The Purrfect Stranger (3 page)

And she was human. More than that, she was a mage. A failed mage, by her own account, but still a magic user.

And didn’t that set all his beliefs on their ear?

Keith started to laugh.

“What’s so funny?” She looked adorably dazed as he held her loosely in his arms.

He dropped a kiss on her forehead, then hugged her close, swaying side to side. His heart was so light he couldn’t keep still. He’d never been giddy before, but he figured that was the best word he had to describe the incredible feeling singing through his blood.

“All my life I’ve fought against magic,” he whispered near her ear, enjoying the feel of her soft body in his arms.

“And now?” She sounded worried enough that he felt the need to reassure her.

He drew back and looked deep into her eyes, wondering if she understood the importance of this moment. Disappointment filled him when he realized she probably didn’t. She was human after all. Of magic blood, but still human.

“I give in,” he replied, hoping she understood his meaning. He tried to think of a way to make her understand, but words failed him. She would figure it out in time. Hopefully sooner rather than later. He’d start tonight and do his best to make her realize the singular truth that kept running through his mind. “There’s no fighting fate.”

She smiled, an odd expression on her lovely face that said she wasn’t quite sure what he was talking about but was willing to see where he led. That was enough for now. Keith tucked her under his arm and walked toward the cars.

“I think it’s time for that nightcap.”

He didn’t give her the opportunity to move away. He wouldn’t let her out of his sight until morning if he had his way. And even then, not for long. He was a cat on a mission. He had a lady to win and the challenge had already begun.

“Shall we take your car?” He didn’t want to give her time to think.

He wanted to keep her in the compliant mood she was in. He didn’t want her having second thoughts. Not now. Not when she’d already made him purr with a simple little kiss.

What would happen when he was inside her? The anticipation made him impatient to learn and eager to begin the journey of discovery. He’d enjoy this. He’d enjoy her. And he’d make certain she enjoyed every single, memorable, life-altering moment, even if he had to use one of his nine lives to do it. She was going to scream his name in ecstasy before the night was through, even if it killed him.

“What about your car?”

“It’ll be safe enough here. I can always jog back to pick it up.”

“But you don’t even know how far away I live.” She was laughing at his eagerness, he knew, but it was the compliant laugh of a woman who was on the same wavelength.

They were simpatico in this adventure. He could smell it on the breeze and the delectable scent of her feminine arousal. She wanted him. And he wanted her more than any women he’d ever met.

He’d bedded his share, but if legend was to be believed, this might be the first night of the rest of his life. His first night with the lover he would keep ’til the end of their days.

Goddess willing.

Cats loved to roam, but at some point having a different woman every week grew old. Shifters were blessed with superior genetics and the big cat varieties seemed to be more suave than most. It hadn’t been hard for Keith to find playmates in the past, but he’d given up those youthful ways a few years ago in favor of building a home he’d be proud to share with his wife and family one day.

For the past few years he’d been concentrating on work and searching for that special someone among humans and shifters alike. He’d never dated a witch before, but he was willing to go to whatever lengths fate demanded to find his one true mate.

And find her he had. Or so he believed. He’d know for certain after tonight. After he’d made love to her and tasted her all over. Then, he would know for sure. Although he was willing to bet most of his personal fortune right here and now that this little failed witch was the only woman for him.

He let her lead him through the parking lot, following the subtle tugs on his arm as she headed for her car. If he guessed right, hers was the cream colored Jag in the corner of the dimly lit lot. How appropriate.

“Where do you live?” he asked, trying to keep her busy so she couldn’t possibly rethink inviting him into her home.

He wasn’t a bloodletter who needed an invitation to cross someone’s threshold, but he did have manners. If she said no at any point along the way, he’d have to respect her wishes, though he’d do his best to seduce her into changing her mind.

“Do you know the Ravenwood development?” She fished her keys out of her purse as they neared the expensive car. He’d been right. She drove a car named for a big cat species. What were the odds?

