Love Defined
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Love Defined
Love Defined By Celia Kyle This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. Love Defined Copyright© 2008 Celia Kyle ISBN: 978-1-60088-227-2 Cover Artist: Tuesday Dube’ Editor: Leanne Karella All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced electronically or in print without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in reviews. Cobblestone Press, LLC www.cobblestone-press.com
Dedication file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (2 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:23]
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To my husband for his unending patience every time I tell him, “Just one more chapter.” And to the Hussy Brigade, without whom I never would have taken the first leap into submitting my work to publishers. And last but not least, to The Mom for not asking where ideas come from, but rejoicing in my creativity just the same.
Chapter One The quiet rumble of the air conditioner purring to life pulled Mattias from his peaceful slumber. He raised his head and eyed the wire mesh protecting the machine. While he loved the cool breeze flowing from the vent, the noise bothered his sensitive ears. Even though its sole purpose was to keep his room cool, the soft whir of the motor and fan annoyed him. Then the chilled air brushed across his face. He closed his eyes and inhaled the scent of fresh, cool air, savoring the way it so sweetly filled his lungs. Flipping to his back, the breeze enveloped his body in a heavenly blanket of frigid air. As tiredness engulfed him, he allowed the constant whir of the air conditioner motor to lull him back toward sleep. The urge to yawn grew until it became unavoidable. Opening his mouth wide, he inhaled the sweet breeze as it caressed his tongue. He moved to cover his mouth as he yawned and almost gave himself away. He snapped his arm down and slit his eyes. The world was upside down from his position, but he had to know if a passerby had seen file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (3 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:23]
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him commit such a human action. No one was in sight. Good. He couldn’t believe he’d almost given himself away with a yawn. He’d been there for six months, and a damn yawn had nearly done him in. Satisfied no one had seen his slip-up, Mattias arched his back and stretched his whole body from head to toe, luxuriating in the sensation of his sleek muscles and tendons pulling tight with his movements. It felt good to be lazy. To not have to worry about a phone ringing, email, or someone waiting in the reception area for a meeting on God only knew what. In the first month, he’d been so jittery. It was as if his body couldn’t stand being still. Relaxation had become so foreign to him that even the act of sitting was torture. He had nearly been killed by his neighbor and was given a very stern warning. Not so much with words, but her look said it all. After another week of the semi-solitude, he grew to love the place. The water provided by the staff was always purified and ice cold. Too bad it wasn’t beer, but beggars couldn’t be choosers. Food was always delivered twice a day, promptly at eight and five. It was generally a smidge rare for his taste, but again, beggars couldn’t be choosers. Not that he was a beggar exactly. Grateful, maybe. But definitely not a beggar. He considered it a win-win situation. He got a peaceful break from the rigorous life he normally led and they…got a prime example of a fully grown male snow leopard. A fully grown intact male snow leopard, at that. Specifically, one that didn’t have a need to mark its territory. His keepers had to be thankful for that, right? It didn’t matter. Not really. The head of the big cat department, Richard Catsis, was a friend of the family and had secured Mattias’ position in the sanctuary. Mattias just needed to get away from everything for a while. Richard gave him that opportunity. He forged the paperwork, getting him into the sanctuary as an on loan animal under the guise of a mate for the female snow leopard they already had. As if. He wouldn’t mount that female for all the meat in… A noise near the entry to the habitat drew him out of his thoughts. Slitting his eyes, he looked through the entry of his den, trying to gauge the time file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (4 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:23]
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and see if anyone was coming in. Normally, they wouldn’t dare, but with Richard, one never knew. The man had a lion-sized set of balls, without actually being a lion, of course. When no one approached, he grew concerned. It wasn’t like the keepers to disturb him except at feeding time. Occasionally, they tried to work on some sort of developmental training, but Richard managed to discourage that for his stay. There had to be something wrong. The scent of raw meat tickled his nostrils as a gust of hot, moist air pushed through the entrance of his den. Ugh! Why did he have to choose a sanctuary in Florida, of all places? Next time, he’d plan his self-imposed isolation a bit better. Rolling over, he rose to his feet and padded toward the entrance to his cave, curious of the sounds and scents wafting through his habitat. The female’s gentle chuffing could be heard across their shared space. It was such a ridiculous sound, reminding him of a child blowing a raspberry, sans their tongue. So juvenile. If the keepers expected him to make those noises, they were sadly mistaken. He would never lower himself to such a level. The thought alone disgusted him. But her chuffing continued. Shaking his head, he turned to resume his spot inside the air-conditioned sanctuary. He stopped mid step when he heard the keeper’s shrill voice. “Mattias! Here kitty, kitty, kitty!” She did not just give him some here kitty call. “It’s dinner time! Come on Mattias!” Dinner time? He looked back outside, raising his gaze to the sun to gauge the time. There was no way it was anywhere near five. It had to be closer to two, possibly three. Something was definitely wrong if they were being fed so early. And why was that woman feeding them? He’d told Richard that the woman’s voice could drive him to seriously consider eating her. And not in a good way. Her screams and cat-calls continued until he finally went outside, just to shut her up. Hopping and leaping down the faux stone structure, he landed on the dirt and grass floor with a soft thud. He took his time padding over to the feeding enclosure. He still hadn’t caught the scent of his dinner, just the horrid stench of Mischa’s steak tartare. True, most snow leopards ate raw meat, but Mattias wasn’t one of them. If he was file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (5 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:23]
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going to suffer through an unseasoned meal, it had to be somewhat cooked. Pan seared at the very least. This was…bloody. Thanks, but no thanks. He was not accepting completely raw, dripping, ground beef as a suitable dinner. He would wait for breakfast. Richard would have to have gotten the staff in hand by then. Missing one meal wouldn’t kill him. “Come on, Mattias. Time to eat. Yum, yums!” The annoying woman wouldn’t leave him alone and tried to shove the bloody mess at him. It was difficult to fight the urge to swipe at her. One teensy little swipe of his paw would teach the annoying one, wouldn’t it? Richard couldn’t be too miffed. Not if he explained why he did it. The woman was the embodiment of irritation. She wore too much makeup, making her look strangely demonic. And too much perfume, almost making him sneeze. And her general appearance made him nauseous. She had a thin structure, but she wore clothes that were two sizes too small. If she was trying to impress anyone with her appearance, she failed miserably. He shook his head, disgusted with the example of humanity standing before him. “Come on, kitty! Time. To. Eat.” She stomped her foot with each word. All that managed to do was piss off his neighbor, Mischa. She was a twitchy little snow leopard, and sudden sounds and movements pissed her off. Good. Now he wasn’t the only one. Maybe Mischa would do him a favor and spray the woman. Just because he wasn’t allowed to, didn’t mean she couldn’t. He watched Mischa with growing interest as the snow leopard stood and stared at the woman. The previously sedate chuffing turned into a low rumble. Too bad snow leopards couldn’t roar. He was sure Mischa was gearing up for a good temper tantrum and was glad he had a front row seat. Mischa’s tail flicked in agitation as the keeper’s chatter continued. Her muscles tensed at the shrieking. Some humans were so dumb. The keeper poked at the food she’d set out for him, and that’s where she made her mistake. Mischa chose that moment, when the keeper’s hand entered the cage, to strike. Like file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (6 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:23]
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lightening, she flew and batted the woman’s hand, claws unsheathed. The keeper shrieked and screamed for help, and part of Mattias wished he was human at that moment. Just so he could laugh.
Chapter Two Glasses. Glasses, glasses, glasses. Where were her glasses? Ginny had them just a moment ago, and now they were gone. Walking wouldn’t be much fun without them. Well, walking, driving, reading, anything really, wouldn’t be much fun. And she was already late. She knew it, even if she couldn’t see the clock to know for sure. She stumbled through her home, touching all of the surfaces, hoping her hand would bump the darn things. Her searching was to no avail. She did have an extra pair somewhere though. If only she could remember where. Too bad she wasn’t a fan of contacts. She knew where those were. Her beautiful blue contacts were tucked safely away in her medicine cabinet upstairs. After spending so much on them, they would forever hold a place in her home, even if she never wore them again. One experience of putting something foreign in her eyes was enough, thank you. Back to finding the glasses. Ginny couldn’t exactly do her job without them. Part of her analysis would be to visually inspect her patients, which she couldn’t do if she couldn’t see. Frustrated, she ran her hand through her hair. It caught on something as her fingers combed through her locks. Her glasses! She was such a moron sometimes. She’d perched them on her head while file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (7 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:23]
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she washed her face. Settling them on her nose, she glanced at her watch. Shit. She was already a half hour late. God, she hated being her sometimes. Gathering her notes and messenger bag, she forced her feet into her sneakers as she rushed out the door. She was still wiggling her heels into her shoes as she unlocked her SUV’s door and hopped in. Settling into the driver seat, she checked her mirrors and clicked her seatbelt into place before starting the engine. A fanatic about checking for oncoming traffic, it took her five minutes just to pull out of her parking spot. Sometimes, like now, she really hated her obsessive-compulsive tendencies. One near miss on the highway, and now she couldn’t even change lanes unless she was sure, super sure, that it was safe. Driving was a chore for her, but she couldn’t stand to let anyone else drive her around. It was a necessary evil. Part of her wanted to move to New York for the public transportation alone. Problem with that were all those people. When too many people got squished together, they touched other people. The thought of such a thing sent a shiver down her spine. Gross. So, for now, she and her highly dependable SUV would putter around the city streets, doing her best to avoid others while getting from point A to point B. Pulling into the parking lot at the San Pallo Exotic Animal Sanctuary, Ginny gathered her belongings and hopped from the SUV. That was another thing she hated—being short and always having to hop in or out of cars and trucks. She loved her SUV for the space it provided, especially if she had to transport a small, exotic cat, but did it have to be so darn high? Grumbling because she dropped a reference book when she hopped down, she bent to pick it up. Of course, her glasses fell off her face. She really needed to get them adjusted. Snatching them off the ground, she straightened her messenger bag and trudged across the lot toward the employee door. Man, she hoped someone would be there to let her in. The director of the sanctuary had called her in a panic. Apparently, Dr. Catsis had been in a car accident and wouldn’t be able to work. Normally, the assistant department heads would step in and pick up the slack. Unfortunately, Dr. Catsis also acted as the veterinarian-on-duty for the big file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (8 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:23]
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cats, and one of the poor dears was ill. Ginny was happy to help in any way she could. She and Dr. Catsis had worked side-by-side on many occasions when she volunteered at the sanctuary. Now, she’d be paid for her work. Woo hoo! She knocked on the door and wasn’t surprised to see Milo waiting for her. The big, burly security guard with his coppery, sun-kissed skin and shocking white hair always looked out for her when she worked and never let her walk to her car alone on nights that she volunteered late. It didn’t matter that he was sixty and would likely die of a heart attack if he ever truly had to defend her. It touched her that he cared. “Miss Ginny.” Ginny smiled. The man still wouldn’t drop the Miss from her name. In spite of the rough morning she had, the sweet giant always brought a smile to her face. “Hey, Milo. Hear there’s a kitty giving ya’ll some trouble.” Two words from Milo, and she had slipped back twenty years to a gangly ten-year-old with a southern drawl that wouldn’t quit. Somehow, talking to the sweet, older man always did that to her. Milo sighed, resting his entwined fingers on his bulging belly. “Yes, Miss Ginny. We got ourselves a little one in a bad way. Let me tell you about it while we make our way to the habitat. The big boss said I needed to rush you on over there to figure out what’s wrong with this one.” He held his arm out to her in a gesture she was familiar with. She wrapped her hand around his arm, and they started their journey down the tree-lined path. “We’ve got us a snow leopard on loan from a zoo. He’s been here nearly six months, but lately he hasn’t eaten a thing. And with Dr. Richard out because of his accident, the big boss had to get someone in here fast. Poor dear. I think part of his problem is…well, you’ll see when we get there.” Ginny appreciated anything and everything Milo could share with her. He may never know the technical term for anything, but he was a watcher. More than that, he cared about every single animal the sanctuary housed. If an animal was having a bad day, Milo would know about it first, and she found him invaluable in caring for the big cats. As it turned out, Ginny didn’t have to see the problem to diagnose it. She file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (9 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:23]
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could hear the living, breathing problem from the lion habitat, and she groaned. The screeching, high-pitched screams of Monica Carrell. “Monica.” “Well, Miss Ginny, I knew you would be able to handle things.” She patted Milo’s hand and drew away from him. “Thanks for the escort, Milo, but I think I’ll take it the rest of the way alone. Ms. Carrell and I are going to have a come to Jesus meeting, and it ain’t goin’ to be pretty.” He squeezed her hand in return. “All right, then. I’ll come back before I leave to check on you. You be careful, Miss Ginny. That Monica woman is darn near the devil incarnate.” The fact that he spoke of Monica without adding the Miss to the beginning of her name was quite telling. Milo really didn’t like the woman, and she couldn’t blame him. Monica bought herself a position as keeper in the big cat department of the sanctuary in hopes of catching the director’s eye. She caught the man’s eye with the number of zero’s on her check, but that was all. Without Dr. Catsis around to keep an eye on her, Lord only knew what trouble the woman had caused. Squaring her shoulders, she put one foot in front of the other, leaving Milo to get back to work. She was doing well, too, until she tripped and landed on the sidewalk with a thud, sprawled on the ground. She looked back down the path for what tripped her, and nothing was there. Figures. She was constantly tripping over air. Thank God Milo hadn’t witnessed her swan dive onto the pavement. If he had, he would start driving her from habitat to habitat in that stupid golf cart again. Regaining her feet, she brushed the dried leaves and dirt from her clothes and started for the snow leopard habitat. She had a meeting with Monica, and she wanted to get it over with as soon as possible. ***** If the woman would only come a few feet closer, Mattias would have her. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (10 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:23]
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A few swipes, a nibble or two, and the she’d be silenced. Or maybe she would be stupid enough to come into the habitat. Yeah, that could work. Then he could pounce on her. One good bite, and it would be over. The headline tomorrow would read, Woman Mauled In Freak Snow Leopard Attack. He would shift when it was over, and the snow leopard would never be found. He wouldn’t get the global recognition as a man that rid the world of such a wretched woman, but that was okay. It was a perfect plan. If only the maddening woman would cooperate and come a little closer. He thought about the promise he’d made to Richard, and decided that promising not to harm the keepers didn’t apply to this woman. Plus, after not eating for nearly a week because she kept trying to feed him raw meat, she was on his last nerve. Richard obviously put her near him so that he could take care of the situation. Why else would such an irritating woman be allowed near animals? Yep, Richard wanted this wench gone, and Mattias was happy to help him out. Just the teensiest bit closer and… “Ms. Carrell!” Goody, another one. He was going to dine in style tonight. Even if rare wasn’t his thing, he could adapt. He’d take one for the team and rid the world of annoying, inept women. Who was he kidding? He’d never actually harm anyone. It was fun to dream though. The skinny, aggravating bitch froze mid screech and turned to face the bodiless voice. The woman’s face turned a bright, beet red, but she held her tongue. Skirting the umpteenth raw meal he’d been offered, Mattias moved closer for a better look. He hoped to catch a glimpse of the woman that could get the bitch to shut up. From his vantage point, pressed against the bars of his habitat, he couldn’t see much. As far as he could tell, the woman was short, and he saw a flitter of blonde hair as she unloaded her belongings. A canvas messenger bag and a book were tossed on the ground. For all intents and purposes, the action was one of nonchalance, but the stranger’s voice was hard as steel. “You will cease to speak in that manner. Is that understood?” “Who do you—” file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (11 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:23]
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“I am the veterinarian brought in to fix the mess you’ve created, starting with your screeching. So zip it. Next, you’ll get me the records for these two animals. I want to see their feeding and observation reports immediately. Every single note you’ve taken on them, I want in my hands in five minutes. Is that understood?” Mattias liked her. Liked her a lot. Maybe he wouldn’t have to break out of his vacation habitat just yet. After a week of the screeching woman trying to feed him raw meat, he seriously considered making a break for it. Richard’s job be damned. The man hadn’t been back for seven days, and he was starving. Maybe this new arrival would sort things out, and he wouldn’t have to leave just yet. Richard obviously was no longer up to taking care of things. Then again, Mattias had never known Richard to not take care of his obligations. What if something happened to the man? He couldn’t finish the thought because the screeching one started up again. “I don’t answer to you! You’re just—” “Responsible for the welfare of these animals until Dr. Catsis returns.” This new woman stepped forward to confront the screeching one, Ms. Carrell. So tiny, was his first thought. She barely crested five feet from what he could tell. Starting at her head, his gaze drank up her presence. Pale, blonde hair framed a full, round face. He couldn’t tell the color of her eyes; the glare from the glasses perched on her pert little nose hid them from his view. His gaze continued its travels, pausing at her full breasts barely contained by an old T-shirt. Moving on, he followed the curve of her waist until it flared out to a set of full, rounded hips encased in a frayed pair of shorts. Her legs were delicate, creamy white. While she appeared comfortable in her clothes, he could tell she didn’t go out into the sun too often. She was so pale, she’d burn almost instantly. Silence reigned throughout his perusal. Drawing his gaze from the delectable curve of her ass, he focused on her face. Tense, as if prepared for battle, the woman stood her ground against Ms. Carrell. A fighter. The screeching one towered above the defender, but the woman didn’t flinch, didn’t even move a muscle. Ms. Carrell huffed as she narrowed her file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (12 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:23]
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eyes. “You’ll be sorry about this. Wait until the direct—” “What makes you think he hasn’t? Who do you think called me?” The tension buzzed and popped from both the newcomer and Ms. Carrell. Blood draining from Ms. Carrell’s face, and her shoulders slumped as her bravado fled. “Fine,” the woman mumbled as she brushed past the new arrival. The woman turned and watched Ms. Carrell stalk away. Her body thrummed, every muscle visibly tense beneath her milky skin. Then suddenly, she dropped to the ground. One moment she was standing off against the horrendous woman and the next, she was crumpled on the floor, landing with her legs crossed. Mattias pressed against the bars of his self-imposed prison, trying to get closer to the woman that captured his attention. A shaking hand pushed her glasses to the top of her head. She pinched the bridge of her nose, eyes squeezed closed, while the other continued to shake as it rested on her knee. He watched her with wonder. Minutes ago she was standing tall and proud as she faced off against that horrid woman. Now, she was seated on the floor, shaking like a leaf. The shift from backbone of steel to feather in the wind intrigued him. He pressed tighter against the bars as he raised his nose to scent the wind. The stench of bloody meat overpowered his senses. He could smell nothing but what Ms. Carrell tried to pass off as his dinner. A shudder ran down his spine at the thought of all of the meat. The woman took a deep breath, flexing and relaxing the hand on her knee. Finally, she removed the hand from the bridge of her nose and opened her eyes, staring into the distance. Blue. No, not just blue. The most breathtaking, pale blue he’d ever seen. The center of her iris was so pale, it was almost white. The white faded to a gorgeous, soft blue ringed in a line of navy. Striking. His stomach clenched, and he sucked in a quick breath as if he’d been kicked in the gut by a steel-toed boot. He had the urge to wrap his arms around her and tell her that everything would be okay. Difficult, though, considering he was still in his snow file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (13 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:23]
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leopard form. What could he do to comfort her though? That stupid noise Mischa made...the keepers seemed to like that. Inhaling a deep breath through his nose, he exhaled through his mouth, expecting to hear a sound similar to his neighbor’s. Unfortunately, he only managed to huff. Damn. He inhaled again, closing his mouth a bit, hoping that would do the trick. Close, but no cigar. The third time, he brought his tongue into action. Chuffing always sounded a little like a raspberry. Maybe that’s what he was missing. He glanced around, making sure Mischa wasn’t nearby to witness his embarrassment, and went for it. Another deep breath, tongue sticking out, he blew. It sounded nowhere near what it was supposed to, but it did get the woman’s attention. Well, at least it sort of worked. Her eyes moved in his direction, but they seemed…unfocused. That’s when he remembered her glasses. That seemed to be when she remembered them, too. She muttered as she searched for them. “Glasses. I just had them a second ago. Where did they go? Stupid things. Always disappearing. I swear, if they don’t stop growing legs and disappearing…” She looked around, and when she bent her head, they fell into place. “Oh! There they are.” Her head turned in his direction. He didn’t think it was possible, but the glasses seemed to make her beautiful beyond compare. The way they framed her sweet face, he didn’t want her to ever take them off. “And there you are.” Their eyes locked. For the first time since he’d come to the sanctuary, he hated the bars.
