Ciaro (Big Cats Book 3) Read online

  Big Cats series

  Book 3

  Ciaro

  By Crystal Dawn

  Cover by Cynthia Lucas

  Edited by Eagle Editing

  2017 Copyright by Crystal Dawn

  This book is a work of fiction. All contents, including names, places, and events are the product of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to persons, living or deceased, or to businesses, locations or events are completely coincidental.

  None of this work may be used, reproduced, exchanged or transmitted by anyone, except the person the book was purchased for. Any reproductions of this book in any part or any form must be done with the express written permission of the author or not at all.

  Thank you for respecting the work of this author.

  Big Cats

  Book 1

  Sebastian

  Sebastian is moving his pride headquarters to what he hopes will be a permanent home. Seven groups of big cats will be forming an alliance for mutual defense and to aid in the growth of all their groups. The last thing he needs right now is a mate. Too bad the goddess does things her own way.

  Andi is busy building her flower shop into a prosperous business in a town the size of a shoe box. She gave up on men, who has the time for them anyway? If only a certain arrogant alpha would get the message. Things get even worse when she's attacked repeatedly by mercenaries looking for a potential white wolf mate to sell to a customer. Will her life ever settle down?

  Big Cats series

  Book 2

  Titus

  Titus supposed he should feel honored that Sebastian had put him in charge of the private school for their children. He didn’t. It was one headache after another with the interviews being the worst until Beth came in. His tiger roared in approval, she was his.

  Beth had a bad history with males. If she didn’t, the sexy tiger might appeal to her. She was tired of supernaturals trying to mate her because of her bloodline. This would be just another one, so she intended to steer clear of him.

  Big Cats

  Book 3

  Ciaro

  Life was all about change and since he’d met Mairi, his opinion about mating had changed. He was ready for her whether she was ready or not.

  So Ciaro was handsome and could be charming when he wanted to be. That meant almost nothing to her. She didn’t want a mate and he couldn’t have her.

  Two beautiful people with a fate in common. One fought it while the other was ready to embrace it. Those things always turned out good, right?

  Prologue

  Mairi hung up the phone. Why had the panther leader called her? Ariel knew she didn’t like dealing with customers. She was the behind the scenes type doing the work, but staying in the background. It was a stretch for her to boss a crew like she was doing. It only worked because she knew most of the guys and they listened to her. Since they were all experienced, she worked right beside them getting the work done. Her supervising was limited to assigning duties and keeping the logs of materials and time sheets.

  Beth was the one who could train and encourage workers that had no experience. As a boss, Beth could also deal with customers or anyone else she needed to. Her cousin was beautiful and perfect. They’d been the best of friends since they were in kindergarten. Andi, Beth, and she were like the three musketeers. Now they were back together after becoming adults had sent them in separate directions.

  It was a good thing Beth was still helping out. She would take care of the panther alpha for her. Still, the male had a sexy voice. It sent shivers through her. Best if she never met the guy at all. Shifters weren’t her thing. They were too dominating. The males in her dad’s family were bossy too except for her dad. It was something she couldn’t handle. At five foot zero and a hundred pound soaking wet, it was easy for her to get mowed over by a bossy guy.

  xxxxxxxxxxxx

  Ciaro looked at the phone in fascination. The female’s voice had stroked him over the line. Soft and sexy, he couldn’t wait to see what she looked like. He called Beth getting everything straightened out and learning Beth was Titus’ mate. Two cat leaders had settled down here and both had mates already. He’d heard both females were exceptional and it turned out they were both white wolves.

  It wasn’t like he’d be so lucky. Not that he was looking, at least not yet. He needed to solidify his position and see to his people before he even considered a mate. Ciaro wasn’t even a hundred yet. There was time before he needed to start looking. A hand appeared on his thigh.

  “Come back to bed, Darling.” Hetty whispered.

  “I’ve had enough for a while. Go home.” Ciaro wasn’t nice, but his lovers knew what he was like.

  “You know where I am when you’re ready, if I’m not busy by then.”

  He nodded absentmindedly. The computer screen captured all his attention as he checked out supplies, costs, and completion dates. In the back of his mind, a sexy voice spoke to him teasing him. Ciaro would meet the woman soon.

  xxxxxxxxx

  Ariel was happy with her results so far. Two out of two alphas mated to cousins. She hadn’t had to do much either. Just a little tweaking of schedules to make sure the right couple met at the right time. Two arms wrapped around her. “I love you, Sweetheart.” She said knowing it could only be her mate.

  “Who are you plotting against now? Mairi and Ciaro?” Blake asked as he nuzzled her neck.

  “Why don’t we forget about them and just slip away to bed for a nooner?”

  “I love the way you think.”

  They’d had more time lately to be spontaneous and it felt wonderful. The world could do without them for a short while. Tomorrow she would get back to her plans.

