FavoriteObsession (15 page)

Mira sat across the table from the pissed-off shifter. Aron
had one arm stretched over the back of the booth, his fingers tapping out a
rhythm on the ripped vinyl while the other lay fisted on the stained tabletop.
He stared out the window at the parking lot. She followed his gaze. Only Aron’s
SUV and a rusted pickup took up parking spots.

The local diner usually had a decent crowd. However, at
close to midnight on a weeknight, most people were home in bed. That was where
she wanted to be. She couldn’t wait for her dream lover to sweep her away.

“I’m sorry, Mira.”

She glanced at Aron. His gaze remained glued to the parked
truck, but those were the first words he’d spoken since they’d left the bar.
She studied his profile. The tic in his jaw and the fine lines etching his eyes
spoke of his rage. He might be talking, but he hadn’t forgiven her. She couldn’t
blame him. Getting oral sex from one man while on a date with a different one
screamed tacky.

It hadn’t felt wrong at the time. That was the problem. Josh
could do anything to her, anywhere, and she’d walk away with a smile on her
face. Fighting her instincts to be with him proved damn near impossible. Tonight
proved it.

She needed to do some serious soul searching and come up
with a way to end her fascination with Josh. Otherwise… No, she refused to
allow the thought to form.

“For what? I’m the one who should apologize. It was wrong of
me to let things go as far as they had with Josh.” She swallowed past the
guilt. “I didn’t plan on it.”

Aron sighed. “I know. That human is obsessed with you and
you can’t resist him. Putting the two of you in close proximity is asking for
trouble. I don’t blame you for what happened tonight. The fault lies on the
human’s shoulders.”

She straightened in her seat, her elbows on the table. “That
human is Josh. Please use his name.” She waited until Aron inclined his head
marginally. “And you can’t hold him responsible for my actions. Josh cannot
force me into any situation I don’t want to be in. I’m stronger than he is, don’t
forget.”

He snorted and a smile replaced the tight press of his lips.
“I’m not so sure about that. The human—” Aron raised his hand to stop her
correction. “
Josh
is unusually strong and quite…primal. There is
something different about him, but I can’t put my finger on it. My cats are
confused by the male too. They actually view him as a rival.” He shook his
head. “Crazy, I know, but true, nonetheless.”

Aron’s words pleased her. She fought the smile threatening
to break free. Her happiness must’ve shown anyway. Booming laughter filled the
diner.

They sat in the farthest booth from the counter so the
humans wouldn’t hear them unless they shouted. Or laughed with uncontained
amusement. The only other customer was a young redheaded male in ripped jeans
that hung so low on his hips his butt crack showed. The human glanced over his
shoulder. She narrowed her eyes and tried to place his face. He looked
familiar. A local, had to be. The small farming community she called home was a
close-knit group.

Many of the shifters made a point of befriending them by
volunteering at community events or generally being a good neighbor. Rafe even
took it upon himself to make sure the elderly living near them had fresh meals
and company.

Their interest served two purposes. One, the inborn need to
protect the weaker members of their pride or in this case, the citizens of
their hometown. The other, they hoped to make allies in the human world beyond
the ones associated with Shifter Affairs in preparation for the day when their
existence became common knowledge.

The fear among the shifter community and the human
government was a real one. The secret of the nonhuman species who’d lived among
humans for millennia wasn’t one that could be hidden forever. The expression
she’d heard Jazz use fit them the best—shifters were the big pink elephant in
the room everyone ignored.

Once the humans realized exactly what they’d been
associating with? Gods, the thought chilled her.

She studied the male a moment more. He vaguely resembled the
one who’d stopped the confrontation between her and the redheaded female at the
bar. “Do you recognize him?”

Aron turned in his seat. The human dropped his gaze and looked
away. She’d witnessed the reaction countless times over her life. Humans might
not know of the predators living among them—yet. Some part of their psyche,
however, recognized them for what they were and reacted accordingly.

“He was in the bar the night I fought Josh.” He lowered his
voice to a soft whisper. “My cats don’t trust him. He reeks of hatred and
drugs, some of which I’ve never scented before.”

