Shifters of Grrr 1 (47 page)

“Thanks. Ah, Dad is—was—Chinese, born here. Mom was born in England.” She choked on the words, on using past tense when referring to her parents.

“I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to—”

“It’s okay.” Lucy forced a smile. Grunting from below cut through the awkward silence. “What exactly is the Hai San
Kongsi
?”

“Ah.” Mei’s chocolate eyes sparked with mischief. “The Hai San Secret Society was established in the early nineteenth century. It’s one of two branches beneath the Council of Elders, who basically rule the world. Politics, business, religion. The other is the Ghee Hin
Kongsi
, whose members you met in the Gardens.” Her brows lowered and pinched together. “Snake, their unofficial Master, leads them, but a man named Delun and a woman called the Empress are their figureheads. Which is another story.” She waved off the names as she sipped her tea.

“Sheng is your
Kongsi
’
s
Master?”

“Yep. We lost our male figurehead a few years ago, and the Matchmaker is his female counterpart. Everything exists in a balance of hierarchy. The Jade Emperor first, then the Council of Eight Elders. Below them are the two
Kongsi
with one representative each on the Council. The Matchmaker for us and the Empress for the Ghee Hin. Next are the Masters, the Chosen, and the monks.” She grinned widely. “That’s bureaucracy for you.”

Intriguing. Lucy swallowed her tea and considered her options for conversation, but one nagging speculation occupied her mind. Setting her cup aside, she rose and peered out the window. “Are you his girlfriend?” she blurted, her cheeks heating. “Uh, I mean, are you two involved?”

Mei’s snorting laughter answered. “Absolutely not.
Ugh.
Disgusting.”

Lucy raised a hopeful brow. “Disgusting?” How? Sheng was gorgeous.

“He’s like my brother.” The girl wrinkled her nose. “Not my real brother, but we consider each other family.” She craned her neck to look past Lucy and study him. “I guess I can understand why you might be attracted to him. Sort of. Yuck.” She straightened and shook off whatever image had popped into her mind.

“He kissed you.” Yeah, and a jealous arrow had fired straight into Lucy’s chest.

Mei shrugged. “He’s a tiger.” Lucy continued to stare blankly, until Mei elaborated. “Tigers are affectionate creatures. Always kissing, nuzzling. They crave intimacy. We’re family. For him to not touch me would be sheer torture.”

“Torture?”

“Yeah. Tigers don’t fulfill their requirement for physical contact with anyone but family. Outside their pack, they don’t trust easily.”

Their pack. Sheng constantly had his hands on her. Did that make her part of his pack?

“Yep.” Mei shot her a wide grin. “Boy can’t take his eyes off you, much less his hands. Something more than brotherly affection going on, huh?” She leaned in. Guess the girl
was
desperate for a female friend.

Me too.
Although referring to Sheng as a boy seemed contradictory, like calling a shark a goldfish.

“Nothing to tell.” True, she hadn’t slept with him, hadn’t even gotten to first base. Maybe he didn’t intend anything sexual in the way he pawed at her.

“
Uh-huh.
Sure. And I’m the Empress.”

“Honest.” Lucy held up her hands. “He hasn’t even tried to kiss me.”

“
Hmm
, well he must be waiting then.”

She peered at Mei. “Waiting?”

Mei pointed at the sparring below. “Yeah, for you to accept him. Us. Yourself. I told you, he’s the Master of our
Kongsi
. The Tiger leads our spirits.”

Master? Spirits?

Lucy peered over the window ledge, an icy shiver of awareness rippling down her spine. Sheng crooked his fingers at his opponents who both huffed as though out of breath, sweat glistening on their bare chests. Their right shoulders bore the same
yin-yang
tat as Sheng. Beneath her leather jacket, did Mei sport one too?

Sheng, on the other hand, appeared cool, like he hadn’t exerted himself in the least.

“What are they doing?” Mei whispered.

“Sheng, Fang, and Kassian are fighting. I think Sheng’s winning.”

“See anything else?”

Lucy scowled, beyond frustrated everyone kept asking her that.

