Chapter 06

Killian watched the slender biologist try to temper the aggressive male’s enthusiasm over the mud impression. The researcher had earned his instant dislike due to the way he treated Melody, but there was a sense of desperation around the man which made him unpredictable. After they took a gazillion photographs, the shifter emerged from the trees with a bundle wrapped in butcher paper. Using a thin paint scraper, he removed his hybrid print and unwrapped the second imprint taken the same night – this time of his human foot.

It was slightly smaller than his hybrid form and lacked the distinctive claws, but otherwise looked similar enough to cause dissension in their ranks. He used a stick to create the illusion of claws at the toes, dipped it in the stream, and set it into place. It took him longer than he would have liked to blend it into the rock, but he was satisfied with the results. By the time the team lead returned to make the plaster impression, there would be nothing but a smudged human footprint at the cave mouth.

Chuckling to himself, he gathered his tools, removed his tracks, and slipped back into the forest. The next stage would be a two-prong attack that they wouldn't notice until the morning. He stuffed his tools into the work shed, shifted into bear form, and returned to the encampment. It was getting harder and harder to stay away from his sexy human mate. When he arrived, the camp was in chaos.

“What do you mean the print had changed? Prints don’t just change, Terry!” Andrew paced in front of the food tent, a cigarette dangling from his lips and his hair sticking up at odd angles. “Tim was there, too. He saw it! We had photographs, for fuck’s sake.”

“Then show them to me, Andy.” The older man stood with his arms crossed over his chest, feet shoulder-width apart. Killian smirked as Terry's stance issued an obvious challenge. By the way the aggressive human reacted, he recognized it and retreated into sullenness.

“You've seen them already.”

“And I want you to show them to me again. If this thing’s legit as you say it is, surely you’ll want to show them to me? Besides, we’ll need to edit them into the episode.”

“Well, I don’t exactly have them anymore,” Andrew lit another cigarette off the first, and stuck the butt into his discarded beer can. That’s an unauthorized beverage while on set, Andrew McMasters, Killian tutted to himself. Sitting back on his haunches, he wondered how the foolish researcher would weasel his way out of this one.

“What?” Melody choked on her water, as did a few of the others. “What happened? Did the laptop crash?”

“Not exactly.”

“What do you mean by not exactly?” Terry pulled the unopened beer from Andrew’s hand and slammed it onto the table. “There’s a backup on the camera, right?”

“I bet he’s sold them, and had to delete them as part of the deal.” Brian, on loan from the ghost hunting shows, looked up from his game of solitaire. “How much did you lose in Vegas, Andy?”

“Shut up, Brian,” Andrew snarled, whipping around Terry to retrieve his beer. “You don’t know anything.”

“If you didn't sell them, where are they?” The gruff team lead stared a hole in the young researcher. Killian would have liked the older man a lot more if he wasn't lusting over Melody. If that man jacked off one more time after ogling his mate’s gorgeous tits, he was definitely going to bite his dick off. The bear flopped onto his stomach with a rumbling, pouting growl.

“So, it’s like that, huh? You’re just going to listen to Brian and that fat bitch without even hearing my side of things? Maybe if you raised your eyes above her tits, you’d see what she’s doing to you.”

“Excuse the fuck out of you?” Melody stood and got in the slender man’s face. Killian drooled as her chest heaved, straining the thin material of her shirt. “Why don’t you unknot your pencil dick, and get the fuck over the fact that there’s a woman on the team? I won’t even address your comments on my weight or the size of my chest, because they don’t have a single goddamned thing to do with this discussion.” She punctuated each point with a stab of her finger into Andrew’s chest, knocking him back a few inches each time. “You took the pictures. Those pictures are now gone. The same pictures that are property of the network, you misogynistic asswipe. I hope you got enough money to pay your bookie and your lawyer.”

“Wait, lawyer? What the fuck is she talking about, Terry?”

“Something you should have thought about, Andy, if you really did sell those pictures.” Brian gathered his cards, shuffling them with smooth expertise. "Everything seen, written about, photographed, or shat out of your poor delusional brain is property of the network execs. Even if you took the pictures with your cell phone or drew them as hieroglyphs on the cave walls. Read your fucking contract, dude.” Andrew drained his beer, and fell into the nearest chair with a groan.

“Did you sell the pictures, Andy?” Terry asked again. The man nodded, propping his elbows on the table and burying his head in his hands. Killian almost felt sorry for him. Almost. “Can you get them back?” The younger man shrugged. “You’re fucked, you know that?” Andrew dropped his head onto the metal camp table with a thud. “Okay, guys. I've got to alert the network of this little problem. Andy, stay in your tent or with one of the guys. I don’t want you wandering off. Brian, I need you and Melody to go out and take down the cameras. I have a feeling they’re going to shut us down after this.” The researcher just banged his head on the table again while the others went into motion.

