Tyger, Tyger Burning Bryght

Tyger, Tyger Burning Bryght

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eBooks are not transferable. They cannot be sold, shared or given away as it is an infringement on the copyright of this work. This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locale or organizations is entirely coincidental. Samhain Publishing, Ltd. 577 Mulberry Street, Suite 1520 Macon GA 31201 Tyger, Tyger Burning Bryght Copyright © 2008 by Cathryn Cade ISBN: 1-60504-072-X Edited by Angela James Cover by Dawn Seewer All Rights Are Reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. First Samhain Publishing, Ltd. electronic publication: July 2008 www.samhainpublishing.com

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Tyger, Tyger Burning Bryght

Cathryn Cade

Dedication

Tyger! Tyger! burning bright, In the forests of the night, What immortal hand or eye Could frame thy fearful symmetry? ~William Blake To all the poets who have left their words burned indelibly on our hearts—thank you.

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Chapter One

The crew leaders of the spaceship Orion, bound for planet Bryght by way of the Cattarus system, winced as the unearthly scream of a big cat echoed through the ship’s command center. The scream swelled into a roar, and then subsided in a series of deep, coughing growls before fading. They shuddered in instinctive fear, and glanced uneasily at the seal-locks on the entrance. Captain Steve Craig, Earth Con II, looked around the holo-table at his Crew Commanders. From the far reaches of the galaxy, all some of his team had in common were their sleek grey flight suits. Each bore the insignia of their craft, from tactician to interpreter. He himself wore the bars and stars of ship’s captain, as well as several commendations. “I believe that explains why I’ve called you in for a meeting,” he said dryly. “As you know, our navigator on this run must be a Tygean native from planet Bryght. Only they can navigate safely through the Cattarus system. We have one of the best on board—Commander Tryon Jag. Unfortunately, under the influence of their home moons, the Tygeans undergo a yearly mating shape shift. Jag has shifted into full Tyger mating mode. Something’s got to be done.” His second-in-command, Commander Navos, a tall, spare Indigon, raised one arching brow. “Sedation seems the logical course. A Tyger in shape shift is a dangerous creature, with uncertain temper, and the claws and fangs of a predator.” file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (4 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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“Yes, I could get some type of palliative into his food,” the ship’s physician, Dr. Tentaclar, offered. His several eyes lit with interest, the upper set waving about on their stalks. “We can’t drug him,” the captain snapped. “We need him awake and alert. Without a Tygean navigator, we will never make it safely through the Cattarus asteroid belt. The gravitation of all the moons will pull the Orion into a crash. Every ship lost in the Cattarus has had a non-native at the helm.” “It is unfortunate that our departure from Earth was delayed,” said the Indigon. “The moons of the Cattarus system have risen to their male phase, inciting the predictable hormonal reaction in Commander Jag.” “Yes, we were supposed to be through here days ago. It’s these damned terrorists. The Earthland Security regulations have become so tight; it sometimes takes days to get through customs instead of hours.” “Is it the ecoterrorists this time?” asked someone. “Or one of those religious fundamentalist groups? I can’t keep them straight.” “They are all equally dangerous,” cut in Navos, his deep blue eyes cold as an Indigon glacier. “Creatures who are willing to destroy others and themselves to make a religious or political point.” “Yes, and speaking of going through customs—was it really necessary to body search the entire crew?” growled Ogg, the systems mechanic. “Most of my guys and gals have been with the company for years.” “Oh, it’s necessary. The terrorists have gotten very tricky with their little bombs.” Dr. Tentaclar leaned forward, all his eyes focused on Ogg. “They’ve discovered how to create organic explosives. Hide the devices right in their body cavities, so they can’t be detected by a holographic search. Then, when the ship is out in space—squersshhh!” A few of them winced, and Craig held up one hand. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (5 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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“Thank you, Doctor. I think we all know the results of a bio-bomb on a ship’s systems. Now, back to our immediate problem, if you will.” “If we cannot proceed without our navigator, we must persuade him to resume his duties,” the Indigon said. “By my reckoning, we will enter the hazardous portion of the Cattarus system in four days. We have until then to deal with the problem.” “But how will we reason with him?” asked the interpreter, a small Pangaean woman who shimmered with a faint green aura, the result of lifelong exposure to the rich vegetation of her home planet. “Everyone is afraid to go near him. He nearly frightened to death the young couple who chanced to be in the ship’s arboretum when he shifted.” “We don’t reason with him,” the captain said. Then his eyes sharpened, as he looked at the Indigon. “Unless Commander Navos can assist us.” “I cannot help you.” Navos shook his head. “It is his feline-enhanced faculties that enable him to do his job. Any attempt at thought control would result in disaster.” They all looked at Craig, who sighed. “In that case we get him what he wants—a mate.” “Yes, he’ll have to have one in order to function,” Tentaclar agreed. “Just now he is in the thrall of his powerful mating urges. If he is not provided with a suitable mate, and soon, he will hurt himself or others.” “But—how do we procure him one? We can’t just order one of the female crew members to submit.” “There are licensed sexual companions on board,” Navos put in. “Hire one or more of them to service him.” “Won’t work,” Tentaclar chirped. “Tygeans are very picky. Has to be a female who is not sexually imprinted by numerous other males—or females.” Interpreter Mra frowned. “So we must ask a young, relatively inexperienced file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (6 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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female to volunteer? Surely this is dangerous. I understand Tyger males are quite, er, forceful in their sexual demands.” “They are also famous for their prowess,” purred the other woman at the table, a sleek, golden creature who looked like a statue from some exotic temple until she moved, revealing the sinuous movements of a Serpentian. “I would volunteer myself, but…” She shrugged, and the other crew leaders politely avoided her eyes. The Serpentians were well known for their promiscuity—the Tyger would never accept her. “This sounds like the ancient Earth practice of throwing virgins to the tigers ” The mechanic scowled. “I don’t like it.” “Actually,” Captain Craig said. “We need not ask for a volunteer. I have one. She is one of your people, Interpreter Mra. Her name is Calla Fellura.” “Calla?” The Pangaean’s feathery green hair wafted up around her head in surprise. “But she is not sexually active. She has refused the advances of both male and female crewmates thus far.” “Perhaps she is one of those who prefer…coercion,” the Indigon said with a disdainful flare of his nostrils. The captain rubbed his hand over his reddening face. “Uh…no. She is actually a Tygean herself, so she understands the situation.” “Ah, one of his own kind. In that case, she would seem to be ideally suited for the purpose,” said the Indigon coolly. “I vote that we use her. Any dissenters?” The crew leaders looked at each other. No one made a negative motion, although Mra frowned, her hair curling anxiously around her neck. “I do wish to ascertain that my crew member is safe,” she insisted. “Fellura may be a Tygean, but she is a young one.” “I agree.” The captain nodded. “She has been awaiting our decision, and is ready file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (7 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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to enter the arboretum now. That is where Commander Jag is holed up. The holovideocom, please.” The team turned their attention to the center of the table as the Indigon pressed a button on the command console, and a hologram of the ship’s arboretum sprang to life. The owners of the space transport companies had found that crew members, especially those from the verdant planets, remained in much better spirits, and thus more productive on the long voyages into the cold outer reaches of space, if they had a shipboard retreat that simulated nature. The Orion’s arboretum was the size of a ballroom, built into the top deck of the huge ship, with a clear roof so that the constellations and moons could be seen at night, and the suns and planets during the day. Self-supporting, with recirculating water, and temperature and humidity control, it resembled a Pangaean rainforest. The soothing sounds of breezes rustling in the trees, the occasional birdcall, and the waterfall splashing into the pond filled the humid air. As they watched, a young woman stepped into the clearing by the pond. She carried a small duffle bag and wore the Orion’s signature grey flight suit with the symbol of her job, a hand held up in greeting. She was of medium height, with strawberry-blonde hair that waved about her head and shoulders, a fit, toned body, and the slightly golden skin and golden brown eyes that were peculiar to the Tygean race. Just now her face was pale with nerves, and her large, slightly slanted eyes darted about nervously. Another scream echoed through the quiet arboretum, and she braced herself visibly, dropping her duffel bag to wipe her palms on the legs of her flight suit. The crew leaders watched, fascinated, as the shrubbery behind her rustled violently, and then parted. Another cry, this one a deep warning snarl, and the file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (8 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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Tyger stepped into view behind her. The female crew leaders gasped. He was male rampant, in the glory of his prime. Tall, with broad shoulders, powerful arms and legs, his human body had undergone the enhancements of his Tyger mating shift. His handsome face, with slanting eyes and prominent brow, cheek and jawbones, was now catlike in its intensity and character. His pupils had narrowed and crystallized like those of a big cat, and his nose was slightly flattened, nostrils flared, lips narrowed and curved. He was man, and yet Tyger. The hair on his head was dark gold, short and slightly wavy. Now it was joined from head to toe in a fine golden dusting of hair that swirled sleekly over his golden skin, accentuating every powerful muscle. His huge hands, flexing at his sides, bore short, curving claws where his fingernails had been. He wore not a stitch of clothing. And from between his narrow hips rose an erect cock so impressive that even the Serpentian drew in a hiss of appreciation. The Tyger snarled again, a deep, guttural sound of command, his narrow lips drawing back to reveal lethal incisors. The young woman before him slowly dropped to her knees and bent her head in a posture of complete submission. Her hair swung forward to conceal her expression from the camera, but her hands were clenched into nervous fists at her sides. “All right, that’s enough,” the captain snapped. “Turn off the holocom link.” The hologram winked out, and the crew leaders sat for a moment, most of them blinking. The captain’s lean face was once again red. Someone cleared their throat. “Well,” the Serpentian said with wry humor, “at least we know one couple who will be having a good time tonight.” Mra tsked, her hair standing straight up with distaste. “That’s disgusting, Sirena. She is a brave young woman who is sacrificing herself for the well-being of her file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (9 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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ship and crew. We should be concerned for her. Captain, you will be maintaining surveillance for her safety?” “Yes, computer surveillance. It will alert us to any distress. We’ll go in if we have to, and sedate him with a dart.” She nodded. “Well, then. I presume we should all go back to our duties, and await your report.” “Yes, carry on. I’ll see you all at our normal starfall meeting.” The company rose and filtered out of the room, the doctor casting one regretful glance back over the top of his head at the holographic space. “Mating habits of the different species are so fascinating,” he murmured. The Serpentian hissed good-naturedly, flicking her forked tongue at him as she passed. “I could show you some really fascinating ones.” He tittered, his eye stalks waving. “Rascal—you know I am nearly two hundred years old. Now off with you, and torment the younger men of the crew.” “Yes-ss. I believe I will.” The male eyes shifted as one to watch her golden form undulate away, hips swaying.

