In Heat: Mating Call (In Heat Shapeshifter Romance Series #2) (11 page)

“Maybe I don't want your focus to be on them.” She sounded so serious that he was surprised to see her still smiling when he pulled back to look at her.

She turned away and he stared at her back, studying the beautiful curve of it and the line of her spine until it disappeared beneath the dress. He couldn't figure out how the hell the dress was staying on her, but he wasn't about to waste precious time thinking about it. He stepped up close behind her, his hands covering her stomach and holding her to him.

She moaned quietly and shifted against him. His fingers tightened against her. Was she trying to get him hard?

He kissed her earlobe, sucking it into his mouth and wondering if she'd get angry if he made a move on her.

“Wow, this is stunning.” Sean's voice shattered the moment and Erik growled when his friend stopped next to them. “Not you two, you just need to get a room or get a hormone check.”

Kim giggled again and Erik's anger over being disturbed disappeared. She'd really bonded well with Sean over the past few days and it was nice that they had a shared friend now, and that he was a shape-shifter. Once she was a lycan too, they'd have to visit all the elite families and introduce them. A lot of them had refused to come tonight because of the presence of a human. He wasn't about to tell Kim that.

He looked at her where she stood in the middle of the ballroom a few feet away, her eyes scanning the room.

It was beautiful, incredible considering the short amount of time she'd had to arrange everything. The theme was a traditional Christmas one of gold and red. At one end of the room were tables with pristine white cloths and centre pieces of gold candles and red roses. Gold candelabras decorated the long tables where champagne and food had been laid out. Even the ice sculpture had gold flecks in it.

He smiled when he saw it was a panther climbing a tree trunk.

The main chandeliers had been lit, lending a soft glow to the already golden walls. The light reflected off the long mirrors that lined them. The curtains had been pulled back to reveal the three sets of tall French doors that led onto the balcony.

It was strange to see his house so bright and cheerful. For so many years it had been dull but he hadn't realised that until now. Seeing all the bedrooms opened and the fires all lit, and hearing all the excited chatter from Rose and Kim, reminded him of how Christmas here used to be when his parents were alive.

When Alistair was alive.

He frowned but it was chased away by Kim when she touched his cheek. There was so much concern in her eyes and he knew without question that she'd felt the hurt in him.

The start of the mating was close, maybe closer than he'd thought.

She was ready now.

Kim stared deep into Erik's eyes, wondering what he was thinking as he looked at her. The pain she'd felt in him was gone, replaced by something that she couldn't sense. She was glad that the connection was back to full strength again. She couldn't wait to start the mating now.

She dragged her attention away from Erik when the musicians came in and she directed them to the far end of the ballroom where a stage had been erected. She hadn't known what kind of music to go for, so she'd opted for one that played mostly classical music but with the odd old tune thrown in. She'd specifically asked every band she'd called if they could play ‘White Christmas' and this was the only one who had said yes.

She'd hired them immediately.

She hoped to God they were good.

Her eyes strayed back to Erik as he laughed with Sean. He'd said she looked fantastic tonight. He was one to talk. In his crisp black tux he was a sight to send her temperature soaring to that of the sun. He glanced across at her, his honey eyes intense with desire and his lips playing into a seductive smile. Her whole body flushed, her cheeks burning up. Damn, she wanted him when he looked at her like that, like she was prey to his predator. She coyly swayed her hips, giving him a sweet smile in return. He swallowed hard and she saw the muscle in his jaw flicker as it tensed.

He stared at her, making the whole world disappear as she kept her eyes fixed on his. There was such an air of power and strength about him tonight, a confidence that he radiated and that she felt in her very core. It made her tremble with the desire to feel his strong hands on her body, to feel him touching her and taking her to dizzying heights of pleasure.

When he growled, a thrill ran through her, shivering down her spine and washing across her every nerve ending. They screamed for him, begging him to come to her and take her like she knew he wanted to.

He smiled and she blushed again.

“I wish you two would do it and get it over with already,” Sean said.

