch sound of a hu her claws

"Definitely" He held her gaze "I’m flexible, little cat, but I’m not a pushover"

Her arousal spiked at his words, but so did her anger "As if I ever believed that"

"Annie, you’re used to academic types who probably let you walk all over the with temper

God, she was pretty He reached forhile she was distracted, gripped her chin And kissed her

Chapter 6

She was softer than he’d i he’d ever experienced Cat and asp, he swept inside to taste her Sweet and tart, innocent and woman, she was his own personal brand of intoxication

He bit her lower lip, sucked on it, let her gasp in another breath before kissing her again "Med his need to touch this wo that translated into sensual affection in a relationship It didn’t always have to lead to sex Sometimes it was just about the pleasure of skin-to-skin contact

When he drew back, her lips were a little swollen, her pupils dilated He rubbed his thu need She wasn’t ready, not yet As he’d learned this , her soft exterior hid a fierce core of independence--the instant she learned what he really wanted, she’d stop playing with him

And that was siel" He dropped his gaze to the rise and fall of her generous breasts The te, he took his hand off her chin and thrust it through his hair "About that hike?"

She gave a jerky nod "I can walk"

"Tell rabbed her chin again and this ti "Iyou that You give ain, a true s over her lips "I will, I promise It’ll probably ache soets any worse, I’ll tell you"

He wanted to kiss her again but knew full well that if he didn’t get theht there--like soo" Grabbing her little pack, he thrust his own bottle of water inside and opened the door

She met him a few feet from the vehicle, her fluffy yellow jacket a dash of pure summer "I know," she said, when his eyes landed on her, "I look like a baby duck"