New Species 03 Valiant (8 page)

patrolling that area. Put his ass down and secure him if

he tries to leave his territory. Clear?”

Tammy glanced at the guy on the seat next to her.

He had an ear clip-on comm device. Whatever was said

made him look more relaxed. “Good. Tiger out.” He

hooked the radio back to his vest.

“I’m very sorry for all of this. You need to contact us

if there’s anything we can do for you. Our legal

department will be getting hold of you.”

“For what?”

“They just will. When you agreed to work here you

had to sign forms. You know anything that happens here

stays confidential or you could face huge lawsuits so

please don’t go to the press. Our legal department will

make sure anything you need is taken care of so

whatever issues you face, they will make sure you’re well

compensated. That’s all I can do if you refuse to press

charges against him.”

She had signed a ridiculously long confidentiality

contract. She wasn’t allowed to talk about anything she

saw or heard at New Species Reservation. She wasn’t

permitted to sue them for it if she suffered any injures

while being a guest. It was a come-at-your-own-risk kind

of deal but they had put in the clause that they’d pay for

any medical bills if she were injured. Now she knew why.

“I would never talk to reporters.”

Five minutes later Tiger parked the Jeep in front of

her small house and two other vehicles parked behind

them. She’d been escorted home with a full security

detail. She knew New Species were targeted by hate

groups and hadn’t needed to ask why the extra vehicles

had followed them to her home.

She glanced at her home and tried to hide her

embarrassment. The house had been left to her by her

grandmother. It had been in bad shape to begin with and

Tammy had never had the extra money to fix it up. The

porch sagged in spots, making it appear uneven, paint

had chipped off in large sections, and one of the front

windows had duct tape over it where the glass had

broken. It was a small two-bedroom, one-bath house,

but it was all hers. She wondered what the New Species

thought as he stared at her home with a confused look

on his features.

“A re you sure you don’t want to see a medical doctor

or a shrink? We will make him pay if you file a complaint.

We’re harsher than your justice system.”

She shook her head as she undid her seat belt. “He

didn’t hurt me, I don’t want him punished and I don’t

need a doctor. I’m not sure about the shrink part yet but

I’m tough.” She paused. “I just want to forget this ever

happened. Okay?”

He met her gaze, watched her silently, but nodded

slowly.

Tammy climbed out of the Jeep and walked to her

front door, unlocked it, and stepped into the small room.

She turned and noticed that Tiger watched her silently

from the black unmarked vehicle. She firmly closed the

door and twisted the deadbolt.

“Son of a bitch.” She sighed. She headed for the

bathroom and the shower. “I never saw today coming.”

So much for always trying to be prepared. Ha! Man-

beasts with killer kissing skills and the ability to seduce

women. She shook her head. My life just gets weirder

and weirder. Why can’t it ever be normal?

* * * * *

Valiant groaned. His head throbbed and he couldn’t

remember why. His eyes opened to stare at the carpet.

He lay sprawled on his side. He blinked before someone

shoved a big plastic bag of ice in front of his face. It

hovered there. He inhaled and softly growled. It made

his head hurt worse.

Tiger crouched down, still holding out the bag of ice.

“Put that on the back of your head.” He spoke softly.

Valiant grabbed it. His hand trembled a little and he

found the spot where it hurt the most. He winced and

snarled as the bag made contact. His attention fixed on

Tiger.

“A re you all right?”

“What happened?”

Tiger took a deep breath. “It will come to you. Just

stay down when it does.”

The ice helped reduce the haze of pain and he took a

deep breath, allowing the scents inside the room to fill

his nose. Tammy! He tried to sit up but the room spun.

He groaned again, sank back to the floor and bared his

teeth at Tiger.

“Which one of your men crept up on me?”

“Tammy did it. She hit you with a lamp.” Tiger stood

and backed away, putting a safe distance between them.

“She’s safe and off Reservation.”

Rage surged through Valiant and he snarled. “Bring

her back. She’s mine.”

In response, the other Species leaned against the

wall, crossed his arms over his chest, and sighed. “She

hit you to get away, asked to be taken home, but refused

to press charges. You’re lucky, man. She could have had

to press charges. You’re lucky, man. She could have had

you locked inside a tiny damn cell and Justice would have

had to decide if you needed to be put down for good. If

you’re too dangerous to live— Fuck, don’t get me started.

That’s a nightmare concept we never want to have to

face.”

The pain receded more and Valiant sat up without

the room spinning. He glared at Tiger. “She’s mine.”

“I got that.” He sniffed the air. “You had her all

right.” His gaze flickered to the bed and back. “But you

can’t keep her. She’s human. You wouldn’t even pull that

stunt on our women. You know you can’t just claim them

and force them to live with you.”

“She’s little. I could easily keep her here and change

her mind about leaving. I planned to feed her and care

for her.”

“She mentioned you seemed to think she was a pet. I

thought she had read the situation wrong. Humans tend

to see us in a messed-up light but after hearing you talk,

she was dead on. She’s not a pet.”

“I know this.” Valiant frowned, worried that he might

have given her the wrong impression. Regret gripped

him. “Is that why she left? Why she hit me? I’ll tell her

she’s my mate, not my pet.”

