The Beast's Desire 1-3 (Paranormal Romance, Beast Lust Series) (7 page)

Chapter
3.1

The cold, ice-running-through-her-veins
feeling of shocking truth whipped through Chloe from head to toe. Never in a million years would she have guessed the identity of Bigfoot was actually a man, let alone Ronin Devons.

“
You...” Chloe whispered as she stumbled backwards from Ronin. “You’re...oh my god!” she covered her mouth, feeling nauseous.

The encounter with Bigfoot, which she had thought would have stayed
a secret in Apple Creek Preserve, was now a much more complex problem. She had fucked not one, but two ape-men! Ape-men who could talk and communicate quite well.

Ronin stepped forward and tried to calm her. “Chloe, please...I
–”

“No!” she shouted at him
, shaking her head. “Don’t even
speak
to me! You...you
lied
to me!” She was now practically screaming at him.

“
I didn’t lie to you. I just...” he said, reaching out toward her. “Let me explain, honey.”

“
Honey?
Don’t you dare use a pet name with me!”

Ronin
put his hands up to signal defeat, then said gently, “Okay, okay. I’m sorry.”

Chloe was so angry, she was nearly hyperventilating.
How could he have sex with me and not tell me what he really is?
To Chloe, lies of omission were nearly as offensive as blatant, straight-forward lies – a lie was a lie was a lie to her.

Ronin couldn’t help noticing that even in her anger, she was the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen. He wisely decided to refrain from mentioning that little bit of information since she’d probably not take it as a genuine compliment right this second.

He couldn’t help notice her perfect, lovely breasts moving up and down, up and down underneath her blouse as her chest heaved with her angry breathing. His previously faint pheromones began to seep out of his body, thickly permeating the air.

Chloe immediately noticed the
sudden increase of the spicy, sandalwood scent and realized exactly what it meant for her. “Ohhh, no! Don’t you
dare
try to drug me with your smell!”

Ronin’s eyebrows shot
up surprised at her comment. “Drug you? What are you talking about?”

Feeling lightheaded and
fearful that her ability to reason soundly would disappear if she didn’t get the hell out of there, Chloe backed up as speedily as possible. She turned around suddenly and bolted through the forest, leaving her backpack on Ronin’s doorstep.

“Chloe, wait!”
yelled Ronin, but it was already too late; she was gone.

* * * *

Chloe ran as fast as her legs would carry her. All she wanted to do was to get back to the cabin and lock the door to keep Ronin Devons from ever bothering her again.

She was angry that her weekend of research had been a total disaster
. This had been the perfect place to study, but now everything was ruined. With any luck, the university would give her a one week extension to complete her research elsewhere.

She finally reached the
section of the path where it split; one path led to the cabin, the other to the small pond. With her side hurting badly from her sudden sprint, she slowed down to a brisk walk.

Thunder rumbled as a storm approached, the breeze picking up and blowing her hair across her face. She shivered slightly, her perspiration cooling her skin
along with the chilliness of the impending storm.

Her thoughts completely blinded her to
her surroundings, and she was unaware of the black shape that shadowed her silently. As she passed by the pond, she heard a low, menacing growl. She stopped in her tracks and fear flooded through her as the same enormous black panther she’d seen last night stalked toward her.

Another growl came from her left and Chloe realized she was in
deeper trouble than she realized. Anger was swept away as terror took over her emotions.

* * * *

Still in his towel, Ronin stood on the front step of his house and hung his head in despair. He couldn’t believe he had been so careless.

He knew this was going to happen. After he had stupidly shouted her name when he climaxed, he knew he and his brother had little time to keep their secret life, well…secret. Chloe was just too smart for that anyway.

He and his brother had successfully kept their
Bigfoot-shifter existence quiet for over fifteen years. Apple Creek Forest Preserve had been the perfect place to protect him and his brother. It was secluded, and after the park had closed, no one visited the place – ever.

He whipped off his towel
and wiped the shaving cream from his face, suddenly angry with himself. How could he have been so stupid as to involve Chloe in his life in the first place? Granted, it wasn’t entirely his fault; the moment Kane appeared to her shortly after she had crashed her truck, he should have put a stop to their involvement right then.

The only reason he hadn’t was because he had been lonely
–
they
had been lonely. It was a selfish, self-serving decision that he now regretted deeply.

Well,
he supposed, loneliness wasn’t the only reason. It wasn’t just that she was smart, beautiful and a breath of fresh air to their secluded lifestyle.

There was something more
: something he felt about her that drew him to her. She was on his mind constantly – her beautiful blue eyes, her long blond hair, her soft, curvaceous body, the way she smiled, the look on her face when she climaxed – she always seemed to be his next thought. Her scent and the sight of her made his cock rock hard and he felt as though he was losing his mind.

What he felt for her was so much deeper than attraction; the animal side of him accepted th
at part easily while the human side had to analyze it to death. Bigfoot view: The most powerful want and need for her filled every fiber of his being. Human view: It was irrational to think he could already have fallen for her, right? Then again, he was certain this was exactly how he felt.

He shook his head, admonishing himself silently.
Between he and his brother, it was he who always made the “safe” decisions. Due to their shifter heritage, the decision to move here and to take the job as a ranger, was the only way he and Kane would have a shot a decent life.