In a small, dingy room high over the docking bays of Port Seattle, Earth, two young human males huddled before a large computer screen. With sallow skin, hair and clothing unkempt, they presented a sharp contrast to the two Pangaeans who stood behind them. Clad in expensive sportswear, their sleek skin and hair glowed with enough chlorophyll by-products to light the room with an eerie green file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (10 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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glow. “The tracking device shows that Pyl is in his shared berth on the Orion,” one of the Pangaeans said with satisfaction. “That means he made it through the physical inspection. They would never have let him on board if they even suspected.” “Yes, and if he had been caught removing the bomb, he would be in the isolation unit.” One of the young men scratched his blonde hair. His eyes glowed with the fervor of fanaticism. “So we’re on track. We wait until the Orion is too close to the asteroid belt to turn back, and then we make our demands.” “If they don’t agree to stop the mining of the fossil fuel deposits on Pangaea, we detonate the bomb, and destroy their navigation system,” added the other, with the pleasure of one repeating a favorite line. “We may have lost the eco-wars on Earth, but Pangaea is a second chance to show the capitalist-techno combines that we will never give up!” Behind them, the Pangaeans exchanged a secretive glance. “Yes,” one of them said smoothly. “We will reawaken the galaxy to the importance of being one with our environment, instead of raping it. With your help, we will win this time.” “Yeah!” The two Earthlings gave each other an exuberant high five, and one reached for his tube of energy drink, guzzling it and belching loudly. The Pangaeans retreated a short distance, distaste clear as their hair stood straight up on their heads. “We must be getting back to our office, before we are missed. You have everything you need here?” “Yeah, except bring some more of this WarpRev energy drink when you come back, okay?” The young man waggled his empty can over his head without turning from the computer. “This stuff is great—I hardly need to sleep.” “And some more of those Chlorochili chips—the dark green ones,” added the file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (11 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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other. He turned, but the Pangaeans were already gone. He frowned, then turned back to the computer. He leaned back in his chair to prop his feet on the table beside the computer, but lifted one hand to his mouth, gnawing on an already short, ragged nail. “Hey, Nels, those two ever sort of give you the heebie-jeebies?” “’Course they do.” Nels shrugged, clicking the controls. “They’re not from here, man. But they’re cool—they’re for the cause. Hey, you want to see if the spy cams are up on board the Orion? Pyl was supposed to tie into the vid-cam system.” The dark one sucked on his finger, now bleeding. “Sure.” A moment later the computer screen, a huge glowing square on the stand before them, divided itself into a neat grid, with a multitude of different views of the inside of the transport ship the Orion, bound for Bryght with a load of precious chlorodine ore, and 365 passengers. They both glanced without interest at the quiet views of passageways, dining hall, cargo bays, and engine room, and the flight-suited beings working, talking, and going about their duties. They were all capitalist pigs, and thus expendable. Then both their eyes widened on the view of the ship’s arboretum. “Whoa!” one of them breathed. “What is that?” “I don’t know! Bring that screen up bigger, dude.” The dark boy flicked the remote, and their mouths fell open as the screen filled with a view of the verdant arboretum. Between the heavy foliage growing around the bathroom could be seen a glimpse of the pool and the mossy clearing. As they watched, a large, naked man-beast prowled through the clearing, then turned and prowled back. Stopping, he threw back his head and screamed like a wild cat, his fangs and extended claws visible through the leaves. The audio feed on the spy-cam muted the volume of his cry, but even so, the file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (12 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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sound sent goose bumps racing over the two boys’ skin. “Whoa!” one breathed. “You think Pyl knows that’s on board?” “I dunno, man. We’re not supposed to communicate with him.” They both looked at each other, and then grinned guiltily. No sense in warning Pyl—he was a Pangaean, not one of their Earth dudes. He was planning to blow himself up if necessary, anyway, to take out the Orion. This could be cool. It was like a holo-vid game. Maybe the creature would, like, get out and take down some of the passengers. That would certainly enliven the hours while they waited for the climax of their endeavor. They popped open another energy drink, and sat back to watch.

Chapter Two

Calla Fellura, interpreter second class, Tygean, sank to her knees on the soft mossy floor of the arboretum and bowed her head to show submission to the male Tyger looming behind her. His deep snarl ran through her like an electric current, every cell of her body reverberating with fear, and yet, with something else—a file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (13 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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primitive feminine reply. This was a male of her kind, calling her to mate with him. A handsome, virile male she had been secretly watching and admiring for days. She had seen him the first day of the voyage, at crew briefing. Commander Jag had lounged with arrogant grace on the podium, his golden eyes under their heavy brows flickering over the crew below with seeming disinterest. She had known better—a Tyger always knew his crew down to the last cook’s helper. Interpreters, especially, were valued by crew leaders on the long voyages. Nearly everyone spoke the universal language, as well as their native tongues, but each planet’s culture had subtle differentiations of intonation and gesture that could cause misunderstandings, leading to shipboard quarrels, or breakdowns in trade negotiations. Interpreters looked for these differences in conversation, and guided the different parties to understanding. Calla had met Jag’s eyes, and then blushed with chagrin and embarrassment when his golden gaze flicked past her with no signal of interest. She was disappointed, but not overly surprised—she was not from one of the royal Tygean houses, as she had heard he was, and although she knew she was attractive, there were certainly flashier, more sexually experienced females aboard to catch his eyes. She had continued to admire him from afar, and found herself fantasizing about him at night in her narrow bunk, instead of accepting one of the sexual offers she had received from other shipmates. Shipboard romances were as common as shared meals, and since everyone was vaccinated against unwanted pregnancy and STDs, the often fleeting liaisons were an accepted part of life for those who made their living on the inter-galaxy runs. Voyages could last for months, and the space crews were a lusty lot. There were also licensed sexual companions on board for those who craved some sort of sexual variation. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (14 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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On Calla’s first voyage, a handsome young Tygean had wooed her into his bunk. She had given him her virginity, and enjoyed their two encounters, but sensed there must be something more than the gentle orgasms he had given her. After that, she had put him off. She had no great urge to further their liaison. Now, she wanted no one but the tall, handsome navigator with the piercing eyes and arrogantly carved face. Her sensual thoughts about him kept her awake at night, and left her flushed and restless. Something about him was awakening a side of her nature that she had explored only a little. When the captain sent a com message to the female Tygeans aboard, asking one of them to go to him, she had immediately volunteered, without allowing herself time to consider the consequences. She would be helping her ship, and her crewmates, she told herself. Now she realized with sick clarity that more than altruism had guided her—she had also acted on her intense attraction to him. O Tigress, what had she done? He didn’t care who she was—in the grip of his intense mating urges, any Tygean female would do. And she was committed now. He was not fully in control of himself—he was nearly mad with desire. Her breathing quick and shallow, she felt, rather than heard him approach her from behind. Heat radiated off his body as he came very close to her, filling his nostrils with her scent—learning about her, and searching for the scent of other males. He would find none—her first sexual encounter had been months ago. “You know what you have done?” he growled softly, but with a sharp edge to his deep voice, as if he held himself under a tenuous control. “You are in my lair, woman. You offer yourself to me?” She shuddered, his deep, commanding voice curling through her like a velvet whip. “Yes—I do,” she managed huskily. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (15 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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He snarled fiercely, and she flinched, gasping as she felt his hot breath on the back of her bowed neck. “Then accept me,” he snarled. The words vibrated in the tendons of her neck as his fangs scraped over the nape of her neck and sank into her skin, not breaking it, but holding her there for the mating act. Every cell in her body responded to the primitive hold, heat flooding through her. If she were not already on her knees, she would have fallen. His powerful hands closed over her shoulders and flexed. She felt the short, curving claws on the ends of his fingers. He raked them lightly down her arms, and her flight suit fell away, down her torso, leaving her bare to the waist. She instinctively covered her bare breasts with one arm. Another slash of his claws and she felt the air on her bare bottom, the soft fabric of her flight suit settling about her thighs. He had stripped her with two swift slashes of his dangerous claws, not even grazing her skin. He snarled again, the sound reverberating through her spine, into her skull. She felt the incredibly silky whorls of fur, the heat of his body on her bare back as he forced her forward, bending her over beneath him. Something huge and hard prodded between her ass cheeks, slid between her thighs, hot and silky smooth, jerking and quivering with need—his cock. Her breath squeezed in her throat and she fell forward as he demanded, digging her fingers into the soft, cool moss. It was true what they said about a shifted Tyger’s cock—he was huge! O Tigress, what if he tore her? She had used special ointment purchased from a little shop in the plaza in Lyon City to oil herself, but she was still afraid. She had hoped perhaps for a liaison with a normal-sized male when she bought the ointment—she had not been planning on this! He was growling unceasingly now, one of his huge hands sliding down her belly file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (16 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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and cupping her mons, his fingers probing into the slick folds of her labia. He grazed her clitoris, but she had no time to do more than jerk at the sensation because he was using his huge fingers, the claws carefully retracted, to part her. He shoved her thighs wide apart with his own, and began to work his cock urgently into her. He was huge and hot, and it felt as if he were trying to drive a spaceship into a tiny shuttle slot. She crouched there in his grasp, her bottom presented to him with her thighs wide apart, her face in the cool moss, his teeth working slightly on her neck, stinging. She was female to his male, in the totally vulnerable sexual position. She hoped wildly that he would not bite her and snap her spinal cord when he came, that she could stretch just a little more to take him, that it would be over soon! It stung inside now as well, verging on painful as he stretched her tight channel. He thrust deeper, forging his way into her vagina, shuddering with the intensity of his need. She gritted her teeth, knowing he could not stop now even if she cried out. O Tigress, she could not bear this terrible intimacy—she wanted to scream! She wanted to weep! It was not supposed to be this way—he was supposed to come to her with tyger-nip words, and coax and beguile her, face-to-face the first time. But then he flexed his powerful hips, and just as she felt him seated so deep inside her he was surely nudging her ribs, he shuddered deeply, and let out a great, growling snarl of release. Heat flooded deep inside her. She shivered with a kind of secret pleasure. Since she was not in mating shift herself, she could not become pregnant, but her body still reveled in receiving his seed. He relaxed over her, his heart thudding against her back. He was as hot as a furnace. Cats didn’t sweat, but he was exuding heat in waves. In the calmness of shock, she watched his big hand, braced before her face on the moss, flex in the file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (17 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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springy greenery, the short curving claws extending and then retracting. She felt his enormous presence still throbbing inside her. She felt a slow, rhythmic rumble roll through her, and realized that he was purring, a big cat sated, pleased…for the moment. His teeth released her neck, and she felt the hot, wet rasp of his tongue soothing the sore marks. It felt good. She arched her neck a little, inviting more of the caress. He gave it to her, lavishly, and then slowly, carefully pulled out of her. It was over—this time. She moved, but found herself held down with one large, powerful hand in the small of her back. He held her there, and she could feel him looking at her, the alley-bred bastard. “Let me go!” she demanded, wriggling in his grasp. She had done what was needed, now she wanted up. “In time,” he rumbled. “My time.” He sounded unbearably smug. She struggled again. She felt the rough swipe of his tongue on her shoulder, and down the valley of her spine, and then her eyes widened as it licked down between the full globes of her bare ass, and she gave a squeak of shock as she felt it where no other male had ever even put a hand. She tried to pull away, kicking at him. She had known he would want to groom her, but this— He ignored her protests, simply flipping her over onto her back, her open legs straddling his thighs. She lifted herself onto her elbows, starting to scoot back, but then froze as his purrs changed to a warning snarl, his lip curling back over his lengthened incisors. She glowered furiously up at him, and then simply stared as she took in his male beauty. He was a handsome man, she knew that, but in his Tyger shift he was male animal incarnate, completely unselfconscious, his face fierce and file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (18 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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sensual. He was a man, and yet a big cat. O Tigress, he was gorgeous. He was a splendid male animal, and he knew it. He was completely in control, and he knew it. He would have her again, whenever and however he wanted her. Realizing this, she felt feminine anger war with arousal. “I like the tyger-nip oil you used to anoint your pussy,” he said lazily. “It’s my favorite. It enhances your scent.” He smiled ferally, and her eyes widened as his tiger gaze traveled slowly down her bare torso, lingering on her full white breasts, her nipples so tightly furled they stood out in long peaks, her small waist and slanting hips, and then her mons, the small triangle of damp red-blonde curls not able to conceal her swollen labia. She blushed hotly as she realized that she was fully presented to him with her legs open over his thighs, and he was enjoying her like a prize. “I like the taste of nip, too,” he purred. He grasped her waist, and lifted her away from him enough so that he could bend his head to her. She watched in shocked fascination as he brushed his nose over her pubis, and sniffed her thoroughly, purring loudly with approval. His breath was hot on her skin. He lifted his head a little, shot her a heavy-lidded look, and curled out his lengthened tongue. Glory, it was long, with the roughened, sandpapery texture of a big cat’s. Watching her closely, he used it to lick up into her wet, swollen labia. She whimpered at the sweet shock of sensation, at having him perform such an intimate act while staring right into her eyes. The soft sound cut through the humid air, and she felt her toes curl, wishing she could just die of embarrassment and get it over with. His eyes narrowed with approval, and amusement, and holding her helpless gaze, he did it again, this time deeper. It teased and abraded her swollen flesh, and caused a deep, thrilling throb to begin where he caressed her so expertly. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (19 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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“Again,” he growled. “Sing to me, little female.” Calla felt another whimper build in her throat as she watched him stroke that wicked cat tongue clear up to her waiting, eager clitoris. Her hips tilted up to meet his caress, even invite it, and she did sing to him, a soft paean of slow, helpless whimpers that cut through the humid air as his tongue lashed her into a rising tide of pleasure. She came with an aching cry of delight, her pussy spasming deliciously under his mouth. She forced her heavy eyes open, still feeling little aftershocks of pleasure, to find him sitting back on his haunches, surveying her smugly. “You like that,” he purred. “Good. I will do it again, when you please me.” He rose lithely, standing over her. She had to tip back her head to meet his eyes, and she blushed all over again. He was the quintessential male, standing over his possession, having conquered. Her eyes fell to his cock, which now hung heavy and relaxed before his goldenfurred scrotum. Even quiescent he was incredibly impressive. That had fit inside her? No wonder she was still stinging, throbbing. “Stay close, little tyger-pussy. I’ll want you again soon.” He sauntered away, leaving her lying in the tattered ruins of her flight suit. “I am not your tyger-pussy,” she hissed after him. “My name is Calla.” He gave no sign that he heard her, but she knew he had. She did weep a little then. Just a few hot tears of humiliation and anger—how dare he just play with her, and make her come so easily, when she wanted to be a brave heroine, holding her essential self aloof from him, offering him only her body. She supposed that she wanted him to pay for his earlier lack of interest by being enthralled by her now. Silly of her. She swiped the tears from her face with one hand. No ordinary female could remain detached from a Tyger male. She was walking right into the file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (20 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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fire, and she had already gotten burned. He was enthralled by her, all right—by her willingness to mate with him. Any of the other Tygean females on board would have enraptured him just as easily. She made herself sit up and strip off the ruins of her flight suit from her legs. Her soft flight shoes she stuffed back into her duffle. There was no need for them in the arboretum. Wincing at the unaccustomed soreness in her sex, she rose to her feet. For now, she had to pee, and she wanted to wash. She picked up what was left of her flight suit, and took it with her.

