On The Prowl Read Online Free

With more nonchalance than she possessed, she stretched, leaning away from Daniel, setting her cup near the fire. She turned back to him.
    “I’m exhausted. Which side of the fire do you want to sleep on?”
    She caught his gaze, saw the flicker of disappointment that crossed his face. For a moment, her heart clenched, but she squared her shoulders. His expression changed, settled into his normal, relaxed smiling appearance.
    “I’ll take the side closest to the edge. You take toward the back. It’s warmer there. I always sleep hot anyway. I’ll be cooler there.” Daniel pulled his pack over, unsnapping the sleeping bag. Addison sighed, reached for her pack and did the same.
    Addison crawled inside her sleeping bag. The floor of the ledge was rocky but she barely registered the hard lumps poking her in the spine. She watched for a moment as Daniel set another branch on the fire before he arranged his own bag.
    She lay in the soft darkness, trying to make sense of everything that had happened, why she was here in this jungle. Here with Daniel. Then sleep took her, suddenly and completely.

 
    Chapter Three
     
    He wanted to see her again. Her scent hung heavy in the humid air and he followed behind her and the man, through the jungle behind them. He knew where they were going, probably before they did. Humans needed cover, craved fire. The ledge was the logical place.
    But he’d circled around, coming down over the top of the ridge, prowling through the undergrowth until he was just above the top of the ledge. He breathed deeply, inhaling her scent. Then he wrinkled his nose, catching the scent of the man with her. A snarl raised his lips.
    He slipped down to the ledge, eyes adjusting to the light from the guttering fire, scanning the space. The rain had stopped and moonlight filtered through the canopy, turning the jungle a mystical silver.
    She was near the back, sleeping on her side, her head resting on one arm. Her hair was a dark spill across the stony ground. She looked peaceful, but he saw dark circles beneath her eyes. He hadn’t noticed them earlier, as she’d held his gaze on the path. He’d seen fear then, but also a frank curiosity. And a power, a determination. She hadn’t backed away, she’d held her ground.
    A deep, unfulfilled hunger came alive. He wanted her, suddenly, completely. The desire was almost irresistible. Despite being exposed, with a dangerous male only feet away, he rose up, his body shifting easily from jaguar to human. He wanted to experience this as a man, not as a cat.
    It hit him immediately, taking his breath away. He stood, head back, eyes closed, letting the sheer power of his desire flood through him. It was intoxicating, addicting.
    Reluctantly he opened his eyes, and then froze. She was raised up on one elbow, looking at him with wide eyes. Again, there was fear, but as before, there was frank curiosity.
    “What the hell?”
    He wrenched his eyes away from her, to the man. He was sitting up, reaching for a large knife. Instinct raged through him, and he wanted to kill them on the spot. They’d crossed the line into his territory and they should not be allowed to live.
    Killing them would take only a moment. The man, even with the knife, was no threat. But at the thought of killing her, his mind whirled in confusion. He could not even consider harming her. There was no choice but to disappear.
    In an instant, he dropped to his knees, his body shifting in a fluid movement into the form of a jaguar. With a snarl, he bared his fangs, then leapt down from the ledge, disappearing into the jungle.
    * * *
    “Did you see him?” Addison sat up, fighting with her suddenly constrictive sleeping bag, struggling to her knees. “Who was it?”
    Daniel was on his feet, a knife in his hand. He moved toward the opening of the ledge, looking back over his shoulder, down into the darkness.
    “Probably a villager, someone local.” He turned back, brandishing the knife. It was more like a