Shifters, Inc.: The Bear Who Loved Me

Copyright 2014 by Georgette St. Clair

This book is intended for readers 18 and older only, due to adult content. It is a work of fiction. All

characters and locations in this book are products of the imagination of the author. No shifters were

harmed during the creation of this book.

License Statement

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.

Heath, a bear shifter criminal turned security consultant, just got what should be a dream

assignment: going undercover on a floating pleasure palace to flush out the assassin known as the
Chameleon. Unfortunately, there’s one thing getting in the way of his fun: Tonya Crandall. A curvy
cub reporter and a total fox – literally and figuratively - she pushes all his buttons and drives his
inner bear crazy every time she shows up bugging him for an interview.

Turns out she’s sneaked onto the giant luxury cruiser too, and she’s in way over her head.

Heath suddenly finds that when anybody looks at his fox (his fox?) his bear has a way of making its
displeasure known - violently – so he’ll just have to pretend she’s his companion for the duration of
the cruise. When they get back to shore, the grouchy bear is going to let her know what’s what – isn’t
he? Unfortunately, things are not as they seem on the Shangri-La of the Sea, and betrayal waits for
both of them in the most unexpected of places.

Chapter One

The auction was scheduled to start in half an hour, and a casual observer scanning the room

at Le Magnifique Art Gallery would have seen nothing but a sea of handsome men in tuxedos and
beautiful women in evening gowns. In reality, in that crowd were several dozen security operatives
who were dressed to the nines and mingling with the crowd, an art thief, and one very pissed off fox
shifter.

“I solemnly vow, I will never again start out a night by saying ‘What could possibly go

wrong?’” Tonya Crandall said to her roommate Bridgit.

“That seems like a good plan,” Bridgit agreed. “Don’t ask fate a question like that unless you

want to find out the answer.”

The answer to that question was standing across the room, near the open bar. Tonya

glowered at Heath Anderson, the most annoying bear shifter in the history of…well, ever. As if
sensing her presence, he looked up and met her gaze. Then he held up his glass of beer in a mock toast
to her, and winked.

Her glare deepened, and he shrugged and resumed his conversation with the beautiful

brunette who seemed to have all his attention tonight. Coyote shifter, Tonya was pretty sure. She felt
something tighten in her gut and looked away.

Bridgit glanced at Tonya’s hand, wrapped in a makeshift bandage. Within minutes of showing

up at Le Magnifique, Tonya had tripped and bumped into Diana Oliver, the new curator, knocking
over her wineglass and somehow cutting herself. Then, while she’d been stammering her apologies,
she’d felt a strange erotic tingling sweep through her body, looked up and seen Heath. The evening
had not started off well.

Diana walked by, accompanied by the gallery owner, Jacques Barbeaux. Tonya happened to

know that his real name was Jack Blotsky, from Idaho, and he totally faked his French accent, but that
didn’t bother her. He frequently held auctions that benefitted charity, so he could fake it all he wanted
as far as she was concerned.

Tonya waved at Diana with her bandaged hand. Diana, a tall, lean woman with a severe

nose and shiny black hair, waved back. She also had a bandaid on her hand.

“Sorry! “ Tonya called out again.

“Don’t worry about it,” Diana called back.

That did not set the tone for the rest of the evening, Tonya thought uneasily. This will go off

without a hitch. Hammersmith has it covered.“You could go duck out back in the alley, shift into
your foxy form of foxiness and heal it in, like, five seconds,” Bridgit pointed out.

Tonya shook her head decisively. “And miss my first big scoop? Forget about it. I’ll shift

once this is all over.” She was still only a freelancer at the Playa Linda Telegraph, but if she could
just get one major story, she was sure they’d hire her.

And she’d do just about anything to get that scoop. That was why she was standing ten feet

away from a bronze Renaissance statuette, which was up for auction and was going to be stolen in –
she glanced at her watch – two minutes. Well, the art thief was going to attempt to steal it, and
Hammersmith Security was going to intercept them.

“You’re sure that Hammersmith won’t let him get away?” Bridgit said nervously. The

statuette was expected to bring in at least a hundred grand at the auction tonight, and the owner had
pledged to donate the money from its sale to help build Playa Linda’s first no-kill animal shelter.
Bridgit was donating the rest of the money from her trust fund, and would be on the shelter’s board of
directors. The cause was very important to her.

“They’re all over it. Look, they’re standing right next to the statue. There’s six of them,”

Tonya reassured her. They were standing in a cluster, all wearing tuxedos and pretending to drink
while visually scanning the room. She had to admit, they looked really obvious and not incognito at
all, but still, how could the art thief get past all those shifters?

The auction company had considered cancelling the entire event when they’d heard that they

might be targeted, but Hammersmith had assured them that they would catch the thief in the act.

She looked across the room at Heath. He was a security consultant for a company called

Shifters, Inc. They were a relatively new company, only a year and a half old, and they were
Hammersmith’s main rivals. They had also steadfastly refused to grant Tonya an interview, which
irked her hugely. Of course, Hammersmith hadn’t given her an interview yet either, but Tom Hooper,
the owner’s nephew, regularly leaked her information.

“So, bad things come in threes,” Bridgit said. “You’ve already had three tonight, so you

should be good, right? You tripped and cut your hand, your least-favorite bear showed up, and…
what’s the third thing?”

“Nothing. Yet.” Tonya looked around uneasily.

“Oh. Well we could be in trouble then.”

“You are not helping!” Tonya elbowed her friend in the ribs. “That’s nothing but a silly old

superstition. Trust me, I’ve had plenty of days when bad luck came in the dozens. Also, you should
go. Other side of the room; you promised.” Things were about to get a little too exciting, and she
didn’t want to risk Bridgit getting in harm’s way.

“I’ve never seen an actual heist before,” Bridgit protested. “This is going to be better than

TV.”

“It will be an attempted heist. And I don’t want anything to happen to you. I would never forgive
myself. Well, I’d feel mildly guilty for a short period of time. Of course, your room does have the
better view…”

“I’m so touched I think I might cry,” Bridgit said drily. “Also, I swear to God Tom wants to

sleep with you. Be careful of accepting favors from him.”

Tonya was sure Bridgit was wrong, not that it would really matter. Tom wasn’t her type; he

waxed his eyebrows and gelled his hair and apparently bathed in tubs full of cologne. Sure, he flirted
with her, but he did that with all women. It was a natural reflex for him.

“He’s just being helpful. He has no interest in my fat butt. I’m not you, Bridgit; men don’t

gape in admiration when I walk into a room.”

Bridgit was a slim blonde with big blue eyes and pre-Raphaelite curls. Tonya was, to put it

kindly, full-figured. A good ten sizes bigger than her roommate, which sucked, because Bridgit had a
great wardrobe and Tonya could never steal her clothes. From looking at Tonya’s big, zaftig figure,
nobody would ever guess that she shifted into a cute little red fox. Bridgit’s animal, ironically, was
twice Tonya’s size; she was a wolf shifter.

Bridgit shook her head chidingly. “Seriously, Tonya, you don’t give yourself enough credit.

Plenty of men like a well-padded woman.”

Tonya shrugged, trying to banish the memory of the taunts she’d endured growing up in the

children’s home. “If someone adopts you, they’ll be getting three for the price of one!”

“That is nice of you to say. And now you must leave. Stuff’s going down. And you promised

to stay out of the way.”

She gripped her camera, which was tucked into her purse.

“Oh, fine, funkiller,” Bridgit pouted.

“That is what they call me,” Tonya agreed. “Along with other, less flattering names. Go.”

Bridgit flounced off, and Tonya pulled out her camera and began snapping pictures of the

guests as they circulated through the room, admiring the statues and vases on pedestals, and the art
installations and paintings.

Diana was chatting with the mayor now. Jacques was schmoozing with a senator. Le

Magnifique auctions always drew the city’s elite.

She glanced at Tom and his team again, and she felt a jolt of alarm shoot through her. They all

looked glassy-eyed and out of it now. What was wrong with them? They’d been drinking so they
could fit in with the other guests, but they’d been nursing the same drinks ever since they’d got there.
They couldn’t possibly be drunk.

And Heath and his group were hanging out on the opposite side of the room. Did they even

know that a theft was going to take place tonight? Maybe they were just here to provide additional
security? Hammersmith had received a tip from a snitch they worked with; perhaps Shifters, Inc.
wasn’t as well-informed as they were.

She shook her head and went back to taking pictures of the crowd. There was a retired

movie star with a big frosted hair helmet, wearing a dress that was much too young for her. Standing
nearby was her husband, the retired football superstar, already soused. But they were celebrities so
she could give their pictures to the society page editor.

“Well, well. If it isn’t my favorite cub reporter.” The deep, booming voice made her jump.

She hadn’t even noticed Heath walking up to her. For a man as big and burly as he was, he moved
with surprising stealth when he wanted to.

Every time he got close to her, she felt hot arousal pulsing through her body and her heart

started pounding. It was beyond frustrating, because she couldn’t stand him. Her brain knew that; why
didn’t the rest of her?

She felt her nipples swell to hard buds, and quickly crossed her arms over her chest to hide

them. He was an arrogant jerk; he didn’t deserve to know the strong physical effect he had on her.

She tipped her head back to stare up at him. He was easily six-four, a good eight inches taller

than her, and built like a linebacker. His eyes were a rich brown with glints of gold, and he had a
strong jaw and an amused quirk to his lips.

“Right.” She raised an eyebrow. “Cub reporter. Because I’m a fox. That’s hilarious. We have

kits, Heath, not cubs.”

He grinned and took another sip of his beer. “I stand corrected.”

“You’re also standing much too close, unless you’re finally ready to give me an interview.”

He had somehow moved even closer to her. They were practically pressing up against each other.
She swallowed hard and forced that image to the back of her mind, but not before her panties went
damp with arousal.

Heath had a lascivious gleam in his eye. “There’s plenty of things I’d like to give you, but an

interview isn’t one of them.”

“Does that kind of line work on most women?”

He grinned at her. “Surprisingly, yes. Everyone but you. Why do you even want to talk to us?

We’re not that interesting.”

Why did he always have to do this fake flirting thing with her, when clearly he wasn’t really

interested? Also, he’d just been chatting up some gorgeous coyote; it was obvious he liked to spread
his favors far and wide.

“You foiled an assassination last month,” she said patiently. She’d gone over this with him a

million times. “You and your team rescued a group of kidnapped oil contractors from terrorists. Your
company opened up shop only a year and a half ago and you’re already one of the most successful and
sought after in your field. The Playa Linda Telegraph wants an article on you and your company.”

He shrugged, and took another sip of his drink, visually scanning the room before returning

his attention to her. “The press is the enemy, and we don’t need publicity.”

She shot him a challenging look. “Why is Shifters, Inc. so dodgy about talking to the press?

Who’s afraid to talk to the press? Guilty people. People with something to hide.”

Heath tossed back the rest of his beer. “Yeah, yeah, freedom of the press, first amendment,

blah blah. Come back when you think up something original, babe.”

“You’ll be waiting a long damn time for that to happen!” She turned on her heel and walked

off, then stopped and spluttered in indignation. “Wait, I meant I won’t…damn it. That did not come
out how I intended.”

“Very smooth.” Bridgit had snuck back, and glanced over at Heath appraisingly. “He also

likes you. I think him and Tom should fight a duel to see who gets to claim you.”

“Bridgit, I sincerely wish that all the men you think lust after me really did. I’d never be

home alone on a Friday night.”

Before Bridgit could answer, the lights blinked off and the room was plunged into darkness.

Tonya had been expecting that. Thanks to the precautions taken by Hammersmith, the lights

would be back on immediately.

Except they weren’t, she realized, panic clutching at her.

She heard heavy thumps, oddly sounding as if bodies were falling to the floor, and the sound

of smashing glass and swearing.

This was bad. Between Hammersmith and Shifters, Inc., all the exits should be blocked, but

still…what if the thief actually got away? The animal shelter literally would not be built if the statue
was stolen.

In fox form, she had exceptional night vision. She knew what she had to do.

She partially shifted, just her head, feeling her snout lengthen, and her eyes immediately

adjusted to the pitch black. Tom and his cohorts were sprawled on the floor. They were breathing,
she noted quickly, so she would deal with them later if nobody else had gone to help them.

The thief, a tall, skinny man whom she’d spotted earlier admiring abstract paintings, was

vanishing with the statuette through a door at the rear of the room.

Chapter Two

She dashed across the room after him, ignoring the stumbling, shrieking guests. Why the hell

wasn’t anyone else chasing him? Apparently the worst security operatives in the nation were all on
duty tonight.

She ran through the door and down the hall. “Stop! I will kill you!” she screamed.

She heard footsteps pounding behind her, and she scented Heath and some other shifter – a

wolf. About damn time.

Le Magnifique was housed in an enormous building, with the front part set up as a gallery and

the rear housing their offices, warehouse and restoration workshop. She chased the thief down
several hallways and into a storage room. There were shelves and boxes and crates everywhere, and
the room smelled like dust. The thief wove nimbly down the alleyways created by the rows of
shelves, with the statuette tucked under one arm, but she was right behind him. She was about to
tackle him – when instead, someone tackled her.

She hit the ground with a thud.

“Oops, sorry.” Heath didn’t sound sorry.

“Let me go!” she howled, as Heath sprawled on top of her. “That statue is for puppies!

Puppies and kittens will die if he gets away!”

He didn’t move. He just kept her pinned down, and she heard footsteps running away, and

then a door slammed open. The door led to an alley; she grimaced at the gust of sour air from the
garbage bins outside. The thief’s footsteps were getting further and further away; now she could hear
him climbing into a vehicle and the vehicle was taking off…he was getting away.

What kind of heartless bastard wasn’t moved by puppies and kittens?

The room was still pitch dark. She struggled furiously, clawing at his face and biting him on

the shoulder with sharp fox fangs, but he just laughed, grabbed her hands and pinned them over her
head. She stifled a gasp of arousal and was horrified to realize that her panties were completely
soaked with her juices.

Shockingly, she could sense that Heath was aroused too. She could feel the thick, hard length

of him pressed against her stomach. She was sure that he wasn’t attracted to her; was it a leftover
erection from talking to the hot brunette earlier?

The lights flickered back on, and she shifted her head back to human form and glared up at

him. She was completely pinned underneath him, his muscular body covering her like a blanket. He
was so warm, so strong…he was also the bastard who’d deliberately let the thief get away.

“You again.” He flashed her a feral grin. “Can I buy you a drink?”

“Get off me, you son of a bitch! I swear to God, I am going to rip your face off the minute you

set me free.”

“Really?” He looked amused. The bastard was laughing at her. “Then why, exactly, would I

let you go? I kinda like my face. I’ve grown attached to it.”

“What’s your alternative? Are you planning on just lying here forever?” She snorted

contemptuously.

“Not forever, but I’ve got some time to kill.” He winked at her. “Now, what should we do to

pass the time? I’ve got some ideas.”

With a growl of anger, she headbutted his nose, hard, causing him to let out a surprised howl

of pain. She could feel blood trickling down her forehead, but it was worth it.

At the same time, she heard heels clattering through the room, and then Bridget appeared. She

grabbed a stone statue off a nearby shelf and held it high, threateningly.

“Okay, what’s going on here?” she demanded. “Is he assaulting you? And are you objecting?

I’m serious – I really can’t tell what’s happening. Should I leave you two in privacy or beat the hell
out of him?”

Tonya managed not to laugh. Bridgit was the least threatening person on the planet.

“He is assaulting me, and he is going to let me go now before he really regrets it,” Tonya

said, although she had no idea what she was going to follow that threat up with.

“So we’re beating him up? Oh, goody,” Bridgit said, raising the statue even higher over her

head. Tonya could have told her that someone who says “Oh, goody” wasn’t likely to intimidate
anyone, much less a bear shifter, but before she did, a big, brawny wolf shifter stalked up behind
Bridgit, snatched the statue from her and pinned her arms to her sides by wrapping one muscular arm
around her.

“Whoa there, sweetheart. I know Heath likes to play rough, but we wouldn’t want you to hurt

his tender little head.” The shifter grinned and bared a mouthful of white teeth. He had a scar through
his right eyebrow, which was unusual. Only silver would leave a permanent scar on a shifter.

“Let go!” Bridgit yelled furiously.

The wolf let go and stepped away. As he did, Heath rolled off Tonya and sat up. The minute

his warmth vanished, her body cried out in protest; she wanted him on her again. Covering her.
Pinning her down. Kissing her…

She shook herself and sat up, brushing dust off her clothing.

Blood trickled from Heath’s nose where Tonya had headbutted him, but he didn’t even seem

to notice.

“How long have you been there?” Heath said to the wolf shifter, exasperated. “Were you just

standing there watching?”

The shifter snorted and raked Heath with a contemptuous look as he set the statue back down

on a nearby shelf. “Oh, I’m sorry. Were you scared here in the dark? Did you want me to hold your
hand?”

“Fuck you,” Heath growled. He stood up, reached down and grabbed Tonya’s hand. He

yanked her to her feet, his big hand closed around hers and holding it for a second longer than
necessary before letting go. She could have sworn he squeezed her hand before releasing her.
“Bridgit, meet my good friend Levi. We just call him the Beast. And when I say good friend, I mean
the asshole that I work with.”

Levi shrugged. “You’re welcome for saving your life last week.”

“Yeah, yeah, you took a bullet for me. It wasn’t silver and it took you five minutes to heal, so

wolf up and quit whining.”

Bridgit glared up at Levi, hands on her hips. “I guess I know why they call you the Beast.”

He gave her a slow, appraising once-over and a smile curled his lips. “Not yet, you don’t,”

he said with a wink.

She spluttered with indignation. “You presumptuous bastard! Not if you were the last shifter

on Earth!”

He shrugged. “Your loss,” he said, and turned and walked away.

“Dickhead!” she yelled, and threw her purse at him. It bounced off his back and he didn’t

even break his stride. “You…jerk! You buttface!”

Bridgit really, really needed to work on her swearword vocabulary, Tonya thought, shaking

her head.

She turned her attention to Heath as Bridgit ran over to retrieve her purse

“You are beneath contempt. Kittens and puppies will die because of you,” she said, frost

dripping from every word. She was actually about to cry at the thought of it, but she wouldn’t let him
see that. “I hope the bribe was worth it.”

“What are you talking about?”

“You clearly took a bribe to let the thief escape. Even you aren’t this incompetent.”

“Why, thank you. I think.” He folded his arms across his broad chest.

“You drugged the drinks of the Hammersmith security too. Because they wouldn’t take a

bribe. They are far too professional.” She glared at him with accusing eyes.

To her surprise, Heath threw back his head and laughed. “They’re far too professional. Right.

If they were professional, Tom wouldn’t have told a reporter that a theft was going down tonight just
because he wanted to get into that reporter’s panties.”

“Told you,” Bridgit said cheerfully.

“Traitor! Do not agree with anything he says!” Tonya cried out, shooting a wounded look at

Bridgit. “If he says the sun is hot, you say it’s ice cold!”

Then she redirected her wrath back at Heath. “That shelter won’t be funded because of you!

How can you live with yourself?”

Heath let out a lengthy sigh. “Don’t get your panties in a bunch. The real statue is still here,

the auction will carry on. If you want to find out what happened, first shift and heal your hand and
your forehead while I heal my possibly broken nose.” He started to strip off his clothes without even
waiting to see if Tonya would follow suit.

Annoyed, Tonya stepped behind a row of shelves and shed her clothes. Shifting in clothing

was generally destructive, especially for someone like Heath, who would grow even bigger.

She shifted into fox form, dropping down to all fours. Scents swirled through the air, and she

sniffed appreciatively. The musky, masculine scent of Heath tickled her nostrils, and she inhaled it,
drawing in several breaths before shifting back to human form. Her hand and forehead were healed.
She quickly pulled her clothes back on and walked around to see Heath pulling on his jeans. Ouch.

She looked away quickly, but not before she saw the size of his massive cock right before he slid his
boxers over it and zipped up his pants.

Great. She’d never get that image out of her head. He’d be haunting her wet dreams.

“Let’s go,” he said, gesturing at her to follow him. She didn’t have much choice; the thief

would be long gone by now.

She and Bridgit followed him through several hallways until they were led into an office.

There were six shifters in there, as well as Diana and Jacques. They were all gathered around a big
laptop, watching a grainy image of a team of armed men battering down the door of a building. The
shifters all wore Bluetooth headsets, and several of them were talking at the same time.

Diana and Jacques applauded. “Brilliant!” Jacques cried out.

