By dinner time, Emma was certain she was going insane. Her body ached with need. If Jake hadn't gone to his office she would have been begging him to make love to her. Her breasts ached beyond belief, her nipples hard, brushing against her bra with every step she took until she wanted desperately to rip her clothes off to get some relief. It felt as if a million ants were crawling over her skin, soft, tiny brush strokes feathering up and down every nerve ending. Deep inside, she burned, empty and desperate to be filled. She was hotter than she'd ever been, her temperature rising by several degrees, and not even an ice pack on her neck alleviated the heat.
The brewing storm added to her growing discomfort and unrest. Twice she picked up the phone, and then dropped it back down. She couldn't let fear put Jake in danger. The weather forecasters had been sending nonstop warnings about possible flooding, and already the rain had started.
With the wind picking up, the rain was being blown sideways. She didn't want Jake out in danger because she was uneasy and becoming afraid.
Emma put together a nice dinner, trying to do something positive with the restless energy building up inside of her, but she was ready to crawl out of her skin. It hurt to wear clothes. The sexual need came in waves, each one stronger than the last, so that her skin flushed and she wanted to tear her clothes off and rub her body against anything to relief the terrible pressure.
"Susan, after the children finish and while I do the dishes, do you want to give them a bath for me? They like to play in the tub and it might keep them occupied for a few minutes until I can finish up and read to them." And get everyone out of the way so she could find out just what was happening to her.
"Sure. They're good in the bathtub. I know where all their toys are."
Emma didn't trust her voice. She wanted--no, needed--to strip, to get the weight of her clothes off her too-sensitive skin. She couldn't stop moving. Her body was undulating with need now. The heat was building, the pressure on her most sensitive bundle of nerves causing her hips to seek relief. She wanted to cry with the ache between her legs.
Emma kissed Kyle and Andraya on top of their heads and gratefully sent them upstairs. Hanging on to the sink, she hung her head, taking huge, deep breaths. She could barely walk, her feet aching, the knuckles on her hands burning along with her fingertips. She kicked off her shoes and dropped to the kitchen floor, crawling toward the intercom, terrified now, desperately needing Jake.
Her body moved with a sensuous slide, her bottom lifting, her arms pushing back, as if her body was separate from her mind and she could no longer control it. She had the urge to touch herself, to trace the curves of her body, to find her burning center and alleviate the ache. Her mind screamed for Jake. She needed Jake.
Outside the rain lashed at the windows and her pulse beat in time to the wild rhythm of the whistling wind. The fever built in her blood. Images of Jake filled her mind, naked, his body muscular, demanding, conquering hers. Not the lovemaking she craved from him, but something altogether different. Her pulse pounded deep inside as blood pooled and demanded. Her mind turned chaotic and her hands--oh, her hands--curling, bending, raking at the floor in frustration.
Sobbing, she hit the intercom button. "Drake." Her voice was different. Her throat ached. Was raw with burning need. There wasn't a place on her body that didn't ache. If the lacy material of her bra brushed against her nipples one more time, she might go insane.
"What's up, Emma?" Drake's voice was tense.
She knew he was working to secure the ranch for the storm. Everybody would be. She coughed, felt her hands sliding over her breasts, trying to ease the terrible ache and quickly pulled her hands down. "You have to come here. The kitchen." And God help her if anyone else came. She had to have Drake tell her what was happening. She knew he was the one with all the knowledge of their species. She knew he talked to Jake. Her mother had never said a word about the change, but something terrifying was happening and it had to be her leopard.
Minutes. Hours. Each wave of sexual hunger was worse than the last one. She was nearly sobbing when she heard the door open.
"Emma?"
"Drake." Relief poured into her voice. She hadn't realized just how much she was counting on him to help her. Once she understood, she should be able to manage the intensity of the need burning through her. If this was the way Jake felt all the time, she could understand his need for continual relief.
"Emma, are you all right?" Drake entered the kitchen, took several steps in when the scent hit him hard. He halted abruptly, his fingers curling into tight fists. Deep inside, his leopard leapt and roared, raking at him, clawing deeply in an effort to get out.
"Drake, you have to tell me about what happens to a woman when she goes into heat. Jake started to tell me about it, but I was so certain I didn't have a leopard. You have to help me."
He studied her body from across the room, gripping the back of a chair, nearly crushing the wood, clearing his throat before replying, "You need Jake."
"I know I need Jake. He isn't here, obviously, so you have to help me. Tell me what to do. I can't stand this."
He grit his teeth, fighting down the urge to leap over the table and take her. "None of the men can come in here, Emma, including me. It's too dangerous. Get the kids down for the night and lock yourself in your room. Don't let Susan near you. Everyone of the men, leopard or human, is going to be affected by you right now. You have to stay away from them."
"You're not helping me."
"Damn it, Emma. I'm a male whether I can shift or not. I can't be here." His nails dug into the kitchen chair.
When she peered around the table at him, her breath caught in her throat. His eyes had gone molten, fixed and staring like that of a predator. His head moved from side to side, but his stare never wavered. His body changed, muscular, compact, so strong. She felt the emptiness pulsing between her thighs as she stared at each breath he took.
Drake backed away from her, almost to the door, as she crawled forward. "I have to get out of here, Emma. Your leopard wants out. She's in heat and you're going to feel everything that she feels. It's intense and difficult, and you'll need Jake."
She didn't want to hear that again. She laid her head on the floor and wept, terrified of being selfish enough to call Jake back in the midst of one of the worst storms of the season. She had to control herself. That was all there was to it. She heard the kitchen door cl
ose and she stayed there, right on the floor, as the tide of feeling ebbed, leaving her drained. She slept and dreamt of Jake, of a forest, hot and humid, and the two of them rolling together on the ground, consumed with the need to be as close as possible.
"Emma." Susan's voice called to her. A hand touched her shoulder, gently shook her. "Are you sick? Should I call Drake?"
Emma reluctantly opened her eyes, blinking rapidly. The room was dark. Outside, the wind was howling. She could hear the occasional scrape of a tree branch against the house. Her mouth tasted like cotton. Experimentally, she ran her tongue along her teeth.
"Emma." Susan's hands were gentle as she tried to help Emma sit up. "You're burning up. You're running a temperature."
The touch on her sensitive skin burned, and Emma forced herself not to pull away. "The flu, maybe, nothing serious." It felt serious. Her body ached, every joint, every muscle. She took a deep breath and pushed herself to her feet, using the table to help drag herself up.
Susan rushed to the refrigerator to get her a glass of ice-cold water. "The children are ready for bed. I could try to put them down for you, but they're sort of scared of the storm."
Emma took a long, cool drink. The water felt good on her throat. The symptoms in her body had eased, leaving her with a sore and achy feeling, but at least she could manage it. "I'll tuck them in and read them a story. Thanks, Susan."
As she went up the stairs, she glanced at the windows, wishing she was outside where raw nature was elemental and alive. She felt trapped, caged in. Her skin so tight over her bones she was afraid she'd burst.
Kyle ran to her, throwing his arms around her legs, and Andraya, as usual, followed his lead. Both looked up at her with fear in their eyes.
"It's just a little storm," she soothed. "Come on. I'm going to tell you one of my stories of the two magical children. Let's get in Kyle's bed."
She took their hands and led them into his room. They climbed up onto the bed with her. The storm hit full force just as she began the story. Lightning zigzagged across the sky, sizzling and cracking like great whips, lighting up the roiling black clouds. The force of the wind drove the rain against the windows. The children burst into tears, frightened as thunder boomed loudly just overhead, rattling the windows.