“Is this for me?” Kolby asked, coming down the stairs and pointing to the box at the bottom of them.

  She laughed. “I put it by the stairs for when I was going up.”

  “I’ll take it.”

  “Okay. It’s the cleaning supplies for the bathrooms.”

  He took the box upstairs.

  She was thinking she needed to discover when Kolby’s birth date was! She needed to get him something special. She grabbed her phone and found his profile on Facebook. November 15th. She smiled and friended him. He was walking from bathroom to bathroom, dropping off supplies, but he suddenly stopped walking and she got a friend request approval from him.

  She began opening more boxes and checked to see if there was anything else they needed.

  Kolby finally joined her and grabbed up a box of tools and carried it into the garage. She couldn’t have moved that for anything. She’d planned to empty some of the tools out first. She would have had the movers take it out there, but it had been mislabeled.

  Then she found files and she could do something with those. She began to unload an armload and took them to her filing cabinet in her office. Kolby found the box she was unloading and carried the whole thing in for her.

  She chuckled. “Thanks so much. Those were too heavy for me to move. When the movers brought them, I wasn’t too sure where I was going to set up the office or I would have had them use their muscle to put them in here.”

  “That’s understandable. I saw three more boxes of files near that one. Do you want me to bring those in also?”

  “Yeah, sure. Thanks.”

  He lifted it and nearly dropped it.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “Looks like one of your kittens decided to play in it.”

  She peered inside and saw Vader looking up at her. She laughed.

  Then he helped unpack them in her office, giving the empty boxes to the kittens to play in. After another hour of working on the boxes, she said, “Do you want to watch a movie?”

  “Yeah, sure. I’d like to take you to one too, as soon as we’re both free,” Kolby said.

  “I’d like that.”

  “And dinner at Jose’s Mexican Restaurant.”

  “That would be nice.” She thought of asking Eric to join them to watch the movie, but when he was in the zone for painting, it was like when she couldn’t stop writing on a story. She knew he’d come and join them if he wanted to.

  It was still raining and thundering out. She just hoped they wouldn’t lose their electricity while they were watching the movie.

  She looked at the sofa. “It’s…dusty.”

  Kolby smiled. “Yeah.”

  She sighed. “Do you mind cleaning some more?”

  “Not at all.”

  “Let me get the vacuum cleaner and one of us can vacuum and the other can shake out the cushions.”

  “I might be able to shake the cushions out easier.” Kolby began gathering the cushions up and Eric came out of his studio.

  “What are you both doing?” Eric asked.

  “Cleaning cushions so we can sit on the sofa and watch a movie,” Rosalie said.

  “Okay, I’ll help.” But before Eric did, he took the kittens up to his room away from the noisy vacuum.

  Since moving here and meeting the other cougars, Eric’s complete turnaround in his behavior amazed her. She wondered if her brother was trying to impress Kolby. She certainly was impressed.

  Then Eric and Kolby took the cushions out on the patio, the patio cover protecting them from the rain while she vacuumed the sofa. She wondered if Eric would join them to watch a movie then. There was enough room for all three to sit on one sofa, but she started working on a chair and another sofa too because they needed the extra seating anyway if any other people wanted to visit.

  The guys came in and saw that she had set the other cushions on the floor and was vacuuming a second sofa and chair.

  “She’s making more work for us,” Kolby said.

  “Sure, but she’s also making enough seats for each of us to sit on so we don’t have to crowd each other while watching the movie,” Eric said.

  She and Kolby smiled. When they were done cleaning the sofas and chair, Kolby and Rosalie cuddled on one of the sofas together, while Eric stretched out on the other sofa. They decided on an adventure thriller—five men and two women trying to find gold in the desert and everyone trying to get it at the same time, greed taking over as soon as they found it.

  Once the hero and his party saved the day, it was late and time for bed.