  Chapter 1

  Foundations

  The panther’s party house or what would soon be it, lay in front of him. A crew was doing the foundation while a kid watched them. Should a kid be so close to a working crew? Wasn’t that dangerous? His eyes widened as he realized the child was giving them instructions. He bit his tongue deciding to wait to see what was happening rather than to blunder in and look a fool. Thank the goddess he’d waited.

  The person turned towards him and it was a short woman who looked like an elf. She was beautiful and lithe, her voice sweet and endearing even if some of her words were coarse. Something went wrong and the woman cursed up a blue streak. He had to smile, she was so cute even when she talked like a truck driver.

  Ciaro was beginning to see Titus’ recommendation about putting a few picnic tables here in case he wanted to watch the workers. The tables would be useful later as well. Pulling out his phone, he added them to the next supply order.

  Someone must have messed up again because she lifted her foot pointing to her boot then to the huge man’s ass. He looked like a wolf. The guy turned bright red before he nodded enthusiastically. She dropped her foot then shot him a look. Scurrying off, the wolf looked behind him to make sure she wasn’t following. The little woman had all these big guys under her thumb. Ciaro found it fascinating.

  It didn’t hurt that she was lovely and fiery. She was on the small side which made him concerned that he’d break her if they were intimate, but she was tough. The elf, as he nicknamed her, was lifting heavy boards and doing the same work as the big men. He’d caught her eye, too. Every once in a while, she couldn’t help, but to look at him. Her eyes would move away fast too.

  Ciaro knew the females loved him. He couldn’t beat them off with a stick, but other than sex, he had little use for most of them. He bet this little lady would give him a run for his money. That excited him, a chase with such delectable prey.

  Now he stood up then stalked to the foundation while the crew worked. Standing next
to her, he could see she was aware of his presence by her fast heartbeat, heavy breathing, and the goosebumps breaking out on her skin. Her scent was delightful as she was nervous, but not fearful. Maybe she was even curious about him as he was about her.

  “This is delicate work. Interruptions are not welcome.” She said softly.

  Her voice ran through him. He loved the sound of it. “You know who I am, right?”

  “You’re the reason we’re putting a rush job on this project?” She asked.

  Ciaro’s face heated. Had that ever happened to him before? “Technically yes. But I’m also the one paying for everything so I feel I have the right to assure myself that everything is being done properly.”

  “Is it?”

  “What?”

  “Is it being done properly?” She asked.

  “I’m not sure.”

  “In other words, you’re just getting in our way.”

  Ciaro felt his face heat up again. He wished there was something he could say to correct her, but she was right. He knew nothing about construction, he was just wanting to get a closer look at her. His impulse was just to throw her over his shoulder and carry her away. Some female panthers liked that, but he’d heard humans didn’t always understand. Since they were new to the area, he had to be careful about how they were perceived. What a shame!

  “I guess I’ll just drag my sorry self back to where I was. Is that far enough away?” He asked hoping she would reassure him that he wasn’t really in the way.

  “Yes, that will be fine.” She even sent a smile his way, briefly.

  Ciaro was stunned. Women never treated him this way. This woman challenged him on every level. How would he change her mind so she would see him? What did he have to do to get her attention in a positive way? Whatever it was, he would do it. Never had he ever been so obsessed by a female.

  Titus came walking over to speak to female. She seemed to be pleasant to him, but Titus was mated to a friend of hers. As Titus walked by, Ciaro called to him. “What did you need, Ciaro?”

  “Some advice on how to handle a female.”

  “Mairi? The one I just spoke to? My advice is to find another.” Titus chuckled.

  “Why?”

  “She’s not like any female you know. Beth was tough, even Andi gave Sebastian a hard time, But Mairi, oh my. Beth calls her a piss ripper. Mairi is tough and hard on men who are interested in her. She’s also a scrapper who won’t take anything off of anyone.”

  “What the hell does all that mean?”

  “Basically, she’s dynamite in a small package.” Titus explained.

  “I know exactly what I knew before I talked to you. I thought you would be a help.”

  “Okay, if you’re serious about her, talk to Ariel.”

  “The white wolf?”

  “Yes, she’s just a person. You’re doing business with her, aren’t you?”

  “I suppose so.”

  “You’ve not spoken to her yet?”

  “No, Sebastian set everything up.” Ciaro admitted.

  “It’s time for you to step in.” Titus said as he walked off.

  Ciaro liked Seb and Titus well enough, but both of them were too damn happy all the time. Mating rarely brought that out in a male. It was usually their downfall as far as he’d seen. This was crazy as well as was Titus’ advice. Like he could just go and see the white wolf or even call her up and say hi, could you give me some advice. Titus must think he was so damn funny.

  Ciaro would figure things out on his own. It was best to rely only on yourself. Next time something was needed for the project he would deal with it himself, but he would not approach the white wolf because of his love life. Sitting there, he watched Mairi work. Somehow, someway, he would win this little stick of dynamite.

