Cat on the Fence (4 page)

When the doors opened and all of the people filed out, Alex
reached for Karabi’s hand, interlocking his fingers with hers. He wanted to ask
her if she would walk out of that elevator with him as his date. No way would
she reject him this time. She threw him a quick look but with the mask on he
could not read her expression. She let her hand linger in his for a moment but
she pulled it away and quickly exited the elevator without looking back again.

Alex exhaled deeply.
Down, tiger
, he thought. He
adjusted himself quickly and walked out of the elevator, a little bowlegged at
first until he could get his erection to subside, and joined the party.

And the party was jumping! Almost all four hundred guests
had shown up. He smiled with satisfaction as he scanned the room—this event was
going to make him look really good. Everything was already set up and in place
as planned. The DJ already had the music going, the tables were set, appetizers
and drinks were already being served.

There wouldn’t be much for him to do tonight, really. They’d
hired an emcee, the building staff managed the food and drinks and the
directing of people to where they needed to go. One of the older zookeepers had
volunteered to run the silent auction. The director of the zoo was unmasked as
he did his meet-and-greet with the guests but no one had any desire to meet the
Finance Guy. So he kept on his mask, figuring he might as well party.

He scanned the room for Karabi. He found her patrolling the
room, taking everything in, going behind the servers to straighten up a table
or a sign here and there. She’d been granted her request to not have to
interact directly with the guests, so she too kept on her mask and remained
pretty much inconspicuous. Alex followed her around the venue for the first
hour and she seemed to intentionally lead him on. Glancing his way every few
minutes but then casually looking the other way when their eyes met. Never once
letting him get too close…or too far either. Alex felt very much like a tiger
for real, stealthily hunting down his very tempting prey.

And he rather liked the feeling.

Karabi watched as the guests paired up and danced to the
music. They were on the ninety-ninth floor and spectacular views of the city
lights and the lake could be seen from every single one of the floor-to-ceiling
windows that made up the entire outer wall of the room. The red-and-white
cloths on the tables and the soft lighting gave the room a very intimate
feeling. It was way more romantic than she’d ever imagined a zoo ball in a
skyscraper during a Chicago winter to be. Then Alex walked by in his sharp suit
with a tiger-striped tie and a fake tail to go with his tiger mask, and her
stomach did a giddy somersault.

Something wasn’t right. The way Alex made her feel and
behave just wasn’t normal. Her mental alarms were going off but she wasn’t
clear on what exactly her instincts were trying to tell her. That Alex was the
one? Or that he was not? She’d never met a man who confused her feelings like
this. Or at least she couldn’t remember the last time one did.

He unnerved her and she wasn’t sure why. It wasn’t as though
he was doing anything threatening. Inappropriate maybe, yes, but she wasn’t
exactly an unwilling participant. But he frightened her just as much as he
excited her. The only other man she could remember making her feel like that
was her father, whom she hadn’t spoken to in years.

But Alex was nothing like her old-school, patriarchal,
ultraconservative father. Alex knew when to play it professional and when to
let down his guard. He was open and free with his sexuality. Unafraid to let it
be known exactly what he wanted, with enough command to make it hard to tell
him no but without forcing it or pushing his will upon others. Her father on
the other hand was closed-minded, hard to read, ruled his home with an iron
fist and did nothing
but
push.

So what was it about Alexander McClellan?

Karabi had been intentionally avoiding him all evening. Not
completely, however. Enough to keep from having an awkward confrontation with
him but not enough that he was entirely out of her sight for long. She felt
uncomfortable when he was nearby, yet somehow uncomfortable still when he was
too far away. After that elevator ride…whew, she wasn’t sure
what
she
should say—or do—to him.

“How do you like my costume?” he asked when they crossed
paths at the deserted bar.

“Not bad. You’re a tiger, I see.”

“I am. Down to my boxers,” he said. She let her gaze drop
for a second to his crotch.
I’d like to see that
, she thought but didn’t
say aloud. Things had already gone way further tonight with this guy than she’d
intended. “So you’re a cheetah, huh?”

She grinned inwardly. “Yeah.”

“Cheetahs move fast, that’s their defense mechanism, right?
Is that why you keep running from me?”

“Cheetahs also use their speed to catch their prey. Maybe I’m
chasing you?”

He shook his head. “Nah, that can’t be it. You wouldn’t have
to chase me. I’m ready to throw myself at your feet.”

She blushed and walked off with her plate. He made her feel
like a silly little girl. And Karabi was
not
a silly little girl, befuddled
and out of sorts. But the way he looked at her, touched her, spoke to her… She
was falling fast, like a fool. What good would it do her to get so close with
another person whom she couldn’t fully be herself with? Could she be herself
with Alex? With anyone? She felt as if she could but was she right? For a while
there she’d thought Rao might be the one too. Maybe her problem was that she
kept falling for humans when she wasn’t human herself. Perhaps her father was
right and she needed to find a Werecat to settle down with. But she’d sworn off
the Pride and all things Were years and years ago, and she just couldn’t see
herself letting go of her convictions to return to the Pride begging for a mate
or two. So what was it that Karabi
really
wanted?