Killian trailed a respectable distance from his mate and the human male, listening to their sparse conversation, eating a few berries, remarking his territory. If the crew left early, his claim on his mate would fade in time. This made him very sad. He enjoyed her attitude as well as her enthusiasm. She hadn't even screamed when he turned into a bear, though her soundless gaping hadn't been her most attractive look. The thought of her leaving made his cock even sadder. It really enjoyed its enthusiastic journeys into her delightfully tight pussy and her sinfully wicked mouth. No, he had to convince her to either stay, or at least return to him.

He was so deep into his thoughts, a first for him, that he almost tumbled into the clearing where the pair had stopped for the final camera. Brian shimmied up the tree in record time, retrieved the camera, and lowered it to Melody. He started on the buckles and straps, while hanging onto the thick branch like a hairless monkey.

“So,” he called down as he dropped each strap to the floor. “How long have you known the bear?” The bear in question sat abruptly on his haunches, fanged jaw hanging open in shock.

“The what?” Though she only hesitated a brief second, it was a very telling second.

“The bear you've been sneaking out of your tent to meet by the stream. Look, I don’t care who you’re banging, but you have to be careful. Not all shifters have your best interests at heart, you know?” He tossed the last of the straps to the ground then jumped nimbly from the branch. Killian’s eyes narrowed. Too nimbly. Raising his nose to the air, he finally caught the scent. Bobcat. Son of a bitch!

“I don’t know what…”

“Well, hello there.” Brian’s brown gaze moved from his mate’s face to his own, and it held more than a hint of genuine appreciation. A low purr started in the ghost hunter’s throat when Killian stepped, fully nude, from the bushes. “Nevermind my question, Melody. I completely understand why you’re sneaking out to meet him. Good catch!”

“Killian! What the fuck are you doing here, and where are your clothes?”

“Following you, of course.” He folded his mate into his arms, and nodded to the strange shifter. “Hoping to get a chance to talk to you about tonight.”

“Killian Lancashire. I think we met at an electronics and computer expo a few years back. Great lecture, better ass.” Brian held out his hand with a grin. “Now that I’ve seen the rest, I’m even more disappointed that you seem to have found your mate. Brian Arcady, by the way.”

“I think I remember you.” They shook hands, and he noticed the cat scenting the air. If he hadn’t been so intent on claiming his mate, he might have smelled the other shifter before now. A cub’s mistake. “You were doing the panel on infrared cameras, right?”

“In more ways than one. You wouldn't believe how many times a man can come if you can purr when his cock is in your throat.”

“Hmm, I bet.” Killian’s cock twitched in interested curiosity, thumping against Melody’s hip as if asking permission. He received a frown in reply. “What? I’d love it if you could purr, mate. Do you know how awesome that would feel? Like a living, sucking vibrator. Hell fucking yeah!”

“Good Lord, Killian, is that all you think of?”

“Of course not!” He tried to look affronted, but a silly grin worked its way over his face. “Sometimes I think about fucking you ‘til we both pass out.”

“Oh for fuck’s sake!” Melody threw her arms up, giving him the perfect opportunity to turn her around in his arms. Her generous tits pressed against his chest, pulling a happy rumble from his chest. He gripped her hips, grinding his erection against her jeans-clad crotch as he peppered kisses along her neck. “Killian,” she moaned, pushing at his shoulders while tilting her head back. “We have an audience, you silly bear.”

“The cat can get his own lover,” he mumbled against her shoulder. Her shiver when he nipped his healed bite encouraged him further, and he eased his hands beneath her thin shirt to unclasp her bra. “Or he can watch. Or join in. I don’t care. Want you.”

“Oh, sweet God, yes!” He nudged her shirt to her neck, clasping his teeth around one eager and waiting nipple and suckling hard. “Wait, no! I mean… oh, fuck, that feels good.”

“Hell, yeah,” Killian rumbled against her luscious tits. He deftly maneuvered the button and zipper, and pushed her jeans to her ankles. As his fingers plunged into her waiting pussy, he felt the cat’s warm hands caressing his ass. He hoped to hell his mate didn’t mind a bit of hedonistic sharing, because those hands felt heavenly. “Kick off those shoes, mate. Want to taste that delicious cunt of yours.”

He kissed his way down her stomach, teasing her navel with his tongue as she toed off her sneakers. He laid her down on the damp ground, and spread her legs as wide as they would go. With a growl, he attacked her dripping lips, licking and slurping up her juices with enthusiastic abandon. He shoved his rough tongue deep into her quivering hole, and fucked her with long strokes. As she squirmed beneath his assault, He felt Brian’s hot mouth, tight throat, and then the mind-numbing purrs around his engorged cock. Fuck yeah, it felt awesome!

He replaced his tongue with three thrusting fingers, meeting Brian’s amber eyes as the cat gobbled up his cock. Killian felt Melody approaching her first orgasm and bit down on her clit. Fuck, she gripped him like an anaconda. He forced his fingers to keep thrusting into her sopping, gripping cunt, and urged her towards another climax. She sobbed his name as he kept her hanging, edging her higher and higher. Damn, his mate was beautiful during sex!

