Shifters Unbound [5] Tiger Magic
Jennifer Ashley
Praise for the novels of Jennifer Ashley
MATE CLAIMED
“With her patented page-singeing sensuality and flair for creative plotting, Ashley delivers another sexy installment in her Shifters Unbound series.”
—Booklist
“Another paranormal romance by Ashley is just what the doctor ordered. Her characters are intense and full of passion, and there’s plenty of action.”
—RT Book Reviews
“Jennifer Ashley is a master storyteller. Her writing is captivating and spins out the drama and attraction effortlessly. . . . Mate Claimed is a fantastic story.”
—The Romance Reader
WILD CAT
“Danger, desire, and sizzling-hot action! Wild Cat is a wild ride. Jennifer Ashley walks the razor’s edge of primal passion . . . This is one for the keeper shelf!”
—Alyssa Day, New York Times bestselling author
“A riveting read, with intriguing characters, page-turning action, and danger lurking around every turn. Ashley’s Shifter world is exciting, sexy, and magical.”
—Yasmine Galenorn, New York Times bestselling author
“Another excellent addition to the series!”
—RT Book Reviews
PRIMAL BONDS
“[A] sexually charged and imaginative tale . . . [A] quick pace and smart, skilled writing.”
—Publishers Weekly
“An enjoyable thriller . . . [An] action-packed tale.”
—Midwest Book Review
“Humor and passion abound in this excellent addition to this series.”
—Fresh Fiction
PRIDE MATES
“With her usual gift for creating imaginative plots fueled by scorchingly sensual chemistry, RITA Award–winning Ashley begins a new sexy paranormal series that neatly combines high-adrenaline suspense with humor.”
—Booklist
“A whole new way to look at shape-shifters . . . Rousing action and sensually charged; MapQuest me the directions for Shiftertown.”
—Publishers Weekly, “Beyond Her Book”
“Absolutely fabulous! . . . I was blown away . . . Paranormal fans will be raving over this one!”
—The Romance Readers Connection
THE DUKE’S PERFECT WIFE
“Fabulous . . . A sensual, gorgeous story that was captivating from the first page to the very last.”
—Joyfully Reviewed
“Ashley demonstrates her gift for combining complex characters; emotionally compelling, danger-tinged plotting; and a delectably sensual romance into one unforgettable love story.”
—Booklist (starred review)
THE MANY SINS OF LORD CAMERON
“Big, arrogant, sexy highlanders—Jennifer Ashley writes the kinds of heroes I crave!”
—Elizabeth Hoyt, New York Times bestselling author
“A sexy, passion-filled romance that will keep you reading until dawn.”
—Julianne MacLean, USA Today bestselling author
LADY ISABELLA’S SCANDALOUS MARRIAGE
“I adore this novel: It’s heartrending, funny, honest, and true. I want to know the hero—no, I want to marry the hero!”
—Eloisa James, New York Times bestselling author
“Readers rejoice! The Mackenzie brothers return as Ashley works her magic to create a unique love story brimming over with depth of emotion, unforgettable characters, sizzling passion, mystery, and a story that reaches out and grabs your heart. Brava!”
—RT Book Reviews (Top Pick)
“A heartfelt, emotional historical romance with danger and intrigue around every corner . . . A great read!”
—Fresh Fiction
THE MADNESS OF LORD IAN MACKENZIE
“Ever-versatile Ashley begins her new Victorian Highland Pleasures series with a deliciously dark and delectably sexy story of love and romantic redemption that will captivate readers with its complex characters and suspenseful plot.”
—Booklist
“Mysterious, heartfelt, sensitive, and sensual . . . Two big thumbs up.”
—Publishers Weekly, “Beyond Her Book”
“When you’re reading a book that is a step or two—or six or seven—above the norm, you know it almost immediately. Such is the case with The Madness of Lord Ian Mackenzie. The characters here are so complex and so real that I was fascinated by their journey . . . [and] this story is as flat-out romantic as any I’ve read in a while . . . This is a series I am certainly looking forward to following.”
—All About Romance
“A unique twist on the troubled hero . . . Fresh and interesting.”
—Night Owl Reviews (Top Pick)
“A welcome addition to the genre.”
—Dear Author
“Intriguing . . . Unique . . . Terrific.”
—Midwest Book Review
Berkley Sensation titles by Jennifer Ashley
The Mackenzies
THE MADNESS OF LORD IAN MACKENZIE
LADY ISABELLA’S SCANDALOUS MARRIAGE
THE MANY SINS OF LORD CAMERON
THE DUKE’S PERFECT WIFE
THE SEDUCTION OF ELLIOT MCBRIDE
Shifters Unbound
PRIDE MATES
PRIMAL BONDS
WILD CAT
MATE CLAIMED
LONE WOLF
(An Intermix Special Novella)
TIGER MAGIC
TIGER MAGIC
JENNIFER ASHLEY
THE BERKLEY PUBLISHING GROUP
Published by the Penguin Group
Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014, USA
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For more information about the Penguin Group, visit penguin.com.
