The Lion Within (Ghost Cat Shifters #1) (10 page)

She paused on the sidewalk. The sun was setting behind the mountains. The sky was swirled in gold, orange and red. The decorative streetlights blinked on. She turned to face Daniel. He stood quietly, his hands in his pockets. He’d been looking up toward the sunset, but his eyes swung down to meet hers the moment she turned. “I was hoping I could see you tonight.”

The only answer was yes. She nodded wordlessly. Emotion tightened her chest. This intensity of emotion Daniel elicited in her was startling. He took two strides to stand in front of her. He didn’t say a word. His eyes held hers—banked heat and understanding reflected in them. He dipped his head and caught her lips in a kiss. It was just a kiss, a quick brush of his lips across hers before he caught her lower lip in his teeth, tugging softly as he pulled away. Heat flooded her body, liquid need swirling in her center.

He remained close. Her hand had landed on his chest, and she could feel his heart pounding. A small sense of relief washed through her to know he was perhaps as affected by her as she was by him. He cleared his throat. “Did you walk into town today?”

She nodded, trying to catch her breath and slow the wild flutter of her pulse. “Should we grab dinner in town?”

She shook her head firmly. She might be diving headfirst into madness, but she needed him to herself now. “Let’s have dinner at my place again. Daisy will be expecting me home soon anyway.”

Daniel smiled slowly. “Dinner at your place sounds perfect.”

Chapter 9

Daniel stood in Sophia’s kitchen, chopping onions rapidly. Daisy was lounging in the middle of the kitchen, taking up most of the floor with her sprawling frame. After they’d gotten to Sophia’s house, she’d fed Daisy and declared she would cook a stir-fry. Daniel offered to help and next thing he knew, she’d assigned him to chopping the vegetables while she busied herself slicing chicken. He took a swallow of wine from the glass she’d set beside the cutting board for him.

When he was with her, he felt a sense of comfort and easiness. Just now, he felt as if they’d done this hundreds of times before. All they were doing was cooking dinner together. The only unsettling thing was Daniel didn’t know what to do with the depth of his feelings. Not to mention the nearly overwhelming attraction that sizzled to life between them whenever they were within sight of each other.

When they sat down to eat, he finally asked the question he’d been wanting to ask since he’d visited his uncle. “Are you a shifter?”

Sophia was in the middle of lifting her fork to her mouth. Her hand froze in mid-air, and her eyes widened. She slowly set her fork down. She looked at him, her gaze searching. After several beats of silence, she nodded slowly. “I am. Everyone in my family is a shifter. I’m guessing you have your reasons for asking.”

Daniel considered his reply. He bought himself a little time by taking a bite of food. “I only found out shifters existed outside of rumors right before my mother died. She gave me a crash course in our family history in just a few weeks and explained why I could hardly tolerate going hiking in the woods anymore.”

Sophia had resumed eating. She paused between bites and took a healthy gulp of wine. “Wow. That must have been… I don’t know, really. How are you with all of it?”

Daniel took a swallow of wine and considered her question. He was aware he could have been shocked, terrified, confused and many other possible feelings, yet once he’d heard everything from his mother, he felt mostly relieved. Deep down, he’d known he was somehow different. The questions tumbling about inside had been answered once his mother shared the truth of who and what he was. He looked over at Sophia who was patiently waiting for his answer. “I won’t say it wasn’t startling at first, but it all made sense. I’m okay with all of it. I’m sorry for how my brother died and for what that did to my family, but I’m relieved to know the whole truth.” He paused, considering whether to talk with her about his uncle. He decided he might as well. “I went by to meet my uncle today.”

Her eyes widened slightly. “How’d that go?”

“Not great really. He’s not the friendliest guy. I meant to ask if maybe you could introduce me to your mom like you said, so I could ask her about my family. Nelson was pretty quiet. What do you know about him?”

She shook her head slowly. “Not much really. I haven’t seen him around in years. My mother would be able to offer more. All I know is he stays out at your family’s old property and keeps to himself. I’ll call my mom tomorrow and bring you out to meet her.” She paused for a sip of wine. “Not to get too nosy, but how does it feel to know you’re a shifter?”

