Chapter 154 Chapter 154
Blair stared at the ceiling; he didn’t know how long he’d been trying to fall asleep—but his internal clock told him it was too damn long. He should have passed out as soon as his head hit the pillow. Calum and he had not only gone to check on the hill to get a view of the area surrounding the property, but they’d run the outskirts and adjacent properties—twice, to check for any scents that shouldn’t have been there. Then he’d come back and eaten enough for three people before walking, on two feet, the perimeter of the yard around the house.
So why wasn’t he sleeping?
Right. He couldn’t sleep because his brain and cat wouldn’t shut up. He somehow needed to tell Kobie that she was his mate. Normally, he’d have no problem with that—or he hoped he wouldn’t, but this was not normal. Not only had she just lost most of her clan, her father, and her home, but her brother might not make it either.
She was very perceptive, how hadn’t she figured it out too? They’d been close enough in both forms during their trek up and over the mountain. Closing his eyes, he rubbed them. With everything happening in her little world right now, he was lucky she wasn’t running around freaking right the fuck out.
Blowing out a breath, he rolled over and grabbed the pillow to squish it up more. He had to sleep, or he was going to end up running around freaking the fuck out tomorrow—or killing everything in sight.
“Blair.”
He opened his eyes to see Daisie leaning over him. “What’s wrong?” He blinked to try to focus.
“I can’t find Kobie.” She whispered.
He was awake now. “I’m coming. Wait outside.”
As soon as the door closed, he flipped the blanket back and grabbed his jeans off the floor. He didn’t even bother doing them up completely. Opening the door, he motioned for Daisie to go downstairs. “Did you tell the guys on watch?”
“I don’t know them.”
He didn’t blame her, a few were even scary looking to him. “Okay. Did you check the whole house and yard?”
She nodded.
Reaching the bottom of the stairs, he touched her shoulder and then leaned down to talk to her. “Go knock on Calum’s door and tell him, okay? Tell him I’m going to look.”
She nodded. “Okay.” She hugged him quickly. “Please find her.” Turning away from him, she ran back up the stairs.
Blair went out the door and jogged over to the guardhouse.
When he opened the door, the one man in the room jolted like he’d been asleep. “Did you see Kobie go anywhere?” He motioned to his head, “pale blonde hair.”
The guy shook his head.
Blair snarled, “check the tapes.” He grabbed a radio off the table and went back out the door.
Going to the middle of the drive, he inhaled deeply and tried to catch her scent. If she used that damn alcohol to cover her tracks, he was going to—he didn’t know what, but it wouldn’t be pleasant.
Turning, he inhaled again. She’d gone this way. He picked up another scent as he started walking that way. He didn’t recognize who it was. Blair’s cat was on full alert and made him even more unsettled. Jogging, he headed in the direction her scent was going. The radio in his hand beeped softly. Stopping, he depressed the button, “Did you find anything on the cameras?”
“No. There’s no movement since patrol an hour ago.”
Shit. “Okay, check in with the other posts.” He started jogging again. How had the cameras not caught her leaving? There had to be blind spots.
He kept running. Her scent was so strong now, a few times he thought he’d lost it, and was afraid she was gone from him, then he’d pick it up again. He was halfway to the back of the property when he picked up her cat’s—she’d shifted. Why had she shifted? Stopping he turned slowly and inhaled, trying to sense any threats.
“Blair.”
It was Calum on the radio. “I’m heading to the back.” He told him quietly while watching and listening all around him. “She shifted.”
“Is she alone?”
Blair blew out a quiet breath and tried to take in all the smells nearby, “I think so.”
“What the hell is she doing?” Cal sounded as unhappy as Blair was starting to feel
“I don’t know. Can you check the perimeter and see if anyone has been near here?”
“We already are. Keep us informed.”
Blair knew that was the last of Cal using the radio unless they found something. He was just about to strip off his jeans when he realized he hadn’t brought a pack. Fuck. He had nowhere to put the radio. Shit. Clipping it to his jeans, he started jogging toward the back. He scented the running water and was just about to radio and ask if the river was deep enough for a small craft to use it when Kobie stepped out of the trees. He stopped and stood there. She was wearing jean cut-off shorts and a halter top; both left a lot of glorious skin showing. In her hand were a string of fish and a makeshift spear out of a tree branch.
Turning her head, she shook her hair back from her face and smiled at him. “I needed to clear my head.”
Blair felt his head moving. He was nodding, but words hadn’t yet formed in his brain.
“Is everything all right, Blair?”
Fuck. He blinked. No. His brain reminded him. “You should have told someone where you were going.” He remembered the radio and pulled it off his jeans to tell Cal to call off the search. “Found her. Everything is fine.” That was a lie. Things were so far from fine right now. She’d scared the hell out of him and then reappears looking like some jungle goddess for fuck’s sake.
“Sorry. I thought we had free roam of the land.”
“You do, but you need to let someone know where you’re going.”
She lifted her hand with the fish in it, “hunting makes my head right.”
He didn’t care about the damn fish, not in any way. Okay, he did because she’d just caught a string of fish with a stick. Impressive. He couldn’t stop looking at her. Her legs were long and toned—images of them wrapped around him popped into his head. His cat was assessing her as well and not helping him concentrate. Her body was toned, not sculpted, but curved in all the right ways. He had the urge to taste her skin.
She stopped walking and motioned behind her, “the river is so full of fish they practically jumped out for me.”
He heard her, but his voice was paralyzed as he stared at the small tattoo of a black tiger resting on her skin just below the curve of her waist.
“Oh,” she put her hand over it, “I had it done before my first shift so it wouldn’t heal. I had no idea I’d be black when I got it.”