“The thief tonight was just an errand boy,” Heath said to Tonya. “We wanted the boss. The

gallery owners created a fake statue here in their workshop, we put a transmitter in it and made sure
he was able to steal it. Now we’ve tracked him down to his buyer,” Heath said with satisfaction.

“The real statue…” Tonya stared at the screen. The men were running down a hallway,

tackling several people who were fleeing…

“Safe and under lock and key.”

“And Hammersmith…”

“We knew they’d be incredibly obvious and stupid. We told the gallery owners to hire them

so the thief would see there was security here.” Heath shrugged. “If there hadn’t been any, the thief
would have been suspicious. But with those guys bumbling around, he thought he knew what he was
up against.”

“So when Hammersmith got a tip that the gallery was going to be hit tonight…that was your

agency, wasn’t it? Since you wanted them here.”

Heath just gave her a big, wide-eyed smile.

“What did you do to them? How did you knock them out?” She demanded.

Heath looked innocent and wounded. “Me? I didn’t do anything. But I’d say it looked like

someone slipped them all a Mickey so they wouldn’t screw things up for us. And by the way, don’t
quote me on anything.”

Tonya tried to sound dignified as she said, “I wouldn’t quote you if you were the last man on

Earth.”

She turned and stalked out of the room, with Bridgit trailing after her.

* * *

The shifters who’d stayed behind at the gallery were gathered around the bar, and the liquor

was flowing generously. The owner was delighted; the series of art thefts over the last year had every
gallery owner, museum and private collector in Southern California on edge, and now the thieves had
finally been taken down.

Bobbi, Heath’s adopted sister and one of Shifters, Inc.’s best operatives, was leaning on the

bar and downing a margarita. It always made Heath laugh to see the tomboy dressed in an evening
gown and heels. Bobbi was a coyote shifter who’d grown up in the ghetto with him, and he knew that

designer clothes made her itch.

“Thank God she’s gone,” Heath growled. She was gone but not forgotten; her scent was on

him, and he could still feel hot desire raging through his body. He was going to shower long and hard
tonight to wash her away.

“Yeah, I like her too,” Bobbi said. “She’s a nice person. For a reporter. I approve.”

“What?” Heath spluttered. “You thought – me and her? I can’t stand her! I’m practically

allergic to her!” It was true – every time she came near him, he swelled up. Unfortunately, he only
swelled in one part of his body.

“Of course you can’t,” Bobbi said.

“I mean, she’s attractive, yeah, but a reporter? Never. She’s so annoying. I run into her all the

time. Every damn time I turn around she’s there,” Heath grumbled.

“That must be terrible for you,” Bobbi said, and then she coughed words into her hand. Heath

could have sworn she coughed the words “Fated Mate”.

“What did you just say?” he demanded, astonished.

“I beg your pardon? I didn’t say anything.” She flashed a maddening grin and tossed back the

rest of her margarita.

“She is not my Fated Mate! She most definitely is not! I don’t even believe in that crap. It’s

ridiculous. This is the twenty-first century. It’s an old wives’ tale. There’s no such thing.”

Bobbi was staring at him with an amused grin, and he scowled at her. The harder he glared,

the wider she grinned.

Just because she and her wolf husband were ridiculously happy, it didn’t mean that Fated

Mates were a thing. Even if they were, he was not the type to settle down, ever. He didn’t believe in
happy endings; his childhood and teenage years had crushed that right out of him.

The fact that he kept running into Tonya was just a coincidence, he was sure of it. The fact

that when she got near him his senses went crazy and all the blood rushed from his brain to his cock
meant nothing. Nothing, damn it! Nothing more than that he liked larger women. Physically, sure, he
found Tonya hot and he wouldn’t mind a quick fling, but his Fated Mate? Ha!

He realized he was so distracted that he was actually muttering his thoughts out loud, and

Bobbi was looking at him strangely. He scowled and stomped off.

Outside the gallery, he watched Tonya climb behind the wheel of her Mercedes and drive off.

He’d done some checking into her, strictly for professional reasons, of course. She’d gone to
Harvard, and she drove a Mercedes that was a year old, and she lived in a huge mansion in a snooty
subdivision.

He’d been abandoned as a cub, grown up on the streets with a gang of punks, watched his

closest friend whom he’d loved like a brother die of an overdose, and barely dodged jail countless
times before finally turning his life around.

If he was going to have a Fated Mate, it wouldn’t be some pampered rich girl.

“Fated Mates don’t exist,” he muttered under his breath.

His phone rang and he grabbed it, suddenly eager for a distraction.

Pete, one of the operations coordinators at Shifters Inc., was on the other end.

“Nice job tonight. As a reward, we’ve got a new assignment for you,” he said. “Starts

tomorrow morning.”

“Please tell me it’ll take me out of town.” God, he needed to get away from that fox before he

took his sister’s words to heart and started believing that he actually liked her.

“Out of town, out of the country. You’re going to love this one. It’ll be right up your alley.”

Chapter Three

“Oh. My. God. He was such a dickhead.” They were back at the palatial mansion that

Bridgit’s grandmother had left her as part of her trust fund, and Bridgit was pacing the floor of the
living room. The room was massive, the oak walls adorned with hand-carved friezes. When Tonya
stood at one end of the room and shouted, it echoed.

“Yes, he certainly was.” Tonya leaned back in her overstuffed reclining chair. This room

smelled a lot like the gallery’s warehouse, she realized, with all its dust and antiques.

“I seriously hate his guts.” Bridgit stomped her foot on the nineteenth-century Persian carpet.

Tonya winced. That carpet was probably worth more than the Porsche Bridgit drove.

“So you’ve said. Many times,” Tonya pointed out. “In fact, if I didn’t know better, I’d think

you had a crush on him.”

“What?” Bridgit looked appalled. “I do not! Of course I’m complaining about him. He’s an

ass. You’re constantly complaining about Heath too.”

“Well, yeah, but… Oh, God.” Tonya sat bolt upright. “It’s true. I think about him all the time.

I have X-rated dreams about him. Oh, God. I do have a crush on him. Kill me now!”

“Of course you have a crush on Heath. You’ve known him for a while. I couldn’t possibly

have a crush on the Beast. I just met him.” Bridgit looked indignant. “What kind of a nickname is the
Beast, anyway?”

Tonya wanted to say A sexy one, but that wouldn’t be very supportive.

“A terrible name,” she said. “The name of a horrible, horrible person who you would never

want to associate with.”

“Damn straight,” Bridgit said firmly. “He was so not my type. I like them refined and

respectful. And I am going to stop talking about him now, because he is not even worth talking about,
at all. He’s not worth a single word. In fact—”

Before she could say anything else, her phone rang, and she looked at it and winced. That

meant it was her stepmother calling.

She picked up the phone, and Tonya grimaced in sympathy as she listened to the stepmonster

verbally light into Bridgit. From what she could overhear, Bridgit was entirely at fault for being at a
gallery where a crime had taken place, and it was very embarrassing for the family, and why did she
always end up right where trouble was?

With a sigh, Tonya got up from her chair and walked to the mahogany bar at the other end of

the room to pour them each a shot of tequila. She was sure they’d need it after this conversation.

Bridgit’s family had barely tolerated the fact that Bridgit wanted to use her PR and marketing

degree to get a job instead of finding some excruciatingly boring, proper jerkwad to marry. Tonya
secretly suspected that her family was sabotaging her efforts to get a job so she’d be forced to give up
and she’d go back to her life as a debutante. She had been expected to go to school to get her MRS
degree – as in, hunt for an appropriately boring and respectable husband. Nobody had expected her to
actually want to lead an independent life.

Tonya returned with two shotglasses of tequila on a tray, and set it down on a table next to

Bridgit.

As Tonya reached for her shotglass, Bridgit hung up the phone, grabbed both of the

shotglasses, and slammed them one after the other.

Her hands were shaking and she’d gone pale.

“They’re taking back my trust fund money unless I let them start fixing me up with more guys,

and agree to be married to one of the guys from their list within the next six months.”

Tonya knew about the list. Bridgit’s parents had drawn up a list of appropriate wolf shifters

from good families, of the right age and the right lineage to marry into their family. Bridgit knew and
hated all of them. Rich, stuffy bastards who’d expect her to stay home and keep a perfect house while
they were out keeping up appearances and having affairs.

Also, Bridgit passionately believed in the whole “Fated Mate” concept and she was

determined to wait for her Fated Mate to come along.

Tonya shrugged. “You can use your degree to get a job.” Bridgit had been planning on doing

public relations for the Animal Haven shelter for free, but her family might be forcing a change of
plans.

“No, you don’t get it. They’ll take away the money that I was pledging to the animal shelter.

There will be no shelter.”

“Can they do that? Your grandmother left that money to you!”

“Yes, but the way the trust is written, it’s doled out to me by a board of trustees, and my

family has a lot of influence over them. They can freeze that money indefinitely. They can’t spend it
themselves, but they can prevent me from having it. My mother was still alive when the trust was
written; my grandmother never anticipated the stepmonster situation.”

“They would do that? I know you and your grandmother had talked about founding a shelter.

This would be going against her wishes.”

Bridgit shrugged miserably. “It would, but my stepmonster wouldn’t care about that, and my

father bows to whatever she wants. Oh, and since this house is owned by the trust, and my car and
your car were purchased with funds from the trust, we’d both be homeless and carless.”

Tonya looked around the room. “Okay, no offense to whichever of your gothically inclined

ancestors built this heap, but it is damned creepy. All the gargoyles and weird carvings freak me the
heck out. Wouldn’t you rather live in a place you decorated yourself, in a style that doesn’t remind
you of a horror movie set?”

Bridgit managed a shaky laugh. “Yes, actually. I guess you and me could get a studio

apartment together and take public transportation, or buy an old junker or something. What’s it like
being really poor?”

“It’s great!” Tonya said with a big, forced smile. “Every day is an adventure!”

“Really?” Bridgit raked her with a skeptical look.

“Okay, it actually kind of sucks. It sucks big time. But, you know what? Not always. I didn’t

enjoy worrying about how I was going to pay my bills, but I used to have fun going to thrift stores and

dumpster diving and making my house look great on zero budget. I’ve got my bartending job, and the
freelance work from the Telegraph, and you can get a PR job somewhere. We’ll be fine, I swear.”

“What is dumpster diving?” Bridgit looked worried. “I’m not sure I like the sound of that. It

doesn’t require a bathing suit, does it?”

“Oh, Grasshopper, I have much to teach you. And now I’m going to go get some more tequila,

because apparently somebody didn’t learn how to share when they were growing up.”

Tonya and Bridgit headed back to the bar.

Tonya’s phone chirped, and she raised an eyebrow. Tom Hooper was sending her a text.

Call me now – and be ready to pack your bags. I’ve got the story of the century for you.

* * *

“You are absolutely sure that you can pull this off.” Alexander was nervous. He had called

the Chameleon for reassurance, even though they’d been over this a dozen times.

If this failed, it would be his head. Literally.

“There’s a reason that you came to me, right?” said the tinny voice on the other end of the

line. The Chameleon always used a voice scrambler for all communications. “You know my
reputation. I never fail.”

The assassin known as The Chameleon never met with employers in person. Literally nobody

in the world knew what the Chameleon looked like. What everybody knew was that the Chameleon
never failed, and could take out any target, no matter the level of their security. Kings, heads of state,
billionaires, heads of multinational corporations…the Chameleon had taken them all out.

“How do you do it?” Alexander asked, fascinated.

“Trade secret,” the tinny voice said. “I could tell you, but then I’d have to kill you.”

Alexander let out a hollow laugh. Very funny.

“You understand how much security will be on that boat,” he said. “They will check

everyone’s identity, verify every single person from the captain down to the galley chefs and room
stewards and engineers.”

“We have been over this before, in great detail,” the Chameleon said, with an edge of

impatience that came through even with the voice scrambler. “I thrive on setbacks. I always turn them
to my advantage, and having security on this ship actually works to my advantage in this case.”

“How?” Alexander demanded.

“I never reveal my methods. Now stop harassing me with your insulting queries, and let me

do my job.”

“All right,” Alexander said. “I look forward to reading the tragic news in the papers.”

“My condolences on your loss. In advance,” said the voice on the other end, with a tinny

laugh.

“Good luck.”

“I won’t need it.” And the connection cut off.

Chapter Four

“This is the dream assignment,” the Beast gloated as they headed towards the briefing room.
“Karma is rewarding me. I must have been really good in another life.”

“Maybe. Certainly not this one.” Heath couldn’t help but grin, however. The Beast’s
enthusiasm was contagious. And he was right; this was the dream assignment.

A week on a floating pleasure palace known as the Shangri-La of the Seas, where they
would be undercover posing as millionaire passengers. They would be catered to, pampered, and
have their pick of the hundreds of beautiful women who were hired to provide “companionship” for
the wealthy clientele on the hedonistic cruise ship. There were plenty of beautiful male companions
too, but that wasn’t Heath’s thing.

And even better, there was very likely an assassin on the boat – or so rumor had it – which
was why Shifters, Inc. had been hired to discreetly take care of the problem.

They sat down at the conference table. The room was filling up with operatives who’d been
called in for the assignment, and Jake, their team leader, was sitting at the head of the table. The
massive computer screen mounted on the wall at the far end of the room had been turned on and there
were rows of driver’s license pictures scrolling across the screen.

Sex and violence and danger – that was exactly what Heath needed to take his mind off
Tonya. He’d even dreamed about her last night, damn it. He’d dreamed of kissing her soft thighs,
working his way up them, listening to her moans of pleasure…

He wrenched his thoughts away from her with considerable effort and slid his chair in closer
to the table. Just thinking of her gave him a hard-on these days.

“So,” said Jake, “the cruise company only found out about the possible threat today, and they
still don’t know who the potential target will be. An assassin was arrested yesterday by Interpol, and
he gave up information in exchange for being spared the death penalty. Apparently, over the past few
weeks somebody has approached a few of the top assassins in the world to take out a target who will
be on the Shangri La of the Seas, which is departing tomorrow morning for a one-week cruise. ”

“And the target is?” asked Tanner Collins, a wolf shifter.

“If only we knew. The informant wasn’t told, because the assignment ended up going to
someone known as the Chameleon. However, he did gather that the intent of the assassination was to
cause turbulence and discord. He wasn’t sure whether it was in the target’s home country or
corporation, but we have managed to narrow down the most likely victims to a list of three.”

He tapped the computer screen in front of him, and three pictures on the wall-mounted screen

popped up.

Jake pointed at the one on the left. “Reshef, a member of the ruling family of the small, oil-
rich country of Ohfretar. His younger brother, the family favorite, currently holds the throne there. His
brother is a moderate, and a friend to shifters in a country which is traditionally prejudiced against us.
Reshef is a far-right radical who is not particularly friendly to shifters, but if he were assassinated it

might destabilize the region. Heath, you’ll be in the suite down the hall from his. The ship offered
everyone extra security, for free, saying that it’s a perk for their clientele, but Reshef turned it down.
He has numerous bodyguards of his own and was apparently insulted by the implication that his
security isn’t good enough.”

“And we have to protect this a-hole?” Heath grumbled.

“Unfortunately, yes.” Jake pointed at the next picture on the screen. “Tanner, you will be
nextdoor to Duncan Rowland. He’s the CEO and founder of a company that manufactures microchips,
and he’s apparently developing a smaller, faster microchip that may bankrupt several of his rivals.
He’s had his fair share of lawsuits, accusations of patent theft, paternity suits, top models clawing
each other’s faces over who’s really his girlfriend…also an arrogant douche, from what I’ve heard.”

“Levi, we’re assigning you to keep an eye on Benedetta Di Costa. From what we hear about
her, you will be exactly her type.” The Beast looked at the picture of the stunning Italian woman, with
her sensual, pouty red lips, sulky expression and smoldering dark eyes. She had shiny black ringlets
of hair cascading over her shoulders and halfway down her back. “You may get as close to her as you
like. The closer you are, the more protection you’ll be able to offer.”

The Beast grinned.

“Benedetta is the heir to a fashion empire, but her brothers and sisters are fighting her for
control of the company. They are trying to challenge the terms of her late father’s will and seize her
shares in the company. Her death would give them control of a billion-dollar fashion empire. ”

“Don’t worry. I will stay very close to her.” The Beast smirked as he said it.

“So just to be clear, he gets the hot chick and we get the assholes?” Tanner grumbled,
looking at the screen.

“Sounds fair.” The Beast nodded with satisfaction.

Jake ignored Heath and Tanner’s growls and kept talking. “This is important. Once we leave
port, it’s radio silence out there – we will not be able to communicate with anyone on shore until we
reach our destination, unless it’s a life or death situation. The owners of the Shangri-La offer their
guests an environment where they can indulge their wildest fantasies in privacy. Guests not only sign
a non-disclosure agreement, they have to surrender their technology when they check onto the boat, no
photographs are allowed, and no radioing, calling, texting, emailing, et cetera, for the duration. You
will of course be able to meet up with me, discreetly, on the boat, to give me your reports each day.
You’ll also be checking in with Pierre Robard, the ship’s head of security.”

Heath and Tanner grumbled mutinously over their assignments, while the Beast gloated and
Jake continued to outline each team member’s assignments.

Privately, Heath thought that the ship owners should just cancel the cruise, but apparently
there was too much money on the line.

The next morning, Heath was driven to the boat in a limo, in keeping with his cover. He was
posing as a rich playboy from Los Angeles, with inherited wealth. He’d been provided with the

wardrobe to match – hand-tailored linen suits, hand-sewn raw silk shirts, Italian leather shoes. He
had no idea how they’d managed to pull together that kind of wardrobe to fit his bulky size so fast, but
he knew that the owners of the Shangri-La were sparing no expense to keep their passengers and their
reputation safe.

On board the boat, he quickly checked in. Ocean view cabin. Nice. He had a suite the size of
a small apartment, with livingroom, generously sized kitchen, and a bedroom dominated by a massive
mahogany four-poster bed. The sheets and comforter were silky red satin. The wall was adorned with
classical paintings of Bacchanalian orgies.

There were already fur-lined leather cuffs on chains attached to each of the four posts. In a

normal hotel room, a guest might expect to find chocolates on their pillow. On his bed, he found a
black silk blindfold mask, a riding crop, a box of sensual flavored oils, a flogger, a vibrator and
nipple clamps, fanned out across the blanket. There was a well-stocked bar with cut crystal glasses.
No expense had been spared.

After putting away his clothing, he quickly headed out to explore the ship. It was massive,
towering many stories high, and decorated in a tropical theme. He headed to the Hawaii Deck.

Calypso music floated through the air from speakers hidden in the palm trees. The lush

foliage around the bars and restaurants created a realistic-looking jungle. There were beautiful men
and women everywhere, and they were not shy about expressing their interest as they watched Heath
stroll by. It was easy to tell the companions, because they wore leis of different colors and Hawaiian-
print bikinis or trunks.

Passengers and companions were pairing off all over. There were wicker beds with

mattresses scattered around, and broad lounge chairs that could easily accommodate two or more. On
the Shangri-La, public displays of eroticism weren’t just permitted, they were encouraged.

A tanned, well-oiled man who looked to be in his forties was reclining in a lounge chair with

his shorts down around his ankles. A beautiful blonde knelt between his legs, taking his cock deep
into her mouth and caressing his balls. His head was thrown back, eyes closed, and he groaned in
pleasure, fingers tangled in her hair. “Oh yes, darling. You suck me so good. Just like that. Yes…” he
groaned. An almond- eyed Asian woman sat on the lounge chair next to him, kissing and licking his
neck. He freed one hand and squeezed and massaged the Asian woman’s breast. A crowd was
gathered, watching admiringly.

While the erotic scene was certainly mesmerizing to watch, the security contractor in Heath

recognized it for the logistical nightmare that it presented. People were downright riveted, their
attention distracted.

That was a problem, because a companion would be able to get dangerously close to anyone

on this ship, and kill them in any number of ways. Slow-acting poison would be Heath’s best guess –
because the companion would want to be on some other part of the ship when the target died.

Shifters, Inc. had discussed that with the Shangri-La’s security team, and they had a team of

doctors and nurses standing by just in case, with antidotes to literally every poison known to man.
They had a witch and a wizard on board who could counteract poison of a magical nature, and who

had also scanned everyone boarding the ship for black magic. None had been detected.

He shrugged. One of the other team members was taking a turn watching the video camera

that was secretly installed in Reshef’s room. Right now, Heath was expected to mingle with the
crowd and get to know people, and then later he’d take a turn watching Reshef’s room.

