The Jaguar's Arranged Mate: A Paranormal Shifter Romance (3 page)

CHAPTER THREE

It was ridiculous how nervous Miera felt. It wasn’t as if this was her wedding day.
No, just the day I meet the man I will one day marry, though.

Her brother wrinkled his nose when she stepped out of her room.

“What?” she asked, not appreciating his expression.

Matthias shook his head and sighed. “You’re wearing that?”

She glanced down. Black pants, a gray tank top, neither tight. She preferred somewhat loose clothing so she could move easily move. Having movement restricted meant slower reaction time, and with things being dangerous, she couldn’t risk being anything but her quickest.

“Yes, I’m wearing this.” She crossed her arms, daring him to suggest she change.

He sighed again, a deep, heavy sound. Her younger brother was wearing nicer clothes than she had seen him wear lately, a blue suit that suited his fair skin. No tie, at least, but still fancy, and he made her look even plainer.

“You’re the one who looks like he’s on a date,” she teased.

Matthias flushed. “I do not—”

“Think you’ll see Sierra along the way?”

“S-Sierra? No. No. I don’t know—”

“Oh, please. You know you love her.”

His amber eyes bulged. “Love?” he croaked. “We’ve known each other forever and—”

“Yes, but when she left to go and be a ward of another pack to see about being allies down the road, she had been a scrawny girl of ten. Now she’s returned, and she’s all woman, as I’m sure you noticed.” She nudged her elbow into his gut.

“It’s too bad the Jeweled Ones have decided to relocate.”

“Across the country. Pennsylvania.” Miera sniffed. “Who wants to go there?”

“They figure the Brutal Claws will never go that far east. Plus, the Brutal Claws haven’t looked in their direction. It would have only been a matter of time, so maybe they were smart to—”

“To run away like cowards.” Miera rolled her eyes.

Other packs had resisted the Brutal Claws before. The result had always been the same: the utter destruction of those packs. The only other option was to join the Brutal Claws on their quest for rampage. Many opted for that choice, and they became as brutal and harsh as the original members of the pack in short order.

Running wasn’t an option for them. Not after the blood that had already been shed. Plus, the Brutal Claws would hunt them down should they show signs of leaving. That would definitely provoke them into action.

“Well, we should be going.”

“We?” Miera shook her head. “No. I’m going alone.”

“But—”

“But nothing,” she said firmly. “You go and get reacquainted with the lovely Sierra.”

“I can’t—”

“You can, and you will.”

“But—”

“No buts,” she said firmly, putting her hands on his shoulders and shoving him forward. “Go. Now.”

He glanced back a few times but did as she bid.

Good. She didn’t want an audience for this. It was bad enough she hadn’t been able to propose to the were-jaguar herself, that Matthias had done it for her. The council had agreed to her marriage idea, but they hadn’t thought she should be the one to deliver it to Beric, as she had learned was the name of the heir of the Teal Warriors. “Too dangerous,” they had said. “Where would we be without you?”

As if she was irreplaceable. No one were-jaguar meant that much to the Blood Roses. They were like a massive bush. All of the roses were beautiful, so long as they were nearby and close to each other, sharing water and light and roots. A single rose would not make or break a bush.

In the end, she had relented despite worrying Beric would think less of her for not seeking him out personally. Her brother had assured her that Beric seemed like a competent enough were-jaguar, but considering they had only spent an hour together, how well could her brother really know anything about Beric?

What did he look like, her future husband? What was he like? Would he listen to her, heed her advice, or would he think he knew best? The few were-jaguars she had met from other packs had all been rather misogynistic. Not all packs viewed females as equals to males, although there were a few packs with female alphas. That they, the Blood Roses, were ruled by a council headed by an alpha was even rarer.

Beric would need to be made a member of the council. Will he want to expand it, to add more Teal Warriors?
That seemed only fair. There was so much to consider, so many changes that might happen as a result of their union, but would it be enough to save them from the destructive horde that was the Brutal Claws?

There wasn’t anything else she could think of, no other plan. There were other packs in the vicinity, but they were smaller ones, not even numbering one hundred. They might be lost in the shuffle, small enough to be overlooked by the Brutal Claws, but the Blood Roses were already on their radar.
I hate them.

It was a long drive to reach the Teal Warriors. Miera rolled down her window as she drove up to the fence. Two were-jaguars opened the gate before she could even introduce herself, but then, they were expecting her.

The one closest to the driver’s side approached her. “You can park right here.” He gestured to the parking lot behind him. “I will escort you to Beric.”

“And you are…” She couldn’t help pursing her lips. Yes, they had anticipated her arrival, but this was ridiculous. Were they all so lax about everything? The fence was solid steel and rather tall, but it could be breached. Maybe this was a mistake. If the Teal Warriors weren’t taking enough precautions, they wouldn’t be able to help the Blood Roses against the Brutal Claws. They needed to have a solid plan, one that took precautions into consideration. Maybe it wasn’t too late to back out.

But the were-jaguar had moved back to allow her space to park, his mouth shut, obviously not going to answer her question.

Grimacing, Miera parked but remained in her car. Two could play this game.

After a moment, the guard approached. “Is something wrong?”

“I want to know your name. I want to know his name.” She pointed to the other guard who was closing the gate. “I want to know why you haven’t asked for my name.”

“As a sign of respect.” He bowed. “I’m sorry, Miera. I did not want to be overbearing.” His cheeks were bright pink. “I, ah…”

“What if I’m not Miera?” She climbed out of her car, arms crossed, and stalked toward him, shoving a finger toward his chest. “What if I’m really a Brutal Claw posing as this Miera?”