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Chapter Three So beautiful. And so sad. The coat of the snow leopard before her lacked the luster of a healthy animal. Poor thing. Ginny’s heart broke for the animal before her. It had been in Monica’s care for a mere seven days, and this was what she had managed to do. God only knew what else could be wrong, but at the very least, his diet was lacking. Standing on shaky legs, she peered into the enclosure and saw that his meal was left untouched. Curious, considering snow leopards lived on a raw meat diet. Then again, there were always exceptions to the rule. The only way she would really know how to care for him would be to find all of the notes the other keepers had taken along with his records. Monica hadn’t returned, so that meant she would have to hunt them down herself. No bother. Taking care of animals was something she loved doing. “All righty, big guy. I’m going to hunt down your records and the keeper’s notes, and we’ll see if we can’t get you feeling a bit better.” The snow leopard cocked his head to the side as she spoke. It was amazing that animals always seemed to listen when a person spoke, almost as if they could understand. She snorted at that thought. “Yeah, he can understand me. Maybe he could tell me what the problem is and just save me some time” Grabbing her reference text and messenger bag from the ground, she trekked toward the office next to the habitat. Everything about the snow leopard would be housed there, along with any special supplements the animals may be on. Unlocking the door, she walked in, searching for the lights along the wall. Flicking them on, she was shocked at what she found. Messy didn’t even begin to describe the office. Disastrous was a good start though. Papers and file folders were strewn everywhere with no rhyme or reason. They lined every flat surface, including the floor. Empty, half-empty, and even a few full coffee cups were scattered around the countertops. There was no way Dr. Catsis would have allowed the office to become such a mess. This had to have been Monica’s work. Damn that woman! Ginny was still shaking from her confrontation with the wannabe keeper. Technically, she was employed by the sanctuary as a file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (15 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:23]
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keeper, but she couldn’t think of her that way. Nothing the woman ever did was for the animal’s benefit, only her own. She’d work with the lions, tigers, and bears, oh my! No, the sanctuary didn’t have any bears. Damn, she hated when her mind wandered. Shaking her head, she tried to remember where her thoughts were before they wandered. Oh, yeah, Monica. The woman would do anything if she thought it would catch the director’s eye. The only things that ever caught the director’s eye were donations to the sanctuary and the animals themselves. Oh, and guys. But Ginny was going to keep that golden nugget to herself for a while. Sighing, she glanced around the room once more before looking through the window toward the snow leopard habitat. The male snow leopard was high on his manmade mountain at the mouth of his den. If she didn’t know better, she would say he watched her. Rolling her eyes at the direction her thoughts were going, she turned back to the office. It would be a long night of cleaning and organizing before she could even begin to address the snow leopard’s health issues. Shoving aside a stack of papers, she plopped her belongings on the floor near the door. She pulled her hair back into its customary ponytail and went to work. She dumped the contents of the coffee cups down the sink, and the cups she left to soak in hot water. Not that she’d ever drink from them again. Unless she could find a way to sterilize them, of course. She couldn’t hold back the shudders running rampant through her body as she gathered the different piles of notes. They were covered from everything ranging from coffee rings to donut crumbs. One would think a woman that thin wouldn’t even look at a donut, let alone eat one. But the evidence was there. Monica was a woman that loved her sweets. Ginny loved her sweets, too, just not everywhere she touched. Once the papers were stacked in a pile on the desk, she began the arduous task of cleaning everything. Thank God Dr. Catsis was a clean freak as well and kept the office stocked with an amazing array of cleaning products. She wouldn’t have been able to spend another minute in the office without the ability to scrub it from top to bottom. She pulled on a pair of rubber gloves and went to it, using every cleaning file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (16 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:23]
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product that contained bleach she could get her hands on, rubbing and scrubbing until the gooky scum build-up was gone from every surface. She tried the door in the back corner of the office, but it was locked tight. It had to house the small cot and kitchenette each office typically contained. Maybe she’d get lucky and find the key. It would be great if she could be even luckier and find the room spotless, but after seeing the condition of the office, it wasn’t likely. Hours after the sun had set, she settled into one of the office chairs to sort through each piece of paper, a new pair of gloves firmly in place. Until she could clean everything, the gloves would be her second skin in the office. First, she sorted the reports into two stacks; one for the female, Mischa, and one for the male, Mattias. Mischa’s pile was quite a bit larger than Mattias’, but she was sure she’d figure out why when she read the reports. After sorting the reports into separate piles, she sorted the records by order of date. It thrilled her that Dr. Catsis had been consistent in his daily recordings of the animals’ behavior and health. At least the records were complete until his accident. Maybe reading through them could help her figure out what was going on now. Her eyes grew tired as she thumbed through each page. She took her glasses off, rubbed her eyelids as the stress of the day caught up to her, and then putting them back in place. Checking her watch, she saw that it approached midnight, well past her normal bedtime. She tugged the rubber gloves from her hands before crossing her arms and using them as a pillow. Just a few winks would hold her over. She was anxious to figure out what was going on with the animals. She just needed a few minutes of shut-eye. ***** Mattias didn’t want the sweet seductress to go. He watched her pace away on shaky legs, and every instinct, both human and snow leopard, urged him to care for the woman, and it scared him like nothing before. He was a selfish bastard. He knew it. Hell, everyone knew it. And yet, this little slip of a woman had him wanting to shift and carry her away to paradise file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (17 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:23]
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without even exchanging names. And that was from simply looking at her. He’d be in a whole other heap of trouble if he scented her and discovered they were… No. He didn’t want to let his thoughts wander there. He paced his faux mountaintop, ducking into his den to cool off every now and again. She’d been scrubbing furiously for hours in the office before she finally nodded off to sleep, sitting in a chair. That couldn’t be comfortable, and she would surely wake up with kinks in her back and neck. Scanning the nearby area from his position, he made sure that it was just him and the other occupants of the sanctuary nearby. Re-entering his den, he padded to the furthest, darkest corner where he’d hid his belongings. He dug for the keys to the habitat gates and picked them up with his teeth, grimacing at the coppery, metallic taste in his mouth. Walking quietly out to the mouth of his den, he scanned the area once again, this time reaching out to the other animals through his magic in order to ensure that the only human in the vicinity was his nameless beauty. Convinced no one observed him, he leapt across the faux boulders until he sat by the exterior gate. Dropping the keys, Mattias closed his eyes and spoke to Gaia, the mother of all beings, and channeled her magic into his body. The warmth of Gaia’s love enveloped him and enabled his change from snow leopard to man. In a swirl of mist and heat, his body shifted and morphed with the aid of her magic. Rising from his kneeling position, he snatched the keys from the ground and unlocked the gate. Exiting, he turned and relocked the gate. He sensed Mischa’s eyes on him, and he looked up in time to see the flick of her tail as she disappeared into her den. He’d have to be careful if he made leaving a habit, which he thought might be a possibility if the nameless beauty remained. Walking gingerly across the concrete path, he made his way to the office door. Turning the knob, he prayed that it would be unlocked. It was. He thanked Gaia, and at the same time cursed the woman for being so careless. Didn’t she realize that anyone could have walked in and caught her unaware? There were all manner of unsavory creatures that called the file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (18 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:23]
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night their home. Biting his tongue, he slipped into the office with silent steps. Closing the door with a soft click, he stood near the door as his eyes adjusted to the bright lights. Slowly, the room came into focus, and his gaze landed on his mystery woman. His mystery woman? No, not his. The. The mystery woman. That settled in his mind, he approached her with infinite care. The last thing he needed now was to have her awaken before he got close enough to inhale her scent. Awakening to a naked stranger in the room could be a frightening experience. Awakening to a naked stranger in the room that was trying to smell you…well, that could be terrifying. He didn’t want to take the chance. In all honesty, he wasn’t even sure if he would be able to smell anything but cleaning products. Watching her scrub the office from top to bottom didn’t prepare him for the assault on his delicate senses. The scents of bleach and lemon permeated the air, overpowering him in minutes. If the smell affected him in such a way, what was it doing to his woman? Striding with soft steps, he moved to the window. Flipping the latch, he opened it, allowing fresh air to flow into the small space. He didn’t move away from the window for several moments, but instead let the clean air infuse his body. The longer he stayed in the bleach-scented room, the harder his head pounded. Shaking his head in an effort to clear his mind, he sought out the woman once again. At the sight of her curled so innocently against the desk surface, his cock awoke, hardening with each step he took. By the time he reached her side, he was fully erect and aching. He crouched down near her, brushing her golden hair over her shoulder. Her sweet face took his breath away. She sniffled as he watched her. Her pale, pink tongue snaked out of her mouth and licked her lips, drawing his attention there. Those lips, full and lush, begged to be licked and nibbled. He leaned toward her, his mouth almost upon hers, before he managed to stop himself. But he wouldn’t let his human conscience keep him from the briefest of tastes. He brushed his mouth across hers in a feather-light touch. She sighed as he pulled away and opened her mouth a fraction, as if file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (19 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:23]
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she offered an invitation. And he couldn’t refuse. Leaning forward again, he pressed his lips to hers, his tongue daring to lick her lower lip just before he sucked it gently. Mattias released her lips but took the moment to inhale her natural fragrance. Sweet vanilla, fresh snow, and her burgeoning arousal entered his nostrils and flooded his senses. It was as if he could taste and touch every part of the sleeping woman through his body with one inhalation of her scent. He now knew for certain what his body had sensed before. This woman was his mate. Without question, she was meant to spend her life with him. She moaned and shifted in the seat, and for a split second he thought she was going to awaken, but she rubbed her face against her arms and, with a sigh, settled back into slumber. He didn’t think she could be comfortable sleeping in the ancient office chair, bent across the desk as she was. Looking around the room, he noticed the door in the corner. Padding across the room, he tried the knob and found it locked. He assumed the door protected the small living quarters attached to all remote offices. Gripping the knob tightly, he turned it, breaking the lock with brute strength. It made more noise than he was comfortable with, groaning as it broke, but he couldn’t do anything about it. He snapped his head around as soon as the door opened, making sure the woman slept. He let out the breath he’d been holding when he saw she still dozed. Pushing the door open, he surveyed the room. A bed stood, neatly made, in the far corner. To his left, a miniature refrigerator and hot plate were plugged in and ready to use. The air was bit muggy from being closed for so long, but the room appeared clean. More importantly, the bed had to be more comfortable than a chair. For the time being, this room would do nicely for his woman. Returning to his woman’s side, he stood next to her for a moment, awed by her beauty. She wasn’t beautiful in the classical sense, but she embodied everything he found physically appealing in a woman. Her pouty lips called to him, and the smudge of dirt on her upturned nose almost made him chuckle. For a woman that had been fanatically cleaning, she didn’t seem to take care of cleaning herself very well. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (20 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:23]
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Sighing, he bent to do what he’d been putting off for twenty minutes. He scooped her into his arms and held her for a moment as she grumbled and shifted until she was comfortable in his grasp. Damn. He could stand there all night, holding her and watching her sleep. He just wasn’t brave enough to risk her waking up or he’d do it. Quietly stepping through the door, he laid her on the bed, taking care to not disturb her sleep. Once settled, he placed a blanket across her body, leaving the room while he could. He pulled the door half way closed as he exited and stood in the office, taking deep breaths. He needed to get himself under control. He thought his heart would burst from his chest at any moment. And his cock…well, it might burst as well. He made it all the way to the outer door of the office before his inner beast tried to betray him. His human consciousness warred with his beast over how to proceed. Did he walk away and woo her? Or take her now while he could? He braced his body against the door as his internal battle raged, his human consciousness winning for the moment. Forehead pressed against the door, he opened his eyes to stare at the floor. Something else was in his vision, a messenger bag. It had to be her bag. Dropping to his knees, he rifled through it until he found what he’d been searching for. Her sanctuary ID badge hung from a bright pink lariat. Turning it in his hands, he finally had a name to go with his mate. Virginia Taylor. Replacing her belongings as he had found them, he left the room while he still could. At least now he had a name to go with his beauty.
