Tempted by the Jaguar #1: Transformation (Riverford Shifters) (7 page)

“I’m not so sure I like the idea of you living so close to the river,”
Paul said as they headed out the door early the next morning. “The jaguars may
claim the eastern half, but that’s never stopped the alligators from pushing
their boundaries.”

“Don’t worry,” Kylie replied with a grimace. “Hunter’s territory is in
the easternmost portion, so there’s no reason I’d go anywhere near the
contested borders unless it was deliberate. Believe me, between all the horror stories
my parents and Karen have told me about the alligator clan, you couldn’t pay me
to go even to the jaguar territories on the fringes of alligator territory.”

“I’ll talk to Karen at work and ask her to keep her ears open for
anything gator related. They aren’t part of the Alliance, but no doubt they’ve
at least heard a few rumors about what happened the other night. I hate to say
this, but I’m glad Hunter will be looking after you for the time being.”

“Honestly, I’m surprised the elders didn’t make him into my bodyguard
or something the way they went on and on about the significance of a Returner.
The more Hunter tells me about the clan, the more I’m not so sure joining them
was such a good idea. One of the elders is a history professor at my
university, and he looked positively gleeful at the prospect of searching for
the identity of my parents.”

Paul turned to unlock his car, but not before Kylie saw the troubled
look in his eyes. “What’s done is done. All we can do now is be extra cautious
and try not to do anything that would draw the wrong kind of attention. Once
all the excitement dies down a bit, then you can decide whether or not you want
to stay here or if we should try to go to the British Isles to look for your
mother’s clan.”

“Let’s not think about that right now,” she said. “I’ll call you
tonight after Hunter finishes introducing me to some of the local jaguars.”

As Kylie drove to the university, she spent the whole way dreading the
onslaught of scents she knew awaited her. She only hoped that Hunter would be
right, that her newly enhanced sense of smell had leveled out somewhat overnight.
Otherwise, she would have to miss another day of classes—which she could
not
afford—because there was no way she would be able to concentrate with her head
spinning. She hadn’t really noticed a difference with Paul’s scent this
morning, but…

As she waited at a red light, Kylie resisted the urge to start banging
her head on the steering wheel. Sometimes life just
really
pissed her
off, and she didn’t need to add a headache to the whole horrible mix.

Besides, the ugly knot on her temple had all but disappeared when she
had examined herself this morning. The last thing she needed to do was
reintroduce
that
nasty little reminder of just how much life could screw
you.

The moment Kylie stepped out of her car, the scents of thousands of
people assaulted her senses just as she had feared. Determined not to give up,
she stood by her car and just breathed slowly and shallowly as she had back at
the architectural firm, letting herself get used to the maelstrom of acrid and
earthy scents.

After a few minutes, her head stopped spinning and the smells not quite
so potent.

Maybe I can do this after all.

Relieved, Kylie headed towards her first class, hoping to catch her
friend Molly before class started to borrow yesterday’s notes.

***

“Are you sure you don’t want to come?” Kylie’s friend Tara persisted as
Kylie walked with her, Molly, and Molly’s boyfriend, Ty, towards the parking
lot after their last class.

“It’s not that I don’t want to,” Kylie said, pinching the bridge of her
nose as if in pain. “It’s just my head’s been killing me since Genetics. I
think yesterday’s fever is back. I don’t want to get any of you sick.”

“Yeah, you are looking kinda pale,” Molly said, peering back at her
critically. “You probably should’ve stayed home today, too.”

Kylie shook her head. “You know I hate making up labs. The prof probably
would’ve made me come in on Sunday this time. By the way, thanks for the
notes.”

“No problem. Just make sure they stay in your backpack until at least
tomorrow. You’re probably long overdue for a good snooze.”

“Yes, Mom,” Kylie teased.

Molly snorted. “Yeah, laugh all you want, but that’s probably why you
got sick in the first place.”

“We might go clubbing tomorrow night,” Tara interjected. “Call me if
you feel better, and I’ll pick you up.”

