Tarun started in surprise as she heard Luke’s voice behind her. She hadn’t realized he was in the bar. Turning, her smile froze on her face when she saw him, and a different sort of shock washed through her system.
When the hell had he gotten so handsome?
Of course, she’d noticed how attractive he was before. All of the Enforcers were, really, but seeing him felt different that time. He was tall, towering over her, his body thickly muscled in a way that suddenly made her mouth dry as dust.
His long, reddish brown hair was brushed back from his face, and his bright blue eyes held surprise as they regarded her. His jawline was more oval than square, and his slim nose was set above full lips accented by a closely trimmed beard that was more red than brown.
Heat rushed over her body as she took him in, and she swallowed hard as her dry mouth suddenly flooded with moisture. She’d never felt like that while looking at him before—or any man, really. It was a first, and possibly not an entirely welcome one.
She was there on a mission. She wasn’t there to be distracted by the urge to ogle the Enforcers.
Well. The urge to ogle Luke. She hadn’t felt any need to stare at Blake or Noah, both of whom she’d seen since she walked in.
“Tarun?” he said again, his eyes dipping slowly down her body in a way that made a shiver of heat dance down her spine. “Are you okay?”
“Hmmmm? Oh, yeah. I’m fine. I was looking for you, actually. Can we talk?”
His brow twitched but he nodded, gesturing her toward a booth in a darkened corner. She led the way, acutely aware of him walking closely behind her. She was wholly focused on the sensation, enjoying it without worrying about why she was liking it so much, when she caught a glimpse of Georgie from the corner of her eye.
The other woman was glaring at them, the venom in her eyes making Tarun’s steps falter a bit. No, she wasn’t glaring at them. The hate filled expression was directed solely at Tarun. When she glanced at Luke, her expression transformed into one of adoration.
They reached the booth and she slid in, never taking her eyes off the other woman. “Who is she?”
The moment the words left her mouth, she squeezed her eyes shut, just barely resisting the urge to shake her head in despair, sure the words made it seem like the answer meant more to her than it did. It was just idle curiosity. It didn’t mean anything.
No, really. It didn’t.
Luke’s eyes followed her gaze. “Her? That’s Georgie. She’s one of our waitresses. Now what did you need to talk to me about? And why are you here?”
Her tiger growled in annoyance inside her, and she quickly swallowed it down before he heard it. She understood where her cat was coming from, though. He hadn’t told her what she really wanted to know. But why she even cared about what Georgie was to him, she wasn’t sure.
Glancing around to make sure no one was close enough to hear things they shouldn’t, she took a breath and looked back at Luke. “Did you ever hear what my gift is while you were staying in Durga Valley?”
He frowned thoughtfully, quiet for a moment. “It’s something about sensing threats, right?”
“Yeah. It’s a flawed gift, for the most part. I get a general sense of who the threat’s directed at, but I don’t always know where it’s coming from, or even what it is.”
“So you’re here because of your gift?”
She nodded. “Yes. There’s a threat to the Enforcers, and more specifically, to you.”
“That doesn’t surprise me much. There are usually threats to us, mostly from the people we’re hunting. What I’m trying to understand is why you didn’t just call us. I know Jameson has our numbers.”
“I’m sure you guys usually are under threats. You face a lot of danger with your occupation. But this feels different. In all the time I’ve known you, I’ve never sensed the threats you’ve had leveled against you. But I do with this one. This one is big, and it’s urgent. Please don’t take it lightly.”
He nodded thoughtfully, looking into space for a moment before his light blue eyes met hers again. “You never answered my other question. Why didn’t you just call? If this is dangerous and urgent, that seems like it would have been the best course of action.”
Biting her lip, she hesitated, not sure how he’d react to that answer. “Well… okay, it’s like this. Sometimes, all I sense is the threat. Other times, I get different impressions along with it. Who harbors the intent, where it’s coming from, when it’ll happen. This time, what came to me with it is the knowledge that for you guys to win and not be hurt, I have to be here. That’s why I had to come here instead of calling.”
He stared at her unblinkingly before frowning. “No, absolutely not.”
She cocked her head. “No, it’s true. That’s what I sensed.”