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Chapter Four “Miss Ginny.” Ginny snorted, rolling over and snuggling under the blanket. “Miss Ginny!” What did Milo want so early in the morning? Wait. Milo? Sitting straight up in the bed, Ginny struggled with the blanket and landed in a heap on the floor with a grunt. Untangling the offending piece of fabric from her feet, she looked around the room, trying to figure out where she was. Light from a small window above the bed illuminated the room, giving her a clear view of everything around her. How the hell did she get here, and what woke her up? She’d been having a wonderful dream. A gorgeous man with piercing gray eyes had swept her off her feet, giving her everything her heart desired. Of course, it had to be ruined by her clumsiness, didn’t it? Only she would fall out of bed just when the dream got good. “Miss Ginny, I really think it’s ’bout time you done got yourself out of bed.” Oh, that’s right. Milo woke her up. Using the bed to haul her tired body off the floor, she headed toward the door. Opening it fully, she found herself in the office she had spent most of the night cleaning. Frowning, she looked at the doorknob. It had been locked the night before, hadn’t it? Maybe not. Maybe her mind played tricks on her. Or, once again, she got herself so tired she forgot how she got to bed. It happened more often than she liked to admit. Leaving the door to the sleeping quarters open, she made her way across the room, stopping mid way to stare at the open window in confusion. Had she remembered to open the window when she was done cleaning? Darn it, she hated running herself so ragged that she couldn’t remember doing things. It didn’t do a bit of good for herself or the animals. “Miss Ginny. I mean now, young lady.” Milo was working himself into a lather over waking her up. Stumbling as she wiped sleep from her eyes, she padded to the outer office door. Wrenching the door open, she took one step and tripped, falling flat on her file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (22 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:23]
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stomach and catching her weight on her hands. She bit her lip to keep from crying out in pain as small rocks and twigs dug into her palms and knees. Moaning, she rolled onto her back, pushing her glasses back in place as she stared into Milo’s concerned eyes. “Morning, Milo.” She yawned, covering her mouth with her hand. He gave her a hint of a smile in return, eyes flicking from her face toward her feet and back again. A low growl emanated from a few feet away, near her feet. The vibrations traveled up her legs and through her body until her hands shook with the force of the sound coursing through her. She didn’t want to look. Really, really didn’t. But the curious, and generally dumb, portion of her brain wouldn’t let her not look. Bringing her hands down, she pushed up onto her elbows, eyes closed. That was one step closer to looking, right? The curious part of her brain should be appeased at that. Unfortunately, it wasn’t. Slitting one eye, she couldn’t believe what she saw. Both of her eyes flew open before she had a chance to stop them. There, at her feet, was a snow leopard. Not just any snow leopard. No, it was the one she was sent to the sanctuary to help. Mattias. She could tell easily. After studying notes on the animal most of the night, she could tell by his markings that, without a doubt, Mattias was the one who lay casually at her feet. Casual was an overstatement really. While he may have been lying down near the office doorway, she could see that every muscle was tense, and he was just short of baring his teeth. Ginny couldn’t tell if the growl was meant for her or Milo or both. Not wanting to agitate the animal further, she slowly scooted away. Milo reached down to grab her arms. Mattias’ growls increased in volume, and he gained his feet in one fluid motion. He took two silent steps forward, baring his teeth. “Back away, Milo. Slowly,” she whispered, barely moving her mouth. She, better than anyone, knew what animals were capable of. Hell, in the wild, a snow leopard would kill its own mother for territory. There was no telling how Mattias would react to them, and so far, things didn’t look good. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (23 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:23]
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Even with the animal’s aggressive stance and behavior, she took a moment to admire the beauty of him. Pale gray fur covered his body from nose to tail, and black spots ringed in dark gray created the perfect camouflage for life in the mountains. Too bad they were in the tropical climate of Florida, where green and browns were the typical colors year round. As Milo eased away from her, the growls subsided to a low rumble. If her heart wasn’t ready to burst from her chest, she’d almost call it a purr. That thought had laughter bubbling deep in her chest, and she couldn’t hold back her smile. Yep, she’d officially lost it. She was lying on the ground with one very pissed off snow leopard looming over her, and she couldn’t stop smiling. Where were the guys with white coats when she needed them? Mattias tilted his head to the side, staring at her as she grinned like an idiot. At least he didn’t look as though he was ready to make her breakfast anymore. That was good, right? Eyes locked with hers, he lowered his head to her legs and sniffed. His whiskers and nose twitched as he skimmed her skin. The tiny hairs on his muzzle tickled the daylights out of her, and any second she would curl into a ball with the giggles. His cold, wet nose touched her knee a second before his sandpaper tongue snaked out to lick her inner thigh. Ginny couldn’t stop her body’s response. Her knee jerked up, but she managed to catch it before she hit him in the nose. Its eyes met hers as he lowered his head to her knee, rubbing his muzzle and head on her body. “Oh, Mattias. You’re just a big lover, aren’t you? How am I going to get you back inside your habitat?” Until Milo answered her, she hadn’t realized she’d spoken aloud. “Well, Miss Ginny, I think I might have something with me that could help.” Mattias moved his body further up hers and lay down next to her. Silky fur pressed against her leg from thigh to ankle, and his tail moved to settle between her thighs. It had been so long since anything beside her own hand had been there that her body tensed at the contact. No matter how innocent or innocuous the touch was coming from the animal, it alarmed her. The snow leopard’s tongue snaked out again, licking and nuzzling the file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (24 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:23]
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skin on her arm. When the low rumble began anew, she knew for a fact that it was a purr. “Something that could help with what?” She had no idea what Milo was talking about. She hadn’t bothered to pay attention. Her mind focused on the sensations the snow leopard’s gentle caress caused. Never again would she be granted the opportunity to be this close to a conscious snow leopard. Any other time she’d been near a wild animal had been with the assistance of other keepers or after the animal had been tranquilized. She’d remember this experience forever. Still resting on her elbows, she turned her hand palm up, offering it to Mattias. The animal accepted the invitation and rubbed its head on her hand. She took advantage of the leopard’s affection and allowed her fingers to sink into the silky, warm fur. Once in a lifetime. She sighed, enjoying the vibrations coursing through her body from the Mattias’ purr. Milo cleared his throat, drawing her attention from the animal. “Miss Ginny. Did you happen to find any notes about Mattias here? My Janie made him a great big pot roast for breakfast this morning, and that might be just the encouragement he needs to get back in his habitat.” Oh. Right. Mattias was a borderline wild animal that should be caged. Got it. Was it horrible that she didn’t want to cage the animal again? Instead, she wanted to lie here as long as he was willing, and enjoy the softness of his fur on her skin. “Miss Ginny?” Oh, yeah, Milo. Notes. Notes on Mattias. That’s right. She’d read some notes detailing the animal’s diet and the fact he liked his meals cooked, not raw. Ginny questioned the directions at first but then remembered that even house cats could be picky eaters. Who was she to say that a hundred and twenty pound cat couldn’t be as well? She had already written a reminder before she nodded off to cook breakfast for the big guy to see if that got him to eat. “That sounds like a good idea, Milo. I’ll wait for you to get back. It’s not like he’ll let me go anywhere.” She laid her head back on the ground and closed her eyes. At least if she were to meet her maker, she’d do it happily. Mattias watched Milo’s retreating form until he turned the corner at the file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (25 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:23]
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end of the path, and then his attention was solely on Virginia. His Ginny, as Milo called her. His body pressed against hers gave him the opportunity to touch and be near her as he wished he could have the night before. True, he was still in his snow leopard form, but he’d take what he could get. He pressed his face against her arm and chest, her breasts pillowing his head. His tongue crept out for another swipe of her exposed skin. For the love of Gaia, he was lost. Ginny tasted as good as she smelled. Vanilla mixed with new fallen snow met his tongue as he laved the sweet skin of her arm. He’d never been one to purr, but he couldn’t help himself. His beast was overjoyed by the contact it had with its mate and never wanted to stop. He rubbed his chin along her forearm and licked the inside of her elbow. Her body jerked beneath his, and he repeated the motion, looking into her eyes when he finished. Restrained laughter danced in her eyes, and she bit her lip. Turning back to her arm, he continued to assault the sweet spot he’d found. Giving her pleasure of any kind was his first priority now. He’d found his mate, and his goal was to keep her happy, always and in all ways. “Oh, Mattias. Such a sweet boy, aren’t you?” Her other hand rose from the ground and, with infinite care, she brought it to his neck. Her fingers sifted and glided through his fur. His beast was in heaven, while his human nature told him to make his move. It wasn’t time though. His beast knew it and held tight control. While curiosity may have killed the cat, patience got it an elk dinner. He hoped patience would get him his mate. Ginny’s body continued to relax against his as her breathing became deep and even. She wasn’t asleep, her hand still stroked is neck, but she was definitely relaxed. Part of him wished he could enjoy the embrace as a human man, but he knew it was impossible. His little doctor wouldn’t be able to take such a shock. Hell, most humans couldn’t. It took a special, open-minded individual to accept that there were things that ventured beyond the explainable. He placed his chin atop her breast and watched as her eyes flitted close. She sighed as her hands explored the top of his head and around his ears. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (26 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:23]
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He didn’t mind her exploration and loved that she loved touching him. Lost in her touch, he didn’t hear Milo return. “Mr. Mattias.” Mattias’ eyes flew open, as did Ginny’s, both of them looking in Milo’s direction. Milo stared at him with wide eyes and mouth hanging open. Without thought, he spoke. “What’s wrong, Milo?” Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck! He was human! Damn Gaia for forcing the issue and changing him without asking! He couldn’t have shifted without her permission or assistance, and here he was, lying on the ground on top of his mate, naked. And damn his cock for growing hard. A great big round of damns all around! Ginny’s gaze flew to his face and locked on his. Her eyes widened until they were the size of saucers. The hands petting him only moments ago pushed and pulled as she struggled to get out from under him. He rolled away to release her. She scrambled from the ground, tripping a time or two as she vaulted behind Milo, babbling the entire time. “It’s a dream. Just a dream. Right, Milo? I saw him last night, but he was a man then. And then he was a cat. But he’s a man again. And it’s just a dream. Milo? Milo, are you listening? I don’t like the dream very much anymore. It was nice last night and a little while ago, but now I’m scared. I thought I was awake, but I’m not. I’m going to go wake up now.” He couldn’t see her, but her terror was palpable. Even in his human form, he could smell it, and his beast railed against him for his stupidity. Why was it railing against him? It wasn’t as if he shifted alone. It could only happen with Gaia’s help. The damn beast needed to growl at their goddess as well. Milo shot him one of those if I wasn’t sixty, you’d be dead looks before he turned around and wrapped Ginny in his arms, whispering to her. “Of course, Miss Ginny. You’re going to wake up right quick, and it will all be a dream. Why don’t we get you back in bed so you can wake up, honey?” He stayed on the ground, unmoving, as Milo and Ginny shuffled past and through the office door. The moment they were out of sight, he rolled to his feet and followed their path. He could hear low murmurs from the file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (27 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:23]
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sleeping area but didn’t push his luck. There was no telling how she’d react if she saw him in his human form again so soon. Minutes passed, and the murmurs died down. The only sound passing through the room was soft, even breathing. Milo came through the door. “You might want to put some clothes on, young man. And then you and I are going to have a talk.” That didn’t sound good. This wasn’t one of those let’s sit down and chat a while talks the two men had been having lately. Milo had been working at the sanctuary for longer than Mattias could remember. Coming out to Milo hadn’t even been a coming out in reality. Shortly after his arrival, Milo waltzed up to the habitat, looked him straight in the eye, and told him that if he ever wanted to chat, he was available. The tone of Milo’s voice now, however, was not issuing a friendly chat to talk over coffee. Hell, when he’d first revealed himself to Milo, it had taken a full month. Mattias had shown his true self to Ginny after less than twenty-four hours. Mattias left the small office and allowed himself back into the snow leopard habitat, ignoring the angry growls coming from Mischa. The bitch would just have to get over whatever bothered her. Throwing on a pair of shorts and a light T-shirt, he rushed to get back to the office. He did manage to stop long enough to feed the female snow leopard, for which he didn’t even get thanked. Not that it mattered. He needed to get back to Milo. With any luck, the old man could help him out of this mess. As he entered the office, the smell of fresh coffee assaulted his senses. Mixed with that was another scent…pot roast. His mouth watered at the flavors he could almost taste. Milo must have known he’d be hungry. He had a plate filled with the delectable meat and a cup of steaming coffee waiting to be devoured. The old man didn’t say a word as Mattias sat and began shoveling the food and fresh coffee into his mouth. After a week of only being offered raw meat for sustenance, this meal was pure ambrosia. He didn’t fault the old man for not bringing him something this sublime before. Without question, the witchy woman, Ms. Carrell, would have had Milo fired for feeding him. Time passed in a blur as he ate until his stomach was full to bursting. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (28 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:23]
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Settling back in his chair, he looked into Milo’s eyes and waited for the man to begin. Whatever Milo had to say to him, he knew he deserved it. Scaring a woman like that, mate or not, was unforgivable. Since his own father wasn’t around to beat his ass, he figured he’d take whatever Milo had to dish out. In the short few months they’d known each other, he’d come to respect and care for the old man like family. Milo took a sip of his coffee, squinting as he swallowed the hot brew. “Well now, son, you’ve done got yourself in a pickle.” Those time-wise eyes looked at him, almost as if he could see the inner workings of Mattias’ mind. “Yes, sir.” “Mind telling me what all that was about out there? You’ve never, not once, behaved like that toward me. I have to admit, it makes a man mighty nervous. And the way you acted toward my Miss Ginny. Well, she’s like a daughter to me, and no matter who or what you are, you ain’t gonna hurt her.” “No, sir.” “‘No, sir,’ you ain’t gonna tell me or, ‘No, sir,’ you ain’t gonna hurt her? Get it out, boy.” Nope, this conversation was definitely not one of their normal how ya doin’, conversations. This was being drilled by a father. It seemed Milo took his job as friend a step further to being a surrogate father for those he determined needed it.
