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He watched as she pulled the sheet over her breasts. Her need to hide her nakedness from him made his chest feel heavy, made every instinct he possessed rise in objection.
He’d known about the barb that would lock him to her at the moment of his release. Just as he’d heard of the extreme tightening and milking motions of the female feline Breeds’ vaginas once the barb extended.
The physical pleasure and extreme intensity of each physical reaction, he’d expected.
There were things he hadn’t expected, though.
“So.” She exhaled carefully before sitting up and propping the pillows behind her before leaning back and watching him suspiciously. “I’ll assume you knew that was going to happen when you came?”
The distance in her voice was accompanied by the cool consideration in her gaze.
“Rumors.” He shrugged. “There’s a ban on discussing the true nature of the mating among those who haven’t experienced it yet. There were instances of it in several labs, though, noted by the scientists who discovered the mates.”
No one had mentioned that moment when two mates could see into each other’s souls, though. That moment when their senses merged so completely that hiding exactly who and what one was, would be impossible.
Thankfully, Cat hadn’t expected it either. She’d been too busy trying to slam that door shut to peek into the opened soul of the Breed in that second that he’d been laid bare before her.
“Makes sense.” She nodded. “It could be difficult to explain it if the paparazzi got hold of this information. The vultures would really go crazy then, wouldn’t they?”
Looking down at her nails, she smoothed her fingers over one, and her appearance might be one of discomfort, but he knew the truth was far different. She wasn’t uncomfortable, she was turned within herself, repairing the break in a shield he hadn’t even known she’d placed between them.
It would do her no good. She might have overlooked that glimpse into his soul, but he hadn’t overlooked the one his senses sank into for precious seconds.
If he’d been amazed by the woman, the tigress, she was, then to say he was shocked now was an understatement.
“So, what do we do now?” The hammered gold had faded away; her eyes were now the soft golden brown they normally were.
His brow lifted at her question. “What do you want to do?”
“Leave.” She didn’t even blink when she answered him.
Damn her. She’d turned into a little smart-ass. No, she’d been a smart-ass as a child when the situation warranted it. It just wasn’t something she’d ever turned on him.
“Leave,” he suggested softly. “You have about an hour, maybe two before the physical need for my touch, my kiss, begins to build. According to how stubborn you are, you might make it four to six hours before you find yourself unable to resist returning.”
She nodded slowly.
Damn. Maybe he should have softened the reply. Then he thought of what he’d glimpsed when he saw inside her and he steeled himself against the thought. There was nothing he could say, no explanations he could make at the moment, that was going to soften the scars she carried.
Not even the explanations she was so hungry for would ease the pain she was carrying. That would take more than words.
Turning her gaze back to him, the speculative gleam in her eyes was all the warning he had before she spoke again.
“And you? How long can you stay away?”
Graeme snorted at the question. “If I make it five seconds once it starts, then we’ll both be lucky.”
And that was the damned truth. Now that he’d had her, now that he’d experienced the white-hot fusion of pure pleasure, there was no going back. Hell, he didn’t want to go back. He was kicking his ass for waiting as long as he had.
“Nice of you to warn me,” she said mockingly, the look in her eyes causing him to stare back at her thoughtfully. “And I have no doubt you knew what was coming, didn’t you, Graeme? I guess I should have known to be on guard for the punch line,
so to speak.” Her eyes narrowed on him for one long moment. “I’ll have to see what I can do to even the score now.”
Even at twelve, Cat had been known to strike with swift, accurate results when exacting revenge for a perceived slight.
“Cat . . .”
“But then, warning me never was one of your strong suits, was it?” she pointed out as she lifted her knees and wrapped her arms around them while watching him knowingly.
