Wild Invitation

for perfection in all things.
    The only place Kimberly had failed was with Annie.
    Her mood might’ve dimmed again, but she was too busy daydreaming about kissing Zach on those beautiful lips of his. The man was too sinful to be real. And the way he flirted…wow. It would’ve been nice to be confident enough to flirt back. “Instead of blushing and going tongue-tied,” she muttered.
    She’d seen enough DarkRiver couples to identify the kind of women dominant changeling men found attractive—and Zach was definitely a dominant. Those women were all striking in some way, but it was their self-assurance that really shone through. Vividly intelligent, they didn’t hesitate to speak their minds or give back as good as they got. Feminine strength didn’t scare men of Zach Quinn’s ilk, it enticed them.
    And that was exactly what attracted her to him. She knew after having met him only once that he’d never tell her she couldn’t do something. Zach would simply expect her to match him. And that was a seduction all on its own.
    The bath pinged to alert her it was full. She was about to step in when her eye fell on the cell phone she’d left on top of her discarded clothes. She grabbed it, deciding to give Caro a call. Her cousin was an expert on men, and it was advice on that subject that Annie needed right now.
    Putting it within reach, she sank into the hot water with a moan. After ten minutes of just lying there soaking in the heat, she reached out to get the phone. It beeped an incoming call as her fingers brushed the case. Rolling her eyes because it was probably her mother again, she flipped it open without checking the display and answered audio only.
    “It’s me,” she said, dropping her head back against the wall and pressing her feet flat against the end of the bath.
    “Hello, me.”
    Her breath stuck in her throat at the sound of that sensually amused voice. “Zach…Mr. Quinn—” She’d have jerked upright except that she was frozen in place.
    “Zach,” he corrected. “I hope I’m not disturbing you.”
    “No, I”—water dripped as she raised a hand to push streamers of hair off her face—“I was just relaxing.”
    “In the bath?”
    She blinked, mortified that she’d left the visual feed on by accident. But no, it was switched off.
    “Leopards have good ears.”
    Her cheeks colored. “Of course.” She stayed very still, not wanting him to hear her splashing about.
    “I didn’t mean to intrude into your relaxation time.” An apology made in a voice that was close to a purr.
    Annie told herself to breathe. “That’s okay.” Realizing he couldn’t see her, she stopped fighting herself and allowed her face to suffuse with the pleasure she got from simply listening to him. She’d never before met a man with a voice like Zach’s—so masculine, but with that delectable hint of play. As if while he might be a honed blade of a soldier, he knew how to laugh, too. “Was there a problem with Bryan?”
    “No, JB’s fine. No runs with the other kids for a week for him.”
    Annie frowned. “I thought he’d have entertainment privileges suspended.”
    Zach chuckled, and it rippled through her like living fire. “That
is
his favorite form of entertainment. Leopard changelings, especially boys his age, hate being trapped inside.”
    “Of course.” She remembered one of the other parents saying something along those lines during a parent-teacher conference. “Was that what you called to tell me?”
    “That, and I wanted to warn you about the cold up in the higher elevations. We might even hit some snow. Dress in layers.”
    “Okay.” She bit down on her lower lip, wanting to keep him on the phone but not knowing what to say to achieve that goal. “So, nine a.m. tomorrow?”
    “Hmm.” He sounded distracted to her ears.
    “I should let you go,” she began.
    “Tired of me already?”
    She really didn’t know how to deal with him. “No.”
    Another male chuckle. “Tell me something about you, Annie.”
    “What do you want to know?”
Why
did he want to know?
    “How long have you been a teacher?”
    “Five years,” she said with a smile. “I started teaching new entrants, but for the past couple of years, it’s been kids Bryan’s age.”
    “You like it.”
    “I love it.” She found she’d relaxed again, soothed by the timbre of his voice, so easy, so deliciously male. “What do you do?”
    “I’m a forest ranger, specializing in the predatory species that