  Rosalie realized that Kolby might have needed to go to bed earlier because of having to get up so early at the ranch to do his work. She and Eric could sleep in if they wanted to because their work hours were their own, though she rarely could stay in bed past six. Eric certainly could.

  Kolby grabbed his bags and all three climbed up the stairs to the bedrooms. They said their good nights to Eric, and she hoped he wouldn’t get spooked tonight and have to join them in her bed. She would welcome him if he did, but she hoped he wouldn’t feel the need to on their second night sleeping in the mansion. Eric headed up the stairs to the tower room, closed his door, and locked it.

  “I’ve never had a cougar stay overnight with me,” Rosalie admitted to Kolby when they reached her bedroom.

  “Since I was human before, I had human girlfriends, and I’ve dated cougars here, but no one I felt that was meant to be the one for me. With you, I just can’t quit thinking about you when we’re not together.”

  “Well, thanks. I have to admit I feel the same way about you, which isn’t anything I’ve ever felt for another cougar, believe me.” She opened the drawer to her folded pajamas and night shirts. “I’m going to change in the bathroom and be right out.” She loved kissing him, but now that Kolby was actually joining her in bed, she felt a little…shy.

  She grabbed a pair of pajamas—orange with a cougar’s face on the shirt wearing a witch’s hat—closed the drawer, went into the bathroom, and shut the door. She hoped she wasn’t making a mistake with Kolby by sleeping with him this early in their relationship and ruining a good thing. Though if she had wanted him to stay in another room, she should have washed the linens and bedspread already. If she was being honest with herself, she purposefully hadn’t washed them for that reason!

  When she came out of the bathroom, Kolby was wearing black and orange striped boxer briefs, showing off a beautifully sculpted upper body and legs. His briefs formed a nice package, that she hadn’t meant to stare at for so long.

  He smiled at her. “I love your cougar.”

  “I love your boxer briefs. It’s good to know you like celebrating Halloween a little early.”

  “Absolutely. Every occasion in Yuma Town is a cause for celebration.”

  “I love it here already.” She pulled the covers away from the right side of the bed and he pulled the covers away from the left.

  “Yeah, when I first came here, it was to rescue my brother. It turned out that we had come just to the right place,” Kolby said.

  She couldn’t help feeling thrilled to be with Kolby tonight. The king size bed seemed so much smaller now that he was going to join her in it though. She was surprised he hadn’t been born a cougar. She hadn’t met many cougar shifters, but the ones she had met had all been born shifters. He seemed to fit right in. She wasn’t sure how she would have handled it if she hadn’t been a cougar from birth.

  They climbed into bed, pulled the covers over them, and she gravitated toward him. There was no sense in sleeping with him if she wasn’t going to get close and personal.

  Lightning was still illuminating the room through the heavy curtains and the rain was still pouring down.

  Kolby turned to cup her face and began kissing her. This was so nice. She pressed her mouth against his, leisurely enjoying the feel of his warm, vital lips against hers. His hand drifted to her shoulder, and he caressed it. She smiled, wondering just how far he wanted to go. Probably all the way if she was willing. Which she was.

  She’d heard wolf shifters couldn’t do that. That they had a built-in wolf’s need to mate for life so no consummating the relationship until they found the wolf for them. She was glad the big cats could explore sexual relationships before they decided on their forever mate. Though cats didn’t mate for life so divorce was a possibility if they ended up with a cougar they decided wasn’t the one for them for forever and ever.

  Kolby licked her lips, and she pressed her mouth against his again, kissing, licking, her blood heating, her pheromones already getting worked up. She could smell his interest right back as she ran her hand over his torso, his muscles hard, his skin soft.

  Then he placed his hand on her breast covered by the soft, flannel pajama top. He gently squeezed and she sighed.

  “Too much?” he whispered against her forehead.

  “Not enough,” she whispered back.

  He smiled, a lustful, sexy, I-want-you-too smile. She gave him one back. Then she rubbed her body against his, ramping up the need to have him.