He heard the crack of a whip and a cry of ecstasy. He walked along a jungle path, turned a

curve, and came upon a clearing. There was a complicated jungle-gym like structure made of
bamboo, and several beautiful companions were tied to it, naked and spread-eagled. A female
companion was urging men to approach the structure. The men caressed the women, kissed them,
stroked them…

One woman, Heath saw, was bent over a wooden pommel on the stage, naked, legs tied

spread-eagled, and a passenger was flogging her enthusiastically. From the sound of her ecstatic
shrieks, she was close to orgasm.

A female passenger, a beautiful woman who looked to be in her thirties, had stripped off her

clothing and was being tied to the bamboo structure by several of the female companions. Two
handsome male companions caressed her as she was restrained, and then one knelt in front of her as
the other sucked her breasts.

The male companion began lapping at the woman’s pussy, spreading her open with his

fingers. She uttered throaty cries of pleasure.

A woman slid by Heath, deliberately brushing up against him. He could feel the hard points

of her nipples sliding along his back, and once she’d passed him she turned and gave him a lascivious
wink and ran her tongue over her wet red lips.

He was surrounded by blondes, brunettes, redheads. All beautiful, all giggling and making

eyes at him. He could have his pick of any of them right now. He could take any of them back to his
room and be having sex on those silky sheets in the next five minutes.

Annoyingly, he found that he wasn’t enjoying this flirting business as much as he’d expected.
For some reason, thoughts of Tonya kept popping into his head. She had the tendency to rush into
danger without thinking twice. Sure, she had shifter healing powers, but even a shifter could suffer
mortal damage. Would she be safe while he was gone?

And why was that even his problem?

A brunette deliberately brushed up against him, letting her breasts rub against his arm as she
slid by, and she fluttered her long, thick lashes at him in clear invitation. “Do you want to tie me up?”
she purred. “You could do anything to me.”

Normally he’d feel a stirring in his loins, but today he felt nothing. He realized he had no
interest in the brunette, or in any of the other women who were fluttering by and eyeing him with open
interest. He shook his head and walked away, heading for the bar.

Damn it, what was wrong with him? He couldn’t stop thinking of Tonya. As he scanned the
crowd, he found himself checking out a woman who was more Tonya-shaped than the other women on

board. She was dressed as a companion, wearing the ship’s tell-tale Hawaiian-print ensemble, so
she’d be available. Hmm, he thought. Full-figured, soft, with delicious womanly curves. She was
even a redhead like Tonya.

He was clearly losing his mind, because as he moved through the crowd towards her, she
even smelled like Tonya.

Then the woman turned around, and his mouth fell open with shock. It was Tonya. Tonya was
a companion. Tonya was wearing a green lei, which under the code of the ship meant that she hadn’t
been claimed by any of the passengers yet.

Someone would claim her. Somebody would be kissing her, stripping her clothes from her…
Heath felt his face go furry and claws shot from his fingertips.

Chapter Five

Heath quickly slid behind a palm tree and, panting for breath, struggled to force his beast

back down. He didn’t want to draw attention to himself by shifting and roaring with rage – even
though his bear snarled and thrashed, demanding to be freed.

After a minute he’d calmed enough to step back out, his claws retracted and his skin smooth

again, but his beast lurked just underneath the surface, rumbling with anger and frustration as he
watched male passengers caress her with their gazes.

Why was she here? Why would a newspaper reporter work as a companion? He knew she
was rich; she drove a new Mercedes and lived in a mansion. Was she bored? Was she following him
just to mess with his head?

Or was she here working undercover? If so, she was one dedicated reporter – willing to
literally work under the covers.

The whole “Fated Mates” theory claimed that it was inevitable that you would meet the one
you were meant to be with. You’d have strong feelings of attraction for them immediately, and once
you met your Fated Mate, if you didn’t give in to those feelings and start dating them right away, you
would keep running into them again and again until inevitably you ended up together. Bobbi believed
that, he knew.

That couldn’t possibly be happening here…but what the hell was she doing on this cruise

ship?

He moved closer to her. She spotted him and a look of shock crossed her face. After staring
at him for a second, she blinked, turned and flounced off.

There was a tiki bar at the opposite end of the clearing, and he realized with shock that he
recognized a man who stood there nursing a beer. It was that Hammersmith idiot, Tom Hooper,
wearing a white silk shirt that was unbuttoned to show way too much man cleavage, heavy gold
chains dangling in his chest hair, and black silk pants. His hair was gelled into painful-looking spikes.
Tom was watching Tonya walk away, with an expression of greed and lust that made Heath want to
rip his face off. Anger roared through him. He’d bet a year’s salary that Tom was somehow
connected to Tonya being here.

Tonya vanished into the crowd without looking back.

Heath, blood boiling, restrained himself from running after her and instead stomped
downstairs to find the ship’s security director.

There was a security office on board for the use of any passengers who needed it, but to
maintain discretion for their mission, a special security liaison, Pierre Robard, had been designated
for this cruise. He operated out of the activities director’s office.

Heath stalked in past the receptionist, stomped down the hall to Pierre’s office, and quickly
shut the door behind him.

Pierre, a genial, round-faced man with skin the color of nutmeg, glanced up from behind his

desk, where he’d been typing on a laptop. “What’s wrong?” he asked when he saw the expression on
Heath’s face.

“You have Hammersmith on board too?” Heath demanded angrily.

Pierre looked a bit sheepish. “The Shangri-La Corporation wanted to ensure that we had all
our bases covered.”

“This does not cover all our bases,” Heath growled. “This creates confusion and
disorganization. Do you not see the problem in hiring multiple security agencies and failing to inform
them of each other’s presence? You need a well-coordinated team working together, not two teams
bumbling around working against each other. Not to mention that the Hammersmith agency is known
for its nepotism, and all the owner’s family members are idiots. The owner’s nephew, Tom Hooper,
is on board today, and he’s an absolute jackass.”

“We don’t have multiple security agencies, just two.” Pierre’s tone was placating.

“That’s one too many.”

Pierre sighed and shut his laptop. “I advised against it. I was overridden. There’s nothing I

can do about it,” he said. “We have the Hammersmith agency covering the Pleasure Island section of
the ship, just in case we were wrong about who the real target might be. There are several less likely
possibilities there, but they are still potential targets, so Hammersmith will be watching them.”

“If Hammersmith screws things up for everyone, which they usually do, it’s on you guys, not

us,” Heath growled, and he stormed out of the office to find Jake and report back to him. This was
beyond stupid, and with the internet and all communications shut down, they couldn’t even contact
Shifters, Inc. headquarters to tell them about it.

He debated whether he should have told Pierre that a newspaper reporter was on board
posing as a companion, but he decided against it for the time being. He no longer felt that sharing intel
with the Shangri-La security team was the smartest option. And for all he knew, Tonya might really be
there legitimately working as a companion.

Grumbling, he headed towards Jake’s quarters, which were on the next deck up. He felt an
odd sensation tugging at him, though, pulling him back towards the Hawaii Deck. Tonya needed him.
Now.

What the hell – he might as well find her and demand to know what she was doing there. He
hurried back to the Hawaii Deck, heading in the direction of where he’d seen her last. He shoved
through the foliage, pushing past passionately entwined couples and ignoring come-hither glances
from strolling female companions.

He heard a feminine shriek coming from up ahead, followed by angry male shouting.

He broke into a jog, rounding a corner and bursting through an alcove, where he saw a
heavyset, angry man rubbing his face and Tonya indignantly yanking her bikini top back into place. He
shook with the effort of keeping his beast under control.

Heath hurried towards her, but Tom Hooper stepped between two clumps of foliage and beat
him to it. He walked up to the man and said to him, “Sorry, she should have told you that I claimed
her for the duration of the cruise. She just hasn’t changed her lei yet.”

The man turned and stomped off, and Heath saw a look of bewilderment on Tonya’s face.

Was it possible that she had boarded the ship without understanding the rules?

Tom Hooper leaned towards Tonya with a leer and said something that Heath couldn’t make
out. He saw her face turn pale and her mouth fall open with shock. Tom leaned over and tried to cup
her buttock in his hands, and Tonya stumbled back with a shriek. Before Heath could stop himself,
he’d gone bear. Exploded out of his clothes, towering seven feet tall, long, curving claws shooting
from his paws…

Tom took a few more steps back, mouth opening in shock as Heath lumbered towards him.
He was human. The last thing he’d want to do was tangle with an enraged bear.

Heath could have taken his head off with one swipe of his claws, and he wanted to, but
instead he forced himself back into human form. He was stark naked now, but on a ship like this one,
that wasn’t too big a deal.

A crowd was gathering, drawn by the commotion. Great. Just what Heath didn’t want – to
stand out like a big, hairy sore thumb.

Heath raked Tom with a dangerous glower, then put his arm around Tonya’s shoulders. It felt
so right there, he wanted to pull her in closer and bury himself inside her.

“Actually, she’s apparently very forgetful today, because I claimed her before you did.”

Heath’s voice rolled out in a growl. Tom opened his mouth to protest, but before he could, Heath
leaned forward and said, his voice low and dangerous, “If you give me a hard time about this, I’ll tell
Shangri-La security that you smuggled a reporter on here, compromising the privacy of all of the
guests so that you could get laid.”

Tom went pale, swallowed hard, and directed a furious scowl at Tonya before he turned and
stalked off without a word.

“You – come with me,” Heath said, grabbing Tonya’s arm and hauling her off with him.

* * *

As Heath hauled her into his room, Tonya cast one last longing glance at the distant horizon.
The shoreline had vanished hours ago, and there was nothing but the endless rolling blue sea. She was
trapped here, and in way over her head.

They walked into the room and Heath slammed the door.

She glanced around his cabin and, despite the seriousness of the situation, she couldn’t help
but chuckle. “Wow. This is pornoriffic. My cabin looks nothing like this,” she said.

“Hold on while I get dressed,” he growled, and stalked over to an enormous closet. He
quickly dressed, standing with his back to her. She knew there was no point in staring at him, but she

couldn’t help herself. God help her, the man had the most perfectly sculpted ass she’d ever seen. And
those muscular legs, the mighty thighs…she wanted them wrapped around her so badly that she
swallowed a whimper of frustration.

He turned and walked over to the well-stocked bar, buttoning his silk Oxford shirt.

“Well, this is different,” Tonya observed, looking him up and down. “Usually you’re more of

a jeans and sneakers kind of guy.”

Heath shrugged and poured himself a whiskey. “Want one?” he asked, glancing over at her.

“It’s a little early, thanks. What is all this claiming business?”

He let out a long, exasperated sigh. “Let me guess. Tom got you fake credentials and
smuggled you on board. And he didn’t tell you what you were in for.”

She flushed, shamefully. “He called me up last night and told me that something massively
newsworthy was happening on this ship, and he could get me fake papers to come on board. He
swore this would be the biggest story of my career. I really, really need a big story if I ever want to
get hired at the Telegraph, so I agreed without really reading the fine print. I’m supposed to be
something called a ‘companion’.” She grimaced in dismay at her own stupidity. “I had no idea what
that meant. So now he’s told me that means that anyone can claim me to do anything they want with
me, so I have to be with him this whole week, and if I protest he’s going to tell the ship’s security that
I smuggled myself on here and he’ll deny that he helped me.”

Heath’s face flushed with anger. “That dickwad. Let me explain how this cruise works. They
hire beautiful men and women like you to act as escorts for the passengers. If you’re available, you’ll
be wearing a green necklace. Green means go. If a passenger wants to claim you for the duration of
the ship, and you agree to it, then you get a red necklace, and nobody will mess with you. Of course
you have a choice; Tom was lying when he said anybody could do anything they want to you. The
ship’s passengers are very clearly informed of the rules. They can’t hit on the wait staff or the maids
or any crew member who is not wearing a green necklace, and they absolutely cannot force
themselves on anyone.”

“Oh.” Tonya stared at him in amazement. “Did you just call me beautiful?”

Heath looked at her, puzzled. “Of course you’re beautiful. You know that.”

No, she really didn’t, but it was nice to hear it. Especially from him.

“Go on,” she said. “Some of the passengers weren’t exactly the most attractive people I’ve
ever seen. What if all the companions refuse to be with them?”

“The ship’s passengers are expected to tip the companions very generously every day. Stingy
passengers end up feeling very lonely. Of course, the companions also receive generous
compensation for their time on the ship, but it’s nothing in comparison to the tips.”

“Isn’t that kind of illegal? They’re paying for the companions to have sex with them?”

“They pay in Mardi Gras style beads, which the companions can use to shop in the ship’s

stores.” Heath shrugged. “There are a lot of high-end luxury boutiques on board. That’s how they get
around it.”

“So…” Tonya looked worried. “Where does that leave me?”

“That depends.” Heath’s tone was stern. “You do understand that there are people on here
who have very public profiles, who want to enjoy themselves in privacy?”

“I’m not here to expose anyone’s sex life,” she said indignantly. “I’m not a tabloid reporter,
for God’s sake. Tom told me that he was here to thwart some kind of attack on a political figure.
That’s the only reason I came.”

She had almost declined, in fact, even though she’d never been on a cruise ship before. She’d

wanted to stay behind and help Bridgit figure out what to do about her a-hole family, but Bridgit had
insisted that she go.

“I can’t discuss why we’re here,” Heath said. “I can keep you from getting in trouble with
ship’s security if you agree to stay out of the way and not try to do any investigating. Many people’s
lives are at stake here, and if you interfere, you could expose our entire operation.”

She nodded. “I solemnly swear to stay out of the way.” And she mostly meant it. She had a
feeling that Heath was a bear of his word, and no story was worth risking lives.

“Well, the only way for you to keep your cover and not get hassled by shipboard security is
if I claim you for the rest of the cruise. That means you move into my cabin and pretend that you’re
with me.” He grabbed a red lei from on top of a chest of drawers, and she saw that there were half a
dozen of them there.

“So you could claim multiple companions?” Her eyes widened.

“Hey, it’s a pleasure cruise. However, I’m only going to claim you.” He draped the necklace
over her head. Just as she was feeling a warm glow sweeping through her at the idea that he only
wanted to claim her, he added, “Of course, this doesn’t actually mean I’m claiming you. I’m just
doing it to help you out.”

“Of course,” Tonya said stiffly. “Well, thanks for helping. I’ll go fetch my luggage now.”
Heaven forbid that the bear would actually want to have sex with her. Good thing he’d made his
intentions – to avoid her – very clear.

She thought Heath looked puzzled. “I have to go talk to someone. I’ll meet you back here in
one hour,” he said.

Tonya turned and left the room without answering, and let the door slam behind her.

* * *

Heath watched her go with mingled exasperation and confusion. What was she upset about?
If he didn’t know better, he could have sworn she was offended that he’d said she didn’t have to sleep
with him. It wasn’t as if she liked him; a rich girl like her would never be interested in a street thug
like him. She’d made it clear plenty of times what an enormous jerk she thought he was.

Having Tonya close by was getting harder and harder for him to deal with, and having her
sleep in the same room as him without him being able to lay a finger on her was going to be torture.

Oh, there would be certain advantages to it; he could easily rebuff everyone’s advances and
claim he was doing it because he had already claimed a companion. But how would he be able to
concentrate with her so near and yet out of his reach?

Maybe he could go off and distract himself with the available women on the boat…God
knew there were plenty of them, and he’d been given stacks and stacks of beaded necklaces to tip
with, so he could fit in.

Any other time, the idea of no-strings-attached sex with a beautiful woman would have been
the perfect tension reliever, but he realized that he had no intention of being with anyone on this trip.
If he couldn’t have Tonya – and she’d made it pretty clear that he couldn’t – then he didn’t want
anyone.

Also, he wondered if it would upset Tonya if he were out fooling around with other women.
Oddly, he suspected it would. Was she interested? Until he’d sensed her hurt feelings a minute ago, he
could have sworn she wasn’t.

With a heavy sigh, he headed to the bathroom. Maybe an ice-cold shower and a quick self-
satisfaction session would help to relieve his pent up frustration a little.

Chapter Six

The maid, a petite, pretty girl with a heart-shaped face and masses of black ringlets, was
pushing a cart full of clean linens down the hallway – or trying to, anyway.

An overweight passenger, his belly spilling over the waistband of his shorts, was harassing
her and had her backed up against the wall.

Tonya stomped over to him, boiling with anger. “Listen up!” she barked at him. “I am not in
a good mood, and you do not want to mess with me right now. The lady’s not interested. Back the hell
off before you find out what the phrase ‘crazy like a fox’ means.”

“You’re a companion,” the man blustered. “You can’t tell me what to do.”

A security guard rounded the corner and stepped directly in front of the man, placing himself
between the maid and the angry passenger. “Actually, she can. All of our employees, including the
companions, have the right to say no, which you knew when you signed the agreement required of all
our guests. If we see you imposing on any of our staff again, we will revoke your rights and you will
be confined to your quarters for the duration of the trip.”

“I paid a fortune to be here! And I can’t help myself, I have a maid fetish!” the man whined.

“We will deliver half a dozen French maid uniforms to your cabin immediately…modeled
by very attractive companions. With feather dusters. I am sure that you will be very generous with
your gift beads. Will that suffice?” the security guard asked, his tone leaving no doubt that he meant
business.

“Cabin 3127. I’ll be waiting!” the man said eagerly, and he hurried off.

The security guard nodded to Tonya and the maid. “If you have any further problems, contact
security immediately.” Then he strode off.

“Thank you,” the maid said gratefully to Tonya, in a heavy Italian accent. She glanced at her
red lei. “I see you’ve been claimed already. That’s lucky; nobody hassle you.”

Tonya shot a dirty look at the portly passenger, who was scrambling up a stairwell, hurrying
back towards his cabin. “I’d have turned that jerk down anyway. No amount of beads would be worth
that.”

The maid laughed. “I know, right? I am Antonia. Thank you again for help. I know we are
allowed to say no, but they also say keep customers happy, and I am afraid for lose job. This boat, I
no like. But good money.”

“I’m with you there,” Tonya agreed. “This is my first and last trip on a pleasure cruise. Well,
I’m staying with a passenger in Cabin 4255 if you want to go grab a drink any time that you’re off. I’ll
have plenty of free time.” At Antonia’s puzzled look, she added, “The guest who claimed me is, uh,
busy doing work in his cabin a lot. So this will be kind of like a paid vacation.”

“You are good person. I meet you tonight at the Tropical Rainforest Bar at eight? I have gift
for you,” Antonia said.

Tonya laughed. “Oh, I’ll meet you there, but you don’t have to give me anything.”

Then she headed off to meet Heath.

* * *

Heath watched Tonya walk across the room towards him. The dinner banquet was
sumptuous. Guests had the option of sitting at the tables, or reclining on loungers and letting the
companions feed them as if they were at a Roman orgy.

In the middle of the room there were long tables stretched out, where naked men and women
lay with appetizers carefully arranged on their bare bodies. Passengers were lined up to eat the
appetizers off them. They laid down necklaces of beads next to the companions who were acting as
living food platters.

Tonya had changed into a green wrap dress that emphasized her generous cleavage and her
soft, rounded tummy. He could see men watching her with admiration as she walked by, and he also
realized that she didn’t even notice. She really wasn’t aware of how beautiful she was. He felt a
sudden fierce yearning to show her exactly how sexy and desirable she was. If only she didn’t hate
him.

“You look stunning,” he told her as she approached, and he lightly rested his hand on the
center of her back.

“Thank you,” she said, blushing. Okay, she didn’t look too horrified.

He bent down to brush his lips over hers and felt her stifle a whimper of pleasure. The blood

roared through his body and he felt himself swelling, hardening, the way he always did when she was
near. Was it the sex-drenched atmosphere on the ship? Was she just finally starting to warm to him?

“You…you don’t have to do that to keep up your cover,” she murmured. “Nobody’s really

paying attention to us.”

“I know. Maybe I just wanted to.”

Her eyes widened in surprise at that, and he led her over to his table. He’d selected it
strategically. He wanted to sit with his back to the wall, facing the doorway, and the three people
who were considered most likely to be targets were seated near him. There were a dozen other
Shifters, Inc. agents in the room, some disguised as waiters and waitresses, some as guests. There
were several of their employees working in the kitchen, including a wizard who could detect the
presence of poison.

Reshef was sitting very close to Heath’s table. He was a handsome man with a mustache and
goatee, olive-skinned and with shiny black hair like a silent-screen gigolo. He was surrounded by
beautiful women and bodyguards. Heath realized that many of the women were of the larger, more
voluptuous variety. Reshef and one of the bodyguards were staring at Tonya, whispering to each
other.