The gate closed with a clang, and the other guard approached. Not a hint of fear flashed in his eyes, no doubt either. “I know you’re Miera. Your brother showed me your picture.”

She appraised him. Tall, thick-chested, solid arms, he walked with grace of a cat, the poise of a hunter, and the arrogance that could only come from being heir.

“I take it you’re Beric then.” She crossed her arms again and tapped the fingers of her right hand on her left arm.

“Yes. I thought I would give you the courtesy of seeing me immediately.”

Her eyes narrowed. Was that a dig because her brother had come to see him, to essentially propose for her?

Beric gazed at the other guard, who immediately returned to his post at the gate. “Would you like a tour?” he asked, holding out his hand.

“Would you like me to drop to one knee?” she countered.

His lips quirked and settled into a lopsided smile. “Only if you want to. I don’t have a ring for you.”

“I don’t have one for you either.” She tossed her red hair over her shoulder.

Beric’s laugh was deep and warming, and she found herself laughing too.

“No ring, but I do have this.” Beric reached into his pants pocket—the slacks hung low on his hips she realized—and removed a silver chain. On it was a charm, a white rose. “Not red like blood, but I saw it yesterday, and it made me think of you.”

“You don’t even know me.” She touched the charm but didn’t take the necklace. Did he think he could buy her with gifts? But she had come to him, not the other way around.

Could he want more from her than just a means to protect his pack? The thought terrified her. She hadn’t thought through what exactly it meant to marry Beric, what it meant she would be giving up, but now she was beginning to think about what it could have been like to marry someone she loved.

“You don’t know me either, but you’re willing to marry me so that our packs might have a chance against the Brutal Claws. So, yeah, I don’t know you, but I do know you care about your people, and that means enough to me.” He held up the necklace. “May I?”

A moment passed before she turned around and lifted her hair. After he clasped the necklace on, his hands rested on her shoulders for a moment, his fingers touching bare skin. Her tank top allowed for the skin-to-skin contact, and her shoulders felt aflame from his touch. It wasn’t a caress, and it was over almost as soon as it started, and she found herself wishing he had touched her longer.

Miera swallowed hard before turning around. His eyes were yellow with flecks of gold, his lines hard but not too severe, his nose carved as if from stone. Beric was a rather handsome man, made even more so by the slight scar near his left eye. Without thinking first, she reached up and touched it. “How did that happen?”

“A battle.” He shrugged. “A long time ago. I have a few other scars, too.”

She lifted her tank top to show a two-inch line near her belly button. “My skin’s far from perfect too.”

Maybe that was being a little forward, but the man
was
engaged to her. He’d see her naked soon enough. She hadn’t thought about sex when she had put forward the idea of wedding the heir of the Teal Warriors, but now the prospect of having heirs with this hunk of a were-jaguar wasn’t something she’d object to. At least he was good looking. If she couldn’t marry for love, maybe it would be easier to settle marrying for lust.

“If I point out all of mine, we’ll be here all day.” He moved closer to her.

Her breathing grew ragged. She was tall, but he towered over her. Miera looked up into his eyes and licked her lips. Was he going to kiss her? She wanted him to. Wanted to feel if his muscles were as hard as they looked, wanted to feel if his hair was as soft as it looked, wanted to feel—

But he only reached for her hand. “A tour?”

“Where does it end?” she asked boldly.

Beric stared down at her. “Wherever you like.” His eyes… she could gaze into them and be lost.

Unnerved by how much her body wanted him, she turned away, subtly—hopefully—increasing the space between them but still holding his hand. “Lead the way.”

He pointed out various buildings—their cafeteria, their school, the church, the houses, a warehouse, the barracks.

“Barracks?” she questioned.

“Once we reach ten years old, we start training. We know various forms of martial arts and how to use firearms. We also learn survival tactics as well.”

“A slash at the right spot or a bite will do the same thing.”

“Yes.” He grinned. “But it’s always better to be prepared.”

Definitely. “Especially now.”

Beric nodded. “Do you know how to use a gun?”

“Yes.” As did most of the Blood Roses. “But I don’t prefer to use one.”

“I wouldn’t think you would.” The look he was giving her was far too intense.

She had to look away and pointed to the houses to detract attention away from herself. Although similar in designs, each house had slight differences, from the door color or the shutters or the lawn decorations. “Which one is yours?”

“This way.” Beric led her past the center of the compound. “The alpha lives there.” He pointed to the building beside it. “I and the other higher members of the pack live here.”

Her heart started to pound as he brought her into his apartment. The living room and attached dining room were spacious. His couch looked especially comfortable. The table for dinner was small with only one chair there, which struck her as sad.

“There’s a kitchen just ahead and beyond that is my bathroom and bedroom. If you want to see…”

She did, and she didn’t. “We have a lot to talk about.”

“We do.” He gestured a long arm toward the couch, his biceps prominent.

Miera sat. He sat beside her, causing the couch to sink slightly, and she found herself leaning heavily against him.

Beric smiled as she tried to straighten herself. “I don’t mind.”

She had to stop this, fawning over a were-jaguar she didn’t know, even if he was to be her husband. “You would if I were ugly.”

He touched her shoulder again, preventing her from shifting away. “Looks don’t matter to me. I told you. You care about your people. I care about mine. We will make us a thing. We’ll make it work. I don’t think I have too many vices.”

And just like that, he had her more at ease again, and she laughed. “Well, isn’t that charming. ‘I don’t think I have
too
many vices.’”

He grinned. “I was hoping to earn brownie points for honesty.”