“Shit. When they start thinking, you're in real trouble.” The slight grin on Tersch's face relieved him.
Jules didn't want to fight Tersch, but Tersch needed to know Sheridan belonged. He glanced from his friend to his mate. Maybe her Circ traits had convinced Tersch to give her the respect she was due.
“Then again, I think you're in over your head with this one anyway,” Tersch added, his smile disappearing. “How do you know she's not working for Montaña?” Sheridan inhaled sharply. “I would never help that man do anything, let alone join with him to hurt Jules.” When Tersch simply shrugged, Sheridan's voice rose.
“Screw you. And get the hell out of my lab.”
The ferocity of her anger had the bite of the beast, enough so that Tersch straightened, glanced warily at Jules, then left without another word.
“Baby, you said you've been thinking?” Jules couldn't have been more pleased.
Every time he saw another facet of his mate, his beast purred with contentment. So strong, so his.
She watched Tersch's retreating back. “Ah, yes. Yes, I was thinking.” She turned to face him and cleared her throat. “We've never gone out on a date. I think we should have one.”
Things looked better than ever. Jules smiled. “Just what I was thinking. Let's get through this meeting with Mrs. Sharpe, and then we'll have some alone time.
Out of the bedroom,” he added before she could complain they had nothing but sex in common.
He didn't see the problem with their physical compatibility, but only because he trusted his beast's instincts. He
knew
, without a doubt, that Sheridan belonged to him. She'd turned Circ for him. She'd healed him. She turned him on the way no one ever had. Despite all his adventurous sex with his team and their mates, only sex with Sheridan involved the depths of his soul.
Jules had never believed in soul mates, but with Sheridan, he knew.
“Why are you looking at me like that?” she asked in a soft voice, her blue eyes clear of guile.
He couldn't help himself and glanced at her aura. It still glowed a bright, neon purple—that of a woman in love.
“Like what?” Jules asked, knowing he wore a dopey smile on his face.
He guided her out of the lab and up to where Mrs. Sharpe and the others waited in the conference room.
“Like you…” Sheridan blushed. “Never mind.”
Jules squeezed her to him and kissed the top of her head. “Soon as we're done with this meeting, put on a dress. We're going somewhere nice. Just you and me.”
* * *
And the rest of the team, apparently. Did Jules honestly think Sheridan hadn't seen Tersch disappear around the corner into a booth with one of the psychic guys, who wore an obnoxious baseball cap? Or that Morgan and Hayashi, coupled with Fallon and Olivia at a booth several feet away, weren't noticeable?
“I thought we were going out alone?” she murmured as they sat in the back corner of the Islander, an upscale seafood restaurant near Atlantic Beach, just half an hour from the mansion.
“We are alone. The others are here for our protection, I swear.” Jules took her hand across the table and rubbed it in soft circles.
Her blood heated from just his touch. The vanilla musk always surrounding him deepened, and she drew in a jagged breath.
“Yeah, I know,” he whispered. “I feel it too.”
The love? Is that what he feels? Or the incredible intimacy between the two of
us, despite the crowded restaurant?
“You're so beautiful.”
She blinked. “Me? You think I'm beautiful?”
Jules chuckled and brought her hand to his lips. “Honey, your hair is the stuff of fantasies. First time I saw it tied up in that ponytail, I wanted to rip the band away. The sight of your hair over my stomach when you're going—”
“Jules,” she hissed.
He grinned. “Well, the sight of all that thick hair gets to me. And your eyes are special. So blue. And of course, though I hate to be a typical guy and say I'm hot for your body, I am. Very, very hot.” He cleared his throat and let her go. Then he drained a glass of water in one long swallow.
She blushed, thrilled he was so attracted. “I still don't know why.”
“You're oblivious.”
“To what?”
He sighed. “It's probably for the best. Sheridan, the minute we walked in here, every guy gave you a look. I can't blame them. That blue dress really shows off your curves. You have the nicest ass I've ever seen. And don't get me started on your breasts.”
She huffed. “Okay, okay. I get it. You're weird. You like redheads with big butts, big boobs, and pasty skin.”
He chuckled. “Good. You keep thinking I'm weird and not that you're a bombshell with killer curves. Then I won't have to kill any of the assholes making eyes at you.”