Heath protectively pulled Tonya over to him, leaned down and nuzzled her neck, breathing in
her sweet scent. She let out a tiny gasp, and Heath nearly groaned aloud with desire. Dear God, he

wanted her so badly.

“Just so you know, I’m not acting,” he whispered in her ear, brushing his lips against her
earlobe and enjoying her whimper of pleasure. Yes. She wanted him, and nothing in the world would
stop him from having her.

“Oh. I see.” She barely choked the words out.

They sat down, and he looked around the room. “My God, that’s Benedetta. The fashion
designer,” Tonya said, her eyes round with wonder as Benedetta walked past her. Benedetta wore a
filmy black dress of fabric so delicate it seemed to be made of gossamer.

“I love your clothing! Oh, I am such a dork. Sorry.” Tonya blushed fiercely.

“Not at all!” Benedetta’s eyes lit on Tonya. Benedetta was holding the hand of a beautiful
young man, but her gaze roved lasciviously over Tonya’s body. Her appetites, for both men and
women, were legendary. Heath stifled a growl of jealousy and anger. Damn it, everybody wanted his
fox.

His fox? Whoa, he told himself. Yeah, he thought she was sexy, and he definitely planned to
indulge in a dalliance with her while they were on board…but that was all he wanted, wasn’t it?

Damn his sister for putting those thoughts in his head. He’d never even considered the
possibility that there was a perfect person out there for him until she’d said that…or had he?

Benedetta winked at him. “You two are welcome to come visit my room anytime. And you, I
would love to have you model for me some day,” she said to Tonya. “Contact my office in Rome if
you are interested.”

“Oh, goodness, that had never occurred to me. Thank you so much for asking,” Tonya said

demurely.

“Do call me. I hope to see your beautiful body wrapped in my…clothing.” Benedetta
sauntered off, with a trail of beautiful young men and women following worshipfully behind.

Great. Two of the three targets Heath was there to protect wanted his woman, and now Heath
wanted to kill them, not save them.

His woman. His fox. He had to stop thinking like that. He’d have sex with Tonya over and
over until he burned it out of his system, until he no longer craved her touch.

Heath cast a glance over at Duncan, wondering if he, too, was hot for Tonya, but thankfully he

was surrounded by handsome young men only. He was, in fact, kissing one of the young men
passionately while another stroked his arm. Publicly, Duncan was always seen with a string of
models and starlets, according to the information Heath had received on him, but here he obviously
felt free to indulge in what really pleased him.

Heath was about to order from the waiter when Reshef’s bodyguard walked over to him.
“My employer would like to exchange one of his companions for your companion,” he said. He
gestured at the table. “Any one of them that you like.”

It took every bit of strength Heath had not to shift and tear open the man’s insides. He
couldn’t act jealous, because that would be out of character for him. He was supposed to be
pretending that Tonya was just a companion.

“Oh, I’m already very attached to her, thank you. She’s perfect for me. I’m afraid I wouldn’t
be interested.”

“Are you sure? My employer is very interested in her. He would offer a substantial cash
incentive as well.”

Heath laughed in order to keep from killing the man. Reshef wanted to buy his Tonya? Hell
no.

“Money is the last thing I need,” he said, lightly stroking Tonya’s arm. “I am here to relax
and enjoy myself.”

The bodyguard shrugged and went back to Reshef’s table.

“Good lord,” Tonya said. “I’ve never had the opportunity for so much action in my life.”

“Yes you have. You just don’t notice how attractive men find you. And women too, clearly,”
he said.

She giggled. “It’s hilarious,” she said. “But you’re just like my roommate. You’re

overestimating people’s interest in me.”

“Well, if I can see it, and your roommate can see it, then perhaps you’re the one who’s

misreading the situation. You’re beautiful. People are attracted to you.”

She actually blushed, a rosy flush that stained her cheeks and traveled down her neck.

“Why don’t you know that you’re beautiful?” he asked, genuinely puzzled. How could she not

know?

A shadow crossed her face, and he was sorry he’d asked. Clearly there were painful

memories in her past that he shouldn’t stir up. Maybe she’d had the kind of parents who wanted her to
conform and be skinny, sent her off to fat camp? Kids in school had been mean to her? He hadn’t
checked into her past, so he didn’t know what her upbringing had been like, but clearly something or
someone had hurt her.

He felt a fierce anger at whoever had made her doubt her self-worth, and a sudden

determination to spend all his free time letting her know her real value, inside and out. How beautiful
she was, how sexy she was, how kind she was to those who needed protection. How rare and
precious a quality that kindness was.

He’d already heard about the incident with the maid. That was just like Tonya – jumping in,

literally, to protect someone else from abuse.

She looked up at him, and he saw that she was blinking away tears.

“What?” she asked, as he stared at her.

“I’m looking forward to going back to our cabin and spending some time alone with you.

That’s all.”

“Oh,” she murmured, and grabbed her coffee and downed it quickly.

When they got back to his cabin, however, she let out a huge yawn and stretched.

“I literally didn’t sleep last night. I was up all night packing and making arrangements for
this trip. I need a nap,” she said, and headed to the couch. She lay down and fell into a deep, heavy
sleep.

Chapter Seven

Tonya woke up feeling groggy. She wasn’t sure why; she hadn’t had anything to drink.

She sat up, rubbing her face with her hands, and a blanket slid off of her. Heath must have
covered her with it.

“Are you all right?” Heath asked, looking concerned. “You slept pretty heavily.”

“Huh. That’s not like me,” she said. She normally was a pretty light sleeper. Maybe it was
the sea air. “I’m fine. I just need a shower,” she said. “What time is it?”

Heath glanced at his watch. “Twenty after seven.”

“Argh! I told one of the maids I’d meet her at the Tropical Rainforest Bar at eight for a
drink,” she said. “I’d better hurry.”

She hurried into the bathroom, and showered and changed quickly. She still felt a little foggy,
but not as bad.

She pulled out her purse and looked over her cosmetics, bewildered. She didn’t remember
having packed this much makeup…had she? She stared at it carefully. None of it looked out of place.
She opened each makeup compact and lipstick and mascara and eyeliner. Everything seemed fine. She
couldn’t put her finger on what was bothering her.

Then she glanced at the wall clock. Quarter of eight.

She hurried upstairs to the deck, arriving a couple of minutes late. Heath told her he’d meet
her in a few minutes after he checked in with his teammates.

She made her way through the foliage – man, they went heavy on the tropical jungle theme here.
Antonia was sitting at the bar, drinking a margarita. Out of uniform, she wore a beautiful dress that
could easily have been in Benedetta’s line. It was made of black lace over black silk, and it draped
perfectly.

“That is a stunning dress. Sorry I’m late,” Tonya said, sliding into a chair.

Antonia beamed. “You like? I make myself, from old curtains I buy in thrift store.” She fished

in her purse and pulled out a necklace, with was made of wire wrapped around a chunk of blue
crystal.

“Here is my gift,” she said. “It is a charm I make. My grandmother show me how. It ward off

the evil eye and black magic. It keep you safe.”

“But then you should have it,” Tonya protested.

“No, no, don’t worry. I have one too.” She pointed to the chain dangling around her neck,
which sported a matching crystal.

Tonya let Antonia drape the necklace around her neck. “Well, thank you,” she said. “Now if
only your grandmother could teach you how to make a charm that wards off gross guys, you could be a
millionaire.”

Antonia laughed at that. “I tell her next time I see her. How is your day?”

She settled in next to Antonia and told her about her crazy lunch.

Antonia’s eyes opened wide. “Benedetta! She is like goddess in my country! I so hope to
meet her. I am working in her section of boat now – I will be clean her rooms. I ask to move because
before that, I am clean the rooms of that pig man who bother me in the hall. So what is she like?”

“She’s something, all right.” Tonya laughed. “I mean, she seems nice enough.”

“Was she wearing beautiful gown? Describe to me her gown.”

Tonya described in detail what Benedetta had been wearing, and as she did, Heath walked
up to her and put his hand on her shoulder.

“Oh, handsome friend you have there,” Antonia said. “You have fun with your man. I am off
to meet some friends.” She downed the rest of her drink and walked off, giving Tonya a wave.

“Nice necklace,” Heath said, lifting the crystal in his hand. As he did, his finger brushed
against Tonya’s chest and she felt a rush of heat sweep through her.

“Did one of your male admirers give you this?” he asked.

“What?” Tonya choked back a snicker. “Oh, you were serious. Antonia, that girl who was
just here, gave it to me. It’s supposed to ward off evil.” She gave him an amused glance. “And yet
here you still are.”

Heath grinned at her. “Well, I definitely have bad intentions, and I don’t think any old
necklace is going to stop me.”

“Oh?” Suddenly the air on the deck felt very warm. “What…what kind of intentions?”

“You know, I’m better at showing than describing. Man of few words, you know how it is.
Shall we go back to our cabin?”

There was something about hearing him describe it as “our cabin” that made her want to melt
into a puddle. “We could do that. It’s getting kind of stuffy in here.”

He grabbed her hand and she followed him back to his cabin. She felt as if she were floating
on a cloud, barely noticing the walk back or their surroundings. Was this really happening? He
actually really wanted her? She’d always assumed his semi-sarcastic flirtations were just him making
fun of her, that he only did it so she’d stop pestering him for an interview.

Once inside the room, he shut and locked the door.

“So, I’ve been meaning to tell you something about that dress,” he said, moving so close to
her that her breasts brushed against his stomach.

“Yes?”

“I can’t stand it – because it’s covering your beautiful body.” He reached down, grabbed the
neckline, and ripped it all the way down to her navel. At her gasp, he added “Oh, settle down.

There’s a stack of bead necklaces on top of the dresser, and you’re going to use them at the shops
tomorrow to buy anything you want.” As he spoke, he kept moving towards her and she kept backing
up until they were right against the bed.

She glanced at the bed and realized there was an array of sex toys spread out there. “Those
came with the room.” His voice was a low, sexy rumble. “Because I’m a nice guy, I’m going to let
you pick which toy I use on you first. But you should know that whatever you pick, you’re going to be
tied hand and foot to the bed so I can do anything I want to you until you beg me to let you come.”

Instinctively, Tonya brought up her hands to cover her body as the remains of her torn dress
slipped gently to the floor. She felt her nipple pebbling against her palm, but more than that she was
aware of a hot, ringing silence and a tide of embarrassed crimson washing up over her chest, throat
and face.

Heath seemed oblivious to her self-consciousness. He gave her a crooked quirk of a smile
and the golden glints in his dark eyes seemed to dance as he trailed one finger over her cheek and
down to the corner of her mouth. She was surprised the heat of her blush didn’t blister his fingertip.

Uncharacteristically tongue-tied, she blurted, “I don’t think I can… I mean, I don’t think we
should—”

Heath hushed her and took her wrists, gently peeling her protective arms away from her
breasts and belly. Despite the satin and lace of her bra and panties, she had never in her life felt as
naked as she did at that moment under Heath’s assessing gaze. Surely, looking at her soft, pale curves
after an afternoon spent strolling among the taut, golden perfection of the cruise’s companions, he’d
laugh or apologize or pass the whole thing off as a joke or a mistake. Heath Anderson wasn’t just out
of her league – they weren’t even playing the same game, and anyway nobody had told her the rules.

But the look in his eyes wasn’t amused or disgusted, and he didn’t suddenly announce that
he’d made a mistake. Instead he ran gentle fingers over the spatter of freckles covering the creamy
upper swell of her breast and inhaled a deep, shuddering breath. He allowed his eyes to flutter
closed, and when he opened them again, he yanked her into his arms with a low, urgent growl.

Held against his massive, hard body, the length of his cock pressing insistently against her
belly, Tonya felt sudden moisture flood her panties as her pussy clenched.

“Don’t hide your gorgeous curves from me,” Heath muttered. “Feel how much I want you.”
Then his mouth came down on hers and she was lost in a bewildering swirl of sensations. His mouth
plundered hers, his tongue teasing her lips until she opened on a sigh. He ran his big, strong hands
down her back, caressing the curve of her waist before slipping them under the fabric of her panties
to knead the ample flesh of her backside. Maybe he really did think her body was beautiful, her
curves were gorgeous.

He unsnapped her bra and slid the straps deftly over her shoulders and down her arms,
stepping back slightly to allow the lacy confection to drop to the floor. Then he pressed one thick
thigh between her legs and moved even more tightly against her, supporting her effortlessly in his
muscular arms as he laid her back on the edge of the bed. He stood and stepped back, leaving her
feeling vulnerable and exposed…and unbearably, restlessly aroused.

She was painfully aware of how pale her skin must look against the dark red satin of the
comforter, and the constellations of freckles on her breasts and stomach, like a dusting of cinnamon.
But the possessive look in Heath’s chocolate eyes and the low growl of warning he gave made her
resist the urge to cover herself. Instead she fisted her hands in the silky fabric of the bedding and
closed her eyes, concentrating on trying to slow the crazy pounding of her heart.

She opened her eyes again as Heath slid one arm behind her upper back and the other
beneath her knees. He lifted her and positioned her in the center of the bed, gently arranging her arms
so they were above her head, her breasts upthrust.

“What are you doing?” she murmured, shocked to hear how husky and needful her voice
sounded to her own ears.

“Making love to you,” Heath replied as he secured a cuff around her wrist. The fur lining
slid sensually over her skin, sending little sparks of sensation zipping through her. “But first I’m going
to make sure I can look at you as much as I want to…” He secured the other wrist. “Touch you
however I like…”

Tonya suppressed a desperate whimper at the thought of Heath exploring her body; having
his way with her. She felt a brief flutter of panic as he shackled her ankles to the foot of the bed, but
his movements were so steady and confident, his touch so sure and gentle that the feeling faded…to
be replaced by excitement.

Her pussy clenched and a trickle of moisture slid from between her thighs as Heath climbed
onto the bed, straddling her. His muscular thighs pressed close against the soft curves of her waist.
He leaned in and gave her a slow, thorough kiss. His tongue tangled with hers and he groaned and
flexed his hips. Then he pulled away, covering her full breasts with his palms, working them in firm
circles over her budding nipples. He narrowed his eyes and grinned wickedly when she pulled her
lower lip between her teeth and gave an urgent, needy whimper.

“Which toy shall I use on you first?” he asked, twisting her nipple between thumb and
forefinger. “The vibrator?” She shuddered slightly, arching towards him, frustrated that she couldn’t
part her legs and press closer to him. “The flogger?” he suggested. “You have been a naughty girl…”
She panted, then gave a long, low moan as he twisted her other nipple and the sensation shot straight
to her clit. “No, I know what will make you wet for me…”

She was left squirming and panting as he stood and discarded his clothes, tossing them
carelessly to one side before returning to her, gloriously naked. His cock was fully erect, thick and
slightly curved and already beaded at the tip with dewy pre-cum. She could have sworn she saw it
twitch eagerly as he opened his palm to reveal two small, golden nipple clamps.

He opened the delicate jaws of the first clip and secured it on her nipple. It pinched, and
Tonya felt as if he were tugging on a silver line of sensation that ran directly to her clit. Her internal
muscles clenched and she writhed as Heath reached down to finger the drenched fabric of her panties.
He gave a low rumble of satisfaction and she parted her thighs as he secured the second clip, setting
up a singing sensation between her nipples and her pussy that seemed to intensify every time she
shifted on the bed.

Heath positioned himself between her legs and kissed her again, squirming on top of her,
rubbing his hard length against her labia through the sodden fabric of her underwear. The weight of
his chest against her engorged breasts pulled against the clamps, causing an electrical sensation to
build between her thighs. The heavy heat of his cock against her pussy was maddening.

“Oh God…” she whimpered. “Please…please…”

She hardly knew what she was begging him for, except that if he didn’t take her soon, she
thought she might explode or go insane or both.

Heath pulled away for a moment. She smelled something sweet and realized he was pouring
a small pool of massage oil into his palm. He rubbed his hands together briskly to warm it, then laid a
hand over her breasts, pressing on the clamp and rubbing in slow, tortuous circles. She moaned and
clamped her thighs tightly against his hips, trying to pull him closer. He smoothed his hands down
over her rib cage and the soft swell of her belly, working the warm oil into her skin, his breathing
harsh and his eyes half-lidded with desire. Then he followed the path of his hands with his mouth.

“Mmm,” he mumbled against her skin. “Peach flavored.”

Then he hooked his fingers into the waistband of her panties and glanced up at her, a wicked
expression on his handsome, chiseled face.

“But I’d rather taste this.” And with a single, powerful motion, he ripped her panties away,
leaving her pussy exposed, aching and wet. He buried his face between her thighs and Tonya cried
out as he sucked her swollen clitoris between his lips, flicking it with his tongue and making her
writhe and squirm.

She called out his name, mindless with pleasure as he worked two fingers into her dripping
hole, thrusting them back and forth as bolts of sheer lust shot up her spine. She fisted her hands,
desperate to run them over his broad, muscular shoulders, to clutch her fingers in his hair. But the fur-
lined handcuffs held her fast. All she could do was cry out wordlessly, thrashing her head back and
forth on the pillows as Heath’s relentless attentions drove her into a spiral of orgasm that seemed to
build and build. Just as she thought she couldn’t bear any more, he worked his hands beneath her
generous hips and pulled her even closer, burying his face in her clenching pussy as she all but
screamed with the power of her release, gasping for breath.

As her trembling subsided and she began to drift back to reality, she opened her eyes to see a
very smug-looking Heath smirking at her.

“Now, foxy lady,” he said in a passionate growl. “What toy shall we play with next”?

Tonya grinned. “I know exactly what I want to play with.” She reached down and got a firm
grip on his cock, which was hot and rigid, straining against his belly. “This.” She ran a thumb over
the tip, which was sticky with pre-cum.

Heath groaned and pushed against her hand. “Good choice,” he growled, and ran his fingers
into the drenched red curls between her still-parted thighs. “I know just what to do with it, too.”

She caught her breath, still sensitive from the thorough tongue-lashing the sexy bear shifter

had given her. He slipped two fingers easily inside her, then withdrew them, glistening with her
juices. He sucked them into his mouth, moaning with pleasure at the taste of her.

Tonya ran her hand from the tip of his dick to the base then back up again, squeezing lightly
when she reached the head and making him buck into her hand. He rose up over her, huge and hard
and muscled, and she guided him to her tight opening, panting in anticipation of the delicious fullness
and friction.

For a moment she didn’t know if she could take him all. His penis was long and thick to suit
the sheer size of the man. But then, with a snaking motion of his hips, he eased a little way farther
inside her. A rush of wetness allowed him to slip still more intimately into her pulsing sheath, and she
let out a contented moan as he sank inside her to the hilt.

He was still for a moment, and then he began to move, slowly at first but increasing his pace
as she wrapped her legs around him and dug her fingernails into the broad expanse of his powerful
back, urging him on.

He thrust relentlessly inside her and she ran her hands down to feel the muscular flex of his
buttocks as he pumped. Each push of his cock inside her was a sweet agony, sensation building on
sensation until she felt as if she were on the edge of a vast chasm of mindless bliss. She cried out as
her orgasm rose inside her, rendering her blind, deaf and incoherent, oblivious to everything except
the man above her, inside her. His strength. The heat of his skin. His wild, feral groans and gasps as
he thrust still faster and more desperately, spilling himself into her with a shout of primal triumph that
had her tumbling over the edge once more.

He half-collapsed on top of her, catching himself on his elbows so he didn’t crush her, and
she fought to catch her breath, heart pounding in time with his, their breath mingling, their bodies
joined.

Chapter Eight

Heath yawned, took another sip of the coffee that had just been brought to their room by a
uniformed cabin steward, and concentrated intently on the scene playing out on the laptop.

“What are you watching?” Tonya called as she walked out of the bathroom wrapped only in
a towel.

Heath started, closing his laptop quickly.

“Are you watching porn?” she asked, walking over to him. She smelled fresh and clean, and
her shampooed hair smelled like a luscious bowl of fruit.

“What makes you think that?” he asked defensively. Damn it, it was going to be hard to
investigate covertly with her here in the cabin – but her being anywhere else suddenly felt wrong.
Unthinkable. Out of the question.

She glanced around, looking puzzled. “Well, you’re alone in the room, and I heard the sounds

of people having sex, very loudly. And the walls of these cabins are pretty thick, from what I gather,
so the noise isn’t coming from any of the other rooms.”

“Uh – I was enjoying myself while I imagined you showering?” Heath suggested.

“No you weren’t. There was the sound of a woman too. I’m not against porn, for heaven’s
sake. Let me see.”

She walked over and tried to open the laptop. Heath kept his hand pressed down on it.

“I demand to see what your taste in porn is,” she said. “Hey, I might learn some new tricks.”