The three men below sparred, their strikes knocking each other so fast her eyes had trouble focusing on the individual blows.

Sheng sprang into a back flip, dodging Fang’s arm as it swiped at him. Damn, he was agile. Back on his feet, he ducked a punch from Kassian and a kick from Fang without hesitation.

He must have studied his entire life to be that good. She’d never witnessed anyone fight as well as he did. A perfect blend of strength, agility, and grace.

He seemed to prefer a forward-weighted stance, offensive, and allowing for more aggressive strikes. Although he just as effortlessly fell into a backward-weighted stance, defending himself. If she were being objective, she’d venture he was going easy on his opponents, letting them get in more blows than he handed out. Regardless, his body defaulted to a crouching position.

Tiger.

The word floated through her mind, shivering across her skin. Each of the twelve animals in the Chinese Zodiac possessed positive and negative traits believed to define the personality of the people born into that specific year. It wasn’t unusual for a Chinese person to give their Zodiac animal considerable weight, even choosing occupations and relationships based upon the compatibility of their animals. Lucy’s mother had been a Sheep and her father a Horse—an ideal match. Their loving marriage was proof this belief had merit.

Tiger and Rabbit made suitable matches.
Nope, don’t go there.

Did Sheng truly believe he
was
a tiger? What about Mei? “Which animal are you?”

“Monkey.” She smiled, holding out her hand and wiggling her fingers. “Go on. Take my hand. Tell me what you feel.” Being born in the year of the Monkey placed Mei’s age around twenty. Sheng at twenty-six. If Kassian was an Ox and Fang a Rat, that made them twenty-seven and twenty-eight.

“Um, okay.” Lucy slipped her hand into Mei’s. Warmth pulsed through her. She tugged her hand away, but Mei held firm. Lucy glanced at the woman; Mei shook her head and jerked her chin toward their hands.

As Lucy stared, the lines between them blurred. Their fingers blended together. No, wait, the air between them fuzzed, like a cloud forming around Mei’s fingers. Her mouth dropped open, and Lucy squinted harder. The image of their hands grew hazy. Why didn’t it freak Mei out, too?

“Meet Monkey, Lucy.” After pulling back her hand, Mei cocked her head. “So, the Red Death, huh? What’s it like? I mean, I’ve examined the virus under a microscope, but I’ve never met an infected person. Do they really cry tears of blood?”

Lucy stared at the girl’s hand. How the hell—

“Amazing how anyone could survive. Well, I mean not you, because we’re practically immortal—”

“Mei.” The bellow from below jerked Lucy from the spell. “That’s enough. Bring Lucy down so we can see what she can do.”

Sheng. That was Sheng calling to them.

“Ah, damn him,” Mei muttered. She raised her voice to call through the window. “I said ‘practically,’ Li. I know we’re not really immortal. Sheesh.” She grumbled while waving toward the ladder for them to join the others below.

Wait. Sheng could hear them? This whole time? Lucy slapped her hands on her flaming cheeks.

Mei grinned. Mischievously. “We’ll try this again later.”

Uh-huh.
Later. When she had a clearer head. Lucy glanced at the girl’s
normal
hand.
Must’ve been a hallucination.

She climbed down the rope ladder and hopped off the last rung. Sheng greeted her, crowding her the second her feet made contact with the floor. He set his hand on her waist.

Tiger. He wants to touch me.

Heat flared from the point of contact on her lower back, the erotic flames spearing through her body. She pressed her hand against his pec in an effort to peel them apart, but his chest rumbled beneath her palm.

Almost like a purr.

He’d barely broken a sweat while the others wiped down with towels and guzzled bottles of water.

“Eyes on me, Lucy.” Using his finger, Sheng tilted her chin to his face. Her gaze stayed riveted on his mouth, on those lips he refused to press against hers.

Would he be a good kisser?

Was there any doubt?

He angled her face higher, tearing her analysis from his lips and forcing her to stare into his eyes. Hypnotizing. That’s what his eyes were. Shifting from black to a glinting, pale blue-gray. How could eyes even do that?

