Lynx Loving (7 page)

Trying her best to ignore them and hoping neither of them would notice her, she concentrated on her e-reader. Of course, even after everything that had happened, neither of them could leave well enough alone.

Both men slid into the booth opposite her. “Whew wee. Look what we got here, Chip,” black haired guy said.

“I see, Dave.” Chip smirked.

She snorted. She figured their names would be Bubba and Tiny, or something of that nature, to better fit their idiotic IQs.

“What’s funny, bitch?” Dave tapped his finger on the table.

Obviously ignoring these guys would never work. Setting her e-reader down, she stared at them both. “What’s funny is that you accosted me then ran me and my friend off the road, which could have killed us, and now, here you are again. Have you ever heard of prison? Because if you two don’t fuck off right now, that’s where you’ll be going after I call the police.”

She wished she still had her cellphone. Pulling that bad boy out and punching in 9-1-1 for them would emphasize her threat.

“Damn. No need to get those panties of yours in a bunch, sweetheart,” Chip said.

“Mmm. I bet they’re pink or maybe black with a whole lot of lace,” Dave said before running his tongue over his bottom lip.

Her stomach lurched in disgust. “Excuse me,” she said to a nearby waitress. “Can you please call the police for me?”

Chip and Dave stood, fury dancing in both sets of eyes. “Who needs an uptight bitch who doesn’t know how to have any fun anyway,” Dave said before they both slunk off to a booth in the opposite corner.

Brushing the waitress off, Krista worked on calming her anxiety and anger. She finished her chocolate, refusing to allow them to think they’d gotten to her. She paid her bill then made her way to the door. She was on her way across the parking lot when she realized she’d forgotten to leave a tip. She made her way back inside to find her waitress and gave her the money before exiting the diner once again.

As soon as she rounded the corner to cross over to the repair shop, she was grabbed and dragged to the back of the diner.

“Now what are you gonna do, bitch? I don’t see your bodyguard around to protect you anymore,” Dave said beside her ear, his foul breath making her gag.

“Let me go, and I promise I’ll only hurt you a little instead of kill you,” she squeezed the words through clenched teeth.

Chip laughed as he came to stand in front of her. Grabbing his crotch and making a rude gesture, he sneered at her. “The only thing that’s gonna be hurting is you when I get done.”

The thought of either one of them touching her in a sexual manner made her gag again. “Seriously, I’m going to puke if you don’t quit touching me, you skeevy pig.”

Chip backhanded her. He’d split her lip as indicated by the taste of blood. Her mouth had never been her friend—sassy, bold, and gave little thought to letting people know how she felt. Although, in hindsight, she had to admit that a situation as this might call for calculation and smarts rather than a sarcastic mouth.

She could easily take them both in lynx form, but she couldn’t shift in front of them unless there was no other way to escape. Guys like these, ones with big mouths—no matter how dumb—had a penchant for drawing attention even to the most ludicrous stories. The only way to keep them shut up was to kill them, and she didn’t want to get that drastic unless it became the only option. She stomped hard on Dave’s foot then kicked him in the knee. He went down, cursing, and she ran, but she didn’t get far.

Chip was on her in an instant, pinning her face to the concrete before wrenching her arm behind her back so hard it brought tears to her eyes. Her cat screamed for release, but before she allowed it to surface, cold metal dragged against her skin as Chip slit her shirt and coat up the back. Even if she changed now, she might still be stabbed to death.

For the first time, terror steamrolled her. She opened her mouth to scream, but just as the sound began to emerge from her throat, Dave had recovered enough to shove a piece of fabric between her lips.

“I get to go first this time,” Dave sneered at Chip.

“No! You went first last time.”

“What the fuck does it matter? We’ve done this so many times, we’re both gonna have a good time.”

“If it doesn’t matter, I go first then,” Chip said in triumph.

Their conversation made her stomach churn. How many other women had they done this to, and what exactly did they have planned. Rape? But would they just leave her when they were done, or was murder in the plan, too?

