The Mating Project Read online

  "Cole?" Silas asked.

  "Forgive me. Cole Jackson, he sits on the council, and is the last of his line of bear shifters."

  Again, Silas whistled.

  "Yep, having mated with a human did not go down well, but no one is going to argue with an original. Some of us are not that lucky."

  Silas's eyes narrowed, and Maria cursed herself for all sorts of a fool. She'd already said far too much, and mate or not, Silas was human. Her father would have kittens if he knew. Then again her father had not sent her on this mission. It had been Cole. He wanted Silas on his team of scientists.

  "Anyway," she said. "You're not interested in all of this, are you? I'll never work for your council, those were your words, were they not?"

  Silas glared at her, and Maria bit back a smile. Oh yes, she’d got his scientific curiosity piqued for sure.

  "No, I'm not, but that doesn't mean that I don't find the subject fascinating. As a scientist the mere existence of shifters goes against everything I believe in. You shouldn't be possible at all, yet here you are."

  "Here I am, and I'm not going anywhere in a hurry, so what are you going to do about that?"

  ****

  Now that was the question of the century, and Silas had no answer to that.

  He knew what he wanted to do, what every cell in his body, not to mention his cock, urged him to do, and that was to take Maria home and fuck her silly, until they both couldn't walk straight.

  He resisted the urge to adjust his dick. Blue balls was not a syndrome he normally suffered from, but he got the distinct impression if would be a permanent part of his vocabulary from now on.

  He sought refuge in science as he always did. Being that he had a female shifter in his car, he might as well ask the questions he'd been mulling over, ever since he heard about the Mating Project. He knew it matched shifters up according to genetic compatibility, to give them the best chance to reproduce, and he also knew that there was a thriving black market that exploited this. Shifters were a sought-after commodity, and while humans on the whole did not know of their existence, there were plenty that did know. There were also those on a rather corrupt council who were not afraid to sell out their own for monetary gain. It turned his stomach every time he thought about it.

  "So, tell me. What exactly are you? And if you don't mind me asking, why are you not mated to someone of your kind already?"

  A shadow crossed over Maria's features, and she hid her face behind the silky mass of her blonde hair, but not before he caught the shimmer of tears in her oceanic eyes.

  "That's a long and boring story," she finally said. "Perhaps we ought to get you home. Is there a short cut through here somewhere we can take?"

  Silas smiled at her diversionary tactics, which only made him more determined to find out her story. He realized with a start that he really wanted to know about more her. Another novel experience for him.

  "As it happens my flat is only a ten minute walk away from here."

  She started at that, and he grinned at her.

  "Well, at my walking speed it is. In those heels…." He glanced at her fuck-me stilettos and suppressed a groan as his dick hardened further. "Well, in those it might take us longer."

  She surprised him again when she laughed and jumped out of the car. Seconds later the boot was open, and then she treated him to the perfect view of her shapely ass, when she bent down to take off her heels and slipped into a pair of pink trainers.

  She knocked on his window and pointed to an imaginary watch on her arm.

  "Chop, chop, come on then. I reckon we can do it in less than ten. Shifters are faster than humans, after all. In fact, let's make it a race."

  "Is that so?" he asked and climbed out of her car. "Haven't you forgotten something? You don't know the way."

  Maria waved her hands in a dismissive gesture, and then stepped up right to him and inhaled. It took all of his willpower to not crush her to him as her sultry scent enveloped him, and she too seemed to linger. He could have sworn he could hear her big cat purr, and that sound made him rock hard.

  By the time she pulled away he was breathing heavily, and he watched in fascination as she lifted her nose in the air and sniffed. The most delightful grin appeared on her face.

  "You normally cycle this route, right?" she asked.

  "As a matter of fact, I do. Why?"

  Her grin deepened, and she clicked the lock for her car.

  "Thought so. I can simply follow your scent, so we can race."

  Silas shook his head at her, and she smirked and put her hands on her hips.

