Lion And The Falcon (Furry United Coalition) (19 page)

She tossed him a sharp look. “What makes you say that?”

“Oh please. Give me some credit. Just like you looked into me, I happened to have a peek at your file.”

“And?”

“You passed your courses with flying colors. Graduated top of your class. You’ve got an exemplary record when it comes to hunting down criminals. You should be ranked higher than you are.”

“No kidding.” She couldn’t hide her grudging tone.

“
Yet you’re not because you obviously pissed off the wrong guy. So who did you turn down for sex?”

“Who says I did?”

“Because the guy who ordered you to work with FUC is the father of the male who filed charges against you for assaulting him.”

A smirk pulled up one corner of her mouth. “Nice detective work, Sylvester.”

“I’m not just pretty, you know.”

“So I’m starting to see. And you’re mostly right.”

“Ack!” He grabbed his chest. “I think I’m dying. She finally admits it.”

“Stop it before I stop this car and kill you for real.”

“Oh please, we both know you won’t kill me. Hurt me, maybe, but kill? Nah.”

“What makes you so certain?”

“Because then you wouldn’t be able to enjoy what I have planned for you when we get back to my place.”

“And just what do you have planned, Sylvester? I already told you I wasn’t getting involved. What happened after my shower was a
one-time thing. You caught me during a moment of weakness.”

“Really?” He let his hand slide up her thigh, a hand
, he might add, she’d never bothered to move since he placed it there. Her breathing hitched. “I think,” he purred, “that you’re protesting out of habit.”

“You do?”

“Yes. I think you want me to touch you.” He palmed her sex and the car jerked, but her focus never wavered from the road before them. The fact she would not let her gaze stray told him as much as the rising scent of her arousal. He’d expected her to stubbornly fight, though. All part of her charm. “I think you want me just as much as I want you.”

“I think you’re conceited.”

“I am. But you’re wet. For me. For this.” He rubbed her and she couldn’t halt the soft moan that slipped from her lips.

“I’m supposed to be keeping an eye on you.”

“What better way than if we’re skin to skin?”

“I need to stay on my guard for danger.”

“Oh trust me, my lion won’t let anything sneak up on us.” And if anything tried, and interrupted, he’d probably rip them to shreds.

“We’re too different.”

“You know what they say, opposites attract.”

“I don’t want a relationship.”

“Who says we’re having one? Nothing wrong with some good old-fashioned sex. No strings. Just pleasure. Hot. Trembling. Skin-to-skin. Pleasure.” He leaned into her as he whispered the last few words, his breath feathering her skin.

She shivered and again the car wobbled. “You’re going to get us killed,” she rasped.

“I’ll behave. For now. But do you mind getting us back to the condo a little quicker? I can only wait for so long.”

Their speed, which had dipped as he teased her, shot up as she floored the gas. He might have laughed at the sign of her eagerness, but he held it in. He didn’t want anything to change her mind. They made it to the parking garage without incident and in silence, the sexual tension between them strung tight. As soon as they disembarked from his car, they took quick steps to the elevator. Even before the doors slid shut, he
closed in on her, his mouth seeking hers, hungry for a taste. She met him in a clash of teeth and tongue, her arousal just as fervent.

By all that was holy, she set him on fire. He couldn’t get enough, from her sweet cherry pie taste to her hot breath panting. She roused the carnal beast in him, the savage, the animal who wanted more than to just sink his cock inside. He wanted to bite her and leave a mark for everyone to see. He wanted to roar to the world to stay away from her because she belonged to him. He wanted her, needed her. But did she need and want him back?

The sensual slide of her tongue over his and the frantic thrust of her pelvis against his cock seemed to say yes. But lust ruled her right now. Ruled them both. Answers to his questions would have to wait. He dared not do anything to break their sensual, passionate spell.

All too soon, they arrived at his floor, the jarring ding of the bell and doors opening forcing them apart.

“We’ve arrived,” she said breathlessly, her gaze locked on his.

“First one through the door gets to come first?”

“And if it’s a tie?”

Oh
, damn. His dick twitched at the thought of exploding inside her just as she climaxed. How wicked would that feel to have her flesh milking him as he came?

He growled in reply, the man succumbing to the passion of his beast, primal passion overtaking his manners as he swung her into his arms and strode down the hall. Halfway to his apartment, he smelled it
, and he almost roared in frustration as he suddenly realized his evening would not end on the high note he hoped for. She didn’t immediately notice his inattention, busy nibbling on the column of his neck. She even sucked at his skin hard enough to maybe leave a red mark, a stamp of ownership whether she intended it or not.

Distraction or not, body on fire or not, he couldn’t succumb to the allure of her actions, not when his lion roused itself, its protective instincts kicking in.
Danger
. Yes, danger awaited in his apartment; he could smell it, feel it, sense it. It stroked his ego to realize he’d so unbalanced her that he noted it first. He tilted her chin and brushed her lips with a softly murmured, “We might have company.”

Instantly, she stopped her nibbling caresses, the languorous sensuality she’d just exhibited replaced by the steel
-edged version she showed the rest of the world. “Foe, I take it?”

He nodded as he set her on her feet.

“Dammit.” Out came her gun and he saw her take deep, heaving breaths, steadying her racing pulse. He stored his pride in the fact he’d flustered her so deeply for later. Right now, they needed their wits about them.

Despite knowing she wouldn’t stand for it, he tried to tuck her behind him
—
I am after all the lion in this relationship, and it’s my duty to protect her
—but like the females in the pride, she ignored him and took a position at his side, acting as his equal. He appreciated that. Unlike his female relatives, she didn’t think him completely useless when it came to battle.