“She’s not yours, man.” Tiger pushed away from the

wall. “She wanted to leave. Deal with it. You and I, we’re

not for humans. We talked about this, remember? They

are too fragile, they scare too easily, and you wanted a

Species mate. A feline one.”

“Not anymore. I want Tammy.”

“Too bad. You can’t have her. You talk about our

kind growing soft and how you hate it. You’re the one

who sounds soft right now. Toughen up and face facts. A

human would never get past how we are. A t least not for

guys like us. We’re too in tune with our animal sides. I

just look more human than you do.”

Sadness was an emotion Valiant loathed but it filtered

through him all the same. “She’s not coming back to me,

is she?”

“No,” Tiger’s gaze softened, “she’s not.”

“Leave.”

“I’d rather stay a while to make sure you recover

fully. I’ll make us dinner. We’ll have some sodas and talk.

I heard a few felines you haven’t met yet are being

transferred here. Maybe one of them will be the one for

you.”

Images of Tammy flashed through Valiant’s mind.

“Leave me. I need to be alone.”

“The new felines arrive tomorrow. I’ll pick you up

and take you to the hotel for you to sniff them out.”

Valiant struggled to his feet and his gaze drifted to

the bed where Tammy had been. Her scent still remained

strong inside the room. He moved toward it and tossed

the bag of ice away. He’d rather feel the pain than return

to the numbing state in which he’d existed before he’d

felt all those wonderful things with Tammy. He crawled

onto the bed and lay where she had been, inhaling her

scent.

“Valiant? I’ll pick you up at two o’clock.”

“Don’t bother. Just go. Lock the door when you

leave. I don’t want to meet any felines.”

He breathed in Tammy’s scent, wanted to memorize

it before it faded, and listened to his friend go away. His

eyes closed as his hand gently brushed the comforter. He

couldn’t remember the last time tears had wet his eyes

but they did at that moment. He’d lost her and she would

never return. He’d known peace with her. Happiness.

Hope. A nd now it was gone. She was…lost to him

forever.

Why can’t I just forget Valiant? Tammy felt totally

disgusted with her lack of control over her thoughts as

she lined up the pool cue and the white ball. She glanced

at the red ball and the pocket. Loud music played in the

background. Someone had been in a mood for old-time

rock. A sigh sounded near her.

“Take the shot already, Tam. You know you’re going

to kick my ass anyway.”

She turned her head to grin at her longtime best

friend Tim. The two of them had known each other since

grade school and they were really close. He’d wanted

more than friendship during high school but Tammy

hadn’t returned his romantic feelings. Now years later

they’d settled into a comfortable but strictly platonic

friendship that both of them were happy with.

“I can’t help it if I’m better at this than you are.”

A smile twisted his lips. He appeared to be kind of

awkward but he had a sweet smile and soft brown eyes.

Tim resembled the average computer geek because he

was one. He wore a logo T-shirt and sweatpants and

worked from home as a computer programmer who

made game software. His glasses glinted from the bar

lights.

“I can kick your ass at video games any day.”

“Yes, you can.” She took the shot and sank the red

ball into the corner pocket. “That’s why I’m smarter than

you are and the reason we’re at the bar instead of your

house in front of a game system. I wanted to win.”

He scoffed. “You’re not smarter. I’m just a

gentleman.”

She sank another ball. “Too bad you never bet

money on our games.”

“I make good money but not that good.” He laughed.

“You’d wipe me out of my life savings within an hour

with the way you play pool.”

Tammy winked at him. “You know I need a new

roof.”

Tim’s smile faded as he stared at her. “You do? Why

don’t you let me pay for it?”

Major goof. She’d made a slip. She should have

known better but her mind still remained distracted by

the memory of a pair of cat-eyes the color of melted gold

attached to a body that still made hers heat up at the

very recollection of Valiant. She’d thought about him a

hundred times a day since they’d nearly five weeks

before. She shook her head.

“I was kidding.”

Tim wasn’t buying it. “You were not. Is it leaking

again? Come on, Tam. Let me help you. We’re friends.

Hell, we’re practically family. I know what you make and

its shit. You couldn’t go to college the way I did. You had

your grandma to take care of and I know you’re still

paying off her debts. That house she left you is a death

trap. Let me buy you a new roof. Do you need any other

repairs? I have the money and it’s just sitting inside a

bank account. It’s not as though I have a girlfriend to

blow my money on.”

Tammy sank the black ball. Game over. She frowned

at her best friend. “We’ve had this argument before and I

won’t take your money. Thank you from the bottom of

my heart but I’m not a leech.”

“That’s bullshit and you know it. I’d never accuse you

of that. You always had to do everything for everyone so

let me help you this once. It’s what friends and family do

for each other.”

“I don’t want to fight.”

She walked away from the pool table and moved to

their table. She gripped her beer, peered at the lime

stuck inside it, and took a sip. She rarely drank alcohol

but sometimes she had the urge. She finished off her first

and last beer of the night as she drained the bottle. She’d

felt the need to feel a slight buzz more often since she’d

met Valiant.

“We’re not fighting. I’m trying to reason with you. I

live with my parents and I don’t pay a mortgage. The

house is paid off. I just pay the taxes, which are