That hadn’t even crossed his mind. Then again, his mind was lost in images he needed to not be thinking right now. “It’s nice.” He finally said. Remembering how panicked he’d been a few moments before, he motioned back toward the house. “We should get back. Daisie woke me in a panic when she couldn’t find you.”
She started walking. He followed a few steps behind, which was a bigger mistake. He watched the sway of her hips and the hint of a firm ass peeking out from the bottom of the denim with each step. Fuck. Was all his brain could form. His cat wasn’t happy, and it took a moment to think past his lust to understand why. She was going to walk back through the yard for all the guards to see that perfect fucking body.
“Kobie.” It came out harder than he’d intended. Stopping, she turned and looked back at him. How the fuck do I say this? Closing the distance between them, he looked down at her.
She stood there, looking up at him. Her midnight blue eyes searched his face.
“There’s something we need to talk about.” He watched her lick those pouty lips and forgot what he needed to say. Fuck it. He cupped the back of her head and pulled her closer. Before she could say a word, he crushed her mouth with his. He’d expected resistance and hesitation, but she surprised him by returning his kiss with a matched urgency. Growling, he dropped the radio and lifted her up higher so he could deepen the kiss and taste more of her.
Boosting up on his body, she squeezed his waist between her knees. Blair’s cat went crazy with the feel of skin on skin—he wanted Blair to bite her. Blair wanted to mark her, and that urge made him slow the kiss and then lift his mouth from hers.
“I haven’t decided, Blair.” She said breathlessly, her soft mouth brushing against his.
As her words registered, she slid down his body and bent down to pick up the fish. “You knew?” He looked down at her swollen mouth then at the fast rise and fall of her breasts. She didn’t deny it. “How long?”
“Since I crossed that ditch.” She said whispered and then started walking.
Blair was stunned. His cat was elated. She knew. That was one less issue. Shaking his head, Blair disagreed. Grabbing the radio, he caught up to her. “Why didn’t you say something?” He frowned and forced his gaze to stay on the ground in front of him. The perfume. “You used those perfumes to throw me off, didn’t you?”
“Don’t be too flattered, I always use them.”
“You’re not now.” He licked his lips and wanted to groan. They tasted of her.
“I ran out.” She confessed.
Lightly gripping her arm, he stopped her and looked down at her. “What do you mean you haven’t decided? Decided what?” They were mates. It wasn’t like you could pass on that and wait for the next one. There was no next one.
Heaving a loud sigh, she locked eyes with him. “I don’t think now is a good time to get mated.”
Blair raised one eyebrow and stared at her. “Schedule too full?”
She gave him a hard look. “You know what I mean. My clan is almost all gone. I don’t know what happened to our Alpha, my brother is gravely injured...”
He couldn’t argue with any of that. It made him feel like a jerk but was too stunned to dig past it and find compassion right now. “You can’t put your cat on hold until it’s a more convenient time.” Her confession popped back into his head. “You should have told me, rather than let me think I’m losing my mind.”
She jerked her arm out of his hold. “As I said, it’s been a bad time.” She started walking.
Blair ground his teeth together and watched the sway of her walk. Growling low, he caught up to her. “If you need to go for a walk, or a run, or whatever—from now on you tell someone.” He stepped in front of her, she almost walked into him. “And that,” he motioned up and down her, “is sexy as fuck and you look fucking amazing in it but you need to not be wearing shit like that in front of all the other guys.”
She scowled up at him.
Blair shrugged and tried to give her a simple expression without the rage, “sorry, I can only be so understanding,” he leaned down closer, “and my cat has no understanding. So, let’s be clear, babe, you’re mine—our cats both know it.” He saw the understanding reach her eyes. Straightening, he backed away, “don’t make me start killing good men.” With a quick nod, he turned around and headed back to the yard. He needed to go for a fucking run. He needed to go kill something, anything. What the hell was this bullshit? She’d known since the moment they met and had hidden that from him? No wonder his head was a complete mess.
Calum met him by the guardhouse and gave him a curious look and then looked behind him. “Problem?”
Blair stopped and looked at Kobie stomping across the yard, the fish swinging as she went. “Nope. No problem at all.” Blair said in a low tone.
Calum snorted. “Okay.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “Gage said to call him when you got a minute.”
Blair nodded his head slowly and then finally looked at him when the door to the house slammed and Kobie was out of sight. “Did he say if Coop was all right?”
Calum leaned against the fence. “He said something about a stubborn, ornery old man, so I’m going to say Cooper is recovering and not as fast as he’d like to.”
Blair grinned. “That sounds about right.”
“Kobie’s brother will be here tomorrow.”
Blair took a deep breath and nodded. Would that make things better or worse? He didn’t know. “I need coffee.” He stomped toward the house.
Kobie scowled at the jeans, then pulled them up. Who was he to dictate what she wore? And why was she listening to him and changing? Zipping them, she lifted her hand to her mouth and touched her lips. She’d never been kissed like that before. Heat moved through her as she thought about it. Sure, she’d been kissed before, but nothing the way he had. Licking her lips, she realized she could still taste him. Pressing them together, she paused. Her cat rubbed up against her. Kobie couldn’t remember ever reacting that way to a kiss either. She’d needed to kiss him back the same way, not want, but need. Her cat repeated the motion. “Stop. I know what you want, you hussy.” It felt like she had butterflies in her stomach now. That annoyed her because she knew her body and her cat agreed. Her mind, however, was not about to let her climb that tall sexy body of his without thinking it all through. And there was a lot to think about. She would not be one of those silent complacent mates—women, whatever. Nope, she’d spent her whole life proving she was good enough to be included and respected. Giving into hormonal urges was not on the list of things she had plans to do.