She didn’t know. But she did know that Alexander McClellan
was at the top of the list.

* * * * *

Alex wasn’t going to let Karabi get away this time. It was
getting close to the end of the party and so if he was going to make another
move he needed to do it now. He grabbed a plate with a fudge brownie square and
went to stand next to Karabi, who was alone in a corner of the room with a
saucer full of chocolate-covered fruit. For a moment he thought she was going
to evade him again. Instead she stayed put and kept her focus on her dessert.

“Do you treat all the guys you like this way?” Alex asked
her.

“What way?” she asked before she picked up one of her
strawberries. Alex watched with utmost attention as she carried it to her mouth,
wrapped her lips around it and devoured it.

“Leading them on,” he said, trying his best to stop
imagining those lips around his cock. “Playing hard to get.”

“Who says I like you?”

He grinned. “You like me.” His grin broadened when he saw
her smile too.

“I treat the girls I like this way too,” Karabi said.

Alex arched a brow. “You go both ways?”

“I prefer to say I’m an equal opportunist,” she said. “Does
that bother you?”

“No. Should it?”

“It bothers some. My last boyfriend had issues with it.”

“Meh, some people are closed-minded like that,” he said with
a shrug. “I think it says more about themselves and their lack of
self-confidence. As for me, well, I happen to think it’s kind of hot.” The way
her eyebrows shot upward, Alex began to worry that his honest response might
have offended her. But then he was reassured by the devious chuckle she gave
him.

“Somehow, that doesn’t surprise me,” she said.

“So how do you think the event’s going?” he asked between
bites of his brownie.

“It’s going very well,” she said. “Everything is going so
smoothly. Great turnout too, for such a short notice.”

“Yeah, we completely sold out of tickets, even had to turn
people away. Between the ticket sales and the silent auction tonight, we’ve
raised over three-quarters of a million bucks.”

She made a low whistle. “Wow, well done, McClellan. I bet
you’re feeling pretty proud of yourself right about now.”

“Job well done by both of us,” he replied. “You helped make
this a success. The theme was your idea, and folks seemed to love it. You and I
make great partners.”

She pursed her lips into an expression that appeared
something between a smile and a duck face. “Maybe,” she said. “We should
celebrate. Want to test your ‘great partners’ theory out on the dance floor?”

Alex nearly choked on his last piece of brownie. “Good god,
no. I don’t dance.”

She laughed. “Everybody dances.”

“Some much worse than others.”

“So? It isn’t a competition.” She put her plate down and
grabbed him by the hands, tugging at him.

“No way.” He let her hands linger on his but remained firmly
planted where he was standing. “I’m not about to embarrass myself in front of
everyone.”

“You’re wearing a mask. Nobody would know it was you.”

“
You’d
know.”

“Oh come on.”

A waitress came by carrying a tray full of glasses filled
with rose champagne. “How about we just celebrate with a drink instead?” Alex
took two glasses and handed one to Karabi.

She shook her head. “I try not to drink.”

“Religious reasons? Or are you a recovering alcoholic?”

“I get drunk too easily.”

“That’s because you don’t drink enough.”

“It only takes me half a drink.”

“What’s wrong with that? Sounds lucky.”

She shook her head. “I have nothing but bad luck when I
drink alcohol. After two sips of that I won’t be able to walk straight. I can
barely walk in these stupid shoes as it is.”

“But you’ve got me here. If you stumble, I’ll catch you. I
won’t let you fall.”

She looked at that sinful mouth of his. “I’m all dressed up
in a room full of people. I’d still be embarrassed.”

“You’re wearing a mask,” he said, using her very own words
against her. “Nobody would know it was you.”

“You’d know.”

Alex laughed heartily. “Well, it’d be our little secret.” He
put the glass in her hand. “Go on, have a sip. I dare you.”

She took the glass and looked up at him, clicking her
tongue. “It almost sounds as if you
want
to see me fall.”

“I just want another excuse to put my hands on you.”

“You need an excuse?”

“I’d
accept
an excuse. I prefer your permission.”

“I give you permission to catch me if I fall.”

“Even if I was the one who pushed you down?” He leaned
forward and whispered in her ear. “Pinned you to the floor underneath me and
spread your legs? Kissed and touched and fucked you until you couldn’t walk
straight? Do I have your permission to do that?”

There, he said it. It wasn’t the smoothest line he’d ever
delivered but with Karabi he didn’t feel smooth. He felt raw, masculine and
animalistic. And damn it, he wanted her. No more pussyfooting around, no more
chasing his own tail, no more playing coy cat and mouse.