That sounded quite all right to Heath, but he still didn’t want her to see what he was
watching.

She raised an eyebrow. “What?” she asked suspiciously. “Is it really weird? Are there
fetishes that have no name, are there midgets and circus clowns? Please, no circus clowns – they
really freak me out.”

He choked on a laugh, then quickly grew serious again. He was going to have to trust her to
some extent. He had a feeling, deep down to the bone, that he really could trust her.

“Here,” he said, and opened the laptop.

“You pervert! You’re spying on Reshef?” Her eyes opened wide. Then she leaned closer. “I
mean, I’ll grant you, that is kinda hot. Wow, they’re just having a big ol’ orgy, aren’t they? Look,
that’s the bodyguard who approached us at the table. He’s got three girls at once. He doesn’t even
know where to put his hands. And Reshef’s under a pile of – you know what, no! This is wrong!”

She tore her gaze away from the screen.

“I’m not saying I mind watching this, but it’s actually part of my job.” At her skeptical look,
he raised his hands defensively. “I swear on a stack of Bibles. Scout’s honor.”

“You’ll have to do better than that. I am positive you were never a Boy Scout, and a stack of
Bibles? Really? Is that better than swearing on one Bible, somehow?”

“Swear to me that this is all off the record, and that you will not discuss this with anyone.”

She nodded. “I swear. On one single Bible, not a whole stack.”

He let out a heavy sigh. “He’s potentially the target of an assassination. I’m here to keep an
eye on him. I take turns mingling with guests and trying to keep an eye out for anything suspicious, and
watching this video feed. I’m alternating with a few of my teammates. You can watch with me, if you
want. It’s not the worst thing in the world; I’ve had much worse surveillance jobs, believe me.”

“But why not just warn him?” She sat down on the chair next to him and he swallowed hard
and tried to resist the temptation to tear the towel off her. He had at least a couple of hours more of
watching the video feed, until Reshef left his room, or one of the other operatives from Shifters, Inc.
relieved him. He’d just have to suffer through being rock-hard for the next couple of hours until he
was freed from his duties, and then he’d tear off whatever she was wearing and show her, yet again,
how incredibly sexy he found her.

“Because we’re not completely sure he’s the target. There are several other options.
Benedetta is one of them.”

“Oh no.” Tonya looked alarmed. “Benedetta can’t be assassinated. It’s my dream to be able
to afford one of her dresses someday, and if someone bumps her off, that’ll never happen. Did that
make me sound selfish? I don’t care – I want to own a damn Benedetta if it’s the last thing I do.”

Heath reached out and trailed his fingers along her smooth, soft skin and then immediately
regretted it as his erection swelled to a point where it was actually painful. “Don’t worry about that,”
he gritted out, shifting uncomfortably in his seat. The Beast is watching her. Very closely.”

* * *

Benedetta was sprawled on her black silk sheets, wearing a filmy red negligee that looked
striking against her pale skin. She wore no panties, and the trimmed and shaved triangle of her pubic
hair peeked out from under the hem of the negligee.

The Beast, who took his obligation to keep an eye on his client very seriously, lay on the bed
next to her. She’d had a message delivered to his room earlier, asking him to stop by, and he’d come
in to find her like that – reclining on her bed, gesturing for him to join her.

He’d kicked off his shoes and slid into bed next to her.

There were at least half a dozen companions in the room, as well as a ship-assigned security
guard who was pretending not to watch the writhing pile of limbs on the massive sofa. It was literally
impossible to tell where one body ended and the next began, and moans of delight drifted through the
air.

Apparently Benedetta didn’t care at all that the security guard was there, and didn’t bother to
ask why they’d put a security guard in her room.

As for Duncan, the only problem with him and security guards was that he’d seduced two of
them into his bed, and so the ship had to keep sending in fresh ones.

Reshef was still refusing additional security, but since he never had fewer than a dozen of
his own body guards in his room, that wasn’t as much of a concern.

“You are very bad man. You have the air of danger about you, no?” Benedetta crooned,

unbuttoning his shirt with swift, sure fingers.

He grinned at her, sitting up to strip his shirt off and toss it to the floor. Then he reached
down to unbuckle his belt. She was direct, he’d give her that. Well, he wasn’t complaining. It saved
time.

“Very perceptive of you, but don’t worry. I don’t bite – too hard. And I’d never hit a lady –

well, not unless she asked me nicely.”

Benedetta let out a rumbling purr of delight. “Then I am asking, because I am very naughty
woman.”

The Beast looked at her – the risqué red negligee, the cheekily trimmed pubic hair peeping
out from underneath its hem, and he laughed. “Oh yes,” he growled. “I can see that you’re naughty –
very, very naughty indeed. I think it’s time someone taught you a lesson.”

Benedetta gave a musical giggle. “Perhaps I have thing or two to teach you also, no?”

With a low rumble, the Beast sat up and pulled the lithe Italian woman into his arms so that
she sprawled across his lap, her delightfully pert ass in the air. She squealed and thrashed, kicking
her feet and wriggling in a way that had his cock leaping to life.

He rubbed her buttock roughly, taking a moment to appreciate her from her dark tumble of
curls to her slender feet with their red-painted toenails. She was a warm, squirming weight against
his crotch. The sighs and moans coming from the tangle of companions who were kissing and sucking
and tasting and thrusting on the sofa had tingles of anticipation running up and down his spine.

Then he brought his hand down firmly on her rump. She gave a squeal of delight that changed
into a throaty moan as he rubbed the pink mark his palm had left on her skin. Another swat and the
pink mark changed to a fiery puce.

Benedetta struggled playfully. “Ooh, you are so big and strong. And I have been very, very

bad girl,” she encouraged him. Her skin was hot under his palm and he slapped her again, his hand
making a satisfying crack against the reddening flesh. Benedetta gave a yelp and parted her thighs,
encouraging him to run his fingers between her pussy lips. Her folds were slick with arousal and she
circled her hips, pushing back against his hand, begging him to push his fingers inside.

The Beast tutted and withdrew his hand. “You’re sopping wet,” he growled. “What a

naughty, dirty girl you are.” He slapped her ass again with another resounding smack, then flung her
face-down onto the bed with a rough, playful strength that made her giggle again.

She got to her hands and knees and looked seductively back at him over her shoulder. “And

now you teach me a real lesson, yes?” she purred.

His palm print stood out on her pale buttock in shocking scarlet, and her pussy lips were

swollen, her pink slit sticky and inviting. The Beast roughly pushed down his jeans and underwear
and positioned himself behind her, rubbing the head of his cock up and down the hot, slippery flesh as
she arched her back invitingly. Then he pushed inside her, not quite roughly but with swift efficiency
that made the designer mewl and shudder.

Her pussy was as tight as a fist around his throbbing cock, and as he started to thrust she

pushed back against him with a flattering eagerness, supporting herself on one hand and rubbing
eagerly at her clit with the other.

He clutched her hips, bunching the delicate fabric of her negligee between his fingers, not

caring if it tore. With each thrust inside her he gave a bestial grunt, and she responded with a
strangled moan, frantically fingering her clit and rolling her hips back against him.

Levi allowed his eyes to close and concentrated on the clutching sensation of her warm, slick

flesh around his cock. A hot, heavy sensation began to build in his balls as he held her slender body
and pictured her golden curls, her dazzling blue eyes…

He stuttered in his rhythm, earning a frustrated growl from Benedetta as his eyes snapped

open. He froze for a moment in shock and reminded himself that he was having sex with a beautiful,
willing woman…and it was Benedetta. Benedetta. Not Bridgit.

Frustrated and furious with himself, he banished the seductive image from his mind, bending

forward and seizing a handful of Benedetta’s raven hair so he could pull her head back and graze the
skin of her throat with his teeth. He fucked her with renewed vigor, thrusting furiously inside her –
thrusting away thoughts of the golden wolf-shifter he had no business fantasizing about. He wrapped
his arm around Benedetta’s waist and pounded into her, and her cries rose, crescendoing into a howl
of completion as she spasmed wildly around him. She let off a rapid-fire stream of obscenities in
breathless Italian as he continued to flex his hips. He gritted his teeth against the sensation,
persevering even as the Italian woman, now limp and dewy with sweat, gave another hoarse cry and
there was scattered laughter and a sprinkling of good-natured applause from the gathered companions.

The tight sensation in his balls built until he couldn’t contain himself any longer and he

exploded, pulling out at the last moment to release thick, heavy ropes of cum over the pink skin of
Benedetta’s well-spanked ass.

Heaving in labored breaths, he collapsed to one side, exhausted. He felt limp, weary,

aching…and unsatisfied. The restlessness that sex usually banished was still with him, gnawing away
at his gut. Even as Benedetta stretched, obviously replete, and gave a happy little moan, he felt angry
and frustrated. The sense of release that usually came with orgasm was absent. He was afraid he
knew why. But that was stupid. It wasn’t as if he needed emotion with his sex.

Benedetta draped herself languorously across his chest and he played absent-mindedly with a

lock of her hair.

One of the companions, a well-endowed brunette with an intriguingly clean-shaven mound,

gave a lascivious smile and sauntered towards the bed, clearly intent on joining them.

The Beast ignored the sense of unease tweaking at his nerve-endings. What he needed was as
many rounds of wild, mindless sex as the pleasure cruise’s companions could provide. What he
definitely didn’t need was time to think.

Besides, any thoughts of Bridgit were pointless. She seemed like a nice person, someone

who deserved a man who’d treat her well. He reminded himself that there was no room in his life for
a relationship, for caring, for anything but the burning need for revenge.

Chapter Nine

Jake, their team leader and a lion shifter, had a cabin on the same floor as Heath and Reshef.
After he and Tonya finished watching Reshef and his crew, who seemed to have an endless sexual
appetite, Heath quickly headed over to check in with him.

He met the Beast in the corridor. The Beast grunted a hello, which was a fairly friendly
greeting coming from him.

“Someone got laid last night,” Jake said, as Heath and the Beast walked into his suite. “Hmm.

You both got laid. I can scent it on you. And from the looks of it, I’d say Heath had a better time.”

The Beast shrugged. “Sex is sex. Do it. Move on.”

Heath looked at him critically. “That’s different. Usually you force us to listen to you brag
about your exploits for fucking ever. Getting jaded, are we?”

Levi looked uncomfortable, scowling and looking away. “Why don’t we talk about you? I
hear Bobbi thinks the fox is your Fated Mate.”

“Why don’t we talk about our mission,” Jake suggested, “instead of your wandering dicks?
Any thoughts, anything new?”

“Not since we talked last night,” Heath said. The Beast shook his head.

“Nobody’s jumping out as a suspect,” Heath continued. “I mean, there’s a whole boatful of
potential assassins here, really. But here’s a question. If the Chameleon succeeds in assassinating his
target, the boat is going to be on lockdown. It’s not like assassinating someone on land, where you can
disappear and leave the area. It’s much riskier doing it here. Yeah, the Chameleon could use some
kind of slow-acting poison so he wouldn’t be around when the target died, but he’d have to know that
the risk of exposure is much greater on a cruise ship. So why do it here?”

“Good question.” Jake nodded approvingly. “So you’re not just a pretty face.”

“He’s not even that,” the Beast growled. It seemed he was still nettled by Heath’s minor jabs
at him, or maybe because of his apparently unsatisfactory encounter the previous evening.

Irritated, Heath let out a low, rumbling growl of his own, answered by a snarl from the
Beast, and then they were on their feet, snapping and bristling at each other.

“Enough!” Jake pounded his fist on the table. “We’re here to work, not get pissy with each
other, so sit down and shut the fuck up. Goddamn prima donnas.”

Heath sank back down in his chair, grumbling under his breath, and the Beast did the same.

“Maybe if you ever got laid, you’d be less of an asshole,” Heath grumbled to Jake.

Jake snorted at that. He wasn’t one for dating, as far as Heath could tell. “I have my hands
full dealing with you guys. It’s like hearding cats, for Godsakes. So, Heath, I assume you have some
thoughts on why the Chameleon would strike here.”

“Well, the only advantage of being on the boat that I can see is that it’s possible for total

strangers to get up-close and personal with the passengers,” Heath said. “The companions especially,
of course. So who would be hard to approach anywhere but here? Out of the people we’re protecting,
Benedetta and Duncan are both very approachable generally. Benedetta holds fashion shows all the
time. Duncan is always the man about town, taking his model girlfriends, who we now know are his
beards, out to movie premieres and plays and nightclubs. It would be easy to assassinate either of
them on land. Reshef, however, from what you’ve told me – he’s usually in an enormous palace
surrounded by bodyguards, and he’s rarely seen out in public.”

“That is true.” Jake nodded. “When he goes shopping, apparently he has the stores and the
streets shut down so it’s just him and his retinue. Him being here would give an assassin a unique
opportunity. Unfortunately, he’s the one we’re having the hardest time getting close to. What have you
learned so far from watching him?”

“Not much, other than that he can screw for hours, and being his bodyguard would be an
awesome job,” Heath said. “Or at least some of them. There are three or four of his bodyguards who
get to share the companions. It’s not that he’s unprotected. He doesn’t let his guard down; there’s still
always a dozen bodyguards in the room watching. He always has a dozen or so companions in there,
and he pays them very generously to service both him and his employees.”

“He is the most likely target, you’re right. Unfortunately, since he won’t let us send in any
additional security, all we can do is be extra vigilant and ensure we never take our eyes off him,”
Jake said.

After chatting for a few more minutes, Heath headed up to the restaurant where Reshef was
going to be eating. He’d let Tonya know that he’d be working all day, but he’d make it up to her when
he was relieved for the evening.

He felt a warm glow at the thought of being with Tonya again that night – and also an uneasy
feeling brewing deep inside. Being with Tonya felt perfect, like he’d been missing a part of himself
his entire life and he was only whole when he was with her. He’d never felt that way about any
woman, ever. A lifetime of growing up on the streets had made him cautious about letting anyone get
too close, outside the ragtag little family he and Bobbi and a few others had built while squatting in
abandoned buildings.

He wanted to be able to let his barriers down for her, he realized. He wanted to get to know
her; they hadn’t even talked much. They’d been all over each other the night before, finally falling into
an exhausted sleep.

Would she really want him if she knew about his childhood, the way he’d grown up, the
things he’d done?

Thinking about it made him uneasy, and he had to concentrate on his job. He pushed all
thoughts of her from his head and settled down for a long day of watching the rich, arrogant asshole
who wanted to have sex with his fox.

Reshef kept him busy, moving around all day – visiting various erotic cabarets and sex
shows, stopping to shop, always with his crowd of bodyguards moving with him. Several times Heath
switched off with Tanner, heading off to watch Duncan instead so Reshef wouldn’t notice that Heath

was there every time he turned around.

The day dragged. He kept hoping he’d catch a glimpse of Tonya, but he didn’t. He’d never
been so eager to sit down with someone and just talk. He actually wanted to hold her hands and stare
into her eyes and listen to her beautiful voice. If anyone had told him just a few short days ago that
he’d be feeling this way, he would have laughed. Or gagged in disgust.

Now he got it. Love songs. Heartbreak. Passion. Valentine’s Day cards. He really, really got
it. He found himself wondering what he’d buy her for Christmas. How foolish was that?

When he got back to his room, he found out just how foolish it was.

There was a bouquet of roses on the table, and a note next to them. He walked over and
opened the note, smiling. Aw, she’d left him roses. How adorable.

But they weren’t for him. They were for Tonya.

Today was delightful. I can’t wait for more, the note read, and it was signed with a big,
swirling R.

He felt rage cloud his vision and red-hot fury flowing through his veins, and his whole world
went black with an explosive need to destroy.

* * *

The Midnight at the Oasis Bar was crowded and the dark sky overhead was the deepest
black Tonya had ever seen. Far away from the lights of the city, the stars glittered and seemed close
enough to pluck from the sky.

The night air was warm, and Tonya thought that she wouldn’t mind a stroll around the ship
with Heath. Perhaps a drink or two. And then…

Tonya glanced at her watch. She imagined Heath would be back in his room by now. She
should head back to meet him. Or should she wait? She didn’t want to seem clingy and needy. How
did one do this? Dating was not her forte. Men hardly ever asked her out. According to Bridgit, that
was because she tended to ignore their signals and send “leave me alone” vibes.

She’d been thinking about Heath all day long, yearning to feel his strong arms wrapped
around her again. She loved how safe she felt when she was with him. She loved how beautiful he
made her feel – not just with words, but with actions, with the raw hunger she saw in his eyes, with
his groans of pleasure, with the way he tore her clothes from her and threw himself on her as if he’d
die if he wasn’t with her. Nobody had ever made her feel beautiful before.

She didn’t know a thing about him, and all of a sudden she wanted to know everything. But what did
he want? Was this just a cruise-ship romance for him?

The thought of him walking down the gangplank and driving away without her made her heart
ache and her stomach queasy. How had she come to care for him so quickly? Bridgit would probably
tell her that must mean he was her Fated Mate, but then Bridgit was a moony-eyed romantic who was
waiting for her prince to sweep her off her feet.

Heath acted all jealous and possessive, which she had to admit she found flattering – but did

that mean he wanted a real relationship with her?

She sighed and set down her mojito. She found herself feeling nervous now. Would he be
happy to see her? Would he be bored with her already?

“Look, there is Benedetta,” Antonia said happily, nodding across the room at the glamorous
designer. Tonight Benedetta wore a delicate lace gown that looked as if it were strung together from
cobwebs – with no bra or panties underneath. She was holding hands with two companions, a man
and a woman, and a group of companions were trailing behind her.

Antonia glanced around, then lowered her voice. “I hope someday to be designer like her.”

“You should say something to her,” Tonya said. “She’s very approachable. “

Antonia shook her head. “Maybe. I don’t know. She such big star, she is so perfect…I think
about it.”

“Go now,” Tonya urged. She gave Antonia a shove.

Antonia put down her drink, headed off towards Benedetta, and stopped. Then she quickly
headed towards the restrooms with a panicked look on her face.

As Antonia vanished from sight, Tonya felt a rippling of hairs on the back of her neck, and
then Tom Hooper stalked up to her. Dear God, every time she saw him his hair got spikier. He could
impale someone with that horror show. He had several very visible hickeys on his neck, and he was
swaying and slightly drunk.

“Your bodyguard’s gone, I see,” he sneered.

“Obviously, or you wouldn’t have the balls to come bother me,” Tonya replied in a bored
tone. She pretended to be drinking her mojito, which was mostly water from melted ice cubes by
now.

He glanced in the direction in which Antonia had just headed. “Figures someone like you
would be consorting with the help. And that thug you’re sleeping with. I could have introduced you to
the richest people in Playa Linda. Well, enjoy wallowing in the gutter.” He turned and stomped off.

Tonya stifled a low growl of anger at that. How dare he insult Heath? Snobbish dickwad.

She glanced at her watch again when Antonia came back to her seat. “I need to head back to
my cabin,” she said. “Heath will be waiting for me.”

She headed back to his room.

When she opened the door, she blanched. It looked as if a hurricane had whirled through
there. The bedspread had been ripped to shreds, there were chunks of mattress scattered all over the
floor, a shattered vase lying by the wall where someone had hurled it, the couch was literally broken
in half, and Heath swung towards her when she walked in – with a look of mingled rage and misery
on his face that nearly made her heart stop.

Chapter Ten

“What happened? Someone broke in?” she asked, her voice shaking. Did he think she’d done
this? She couldn’t understand why he looked furious with her.

He shook his head. “Nope.” He bit the word out as if it tasted foul.

“Uh…are you saying that you did this?”

“Yep.” She could see bones rippling under his face, and his eyes kept changing color as he
struggled to keep his beast suppressed.

“Why?”

He gestured at the broken vase. A dozen red roses were scattered on the floor.

“Reshef sent those. With a stack of beaded necklaces and a note that said today was
delightful. What exactly did you do today while I was working?”

“Are you serious?” Tonya felt fury and hurt welling up inside her, and tears burned in her
eyes. “You spent all day watching him. You’re suggesting that I was fucking him?” She spat the crude
word out. She didn’t usually use language like that, but she was so enraged she couldn’t think straight.

“I wasn’t watching him at all times. Sometimes I switched off with another operative.” His
eyes were blazing with rage. He was actually frightening her, he was so furious.

“Like I knew that?” she yelled. “You’re saying that during those moments when you weren’t
watching, I ran right over to his quarters and screwed him?”

“Did you? Because it’s pretty obvious that he’d be much more your type than I would.”

“What the hell does that even mean?” she shouted. “You know what? Forget it. I’m going
back to the companions’ quarters for the rest of the cruise. And screw you. I hope you and all your
friends have a good laugh over your night with the fat girl.”

