Big Cat Mates Lion in Wait Read Free Page A

his mood darkening.
    Mate , his animal snarled, fighting his decision.
    His brothers turned their heads. “She made you smile, bro.” Tanner frowned. “You should, at least, consider it… for all our sakes. You’ve been a bit… intense lately.” Dirk, that idiot, nodded, his brothers for once agreeing on something.
    “I’m not considering it. I don’t need her,” Royce lied, needing Starr with every cell in his shifter body. “And I’m not hiring her. That decision is final.”
    “Yes, alpha.” The two fools snapped to attention, giving him an impertinent salute.
    Gods save me . Royce lurched to his feet, desperate to escape Starr’s scent, to concentrate on business. Yes, business . “Ask Jeanine to have the library cleaned.”
    His brothers stared at him. Royce ignored them. He stuffed his hands into his pockets and strolled to his office -- an office he didn’t plan to leave until all traces of Starr were gone.
    * * *
    I’m tired . Starr grabbed her tote from her employee locker and hooked the straps over one of her aching shoulders. So very tired .
    It had been three long work-filled days since her non-interview with Leone Media, and she hadn’t yet caught up on her lack of sleep. Fucking Royce Leone had been worth it though, that all night sexathon the best experience of her life, her orgasms reaching double digits before she lost count.
    “See you tomorrow.” Starr waved to her fellow waitresses and slipped out of the staff entrance into the back alley. The night air cooled her flushed cheeks as she walked, the pavement rolling before her, black urban plains inhabited by cars and tall buildings.
    I still want him . She’d dreamed of Royce every night since their encounter, fantasizing about his calloused hands, his erotic purring, his enticing warmth, and his burning passion. And every morning, she had woken up, throbbing with need, her bed sheets twisted around her body.
    I’ll dream of him again tonight . Starr headed toward the bus stop, cutting through the parking lot, the area dimly lit by two flickering streetlights, inconstant stars in a midnight sky. Her lips curled into a small smile.
    “Is that smile for us, pretty lady?” Three large men stepped in front of her -- a pack of predators she couldn’t avoid -- their eyes gleaming, their denim-clad arms extended, boxing her in.
    A shiver ran down Starr’s spine. She recognized them, the cruelty in their faces memorable. They’d caused trouble at the restaurant during the dinner rush, grabbing the waitresses and threatening the guests.
    “It’s been a long day.” She lifted her chin, meeting the dead-eyed gaze of the leader, not allowing him to see her fear. “Please let me pass.”
    Starr reached into her tote and closed her fingers around the can of pepper spray, hoping she wouldn’t have to use it, praying that if she did, it’d be enough to stop them.
    “We can’t let you pass. Not just yet.” Their leader looked her up and down. His gaze lingered on her breasts, and he licked his lips, his saliva glistening. Starr shuddered, the thought of him touching her turning her stomach.
    “Not until you give us,” he continued, looming closer. Starr stepped back, her ass pressed against a parked car. “All of us.” His friends leered at her, their canine teeth unusually sharp and pronounced. “What we want.” The leader plucked at her white peasant blouse, the fabric ripping underneath his fingertips.
    A menacing rumble rolled through the space, the sound primitively deep. Starr turned her head. Royce leaned against a silver Maserati, his legs casually crossed, his big body clad in a black suit, his shirt startlingly white, his scarred face expressionless. Starr’s heart leaped, her terror flowing into relief and then into desire.
    “Does your alpha know you’re out?” Royce flicked a piece of lint off his sleeve, his fingers long and tanned and perfect, his nails surprisingly blunt considering the scratches he’d left on