He was a tiger on a mission.

* * * * *

When Alex had finally cornered her, Karabi had been both
regretful and delighted. Even the casual chitchat they’d attempted to engage in
was dripping with lust and desire. She was telling the truth when she’d said
she got drunk pretty easily. The last time she had a glass of wine at a party,
she had to be carried off the tabletop she’d started dancing on. She couldn’t
fathom getting into something like that here, during a work event. Although she
sure could use a drink right about now.

“Even if I was the one who pushed you down? Pinned you to
the floor underneath me and spread your legs? Kissed and touched and fucked you
until you couldn’t walk straight? Do I have your permission to do that?” Alex’s
eyes bored into her as he spoke, his voice soft enough that only she could hear
him but burning with an intensity that revealed the ferocious desire he kept
barely contained.

Karabi’s face flushed hot, and moist heat pooled in her sex.
They stared at each other in silence for a moment, the tension between them
obvious and thick, and she struggled to get her brain to formulate a response. She
was about to say something equally forward and raunchy but her cell phone rang
as soon as she opened her mouth. Saved by the bell!

She excused herself from Alex’s company and scurried over to
the small, open room away from everyone as she eagerly took out her phone. She
frowned when she saw it was Rao. If she ignored it she knew he’d only keep
calling and calling until she answered. She could turn her phone off but then
she’d have to go right back to Alex, who she was only seconds away from
throwing her panties at. Welcoming the excuse to avoid him for a few minutes,
Karabi took the call.

“Hello?”

“Hi, Karabi,” Rao said, barely audible.

“Hold on—it’s hard to hear you.” She went to take the
private elevator up to The Ledge, the observation deck on the 103rd floor.

“Hey. It’s me,” he greeted her again once the noise level
dropped significantly.

“I know. Hi, Rao.”

“How are you?”

She tried to put on a light, friendly tone as she stepped
off the elevator onto the quiet observation deck. “I’m okay, Rao. What’s up?”

“Nothing, I—” He went silent for a moment, probably
gathering either his courage or his thoughts. “I just wanted to say Happy
Valentine’s Day.”

Karabi winced a little. “Thanks. Happy Valentine’s Day to
you too.”

“You’re at that Zoo Masquerade Ball at Sears Tower?”

“Willis Tower.” She’d felt the need to correct him even
though she preferred the original name herself.

“Nice. Do you… Did you bring a date?”

She paused for a moment, biting the corner of her mouth as
she tried to determine how she wanted to handle this conversation. “I’m here
with coworkers. Is everything okay, Rao?”

“Yes, I just wanted to hear your voice. It’s been a while
since we’ve talked.”

“Yeah, it’s been over a month.”

“I know. I wanted to give you some space.”

She took a much-needed large swig of the rose champagne in
her hand. It was strong but surprisingly tasty. “Rao, I told you the break wasn’t
temporary.”

“You also said that it you didn’t know if it was permanent
either. I’d like to get together and talk soon, face-to-face. I miss you.”

Karabi swallowed hard. She’d missed Rao as well but she hadn’t
thought about calling him or felt the need to meet with him. There wasn’t anything
she wanted to talk with him about. “I don’t know if that’s a good idea,” she
said.

“Not even as friends? Can’t we just talk as friends?”

“You tell me, Rao.
Can
we just be friends?”

He was quiet for a long, awkward moment. “I’m not ready to
give up on us, Karabi.”

She sighed heavily. “Rao—”

“I mean it, Karabi. I love you.”

For several seconds she didn’t know what to say. Did she
still love him? Had she ever? “Rao, please don’t do this to me right now.” Karabi
found tears welling up in her eyes. She didn’t like hurting him. “I’m working.”

“Okay, I’ll call you back tomorrow.”

“I’m going to be very busy tomorrow.”

“May I call you in a few days, then?”

She threw her head back and shook it in silent frustration.
But perhaps one last talk would help him find the closure he needed. “Sure,
Rao. Bye.”

“Bye.”

Karabi hung up the phone and slipped it back into her purse
with a heavy sigh. She stepped onto The Ledge, which was a glass box balcony
that extended four and a half feet out from the Skydeck, hovering over thirteen
hundred feet in the air. The view was breathtaking. She watched the snow fall
above and around her, flurries of flakes raining down in crisscrossing
directions as if partaking in a choreographed dance. Looking down and over at
the expanse of the city beneath them, she found her eyes roaming toward the distance.
Far, far out, seeking a wide-open space with few buildings and lots of grass
and trees. Where she could roam free, sprinting as fast as she could, running
from nothing and toward nothing at the same time, just free, pounding her
feet—or better yet, her paws—against the dirt. She wouldn’t even mind the snow
falling upon her fur coat. And again for the second time this month she found
herself wanting to retreat into her Cat Persona for comfort. Instead she quickly
downed the rest of the glass of champagne she still carried in her hand.