Cal stood up on the plush bed, his massive paws burrowing into the soft sheets. Rocking backward, tail in the air, he stretched. His muscles rippled beneath his thick orange and black coat.
It was going to be a great day. Any day he got to see Amelia was a good one. And since he had back to back meetings that would require her assistance, he’d be seeing a lot of her.
He hopped down from the bed just as there was a knock at the door. His heart lurched into his throat and he froze in the middle of his hotel room.
Should he shift?
Should he hide?
Deciding it’d be better for her to walk in on him in the nude rather than a full-grown tiger, he started to change. But he wasn’t fast enough. As she had many times in the past, Amelia opened the door and stepped inside. Since he was not much of a morning person, she often threw open the curtains and woke him by telling him what a fabulous day it was going to be.
He’d missed one important meeting and now his assistant pulled out all the stops to get him there on time.
But today she took three steps before her gaze lifted from the device in her hand and focused on the half man, half tiger transforming before her eyes. Her lovely eyes widened to a comical proportion, showing off the whites. Her jaw dropped open slightly and she froze, the tablet tumbling from her grasp.
She was at the door, hand on the knob in less than a second. But he was faster. He shoved a palm against it and shut it quickly. She let out a squeak of alarm and spun to face him. Her breath came in such a rapid beat he worried she’d hyperventilate.
“Calm down, sweetheart,” he said even though his mind was racing with possibilities and worst-case scenarios. “Just breathe. In and out.”
She stared up at him like she’d met a Martian. And he supposed, in a way, she had. But she didn’t scream.
“I would never hurt you,” he said, realizing the acidic scent in the air was her fear. The knowledge slayed him. He’d scented that emotion from her once before and he never wanted to give her reason to feel it again. Especially where he was concerned. “I promise.”
She remained mute and didn’t take her eyes off him. Her lithe body trembled between him and the door.
“You told me once that you believe in ghosts, why not me?”
Her head drew back a notch and her nostrils flared. “What are you?” she whispered haltingly.
Her unease broke his heart. He’d never wanted her to find out the truth. He should have been more careful. What the hell had he been thinking, taking true form in a hotel room?
He hadn’t been thinking. Simply exhausted and craving the numb bliss being in his tiger form always brought him.
“A shape-shifter would be an accurate description.”
Staring down into her eyes, he knew two things. He couldn’t lose her. Whatever he had to say or do to win her trust again, he would do. And his world had just gotten much more complicated.
She nodded slowly. Once. Her gaze never leaving his face. She didn’t trust him. He could see it in her wary regard and her rigid posture.
“This, my other half, is how I found you that night. How I knew you were in trouble. I smelled your fear long before I saw the courage in your soul.”
Reminding her of her past, how they met, how he’d saved her life seemed to soften her. She’d leaned back a fraction and her shoulders relaxed. He hadn’t sent her down memory lane so she’d feel beholden to him though.
“Would you—would you mind standing over there?”
“Why?”
Her chin tipped up ever so slightly and he was once again captivated by her delicate features.
“You’re not wearing any clothing,” she all but whispered.
He couldn’t help himself. He laughed. It felt good to laugh. It felt good to have her eyes on him, watching him closely.
“Promise me you won’t run, and I’ll put on some shorts.”
She nodded again, this time a little more quickly.
Excerpt from Kissing Wilde by Selena Blake