“Sounds like a plan.”

Hopefully Hunter wouldn’t have anywhere else she needed to go. Kylie
had a feeling that her list of excuses would dry up pretty quickly otherwise.

If you have to go a lot of places with Hunter, then there’s one
excuse that would work for everything
, her mind supplied helpfully.

The thought startled her. Then she was irritated with herself. There
was no denying that Hunter was hot, but getting involved with him would
probably be the worst thing she could do right now, especially when she hadn’t
even decided if she was going to stay or go hunting her mother’s clan.

She snorted. As if getting involved with him was even a problem in the
first place. He hadn’t shown any romantic interest in her at all. Talk about
counting your chickens before they hatch.

Once she was back at her apartment, Kylie began to pack up some of her
things into the few boxes she had on hand while she waited for Hunter to
arrive. The elders had told her that they would take care of hiring movers to
come on Saturday, and although she had nothing in the apartment that was
dangerous for others to see, Kylie still didn’t feel comfortable allowing total
strangers to handle her more personal items.

While she worked, Kylie let her mind wander to all the potential jaguar
shifters Hunter would soon introduce. At the very least, it would be interesting
to see if any of them were people she actually knew. There were already a
handful of people at her university that she was pretty sure were jaguar
shifters. Jaguars and humans were the only two scents she was able to identify
with any confidence. Hopefully Karen would be able to come over to Paul’s for
lunch on Sunday and she could add cougar to the list. The rest she would have
to ask Hunter to help her with.

She was in the process of packing up the contents of her underwear
drawer into a suitcase when she caught a whiff of a familiar scent. Her head
was already up and scenting the air before she realized what she was doing. A
bit unsettled, Kylie headed for the living room just as a loud knock sounded on
the front door.

The scent of a jaguar was strong as she fumbled with the lock. She
supposed it was a convenient way to know who—or what—was at the door before she
bothered to answer it, but it still kind of freaked her out.

“Hi,” Hunter said as soon as the door swung open, a smile lighting up
his face, and to her horror, Kylie’s heart instantly began to race in
excitement.

What the hell was wrong with her? She had
never
reacted to a guy
like that, no matter how hot he was.

Embarrassed, she smiled at him tightly before waving him inside. “Just
let me go grab my purse and keys and we can go.”

“You’re just as tense and wary as the first time I stepped through this
door,” Hunter remarked. “Did something happen? A bear come sniffing already?”

Kylie pocketed her keys and cell phone and snatched her purse from the
coffee table. “No, it’s nothing like that. My jaguar side is just freaking me
out right now.”

Hunter raised an eyebrow. “How so?”

She shrugged uncomfortably. “I’m just not used to reacting to things
the way a cat would. It makes me nervous because I’m not sure I
should
be acting that way at all, if maybe I’m letting too much of the jaguar come
through.”

Hunter’s eyes softened in understanding. “You’re still worried about
losing control.”

“Constantly,” Kylie admitted, though with more meaning than Hunter
could ever guess.

“You shifted forms back and forth with no problem with the elders
yesterday,” Hunter reminded her.

Kylie smiled sheepishly. “I know. I keep telling myself that over and
over, but—I guess it’s because all of this shifter business still doesn’t feel
natural to me.”

“With a few more shifts under your belt, it’ll literally become your
second nature,” he assured her. “Now, we’d better head out. I’d like you to
meet a good friend of mine who co-owns a local nightclub nearby, and I think, given
your problems yesterday with your sense of smell, it would probably be better
to see him now before it gets too crowded.”

“Your friend owns
Southern Glacier
!” Kylie exclaimed as Hunter
drove around to the back of the large, illuminated building and entered the
club’s VIP parking garage.

She had expected Hunter to take her to one of the many small clubs
along the edges of downtown that she and her friends often frequented, not
the
hottest club in Riverford.

“Co-owns,” Hunter corrected with a grin.

