Raphael- Bayou Bites Read online

  Raphael

  Bayou Bites

  by

  Alexandra Ivy

  and

  Laura Wright

  Raphael

  Copyright © 2020 Alexandra Ivy and Laura Wright

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems—except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews—without permission in writing from the author.

  This book is a work of fiction. The characters, events, and places portrayed in this book are products of the author’s imagination and are either fictitious or are used fictitiously. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental and not intended by the author.

  Table of Contents

  RAPHAEL

  Copyright

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  More Books by the Authors

  Chapter One

  I slide through the thick foliage. I am death.

  Silent.

  Focused.

  Unforgiving.

  I reach the edge of a shallow river. I step into a pool of silvery moonlight, allowing it to shimmer against the droplets of dew that cling to my tawny fur. For a moment I stand still, savoring the primitive beat that pulses through the Wildlands. It sings to me, stirring my blood.

  The hunt is on…

  Ashe was done. D.O.N.E. Done.

  It was near midnight as she stormed out of the house and headed for town, recalling, as she went, the numerous times her mother had exclaimed that Ashe was wearing on her last damn nerve. Granted, the woman had been drunk when she’d said this, but Ashe could at least empathize with those frustrated feelings now.

  Crossing the communal center where the Pantera gathered for meals and celebrations, she didn’t bother to stop and admire the tiny lavender water lily that was just beginning to bud on the edge of the clearing. The Dyesse flower could only be found in the Wildlands, and infused the Pantera with happiness, warmth and a sensual sense of euphoria when it was in full bloom.

  Instead she entered the vast building that served as HQ. The previous headquarters had been destroyed a few years back, and this new one still smelled of freshly sanded wood and paint.

  Ashe bypassed Raph’s office and headed straight to the conference room on the top floor. She knew her mate well enough to guess he wouldn’t be sitting behind his desk at this late hour. The male hated paperwork. No, he would be locked in a powwow with the leaders of the Pantera factions, discussing the latest threat to the pack.

  Because there was always another threat. And another. And another.

  Reaching the top floor, Ashe tossed back her long, dark hair and smoothed her hands down the light yellow sweater she’d pulled on that morning along with a pair of faded jeans. They were Raph’s favorites. He said they made her ass look edible.

  Not that the aggravating male had noticed. Lately he didn’t find anything about her edible.

  With a grimace she squashed the painful thought and shoved open the door. It swung hard enough to bang loudly against the wall, bringing the two males inside to their feet. The thick scent of musk and danger prickled through the air. Cats didn’t like to be startled.

  Well too damn bad.

  Ashe glanced around the long table. There were enough seats for the leaders of the various factions, along with a dozen others who might be needed to offer their opinions on whatever was being discussed. Tonight there were maps spread across the glossy table along with stacks of files that had recently arrived from the Pantera Security League, who were busy tracking down a hidden danger.

  Her gaze returned to the two males. Closest to her was Parish, a Hunter with cat-gold eyes and long black hair. He stood over six foot with broad shoulders and scars near his right ear and mouth. Not that the blemish in any way diminished his stark, feral beauty. But Ashe barely noticed him. It was the male stalking toward her who truly captured her attention. And her breath.

  Damn him.

  Raphael.

  The leader of the Diplomat faction, the unofficial head of the Pantera, was six feet two of gloriously lean, hard muscle covered in a black T-shirt and jeans. His thick, dark blond hair was long enough to brush his massive shoulders, and his golden eyes flashed with a hint of jade in the overhead light.

  Ashe released a low hiss, her heart racing and her palms sweating. It didn’t matter how many years she spent with this male. The sight of him always hit her like a punch to the gut.

  Damn him.

  Hungrily her gaze clung to his lean, predatory face, an aching sense of loss tugging at her heart. Granted, the two of them still had sex. Great sex. But during the ever-present years of battling one enemy after another, they’d lost the romance.

  It sounded clichéd. But that was what it felt like.

  Goddess, she wanted intimacy. She wanted fun and laughter. Hell, right now she’d settle for some privacy. Something that was in short supply. Raph was the leader of an endangered species that was under constant attack. An emergency was always interrupting their “alone time.” And if it wasn’t a Pantera disaster, then it was Soyala.

  Their beloved daughter might be a miracle, but as a seven-year-old, she was also a precocious, hyperactive panther shifter who could try the patience of a saint.

  Tonight Ashe wasn’t feeling very saintlike.

  “Ashe.” Raph furrowed his brow as he caught sight of her tense expression. “What’s wrong?”

  “Your daughter.”

  She heard Parish curse as the scent of Raphael’s cat slammed through the air, his eyes glowing. “Soyala? What happened? Is she hurt?”

  “She’s missing,” Ashe told him hurriedly. She was pissed, but she didn’t want him going into full Pantera-mode.

  “Oh.” Relief eased the savage heat that swirled through the air. “Is that all?”

  Ashe clenched her hands, resisting the urge to screech in frustration. As per lately, he’d said exactly the wrong thing.

  “I tell you that your seven-year-old daughter is missing and that’s your reaction?” she said through gritted teeth.