She took a sip of her own water and pretended she believed him. The waiter appeared, and they ordered their food. When he left, Sheridan jumped into the discussion that was long overdue.
“Jules, I've wanted to talk to you for a while.”
“I'm right here, sweetheart. Talk away.”
Why did he have to call her
sweetheart
and
baby
? On his lips, they weren't putdowns or platitudes but endearments. Jules made her feel treasured, cared for, almost…loved. Sheridan studied his face and his eyes, searching for the truth. What did he really feel for her? When he said she belonged to him, what did that really mean?
They barely knew each other, and they'd met under unfortunate circumstances. Physical chemistry wasn't enough to base a relationship on. I know that, she reminded the animal inside her wanting to leap across the table and sate herself with his rock-hard body.
His eyes flashed, the pupils narrowing as he studied her.
“Your beast, hmm?” he asked softly.
“She's in there. I want to call it an
it
, but she won't let me.” Sheridan shook her head. “But you're distracting me. I wanted to talk about us.”
“Good. So do I.”
She frowned. “You do?”
“Sheridan, I really like you, but I have the sense you don't like me.” She blinked. This wasn't how she'd envisioned their conversation. “Excuse me?”
He shifted in his seat and glanced away. His lips quirked, and she had the uneasy suspicion he might be laughing at her.
“Are you—”
“Sheridan, I have real feelings for you,” he said in a low voice. “I've tried telling you about me, hoping you'd do the same. But you won't talk to me.”
“Probably because whenever we're together we make lo—”
“Your salads,” the waiter said as he set down their plates. The minute he left, Sheridan leaned closer.
“I'm talking to you now.”
Oh wow, he looks hurt. Like I hurt his feelings or
something
. “Are you okay?”
“Am I? Sheridan, do you even like me?” His earnest expression took her aback, and she realized he might feel as awkward about their combustible lust as she did.
“I do like you.” She did. A lot. More than was healthy.
He’s mine.
Clamping down on her beast, she smiled at him. “You're protective, responsible, a leader of men. You have integrity and a decent sense of humor.” She thought about what she knew of him and continued. “You're really good in bed.
Really, really good.”
Man, understatement of the year.
He smiled at her, and his eyes twinkled. The rest of the room disappeared.
Only Jules mattered.
“You're too good for me.” She sighed, depressed at thoughts of him eventually leaving her.
He blinked. “What?”
“Jules, I'm a realist. I work with plants, and I like my job. Why? Because I don't have to deal with people. I'm honest, sometimes brutally so. I try to be nice, but I have a bad habit of just saying what I think without filtering first. I don't dress as fashionably as Olivia and will never look even half as good in jeans as Ava does. I'm not fond of sports, though I do like to run. And you'll never see a six-pack on my belly.”
My jiggly belly
. She frowned and touched her stomach. Actually, come to think of it, she'd felt firmer since her change into the beast.
“None of that matters.” Jules waved away her concerns. “Sheridan, I'm not normal.” He lowered his voice. “I have a dangerous job. And I'm a lot more than a regular guy.” He paused. “I'm Circ. I have to be to survive the mating heats. I've been with women—and
men
.” He seemed to be waiting for a reaction.
Unfortunately, she couldn't drum up the disgust he seemed to be looking for.
Good Lord. The thought of Jules doing the other Circs made her wet. He was a sexual male, and she loved his dominance.
His nostrils flared, and he smiled, showing a hint of fang he quickly covered.
“See? That's why you and I work. You can accept what I am. I'm different, and I always will be. I'm in charge because I have to be.” He lowered his voice to a whisper. “And you like that.”
God, yes, do I
. She coughed and took a sip of her water. Then a sudden thought came to her. “Have you and Tersch…?”
“Yeah. A lot. And with the others too. I'm the leader, an alpha. Sex bonds us.
The team, I mean.”
She flushed, suddenly wet and wishing they were anywhere but here.
He exhaled hard. “Man, you smell good. So I take it that doesn't bother you?”
“Olivia and Ava too?”
“Olivia, not Ava. She's not one of us.”
That’s what you think
. “Olivia, hmm?”
