be alone though. I have a feeling Mitchell won’t leave your side. And isn’t that what you’ve wanted all along?”
“But-”
“Shhh.” He kissed her again, then stood to walk away. As he went to pass Mitchell, he grasped his good arm, and tugged him into the hall.
“Going to kiss me good-bye too, cat?” Naomi’s brother mocked.
“You wish, dog. I just wanted to ask you to take care of her while I’m gone. I don’t know how long it’s going to take to hunt the bastard down, but I’m not going to be back until I know she’s safe.”
“Is this your way of bowing out and avoiding any scenes? How classy and predictable.”
A snarl rose to Alejandro’s lips and he shoved his forearm across Mitchell’s throat, ramming him up against the wall. He kept his words low so Francine wouldn’t hear him. “Listen here, and listen well. I care for Francine. Actually, that’s an understatement. I am in love with her, and I want to claim her. Do you hear me, claim her as in forever. So don’t think I’m not coming back, dog, because I am, and when I do, I will mark her. But because I love her, I’m asking you to watch over her while I’m gone. She needs someone to hold her and tell her it’s going to be okay and despite the fact you’re an idiot, she’d probably really like it if that person was you.”
“You don’t need to tell me what she needs. I have no intention of leaving her side, possibly ever again. So what are you going to do about that, cat? Still going to come back now knowing you’re going to have competition? Or are you going to use this as your out so you can keep fucking your way across the country?”
Alejandro released him and stepped back, shaking his head with a light smile. “If you meant to scare me, try again. A threesome doesn’t frighten me. Can you say the same though? I can’t think of more fun than taking turns making love to her receptive body. The better question is, can you handle it? You’d better come up with an answer before I get back.” Alejandro turned to leave, but he couldn’t resist one parting shot. “Oh, and if you do decide to seduce her, she likes it when you bite down on her earlobe as you take her. Makes her go freakn’ wild.”
He chuckled as Mitchell’s face turned red from embarrassment and desire. Hopefully, his hunt for the human who dared cross him wouldn’t take long because Alejandro looked forward to the fireworks to come, both in and out of the bedroom.
Returning to the bedroom, Mitchell seethed at the cat’s words, but his anger receded in the face of Francine looking so small and helpless in the big bed. Of course, he should have known her tongue was in fine fighting shape.
“Are you guys done pissing on Naomi’s walls? Or would you like to each grab one of my legs and pull me apart like a wishbone and see who gets the bigger piece?”
“You must be feeling better. You’re trying to rip a strip off me,” he remarked in a dry tone as he sat on the edge of the bed beside her. “Move over, you bed hog.”
“No. I’m the injured one here.”
“Excuse me? Do you think I’m wearing this bandage because it’s fashionable?”
She peered over at him, her eyes lingering more on his nude torso than his bandage, which made him puff up his chest. “Wuss. My bandage is bigger than yours,” she sassed, but she inched over a bit.
He slid down on the bed until he lay beside Francine, his head on the edge of the same pillow. Her eyes didn’t meet his for long, focusing instead again on the white strips binding him. Then, as if unable to resist, her gaze strayed to the rest of his bare chest, heating him without a single touch. Mitchell grew hard under her regard, and cursed his loose track pants, which made that point all too evident. He tried to cover it with his hand but that just drew her attention to it.
“Nice wood. Hope you don’t usually whack off with your left hand,” she said with a snicker.
“You have a filthy mouth, Francine.”
“All the better to do wicked things with. Hey, weren’t you supposed to be tied to a bed somewhere to make sure you didn’t get out and reopen your own gunshot wound?”
He shrugged. “They tried, but when I heard you got hurt, I kind of broke the bed to come see you.” Which hurt like a fucking bitch, but he lost his freakn’ mind when he heard about Francine’s injury.
“Ah, isn’t that the sweetest thing, but stop trying to distract me. What did you and Alejandro discuss?”
“He’s leaving and told me to take care of you.” He didn’t bother lying.
“What? He wasn’t serious, was he? He could get hurt.”
Again, his shoulders lifted in dismissal while at the same time, irritation filled him that she seemed to care so much about the cat’s wellbeing.
“What is it with you guys and the macho bullshit about taking responsibility? Just because some psycho fixated on Jag doesn’t mean it’s his fault. Did he say how long he’ll be gone?”
“He didn’t. But, honestly, do you really think he’s coming back?”
She bit her lip and didn’t reply, but he saw the tears in her eyes. A twinge of guilt made him sigh and say, “I’m sure it will only be a day or so. Long enough to catch the human and stop him from hurting anyone else. But, you won’t be alone. I’m not leaving your side.”
“Gee, lucky me,” she grumbled.
“What happened to we’re meant to be together forever?” He said it in a teasing tone, but a part of him held his breath waiting for her reply, hoping he’d not completely fucked things up. Tied to a bed, with only his thoughts for company-his lonely state probably caused by him yelling at everyone to get out-left a man with way too much time to think. Hours to sift through his emotions and visualize one person over and over, and not just naked in his bed, but in his life, as a friend and lover.
He’d finally caught the damned mating fever and like a mask lifted from his eyes, he could now see Francine in a new light. See the merits in mating with someone who knew him and his family and didn’t run in fear. Appreciate the fact that she shared some of his same interests like watching sports and even playing them. Snicker with pride over the way one tiny girl used her tongue and rapier wit to defend herself. And most of all, he finally saw her as more than the pig-tailed torment who’d tackled him so many times he vowed never to play football again. He looked at her and saw…perfection.
Startled from his musings, he heard her reply. “I gave up on you as a mate. Too much work. And besides, you’re grumpy. I don’t need to wake up to that every day.”
He frowned. “I am not grumpy.”
“Are too.”
“Am not.”
“Are too.”
“Children, behave!” shouted Naomi from the hall.
“Am not,” he whispered.
She elbowed his injured side, and he sucked in a breath. “Ow! That wasn’t nice.”
“Pussy.”
“Shrew.”
She snickered. “Shrew? Really? That’s the best you could come up with.”
“You’re really annoying sometimes, you know?”
“Only sometimes? I’ll have to try harder then.”
“Or you could shut up. You know, enjoy the sound of silence and rest your gums.”
“Make me.”
What possessed him, he didn’t know. The scent of the cat still lingered on her. He’d not yet resolved what he wanted to do about her. Actually, he had, he wanted her, but he wanted to go about it slowly, cautiously. But still despite all that, he kissed her, a brief touch at first, which sent a jolt of awareness through him and made her gasp. He liked it, liked it a lot actually, and even better, she seemed to as well. So he kissed her again, slanting his mouth over hers, testing its fullness before tugging her lower lip between his for a suck. She parted her mouth, a small moan of need rolling into his. He thrust his tongue into the opening, ran it along the length of hers, tasted her, and wanted more.
