Hour of the Lion Read online

  And oh, she needed that—so much so that she tried to pull away. His embrace tightened, forcing her to accept his comfort.

  "To trawsfur, you have to want to shift. It doesn‘t happen by accident," Alec said. "There‘s a place in your mind—some think of it as a door. When you‘re ready, you open that door and step through into the wildness."

  And if she locked the damn thing? What was this going to do to her life? "Thorson told me stuff about being a shifter. Every month you need to shift into a werecat for a few hours."

  Alec nodded.

  Wouldn‘t that go over well in Baghdad or even some Iraqi village? "Lachlan shifted when he didn‘t want to."

  Calum frowned. "That happens mostly in the first year, before control is achieved. Or sometimes later, if the shifter is very frightened or threatened."

  "Uh-huh." So a grenade goes off, and suddenly I‘m a cat?

  "You have a problem with metal too, right?"

  "Being surrounded by metal for long periods can overwhelm our systems. Magic and iron—

  " Alec stopped at the look on her face.

  No transcontinental flights? Hell, she‘d just walk to Iraq, right? And once there, she could stay out of hummers and tanks? What about cars? Damn, was that why so many people in Cold Creek walked?

  "It has to be a pretty long period of time, Vix, before it‘s a concern," Alec said. "Otherwise it‘s just uncomfortable."

  "Listen, I‘m assigned to—" She closed her mouth, shock freezing her like an icicle through the guts. She‘d almost blurted out what she was. Standing, she pulled out of Alec‘s embrace. "I don‘t want this fucking gift."

  Calum rose too. "I‘m sorry, Victoria. We‘ve overwhelmed you with explanations. You need time to take all this in."

  "Forget taking it in—can I give it back?"

  The lines deepened in his face. "If you never trawsfur, then the magic will eventually fade away, and you‘ll be purely human again. Even the Sight will slowly leave you. However you might—"

  Victoria ran out the door, slamming it behind her so hard the cabin shuddered, and snow slid off the roof. The branch in the corner rustled as the pixie buried herself deeper. Calum shook his head. The little female had a powerful arm. His chest tightened as he fought the urge to go after her. To offer comfort.

  Face set in unhappy lines, Alec picked up his cup and moved to the blankets by the fire.

  "Well, I think that went well, don‘t you?"

  Calum grunted agreement. "We should be grateful we are far from her car."

  "Now, that is a blessing." Alec took a sip of his coffee. "Did you have any idea about Lachlan‘s Gift?"

  "Not a one. Although she is abnormally fast and strong...and sensitive, I assumed it was due to her martial arts training."

  "Me, too. I‘d never have thought Lachlan would be clear-headed enough to remember the Death Gift ritual. Not then."

  "They had a bond between them. That‘s obvious." A dying lad, a woman who couldn‘t save him. The child must have been terrified and in such pain... Calum‘s fingernails dented the table as he fought the fury boiling in his veins. He took a breath filled with fire and released it slowly.

  "He‘d have worried about Thorson being alone."

  "Makes sense." Alec glanced at the door and voiced Calum‘s hopes. "She‘s a shifter, brawd, or can be one. She‘s strong, brave, spirited..." He smiled. "Fun to be with. Passionate. Blunt."

  "And very vulnerable right now. Scared." But his lips turned up. "But we‘ll do our best to keep her for the clan...and for us."

  What the hell am I going to do? Vic stomped through the snow away from the cabin. A shifter. She‘d saved the kid‘s butt, got him out of the cage, and he not only died on her, but turned her into some freakish cat-thing. Fuck, if he were here now, she‘d kill him.

  That thought and the stabbing memory of his pale lifeless face snapped her out of her tantrum. How could she think a thing like that? She would have defended him to her last breath.

  Slumping against a tree, she scowled at the darkening sky. Not a glimmer of sun escaped the thick clouds; it seemed as if her whole life had been washed of color, turned into shades of gray.

  Just like her choices.

  She wanted—needed—to return to duty. Being here, isolated from everything she‘d known...it wasn‘t right. The job over there wasn‘t done. She needed to go back. But not if she‘d turn into a cougar person.