“He’s been staring at me since we walked in.”

“I know.” Aron dismissed the human by turning away. He
focused on her. “Many males do. You’re quite captivating, Mira.”

“It’s annoying.”

He chuckled. “I imagine it’ll become a point of contention
for your mate too. He’ll want to keep you sequestered away for his pleasure.”

She ground her teeth. “He’ll have to deal with it. I’m not
offering a relationship outside the bedroom nor am I offering exclusiveness.”

“You’ll eventually give him everything he demands. It’s our
way.” A cocky grin spread over his face. “Not to worry, sweet Mira, if you
choose me as your mate, I’ll make sure you’re so damn satisfied you won’t ever
want another cock or care to resist my orders.”

The smug look he wore irritated her. She clenched her fists
and fought the release of her claws. Wrong time, wrong place.

“My
breeding partner
will get sex, Aron.” She leveled
a hard look on him, letting him see the truth in her words. “Sex, not love.”

“Love isn’t necessary. You know that as well as I do.” His
grin faded. “And few males allow their women to sleep around on them or live
elsewhere whether they love them or not. Our possessive nature won’t stand for
it.”

“Unless you’re going to beat me or lock me up, you can shove
your
possessive
nature up your ass. Love is the only thing that ensures
shifter mates remain faithful. If you want fidelity, go find your human
one
.”

Aron let his gaze roam over her. After he finished his slow
perusal, he met her eyes. “Not once in my long life have I ever met a human who
stirred me.” He tilted his head, a look of contemplation on his face. “I’ve
often wondered why. Most males at least do a double take when they find one
pleasing to look at.”

She grinned. “So are you telling me you don’t enjoy having a
woman’s legs wrapped around your waist?”

His rumbly laughter filled the diner, drawing the attention
of the redheaded human. Aron whipped his head around and stared at the male.
Whatever look he gave him put the fear of god in the human’s eyes. He threw
money on the counter and hurried out the door. She shifted her attention from
the swinging door to the parking lot. The male jogged to his truck, jumped in
and peeled out.

With the distraction gone, Aron mirrored her pose—elbows on
the table, hands splayed. He inched closer until his fingertips touched hers.
She forced herself to remain still and ignored her growling cats. They’d didn’t
want another male’s touch. They wanted Josh.

Mira stared at where her fingers met Aron’s. She’d made a
horrible mistake tonight. How was she going to be able to choose another male
when her cats had their sight set on one she couldn’t have? Allowing Josh to
pleasure her only intensified the possessiveness they already felt for him.

“You want to pull away. Don’t you, Mira?”

To avoid lying, she asked, “Well, you didn’t answer me.
Don’t you enjoy sleeping with females?” Better to put him the spot rather than
her.

“Yes, I enjoy having a woman’s legs around my waist. I
simply don’t care who they belong to.” He held her gaze, challenging her. “Take
my hands, Mira.”

She gave each of her cats a stern growl, reminding them she
was in charge. Once sure they’d behave, she covered his long fingers. Aron
waited a heartbeat before twining them together. Her breaths quickened as she
fought to contain the annoyed animal spirits who paced inside her soul.

“I am sorry, Mira.”

“I already told you, I’m the one who is sorry.”

“For abandoning you. I should never have given up on you.”

Well, she hadn’t been expecting that. The change in topic
caught her cats’ attention too. Each animal swung its head to stare at him
through her eyes. She cleared her throat. “The window for apologies is over,
Aron. You delivered your refusal to my father nearly three centuries ago.”

Aron frowned. Deep creases marred his forehead. “I did no
such thing.”

She tugged her hands free and wiped them on her thighs. “Don’t
lie about it. I remember quite clearly the day my father came to me. It was fifteen
years to the day I’d been violated. Father said you’d sent word that you
changed your mind.”

Eyes closed, she recalled the letter her sire had read to
her. The cursed words had changed her life. “You said that after much soul
searching you could not find it in your heart to accept a ruined female as your
mate. That if the goddess had meant for me to be yours, she would’ve intervened
and warned my father of Edmund’s plans. You suggested I go to the torture
chambers as a cleansing ritual. If I survived with my mind intact, then and
only then, would you reconsider your stance, but regretfully, you couldn’t
guarantee it.”

