Jungle Rapture Read online

  "Trust me," he said with a smile. She did, with so much more than her diet.

  Chapter Eight

  Jaime gripped his rope ladder with one hand and balanced a tray holding the roasted piglet with the other. More than once, he'd seen Kelsi lift the curtain of the pane-free window to take a sniff. He poked his head through the floor entry where the tree came up through the round, thatched dwelling of rough-hewn wood.

  At sight of her, he let out a relieved breath. Anytime he left her, he worried she'd been a mirage destined to disappear.

  "Hungry?" He raised the steaming tray toward her.

  Kelsi's huge smile greeted him. She pocketed her cell phone and took the platter, allowing him to climb into the room. They sat at his small table to eat, and she made light dinner conversation even though she had to be ravenous.

  He motioned to her phone. "With enough satellite support, GPS will locate your signal in the jungle, though I doubt Erico has the resources to trace it."

  She retrieved the device and powered it off. "I'm sick of solitaire anyway."

  "So, I have to ask, if snakes panic you as you say, what provoked you to enter the jungle?"

  With sadness in her eyes, she shrugged. "You."

  He raised his brows. "I don't understand."

  "A couple years ago, I did a story on jaguar poachers." She hesitated. "Someone at the rescue center in Costa Rica had a picture of … Black Beauty."

  "Cristo!" He remembered a boy with a cell phone. Cursed cameras. "Tell me."

  "The image was blurry, but in a comparison shot, a measuring tape against a tree showed you stood over one hundred centimeters tall."

  Jaime rose to pace the floor, sensing bars closing around him. "Can I acquire this picture, buy it?"

  Lines of concern creased her brow. "Sorry, the man said he got it from social media."

  Fury bloomed in his chest. His jaguar roamed Facebook. Worse, a story-seeking journalist shared his bed. Next he'd be in a lab. Along with anger came an unfamiliar kind of pain.

  The beautiful woman in front of him, his latent-shifter mate, could betray him. When he'd declared himself, she hadn't committed in return. Maybe to her, their intimacy had been nothing but a meaningless hook-up.

  He leaned in. "And you, Kelsi, what will you do with the answers to all your questions?"

  Her green eyes narrowed. "What do you mean?"

  "Have you taken pictures of me, too? To put in the NG?" Jaime still didn't know what an NG was, but he would find out. Now.

  Angry hurt etched her features. "I've spent my life protecting endangered species. You think I'd put you in the National Geographic? So scientists worldwide can converge on you?"

  "You said as much." He wanted to believe she'd keep his secret, but he'd gambled more than his own future when he'd revealed himself.

  She leapt to her feet. Tears hovered on her lashes. "I searched for a new Panthera species, not … not you!"

  Emotions warred inside him. His family, his dream for a life with Kelsi—and children, God willing—balanced on her commitment to the environment.

  "So you care for me as an 'endangered species'?" Sarcasm wouldn't help, but he'd lost his perspective.

  Kelsi smeared tears from her cheeks with the back of her hand. "You're a nice guy, but we just met!"

  "No, we met three days ago. Your scent called me. I answered. I marked you. It is done." He couldn't keep the frustration from his voice.

  "W-what's done?" Worry lines marred her brow.

  If he told her he'd claimed her as mate, she'd bolt. "You carry my scent. Other males will know I've spoken for you."

  Her jaw dropped. "No problem. Jaguar men aren't lined up to date me."

  Not for her. She hadn't marked him. She could flit from male to male as she chose. Jaime clenched his teeth. It’s not her fault I marked her.

  Kelsi sighed and motioned to his treehouse. "I'm not a jungle girl. I need to write, stay on my mission. Protecting endangered animals is who I am."

  "And you're the most endangered species on the planet, yet you refuse to believe me." He wanted to tell her he had a home in Manaus, a business, too, but he wouldn't plead. Either she cared for him, the real Jaime, or she didn't. "You'll be safe here. I'll patrol and return at dawn."

  Kelsi became silent, too silent.

  He needed the blackness of the night, to taste the jungle air, sense the pulse of life around him. With his mate so near, the rainforest called his jaguar forth. He stripped away Carlos's pants with the thought to burn them.

  Kelsi padded up behind him. "David and I agreed if we found you, we'd never tell anyone where. We worried poachers would go after the jaguar."