Killian eased another finger into her slick channel, stretching her as he finger-fucked her with abandon. His eyes latched onto his mate’s hands when she started pinching and tugging on her nipples. He growled around her clit, and thrust deep into Brian’s throat. The cat choked at first, then purred louder and pressed against the bear’s ass. Though he was a bit nervous, having only played like that once before, Killian pressed back against the probing fingers. The cat had unerring aim, stroking along his prostate with insistent fingertips. Goddamn, he was going to lose his fucking mind, soon!

Their release washed over the trio like a line of falling dominos. Melody fell over the edge first, biting the heel of her hand to keep from alerting the camp of their activities. Her pussy clutched Killian’s fingers to the point of pain. He followed, choking his purring cat friend with a seemingly endless flood of come. Brian, left to his own devices, gave his cock one final tug, and sprayed his seed onto the bear’s ass and thighs. Killian rested his face on his mate’s contracting, smooth skin while the cat scooted from beneath his quivering body.

“I wouldn't be adverse to a repeat of that someday, Killian,” Brian gasped. “Your mate is a lucky woman.”

“You should have fucked him, Brian,” Melody muttered. He looked into her sated but smiling eyes, and answered her saucy grin with his tentative one. “I think he’d like it.”

“You’re okay with what we did, mate?” Killian crawled up her body, cradling her with his arms. “I guess I should have asked, but then he started purring and my brain misfired. I don’t want this to cause problems. I know I haven’t exactly gone about this the right way, but I don’t want to lose you.”

“I'm okay with it, just warn me next time. The sex is great, Killian, but we do need to talk. If we want a relationship, we can’t base it on fucking.”

“I know,” he sighed, then leaned down to nibble one of her pert nipples. “But you’re just so perfect for me. I mean, damn woman, look at these tits! How can a man think when faced with such excellent examples of… of… absolute perfection?”

“Get off me, silly bear.” He pouted as she rolled to her feet. “We have to get back, or the entire camp will think I’ve been out here fucking Brian. I mean, they won’t be far off the mark, but I’d rather not face more trouble right now.” He untied her shoes and handed them to her, helping her brush the leaves from her socks. “The network will probably shut us down if Tim really did sell those photographs.”

“He did.” Killian reclasped her bra with a disappointed sigh, brushing her erect nipples with longing. He loved how she arched into his touch, even though she pulled her shirt into place.

“How do you know for certain?”

“Because I bought them, of course.” Brian had his shirt half-tucked into his jeans while Melody stopped in the middle of zipping hers; both stared at him, jaws dropping. “I wasn't about to let something like that get out, and I knew he would try to sell them. He’s about half a million in debt to the Vegas mob. He’s desperate.”

“Now, how do you know that?” When she bent over to brush the last of the leaves from her clothing, Killian’s cock honed in on her plump, perfect ass like a missile. It hadn't even been five minutes since their last romp, and he wanted to rip off her clothes and carry her away like a horny caveman. He licked his lips; Brian did, too.

“I know because that’s what I do. Well, not spy on television folks, really, but I get paid to root around in other people’s computers and tell them where their security holes are. Your buddy Andrew irritated me enough that I comp’d him one.”

“First the mob, and now the tv execs. This is not going to end well.” Brian hefted the case full of equipment, handing the smaller bag containing the straps and pulleys to Melody. She glared; he shrugged unrepentantly. “Shifters are stronger than humans. Get used to it. Listen, the camp will be humming most of the night. I’m pretty sure we’ll be packing up in the morning, but they may put us in a hotel instead of changing the flights. I’ll make sure Ms. Kleptner sneaks away tonight. It’s the full moon. Important time to start a mating.”

“Yes, it is. Thanks, Brian.” He coaxed Melody into his embrace, enveloping her in his scent while giving her a deep but gentle kiss. “We’ll talk tonight, okay? I swear. Maybe after the first round, but we’ll talk.” He winked, and was relieved to see her grin. “I won’t deny I love the sex. It’s better than great and I’m totally addicted to you, but I want more. Maybe a whole lot more.” He swallowed hard after throwing that out there. It was in her hands now.

“I think I do, too.” This time, she kissed him. He groaned when she wrapped her hand around his hard cock and gave it a slow stroke. When she pulled back, her eyes were twinkling, her smile was dazzling, and his cock was weeping in frustration. “I’ll admit to the awesome sex. A gal like me doesn't find a guy like you everyday, and I’m not talking about your insatiable lust. I get the feeling that you’re more than just a talented mouth and an impressive dick. I’d like the opportunity to find out.” Swooping down to place a quick kiss and lick to his begging and pleading cock, she waved and disappeared towards the camp. Brian just chuckled and followed her.