  "Afraid of a little healthy competition, Professor?" she asked. "Or do you think I can't beat you?"

  It was Silas's turn to laugh, and acting entirely on impulse he reached across and kissed her. It was meant to distract her, but it had the opposite effect, as she molded herself to his body with a little whimper of feminine need. His cock jerked against the flies of his jeans, and Silas groaned as he took the kiss deeper.

  Damn it, he wanted her so badly.

  When he broke the kiss Maria looked as dazed as he felt, and he had to clear his throat several times before he could project his voice with any authority.

  "I think we should up the stakes, my little cat with claws." She smiled at that, and he could see her animal flash behind her eyes.

  "To what?" she asked.

  "If I win, you tell me the story as to why you're not mated yet."

  She frowned but nodded nonetheless.

  "Okay, what do I get if I win?" she asked.

  "I'll seriously consider your council's offer, or at the very least listen to your arguments."

  Her eyes grew wide in surprise, and in truth he'd surprised himself at that statement. But, fuck it, what she'd described had roused his curiosity, and he wanted to find out more. Besides, he knew deep down that she was not one of them. He could trust her, just like she had trusted him by sharing those tidbits of information that no human ought to know.

  An impish grin spread across her features, and then she took off without warning.

  "It's a deal. Catch me if you can, Professor."

  Silas laughed and took off after her. Shifter she might be, but he knew short cuts that he didn't take on when cycling, he had been on the athletics team, and still ran every day.

  He would get his cat!

  ****

  Maria took off at a sprint, determined to win this race. She'd gotten a good trace on his scent, and besides she knew the area fairly well. Aware of his heavy footfalls behind her, she ran faster, her animal enjoying the thrill of the chase. She slowed when his steps fell away and she saw him take off down another side street. What was he doing? Not that it mattered much. She inhaled to get her bearing and took off faster than before, grateful for the fact that she'd forgotten to take her gym bag out the boot of the car. She wouldn't have managed to run in her heels, and she wouldn’t have fancied the sprint barefoot.

  Less than five minutes later, and barely out of breath, she turned the corner to the block of flats that housed Silas's home and grinned. His scent was everywhere, but he was nowhere to be seen, and she punched the air in triumph.

  Yeah, take that, mate.

  When there was no sign of him after a further few minutes, Maria's beast grew restless. Where was he? Had he fallen over and injured himself?

  He said he could walk this in ten minutes, and he'd been running quite fast for a human, so where was he? The sound of a window opening above her brought with it a blast of his mouthwatering scent. Laced with sweat, it was even more potent, and Maria inhaled deeply as she spun around.

  Silas leant out of the first floor window and grinned down at her.

  "There you are. What took you so long, little cat? I'll buzz you in. Come on up."

  He winked at her, and it was only the wheeze behind those words that showed he wasn't as cool and collected as he made out to be.

  Maria swore under her breath and pushed through the door. Seconds later
she stood in the hallway of Silas's flat and accepted the bottle of water he threw at her with a grin.

  She took several large gulps and then glared at him.

  "How the fuck did you do that? You must have cheated."

  Silas shook his head and pulled his shirt over his head in one fluid move. The action exposed his bare chest, and Maria stopped breathing as her beast went wild. Silas was all lean muscle with a swimmer's physique and the most enticing trail of hair narrowing into an arrow that disappeared into the waistband of his jeans. Her mouth went dry at the sight of the huge erection he didn't even try to hide, and she clenched her thighs together to relieve the throbbing ache in her clit.

  Silas used the shirt to wipe away the droplets of perspiration that clung to his pectorals and traced the ridges of his abdomen, and Maria licked her lips. Damn it, she was jealous of a shirt, and she slid her hands behind her back to hide the emergence of her claws. Her cougar wanted out to play with its mate, but Silas was human and claiming him would be insane, even if he had been willing.

  Sure he wanted to fuck her, but that didn’t mean he'd look too kindly on being claimed by her beast, and besides, her father would have a fit. This was so against the rules, it wasn't even real.