  Raph shrugged with confidence, a move that made him look both irritatingly calm and undeniably sexy. “It’s not like she doesn’t sneak off on a regular basis.”

  Ashe muttered a curse. That was the whole freaking point. “It’s midnight! She’s never been out this late, or for this long. Besides, I thought you were going to talk to her.”

  “I did.”

  “And?”

  Raph hunched a shoulder. “And she said she feels stifled at night. Like she’s been put in a cage. She needs to run.” His gold eyes glistened. “Hunt.”

  Ashe could feel her blood pressure rising. For the past four months, Raph had refused to take Soyala’s nightly excursions seriously. She suspected he was secretly proud of his daughter’s feisty nature and adventurous spirit. Hell, Ashe was proud too, but she wasn’t willing to risk her child’s life to prove the girl was destined for greatness.

  “And?” Ashe prompted.

  “And I…” He allowed his words to trail away, a flash of heat touching his cheek.

  “What?”

  “I might have said I understood.”

  Ashe jerked, sudden pain slicing through her heart. She glanced over at Parish, who was staring down at the map in front of him, no doubt wishing the thing would swallow him up.

  Put in a cage.

  Stifled.

  Goddess, was that why Raph spent so much time at work instead of being home with her? Had mating with her become a prison for him?

  Her gaze lifted to meet his. “So you’re feeling stifled too?”
>
  “No. No, of course not.” He sounded shocked by the question, quickly reaching out to take her hand. “I just meant that on occasion I feel the need to shift into my cat and run.”

  Her pain eased somewhat—but not her frustration. Soyala had been missing for hours. She wanted her little girl home and tucked in her bed.

  “I also might have said that she needed to wait until I could go with her,” he added.

  “When?”

  Raph blinked. “When what?”

  “When did you say you were going to run with her?”

  “I…” Once again his words trailed away and he glanced toward the window where he could see the full, nearly purple moon proudly dominating the night sky. “Shit.”

  “It was tonight, wasn’t it?” Ashe pressed.

  Raph grimaced. “I forgot.”

  Ashe ground her teeth together and pulled her hand from his. Soyala had been restless all day, barely eating her dinner and constantly glancing toward the door. Now Ashe knew why.

  “You forgot…well, nothing new in that, is there?” she accused, turning to head out of the conference room. “I’m out of here.”

  “You’re such an idiot, brother,” Parish muttered.

  “Shut it, Parish.” Raph rushed forward and stood directly in his mate’s path. “Ashe, please—”

  “Don’t Ashe please me.” She stepped back. “Your daughter is out in the dark. Alone.”

  “I’m sure she’s fine,” he assured her in soothing tones.

  “You’re sure?”

  “Yes.”

  She shook her head. “How? How are you sure?”

  “I would sense it if she left the Wildlands,” he said with a thread of undisguised pride. “Besides, she’s a better hunter than cats twice her age.”

  Everything he said was true. Soyala had already passed the tests needed to become a full Hunter. But while she was physically capable of protecting herself, she was mentally a seven-year-old girl.

  Ashe glared at her mate. “She’s a child.”

  “She’s a cub,” he corrected. He tried to pull her into his arms, looking wounded when she jerked away. “There’s no need to get this upset, sweetheart.”

  Ashe growled at him, feeling like the top of her head was going to explode. No reason to get upset? No reason?

  “Shit, Raph.” Parish cleared his throat, his wary gaze locked on Ashe’s flushed face. “I think the occasion calls for a little more listening and a lot less talking.”

  This time, the Hunter’s words seemed to reach Raph, who dropped his arms and offered a small nod. “Okay, okay…I get it. I’ll go find Soyala and bring her home.”

  “We’ll go find our daughter,” Ashe corrected.

  “I—” Raph caught Ashe’s steely glare. He coughed, pretending he hadn’t been about to go all Leader of the Pantera on her and tell her to go home and wait for him. “Yes. Of course. We’ll go find her.”

  “Finally,” Parish uttered dryly. “Maybe he’s not quite as dumb as he looks.”

  Ashe snorted, moving past her mate and out the door. “I wouldn’t bet money on it.”

  Chapter Two

  Ashe didn’t stop and wait for him to catch up.

  Not inside HQ. Not down the lighted pathway. And not as she threaded her way through the towering cypress and sycamore oaks toward the bayou.

  She was certainly aware of his pursuit, however. Not just because she could hear him moving behind her, that large, powerful body, and those long legs taking one calm stride to her frustrated two. But because that damn musky scent of his was teasing the shit out of her nose. Rich. Sexy. Intoxicating. Achingly heady and gloriously familiar. Every inhale making her skin flush and tingle, which in turn made her heart squeeze with pain.

  Why did it take this—a fight—to get him to pursue her?

  Around them, the air hummed with the sound of insects and the croak of frogs. Above them, the lavender moon broke through the clouds every few minutes, illuminating their way over the lush carpet of moss beneath their feet.

