No longer would Iseult’s threats hover over their lives.The heady sense of freedom filled Betrys from the moment she opened her eyes.She edged out of the sleep-bed, away from Leo’s warmth, and looked for her robe.When she couldn’t find it, she grabbed one of Leo’s shirts and tugged it over her head.It smelled of him—of musk and sunshine and some sort of cleanser with a perfume she couldn’t identify—and the scent soothed her, made her feel happy.
“Why are you awake?”Leo’s husky voice sent an enjoyable frisson soaring to her sex.
“Couldn’t sleep any longer.I thought I’d be sore today with lots of cuts and bruises.There are none—well, nothing that’s too bad.”Betrys watched Leo.She hadn’t dreamed about turning into a black cat.A blip in her feel-good mood since she couldn’t decide if this was a good or a bad thing.On the negative side, the change hurt.A lot.She stretched, lifting onto the balls of her feet, tested her physique.A new strength rippled in her muscles, her body.Not a bad thing, since she had Ricci to protect.
“Looking good in my T-shirt, sweetheart.”Leo climbed out of the sleep-bed and strode toward her.His arms went around her, and he tugged her against his chest.
Home,she thought, his scent filling her senses.
“You’ve seen me in my feline form, Betrys.”
She tugged and freed herself so she could watch his face.“Yes.”
“I like you.A lot,” he said, and a strange expression slid across his face.
Something in her, some sixth sense that hadn’t been present before, told her he wasn’t telling her the truth.There was more, so she waited.
“When I bit you here, on the neck.”His fingers traced across the spot that bore the tiny cat tattoo.“I marked you, claimed you.”
“Claimed me?”Warmth spread across her skin, and Betrys realized she liked—loved—the idea.She didn’t feel coerced or threatened.It was more a sense of him accepting everything she was—both good and bad.And there had been a lot of bad.
“I want you, Betrys.I want to raise Ricci as my son.I want to live with you, love you, and maybe have more children.I want to build a life with you.”
“Even after everything I’ve done?”
“You were trying to survive and keep your son safe.Betrys, I would have done the same thing.So would my brothers.I admit that at first I wanted revenge, but once I met Ricci and understood you were just doing your best to keep him safe, everything changed for me.We can take things as slow as you want, but I warn you now.I’m determined.I’m stubborn, and I will get my way.We will be together.A family.”
He sounded sure of himself.Confident, and she liked that about him.Yet she’d seen the way he and his brothers valued women too.They listened to them, sought their opinions and let them take an active part in the running of the resort.While she’d loved Corrin, he’d never, ever asked her advice.
“We can start by making love,” he said when she didn’t say anything, couldn’t say anything because emotion backed up her throat.
“But Ricci will be here soon.”
“My brothers will let us know.”Leo flashed a grin that made her heart stutter.“Besides, with a kid around, we should get used to bedroom interruptions.”
Betrys laughed and Leo swung her into his arms and carried her back to the sleep-bed.
“Will I change into a cat again?”Goddess, it had hurt so much.It had felt as if her body was turning itself inside out.
“If you will it,” Leo said.“Think of the fun we could have together, playing in the surf, running along the beach at night.”
“It hurt.”
“The change never feels comfortable, but it does become easier and faster with practice.Your first transformation was driven by fear and rage, and you didn’t have the training, the knowledge that my brothers and sister and I were brought up with.Now that we know you’re capable of shifting, we can help and offer advice, but don’t worry.You can shift when you’re ready.”Leo paused.“You will always be a feline now, Betrys.The ability to shift and the things that come with being a feline will never go away.”
Once again, she compared Leo to Corrin.If Corrin had known she could do this, he would have insisted on her changing so he could record the phenomenon.He wouldn’t have considered her feelings, her objections, her doubts.She thought about the fun she’d had playing with Leo at the beach.“I’ll consider your words.”
“Good.Let’s seal our bargain with a kiss.”
“What bargain?”
“Your promise to think about trying another shift.Your promise to stay at Middlemarch Resort with me.”
He didn’t give her a chance to ask another question, to refute his words or even turn them over in her mind.His mouth settled over hers and she sighed at the wash of pure pleasure that swept her at his touch.Since her shift, her senses seemed to work overtime—another thing to ask Leo.
For now, she followed her gut instinct and kissed Leo in return, running her hands over his hard muscles.
“T-shirt off,” he muttered.