  She remembered when Calum had turned into a mountain lion, how his whole body had seemed to glory in the transformation. Maybe she should try… No. She had a feeling that trying on a cat shape would be like taking crystal meth—addictive with one taste. Once she‘d done that, she could never return.

  Had Calum told her the truth?

  As if she‘d summoned him, he appeared between the trees, making his way down to her with his silent, predatory grace. "Victoria."

  "Why do you always call me that?" she growled. "You‘re the only one."

  He ran warm fingers down her cold cheek. "I find I like calling you something no one else does."

  His gaze was as warm as his hand, and Vic took a step back. "Calum, look, I‘m not going to—"

  "Alec and I have been discussing your problem."

  He said that as if her problem was something he could fix. Not. "I don‘t—"

  "I need to visit Elder Village," he broke in. "It‘s a mountain town with only shifters, mostly the older ones wishing to avoid humans."

  If he didn‘t stop interrupting her, she‘d gag him and leave him for Alec to release. Then again, she‘d seen him take Baty down, and also the speed with which he‘d slashed the bear‘s muzzle open. She might not win a fight against him. "I‘m listening." Dammit.

  "Before we…disposed…of them, we took fingerprints and photos of your assailants. A contact in the city is gathering information, but discovering who employed them might take some time. In the interim, Alec and I think you should go with me."

  "Excuse me? You want me visit a bunch of wereanimals."

  "Precisely." He smiled as if she‘d won the spelling bee. "The farther you are from these men, the better. In addition, you need space and time to think about what has happened to you.

  Finally, I‘d like the Elders to meet you, even if you decide to refuse the gift."

  His phrasing hurt. As if she was rejecting something special that Lachlan had… Well, she was. And yeah, she did feel guilty.

  Tough.

  Then he just had to put one last argument out there. He cupped her cheek in his big hand and murmured, "And I would very much enjoy having your company."

  Oh, God.

  Chapter Thirteen

  That night, Vic rolled her eyes as Calum motioned her forward. Into a cave. When he‘d said they‘d stay at a way station, she looked forward to another nice warm cabin. But a cave? Cold.

  Damp. Moldy. Ugh.

  A small rock wall niche near the entrance held candles. He lit two and handed her one. "We go farther back," he said, leading the way through a winding tunnel, veering to avoid holes and rocks. The damp air smelled of minerals.

  After they entered a larger space, Calum set about lighting more candles, and soon flickering lights danced on the rock walls. The place was immense, the candle glow not reaching the top.

  And the ground… She lifted her candle higher. "I‘ll be damned."

  "Quite likely," Calum agreed. "The church does not welcome shifters."

  "No, not that," she said impatiently. "This." She pointed at the rippling ground. The back fourth of the cave held a small lake. "How deep is it?"

  "Mmmmh, about three feet on this side. The far side...no one knows."

  She shivered. "The way my life is going, there‘s some Loch Ness beast in there that eats people."

  "Ah, now that would be interesting. But no, you‘ve probably seen most of the magical creatures." He squeezed her shoulder reassuringly. "Daonain, dwarves, various pixies. There‘s probably an undine or two living in here. But salamanders dis
like the damp, and—"

  "Where are we sleeping?" she interrupted hastily. Undines? Salamanders? God help me.

  "Over there." He pointed to a tiny fireplace and two wooden bins, and then continued,

  "Sylphs prefer the outdoors. There‘s no hellhounds or demons on the mountain. Not since—"

  She punched his arm and bruised her knuckles on his rocklike deltoid. "If you‘re joking, stop."

  "But—"

  "If you‘re not joking, then definitely stop." She gave him a dirty look and headed across to the bins. Demons. If the world had demons in it, she didn‘t want to know.

  Just like at the cabin, one bin held food and the other blankets. Tossing bedding on the ground, she kicked them into a pile. Then rethought and divided them. She realized she was sweating. "Calum?"

  He walked over, glanced at the separate beds a fair distance apart, and quirked an eyebrow at her.

  "It‘s hot in here. Is that my imagination or some creepy shifter thing?"

  "Neither." His smile flickered. "The lake is fed by a hot spring. Would you care to bathe?"

