Read The Mating Intent-mobi for Free Online Page A

larger?”
    “Gabriel…”
    He turned serious. “We need to talk. Come on, I’ll show you to your room. It’s on the first floor so you don’t have to worry about climbing stairs.”
    “And your room?”
    “I’m on the second. You know me. I like to be on top.”
    Grinning, he escorted her down the hall, giving her space, but sticking close. She’d always liked that about him. He didn’t treat her like glassware, but he appeared the instant she needed him.  He was a real gentleman, when he wasn’t trying to seduce her.
    Gabriel was amazing in bed. When he made love, he could make a woman forget her very name.
    Females who’d eagerly sought his bed whispered of his lovemaking techniques, which  sent them spiraling from one shattering orgasm into another. For all the pleasure, they longed for him to utilize the famous barb in his penis. Gabriel could employ the small hooked bit of flesh at will, using it to stroke inside a woman and stimulate her into an orgasm that would make her see stars.
    But famous as the male panthers were for their sexual abilities, there were few of them. Last time she’d been here, there were only 40 panther shifters living in Gabriel’s clan.
    “Where’s the rest of your clan? Have you added any young since I was last here?” she asked.
    Gabriel paused before a closed door. His expression distant, he shook his head. “No young since you left us. No mated couples have succeeded in breeding. We’re becoming as extinct as the real Florida panther.”
    Heartsick, she put a hand on his strong forearm. “Gabriel, I’m so sorry. What happened?”
    He shrugged. “Probably too much in-breeding over the years. My clan has chosen to end it by partnering with other shifters or Others. One in my clan is mated to a human Mage. They just became mated and they’re hoping to get pregnant this month. That’s why the Blood Moon festival is so important. The Blood Moon bestows us with fertility and many of the females who seldom go into heat experience spontaneous ovulation with the full moon when they mate.”
    She ruminated over this news. “How many panther shifters will participate? Are all the males I met now mated?”
    “There’s only 9 males besides myself who’ve chosen to remain here. One is mated, but the others are not,” he said quietly. “The others went west to find mates among other cougar shifters. The rest of us are all alone. I’ve invited several other panther shifters from out west to participate in the Blood Moon festival for the guys so they can have partners, and hopefully, choose mates.”
    “There are no other Florida panther shifters?”
    “We have to choose among other species to avoid inbreeding.” He considered. “Mating with other shifters, or even Glythen such as the Elven, would strengthen our clan.”
    “Are you suggesting I help you fill your gene pool?”
    “If you’re offering,” he said softly. “Breeding with you would definitely help. And it would be quite pleasurable, trying to make babies with you.”
    His intense scrutiny made her blush. Gabriel grinned and led her to a small, but tidy bedroom with serviceable oak furniture.
    Deeply curious, she glanced around. “Where’s the bathroom?”
    Halfway down the hall, Gabriel opened a door to a bathroom as large as her bedroom. One entire wall was glass, overlooking a tangle of cocoplum trees, yellow and red hibiscus bushes, and a small pond with a rock waterfall. The shower was smooth, polished stone with a low wall and twin shower heads, big enough for five. Total decadence.
    Sienna examined the glass wall and the shower. “No privacy. You plan on peeking in on me when I’m showering?”
    “No, I’m planning on others peeking on us while you and I are showering.” He smiled, the predatory grin of the cat who knew the prey was within his grasp.
    Sienna stiffened. “Gabriel, we are not going to be lovers.”
    “Darling, you can count on it.”
    He escorted her down the hallway, out of