Liars and Tigers (4 page)

Alex
opened the front door, feigning surprise when he saw Misha with her little
bundle in her arms. "Miss Miller? To what do I owe this pleasure?"

"Give
it a rest, Alex. You know why I'm here. And don't tell me that you didn't
conjure up this whole pathetic thing to interfere in my life again," Misha
said scornfully, pushing her way past him. He watched her enter with amusement,
wanting desperately to both land a sound swat to her tiny khaki covered bottom,
and hug her.

"I
guess manners don't have any place in your beh
avior
, otherwise you would
have waited until I invited you in," he said bluntly.

"I'm only interested in
saving this cub's life. Where's your bitch?" Misha asked coldly, trying
not to stare at the opulent surroundings.

"Kena is in her room
with her puppies," he answered back flatly, eyes narrowed. Why would it
bother him for Kena to be referred to as a bitch? At least she was not the type
of bitch that Misha was. He turned to walk down the hall toward the den.

"She has her own
room?" Misha sounded surprised, following him.

Alex nodded without looking
back at her. "Sure, why not? I have eight bedrooms in this house, why
shouldn't my best friend get one of them?"

Misha paused mid-step to
stare silently at him, and then jogged to catch up, barely able to keep up with
his long strides. He stopped at a wide doorway that was blocked with a baby
gate. The huge, fawn-colored mastiff rose slowly to carefully detach herself
from her puppies, and greeted them with a wagging tail. Alex stepped over the
gate and sat on the floor. Kena promptly sat on his lap.

"Misha, this is Kena.
She thinks she is a Chihuahua. Kena, this is my friend, Misha," he
introduced the huge animal. Misha couldn't help but grin at the long string of
drool stuck to his face. Alex sighed, pulling out a cloth as he stood.
"Can't go anywhere without spit rags when you have mastiffs. Come in and
meet her. I'll hold the baby."

He held his arms out for the
little cub and helped Misha step over the gate. He watched as she confidently
walked to the center of the room and sat on the floor with her back to both the
door, the large dog and the new litter of puppies. Kena tilted her head and
started sniffing the girl, leaving trails of gooey spit in her hair. She
finally came around to the front and promptly sat on Misha's lap.

Instead of complaining about
the 250 pounds of dog flesh crushing her, Misha simply started scratching the
barrel-sized chest of the animal. She found the 'spot' and Kena flopped with
her table-sized back into the woman's arms, plopping her basketball-sized head
on Misha's right shoulder. The action, plus the dog's weight, caused Misha to
lose balance and fall backward on the floor. Pressed with her back flat to the
ground and weighed down by an enormous dog, whose legs were splayed wide and
who was blatantly demanding a tummy rub, Misha broke out into a loud bout of
laughter.

"I guess she doesn't
realize she's such a big girl," Misha gasped for air.

Alex could not resist
releasing his own hearty laugh. "I've never seen her do that to anybody
other than me! Miss Miller, are you all right under there?"

"I will be once she
gets off me and I can breathe again," Misha giggled, trying to roll the
mastiff off her. "I think she likes her new mattress. She's either going
to crush me or drown me with all this spit."

"Kena, come." Alex
wiped tears from his eyes. He hadn't laughed that hard in, well, he couldn't
remember.

Misha slowly sat up, wiping
a string of drool off her cheek with the back of her sleeve. "Good thing
dog spit doesn't bother me. You need to go on a diet, puppy. Are these your
babies?" she asked, waiting for the dog to enter the nesting box. Kena
licked her hand, giving her permission to touch the two pups. "They are so
tiny. They look like guinea pigs. When did she drop?"

"Two days ago. Think
it's safe to introduce them?"