  "Are you serious? Really?"

  His dark, rough laugh echoed as he motioned to the water. "Indeed. The shallower end is cool. Go deeper for hotter water."

  She felt so dirty. She‘d been filthy before, especially in the desert countries with sand everywhere and in everything and bathing was more of a mudbath. But God, she wanted a bath right now.

  He must have seen her answer in her expression. Stepping closer, he tucked a finger under her chin and studied her face. "You look better, less on edge."

  "It took a while for everything to sink in." She curled her fingers around his hand, met his gaze. "Is that why you stayed so quiet on the hike here?"

  "Aye." He kissed her fingers. "The silence of the mountains serves me well when I am troubled. I hoped the peace would help you also."

  He‘d made her a gift of quiet understanding with no attempts at persuasion or arguing.

  Damn, why did she have to like him so much? She managed to smile at him. "Thank you."

  "You are welcome. Of course, not being Alec, remaining silent wasn‘t a great hardship."

  Brushing her hands aside, he unzipped her jacket.

  "Calum, I‘m not a kid."

  He tilted his head. "No, you are not. Even so, there are times you will allow another to care for you, cariad. This is such a time."

  That sounded wrong, and still sent a wave of warmth through her. "I can manage by myself."

  "I think there has been too much of that in your life," he said. When she frowned at him, he smiled. "Go. Enjoy your bath."

  "I will." The jacket dropped. She unlaced her shoes and pulled them off. Halfway to the water, leaving a trail of clothing in her wake, she got down to her tank top and briefs and stopped. Oops. She turned.

  Calum was leaning against the cave wall, watching her, and smiling a little.

  "Um." What could she say? Turn your back? Go outside into the cold?

  "I‘ll join you in a while." He paused, lifted that damned eyebrow. "Will it worry you if I indulge also?"

  "Um. Fine." Maybe stay in her underwear? But they were damp and crusty with sweat. Hell, considering how incredibly male he was, he‘d undoubtedly seen naked women before. She went to the opposite side of the cave, finished stripping, and walked in. It was like entering a hot tub.

  As the heat penetrated her skin, reaching deep into her, she let out a moan of joy.

  Ergh, that had sounded way too provocative. She glanced over her shoulder. He was still leaning against the wall. Fine. At least over here, with only the candlelight, he wouldn‘t see much.

  She was magnificent.

  As she rose out of the hot water into the cooler air, the candlelight glowed off her wet skin, highlighting each curve and shadowing like an artist‘s brush between her legs. Her chest muscles formed a lovely base for high, full breasts, the nipples pebbling. Her hair was a dark waterfall, spilling down to her sweetly rounded butt. He smiled—she didn‘t realize how well a shifter saw in darkness.

  Using hard-earned control, he kept himself from getting erect. The disruptions in her life might have changed her interest in him. If his attentions no longer aroused her, he‘d know by her scent, by her movements. And that would be that.

  But if she remained interested, sex served as a quick way to remove barriers. A way to learn to trust. Victoria didn‘t let people close. She kept herself contained, rarely showing any emotion except anger. Jamie had shown him the little human had a tender heart, but why so well hidden?

  If she decided to stay with them, she needed to trust in order to survive her first trawsfur.

  And, he admitted to himself, he wanted her trust for other reasons. Before this, she had desired him, welcomed his hands on her…his will over hers.

  He stripped and went to the side of the cave near her. Ignoring how she dropped down into the water as he approached, he strolled past and to the wall. A tin container in a hollowed-out shelf contained soap. He sniffed each ball to pick one that suited her. Not that it would cover up her own scent—one that made him want to growl and purr at the same time. By Herne, he wanted to take her, make her come, and bury himself deep inside her.

  Why does he have to so fuckingly virile? Vic watched him getting something by the cave wall, standing under one of the candles he‘d lit. She tried to tell herself the heat rising inside of her came from the hot water.

  But just look at him. Dark all over, his skin color more like her olive than Alec‘s golden tan.

  His black hair brushed his shoulders as if sampling the feel of the hard muscles. The backs of his thighs had a scattering of short black hair. Between his legs, his testicles hung, large and heavy.

