envenoMATE

14. His Woman Smile

Fourteen.

    “Tigerrr,” Caroline whined into her cell phone as she wiggled her hips back and forth, trying to fit them in her black spandex exercise pants. “I’m allowed to be late today. I had to deal with drunks last night, and it was exhausting.”


Waiting outside in the parking lot, Tiger immediately stilled, his blood running cold. He was no longer in interested in teasing Caroline for being five minutes late for their early morning jog. Protective instincts ran all other thoughts out of his mind. His mate’s wellbeing came first.


“Drunks were harassing you, Caroline? Where?” he snarled. He could go there, pick up their scents, trail them, and make sure they would never dare hurt his woman again.


Caroline sighed as she laced up her running shoes. “They weren’t exactly harassing me, Tiger. Calm down.”


Tiger growled. “How can I calm down when my wife, my mate, refuses to leave the dorm and live with me? I don’t need drunk men slobbering all over you, baby.”


“They were women . . . baby,” Caroline retorted, grabbing her keys and exiting her room. “And they were closer to vomiting in the hallway than drooling on me. Stop worrying about me all the time. I just want one more semester in the dorm. Let’s finish up this year and then we can move in together.”


Caroline hung up as she exited the dorm and saw Tiger scowling ten feet away. He left his post by his slick, white car and jogged quickly to her side.


“I don’t see why you want to deal with drunk people, male or female. Come live with me, please,” Tiger pouted, pulling Caroline to his firm chest by her plump hips.


“Tiger,” Caroline sighed. “We’ve talked about this. This is your last year. You need to focus on school. Once you graduate and once I’m finished with this year, then I will move in with you. Now can we please drop it?


“I’m already tired. I woke up in the middle of the night and had to argue with drunks. I’m worried about Adina and . . . Don’t you dare give me that look, Tiger,” Caroline warned her husband.


Immediately when Adina’s name left her lips, Tiger’s dark chocolate eyes sharpened into a maple syrup color, but there was nothing sweet about his predator look. If Caroline didn’t know better, she would be fearing for her life.


“How can you still worry about her? You should be worried about me. I mean, Caroline, baby. Worry about yourself. Worry about,” Tiger paused and ran the back of his fingertips across Caroline’s soft belly, slightly bulging against her large grey sweatshirt.


“Worry about our future children. Adina is friends with a hunter. She’s dating him. A hunter! What makes you think he won’t come after us? I have left him alone, as you made me promise. I’m trying to play nice, but how do you know he won’t take this as a sign of weakness and hunt us down?”



Caroline shrugged. “I don’t know.”


She buried her head into Tiger’s shoulder and tried not to cry. She was either PMSing or pregnant. She didn’t know which, but she was quite the hormonal short lady. Despite her warm clothing, she was chilled. And Tiger’s body was warm, but his firm muscles didn’t exactly scream comfort . . . mostly other things.



“Adina is still my friend. It’s nice to have a girl not hate me for dating you after you tramped your way through the school’s population.” She paused when Tiger growled and she gave him a stern look. “Don’t deny it, bub. I’ve seen some rather graphic pictures on quite a few female campus bathrooms. Their accuracy is shocking.”



Tiger rolled his eyes. “Your point?”



Caroline huffed, a sure sign she was upset. Further confirmed when her voice raised a few notes in pitch. “My point is it’s nice to have a friend that you haven’t slept with! A friend that I don’t have to worry about trying to sabotage our relationship because she wants you. Adina’s not judgmental, naive perhaps, but not judgmental.


“And last night, Tabitha said Adina went to a party, and we haven’t heard from her since. I’m just scared for one of the few real friends that I’ve made since being here. That’s all. Would it hurt you so much to show some compassion?”


Tiger growled and held Caroline’s soft body closer to his. She was so soft, so fragile, and so . . . emotional. He leant his head down and ran his nose along her graceful neck. He purred loudly at the beautiful scent. His mate was also quite pregnant.



Hearing Tiger’s roaring purr and noticing his obsessive petting of her body, Caroline pulled back with a questioning look. “Tiger, are you even listening to me?”



Tiger closed his eyes and gently shook his head trying clear his head of certain alluring images that had him captive. What had she been saying?


“I’m sorry,” he conceded after a moment. “I didn’t hear you.” Seeing Caroline’s eyes narrow, he tried to remedy the situation. “You just smell so good I can’t think straight. You’re like maple syrup and brown sugar.”


For emphasis, Tiger re-ducked his head back to Caroline’s neck for a deep inhale. He loved her hair down, but when it was up, he loved the easy access. Her neck called to him like a buffet of treats. He opened his mouth, ready to bite down when Caroline stiffened.



“You’re saying I smell like oatmeal?”


Tiger stiffened. “No, I said you smell like maple syrup and brown sugar.”


Caroline blinked once. Then twice. “That’s oatmeal.”


Tiger blinked once. Then twice. Then growled. “But I’m not saying you smell like oatmeal, babe. I’m saying you . . .” He pulled back and met Caroline’s fierce glare. His dad had said pregnant women were tricky. He best let it go.


“Never mind,” he sighed after a moment.


Caroline’s scowl broke. Tiger perked up with interest. Was it really that easy to make amends?


“Help me find Adina, and I’ll consider forgiving you.”


Tiger’s jaw dropped. Huh?


“Don’t look at me like that, Tiger. We need a new place to work out anyway. Why not go to Devil’s Den State Park? They have nice trails. It’s mostly secluded and quiet. I know how much you enjoy hunting. Just track Adina’s trail and let me know she’s all right. Please?”


Caroline pouted with her seductive lips while Tiger stared at her in open-mouthed disbelief. Caroline’s shoulders fell when Tiger continued to stare at her like she had lost her mind.


“I mean, if you can’t do it, I understand.”


Shocks flew through Tiger’s body, jerking him into action. “I can do it,” his inner beast spoke before Tiger’s mind processed the words.


Caroline nodded apologetically and patted his hard chest with her gentle hand. “I know, baby, I believe you,” she said, her tone stating other wise.


Tiger growled, grabbed the hand that was patting him, and speedily led Caroline to the car. She was smiling, happy to have things go her way. He was trying to calm the animal inside.


He was a man. Heck, he was a tiger! And yet his instincts were binding him to the beck and call of his beloved like a little tamed kitty cat. What the heck was wrong with him?


“Nothing,” his inner animal replied, causing Tiger to snort aloud. Yeah right. But as he looked over to the passenger seat to see Caroline’s light brown eyes beaming up at him, Tiger smiled.


“Yup. You’re right,” he conceded in a thought.


Anything was worth seeing his woman smile.