  "I never cheat, Maria. I just knew a short cut, and you still almost beat me. Jesus, woman, you're fast." He watched her from under hooded lids, and the raw lust that poured off of him in waves had Maria take a step toward him before she even realized what she was doing. She took another and another until she was so close to him his body heat scorched her skin, and she had to look up to see his expression.

  Silas wrapped his hands in her hair and tugged hard. The slight pain fizzed excitement through her veins, and she filled her lungs with his intoxicating scent. She wanted to run her hands all over his torso and lick every inch of his skin until he carried her scent, so that every shifter around knew she was his, but she couldn't do that.

  Instead she held still and waited for his move, held captive by the intensity of his gaze and when he smiled, her beast rolled over in submission and purred.

  "So, by my calculations, that means I've won," he said, and Maria's heart beat kicked up a notch. "Tell me, little cat, why are you allowed to run around unmated?"

  Chapter Six

  Just like before, Maria's brilliant blue eyes dimmed, and she didn't meet his gaze. He didn’t need to be a shifter to sense her emotions right now. In his mind, Silas cursed himself for a fool. Maria had been sending out fuck-me-now-signals ever since she'd stepped into his office, so why the hell did he not just take her up on this? Why did he feel the need to get to know her first?

  "I won the race, and the deal was you'd tell me, so 'fess up. And look at me when I'm talking to you."

  Maria's eyes cut to his, and the intense misery he read in their azure depths made his chest feel tight. He released his hold on her slightly and pulled her in for a hug. Her inner cat purred at the action, and he smiled at the absurdity of the situation. The gentle vibrations skimmed across his skin, and he stepped away from her to give himself some breathing space.

  Maria sighed, and when she spoke her voice was a mere shadow of her usually so confident cadence.

  "Okay, you win, but there's really not much to tell."

  "Nice try, Maria, but why don't you let me be the judge of that?" He crossed his arms over his chest and gave her his best you better be paying attention to what I'm saying look, and she rolled her eyes and pouted.

  "Okay, okay, save that for your unruly students. I'll tell you. How much do you know about the Mating Project already?"

  "Apart from the fact that it goes against free will and all the things that make shifters unique? Not much." He couldn't quite keep the bitterness out of his voice, and Maria blinked in surprise. "I do know that young women of pure blood are mated off, so to speak, on their eighteenth birthday, willing or not, so again, I ask, why you haven't been? At least I assume you haven't been. I know enough about male shifters to know that no shifter in their right mind would let you walk about dressed like that without an escort. Fuck, I'm not sure I like the thought that other men can see what's mi—"

  He clamped his jaws shut just in time and shook his head. Shit, what was wrong with him? He almost blurted out his feelings, and he acted like some male chauvinistic bastard.

  "Forget I said that. You can dress any way you like, of course. I have no right to comment on that—at all."

  "Too damn right, you don't," Maria said, but there was no real strength behind that, and a small smile played around her lips. "I get enough of that shit off my father, and yes, you're right. He did present me with a council approved mate on my eighteenth birthday." She smirked, and her cat flashed behind her expressive eyes again.

  "Go on," he said. "I take it you refused?"

  "Of course I did. I told him where he could stick his council appointed, old enough to be my father, and make my skin scrawl with one look, mate." She sighed and shook her head. "Well, in my head I did, anyway. Dad sits on the council and is used to getting his own way, and as Mum pointed out it was my duty, and it had worked out all right for Dad and her. Anyway, I pouted, I screamed, I pleaded, and then I went for a run. I was a spoiled brat really, and I guess, I hoped that Mum would convince Dad that I wasn't ready."

  She shook herself and wiped a tear off her face in an angry gesture that made that elephant sitting on Silas's chest, heavier.

  "Did she?" he asked.

  "Eventually, yes I guess, she did, but not before I was captured and carted off to one of the less official mating project cells."

  "You were what?"

