Tiger Mate (Silverlake Shifters Book 3) Read online

  The door opened and a servant came out, laden down with luggage. And then another. And another. Holy shit, Jesse thought. Where did Sophia think she was going, and what did she think she was going to be doing there? There had to be more stuff in those suitcases than Jesse even owned.

  Even Kane was a little freaked out, to judge by the way his eyes widened in his stone face. Jace was openly staring, and Emma was trying not to laugh.

  After the luggage came the two dark-haired women he’d seen get out of the limo, followed by sweet-faced auburn-haired little Sophia. And then, hair shining in the sunlight, came his Athena.

  Jesse tried to control himself, but he knew his face lit up when he saw her. Hopefully he could talk to her while they loaded this mountain of luggage into the truck.

  Athena hugged the auburn-haired girl goodbye. Then she hugged the two others.

  What?

  Then his sun goddess walked down the front stairs, and Emma said, “Sophia, I’d like you to meet my mate, Jace Monroe, the alpha of the Silverlake wolf pack. Jace, this is Sophia.”

  Jesse stood behind the truck, stunned, while introductions and small talk took place between Jace and the Jenkins sisters. And cousin somebody, who was the petite auburn-haired girl Jesse had believed was Sophia all this time. He was still trying to take it all in. His sun goddess wasn’t contracted to some unknown wolf in an unknown territory. She was contracted to Kane.

  What the hell had she been thinking? Why hadn’t she told him? How the fuck was he going to handle two days in a truck alone with her? This could not get any worse.

  And then it did.

  Kane stepped forward to be introduced. He said the stiff little welcome speech that Emma had drummed into him. Then, after a surreptitious kick in the ankle, again from Emma, he leaned forward and kissed Sophia on the cheek.

  And froze. Jesse saw his nostrils flare as he took in Sophia’s scent. Then he straightened up, turned, and gave Jesse a look that should have blasted him to smithereens right on the spot. Kane’s eyes were golden and feral.

  Oh, fuck. He’d recognized her scent as being the one all over Jesse this morning. Jesse saw Jace’s head go up as he sensed the sudden tension in the air.

  Sophia didn’t bat an eyelash. “It surely is good to meet you at last,” she said, smiling up at Kane in a way that made it seem like no one else in her world was important.

  Jesse’s wolf growled.

  There was more small talk that Jesse couldn’t focus on, and then the servants started loading Sophia’s luggage in the back of Kane’s truck. Kane was standing statue-still, and Jesse waited for the explosion.

  Kane stepped to the side and casually pulled his phone out of his pocket, his fingers tapping the screen. A moment later, Jesse’s phone buzzed with an incoming text. And then another.

  I call challenge.

  When I get back to Silverlake, you’re fucking dead.

  Kane politely wished Sophia a pleasant trip, and then he walked off without a backward look.

  Shit.

  Chapter 8

  If Sophia hadn’t been raised by Nash Jenkins, she could never have gotten through those excruciating introductions and goodbyes.

  Of course, if she hadn’t been raised by Nash Jenkins, she wouldn’t have been in this position in the first place.

  All the Jenkins women learned early on to hide behind an armor of beauty, expensive clothes and southern charm. No one wanted to know how you really felt, and vulgar displays of emotion were punished.

  She’d dragged out her packing as long as she could, not knowing how she was going to face Jesse and travel for two days in a car with him. But she couldn’t hide forever. She had to go through with this—Nash had made that painfully clear.

  She could still feel the sting of Nash’s electrified cane. It was the perfect form of punishment—painful without leaving any marks. No proof of what he did to her, and nothing to diminish her value.

  She’d barely been able to focus on her introduction to Kane, although luckily he hadn’t been eager to prolong their meeting either. He was already gone; to judge by his lack of interest in her, this was clearly going to be a mating of convenience. Jace and Emma had left, and the servants were loading the last of her luggage. Jesse was leaning his elbows on the hood of the truck, doing something with his phone and ignoring her completely.

  After that first sunlit look when he saw her come through the door, he hadn’t glanced her way once. But that one look was enough—his whole heart had been in it.

