Only After Dark The Boxed Set Books 1 - 4: Shifters Forever Worlds (28 page)

And trust…

Trust was now broken between them.

Completely broken.

A tear broke through her dammed emotions, then another, as she wept silent tears.

M
ason Martinez wasn’t small
, not by any stretch of the imagination.

He was a lion shifter, large, dark, and some thought, imposing in a scary kind of way. Not that he got it. He didn’t think he was all that scary—usually.

He was brother to Mark, both were of the Martinez shifters from Florida via Puerto Rico. The remainder of their family were mostly in Spain.

And though he wasn’t a diminutive man, trying to slink down in a bus seat so Evangeline Arceneaux wouldn’t notice he was hard as hell. He practically had to fold himself in half to keep her from seeing him when she scanned the bus for an empty seat.

She’d seemed forlorn, her sunglasses and a big ass floppy hat hiding her face.

Oh, Mason had been told not to be on the bus. Mark had made it a point to seek him out and tell him that Evie was helping Alexa by hosting the bus tour, and that he was not to be on there.

Yeah, right.

He studied her. Her white top was damp from the humidity and the heat. It was practically plastered to her skin, showing off the curves he’d loved too damned much.

He swore under his breath.

Showing off those curves that should belong to him to all the males on the bus.

He couldn’t see past her upper half, his view was blocked by the bus seats’ tall backs, but he knew what fell below the waist. Luscious thighs, a waist that tapered inward rising to her full breasts. Curves and flesh he’d loved, licked, sucked, bit in the heat of passion.

He’d loved her curves. Every inch of them custom created for Mason. They fit better than a key in a custom-made lock. Her body, her flesh, every part of her was made for him. He’d done everything with that body, but couplebond.

He cursed the fact he’d never sealed the deal and taken her as his forever mate.

Of course, Mason was on the bus. As if Mark could have stopped him. As if heaven and earth or any other force could have stopped him from getting on this bus.

He was hell-bent on talking to Evie.

He’d waited too long for an answer about what had happened. And by damn, he’d get one. And he’d get it today. He wasn’t going to sit around this damned Escape Weekend façade while the woman he loved avoided him, and every other woman he had no fucking interest in threw herself at him.

He exhaled in frustration.

Then he saw someone.

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.

Kaitlyn Byrne, Evie’s old roommate was making her way to the front of the bus where Evie had plopped down.

Of course, Kait had seen him and greeted him earlier.

How unlucky is this going to be?

Fucking Kait would probably tell her he was on the bus.

And she was probably going to tell Evie.

At least she was friendly today, because she sure as hell hadn’t been the last time he saw her. Their last year at the university Kait had been such a bitch to him. He knew it was because of his and Evie’s breakup. What he didn’t understand was why Evie got so mad at him and wouldn’t talk to him or see him.

It was the same thing a few months ago when he was in Dallas at the Shifter Council meeting. Just fucking left the room, all pissed off to see him there.

Truthfully, Mason was confused when he received Lézare’s invitation to Escape Weekend. He was surprised he was invited. But he understood the invitation, as now he was family, more or less, since his brother Mark had taken the Arceneaux distant cousin Veila for a mate.

So, of course, he came to Escape Weekend. He deliberated on it, back and forth. He’d even vacillated over the choice, but the decision came quickly, over and over again.

He needed answers from Evie.

Hell, he needed more than answers. He needed Evie. In his life. In his bed.

Bed. Damn.

That’s the last thing he should have thought. His cock twitched in his pants at the thought.

He remembered the last time they’d had sex as if it had happened yesterday.

It had been the afternoon of their breakup. And it had been hot as hell. His pulse raced in agreement, his body responded, his cock straining against his pants.

He took a deep breath. Time to cool down.

Then he noticed Kaitlyn got up and returned to her seat.

Evie was alone.

It’s now or never.

Mason unfolded his large muscular frame from the seat, careful not to bump his head on the overhead panel just above his seat. He rolled his shoulders to break some of the tightness.

She was his. There was no reason to be hesitant.

