Chapter 6

It’s time for a change, Lana decided. Two years was long enough to mourn her father and her mate. And she might be on the run, but that didn’t mean she had to go without companionship. So she’d already made some decisions about this beautiful tiger-shifter. If the night continued to go well, he would be the first tiger-shifter she’d been intimate with since Ian’s death.

It was good that Roman was so different from Ian. For one thing, he was a bit older than she—he’d be the first older man she’d ever been with. The thought of that experience seemed somehow decadent, and it appealed to her. He’d also technically be her first one-night stand—her first time with Ian, under the influence of a hormone-inducing herb, didn’t count, they’d decided long ago. Roman would be the only man she’d ever picked up and gone home with. Or did he pick me up? Either way, when he walked into her restaurant, it had highlighted how lonely she was for other shifters.

One night. That’s all she needed. Only enough to assuage that loneliness a little. Then she could go back to hiding from all other shifters. Maybe begin planning to pick up and leave again. She’d been in San Antonio for over six months, after all. But she could think about that later. Right now, she wanted to live for the moment, focus on the way being with him made her feel.

“Oh, that went down smooth.” Roman breathed out as he put his arm around her, moving in close.

“Well, then, you’re in for a treat.” She glanced up at him by tilting her head up to the side. “If you like this brand, then the next ones will impress you even more.”

“I can’t wait.”

“Then let’s not.” She reached over for their glasses and handed one to him. The first shot was already rushing to her head. She hadn’t eaten much during the day, so the alcohol affected her more quickly than usual—though, with her shifter metabolism, it would burn off quickly. At most, a mild, pleasant buzz was all she usually experienced.

“I’ll have to definitely come back here,” Roman said, and then added, “With you, of course.”

Or maybe it was Roman’s nearness that was going to her head. She was finding it harder and harder to keep her sarcastic-waitress façade intact when all she wanted to do was drag him off to a dark corner and kiss him. “Okay. But you have to know what to order. I’ll write it all down for you, so you do it right.”

“Much appreciated.” He tipped an imaginary hat her direction, a laugh underscoring his voice. “I’d hate to come across as a complete rube.” The growing crowd in the bar pressed them close to each other—so near that she could smell his tiger-shifter scent, both soothing and arousing.

Lana fought the urge to reach up and run her fingers across his lightly stubbled chin. Instead, she turned her back to the bar, leaning her elbows against it. “You have a last name, Roman?”

He pulled back a little, and Lana found herself missing the heat pouring off his body. “Velazquez. What about you?”

Roman Velazquez. It had a nice ring to it. Even this long after her escape from Trevor and his crew, she has to think about her own alias. “Lana Freeman.”

“Nice to meet you, Ms. Freeman.” He picked up one of the shot glasses and tipped it her direction.

“And you, Mr. Velazquez.”

As they drank, Lana caught the scent of bat-shifters wafting through the bar. Roman’s nose tilted up and his eyes narrowed as he glanced around for the source of the smell. In the wild, tigers might not have a very strong sense of smell, but it still beat humans’ any day.

At a table in a corner not far away, a female pair of bat-shifters kissed in the dark, tops off, black bras exposed to the enhanced night-vision of the tiger-shifters in their midst.

Roman glanced at them then turned back to Lana, about to say something, but she pre-empted him. “Give you any ideas?”

Did I really say that? What is wrong with me?

“Tons, actually,” he replied, and without missing a beat, he pulled her to him, his arm tight around her waist. The breath whooshed out of her as she wrapped her arms around his neck. Gently, he brushed his lips across her, sending a spark of desire flashing down her spine.

Arching her back, she pressed into him, instinctively parting her lips, ready for his tongue to enter her mouth. But his lips played against hers, sending more flickers of heat racing through her, stoking the fire of her need for another tiger. For him.

“Roman.” She whispered his name against his mouth, half unconsciously. His arm tightened around her waist and she molded her body to his as he grew hotter against her.

And still, his mouth only danced lightly with hers. With a moan, she threaded her hands through his hair and pulled his lips tight to her, entering his mouth with her tongue, aggressive in a way she’s never been with another tiger. Not even Ian.

Within seconds, Roman matched her intensity, his tongue tangling with hers and sending white-hot excitement to her core.

Oh. I need to back off, or I’m going to end up stripping him down and taking him right here in the bar.