  And now he felt betrayed.

  Last night had really meant something to him. And she could never tell him how much it had meant to her. She was going to shatter his heart, and then shatter his pack. Her wolf whimpered inside her, and she felt like knives were slashing the inside of her chest.

  But she’d learned a long time ago that how she felt didn’t matter. Only what Nash wanted. She walked over to Jesse, diva swagger all over her.

  “Well, sugar, I guess we’re all set.”

  “Yes, ma’am.” He still didn’t look at her. He slid his phone into the back pocket of his jeans, and her eyes followed the curve of that magnificent ass. She couldn’t help but remember how those powerful muscles clenched when he drove himself into her, and how he’d looked in her eyes and held her hands and kissed her mouth and her closed eyes and the soft place under her ear.

  The thought of never having that again was torture.

  He opened the door for her and helped her inside, his touch cold and impersonal. Then he went around to the driver’s side and climbed in, slamming the door and buckling the seatbelt. He turned the key in the ignition, and they were off.

  Sophia didn’t know what to say. A southern lady could handle any situation, no matter how awkward—but the rule book didn’t cover this. Jesse had cracked her walls last night, and though she might be able to hide behind them for everyone else, she couldn’t do it with him.

  He stared straight ahead, not looking at her, but she could feel the tension in his whole body. He’d opened himself up to her, treated her like a goddess, and she had tricked him. She’d refused to think about what would happen when she went to Silverlake as Kane’s potential mate.

  And now she’d hurt him. She didn’t know how she knew that—his face wasn’t showing it—but she could tell. And that made her chest ache and her wolf whimper. Jesse shouldn’t be hurt. Especially not because of her.

  Finally she began softly, “Jesse, I’m sorry. I should have—”

  He barely flicked her a glance. “I can’t even talk about this right now,” he said, his voice tight. “Just…don’t.”

  She couldn’t believe he wouldn’t even talk to her about it. Was he going to sulk all the way to Idaho? She opened her mouth again, and he twisted the radio dial and cranked up the music, drowning out anything she might want to say.

  Sophia’s stomach clenched. Her wolf was clawing at her, telling her to make him feel better, but she couldn’t do that if he wouldn’t let her. She wanted to reach over and soothe him with her touch, but she could sense he wouldn’t like that any better than talking. And she couldn’t stand to be rejected by him again. Her eyes began to fill with tears, and she stared out the window so he wouldn’t see them. Nash Jenkins’ daughters didn’t cry.

  She sat there in silence, wishing she knew what Jesse was thinking. She couldn’t believe this silent, tight-faced man was the open, passionate lover she’d been with last night. That man’s face had lit up with humor, with desire, and with gentleness. There was so much more to him than showed on the surface.

  She had never thought it would be so hard, doing what Nash asked of her. But now she wanted to feel that warmth, that caring. To feel totally seen and known, and to have her true self cherished and adored.

  They drove a few more miles, music blaring, the tension winding tighter and tighter. Suddenly Jesse twisted the wheel, pulled over onto the shoulder with a squeal of brakes, and cut the engine. The radio went off with it, and the sudden
silence was shocking.

  He turned in his seat. “How could you do that to me?” he demanded. His warm caramel eyes were glinting gold. His wolf was angry too.

  “I get that you thought it was a one-time thing,” he said. “I was okay with that, if that was how it had to be. But how the hell could you deliberately hide who you were from me, knowing that the next time I saw you you’d be Kane’s mate? That you’d be coming to Silverlake, and I’d have to see you every day?” He shook his head in disbelief. “That not-quite-finalized contract you were so coy about? I fucking negotiated that!”

  He was breathing heavily, anger and hurt and betrayal radiating from him.

  Sophia only knew one way to deal with this. She blinked back her tears and straightened her spine. “Now, don’t be makin’ a tragedy out of this, sugar,” she said, reaching out to stroke his arm. “Y’all knew it was just for fun—”

  Quick as a flash, he turned the tables and grabbed her wrist, hard. “Don’t even try that southern belle shit on me,” he ground out. “I know it’s all for show. You and I shared something real last night. You know it and I know it. You can’t go back to playing games. I’ve seen inside you.”