  Jaime nodded and launched out the large, oblong window. He shifted on the way to the ground.

  ****

  In the pre-dawn mist, Jaime wove unimpeded through moss-covered deadfall. Sunlight couldn’t breach the heavy canopy high above, so his territory’s jungle floor didn't have the congested tangle of plant life found near waterways.

  Never before had a woman challenged him so. Over his many years, ladies entered and left his life, always on his terms. He was male, after all. Women were drawn to his looks, or money, or both. Now, in a fit of primal instinct, he'd scent-marked one. Vexed, he admitted he wanted only Kelsi, the one woman in the world who could truly know him. He needed her to want Jaime Salazar the jaguar shifter.

  She was still unaware—or unwilling to admit—she was a jaguar queen. Nor did she show any need for him. Snakes terrified her, along with alligators and caimans. A shifter frightened by food. She endured the jungle only to protect endangered species. Inextricably tied to the rainforest, Jaime couldn't survive without shifting. Now, he couldn't survive without her.

  He traveled his domain with nose on full alert. All remained undisturbed. However, one fragrance jolted his awareness. A cascade of white orchids tumbled from a vine-encrusted kapok tree. Kelsi's orchid, though she didn't know it.

  Jaime launched up the two-meter-wide trunk. White petals kissed his muzzle as he took in their fragrance. With his hind paws wedged against the strangler vine, he shifted to biped and pinched off a twelve-centimeter bloom of white and lavender. He'd win his mate, no matter what he had to give up, no matter how long it took.

  ****

  All appeared quiet at the treehouse. Jaime pulled the cord to release the rope ladder. He dropped a small, gutted caiman to the ground, then climbed up. When he gained the entrance, Kelsi rolled to her side on top of the cot. Thanks to the early morning swelter, her sheet lay rumpled on the rough wood floor.

  Her emerald gaze met his through the mosquito mesh. His fingers itched to run through her mussed chestnut hair. Pert breasts rounded her cotton tank top. Equally sensible high-cut panties showcased taut, shapely thighs. He wanted to wake up beside her for the next hundred years.

  His lips parted, but he couldn't speak. Apologies didn't come easily to him. Fear of being exposed, and frustration that Kelsi hadn't jumped to be his queen, had made him a fool. He'd accused her of planning to ruin him. She wasn't capable of such cruelty.

  Jaime set the orchid on the shelf holding his few clothes and grabbed a pair of gray chinos, then slid them on. For convenient shifting, he usually stayed naked. Sounds of Kelsi dressing made him sigh. Covering such a luscious body was criminal.

  "Good morning." Her tone sounded tentative, as if unsure of her reception.

  He tried to keep his relief from his voice. "Did you sleep well?"

  "Like the dead. I don't think I've ever been so tired."

  Jaime stepped past the table to find a tin cup and added water from a jug spigot. As he turned to face her, he sank the flower's stem in for a drink and lifted the orchid to her.

  She gave him a brilliant smile. Like the dawn breaking through the morning mist over the river. She buried her face in the bloom. "I wondered what smelled so good. It's gorgeous."

  "This is your scent, how I knew you on sight. Only a jag shifter will detect your true essence
."

  Her smile faltered. "Jaime, you think I'm something I'm not. Please, can we keep things casual for a while? Get to know each other?"

  He'd said similar words many times. Always before he broke things off with a woman wanting the “next level”. He had nothing left to lose.

  "I understand. But know this. You're here." He patted his chest with a flat hand. "For jaguar shifters, there's only one."

  Tension lined her face. "You can't poss—"

  He had to make her understand. "Instinct drove me to mark you as mate. But I fell in love with the brave woman who freed Cinnamon. And was lost when she sacrificed herself to save a black jaguar."

  He couldn't interpret the stunned look on her face, nor did he have the courage.

  "I don't know what to say." Kelsi avoided his gaze. Not the response his heart needed.

  Inside, he slammed down a steel wall. "Say nothing. In two days, when the helicopter arrives, I'll take you wherever you wish. Until then, we'll ‘get to know each other’."

  Chapter Nine

  They'd kept a polite, distant routine over their two-day wait. He patrolled; she cooked. This morning's breakfast held the same stilted and formal conversation. And later today, they would part ways forever. The thought disturbed her way more than it should. Her gaze followed the lines of his face while he cut his steak.

