Free Outfoxed by Marie Harte

her advantage, pushing off with her strong legs to maximize speed. The deer drew her, a prize to be won when—not if —she beat Grady to the animal.
    She heard him close by and changed her angle to cut him off. When they hit an open area, she jumped over him to avoid knocking him over. Talk about fast. She thought she’d had an edge over him, having started first.
    “Did I mention the winner gets the loser to dance for her?” she teased.
    He showed his teeth before disappearing between the hemlocks and cedars once more. Loving the chase, she ran with abandon, determined to outdo her competitor. She wanted to show him just what she could do, her feline instinct to make him work to beat her as strong as her human compulsion to impress the man.
    They didn’t use stealth when approaching their prey, so it was no surprise when the deer fled before they’d reached where it had been grazing. But having so much fun, Gabby didn’t care. She and Grady panted and took a short rest, eyeing one another in challenge.
    Gabby pretended to stretch, but when Grady would have pounced, she darted away, running headlong into the trees once more. “Race you to the sunning rock.” A small, flat boulder the cats used to take in the overhead sun, it was a favorite spot of Grady’s he’d shared with her after she’d moved to the ranch.
    “You’re on. I want that dance.” He threaded his way behind her, most likely keeping himself deliberately behind.
    She liked that Grady could be devious. His pranks, his sense of humor, his need to win—all of it suited her. But she wanted more. They’d danced around each other long enough. She wanted to feel him inside her, to join with her completely. Her cat loved the idea, so she increased her reach, racing like the wind until she could no longer hear Grady behind her, intent on reaching the sunning rock first.
    Except when she leaped up, she saw the cocky cat lazing on the rock, his head on his paws, completely at rest.
    “Bastard.” She panted, still unsure how he’d beaten her. Gabby liked to think of herself as fast. Only Julia could beat her in a race, but that was fox to fox.
    He yawned and blinked up at her. “Oh Gabby. Didn’t see you there.” His eyes glinted with mirth.
    She compared herself to him, her smaller size, her reddish color, which complemented his tawny coat, and knew the time had come. She jumped up and stretched out next to him, then rubbed her body against his, less for companionship than because she wanted to spread her scent. This desire she had for Grady hadn’t abated. If anything, it had grown.
    His lazy attitude vanished from one heartbeat to the next. The large male rubbed back against her, encouraging the contact. They rose to their feet. Her tail grazed him. He circled behind her. The feline inside her rumbled her pleasure. And then Grady rose over her.
    The animal mating ended in moments, the physical copulation quick and repetitive—a fact her cat acknowledged before letting the satisfaction ease her firm grip on Gabby’s psyche, allowing the human aspect of her to regain control.
    After Grady eased from her body and lay back on the rock, panting, she turned and regarded him with a woman’s need.
    In tune with one another, they shifted back to human.
    “Sorry. I meant to take my time, but my cat didn’t want to wait.” The man didn’t intend to wait either, if his growing erection was anything to go by. Though he’d just come, Grady, the man, seemed ready to go again.
    She lay next to him on the warm rock. “That’s okay. I don’t think mine wanted to wait either.”
    He pulled her into his arms so that he lay on his back, and she draped over him like a blanket. Where they touched, heat flared between them.
    “This is what I’ve been waiting for.” He pulled her down for a kiss, his mouth taking charge and fogging her brain with unwavering lust. His hands stroked her back, then cupped her breasts.
    He pinched her nipples and toyed with her