In their hideout in Port Seattle, the two young terrorists sat transfixed before the screen. The trailing branches hid a great deal of what had just happened, but they had seen enough to know that the big male whatever-he-was had just ripped the clothes off the pretty young woman, and then proceeded to fuck her good. Right there in the open. And then he had flipped her over and gone down on her. She had liked it, too. Those had been some happy-girl noises she had been making. They looked at each other, and then away. “Whoa, Nels,” breathed the dark one. “That is some seriously hot stuff.” He took a drink, nearly choking on the spicy liquid. “You got it, Rat,” Nels said hoarsely. “Uh—wonder if they’re…like, gonna go at it again.” His friend, whose face was rather rat-like, raised his drink in a salute to the big screen. “Man, I hope so. I dunno what that guy is, but you’d pay plenty to download this kind of show for coin.” “Yeah. Hey, I know—let’s check out the crew list. It’ll tell where they’re all file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (21 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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from. He’s no Earth dude, that’s for sure.”

Calla was really irritated about the loss of her flight suit. He could have asked her to take it off. She hadn’t brought another in with her—all she had in her duffel were a few toilet articles, and some of her favorite sweet, chataulette. A girl could get through most anything with a supply of that. She had been told that food and drink would be sent in on a regular basis, and she could use the tiny com link implanted in her ear to communicate with the ship’s emergency techs if she needed to. She had also been warned to save that for an absolute necessity, as the Tyger would not take kindly to any intruders, even peaceful ones, and might harm them. She would simply have to deal with the situation as it developed. The bathroom was concealed in one of the huge faux rocks by the lovely pond, the door swinging open silently under her hand. The low lights glowed as she entered. She used the toilet, and then washed off in the small shower, letting the cool water run over her hot skin. Drying off, she opened the vial of tyger-nip oil and poured some into her palm. Standing in front of the mirror over the sink, she looked at her reflection. There was a hectic flush on her cheekbones, and her eyes were still a little languorous from her orgasm. She looked…pretty. She looked down at her bare body, her full breasts and her mons. He had seen her this way—seen her pubic hair damp and curling, seen the swollen pink flesh of her labia peeking out. She propped one bare foot on the sink, and watched as she smoothed the tygernip oil over the lips of her labia and up into her vagina. He had seen this too, her sex open to him. She shivered as she remembered his tyger tongue rasping where file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (22 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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her fingers, sleek with oil, lingered. Her own gentle touch felt wonderful—the oil was soothing, the scent instant aromatherapy to her Tygean senses. It was at once herbal and musky, with a hint of spice that went right to her head—and to his as well, she thought with a tiny smile. She touched her clitoris lightly, then more firmly as the sensation intrigued her. She blinked at the rush of sweet pleasure. O Tigress, that felt good. She watched her slender fingers working in her own glistening pink folds, and bit her lip, halfastonished at her own daring. She was…she was going to make herself come again, right here in front of the mirror. The tyger-nip oil, his intense stimulation of her sex, and the sheer naughtiness of watching herself in the mirror combined in a sweet, heady rush, and she came with a shiver of joy. She dropped her foot and hung onto the sink for a moment, taking a deep breath, and fighting a sudden urge to giggle—what was she doing? She had masturbated before, of course, and found it quite pleasurable, but only in the privacy of her own bed or shower. She leaned over to pick up her shredded flight suit. She might know that she would be having sex with the Tyger again, but she couldn’t just go around naked in front of him—she wasn’t comfortable that way. She tore two strips out of the soft, stretchy fabric, as wide as she could manage. One she tied over her breasts and the other around her hips, in a short sarong. There, that would suffice. The door swung violently open, and she jumped a little. The Tyger filled the doorway. His claws were flexed at his sides, his face hostile. She saw with alarm and awe that he was half-aroused already. Her face went hot as she imagined him opening the door a few moments ago and catching her stroking herself. “Hiding from me?” he growled. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (23 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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“No,” she said coolly, frowning at him. She was not accustomed to being treated like a possession. “I was washing.” He grunted, seeming to accept this. She knew that he might ordinarily be the most even tempered of men, but just now he was not in control of his emotions—his Tyger being was dictating strongly territorial behavior, and that included her, as his female of this season. He wanted her in sight. His gaze fell on her rudely fashioned garment. He scowled with displeasure and prowled over to her, not stopping until he had her crowded against the cool cerametal of the sink, her back to him. She shivered. He was so much bigger than she, his broad shoulders dwarfing hers as he looked over her head in the mirror. She looked very small and feminine in front of him. A part of her liked that very much. She began to wonder if she might have a streak of the submissive. His hand trailed lazily over her shoulder, and down the crevice of her cleavage to the fabric tied there. “No top. I like to see your pretty breasts. I want them bare to me.” And he raked one claw through the soft fabric. It fell from her body. He purred with approval, and reached around her to fill both huge hands with her breasts, weighing and squeezing them in his palms. She blushed, watching in the mirror as his golden-furred hands moved on her body, pinching her nipples up. His heavy claws framed their delicate peaks in primitive contrast. She wanted to scream at him, and shove him away. She wanted to bite him. She wanted to purr, and enjoy his touch. It felt wonderful, his hands sure, his skin hot and slightly calloused. But she remembered her mission—to placate him, soothe him back into doing his job. And she felt a purely feminine desire to wind him around her little finger. This was about sex—very well, she must use that. Deliberately, she leaned forward into his hands, bracing her hands on the sides of file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (24 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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the sink, and looked into his eyes in the mirror. She arched her back against him and as the little sarong rode up, rubbed her bare bottom against his groin. She felt his testicles, heavy and stiff, felt his cock lying heavy and rigid in the small of her back, felt him tense, and quiver with need. He growled deeply, his eyes falling nearly shut, his upper lip lifting to show his incisors, and then reached between them to shove the head of his cock between her legs. Bending his legs slightly, he came up under her, wedging her thighs apart with his, lifting her up onto the lip of the sink, and thrust slowly into her. She was sleek with the oil, and with their recent come, so she took him a little more easily. She felt a deep, thrumming excitement. He was so…huge, so sure of himself, so ready and able to possess every centimeter of what she offered, and then demand more, and make her want to give it. She rose on her tiptoes, gasping, as he came deep up inside her pussy, impaling her on his shaft, but then drawing back before the point of pain, until she wanted him there again and arched her back to take him back in. He grasped the edges of the sink, his arms framing hers, and thrust harder, faster, lifting her up with each powerful flex of his hips. He was growling deep in his chest again, louder and louder. Triumph swelled in her. In this she held as much power as he. But as she looked up into his hot, golden gaze in the mirror, she spread her legs wider, taking more of him, and then dropped her head forward, offering the nape of her neck for his teeth. He growled his approval and bit her firmly, his hot breath washing over her, his snarls of triumph in her ear. Now he was thrusting against a perfect spot inside of her. She heard herself making those slow, pleading whimpers again. He thudded against her, almost spanking her ass with the slap of his flesh against hers. His cock raking her exquisitely sensitive pussy was the most important thing in the entire galaxy, and file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (25 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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she spasmed helplessly around him, coming harder than she ever had before. His roar of triumph drowned out her high keen of delight, echoing through the small stone room as he flooded her with his seed. She fell forward onto her braced arms, weak with the physical languor of her third orgasm in less than an hour. When she could open her eyes, she lifted her bowed head enough to see that he had gouged deep furrows in the cerametal of the sink bowl. She shivered, feeling an aftershock of pleasure as her body tightened around him inside her. She was glowing with perspiration, so relaxed she could hardly stand up. He was a hot, silken bulwark around her, cradling her in his arms, holding her up with his cock inside her. She wanted to keep him there, in this position of exquisite vulnerability, perhaps forever. He grunted, and then pulled slowly out of her. She felt every inch drawing out. His come trickled down her leg, hot and wet. He licked her shoulder, giving her a little squeeze, supporting her as they stood up. “My thanks for offering me your sweet tyger-pussy,” he purred in her ear, giving it a little nip. “I will satisfy you whenever you ask.” She elbowed him as hard as she could, a low growl of hot irritation in her throat. Arrogant alley cat! He had to open his mouth and spoil the glow of intimacy. He grinned lazily down at her, but then stopped her with a hand on her arm. He let her feel his claws. “Don’t wander too far away, tyger-pussy. If I have to hunt you down, I might hurt you, and I would never wish to do so. The moons are strong in me. Do you understand?” She lifted her chin proudly, meeting his eyes, but she knew better than to argue. “Yes.” He trailed one claw under it. “Good. You please me. Come, we’ll eat.” file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (26 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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“I want to wash again,” she snapped. Tigress, but men were dense! He might be willing to walk around with sticky semen on him, but she was not. She could feel wetness trickling down the inside of her thighs. “Food,” he insisted. “Please. I am dripping with your—your come.” “Mm, I suppose,” he grunted. “Don’t be long. You can keep the little sarong. It won’t get in my way.” He held her gaze long enough to remind her who was in charge, and then sauntered out. She went back into the shower, and washed off again. This time there were no tears, but she did make terrible faces at the mosaic designs in the shower wall. She was going to claw him when this was over. When she walked out of the bathroom, wearing only the tattered sarong, he was relaxing on the moss by the pool, lying on one elbow. He watched her walk toward him, and she felt her nipples peak under his gaze. There was something very erotic about being made to display her breasts to him. She knew men liked her breasts, they looked at them, and some had entire conversations with them, instead of her face. It was strangely exciting to have them bobbing loose for his enjoyment, her nipples thrusting out at him, instead of neatly confined, showing only as much as she chose. This sexuality was certainly a strange thing. Wanting to brain a male and yet submit to him at the same time. It made her feel at the mercy of her body, instead of in charge of it. She was completely at his mercy, too. Perhaps she liked that—she flinched inwardly from the thought. It was embarrassing to admit that she might discover submission to be very pleasurable. Perhaps it was his overwhelming sensuality. It certainly wasn’t his personality—she was discovering that the shift enhanced the overbearing male side of a Tyger’s nature, as well as his sexuality. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (27 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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He was wet from the pool, little spangles of water still clinging to him. She smelled something wonderful, and realized the scent was coming from a hamper that sat nearby. “There’s food,” he said. “Come and eat, tyger-pussy.” “Don’t call me that. My name is Calla.” “It’s a term of praise,” he growled, his eyes drooping, perhaps with a glint of humor. “Your pussy is the finest, tightest I’ve had in years. You should be pleased.” Pleased that she was one in a long line of conquests? Tigress, he was dense! Jealousy of all those other women burned in her middle. He lounged where he was, obviously expecting her to wait on him. She raised an eyebrow at him, but knelt to open the hamper, and shook out the leaf cloth onto the moss. There was an entire roasted vyre bird, freshly baked breads, and some of the strange but delicious vegetative hybrids developed to store and eat on space voyages. She realized he was watching her breasts swing as she bent over the food, and shook her hair forward. He growled his disapproval, but turned his attention to the vyre bird. He simply ripped off half of the bird and began to eat with hungry intensity. It seemed the vegetables were for her—he turned up his nose at them. He did condescend to eat some of the bread. He watched her eat, and snarled warningly when she pushed her plate away with meat still on it. “You will need your strength. Eat it.” “I cannot eat as much as you. I have had my fill.” He looked her over, and then shrugged, going back to his own meat. Buoyed by the small victory, Calla tried cautiously to bring up the subject of navigation. His eyes narrowed to dangerous slits, his lip curling up to reveal his lengthened file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (28 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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incisors in a way that raised the hair on the back of her neck. She closed her mouth, and quietly tucked the food back into the hamper. “Come and rest,” he said lazily, holding out his arm to her. She moved cautiously closer to him, and he pulled her into the long, hot curve of his body, his powerful arm around her waist, his hand heavy on her bare hip. He fondled her breasts, purred with pleasure, and then closed his eyes. Her head tucked under his chin, she listened as his breathing slowed almost immediately. She shifted a little, disposing herself along his warm male bulk. His scent, male and musky, filled her nostrils, making her want to purr with pleasure. He felt…wonderful, hard and tensile, covered with the fine whorls of fur like the finest silk under her fingers. She was going to have to try to talk to him about resuming his duties again, soon. Perhaps when he woke… She flushed as she realized that he was almost certainly going to have something else entirely on his mind when he awakened. She must be careful not to read any more into this desire to keep her close. After a moment she realized that she was stroking his broad chest. She found one of his small nipples, a satiny coin of flesh, and explored it delicately, then yawned, and let her eyes drift shut. She woke slowly, to the delicious sensation of being licked, very delicately, on the back of her knees. Her toes curled, even as her eyes flickered open, and she shifted, writhing a little onto her stomach on the cool, soft moss as the rasping tongue moved up to enjoy the silky globe of her ass cheek. She felt the little sarong fall away, and then she was being turned over and her eyes fell shut with sheer pleasure as his tongue furled over the stiffened peak of one of her nipples, abrading the tender puckered flesh with rough skill. Oh, she had just discovered the best thing about going bare-breasted. She liked him looking at her, but she loved the attentions of his tongue even more. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (29 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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The other breast received the same delicious sandpapering, while his big, rough hands caressed and fondled her, lifting her to his mouth, awakening every part of her body to his. That deep throbbing began in her pussy, awaiting his attention there. Soon he would take her… She lay still, content to let him arouse her, her eyes closed. Then she felt his touch roughen, and his claws dug slightly into her skin. She gasped, and her eyes flew open. He was looming over her, filling her vision, his glowing eyes narrowed dangerously. His claws retracted, and then emerged again, digging into her soft hips as he flexed them. Holding her gaze, he pushed her thighs open with his and nudged at her labia with his cock, sliding the hot shaft along her wet folds. Pleasure shot through her as his hot flesh raked her clitoris. “Do you want my cock, tyger-pussy?” he crooned, his voice a deep rasp of sound. She caught her breath as he slid against her again, her hips flexing up to meet him, her thighs opening further in helpless invitation. “Yes!” His eyes slitted, and he smiled—not a nice smile, but the baring of a tyger’s teeth in triumph. “Good. Then come and take it.” And he rolled onto his back on the moss, his cock thrusting up from his loins, a challenge, a temptation. She leaned up on her elbow, piqued. She had expected him to take her, with nothing more required on her part. He smirked at her, and reached down to stroke the silken length of his shaft, purring deep in his throat. She glowered at him as her pussy contracted with answering need. Oh, what she would give to get up and walk away from him! But she was here to service him—and the guilty part of her was happy about that, a weak melting deep inside file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (30 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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her at the idea of being made to actively participate in her own taking. She rolled onto her hands and knees, and crawled to him. She lifted one leg over him, straddled him. Then, as he crooked one arm under his head, watching her with obvious enjoyment, she took him in her hand. His cock jerked at her touch, a deep rumble of pleasure in his chest as she closed her fingers around him. He was so silky she had to stroke him a few times, and so big her fingers barely met around his shaft. She looked at him uncertainly. She had seen holo-video of this, but her other two sexual encounters had been quite traditional. “Ah, never ridden the tyger?” He looked pleased. “I’ll teach you how I like it. Lift up.” She rose up a little, and he guided the broad tip of his cock into the folds of her labia, petting her as he showed her how to sink down onto him. He tipped up her chin with his claws. “Look at me as you take me,” he commanded. Then he smiled as she blushed, her eyes holding his as she flexed her hips, working her way down onto him. He leaned back to watch their bodies joining, his pupils contracting as her flushed pink folds accepted him little by little, up and down, his shaft glistening with her arousal as she grew wetter with excitement. “Now ride me. Ride me hard.” He held her with his hands on her hips as she rode up and down on his shaft, pleasuring them both. He grew more and more rigid, his claws digging into her ass cheeks, his hips flexing up to meet her, his growls louder and louder, until she dug her own short fingernails into his chest in a nearly unbearable implosion of pleasure, feeling the sting of his claws and the hot flood of his come blend with her own orgasm. Afterward, she sat, braced on her arms, and let her head fall back, breathing hard, file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (31 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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awash in pleasure, simply enjoying possessing his cock, the instrument of her ecstasy. He sat up under her, his hands slid up her back in a rough massage, and he began to suckle her with lazy enjoyment. She crooned with pleasure at the sight of his beautiful male head at her breast, while the pull of his mouth on her nipples sent pleasure shooting through her. “I scratched you,” he growled. “Let me lick it better, sweet tyger-pussy.” He laid her down on the moss on her belly, and licked the stinging marks on her ass. “All better,” she murmured. “Oh, not yet.” His tongue slicked between her ass cheeks, into that ticklish, forbidden territory. Her eyes opened wide, and she reached back to push at him with her hand, protesting. His claws dug into her skin, holding her still. “Mine,” he snarled softly. “All…mine.” He continued with his grooming, and she found that even with a blush of pure embarrassment heating her face and chest, her body, sensitized by intercourse, was extremely pleased by his attentions. She felt her hips flexing in his hands, her back arching as his rough tongue laved her ass. Then something else prodded at her, and she realized he was probing a fingertip into her ass. “No,” she gasped. That was too much! He growled again and bit her warningly on her ass cheek. She bit her lip as she felt his finger working very gently into the tight opening, tickling, irritating…intriguing. She wanted…she wanted exactly what she got, which was him turning her onto her back, her thighs wide open to him, one of her legs draped over his shoulder as he lay between them. Her pussy was throbbing with need again, even with the soreness of his recent possession. “Tyger-pussy…” he growled in a soft demand. She looked at him. He turned his file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (32 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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head, holding her gaze. Kissing the inside of her thigh, he moved his hand just enough to remind her, as if she could forget, that she was impaled on his finger. “Yes?” he rasped, his pupils contracting, his nostrils flared tautly. She bit her lip, and glowered at him. If only what he was doing didn’t make her want him again. “Yes!” He purred deeply, bent his head to her, and pressed another kiss to the inside of her thigh. Then his tongue raked lavishly up over her labia, still glistening with their mingled come. She moaned with delight. “Yes, what?” “Yes, I—I want you to touch me that way,” she said, and then she did kick at him, in a sudden fury at his demand for surrender, and her willingness to give it. He caught her easily in his big hand, and held her down, smiling savagely at her. She hit at him, and he pinned her leg with his arm, and caught both her hands in his and held her there, his golden eyes holding hers in a grip even firmer than that of his body. “Alley-cat bastard!” she hissed at him. “Turn me loose! I’ll—” “You’ll sing for me, sweet kitty mine.” He flexed his claws, letting her feel the sting in her tender skin, and watching smugly as she caught her breath with pleasure at being held so for his delectation, at being so desired by this gorgeous male animal. “Lay your arms back,” he instructed, and let her hands go. She did, flexing her fingers into the soft cool moss instead of his hair. He bent his head to her, and his tongue raked again, harder, up inside her, and swirling over her swollen clitoris, while he held her prisoner with one importunate finger only. She could have pulled away at any time. When she was whimpering helplessly, lifting herself up to his tongue, and file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (33 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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moving her hips to invite the flexion of his finger inside her ass, she felt the sting of his claws, and she came with a helpless keen of ecstasy, riding the sweet toils of his tongue and his hands into a long, long orgasm. It was so utterly sweet to give in to him, and be rewarded for letting him do exactly as he wished. She felt him purring as he finished with her, felt him gather her close, and fell limply onto his chest, using her last bit of strength to wind her arms about his neck. He was huge and hard, muscle and heat, all covered in silken fur, the most delicious male she could imagine holding in her arms, and rubbing herself against in thanks and praise. “It’s good when you surrender to me, isn’t it, little pussy?” he whispered into her ear, following the words with his tongue rasping the delicate shell. “Yes,” she groaned. He was right, even though she would no doubt regret admitting it. He carried her into the pond, and the cool water washed up around her, lapping silkily at her skin. She floated, content, while he dove under the waterfall, tipping back his head to wash his face, and to drink. She swam into his beckoning arms. Cupping water in her hands, she washed him, learning the heated crevices of his body under the water, grooming him. Jag accepted her ministrations, a deep purr rumbling in his chest, then kissed her, careful with his powerful tongue, tangling the tip with hers, licking at her full lips. “I’ll have you here in the water, later.” They floated until she grew drowsy. Carrying her out, he dried her off. She fell asleep in his arms.