  This time he moved his hands underneath her shirt and cupped both breasts, massaging them, rubbing the palms of his hands against her rigid and sensitive nipples. Oh, yes!

  He pulled her shirt off and she ran her hands over his nipples, felt them pebble, before he kissed her again, and deepened the kiss.

  She slid her hands down to his waistband and tugged at his boxer briefs. She was ready to go all the way with him now, not later. Well, later too. Once she had him, there was no going back. She hoped he realized that.

  He slipped his hand down her pajama pants and found her clit and began working it. Ohmigod, he was a dream lover for sure. She moved against his fingers, wanting to climax in the worst way.

  He moved his mouth over hers and she circled her arms around his neck, taking his tongue into her mouth, luxuriating with the feel of his tongue stroking hers while his finger was stroking her between her legs.

  She didn’t want to cry out when he brought her to climax. She was going to bite her tongue, not wanting her brother to hear her making love to the big cat.

  But then she couldn’t hold back, tensed, felt the end coming, and she was about to cry out with pleasure when Kolby stole her breath, covering her mouth, and kissing her to muffle her cry.

  Maybe she should have moved her brother’s room even farther away from hers!

  She was so thankful to Kolby for knowing how she was feeling about her brother being nearby while they were making love. She didn’t figure most guys would be that sensitive about it.

  She kissed Kolby back and he slid her pajama pants off her legs. She pulled his boxer briefs down his hips, freeing his erection, and he hurried to kick his boxer briefs off the rest of the way.

  “Are you ready for this?” Kolby asked in a sincere way, not pressuring her to continue if she wasn’t sure about their relationship yet.

  “Oh, yeah.”

  He pushed her legs apart, his mouth and eyes smiling. He looked like he couldn’t be any happier. He centered himself between her legs and pressed his arousal in her wet feminine sheath. Yeah, for sure, this wouldn’t be a one-time occurrence.

  If anyone had told Kolby that imagining he had seen a snow leopard running on the ranch would end up in his meeting the snow leopard’s cougar sister and making love to her, he would have thought they were living in a fantasy world. But this fantasy was so real. He had never thought he’d ever find a she-cat who intrigued him as much as Rosalie did.

  She tightened around him as he pressed into her, and she fit him like a heavenly, wet glove. He slowly pushed in and pulled out, easing into her tight body again. She felt so right, their connection deepening and he knew he wouldn’t want to ever let her go. He suspected she felt the same way about him as he did about her.

  He began kissing her mouth again, their bodies working together in a poetic rhythm, perfectly synced. He was sure hoping that she wanted him to stay more nights than just this one!

  He continued to thrust, her pelvis rising to maximize the pleasure, her hands sliding over his body, pure delight. Their pheromones were all over the place, their musky scent filling him with urgent need. He knew he shouldn’t look to the future and want more than what they had right now. This wonderful night with her, enjoying the sex, enjoying being with her. But he couldn’t help thinking of wanting more of her like this—sharing meals, watching a fun movie, running with her in their fur coats, making love to her, just everything.

  He felt the end coming, held himself still, put off the inevitable, but he couldn’t hold back. Not with smelling her sweet scent, feeling her soft body beneath his, seeing her luscious lips parted for another kiss, tasting her lips. Then he was thrusting again, coming, spent, relaxed, and hugging her body.

  “I hope—” he started to say.

  “It was perfect.”

  He smiled. “Yeah, I thought so too, but I hope if you wake and want some more loving, you’ll feel free to ravish me.”

  She chuckled. “Your wish is my command.”

  Then he rolled off her and he pulled her into his arms, not ready to give her up just yet. She was just too huggable.

  She seemed to be of the same mind and cuddled against his chest, her hand resting on his belly. Then she sighed. “If you hear anything unusual, wake me and I’ll go with you to check it out.”

  “All right. It’s a deal.”

  He didn’t think he’d ever get to sleep while he was enjoying snuggling with Rosalie. But he knew he would have a packed day at the ranch tomorrow and he needed to get his sleep. Then something woke him around two in the morning and he was surprised to realize he’d actually fallen asleep.