Shaking his head, he slashed a hand through the air. “Not that. I believe you sensed that. I meant, no, you’re absolutely not staying here. The Enforcers can deal with this. You need to go home.”
“What? No, I can’t. I have to stay here. You’ll be lost for sure, and damage could be done to the others in your crew. My gift was clear on that.”
“We haven’t lost yet, so it’s doubtful we will now, especially since you’ve warned us to be on the lookout.”
“That isn’t how this works. Without me here, the odds of you all losing are far higher, and you might not survive.”
“It’s a chance I’m willing to take,” he replied, standing up.
She eyed him with disbelief. “Where are you going? We’re not done.”
“We are. You’ve said your piece, and I’ve said mine. I’m thankful that you warned me, but you really should have just called. Would have saved you the trip. Go back home to Durga and your brother. That’s where you belong.”
Tarun stared in disbelief as Luke spun on his heel, walking quickly away and disappearing down a hallway with a Members Only sign above the archway. She hadn’t thought she’d be welcomed with open arms, but she never thought she’d get that kind of reaction, either.
Anger was heating her blood, boiling hotter the more she thought of their conversation. Where she belonged? Where the hell did he get off? The prick didn’t even consider her point of view. Just arrogantly stated he could handle himself and then ordered her home before walking off.
She’d be damned before she let him think he could tell her what to do. She’d had enough of that in her archaic, backward tribe. She’d just gotten her freedom, just been granted the ability to make her own decisions without a man’s input, a year and a half ago. And she wasn’t going to let anyone take that from her.
Even if the man in question did suddenly make her stupid when she looked at him.
He thought he could order her home? She glanced at where Blake was serving a customer at the bar, determination settling over her. She’d see about that.
Standing, she caught a glimpse of Georgie smirking at her, and the anger in her veins boiled over. She’d had more than enough of these people.
Too bad she was stuck with them, because she wasn’t going anywhere. Luke and Georgie would both just have to get used to it.
Luke’s heart was racing as he quickly climbed the stairs to his room. Letting himself in, he ran a hand through his hair, swearing when he noticed the fine tremble in his fingers. Where the fuck had that reaction come from?
From the moment Tarun turned to greet him, he’d been off balance. He hadn’t spent a lot of time around her in the time he’d known her, but it was enough to know the way he felt like he’d been run over by an eighteen-wheeler was completely new and different.
She looked the same. Considerably shorter than him, the top of her head just barely came to his shoulder. Her skin was a light caramel color, hinting at her Indian heritage. It wasn’t as dark as others in her tribe, because Jameson said they had Scots blood mixed in. Something that showed through in her long, silky dark hair shot through with red highlights, and green rimmed hazel eyes.
Her figure was a voluptuous hourglass shape—something he, as a man, had appreciated before. But now, it was making him take notice of her in a whole new way, his blood heating and his groin tightening in a way he wasn’t sure he was comfortable with.
Her brother was his friend. He’d spent a lot of time with her people, and he knew them well. Well enough to know she’d been fairly sheltered her whole life. Jameson had allowed her a lot more freedom than the other women in her tribe were granted—at least until Kian had become Alpha and changed the rules, giving all women those freedoms.
But she was a good girl. Always following the rules, even though she had more room to be herself and do her own thing. It’d even taken her a couple months after the rules changed to embrace them and do as she pleased.
Lusting after her felt a bit like lusting after a Disney princess—uncomfortable and just plain wrong.
And her whole tribe, especially Jameson, would come after him and cut his dick off if they knew he was even thinking about her like that.
That was part of the reason why he told her to go home. She was suddenly a temptation he didn’t think he could resist, and she deserved to be more than the person who happened to warm his bed. She deserved to find her mate, to have the whole package.
The other was that he felt compelled to make sure she was safe. He’d want to, regardless, because keeping women safe was a benchmark of who he was. Not because he thought they couldn’t take care of themselves, but because he’d been unable to protect the women in his family. It’d become like an obsession for him.
Still—protecting Tarun felt even more important than it usually did. He refused to examine why, but it was best that she left.
For her sake and his.
