Read Here There Be Tigers for Free Online Page B

her face against
his neck and breathe him in while she stripped him naked. Then she
wanted to taste him, everywhere, just to see if he tasted as
delicious as he smelled.
    Bad idea, Nila. Bad idea. Hiding in sex
wasn’t going to get her out of her current predicament. Giving in
to the amnesia of sex wouldn’t help. She needed to stay
clear-headed, which meant she needed to get off this couch and away
from temptation.
    “ Either the tea is working,” she
said, very carefully setting the mug down on his coffee table, “or
the jetlag is taking its toll. I think I should turn
in.”
    “ Good idea.”
    His voice cascaded over her skin, leaving a
tingling of anticipation in its wake. Her body pulsed with need.
Why wasn’t she dragging him to bed? She bet there was a very
serviceable bed in that guestroom. Without meaning to, she found
her gaze wondering over his chest and shoulders, settling on the
flexing muscles of his forearms.
    She swallowed and stood so she wouldn’t lean in
and kiss him.
    “ This way.” He gestured to the back
of the house, behind the sunken sitting area, where a wooden
staircase curved up to the second floor. She followed his
lead.
    On the landing, he turned right. “My bedroom is
back that way.” He motioned toward the opposite side of the
hallway. “Here’s the bathroom.” He tapped a door as he passed. “And
here’s your room.” Pushing open the next door, he leaned in and
flipped on the lights.
    When he stepped back, she walked past to get
into the room and paused just inside the threshold. They hadn’t
touched, but she could almost feel the brush of his skin against
hers, and the sensation made her shiver.
    “ If you’re cold, there are more
blankets in that closet.”
    She wasn’t the least bit cold. In fact, she was
overly warm. But she thanked him anyway. Without having to look,
she sensed him moving closer, close enough she felt his heat along
her spine.
    “ Is the room okay?”
    His breath brushed against the side of her face
as he leaned in. “It’s fine,” she whispered, her every nerve
conscious of his proximity. All she’d have to do is lean back to be
in his arms. If she turned her head, she could capture his mouth
with hers. Her breathing increased right along with her heart
rate.
    Tilting her head to the side just enough to see
him from the corner of her eye, she caught him staring down at her.
The heat in his eyes dried her mouth. When she licked her lips, he
growled softly. The sound sent a tremor of desire shooting through
her body.
    “ I should really try to sleep,” she
murmured.
    He nodded. “You should.”
    Neither of them moved for a long
moment.
    Finally, she faced the room and pulled in a
long slow breath. She tried, again, to convince herself sleeping
with him now would be foolish. She was in no state to make a wise
decision about sex, and she was too old to go flying into bed with
a man just because he was hot and she wanted to forget for a few
hours. She had no idea what would happen in the next few days. The
complication of sex with Mitch was more than she could afford right
now.
    Despite the rapid thump of her heart, she
forced out a quiet, “Goodnight.”
    “ Goodnight. If you need me, I’m just
down the hall.”
    Oh, good. Being reminded of that would really
help her sleep. With a silent groan, she firmly closed the bedroom
door between them.
     
    Nila woke with a start. She squinted against
the pale light filtering into the room. For an instant, she didn’t
recognize her surroundings, then the whole horrible night came back
to her.
    Well, not entirely horrible. Meeting Mitch was
almost worth the mess she was in.
    She rose and opened the drapes, taking in the
thick woods on the side of the house. Sparkling sunshine reached
down through the branches, and a bright blue sky peeked out over
the green limbs.
    Her mother was a tiger shapeshifter.
    In the light of day, the idea seemed beyond
ridiculous. Thinking back, she could almost believe