She smiled when she caught his gaze, her midnight eyes filled with heat. He felt his body respond, even though he had no true desire for the woman. She was just another job.
And yet he knew this would not have been the case a week ago. Dangerous or not, he would have taken what Eleanor was offering and enjoyed it. But every time he reached for Eleanor he saw Maddie's eyes—frightened and alone and yet oddly courageous. Somehow, she'd slipped past his guard and become a friend. And he didn't leave friends alone and frightened. She had a hell of a lot to answer for, he thought grimly. Eleanor was the key to the kids, the figurative nut that had to be broken, through fair means or foul. How could he be expected to do his job when everywhere he turned he saw something that reminded him of Maddie?
He accepted his drink with a smile and patted the cushion beside him. Eleanor folded down beside him, then caressed his thigh. He stared into her eyes and wished they were amber rather than dark.
"I'm so glad we decided to come back here," she purred quietly. "So much cosier."
He suspected it wasn't the coziness she was after, but rather the solitude. The Blue Moon had plenty of customers—and plenty of potential witnesses if something went wrong.
Though why he thought something would go wrong he couldn't say. He just had an itchy feeling he'd better watch what he did—and watch what she did.
"It's not often another shapeshifter drifts into my territory," she continued. "Taurin Bay is such a backwater."
Her hand was moving up his leg, creating heat wherever she touched. The mind may not want her, he thought wryly, but the body sure as hell does. "Which is why I was so surprised to find you here. You look more a city type of girl." Eleanor gave him a lazy smile. "I am. Unfortunately, my other shape is not."
"Very few are." He reached forward, tracing the line of her cheek. "But Taurin Bay is such a small town. Small towns like to watch and gossip."
"Ah, but I like the danger of discovery." She leaned into his hand and lightly kissed his palm. "Besides, Taurin Bay has a city attitude. You can do what you want, and the neighbors have no wish to know about it." Was that some sort of admission? Did she mean you could kill without the neighbors getting suspicious? Taurin Bay wasn't that insular. Someone, somewhere, had to know something.
"So what do you do for excitement in a place like this?" Eleanor smiled. "You mean, besides trying to seduce passing shapeshifters?" He ran his fingers down her neck, letting them linger momentarily over her pulse. "Yes, besides that."
"I hunt. I run the hills at night. I help Hank at the inn occasionally." And she was hunting now, with him as the quarry. Excitement lit her eyes, raced through her pulse. The edge he was walking was getting decidedly thinner. If she changed form, he'd be in serious trouble. He doubted if his own form would have much hope against a panther.
"I didn't know Hank owned the inn."
"Oh, he doesn't. I do."
He raised his eyebrows in surprise. Maybe, just maybe, Eleanor had given them their first lead. "Really. I thought the inn was owned by a Randolph Barker."
"My former husband. Couldn't stand the demands of a shapeshifter, poor dear." The demands, or the appetite, of a shapeshifter? Maybe they should check out just what had happened to poor dear Randolph, as well as find out if he owned any other properties in the area.
Eleanor's hand touched his thigh, then moved to the fly of his jeans. His groin tightened in response, aching with need.
He leaned forward and kissed her. Her mouth was hot and sweet, but it was a taste that suddenly went sour. Damn, he just couldn't do this. He'd ignored Maddie's desperate need to be held and comforted, had ignored the flash of hurt when he'd walked away from her.
But he simply couldn't ignore the fact that he had no wish to make love to one woman when it was another he wanted.
He placed his hand on Eleanor's. "Eleanor, stop." She raised an eyebrow and sat back. "Cold feet?" she questioned softly. "Or a case of not wanting to cheat on your girlfriend?"
"Neither," he replied calmly. "Just caution. What's your other form, Eleanor?"
"A cat." She sipped her drink, regarding him thoughtfully. "A black panther, to be precise."
So she wasi\\Q cat he'd seen in the forest. Her hair had to be dyed—usually it was a clear indicator to the coloring of a shapeshifter's other self. "My spirit is the hawk, Eleanor. We aren't compatible." Not when she was likely to pounce at a vital moment.
She smiled, but it failed to reach her eyes. The light of battle was flaring deep in the midnight recesses of her gaze. "But think of the fun, Shapeshifter. We'd never know when one might change and devour the other. The thrill of fear will only add to the excitement."
It was the sort of fun he could well do without. "I wouldn't want to hurt you."
"Oh, you wouldn't, believe me," she murmured softly.
"So, where does that leave us?"
He took another sip of wine instead of answering, and saw a sudden gleam enter the dark depths of her eyes. A chill ran through him. The wine. Christ, he was a fool.
He put the glass on the table and caught her hand. "I guess I should do the gentlemanly thing and leave."
"Oh, don't. There is still so much we have to discuss." Her glance flicked past him, no doubt studying the clock on the mantle. He wondered how much time he had left until the drug took effect. He dropped a quick kiss on her fingers, then rose and did up his pants. "It's best if I go, Eleanor. We both know that."