She grabbed her suitcase and stomped out, tears running down her cheeks. Behind her, she
heard roars of rage and the sound of shattering furniture. She spent the night crying into her pillow and
throwing up in the bathroom. Heath didn’t come by to apologize, not that she’d expected him to. She
wished he would, though. She wanted him to beg for her forgiveness.

* * *

The next morning, Antonia met her for breakfast at a café on one of the upper decks. She had
the afternoon and evening shift that day. “You no sleep good?” Antonia asked as Tonya listlessly
picked at her breakfast.

“No, afraid not,” she sighed. “Long story. The guy who claimed me, uh, we stopped getting
along.” She wished she could tell Antonia what had really happened, but she couldn’t reveal Heath’s
mission.

“Men.” Antonia made a tsking sound, shaking her head. “He was only passenger. You back
on shore, you find good man.”

“Thanks. Hasn’t happened so far.” Tonya managed a smile, and then she saw that Antonia
was looking across the room.

Benedetta was taking her seat at a table, with the Beast and a bunch of companions. She
looked as radiant as ever, dressed in filmy floral chiffon.

“Go tell her,” she urged Antonia. “I am telling you, she is really easy to talk to. She’s not a
snob at all. When else will you get the opportunity to be this close to her?”

Antonia looked hesitant. “I don’t know…”

Suddenly there were yells of alarm coming from Benedetta’s table, then a thud.

One of Benedetta’s companions fell to the ground, shrieking and thrashing. Everyone
crowded around him, and the Beast bellowed “Stand back!” as the man foamed at the mouth, heels
drumming on the deck.

The Beast gathered the man up in his arms and ran full speed out of the restaurant, but Tonya
saw the companion go limp and she knew he’d be too late. The man was dead already; rushing him to
the ship’s clinic wouldn’t help.

She also saw a couple of big, hulking shifters hovering protectively near Benedetta. They
were dressed in expensive resort-style clothing, but she suspected they were Shifters, Inc. employees.

Uniformed security guards rushed in. One of them, a dark-skinned man with several stripes
on his uniform, yelled, “Attention, everyone! My name is Pierre Robard, head of ship security!
Nobody eat anything else! If you feel sick, notify a security guard immediately. We must interview
everyone in the room and review all security tapes before you are released! We apologize for the
inconvenience, but I must ask you to return to your seats at once.”

There were shouts of protest and cries of panic, but most of the guests returned to their seats
– except for the dozen or so guests who had suddenly developed phantom stomach pains and were
urgently swarming around the guards. The guards gathered those guests and led them out of the café.

Tonya, ignoring the instructions to stay put, got up and made her way over to Benedetta’s
table. “Are you all right?” she asked. Benedetta grabbed her hand, tears in her eyes. “That was meant
for me,” she cried. “He grab my coffee and have one sip. Just one sip, and he is dead!”

Tonya looked around the room and saw that Heath had returned, and the Beast was with him
now. Heath looked utterly miserable too, she saw with satisfaction. He had circles under his eyes and
his hair was bed-rumpled and uncombed. Good. Asshole.

She turned her attention back to their surroundings, then she put her hand on Benedetta’s arm.

One of the waiters was making his way through the crowd towards them, with an angry,
determined look. His hand was inside his apron.

Tonya leaped to her feet. “Waiter!” she screamed, and she saw Heath and the Beast spin
around at the sound of her voice and start running towards her. They were all the way across the
room; they wouldn’t get there in time. She leaped into the waiter’s path as he whipped out a knife and

ran straight towards Benedetta.

With one flying kick, she knocked the knife out of his hand. He swung a fist at her and she
ducked, responding with a quick left hook to the jaw that sent him staggering back. Moving forward,
she kept up the attack, kicking him in the stomach, punching him in the face…

He fell to the ground just as a pile of security guards landed on him.

“Are you all right?” Heath looked panicked. She fell back a step, breathing hard.

“Never been better.” Except for the fact that my heart’s been ripped in two, she thought but
didn’t say.

He looked bewildered. “Where did you learn to fight like that?”

She shrugged. “I mean, I’ve taken a self-defense class.” The waiter was being hauled away
now, screaming curses in Italian. Antonia was standing at the side of the room, clutching her necklace
and looking horrified.

“That was pretty good for one self-defense class.” Heath looked at her skeptically.

Was it? She’d never been in a street fight before.

She shrugged, turned and walked away. “Natural talent. Or maybe I’m lying and I’m secretly
a ninja. Since apparently I can’t be trusted.”

He followed after her. “Really, are you sure you’re all right?”

The doors were open now, and she joined the stream of guests who were rushing out,
chattering amongst themselves.

“As if you care,” she said bitterly.

“If I didn’t care, why would I get so upset about you and Reshef?”

She stopped, spun around and slapped him as hard as she could. He actually rocked where
he stood, blinked in surprise and rubbed his cheek. “You pack quite a wallop.”

“If the way that you show that you care is by falsely accusing me of sleeping around, and then
destroying your hotel room, and not even bothering to ask me before you throw accusations in my
face, then screw you. Go care about someone else.”

She stomped off, head held high, blinking really hard so she wouldn’t burst into tears.

* * *

Heath and the Beast stood outside Jake’s door, waiting for him to return so they could have a
briefing.

“I saw you and Tonya in the café,” the Beast said. “What did you do to fuck things up there?”

Heath whirled to face the Beast, letting out a rumbling growl and unsheathing his claws. The
Beast didn’t even blink. Nothing fazed him. In wolf form, he was enormous, the biggest wolf Heath

had ever seen, and he’d taken down, among other things, a lion, a bear and a panther.

“Unless you want me to separate your head from your body, you won’t say another goddamn
word.” Heath hoped the Beast would challenge him. He really, really needed an outlet for his pent-up
emotions. He’d never felt so utterly horrible, bleak and despairing, and he could barely stand to be in
his own skin right now.

To his surprise, the Beast didn’t rise to the challenge. He just fixed Heath with a calm,
appraising look. “She is your Fated Mate. I can tell. Not all of us get to be with their Fated Mate. I
never will. If you’re not an idiot, you’ll go grovel for her forgiveness and make things right, or you’ll
be miserable and utterly useless to work with, for the rest of your life.”

Heath actually sheathed his claws, he was so shocked. The Beast? Not attacking? Giving
someone romantic advice?

“You believe in the whole Fated Mate thing?” he demanded suspiciously. If the Beast was
making fun of him, he’d fucking kill him. “You’re actually some simpering, hopeless romantic?”

The Beast responded with a wry smile. “Hopeless is the perfect way to describe it. And yes,
I believe in it the same way I believe in gravity. It’s a fact.”

“Why do you say you’ll never be with your Fated Mate, then?”

The Beast’s face darkened and some long-ago memory made a quiet rage flash in his eyes.
“Some things just are. I’m not getting into it.”

“She cheated on me with Reshef,” Heath blurted out. He couldn’t believe it. He was actually
confiding in the Beast. Next they’d be braiding each other’s fur and having a manicure party to paint
each other’s claws.

The Beast raised an eyebrow. “Her? No,” he said simply.

“Well, Reshef sent a note to our cabin with a dozen roses, thanking her for giving him a good
time…” As he said it, Heath started to feel stupid. Really stupid. And like a major asshole.

Had he let Reshef manipulate him into ruining everything?

“Didn’t you tell me that Reshef asked for Tonya to be his companion?” The Beast’s tone was
scornful. “A man like that doesn’t like to be told no. And sending a note like that was a good way to
drive a wedge between you, and then he’d have a better chance at getting with Tonya. I mean, it was a
good plan on his part if he figured you for a fucking moron. Obviously he was right.” And then the
Beast punched him in the arm so hard he staggered back a step. Now there was the Beast he was used
to.

“And that’s for thinking you could take me,” he growled, just as Jake and a couple of other
operatives strolled down the hallway.

Heath and the Beast shifted, and all the other shifters followed suit, and then there was a pile
of furious, snarling animals, snapping and biting and shredding their clothing,

Within a couple of minutes they’d gotten it out of their systems and they were all sitting in

Jake’s room, stark naked and listening to Jake screaming one of his famous full-volume lectures at
them, threatening to personally rip them all a new one, and also to fire them, kill them, and then fire
them again, and then ship their dead body parts back to their families. After he spat on them. Then he
might kill them some more after that.

Standard pissed-off Jake stuff.

Heath listened and nodded and apologized, because fighting like that did risk exposure and
jeopardize their mission, and for that he genuinely was sorry.

In the back of the mind, one thought was running, repeating itself urgently, over and over:
I’ve got to find Tonya. I’ve got to find Tonya. I’ve got to find Tonya.

Chapter Eleven

That day, Tonya was so angry at Heath that she spent the day hiding out in Antonia’s room,

and spent the night there as well. In the morning, Antonia and Tonya went to get some coffee and
watched a helicopter lifting off, heading away with the waiter who’d tried to kill Benedetta.

Word travelled quickly on the ship. One of the porters told them that the ship’s security had

contacted the authorities in Italy, and a little research had revealed his motive pretty quickly. His
girlfriend had left him to have an affair with Benedetta, and he was furious about it. Since he really
was a waiter at a high-end restaurant and had no criminal record, he’d been able to get hired easily.

So that’s it, Tonya thought. Or was it? The waiter had been carrying out a crime of passion.

From what little she’d gleaned from Heath, she gathered that they were on the alert for a professional
assassin.

The waiter hardly seemed to be enough of a threat to warrant having two security companies

on board. She’d been able to disarm him single-handedly.

“Well, that is done,” Antonia said. “I go to work now. I think you should talk to Big Bear.

You miss him. I see it.”

“If I had a shotgun, I wouldn’t miss him,” Tonya grumbled as Antonia started to walk off

towards the servants’ quarters.

“Just one minute!” Tom barked, barreling down the walkway towards them. He was

accompanied by a big, burly man whom Tonya vaguely recognized as another Hammersmith
employee. Tom grabbed Antonia’s arm and began hauling her with him.

“You thought you’d get away with it? Nothing gets past me,” he barked at her.

“What the hell are you doing?” Tonya yelled, her fangs descending and her eyes blazing with

rage. “Let go of her before I rip your face off!”

He sneered at her. “They turned the internet back on so they could do a background check on

that waiter, and I had the time to do some research on your little friend here. And we’re looking into
you too, mark my words.”

Antonia went as white as a sheet as Tom hustled her off, towards the security headquarters,

Tonya suspected. “I’ll get you out of there!” Tonya yelled after them.

Damn it, she couldn’t call a lawyer – they were in the middle of the ocean. She also couldn’t

let Antonia be framed for anything. She was positive that Antonia hadn’t done anything wrong, and
she suspected that Tom had just targeted Antonia because he knew they were friends. That rat-
bastard. She really had wanted to shift and shred his face, but it wouldn’t have helped anything.

Tonya thought and thought, and finally came to the conclusion that she had no choice. She had

to go to Heath for help. She couldn’t think of anyone else who could intercede.

Heath opened the door when she banged on it. His face lit up with joy and relief when he saw

her. “Where have you been?” he asked. “I looked everywhere for you. I was about to start tearing the

ship apart to find you.”

Well, that knocked her for a loop. “Why were you trying to find me?” she asked.

“Because you’re my Fated Mate, and I’m a dumb asshole.”

She clutched at the doorframe for support. “Excuse you? I mean, the second part of that

statement is right, but – why would you say that you’re my Fated Mate?”

“Because it’s true. I know it and you know it. I’ve just been trying to deny it to myself, ever

since I met you, really, because…I don’t know. I’m an idiot. And caring for someone as much as I
care for you scares me, and before this, literally nothing scared me.”

He stepped back, waving her inside. Numbly, she walked in and he shut the door. The room

had mostly been repaired; there was a new mattress, comforter and sheets, and even a new sofa.
There were still gouge marks in the wall.

“But I… I mean…”

He gripped her shoulders, staring earnestly into her eyes. “You know, my sister Bobbi was

the first one to tell me that you were my Fated Mate, back at the art gallery.”

“Your sister was there?” She was desperately trying to gather her thoughts.

“The girl I was talking to at the bar.”

“Oh, that was your sister.” She felt enormous relief rush through her. So he hadn’t been with

another woman the night before the cruise. Not in that way, at least.

“So, you had one bear parent and one coyote parent?” That was the only way a coyote could

be his sister.

“Adoptive sister,” he said impatiently. “As in, I adopted her when she was running away

from an abusive foster home, and she lived with me and a few other thugs in an abandoned building.”

“If you care about me, why would you be so quick to accuse me of being with Reshef?” She

folded her arms across her chest and glowered up at him.

“Because…well, mostly because of what I just told you about how I grew up. I couldn’t

believe you’d really want me.” He was serious. Big, handsome Heath, who could have any girl he
wanted, didn’t think she would want him. “Why would a rich, gorgeous girl like you want a hood rat
like me? I was afraid you were slumming.”

“A rich girl?” She was astonished. “What makes you think that I’m rich?”

“You drive a new Mercedes. And I know where you live. And you went to Harvard.”

“How do you know where I live?”

He looked embarrassed. “I might have been doing a little checking up on you.”

“Why?”

“It’s possible that I was a little bit interested in you.”

A warm glow swept through her. He’d liked her all along. Ever since they’d first met.

“You obviously didn’t investigate too deeply,” she pointed out.

“Well, no. I didn’t want to be like a crazy stalker.”

She shook her head. “Okay, the car belongs to my friend Bridgit’s family, I live in a house

owned by her family, and I went to school on a full scholarship. So did she, actually; her family could
have paid for it, but she wanted to do it on her own. As for me, my parents were alcoholics, my father
went to prison, my mother ran out on me, and I grew up in a children’s home.”

“Oh. I am sorry. Well, like I said, I’m an idiot.” He looked chastened.

She grimaced at the memory. “Some of the kids got adopted. I never did. The other kids told

me that it was because I was too fat, that nobody would ever want me. And basically they were right.
The parents would come in and look around and pick out the cute little kids. It was never me.”

“They had no idea what they missed out on. And if I ever heard anyone say something like

that to you, I’d kill them.” Looking at the shock and anger on his face, she believed him. He was
furious on her behalf. He really would kill for her.

Normally, just talking about it brought her to tears, but being with Heath and feeling his

genuine love for her actually made her feel stronger than she’d ever felt.

“Can you ever forgive me? Please? I need you to come back here. I had absolutely no right to

accuse you like that. I can’t be without you. I can’t. I thought I’d die this last couple of days.” He was
actually begging.

“I can consider forgiving you, but believe me, there will be some serious groveling involved

on your part.” She felt as if a dark, black cloud had been clinging to her, chilling her, and now the sun
was shining again and bathing her in warmth. She couldn’t believe this was really happening; it felt
like it was too good to be real.

His face lit up. “Starting now? I can grovel like a champ. Let me show you.”

“First, we have an emergency that we have to deal with,” she said, and told him what had just

happened with Antonia.

“That stupid son of a bitch!” he swore furiously. He picked up his room’s phone and called

Jake’s room and filled him in. Then he and Tonya quickly headed down to the ship’s holding cells.

Heath shoved his way in past a startled secretary. “I need to talk to Pierre, now!” he roared.

A door in the back of the room opened and Pierre peeked out. Heath rushed over and shoved

his way past Pierre, with Tonya at his heels. Tom was sitting at a long table, across from Antonia,
whose face was streaked with tears. There were sketches of dresses fanned out on the table.

“Are you kidding me?” Heath yelled at Pierre. “He grabbed this woman’s arm, in public, and

dragged her off to detention? In broad daylight, in front of all the other passengers? He’s supposed to

be a guest! He just exposed the fact that there’s private security here working undercover, which
could blow our whole mission and put everyone at risk!”

“I agree completely, he used terrible judgment.” Pierre nodded, and Tom looked outraged.

“But,” Pierre continued, “he did come up with some discrepancies in her resume. Her references
turned out to be friends of hers. She never really had a job as a maid before. And we found stolen
designs from Benedetta in her room. We think she’s a corporate spy.”

At that, Antonia, who had been slumped over, straightened up indignantly. “They weren’t

stolen! I make these!” she protested.

“Sure you did,” Tom sneered.

“Bring Benedetta here and ask her,” Antonia said indignantly. “I no steal!”

“We will,” Pierre said. He stepped out of the room to talk to one of the ship’s security

officers, and then returned.

They sat in uncomfortable silence for several minutes. Tonya glared at Tom with murder in

her eyes.

A few minutes later, Benedetta arrived.

“What is this foolishness?” she asked. She glared around the room. “Who upset this girl? You

are bullies.”

“He did,” Tonya said, pointing at Tom. Benedetta smacked Tom on the top of the head so

hard that it resounded through the room, and swore at him in Italian, making Antonia titter behind her
hand. Tom clenched his fists in rage, and immediately Heath let out a growl and partially shifted,
exploding out of his shirt. His face went bear, his fur covered him like a lush brown carpet, and his
fangs curved like long, cruel daggers.

“Touch her, and you’re a dead man,” Tonya snarled, meaning it. She didn’t even need Heath

for this; she could rip out his throat with her fangs quite well on her own.

Heath shifted back to human form, now half naked. Tonya tried not to look. Damn his hotness

– she couldn’t look at his incredible body without wanting to rip the rest of his clothes off.

Tom settled back in his chair and swallowed hard. Pierre was enraged; Tom had actually

clenched his fists at one of the people he was supposed to be protecting.

“What is this nonsense about this girl steal my work?” Benedetta demanded. “I have no

designs with me. That is not my work.” She leaned over to look at the sketches. “It is very good work,
though. Very pretty. Who drew this?”

“It was me,” Antonia said in a small voice. She explained everything. She had faked her

resume to get on board the boat in the hopes of meeting Benedetta, but she’d been too shy to approach
her.

“The work is very good.” Benedetta nodded. “You sneak on ship? You are, how the

Americans say, go-getter. We have room for intern at my studio. You will come by when we return

home.”

Antonia lit up with joy. “Really?” Her voice was a high-pitched squeak of astonishment.

Benedetta nodded, then arched an eyebrow at Pierre. “You release this girl and be nice to

her, or I tell all my friends very bad things about your boat. She no have to work again for you, and
you give her paycheck, in apology for false arrest.”

Then she turned and swept out of the room. Nobody could make an entrance or exit like

Benedetta.

“You may go,” Pierre said to Antonia. “I will honor Benedetta’s request, but you may not

work for us again, because of your false resume.”

“Trust me, she won’t be back,” Tonya said, rolling her eyes.

Antonia hugged her. “You are my good friend,” she said, and gathered up her sketches and
quickly left, wiping her face with the back of her hand.

Pierre nodded to Heath. “Thank you for clearing that up. I need to speak to Mr. Hooper in

private.”

Tonya smiled as they left. She was positive that the talk wasn’t going to go well for Tom.

Back in Heath’s cabin, he shut the door and turned to her with a huge grin. “See this smile?

First time I’ve smiled since I saw Reshef’s note. And I’ve got the next couple of hours free.”

“Oh yeah?” She grinned back, foolish and giddy with happiness. “Well, let the groveling

commence.”

“Do you know what the word for grovel translates to in bear?” Now Heath’s smile had

turned calculating.

“I was not even aware that bears had a separate language.” She raised an eyebrow in

challenge. “But go on.”

“The word grovel translates to ‘perform sex acts on your mate’s naked body until she passes

out from multiple orgasms’.” Heath grinned.

“It does not! You are a big fat liar!” she scolded him. “By the way, I like this dress, so do not

– damn you, Heath!”

Chapter Twelve

She’d have to be mad to turn down sex with this huge, hunky bear shifter, but she had a
sneaking suspicion it was going to be very expensive in clothes. Moments later, her bra and panties
joined the remains of her dress on the cabin’s floor. She wasn’t going to be able to afford one of
Benedetta’s beautiful creations anytime soon if she had to keep replacing her lingerie.

Heath pressed her up against the wall, running his palms over her large breasts and curvy

stomach, kneading the flesh of her hips and kissing her as if he wanted to eat her alive. He paused for
a moment to whip his shirt over his head and open the button of his fly to relieve the pressure on his
bulging erection.

He went back to kissing her, growling into her mouth. She explored his mouth, tongue and
teeth and palate, then gasped as he put a large hand behind each of her thighs and hoisted her into the
air so her back was against the wall and her legs were wrapped around his hips. He held her there
without apparent effort, flexing his hips to push the hard length of his denim-clad cock against her
core.

