She tensed beside him but didn’t argue, thank God.
A hiss shot through the night.
“Run!”
Thankfully, she didn’t hesitate. She took off like a jackrabbit, and Braden pounded the ground after her, his hand at her back urging her faster.
Metal glinted in the moonlight ahead. The SUV came into view, and he grasped her arm and dragged her the remaining way.
He yanked open the door and tossed her inside. She landed with a thump then rapidly turned over to glare at him.
“Don’t get out of this truck,” he said. “I don’t care what you hear or see. You don’t leave. You got me?”
“Yeah, I got it,” she returned softly.
For a moment, fear lurked in her eyes.
“What’s out there?” she asked.
He grimaced. “I’m not entirely sure.”
He glanced once over his shoulder to make sure Ian hadn’t stalked them back to the truck, and then he turned back to Katie.
“I’ll be back in a few minutes.”
Without giving her a chance to respond, he shut the door, bathing the interior in darkness once more. The night air blew down his spine, eliciting a shiver.
He listened closely, tuning in to the sounds around him. There in the distance—the slow, methodical sound of a predator creeping through the underbrush.
Braden turned and ran in the direction of the noise. He shoved aside branches and bushes then leaped over a fallen log. It was stupid to confront the jaguar, but he wouldn’t leave Ian out here alone.
He burst into a clearing and came to an abrupt halt when the luminescent eyes of the cat stared back at him.
Shit.
They stared at one another, both so still. Then the jaguar raised its head and sniffed in his direction. The ears that had lain flat against his head slowly rose.
The cat stepped forward, and he hastily backed up. He reached for a gun that wasn’t there, not that he’d use it. Then he nearly laughed. What was he going to do, threaten the cat with it?
The jaguar stopped, his nostrils flaring. His head bobbed up and down as he inhaled Braden’s scent. Then he started pacing from side to side, his eyes never leaving Braden.
“Ian, man this sucks. Come on. Shift back. Katie’s probably setting the truck on fire as we speak.”
At the sound of his voice, the cat hunched down and let out a growl.
“Shutting up now,” Braden murmured.
He remained stock-still, not wanting to alarm the jaguar any more than he already had. He couldn’t bring himself to think of the cat as Ian. That wasn’t Ian.
The jaguar padded forward again, his steps cautious and slow. His ears flicked and twitched, and occasionally he tossed his head in the direction of a distant noise.
Braden held his breath and hoped he wasn’t about to kiss his ass goodbye.
When the cat was just a few yards away, he stopped again and settled on his haunches. He simply stared at Braden, his tail lazily flopping around his paws.
Afraid to say anything that might set him off, Braden just stood there, waiting.
His chest grew tight. Sorrow squeezed his throat even as anger lit fire to his veins. This was bullshit. It was no way for him and Ian to live—worried that at any given moment they could shift to beast and kill the other, or someone else.
“Come back, Ian,” Braden whispered. “Goddamn it, shift back.”
To Braden’s surprise, the cat eased down and gingerly rested his head on his front paws as he stretched out his lithe body. In the next moment, his body gave a shudder, and a garbled sound of pain—half human, half animal—shattered the stillness.
Braden raced forward, dropping to his knees as Ian’s body contorted and stretched. Fur melted away, replaced by pinkened skin. Sweat popped and beaded on his flesh as the muscles contracted, seized and finally went limp.
Ian’s mouth stretched into a ghastly grimace, and a more human-sounding cry of pain escaped, carried away on the breeze.
Ian’s head fell to the ground. Harsh breaths danced in rapid staccato, escaping in a thin puff of smoke against the increasing coldness in the air.
Braden leaned over his brother, fear like a vise gripping his chest. “Ian. Ian, talk to me, man.”
“It hurts,” Ian said with a tortured groan. “Goddamn, it hurts.”
“Come on, let me help you up before you freeze,” Braden muttered.
With Braden’s help, Ian staggered to his feet, his naked skin illuminated by the full moon. A hunting moon. Did it call to the predator inside them both? Was it the reason, along with Katie’s flight, that they battled the beasts so fiercely?
“Katie,” Ian gasped out. “Did I hurt her?”
Braden snorted. “My money might be on her in a showdown between her and the jag.”
“Not funny.”
A half smile quirked Braden’s lips. “You never think I’m funny.”
“Clothes. I need clothes.”
Braden sighed. “Yeah well, between chasing after Katie, running from you and stuffing her into the truck, I didn’t exactly stop and get you an extra pair of underwear, you know?”
“Go,” Ian bit out.
Braden shook his head. “I’m not leaving you, so deal with it. It’s dark. Your maidenly modesty will survive intact. You can get into your clothes at the truck.”
“I’m not too wiped out to kick your ass, little brother,” Ian growled.
Braden smirked. “You couldn’t fight your way out of a paper bag right now.”
He promptly doubled over when Ian planted a fist in his gut.
“Damn but you’re a cranky son of a bitch.”
“I could have killed you, Braden. Think about that the next time you decide to play babysitter. I told you to get the hell away from me.”
Braden wrapped an arm around Ian’s shoulders and ignored Ian’s attempt to shake him off. He shoved his brother forward.
“Yeah, you told me, but when have I ever listened to you?”
Ian shook his head, but he stumbled and leaned wearily against Braden. They walked back in silence. When the SUV came into view, Braden halted and leaned Ian against a tree.
“Wait here. I’ll get you some clothes.”
Chapter Eight
Eli Chance let himself into the bedroom he shared with Tyana and glanced over to see her propped on the bed, her casted leg elevated on a pillow.
She looked up, her eyes flickering with both welcome and wariness she still hadn’t shed when it came to him.
She kept it interesting which was one of the things he liked most about her. He damn sure never had to worry about being bored.
“Glad to see you found your way back to bed, sugar.”
She rolled her eyes, but he could see the pain and fatigue etched in her brow.
Not waiting for an invitation, he stretched out beside her, careful not to bump her cast. Her body settled comfortably into his, and he felt her go soft around him.
Enjoying the quiet and stillness, he brushed his lips across hers, tasting her mouth with his tongue.
“Jonah tells me you’re getting tired of me already,” he murmured.
Her eyes widened and she stared at him in horror. “He said what?”
He chuckled. “You’re way too easy, sugar.”
She frowned, but he saw a glimmer of guilt before she looked away.
“Ah, so you did put him up to getting rid of me.”
“Hell,” she muttered. “It wasn’t quite like that.”
He lifted one brow as he trailed a finger down the softness of her cheek. “So how is it? Come on, Tyana. We’ve always been honest with each other. Don’t start holding out on me now.”
She sighed and slumped back into her pillows in defeat. “I’m just not used to all the hovering, Eli. Don’t take it personally. This whole relationship thing is new to me. I don’t handle convalescence very well.”