“On some level, I knew something was up whenever I was hiking in the woods and thought my body was going to explode. When my mom finally told me everything, it was kind of a relief once I got used to the idea.”

“I’m trying to imagine what it would be like to learn something that big that far into life. I’ve known I was a shifter for as long as I can remember. Painter has a pretty large shifter community, so it’s impossible to be one around here and not know and hear about others. It seems like it would have been lonely to learn the way you did.”

“I suppose it was, but there’s not much I can do about it now. That’s a big part of why I came to Painter. My mom told me I’d be able to meet other shifters here. I know they’re probably everywhere, but I wanted to come to the place where my family came from.”

Sophia nodded. “Shifters are everywhere, but Painter and a few other communities are strongholds. My family moved here a few generations back from Catamount, Maine, which is where shifters were first born. I’m allegedly a descendant of a founding shifter family.”

Daniel couldn’t help the curl of curiosity. He wanted to know so much, it was difficult to corral his questions. Sophia didn’t seem to mind and happily answered anything he asked about the shifter community. Dinner passed quickly. Before he knew it, Sophia was clearing plates from the table and loading them in the dishwasher. He stood up from the table and carried their empty wineglasses to hand to her. Her fingers brushed his, and a jolt of lust rocked him. The current between them never died out. It ebbed and flowed, but it was always present.

Her dark hair swung over her shoulder as she leaned down and placed the two glasses in the dishwasher before she closed it. She wore a pair of black leggings and a fitted emerald green t-shirt. She’d kicked off her cowboy boots by the door. She turned to face him, her hands curling on the edge of the counter. His heart pounded, strong and steady. The simmer of lust within threatened to boil over. He itched to grab her, toss her over his shoulder and carry her straight to the bedroom. Daisy, who happened to occupy most of the floor, stretched and sighed.

Daniel met Sophia’s eyes, that gorgeous green gaze, and saw desire darken them. He stepped around Daisy and reached for Sophia’s hand. The moment his palm closed around hers, the pounding beat of lust intensified. He didn’t care to bother to take things slowly just now. Though not a word passed between them, her dark gaze and the rapid flutter of the pulse in her wrist told him what he needed to know. He turned and stepped past Daisy, Sophia’s hand firmly in his. When he reached her bedroom door, he glanced over his shoulder. She reached past him and gave the door a soft push. He stepped through with her right behind him. He didn’t wait and turned to face her, fitting his mouth over hers.

The embers inside flashed into white-hot flames as she arched into him and gasped against his mouth. He swept his tongue inside, emitting a low growl when her tongue met his stroke for stroke. He flattened a palm against the door behind her as he tore his lips from hers, licking and nipping his way down her neck. He could barely keep himself in check when he curled a palm around her breast and felt the tight bead of her nipple through the thin cotton of her t-shirt.

His lion simmered under his skin, rumbling for more.
Now.
He needed to taste her, to know every inch of her. The next few moments passed in a frantic blur. He tore at her clothes, ripping her t-shirt down the center and shoving her leggings down. She was as frantic as he was, shoving his t-shirt up and tossing it across the room. She swiftly unbuttoned his jeans and started to slide her palm around his cock, but he couldn’t be distracted just yet.

He hooked a hand under her knee and stroked a finger into her cleft. Her head slammed against the door behind her as her breath came out in a long hiss. She was drenched, so wet all he could think about was how good it would feel to be inside of her. Somehow, he grabbed onto a thin thread of control. He might be teetering on the edge of madness, but he meant to make her forget everything but him, to imprint himself on her as deeply as she’d already imprinted herself on him. The beat of lust pounded through him as he slowly dragged his fingers back and forth through her folds. When he eased one finger and then another into her channel, she clenched around him.