TIGER MAGIC
A Berkley Sensation Book / published by arrangement with the author
Copyright © 2013 by Jennifer Ashley.
Excerpt from Wild Wolf by Jennifer Ashley copyright © 2013 by Jennifer Ashley.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Purchase only authorized editions.
Berkley Sensation Books are published by The Berkley Publishing Group.
BERKLEY SENSATION® is a registered trademark of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
The “B” design is a trademark of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
For information, address: The Berkley Publishing Group,
a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.,
375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014.
ISBN: 978-0-425-25121-8
eBook ISBN: 978-1-101-62340-4
PUBLISHING HISTORY
Berkley Sensation mass-market paperback edition / June 2013
Cover art by Tony Mauro.
Cover design by George Long.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.
Contents
Praise
Berkley Sensation Titles by Jennifer Ashley
Title Page
Copyright
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHA
PTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
CHAPTER NINETEEN
CHAPTER TWENTY
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
CHAPTER THIRTY
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
Special Excerpt from Wild Wolf
CHAPTER ONE
“No, no, no, no, not today. You can’t do this to me today!”
But the car died anyway. It throbbed onto the shoulder of the empty highway, bucked twice, and gurgled to silence.
“Aw, damn it.” Carly’s four-inch heels landed on the pavement, followed by tanned legs and a tight, white sheath dress. She glared down at the car, the Texas wind tugging her light brown hair out of its careful French braid.
She would have to be wearing white. Carly jammed her hands on her hips and skewered the Corvette with her enraged stare.
Take the ’Vette, her fiancé, Ethan, had said. It’s a big day. You want to make an entrance. She’d been in a hurry to get on her way out of the city to the gallery where she worked, so Ethan had pressed the keys into her hand and pushed her out the door.
Carly had agreed with him—the artist they were showcasing liked classic cars, and he was doing an exclusive with her boss’s gallery in the little town northeast of Austin. Buyers were already lined up. Carly’s commission could be enormous.
If she could get there. Carly kicked one of the tires in rage, then danced back. Her shoes were substantial but that still hurt.
Perfect. Ethan could be generous—and he had the filthy richness to do it—but he also forgot little details like making sure cars got tuned up.
“His lazy highness can just come and get me, then.” Carly went around to the passenger side of the car and leaned in through the open window to grab her cell phone from her purse.
Today. This had to happen today. Still bent into the car, she punched numbers with her thumb, but the phone made the beeping noise that indicated it was out of range.
“No effing way.” Carly backed out of the car and raised the phone high. “Come on. Find me a signal.”
And then she saw him.
The man stood about ten feet from the car, not on the road but in the tall Texas grass beside it. That grass was dotted with blue, yellow, and white flowers, and this being summer, the grass was also a nice vivid green.
It wasn’t every day a girl saw a tall hunk of a man, shoulders broad under a black and red SoCo Novelties T-shirt standing by the side of the road. Watching her.
Really watching her. His eyes were fixed on Carly, not in the dazed way of a transient wandering around in an alcoholic haze, but looking at her as no human being had looked at her before.
He wasn’t scruffy like a transient either. His face was shaved, his body and clothes clean, jeans mud free despite his having walked through the field. And he must have walked through the field, because she sure hadn’t seen him on the road.
His hair . . . Carly blinked as the strong sunshine caressed sleek hair that was orange and black. Not dyed orange and black—dye tended to make hair matte and stark. This looked entirely natural, sunlight picking up highlights of red orange and blue black.
She knew she should be afraid. A strange guy with tiger-striped hair popping out of nowhere, staring at her like he did should terrify her. But he didn’t.
He hadn’t been there when Carly had first stopped the car and climbed out. He must have arrived when she’d bent over to get the phone, which meant he’d seen every bit of her round backside hugged by her skintight white dress.
This stretch of road was deserted. Eerily so. The streets in Austin were always packed, but once outside the city, it was possible to find long stretches of highway empty of traffic, such as the one Carly drove down to get to the art gallery every day.
There was no one out here, no one speeding along the straight road to rescue her. No one but herself in now-rumpled white and the tall man staring at her from the grass.
“Hey!” Carly shouted at him. “You know how to fix a car?”
* * *
He didn’t have a name. He didn’t have a clan. He’d had a mate, and a cub, but they’d died, and the humans who’d held him captive for forty years had taken them away. They hadn’t let him say good-bye, hadn’t let him grieve.