He started to laugh when she named the decade old upscale housing development. She looked at him oddly as he allowed her to escape from his loose embrace near the driver’s side door of the low-slung luxury car.

“Know it? I built it. Ravenwood was my first job in this area when I joined the Clan’s construction firm.”

“Redstone Construction.” Her voice held a note of discovery. “Of course your name sounded familiar.” She smiled in a way that eased his mind. Redstone was better than most firms, but there was the occasional homeowner that blamed every little problem on the guys who built the house. “I had no idea there were shapeshifters involved.”

“We’re more than involved. Almost everyone in the company is a shifter of one kind or another. My cousin, Grif, heads the firm and the Clan. He’s the Clan Alpha. I’m the local Alpha. There aren’t a lot of cougars here, but the few who call this little burg home answer to me.”

He felt some pride in that title and he was concerned it might sound like conceit. He wondered if she realized that not every man was cut out to be Alpha. Of course, he’d had to overcome more than most.

“You’re an Alpha?” She sounded suitably impressed, which stroked his ego, even if she wasn’t fully aware what the title entailed. Yet. She would be. That, he vowed.

“I don’t normally talk about these kinds of things with non-shifters, but I feel…” He paused as they stood by the driver’s side door, facing each other in the dim light of the parking lot.

“What do you feel, Keith?” Her voice was a throaty whisper that set his every last nerve ending on perilously sensual edge. If she kept that up, he wouldn’t be responsible for the show they’d put on in this very public place.

“I feel something between us, Valerie.” Dare he speak the unvarnished truth? He never had before with a woman. He’d always played the courtship game. But Valerie was different. So different. He had to start as he meant to go on with her. She was already too important to him—possibly to his future. “I think we could be on the brink of something momentous here.”

“You feel it too?” Her shocked whisper went right to his heart. And other places.

“Take me home, Valerie. Let’s see where this leads.” He wanted to say more, to coax her if necessary, but it wasn’t necessary.

She grabbed him by the collar and drew him down for a lingering kiss. She’d surprised him with the bold move but he was with her. He drew her close into his arms and locked lips in a way that sent them both skyrocketing toward the stars.

Headlights bouncing off the walls around them intruded on the moment. Keith drew back, far enough gone to want to pursue this boldness of hers as far as it would lead, but level headed enough to know that he didn’t want their first time to be in the corner of a dingy parking lot.

No. He wanted their first time to be special. He wanted to invade her lair and conquer her in her own bed, staking his claim. He wanted to let her know in the most primitive way possible that she would belong to him after this night. Forevermore.

There was that word again. Forever. She had to be the one. The purr pulsing through his human chest was back and it felt good. So damn good.

“Let’s go to your place.” He drew away reluctantly and she swayed satisfyingly on her feet.

“I thought you’d never ask.” Her giggle was girlish and enchanting. On her, every little feminine gesture was entrancing. She was like catnip to a housecat. A drug he never wanted to run out of.

Chapter Four

The drive to her place took less time than he would have imagined. Seems little Miss Prim had a lead foot and Indy 500 skills when she wanted to get somewhere. She waved her little fingers at the traffic lights and they all turned green. Now that was a neat trick.

Much to his satisfaction, the engine of the Jag purred like the beast it was proving to be under the hood. He really liked her choice of wheels. Almost as much as he liked the way she handled the expensive vehicle with cool competence and sexy confidence.

She pulled into the development he’d once known so well. It had changed significantly since he’d signed off on the last of the homes over a decade ago.

“Boy, this place has changed.” Keith noted the giant trees that bordered the streets and gave the whole place a grove-like feel. Something tingled along his spine as they crossed through the ornamental gate. If he’d been in cat form, his hackles would have risen. In human form, he merely shivered and jumped slightly in his seat. “What was that?”

“You felt the shield?” She looked at him as she guided the sleek car down the tree lined street.

“Shield?” He had only a vague notion what she was talking about. “Like a magical shield?”

