Lion And The Falcon (Furry United Coalition) (23 page)

Now if only the reality check didn’t hurt so much. Unable to face him, not yet with her realization so fresh, she slipped from his condo
, leaving him to slumber under the protection of the FUC agents placed outside in the hall.

The sooner she got the job done, the sooner she could escape the clutches of the feline who made her wish for things she could never have.
A home and his heart.

*

Nolan woke alone with only a vague recollection of Clarice leaving their deflated bed. What she claimed was a need to use the washroom was apparently an excuse to go out investigating, without him, again.

Despite his realization the night before that he couldn’t forbid her
from facing danger, it still rankled. Worrying about the safety of someone he cared about truly sucked, however, if he was going to convince her to let him into her life, he needed to accept it.
I just don’t have to like it.

Breakfast, a shower, and a drive to work later, he still felt an urge to grumble.
More than once, he’d grabbed his phone, tempted to call her just to hear her voice. Each time he set it down and chastised himself for acting so needy.

I am a lion.
Haughtiness was his middle name. Still, would it have killed her to leave him a note? Send him a text? Something?

It irritated him to realize he had no idea when he’d get to see her again. He just knew he would.
She won’t escape me that easily.

It mollified him somewhat to discover Clarice met up with some other agents to go over the items found in the squirrel’s lair—mostly bags and bags of nuts.
Surely she’d remain safe enough doing something so mundane. He would have liked to join her; however, fate, also known as his boss, possessed other plans. Apparently, FUC had other tasks to keep him busy.

It wasn’t only he and his falcon who enjoyed
a busy night. His escaped patients kept the FUC staff on duty hopping. The escaped ostrich and gecko, who paired up in the outside world, turned themselves in to some agents. Life on the street, and their new condition, didn’t agree with them. Unlike the other mutants they’d run into, the escaped duo retained enough of their sanity to realize they needed help.

It made Nolan wonder if perhaps some of the others could be salvaged as well. Or so he argued.
But, those passing down the edicts wouldn’t budge. No chances were to be taken with those still on the loose. However, Nolan did win one concession. Kloe ordered Nolan to evaluate the physical and mental state of the pair who’d returned and were currently jailed in a holding cell at the FUC office.

While he conducted interviews and ran some tests, he heard through the grapevine that t
hey’d recovered the body of another patient, but not before some human with a camera got a video clip and posted it on YouTube. Luckily, people treated it much as they would a Nessie and Big Foot sighting. In other words, a bunch chattered excitedly about it being proof of alien life while others scoffed and called it the worst Photoshop job they’d ever seen. Meanwhile, the body itself got accidentally “lost” on its way to the human morgue. Another FUC cover-up to keep the humans in the dark.

All in all, he spent an
eventful day with only one nap to tide him over. Of Clarice, he didn’t see beak or feather until he returned home, accompanied by Viktor who drove while Nolan slept. The croc nudged him awake when they got to the underground garage. Nolan’s gaze immediately honed in on the empty parking spot alongside his. No parked Goldwing, which meant no Clarice.

“Why the dour face, doc?” the croc asked as he escorted
Nolan to his floor where FUC agents still stood guard.

I wonder what the neighbors think.
He wondered even more where Clarice was and if she was all right. He roused himself from his musings to answer Viktor, speaking his thoughts aloud. “Why must women be so pigheaded?”

“Because they know it drives us nuts.”

“So you mean Renee does that to you too? Goes diving into danger and doesn’t call to let you know she’s okay?”

“Uh no, but apparently I do that on a regular basis. It
scares her, which in turn, pisses her off, not that she says so.”

“How does she handle it?”

“Why the questions?”

“Because I need some advice
, and I’d rather not listen to that of the female members of my pride.”

Grunting, Viktor swung open the apartment door.
“Can’t blame you there. How does my wife handle my job? Let’s just say I do on purpose sometimes make my day seem more eventful than it is and leave it at that.”

It took Nolan only a moment to decipher his meaning. “
You mean you putting yourself in danger brings you
closer
?”

“If you mean as in clothing optional closer, then yes. But if you tell anyone, I’ll kill you.” The killer glint in the croc’s eye didn’t hold any mirth.

“I won’t say a word.” Nolan valued his life too much. “If you don’t mind me asking another question, how did you know you loved her?”

“
What is this, the Dr. Phil hour? Is this about that falcon the office has you shacking up with?”

“Maybe.”

A knowing smirk crossed Viktor’s face. “It is. Ha. And people think my fox and I make an odd couple.”

“
Clarice and I aren’t so odd. We’re both predators.”

Viktor snorted. “That’s a thin comparison
, doctor, and you know it. But as to your question—if you’re asking what it will take to get her to love you, then I don’t know. She’s a tough bird, that one. And I’ll bet she doesn’t trust easy. I know I don’t, nor am I into that sappy, lovey-dovey crap.”

“Yet you love Renee.”

“Listen, doc. I fought real hard against having feelings of any kind for my fox. Real hard. But she just wouldn’t take no for an answer. I almost lost her I was so damned stubborn. Lucky for me, she never gave up.”

“
In other words, I should keep trying.”

“I’m not saying nothing. Who knows what’s going on in that bird’s
brain? But if you care for her…” Viktor shrugged. “Hell, don’t ask me. I don’t know how to romance a woman or make flowery speeches. You should ask Mason or someone who’s good with words.”

Big mouth Mason? Not happening, not unless he wanted it posted on every FUC message board. “I think I’ll pass. Actually, you’ve been most helpful.”