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Chapter Three

Tryon Jag moved a little, disposing himself more comfortably in the soft moss, and looked down at the sleeping woman draped over him. She was lovely, a quintessential Tygean with her strong but delicate frame and graceful curves. Her hair curled riotously about her head as it dried in the warm air, and her skin glowed soft golden tan, a rosy flush on her slanting cheekbones. He saw a red mark from one of his claws on her hip, and frowned. He would have to be more careful with her. The sight also afforded him a glow of sheer Tyger satisfaction, though. Only a true tyger-mate would allow him to use his claws on her, and even be sexually stimulated by it. He pulled her a little closer, enjoying her soft curves pillowed against his hard muscles. Whoever had sent her to him had made an excellent choice. He had noticed her at crew lineup that first day of the voyage. She had looked up at him with clear interest, then blushed shyly when he looked back. He had felt a quick surge of desire, but dismissed her as a possible sexual companion for the voyage—he didn’t like the emotional baggage that came with taking a younger file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (35 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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woman. They inevitably thought themselves in love, and cried and made demands even as a male’s interest was waning. But when Calla had offered herself here, he was in no position to refuse. He had to have a woman or go insane with the demands of his body, in thrall to the male moons of Bryght. And he was well pleased with her—she was lovely and she had spirit. Even though she was a Tygean, it would have been frightening to offer herself as the sex-mate of a big male like himself in mating shift. She had even fought him a little, daring his anger. Her surrender had been sweet as jaguari honey. He purred softly, recalling how she had allowed him every liberty he demanded, and even crawled to him, pouting so prettily, to ride him. She enjoyed being mastered. And that was very, very good, because it enhanced his own ferocious pleasure twofold to have a spirited female surrender to him, and take pleasure in it. Now that he had her sexually bonded to him he could relax, knowing that she would be within reach, ready whenever his hunger swelled. This was his tenth shift, as he was in his thirties, although it was the first time he had been caught off-planet. Always before he had been able to den up with a willing female and do nothing but mate and sleep and eat. His chosen females had always left with smiles of satiation on their pretty faces, and reluctance in their footsteps. He was sure Calla would be no different. He stretched lazily, enjoying the heightened cat senses of his shift. He could smell every plant in the arboretum, the water in the pool, every food still in the hamper, and every nuance of her body, from the herbal scent of her shampoo, to the heady musk of her pussy mingled with the tyger-nip oil, and his semen that lingered inside her. There was nothing like the scent of his come on a favored female, nothing like the scent of her pussy on his fur. He could also smell the items in her small duffel, which lay discarded nearby. His file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (36 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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nostrils flared, enjoying the scent of chataulette, the rich creamy golden confection dear to Tygean adults. It had a slight bitter edge to its sweetness, and was a mild stimulant, but it also seemed to soothe females. Strange, but he had noticed that the females of every planet had a similar substance, from the glowing green chlorogyn of Pangaea, to the chocolate of Earth. Perhaps she would share some with him later. But now, he sighed. He had a job to do, the one he had signed on for, guiding the Orion to planet Bryght. It was time to communicate with the other crew leaders. The cat in him was still uppermost, and he felt no shame in his current situation. His Tyger needs had come first, now he would do his job. Bryght had once been isolated by the risks of navigating through its dangerous asteroid belts and past its several moons, all of which had their own gravitational pulls. Now it was a lucrative market for intergalactic trade. Tyger navigators were highly prized. The owners of the big shipping companies courted them, and put up with their quirks. This was one he had certainly not planned on subjecting them to, but it had happened, so everyone must deal with it. He reached up to his ear, and manipulated the tiny com link button there. “Captain,” he said quietly. “Commander Jag here.” The reply was immediate. “Jag, how are you? And how is the girl?” “Both fine,” Tryon drawled. “You picked a good mate for me. My thanks.” “I didn’t have much choice,” the captain replied, an edge to his normally mild voice. “Neither did I.” “I suppose not. Commander, we are three and a half days out of the Cattarus system. We’re starting to pick up some stray asteroids. The deflector shields are taking care of them, but we’d all feel more confident if you could resume your file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (37 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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duties.” Unspoken was the fact that if he did not, they would reach the dense asteroid belt, and certainly die there—unless they turned around, and made the long voyage back to Earth. That would be a very expensive decision, and one the captain would make only if he had to. “I am at your service, Captain,” Tryon said politely. “If you’ll open a passageway to the navigation room, I’ll take over.” The captain sighed. “You’re going to keep the arboretum to yourself.” “I need it—I can’t be cooped up in walls all day; it would drive me mad. I’ll be keeping the woman with me, of course.” “Of course. I, ah, need a visual of her. Commander Mra is worried about her.” Tryon pulled Calla’s leg a little higher over his cock, and slid his large hand down her ass, to cover her pussy. No one but he would be looking at it from now on. “Go ahead,” he said. He smiled slightly, knowing that the captain and probably the other crew leaders were now looking at a holographic image of the two of them, lying relaxed, naked and replete in the sylvan glade. Eat your hearts out, he thought, closing his eyes. A quick cat nap and he would go to work.

