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RAPHAEL lifted a brow

Christ Did she actually think he had furry parts when he was in this form?

Then he bleakly reminded hied deep inside her, was branded on his ht stirred a startling co and so thoroughly she would never, ever be able to forget his touch

To er on her

Mine

He sed a low snarl Dammit He&039;d been chosen as a diplo his ee to destroy that restraint?

"Yes, I&039;m part beast," he said dryly "And before you try to peek, I don&039;t have animal parts when I&039; all she&039;d been through over the past few hours, she aze, determined to learn the truth

"I assume that means you have more than one form?"

"When I&039;m on my native soil I can shift"

"Shift?" She blinked "Like a olf?"

He "

She slowly absorbed his words, her face pale "How?"

Raphael hesitated, battling against his instinctive urge to ignore her question

Over the past fifty years the already elusive Pantera had becoer but unable to pinpoint the precise threat

Only those individuals necessary for survival of their race actually left the Wildlands and they renito except to a rare few, trusted humans Well, and the politicians who had the power to screith their ho, he knew deep in his gut that this woman was innocent

He would have been able to sense if she were lying to him

She truly had no idea what Pantera were or that the child she carried was supposed to be an impossible dream

"You&039;ll have to discuss the subject with our philosophers if you want an exhaustive explanation," he at last answered "But the short story is that the Wildlands possess a ic that createdthe them the ability to shift into animal form It&039;s still hotly debated whether they could have chosen any animal and settled on pumas since they were thein the bayous, or if it was the only foric allowed"

Her face paled another shade, eile beauty "What else can you do?"

Feeling a jab of regret, Raphael loosened his grip on her wrists, ski his hands down her bare arms

This had to be difficult for her

Unfortunately, he didn&039;t kno to make it any easier

"Like hurowing excitement, but her expression remained hard with suspicion

"That&039;sevasive"

His concentration was shattered by the feel of her satin skin beneath his fingertips, the cat inside hier

It didn&039;t understand this need to talk

It wanted to pounce Devour To mate with this female arm and wet beneath him

"We&039;re a secretive race"

"No shit," she breathed "Why?"

"We have our reasons"

Her eyes darkened as his hands traced her shoulders before heading down the line of her collarbone, her own concentration obviously beginning to fracture

"Just tell h clenched teeth

"We produce a pheromone that can be an aphrodisiac," he said, not surprised when her eyes widened and she wildly grasped for the excuse to explain her violent arousal whenever he touched her

"I knew it," she rasped

He shook his head "Ashe, that&039;s not what happened between us"

"You just said-"

"I said it&039;s possible to produce a phero," he said, his voice thickening as his dick began to throb with an insistent craving "You walked into the bar and the air combusted between us"

He could hear her heart miss a beat as her nipples hardened into tiny nubs of teht of you and instantly climbed into the nearest bed?"

She tried for scorn, but there was nothe dilation of her pupils and the scent of her arousal

He sucked in a deep breath, savoring her sweet scent "I don&039;t have an explanation beyond the fact thatone another, theheat hit, and not a force on this earth could have keptheat?"

"When a female Pantera is fertile she-"

"Don&039;t" She pressed a hand over hisover her delicate features "I&039;reed "And even if you were, I should have been able to control ht have the soul of an animal, but I&039; for the truth "Did you truly aze He wasn&039;t proud that he&039;d used his power to scrub her mind

But the bald truth was that he&039;d been as shocked as she was by the intensity of his desire for her And while he&039;d had sex with any number of huht

He couldn&039;t be entirely certain that he hadn&039;t given away the fact he wasn&039;t a nor to complicate their already fucked-up relationship

"I have the ability to cloud your memories," he reluctantly admitted

She stiffened beneath hirowled "I can onlyurge you not to remember It&039;s a small trick that has allowed my people to keep our presence hidden from most of the world"

He could feel her stiffen beneath him "That&039;s what you call it? A sht fire "I thought I was going crazy when I went to the doctor and he toldflashes of memories It terrifiedinsanity"

"I&039; this woan to accept that the child she carried was no trick, that she was actually pregnant with his babe, he couldn&039;t regret that he&039;d given into his pries

To have this woman as his mate, and a child to call his own

It filled him with a fierce happiness he never expected