He knelt down, glancing up for a moment as he did. Her dark hair fell in a tangle around her shoulders. Her dusky nipples peeked out through the curtain of her hair. Her full breasts were enough to bring him to his knees, so it was good he was already there. Her breath came in pants and gasps. Her eyes flickered open, her gaze hazy with passion. Holding her eyes until the last moment, he leaned forward and brought his mouth to her center. Her hips bucked against him. He gripped her hips with one hand, savoring the give of her flesh under his grip, and set out to taste and pleasure every inch of her. Her breath came in broken gasps and low moans. He licked and stroked, establishing a steady rhythm with his fingers. Her thighs were wet from her own desire and her head thrashed against the door. Her channel began to throb around his fingers. Only then did he swirl his tongue around her the nub of her desire once more. Her cries rained down over him as he dragged his fingers out and slowly rose.

***

Daniel fumbled in his pocket for a condom, while Sophia shoved his jeans down around his hips. She was almost out of her mind with need despite the fact he’d just brought her to an earth-shattering orgasm that was still rippling through her body. She needed him to be inside of her.
Now.
His strong palm curled under her thigh and lifted it high once he had rolled a condom on. His eyes lifted and caught hers. For a moment, he held still, the head of his cock resting at her entrance. That single moment sent flames roaring through her, the need to be one with him ran so deep she could hardly bear it. Just when she thought he’d give in to what she needed and fill her, he dragged his cock back and forth in her slick folds with each pass sending streaks of pleasure through her.

When a moan broke from her throat, he leaned forward swiftly and caught her lips in a searing kiss. He pulled away with a growl when she arched her hips into him. Lost in his dark gaze, she gasped in relief when he finally sank into her. He plunged in deeply and lifted her knee higher. She curled her legs around his hips and held on when he started to move. He didn’t hold back and surged into her in long, deep, pounding strokes. The door rattled behind her. He held her easily in his arms as he drummed into her, notching her higher and higher, pressure gathering in a wild storm inside. Another climax tore through her, a hoarse cry following. With a low growl, he surged into her one last time, his body going rigid and then shuddering. His head fell to her shoulder. Their breath came in mingled gasps as he held her against him.

He slowly lifted his head and adjusted his hold on her before stepping away from the door and carrying her into the bathroom. He nudged the light on with his elbow and reached into the shower with one hand to turn it on, all the while holding her firmly against him. She didn’t ever want him to let go. A small corner of her was terrified at the depth of feeling he elicited. The rest of her simply wanted to savor the feeling. He slowly eased his hold on her hips, and she slid down his body. He quickly disposed of his condom and tugged her into the shower with him.

A while later, she rested beside Daniel in bed. Daisy was snoring audibly at the foot of the bed. Sophia’s palm was resting on Daniel’s chest, and she could feel the slow and steady beat of his heart. His arm curled around her, resting on the curve of her hip to hold her close. A sense of deep comfort stole over her as she drifted off to sleep.

Chapter 10

Daniel followed Sophia into her parents’ home. After he’d dropped her off at work this morning, she’d texted him to ask if he wanted to talk with her mother this afternoon. He paused on the porch of the farmhouse and turned to look out over the small valley nearby. The sun glinted off a small stream winding through the corner of the valley. A mountain ridge rose tall on the far side, shading a cluster of aspen. A magpie burst out of the trees at the side of the house and swooped to land on the porch railing within arms length of Daniel. He heard the door opening and turned to face it. The woman who must be Sophia’s mother gave Sophia a quick hug and stepped to Daniel, her smile beaming. She had dark hair streaked with silver and warm brown eyes. She wore a flowing skirt of gauzy green fabric that twirled around her ankles. She’d paired the skirt with a loose white blouse. Hammered silver hoops swung at her ears, and silver bracelets jangled as she reached for his hands and squeezed them.

“You must be Daniel. I’m Lila Ashworth, Sophia’s mother. It’s so good to have you here in Painter.” Her eyes were warm. Daniel felt as if she could see right through him.

“It’s good to be here. Thank you for having me.”

Lila loosened her hands when the magpie on the railing started chattering. It appeared as if the bird was speaking to her. She released Daniels’ hands entirely and put her hands on her hips, eyeing the magpie. “Oh really? I already gave you one snack today.”

Daniel glanced to Sophia who grinned and shrugged. The magpie chattered again and pecked at the railing. Lila stepped to the door beside which there was a decorative copper bucket with a lid. She reached inside and came out with a handful of cracked corn. She proceeded to feed the magpie who pecked daintily from her hand.