“Yup. This kitty doesn’t know how to land on her feet.”
“Nope. But she flashes her pussy so prettily, maybe they won’t notice.” I opened my eyes in time to catch Bae cuff Arin’s shoulder and laugh. Grrr. My hands balled into fists, and my body shook. I’d never hit someone in anger before, but I had a feeling that I soon wouldn’t be able to say that anymore.
“Don’t listen to them. They’re being Poo Bear heads.” Kasim wrinkled his face and winked. I snorted. Poo Bear heads, really? I tried to work it out... Poo Bear was the name of a children’s bear. Children led me to the adult word for poo. The snort turned into a giggle, bringing a smile to Kasim’s face. My heart lurched. His first close-up smile had been a killer even in the low light of dusk, but in the bright light of the room, it was devastating.
He brushed the smudges of floor dust from my arms as he continued to speak only for my ears. “What happened? You were amazing. And then you just...” He shrugged. “If it helps, I know that you can ace this, have those two bozos eating from the palm of your hand.”
His confidence in me pierced a spot I didn’t know I had. After so many years of having people trample my dreams due to all my anxieties, the fact that he didn’t—and after a breakdown—felt foreign. Even when I applied to FUCN’A, despite my grades and obvious expertise in computers and engineering, each person I mentioned my application to told me that it was a long shot, that they didn’t take domestic cats, that I would be the toy mouse for all the big cats.
But looking at Kasim, I wondered, what was wrong with being his toy?
7
Kasim
What in the jungle was I doing? Siding with this tiny mite of a thing against my teammates, my brothers? Yes, we needed her if we were to complete this mission. And more than anything, I wanted to get on with it, get back out into the real world instead of teaching. I could teach later, when the rush of the hunt didn’t flow through my veins.
But as much as I told myself I was only thinking of the mission, the fact that I waited with bated breath for her answer told me I was lying. She’d somehow burrowed herself deep into my fur.
What I really wanted to do was to pick her up, place her on my chest, and stroke her until she purred. That would not go over well, even if my two bozo teammates didn’t exhibit the same weird fascination with her that I did. So instead, I did what I could, asking what the problem was and promising I’d fix it.
She closed her eyes as if she were gathering some internal strength. And then she opened her mouth. Even with my accurate hearing, I had to lean down to catch the words that flowed faster than a rushing waterfall. “—stage fright. Moment people focus on me. Lose my balance, get sick, feel dizzy, sweats. Fine if I can’t see them. N—”
I placed my fingers over her lips, shutting her up, but didn’t remove them when she stopped talking. Underneath my fingers, her lips were soft and plump, kissable. And the warm breath that wrapped itself around my fingers triggered a Pavlovian response with my cock. Shit. I pulled my fingers from her lips as if I’d been burned. Now was not the time to indulge in a little side action. Besides, she wasn’t even my type. I wanted a woman who would fight with me, not cower. I didn’t want a simpering submissive but rather one who wielded the power she had with cunning and skill.
In other words... not Tabitha.
“That’s why you had your eyes closed when you danced.” The fingers I’d removed from her lips tapped against my thigh. “And when Bae spoke, he startled you.” I didn’t need her confirming nod to prove my theory correct. The moment I said it, I knew the truth of it. Shit. That’s why her eyes were closed in those videos. After we’d left Director Cooper’s office, I’d left my teammates to their own devices while I’d searched for dance videos that contained Tabitha. They way she’d turned green and protested in the office had set off all my alarms. I’d expected to find out that she’d been lying about her skill, but that had had been far from the truth.
So how did we fix this? She had the moves, the skills to draw the patrons in. In fact, she would be a shoo-in to be the headline dancer. Her tips alone would be a fortune. Yet none of that would happen unless she could dance with her eyes open. I couldn’t fix that without time. Time she wouldn’t have if we couldn’t show Bae that she had the skills to do the job.
The key was to get her through this showing.
“Use me.”
Her eyes widened. “W-what?”
“Use me. Close your eyes. Dance. But keep a hand on me so that you are grounded. Then you won’t get startled and fall.” I wanted to tell her that she could use me as her stripper pole, but the look on her face when I suggested she use me told me she would have self combusted.
“I-I’m not sure.” She glanced toward the ground. Defeat lined her very stance.
I lifted her chin, wanting to gaze into her green eyes. “You can do this. I believe in you.” I jerked my chin in the direction of Bae and Arin. “Show them you’re made of sterner stuff. I promise that you will have them eating from the palms of your hands.”
I continued to stare into her eyes, pushing every last ounce of confidence into her that I could until she nodded. “Good.” I dropped my hands from her, immediately feeling