We can protect her. We’re fierce, and the Enforcers are the best fighters, with the best gifts, around, his lion said.
Did you not hear her say the Enforcers are in danger? Me, more than most? Her going home isn’t negotiable, and you shouldn’t want it to be.
A knock on the door sounded before his cat could reply, and he froze before turning to glance at it. Surely she hadn’t followed him up to his bedroom. Right?
Hesitating, he debated, unsure he wanted to answer the door. He was pretty sure the image of her in his bedroom was the last thing he wanted burned into his mind. The knock came again, more insistent that time, and he frowned, finally moving to open the door. If it was her, he could make sure she didn’t actually enter the room.
Swinging the door open, he paused, feeling his eyebrows raise. “Blake. What are you doing here?”
Blake raised an eyebrow of his own, his lips quirking. “You sound surprised. Expecting someone else, were you?”
Quickly schooling his expression, he moved back from the door as Blake pushed past him. Shutting it behind him, he turned to watch the Enforcer’s leader—the alpha, as it were.
“What’s going on?”
Blake thrust his fingers through his short dark hair, shooting him a look as he propped his hands on his hips. “Luke—”
Dread filled him as Blake cut himself off, and he shook his head. “No. She’s not staying.”
“Luke—”
“No.”
Exhaling in exasperation, Blake shook his head as he squared up to him. “If her presence can save us—”
“Then we should just sacrifice her, is that it?”
Blake cut him a look and Luke tightened his lips as he sought to breathe through his anger.
“That’s a bullshit accusation and you know it. I’d never put anyone in danger if I could manage it, but if her mere presence means the difference between life and death for you, or any of my Enforcers, then it’s a risk I’m willing to take. It’s a risk she’s willing to take, as well.”
“At least you asked her permission first before you decided to put her life in danger,” he muttered, stalking to his window to look out at the setting sun.
“She came to me, actually. I’m not sure what your problem is right now, Luke, but you need to get over it. I knew you weren’t going to be happy. She told me you ordered her to go home. But I still didn’t expect this kind of reaction.”
Exhaling, he shook his head, continuing to stare outside. “You know how protective I am of women.”
“This feels like more than your usual protectiveness. Whatever your issue is, you need to find a way to get over it, fast. I agreed to let her stay for as long as she wants.”
Luke spun around with a glare. “Dammit, Blake—”
“And to think you used to be one of my more laidback Enforcers. Look, Luke, she told me what was going on and then told me she was staying whether you liked it or not. Said she’d just find another place to stay until she felt like she should leave if we didn’t want her in the clubhouse. And she was dead serious. We can’t stop her from staying in the area, so the best way to make sure she’s protected is to keep her here, where we can watch over her. This isn’t just about saving our own asses—it’s about making sure, when she finally goes home, that she arrives in one piece. So you need to get over whatever the hell your problem is, and do it soon.”
“I don’t fucking like this.”
“You don’t have to like it. But you’d better not hurt her in any way. The War Cats are a friend to us. You and Noah stayed there for a long time, and the top warriors, including Jameson, were completely welcoming to you. You, a lion, the tiger’s natural enemy. The least we can do is make her feel welcome.”
Luke could feel the muscle in his jaw ticking, and he took a deep breath, hoping to calm down. “I won’t hurt her feelings, but I’m not sure I can make her feel welcome. I told her she needed to go home.”
“She’s a grown ass woman, idiot. You can’t order her around, and who are you to think you can try? And making her feel welcome, giving her the same courtesy we would any shifter, isn’t a suggestion, Carlisle. It’s an order.”
Blake spun around and stalked to the door, his frustration with Luke evident in the way he was holding his body tightly. He didn’t slam the door—that wasn’t his way—but it was clear he wanted to.
Fuck. That had gone well. Blake had a point, though. If she was staying, it was better she was at the clubhouse, so they could keep an eye on her.
Well, it was better for her safety. Far less so for his sanity.
He guessed he better get used to the thought of her being there, because Blake was right. He didn’t want to make her feel badly. His intent was to protect her, not hurt her.
Time to reconcile himself to their new houseguest and making sure she never found out just how attracted to her he was.