Panthers' Pleasure [Impulse 1] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) (13 page)

Mikael cast an appreciative smile her way. “I’m glad you made it here at last,” he said. “Rafe and Vilas had almost given up on you.” Before she could put him straight on that, he spoke again. “What do you think so far? It’s pretty overwhelming, I guess. A lot to take in.”

“Yes.” She returned his smile, thinking that his dark blond, stripy hair was so tigerish that it was obvious, now she knew he was a shifter, what species he must be. “Is it true what Rafe told me, about your cures for childhood illnesses, I mean?”

“Yeah,” said another guy, also with stripy hair, who prowled up to Mikael and placed a hand casually on his arm. “I’m Philo,” he said, extending his other hand, “Mikael’s fellow alpha tiger. Pleased to meet you.”

“Likewise.”

“Yes, we do run the clinic and help where we can,” Mikael said, making their remarkable achievements sound like no big deal. “Before I even graduated med school I’d decided that modern medicine had a lot wrong with it. So I fell back on some of my granddad’s herbal knowledge, teamed up with Philo, who’s a Botanist, and decided that between us we couldn’t do any worse than the so-called experts do.”

“It gives us a buzz to do some good in this tarnished world of ours,” Philo added.

“I’m sure it must do. If I can help at all while I’m here—”

“We’ll find you something to do, don’t worry about that.”

“Yes, but I don’t know how long I’ll be here for, so don’t plan too far ahead.”

Mikael and Philo exchanged a glance that implied they knew better than she did, but they didn’t contradict her.

People, shifters, whatever, came up to chat with her, putting her more and more at ease as the evening progressed. She noticed things about them that she hadn’t seen when working the bar that morning, perhaps because they’d been careful to shield her from their feline tendencies on that occasion. Now that she knew what they were, they didn’t seem to feel the need to keep their claws sheathed, or to hide their lithe abilities. One guy was lying flat out on his stomach across an open window, legs and arms hanging down on either side of it, looking entirely comfortable as only cats can in such circumstances.

“I know exactly how you feel,” an attractive woman said to her as she caught Chantal staring at the guy hanging over the window frame. “It takes some getting used to, and they do so like to show off. Still, you’d be surprised how quickly it becomes the norm.”

“You’re human, I take it.”

“Yes, I’m Lily, mated with those two over there,” she said, pointing to a couple of guys having a lively debate on the opposite side of the bar. “They love each other to death but seem to enjoy arguing.” She rolled her eyes. “Go figure. If they haven’t got me in bed, I spend my time playing referee.”

“Rafe and Vilas seem a bit that way.”

“Goes with the territory, honey. My guys are beta panthers so I know about what I speak.”

“Er, do your two…um—”

“Fuck each other?” Lily shrugged. “Sure. That’s all they did until I came along and made things a bit more interesting for them.”

“Well, if I stay—”

“What do you mean
if
?” asked another woman who Chantal thought was called Irena. “You’ve got the chance of having those two hunks all to yourself. Why would you walk away from that?”

“Irena!” Lily said, with obviously feigned shock. “You’re mated.”

“So?” Irena shrugged nonchalantly. “That doesn’t mean I’ve been struck blind.”

The three of them laughed together, leaving Chantal with an intense feeling of well-being. This strange collection of people really did seem to care deeply for one another, like the family she longed to be a part of. And she could be. All she had to do was say the word. In less than twenty-four hours, Rafe and Vilas had come to be the focal point of her world, there was no escaping that fact. They were weakening rapidly, but it was within her ability to right that situation. In order to do so, she’d have to have sex with them, of course. Not that making such a mega sacrifice would influence her thinking, of course!

“What if someone not in the colony comes in?” Chantal asked Lily. “Wouldn’t they notice something strange about the way you all behave in here?”

“We’d know before they got beyond the parking lot,” Irena answered for Lily. “Not that many strangers venture this far from their hotels—”

“Because of the atmosphere?”

