When she located her clothes, she sat down in her puma form for a few moments to enjoy the freedom before she allowed her body to shift back. It always amazed her how tiny she seemed in human form, but as a puma, her body was large. She was a short female, little more than five foot, but thanks to her love of running wild in natural form, she had curves in all the right places. She dressed and made sure her hair was in place. It was important to a cat shifter to have nice looking hair. She licked her hand and swiped it over her head in a catlike movement before she started to make her way back to camp.
The thought of a picnic with Hayden caused butterflies in her stomach. She’d really enjoyed getting to know him, and the thought that he’d soon be returning to the front line scared her. She wondered if he could ask for a little longer leave, but she knew he wouldn’t. He was a man who’d never run from a fight—he was destined to go on to greater things.
Molly would just have to hold on to the hope she’d see him again, and when the war was over, they could forge a relationship together. She was already developing strong feelings for Hayden after only a few days. It wasn’t love yet, but it definitely could be. She was almost skipping by the time she reached her accommodation.
“Molly.” The voice startled her, and when she turned around, she saw Hayden staring at her. His nostrils flared, and he was obviously full of rage. “What were you doing in the jungle?”
Chapter Four
Hayden couldn’t believe what he was seeing. How could he have been so stupid. Molly had obviously been in the jungle for an illicit liaison with someone else. Why on earth would she be so stupid to go there otherwise? It was well known what happened in the jungles around the compound. He was livid, but it was his heart that hurt the most. He thought he’d found something special with her, but obviously he hadn’t. It was all a sham, and he wouldn’t allow himself to be made to look a fool.
“Hayden, what are you doing here?” Molly protested, every syllable was laced with guilt, and it only served to strengthen his growing hatred for the woman he’d thought he might love one day.
God, he had been a fool.
“I saw you,” he reiterated. “In the jungle. People only go there for one reason.”
Molly’s eyes went wide as realization dawned on her. “You thought I was meeting someone?”
“Well, you weren’t going for an evening stroll, because that would be completely stupid.”
His tone was laced with the anger he was feeling. For some reason, he was struggling to control himself. Why did she have to do it to him? He’d completely fallen for her innocent girl routine. He bet she hadn’t been here for only a few days—that was just the story she told the saps she manipulated to get her kicks. Women like her were the worst.
He’d seen and heard enough. He’d been given his orders earlier in the day. He was shipping back out to the battle front in the morning, and he couldn’t wait to board the first available helicopter. He turned on his heels and stomped away without so much as a goodbye.
“Hayden, wait.” Molly chased after him. A few people were wandering around, going about their duties, but they stopped to look at the quarreling couple. “Please, I can explain.”
Molly touched his arm, and it sent the familiar thread of longing through his body. He couldn’t and wouldn’t touch her again after this betrayal. He pushed her away a little bit too forcefully, and she fell to the ground. In an instant, she was on her feet again with a look of anger on her face.
“Hayden Eckhart, you will listen to me and stop acting like a petulant schoolboy. All is not as it seems, and I won’t have you giving me a bad reputation when I’ve done nothing wrong,” Molly fumed.
“You were in the jungle. People go there to fuck each other,” he shouted at her, and a couple of the nurses watching them started whispering together.
“I’m an idiot who should walk away from you right now. You obviously have no trust in me, but I’m not willing to throw away something I know can be good.” Molly pushed past him and made her way back to the edge of the jungle where he’d seen her appear from earlier. She turned and motioned for him to follow. “If you have anything inside your heart for me, you’ll come with me so I can explain. I’ll give you five minutes to decide, but if you don’t give me a chance, then I never want to see you again, and you’ll have wasted the best thing that could ever have happened to you.” With that parting shot, she disappeared into the darkness of the jungle.
“Fucking stupid woman,” he called out, but it was only a few seconds before he rushed into the jungle after her.
He been in areas like this before—they were littered with hazards and traps, not just from wild creatures but also enemy weapons.
“Stop,” he shouted to her, but she kept walking, deeper and deeper. He followed her path until he found her standing in a clearing. “Are you insane?” he yelled at her. “You could get us both killed. There could be any number of explosive traps laid around here.”
“Are you worried about me now, or just yourself?” Molly retorted.
“We’re forbidden to come into the jungle,” Hayden snapped back.
“Yet, you accuse me of coming in here, how did you politely put it, to fuck someone?” She raised an eyebrow at him.
“You’ve no light to guide you this time. It’s crazy.”
“I didn’t have any light last time. I don’t need it,” Molly responded.
There was no anger in her tone anymore. It was flat, and it scared him.
“Molly, what is going on?”
She lowered her head before raising it again and looking directly at him. “I’ve never revealed this before, but something tells me you’ll understand…I don’t know why? I’m probably insane, but there’s something you need to know about me.”
Hayden watched as she pulled her t-shirt over her head and dropped it on the jungle floor.
“What are you doing?” He rushed at her, and picking up the t-shirt, he tried to use it to cover her body. He couldn’t help staring at her breasts encased in a white lace bra, though. They were the perfect size, and his dick started to lengthen in his army issue pants.
“You said you believe dragons once existed and that one day you’ll find their bones. Let me do this, Hayden. Let me show you what really exists that you have no clue about.”
There was something about the honesty in her eyes that made him stop and step back from her. He held her t-shirt to his chest as he watched her lower her pants. Her underwear followed next until she was naked before him. She took his breath away. All he could do was look at her perfect body. His dick strained in the confines of his pants even though he still believed she’d been with another man earlier. Or did he? Something told him this wasn’t about sex.
Let me show you what really exists that you have no clue about.
Her words sent a shiver down his spine.
“Show me,” he ordered.
He stood in silence as he watched Molly change from a human to a puma in front of him. Her body shifted. He could hear her bones as they cracked and remolded themselves into the shape of a cat. He saw the brown fur grow over her body. But it was her eyes that shocked him the most. They’d also changed, but just from looking at them, he could tell the big cat before him was Molly.