“My friends and I have always wanted to come here,” Kylie admitted,
“but I always thought there was no way a bunch of lowly college students like
us would stand a chance of getting in so we never tried.”

“You’d be surprised,” Hunter said. “The owners aren’t as fussy about
their patrons as you might think. It’s all just the luck of the draw as long as
you’re willing to wait in line long enough since people are selected randomly.
Really, the owners would let everyone in if they had the room so long as you
could pay the cover.”

“Even alligator and bear shifters?” Kylie asked shrewdly.

Hunter smiled wryly. “You got me there. No, anyone from the alligator
clan are most definitely not welcome. They’re naturally—forgive the pun—
snappish
.
They can’t be trusted to not start trouble. Their tempers are always on a
hair-trigger. That’s one of the many reasons why they are always at odds with
most of the other shifter clans.”

“And the bears?”

“They can be aggressive when provoked just like their wild
counterparts, but for the most part, as long as their boundaries are respected,
they won’t cause trouble just for the sake of causing trouble like the
alligators. You might see a bear or two in the club, but they tend to not like
crowds. Maybe a few Jaguars will also show while we’re here and I can introduce
you.”

“A lot of people at the university were staring at me today,” Kylie
said. “I’m not sure how many of them were jaguars, but I imagine they were
shocked that someone that had been human a couple of days ago suddenly smelled
like a jaguar.”

“I don’t think the elders have gotten around to telling everyone in the
clan about you. We don’t gather very often, so that’s what this little tour of
introductions I’m taking you on is all about.”

Kylie snorted. “Sounds to me like they’re just dumping me on you. I
mean, how hard can it be to rent a large hall and just call everyone up and say
‘come meet the clan’s new member’?”

Hunter chuckled. “Normally I would agree with you, but you’re a special
case. It’s very unusual for a shifter to leave their clan for another, so new
additions are pretty rare. It’s tradition that they introduce themselves to key
members of the clan, but since you’re new to all of shifter society in general,
it’s only logical that they ask me, the only jaguar you’re somewhat familiar
with, to help you with the introductions.”

“So one of the owners of this club is a key member of your clan?” she
asked. Knowing just who filled the upper echelons of the jaguar clan could
prove useful to her and Paul’s search.

“Oh, no. Maxim—that’s my friend—heard about you from a family member
who’s an elder and wanted to meet you.”

There was something about the way Hunter grinned at her as he replied
that immediately set Kylie on edge, but she couldn’t for the life of her figure
out why or even if it was
her
who noticed it or the jaguar in her. She
was beginning to wonder if she would ever get used to her dual nature, that
maybe she had lived as just a human for too long. What was the use of having
enhanced instincts if she couldn’t interpret any of their meanings?

Hunter stopped his truck in front of a group of young men dressed in
black tuxedoes, and two of them immediately broke away to open their doors. The
valet had the strong, earthy smell of a shifter, though it had another
underlying element that she had never smelled before. Kylie wondered which type
of shifter he was. She would have to remember to grill Hunter later about which
shifters were friendly with whom and not just for appearances.

Loud music assaulted her senses once they stepped into the club, from a
live band she was pleased to note. She wondered how long Hunter planned for
them to stay. It was Friday night, after all, and she was missing out on
hanging with her friends. Not that she had much to complain about seeing as she
was currently walking into
Southern Glacier
with a super hot guy—and she
did
not
just think that.

Kylie’s entire body seemed to heat up as she glanced at Hunter from the
corner of her eye. Hadn’t she already decided that she would keep their
relationship strictly on friendly terms, that she wouldn’t even try to flirt?
It wasn’t like her to fixate on any guy, no matter how hot, especially when she
knew how dangerous letting this guy in particular get closer to her could be.

Even though it was fairly early as far as clubbing was concerned, the
tables and dance floor were already pretty crowded. Never had Kylie been so
glad about the city-wide ban on smoking in public places than now. She could
only imagine the havoc adding cigarette smoke to her already reeling senses
would have caused.

