Page 11 of Into the Lion's Den (Secrets of the Northland Shifters)

It was only my irritation with her that had pushed her lush body into my dreams. Nothing more. And she would pay for that intrusion.

I got dressed quickly, put on a baseball cap, then barreled down the hall toward her office, trying to keep myself calm despite the beast snarling beneath my skin.

So much for my vow to give her a wide berth. I’d only been awake for five minutes and I was already looming in the open doorway to her office, taking in the scene before me.

She was at her desk with notebooks and loose paper spread all around. Her hair was half up, half down, and a thin gold chain with an “S” pendant dangled in front of her pale-pink cashmere sweater, a sweater so soft it begged to be stroked.

She cradled a steaming mug in both hands. The tabs of two tea bags dangled over the edge, and I could detect the aroma of warm honey.

She looked positively blissful—so different from myself. So different from the nervous ball of energy she herself had been just yesterday.

The change in her was fascinating, and the lion wanted to jump out of my skin and give her a good sniff to satisfy all its burning questions.

She raised her mug to her lips and was just about to take a sip when her gaze lifted over the rim and our eyes locked.

She blinked once—exclaimed “Oh!”—then set her mug down quickly. She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and cleared her throat. “Good morning.”

Good. I’d surprised her. That was only fair. Seeing her in the window last night had nearly stopped my heart.

“I told you to be at dinner at six o’clock.” A growl rumbled at the back of my throat.

“Oh. Yeah.” She tucked a lock of her soft brown hair behind her ear. “I laid down for a nap, then accidentally slept right through to morning. Traveling really takes it out of me.”

Was that all it was?She seemed sincere. But I’d detected something secretive about her yesterday. Was she merely an excellent actress?

I stalked slowly into her office. “I thought you might have been sick, or something.”

“No.” She leaned back in her chair, away fromme, and her nipples hardened beneath her sweater. “All better now.”

“You must be.” I took another step closer, cursing my lack of physical restraint while the mountain lion purred softly in response.

Logically, I should get far, far away from this woman. I had a business to run…rules to keep…rules designed to keep my family safe…

“You look like you’ve been hard at work for a while already.”

Sarah shrugged. “Go to bed early, wake up early. Besides, no point wasting time.”

I respected a strong work ethic. So had my father. That was probably why he’d hired her in the first place.

Before I could say anything more, my brother Sam appeared behind me in the doorway.

“Good morning, boys and girls! Nice to see you again, Sarah.”

“Good morning,” she said.

My gaze, which had been locked on Sarah, suddenly jerked to Sam. When didhehave the chance to meet her?

Sam kept his eyes on Sarah, though his sly smirk suggested he was provoking me on purpose.

Christ. Obviously Sam knew me well enough to know this woman would be exactly my type, but did he also know she’d triggered something deeper? Did he know I’d broken my own rule and shifted?

I braced for my most perceptive brother to put two and two together.

“The staff cafeteria is open for breakfast,” Sam said. “What do you say, Sarah? Can I interest you in something sweet?”

I suppressed a growl, but not well enough to hide it from my brother. Sam’s grin grew wider, telling me everything I needed to know. He was on to me.

“Actually,” she said, “that sounds great.” She got up and walked right past me on her way to Sam.

---