Moon Shifter 02 - Primal Possession

surface.
    Jayce quickly looked at Liam as he forced himself to control his breathing. The urge to shift forms was powerful, but he shoved his inner beast back. “I’ve got to take care of something, but I’ll talk to you later. Tell your brother I’ll be at the ranch tomorrow morning around eight.” Jayce noticed that the redhead’s eyes widened in fear as she backed away toward the bar, no doubt because his eyes had likely changed from their normal gray to black, but he didn’t care.
    Liam nodded in what almost looked like understanding.
    Jayce didn’t waste time. He stalked up to Kat and Mr.Preppy. The guy’s jaw dropped open and Kat opened her mouth, no doubt to blast him again.
    “We need to talk.” He grabbed her arm, not hard, and he was surprised when she didn’t struggle.
    She just glared at him for a long moment. Then she nodded. “You’re right—we do.”
    Keeping his hold on her elbow, he continued out of the bar and made a sharp left. He’d seen a utility room down one of the halls when he’d done some earlier reconnaissance. It was unlocked, so he steered them both inside the small room.
    Kat yanked her arm out of his grasp. “What the hell do you want?”
    Ignoring her, he shut the door behind them. She rolled her eyes and plopped down on an overturned bucket. He flipped on the light. That’s when he realized she was drunk. More than tipsy and definitely on her way to getting tanked. Something she’d rarely done before.
    Her eyes were glassy as she stared at him. “I’m waiting, Mr. Bossy.” She hiccuped and swayed on her seat.
    The drunkenness explained why she wasn’t tearing him a new asshole for manhandling her. “You planned to
fuck
that guy tonight?”
    She shrugged. “Maybe, maybe not. Depends how drunk I get. What’s it matter to you?”
    “You matter to me.” It was one of the most real things he’d ever said to anyone. Especially a woman.
    She laughed at him. “I matter? You’re so full of shit, Jayce. You like me well enough in the bedroom, but that’s all you want from me. I don’t know why you’re here and I don’t care.” Pushing up, she swayed again but clutched on to the metal rack against the wall. “It might surprise you, but men find me attractive and smart andplenty of them would like to warm my bed at night. Unlike you, they don’t view me as some dirty secret.” She hiccuped again. This time louder, but her voice cracked on the last word.
    Dirty secret?
What the hell was she talking about?
    “Big, stupid enforcer can’t bondmate with his pathetic little human. Well, fuck you, Jayce! I’ll screw whomever I want, whenever I want. I’ve had plenty of lovers since we broke up and there’s nothing you can do about it.”
    No she hadn’t. He’d have been able to scent someone if she had. She was still untouched by anyone but him. But the hurt and pain in her pale blue eyes were crystal clear. He didn’t understand it and he didn’t have the heart to contradict her. She was the one who’d walked away from him. She’d broken things off, then left town as if what they’d had together meant nothing. He’d called her so many times afterward it was embarrassing.
    “Katarina.” He reached for her, but she swatted his hand away.
    “Don’t touch me!” Her voice rose with each word as she sidestepped him toward the door. The agony she projected tore at his gut. He didn’t understand it but he wanted to take it away.
    Kat had never hidden her emotions from him when they’d been together. Anger, lust, heat, passion, love—she’d projected everything freely. But never hurt. Not like this. She yanked open the door and practically sprinted away from him.
    He pressed a hand to his chest. Something foreign and uncomfortable made his chest ache. For months he’d waited for her to reach out, to explain why she’d left. He’d thought she’d finally woken up and realized she was too good for him. If he hadn’t been so busy with Council matters, he’d have tracked her down long ago.He knew they didn’t have a future together because he couldn’t bond with her, but that didn’t mean they couldn’t spend more time together. Just a few more years. That’s all he wanted with her.
A little more time.
He snorted to himself. He sounded fucking pathetic. No wonder she’d left him.

Chapter 5
    “W e should go after her.” December slid her nearly full vodka tonic away and stood up.
    Liam shook his head. Even if Kat had been sucking drinks down