She reached down to cup his firm buttocks as he moved against her, then whimpered as he
trailed his mouth down her throat to her breast. He sucked her nipple into his warm mouth and nipped
playfully at it with his teeth. She snatched a surprised gasp of air.

“How come your clothes never get ruined?” she grumbled as she worked the fabric of his

pants down over his hips, bringing his dick into intimate content with the slick folds of her pussy. He
growled and pressed harder against her, his mouth still full of her breast. Then he pulled back slightly
and, with a swift, sure movement, impaled her on his cock. She felt her passage stretching to
accommodate his girth as he slid inside her, his movement eased by the slick moisture of her
excitement. She almost came right there and then.

He stilled inside her for a moment, trembling, eyes closed, as though trying to control

himself, and she realized he was just as unbearably aroused as she was. “Heath…” she sighed, and he
gave a desperate, heartfelt groan and started to move inside her, the tension in his shoulders betraying
how close he was to fucking her until he came apart inside her.

He bit his lip, a look of intense concentration on his face. Then he said, “I want you to ride

me.” His words made her clit swell and throb, and she threw her arms around his neck and drank in
the blissful electrical sensations shooting through every nerve ending as he strode over to an
overstuffed armchair, still firmly inside her. He sank into the chair with Tonya straddling his hips and
let his head fall back, chest rising and falling in a rapid rhythm and his fingers white from clutching
the arms of the chair.

Then he lifted his head and looked at her. His pupils were wide and black, his rich brown

irises dancing with golden flecks that seemed to add a playful element to the dark intensity of his
gaze. He quirked a smile at her, then raised his hands to her breasts, stroking and teasing the generous
flesh. Heart thudding, Tonya began to move, raising herself until his dick almost left her slick, needy
flesh, then sinking back down. He filled her deliciously, completely. She sighed and wriggled, and the
crisp curls of his pubic hair rubbed against her clit. A bolt of sensation shot to her womb and her

pussy clenched. She whimpered as she drew back again, feeling the slide of his cock inside her. His
skin radiated warmth, almost fever-hot, and a bead of sweat rolled down his temple as his face
contorted into a look of fierce concentration. She leaned forward and licked at the droplet, allowing
the salty taste to blossom on her tongue. She kissed the crease between his brows and he gave a long,
guttural groan as she took his full length back inside her again.

To have this kind of control over the huge, powerful shifter – to have him trembling beneath

her and fighting to stave off his orgasm – was heady. It was hot. She had never felt so strong, so
beautiful, so desired.

She began to move faster, feeling excitement coiling in her belly. As she rode him, she

milked his cock with her internal muscles, swiveling her hips to vary the friction. With each
movement he moaned and clutched her hips, muttering desperate encouragement under his breath. She
watched his beautiful lips shaping the words. “Oh God… Oh yes… Oh Tonya…”

Then he tensed beneath her and held his breath, and Tonya pumped furiously against him,

thirsty for his cries as her orgasm wound tighter and tighter inside her, then broke, sending shockwave
after shockwave through her and over her.

Heath shouted, his biceps bulging as he wrapped his massive arms around her and pumped

his hips. His cries were desperate, urgent, trailing off into long, hoarse moans as she felt him spurting
inside her. Her pussy throbbed around him, clenching and spasming again and again, and she heard
her own voice, wild and unfamiliar, rising above his.

* * *

It was a long time before they managed to disentangle themselves and, on shaking legs,

stagger to the bed.

Heath pulled the covers over them and Tonya snuggled against his side, exhausted and utterly

content.

“So…” Heath tangled his fingers in her hair, playing with the fiery strands. “What did you

think of my groveling?”

Tonya drew idle circles on his pecs with her finger. “I think…I’d like to see you grovel a

little more,” she said, smiling wickedly at him. “Another orgasm or two…”

She yelped as he rolled her over and pinned her beneath his large body. “I think that can be

arranged,” he rumbled, and kissed her again as his nimble fingers got busy in a variety of deliciously
naughty ways.

Chapter Thirteen

Tonya was wrung out and exhausted, wrapped in Heath’s arms and wishing she never had to
move from that spot, when a heavy pounding on the door jerked her from her dreamlike state.

“What, damn it?” Heath groaned.

Heath climbed out of bed, naked. Before he had a chance to walk towards the door, there
was a clicking sound and the door opened and swung inward. A dozen security guards poured into the
room, including the Beast and Jake. Pierre was with them as well.

Heath glowered at them, claws shooting out from his fingertips. “What the hell are you doing
in my room?”

Pierre’s expression was grim. “We have some new information. Mr. Hooper found out, and
we verified, that the day before leaving for this cruise, Tonya created a new bank account and one
million dollars was wired into it. We’re working to identify the source of those funds. We also
discovered that she is a newspaper reporter, and came on this boat using forged papers.”

Tonya scrambled out of bed, clutching the sheet to her naked body. What would Tom try to
pull next? What a grade-A pig.

“I most certainly did not open up a new bank account, and nobody wired me a million
dollars,” she said indignantly. “And Tom Hooper got me those forged papers because he thought he
could trick me into serving as his companion.”

“We will ask him about that, but it doesn’t change the fact that you boarded the ship under
false pretenses,” Pierre said, his tone stern.

This was absolute madness, Tonya thought, stunned. A million dollars? She wished!

Heath went bear, fur rolling over his skin, towering over the other men. He let out a low,
rumbling growl that threatened anyone who came near his mate.

“Heath!” Jake snapped at him. “Don’t. Shifters, Inc. has already independently verified the
million-dollar deposit. If she’s innocent, she won’t object to us searching her belongings. And her.”
At Heath’s warning snarl, he added “We’ll have a female operative do the searching.” He gestured at
one of the women with him.

“I have no problem with it at all,” Tonya said, exasperated. She glanced at Heath. She didn’t
want him to get hurt; he was a big bear, but they were up against a group of shifters who included a
lion, a bear, numerous wolves… “Shift back. It’ll be fine. We’ll clear this up,” she pleaded.

With a growl of rage, Heath shifted back to human form.

Security agents swiftly searched Tonya’s luggage and purse, then two of them took
everything she had brought with her back to their office. The rest of the people from Shifters, Inc. and
the ship’s security crew stayed behind. At least there wasn’t anyone there from Hammersmith, Tonya

noted with relief.

A female agent went into the bathroom with her and walked around her, checking her out

visually from front to back after she dropped her sheet. She confiscated all of Tonya’s jewelry,
dropping it into a plastic bag.

“Hey! That necklace was a gift from a friend!” Tonya complained.

“We’ll keep it safe,” the woman promised her.

Then Tonya quickly put on a pair of pull-on pants and a shirt – after the agent had searched

them to make sure they didn’t contain weapons.

Tonya rejoined Heath, who immediately threw a protective arm around her and glared

murderously at the security personnel before leading her off to the other end of the huge cabin. All the
security agents were standing in front of the door, Tonya noticed. As if she’d try to make a break for
it. What was she going to do – jump over the side and swim to shore? She was a fox, not a dolphin.

“We’ll be fine,” Heath reassured her, his face flushed with anger.

“Why would someone do this?” Tonya asked, bewildered. “I understand that Tom would try
to frame me. He’s turning out to be a grade-A pig. But he wouldn’t have put a million dollars in my
account. Not only that, from what they’re saying, the account was created during the day – and he
didn’t call me and ask me to come on this cruise until the evening. And the account was obviously
created to frame me – by somebody with very deep pockets. So if it’s not him, then who?”

“Very true,” Heath agreed. He frowned unhappily.

“What?” Tonya demanded.

“It’s just…when you disarmed that attacker the other day. Are you sure that you never had
any other fight training? Because I’m telling you, your moves were far too fast and too professional to
come from one self-defense class. That’s amazing natural ability combined with at least a decade of
dedicated training.”

Tonya was stunned. “You still don’t trust me?”

“It’s not that!” Heath protested. “I believe in you. I just know what I saw. I’ve seen and been
in every kind of fight. I’ve seen every level of fighter. I’m a professional. And from the way you took
out that waiter – so are you.”

Tonya shrugged Heath’s shoulder off her arm as mingled hurt and anger rushed through her
and threatened to choke her. He was looking for an excuse to break things off with her. Of course he
would be; since when, in her entire life, had anyone picked her?

“I’m going to handle this on my own,” Tonya said, with tears in her eyes. She turned and
walked back towards the security guards with Heath following her.

“Tonya, wait! I am one hundred percent with you! I’m just trying to understand!”

She folded her arms across her chest and stood with her back turned to him.

Pierre touched his Bluetooth earpiece, listening to a voice on the other end, then looked at
Tonya. “You’ll have to come with us,” he said.

“Why?” Heath demanded.

“There are explosives concealed in some of her cosmetics containers, and poison in some of
the others,” he said. Tonya felt a ripple of dizziness sweep over her. The cosmetics. Something about
the cosmetics… She couldn’t remember.

What was happening to her? She wasn’t an assassin, she wasn’t a skilled martial artist, and
she wouldn’t even know where to find explosives, much less how to disguise them as cosmetics. And
who had sent her a million dollars?

“You’re not taking her. I will rip every last one of you to shreds,” Heath shouted. He tried to
block them, but Tonya yelled, “Stop!”

She turned to him, blinking away tears. “You don’t even believe a word I say. I want nothing
to do with you. I will deal with this myself.” She had no idea how, but she didn’t want Heath to try to
help her out of some misguided sense of obligation. He clearly had no faith in her.

“Heath, don’t interfere, for God’s sake. You know we need to investigate this.” Jake and the
Beast moved to block Heath as Tonya was escorted out of the room between two security guards.

She could hear Heath following, bellowing in rage as Jake and the Beast and the other
Shifters, Inc. operatives swarmed around him. As they marched down the walkway, she saw Tom up
ahead, smirking.

“How’s it feel, you ungrateful bitch?” he yelled at her gleefully. “You’re going to prison for
the rest of your life!” Heath shifted again and lunged for him, but his fellow shifters also went animal,
and blocked him.

“I told you to stay out of the way,” Pierre snapped at him.

“Well you made it very clear we don’t work for you anymore, so I can do whatever the hell I
want,” Tom taunted.

“So can I,” the Beast snarled, lashing out with a single punch to the jaw that sent Tom
spinning, then collapsing into a heap on the deck.

Tonya was quickly hustled to the security office and into an interview room. When the door
slammed behind her, a sense of hopelessness settled over her like nothing she’d ever felt before.

Chapter Fourteen

“Keep it together, and stop pacing,” Jake snapped at Heath. “You’ve literally worn a hole in
the carpet. Once we get back to shore, we can do a better job of investigating this.” The internet had
been shut down again, they were totally cut off, and Heath couldn’t decide who he’d kill first.

Heath glanced at the carpet of Jake’s floor. Yeah, he’d worn a hole in it, because he kept
shifting and his claws were ripping it to shreds. It was one-thirty in the morning, she was still being
held in her cell and insisting she had no idea where the money or the explosives had come from, and
Heath wanted to kill everyone who wasn’t Tonya.

He met Jake’s gaze with a challenging glare. “She can’t stay in a jail cell all that time.”

“Heath, with the evidence they have, it’s understandable that they would insist on holding
her.”

“That’s my mate they’re holding!” Heath went bear again, for about the dozenth time since
they’d taken Tonya, and for the dozenth time all the other Shifters, Inc. employees shifted, dove on
him and pinned him to the ground until he shifted back.

They weren’t even bothering to get dressed anymore. Too many shredded articles of
clothing.

They all climbed to their feet, grumbling and muttering.

The Beast snapped his fingers at Heath to get his attention. “You want to help your mate?
Use your brains. Normally, and it causes me actual pain to admit this, your strength is that you know
when to use your brain and when to use brute force. Brute force isn’t going to accomplish shit here, so
if you want to help her, start thinking and figure this out. If you’d rather show what a big tough bear
you are, keep on shifting and we’ll keep on knocking you down. I’m here all night.”

Heath hated to admit it, but the Beast was right. He wasn’t one to lose control in an
emergency; it was his feelings for Tonya that were summoning the animal within him.

“All right,” he said evenly. He took a deep breath and ignored the part of his brain that was
screaming, Rescue your mate! Kill! Destroy! “Tonya could easily have gotten very close to Reshef or
Benedetta – they both invited her to be their companion. For that matter, Duncan’s been out and about
on the ship – it wouldn’t have been hard to get close enough to assassinate him. Tonya hasn’t made a
move, which to me indicates that she isn’t the assassin.”

“To play devil’s advocate, she could have been waiting until the boat was almost at port,”
Jake said. “More chance to escape.”

A brief surge of rage flowed through Heath and he forced it down. “Very risky,” he said.
“Waiting until the last minute like that would mean there was a good chance her target would be doing
something else, indisposed, whatever, and she wouldn’t be able to get to them.”

He sat down, racking his brains. “The money was deposited before Tonya even knew she
was coming on this ship. Jake, from what you tell me, you can’t tell where the money came from.”

“Not yet,” Jake said. “By the time we’ve landed, our IT team will probably have been able
to track it.”

“Somebody, somehow, knew Tonya was coming on this trip before she did. Tom was the
one got her on board. It’s likely he took a bribe.”

“From what we’ve been able to determine so far, the money actually went into that account
shortly before Interpol contacted the Shangri-La owners to warn them,” Jake said. “Somebody was
already arranging for her to come on the ship before Hammersmith was contacted. So it would
probably make sense to take the Hammersmith operatives into custody as well, until we’re on shore.”

“The question is, how and why did they target Tonya to take the fall for this?” Heath
growled, pacing the floor. “And when did they meet her? I need to talk to her, ask her if she’s met
anyone new or if anything unusual has happened in the past few weeks.”

“I’ll go,” Jake said evenly. When Heath started to protest, he said, “Pierre and his crew
won’t let you in. I’ll be right back.”

Before Heath could protest, he got up and walked out.

Fifteen minutes later, he strode through the door.

“She wouldn’t talk to you?” Heath said.

“She was sleeping very heavily,” Jake said. “She wouldn’t wake up. The guard went and
checked, and she was okay, she was just asleep.”

Something about that… Heath shook his head.

“She fell into a slumber like that on the first day we got here, where she couldn’t be woken
up,” Heath said. “But that isn’t normal for her. Other times she slept normally. This was practically
like a coma. To me, that says some kind of magic control.”

“We could consult the ship’s wizard,” the Beast suggested.

“We could, but I want to talk to Antonia first. The wizard works for the cruise company –
he’ll be representing their interests. She’ll want to help Tonya, and from what I gather, she’s got at
least some magical ability.”

Jake asked for Antonia to be sent to their room, and the shifters quickly got dressed in the
extra clothes that Jake always kept on hand for them. Shifters went through a lot of outfits.

It took about half an hour, but Antonia came marching in, looking sleep-rumpled and angry.

She stomped up to Heath and slapped him in the face, hard. Then she kicked him in the shins.
Everybody tried not to snicker. She was human; Heath would barely feel it.

“You arrest my friend? You son of a bitch! She is good person!”

“Yes, I know,” he said, exasperated. “I had already come to that conclusion.”

She stared at him, narrow-eyed. “Then why you are not get her out from jail?”

“I’m working on it! My understanding is that there is some magic in your family,” Heath said.
“Is that true?”

“Yes. Our particular talent is charms that repel the black magic and protect from curses.
Why?” She looked puzzled.

“Like the charm you gave Tonya.” Heath turned to Jake. “This deep sleep that Tonya’s falling into…
the first time it happened, it was before she wore that charm necklace. And after the ship’s security
took her necklace off, it happened again.”

Antonia went pale. “Deep sleep? That sound like, how you say, mind-control spell. You
must put necklace back on!” She pulled her own necklace off and shoved it into Heath’s hand. “Use
this one. Go now, go!”

Heath headed for the door before Jake could say anything. Jake and the Beast hurried after
him.

* * *

The Chameleon, lying on Tonya’s cell bed, opened Tonya’s eyes. It was two a.m. and, even
on a party cruise like this one, most people would be in their cabins by now. It would be easy to get
into Reshef’s quarters.

The Chameleon felt around Tonya’s throat. Thank God they’d removed that cursed necklace;
it had nearly ruined everything. Reshef should have been dead already, and Tonya should have been
blamed for it.

With that necklace on, it had been impossible to control Tonya or see her thoughts – for days.
Of course, there had been secret communications from the traitor in Reshef’s camp, the bodyguard
Tabari. Tabari had pointed Tonya out to Reshef, had done his best to lure Tonya into Reshef’s room,
but with that stupid bear hanging on Tonya’s every move, there had been no way that would happen.

No matter. The Chameleon always had multiple backup plans.

The cell door was shut, and nobody could see through it. The Chameleon quickly popped
Tonya’s fake fingernails off. They also contained explosives, and when the right three nails were
pressed together, they had a powerful charge.

Tonya-Chameleon hurried over to the door, pressed the nails together and stuck them to the
top and bottom hinges. Smoke sizzled out, and the Chameleon backed away quickly, retreating to the
far corner of the cell.

Seconds later, there was an enormous boom and the door fell inward. The Chameleon
hurried out of the cell.

Two human guards were already rushing forward, but the Chameleon disabled them both and
had them unconscious on the floor within seconds.

Now to get to Reshef’s room. Tabari would let Tonya in. He’d claim that he’d done it
because Reshef had already invited her to be a companion. She’d have to kill Reshef quickly. She
wouldn’t get to use the poison she’d concealed in one of the other fake nails. Then the bodyguards
would kill Tonya. It was far from an ideal scenario, but the most important thing was the success of
the mission. The target must die.

The Chameleon scowled and strode towards the door.

Chapter Fifteen

Tonya woke up with a start, standing in a corridor of the ship, crushed between Heath and
someone else. She was in the middle of a giant man sandwich, and for some reason her heart was
hammering and she was gasping for breath and her throat felt raw, as if she’d been screaming. Her
hands throbbed with pain as if she’d just punched someone.

“What the hell?” she demanded.

Heath let go of her and so did the man behind her. She turned and saw that it was the Beast.

Heath’s nose and lip were bleeding.

“Tonya?” He stared at her with a peculiar expression, wary, as if she was about to attack
him.

“Of course it’s me. Who else would it be?”

“Whoever was possessing you and turning you into a demon from Hell,” Heath said. “Let’s
go back into the holding area for now. I’ll explain.”

How had she gotten out of her holding cell? “Where are we?” she asked shakily.

“Outside Reshef’s quarters.”

Tonya felt a wave of dizziness sweep over her, and clutched at Heath, who put a steadying
arm around her and held her up as they walked back towards the security office – only to be passed
by medical personnel carrying out two security guards on stretchers.

“What happened to them?” she asked, flexing her aching hands.

“You happened to them. Or rather, whatever was possessing you happened to them,” one of
the shifters who was with Heath told her.

“Oh, come on,” she protested. “I couldn’t take out two security guards. That’s crazy. I was
just… I swear I just fell asleep.” Her brain still felt a little foggy, but it was clearing. Instinctively,
she reached down and touched her charm necklace. But hadn’t the security guards taken that from her?

She let Heath lead her back into the security office, where Pierre and a group of his men
were waiting with angry expressions.

“Hold off,” Heath said gruffly to Pierre. “She was not in control of her own body when she
attacked your men.”

With the other shifters standing by, Heath sat her down on a bench in the waiting area and
explained both to Pierre and to her what had just happened. He held her hand in his as he spoke.

Tonya listened with growing horror. Somebody was controlling her body? Making her attack

people? She felt sick and violated.

“Did I hurt anybody?” she asked, tears burning her eyes.

“Everyone will recover, and the ship’s wizard is on his way here to examine you,” Heath
said.

“This all is so confusing… Tom Hooper only invited me to come on this cruise the day
before we left,” she protested. “How would anyone even have known to take over my body? Why me
and not somebody else?”

“Well, physically you are Reshef’s type, so it would have been very easy for you to get close
to him,” Heath pointed out. “Whoever was hired to assassinate Reshef would have been provided
with that type of information – what kind of women he liked. And believe me, Tom will be
questioned very thoroughly about this.”

“Is Reshef safe? You should warn him that he’s a target,” she said shakily.

“We have,” Heath said. “He’s said that he won’t come out of his cabin for the rest of the
cruise. The ship is returning to port early because of all this row.”

He looked up. A short, mild-looking man with thick, round glasses had just strolled through
the door, carrying a briefcase. “Ah. That must be the wizard,” he said.

He looked more like an accountant, Tonya thought.

“Hello. Albert Winkelfield, at your service,” he said.

“Winkelfield?” Tonya asked skeptically.

“Yeah, I get that a lot.” He giggled. “Not very wizardy. Also, ‘Funny, you don’t look like a
wizard’. Shall we begin?”