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Ginny moaned as she rolled over in bed, her glasses digging into the side of her face and nose. She hated when she fell asleep with the darn things on. Just another reason for her to wear the stupid contacts. Too bad she had that phobia about putting things in her eyes. She supposed she could have that new surgery where they zapped a person’s eyes with lasers and suddenly they could see perfectly. But that surgery was too similar to Star Trek for her tastes. Lasers killed people. She’d seen it on TV. Rolling over, she rolled right off the bed with a thump, blanket tangled in her legs. Geez, this seemed familiar. It all came back to her in a rush of memories. She’d woken up, fallen out of bed, tripped over a snow leopard, said good morning to Milo, the snow leopard turned into her dream man, and then here she was. It had been a dream, right? Something like that didn’t happen in real life. There was no way. Okay, maybe all of the falling and tripping could happen in real life. She was probably the world’s clumsiest person. But the whole snow-leopard-turning-into-her-dreamman thing had to have been a dream. Soft whispers drew her attention toward the door. But she remembered this room from her dream. Was she still dreaming? Maybe she was. She pinched her arm and jumped, surprised that it actually hurt. Nope, it wasn’t a dream this time. Pulling herself to her feet, she tiptoed to the sleeping quarters’ door. She wanted to remain silent. Obviously, whoever was out there didn’t want to be heard. Maybe this was still a dream. But the pinch hurt. Oh! She dreamt that it hurt, but it didn’t really. Yep, that’s what happened. If this was still a dream, earlier had been a dream within a dream. The whispers outside grew, drawing her attention again. She recognized one voice, Milo. “Well, boy?” Milo spoke to someone. Of course, he spoke to someone. She was the only one who talked to herself. A throat cleared, and a velvet voice fluttered toward her. “She’s my mate, sir. I…I can only apologize for my behavior toward you, but not toward her. My beast was protecting her and enjoying her touch. I’d never hurt her. Never.” file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (30 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:23]
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The last word, spoken with such vehemence, had goose bumps rising along her arms. Oh, that man loved the woman he talked about, and poor Milo gave him the third degree. Just like him, adopting a woman as yet another daughter and looking out for her. She inched closer to the edge of the door and dared a peek into the office. Eavesdropping wasn’t normal behavior for her, but she just couldn’t help it. This seemed like such an important conversation that she didn’t want to interrupt, but she did want to see the man that loved another with such passion. “Your mate, huh? And you figured this out how?” Milo’s tone showed his skepticism of what the man told him, but the man seemed unfazed by Milo’s questioning. “Her scent. No, not just her scent. Her caring, courage, beauty, and her scent. All of it. She’s mine, Milo. She just doesn’t know it, yet.” Milo sighed. Ginny knew what that meant. The man had won. Milo only made that sound when he’d been defeated by reason or persuasion. She knew from experience. She’d heard the sound from him more than once when they had their own discussions. Usually when he tried to convince her to date one of his friends’ sons, and she was just as adamant about not dating them. She generally won. She inched closer still to the doorway. The only thing blocking her view of the other man was Milo’s body. That meant the man couldn’t see her either. Just to be safe, she hunched down, almost to her hands and knees. “All right, boy. But you take care of my Miss Ginny and if I hear…” She bolted upright at the mention of her name, and her head came in contact with the door knob, knocking her down to her knees. The noise drew the men’s attention, and a set of gray eyes met hers from across the room. Was she still dreaming? No, the pain in her head told her she wasn’t. So what was her dream man doing in her office? And did he call her his mate? Mattias sat frozen to his seat as Ginny, perched on all fours, stared at him. He knew he should be the gentleman and rush across the room to help her up, but he didn’t want to give up his view. He was a selfish bastard, and he knew it. From his vantage, he could see straight down the neck of her Tfile:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (31 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:23]
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shirt to those abundant breasts he’d been nuzzling not so long ago. Her bra barely managed to contain her bosom within their lacy grasps. Just one more nudge, and he’d get a peek at a nipple, or two. Yep, grade-A bastard. That was him. Thank God Milo had more sense than he did. The old man levered his body out of the chair and walked over to Ginny. He extended his hand and helped her up from the floor as she rubbed her head. He’d heard a thump. His beast railed at him for getting his jollies while its mate was hurt, turning his stomach into knots. Milo led a wary Ginny to the table and sat her next to Mattias while the old man remained standing between them. “Miss Ginny, I’d like you to formally meet Mr. Mattias Kilgrey. Mr. Mattias, Doctor Virginia Taylor.” Milo gave him a look of warning. Even after all of Mattias’ promises and proclamations, the man still looked out for her. Good. She’d obviously earned the old man’s trust and caring. Yet another reason he cared for her already. “Thank you, Milo.” He stood, shaking the man’s hand as he led him to the door. Milo opened the door and took one step through it but was halted by Ginny’s voice. “Wait. This…this is not all right, Milo. Am I going crazy? I must be going crazy. Where’s my bag? I have a list of questions you can ask yourself to see if you’re schizophrenic. It’s in the same notebook that has my list of questions you should ask a potential sexual partner.” Ginny jumped up from her seat and frantically searched the room for her bag. Milo was able to calm her with just a few words. “Miss Ginny? You’re not crazy. This young man is as good a man as I’ve ever met. There’s no reason to go huntin’ for your bag.” “You’re right. I’m schizophrenic. There is a difference. Have I ever told you the difference?” “Miss Ginny. You’re not schizophrenic, and you’re not crazy. You trust this old man. I’ve known you since you were knee high to a magnolia, and I’ve never steered you wrong yet. You just sit down here with Mr. Mattias and have yourselves a cup of coffee while he explains a few things. Okay?” Ginny still looked wary, even after Milo finished his instructions. Even if file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (32 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:23]
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the man was just the security guard around the sanctuary, with personal matters, people listened. And listened good. She nodded her head in agreement, which Milo took as his cue to leave. After closing the door behind the man, Mattias approached the table with slow, even steps. He didn’t want to scare her. “I’m not crazy.” “No.” “And I’m not suffering from schizophrenia? I could get my checklist just to be sure.” “No, you’re not schizophrenic.” “Oh! I’m dreaming. This would all make sense if I were dreaming.” She had such a hopeful look in her eyes, he was tempted to tell her she was dreaming, just to see if he could get a smile out of her. Instead, he settled for the truth. “No. Sorry, kitten. You’re not dreaming.” “This would be so much better if it were a dream.” Brow furrowed and confused, he asked his next question, not sure if he wanted to hear the answer. “Why is that?” “Wishes come true in dreams, and I could almost believe a hunk like you would want me if we were in one.” She clapped a hand over her mouth the second the words escaped, and her forehead dove for the table. His hand shot out, catching her head just before it connected with the hard surface. The first conscious contact of skin on skin sent tingles of awareness speeding through his body, awakening every nerve ending from fingers to toes. His cock grew hard against his leg, and his muscles bunched, prepared to pounce. With a deep breath, he withdrew his hand from her forehead and rested it softly against the table surface. “You can leave now if you’d like. I’d much rather die of embarrassment alone, if you don’t mind. Just send Milo around later and have me chopped up and fed to the animals before I start getting stinky. Can’t feed them tainted meat. It’ll make them sick. Oh! Feed me to the new snow leopard! But cook me first…because he likes cooked meat…and…and…you can’t feed me to him because you’re him. Okay, file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (33 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:23]
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Mr. Hallucination, you can go now.” She waved a limp hand at him, as if he would actually listen. He leaned closer, inhaling the sweet vanilla that surrounded her, and laid a hand on her back. He stroked her in soothing, soft motions as he spoke. “You’re not crazy, and you’re not dying of embarrassment. But I am thrilled that you think I’m a hunk. Because you are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen.” Ginny remembered at least one of the signs of schizophrenia. “Auditory hallucinations.” She smiled, pleased that she could at least remember one of the symptoms. “Excuse me?” She jumped from her seat and skittered around her imposing guest toward her messenger bag. “Auditory hallucinations. That’s one of the symptoms.” She waved a hand at him as she moved past. Bag. Bag, bag, bag. Oh! There’s the bag! Bending over, she rummaged through it. Finding her notebook labeled General Stuff, she popped up, hitting the top of her head on Mattias’s chin. “Ow!” She rubbed the sore spot with one hand as her gaze traveled up his body. She had to admit, for a hallucination, her mind did a bang-up job. Mattias was big. Not in a body builder kind of way. No, he was just tall. Easily six feet, and her head barely reached his shoulders. Wow. His shirt was fitted, but not tight. It did manage to show off the fact that the man didn’t have an ounce of fat on him. Shorts hung low on lean hips, and she could just imagine the taut muscles hidden by the thin cotton. His waist was slim and tapered up to a set of broad shoulders. The sleeves of his shirt were stretched tight around his biceps. All-in-all, this was one toned and hunky man. And she hadn’t even gotten above his shoulders, yet. By the time she managed to tear her gaze away from his body and settle on his face, she met his smiling eyes. Damn. He caught her looking. He didn’t look displeased at the notion, though. His smile grew, exposing a set of pearly whites that would make a movie star jealous. His skin was lightly tanned, but some would still consider him pale when compared to the file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (34 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:23]
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beach bunnies of Florida. A pair of pale gray eyes locked on hers, and she had a hard time pulling away. She had only caught a glimpse of his midnight black hair before his gaze captured her attention. Her hallucination had it all; built, with black hair, gray eyes, and a body to make anyone drool. “You okay?” “Okay?” He’d stolen her ability to string a thought together. She was crazier than she thought. His hand came up and brushed her cheek, leaving soothing warmth in its wake. “Did you find your notebook?” “Notebook?” Why was he asking about her notebook? She couldn’t really think when he touched her. How many women had their wet dreams come to life in the daytime? Oh. Right. All the schizophrenic ones, of course. “Am I still an auditory hallucination or are you ready to accept that I’m real?” Ginny’s eyes flew open. When had she closed them? Probably when his hand worked its magic on her cheek. Everything rushed back again; the snow leopard, this man, Milo, the dreams, all of it. Her mind did really wander at the most inopportune times. Backing away slowly, she held her notebook as a shield. “Ginny.” Damn if his voice didn’t sound like a purr from his chest. A man shouldn’t be born with a voice like that. “My name is Mattias Kilgrey. You’re not crazy, nor are you schizophrenic. Though I do admit, I’ve never heard that one before. Milo told you to trust him, and he left you with me. Do you really think you should still be scared? I won’t hurt you. I’d never hurt you.” He reached for her again, but this time she didn’t let herself get sucked under by the magic his hand could weave. She swatted at him with her notebook, earning her a chuckle in return. “Keep your hands to yourself. Just because I’m having some sort of hallucination or whatever doesn’t mean you can touch me.” Her statement didn’t instill the fear she had hoped for; it merely made him laugh harder. “Ginny, I’m no more a hallucination than this room is. The sooner you accept that, the sooner we can get on with other things.” file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (35 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:23]
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“But, you’re…” “Have you ever heard of a corporeal hallucination, Ginny? One that you could touch, feel, or taste if you wanted to?” Oh. If this were a dream, she would definitely taste, feel, and touch. All of the above, please. “No. But I haven’t exactly read…” Who was she kidding? She’d just made the biggest ass out of herself. Again. It was the story of her life. She managed to make a fool out of herself everywhere she went. Between her clumsiness, muttering to herself, and general quirks, she alienated everyone. Family and Milo excluded, of course. But that still didn’t explain… “Ok. You’re not a hallucination, and I’m not suffering from a mental illness. But that still doesn’t explain…” It was Mattias’ turn to be embarrassed. A light blush rose up his neck, staining his cheeks, and his eyes suddenly found the ground very interesting. It was kind of cute. The way the red blush contrasted with his pale skin and dark hair. It made his gray eyes seem an almost silver color. He shoved his hands into his pockets in a little boy gesture Ginny recognized. She’d seen her nephews do it enough times when they got caught doing something they shouldn’t have. He swallowed hard. She watched his Adam’s apple dance up and down his neck before he returned his gaze to hers. “I’d like an opportunity to explain, if you’ll let me. I’ve already taken care of Mischa this morning. Would you take a walk around the sanctuary? We can talk, just talk, and I’ll explain everything.” Looking into his eyes, she didn’t see anything that would hint at an ulterior motive. He seemed genuine in is proclamation that they would walk and talk, that’s it. Plus, she had to take into account Milo’s opinion of him. The old man was an amazing judge of character and had called the man in front of her Mr. Mattias. Not just Mattias, but mister. That was a definite vote in the man’s favor. In the past few hours, she’d seen things that she couldn’t explain. Maybe now she’d get those explanations.
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Chapter Six Mattias held the door open for her as they left the office. For a moment, he was thankful she was even speaking to him. Too bad it only lasted for a moment. “You took care of Mischa?” They walked by the animal in question. The snow leopard kept time with their steps as they navigated the paved walkway. The animal’s chuffing and their foot steps were the only sounds to meet Mattias’ ears. She stopped suddenly and bent down to say a quick hello to the animal. “Did this big guy get you a good breakfast, Mischa?” Mischa’s chuffing continued, interspersed with occasional purrs. It seemed the female was perfectly content to have the habitat all to herself once again. The way Ginny bent to be at Mischa’s eye level gave him an excellent view of her perfectly round rear. The worn material of her shorts stretched across her backside as the edge crept up her legs. Just a smidge higher and he’d be able to see the skin of her ass. His arousal, humming near the surface in her presence, made itself known. His cock hardened inside his shorts and for once, he wished he didn’t have such an aversion to undergarments. A pair of boxer briefs could really help a guy out right about now. At least they might have made his burgeoning erection a little less noticeable. She cast a glance over her shoulder and caught him eyeing her. He did what any male would do; pretended he hadn’t looked. He looked away from her body with lightning speed and focused on the tiny pebble near his right foot. Heat suffused his face, but he ignored it. If she didn’t say file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (37 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:23]
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anything about him ogling her body, he sure as hell wouldn’t bring it up. He held his breath, waiting to see what her response would be. She stood tall and stepped past him as she continued on the path, and he released his breath. Jogging, he caught up to her quickly, her short steps no match for his longer stride. He’d have to learn to adjust to her shortened pace if… No. When. She’s my mate, and I will have her. No matter how long it takes. He straightened his shoulders, resolve flowing through him as he made his decision. His only hope was that she could accept everything he had to say. They walked in silence, observing the different exotic species as they made their way through the sanctuary. He followed her lead, allowing her to guide their tour. He could sense the tension and see the difference in her gate. She was stiff as they moved along the path. He wanted nothing more than to sweep her into his arms and assure her that everything would be okay. Unfortunately, he couldn’t do that. Stopping near the lion’s habitat, she straddled a concrete bench and broke the silence. “Okay, Mattias. You got some s’plainin’ to do.” Then she burst into a fit of giggles, clutching her stomach as she leaned forward. He had a hard time focusing on what she said. With her legs spread wide across the bench, all he could think of was the moist heat her clothing hid from his eyes. His erection grew, and he sat down next to her on the bench, doing his best not to embarrass himself. Her giggles died down, and he looked at her out of the corner of his eye. “Mattias?” He ran his fingers through his hair and wasn’t surprised that they shook against his scalp. Damn. He’d never been so nervous in his life. He was basically asking a complete stranger to spend the rest of her life with him. True, his beast had identified her as his mate. And he had caught glimpses of her personality over the last twenty-four hours. What he knew he liked, and what he didn’t know…he’d find out eventually. As long as she was willing. “I am a child of Gaia. Well, that’s not exactly true. We’re all children of file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (38 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:23]
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Gaia.” He spread his hands, encompassing everything within sight. “I am just a child that speaks to his mother and she, in turn, answers.” He stole a glance at her. He wasn’t explaining things very well, and he knew it. How does a person express thousands of years of history in one conversation? Sighing, he tried again. “Gaia is the mother of us all. She is responsible for all that is around us. All that flourishes and all that dies, only to be reborn.” “Okay.” She sounded skeptical, but her eyes shone with interest, so he continued. “My parents, when I was a child, spoke to Gaia and asked her to bless me. I was already the child of two blessed parents and had been born with certain abilities beyond that of a normal person. With Gaia’s blessing, I became more.” “You became an animal.” Well, at least she understood part of it. “Yes, I was given the ability to shift from human to snow leopard. But I can’t do it alone. Each time, I must ask Gaia to share with me the power of her earth. Only with her gift can I change.” Ginny nodded her head, urging him to continue. At least she didn’t run screaming in the other direction. He opened his mouth to finish his explanation, but her question stopped him. “But why a snow leopard?” His eyebrows drew together as he pondered her question. He had asked his parents that when he was a small boy. His mother had been granted the power to heal with Gaia’s help, while his father had been granted the form of a wolf. Yet their son had been given the power to shift to a snow leopard. He would give Ginny the same explanation they gave him so many years ago. “Because she knows my soul better than anyone and knew what I needed to be complete. She reached into my heart and gave me a piece that was missing. A piece that made me closer to whole.” She listened, or seemed to be listening. Her head nodded in the appropriate places as he spoke. The look of skepticism still marred her brow, but the tension had eased from her body as the words flowed from file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (39 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:23]
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his mouth. “But what does this have to do with me? If you’re to be believed…and I’m not saying I do, I’m saying if. Why were you sleeping outside the office, and why did I hear…well, you know what I heard. What was with all of that?” Mattias opened his mouth to respond, but a new voice joined their conversation, cutting off his words. “Mr. Kilgrey, so nice to see you again.” Damn the director! Damn, damn, damn the director. Damn. Ginny had sat quietly through his explanation involving the ancient goddess, blah, blah, blah. She wanted to get to the good stuff. Like what the word mate meant to him. Did it mean the wolf’s definition of mate, as in forever? Or was it a more general term for getting their freak on with each other? Sure, she should probably still be freaked. She still was to an extent. But she’d heard her great-grandmother talk about the ancient one, and her gifts to her children, when she was a small child. Stories and myths had to come from somewhere, right? Why couldn’t they come from reality instead of someone’s overactive imagination? “Dr. Taylor?” “Oh. What? Sorry, I was daydreaming.” Her eyes met Director Caleb St. James’. Everyone simply referred to him by his title. The man was a large, imposing presence. The employees jokingly referred to him as the Big Bad Wolf. Funny. Now that she knew what she did about Mattias, she wondered if the director really was a wolf. The man gave her a stern frown. What? She couldn’t help it if Mattias dropped a bombshell on her a few moments ago. Men. “I asked how our snow leopard, Mattias, was doing. Can you give me a report and list his health status?” She didn’t know what to say. Gee, he’s great. Matter of fact, you should have come by a few moments ago. He was sporting a decent sized boner. No, that wouldn’t work. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (40 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:23]