She blushed for a different reason, dying a little when she remembered that her and Erik weren't alone. It wasn't just Sean that had stopped to stare. She could almost feel the eyes of the band boring into her back. She quickly covered it with her shawl and was silently thankful when the doorbell rang.

“I'll get that, I need an excuse to get out of here before I do something I wouldn't regret.” Sean winked at her and she frowned until she'd got what he'd meant.

“Like I'd ever,” she said to his retreating back, disgusted at the thought of Sean wanting her body.

“No one gets to touch you but me,” Erik said, melting her and making liquid heat pool in her knickers when he stepped up against her, his body flush with hers.

She wrapped her arms around his neck. “Mmm, I second that, and you're mine, buster.”

He grinned and kissed her, light enough that he was obviously trying not to get her lipstick all over him. When he pulled back, she smiled, answering the question she could see in his eyes.

“It's okay... it's this new stuff that never comes off. The shine is just a clear gloss.”

“So I can kiss all I want then?”

She nodded and squeaked when he grabbed her around the waist and dipped her backwards over his knee as he kissed her.

“Looks like the party started without us.”

She pushed Erik off her on hearing the strange voice. He pulled her up onto her feet so fast that her head spun and her hair fell across her face.

She straightened herself out, stifling the blush that threatened to creep up to her cheeks and clearing her throat.

When she finally looked up, she saw Erik greeting a fat old man. Next to the man was a pompous looking old lady wearing an emerald green dress, her yellow-white hair piled high on her head. Kim walked over to them, trying not to laugh at the couple's eccentric appearance and wondering if everyone was going to be as old as them tonight.

She hoped this Charlotte character was old.

Like ancient.

She fixed on her best smile as she went to greet the couple.

“This must be the human,” the woman said with such a note of disdain in her voice that Kim couldn't stop the shock from reaching her face.

She blinked and looked at Erik, waiting to see what he was going to say.

“This is Kim. I believe I mentioned her on the phone.” He put his arm around her and she thanked him for the show of solidarity. She hadn't been prepared to meet with this kind of reaction.

“Make her ours, quickly.” The man dismissively waved a hand in her direction and walked off.

Ours?

She mouthed the word at Erik. He tugged her closer and sighed.

“Don't let the old ones get to you. Some of them have a strange view of people.”

People? Humans? Did these lycans really see a divide like that? Were humans below their notice?

The questions crowded her mind as more people entered, this time a young group that didn't bat an eyelid about her being human. More than one of the men did give her a hungry look she didn't like though. She shuffled a little closer to Erik and wasn't surprised when his hand settled firmly against her waist. She held it, letting everyone see that she was spoken for.

What annoyed her more than the men eyeing her, was the way some of the women flirted with Erik, completely blanking her. Would it always be like this, even after the mating? Erik was an attractive man, handsome and confident, rich and powerful. There was no doubt that women were always going to be drawn to him, but she knew that he wouldn't flirt back. He loved her too much.

When the room began to get more crowded and people didn't seem to be arriving any more, she followed Erik across to the table where the champagne was. She needed a drink after enduring such a mixed reaction. Half of the room clearly hated her presence. She wondered why they'd bothered coming.

Her heart melted when Erik pulled out a box from under the table and opened it to reveal two bottles of Dom Pérignon Rosé covered in ice. He popped the cork to the amusement of people nearby and handed her two glasses. She held them steady as he filled them and then giggled when he hid the champagne again. It was a sweet touch that reassured her more than he could possibly imagine. It showed her how much he cared about how she felt and how much he loved her.

* * * *

Kim found herself swept along by the music, the chatter and the champagne as the evening progressed. Coming out of her shell hadn't been hard after a few glasses and a few dance requests. Erik had danced with her the most. He didn't seem to be able to let her out of his sight for more than a few minutes before he came back to claim her from whomever she'd fallen into conversation with.

Sean had shared Erik's work getting her introduced to the younger set and she was grateful for his attentiveness. Without him and Erik leading her around the room, she was sure she would've been sitting in the corner all night long.