The door to his place gaped open an inch, even though he knew for a fact he’d completely latched it when they left earlier. Clarice pointed her gun hand at chest height and using the toe of her shoe, swung the portal wider. Nolan, tie loosened and shoes kicked off, readied himself to go furry.

Nothing jumped out at them, but the smell of wrongness grew stronger, the same scent he’d encountered at Agnes’. One of the missing psychos had found them.

In went Clarice, revolver pointed, Nolan at her heels, sniffing. He knew this scent. Recognized it. How could he not when he’d treated the male it belonged to, a male who hated doctors and blamed them all, even Nolan, for his torture at the hands of
Mastermind? Unlike his nurse’s home, there was no barbecue sauce or other people on the scene before him to muddy it.

“I know who it is,” he whispered.

Clarice held a finger up to her lips.

“No need for silence. He’s gone.”

“How can you be sure?” she hissed.

“It’s a jungle thing. I just know.” His apartment
felt
empty. He couldn’t really explain it any clearer than that. But while the intruder had departed, he’d certainly left his mark. Nothing remained intact. From his beautiful buttery soft leather sofas slashed to ribbons to his pristine carpet, stained beyond repair. The urine all over his bed, though, really beat all. It took a lot of willpower not to whip his dick out and spray over top of it. His lion seemed really insistent on making him cover up with his own mark.

Clarice, even with her feeble sense of smell
, caught the acrid stench. “I guess you’ll need a new mattress.”

“New everything,” he replied with a sigh. “Damn it. I guess I won’t be taking that vacation to
Mexico this year.”

“Poor Sylvester.”

“Don’t start with me, woman.”

She choked on a sound as she spun on a heel to peruse him. “Did you just call me
woman
?”

“I did. Now is not the time for your snide remarks. Not when my evening is ruined.”

“Poor kitty cat. Did someone break his toys?” she sassed.

“No. Someone ruined what was promising to be the best sex of my life,” he rumbled. Well
, that certainly took her by surprise, or so he smugly wagered given her wide eyes, open mouth, and lack of retort. “You didn’t seriously think I cared about this stuff? It’s replaceable. What we almost indulged in, though…” He shook his head mournfully. “Delayed for who knows how long.”

“Try forever.”

“You wish, Tweety. You can stop denying it. I want you. You want me. The only question now is how long before we can get out of here, get checked into a hotel, and hop into a shower where I can worship you with my tongue and cock.”

“Is that all you can think of? Sex?”

He blinked. “Well, yeah. Don’t tell me you’re not miffed we got interrupted?”

“I’d call this more than an interruption, Sylvester. One of the psychos was in your home.”

“His name is Lester.”

“Whatever. Doesn’t the fact he entered your place bother you?”

“Sure. But there’s no point in getting all dramatic about it.” Okay, he lied. It did piss him off. Really pissed him off. And as for his lion? He held onto that beast by only the thinnest of leashes. Some jerk came into his home.
My home
. Invaded his space. Destroyed his things. Ruined his evening with a hot chick. However, dwelling on it wouldn’t solve anything. Going off the deep end rarely did. So no matter how annoyed and violated he felt, Nolan would hold onto his temper and feelings, take care of the situation, get his woman to safety, make love to her—nap—make love to her again, then go hunt down the bastard who ruined his favorite cashmere freaking sweater.

“Wow. I’m impressed. If it had been me, I’d have flown the coop already looking to mete some vengeance.”

“Oh, never fear, revenge is on the menu, but going off half-cocked won’t solve anything.”

“Now is the best time
, though, while the trail is fresh.”

“Not for long. We’re not dealing with an idiot. Lester might be not in his right mind, but he’s anything but stupid. He’ll have covered his tracks. We need to outsmart him.”

“So you weren’t kidding? You recognized the scent.”

“Yeah. I had an inkling at Agnes
’, but the contamination by the daughter and first responders muddied it. This time, though, there’s no mistaking it. Lester pretty much ran around naked in this place.” Which reminded him…he peered down at his bare feet. Damn. He’d need to scrub them, maybe dip them in some gasoline to disinfect.

“And Lester was which one?”

“Chimpanzee. Short fellow, about five-five, brown hair and eyes. Nurses thought he was cute, but he had a bad attitude.”

“I remember his file. He was the one who argued the most with staff about staying under lock and key when we had him in custody.”

“He really hated doctors and all things medical. I kind of felt bad for the guy. He was a fairly well-to-do fellow before Mastermind got her claws on him. Given his rage issues before the drug, I’d say he’s got real issues now.”

“You think?” She stared at his trashed
condo pointedly. “So where do you suppose he went?”

Other than crazy?
“How would I know? I still can’t figure out how he got in.” Building security wouldn’t have let him waltz in. On the other hand, Lester had enough smarts to have obviously found a way. If he had to guess, he’d wager he came in through the underground, stole one of the elevator passes, and made his way up. But it still didn’t explain how he managed to unlock his door.

“I’ve got to call this in.” Clarice already had her phone out
, dialing.

“Of course. I’ll take a peek around and see if I spot anything odd.” In the mess left behind
, though, finding a clue would resemble the whole needle in a haystack trick. God, what a disaster. Even the kitchen was trashed. His microwave smoked, the smell of burnt popcorn making his nose twitch.

It didn’t take long for him to realize everything needed to
be tossed and burned. Lester left nothing intact. His rage seemed a boundless, violent thing, and that worried Nolan. If this was how his former patient reacted to his condo, how would he react if they met face to face? Not that Nolan feared for himself, a lion was a match for a chimp any day, even one hopped up on a drug, but what about Clarice? By associating with her, what kind of danger had he put her in? Especially since he could see Lester had gone through her bag and gotten her scent. Hell, he might have even caught the lingering perfume of their earlier lovemaking. Did Clarice now have a target on her back?