He didn't look away from her, and the lack of his discomfort somehow made it easier to accept. “Olivia's happily mated to Fallon. She's a part of my team now. But I don't want to spend the rest of my life with her as my mate. She knows her place among us, and being with her is almost intrusive now, especially with the baby coming.
“Sheridan, I know this sounds really out there, but we're not human. We're Circ, and Circs have unusual needs.”
Though Sheridan didn't like the thought of Jules with Olivia, her beast accepted it. Just the notion that Jules had kissed Olivia bothered the crap out of her; jealousy reared its ugly head. Yet her beast urged her to understand the necessity of the Circ bonding process.
A glance over to her right showed Olivia sitting with Fallon, her arm around his shoulder. The woman was clearly in love with her mate. Though she'd expressed affection for Jules, she didn't seem flirty or more than friendly with him.
“So you're not in love with her?” As soon as she said it, Sheridan hastily corrected, “I mean, you're not involved with any of your team that way? Like mates, right?”
“We're all a team. The longer you're with us, the better you'll see how we function. I'd give my life for any of them. We've been through some tough stuff, danger, pain, loss. But now Fallon has Olivia, and Hayashi has Morgan, as irritating as he can be.”
They shared a smile.
“Two of us have bonded, but Tersch and I are still alone. Or at least, Tersch is.” Jules grasped her hand again, his energy snaking into her palm. “Sheridan, I want to know everything about you. I know you like vanilla and not chocolate. That you're sexy as hell but still innocent, no matter what we've done.” He grinned at her blush. “You're a tremendous healer. Your gift is much of who you are. Giving, caring, unselfish. That's why I fell in love with you, Sheridan. That's why I mated you and why I want to marry you. We have the rest of our lives to learn about each other. I want to get started with you by my side.”
The waiter chose that moment to return to their table, and Jules wanted to strangle him. Fortunately, the guy had enough sense to back away with a hasty excuse.
Sheridan's blue eyes were huge as she stared at him, her full lips parted in amazement.
The violet in her aura hadn't changed. He knew she loved him, but he couldn't understand why she thought he'd reject her. The woman had guts, a kind heart, the mind of a genius, and the body of a goddess. Why
wouldn’t
he want to marry her?
“You love me? You want to m-marry me?”
“Yes. The sooner the better.”
“But Jules, we don't know each other.”
“What do I need to know about you that I don't already know?” he asked.
She sputtered, looking both adorable and sexy in that dark blue sundress that showed off her generous cleavage. “We might have nothing in common!”
“Opposites attract. And besides, we have several things in common.” He held up a hand and ticked off his fingers. “One, we both like to run. Two, we both get bigger when we're excited,” he said with a wicked smile, startling another blush out of her. “Three, we're both loyal to friends, and we fight to protect the innocent.”
“That's four things, not three,” she corrected in a soft voice. “Jules, I don't know. It's not rational. We barely know each other. We've spent less than a week together at most.”
“Love isn't rational. I love you, Sheridan. How do you feel about me?” She didn't answer, but her aura glowed like a beacon. “That's not the point,” she said after a pause.
“That's exactly the point. You love me. I can see it.”
“What?”
“I can see auras. And yours is violet any time you're near me,” he said with satisfaction. “The same way Olivia and Fallon are, and Morgan and Hayashi are.” She blew out a breath. “God. This is so embarrassing.”
“What? Knowing that the woman I love loves me back? Baby, it's magic, and it's right. Why can't you let yourself just go with it?”
“Because it's new and it's scary. Hell,
I’m
scary. I've always been different, Jules. But now I'm beyond different.”
He understood that all too well. “I could always read auras, Sheridan. Never quite fit in with the crowd. But now I'm with others the same way. Fallon reads minds, Olivia reads emotions, Hayashi can see the future, and Tersch is like some damned berserker out of Viking legend. Morgan steals energy. None of us are normal, but we all have something in common. We fight the good fight, and we fight it together. We're family.” He smiled at her, his heart so full, it hurt. “Sheridan, I want to be your family.”
Her eyes filled. “Man, you're good.”
He laughed.
“You seem a little too perfect. I keep waiting for the other shoe to drop.” She rapped her fingers on the table. “What about my research? It's important to me. I might want to continue it.”