Page 29 of Visions, Paws, and Claws

Jana held her head high. “That when all three mates find each other, there’s a… connection.” She flushed. “I’m not just talking physical. Mental and spiritual too.”

“Where did you hear this?”

She pointed toward the door. “Out there. I met a guy—he hasn’t been here all that long—who told me he’d met three shifters who could talk to each other without even opening their mouths.”

Milo gaped at her. “Seriously? It has to have been a trick.”

“That’s whathethought too—until they proved it to him.” She smiled. “We’ve found each other. Now all we have to do isfind our third.” Jana grinned. “Don’t they say good things come in threes?”

Milo stood, scraping his fingers through his hair. “You make it sound so easy. Can I remind you that you’re incarcerated here, and that I’m one of the soldierskeepingyou here?”

Jana rose from her chair. “Do you know how difficult it’s been to sit here and not touch you?”

“Jana, you’re not listening.”

“Yes, I am.” That serene smile was back. “It’s you who isn’t listening. To what everything inside you is telling you right this second.” She closed the gap between them. “Your name is Milo, isn’t that what you told me when I arrived?”

All he could do was nod, his throat tight.

“Well, Milo, what are you?” Her eyes twinkled. “You already know I’m an otter. I think it’s only fair to tell me what my mate is.”

And there she went again, saying things that couldn’t possibly be true.

“Milo?”

He couldn’t fight the urge to touch her.

Milo cupped her cheek. “I’m a gorilla.”

Her eyes widened. “Oh wow.” Then she grinned. “That’s cool. I do like a hairy man.”

“Whereas gorillas avoid large bodies of water and rivers. We’re not natural swimmers.Playingin it? That’s fine.”

All the desire to deny what he was feeling fled. Milo put his arms around her and drew her to him. Jana brought her hands to his nape, and their lips met in a soft kiss.

What happened inside him was anything but soft.

Something caught fire, sending heat to every extremity. What filled his mind was the knowledge that this wasright, that Jana was his. He prolonged the kiss, and that only served to deepen their connection. He couldn’t get enough of her, moldingher slim frame to his body, aware of the way her hair smelled like sunshine, her lips tasted like wine, her skin felt like silk.

Then a shout came from outside, and the moment shattered. They sprang apart, both breathing hard, her face flushed, his cheeks warm.

Milo took a step back. “Now what?”

He was in virgin territory with no map and no compass.

Jana took a deep breath. “I have to believe I won’t be in here forever. So I have to stay alive until we find our third.” She sighed. “They’re not going to breed me, because I’m not what they need.”

“‘They?’”

She frowned. “The Gerans. They’re only breeding the strongest, the fastest, the most lethal shifters.”

“And who told you that?” Cold inched its way through him.

“Every shifter I’ve met so far who’s part of the breeding program.”

“I’m sorry to tell you, your source is incorrect. We breed all kinds of shifters here.”

Jana became very still. “We?”

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