Nope, her tiger purred, sounding so unconcerned that Destiny wanted to grab her by t

he ears and shake her. Never felt anything like that. Still don’t.

And then, adding insult to injury, the big cat curled up and went to sleep.

A hand touched her thigh. Destiny nearly jumped out of her skin.

“Hey, space cadet,” Ethan said. “Say goodnight.”

Her head jerked up. Hal and Ellie had already stood up. She leaned against him with every line of her body signaling her absolute trust, and he had his arms around her in a gesture of protectiveness and devotion.

That’s what mates look like, Destiny thought. Despite the fire, she felt chilled to the bone.

Hal and Ellie went off to their bedroom, leaving Destiny and Ethan alone together.

“You can take the sofa. There’s a sleeping bag I can use.” Ethan smiled at her. “Or we can wait fifteen minutes, then split one. What do you think?”

His blue-green eyes were hot with desire and the firelight made his hair shine like molten gold. She could feel the heat of his body from where she stood, as if the space between them didn’t separate them at all. He reached out for her. All she had to do was stand there, and then he’d hold her in his strong arms and press his lips against hers and—

It was the one of the hardest things she’d ever done, but she held up her hand. “Ethan, wait.”

He stopped. “Too tired? We don’t have to do anything, you know. We could literally just sleep together.”

About a million thoughts popped into her head at that:

He is nice. Not in a brother-boss-best friend way, in a good guy way that’s exactly what I want in my mate.

If we can’t make love, I’d rather cuddle up with him and go to sleep than not touch him at all.

If we did cuddle up, there’s no way we’d get any sleep.

Hal and Ellie have all the luck.

Destiny didn’t know how to explain—she didn’t want to explain—but her only other choice was to lie, and she couldn’t do that to Ethan.

“There’s something I have to tell you. That stuff Hal was saying about mates? It applies to me too. I like you a lot, but…” She almost stopped right there, then forced herself to continue. “You’re not my mate. I looked in your eyes, and nothing happened. I asked my tiger, and she said no.”

“But…” Ethan looked both baffled and outraged. “I don’t get it. Are you banned from having relationships from anyone but your mate? Hal’s in his thirties—are you telling me he was a virgin until he met my sister a month ago?!”

“No. I mean, I don’t know, we’ve never discussed it, but I assume not. I know he’s dated other women before.” She hurried to get off the topic of her boss’s sex life. “And no, it’s not banned. I’m not a virgin either.”

“Then what’s the problem? Okay, so maybe I’m not the love of your life…” A shadow of hurt flickered across his face, making her wince. He obviously didn’t like that idea one bit. But determinedly, he went on, “So what? I’m not asking you for a lifetime commitment. I’m only saying, let’s try it out. See how it goes. You know, the way everyone who’s not a shifter does it.”

Destiny was tempted. She was incredibly tempted. Sure, they could try it out. For all she knew, she wouldn’t meet her mate for another fifty years. She might not even have a mate at all. Why not take what he was offering, and let the chips fall as they may?

But there was a great big glaring problem with that.

“Ethan, you have a mate.” The words almost choked her, but she forced them out. “The perfect woman for you. The one you’ll love more than you love your own life. And she’s not me. She can’t be me. If I were your mate, then you’d be mine, and my tiger would know.”

“No.” He was shaking his head, his expression set in absolute denial. “I don’t have a mate. I’m not a shifter.”

“All that means is that you probably won’t fall in love at first sight. But she’s out there somewhere. And when you meet her, you will fall in love. The sort of love that Hal and Ellie have. And that’ll be it for you and me.”

“No, it won’t!” Ethan forced his voice down from a shout. In a low, intense tone, he said, “We could’ve both died tonight, and then what happens to this woman I’m supposedly meeting? To hell with her. I don’t believe in her. Let’s forget about things that might happen in the future, and take what we have in front of us. That’s you, Destiny. I want you, and I want you now!”

Destiny wanted him too. She wanted him now. But her mind had leaped ahead to what would happen if she let him persuade her. It would be wonderful; she knew it. But sooner or later, he’d meet his mate. And then what? Would letting go of him be any easier six months or a year or five years down the road? What if they were married?

What if they had kids?

Tags: Zoe Chant Protection, Inc Paranormal
Source: readsnovelonline.net