  It was the perfect night for a romantic stroll. Hands entwined. Riding on the back of his powerful cat as it purred its pleasure. But instead she was stomping through the bayou—angry and worried, frustrated and sad.

  “Are you ever going to talk to me?” Raph asked behind her, his deep voice gentle.

  She remained silent. Like a child. A hurt child who desperately missed her best friend.

  “Shit, I’m sorry, Ashe.”

  “You need to say that to your daughter,” she returned tartly.

  “I will. But I wanted to say it to you first.”

  She veered to the left and took the trail leading to the deepest and most untamed part of the Wildlands.

  Raphael came up beside her. “Are you mad because I forgot to take Soyala on a run tonight?”

  “Isn’t that enough?”

  “Yes, but it feels like this is about more.”

  Of course it was about more. But how was she supposed to say it? I miss you. I miss us. I need you so much it aches. She didn’t want to beg, and she definitely didn’t want to hear that he didn’t feel the same. She shook her head and kept walking. “Let’s just find our daughter.”

  “Dammit, female.” Raphael grasped her hand and turned her toward him. “Enough.”

  Ashe stared up into his handsome face. His eyes were glowing. Fierce. Otherworldly. That look always had the power to make her both quake with unease and come with abandon.

  “Please don’t make me guess,” he said, his control wavering. “You know how bad I am at that.” His cat was lurking close to the surface, spicing the air with his heat and hunger. “And I refuse to fail you again tonight.”

  His words speared her heart. It was juvenile that she didn’t want to have to tell him what was wrong—that she wanted him to instinctively know. Granted, he had many amazing qualities. He was loyal, protective, honorable, and sexy as hell. But he was no mind reader. He was a cat. And seven years ago, he’d claimed her as his mate. As far as he was concerned, their relationship was settled. Clearly he found it difficult to understand why Ashe needed his constant reassurance that he loved and needed her.

  Maybe it was because she was a human. Or maybe it was because she was a woman.

  Whatever the case, she needed more.

  “Look,” she said finally. “Here’s the thing. Soyala isn’t the only one you made promises to.”

  Raph tilted his head, no doubt searching his memory for what he might have promised. “…I did say I would take you someplace special for our anniversary.” Raph frowned in confusion. “But our anniversary isn’t until… Oh, fuck.”

  “Yes.”

  “Last week.” His gorgeous face twisted with regret. “I’m such an ass. I’ll make it up to you, sweetheart, I promise,” he rasped, his fingers skimming up her arms to gently cup her face in his big hands.

  Her gaze fell. “It’s fine. Just please don’t make any more promises. It hurts too much.”

  “Ashe—”

  “Maybe you’re just not into me anymore or something,” she said with a forced laugh.

  “What?” Sudden fire flashed in his eyes.

  “Maybe you’re not attracted to me…”

  He snorted. “Not a fucking chance.”

  “It can happen after years together—”

  “Not with us it can’t. And definitely not with me.” He lifted her face to meet his and gave her a gentle, almost teasing grin. “I would ask you the same…if perhaps you’re no longer attracted to me, but…” He inhaled deeply, then growled low in his throat. “My nose always tells the truth. And I scent your sweet cream even now, ma cher.”

  Ashe gasped at the endearment, tears pricking her eyes.

  Raphael’s expression clouded with sudden concern. “What’s wrong? What did I say?”

  Emotion filled her throat, nearly cutting off her breath. She couldn’t stand there anymore, his hands on her, his eyes searching hers for answers. It was too much. It ha
d been too much for a while now. She pulled free of him and started to run.

  “Ashe…wait!”

  But she was off. Granted, she was no Pantera, but when she wanted to be—when she needed to be—she was fast. And, even in the darkest of nights, she knew this land like the back of her hand. Every tree, every hill, every flower.

  “Ashe!” he called again.

  No! No…

  The cool, perfumed air rushed her face as she ran toward the shoreline, her tears drying just as more took their place. But in the end, she was no match for the leader of the Pantera. He was on her in seconds, and with a frustrated growl, lifted her up and pressed her back against a massive willow tree near the water’s edge.

  “Talk to me,” he demanded, his gold eyes blazing under the light of the purple moon. “Please. You’re scaring the shit out of me.”

  “I just…can’t…” she said through a choked sob. “You haven’t called me that in…I don’t know how long.”

  “Called you what?”

  “Ma cher.”

  He stilled, the sounds of the wind in the grasses and the lap of water against the bank the only things competing with their ragged breathing.

  “Ashe…sweetheart…”

  She shook her head.

  “Ma cher…” he whispered with a hint of a growl.

  Tears streamed down her cheeks and she swiped them away. “I hate you.”

  “I know.”

  “And your nose was wrong, by the way…completely wrong. I’m not turned on. And I’m definitely not attracted to you.”

  “I understand.” He reached up and cupped her cheek.

  He was playing with her, but gently, teasingly, lovingly. His palm was so warm…

  Damn cat.

  Damn sexy, wonderful, frustrating cat.

  “Maybe I can earn back your attraction?” he suggested, the heat coming off those gold eyes hypnotic. “After all, it is a very precious gift to me.”