  Unexpected yearning filled Kelsi. Confident, with a guileless charm and feral sexuality, Jaime held an allure beyond her awe of his jaguar. Even though she’d disappointed him, he’d shown her nothing but kindness. She missed his self-assured, sexy smiles. Sometimes, she wanted to roll in his scent. I do care for him.

  "Your father taught you well." Jaime swallowed his forkful of tapir calf. "You've asked nothing about shifters these past days."

  Her gaze snapped to his. His open expression seemed to invite her questions. "If someone does out you, I don't want you to think it was me."

  She looked down to her plate and stirred acai berries.

  "I trust you, anjo. What would you like to know?"

  Surprised at how much his faith meant to her, she considered where to start. "Do you know how shifters evolved? Where you came from?"

  Jaime smiled. "So scientific. All we have is legend. Supposedly, we’re descendants of the Jaguar Princess—a demigoddess."

  Kelsi's stomach flipped. "Comizahual? The white Indian princess who united the warring tribes?"

  "The Honduran legend is known in the U.S.?" His eyes lit with interest, and the corners of his mouth kicked up.

  "Not really, it's a bedtime story my mom used to tell us. The big reveal at the end was the Jaguar Princess was our many-times-over, great-grandmother." The white warrior maiden, who didn't age and ran with jaguars. Kelsi expected Jaime to jump on the latent cat thing again.

  He only nodded as if unsurprised. "So who is 'us'?"

  "My sister."

  "So there is a sister."

  An embarrassed smile twisted her lips. "Dakota. I thought—"

  "I know." Jaime’s polite smile didn’t reach his eyes.

  Recall of her accusations made her cringe. Rape, proposing an orgy. He hadn’t deserved any of it. Then, when he’d bared his soul, she’d shut him down. "I'm sorry. You've done nothing but protect me and I've been—not always nice."

  He nodded and rose from his chair.

  Not the forgiveness she sought. She touched his forearm to halt him. “I was wrong about many things.”

  "And I hoped for too much, too fast.” He squeezed her hand before turning away. His formality didn't include modesty. He stepped out of denim cutoffs boasting an expensive designer label. “Our ride arrives mid-afternoon. I need to scout our route to the helipad. I’ll be back within an hour."

  He shimmered into Black Beauty then launched from the largest window. She raced after him to see the athletic, graceful landing twenty-five feet below. Not for the first time, she marveled at the honor of witnessing his existence. Maybe he did trust her.

  ****

  Kelsi left the treehouse to prepare their last meal in the jungle. Pleased a dead gator didn’t trigger panic, she skewered the caiman onto the spit, then hung a kettle of water from a hook. She'd located a precious bag of rice in Jaime's “kitchen”. They'd eat before the three-hour hike to the helicopter. Somehow, before they took off, she’d work up the nerve to ask Jaime to stay in Manaus a few days. She hoped a nice meal would set a better mood. I'm pathetic.

  A semi-auto's metal slide interrupted the incessant insect drone. Kelsi jerked to the sound, grabbing her rifle. A smiling Erico and a chubby white man stepped from the shadows. Both wore fatigues and camo face paint. Chunky leveled a nine mil in her direction. Handgun speed trumped a rifle any day. She turned at the sound of a third commando type, of African descent, at her rear.

  "Shoot her if she moves," Erico commanded.

  Chunky kept narrow eyes on her and nodded.

  "Drop the rifle, puta," Erico ordered. Kelsi suspected if he planned to kill her, she'd already be dead. She laid the weapon at her feet.

  "I should thank you. Kelsi, right?" Wallets. He got her name from Carlos. "Nice leg-shot through the trees."

  "I should've shot you, too." She raised her voice and hoped Jaime was nearby.

  "Yes, talk louder. I want your boyfriend to join us. A loose end, you see." Her expression must have telegraphed her disgust. Erico laughed. "I cut loose ends, like you, Kelsi."

  He jutted his chin at the third commando. The black soldier jerked her hands behind her and secured her wrists with what sounded like zip ties. The bite of toothed plastic told her she wouldn't loosen these handcuffs. My wrists will never heal. He'd found her twice. Damn phone.

  Erico's assessing gaze traveled her from top to bottom. "Carlos was an idiot. You bring good price." One corner of his mouth lifted to show stained, intermittent teeth. "Know Russian?"