In one of the crew lavatories, the Pangaean Pyl shrugged his upper torso out of his tight flight suit, and took a deep breath as he looked down at his naked green body. This was going to hurt. He reached up under his lowest rib, where there was an ugly scar, puckered and deep green. He grasped it in his fingertips, and pulled, hard. He bit his lip to keep from crying out as the adhesive there slowly gave, opening the pocket of flesh file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (38 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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that had been surgically created in a small private clinic on Pangaea. He leaned back against the wall of the tiny lavatory, resting for a moment, before he reached in and took out the small greenish grey object that lay in the cavity. He pressed the adhesive back in place. All these old sports scars came in handy—the Orion’s doctors thought the scar under his ribs was the result of a nasty kick during a game of flex-ball, not the repository of an organic explosive powerful enough to destroy whatever computer hard drive on which he chose to place it. He had winced theatrically when they probed the scar, and they had been careful with him. Fools. It looked like a slightly overripe gremel, a Pangaean fruit with a sweet orange heart dear to the natives. Also popular on other planets, it was one of Pangaea’s main crop exports. The Orion carried a supply of them and, if found with the bomb, he could just play stupid and claim that he had gotten it from the ship’s stores, and how was he to know it was not a true gremel? He placed it carefully in the pocket of his flight suit, and reached out to flush the toilet. Important to act naturally. Come to think of it, he had to go, anyway. His nerves were shot from walking around with a bomb tucked under his ribs. Now he just had to secret the bomb where he wanted it, and wait. He sank onto the toilet and sighed, swiping at the hair coiling nervously around his neck. He would be glad when this was over. Bad enough to have this mission, he had to have the worse luck to be on a ship with a Tyger in shift. Ack, how he hated the sound of those giant cat screams echoing in his com link. If he weren’t wired into the com system with a spy link, he wouldn’t have to listen to them. But he didn’t quite have the courage to shut the link off. He was supposed to listen in on the crew leaders’ coms, and he was even more afraid of his handlers than he was of the Tyger. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (39 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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The Tyger woke the female, Calla, by rolling her gently onto her back, and thrusting into her slick, welcoming heat. She frowned and blinked up at him, but then a sleepy smile lit her lovely face, and her arms came up around his back as she tilted up her hips to make his way easier. O Tiger, but she was tight and hot! He licked her under the chin, growling with pleasure as he thrust rhythmically, harder and harder as she accepted more of him, and her legs lifted to lock around his back. Her breasts pillowed against his chest, her nipples spearing the soft fur, and her hips flexed up to meet his. “Your little tyger-pussy is the finest I have ever had,” he whispered roughly, licking her ear. “So tight I can’t believe you can take all of me.” She made that high whimper in her throat, and he felt the first little squeeze as his words aroused her further. Perhaps…yes, by the Great Tiger, it was true, what he had just told her. He felt his own orgasm begin to build, his scrotum sucking up tight and hot, the irresistible pressure damming up inside him. “Ahh, let me feel you milking out my come!” He snarled, beyond words now, and drove into her harder, grasping the silky globes of her ass in his huge hands to hold her just where he needed her, his claws digging in just a little as flesh slapped together, and heat built, and then burst in a glorious flood of his come deep inside her, his exquisite little tyger-mate. She keened her ecstasy, a high, sweet note, and he let out a great roar of pleasure as her tight sheath squeezed his cock in rhythm with his thrusts. Afterward he groomed her, showing his satisfaction with her. She arched her back like a kitten, submitting to his rough tongue in every wet, delicious crevice he cared to lap. He purred with deep satisfaction as he crawled up over her, tickling file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (40 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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her ear with the rough tip of his tongue. Perhaps he would keep her for a time as his tyger-pussy mistress, when the voyage was over. He owned a small but elegant apartment high over Lyonsgate, the principal port city of Bryght, which would be perfect for her, and convenient for him to visit when he was in the city. Now that she was sexually awakened, he would bet that the next rise of the female moons would cause her to shift. He could hardly wait. He would lock them into a private hillside retreat and feed and service her. He might die of the pleasure of playing stud to his little cat in heat, but if so, he would die a happy man. Like most Tyger females, she had a peppery temper, but he was very, very pleased to see that she had a bent for submission when it came to sex. He could tell, also, that he was the first to awaken her to this side of her nature. She was not sure she liked that about herself. If he knew females, she felt guilty about it, as well. But she had accepted everything he had demanded thus far, and been aroused by his mastery. He saw the way she unconsciously preened herself when he looked at her bare breasts, and her ass and pussy. He would bet that he could make her nearly come just by looking at her. It had been sheer tyger-nip putting his finger up into her tight little ass, and feeling her writhe with unwilling arousal, then flex her hips to demand more. He would teach her to do the same for him while she sucked his cock. He purred at the thought of her grooming him when she was in mating shift, licking him with her enhanced cat tongue. No female in the galaxy could suck a man’s cock like a Tyger female in shift. He really should start teaching her immediately. Now that the edge was off of his desperate drive to mate, he wanted to play. “Have you ever tasted a man’s come?” he growled softly, holding her chin up file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (41 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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with a lazy claw. Her pretty eyes widened, and she blushed, shaking her head. Ah, he had thought not. “Good,” he purred. “Mine will be the first, yes?” Her cheeks reddened, but she looked him in the eye. “Perhaps,” she said coolly. He raised a brow at her, watching as she blushed harder. When he was satisfied that they both knew she would surrender yet again, he licked her cheek affectionately. “You will take me that way, and you will enjoy every moment of it.” He levered himself to his feet, pulling her up with him, supporting her in the curve of his arm. “A swim, and then I need to go to the navigation room.” “All right. I’ll stay and—” “You’ll come with me,” he growled. “I’ll want you again soon.” She pushed at his arm, frowning a little. “At least let me wash before we go.” He released her, and she went to her duffel, and took out a tube of bio-soap. He watched her bend over, admiring the way her round ass and strong, curving thighs framed the pink lips of her pussy. He wondered when she would notice her sarong was gone, and if she would care anymore. She waded into the waterfall, and soaped her hair and body, rinsing off while he lazed in the water, watching the white suds stream down over the globes of her breasts, and the sleek lines of her belly, catching in the red blonde curls below. Accepting the tube of soap from her, he sniffed it cautiously, decided the mild herbal scent was not too feminine, and washed his hair and face. He shook himself hard afterward. It felt good to be clean, he was fastidious about that, but the cat in him hated having water dripping around his ears. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (42 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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He held out the soap to her, as she rose from rinsing her hair. “Come and wash the rest of me,” he invited. She narrowed her eyes at him, but she took the tube, and soaped him down, working the light lather over his torso, and then lower, over his flanks, his ass, and between his legs as he stood in the thigh-deep water. She knelt and cupped his heavy scrotum, massaging it gently. The sensation of her hands lathered with the soap was exquisite. He widened his stance, inviting more, and she looked up at him under her lashes, a tiny smile curving up her full lips, and slid the fingers of one hand up the crevice between his tightly muscled ass, working the slick lather, learning the sensitive puckers of his asshole, watching his face to see what he liked. He growled deep in his chest as he felt arousal begin to feather outward from her searching fingertips. Perhaps now was the time for that lesson. “More,” he commanded. “Slide one of those clever little fingers up inside me. Yes-ss, like that!” He felt the invasive probe of her finger, slick with soap, and deliberately flexed his ass downward, taking her touch a little deeper. He opened his eyes and looked down, smiling with ferocious pleasure at the sight of his cock rising up in a stark demand before her uplifted face. He cupped the back of her sleek head in his hand, urging her to him. “Take me in your mouth.” The sight of her soft pink mouth opening to take him inside, her hand holding his shaft as it bobbed and twitched with impatience, nearly made him come instantly. But he wanted to feel her sweet mouth taking him in, wanted to feel the delicate rake of her teeth, the eager, clumsy suction as he showed her how to take him in and out, in and out. She could only take a portion of his shaft, but the feel of her tongue working the file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (43 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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sensitive head, and her finger in his ass, her other hand fondling his scrotum, sent him swiftly over the edge. “Now, tyger-pussy,” he snarled. “Taste how you please me!” And he let his ecstasy explode, his hips working in tight little spasms as he surrendered to her mouth. Calla swallowed as much of his come as she possibly could. It was thick and slightly salty, pulsing into her mouth in hot spurts as she swallowed and swallowed. Over her head, he roared out his pleasure, and shuddered in her grasp, the sound settling down to a deep, rasping purr. He stroked her head, and she let him slide out of her mouth, leaning her head against his groin, and clasping his hard thighs in her hands. She licked her lips, and took a deep, shaky breath. O Tigress, that had been…well. She had imagined going down on a man, of course. But she had never thought that it would be so fulfilling, to pleasure a male this way. To kneel before him and service him with her hands and her mouth. The water lapped around her in silken counterpoint to the heat and power of his body. She felt his powerful hands grasp her under her arms, and he lifted her up out of the water, high onto his chest. His eyes were lambent, golden with pleasure. “Thank you, sweet tyger-lily,” he purred. “That was exquisite. Did I not tell you we would both enjoy it?” He licked her, across her swollen lips, and into her mouth, and kissed her deeply, tangling his tongue with hers, tasting his come in her mouth. Calla wound her arms around his neck, and kissed him back, a long, passionate kiss. She knew, really, why she had enjoyed it so much—because it was he, and no other. He carried her out of the water, and dried her off tenderly. They shared a drink of berry juice. He kissed her again, the taste of berries on his mouth. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (44 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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“Now,” he said lazily. “I need to get to work. Come.” Shocked, Calla hung back, digging her heels in to the soft moss as he pulled her toward the passageway that had opened while they slept. “No! I’m not going out of here without clothing!” He bared his teeth impatiently. “It is only to the navigation center, woman. There will be no one else there.” She twisted her wrist, trying to pull out of his huge hand. “I don’t care!” She scowled back at him. “I want my sarong back, at least.” His eyes narrowed to slits, and then he simply reached down and hoisted her up, throwing her over his shoulder. Calla let out a yowl as she found herself hanging high above the ground, his arm around her bare bottom holding her there. She kicked wildly, hitting him on the back with her fist, fury rising in her like a hot mist. “You—put—me—down!” she demanded, punctuating her words with her fists, and managing to twist her hips enough to thwack the side of his jaw with her outer thigh. His answer was a snarl of annoyance and a stinging smack on her bottom. “Be still, woman,” he growled, swinging her down. She stepped back from him, ready to do further battle, to find herself in a small room, all black gleaming hardware, and blinking lights. Before them, the vast reaches of outer space spread outside the huge window. She gave a swift, hunted look around, her arms covering herself, and saw that at least the onboard cameras were off. The Tyger sat down in the big chair before the complicated instrument panel and lifted her onto his lap. She tried to wriggle away, elbowing him. “I will sit over there,” she said, spying another chair in the corner. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (45 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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“Quiet,” he grunted, hauling her into the curve of his body, her legs draped over his. “I need to check our coordinates, and then I’ll want to be inside you again.” She narrowed her eyes dangerously. Here, in the navigation center? Not while she still breathed. It was one thing to mate in the arboretum. But this was a command center, with lights and gauges and mysterious beeps and hums all around them. Even the big chair was sleek and businesslike, with its black plant-leather. And he had gone too far, hauling her in here like a naughty child. He should understand that a female, smaller and more vulnerable than a male, needed her clothing to feel that she had some armor between her and the world. She crossed her arms, and sat stiffly on his lap as he worked the elegant remote device in his hand, causing all sorts of lights and sounds to react on the various screens before them. He hissed at some, purred in satisfaction as the lights and sounds assumed a sort of rhythm, and leaned back, stroking her absently. She shoved his hand away as it cupped her mons. She might have to be here, but she did not have to invite his caresses, or even allow them. She turned her head, scowling up at him, to find him not even looking at her, but watching his instruments. With a huff of disgust, she crossed her legs, too. His hand slipped back down her belly, and a low warning rumbled beneath her ear as she tried once again to push it away. He wedged his fingers between her thighs, cupping her, and then relaxed, manipulating his remote once again. Making sure his favorite toy was safe, she thought snidely. At least his arms around her were warm. It was cooler in here. After a time, her sense of humor asserted itself, and she pressed her lips together to hide a smile. Here she was, in the Nav Commander’s chair, wearing the commander himself like a G-string, her bare breasts peaking in the cool air. Not exactly how she had imagined making this voyage. Her fellow interpreters’ eyes would pop out if they could see her now. She file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (46 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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blushed at the thought, but it was erotic, the idea of others on the ship knowing that she was curled naked on the navigator’s lap, ready for him to take at any time. Perhaps here, after all… No! She was angry with him. He was a chauvinistic alley-bred jerk, and he was going to have to apologize first. She raised her chin, even as she snuggled a little deeper into the warmth of his body. With his revved metabolism, he continued to give off heat like an energy core. She looked out at the vastness of space spread before them and shivered a little. The view was incredible. Far ahead she could see the faint blue and white circle of Bryght. On the left, much nearer, loomed the Lyon Moon, a dark gold bulk gleaming with the sun’s reflected light, in full rise. On the right, further away, gleamed the other two male moons, Jaguari and Felinus. They were lighter shades of gold. “The moons are handsome tonight.” She didn’t realize she had spoken aloud until he purred his agreement, giving her a squeeze. “They are indeed. And thanks to you, they are not driving me mad.” Ahead of them a large asteroid came into view. It appeared to be floating toward the ship, but she knew the Orion was really approaching it. She tensed, her hand tightening on his arm. Her bare toes curled on top of his feet. She knew better than to question his skill, but she could not help being nervous at the sight of the lethally jagged edges of the huge hunk of rock and metal bearing down on them. “Wait,” he said calmly. The asteroid loomed nearer, but the ship dipped to the left, sailed smoothly past, and it was gone. “I’m programming the defense shields for the next few hours,” he said. “There are only two more asteroids in this alley. The Orion will slip around them. Then I’ll go to manual controls to take us through the first of the main belts.” file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (47 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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As he waited for the commands to take effect, Calla sat quietly, enjoying the sight of their home planet waiting quietly in the distance, the life-giving clouds swirling slowly over her temperate surface. Calla shivered a little, and he wrapped his arms more tightly about her. “How long have you been off-planet?” “Just a month,” she said cautiously. He wanted to know about her? A part of her was very pleased by this, but again she cautioned herself against reading too much into it. When this interlude was over, he would walk away from her without a backward glance. She must armor herself against it. “How many times have you been out?” “This voyage is only my third. I stayed on Earth for a furlough to take some new interpreter training. I hope my roommate hasn’t killed the plants in our apartment,” she added, frowning. She had been going to call him before she was summoned to this tryst. “He isn’t good with them.” “He?” The word was a snarl. She tilted her head back to look up at him, startled. He had a dangerous look in those tyger eyes. He was jealous! She refrained from rolling her eyes—just. “He would love to be here right now, taking my place,” she said wryly. “Renne and I have been friends since we were cubs—we’ve always known that he was gay.” He grunted, relaxing again, and lifted her hand to his face. Wordlessly, he showed her how he wanted her to stroke her fingers through his hair. It was silky and yet crisp, twining about her fingers as she massaged them through it. She sighed to herself. Men—now he wanted to be petted out of his bad humor. “What about you? How long have you been away?” He turned his head, enjoying her caress. “Six months out,” he said lazily. “My company, JagNav, recently won the file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (48 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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contract for the Lodestar Corporation. I took the controls on one of the first flights out to make sure everything went smoothly, and I’m using this flight to hop home from Earth. I’ll be glad to get home, and I intend to stay on Bryght for a few months. Do you?” She shrugged. “That depends.” If he wanted to know about her plans on Bryght, he could behave like a gentleman. His claws dug into her soft flesh just a little, and then retracted, and he slid his hand further between her legs. “It does, hmmm? What if you were asked to lift up, so…and turn around?” She was almost relieved by the return to sexual matters. This she understood about him. He needed a woman, and she was the one available. Beyond that, she was reluctant to think. Would he have any interest in her when they returned to Bryght? Did she really want him to? Was he the kind of man she wanted to have a day-to-day relationship with, or would it end with her screaming at him to stop trying to dominate her? “I would say no,” she snapped, lifting her chin at him. It was not easy to scold a very large, powerful male when she was sitting cuddled on his lap with his hand playing enticingly between her legs, but she would. “I do not appreciate being carried in here like your latest kill on a hunting trip, Commander Jag! And without any clothing.” “And stop poking me with that thing!” His cock, erect once again, twitched and prodded at her back. He gave a snort of laughter. “A Tyger would have to be dead not to be aroused by your exquisite ass on his lap,” he said. “And a handful of your wet, silky pussy.” He looked into her eyes as two of his file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (49 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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fingers delved easily into her vagina. She caught her breath, but continued to frown at him. He found her clitoris and began to ply it with his thumb. It felt absolutely delicious, and she hung onto her anger by a thread as he stroked her again and again, sweet strokes of pleasure that grew. Oh, she was going to come, and she did not want to, not when she was angry with him. She whimpered, in protest, in pleasure. He bent his head, and licked her ear, nipping at it. “My apologies for my rude behavior, sweet tyger-lily,” he growled softly in her ear. “Forgive me?” “Yes!” she gasped, and lifted against his fingers, coming with a shiver of delight. He held her until the small spasms had quieted, and then lifted her. Languorous with pleasure, she found herself astride his powerful thighs, his cock resting like a silken, hot iron against her belly. It reached past her slender waist. “What if you were asked to take the commander’s cock now?” She lifted up, bracing herself on his broad shoulders, and reached down to take him in hand, guiding the head of his cock between the lips of her labia. “You are in command,” she murmured, looking down into his eyes. Oh, how she loved to see that look in them—heavy lidded, hot with carnal intent, focused entirely on her. “Mmm,” he purred. “So wet for me, aren’t you, tyger-lily?” She made a shaken sound in her throat as she began to writhe her way down onto him. “I…have to be,” she managed. “You’re so big…I would never be able to take you otherwise.” “Does it hurt you? I can send for something—the doctor has various soothing unguents on board.” file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (50 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:35]