“Right. This place tends to be the colony’s unofficial headquarters. We can be ourselves here most of the time.”

“So I see.” Chantal nodded toward a man on the opposite side of the bar who had whiskers sprouting from the side of his face that looked a bit like an electrified moustache. A woman had draped herself round him and was pulling the whiskers gently through her fingers. Chantal could hear the man’s deep rumbling purr even above all the noise in the bar.

“Oh, he’s a young jaguar showing off to Sally-Anne,” Irena said dismissively. “They’ve only just been mated and can’t keep their paws to themselves.”

“A cat’s whiskers are especially sensitive,” Lily explained.

“A feline erogenous zone,” Irena added, rolling her eyes. “Take it from one who knows.”

“Hence the name of this place, I suppose.” Chantal smiled. “Is that why they like to rub faces with one another?”

“Pretty much, yeah.”

Rafe materialized at her side. “Some of us are going up to the apartment,” he said softly. “I’ve called a council meeting to decide what to do about your brother.”

“Oh, then I’ll come and—”

“No, it’s just for the council at this point. I’ll fill you in on what we decide later. You stay here and enjoy yourself. Lily and Irena will take care of you. Come up when you’re ready.”

He rubbed his cheek against hers and was gone. She watched as Mikael and Philo followed him from the room.

“Those two behind Mikael are Vadim and Zayd, alpha jaguars,” Lily told her.

“That’s Kane and Tyronne next in line, the alpha leopards,” Irena added. “And the pumas, Pascal and Kai, are bringing up the rear.”

“Well,” said Lily, handing her glass across the bar for a refill. “Now we’ve got all that testosterone out of the way, we girls can have some fun.”

But in spite of Lily’s best efforts to get a party going, a lot of the young shifters drifted away.

“They have to patrol,” Lily explained. “We’re vulnerable to attack right now.”

“Because of me,” Chantal said bleakly.

“No, honey,” Irena said. “It goes with the territory, literally.”

Chantal asked a lot of questions and enjoyed getting to know Lily and Irena. What she was reluctant to admit, even to herself, was that the bar seemed empty without Rafe and Vilas filling the space with their vibrant presence. She must be tired, she decided. It had been a very long, very strange day.

“You’re going to have to excuse me, ladies,” she said, hiding a yawn behind her hand. “I need to get some rest.”

“We understand,” Lily and Irena said, sharing an amused glance. “We’re about to leave ourselves.”

“Have fun up there,” Lily said, waving her fingers at Chantal.

“Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do,” Irena added with a smug smile.

“Which means you get to do just about anything you like,” Lily said, linking her arm through Irena’s and heading for the door.

“Do you need me to help you clear up, Stefan?” Chantal asked the young man tending the bar.

“No, love, I’ve got it covered. You get yourself upstairs now.”

“Night then,” she said, yawning again as she left him to it.

A tingling of anticipation swept through Chantal as she climbed the stairs, simply because she’d get to see Rafe and Vilas again. So much for not being needy, she thought with a wry smile. She was unsurprised when she opened the door to the sitting room and all the men gathered round the table were already looking her way. Of course they knew she was coming, and not just because they’d heard her footsteps on the stairs.

“I didn’t mean to interrupt,” she said. “I just need to get some sleep.”

“We’re about finished here, anyway,” Rafe said.

The sound of chairs scraping on the wooden floor confirmed his words. All the other council members wished her good night and headed for the stairs. She was left alone with Rafe and Vilas.

“Did you have a good time down there?” Rafe asked.

“Yes, Lily and Irena are lively company.”

“They lead their mates in a merry dance, just like you will us, sugar, if you decide to stay.”

“Vilas!” Rafe chided. “No pressure, remember.”

“Just sayin’,” Vilas protested a little too innocently.

