Free Beastly Desires by Nikki Winter Page A

to the top and launching himself at Kaisal. Catching the boy, he crouched. “Hey, hey, hey. What’re you doing away from the cabin? Where’s your mother?”
    Cal shook his head, tiny hands clenching in Kaisal’s T-shirt. “She’s trying to make me leave!” Bright, devastated eyes stared up at him. “Tell her we can’t leave. Tell her you want us to stay. Tell her we’re safe!”
    “Cal—”
    “ Please .”
    Kaisal sucked in a deep breath, placed his palms on Cal’s shoulders. “Calm. Down.”
    The cub inhaled, his lips trembling. His lids slid closed as if he were staving off the urge to cry. They stood like that until his expression hardened into a mask that Kaisal had seen Kam wear more than once—determination. “I don’t want to leave. I don’t want to have to start over. I’m tired of running.” He swallowed. “I like it here.” His stare turned accusatory. “Even if you haven’t been around.”
    Right. No punches pulled.
    “I—” He stopped the moment undertones of freesia teased his senses. Kam wasn’t far behind and the smell of her seemed to have only gotten headier the longer he kept his distance. It had gone from simply being sweet to being distinctive. Kaisal’s tiger pushed. Ours. She’s trying to leave us. She can’t leave us.
    Kaisal bit the inside of his cheek. He’d get control. He’d get control quickly.
    Cal wrapped his small arms around Kaisal’s neck. “ Please .” The plea in his voice, the thread of desperation tapped something inside that was unbearably hard to feel. He was attached. He was fucking attached. How or why was indecipherable but his beast would not be ignored. If he stood by and attempted to watch them leave, his leash would snap and there would be no going back.
    Her voice rang out, and soon the sound of her footsteps crunching through the snow followed. Kaisal stood, Cal clinging to him. She passed the trees and her gaze locked onto his the moment she cleared them. For the briefest second she looked as though she simply wanted to fall to her knees but she didn’t. She lowered her stare and he felt the slow build of a growl in his throat.
    Ours. His tiger reiterated.
    “ If ¹ ,” she softly called, coming closer. “It’s time to go.”
    Cal’s grip tightened. “No.”
    Her eyes begged Kaisal to argue, to insist but he did neither. He simply watched her as she approached, her steps slow, steady.
    “You’re leaving,” he stated flatly.
    Kam halted, her gaze turning wary. “We’ve stayed long enough. I need to start—”
    “Why?” Kaisal cut in.
    She shifted from one foot to another. “Why what?”
    “Why are you leaving?”
    Cal lifted his head from Kaisal’s shoulder and turned to his mother, obviously looking for an explanation also.
    Catching her bottom lip, she rubbed her arms. “Because we need to.”
    “Why?” he asked again.
    Her nostrils flared and she slowly repeated herself. “Because we need to.”
    “ Why ?”
    Her jaw clenched and Kaisal could see her resisting the inclination to scream. She wanted to. The way her shoulders tensed and her hands balled at her sides told him. Her eyes suddenly went from his and bounced just over his shoulder. Without turning around, he knew Basanti and Naresh were in the doorway, obviously curious about the tangible tension building in their presence.
    Kaisal sat Cal down and kept his glare fastened to Kam’s, speaking calmly. “Baz, would you please take the young prince inside and make him a mug of cocoa?”
    “Err…” Indecision colored her voice.
    “ Now.”
    Cal looked from Kaisal to his mother before moving out of sight. The back door closed behind him.
    Kam spoke through clenched teeth. “You have no right—”
    “Is there something wrong with the cabin?” he cut in, stepping down. “Is there not enough heat? Enough food?”
    She looked confused. “The cabin’s fine.”
    “Has someone in my pride spotted you? Did they make you uncomfortable?”
    “No.”
    He took