Unless you were to count the last time he saw her…

On the mountain.

After the awesome sex.

A
ll those years ago
…

F
inals were over
. Mason had sprung for a trip to Colorado for some skiing for himself and Evie. They’d met friends there and shared a condo. He’d been out in the afternoon. His lion eager to explore, he’d sidetracked to the mountains and left her at the condo. He’d asked her if she wanted to join him in the mountains, to give their felines a chance to reconnoiter and enjoy some freedom.

She’d rolled over from her afternoon nap, her hair a lovely red mess, her lips full and slightly bruised, and her body still smelling like sex. He leaned down to kiss her, relishing the scent of her and felt his cock twitch.

Fuck. At this rate my lion will never get to enjoy a run through the snow or a walk in the forest.

And with that, he left his curvy woman taking an afternoon nap, while he proceeded to head toward the isolation of the trees on the mountains.

He was almost out the front door of the condo when Todd, his college roommate, stopped him.

In all, six couples had traveled together for R&R. Not exactly couples. His roommate Todd brought his sister, as he was between girlfriends.

“Where you going?” Todd asked.

“Exploring.”

Todd’s brows dipped in a frown. “How about Evie?”

“She’s napping. I’ll be back in a couple hours.”

Evie was a notorious napper. She could lay down for a nap right after lunch and sleep until the next morning. He was confident she wouldn’t be up when he returned.

Todd nodded. “We’ll keep an eye on her.”

Not sure why.

His lion roared in his head, ready to get on the way.

“Okay.” Mason agreed so he could get the hell out of there quickly, ready to let his lion shift and roam.

He walked out of sight of the condo, stopping behind a cluster of trees. Mason listened for any sounds of life, his shifter hearing straining to pick up heartbeats or movement.

Nothing.

He was all alone.

Exhaling a breath in relief, he prepared himself and turned his body over to his lion.

The lion made a chuffing sound of appreciation.

Mason steeled himself for the discomfort. A few popping sounds, then the sensation of tendons stretching, a creaking sound as his bones shifted, and within seconds, he stood, proud and thick-chested, a large lion with a tan mane, tipped with black in places. His clothes shifted, staying intact, but hidden by his lion’s body.

Mason pawed the snow. He’d never seen the cold powder, not in his human form since he was young, and never in his lion form.

He buried the tip of his nose in it and blew warm air on the snow that surrounded his wide muzzle. The snow turned liquid. He shook his head in the snow drift, letting his mane be covered in the white frost.

How he wanted to roar. To let the power of his lion release in the deathly silent mountainous area, where the only sound was the wind blowing through the trees.

But he couldn’t.

No, that would attract undue attention, and that was the last thing he and his shifter friends in the condo needed.

So instead, he let his energy loose in a lope. Running and trotting, switching pace and covering much area.

Fewer than thirty minutes ago, he’d left the condo and that mountain behind and was picking his way amongst large rocks and snow on an isolated ridge. Hopefully a good amount of snow would fall and hide his tracks. He didn’t need anyone finding his prints and sending out a crew to locate the creature.

He loped to the top of the ridge and studied the ravine below, then leapt to a large boulder and scanned the horizon.

The pyramid-like peaks of a set of snow-dusted sister mountains with flat faces and sharp corners. Spruce and fir peppered the mountains, growing in areas that were pure rock and others where the trees were dense, almost impenetrable.

His lion pounced to a large boulder, surveying the landscape and dropped to his haunches then lay back, head erect.

He wanted to release a roar so badly. But instead he allowed himself a small series of short huffs, as if calling out to establish his dominance.

Mason felt his lion’s inner peace and he let his guard down, allowing himself to reflect on the life he’d attained, leaving behind his delinquent ways, mourning his best friend, setting aside the life of questionable means, and now, having found his mate.

Mason was ready to move to the next step in his life, and his lion was in lockstep with him on this agenda. He pawed at the stone beneath him, claws etching horizontal white lines in the rocky surface.

He should make his way back. He pushed off the rock.

