Read Shifting Crossroads 8 - Ocelot of Trouble for Free Online Page B

was crowding her against the wall and helping her remove traces of their coupling.
    Mina leaned back as he massaged her spine and the curve of her butt.
    His hands slipped between her thighs and relieved some of the ache that was starting in muscles that hadn’t straddled another living being before.
    “So, where would you like to go for lunch?” Robar whispered it in her ear.
    Her stomach growled as an answer. “The café would be fine.”
    He laughed. “I was thinking something more formal for our first meal together.”
    “Formal can be for dinner. I am in the mood for fries or maybe a salad.”
    Robar’s hands moved around her body and cupped her breasts. “I am in the mood for more of you, but I will wait. I think we need to exchange particulars and the café is as good a spot as any.”
    She smiled. “Good. Now, let me out of here and you can have your own run through the water.” She turned in his arms and stared up at the clean line of his jaw and the throbbing pulse in his neck.
    “Fine, but don’t take off without me.” Robar laughed.
    Mina sighed and slid past him. She wrapped herself in a towel and retreated to the bedroom. She blinked. The sheets were now a pristine white and there was no trace of the previous wreck.
    A table set for two with covered dishes on it waited for her.
    Her clothing was folded neatly at the foot of the bed but a navy blue silk and lace negligee was draped over top of it. She took the hint.
    When Robar returned, he stopped short, wearing nothing more than a towel and a shocked expression. “What?”
    “Apparently, Teebie thought I could benefit from an afternoon in.”
    He grinned and looked at the table. “What is she serving?”
    “I have no idea. There was a note that said we were to place our orders out loud and she would provide.”
    He smiled and held her chair out for her. She slipped into the seat, and he helped her place the napkin on her lap.
    He sat opposite her and smiled, “I do not recall you wearing that on the way into this room.”
    “It was waiting for me when I came out. I decided to take the hint.”
    “Remind me to thank Teebie for it.”
    She smiled. “I will.”
    She closed her eyes and muttered her lunch request. There was a ping from the metal, and when she lifted the cover, her fries, ketchup and salad were all huddled together.
    Lunch was served.

Chapter Eight
     
     
    “So, how did you end up here? I was blackmailed.” Robar grinned.
    “Ah, well, I was sent here by my family and my entire local shifter community. They held a social to raise funds and each donated a piece of themselves for the transporter.”
    She dunked her fry into the ketchup and waved it in the air. “It was the largest single donation on record.”
    “What is a social?”
    “It is an event where you purchase a ticket, dance and drink. It is a ticket to a party.” She smiled.
    “Was it fun?”
    “Not particularly. Even my ex-dates participated in an effort to get me to the Crossroads.”
    He winced. “That must have been embarrassing.”
    She snickered and waved a fry at him. “No more so than finding that the women you had paid to come here were not suitable candidates for an easy escape.”
    He raised one auburn eyebrow in surprise. “Fair enough. You are right. I was a little perturbed when I realised that none of them would be suitable as mates.”
    She chuckled. “At least my exes wanted me to find my proper match. If they couldn’t be the love of my life, they wanted me to find it.”
    He sat back with a strange look. “You do seem to make friends easily, don’t you?”
    She shrugged. “I know. For a wild species that is normally solitary, I am perversely social.”
    “It is a good trait. My family throws a lot of dinner parties and attends any number of events.”
    Mina suddenly realised that he came from money. “How well off are you?”
    “Well, the Pickwiks are an old family, and my grandmother’s line is even older. She’s an