Titus (Big Cats Book 2) Read online

  Big Cats series

  Book 2

  Titus

  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.

  Prologue

  Daryn stood in front of the assembled group of mostly strangers. There were a couple of faces that looked familiar, but he wasn’t sure he knew them. “This is my first time and I’m not good at public speaking. I hope this might help someone not as far gone as I am. My name is Daryn and I’m an addict. I know this is AA, but there’s no place near here for drug addicts so my counselor suggested here.

  I love my family and they love me, but I’m taking them down this dark path with me. I’ve thought about ending it all a hundred times, but I’ve been too big a coward to do it yet.”

  “No, Daryn. That’s no way to deal with this. Think of your family.” An older woman at the back said.

  “Believe me, I am. I’m eighteen.” He heard the gasps around the room. They were shocked at his appearance. He looked like someone in the last stages of an aggressive cancer. Smiling, so they could see most of his teeth had fallen out. His hair was only a few tufts too stubborn to go.

  “I discovered a taste for a new designer drug. They forget to tell you how addictive it is. Once it has it’s claws in you, it won’t let go, no matter how hard you try. There were things I always swore I’d never do. I’ve done almost all of them now even though I don’t remember most of it.”

  “Why…” Someone yelled from the right side.

  “The drug interferes with memories. I ran out of money, but I needed the drugs so badly. My dealer gave me some. More than usual and I was so grateful, I never questioned the possible cost. I took it all and that was the last thing I remembered. I woke feeling like shit. When I went to the bathroom, my underwear was full of blood and my ass hurt. Someone finally told me what happened, actually they showed me pictures. A dozen men took me over and over as I lay bent over a chair. I’m not gay, I’d never even done that once. Did I agree? I don’t know, but I was out of my mind when it happened. The pain came later.”

  “Oh, my God.” The older lady at the back said.

  “That’s not the worst.” He continued. “I love my brother so much. Never would I have hurt him before. He agreed to go to a party and I was going to trade him for a night to get my drugs. Luckily, my mom found out and put a stop to it. That’s when she threw me out of the house. My cousin Beth took me in even though she’s a three years younger. I tried to get her to party with me, but she was too smart. She fed me and bought me clothes, but she never gave me any money.”

  “Smart girl.”

  “Yes, she was. Now do you still believe they wouldn’t be better off without me?”

  No one said a word. Maybe they thought of Beth, too young to be responsible for someone like him. A tear ran from one eye but he wiped it away. His decision was made. The pain from his body slowly rotting increased with each passing day. Maybe if he’d known about what the drug was sooner, but he hadn’t.

  Chapter 1

  Without Daryn

  At fifteen, she had stood on the mountain, Ariel’s mountain, surrounded by her family. Daryn wasn’t a white wolf, but many of them had known him all his life. She’d been orphaned at a young age and her aunt Beth, the one she’d been named for had raised her as part of her family.

  Once she’d turned fifteen, she’d gotten a job and at sixteen she’d moved out. It hadn’t been because her aunt hadn’t loved and cared for her although the new husband wasn’t all that nice. No, it had been her own stubborn independent streak. Beth hadn’t realized Ariel had finished the brief eulogy and it was time to set Daryn free.

  He was in a better place, Ariel had said. That must be true since there wasn’t a greater hell than the one death had freed him from. She should rejoice that he could now be a peace, but she was selfish. Why did everyone she loved leave her? Wasn’t she important enough to stay for?

  Ariel came and wrapped her arms around her. Her tears mixed with Beth’s as they stood there hugging and crying. Life would never be the same without Daryn. She opened the jar and started to spread the ashes as a wind came suddenly picking them up and carrying them all over the mountain.

  “It’s done.” Ariel declared.

  Slowly, people began to head back down the mountain where the meal awaited. That was when she made a decision she’d been putting off. She would be a teacher. Maybe she could help guide young people so they wouldn’t fall into the same trap Daryn had. She was about to graduate in two months’ time. At seventeen, she was one of the younger ones.

  Originally she’d planned to take a year off. Maybe travel or work to save up money. Now she would apply for scholarships and colleges. Beth attacked college with the same single mindedness she’d applied to everything else. By taking special courses over the summer and extra courses each semester, she finished in three years. It was quite the accomplishment with a full time job year round and working part-time for Ariel every summer.

  “I’m not sure what to do now.” Beth admitted. At twenty, she was free of college and ready to move on with her life.

  “You should jump on it.” Ariel encouraged.