For a second, Mason didn’t know what hit him. All he knew was he was broadsided and fell from the rock, careening into the ridge below. Somehow, he managed to right himself before he hit the ground, so he landed on his paws—shook up, but unhurt.

Wondering what the hell struck him and knocked him off the boulder on the ledge, Mason looked up at the spot where he’d been.

White, with dark stripes almost blending in except for her vivid eyes, Evie stood on the boulder glaring at him. She was in tigress form, something he hadn’t seen. They’d never had cause or reason to shift before.

Her eyes, a light blue color, rimmed in silver were filled with fury, even from his spot in the ravine he could see the anger. He could feel her rage emanating off her tigress.

Then it hit him.

She was what knocked him off.

What the fuck?

He pushed for a sync, the shifter way to communicate when in animal form. A silent verbalization that traveled from one shifter’s mind to the other’s, accessible by invitation and opening the link.

He was met with a resistance as solid as a rock wall. He pushed again, this time adding, “
Evie. What are you doing here? What was that about?”

He felt her open the communication portal between them, the sensation like a window opening and a breeze flowing through.

“How dare you? I trusted you.”
She leapt from the boulder on the ledge, landing next to him with a soft puff of a snow cloud where her paws landed. She sunk into the soft powder slightly. Her fur was luxurious, shiny, and thick.

He longed to push his nose into it, to take in her tigress scent, to nuzzle with her. But he couldn’t. She was pissed and he was clueless.

“What are you talking about?”

Lightning fast, she struck him with her claws, swiftly, across his face. The sliced flesh smarted. He looked at the ground where red drops were accumulating, dripping from his face, forming crimson patterns in the blanket of white snow.

Mason couldn’t react. He’d never struck a woman, even one in her shifter form. He never would. And Evie was the last one he could ever hurt anyway.

So what was she upset about?
“I’m not sure I understand.”

Her tigress eyes glittered dangerously. The pupils weren’t more than a slit. She lowered her lids, narrowing her gaze. Her tail twitched. Her shoulders and neck were stiff.

“I never want to see you again. Ever. I hope that’s clear.”

And that was the last of it. She never talked to him again.

Just like that.

No explanations.

No nothing.

M
ason took a deep breath
. That seemed like eons ago. And at the same time it was fresh on his mind and in his heart. It’s not like she could pull that scene again, not on a bus, not with all these people watching.

He paused, just behind her seat. She was looking outside, the hat gone. From the reflection in the window, he could see she’d added gloss to her lips and color to her cheeks. Her hair looked smoother too.

Where did she vanish to last night? He’d overheard someone say she went to her room to pout. He heard someone else say it was because of an ex-boyfriend. He wondered if they meant him.

Surely she didn’t care about him anymore. She wouldn’t have broken up with him if she had.

He stepped forward and dropped into the seat next to her.

She flinched, then turned his way, her eyebrows dipping into a frown the sunglasses couldn’t hide. Full lips were drawn into a stern line.

His throat went dry. He tried to work it. Felt his Adam’s apple moving, but his lips wouldn’t cooperate.

“What are you doing here? Go away.” Her tone was more of a serpentine hiss than spoken words.

“I want to talk to you.”

He raised his hands, took her glasses off.

“What the—” She bit down on her lip, sealing her response away.

Her eyes, green when she was in human form were the color of the sea during a storm, and surrounded by bloodshot white.

Hangover or crying?

Lust bubbled up inside and threatened to overflow. Even at what she would consider her worst, when the redness made her eyes so much more vivid, she was the sexiest woman he’d ever met. Hell, she was sexier now than she’d ever been. She’d matured. Some of the planes of her face had changed, some of her curves were fuller. She was 150 percent woman now, so much more so than in their college day.

And 1000 percent fuckable.

Her scent was heavenly. The same perfume. She hadn’t changed that. And it wasn’t masking the fact she was still turned on by him. Hope grew like tiny ivy in the crevices of a dilapidated sidewalk that she might want him still.

His lion chuffed in his mind.

She was silent, but her glare spoke volumes.