“Yes.” She nodded slightly. “It’s not generally known, but every house in this development is owned by a mage of some sort. Did you build it with mages in mind? It was really ideal for magical folk and most of the houses were snapped up within days of going up for sale.”

“You’re kidding.” He began to feel as if eyes were watching him from every window, the interloping shifter in the midst of a mage-only community.

“Relax. I’ll protect you. Even if I have little magic of my own, my last name carries a lot of weight. Cousin Suzy lives a few houses down and Bill never has any problem in our neighborhood. I wouldn’t have brought you here if I thought it would cause trouble.”

How did she know so accurately what he’d been thinking? Damn, they were already more in tune with each other than he’d expected. If she wasn’t the One, he’d eat his own tail.

“So does magic have something to do with how these trees grew so quickly? I planted a few of these myself and I can guarantee they were the next best thing to seedlings when they went in. Now they look as if they’ve been here fifty years or more.”

“Yes, that’s Julie’s doing. She has a gift for growing things. Especially trees. She lives across the street from me.” She turned into a driveway that led to one of the mini mansions that made up this sprawling, upscale development.

“You’re kidding. This is your house?” Keith shook his head in wonder. What were the odds?

“Yes. Why?” She turned to face him once the car had been silenced and the keys were in her hand.

“This is the model house I lived in while the rest of the development went up. I loved the view from the back balcony.”

“I love that view too.” She sounded both surprised and amused. “I can’t believe it. So this is like coming home to you then.”

“In a way. Of all the houses I’ve built and lived in while I built others, I missed this one the most. It was perfect. From the landscaping—which I can see you haven’t changed much except to add way more flowers—to the woods along the back of the property edging the lake. I used to prowl down there when I needed to run.”

“I can imagine. The woods back there are filled with protective magic. Probably your doing, now that I know the flavor of shifter magic.”

“Magic has flavors?” He was amused by the idea. Shifters were the ones always being accused of assigning scents, sounds, smells and flavors to everything since their senses were so much sharper than everyone else.

“I may not be good at
doing
magic, but I have all the sensitivity of anyone in my family.” She seemed slightly offended and he regretted teasing her. Magic was obviously as sensitive a subject for her as it was for him.

She hopped out of the car before he could reply and he followed. Quick as a flash he was around the car, at her side. He coaxed her to face him with a gentle hand on her shoulder.

“Look, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean anything by that remark.”

She smiled only a little stiffly. “It’s okay. You just hit one of my hot buttons. It was hard growing up in my Clan without magic.”

“And it was hard growing up in my Clan being able to see magic,” he admitted. He didn’t want to get into his difference from most other shifters, but he owed her. He’d hurt her with his thoughtless words and he needed to make up for it.

“I meant to ask you about that. Do all shifters have magesight?”

“Is that what you call it?” He moved his fingers to her soft cheek, stroking slightly. His eyes narrowed on the little sparks of light he could see dancing over her skin wherever he touched.

“What do you see?” Her words were the merest whisper in the dark of the night.

They were standing in the middle of her driveway, the path to the house to their right. The towering trees and long distance to the road kept them from being seen by the neighbors unless they really tried. It felt like in the whole world, only the two of them existed.

“A rainbow of light, wherever I touch you.” His voice had dropped to the same intimate whisper.

Valerie’s hand moved to cup his cheek and her eyes followed the motion. “I see the same thing wherever I touch you. Do you feel it tingle?”

“Straight to my—” he cleared his throat and stepped back, breaking the spell. “Sorry.”

He was actually embarrassed by the reply he’d cut off so abruptly. Hanging around with construction workers all day, every day, had removed the filter that should have been between his brain and his mouth. At least around women. Keith cursed himself inwardly. He was about as smooth as gravel.

Valerie’s giggle surprised him. His gaze shot to hers and he could see she wasn’t completely appalled by what he’d almost said. If anything, she looked flushed with a sort of conspiratorial agreement.