Hunter led her through the tables towards the huge bar that spanned the
entirety of one of the far walls. He caught the eye of one of the many
bartenders and spoke something into his ear that Kylie couldn’t hear over the
music.

“Have a seat,” Hunter said, gesturing towards a barstool that someone
had just vacated. “I sent that bartender after Maxim. If you want, I’ll buy you
a drink while we wait.”

Kylie raised an eyebrow as she jumped up onto the stool. She beckoned
Hunter closer and said into his ear, “I guess you forgot.”

He tilted his head curiously. “Forgot?”

“I’m only twenty remember.”

For a couple of seconds, he looked confused before he shot her an
incredulous look. “Normally this would be the last place you’d want to bring
that little fact to anyone’s attention.”

Her smile was self-deprecating. “I’m not much of a drinker.” Let him
make of that what he will, but the last thing she wanted to do was get into the
“whys.”

He nodded and then flashed her a smile that was much too charming for
her peace of mind. “Even so, my offer still stands. Sparkling water? Coke?
Italian soda?”

Kylie couldn’t help returning his smile. “Thanks, but I’m good.” She
gestured with her chin over to the stage where the four-man band was just
finishing up a rock song she had never heard before. “Being able to listen to
live music is enough for me. I’m usually too busy with school, so it’s not
something I get to do as much as I’d like.”

“Sounds exhausting,” Hunter said, leaning up against the bar.

“It can be.”

“I never had the ‘pleasure’ of going to college. When my parents died,
my brother and I took over several apartment complexes and rental properties.
Occasionally, I will even buy and flip a house. I guess you can say real estate
is in my family’s blood.”

“Is your brother older or younger?”

“Older.” Hunter’s eyes flickered to the side briefly, his posture
suddenly tense.

“You sound pretty busy yourself having to manage that much property,”
Kylie remarked, deciding not to press the subject. No use purposely stepping on
a potential minefield—at least not yet. “I’m sorry that the elders saddled you
with me.”

His lips curved up. “Because coming to Southern Glacier with a cute
girl is so terrible.”

“Well, that was certainly quick,” a deep voice abruptly said loudly near
Kylie’s ear, startling her so much that she nearly fell off her stool.

“Don’t even,” Hunter said warningly at the tall, platinum blond man
dressed completely in black in a fashionable suit sans tie who was smiling
affably at them both.

A strong scent of something that was definitely not the scent of a
jaguar shifter emanated from him, reminding Kylie of the clean smell of snow in
the air. It completely caught her off-guard. She had automatically assumed
Hunter’s friend would be another jaguar, and now she realized how utterly
short-sighted that was of her.

“Maxim Clarke,” he offered, holding out a hand to her.

His large hand all but swallowed hers as they shook hands. “Kylie
Moore. It’s nice to meet you.”

The moment she released his hand, Kylie felt a surge of warmth flow
through her entire body. It took every ounce of control she had to keep from
visibly reacting. What in the hell had just happened? Did Maxim do something to
her? Exactly what type of shifter was he?

For his part, Maxim gave no indication that he knew she was freaking
out inside, regarding her with the same polite interest in his pale blue eyes. Maybe
it was just a natural reaction that shifters of certain clans experienced. Did
she dare ask which clan he belonged to? Kylie turned and looked at Hunter
questionably, hoping he would understand and save her from asking and possibly
committing some kind of social
faux pas
.

“He’s a tiger,” Hunter said. There was a definite tinge of amusement in
his voice.

“Siberian, to be exact,” Maxim interjected. “We and the Bengal tiger clan have got a rivalry going on, so you don’t want to get us confused.”

“At this point, I wouldn’t know a Bengal tiger shifter from a moose
shifter—if there’s even such a thing—so it’ll probably be better for everyone
all around if I just don’t say anything,” Kylie said wryly.”

Maxim laughed. “Well, come to my family’s club often enough and you’ll
definitely get a nose-f. You’ll find no better melting pot of shifters
outside a university.” He slapped Hunter on the back. “I’m sure this guy’ll be
happy to set you straight. I’m always telling him he needs to get out more,
anyway.”