“What did you decide tonight?” Chantal asked, taking one of the vacated seats at the table and studying the map spread across it. “Impulse is just a long peninsula, isn’t it?”

“Yes,” Rafe said. “That makes it easier and harder to defend.”

“It’s easy to defend from the land because the only way in by road is across the one bridge,” Vilas explained, “or on foot along the beach.”

“But you’re vulnerable on all sides by water,” she said.

“Yes. Not so much on the gulf side, because the beach shelves and there aren’t many places to bring a boat in,” Rafe explained.

“That doesn’t stop them diving in and trying to swim it.”

“Big cats can swim?” Chantal shook her head. “I thought you didn’t like water.”

“It’s not our preferred method of getting about, but desperate times and all that,” Vilas said. “What the lions do, the sneaky bastards, is to send their best swimmers in human mode and get them to try and make it to shore.”

“They haven’t managed it yet. We’ve always been able to fend them off,” Rafe said, raking a hand through his unruly hair. “Our problems lie on the Intracoastal side, where there are places absolutely everywhere to stop boats.”

“I can see that. But what did you decide about Max?” she asked. “I don’t want you putting the colony in danger for my sake.”

“We’re sending out scouts tonight to see what news we can pick up,” Rafe said.

“Shifters like to gossip just as much as humans,” Vilas added.

“You’re going yourselves, aren’t you?” Chantal felt overwhelmingly concerned for their safety.

“We go out every night,” Rafe said softly. “It’s what we do.”

“Please don’t take any unnecessary risks. Your powers are so weak.”

Rafe lifted her from her chair and into his lap. “Don’t worry about us, baby. We’ll be fine.”

He stood up and carried her through to her room, Vilas at his heels. Once they got there, he put her down and she stood obediently while he pulled her dress over her head. Both men sucked in sharp breaths when she stood before them naked. Vilas ran a hand across one of her breasts, causing the nipple to pebble and throb. Rafe merely looked at her like he never wanted to tear his gaze away.

“We have to go,” he said with a heavy sigh. “Get to bed and rest. You’ll be perfectly safe here, and we’ll talk in the morning. We might know more by then.”

Each of them bent to kiss her and then left the room. Chantal wanted to go after them and beg them to stay, but when she tried to move, her feet appeared to be rooted to the spot. A moment later she heard the window in their adjoining room swing open and knew she was too late. They were gone and she’d never felt so alone in her entire life.

Chantal washed, brushed her teeth, and climbed into bed, bone weary but unable to sleep. The way she saw it, this colony of complete strangers was putting its collective lives on the line for her brother. She’d never be able to live with herself if a single one of them received so much as a scratch, but there didn’t appear to be any way to stop them. It wasn’t her fault. She accepted that she’d been used but still felt responsible. The sensible thing would be to leave. That way they wouldn’t feel the need to protect her, and Impulse wouldn’t be under threat because of her. Max wasn’t here, so she had no reason to stay.

The only problem with that master plan was that the thought of leaving Rafe and Vilas tore at her heartstrings, causing her acute physical pain. She believed them when they told her she was the only mate for them and that by letting them fuck her she could restore their power. She was falling in love with them, damn it, otherwise she wouldn’t feel so uneasy at the thought of them being out there, weak and vulnerable to attack.

Was it possible to fall in love within the space of a single day? Apparently so, because that was what Chantal felt for them, no question. Her insides roiled as she seriously contemplated committing herself to them. For life. But if she did that, they would never stop looking for Max. They might be stronger, but they’d still be putting themselves in danger.

There had to be another way.

She could agree to be their mate, have sex with them to restore their power and
then
leave. They’d said mating was for life, no divorce allowed. But if they weren’t officially married, divorce didn’t come into it. As far as she could tell, having sex with each of them just once would be enough to give them back the power they’d lost. She could block her thoughts from them so they wouldn’t know she planned to leave. Even if they picked up the vibes, short of physically restraining her, they had no way of forcing her to stay.