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“Actually, Mr. St. James,” Mattias said, “my namesake is doing quite well after only a few hours in Dr. Taylor’s tender care. It’s unfortunate, though, that he’ll be transported from your sanctuary so soon.” The director flushed at Mattias’ words, and Ginny couldn’t keep her mouth from dropping open. He was leaving? Already? Yes, his care prior to her arrival left much to be desired, but still. She was here now and could take care of him. “Leaving?” “Yes. It seems that there is a more...” His eyes met hers for a brief moment before returning to the director. “...amenable female that would benefit from his attentions. I stopped by to give you and Richard notice that he’ll be picked up this evening, but I found Dr. Taylor working in his stead.” This time it was the director’s mouth that dropped open. It didn’t seem the man was used to surprises. He seemed to recover quickly from the shock. “I see. Yes, well. It seems Dr. Catsis had a car accident last week and has been unable to work.” Mattias looked as if he’d been punched in the gut. Without thought, she wrapped her fingers with his, giving him her wordless support. The gesture didn’t go unnoticed by the director. He gave her a quick wink before returning his attention to Mattias. “He’s fine, as it turns out. He’s unable to put much weight on his right leg, though, which is what has kept him from coming in. Well, I’ll leave you two to your tour.” With a few handshakes, he left them alone. Ginny released the breath she’d been holding. She waited until she was sure the director was gone before she began interrogating Mattias again. She tugged on his hand until he relented and sat on the bench with her. His body was so close, the heat from his thigh a mere inch from her knee felt as if it were burning her. If she moved just a bit forward she could… “No wonder Richard left me to suffer with that woman.” What? Richard? Woman? What was he talking about? He must have seen the confusion in her face, because he continued. “You know, Richard, his accident, that wretched woman who called me a file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (41 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:24]
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kitty? Any of this ring a bell? Do you do this often?” “Do what?” “Forget.” “Oh. Yes, all the time. It’s not so much forgetting as it is my mind moving on to other things. Like you were talking about Richard, Dr. Catsis, and I was thinking about touching your leg with my knee.” She slapped her hand over her mouth, and she knew without looking in a mirror that her face was crimson. Her cheeks heated as blood rushed to the area. Sometimes she was a great big idiot. Hell, most of the time. She closed her eyes, wishing she could just up and die from embarrassment. Mattias’ warm fingers pulled at hers, removing them from her mouth. “Ginny? You were thinking of doing this?” His leg pressed against her knee, the crinkly hairs tickling her smooth skin. No matter what he did, she wasn’t going to open her eyes. She couldn’t speak. Instead, she nodded her head in agreement. The next time he spoke, his breath danced across her skin. He was so close. “Good. I was thinking of doing that, too. I’m glad we’re on the same page.” Then, a pair of moist, soft lips pressed against hers. Tentatively at first, just a tiny flutter of a touch as he brushed them across her mouth. Oh... That was nice, but she wanted more. It no longer mattered what his definition of mate was. That brief touch sent rockets through her blood, and she needed it to happen again. She opened her eyes, just a smidge, to see what he was doing. “You peeked.” Her eyes flew wide, and her mouth dropped open at his words. “If I peeked, so did you.” His hand came up to stroke her cheek, and she leaned into the touch, rubbing her face against his palm. “Only because you’re so beautiful, and I wanted to make sure you weren’t going to slap me.” “Never. At least not for a kiss.” “Does that mean I can have another?” “Yes.” file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (42 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:24]
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Chapter Seven The word was barely out of her mouth before Mattias captured her lips for another kiss. Sweet. So sweet and sexy, his little kitten. Her body melted beneath his lips as he explored her. His tongue tasted and licked the seam of her lips. His body warred with conflicting feelings. His beast wanted to savor the first taste and smell of its mate, while his human mind wanted it all. Now. His beast won, for now. She sighed into his mouth, granting his tongue entrance. He slid carefully through her parted lips, savoring the first explosion of her taste. Their tongues twined and danced in each other’s mouths as their kiss deepened. Soft whimpers and moans came from low in her throat as his tongue delved into her, discovering every sweet secret she held. He skimmed his hands up and stroked her neck and shoulders in a moment of indecision. He wanted to sweep her into his arms but was afraid of moving too fast. Hell, he’d already moved too fast, he just didn’t want to scare her away after making so much progress. He pulled back from their kiss before it could go too far. He nibbled and suckled her lips amid her whimpers of protest. Damn, his kitten was sexy. This time her tongue swept out for a taste, the touch devastating his control. She was the aggressor now, taking all decisions from him with one, swift movement. Her body, with cat-like grace, shifted until she straddled his lap. Her warm heat settled and pressed against his erection file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (43 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:24]
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as she bit his lower lip, tugging lightly. His cock hardened fully, filling to capacity, trying to reach through his shorts to her core. Her body was so hot. He had no doubt that his questing fingers would find her dripping and ready for him. But was she ready for what he proposed? Before it went any further, he had to find out. He did something he never thought he would ever do. He stopped. “Wait.” Ginny’s mouth moved along his jaw, exploring his growing five o’clock shadow with her tongue, before traveling to his neck. She was not waiting. Her hands skimmed and kneaded the muscles of his arms and chest, testing his control. “Ginny. Wait.” He had to catch her hands with his own. Once the woman got started, it seemed she didn’t want to stop. Truth be told, he didn’t want to stop either, but he wouldn’t make love to her for the first time on a cement bench. Her hands locked in his, she didn’t have a choice but to give him her attention. He laid his forehead against hers as they both worked to catch their breaths. They had gone from zero to sixty in less than a second, and it took time to slow back down. “Gotta slow down, kitten.” Her eyes were still closed, and he wished like hell he knew what she was thinking. But if there was one thing he’d learned, it was that given time, she’d tell him herself. “Don’t wanna.” A whimper escaped, and she poked her lower lip out in a pout. “Gotta.” He sucked her lower lip into his mouth. She ground her pussy against his erection in response, making him groan. Oh, he was never going to stop if she kept doing that. Just as quickly as she’d mounted him, he had her sitting on the bench next to him, and she let out a squeal. “Gotta, kitten, or I’ll make love to you on this bench. Now, weren’t there a few more questions you had for me?” “Questions?” Damn, her mind had moved onto other things, or maybe he’d managed to file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (44 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:24]
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scramble her thoughts with his kisses. He decided he’d go with that explanation. Any man wanted to be able to boast that his woman couldn’t think straight after one of his kisses. Now, he could. “Yes, questions. Maybe about how I can shift or…” “What do you mean by mate?” He coughed, choking on his surprise at her question. “Where did that come from?” “I heard you talking with Milo, and you referred to me as your mate. I’d like you to define that please.” Maybe he should kiss her again. She’d gotten her wits back just a little too quickly for his taste. “My mate?” “Yes, do I have to recite the conversation from memory?” She pushed her glasses up her nose. He wanted to kiss the very tip of her nose and didn’t want to stop there. One kiss on the tip, a kiss or two along the bridge, one for each eyelid, and one… “What conversation?” She gave him a blank stare, and it took him a moment to remember what they were talking about. Apparently, having your mind move onto other things wasn’t so difficult of a task. Then he remembered. “No, no need to recite it from memory. I know what was said.” He took a deep breath, calming his nerves. What he was about to do was tantamount to asking a woman to marry him. He always thought that when he got to this point in his life, he’d know the answer to the question before it was asked. It royally sucked that he didn’t. “My mate is the one…” “Mr. Kilgrey!” Saved by the Screeching One. “It is Mr. Kilgrey, right?” The woman could barely walk in her too-tight shorts and high heels, but she did give it a good amount of effort. “The director sent me looking for you. He wants to go over some paperwork regarding Mattias before he’s picked up.” At least he was saved from this conversation. Turning to Ginny, he made file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (45 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:24]
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his excuses. “I suppose this ends our tour.” She nodded, looking at him, yet at the same time not. Her face was upturned, but her eyes weren’t focusing on his. He bent down, brushed his lips across hers in a light caress, then pulled away. She didn’t respond, not as she had those few moments ago. “I’ll come by your office later to finish our discussion?” Yes, it was a question. So many things had happened and changed in such a short amount of time. He didn’t want to start making assumptions now. “Okay. I’ll…I’ll see you later.”
Chapter Eight Stupid. Stupid, stupid, stupid. Or maybe idiotic. Moronic? Or any other ‘–ic’ word Ginny could think of. She’d made the mother load of mistakes, and now she’d never know what could have been. All she had now was a morning of memories, nothing more. Stepping out of her steaming shower, she dried off and went in search of clothes. She wanted to be dumpy and frumpy tonight. No cute panties or frilly pajamas for her. No, sir. Tonight was a sweats, T-shirt, and ice cream night if there ever was one. Rummaging through her dresser, she found what she searched for at the bottom of the drawer. Forgoing panties for the evening, she slid on her ratty gray sweats, pulling at the drawstring to tighten them at the waist. Comfy and airy. Perfect. Then she went in search of just the perfect top. She already had one in mind. Tonight was about comfort, and nothing said comfort better than a thin, file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (46 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:24]
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plain, cotton tank top. The kind her brother used to wear around the house when they were growing up. Finding it in her drawer, she pushed aside the bras and snatched up the tank. It was all about commando tonight. Forget elastic digging into her legs or bra straps cutting into her shoulders. The twins were swinging free. As long as they didn’t dip into her ice cream, it would be all good. Grabbing the ice cream on the way to the living room, the events of the day crashed around her. Putting a big scoop of the double-fudge brownie treat in her mouth, she let the chocolate wash everything away. When Mattias walked away arm-in-arm with Monica, it hit her hard. Monica was a better match for him than she was. How could she compete with the bottle-blonde bombshell? The woman had curves in all the right places and none in the wrong ones. Just the opposite of her. She had curves everywhere. Sometimes, even her curves had curves. Sure, Mattias acted interested, but maybe his definition of mate was the one time freak-a-thon definition. It couldn’t be anything long-term. Not with her, anyway. So, she did what any normal, hot-blooded woman would do. She hid. Being the brainiac kid growing up that always managed to attract bullies, she knew how to hide. She avoided the man like the plague for the entire afternoon and before she’d left, the director let her know that she wouldn’t be needed any longer. Richard would be returning to work to oversee the department. She managed to hold her tears back until she got home to the shower, and then she let them all out. She loved working with the big cats, and working at the sanctuary as an employee, not just a volunteer, was a dream of hers. It didn’t seem that any of her dreams would come true anytime soon. She was used to not getting what she longed for. It was the story of her life. People disappoint. Period. That was part of the reason she’d gone into veterinary medicine. Animals were what they were. They didn’t pretend or posture. There was generally a logical explanation for their problems, and she loved fixing them. Even more so, she loved helping the animals that had been ripped from their homes for one reason or another. Some of her patients at the sanctuary had file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (47 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:24]
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been circus retirees while others were cast-off pets from people that thought owning a tiger would be ‘cool’. Sure, owning a cute little tiger or lion cub seems wonderful. Until the tiger cub turned into an eighthundred pound adult that still thought pouncing on a person was great fun. She’d go back to seeing her domestic patients tomorrow. For tonight, she’d binge on ice cream and watch silly idealistic movies. She needed to see someone get a happily ever after tonight, even if it wasn’t her. Wrapping her quilt around her body, she dug around in her ice cream, searching for nuggets of brownie. She’d get around to eating the whole tub in a minute. Right now, she needed some chocolate goodness. Running from Mattias had been nerve wracking and stressful to say the least. This tub of ice cream was her stress relief. Well, the first half of it at least. The other half would come in the form of her favorite vibrator bringing her to orgasm as she drifted off to sleep. With images of a naked Mattias dancing through her head, she didn’t think she’d even need a vibrator to get there, but she’d keep it around, just in case. Flicking on the television, she searched for the teeny bopper movie of the night. Something about boy meets girl, boy fucks girl, and they live in marital bliss forever. Yep, that’s what she needed right now. Maybe the movie would be on a pay channel so that the sex scenes were a little more than a topless man a girl in a tube top shielded by a sheet. Changing channels for a few minutes, she found the movie she wanted, on a regular channel, no less. Well, I can’t have everything. Halfway through her ice cream, she thought she would be sick. She wasn’t a teenager anymore who could put away so much sugar. Mildly disappointed at a reminder of her age, she padded into the kitchen to put the tub away. After washing her hands in the kitchen sink and wiping her face with a hand-towel, she made her way back to the living room. Just as she was about to bundle up again, a knock sounded at her front door. Curious and a bit annoyed at the interruption, she went to see who was knocking. The person stood too close to the peep hole, so she couldn’t see who it was. “Who is it?” file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (48 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:24]
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She kept her eye presses to the hole, hoping the person would step back. “Mattias.” Damn. Double, double damn. “Would you believe me if I said I wasn’t home?” She cringed. Even to herself, she sounded like a little, pathetic mouse. Okay, maybe not little, but definitely a mouse. He laughed a deep rumble, which traveled through the door and straight to her core. “No, kitten, I wouldn’t.” “Are you sure?” “I’m sure, Ginny. Open the door. We need to talk.” “Well, damn.” Mattias held his breath, waiting to see if she’d actually let him in. A lesser man would have crumpled with her whispered, “Damn,” but he wouldn’t fold. He wanted her. That’s all he had to remember, no matter what excuses she managed to come up with. Milo had warned him that she was as fragile as a fresh magnolia blossom. He wasn’t sure what that meant exactly, but he would take things slow and treat Ginny like a spooked animal. Not that she was an animal. Damn, he was already sticking his foot in his mouth, and he hadn’t even spoken, yet. Locks clicked and the safety chain rattled before she opened the door. He took a step back, not wanting to overpower her. She cracked it just wide enough to look out but didn’t open it further. “Okay, the door’s open. Talk.” “Can I come in?” She sighed, a loud frustrated sound that echoed around him. “Fine.” She flung the door wide, holding an arm out to invite him in. He was going to walk through the door, too. Just as soon as he could get over the sight of her. She was dressed in the thinnest tank top he’d ever seen. So thin it was almost transparent, and she wasn’t wearing a bra. Her large breasts strained the delicate fabric, and he stared, open-mouthed, while her nipples pebbled and grew hard. He didn’t know how long he stood there, staring at her hardened pink nubs pressing against her top. When she cleared her throat, his gaze snapped to hers. Damn, he’d been caught. She arched a brow at him, file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (49 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:24]
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almost as if she was daring him to do or say something stupid. Instead, he stepped through the opened door and into the entryway of her home. “You know, a lesser man would be insulted and leave. Especially after the way you avoided me all afternoon.” “Oh, good. Then I’ll say my goodnig—” He snatched her hand, wrapping her fingers in his before she could escape, and pulled their bodies together. “Good thing I’m not a lesser man, kitten.” Her nipples, hard as rocks, pressed into his chest. He had a difficult time thinking of anything but pulling those nubs into his mouth. Blood rushed from his head in a race to fill his cock. As much as he loved holding her in his arms, he needed to release her before she knew just how much he loved it. That wasn’t about to happen, though. Not after her delicate hands found their way around his waist. She hugged him, pulling their bodies closer, if that was possible. She pressed her chin to his chest as her gaze delved into his. He could get lost in her eyes, staring into them forever as he memorized the subtle changes and shifts of color with her moods. “Why are you doing this to me?” He rubbed his hands along her back, stroking every inch of skin and cloth he could. God, he wanted to kiss her. He wanted to carry her away to her room, to her bed, and keep her there forever. “Because you’re mine.” The analytical part of her brain must have awakened with his comment, and he kicked himself in the ass for saying something that forced her to think. He needed to keep her feeling and not thinking. He loved the woman, but she was too damned smart for her own good. Wait. He loved her? He didn’t know her enough to love her. She was his mate. But love? Ginny didn’t give him a chance to examine his emotions. One moment, they were wrapped in each other’s arms, and the next she was half way across the room, searching for something in her bag. That damn bag. Finding what she looked for, she popped up and motioned for him to take a seat. Well, at least she hadn’t kicked him out, right? “Sit, sit, sit.” She settled onto the couch, taking a seat at one end, her legs file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (50 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:24]
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extended to cover the middle seat. He walked around the couch and took the area opposite her. “Now, define mate?” “Excuse me?” She baffled him. Yeah, they hadn’t finished their conversation from earlier, but this was coming out of left field. He had hoped to make love to her a time, or ten, before having this conversation. Maybe even take her out to a nice dinner. Woo her. It didn’t seem as if she would give him that chance. She looked at him over her notebook, glasses perched on the end of her nose, pen in hand. “Define mate.” “You’re taking notes?” He could only see the top half of her face and chuckled when he saw the crimson blush creep up her cheeks, all the way to her forehead. “Just in case my mind moves on to other things.” So she wouldn’t forget, was the real reason. His little kitten was a forgetful one. Reaching for her feet, he wrapped his hands around her ankles and tugged until they settled in his lap. She squeaked at his first touch but didn’t fight him, choosing instead to cover her entire face with that damn notebook. Her tiny feet were cold to the touch. His fingers moved from her ankles to stroke the soft skin on the top of her feet. His touch was gentle, but not too soft. He didn’t want to tickle but soothe her. She was tense, flinching with each new touch, but she didn’t pull away. He took comfort in that fact and let his fingers travel from ankle to heel, skimming the soles of her feet. Cresting her toes, he pressed them back, toward the top of her foot, stretching the tendons and loosening the joints. He’d watched his dad give his mom more foot rubs than he cared to count, and now it thrilled him that he’d paid attention. Releasing her toes, he gripped her left foot in his hand and made circular motions with his thumb against her sole. He started off with just a hint of touch and gradually increased the pressure, easing the muscles in the foot before moving to the right. Her tension eased, and she relaxed beneath his fingers. Thank you, Dad! Balling his hand into a fist, he rubbed and rotated it against the bottom of her foot, paying special attention to the arch when he heard her moan. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (51 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:24]
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Looking at her from beneath his lashes, he smiled at what he saw. She had abandoned her notebook, the bane of his existence, and closed her eyes, resting her head on the arm of the sofa. Her plump lower lip was caught between her teeth, and she moaned, her body shifting beneath his hands as he pressed into her arch again. God, she’d be so responsive if he ever managed to get her beneath him. No, not if. When. Ginny was his mate, and it was only a matter of time until she realized it. If only he didn’t have to define mate for her first. Then again, he just needed to keep her mind on other things, and then he wouldn’t have to worry about defining it. They’d be mated long before she bothered to ask again, if he played his cards right.