  Sophia gritted her teeth and clenched her jaw to keep the tears from welling up again, but she couldn’t. He had seen inside her, and she’d seen inside him. He was a good man who’d make somebody an amazing mate one day. But it couldn’t be her. Nash’s words were echoing in her brain, and she could still feel the sting of his cane sending electric shocks through her.

  She couldn’t tell Jesse her secrets. If he knew what she was—a rogue tiger—he’d probably turn her in. Worse, he might try to protect her. And that would make him an accessory. His pack would have to take him down along with her.

  She had to find another way to keep Nash from taking over the Silverlake pack. But she couldn’t put Jesse in danger. She was poison. The further he stayed from her, the better off he’d be.

  She was so used to putting on her southern belle armor. It was scary being honest, but she owed him that much.

  She took a deep breath. “I’m so sorry, Jesse,” she said softly. “I know I should have told you. It was selfish of me not to. It was just…no one had ever looked at me the way you did. Like they saw the real me, not just the surface. Nobody has ever wanted to make me feel the way you did. Like I matter.”

  The gold began to fade from his eyes, leaving just some flecks in the warm brown. His body and his grip relaxed a fraction.

  “You still could have told me,” he said.

  She shook her head. “I knew you wouldn’t have done it if I told you. Even though you don’t like Kane, you wouldn’t have poached his mate—his almost-mate—if you knew. And you would have been smart enough to realize how hard it would be for us to be around each other afterward. I just didn’t let myself think about it. I wanted to be with you so badly…”

  He sighed, his eyes searching hers. His hand still enclosed her wrist, but now his grip was gentle. Calming. “So what do you want now?” he asked her.

  She couldn’t stop her eyes from filling with tears.

  “It doesn’t matter what I want,” she said. “Nash wants this alliance, and he wants me mated with Kane. And believe me, I know Nash well enough not to get in the way of what he wants. And if you know what’s good for you, you won’t either.”

  Jesse was watching her, forehead creased in a frown. “But if all he wants is an alliance with Silverlake, why does it have to be Kane? Why couldn’t it be me?”

  His question hit Sophia like a punch in the stomach. “You’d do that?” she asked. He’d sign a mating contract with her?

  He dropped his eyes, his fingers moving softly on her wrist. “We could have something, Soph,” he said. “Something amazing. You know we could.”

  For a moment, hope blossomed in her chest. Then she shook her head. “Nash would never go for it,” she said.

  Jesse’s face hardened, and he dropped her wrist. “Of course he wouldn’t,” he said. “Never mind. Forget I said anything.”

  It was like a door had slammed between them. And this time, for the life of her, Sophia didn’t know why.

  But she knew it was for the best. Even if her wolf was still crying.

  Chapter 9

  Jesse put the truck in gear and pulled back out on the road. Of course Nash Jenkins wouldn’t agree to transfer the mating contract to him. Jesse wouldn’t bring the Nashville pack any status—he was just Jace Monroe’s charity case. The non-dominant wolf who only had a place in the pack because he was Jace’s friend.

  And apparently, whatever they’d shared wasn’t enough for Sophia to give up the status Kane would bring.

  He came to an intersection where the road to the highway was blocked. There was a detour sign sending them off to the right, on a secondary road. Jesse braked to a stop and checked the GPS on his phone.

  “It looks like this road will take us around to the highway, but it’s a pretty long detour,” he said to Sophia. “Do you know a better way?”

  Her voice was distant, and she didn’t look at him. “Not really. This road’s decent, and it’s a pretty drive. You’re right, though, it’s the long way around.” Her voice grew colder. “Hope you can stand to be with me a little longer than you thought you would.”

  Considering they were going to be on the road together for two excruciating days, another hour wasn’t going to make a difference either way. Jesse took the detour without replying.