  Very male. His frame was less bulky than Alec‘s, but his hard muscles were more defined, and her need to run her hand over his chest had grown to almost a compulsion.

  But…he wasn‘t erect. Here she was, naked in the water, and technically a shifter now, and she didn‘t excite him. Hell, he wasn‘t even checking her out.

  Deflated, she let her body sink below the water‘s surface and exhaled in a snort of bubbles.

  She was being an idiot. She‘d bedded his brother and would like to again. Messing around with Calum would be wrong. She and Alec weren‘t a pair or anything, but she mustn‘t cause friction between the brothers. No. She popped back up and sucked in a breath of chill air.

  Calum wasn‘t standing by the wall anymore. Regret washed through her, followed by relief.

  Yes, she‘d better lock it down and keep her horny little body to herself.

  "May I offer you some soap?"

  She jumped, spun around. Holy fuck, he was not a foot from her.

  The corners of his eyes crinkled as he repeated, "Soap?"

  "Um." His chest was a matt of dark curling hair with water trickling down between the sculpted pectorals. After a moment, she yanked her gaze to his face. "Soap?"

  "The substance used for cleansing?" he prompted as his smile creased one cheek. "Let me show you." He rubbed his hands together, forming froth that smelled like strawberries.

  Without waiting for her agreement, he ran his palms down her neck, her shoulders, her arms.

  His touch was firm and cool against her overheated skin. Stunned at the way his touch felt on her body, she stood still. Picking up her limp hand, he washed her fingers with the foam, then massaged the plump part of her palm just below her thumb.

  "Did you know this is called the Venus mound for the goddess of love?" He nipped the spot and sent a wave of lust up her arm and straight down to her groin.

  "Calum …"

  He stroked the soap over her biceps, massaging her muscles as if he was a well-schooled bath attendant. "Turn, little female," he murmured, guiding her until she faced away from him.

  She should protest, but he wasn‘t trying to grope her breasts, he was...

  Hard fingers dug into her aching shoulders. "Oooh, God."

  "Y
our backpack was too heavy." He‘d argued with her before they left the cabin, wanting to carry their gear himself. Like that would happen.

  "Mmmmh." He could scold all he wanted if he just kept his hands pressing away the soreness.

  "Stubborn." With a soft laugh, he squeezed her trapezius muscles to the point of pain, then released his grip. As the blood flowed back into the relaxed tissues, she couldn‘t suppress a moan. His fingers traced the scars from Lachlan‘s bite, and he kissed the spot before continuing.

  She couldn‘t move. It was like he‘d cast a net over her with his sure touch, rendering her helpless. When her legs wobbled, he wrapped a hard arm around her waist, his hand resting just below one breast.

  "We‘re not finished, Victoria." He nipped the nape of her neck, sending a jolt of electricity straight to her pussy.

  And yet, the surge of heat wakened her from the spell. Her mind—and conscience—flicked on. He intended to have sex. She pulled away and turned. "Calum, no. This isn‘t right. Alec—"

  "Victoria, Alec knows we will make love." He moved close enough that the stiff peaks of her breasts rubbed his chest, then cupped her chin in his steady hand. "Look at me, cariad."

  Her gaze lifted as if compelled. Don"t let him talk you into this, sergeant. "What does cariad mean?"

  "It means darling." His thumb stroked her lower lip. "Alec and I often…share…our women.

  Alone or together."

  Two men? Oh God. A wicked lick of heat swept through her body. She pressed her hands against his chest and hesitated, disconcerted by his rock-hard muscles. "No. I don‘t believe you. I won‘t risk hurting him." Her body throbbed with the need for sex, but hurting Alec wasn‘t something she‘d do.

  "It pleases me that you worry about my brother‘s happiness." His determined hands closed over hers and lifted them to his face. His beard shadow scratched her palms, sending an odd excitement through her. He smiled slightly and dragged his jaw slowly across her palms. When his gaze lowered to her breasts, as if imagining how his beard would feel against the tender skin, her body melted.

  "No," she whispered and tried to step back.

  His grip never loosened. "Victoria, I give you my word that Alec approves of you being with me." His steady gaze met hers.