She frantically searched in her line of vision for some way out of this mess, but no one was around, and the back of the building was only a few snow-covered feet from a patch of dense forest. Would Landon find her body? Because she was sure at this point they’d kill her when they finished having their little demented party. Would her death ruin Landon’s chance at having his sister back in his life? She didn’t want to be the cause of more pain for him or Nyssa. And Brady... She closed her eyes and swallowed hard.

Brady would never forgive himself for this. He would blame himself for sending her with Landon so he could spend some time with Nyssa. She’d never want any of them to blame themselves for her death—life was too unpredictable for blame in situations as these—but what she wanted and what they’d do, she was certain, were two different things. Not only did she want to live, she didn’t want to be the cause of pain to everyone she loved in the world.

Anger surged through her, and she began bucking and fighting for her freedom. Chip grabbed a fistful of her hair and bounced her forehead off the concrete. Stars danced before her eyes, and blackness shadowed her peripheral vision. Her stomach churned again, and tears streamed down her cheeks. When Chip placed the blade under the waistband of her pants, she closed her eyes, praying for redemption. A split second later, she got it.

A snarl, followed by a screech, prompted her to look up where she found a huge, gray lynx with black spots stalking Dave and Chip from the clearing between the diner and trees.

“What the fuck is that?” Dave whined.

“Is that a fucking lynx? Do you have the gun on you?”

“Left it in the truck,” Dave answered. “Biggest damn lynx I ever seen.”

Chip released Krista’s arm, and she rolled toward the building, stood then pulled the cloth from her mouth. Her head spun, and she blinked back the pain of the oncoming headache. Reaching up, she felt the goose egg on her forehead.

While happy that Landon had come to her rescue, she was also pissed that he had shifted so soon after being injured. Lynx didn’t heal the way lycan did when they shifted. In fact, if a lynx shifted with a major injury, the result could have dire consequences, even death.

Even through all of the commotion she couldn’t help but notice that Landon’s lynx was gorgeous, powerful, and one of the biggest cats she’d seen. He was a magnificent male in any form. Renewed anger shot through her that losers Chip and Dave had threatened them both again. They had to be stopped.

As Landon advanced on them, she went into action. First, she kicked Dave in the side of the knee, and when he howled in pain and went down, she spun and planted her foot squarely against his jaw. His head snapped around, the breath whooshed from his lungs, and he sank to the ground.
Yeah, asshole. Meet unconsciousness. Isn’t she a bitch?

Chip tried to keep an eye on her, but never fully took his gaze from Landon, who closed the distance between them. Once he was within two feet from Chip, Landon snarled and struck out with his powerful paw. Chip screeched like a girl, grabbed Krista and flung her in front of him before turning to make a run for it.

He didn’t make it far before Landon hit Chip full-force from behind, knocking him to the ground. Landon stood over him, snarling, and Chip whimpered like a toddler who’d lost his binky.

“I wouldn’t move if I were you, Chip,” she said.

She hurried to the diner to call the police and smiled when Chip pleaded from behind her. “Don’t leave me here. Pleasssse.”

“Fuck you, you coward,” she sneered over her shoulder.

H
ours later, Krista and Landon were finally on the road once again. It hadn’t taken much for her to convince the police that Chip and Dave were doped out of their brains and imagined the lynx. Lynx weren’t rare to these parts, but they didn’t usually aid damsels in distress.

“Are you feeling better?” Landon adjusted the heat.

She removed the previously cold, now semi-cool, icepack she held to her head and tossed it onto the dash. “I’m good.”

“I should have killed both of those bastards.” He clenched his fingers around the steering wheel.

She’d never seen Landon this worked up. “No. You shouldn’t have. And you shouldn’t have shifted with your injury. It could have caused permanent damage.”

“Wasn’t my priority at that moment,” he said. “Besides, I was healed enough.”

“It’s hard to believe the police have been looking for Chip and Dave for two years. It’s even harder for me to wrap my mind around the fact that they’ve been attacking and killing women in several states.” She shivered. “They’ll spend the rest of their lives behind bars.  Makes me sick. I will never understand how some people can do some of the things they do.”