“I have? Don’t tell anyone.” Viktor tossed him a glower. “I don’t need every lion, tiger, and cougar coming to me for advice. I’m a soldier, not some bloody dating shrink.”

“Your secret is safe with me.”

With a grunt, Viktor left his condo, but not before checking every nook and cranny to ensure no psychos lurked. As Viktor tucked his gun in his waistband, Nolan could see the disappointment on the croc’s face when nothing popped out to attack. There was a man who loved his job.

Alone,
Nolan wandered around his condo, noting the new furniture and clean smell. All traces of the attack were gone, even the holes he had punched in the wall, erased by a coating of plaster and paint. But more interesting than his new décor were the shopping bags filled with women’s clothing and toiletries.

Hope lit a fire inside his chest. If someone went shopping for Clarice and left her things here,
it meant she planned to return.

Whistling, Nolan planned his assault
. When Clarice arrived just as dusk fell, through the front door this time and not the balcony, and wearing an unfortunate amount of clothing, he was prepared.

Candles flickered. The table sat ready with a dinner for two.
Flowers adorned several vases. The food chilled in the fridge. Nolan greeted her with a glass of wine and a bright smile. “How was your day?”

For a moment, panic flitted across her face. He froze lest the slightest move send her flying.
Clarice eyed him and the room suspiciously. She took one cautious step, then another.

“What is this?”
She flapped a hand at the place setting for two.

“Supper. I ordered us some sushi with rice.”

“Sushi?” Her eyes lit up and he wanted to fist pump at having gotten something right.

“
From the best place in town. Sit down while I grab it from the fridge.”

When he returned with
the two large platters he ordered earlier, he found her perched on a chair, fingers toying with her wine glass, her expression indecipherable. Not exactly the warm kiss and hug he’d hoped for, but at least she’d not fled. However, given the tenseness of her body, he knew he should tread carefully.

“Here
you go.” He set the offering down with a flourish and took a seat across from her. “I wasn’t sure what kind of fish you liked best, so I ordered a little bit of everything.”

“
What are you up to, Sylvester?” she asked suspiciously.

“Me? Nothing.”

“This isn’t nothing. This looks like a guy trying to score.”

He laughed. “Okay. You caught me.
Can you blame me, though? Last night was incredible, and I’m a selfish lion. I want a repeat.” Why bother lying? He knew she valued the truth and the truth was, he found her desirable. What woman didn’t want to hear that?

“You could have just asked. You didn’t need to put on this show.”

“What show? I need to eat. You need to eat. Got to keep our energy up for the evening’s entertainment.”

“
Pretty sure of yourself, aren’t you? Who says I want seconds?”

“
I do. And thirds. And fourths.”

A ghost of a smile finally
curled her lips. “You are something else, Sylvester.”

“Why thank you, Clarice. I’ll take that as a compliment. Now eat or I’m going to skip the main course altogether and go straight for dessert.”

Arching a brow, she took a sip of her wine before asking, “And what decadent treat do you have in store for dessert?”

“I’m in the mood for some cream. Hot
, delicious, thighs around my neck cream.”

Mmm, now there was the reaction he waited for.
Her pupils dilated. She licked her lips, and leaned back in her chair, letting her legs fall apart. Even with the several feet between them, the invitation seemed clear. His nose quivered, but it was her huskily murmured, “Why wait?” that sent him diving from his chair.

As for the rug burn on his knees
, which he noted hours later when they finally got around to eating a late supper? Totally worth it.

*

Over the next two weeks, he and Clarice fell into a routine. During the day, they tackled their separate tasks, her investigating while he dealt with his mutant patients. Of Lester, the psycho who’d trashed his place, not a sign did they find. Actually, since the day after that fateful evening, all the remaining escaped patients seemed to have disappeared in thin air.

The sightings stopped.
The homeless remained on the streets begging. The missing persons bulletin board didn’t acquire new names, and no humans ended up at the morgue with bite marks. And stray animals everywhere probably breathed a sigh of relief.

Things went more or less back to normal.
One by one, FUC cut back guard details as agents returned to their regular day jobs. It seemed the worst of the crisis had passed. Speculation led to several theories, one being that the remaining patients at large adjusted and blended back in to real life, or their mutations killed them at last. Either way, people relaxed and let down their tense guard.

Despite the lack of action in the field and at work, Nolan had never been happier. While he disliked his separation from Clarice during the day, he couldn’t deny he loved the nights.
It became the most natural thing in the world for he and Clarice to sit down to a nicely catered dinner and talk, followed by hot lovemaking that didn’t always make it to a bed.

Over the course of those uneventful days, he got to know Clarice, and fell more and more in love.
Truly in love. It wasn’t just about the great sex, he loved the woman, every ornery, bossy inch of her. He just didn’t admit it to her. Couldn’t, because despite her opening up and telling him about her life in the orphanage and the shenanigans she put up with in the ASS office, and him returning the favor and regaling her with stories of growing up molly coddled by an overprotective lioness, he feared her reaction. While she didn’t seem to mind their current living arrangement, nothing she did or said indicated in any way that she wanted it to become permanent.

O
ddly enough, his boss forced him to realize he needed to do something about the situation before it was too late.

Kloe
called him into her office late Friday afternoon, almost three weeks after Clarice joined the FUC team. She motioned for him to sit. “Thank you, Nolan, for coming.”

“Anytime. I take it you want an update on the patients?”
And by patients, he referred to the pair who’d turned themselves in for voluntary testing.