A Summer in Paradise (14 page)

Pearl’s scream died a cold death on her
lips as terror held her imprisoned in its iron grip.

Glenn pushed his way into the room,
dropped a note on the table, then grabbed her arm, yanking her
through the door.

By the time her shock had worn off,
Glenn had dragged her down the service stairs and out the back
door. “Are you crazy?” Stopping, Pearl jerked back, forcing Glenn
to release her arm. “This is my wedding night. Do you think Duncan
and Jarrod won’t miss me?” She wished she knew how to make contact
using telepathy, but they hadn’t had the time to teach her that
yet. “I can assure you, they will.”

“
Don’t count on it, slut.”
Glenn laughed. It was a strange maniacal sound that she’d never
hear him utter before. It caused her skin to crawl. “I left them a
nice little note that will undoubtedly make them hate
you.”

The slap he delivered to her face
almost brought her to her knees. It probably would have knocked her
to the floor a few weeks ago, but not today.

Pearl wiped the blood from her mouth
and glared at him. “No one calls me that and gets away with it. Not
anymore.”

“
You’re a slut. That’s all
you’ve ever been and I’ll prove it to you.” Glenn grabbed the neck
of her gown and ripped it down the front. “Look at how easy your
nightgown is to remove. Only a whore would wear one so easy for a
man to peel off her body.”

Pearl refused to cower in front of this
animal. She was through taking his or anyone else’s abuse. The gift
her mates gave her was precious. It was the gift of her jaguar and
a bucket full of self-confidence.

Shrugging the gown off her shoulders,
Pearl was thankful that she didn’t have to pull it over her head.
It would have made her vulnerable. She moved, uncaring that she was
naked. It wasn’t like Glenn had never seen it before and she was
grateful to be free of the gown’s restraints.

“
Face it, Pearl, you’re a
whore. You’ve always been a whore and you will always be one. What
normal woman fucks two men at the same time?”

“
I’ve had quite enough of
you.” Pearl said with a low snarl as her beast burst free. She
actually felt the fur sprouting along her extremities. Her face
widened, growing broader to accommodate the wider set of her jaw
and the large
panthera
teeth. Even her vision changed to that of her jaguar,
incorporating the temperature of the warm summer night and Glenn’s
body heat.

Pearl wanted to laugh when Glenn could
only stand and stare at her, his mouth opening and closing like
that of a fish out of water.

“
That’s—that’s impossible!
You aren’t…you can’t—”

No, you idiot, I wasn’t and
I couldn’t, but I sure as hell can now.

With a snarl, Pearl lunged for Glenn,
who turned to run. The idiot even tried shifting into his animal
form, but all that did was slow him down when his legs got tangled
in his clothing.

I always thought you were a
pig, Glenn. I’m just glad to see my suspicions were
accurate.

I’ll be back, Pearl. You can
count on it.

“
Like hell you will,” Duncan
and Jarrod said at the same time. They both tore their clothes off
and went after Glenn who took off at the first sight of her males.
Pearl sat back on her haunches and watched as her men mauled Glenn
until he lay panting in the grass, blood pouring from his
wounds.

Matt and Merrick exited the lodge
through the back door, shook their heads and approached the wounded
boar. “Leave him be. We’ll take care of him. This is your wedding
night,” Merrick said as he bent to check Glenn’s
injuries.”

Both jaguars shimmered for a few
seconds, their bodies changing quickly to their human forms. Duncan
toed the injured boar. “You know, Pearl kept telling us you were a
bore, but I just thought it was a figure of speech.”

He turned to look at her then smiled,
Jarrod doing the same. “How about we all go take a shower together
and get started on this wedding night?”

Pearl shivered with anticipation, stood
and flicked her tail as she turned toward the door. Butterflies
flew around her tummy and her womb clenched with
anticipation.

What are you two waiting
for?

About the Author

Tianna Xander is the author of over
fifty published paranormal, time-travel and science fiction works.
She loves reading everything from romance novels, murder mysteries
and encyclopedias, to handbooks on solar energy. Tianna is the
first to admit she spends far too much time surfing the internet
and chatting with her online friends and critique
groups.

Having written several novels and
working on at least one more at any given time — Tianna still finds
time for her family, friends and her many pets. She currently lives
in Michigan with her husband, two children, four cats, one big dog
and one occasionally terrorized Netherland Dwarf bunny that loves
raisins. Her life is anything but boring.