His rough finger continued to stroke her cheek and she felt herself drifting. Falling.

His warm breath mingled with hers, and the deeper she fell into his spell, the stronger her senses became. His masculine scent, spicy and intoxicating, floated through her nostrils, settling on her tongue. So vibrant she tasted him. Her ears detected his heartbeat. Strong, pounding. Louder than hers, which slowed to a dull thudding. Her muscles fell limp, and her body crashed to the floor.

Around her, muffled cries echoed as though from a distance. Her vision didn’t fade, but sharpened. Colors brightened, shapes enhanced. She tuned out the background noise, her focus on what was right in front of her. Of Sheng crouched above her body, his hands gliding over every curve and dip. His firm caress would have been sensual if not for the panicked tone of his commands.

Her gaze slid into his, mesmerized by those glinting eyes.

And then her breathing stopped.

***

Sheng ran his hands over Lucy’s body, fighting the dread icing his muscles. He cupped the back of her neck and brought her mouth closer to his face. Had she hit her head? His fingers found no lump. What the bloody hell was happening? One moment, they’d been flirting. The next, she’d slumped to the ground without a fucking warning.

“Mei. Kassian. Fang. Get help.” The shrill note of panic laced his voice. Lucy laid limp and lifeless in his arms. Hovering his hand over her mouth, he didn’t detect any sign of her breathing. Terrified she would die right here, in his arms, he laid her down, adjusted her neck, and parted her lips. Determination surged through him as he bent forward to begin resuscitation. He refused to lose her.

Dammit, Lucy. You’re not leaving me. Not like this.

Mei squatted at his side, ready to help him with chest compressions. He pinched Lucy’s nose, making sure her airway was clear.

Her eyes glazed over and her heart stopped beating.

Tiger roared in helpless confusion. Sheng slammed the beast back into its cage, requiring a clear head.

As he drew back to suck air into his lungs, Lucy gasped. Her body jerked, hands shooting forward, smacking his chest. The force flung him backward while she vaulted to her feet and launched into the trees.

Sheng righted himself. His shock was mirrored in Mei’s widened eyes. He sprang to his feet, scanning the rafters. Where was she and what the fuck was going on?

“Lucy,” he growled, half in frustration, too confused to release his panic. It took him only a second to detect her twenty feet above, dangling from a tree branch. “Lucy, get the fuck back down here.”

He wasn’t sure if he should be furious or elated. Was this some kind of joke? How the hell had she pulled it off? She’d been deathlike in his arms.

One of her legs scraped against the bark as she tried to swing her foot over the branch and right herself. Her foot slipped and so did her grip. She fell, but managed to hang on, arms embracing the branch, legs dangling in the empty space below.

“H-help me.” She chittered the words as if petrified.

“Mei.” He didn’t have to issue the command, because she was already in the tree, swinging toward Lucy.

Lucy’s grip loosened and she dropped lower. “Hurry, please.” Her high-pitched squeak grated the last of the rage from him. This wasn’t a game. Not to her or him.

He vaulted off the side wall and leapt into the tree. Advancing on his belly, he crawled along the branch to her. “Grab my hand.” He reached out with his right hand, maintaining a firm grip on the branch with his left.

Mei leapt onto the branch angled below Lucy. “Gotcha.” She snagged Lucy’s legs and balanced on her tiptoes to prevent Lucy from swaying forward. Pushing upward, she boosted Lucy toward Sheng.

It was enough for him to snatch her hand. “I’ve got you.” He stared straight into her eyes, those panicked golden depths. Whatever had happened, it had terrified her as much as him.

Didn’t mean he had control over his anger. Not even an ounce.

“What the hell were you playing at, Lucy? You scared the shit out of me. Fuck.” His tongue rolled off a steady stream of chastisement as he secured her in his arms and dropped to the ground. Half of him itched to shake some sense into her. The other half feared bringing on another episode.

Kassian sprinted into the room, a phone clutched in his hand and a handful of monks at his side. “Should I call off the ambulance?”

“Absolutely not.”