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“Perhaps for the next time.” She was fully impaled on him now, and he pulled her close, kissing her. “Don’t move, then,” he murmured. “Let’s just come this way.” He slid one huge hand between them, and found her swollen clitoris with one rough fingertip. Her nails dug into his shoulders. He smiled, watching her face as he reached the other hand back to fondle her bottom, one finger slipping deep into the damp crevice to tease her there. Then he kissed her, while he stroked her fore and aft, until she thought she would go wild with pleasure, moaning into his mouth, clutching at him. “Stay inside me,” she begged, biting at his chin, turning her face against his. “Don’t leave me!” He purred loudly, continuing his sweet torture. “You are the only female I’ve ever had in my nav station,” he told her wickedly. “And no doubt the only one to ever be fucked in this particular chair.” At his words she came, just like that, holding him inside her, and then felt him shudder deeply with pleasure as her pussy clasped him rhythmically, and felt the deep hot flood of his come at her core.

They spent the next three days and nights between the arboretum and the navigation room. Jag thought with glancing humor that he now enjoyed the ideal work environment—he had a tropical lair, delicious food when he wanted it, and a gorgeous, naked female, all a few feet away from his nav station. Of all of these, the female was the most problematic. By this time, he should be getting a bit tired of her, nearly ready to present her with an expensive bauble of some kind, and kiss her goodbye. He should have discovered that she had an irritating giggle, or that her tenacious arguments made him want to gag her. But file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (51 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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instead, he found that he enjoyed the feminine logic of the way her mind worked, even when it was incomprehensible to him as a male. He enjoyed the sound of her soft, husky voice, even when it was scolding him. Especially when it was catching breathlessly as she gave in to him. He looked for ways to make her smile, just to see the way her full lips curved up, and her pretty eyes sparkled. He was a skilled lover, and he always left his women satisfied, but with this one, he wanted to imprint himself on her, wanted to own her so thoroughly that she would never want another male. When he looked over at her, and found her watching him, awaiting his pleasure, he wanted to roar with triumph, warning every other male on the ship that this was his! A supply of aromatic ointment appeared with the food hamper, and he delighted in applying it to her pussy. It was a strong analgesic, as well as a mild stimulant, and he watched with fierce pleasure as it spread through her system. He knew what it felt like—a rush of prickling heat, followed by a powerful sexual need. “It is…too much,” she moaned. “It’s necessary,” the Tyger said soothingly, watching with approval as she writhed slightly around his ministering fingers. “You are so tight. You can barely take my cock as it is.” “I’ve only been with one other lover.” She gasped as he found the sweet spot up inside her silky depths and rubbed it. “Months ago. He was…just a boy, compared to you.” He growled, deep in his chest, his fingers flexing inside her. Rage flared at the thought of another touching her. Perhaps he would find the “boy” and rip his throat out. “How many times did he have you?” he growled, his claws biting her ass cheek. “Only…twice,” she managed, and then protested as he withdrew his fingers. He loomed over her, bearing her down into the moss by the pool. His cock was so file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (52 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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hard it was batting against his belly with need. “Then I will take you until you cannot remember his name, or his face,” he snarled. She clutched at him, pulling him to her. “I’ve already forgotten him!” she snapped. “For Tigress’s sake, shut up and take me!” He growled, biting back the sudden urge to laugh, even as he felt the renewed thrill of need, and thrust into her so hard that her head arched back, her mouth opening on a soundless cry of joy. She was so hot and slick and tight, and her slender legs wrapped around him, holding him just where he wanted to be. He came down into her arms, letting her softness cradle him as he thrust into her. “Yes!” she panted. “O Tigress, yes!” He snarled with triumph, and took her hard and fast, their bodies slapping together, until she screamed with pleasure. And he liked that sound best of all.

Pyl slipped from his bunk, and stood for a moment, listening. It was time to proceed with the next phase of the plan. His bunkmate slept on in the upper berth, his breathing even. Pyl checked that the bomb lay safe in the pocket of his flight suit. Then he glided from the room, and set off down the silent hallway. Most of the beings on board were diurnal, so the Orion was quiet, only a skeleton crew awake, and a few nocturnal passengers. It would be easier to make his way to the nav-com computer now than during the day. If stopped and questioned, he would say he had been awakened by cravings for gremel, and gone to find one. Then he had made a wrong turn, and wound up file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (53 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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outside the nav-com. He practiced looking embarrassed, his hair wafting forward around his face, and grateful to be rescued. As he had expected, he met only one guard strolling in the hallway, a lithe green Serpentian. He had chatted her up that evening at mess, and she smiled at him now, her tongue flickering in teasing invitation. He feigned a huge yawn, and then sighed with relief when she let him pass—he was much too nervous to become sexually aroused, even by one of these seductresses. Had she insisted on pulling him into an alcove, she would have quickly realized something was wrong. No unattached male in his right mind turned down a quickie from a Serpentian. The door to the nav-com was locked, of course, but his handlers had paid a tech within the manufacturing firm a huge sum for the code, and he quickly typed a command into his handheld remote, and the door swung open. Quick as a shadow, he slipped inside, planted the bomb firmly on top of the gently humming hard drive, and slipped back out, locking the door behind him. If all went as scheduled, his arrival and departure would be hidden by two small sessions of static on the video-com screens, which would look like magnetic interference from the passing moons of Bryght. Heady with relief, he sauntered back down the hall. This time his yawn was genuine. Now he could relax, perhaps sleep a little. His handlers would be making their anonymous, untraceable call to the captain soon, demanding the mining on Pangaea be stopped. He smiled vengefully as he thought of the panicked calls to the Orion’s parent company that would ensue, and the frantic communications with the galactic police, and even the mining companies on Pangaea. Of course, none of that would make any difference. The bomb would detonate itself in a few hours, and quickly do its work of enveloping the navigation hard file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (54 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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drive in a mess of slippery, stinking goo. And just as it was discovered, he would be stepping into an escape pod. By the time anyone else on board knew that they too should be heading for the emergency exits, it would be too late. He would sail away with their terrified faces lining the windows of the Orion behind him.