Now he lived among other Shifters, brought to this place of humidity, heat, and colorful hills. He only felt completely well when he was running in his tiger form, way out in the backcountry where no one would see him. He usually ran at night, but today, he hadn’t been able to stay in the confines of the house, or Shiftertown. So he’d gone.
He’d left his clothes hidden behind a little rise at the side of this road. Connor was supposed to pick him up, but not for a couple more hours, and Connor was often late. Tiger didn’t mind. He liked being out here.
He’d dressed, walked around the rise to the road . . . and saw a fine backside sticking out of a bright red car. The backside was covered in thin white fabric, showing him faintly pink panties beneath.
Below the nice buttocks were shapely legs, not too long, tanned by Texas sun. Shoes that rose about half a mile made those legs even shapelier.
The woman had hair the color of winter-gold grass. She had a cell phone in one hand, but she waited, the other hand on her shapely hip, for him to answer her question.
Tiger climbed the slope from the grass to the road. She watched him come, unafraid, her sunglasses trained on him.
Tiger wanted to see her eyes. If she was going to be his mate, he wanted to see everything about her.
And this woman would be his mate. No doubt about that. The scent that kicked into his nostrils, the way his heartbeat slowed to powerful strokes, the way his body filled with heat told him that.
Connor had tried to explain that mating didn’t happen like that for Shifters. A Shifter male got to know a female a little bit before he chose, and then he mate-claimed her. The mate bond could rear its head anytime before or after that, but it didn’t always on first glance.
Tiger had listened to this wisdom without arguing, but he knew better. He wasn’t an ordinary Shifter. And this female, hand on one curved hip, wasn’t an ordinary woman.
“Can you put the hood up?” Tiger asked her.
“I don’t know,” she said, frustrated. “This car is different from anything I usually drive. Hang on, let me check.”
Her voice was a sweet little Texas drawl, not too heavy. A light touch, enough to make warmth crawl through Tiger’s veins and go straight to his cock.
The woman found a catch and worked the hood open, then dusted off her hands and peered at the inner workings without comprehension. “Classic car, my ass.” She scowled at it. “Classic just means old.”
Tiger looked inside. The layout was much different from the pickup he and Connor had been tinkering with all spring, but Connor had been teaching Tiger a lot about vehicles. “Got a socket wrench?”
When he looked up at the woman, he saw her staring at him from behind the sunglasses. “Your eyes,” she said. “They’re . . .”
“Yellow.”
Tiger turned away before her scent convinced him to press her back against the side of the car and hold her to him. She wasn’t a female someone had tossed into his cage to trigger his mating frenzy. This was his mate, and he didn’t want to hurt her.
He wante
d to take this slow, woo her a little. Maybe with something involving food. Shifter males around here liked to cook for their mates, and Tiger liked the rituals.
She opened the back of the car and found a toolbox, which did have a set of socket wrenches. Tiger took one and reached inside the car, looking for the silence within himself that would lead him to the problem. He seemed to be able to sense what was wrong with engines, and how to coax them back to life. He couldn’t explain how he did it—he only knew that cars and trucks didn’t watch him, or fear him, and he could see what was wrong when others couldn’t.
As he worked, the neckline of his T-shirt slid down, baring the silver and black Collar that ran around his throat. The woman bent over to him, the top of her dress dangerously open, the warmth of her touching his cheek.
“Holy shit,” she said. “You’re a Shifter.”
“Yes.”
She lifted her sunglasses and stared at him. Her eyes were clear green, flecked with a little gray. She stared at him frankly, in open curiosity, and without fear.
Of course she wasn’t afraid of him. She was going to be his mate.
Tiger met her gaze, unblinking. Her eyes widened the slightest bit, as though she realized something had happened between them, but she didn’t know what.
She restored her sunglasses and straightened up. “I’ve never seen a Shifter before. I didn’t know any of y’all were allowed out of Shiftertown.”
Tiger picked up the wrench with one hand and moved the other to the timing belt chain, which had come loose from the gear. “We’re allowed.”
The repair needed both delicacy and strength but Tiger finished quickly, leaning all the way inside and letting his fingers know what to do. He backed out and closed the toolbox. “Start it now.”
The woman eagerly rushed to the car, slid inside, and cranked it to life. She emerged again, leaving the car running, while Tiger scanned a few more things. “The timing belt will hold for now, but the whole shaft is worn and could break. Take the car home and don’t use it again until it’s fixed.”
“Terrific. Armand is going to kill me.”
Tiger didn’t know who Armand was and didn’t much care. He carried the toolbox to the back for her and closed the small trunk, then returned to close the hood.