"It's now or never.
Kena, this is Rodin. He needs a mommy," Misha said softly, holding the cub
to the dog's nose. She sniffed him thoroughly and then began to groom him
gently. The cub mewed, lifting his little chin for her tongue. Taking it as a
good sign, Misha placed the Bengal in the box next to the new squirming
puppies. She glanced at Alex, seeing his nod. Slowly, she drew back to stand
next to him, and he reached for her hand, holding it firmly in his as they
anxiously waited. They watched as Kena licked the cub firmly for several
minutes, and then pushed him with her giant muzzle to her abdomen. Within
seconds, the little orange ball of fur found a teat, latched on, and started to
suckle. He was immediately joined on either side by his new litter mates.

"It worked! My God, it
worked!" Misha whispered, tears in her eyes. She looked up at Alex.
"Look! He's nursing! He's going to make it! Thank you."

Alex bit his lip as the
young woman hugged him happily, holding his arm as she watched the mastiff once
again clean the tiger cub. The urge to hug her back was overwhelming, but he
controlled the temptation.

"Now what?" he
asked. "I've never raised a Bengal tiger before."

Misha grinned.
"Nothing. Nature has done her job, and all we have to do is watch him
grow. Wow. She is a good mama."

"She's the best. She
misses her human kids," Alex said quietly. Jack had suggested he show
Misha his softer side, but was he ready?

"You have
children?"

"Two-year-old twins.
They live with their mother in New York."

"That must be hard for
you. I never knew you were married." Misha's features softened as she
looked into his eyes.

"Not anymore. I had a
mistress and she divorced me because of it."

"You had a
mistress?" Misha gaped at him. She knew he could be a jerk, but she hadn't
expected such a confession.

"Stand down, Miss
Miller. This," he pointed to the cub, "was my love. My passion. She
never wanted to share it with me. Her passion revolved around parties and
politics. She wanted me to follow my dad's career and become a senator. That
life was far more glamorous than being with a guy who shoveled horse manure and
ran a zoo."

"I
can't say I have even seen you shovel horse shit. You hire people to do that,
don't you?" Misha said, with a twinkle in her eyes.

"I've
shoveled plenty of shit in my day, young lady. Is it safe to leave them alone?
It looks like they've piled on top of the cat and are going to sleep."

"I
think they will be just fine. And, if you will pardon me for saying this, your
wife was a fool. Good riddance to her. I'm just sorry that your kids have to
suffer because of it."

"You
think she was a fool to leave me?"

"No,"
Misha stepped back, releasing his hand, "she was a fool not to see the
magic in what you do. I am sure living with you was a total nightmare."

"We
both had our moments. Are you hungry? I haven't even had breakfast yet and was
thinking about whipping up a couple of omelets."

"You
cook?"

"Not
only do I cook, little lady," Alex escorted her to the gourmet kitchen,
"but I also clean, do laundry, and cut my own grass. Comments?"

"Yes,"
Misha said, allowing him to pop a grape into her mouth, "I reiterate, your
wife was a fool. I would love an omelet, but no green pepper."

"As
you wish. Coffee? I have vanilla creamer."

"Just
the way I like it, thank you."

They
sat down at a table outside to eat, Alex making certain to impress Misha with
his skill at both cooking and serving. He watched her visibly relax before him,
and struggled with guilt over the way he had treated her. Determined to break
the ice completely, he did the unimaginable. He apologized.

"Misha,
listen," he said, grabbing her hand before she had a chance to pull away,
"I'm sorry for the way I treated you. It was wrong of me. You deserve
respect and I failed to give it to you. Please, forgive me."

Misha
stared at him wordlessly, her mouth hanging open. He took the rare moment of
speechlessness and continued, "I saw something unique and special in you
and wanted to make sure that you would be in a place where your talents would
serve the most use. The Forestry department doesn't really care about skills
like yours, not the way I do."

"I
loved my job. I was not even given a choice," Misha said, pulling away.

"And
now? Do you like what you do now?"

"I
love what I do now. That is beside the point. You basically kidnapped me and
then blackmailed me to stay here. Even coming here," she gestured to the
luxuriant grounds, "was manipulated by an opportunist."