“Your whole family runs the club?”

“Just my older brother, sister, and their mates. You’ll find that with
shifters, pretty much everything is either family or clan-oriented. Well, with
the exception of the jaguar loners. They tend to do their own thing.”

“And that’s why we have more territory in this city than any other
clan,” Hunter said.

“Too true, but at least you’re not greedy about it like those damn
gators,” Maxim said darkly.

Hunter’s entire demeanor was instantly alert. “More trouble?”

The tiger shifter sighed. “Always,” he replied, his tone heavy with
meaning. He turned his attention back to Kylie. “The alligator clan hates us
felines more than any other. As I’m sure your new clan’s elders told you, a
Returner like you is a big deal in the shifter world, like winning the genetic
lottery. It’s only a matter of time before the gators catch wind and see an opportunity
to strike back where it would hurt most. When that happens, just know that the
Siberians will have your back.”

Kylie was taken aback. Was this the reason why Hunter wanted her to
meet Maxim? Did she dare hope that she might have found more true allies within
the shifters like Karen? It was still too early to judge, but for the first
time in a long time, Kylie felt a flutter of hope that maybe, just maybe she
and Paul might be able to move their investigation into her parents’
disappearance past the utter standstill it had been in for over a year now.

“Saying thanks doesn’t seem like it’s enough, but thanks,” Kylie said.

He waved a hand dismissively. “I know all this must seem confusing as
hell, so the least all of us can do is ease you into our world as painlessly as
possible. Which reminds me—a gator tried to start a fight outside the club last
Friday and lost his beanie in all the excitement. I’ll have security bring it
to you so you can get a whiff. That’s one scent you’ll want to know right away.”

“I also have something I want your guys to look at,” Hunter said.

“Of course. Did you want to do this now or…” Maxim’s gaze flickered
over to Kylie meaningfully before fixing on Hunter again.

“Kylie, do you want to go to the back with us, or—” Hunter touched her
shoulder, and for the second time that night, Kylie nearly fell off her stool
as that same strange warmth she had felt after shaking hands with Maxim shot
throughout her body. However, this time it seemed much stronger, hotter and
lingering, as though she had just submerged herself in a hot tub.

Hunter immediately sprang forward to steady her. “Kylie?” he asked
worriedly.

“S-sorry,” she said, shaking her head as if to clear it. “I just felt
dizzy all of a sudden. It’s probably just my senses going haywire again.”

He frowned. “Maybe it was too soon to bring you into such a crowded
place.”

She smiled at him with forced reassurance. “I’m okay now. I was only
dizzy for a second. You two go on ahead and take care of whatever business you
have. I’ll just sit here and listen to the band.”

When Hunter hesitated, Maxim said, “Don’t worry. I’ll have a couple of
my guys keep an eye on her.”

“Okay, but you should at least drink something,” Hunter insisted. “Just
think of how it’d look if you passed out and I had to carry you out.”

This time Kylie’s smile was real. “You really do want to buy me that
drink,” she teased. “Fine. I’ll have one of those cherry Italian sodas you
mentioned earlier.”

As Hunter waved over a bartender, Maxim turned to her and said, “You have
a pretty strong scent. I can only imagine it’s because you’re a Returner. I’ve
never met one before you so I can’t compare, but it may peak a few shifters’
curiosity.” He pointed to a couple of large men who looked like real bruisers standing
at the other end of the bar. “I’ll have those two make sure no one takes that
curiosity any further.”

“I appreciate it.”

“I promise we won’t be long,” Hunter said with an apologetic smile as
he and Maxim headed away from the bar.

Kylie watched the two men with narrowed eyes as they quickly wove
through the throng towards the back of the room with the agility associated
with the big cats who were, in essence, their alter egos. For some inexplicable
reason, she suddenly had a strong desire to chase after them. Just thinking
about going after them made her whole body heat up and buzz with—something.
Excitement? She wasn’t sure.