Free Shifted Perceptions (Alpha Division) by C.E. Black Page A

unless it was my boys on the team, I hated showing myself off to the world. I was pretty sure it was another trust issue. I had a lot of those.
    I stretched my arms above my head and cracked my neck back and forth. As my head tilted to the side, my gaze caught on a small movement in the back of the arena, against the wall. People were in the way, and he was pretty far off, but then the light hit his face. That split second of illumination was all it took to recognize him – and his expression. Shit! Paul was pissed. Oh well, I’d deal with that later. Throwing him a wink, I bent over and set my fox free.
    The bell rang and the golden lioness was lunging, but one of my best assets was my speed. I slipped easily away, time and time again, laughing at how she would fall and skid to a stop , before roaring out her anger. I pranced around, teasing her ruthlessly, shaking my tail, making her so irritated, I swore her eyes turned bloodshot as she chased me around the pit.
    It was fun, but in the end, I couldn’t win that way. It was actually quite funny how fast the fight was over. I doubted anybody else had done it quite like me. All that cat and mouse chasing around the ring hadn’t been just for my pleasure. I wore out the bitch to the point she was shaking with fatigue, and the next time she lunged and missed, I leaped onto her back.
    She twisted, trying to throw me off, but she couldn’t. And in fact , did exactly as I wanted. As she rotated, so did I, until my teeth could clamp down on the inside of her neck, just at the artery.
    As much as I relished every adrenaline pumping moment, I was ready to finish it.
    There was nothing she could do , as her paws tried to claw at me and missed. Shifting easily into my human form, I released her neck from between my teeth, though I made sure to allow my sharp nails to stay formed on my fingers and dug in, using the strength in my leg and arm muscles to hold her down. I was hanging on, digging my claws into flesh, and she was too exhausted to do anything about it.
    The bell rang, signalling the end of the fight. I jumped off the brunette with a wide grin and turned at the booing crowd. That should teach you, bitches! I thought, making sure to send Paul another mocking wink. Don’t ever underestimate me.
     
     
     

Chapter 13
     
     
    Stone was silent the entire drive to the hotel. I couldn’t tell from his glazed expression if he was in shock that I volunteered to fight, or that I actually won. But he was definitely chewing on something in that mind of his. Shrugging it off, I kept my mouth shut for once and sat quietly beside him.
    When we pulled into the parking lot, Stone leaned back, though he didn’t turn off the engine. I watched him, confused by the way he just stared straight ahead. The silence was deafening. Neither of us had turned the radio on and as I closed my eyes, all I could hear was the soft sound of Stones breathing, along with the thump thump of his heartbeat. His scent filled the small space, causing my body to react in the most pleasant way, but it was obvious he wasn’t in the mood.
    “Thanks for the nice evening, I had fun,” I said and reached for the door handle.
    A hand fell softly on my shoulder halting my exit. I turned, my head tilted in question. His eyes bore into mine, searching for what, I wasn’t certain, but it seemed he was looking for answers . Answers I couldn’t give him. I prepared myself for the lie that would come rolling off my tongue. I just knew he was about to ask where I trained, what my life was before landing in Cedar Hill. But Stone didn’t ask any of that. He never said what he wanted either. He showed me.
    Moist, soft, decadent. Those are the words that describe the feel of Stones lips on mine. Those lips seduced , as they moved over my own, teasing and tasting, tempting me to give in. I could do nothing else and opened my mouth to tentatively touch his tongue with mine. His taste, as sweet as his kiss, was addicting and