Speed Mating - A Midnight Liaisons Novella by Jessica Sims Read Free Book Online Page A

tossed her phone back in her purse and ran her fingers through her hair, trying to make it look tousled and sexy. Fuckable. She'd even worn a hint of eyeliner, though that was all she dared as far as makeup went. Male shifters didn't like the scent of makeup. No perfume, either. Her own turned-on musk would scent the clearing. It was definitely a good thing that Vic had sent the others out of town, or she'd be dragging every half-interested tiger or lion male toward her no matter what she did.
    So she paced. And she waited.
    Vic's scent reached her first. Still distant, the masculine smell of tiger sent waves of pleasure rolling through her body. Her nipples tightened in response and she crossed her arms over her chest, shivering at the sensation. Her toes wiggled in the inch-deep snow, but she forced herself to remain where she was.
    He needed to come and find her.
    Of course, just waiting made her nervous. She chewed on her lip, thinking as she studied the naked trees nearby. Maybe a sexy pose? She could lean up against a tree trunk, cock a leg, maybe thrust out her breasts...
    Vic crashed into the clearing in full tiger form.
    Estrella yelped in surprise, flying backward automatically, her claws coming out. She could feel her cat under her skin, an automatic defense mechanism, and forced herself to calm, shoving away her shifter form. The last thing she wanted was to transform right now.
    Vic's gaze moved to her, studied her for a moment, and then he opened his mouth and roared so loud that her eardrums vibrated.
    Boy, he was furious . Estrella backed up to the nearest tree, automatically feeling that awful mental heaviness that came with disobeying your alpha. She leaned against it, forcing herself not to cringe away from his anger, and thrust her breasts out in the skimpy bra. "I'm so glad you're here, Vic," she murmured huskily. "I'm in trouble."
    The tiger paced around her, nostrils flaring and scenting the clearing. His tail lashed wildly.
    She patiently waited for him to finish checking out their surroundings, knowing that he'd find no other scents but hers. Once that was done, he leveled her another pissed off gaze and then hunched in the snow-covered grass, shoulders flexing as he began to change back to human form.
    A few rather long minutes later, and he was in human form. She eyed him appreciatively, noticing for the first time that his chest was sprinkled with dark hair and he had the tightest buttocks she'd ever seen. God, she wanted to wrap her legs around them right about now.
    She forced herself to meet his gaze as he approached her, his dark, damp hair steaming in the bitter cold. "What is it?" Vic growled. "What trouble?"
    Here we go , she told herself mentally. Now or never. "This kind of trouble," she said in a throaty voice, and reached behind her to unhook her bra.
    He growled again, the low rumble managing to come through despite his human form. The wild, furious look returned to his eyes. "What the fuck is this, Estrella?"
    She stopped, humiliated.
    She wanted to clutch the now-slipping bra to her breasts and run into the woods. Shame made the hairs on the back of her neck prickle. "A mistake, apparently."
    Vic was still breathing hard, still furious. "This is a set-up, isn't it?" His shoulders heaved with each angry breath.
    She remained silent.
    "Fuck, Estrella!" Vic turned and stomped away, snarling. "Do you have any idea of how fucking worried I've been? Here I thought that you - one of our females and near a dangerous mating heat - was hurt and in trouble. I've been mentally figuring out what the fuck to do if you need medical help, and you're just trying to seduce me?"
    Bitter disappointment mixed with the shame. She reached behind her back and tried to resnap her bra, blinking back humiliated tears. "I didn't think--"
    "No, you didn't," he roared again. "What if you were in tiger form and you were injured? What am I supposed to do? The Alliance doc can only do so much. Do I fucking call an