His Purrfect Mate Read online

  She’d nearly finished all of her meal when something bumped against the door. Her spine stiffened, her attention fixed on it, and her heart started to race.

  It suddenly opened, flung wide, and Anton stumbled inside. Seeing his torn shirt, blood on his cheek, and more smeared on his arms, alarmed her. She shot to her feet so fast the stool crashed to the floor. She noticed more blood as her stunned gaze traveled down his body.

  Dark red stains smeared his jeans on the legs, thighs, and one ankle. His hair was a mess. He met her gaze with wolf-shaped eyes. “It’s fine. Don’t be worried. I need to shower.”

  “What happened?”

  “I met two of the rogues who broke into your apartment.” Broad shoulders shrugged. “They didn’t want to listen to me. They aren’t a threat anymore.”

  Shannon gaped at Anton, and the blood staining him. “You…” She couldn’t say the words.

  “Fought to the death? Yes,” he answered softly. “I told you I’d kill to protect you. I’ll be back.” He limped toward the bathroom.

  “You’re hurt.”

  “I’ll be fine. I heal fast.”

  He didn’t spare her another look but instead entered the other room, closed the door firmly behind him, and in less than a minute the shower came on.

  The food inside her stomach churned. Anton had killed someone for her. The fact that he’d said rogues—plural—made her feel even sicker. He might have had to kill more than one werewolf. She yearned to go after him to make sure he wasn’t really hurt but the closed bathroom door assured her she wouldn’t be welcome. Indecision left her standing there with a feeling of helplessness.

  The front door suddenly flew open again, but this time it was a woman who stormed inside. She drew to a jerking halt when she spotted Shannon. They stared at each other. The woman appeared to be in her late thirties, had long dark hair to her waist and brown eyes. Her lips parted, fangs flashed, and a snarl came from her mouth.

  “You!”

  Fear gripped Shannon. “Who are you?”

  “I’m Eve.” The woman’s face started to transform enough for there to be no doubt of her werewolf heritage. “I’m going to kill you!”

  The woman lunged.

  Instinct took over and panic struck Shannon. She bolted for safety—that being Anton. She hit the bathroom door with enough force to break the flimsy handle securing it to the doorjamb, grabbed the shower door without thought, flung it open, and jumped.

  Anton twisted his body her way and barely caught her, his shock apparent. The vicious growl from Eve made him spin again to trap Shannon’s body against the wall and one of his hands automatically shot out to strike the advancing woman in the chest. He shoved her and sent her flying out the bathroom doorway.

  Shannon wrapped tighter around Anton, her body soaked from the water pouring down on them as well as from his slick, wet body. She buried her nose against his throat and shook from terror. She couldn’t think beyond her need to cling to him, her instincts overriding rational thought. One of his strong arms wrapped tighter around her waist.

  “What the hell is going on?” Anton yelled. “Shit! I just knocked my mother on her ass.” He awkwardly bent, turned off the water, and stepped over the rim of the shower to glare down at the woman sprawled on the floor. “Mom? What are you doing here?”

  Shannon turned her face just enough to watch the tall woman ungraciously get up from the floor. She staggered when she stood and then slowly turned to glare at her son.

  “I came to kill that!”

  Anton reacted instantly. He snarled, his fangs growing, and sharp points slid against Shannon’s side where he gripped her. She looked down at the claws on his hands. He tried to gently pry Shannon off him but she wrapped around him more securely.

  “Shit. You’ve terrified her.” The anger in his tone made him growl the words. “You have no authority to come into my home after someone under my protection!” His other hand lifted and he rubbed his palm down Shannon’s back in an attempt to soothe her fear. “I don’t care if you’re my mother.”

  His mother wanted her dead. Shannon digested that, her mind starting to work beyond the panic. Her heart rate slowed and she eased her hold on him but her body wasn’t willing to release him entirely yet. She was starting to hate the way she lost control around werewolves. It was embarrassing. She clung to a naked guy in front of his mother as if she were a terrified child and Anton was a big teddy bear. A sexy, wet one. But I bet I look pathetic.

  “That’s what you’ve chosen to share your heat with?” Eve curled her lip in disgust. “Look how weak she is!”

  “Actually, she’s pretty strong. Her thighs aren’t clamped around your waist, so take my word for it.” His anger eased. “She’s mostly human but when she’s threatened or scared, her puma instincts hit. You obviously terrified her. Not cool, Mom.”

  “You humiliated me in front of our entire pack and you’re chastising me?” Eve’s eyes darkened to black. “They’re all talking about my son and his cat.”

  Anton turned, grabbed a towel, and then sighed. “It’s okay, kitten. Want to let me go? Stand behind me but I feel weird talking to my mom naked for this long. It’s one thing to remove my clothes to shift but we don’t just hang out talking to each other while naked.”

  Shannon nodded and took a deep breath. She forced her body to listen when she demanded her hold on him ease. She slid on his slippery body to her feet but instantly took his suggestion. She moved behind him while he wrapped the towel around his waist. She pressed against his back as soon as he had it secured snug around his hips and peered around him at the tall werewolf female.

  Eve growled low at her. Anton growled back louder. “Enough, Mom. I just got her down. Look at me.”

  Eve jerked her glare away from Shannon to give him the full measure of her anger. “I won’t have it. You get rid of her.”

  “You don’t give me orders in my own home.”

  “I’m the alpha bitch and your mother!”

  “I respect you for both—but I go with her if you want her gone from the territory.”

  “Unacceptable! You’re my son. I raised you better.” Eve moved closer. “Either you will kill her or I will. That will end the rumors immediately. We’ll say you were just using her to get information about those nasty rodent chasers. I can still spin this nightmare to save face.”

  Anton crossed his arms over his chest, watching his mother with narrowed eyes. “Not happening. No one is going to hurt Shannon, and I don’t give a damn what the pack thinks. I understand you’re unhappy but that’s not my problem. You can leave now.”

  Eve paled. “I’m giving you an order! Kill the cat or I’ll do it!”

  “No.” His arms dropped and he reached back to nudge Shannon a little farther behind him. “Don’t make me pick you up and carry you out, Mom. How would that look to the pack? You aren’t welcome here while Shannon is with me. If you ever threaten her again, you won’t enjoy the reaction you get.”

  “Anton,” the woman snarled, “I won’t permit this embarrassment to continue. You will not do this to me!”

  “I’m not doing anything to you.” He stepped closer, his body tense, and his voice deepened. “You’re the one who invaded my home to threaten the woman I marked.”

  Dark eyes widened with horror and Eve stumbled back. “What?”

  “Marked. Made mine.” He advanced another step. “As in I sank my teeth into her, shared my scent, my bed, my home. I couldn’t care less if your bitch friends snicker over it. I don’t give a fuck if the males make jokes.” He kept advancing, forcing his mother to retreat into the living room. “Shannon means more to me than that. Now leave!” He yelled the last words.

  Eve fled but not before she shot a lethal glare toward Shannon where she stood at the bathroom door, watching the scene unfold. Anton’s mother slammed his door when she stormed out. He stared at it until Shannon walked up behind him to place a trembling hand on the middle of his back.

  �€