Cat Scratch Fever

By Asha King

Tiger shifter Erik Wells has reluctantly left the woman he loves in the hopes of protecting her from the people out to get him. But his retreat has come too late: Erik’s enemies have not only found her but know exactly who she is and what she’s capable of.

Adelaide Deveraux is only beginning to discover the power of Conjure passed down to her from her late witchdoctor grandmother. But those powers might not be enough to save her when she’s taken from the sanctuary of her house and brought to the man intent on owning her and her magic...even if he has to break her to do it.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Asha King
• Release date: Dec 21, 2013
• ISBN: 9781311097880

Asha King

Asha King likes good-looking men and hot books, and often strives to combine the two in contemporary, paranormal, and suspenseful romantic stories. She lives in the exotic land of Alberta, Canada, where she doesn’t ride a polar bear to work but does drink vast amounts of locally brewed beer and watches hockey. She loves connecting with readers and you can keep up to date with her online at www.AshaKing.com, where you’ll find a list of her books as well as what she’s working on and potential release dates.

Book preview

Tiger shifter Erik Wells has reluctantly left the woman he loves in the hopes of protecting her from the people out to get him. But his retreat has come too late: Erik’s enemies have not only found her but know exactly who she is and what she’s capable of.

Adelaide Deveraux is only beginning to discover the power of Conjure passed down to her from her late witchdoctor grandmother. But those powers might not be enough to save her when she’s taken from the sanctuary of her house and brought to the man intent on owning her and her magic...even if he has to break her to do it.

Cat Scratch Fever

Cats & Conjure #2

Asha King

www.AshaKing.com

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Cat Scratch Fever

Copyright © 2013 by Asha King

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Edited by Adrienne Jones

Cover Art © 2013 by Asha King

SMASHWORDS EDITION

First Edition December 2013

All rights reserved under the International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the author.

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this or any copyrighted work is illegal. Authors are paid on a per-purchase basis. Any use of this file beyond the rights stated above constitutes theft of the author’s earnings. File sharing is an international crime, prosecuted by the United States Department of Justice Division of Cyber Crimes, in partnership with Interpol. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is punishable by seizure of computers, up to five years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000 per reported instance. Please purchase only authorized electronic or print editions and do not participate in or encourage the electronic piracy of copyrighted material.

Your support of my livelihood is appreciated.

Chapter One

Dawn tinged the woods dark blue, black shifting to navy. Soon it would be bright, daylight streaming through the trees. But not yet.

Nothing stirred in the woods—no birds, no small animals, nothing but Adelaide’s steady steps. She didn’t feel rocks or pine needles or anything rough beneath her feet—the forest floor was soft and giving, almost warm. She knew it was a dream even if she didn’t want to admit it. Instead of worrying, instead of trying to wake, she followed the tugging feeling against her breastbone toward a destination she both knew and longed for.

It felt real. So real, her heart ached the closer she got, and the more her head seemed to spin. Her eyes closed and she breathed in the scent of the forest, earthy and fresh.

Hands wrapped around her shoulders and she felt the heat of another body behind hers, searing through her clothes.

Addie... The voice breathed against her ear, spilling goose bumps down her back. She leaned into him, gasping as his hand swept her long dark hair back. Lips found her throat, glided over her flesh. She reached for him, her head tipping to the side to give him better access and hand tangling with his hair and drawing him firmly against her throat.

His fingers trailed down her side and she grasped them, guiding them up to her breast. From there he took control, massaging and sending pleasure darting through every nerve ending as he touched her. Her nipples rose into peaks and she moaned as his thumb brushed one, bolts of rapture rushing through her.

I miss you. Without words, without a voice, on some level she spoke and on that same level he understood, his own desire and yearning twinging with hers.

He was flush against her back, his erection pressing into her. Her hips rocked, rubbing him and eliciting a groan of pleasure.