  What was the sound he’d heard?

  Rosalie was still cuddling with him, but she lifted her head, saw that he was awake, and she shifted.

  Okay, so she had heard it too. He shifted. They leapt from the bed and headed for the door—the shut door. He shifted, opened it, and shifted again. Both of them left the room and stared down the hallway toward the stairs, their ears perked, listening for any further sound.

  10

  Poor Kolby, Rosalie was thinking. He needed to get his sleep, but she was glad he was joining her to learn what they’d both undoubtedly heard downstairs. She hadn’t been sure, but the fact that he was listening for something too had to mean she hadn’t dreamed she’d heard something.

  They started down the hall, climbed the tower stairs, listened at Eric’s bedroom door, but it was quiet, no sounds at all. She figured he was dead to the world after all the work they’d done unpacking and cleaning. Kolby and Rosalie made their way to the curved stairs, then both of them ran down them together. She was glad Kolby didn’t feel as though he had to take the lead. Though if there was an intruder with a gun, neither would be safe in their cougar or human forms.

  She hoped it was just the creaky old mansion and nothing more sinister than that.

  They didn’t hear anything going on, no footfalls, no one sneaking around. They peered into the kitchen to see if maybe Eric had gotten up and was in there getting something to eat or drink. But he wasn’t. She suspected he was sound asleep in his room still. She should have shifted and checked to see if his bedroom door was still locked. She guessed she was a little fuzzy headed this morning herself.

  She and Kolby walked to the basement door and found it wide open. She was sure she had locked it!

  Kolby looked at her and she swished her tail back and forth, nervous, irritated. She was ready to call the sheriff’s department. Kolby wasn’t. He headed down the stairs to the basement like a wary cat, moving slowly, taking a step at a time. If someone had opened the door from the basement, he could be in the house.

  She snarled and growled in her cougar cat way, hoping to wake her brother in case she could, and he could at least shift into his snow leopard coat to protect himself better, if they ran into trouble.

  Kolby glanced back at her, looking to see why she was making a fuss. She figured he thought she was warning him she’d heard something in the house and not in the basement or was telling him not to go down there any further. Truly, she was at a quandary as to how to proceed.

  Maybe Eric had gone down in the basement for some reason at some time yesterday and she hadn’t noticed it was unlocked…or that the door was left open. The basement door was out of the way of the main flow of traffic, so it was easy to miss it, if she hadn’t specifically checked on it.

  Still, she hadn’t gone into the basement during the day, so she wouldn’t have unlocked it for any reason. Certainly, she hadn’t opened the door and left it wide open.

  Kolby continued down the stairs and suddenly stopped near the bottom. Rosalie smelled the cold, rainy wind as soon as she walked down a few more steps. That’s when she realized the door in the basement was wide open.

  Kolby growled low, then checked the entire basement over. Rosalie was with him the whole way. She probably should have been looking around the basement on her own so that they could have taken care of it in half the time. But she wanted to stay with Kolby in case something came out and attacked them.

  Then Kolby went to the door and stared out at the rain. She joined him. He shifted and closed and locked the door. “Unless your brother sleepwalks, or you do, someone’s been here. Someone who used a lockpick and who wore hunter’s concealment spray. I don’t smell that anyone was here.”

  She shifted, shivered, and hugged Kolby. “I don’t either.”

  He hugged her right back, warming her in the chilly air.

  Then they both shifted and ran back to the stairs and ascended them. Just then they heard someone coming and saw Eric dressed in his snow leopard coat. He joined them, winding around them in greeting. Kolby shifted and closed and locked the door to the basement.

  “Did you go into the basement and leave the door open?” he asked Eric.

  Eric shook his furry head. Then Kolby shifted and they explored the whole mansion together to ensure the intruder wasn’t in some other part of the place now. They found no one and then headed back upstairs to their own bedrooms.