Chapter Nine Heaven. Mattias’ hands worked magic on her feet, and she knew she’d died and gone to foot-massage heaven. Thoughts flew from her mind until she could only focus on what the man did to her body. How wonderful would it be to have his hands in other places? If only he’d keep those touches traveling and moving along her body. Stroking and rubbing her calves, thighs, and her aching pussy. Didn’t he know there was a nerve leading straight from her feet to her core? Of course, he did. He was rubbing that spot right…now. She moaned. Damn, that man knows how to get to me. She didn’t even care about his definition of mate anymore. As long as he kept his hands moving in those slow, sinuous circles, she would be happy. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (52 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:24]
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Her notebook dropped to the floor with a thud, but she didn’t care. His knuckle dug into the arch of her foot, just below the ball, and pressed hard. Another moan escaped her lips. She could only imagine what she looked like. Dressed in a ratty T-shirt, sweat pants, and hair in a pony tail on top of her head, she probably looked like crap. But some things could be worried about later. Right now, his hands were traveling up past her ankles to her calves. That hadn’t been shaved in two days! With a shout, she sat up and pulled her legs to her chest. “No!” Mattias’ hands flew up so fast, it looked as though she’d pulled a gun on him and told him to stick ’em up. Words flew from his mouth so fast, she couldn’t understand what he said. “What?” His eyes were as big as saucers. He swallowed hard before repeating himself. “I’m sorry.” It was her turn to be embarrassed. The stupid blush that had just left her cheeks came back with a vengeance and the heat of hell. What could she tell him? Well, he seemed interested, so she might as well bust out with the truth. She was who she was, and there was no chance she’d change. Not after almost thirty years of being quirky. She stretched her feet out, replacing them in his lap. Staring at her hands as she spoke, she offered her own apology. “No, I’m sorry. I haven’t… I mean… Just get it out, Ginny.” Taking a deep breath, she squeezed her eyes shut tight and confessed in a rush. “I haven’t shaved in two days.” She let her breath out slowly and cracked one eye to gauge his response. It was not the one she hoped for. Then again, it wasn’t as bad as it could have been. Mattias’ face changed from one showing shock and remorse to that of a man about to die of laughter. Literally die. Maybe not of laughter, though, because if he didn’t get it under control she would bludgeon him to death with her notebook. She leaned over, the weight of her breasts nearly pulling her off the couch, and snatched the notebook from the floor. She grabbed a nearby hardcover romance book for good measure, too. He still laughed like a loon. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (53 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:24]
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Just wait till she got him good with Danielle Steel. She’d see who laughed then. Maybe she could beat a little romance into him. Yeah, that sounded good. Normally, she wasn’t one for violence, but this was one of those rare occasions that it would be justified. She pulled her feet from his lap—it wasn’t as though he’d gone back to rubbing them—and rose up on her knees. The girls were swinging free, but that didn’t matter. She brought the book back, taking a nice swing, and his hands came up in defense. Between laughs, he tried to apologize again. “Wait... I’m… Whew…” She raised the book higher. This was not a very good apology. “Wait! I’m sorry.” He finally caught his breath. “I’m really sorry.” He plucked the book from her hands without any obvious effort and grabbed her upper arms, pulling her into his lap. His very hard, with a little extra hard in the middle, lap. He rested his chin on her shoulder while she focused her gaze on the television. She would not look at him. Nuh uh. Nope. No, sir. Not lookin’. He pressed a light kiss to her shoulder, right next to the strap of her tank top. “Forgive me?” She could do this. She just wouldn’t acknowledge him. That sounded good. Now, what was on TV again? Oh, right. Some teeny-bopper, woo hoo, happy-ending movie. Okay, focus on the movie. His lips traveled to the other side of her tank top strap, closer to her neck. She watched him lick his lips out of the corner of her eye before pressing another kiss to her heating skin. “Please, kitten?” Oh, she really liked that. Apparently, he did too, if the hardening beneath her ass was any indication. Maybe she’d keep ignoring him to see how far he’d go. He’d been quick to back off earlier when she’d said no. Even if she only said it because she was a dork and didn’t want him touching her foresty legs. Eyes still on the TV, she leaned a little closer to him, giving him encouragement without words. She sighed when she found out words weren’t needed. His next kiss wasn’t a kiss at all. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (54 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:24]
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His teeth nipped and scraped the sweet spot where her neck and shoulder met. Much more of this kind of treatment and she’d be a puddle. Hell, it surprised her that her sweat pants weren’t soaked through with her arousal already. Her pussy clenched and wept with each touch of his lips on her skin. His arms wrapped around her body, hands settling on her stomach just below her breasts. Her free-flowing, uninhibited breasts. Part of her wanted to cringe at the fact that the twins were free, but the other part of her knew she couldn’t change how she was built. She had big hips, a big waist, and bigger breasts that sagged a bit. Hell, any natural woman sagged. His hands shifted, and his thumbs rubbed small circles on the underside of her breasts, stimulating her through the flimsy excuse of a shirt. And then she heard it. Oh, she’d heard the sound before. For those few minutes on the ground, when she’d tripped over him in his snow leopard form, she’d heard it. And now she got to hear it again. He purred, and the gentle sound traveled through her entire body. The vibrations rumbled from head to toe and every pulsing, gushing, throbbing place in between. His erection grew harder beneath her ass, and she couldn’t stop herself from wiggling against it. She wanted to spread her legs and ride him reverse cowgirl style, but she knew she wouldn’t. Not yet, anyway. She still hadn’t forgiven him. “Forgive me? Please, kitten?” It was a whisper, so soft. His breath teased her ear while his hard staff pressed against her ass. Her eyes had been trained on the TV, unseeing, through his pleas. But now she turned to face him, her eyes crashing with a set of steel gray. His hair was tousled from their roughhousing, and she nearly died when his tongue darted out to lick his lower lip. She didn’t know what to focus on. Everything about him, his face, his body, his voice, all turned her on, and she didn’t know where to look. Somehow the question had shifted in meaning. It was no longer about forgiveness, but about permission. The cock pressing against her rear, his hands, his lips, they all asked a question. Settling on his eyes, she answered him. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (55 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:24]
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“Yes.” No matter his definition, even if it was only one night, the answer remained the same. “God, yes.” No! No sex. Sex will ruin everything. Mattias’ mind screamed, and his inner beast roared. Not just no, but hell no, dumb-ass. Don’t make the biggest mistake of your life. He couldn’t do it. Not that he didn’t want to, but he just wouldn’t do it. Regardless of the invitation in her eyes and the way she licked her lips. Ginny was more to him than a one-night stand. Taking her up on her unspoken offer would be a death sentence to any future they would have had. Her eyes flicked from his to his lips and back again. The room was silent with the exception of the TV and their heavy breathing. Damn, this was hard. Easing forward, he pressed his lips to hers, his tongue darting out for a quick taste before he pulled back. “Thanks, kitten.” Her mouth dropped open, probably in surprise. He wished one of his gifts was the ability to read minds. He’d give almost anything to know what thoughts rolled around in her head. But no, the goddess had to give him a roaring beast that was really pissed at the moment. Too bad. The human was in control now, and he wasn’t about to screw everything up with a quick fuck. Ginny meant more than that. Pulling her body against his, he arranged her so that her side pressed against his chest. He stroked and caressed her back as they lay together, watching the television. Frustrated with the juvenile movie playing, he snatched up the remote and flicked through the channels. She snatched it from his hand just as fast, putting it back on the previous station. “Excuse you.” She gave him a look that dared him to argue with her. “What? You want to watch that crappy movie?” “Uh, yeah. If I didn’t want to watch it, it wouldn’t have been on.” A wordless, obnoxious hello? hung between them, as though he were the idiot for even considering watching something else. Okay, it was her house. He could sit through mindless television with the best of them. His stomach grumbled in the silence between them. “Tell you what. You feed me, and I’ll watch the crappy movie. Deal?” She whacked his leg with the remote control. “You’ll watch what I want to file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (56 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:24]
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watch because it’s my house, and I’ll feed you because I’m a good hostess. Even if you weren’t invited.” She mumbled the last sentence, but he could still hear her. “Yeah, but you’re happy I’m here, aren’t you?” Her head whipped around to look at him, ponytail whacking him in the face. Before he had a chance to react, she pressed her lips to his in a quick kiss and hopped off his lap. “Yeah, I am. Now come on, let’s see what I can feed you.” They ended up ordering Chinese food from the local delivery place. He had a funny feeling she ordered there often, especially when she placed the order and began with, “Hey, Jenny, it’s me.” That, and the fact that she questioned the delivery guy about his wife and kids. Mattias didn’t mind eating delivery now and again, but her familiarity made it seem like ordering out was a regular occurrence for her. It looked as though he’d be the cook in their family. Not that he minded. His mother had taught him how to cook, and his skills rivaled that of any gourmet chef in New York’s finest restaurants. He just enjoyed actually having a life. Being a chef in a restaurant or owning his own place wouldn’t have afforded him that. Instead, he happily assumed his place within his father’s company and cooked for fun. They settled on the floor in the living room, using the coffee table to hold the numerous cartons of food. She’d ordered practically one of everything on the menu. Looking at her, he couldn’t figure out how she’d manage to eat it all. An hour later, he figured it out. She didn’t actually eat it at all. She took a bite or two of a couple of dishes then proclaimed she was full. He supposed that eating a little out of four different containers was enough, but it was such a waste. And instead of keeping his big mouth shut, he said as much. “But I like all of it. I ate a bit of that one.” She pointed to the sweet and sour chicken. “Ooh! And that one.” House Lo-mein. “And didn’t I eat some of that?” Pepper steak. “Yeah, but baby… If you know that you’re not going to eat it all, why did you waste the money and order so much.” file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (57 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:24]
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She looked at him as if he had two heads. “Because I like it. And they don’t offer combo platters or anything. Otherwise, I would’ve ordered that.” It made sense to her. He could hear it in her voice, and in the conviction with which she said each word. Shaking his head, he followed her into the kitchen and helped her clean up. He had to accept that there would be some things he’d never understand about his mate. By the time dinner was over and they’d put everything away in her fridge, it was getting late, but he wasn’t ready to leave. Flopping down onto the couch, he pulled her down with him. They snuggled together, her head on his lap, as they watched yet another juvenile movie she seemed to love. He sighed. I guess I should brush up on my chick flicks. His woman loved a sappy love story, the cornier the better. Around midnight, he caught himself dozing off and snuck a look at Ginny. His fingers were still entwined with hers, her head resting on his thigh. Her blonde hair created a halo around her face as she peacefully slept. Sliding from beneath her amid her grumbles, he pulled her body into his arms. Carrying her down the hall, he found her bedroom easily. While the rest of the home was a picture out of an interior designer’s magazine, her room was a jumble of her true personality. She had everything from framed Jim Morrison prints to pictures of different animals lining her walls. It seemed as though everything she loved had been poured into this one room. He laid her on the bed and covered her with the blanket before he tiptoed out of her bedroom to leave her sleeping, alone. It was hard as hell, for him and his cock, but it had to be done. Slow and steady won the race, right?