He led them into one of the interview rooms and questioned Heath, Jake and Tonya about
everything that had happened so far. Pierre stood in the back of the room, still looking skeptical. He
wasn’t happy about the assaults on his men.

“I’d like you to bring that Tom Hooper person here as well,” Albert said. “I can determine
whether he was bewitched, and if he wasn’t, then he might be your assassin.”

Pierre sent one of his men to fetch Tom.

While they were waiting, he opened his briefcase and pulled out a black leather bag. He

opened the bag and poured a pile of different crystals onto the table in front of Tonya and muttered
some incantations.

When one of the white crystals began glowing red, then blinking white, then red again, he

stared at it with a look of surprise. He picked it up and shook it. He held it up to the light, then put it
down on the table again, still staring at it.

“What is it?” Heath demanded.

“Well, I’ll be,” he said. “Sangromancy. I’ve heard of it, but never actually come across it

before.”

“Explain it to those of us who don’t speak magic-geek language,” Heath said impatiently.

“What’s been done to her, and how do we get rid of it?”

“Careful,” Tonya murmured warningly to him.

“Oh, don’t worry, I won’t turn him into a toad or anything.” Albert giggled again. “I mean, I

could, but I won’t. So, sangromancy is magic that allows a person to control others after exchanging
blood with them.”

“Well, the night before I left on the cruise, I cut my hand,” Tonya mused. “I was at an art

auction, and I threw away the pieces of glass that I’d cut myself on. Anyone could have gotten ahold
of the glass shards with my blood on them.”

“This is good, though!” Heath said eagerly. “This narrows down our field of suspects

considerably.”

“Guests, security guards, caterers, bartenders…” Tonya pondered.

“Still a finite number. And there were security cameras there,” Heath said. Then he turned his

attention back to the wizard. “Why weren’t you able to detect this magic when she came on board?”

Albert indicated the blinking crystal. “The fact that it’s blinking means that this magic can

basically turn itself on and off. The magic is only active when the subject is sleeping.”

“What do you mean?” Tonya asked.

“Well, one thing it can do is give you new skills, and imprint some suggestions, like post-

hypnotic suggestions that stay in the brain. However, it only controls a person when they fall asleep –
and it can’t make them fall asleep, the person has to fall asleep naturally. As soon as they’re asleep,
the spell-caster can enter their minds, see their memories and read their thoughts, and the one who is
possessed will never know. Then the spell-caster basically acts like a puppet master, directing their
victims’ body to do anything they want.”

“Ugh.” Tonya felt as if she might gag. “That’s horrifying.”

“The ability to practice this magic comes from a very rare genetic mutation, and there have

only been a few people in the world ever known to practice it,” Albert said, holding up his crystal
and staring at it as if it might hatch into a dragon. “The Council of Magic is not aware of any living
Sangromancers. Nobody bothers to scan for it, because it just never comes up.”

“So…how do we get rid of it?” Tonya asked uneasily.

Albert’s expression turned serious. “You need to get hold of the person who cast the spell,

and then a wizard can do the blood exchange again for you to reverse it. Otherwise – don’t take that
necklace off. Or if you do, don’t fall asleep.”

Tonya clutched at her necklace, stricken. There was an assassin living in her head, who could

turn her into a killing machine if she wasn’t careful. “This is a nightmare.” She looked at Heath,
devastated. “I can’t…I can’t ask you to be with me. I’ve been made into a monster.”

“Quit trying to get rid of me, because you never will,” Heath said firmly. “I love you. We

will get this spell reversed. Even if we don’t, I will be by your side forever.”

Tonya wiped away tears with the back of her hand. “Can you…can you say that love part

again?” she asked shakily.

Chapter Sixteen

“This is ridiculous,” the Beast grumbled. “What a stubborn ass.”

Reshef still refused to allow any additional security into his room. He claimed that as long

as he stayed in his room for the rest of the trip, with the protection of his bodyguards, he’d be safe.
The ship was headed back to port anyway.

Tonya, very shaken but trying to hold it together, had been sent off to hang out in Antonia’s

room, guarded by one of the operatives from Shifters, Inc., just in case. Since they now knew that
Reshef was the target, Heath didn’t want her anywhere on the same floor.

Most of the shifters had gathered in Heath’s room, since he was right down the hall from

Reshef. Several shifters stood in the hallway, near Reshef’s door. At least they’d be close by if
anything happened. They sat and watched the video feed on their laptops. There were multiple video
cameras in Reshef’s room, and the operatives were glued to their computers, watching all the
separate feeds.

“Too bad that Tom gets off the hook,” Heath grumbled as he stared at the screen. Albert had

verified that Tom had also been bewitched by sangromancy, which was likely why he’d been so
insistent about bringing Tonya on the cruise. He’d really hoped that the bastard had been working
with the assassin, so he’d see some serious prison time.

Albert had also explained that while a Sangromancer could do the blood exchange with as

many people as they wanted, they could only control one person at a time. Apparently they’d picked
Tonya because they thought she’d have the best chance at getting close to Reshef.

“The bodyguard. That one,” the Beast said, pointing. “He’s been acting squirrelly all day.

Something off about his behavior. His body language… He doesn’t seem to be paying any attention to
Reshef. He’s watching the other bodyguards.”

“I agree,” Heath said. “That’s the guy who tried to get Tonya to go to Reshef’s room.” He felt

his gums itch as his fangs nearly descended, but forced his animal back down.

“Look at that.” Jake gestured at the screen, watching Tabori head into the suite’s kitchen. He

reached into the cabinet and pulled out a pitcher, then set it on a tray with several glasses. He got a
container of iced tea and poured it into the pitcher and , glancing around furtively, reached into his
pocket, pulled something out and dropped it into the pitcher.

“Go!” Jake shouted, sprinting towards the door, but Heath, the Beast and Tanner were

already halfway out.

There was a loudspeaker system in Reshef’s room, which the shifters had access to through

their laptops, and Heath could hear Jake yelling into it. “The bodyguard Tabori is poisoning the
drinks! Apprehend him!”

The shifters outside Reshef’s room already had the door open and were rushing in. When

Heath and his fellow operatives burst into the room, they saw a scene of mass confusion – all the
bodyguards were pointing guns at each other.

What the hell was so hard to understand about “Apprehend Tabori”?

Tabori’s eyes were bulging and his lips were peeled back in rage. He held a gun, pointing it

at Reshef’s head.

Heath leaped in front of him and batted the gun out of Tabori’s hand, then wrapped his arms

around him and pinned him. Tabori struggled furiously and shouted, “Get your hands off me, animal!
I am Reshef!”

“Release him!”

“He’s telling the truth!” Several of the bodyguards shouted at once, training their guns on the

shifters.

“If you shoot us, it’s just going to piss us off,” the Beast growled. “When we’re pissed off,

we tend to kill things.”

“Filthy beasts,” one of the bodyguards spat contemptuously, but they reluctantly lowered their

weapons.

Heath, still maintaining his tight grip, glanced over at the man whom he’d been told was

Reshef. “Who are you?” he asked.

“I am Tabori. He tells the truth, he is Reshef. But why would he try to poison me?” The

bodyguard looked confused.

Well, that explained why the bodyguard had been having sex with so many companions –

because he was really Reshef the whole time, Heath thought.

“I switched places with my bodyguard for this trip, for security reasons,” Reshef said, his

tone haughty. “That is done quite frequently in my family when we travel.”

“No, it isn’t,” Tabori cried out, his tone deeply wounded. There were tears shimmering in

his eyes. “It is never done, but you ordered me to do it and I obeyed. Why would you betray me like
this? My family has served yours for generations!”

“Silence, dog! You have no rights! I cannot be prosecuted. I have violated none of my

country’s laws.” Reshef’s lip curled in a sneer.

“You can if you just attempted to murder a man.” Pierre had just entered the room with

several of the ship’s security officers. “And we have it on videotape.” He glanced at the pitcher,
which had been knocked over and spilled on the hardwood floor. “We’ll analyze that drink, and if
there’s poison, we’ve got you for attempted murder.”

“I am immune from prosecution!” Reshef howled.

“In your country, perhaps. But you’re not in your country, are you?” Pierre’s smile was quite

nasty, and promised that no mercy would be shown.

Under questioning, later that day, Reshef admitted that he had hired an assassin to take him

out on the cruise – and then switched places with his bodyguard so that he would be the one who was

killed.

The Chameleon hadn’t been in on the ruse.

Once the assassination had taken place, he would blame his brother, the current ruler, and use

it to stage a coup.

Instead, he now faced life in prison.

Unfortunately, Reshef did not know the identity of the Chameleon. He had operated through

an intermediary, one of his trusted advisors, a man named Alexander – but even Alexander hadn’t met
the Chameleon in person.

Chapter Seventeen

Bridgit stood in the doorway of her mansion, eating Ramen noodles, as the taxi pulled up in

the massive circular driveway. She’d Googled “What do poor people eat?” and apparently Ramen
noodles were very popular among the financially challenged, so she wanted to get some practice in
before her family cut her off.

“This isn’t too awful,” Bridgit mused aloud. “I mean, I could get used to it.”

Tonya climbed out of the taxi, looking radiantly happy. She wore long, flowing white pants

and a new, flattering, low-cut top, and she practically skipped up the steps.

“Somebody got some nookie,” Bridget observed. She held out her bowl. “Look, I’m eating

poor people food! I can do this! Also I went to a thrift store yesterday. Found some cool stuff. I took a
picture of myself wearing a two-dollar maxi-skirt and emailed it to my stepmother, out of spite. She
tried calling me twenty times, but I ignored her. So, enough about me. How was the trip?”

“I am so freaking glad to be back on land.” Tonya threw her arms around Bridgit and hugged

her, making her spill some of her noodles. “If anyone ever offers you the chance to be a companion
on a seven-day sex cruise, for the love of God, run in the other direction.”

“Why, thank you, Tonya, that is very useful advice. I’m sure that I will put it into practice

often.” Bridgit let out an unladylike snort. “Did you bring me back anything?”

“I’m afraid the stuff they give out on that cruise isn’t appropriate for gifting. Unless you’d

like a few bottles of half-empty flavored lube and some edible underwear? I only took a few bites out
of it.”

Bridgit made a horrified face and cringed away from Tonya. “What the hell kind of floating

orgy was this place?”

“You do not want details. You so, so do not want details.”

Something was missing, Bridgit realized. Luggage. Tonya had returned without any. Also, the

taxi was still in the driveway.

“Where’s your suitcase? Why aren’t you coming in?”

“I have to run an errand right now. Okay, I’ve got so much news that we’re going to have to

sit down over drinks tonight for several hours for me to get it all in, so I’m just going to give you the
Cliff Notes right now. Important news part one – an assassin put a million dollars in my bank
account, and I get to keep it.”

Bridgit burst out laughing – and then realized Tonya wasn’t kidding.

“Okay. Assassin. Million dollars. You’re serious. An assassin gave you a million dollars.

Are you…are you an assassin now?” She looked at Tonya warily.

To her surprise, instead of denying it, Tonya shuddered. “Basically, no. I’m going to go with

no.”

“But you’re not sure?” Bridgit’s voice rose with alarm. “That is a very dangerous

profession. Short life-expectancy. At least from what I’ve seen in movies.”

“Can we focus here, please? I’m a newspaper reporter. I am not a hired killer.”

Bridgit nodded slowly, not fully convinced. “So you’re a millionaire now. Cool! Can I

borrow some money?”

“Sadly, I don’t have much left.” Tonya shook her head, with an expression of mock sorrow.

“You spent a million bucks?” Bridgit’s eyes widened in mingled shock and admiration. “That

fast? And I thought my shopping sprees were legendary.”

Tonya’s look of mock sorrow was replaced by a triumphant grin. “I’m replacing what your

stepmonster took back from your trust fund, and using it to help fund the animal shelter.”

It took a few seconds for that to sink in. The shelter. It would get built after all. Bridgit had

just about given up hope. She’d thought about selling her entire wardrobe, and it still wouldn’t have
been nearly enough. And all her jewelry had been left to her by her grandmother, so her parents
wouldn’t let her sell it. She’d been sure that the shelter was doomed.

But Tonya meant it. She was going to give up all her new riches for the shelter.

“Oh my God.” Bridgit’s eyes flooded with tears. She dropped her noodle bowl and hugged

Tonya, then stepped back. “Really? But…no. This could be your chance at independence. You would
never have to worry about money again.”

Tonya shook her head. “The thing is, I didn’t earn the money. It was blood money. I don’t

feel like I can spend money that should never have been mine, but I do feel like I can convert what
was meant for evil into a good cause. Stop crying! You’ll make me cry, and then my mascara will run!
And I haven’t even gotten to the exciting part!”

“What’s that?” Bridgit wiped her cheeks with the back of her hand. “Something more exciting

than an assassin, a million dollars and the animal shelter getting built?”

“I’m moving in with Heath.” She pointed at the taxi cab, and Bridgit looked again and saw

that the big bear was in the back seat, waiting for Tonya.

“But the last bit of that million – I’m going to give you for rent. Shut up,” she said before

Bridgit could argue. “You let me live here in Gothic Gardens rent-free for a year. You also let me
drive that car for free. I’m giving you a year’s worth of rent and a year’s worth of car payments.
Now you can move out, get a job, drive a cruddy car, and your parents can’t do a damn thing to
control you anymore.”

“You’re leaving?” Bridgit wiped away more tears and sniffled. She was happy for Tonya –

she knew Tonya had been crazy about the bear. She was just going to miss her.

“Oh, I’ll come around to your apartment all the time, believe me. Me and Heath will help you

find a place and move you in. Oh wait, you don’t have furniture. We’ll come up with something.
You’re also going to be my bridesmaid. Well, Heath says we’re Fated Mates, so I’m pretty sure he’ll

propose.” She yelled down to Heath, who was watching them through the rolled-down rear window,
“Are you going to propose?”

“It’s a surprise!” he yelled back. “So, no! Do not expect a proposal!”

“Yep.” Bridgit nodded. “I see a wedding ring in your near future. So wait, are you leaving

right now? You just got here! Come in and let me make you some Ramen noodles! I’ve gotten really
good at it. It involves the combination of a microwave, water and pre-packed food stuff.”

“I have to swing by Le Magnifique to run an errand. I’ll be back later so we can drink and

catch up.”

And she turned and dashed down to the taxi, leaving Bridgit near speechless with

astonishment and contemplating how much her life had just changed in the last minute.

As the taxi pulled away, Bridgit noticed that it was just Tonya and Heath in the back seat.

The Beast wasn’t with them. That was good, because he was a certified pig and she absolutely
couldn’t stand him. A great deal of her time these days was spent thinking about how much she
couldn’t stand him. So it was good that he hadn’t come by.

“Really, really good,” she said out loud to no one.

* * *

Diana was sitting in her office at the back of the building, going through paperwork. When

Tonya walked in, she looked up and smiled.

“Tonya! I heard about your trip! How was it?”

“Oh, I couldn’t answer that question in one sentence.” Tonya shook her head. “I’m here to

ask you for a favor. Heath’s waiting for me outside, so I’ve only got a minute.”

“Well, shoot. Anything for you. Jacque tells me that you’ve written some lovely articles

about this place.” Diana pushed back her chair and stood up.

“We’re going to need copies of all the security tapes from the night of the auction, and a list

of everybody who was there. Not just guests, but caterers, bartenders, artists, the auctioneer –
everyone. I can’t explain why, but it’s important.”

“Well…sure. I mean, we have all the copies already pulled, because of the art heist. Come

with me.” Diana led her down the hall, towards the storage room. And to think, she’d been tackled by
Heath in this very room, a little over a week ago.

Odd place to keep the security tapes, though, Tonya thought.

When Diana shut the storage room door behind her, she turned away for a minute and fumbled

with her purse.

Then she turned back, holding a revolver, and pointed it at Tonya’s head.

Tonya could scent the silver on the bullets. One shot would be deadly.

“What are you doing?” Her voice went high and squeaky.

“In just a minute, I’m going to enter your mind and make you take this gun, go outside and kill

Heath, and then you’ll go kill your friend Bridgit, and then, if you escape, you’re going to Italy and
you will kill Antonia. And if you don’t, I’ll find someone else to do it for me.” Diana’s eyes were
glowing dark with rage.

“Of course. You’re the Chameleon.” Tonya’s voice shook. “You bumped into me on purpose

and made me spill the glass and cut my hand. You picked me because you thought Reshef would like
me.”

“Aren’t you the genius?” Diana sneered. “But not that smart. You took your necklace off.”

Tonya’s hand went to her neck. “You thought that because you were off the ship, the threat was gone?
That was your last mistake.”

“How did you even get hired here?” Tonya shook her head in confusion. “And why?”

“Fake references, moron. And I needed to be close to the location where the cruise ship

departs, and to decide who I was going to use to carry out my assignment.”

“But…why are you even telling me all this?” Tonya protested, taking a step back. “Why stay

here? Why make me kill my friends?” Her voice rose to a high squeak.

“Because you ruined everything for me. I have never failed an assignment before. And you

exposed my secret. I’m going to take over your mind again, and send you out to destroy everything
and everyone you’ve loved. But first I wanted to see the dumb look on your face when I told you
that.”

Tonya shot her a puzzled look. “But…aren’t you forgetting something really important?”

“I am the Chameleon. I forget nothing!” Diana, or whoever she really was, announced

haughtily. “And now – say goodbye to your life, Tonya.” The Chameleon made a gesture with her
hand, then impatiently repeated the gesture. Then she looked shocked. “You’re not wearing the
necklace. How are you blocking me?”

Tonya didn’t answer. Instead, she crossed the room faster than the Chameleon could blink,

dodging behind a shelf full of crates. Bullets pinged off the crate next to her, and she scrambled
behind another crate. At the same time, the doors burst open and Heath and the rest of the Shifters,
Inc. crew rushed in.

“Silver bullets!” Tonya screamed. “She has silver!” If that silver hit Heath…she couldn’t

stand to think about it.

Several shots cracked out, and she heard Diana shriek with pain and then fall to the floor

with a thud.

“Tonya!” Heath yelled.

“I’m fine, I’m here. Is it safe?” she called back, and then he appeared, running towards her.

“Silver freaking bullets! I never should have agreed to let you do this!” he growled, grabbing

her in a big bear hug.

“It was the only way to flush her out,” Tonya said, hugging him back. “I’m fine. I move fast

for a big girl.”

They strolled back out, hand in hand, to see Diana lying on the floor, bleeding from the arm

and leg, as the Beast handcuffed her, none too gently. One of the other shifters was tucking a gun back
into his holster.

Tonya walked over to Diana and stared down at her. “What you forgot is that you

permanently imprinted me with your speed and fighting skills,” Tonya said coolly. “And we already
had the security video, and it showed you bumping into me on purpose on the night of the auction, so
we knew it was you.”

“How did you resist me? How?” Diana howled at her. “Nobody can resist me!”

Tonya yanked up the hem of her pants, revealing a magic charm on her ankle.

“I had Antonia make me a dozen of these. I’m wearing them all over,” she said.

“I will kill you! I will kill all of you!” Diana was spitting with rage. Even wounded, she

lashed out at the shifters with her feet, and one of them barely dodged the stiletto that suddenly
protruded from her shoe. That was silver-coated too.

The shifters had to pin her thrashing legs down to get her shoes off, and they bound her ankles

for good measure so she couldn’t kick them. She threw her head from side to side, trying to bite them,
as they carried her out of the room.

“Thank God. I can’t wait until the spell is removed from me.” Tonya shuddered. She wanted

Diana permanently blocked from her mind.

Diana would be executed by order of the Council of Magic in the near future, Tonya knew;

using magic to cause harm to others was a death penalty offence.

Then she thought of how quickly she’d moved across the room, and broke out in a grin. “Hey,

I’m ninja-fast now! I could work for Shifters, Inc.!”

“No!” Heath barked immediately.

“Why not?”

“Because it’s dangerous, and I love you.”

Tonya’s grin got even wider. “Can you say that one more time? I never get tired of hearing

it.”

“I love you. I love you. Hey, want to hear it echo? I LOVE YOU! Fated Mates are real, you

are my Fated Mate, and I love you!” Heath yelled happily, and it echoed off the walls. Several of the
other shifters snickered quietly, but Heath didn’t seem to care.

Tonya happily sank into his arms and breathed in his scent.

“By the way, if you do happen to propose to me, I just want you to know one thing. One deal

breaker. One thing we will not do,” she said.

“What’s that?”

“We are never, ever, ever, going on a honeymoon cruise.”

THE END