  He’d brought his computer with him and set it up on the picnic table because an alpha had responsibilities and always had things to do. The picnic table he was sitting at was the only one here and borrowed from Seb. A chirp came from it alerting him he had an important email. More and more of those had been coming from his people. It was mainly those interested in settling on these lands. Many of his security people would be coming, a few already had.

  His personal assistant had mated recently and wouldn’t be coming here. Now he needed a new one. Seb had also told him to check with Ariel to find jobs for his people and people for jobs he needed to fill. It was hard to wrap his head around the possibility that the white wolf would be that available especially to those alphas that weren’t even wolves. Was it true or were they teasing him? The next major emergency he had related to construction would give him the answer. Instead of going through Seb, he would go to her himself.

  Pulling up his emails, he saw he had hundreds in just the last the last few hours. The new one that had come in was from his second. He knew Jase from years ago. It was true he didn’t know him well, but he needed to. The hierarchy of his party of panthers wasn’t well established because they had scattered to the winds without a true home in sight. That was changing.

  Jase had given his notice to leave his job and now the time was up. His household was packed and about to leave and he needed a home. Jase had three children, and a group of employees. There were also two siblings that lived with him. Ciaro had been planning to find a place for his second to live, but had put it off. He’d left it in the hands of two local real estate agents who he now realized he’d not heard from in over a week.

  Remembering that Seb had mentioned that Ariel and some of her people dabbled in real estate, he decided to give her a call. It didn’t scare him, he just didn’t want her to be offended that he’d bothered her. Hoping for the best, he dialed the number Seb had given him for emergencies.

  “Author at work. Give me a second to finish this sentence.” There was a pause. “This is Ariel, how can I help you.”

  “This is Ciaro. I’m the panther alpha.”

  “I know who you are. Everything going alright?”

  “The project is fine, but my second is on his way with a large household and I’ve no place for them to stay.”

  “This is your lucky day! I happen to know Mairi has a place almost finished that has six bedrooms and a guest house out back. The guest house is small, but it will help. He can make do and add on later as he wants. It’s on five acres.”

  “Your construction supervisor, Mairi?”

  “That’s the one. Approach her carefully and wait until lunch. It’ll be alright.”

  “Thank you.” Ciaro said, but she was already gone. He prayed to the goddess that this problem could be solved so easily. He was currently staying in a rented house, but his home would be in the party house until he mated and built a house at some time in the future. His second had a large family even though he had no mate. The female had left him tired of being surrounded by children.

  He’d never liked Saranda. In his opinion, she’d been a cold ruthless female. She’d been from a strong bloodline, but she’d not represented it well. Family was important, the only thing more important was a fated mate. For those few lucky enough to have one, they were everything.

  It seemed like the time crawled until it was lunchtime. Mairi sat on the stairs surrounded by her workers as he approached. She shot him an annoyed look. “Ariel said I should discuss something with you.” Her entire attitude changed.

  “Why don’t we go to your table?” She pointed at where he’d been sitting.

  He led the way sitting once she’d sat. “I need a large house as quickly as possible and she said you had one nearly complete?”

  “It’s a very nice house and it might be more than you want to spend for a single guy.” Mairi explained.

  “It wouldn’t be for me. My second is coming with his children. He also has two siblings that he was left in charge of. His mate left him tired of kids everywhere. They were not fated mates and many do not mate in the old ways that last a lifetime. Things have been hard for him and I’d like to ease his way as much as possible.
Jase was high in the security company and money is not a concern especially since he sold a mansion in New York and prices here are much lower.”

  “Alrighty, then. I’ve not listed it yet, so he can have the first shot at it. Tomorrow is my finish date and everything should be tidied up and ready for a buyer.”

  “He’ll be here in three days or less, but he asked me to get the purchase started.” Ciaro explained.

  “If that’s what he wants. You can inspect it tonight to be sure it will work for him.”

  “That would be perfect.”

  They shook hands and a shock ran through him. Mairi scurried away and he was certain she’d felt it too. He would have preferred to kiss her to seal the deal, but he saw that wasn’t happening. As an alpha, he wasn’t a passive male and this was hard on him to hold back when he wanted to take action. The action he wanted to take with Mairi would have been enjoyable for them both. Being diplomatic and acting in a correct fashion was hard. Seb and Titus both had his respect for learning to do it.

  His computer chirped again. It reminded him of the hundreds of emails he had to deal with. He sat back down determined to deal with what he could before it was time to tour the house with Mairi. First he went through deleting any emails that were sent by unsolicited salesmen like those for males that couldn’t satisfy women or wanted to be larger. Ciaro had no needs in that area. Now he went through them dealing with those of importance first.

  His sister, Unis, had contacted him wanting him to find her a house. Pulling out a notebook, he wrote her name under the list of those he knew needed housing. As he went through his emails, many of them dealt with housing or jobs. Fiaro, his oldest brother also needed a house, a job, a job for his youngest daughter, who happened to be a secretary, and several of his sons. Praise the goddess, young Jezzie might be able to help him with his paperwork.