  There’d been some changes in Ariel’s life that had affected the whole family. She and Matt Sr. had split several years ago and she had begun writing novels. That added another famous person to the family. Roc’s career had taken off too. Roc had been a midlister for a couple years, but now she was a bestselling author that would soon be worth millions. Ariel hit success almost immediately and a few years ago had met a new man who wasn’t a man at all. The paranormal world had intruded on them.

  Ariel was talking about an offer she’d gotten to teach summer school as a test drive for teaching at a local middle school. Beth had no particular age that she preferred to teach, she loved them all. As long as they were open to lea
rning, it was all good. She’d manage to get through to them somehow.

  Now two years after she’d accepted that offer, with summer looming on the horizon, she was ready and she needed to move on to something better. The job itself, she loved. The children were wonderful and she got far too attached to some of them. The issue was the school board with their stupid rules and the principal with his endless pursuit of her. The man was a pig that shouldn’t be allowed around kids.

  Now what? Again, her favorite aunt Ariel stepped in with an intriguing option. Their lives had changed again as they all had discovered their blood was sought after. It had been kept from most of them for a while. Now everyone likely to be affected by it had now been told. She’d also found about the drug Daryl had been addicted to.

  It wasn’t a human drug, or at least not completely. Her cousin had been one of the first the designer had tested the drug on. The drug had now ruined tens of thousands of lives. The originator had been taken down, but others continued to market and benefit from the drug. Wardens were fighting to gain control of the problem and slowly winning the battle.

  That was one reason she wasn’t sure about this plan of Ariel’s. Did she want to enter the world that had helped deprive her of her cousin? In the end, her hatred of her current situation had convinced her to sit down with Ariel and discuss the possibilities. A group of cat shifters had moved into an area of Blue Eye Missouri. She gave Ariel a hard look. That was where she’d found her house and land two years ago. A house she was still remodeling, but it was looking really good.

  It was a house meant to be a home for a family, a big one. Not a reclusive single female. She felt guilty for taking it away from such a family, but she connected with the house on a personal level. No one else would love it the way she did. Restoration had been slow, but she’d kept most of the historic elements in place. Someone might just make it habitable, she was making it like it had been when it was new only better. If she sounded crazy, well it ran in her family.

  Had Ariel been planning for this all along? She decided to give it a shot and Ariel already had an appointment set up for her. Ariel gave her a slip of paper with all the needed information. Maybe this could work out for her. If not, she’d find something else.

  Right now, she looked through her closet. She needed to look professional. The image she needed to present was capable, hardworking, and respectable. Beth had no desire to fall into the same trap she’d had at the last place with a man chasing her. Pulling her hair back into a tight bun, she would add thick glasses even though they gave her a headache. The skirt she selected went well past her knees. The shirt came up to her throat.

  Looking around the closet floor, she found some Mary Janes (shoes) to wear. No one would call them sexy. Nothing she wore would say single woman looking to be harassed. No makeup, no perfume only the residue of her shampoo and deodorant. She couldn’t go in all sweaty and stinky, right? Looking in the mirror her look screamed middle aged school marm. Perfect. Adding a pencil behind her ear and a notebook in her hand just to be sure, she was ready.

  Once she was finally on the road, she watched for the land the cat shifters had bought. She never tended to notice things like this until it affected her personally. Her personal code told her to stay out of other people’s business the way she hoped they would stay out of hers. It didn’t always work, but sometimes it seemed to. Family was usually the ones all up in her business. That she had to put up with because they did it out of love.

  The turn came quicker than expected, but she managed to make it. Pulling in, she saw construction going on everywhere. One of the buildings was even being built by a crew run by Ariel’s business. She rarely did new construction. Beth parked in an area others parked at, but once she got out of her car, she saw no place set up for the interview she was set to attend.

  There was a man standing under a tree observing the construction work. Maybe he’d know where she should go. A buzz ran through her as she gave him a closer look. Damn that man was hot. His look screamed shifter, they were all tall and built like a brick house. He turned to stare at her as she moved closer. His regard made her stomach do flip flops.

  Now that she was close enough, she decided to ask. “Excuse me. Do you know where the interviews for the teaching position are being held?”

  He grinned mischievously. “You look like some of the teachers I had growing up, but you don’t smell like them.”

  “Excuse me? What does that mean?”

  “Sorry. We aren’t set up for regular interviews so let’s take a walk. You tell me about yourself.”

  “Who are you?”

  “My name is Titus Claw. I’m in charge of the school program. To be honest, I don’t know much about teaching, but I like to think I know enough to pick competent people to run the school so I only have to deal with administrative aspects. Tell me, why do you teach?”