But, this
woman threw all of his logic and sound decision-making skills to hell. His animal side was obsessed with her, and he would swear, even though they’d only just met, she was the one who would make their family complete. He couldn’t get her out of his mind or his heart, no matter how wrong he knew it was to pursue her.

His thoughts were jarred
back to the present as his brother, Kane, walked out of the house and stood in the front yard next to him. He sniffed the air deeply then stated matter-of-factly, “Chloe was here.”

Before Ronin could nod, a woman’s scream
rent the stillness and both men took off to help the woman they inexplicably found themselves caring about so deeply.

* * * *

The two big cats circled Chloe, both baring their teeth and growling. Chloe had never been in a situation like this before, but it was obvious to her neither of the felines was exactly “normal”.

Even though the panthers’ features were similar to a
big cat’s, there were a few noticeable differences: First, these big cats were the largest she had ever seen. Male panthers weigh between eighty and one-hundred fifty pounds, these two were well over two hundred.

Second, their eyes were strange
– they held an intelligence she had never witnessed in wild cats, which now made complete sense to her. They were shifters, too – they had to be.

Her voice shook as she spoke. “Look, I just want to leave. I won’t say anything, all right?”

The big cats caterwauled, the disturbing sound echoing throughout the forest, making Chloe jump. In response to her sudden movement, the larger of the two cats sprung forward and pushed her to the ground.

The
bigger panther shifted smoothly, his body changing into a tall, lithe human male. He straddled Chloe just above her hips, and bent over, his face inches from hers. “You have no idea what you’ve done, do you, little girl?”

Seein
g the panther change into a man made the shifter seem less harmful and Chloe responded more flippantly than she should have. “No, what have I
supposedly
done?” she sneered at the were-cat. Although she was scared, she was sick of being in the dark about Ronin, the other Bigfoot and now panthers for god’s sake!

The man barked a laugh, “Even when I could rip out your thro
at in a second, you are still defiant.”

“Look,” she said angrily. “I didn’t ask for any of this. I
–”

The man cut her off, “
Maybe you didn’t, but you fucked them anyway, didn’t you?”

Chloe opened her mouth to retort then
closed it again, her lips coming together in a thin line. Damn, he had her there.

His laugh was low and husky as he sat up
, revealing his nakedness to Chloe. “It has already begun, woman.”

Trying to ignore the man’s
rippling muscles and his generous cock resting on her stomach, she stared him in the eyes. “Stop being so damn cryptic.
What
has begun?”

A flash of anger crossed his face, but disappeared as he wrestled
the emotion away. The were-panther was not accustomed to being spoken to so casually by anyone. “The Vow has begun. It is how shifters take a mate.”

She shook her head defiantly
, “I spoke no vow.”

The man rolled his eyes and said, “The first part isn’t about speaking. You are nearly their mate already.”

Her eyes widened, “
Mate
?”
What in the hell is he talking about?
“I am no one’s mate!” she said.

He tsked in irritation. “
How do animals communicate?” Before she could answer he said, “Non-verbally.

“
One – they display dominance, which is exactly what the Bigfoot was telling me when I saw you naked together. Two – they mark their mate; I can smell the blood on your breast where the big ape bit you, there’s no denying it. Three – they fuck their female.  You
are
a biologist, correct?”

“Yes,” she
hissed, then waited for him to continue. When he remained silent, she prompted, “Well? What about it?”

Annoyed, the man bared his teeth in a very feline manner. Chloe would have sworn she heard the deep rumble of a growl
emanate from the shifter. “You are going to tell me you noticed nothing different about the apes? Did they not appear
un
like other apes to you or smell different?”

“Yes, but
–”

“
You should have learned this long before graduate school,” he chided.

“Yes
,” she huffed. “What does that have to–”

He cut her off again, “Then you,” he pointed his finger accusingly, “of all people should have recognized
even the slightest subtleties of communication!” He shook his head. “They were stupid not to have talked with you when you were together a little while ago.”

Chloe couldn’t have agreed more. “You got that right.”
Wait a second; is this guy everywhere at once? Is he spying on me? On us?
She opened her mouth to say something snide about his apparent omnipotence, but he spoke before she could utter a sound.

“But,” he said then gave her a hard look, “you
admit you
were
aware of their differences?” His face showed triumph as he ‘caught’ her in her realization.

Embarrassed, Chloe
finally grasped that she was partly at fault. She knew when she met the Bigfoot after she crashed her truck that his pheromones were the reason he affected her. She also knew the two ape-men were not ‘normal’ in the first place. And, yes, when she met Ronin the first time, she knew he had been putting out the exact scent as the other Bigfoot.

“Okay, fine,” she said in defeat. “Yes, I will take part of the blame, but I didn’t vow anything to anyone.”

The shifter cursed then sighed loudly, “I see I will have spell it out for you.” He shook his head, “Get up and walk. I will explain while we are moving.”

The man stood up and shifted back to panther form giving
Chloe a moment to wonder how he was going to talk properly with a muzzle rather than lips, but the thought left her mind as quickly as it came.

She scrambled
away, trying to distance herself from the big cats, but they were, of course, much more adept on four legs than she on her hands and knees.

They al
lowed her to regain her footing and pushed her farther into the wooded area. Both cats seemed to be herding her, guiding her toward the forest and she could do nothing less than go exactly where they wanted.