  Silas locked his jaw and started pacing, anything to get his emotions back under control. The thought of his Maria, and she was his, dammit, in one of those torture cells made him want to scream and punch something. He did neither and instead murmured an apology when Maria flinched and pointed to her ears.

  "No need to shout. Supersensitive hearing, remember, and don't worry, I managed to get away before they could do anything too nasty. I was rescued in fact by my true mate."

  That got Silas's attention all right, and he stopped pacing. He knew he was scowling at her, but dammit, that didn’t sit right with him either. He was no stranger to sharing women, but he had no intention of sharing her with anyone.

  She nodded at him. "Yeah, I know, it was and is fucked up. Anyway, he got me out of there and then disappeared. The council declared him dead, and my dad decreed that I could find my own mate. Though, lately my father has been making noises again, especially since my brothers found Anastasia, and that mate he found me back then is once again sniffing round me like a cougar on heat, and yes, he still makes my skin crawl. There is no way in fucking hell I want De Souza anywhere near me. However, I'm pure blood, and it's my duty to protect the precious bloodlines, and clearly fate likes to screw me over, because…" She ran out of steam and simply looked at him in such a defeated way that all of Silas's protective instincts rose kicking and screaming, not least at the mention of De Souza's name. That cougar shifter was bad news, and the reason his best friend was once again out of the country, trying to amass evidence on De Souza's less than official mating practices. So far he'd covered his tracks well, but he was bound to slip up sooner or later.

  Dammit, he could do with his friend's solid advice right now. One thing was certain, mere human or not, there was no way he'd let that shifter get his claws into his girl. He took a deep breath to not let his agitation show and addressed Maria.

  "Because of what is happening between you and me?"

  Maria nodded and this time didn’t bother to swipe her tears away.

  "Yes, and we can never be, regardless of what my cougar is screaming at me. I fucking hate this." She sniffed and took the tissue he passed her with a watery smile.

  "Some femme fatale I've turned out to be. Instead of seducing you, I've spilled my guts, told you things I haven't told another living soul, and completely failed to get you on board."

&n
bsp; "I wouldn't say that exactly, Maria."

  Her eyes grew huge when he approached her, and he could see the rapid beat of her pulse at the base of her neck.

  "And I sure as fuck don't agree that we can never be. I'll be the first to admit that I haven't got a fucking clue how we're going to make this work, but I do know, that I can’t just simply let you walk out of here. Maybe it's that fucked up mating bond, maybe it's just pure lust, but I know you feel the pull as much as I do, and if I don't fuck you soon, I'll have a permanently bent third leg, and you know, that's just not a good look for a lecturer."

  He winked at her, and Maria burst out laughing. God, she was beautiful when she laughed, and Silas swore to himself right there and then that he would make her laugh often.

  ****

  "So, are you going to help a guy out here?"

  Through Maria's laughter, Silas's question registered, and she sobered as he crowded her against the wall. This close to him his natural scent lodged in her nostrils and made it difficult to breathe, as her cat clawed to be let loose.

  A whimper lodged in the back of her throat when Silas bent down and inhaled against her neck. His hot breath raised the fine hair of her skin, and she bunched her hands into fists to stop herself from touching him. Her animal was too close to the surface. Never before had Maria had such problems controlling her cougar, not even with Malachi.

  A vision of him, as he was then, slammed into her mind, and she bit her lips to not say his name. He was her past, and had no say in this … whatever this was that was happening between her and Silas right now. It had to be the fact that she found Silas that made her think so often of Malachi lately.

  All thoughts of the wolf flew out of her brain when Silas grumbled into her neck.

  "You smell so fucking good. Tell me you're mine."

  He ground his erection into her belly, grabbed her still fisted hands and pulled them up high above her head, whilst he kicked her legs apart, and rubbed his thigh against her crotch. Another whimper escaped Maria at the torturously slow friction he created against her clit. She was so wet that she must be leaving a tell-tale stain on his jeans.