Lower and lower, his hand moved over her abdomen and to the apex of her thighs, cupping her mound. Her body arched, urging him to touch her, and he complied. His fingers glided past her wet folds and she let out a needful sigh—

Addie awoke with a start, still panting. Sweat plastered her hair to her forehead and her heart hammered forcefully. Pleasure tingled through her entire body though she lay alone in her own bed.

That was...intense.

She’d seen and experienced enough to know that it very well could’ve been real. She and Erik had shared a dream before, but that was more her following him through nightmares.

Not like this.

She reached up and swiped hair from her forehead, blowing out a heavy breath, and stared up at her ceiling. Morning sunlight streamed through the blinds and cut a yellow square across the room. Despite a week away from him, she still felt him near. Ever molecule in her body seemed to thrum with the memory of him.

She closed her eyes and groaned. Time, she’d hoped, would ease the connection somewhat between them but it didn’t seem to be going anywhere.

A knock sounded in the distance, someone at her front door. She didn’t glance at the clock on her nightstand but guessed by the sun in the room it was midmorning. Definitely time to get up.

With a heavy sigh, Addie climbed out of bed, ran her hands through her hair to smooth it somewhat, and slipped a light robe over her pajamas before leaving her bedroom. The hallway was dark, as always, as little light made it into the space. Hardwood creaked beneath her quick steps and she made a hard right for the front door, yawning sleepily.

She reached for the deadbolt but paused, a shiver walking down her spine. She didn’t just blindly open the door now—even if she hadn’t been cautioned repeatedly to be careful, she’d still be hesitant based on everything that had happened.

Gauzy curtains covered the long boxy window beside the door. She peered through and let out a sigh of relief upon seeing the figure outside her house. Addie twisted the deadbolt and opened the door, sweeping her arm back to gesture for him to come inside. Robbie, hey.

He hesitated, head tilted down and half-grin lopsided. Did I wake you?

She waved off his concern. No, just slow moving. Since I’m ‘not allowed’ to go to work.

Robbie sighed and stepped inside. He was tall and lean, white T-shirt hanging on his lithe torso and dark jeans scuffed from work outdoors. He ran his hand back through his sandy hair and stood to the side as she closed the door. "You’re allowed to go to work—"

Addie snapped the deadbolt shut and crossed her arms over her chest. But only if I want to maybe be kidnapped by a sociopathic warlock dude.

I just think you should be careful until things calm down some. I mean, he left because...

She averted her gaze, staring instead at her toes as tense silence took up between them. Erik left to keep her safe. And she didn’t want it to be in vain. That meant being careful.

Even if she was going stir crazy.

She crossed the living room and headed for the kitchen to put on a pot of coffee.

Robbie trailed behind her, his steps heavy on the floor. Maybe you could—

I am not turning my living room into a belly dancing studio.

He fell silent.

He’d tried to be helpful, she knew—he checked in on her, and she didn’t think it was just because whatever supernatural force had made her, well, her, also appointed him her guardian. He brought her some groceries, hung around and helped her move her grandmother’s things from the attic. But she missed teaching her classes, missed working at the community center.

I miss Erik.

Addie dashed those thoughts away. I can’t keep claiming to be sick. People have paid for classes and I’ll have to refund that money if I don’t teach.

Maybe you can head out sooner rather than later.

She turned, leaning her back against the counter, and watched him while she waited for her coffee to brew. Meaning?

"I...may have found someone who can mentor you."

Her spine straightened, irritation dissipating to be replaced by curiosity. Someone else with, like, a Sanctuary or whatever? From what Robbie and Erik had told her, people like her and her late grandmother basically didn’t exist anymore.

Not quite. Someone...schooled in the form of magic your grandmother used. Conjure.

If she better learned how to use Conjure, she could better protect herself and others. Like Erik, if I find him again. Or when. Not if. When.

She had to think positive because her heart hurt too much when she didn’t.

"It took some digging but I found an address. I can bring him to meet with you—I thought it might be good for him to go through what’s left of your grandmother’s supplies and tell you what you’ve got and what you