“Those aren’t people. They’re animals with no conscience,” Landon muttered. “Hell, that’s not even fair to the animals. At least they kill to survive. Those bastards were doing it for fun.” He white-knuckled the steering wheel again.

“The best part was when Chip peed his pants.” She laughed, trying to lighten the mood, but Landon continued to stare at the road ahead, brows drawn, frowning. “It’s all over now. Besides, if you don’t stop squeezing the death out of the steering wheel, you are going to break it, and we’ll end up stranded again.”

He let up on the wheel and blew out a long breath. “I should have never left you alone. Yet another person in my life I let down.”

“Stop it. You can’t control what other people do.”

“After everything that had happened already, I should have kept a closer watch on you.”

“I’m an adult. I can take care of myself.” She fiddled with the heat knob that controlled the heat to her seat.

“Son of a bitch!” He slapped the steering wheel. “If I hadn’t figured out where you were when I did...”

“It’s over. Let’s move past it.”

“Yeah.” After a few miles, he sighed. “I thought this could happen between us if Brady was okay with it, but we can’t be together. I’m sorry about everything. I should have never—”

“I get it! You regret having sex with me.” She cringed when pain shot through her head and reached for her purse to dig out some ibuprofen.

“Stop saying that,” he said.

“Forget it. I don’t want to talk about it anymore. I’m tired of this trip. I’m tired of fighting with you over us, and I’m just...tired. Period.” She placed a travel pillow behind her neck and rested her head against it. “Maybe you’re right. Maybe we weren’t meant to be. I can’t spend my life trying to convince you that we belong together. You either want to be with me or you don’t.”

“It’s not that easy.”

“Yes. It is.” She wiggled until she was comfortable enough to sleep. “I’m going to take a nap now. Don’t worry. When we get back, I’ll pretend none of this ever happened.”

“I don’t want you to pretend it never happened. I can’t pretend it never happened. It was—”

“Tough. You know how I feel about you. I’m done trying. I’m...done. I don’t want to talk about this anymore.” She fought to keep her voice from shaking, not wanting him to hear how much all of this was hurting her.

She’d never be able to forget making love with him. And she was certain she’d never stop loving him, but damn it. She shouldn’t have to convince the man she loved that they belonged together. If he loved her, he’d be with her. She couldn’t torture herself over him any longer. She understood his guilt, understood that he thought he wasn’t good at relationships, but her understanding had its limits.

She closed her eyes. Breathing deep, she willed the anxiety building in her chest to calm and fought back the tears that threatened to spill down her cheeks. Finally, coming to terms that she and Landon may never be together, her heart thumped hard against her ribs leaving behind an ache in her chest. She’d never given up, never lost hope, but she was beginning to realize that maybe her hope and tenacity wasn’t enough for the both of them.

* * * *

L
andon drove the last few hours of the way in a completely silent cab. He glanced at Krista again. He’d be willing to bet that she hadn’t been asleep the whole ride. She’d most likely been pretending for a good while now to avoid conversation with him. He couldn’t blame her.
That’s because I fucked everything up.

When he’d seen Chip and Dave assaulting her in the back of the diner, he’d wanted nothing more than to kill them. Though he knew he could take them both, beat their asses, he hadn’t wanted to risk one of them hurting Krista. Shifting and catching them by surprise had been the best chance for getting Krista out of her predicament unscathed. Fortunately, things had gone as planned, and the two assholes would rot behind bars for the rest of their lives.

That didn’t stop him from facing the real possibility of losing Krista had things not gone so well. That imagined scenario had brought into perspective the guilt over his mother’s death and not being there for Nyssa. He almost hadn’t been there when Krista needed him most. Determined to give her the time she’d wanted to cool off after their disagreement in the repair shop, he’d nearly been too late.

A shudder shook him when he thought about what he would have found behind that diner had he waited even twenty minutes more before going after her. She was strong and had handled herself admirably with two men threatening her. Brady had taught her well, but her skills had not been much of a match for the men’s strength once they had a hold of her. She’d ended up with a split lip, bruised head, and he’d ended up with not only more guilt, but regret for not killing the two bastards for touching her.