  He couldn’t help stealing glances at Sophia as he drove. She still sat confidently, with her head high, as if she didn’t know any other way to be. But every now and then a tear slipped down her face. She didn’t brush them away—it was as if the only way she could deal with crying was to pretend it wasn’t happening.

  Damn.

  He hated to see her cry. Even after she’d tricked him, even after she’d made it clear she wasn’t interested in getting out of her contract—he still felt that pull toward her. Not just attraction. But the feeling that she needed him, and he was somehow letting her down. And his wolf wanted to go over and nuzzle her, touch her and snuggle her until she stopped hurting.

  There was more to her story than she was telling him. There had to be. But he didn’t know how to get her to open up to him. His goddess was a maze of secrets and lies, and Jesse suspected that maze led back to Nash Jenkins.

  He had two days to get her to trust him. And to convince her to tell him what Nash was really up to. Two days before they hit Silverlake. And two days before he had to fight Kane for her.

  Or, possibly, die for her.

  They’d been riding through the forest in silence for almost an hour when Jesse heard a loud “crack.” A second later the truck’s tire blew out. The steering wheel jolted under his hands, and the truck swerved toward the side of the road. Jesse fought to keep it under control.

  Then there was another “crack,” and the side window of the truck shattered. A bullet whined by. “Get down!” Jesse yelled. Sophia ducked, snarling.

  Someone was shooting at them. And they weren’t screwing around.

  There was another shot, and another tire went. The truck lurched and hit a pothole, and Jesse lost control. In less than a second they were over the edge of the road, careening down a short slope towards the trees. There was no way to avoid hitting something. Jesse hauled on the wheel, trying to hit the smallest tree in the least lethal spot. The truck smashed into a half-grown sapling and pitched suddenly over on its side. His head struck the door frame, hard.

  For a moment Jesse was disoriented, and then adrenalin roared through him and cleared his brain. His head hurt, and blood was trickling down the side of his face, but all his limbs felt intact. The engine was still on, the wheels spinning. Sophia was just stirring on the other side of the truck. Her side of the vehicle was in the air, only her seatbelt holding her in place.

  Jesse reached for the ignition and twisted the keys, turning the engine off. If there was a gas leak, the last thing
they needed was to spark something.

  “Sophia!” he said. “Are you okay?”

  She turned her face to him with a growl, her eyes a bright feral green. She seemed to have difficulty focusing on him. There was something wrong with her, Jesse realized. Those eyes definitely didn’t look right.

  “Come on, sweetheart,” he said. “You’re okay. But we have to get out of here. Can you move?”

  His voice seemed to soothe her, and her eyes cleared a little. “Come on,” he repeated. “Can you open your window?”

  Kane’s truck had old-fashioned crank windows. Jesse reached awkwardly over Sophia and wound hers down. “Climb out, babe,” he said. “You can do it.”

  He had to unbuckle her seatbelt and physically direct her attention to the open window by turning her head, but once she saw it she climbed out and dropped to the ground. Jesse had to shift partway to wolf to get his legs out from where the dashboard had been crunched towards his seat. He slithered around and then changed back, hauling himself out the truck window.

  Sophia was on the ground in a half-crouch. She still looked like she was on the verge of panic-changing. Sometimes when wolves were injured or traumatized, they shifted involuntarily, which was why they never went to human hospitals if they could possibly avoid it.

  Right now, Sophia looked like she was about to lose it. And her energy felt strange and confused.

  “Sophia,” Jesse said, keeping his voice down, but trying to break through her panic. “Soph, we have to get out of here.”

  Shifters were hard to kill, but a bullet through the heart or the brain was just as lethal for a shifter as for a human. Those earlier shots might have just been rednecks playing games—but Jesse didn’t think so. That convenient detour, and then someone running them off the road—that sounded like Alexander Grant’s style. And if it was Grant, this could get very bad very fast.

  Alexander Grant had a serious issue with the Silverlake pack. If he had gotten word that one of their lieutenants and a valued female from the Nashville pack were traveling with no protection, he might have jumped on the opportunity to take hostages from both groups at once.