  Jaime will find me. Bolstered by her faith, she throttled back the disabling panic that threatened.

  Erico retrieved her rifle and gave it to the black Brazilian. "Nuno, Andre, stay here. Man … black hair … kill him." He repositioned his tranq weapon on his shoulder. “…black jaguar."

  Kelsi picked up enough of his Portuguese to know he hunted Black Beauty. Erico disappeared into the trees.

  ****

  Jaime's sensitive nose caught the scent of roasting caiman. A rumble from his stomach doubled his pace through the trees. He shifted to biped, wanting to speak to Kelsi as soon as she looked out the window. Her strained voice stopped him cold. Skirting the area, he shifted back to jaguar. Three male scents, including Erico's, curdled his blood.

  He launched into a tree to close the final distance. Two well-armed soldiers guarded Kelsi, who sat on the ground. Though her wrists were bound behind her, she appeared alert and unharmed. Jaime circled above the trio, searching for Erico. Kill the paycheck, and his mercenaries will scatter. Where is that bastard?

  The tapeworm finally appeared red-faced and breathless. Erico plopped down on a fallen tree trunk and pointed at the dark-skinned gunman. "Nuno, get Jose on the radio. Tell him to prep the chopper for a cat."

  Nuno's eyes widened. "The one for our bonus?"

  "Yes, move it."

  If Kelsi understood them, she hid it well.

  Nuno clicked his walkie-talkie and groaned. Apparently, he needed higher ground or thinner canopy to reach Jose. He looked to the other soldier and motioned to Kelsi. "Andre, she's yours."

  Plump Andre took up a position near her as Nuno stalked off into the jungle. Jaime couldn't leave his mate with two thugs to dispatch the isolated soldier.

  In the past, he'd only called Cinnamon to share a kill, but according to his father, jaguar familiars would do a shifter's bidding. Without a reason to hide his presence, he barked several short roars into the air.

  Erico scanned the trees above them. "I told you, he's here. Good day, today. Many monies. You and big, big jaguar."

  She glared at him. "In America, we'd say you're counting ch
ickens before they hatch."

  Good, she's not falling apart. Cinnamon's coughed snarl sounded near. Jaime only needed Kelsi to buy them a few more minutes.

  Erico’s eyes lit with something more than greed. "Very big chicken. Your man, he's big surprise—jaguar changer."

  With a movie star's skill, Kelsi screwed up her face. "A what?"

  "Ha! Maybe you changer, too?"

  At Kelsi's blank stare, he charged on. "Jaguar and human … the same. He glowed into cat. Odd, he's always close to you."

  Kelsi sneered. "You eat some bright-colored berries?"

  Her taunt prodded Erico to his feet. He jerked her up by her arm and pulled her against his chest. He unsheathed a twelve-centimeter blade and pressed it to her throat. "I call him, yes?"

  Jaime cursed himself. He'd waited too long. However, Erico was about money. He can't sell her dead body.

  "Salazar!"

  Cristo! He knows me!

  ****

  Kelsi barely hid her stunned reaction. Her pulse pounded under the razor-sharp edge, but Black Beauty's roar in the trees above gave her hope. A male scream echoed through the understory, not anywhere near them. Jaime wasn't alone.

  Andre scanned the trees with frightened eyes. "Nuno!"

  How does Jaime know Erico? They had no regard for one another, that was certain. However, any relationship raised disturbing scenarios. Jaime wouldn't involve himself in trafficking. He'd shown her faith. She'd do the same.

  "Our chicken will come." Appearing less confident, Erico searched the branches. Without warning, the surgical edge sliced the skin over her throat. The cut burned like hellfire.

  Kelsi held back her cry of pain. Blood trickled between her breasts.

  "Salazar! Trade … girl … you." Jaime's wilderness scent came to her along with sudden terror he'd give himself up. If they even let him live, his life would be destroyed.

  Erico flicked his wrist, and the blade cut her again. This time she couldn't hold back her yelp of pain.

  Black Beauty, majestic and graceful, dropped from above to the jungle floor. With a placid stance, he looked at Erico then turned his sad, blue gaze to Kelsi. Erico pushed her to the side, raised his tranq rifle and fired. He yanked her back into his chest and snapped Portuguese at Andre. A beat later, the startled soldier fired a second dart at the unmoving jaguar.