Beneath the Skin: de La Vega Cats, Book 3 (13 page)

She cracked an eye to find that smug smile on his lips. “How’d that go?”

She laughed. “You aced the finals.”

She really couldn’t believe she was jogging. She hated jogging. But her physical therapist had suggested it as another way to build endurance so she was doing it, and sweating like a pig shifter.

That made her laugh, which was good because it meant she had enough breath not to pass out. She kept running, glad for all the paths around town so she could keep up some variety. She had an audiobook in her iPod but for right then she’d switched to Florence + the Machine. Each drumbeat kept her feet pounding the pavement. Her thigh had mostly healed and she thanked her shifter blood for that. But it had been slower going than it would have been before the attack.

She picked up her pace and ignored the twinges. It was unacceptable that she not be back to one hundred percent. Unacceptable that those assholes who’d nearly killed her might limit her choices any more than they already had.

Her shoes connected with the path, boom, boom, boom, like her heart. The rhythm lulling her.

Up the trail she kept track of the people on bikes coming in the opposite direction and got over, not wanting to cause a crash.
Boom, boom, boom
. She kept running, but they kept edging into her space until she realized it wasn’t just drift, but purposeful.

The cottony place she’d been in as she ran fell away. Her senses sharpened as she took everything all around her in. How fast they moved, the looks on their faces, the lack of others on the trail.

And despite her training, despite the fact that she’d been under threat and was on the lookout for anything out of the ordinary, it was still unreal.

Like an ugly dream as reality pulled away from her shores and she watched as a weapon was pulled and aimed in her direction. She hit the ground and rolled to the right, toward a stand of bushes that would hopefully give her some cover.

They tossed the bikes and headed toward her. She pulled her phone out and called Gibson and got out her location and that she was being attacked and was going to shift. She hung up and let her cat come over, let the anger and rage spill into her, speeding the full transformation until she bounded from the bushes and ran toward the two men with guns. Only they weren’t men, they were cats.

Cats that weren’t nearly as brave and they tried to run. Her cat didn’t take too kindly to that, and she landed on one of them as he was in mid-shift. The other behind her shot but it missed her as she snarled and then hissed.

She ripped at the one beneath her, her cat no longer afraid, but full-on pissed off.

Someone was on her back. She twisted, her claws out, shredding the other cat until it shrieked and tried to get away. She grabbed it with her teeth, needing to kill before she ended up dead. Her cat remembering the helplessness of the last time. Remembering what it was to be nearly killed.

Sadly for those two who tried to harm her.

But human voices came down the trail. And then sirens. The woman inside insisted the cat move on and get out of sight. The cat reluctantly left her bleeding prey and bounded off toward home.

Gibson saw it was her number and, smiling, he answered. But instead of her normal voice, she was upset. Tense. She spoke quickly and quietly. “Two men on bikes with weapons. They’re following me. I’m shifting.” She dropped the phone and he heard the sound of her cat’s scream. His own rushed to the surface, his hands fisting against phantom claws.

He grabbed his keys, standing, though he’d been involved in a meeting. Several sets of eyes looked his way. “Mia is being attacked again. Dario, with me.”

Dario took the wheel as Gibson watched out the window. He kept his phone to his ear but the call was dropped. But not before he heard the attack, the sound of teeth meeting flesh, and he hoped like hell it was her cat who was ripping those others apart.

He knew where the trail was. He’d been the one to suggest it to her because it wasn’t so often used by others, and she hated to run where it was crowded.

But cop cars were there when they arrived. Dario put his hand out to stay him. “I know you’re worried, but you can’t do anything with the cops there.”

Ambulances had pulled up. “Fuck that. What if she’s hurt?”

“What can you do for her if she is? You’re not married to her. You can’t ride in the ambulance with her. They’re going to want to know who you are. How can you explain it?”

“I’m not going to sit here watching as she dies. What kind of cat do you think I am?” He pushed from the car but walked around the scene, using his nose to find the spot where she’d hit the bushes. Her phone was there, along with her clothes. He grabbed them and climbed down the small hillside to the street below. It was only about a mile to her apartment so he headed that way, calling Dario to tell him to meet him a few blocks away.

“I’m not saying you don’t care about her. I’m saying be smart.” Dario risked continuing the conversation when he got back into the car.

“She’s one of my cats. Do you think I’d walk away if it was you? Or her brother or any of my people? It’s my job. I am the Bringer. It is my role to keep her and others like her, safe.”

“I’m sure it has nothing to do with the fact that you’re falling in love with her.”

He glared but Dario had known him long enough to let that go.

Once they’d arrived at the stoplight a block away from her building he got out and headed over. “Meet me there.”

He didn’t bother with calling up. The door was being opened by someone leaving and he caught it, heading up to her place via the stairs. He pounded on the door. “Mia, are you in there?”

She opened moments later, holding a towel over herself.

He pushed inside and locked up. “What’s going on?” He took the towel, ignoring her squawk of annoyance, and gave her a close look. She stopped struggling, and he was so angry that anyone would touch her that he could ignore all that pretty skin he usually wanted to lick from head to toe.

“I’m all right. Mainly. One of them tore at my back. That’ll take another hour or so. They fucking shot at me.
Shot at me!
What the hell? They were shifters. The same scent as the night you were shot. I don’t think they used silver though.”

“Get your things.” He stalked, pacing back and forth.

“What? I’m not going to the hospital. I was attacked when I was shifted. Those fuckers were not anywhere near as good as me.”

“Don’t try to be cute.”