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Chapter Ten Stupid, freaking phone with the ringing and the waking me up. Shut up! Ginny flailed her hand across her bedside table as she searched for the ringing offender. Who the hell would be caller her at… She picked her head up off the pillow and glanced at her bedside clock, thanking God that she’d sprung for the one with five-inch high numbers. Five o’clock in the morning? Snatching the neon pink phone from its resting place, she pressed the Talk button. “Lo…” She cleared her throat, swallowing away her sleepy voice. “Hello?” “Dr. Taylor?” Shit. She never got calls this early in the morning unless something was wrong. Untangling from the sheets, she felt around for her glasses. She really needed to start attaching a motion sensor light to the damn things before she went to bed. “Yes, this is Dr. Taylor. What can I do for you?” She found her glasses near the alarm clock. Thank goodness she put them somewhere sensible this time. Last time she lost them, she found them inside the breadbox. How they ended up there, she still didn’t know, but she was sure it seemed reasonable at the time. “This is Richard...Dr. Catsis...at San Pallo Exotic Animal Sanctuary.” That made her nervous. Had she done something wrong while she was there? She only took care of Mischa and Mattias for a few hours. Oh, and she cleaned, a lot. “I apologize for calling this early, but I wanted to catch you before you left for the day.” “Is something wrong?” Worry tainted her voice, but there was nothing she could do about that. Nerves made her crawl from the bed and begin her standard pacing from the bathroom door and back to her bed again. “No, no, nothing like that. Actually, I’m calling to offer you a position with the sanctuary.” Her knees went week until they could no longer support her, and she plopped down in the middle of her floor. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (59 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:24]
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“You’re offering me a job? Like, a paying job?” She held her breath, waiting for his answer. “Yes, I am.” “I’ll take it.” He chuckled. “Well, don’t get too far ahead of yourself. I want to tell you a little bit about what will be expected of you.” It didn’t matter what he expected of her, she wanted the job regardless. But she listened to what he had to say. She would have to supervise the keeper’s treatment of the animals, monitor all of the big cats, blah, blah, blah. No matter what he said, she accepted. She was only on standby and worked at the emergency clinic when she was needed. It wasn’t as if she had a steady job. She’d been secretly hoping for a position with the sanctuary, and now she had her chance. Pressing the Off button on her phone, she threw it on the bed while she jumped from the floor. Her enthusiasm knew no bounds. She jumped around in circles, squealing like a teeny bopper at their first concert. She just couldn’t contain her excitement. She was starting at the sanctuary that day, promptly at eight o’clock. Tunneling through her drawers, she snatched out a T-shirt and pair of shorts. Thank God the sanctuary was all about casual. She’d probably get a cool employee shirt later on, but for now, one of her other shirts would do. Giddy, she hopped into the shower, anxious to get her first day under way. She just couldn’t manage to bottle her excitement. Twisting the knob on the faucet, she let the water run until it was nice and hot, nearly steaming. She loved a nice hot shower to help her wake up in the morning. Stepping under the spray, she blocked out the rest of the world. There was nothing in her mind but thoughts of the day ahead of her. Her new job! At the sanctuary, no less! She would be assisting Dr. Catsis in supervising the keepers for all of the big cat habitats. He said his recent accident proved to the director that a second-in-command was necessary. There had been no reason for Mattias to have declined so quickly in his absence. Mattias! She’d almost forgotten about him in her excitement. Sweet guy that he was, he must have carried her to bed and then let himself out. Poor file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (60 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:24]
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man, having to carry her ass all the way to her bedroom. It didn’t matter that it was only twenty feet or so. Twenty feet carrying her big ol’ butt had to seem like an eternity to him. Nothing she could do about it now. Later, now that was another story. The thought of showing her appreciation brought an even bigger smile to her face. She risked doing a few hops and a happy dance as she squealed some more. “I’ve got the most amazing job in the whole wide world! Go, me!” She shook her butt and reached for her razor. “Can’t forget to shave the legs, just in case Mr. Hottie wants a little somethin’ somethin’. Maybe a little smoochin’ and bumpin’ and grindin’.” Just as she turned around to face away from the spray, Mr. Hottie’s head popped into the shower, and his gravelly morning voice washed over her body. “I wouldn’t mind a little smoochin’.” Freaked by his sudden appearance and her nakedness, she snatched the shower curtain with both hands, pulling it around to shield her body. Of course, in doing that, she lost her balance. The world whirled as her body spun and tilted until she landed with a thud on the bathtub floor. Warm water continued to pour over her as she sat wrapped in a bright pink, plastic shower curtain, pale pink Lady Bic still in hand. Mortified didn’t even begin to describe it. She wished she were like the wicked witch and would spontaneously melt when exposed to the water. She looked down at her pudgy body wrapped in plastic. Nope, it was still there. Damn. Stringy blonde hair covered her eyes, not that it would matter if it wasn’t. She didn’t have her glasses on, so she couldn’t see Mattias’ face. Maybe it was better that way. Did she really want to see his disgust after receiving such good news this morning? No, she didn’t. Now that he knew what she looked like naked, he could gracefully bow out of their whatever it was they had before it got too serious. She tightened her grip on the razor, trying to decide if she should put it down or commit violence against the man. Not that it was his fault. Well, it was, but it wasn’t. She was clumsy. She accepted that. But did the man have to scare her in the middle of her shower like that? He probably file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (61 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:24]
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thought he was being cute. Yeah, right. It wasn’t cute if she couldn’t see! Or if she was wrapped in a…flowery…piece…of…plastic. Shit. She was beginning to have a panic attack. She really hated those. He stood there, mouth hung open and motionless as the seconds ticked by. His shock seemed to wear off and he reached for her. “Oh, God. Ginny, kitten, are you okay? Here, let me help you up.” “Don’t. Touch. Me.” The pain in her rear end was subsiding, and soon she’d be able to get up on her own. She didn’t even want to think about the water spraying outside the tub at the moment. No way. She wasn’t thinking of it. Not at all. Her gaze was glued to the faucet. For once in her life, she wished she were telekinetic. He must have followed her gaze because his hands fumbled and twisted at the knobs, trying to turn the water off. He managed to get it done, but not before nearly burning her with scalding water. And the day had started out so well. “Ginny, why don’t you let me—” “Out.” In through the nose, out through the mouth. In, out; in, out. I’m not going to slice him into little snow leopard pieces to feed to Mischa with my Lady Bic. I’m not. He didn’t realize he was a grade-A ass. He thought he was being cute. I’m not going to slice him into tiny pieces. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw his blurry figure back out the bathroom door. After waiting a minute or two, she extricated herself from the tub. Wrapped in the shower curtain and rod, that was no easy feat. Thirty minutes later, she was out of the bathroom and ready for her day to begin. She only prayed Mattias wouldn’t still be there. She didn’t know if she could stand to see his face. If she didn’t need her glasses to get around, she would have left them on the bathroom counter. Too bad they were a necessity. Walking through her home, she was relieved that he was gone. But part of her was also saddened by his absence. It was better to find out that he wasn’t the guy for her before she got too attached thought, right? Good thing she hadn’t fallen in love with him or anything. Yeah, she didn’t even really like him all that much. What was to like about the guy? He only had muscles from here to eternity, didn’t try to seduce her during file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (62 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:24]
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their first night together, didn’t mock her for being clumsy or forgetful, seemed to actually listen to what she had to say, and had the ability to turn into one of her favorite animals ever. He wasn’t all that. Who was she kidding? He was all that and a bag of chips times two. But he was obviously disgusted by her less-that-perfect body. So, what did it matter?
***** It had taken Mattias all day and a check with more zeros on it than he dared to admit, but he finally got it. The perfect gift for Ginny was wrapped and just waiting to be given to her. Now, this is where he’d had a little difficulty in his plan. His choices were to either wait outside her home for her to arrive, or to wait until a little later and stop by after she’d been home for a while. He and his beast had been fighting an internal battle for the better part of an hour as he sat in his car in her driveway. It was nearing six o’clock, when he figured she’d be home, so he needed to make a decision fast. When he’d heard her hopping, yelling, and singing in her room, he had wanted to share in her joy. Whatever it was. Overhearing that she’d gotten a new job, he immediately thought of Richard. It was no wonder the man wanted to hire Ginny. She was an angel. The way she treated him and Mischa, dedicating so much time to straightening out the office and digging around to figure out what was wrong, showed her dedication. It only made sense that if the sanctuary was going to continue to offer vacation opportunities to the shifting Children of Gaia, and that they have someone else who knew of their existence. He’d ripped Caleb St. James a new asshole over his treatment from that screeching twit. Now Ginny would take care of things if, God forbid, something happened to Richard. Glancing at the clock in his dashboard, he sighed. It was getting closer and closer to six, and he still hadn’t decided what he should do. But the decision was taken from him when Ginny pulled up in her monstrous SUV and parked beside him. He looked over at her and waved, mustering the file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (63 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:24]
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best smile he could. She frowned at him, brows furrowed, before she hopped from the car. Damn, if she just wasn’t the cutest thing on two feet. Grabbing his gift for her and the dinner he’d made for them, he followed her to the front door. Surprisingly, she didn’t slam it in his face. Good, maybe he didn’t fuck things up as badly as he’d thought. Poking his head into the shower had been a decision made by his too-eager-to-see–its-matenaked beast. Stupid animal. Not only had he had a hard-on to end all hardons from seeing her delectable figure, but he’d also managed to frighten her so bad she fell. She managed to push a few words past her grinding teeth, and none of them boded well for his reception this evening. She unlocked the door and stepped into her home. Just when he thought he was in the clear, she stopped and whirled on him, eyes narrowed, lips drawn into a frown. “What are you doing here?” Play it cool. Don’t scare her away now, idiot. Just play it cool. “I wanted to see you.” She didn’t look convinced. “You want to see me after you’ve seen me?” She waved her hands, indicating her body. Damn, if she only knew how much more he wanted to see, touch, and taste. “Absolutely. Plus, I brought you a present and homemade lasagna.” He hoped the lasagna would be his ticket into her house for dinner. The night before she had lamented over the lack of good Italian delivery places near her home. Well, now he was delivering. “A present?” She appeared more thrilled with the present than the food. “And lasagna?” Okay, at least she mentioned the lasagna. “Keep it up and I’ll never let you leave.” That’s what he wanted to hear. He followed her into the house, through the living room into the kitchen, admiring the sway of her hips and wiggle of her ass with each step. His beast wanted to come out and play in a bad way. It wanted to pounce and nip on her rounded behind as she scurried away. He needed to keep it under control, though. The last thing he file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (64 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:24]
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wanted was Gaia playing another trick on him and letting the beast out without his human side asking. Ginny pointed to the sparkling oven. “There’s the oven. Other than the fact that it came with the house, I know nothing about it. I’m not much of a cook, if you haven’t figured that out, yet.” A blush tinted her cheeks. Placing his gift and the lasagna on the kitchen table, he closed the gap between them in the small kitchen. Wrapping an arm around her, he tilted her head back to meet his gaze. “I guess I’ll just have to handle the cooking for the both of us.” He lowered his head and brushed his lips across hers. She hadn’t acted angry with him for intruding on her shower and scaring the bejesus out of her yet, but he didn’t want to push his luck. “How does that sound, kitten?” She sighed and laid her head against his chest, nodding her agreement against the fabric of his shirt. They stood there in the silence of her home for a minute, perhaps two, when she suddenly stiffened in his arms. He looked down into her panicked face. “Let go. Ewwww! Let go! It’s bad enough that you’ve had your hands all over my hairy legs before, but God, I can’t even begin to imagine what I smell like! I need to shower…bad.” He released her with a chuckle, and she bolted to the kitchen entry. She whipped around with a finger pointed at him and a stern warning. “The bathroom is off limits, buster. Unless I scream your name, your ass stays out of there. Clear?” “Perfectly.” As much as he wanted to catch another glimpse of her body glistening with water, he wanted a chance to actually touch her and make love to her more. She disappeared around the corner, and he busied himself with finishing their dinner preparations. Sliding the lasagna into the preheated oven, he wandered into the living room and flicked on the TV. The rest of the evening passed in a blur of food, wine, and laughs as they got to know one another. She relayed the events of her first day working at the sanctuary. “Okay, so, Richard assures me the lion is a man that’s in his shifted form, so I waltz into the habitat, the whole time thinking I’m perfectly safe file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (65 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:24]
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because, hello? there’s a man in there somewhere. Apparently, it’s way down deep.” He rubbed her feet while she reclined on the couch, eyes closed as she told her story. Good thing, too, otherwise she would have seen the look of horror that passed over his face at the mention of going into a lion’s habitat. Just because a Child of Gaia spends part of their life as a man didn’t mean that the man ruled the beast. “One second I’m whistling along, looking for the big guy so I can check him out, and the next, I’m flat on my back with a great big beast looming over me.” Her head popped up to look him in the eye. “Um, hello? Do I look like a meal from a drive through?” She laid her head back down. “Anyway. He was sniffing and chuffing all over me. That’s why I smelled like that when I came home. So, I did what any woman does when she wants to dissuade and over eager suitor.” “You didn’t.” His hands resumed their travels over her feet, moving higher on her legs to her calves. Smooth as a baby’s bottom. “I did. Pow!” She kicked her leg up, narrowly missing his face. “Right in the family jewels.” Mattias’ heart was ready to burst from his chest, from both fear for her life and pride at how she handled herself. His kitten was a fighter, even if she preferred to be a sweet, absentminded lover most of the time. She placed her foot back in his lap and wiggled further down the couch. Apparently, she didn’t want just her feet rubbed tonight. Her movements put her calves and knees in his lap. He could take a hint, if that was what it was. He’d find out soon though. He squeezed some lotion from a bottle he found on the end table into his hands. Warming it first by rubbing his palms together, he massaged her legs, his hands wandering higher and higher with each pass. She still hadn’t objected to his touch. His palms traveled over her smooth skin from ankles to upper thighs and back again, moving closer to her central heat with each stroke. She panted and moaned beneath his touch, each small sound making his cock harden even further, if that was possible. He always seemed to be in some state of arousal near her, even when her legs were unshaven and she file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (66 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:24]
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smelled like the back end of a lion. She shifted her legs, widening them, as he skimmed her upper thighs. Inches from her sweet pussy, her heat called to him, beckoned him to stroke her. He ached to close the gap between his hands and her center, but he resisted. He wanted to hear the words, hear her ask and give permission for him to touch her in such an intimate way. He wanted his mate to acknowledge her need for him. Until then, he’d resign himself to cock-aching massages and tender kisses.