"I
know. Do you regret it?" Alex asked cautiously.

Misha
turned her head to avoid his eyes. "No."

"Forgive
me, then? I honestly just wanted the best for you and to see you have every
opportunity to excel. I knew I could provide these opportunities for you."

"Alex,
money is not going to buy happiness for anybody, any more than having power
does. You can't manipulate people into doing what you think is best for them,
and expect them to be grateful. It takes away our… my ability to make choices
for my own life. I need to be allowed to make decisions for myself."

"I
understand. I promise to think twice before I pull that crap on you again.
Agreed?"

"Agreed.
Thank you." Misha still sounded cautious. "No more bossing me
around?"

"I
can't change everything about myself," Alex laughed, patting her hand.
"But I will give you the chance to make your own decisions about your
life. Now do you forgive me?"

"Do
I have to?" Misha let him see a tiny smile.

"Please?"

"Very
well, you're forgiven. Happy now?"

"Yes.
Looks like we have company," Alex observed, as Kena waddled in, a puppy in
her jaws, which she promptly set at Alex's feet. The dog stared at Alex,
sending him a look of expectation.

"I
think she wants you to babysit while she gathers the rest of the brood."
Misha chuckled.

"My
girl hates being left out of anything and wants to join the party," Alex
said, once again sitting on the ground. Misha joined him and waited as Kena
gathered the remainder of her litter. The animal gently placed the cub in
Alex's lap, and her other puppy in Misha's, and plopped onto the grass to groom
the third member of her little family. Misha turned her head as she felt
something rub against her back. It was the ever elusive and antisocial Selma.

"Well,
now, who is this pretty thing?" Misha asked, scooping the old calico up
and cuddling her closely. A rumbling purr accompanied a slow sway of the long
tail.

"Okay,
now I've seen everything. That damn cat hates the world. Her name is Selma and
she doesn't even climb into my lap."

"You
have to give her credit for having taste," Misha teased. She kissed the
top of the cat's soft head. "I miss having pets. There is nothing better
to snuggle into bed with."

"Oh,
I can think of something a little better. My sleeping buddy here snores
something awful. And let us not forget the puddle left from her drool,"
Alex sighed, playing with Kena's paw, which was as large as his hand. "It
takes a special person to love this breed."

"It's
not that bad, except for having to clean off the ceiling," Misha smiled,
pointing at the string that had stuck to the wall after Kena shook her head.

"You
are the first woman I've ever met who wasn't grossed out by this beast's
spaghetti factory."

"I
find most people are far more disgusting than anything an animal does."
Misha shrugged, playing with Kena's jowls and holding them far out to look like
giant fish lips. She blew into the dog's cheeks, making them puff out. Kena
pulled back and shook her head, then tackled Misha onto her back to cover her
face with a giant pink tongue.

Alex
ignored Misha's giggling pleas for help. "I tend to agree with you.
Speaking of which, how's that slum lord of yours? Is he still harassing
you?"

Misha
rolled to her stomach and then sat up as she wiped off her face. "Kena,
you have serious dog breath. Love ya, puppy, but enough of the face kisses.
It's icky." She then looked
at
Alex. "I thought I made it
clear that my home life is none of your business, Mr. Hodges."

"I
was just asking. Sorry. I didn't mean to pry."

"Like
hell you didn't. Oh, stop pouting. I am actually enjoying hanging out with you,
shockingly enough. You know as well as I do that it is rare to find someone who
understand my own passion and goals."

"Misha,
I am really trying to be polite here." Alex looked wounded.

"I
know you are. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have snapped at you. He's a jerk. As soon
as I save enough money to buy my ranch, I'm out of there. I hate to say this to
you, because you have an over-inflated ego and won't let me live it down, but
you were right about him. I'm feeling the need to block my door at night when I
go to bed because I don't know when he'll just barge right in. He's recently
threatened to burn down the place, too."