  “I teach because I love it. It’s a passion and it has to be for someone to be any good at it. If you don’t love children and want to give them the best education possible, they’ll be cheated out of their potential.”

  “Why did you decide to be a teacher?”

  Sorrow rolled over her as she thought of Daryn. “I had a cousin who made a lot of mistakes and ended up dying. Maybe I’m wrong, but I think if he had an adult he trusted, one he felt he could approach for advice, he would have avoided the pitfalls that led to his death. Even though I don’t always know what to do, if a student comes to me with a problem, I’ll move heaven and Earth to get them the help they need.”

  It was hard to tell if Titus thought she was a busy body or was impressed with her sense of commitment. His face showed no emotion, probably an ability honed over several lifetimes. Shifters lived so much longer than humans. She’d learned it was hard to tell what their age was.

  “Would you be able to work part time over the summer?”

  “Do you have a summer program?”

  “No, but the school is in the process of being built and Ariel suggested the teacher running the program be hired so they could see things organized the way they want them.” Titus explained.

  “Someone will thank Ariel. That’s a good idea and yes, I’d be available. I put off getting a summer job until I know what job I’ll land, but I can work around something like that.”

  “Okay, there’s no point in waiting. The job is yours if you want it. You got the basic information, right?”

  “Yes, I got the run down on pay and benefits. How long before the building is ready for me to start figuring out what I need?”

  “See that job site?” Titus asked. She saw a concrete pad with no walls.

  “Yes?”

  “That’s your school.”

  “Oh, my. I’ll be starting a part time job any day. Just call me when you’re ready for me to start.”

  “Thank you. My assistant will call as soon as walls are up inside.”

  “Thank you. It was nice to meet you.” Beth said as she rushed away.

  Once she was in her car, she collapsed in the seat. A mixture of relief and confusion hit her. She drove to Ariel’s to share the good news and to see if she could get a job for the summer. It was odd the way shifters now seemed to be drawn to the area Ariel lived. The drive was short and she hoped she made it for breakfast. Beth did, but the selection wasn’t good.

  “You got the job.” Ariel guessed as she approached.

  “I did and he’s taking your suggestion on letting the teacher be in on organizing the school from the very start. It still won’t keep me busy so if you have an opening, I’ll take my usual holiday job.”

  “You can start tomorrow, but I need you to work on the school. I don’t want to fall behind and we have several remodeling projects going too. Business is crazy busy.”

  “That’s good, right?”

  “Almost too good. Now that Matt’s gone too and one of my teams is on loan to him, I’m wishing we hadn’t bought so many houses. I’ve hired extras, but they are untrained and in
experienced. You could be in charge of the school project if you want to be.”

  “Okay, I can do that as long as you know I’ll need to be able to get in touch with you if I run into trouble.”

  “Oh, thank you, Beth. You’re a life saver. Sara will bring you up to speed and help you with, well, everything.”

  Sara was one of several assistants Ariel had now. She’d been there at least a year now and Beth was familiar with her. “Hi, Sara. I’m going to need you quite a bit on such a big project.”

  “I’m always ready to help. If we do good, maybe we’ll get bonus.” Sara hoped. Ariel was well known for her bonuses. A project like this done in time or early and done well would probably make her give them one.

  “We’ll work with that goal in mind. Let’s grab a drink and I’m going to fix me a plate of food and we’ll go plot and plan.”

  “I’ll be at the kitchen table waiting for you.” Sara assured.

  Beth was feeling pretty good about things right now. She was experienced at working these projects, even the odd new construction. A few times she had even been a second, usually to Ariel or Matt. She’d even covered Danny’s crew as boss a few times and last summer when he’d been gone. It was an absence that had become permanent, but at least he wasn’t far away. This move to project manager wasn’t such a big jump that it scared her. Sara would help her get her crew and her supplies then tomorrow, she would get on it.

  She ate while they pulled together a team using a few newbies and some of her cousins that worked over the summers and knew what they were doing. It was a crew she could manage. Sara wrote up the list of supplies and most of them would be delivered tonight. They would be safe because they had onsite security.

  A crew truck was assigned to her including needed tools. Some of her crew would meet her at the job site while she would pick up the others here. She took the truck home with her so she could drive it back in the morning. On the days she got off early, she would have access to lots of tools to help her with her personal remodeling plans. Ariel was good about loaning tools, as long as if you broke it, you replaced it. When she finally got home, she was tired, but satisfied with the plans she’d made.