“I don’t have to try. Don’t hate, Gibson. I’m naturally cute. Why are you all Pacy McPacerson over there?”

“What if they know where you live? You can stay with me. Or with your parents. Or with my parents for that matter. You’re one of our cats.”

Her eyes widened, and he realized he’d made some sort of man mistake but didn’t know what it was.

“You look here. I am no one’s responsibility. You got me?”

“What? Of course you are. They clearly think you saw something when you helped me that first night. Or they see us together and believe you to be my mate, or important to me. You’re in danger because of me and I’m involved because of the jamboree business. So of course you’re my responsibility.”

“You need to go.” She pushed him toward the door but he stopped, not wanting to be moved. Dario called, Gibson knew his ring and he picked up.

“I’ll get back to you. I want you to look around, see what you can see. Any signs of surveillance and I want to know about it immediately.” Gibson hung up.

She tried to push him toward the door again and he sighed. “You’re not strong enough to move me and you’re only going to make that slice on your back worse. Just stop.”

She stepped back, the air between them, usually so hot, was now icy cold.

“What the fuck is wrong?”

“I’m apparently a weakling and a burden.”

“What? I never said that.” And that’s when he realized they were totally in a relationship and she was his—for wont of a better term—girlfriend.

“I already told you I’m no one’s responsibility and I’m not so weak I can’t take on two full-grown shifter males and kick their ass. I hope they bled out on the sidewalk.” She began to pace now, snatching her towel back and putting it around her body. “You’re damn right they wouldn’t be fucking with me if they hadn’t seen me with you. But that’s neither here nor there. It’s done. They’re trying to kill me, just like they’re trying to kill you, and I notice
you
aren’t living with your parents.”

“Why is it that women always interpret words in the worst possible way?”

Her brows flew up as she spun, the towel nearly losing purchase, and then he remembered how much he liked what she had going on underneath it.

“You know, it occurs to me you either have a death wish or you’ve never been in a real relationship with a woman.”

He felt a little of both.

“I’m not saying you’re a burden.”

“You’re avoiding the issue.”

Christ
. “This is why I’ve never had a long-term relationship with a woman before.”

“You don’t even need a shovel to dig yourself in, do you? Astonishing. Go, Gibson. I don’t want to fight with you right now. I ran four miles before I got attacked. So I was already grumpy. Then two shifters tried to kill me in the middle of a running path. Then I had to run home and not get caught. And now you’re in here talking shit and being a dumb dude and I don’t have the energy for it.”

“You’re being—” But he shut up when he saw the look on her face. Now he didn’t feel so funny for all the times he poked at Max and Galen over the trouble they got into with their women.

“I’m not going anywhere. If you won’t stay elsewhere, I’ll stay here.”

She sighed and walked past him, into the bathroom, slamming the door. Moments later the shower went on and he made a call to Dario.

“Across the street. The three-story brick? Yeah, on the roof.”

“How many?”

“Two, maybe three. If there are three, two of them are related. She’s not safe here.”

“I tried to tell her that. She nearly ate my face off.”

Dario laughed but quickly got himself under control. “What do you want to happen?”

“I want to know who owns that building. See if it’s connected or if these cats are just sneaking up there. I’ll let you know if I want extra people on this place in a bit. But I want another guard on her parents’ shop and their home. I figure you can deal with them through her brother. Get me info on what happened to those cats on the trail. Dead? In the hospital and, if so, which one?”

“On it already. I’ll get back to you as soon as I know anything. You want me to keep watch out here for the time being?”

“I want you on Max and Kendra. I’m fine here for now.”

Dario hung up and Gibson took a deep breath before calling Max. But it was Kendra who answered so he filled her in.

“She can stay with us. We have the room.”

“I don’t want her with you. I want her with me, so I can keep a close eye on her.”

Kendra laughed. “Oh, Gibson, you’ve gone and fallen for a complicated female. If I didn’t like her so much I’d be laughing a lot harder. What did you do to piss her off?”

“You assume I made her angry.”

“If you hadn’t, when I offered our place you would have told me she was staying with you. You didn’t. You said you
wanted
her with you. Which is different.”

“I thought Max was the lawyer.”

“Ha. He is. But I’m observant. And a woman.”

“She thinks I said she was a burden and weak. When I really said she was my responsibility as one of my cats. And she was trying to shove me out of her apartment and I wasn’t budging and I told her she wasn’t strong enough to move me.”

“This is after she took down two full-grown male jaguars on her own. Overcoming wounds of the like I hope to never experience firsthand. Hearing it from a man she’s in love with and who she admires.”

“Whoa, no one is talking about love. And I wasn’t insulting her! I’m trying to protect her. She took what I said and twisted it into something ugly.”

“It’s a good thing you’re so pretty because you are dumb. Almost as dumb as Max. Maybe more. Prove me wrong and grovel.”

“Grovel? Me? For what? I didn’t do anything but try to protect her! How is that a bad thing?”

“You already know. That’s why you’re so pissy and defensive. Go on. I’ll fill Max in on what happened. Keep us updated. Grovel, Gibson. Believe me when I tell you that make-up sex is spectacular.” She hung up, leaving him glaring at the phone in his hand.

The shower was still going in the bathroom so he took the liberty of rearranging her place to keep her a maximum distance from the windows. Grovel. Not in this lifetime.

Chapter Nine

The nerve.

She soaped up, wincing a little as the newly healed slash in her back tugged when she reached up to get her hair soaped up.

He normally did that. He had good hands, and while he was washing her hair, he gave a great scalp massage too.