Chapter Eleven Ginny was going to hit him with his present. For a month—a whole month—he’d come to her home, prepared her dinner, and given her the most tender and loving massages of her life. But that was it. That was where it ended. He’d get her hot, bothered, and ready to roll, then politely excuse himself with a tender kiss goodnight and a promise of tomorrow. Well, she was going to beat him with his damn present, which she still hadn’t opened, until he was unconscious, and then she was going to have her way with him. Ha! Take that Mr. Get Me Hot and Bothered and Leave Me Wanting! After he left the gift on her kitchen table, she’d moved it around her house, never daring to un-wrap the thing. She half wondered if he’d forgotten that he’d given it to her. He didn’t mention it, and neither did she. But file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (67 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:24]
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she’d spent so much time staring at it, touching it, trying to figure out just what it was, she was ready to go crazy. Between trying to figure out the present and trying to figure out Mattias’ game, she’d end up in a straight jacket soon. The gift was heavy and looked to be a book wrapped in flowery paper. She could tell he’d wrapped it himself. The obsessive-compulsive part of her cringed at the uneven edges and crooked folds of his wrapping job. She ached to rewrap it. It was exactly three inches thick, eleven inches high and eight inches wide. Nice and hefty, it would do just the trick to knock him on his ass. She was used to being scattered with her thoughts—that was an every day occurrence for her. But to be this scattered because of someone else’s behavior, now that was something new. Part of her was convinced that he liked her, wanted her, and loved her as much as she did him. But the insecure part of her that awoke to the vision of her pale, jiggling thighs and jelly-like belly wasn’t so sure. She’d find out soon enough, though. Tonight was the night. She’d stayed home from work after clearing her schedule with the sanctuary and set the stage for Mattias’ seduction. It was all or nothing. She was tired of getting aroused only to have to finish things off herself each night. Enough was enough. Hiding under the covers, wearing nothing but a nervous smile, she waited for him to arrive. She didn’t have to wait long. The sound of him opening the front door drifted to her ears. “Ginny?” She closed her eyes and swallowed hard. This was it. “In the bedroom.” “Oh. I’ve got dinner. I’ll just get started…” “Can you come in here?” She heard him walking through the house, the heels of his loafers clicking on the tile floor. Click, click, click. The clicking stopped. Eyes still closed, she could only assume he’d finally made it to her doorway. “Ginny?” Yep, he had. She pulled the comforter higher, all the way to her neck. Yeah, she was naked. And yeah, he was going to see her, but not until she knew he wanted to see all that. Opening her eyes, she gave him a nervous smile. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (68 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:24]
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“Hey.” He still stood in the doorway. What a good guy. She hadn’t exactly invited him in, and he hadn’t taken it upon himself to enter. Man, did she love this man. “Hey yourself, kitten. You okay?” Aww. He gave her one of his worried frowns. She’d come to recognize them easily now. She relaxed a little and pulled her arms from beneath the blanket but made sure her breasts were still covered. “Yeah, I am now.” His eyes widened, and his body froze. Was that good or bad? She didn’t know. She patted the mattress. “Care to join me?” Oh, she was smooth. Real smooth. Look out men of the world, Seductress Ginny was on the prowl. He moved forward in slow steps, giving her ample opportunity to ogle him. If the growing bulge in his pants was any indication, it seemed he was on the same page as her. So far, so good. He stretched out on the bed next to her. Propping his body up on one elbow, he cupped her cheek with the other hand. “You sure you’re okay?” “Perfect. Well, nearly perfect. I’ll be perfect in a minute, I think. Unless, of course, you say no. Which it is your right to say. But then, I won’t be perfect anymore. Wait. What was the question?” Her mind scrambled, and it was not going as planned. It only got worse when his lips touched hers. So soft and tender, his mouth opened, and his tongue stroked her lower lip. Blanket abandoned, she wrapped her arms around him, one snaking around his neck, while the other slipped over his waist. The kiss grew in intensity, shifting from sweet to scorching as his tongue delved between her lips, licking and exploring every corner of her mouth. Not to be outdone, her tongue dueled with his for dominance, stroking the roof of his mouth, his teeth, everything she could reach. Her hands roamed his back. His muscles tensed and shifted beneath her touch, and she whished he was just as naked as she was. Pulling out of the kiss, she whispered one word. “Clothes.” She wanted them gone, away, off, just to disappear. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (69 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:24]
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He rolled away and stood next to the bed, his hands tugging and pulling at his tie then unbuttoning his shirt. She drank up every inch of skin as it was revealed. His sun-kissed skin was unblemished and stretched tight across his muscular chest. Light sprinkles of hair circled his nipples and bisected his body as it thickened and disappeared beneath the waist of his pants. Her gaze shifted from one side of his body to the other, counting. “What are you doing?” The typical heat of her blush rose in her cheeks, but she tried to appear unfazed. “Counting to see if you have a six pack...” Her eyes flicked to his face. “...or eight.” His pants were slung low on his hips, revealing those little lines carved above each one. That was definitely a spot deserving of a kiss, or ten. He reached for his belt, but stilled. Brows drawn tight, she poked out her lower lip, pouting. “Where’s the present I got you?” “What?” “The present. Where is it?” “You’re stopping…” She waved her hand between them. “...this to ask about a present?” He leaned forward and nipped her lower lip, which still poked out. “Yes, but it’ll be worth it. I promise. Now, where is it? I know you haven’t opened it, so where did you put it.” It irked her that he knew her so well. Sighing, she flopped back onto the bed. “On the end table in the living room. The one where your lotion and the remote are.” He was back within moments and handing her the wrapped package she knew so well. It was a little worse for wear from her constantly stroking and holding it, but it was still wrapped at least. “Open it.” “Now? Of all times, now?” “Yes, open it, kitten. I think you’ll like it.” “But now?” “Ginny.” Ooh! He growled her name. Sure, he was probably trying to sound file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (70 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:24]
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menacing, but when he growled at her, her pussy clenched and wept, aching to be filled. Struggling with the blanket, she managed to sit up while still keeping covered. Comforter held firmly beneath her arms and over her breasts, she pulled at the wrapping paper. Piece by piece, his gift was revealed. It was a leather-bound book. So, she had been right. Flipping the book over, her hands stroked the embossed lettering as she read the title aloud. “Mattias’ Dictionary.” She shot him a confused look. “Like Webster’s,” he said with a whisper. This time, he was the one to blush. “Open it.” Her hand continued to caress the leather, its soft, buttery texture teasing her senses. She opened the large volume, flipping past the publisher notations to the meat of the book. The title proclaimed it was a dictionary, so she started where the A’s should be. Only it didn’t begin with the letter A. It began and was filled with one word. Mate. She hadn’t even read the definition and already tears burned and stung, threatening to spill. She looked into Mattias’ eyes and saw a few tears swimming within them as well. “Read it, kitten.” She cleared her throat, tears and emotion causing it to constrict. “Mate. Noun. Ginny Taylor, Mattias Kilgrey’s other half. The only person that can complete him. From here until eternity. Or as long as she’ll have him.” She continued to flip from one page to the next, each of them filled with the same thing, the word mate and its definition. She’d had this book from the second day of their meeting, and this told her how deep his feelings ran. All this time, he’d done nothing more than kiss and stroke her, taking care of her each day until she was ready to take it further. She only had one question for him. “So, will I end up being able to get all furry, too?” Mattias pounced on her. There was no other word for it. Her impudent question when he was sitting on pins and needles to hear her answer demanded swift retribution. Growling amid her squeals and giggles, he snatched the book from her hands. “Hey! That’s mine.” file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (71 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:24]
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“And you’re mine,” he rumbled against her neck, nipping at the soft skin. “Yeah, I suppose I am.” She giggled again as he rained kisses along her neck, his body half lying on top of hers. “You suppose? Well, I guess it’s my job for you to be damn sure that you’re mine and you know it.” Ginny tilted her head to the side, giving him better access to her neck. God! Sweet snow and vanilla. He’d never get enough of the taste of her. Never. Their bodies remained separated by the blanket and his slacks. While his mouth continued to explore her neck, shoulder, and mouth, one of his hands worked at the button and zipper of his slacks. The expensive cloth restricted his erection almost to the point of pain. His cock sprang free of its confines. Now that the near pain wasn’t clouding his mind, he could enjoy his mate. “I’ll bite you kitten, right here.” He nipped the skin where her shoulder and neck met. “It’ll leave a mark and lingering scent, letting everyone know you’re mine.” She laughed; music to his ears. “So, you’re going to give me a hickey.” She pulled away from him and looked into his eyes. “Can I give you one, too? Don’t want all those other snow leopard floozies getting ideas.” “Anything, Ginny. Anything. My body is yours. Is your body mine? Will you be my mate?” Her gaze met his. He expected an instant yes, followed by several long rounds of lovemaking. He definitely didn’t expect the reaction he got. “Wait.” She pushed at his body, and he rolled away from her. Scrambling and tugging at the blanket, she slid from the bed to stand before him, nude. He didn’t think it was possible, but his cock throbbed and grew harder with the sight of her. Any moment now, with hardly any stimulation, he’d come right on her bed. She was in a word, beautiful. In another, magnificent. She shifted from one foot to another as he stared at her open mouthed and panting. He wanted his hands, mouth and cock all over her. Now. “This is me. Get a good look. I won’t have you telling me to lose thirty pounds in two months, or telling me that I’m fat and ugly and—” “Shut up and get over here, kitten, before I turn you over my knee and file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (72 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:24]
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give you the spanking you’re earning right now.” “Spanking?” Figured that would be what she picked up from his statement. “Yes, spanking.” He draped his legs over the edge of the bed and pulled her naked form to stand between his knees. His position put her face level with his. “Because I think you are the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen, both inside and out. I won’t have you talking about yourself like that. And if I hear of it again, I’ll turn you over my knee and redden this sweet ass of yours.” He wrapped his hands around her hips, stroking and kneading the ass in question. So soft and pliant under his hands, he couldn’t wait to become acquainted with her body. His eyes focused on hers as she spoke against his lips. “You’ll have a hard time doing that with this in your way.” He didn’t know what she was talking about until her warm, agile fingers wrapped around his erection. “Ahh, Ginny.” Her grip tightened, her other hand joining in the fun as he released her and leaned back to watch her hands work him. Warm and eager, she stroked him from base to tip and back again. He fought his body’s instinctive need to dominate, and let her have her fun. She tightened her grip on the up stroke and loosened it as she moved back down his shaft. Tighten and release. Repeated over and over again. His hips moved on their own, no longer controlled by him but by his ache for release. His orgasm built as she stroked and teased his cock. One hand moved to cup and roll his balls, while the other continued stroking him. His eyes rolled up, and he dropped his head back, loving everything her hands did to him. When the warm heat of her mouth wrapped around the head of his cock, he nearly came from the pleasure. His orgasm had been building and simmering under the surface. It shimmied down his spine and built in his lower back, begging to be released. His beast roared its agreement in his mind, but he didn’t want to come. Not yet. Her mouth worked up and down his shaft in conjunction with her hands. Stroke, suck, rub, lick, suck, nip. The nipping was almost his downfall. Her teeth closed gently around the head of his cock as her tongue pressed into his slit, almost as if she sought his seed. She wasn’t going to have it, not file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (73 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:24]
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yet. Mustering his strength and pushing his beast back, he placed his hands on either side of her mouth, pulling her from his shaft. His cock was released with a pop and a whimper. “Ginny, kitten, I don’t want to come that way.” He pulled her nude body on top of his; pressing his steel-hard cock into her lower belly while his hands roamed her back. Their tongues dueled and danced within each other’s mouths while their hands explored. Mattias rolled her to her back and dropped to his knees before she had a chance to protest. Using his shoulders, he urged her legs to part, exposing her pussy—his pussy—to his gaze. And damn, it took his breath away. She was trimmed, but not shaved. She left a short, groomed pelt for him to pet and stroke. Which he did. His fingers explored her most intimate place, touching every inch of skin he could see. It wasn’t long before his fingertips were coated in her wetness, in her proof of desire. She whimpered as he brought one hand to his mouth and his eyes locked with hers. Sucking a finger into his mouth, her taste exploded on his tongue. Sweet snow, vanilla, and her musk. He’d never get enough of her. Never. Now that he’d had a taste on his finger, he wanted it straight from the source. Mattias was touching her there. There. And he tasted her on his hand. And just when she didn’t think it could get any better, his fingers separated her labia, and she watched in awe as his tongue flicked her tiny nub. Her body arched toward his mouth, strung tight with wanting. “Please.” She wasn’t above begging. She wanted his mouth on her more than anything. He chuckled, his warm breath fanning her aching heat. Her pussy was swollen and wet with arousal. She reclined on the bed, unable to watch his sweet torture of her body any longer. His lips and tongue pressed kisses to her lips, from core to clit. If only he would focus on one area and give her the orgasm she craved. As if reading her thoughts, his tongue circled and flicked her clit. At the same time, he plunged two fingers into her heat, stroking and massaging the walls of her pussy. Ecstasy. His fingers pumped and plunged into her file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (74 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:24]
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slick, wet cunt. Over and over again, he stroked as his tongue worked her clit, circling the tiny nubbin of nerves, pushing her toward release. His fingers curved and pressed within her body, stroking the small bundle of nerves that formed her G-spot. His mouth latched onto her clit, sucking in time with his fingers’ movements. He demanded her orgasm. Her pussy clenched and rippled around his fingers, her muscles tensing in preparation of release. He continued manipulating her flesh, urging and rushing her toward the peak. It was so close. Within reach. He sucked harder on her clit, tongue flicking the engorged nub, fingers moving. She rocked in time with his movements, seeking fulfillment. Finally, her never endings burst to life, sending shivers of pleasure coursing through her veins in a fiery climax as her pussy clenched around Mattias’ fingers. She screamed his name with her release. He never stopped, simply slowed, allowing her body to float back to reality in slow, sinuous movements. Her hips still rocked and rode his hand as his tongue lapped at her core. Seconds, minutes, it seemed like hours later, he rose above her and captured her lips in a tender kiss. She tasted her own juices. Never before had she done something so erotic. His tongue swept and swirled inside her mouth, coating her tongue in her own essence. The taste was musky and salty, not too dissimilar from his taste. Mattias’ cock nestled against her curls, and she wrapped her legs around his waist, seeking more contact. He pulled out of their kiss, and her gaze locked with his as he rubbed his staff along her slit. The head of his cock brushed her clit, sending waves of arousal through her body. His breathing was choppy, puffing out in great gusts with each stroke. “Please, Mattias. Fuck me, love me, just do something.” He raised his body above hers and, using one hand, poised the head of his cock at the entrance to her core. She lifted her hips higher and tightened her legs around his waist, begging him to enter her body. He teased her at first, sliding in and out in shallow thrusts. No matter how hard she pulled and tightened the muscles of her legs, he wouldn’t go deeper. His teasing would be the death of her, she was sure of it. “Mattias, please! I need you.” file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (75 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:24]
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“You never answered me, kitten. Are you my mate? You’re mine. Am I yours?” “Yes. God, yes!” His cock forced into her tight sheath, spreading and stretching her pussy wide to accommodate him. In one forceful thrust, he was buried in her body, and he stilled, staring into her eyes. With deliberate movements, he withdrew and pressed forward again, stroking her inner walls. His cock, large and wide, tunneled into her body, and it was exquisite. She surrendered to the pleasure of being joined with him, of accepting and loving his body within hers. He thrust his cock into her body with force as her hands stroked and learned the muscles and contours of his body. She thrust her hips up to meet his with each stroke, eager for him to experience the same pleasure he granted her. Her body shifted restlessly as she neared her peak once again, hips rising and falling with his movements. Her pussy rippled and contracted around his erection, urging him on. Her clit pressed against his body with each thrust into her pussy, pushing her toward the ultimate release. Perspiration glistened and coated their bodies, their combined musk of sex and sweat filling the room. She wanted it, wanted him, wanted it all. His mouth dove for hers. Tongues tangled and fought. Her orgasm boiled just beneath the surface, so close, but she wanted him to fall with her. “Close, Mattias.” “Yessss,” he hissed between clenched teeth. His movements became strained, muscles bunched and tightened above her. She knew he was close. He shifted and covered her completely with his body, his cheek pressed against hers as his mouth found the spot he had claimed not long ago. Tongue licking, teeth nipping, she continued to meet him thrust for thrust. When she couldn’t hold back any longer, she screamed with her release, her pussy clamping down on his cock as the spasms of her orgasm washed through her body. Mattias stiffened above her and, with a groan, sank his teeth into the flesh of her shoulder, the pain dragging her orgasm to new heights. She was awash with the sensation of sharing and joining with him, her love, her mate. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (76 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:24]
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His teeth released her bruised, aching flesh, and he withdrew his deflating erection. She mourned the loss of his cock but knew it wouldn’t be gone for long. He crawled further up the bed and urged her to join him. “Can’t. Move. You fucked me stupid.” She giggled. He answered with a growl. “No, I loved you stupid. Now get your hot ass up here or I’ll make good on that spanking.” She got her muscles to move and crawled next to him. He wasn’t having any of that. He pulled her body on top of his, and she rested her head on his shoulder. He moved her head to the side and bathed his mark with his tongue. “Sorry I hurt you.” “No you’re not, but that’s okay because I’m not either.” “How about sorry it had to hurt, but I’d do it again in a heartbeat?” She sighed, relaxing into his body as he cared for her. “That works for me.” She snuggled closer to him. “Oh, I just remembered another question I had.” “Mmhmm?” He sounded sleepy, just as sleepy as she was with fatigue from their lovemaking tugging at her. “Am I going to have kittens?” The End
Author Bio Celia would have loved to have written her own biography, but she just didn’t know what to say. In a fit of desperation, she turned to me, her most trusted confidant and friend. I realize you’re asking yourself, “Who is this?” I am Cali, her cat. I also go by a few other names, but those may be too strong for your delicate ears. Suffice it to say, my mommy is very file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B/My%20Documents/My%20Books/CK_lovedefined.htm (77 of 78) [23/04/2008 15:46:24]
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creative and not just with writing. My mommy, Celia, began writing in August of 2006. I know this because it was around that time our meals started coming later and later in the day. As months passed, she spent more and more time in front of the boring screen. Though, it was fun to chase the little arrow around every once in a while. You should hear her scream! But I digress. She’s worked hard to give readers sexy, quirky heroines they can relate to. And you better damn well appreciate it. All I got was late-night feedings. And I didn’t even make it into her first book by name! That damn kitten, Katie O’Meghan did. Bitch. Well, enjoy her writings, and if you want to praise her for her writing…don’t. I’d like to get fed at some point, people. Fine. If you must contact her, her website is at www.celiakyle.com Or you can send an email to
[email protected]. But when I go hungry, I’ll blame you all!
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