sweet scent of her arousal from across the club.
If Javier hadn’t been interrupted, he might have compelled her to mate with him right then and there.
Not that I would have allowed that to happen.
Orders or no orders, she’d have sex with Javier over my dead and broken body.
She’s mine.
Now that I’d scented the perfume of her lust, my craving for her bordered on pain. Shaking with need, I tracked Lee’s power walk from Javier’s booth toward the curtains that led to the bathrooms and VIP rooms.
The sound of wood splintering had me looking down at the table. My claws had ripped straight through the top of it. I’m losing control.
I tensed, waiting for my handler to notice the spike in my arousal and blast me with a punishing electric shock. When nothing happened, I slowly let out a deep breath. Jen must not be monitoring me closely. Which meant…
A slow grin spread across my face. I retracted my claws and glanced around the club.
The old man in the cowboy hat had left. A blonde dancer bounced around the stage to an annoying as fuck pop song. Donna and her club owner husband were staring at the television over the bar. Javier was discussing another shipment of weapons with his enforcers. And the dominatrix was offering the jackass at the table in front of me a private dance.
No one was watching me.
This is my chance.
I’d darted halfway across the club before I noticed Donna turning to look in my direction.
“Wow, you’re moving fast, Sly,” she exclaimed loudly.
Two of Javier’s enforcers turned to look at me.
Fuck. “Y-yeah.” Remembering my act, I stopped and swayed in place. “Need to piss.”
Donna let out a grating laugh.
The enforcers turned their attention back to Javier.
I’d almost blown my cover. Cursing my recklessness, I stumbled through the dark velvet curtain. Despite the dim lighting, I had no problem making out the bathroom door to my left and a row of VIP rooms that led down the hallway. Across from the rooms was a set of stairs my dancer was climbing.
With my speed and reflexes, I could have rushed up the stairs and snatched her. But I didn’t want to risk her screams attracting unwanted attention.
“Wait,” I called out, my booming voice carrying over the pop music.
The dark-haired beauty stopped mid-step, gifting me with the incredible view of her muscular calves and firm ass before she spun around. “Sly?”
The body glitter dusting her naked torso momentarily distracted me. It glistened, making her look wet and delicious. I flared my nostrils and drank her scent in—musky vanilla with darker undercurrents of desire.
My cock throbbed and the sharp barbs along its length snagged the fabric of my pants.
“Sly,” she said again, coming down a step. “Are you okay?”
With a start, I realized she was calling me by my alias. “Yes.” My voice sounded like broken glass. I cleared my throat. “You dropped something.”
“I did?” she came down another step.
I retrieved the feather from my pocket and held it out to her. “I found this on the floor.”
“Oh, that. You can keep it,” she said with a dismissive wave.
I willed her to take it. “Can’t you glue it back on?”
She sighed. “Sure. Thanks.”
I held my breath as she took the last step down and reached for the feather.
Her golden skin pressed against mine, and a frisson of electricity passed between us.
I inhaled sharply, savoring the contact. A loud purr-like growl rumbled through my chest.
Lee started at the inhuman sound.
Fuck. Moving in a blur, I dropped the feather, snapped my hand around hers, and twisted her around so her back was against my chest. Then, I clamped my other hand over her mouth and carried her into the closest room.
She let out muffled shrieks, trying to punch me with her free hand.
“Calm down.” I tightened my arm around her, pinning her hands to her side. Then I yanked the red velvet curtains closed behind us.
Agonizing pain pulsed through my head. I’d blown my cover, violating one of my handler’s orders. My chip would punish me until I rectified the situation. As the painful shocks intensified, I continued shifting into my natural form.
My dancer had to sense my shoulders broadening and my muscles thickening around her. Still, she fought me. She knocked off my sunglasses and buried her teeth into the flesh of my palm.
The mounting pain summoned my beast. A deep roar thundered from my lips as my muscles contorted and my bones snapped.
Her struggles became more frantic.
My beast relished in her