Free Saving the Beast by Lacey Thorn Page B

hissed and buried his nose in her crotch.
    “Shit!” she exclaimed and jerked back.
    He followed and buried his nose again.
    “Stop that!” she scolded.
    She reached down to push away his nose and got her first glimpse of sharp teeth when he peeled his lips back and growled at her. She dropped her hands to her side and clenched them into fists.
    The nose pressed against the crotch of her jeans again and rubbed over it. She held still. The man she could deal with. At least she hoped. But the panther. She had no idea what to do. She gasped as a long pink tongue flicked out and licked over the seam of her pants.
    “Zane!” she cried out and moved back with the panther stalking her. The tongue flicked out again, licking over her the ridge of denim hiding her zipper. “Stop that!” she scolded.
    The panther rumbled again and flashed its teeth.
    “That’s not going to work this time. I don’t care if you’re a panther or not. You can’t just go around licking people’s crotches. It’s not right.”
    The panther pushed her with his nose, and she flailed before falling back to land in the opening of the tent on her ass.
    “Damn it, Zane!” she yelled. “That wasn’t nice!”
    The panther loomed over her, and she squealed as his big head dipped toward her. She fell back flat on her back and did squeeze shut her eyes this time. The nose brushed between her thighs again then moved up along her belly to her chest. His tongue ran over both breasts and she gasped, holding still. Then she felt the rough texture against the bare skin of her neck, just below her ear.
    “Zane, please,” she begged. “I need you.”
    The panther rumbled and shook its head as if trying to tell her something. She’d never felt so unsure around cats. Hell, this was her life. Working with large cats was what she’d trained so hard for. This was where she was confident, where she allowed no room for doubt. So why was this any different? Because this was Zane, and wisdom flew out the window when he was near, leaving her lost in a sea of sensations she’d never experienced before. What was he waiting for?
    The tongue flicked out again, and she flinched and shook with a stab of fear as she felt the scrape of his teeth. One wrong move and he could kill her. The nose nudged her again, and she blinked open her eyes to glance up at him.
    “I don’t understand,” she whispered. “I need you, Zane. The real you. I can’t understand you like this.”
    The panther hissed again and let out a growl that echoed around them. Fuck! Had she pissed off the beast? What was it waiting for? Was Zane already lost to her? Had she waited too long?
    The panther dipped its big head and nudged her once more, burying his nose in her neck this time and nuzzling her there. A thought suddenly occurred to her. What if the panther was demanding she accept him before he’d release control to his human counterpart?
    Tentatively, she reached up and rubbed her hand over the fur of his cheek. She slid her fingers along his fur, following his neck to his shoulder and down his front leg. He sat on his haunches and purred his approval. Slowly, she eased up to sit before him. When he didn’t nudge her down with his nose, she cautiously reached out with both hands and stroked over his fur again and again.
    “I know you and Zane are a package. I can’t have him without accepting you.”
    The panther mewled and tilted his head at her.
    “I’ve dreamed of meeting a big guy like you. So inquisitive. So intelligent. So lethal,” she added when he rumbled and stretched up his head, revealing his sharp teeth. “But I don’t need to be afraid of you, do I? Is that what you’re trying to get me to see? That you’re just as much mine as he is? That I’m as safe with you as I am with him?”
    A hum throbbed through his chest, vibrating against her fingers where they stroked over him. He nuzzled her face again, and this time she giggled as his big pink tongue came out and swiped