A low growl rumbled from Aron’s throat. Her eyelids popped
open. Feline fangs filled his mouth and the tips of claws broke through the
skin of his fingers. She gasped, covered them with her hands and glanced
around. The waitress who sat behind the cash register paid them no attention.
She wrapped silverware in a repetitive pattern, her eyes sleepy and unfocused.
Good. She hadn’t noticed Aron’s slip.

Mira turned her attention to him. Lips squeezed in a tight
line, he took deep breaths in through his nose. The hands under hers trembled.
“What’s wrong with you?”

He slipped his hands on top of hers and rubbed his thumb
over her knuckles. “I sent no letter to your father, Mira. I’d planned to come
to you that year, but our pride leader was killed. I was forced to remain at
home until Kade’s sire could return and take control of the family. We had
cubs, females and several humans. They could not remain unguarded.”

The words filtered into her mind. The implication of them
rocked her, left her confused and uncertain. Aron hadn’t refused her as she’d
been led to believe.

She dropped her gaze to the table. Brown circles stained
into the laminate and dozens of little nicks marred the white surface. She
focused on two overlapping circlets, one larger than the other. Scents from the
diner—grease, human perspiration and the trace of shifter—drifted to her. Each
piece of sensory information grounded her. She was here, not in her familial
estate in Ireland getting her heart ripped out. Two of the three most important
males in her life—her father and Aron—had denounced her that day.

After the letter had been read, her father had asked her to
leave their lands. She was worthless to him. Her mating to the Alexander pride had
been meant to align the two strongest bloodlines and bring the goddess’s
prophecy to life. With nowhere to go, Kade’s sire—Aron’s new pride
leader—brought her and Devin into his family, hoping Aron would change his
mind.

“You were already gone by the time Devin and I arrived in
your pride’s territory.”

“I didn’t even know you were coming. I’d been led to believe
you’d refused me.” He stroked his thumb over her knuckles. “And I couldn’t get
away fast enough.”

“What are you talking about?”

“The Council delivered a letter from you asking to be freed
from our agreement.” He dropped his gaze to the table. “Gods, I was a fool. I
should’ve traveled to your estate and spoken with you in person. Hell, I
should’ve mentioned your letter to my pride leader. Instead, I burned the damn
thing and ran to the other end of the world. Like a damn coward, I hid from
you, my family and the shame
your
denouncement brought.”

He had cut all ties without so much as a word of goodbye to
his family. Everyone had assumed he’d run because he wanted no part of the
prophecy or her. Nobody had even known he still lived until a couple of decades
ago when a Christmas card showed up from Australia.

“I waited for you.”

“I know. I returned a few years later but I couldn’t bring
myself to approach you.” He glanced at her. Regret burned in his eyes, the
contacts doing little to hide his pain. “When I finally worked up the courage
to speak with you, you’d already moved on. Still, I stayed for a while and
watched you from afar. Do you know what I saw, what finally made me give up on
us?”

Unable to speak, she shook her head.

“You in the arms of my cousins.” His breaths quickened. “It
killed me, Mira. Fucking killed me.”

Devin had tried to reason with her. He’d told her the same
thing—it had been a miscommunication. Letter or not, he hadn’t believed Aron
would act so cruelly.

“We were deceived.”

“It appears that way.” Aron cursed under his breath. “Did
you see this letter? Was it in my handwriting with my seal?”

“Yes. It even carried your scent.”

“So did yours.” Aron slid out of the booth, dropped to his
knees beside her and pulled her to the edge of the booth. Hands wrapped around
her waist, he laid his head in her lap. “I am sorry, Mira. So very sorry. I
never denounced you.”

Tears made his voice tight. Hers flowed freely. Three
hundred years wasted. All the pain and indignation they’d endured were founded
on lies. Aron had suffered too. She saw this now. Mira petted his striped blond
mane. They both needed the comfort.