She laughed as the couple she was talking to said something amusing and then sipped her drink again. Realising that she'd reached the bottom of her glass, she made her excuses and went off to get it refilled. She hadn't seen Erik for a while now and she was beginning to wonder what was keeping him.

The room was so full of chatter that it was hard to hear the music and she wasn't tall enough to see over most of the guests. It had been an exciting night so far. She'd met all breeds of lycans, from leopards to cheetahs, lionesses to tigers, and even wolves and bears. Her head spun a little as she thought about how amazing it would be to see the whole room in their animal forms. Of course, that would mean that everyone but her would be naked when they changed back.

Heat flushed her face and she pressed her fingers to her lips, giggling at the visual.

She paused when she reached the dance floor and looked back over her shoulder. Clearly, she'd taken a wrong turn somewhere because she was further away from the champagne now, not nearer. She shrugged and watched the dancers. It was stunning, an exotic mixture of colours all blurring past her as they danced to a fast waltz. There was no way she could do that.

Her eyes widened and she almost dropped her glass when she spotted Erik dancing with a beautiful blonde woman. The red dress she wore revealed so much it was bordering on indecent and her blood boiled when she saw the woman smiling up at Erik.

That wasn't just any old smile.

She'd smiled that smile at him.

That ‘come fuck me' smile that he always loved to see.

What made her even sicker was the fact he was smiling back. Okay, it wasn't one hundred percent seductive but there was more than a hint of it in there.

She went to turn away but found her feet wouldn't cooperate. All she could do was stare at Erik as he danced with this woman, too close for her comfort. She looked around her to find everyone staring at them too. She even heard and old couple a few feet away mention that Erik should have chosen Charlotte over her. She knew that they'd said it loud on purpose. They hated her.

Intense jealousy mingled with her residual upset at the way she'd been met with insults by half the room and it coursed through her, eating her up from the inside out and whispering poisonous words into her ear.

The waltz began to slow and she still couldn't move. She felt the hairs on the back of her neck prickle in the way they always did when Erik was looking at her, but when she caught sight of him, he was staring straight into the woman's eyes.

Tears burned her eyes but she wouldn't let them come. She was overreacting. It was the champagne making her feel so out of control of her emotions.

It wasn't the woman.

It wasn't everyone else in this damn room.

When the music stopped, her feet seemed to be suddenly freed and she panicked as she looked for an escape route. She went to dodge into the crowd to go and get a much needed drink, but Erik stopped her.

“Kim!” he said and she froze, cursing him.

She plastered on a smile, turned and swallowed every ounce of hatred she was feeling towards the woman walking towards her with Erik.

“I'd like you to meet someone.” He smiled at her.

She could guess who this gorgeous skinny blonde bombshell that was draped all over him was.

Charlotte. The ‘it'll be great to see you again' and ‘it's been too long' phone call.

“This is Charlotte,” he said, still smiling.

Her stomach dropped and she barely contained the sneer that twitched her lip.

“Lovely,” she said, her voice carrying just enough sarcasm that both Charlotte and Erik raised a brow at her. She waggled her empty glass. “I'm all out of champagne.”

She went to leave again but then stopped herself. Who was she running away from? She couldn't spend her whole life running away from the competition. Erik was hers and she was damn well going to fight for him.

There was an awkward silence in which Erik looked as though he was trying to understand what was wrong.

“Erik,” she said, voice commanding now. “Dance with me.”

It wasn't a question. It was an order. On the dance floor she'd be safe and Erik would be away from Charlotte.

“How can I refuse you when you put it so bluntly?” There was a hint of annoyance in his voice but she didn't care.

She just handed her glass to Charlotte. “Lovely to meet you.”

Grabbing Erik's hand, she dragged him onto the dance floor and as far into the crowd as possible. She huffily placed his hands on her hips and wrapped her arms around his neck. When her eyes met his, he laughed, his whole face brightening.