Recognizing the edge to El's tone, Shawn sat up a little."It's okay, El.Everything is in hand."
"No.Everything isn't okay."
Marisa jeered, "Do you really need the First Lady to protect you?"
"Don't even go there, bitch."El let out a hiss that would have done any house cat proud.
Shawn thought of the times his grandmother's cat had been pissed off by her dog.When the small tabby's back arched, she'd let out a hiss worthy of a cobra and her fur had stood on edge.The pup, no idiot, had known to back off for its own sake.
Marisa didn't seem to realize she wasn't the cat in this situation.
“Excuse me?"Marisa demanded, not showing any of the deference she'd displayed earlier in front of Ryan—undoubtedly because El was human."How dare you talk to me like that!"
"Oh, I dare," El said with a sneer.
"Look, just because you're the First Lady doesn't mean all the single men belong to you.If anything, it means the opposite.You have three!"
Marisa's snarl had El growling.But it was like no other growl Shawn had ever heard.At least not from a human.It triggered every single one of his flight or fight responses.The electrical charges sparking through the air had him on an edge he’d only ever experienced during a firefight.
Had he been in the jungle, he'd have been certain he was being preyed upon by a predator more dangerous than he.That growl was like nothing he’d ever heard before, and he wasn't the only one affected by it either.
Marisa had tensed up.Finally, seeming to register El’s mood wasn't one to be messed with, she held up a hand in surrender."I'm sorry, I didn't mean to intrude."
"You do more than intrude.He’s mine," El spat.
The platform was away from the flat ground where the majority of the crowd had gathered and was mingling.The moon provided illumination, but El approached from the shadows, and it was only when she was a few feet from him that he actually saw her.And when he did, he had to blink a few times.The El standing there was not the El he knew.
Her russet-colored hair which, earlier had draped over her shoulders, now seemed to be glowing.Maybe that was a flight of fancy.It could have just been the moon shining down on her, turning the auburn a gold, bronze color.But the moon wasn't responsible for her eyes.He'd only seen something like that recently.When Ryan had pulled his magic trick.
Gold bled through her irises in a way that had Marisa gasping for breath.First, he thought it was surprise.That the Pride female was stunned by what she was seeing, however, he quickly realized that El was doing something to her.Before he could do little else than gape in surprise, Marisa was falling to her knees.The dull thud of her bones against the decking had him cringing.
Frozen in place, he had no idea what to do next.El had never done anything like this before, it certainly wasn't like he'd forget something of this fucking nature.Then he realized, she’d frozen him in place.
That was why he couldn’t move.Not because he was scared, but because she was controlling his fucking body.
The thought was enough to have him bite out, "El.Release me!"
The bite to his tone had El flinching.The gold in her irises immediately dispersed, shrinking away as though it had never been.In response, Marisa let out a deep gasp.It was like it was the first time she'd been able to breathe properly since El's arrival.
"Get out of here, Marisa."
The female didn’t swagger at his words.Instead, his command had her leaping to her feet and scurrying off into the darkness.He scanned the horizon and saw her return to the fold.
He wasn't sure if she would gossip about what had just happened, figuring she’d be too embarrassed.As far as the crowd knew, after all, El was human.
But what had just happened was beyond inhuman.
What.The.Actual.Fuck?
Chapter 15
When a female grabbed his arm, Trip carefully removed the hand from his bicep.The truth was, now he had El, another female’s touch was repulsive to him.A fact that Marisa should have known, he thought irritably, when he turned around and saw who the arm belonged to.
Marisa, the daughter of a councilmember, had been an irritation to them all at some point.Marc, especially.As the eldest, and the male who had lived alone for longest, he’d been the most susceptible to her feminine charms.
Though Marisa knew she wasn't his mate, nor the Triad's, it hadn't stopped her from trying to wheedle her way into their bond.The power play had done nothing but agitate him and Ryan, but Marc, who was definitely more responsive to her, usually listened when his Triad brothers would have ignored the annoying cat.
"What do you want, Marisa?"When she tried to reach for his arm again, he immediately backed off, ripping free from her hold lest she rubbed her scent on him.
