She took her time making her coffee, looking around her kitchen. Eli had told her she could do anything she wanted with it and she had. He’d bought her the stove and pots and pans, the rest was her design and the touches that made life easier for her when she was working. The touches that made her feel as if the kitchen truly belonged to her.

Eli had given her that as well. Love welled up. Overwhelmed her. She needed him. Needed to be close to him. More and more she found herself drawn to him. Just like this. Her breasts ached and she found it was a wonderful sensation because the thought of Eli put that there. Her feminine core pounded with heat, and again, she loved the soreness that came from Eli’s thick cock, stretching and burning her. She was glad that with every step she took, she could feel him.

Pushing open the screen door, she stepped outside. It was still dark, the light barely filtering through, but mostly that was because of the black clouds churning in the sky overhead.

The scent of blood hit her just as her gaze swept the porch. On the far side of the porch, away from the door, something heavy hung from chains. Swaying. Her heart stopped for a moment and then began to pound. She wanted to run to the swaying body—and it was a body—she could see that now. Not just any body, but Eli.

20

CATARINA froze. She forced every muscle to lock in place. There was no way to take her horrified gaze from Eli’s golden one. His face was swollen. Blood streaked not only his face and head, but his chest as well. Clearly, while she’d been showering, daydreaming, Eli had been tortured.

Eli’s eyes had closed after that one brief acknowledgement of her presence, but she had the feeling he was alert. Ready. Coiled to strike. She didn’t know how that could be possible, and maybe it was only because she was so terrified and needed to believe it, but she did. That gave her the added confidence to look around her.

She knew he would be there. She had thought he would come alone, but he hadn’t. His three top lieutenants, all leopard, were with him. They stood on the ground, just past Eli’s body. One held cables in his hands, another the hose. She felt her leopard rise. Fury shook her, replacing terror. But she didn’t move a muscle. Only her eyes moved.