“Commander Jag, come in! Commander Jag, do you read me?” The Tyger woke, all his senses alert, at Captain Craig’s urgent voice in his ear. Calla lay draped on him like a sensual blanket, sleeping exhaustedly. He sat up, laying her carefully down in the moss. She made a protesting noise, and then quieted as he laid a hand on her hip. “Yes, what is it?” “I’m not sure,” the captain said. “It may be nothing. But Commander Navos has noticed a small anomaly in our course. His computations show that we should be a few degrees north/northeast at this time. You’d better have a look at your instruments. We’re in the nav center now.” “I’m on my way.” He rose, pausing briefly to snag Calla’s makeshift sarong from the bushes where he had hidden it, and tie it around his hips. If there were any females in the nav room, he needed their attention on business, not his genitals. He looked back at her, sleeping peacefully in the moss. She would be safe here—no one would dare enter the arboretum. He strode down the short passageway to the nav center. Only the captain and the Indigon stood before the navigation console. In the eerie lights of the console, their faces were grim. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (55 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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He grunted a greeting, and looked intently at the compass readings. “Four degrees off course now, Commander,” said the Indigon coldly. Jag snarled softly as he watched the instruments. The hair stood up on his neck and shoulders. “You are correct. And this is not my mistake, gentlemen. I did not set my instruments on these readings. We need to check the nav-com computer. There must be a malfunction.” “Damn it!” the captain said under his breath. “All right, just the three of us, first. Then we’ll see if we need the techs.” They strode across the quiet hallway. The captain pointed his remote at the navcom hatch but the Tyger stopped him. “Wait,” he growled. He sniffed the air. Someone had been there quite recently. He smelled the strong scent of digested plant matter—a Pangaean, male. And something else—a faint, foul excrescence was seeping from under the hatch to the nav-com chamber. “Something is wrong,” he snarled. “There is something rotten in there. We’d better put on the emergency equipment before we open the door.” Throughout the ship, the walls were lined at regular intervals with small cupboards containing emergency oxygen masks with enough oxygen to last until one could get to an escape pod. Jag yanked open the cupboard nearest them, his claws gouging the door off its frame. It thudded to the carpet as he grabbed one of the yellow bags inside. As he ripped it open, a protective face mask fell out, attached to a bag of oxygen. He thrust it onto his face, sliding the bag onto his shoulder. He waited as the other two men did the same. The captain nodded their readiness, and the Tyger opened the nav-com door. The three of them froze at the sight of what was left of the nav-com computer. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (56 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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The sleek black column was entirely covered in an oozing, writhing mass of foul green jelly, which hissed and bubbled as it made its way slowly down toward the floor. “A bio-bomb!” the captain gasped, his voice muffled by the oxygen mask. “How in the hell—?” “This computer was perfectly operational when it was checked at star fall,” said Navos grimly. “This bomb was just placed. Captain, we have a saboteur on board.” “See if it can be salvaged,” the captain snapped. He stepped back into the hallway, ripping off his oxygen mask to speak into his com link. “Crew leaders, this is an emergency! We’ve found a bio-bomb in the auto-nav hard drive. Each of you report to your areas, and do a full search. We need to know if there are any more of these on board. I want all computer techs to report to me immediately at the auto-nav. Repeat, all techs to the auto-navigation hard-drive!” “I do not believe they will be able to salvage much of the hard-drive,” Navos told Jag as they stared at the growing mass of bio-jelly. “But we must contain this obscenity. It will continue to destroy all hardware in its path if we do not.” He pressed one of a series of buttons just inside the door of the tiny room, and a low hissing noise began. They stepped outside, and listened as the extinguishers began to shoot neutralizing foam. The inert substance would fill the room, stopping the bio-bomb from working further. When the techs arrived, they would vacuum the hardened foam out. Then they would see if any of the hard drive could be salvaged. The three of them stripped off their oxygen masks, and Jag shook himself, his nostrils flaring in disgust at the foul smell clinging to his fur. He was filled with the fine heat of rage. Someone had dared to meddle with his navigation system. Someone was going to know his wrath. They had chosen the wrong crew leader file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (57 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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to rile. “Captain, the surveillance cameras show no activity around the nav-com,” came a perplexed voice in their ears. “No one has been in or out of that room all night. All I show is the guard walking by at midnight.” “Someone was here,” Jag growled. “A Pangaean. I can smell him.” The other two men looked at him, startled, but accepted his judgment. “He jammed the video-com link somehow,” Navos surmised. “It would be possible, if one had the codes.” “Does this mean he has a confederate on board?” the captain asked. “If he does, he will tell us,” the Tyger said, very quietly. “He will tell us anything we wish to know.” He turned his head, scenting the air for which way the Pangaean had gone when he left the auto-nav. “Jag? What are you planning?” the captain demanded. “We can send the Serpentian guards after the saboteur.” “Simple. I’m going hunting,” the Tyger purred. His claws were fully extended; his eyes alight with the savage joy of a big cat after unwary prey. “The guards will not be necessary.”

Pyl let out a tiny squeak of fear as he listened to their voices on the com link. O Great Gaia, the beast was after him! What had happened to the PlanetFirst demands that were supposed to be relayed to the Orion’s command by now? They should be preoccupied with that right now, not discovering the bomb already! Something had gone terribly wrong! He grabbed his duffel from his bunk and yanked open the door of his berth, not file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (58 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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caring that his bunk mate, Ehl, had awakened, and was staring at him with disbelief. “Pyl? What are you doing?” the other Pangaean asked, rubbing his eyes. “Have you gone fruity? It’s the middle of the night.” “Yes, and soon you’ll be sleeping the long sleep!” Pyl threw spitefully over his shoulder as he began to run down the hallway. Stupid grub! He was thinking quickly as he jogged along. The nearest escape hatch was on this level, but that might be where the Tyger would expect him to go. He would go up a level—that was it. If the creature was scenting him, he would confuse it by using the elevators. Then he would try to contact his handlers. They must be waiting for him. They must. The Tyger ripped open the door of the sleeping berth, and snarled hideously at the lone Pangaean cowering in his bunk. The small green male made a high, squeaking noise, his eyes huge. He held the thin sleeping blanket up to his chin, as if it could protect him from the huge beast looming over him. The Tyger flared his nostrils, sniffing him, and then huffed in negation. “Where is the other one?” he growled. “Your bunkmate!” The Pangaean tried to speak, could not, but managed to poke one trembling hand from the covers, pointing out into the hallway. As suddenly as he had appeared, the man-beast was gone.

Pyl dashed out of the elevator on the top floor as soon as it opened, and looked around him. There was an escape pod to his left, but a Serpentian guard stood nearby. He stared at Pyl suspiciously, his tongue flickering out in full alert. Pyl file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (59 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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knew he could smell fear from yards away with that tongue. “You there!” the guard called. “What are you up to? Why the hurry?” Pyl ducked the other way. The arboretum was just ahead. There would be no guards in there—it was where the Tyger beast had been holed up. He felt the natural horror of a small herbivore at entering the predator’s lair, but the Tyger was two floors below him. All he had to do was cross the arboretum, and use the escape pod in the outer wall—then he would be off ship, and free. “Hold up!” the guard called. Pyl squeaked as a flare charge zinged by his sleeve, and he dove through the door of the arboretum, slamming and locking it behind him. He sank against the wall, panting, his hair wrapping tightly around his neck. That had been close! He looked through the foliage at the open area by the pond, and saw a lovely nude woman sitting up, staring in his direction. She brushed the tousled hair from her face, as if he had awakened her. He blinked. He had forgotten about the female. Well, she looked harmless. He would just walk right by her. The Tyger stood in the elevator as it rose to the second floor. The Pangaean he was tracing had used this one, but now he would have to stop on each floor and discover on which one the little hairball had exited. He flexed his claws, growling. “Jag,” the captain’s voice said sharply in his ear. “We have a visual. The guard on level three saw the Pangaean entering the arboretum.” The Tyger’s lips curled back and he cocked his head, his fangs glittering in a soundless snarl of sheer rage as he pictured Calla sleeping unprotected on the moss. She was his! His to hold, his to protect. For daring to breach her shelter, the Pangaean was going die. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (60 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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He hit the button for the third level, and the elevator shot up again. “I’m on him,” he snarled. Calla woke with a start as the arboretum door slammed, and sat up quickly. She shoved the hair from her eyes and frowned into the shadows of the trees. She could see a green shape that did not belong. It moved, and she stared in amazement as a Pangaean carrying a duffle strode into the clearing. She instinctively began to curl up to hide her nudity, but then frowned, and shot to her feet, balanced lightly, ready to attack or defend, if necessary. “What are you doing here?” she demanded. Where was the Tyger? He would never have let him into the arboretum. She was not afraid for herself—she had some training in the martial arts, and Pangaeans were not known for being physical. This one carried no weapon, either. But if Jag were not here, something was going on. The fellow sneered, his long green eyes flicking over her. “Just passing through,” he said. “I don’t think so,” she said through her teeth, moving into an attack posture. Not only did she want to punch him for looking at her that way, she had to get him out of here. After she brought him down, she would make sure he left, before the Tyger returned, or there would be green blood spilled. She did not get to finish, because the concealed door swung open with a crash, and the air in the arboretum was cut by a low, chilling snarl. The Tyger had returned. The Pangaean froze, his eyes widening. The hair on his head shot straight out behind him, and he made a strange squeaking sound. “O Gaia! The beast,” he gasped. He turned and dashed headlong into the shrubbery past the bathroom, and Calla file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (61 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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heard his swift footsteps patter away, heard the swish of plants. Knowing the Tyger was near, she did not even try to stop him. There was no longer any need. Jag roared, and she whirled, eyes wide, just in time to see him flash past her, running so fast that she felt the wind of his passing. The look on his face chilled her blood, and froze the breath in her lungs. He was all predator, Tyger after his prey. He hurtled after the Pangaean, into the shrubbery. She knew the outcome was inevitable. The Tyger caught the Pangaean with his green hand outstretched to touch the button that would open the escape pod hatch. He lunged, catching the fellow’s flight suit in his claws, and jerked him back. Then he simply lifted him up in one mighty arm, and turned him, so the slender green man hung before him, looking down at him in utter terror. Jag tilted back his head, and snarled, showing all his teeth, his eyes narrowing to slits. The Pangaean pissed himself, squeaking in abject terror, his green face a sickly hue. “Why did you set the bomb in my navigation system?” the Tyger snarled. The fellow tried to speak, and could not. The Tyger regarded him with disgust. No courage at all. “And you entered my lair, you little worm. You looked upon my female. Just for that, I should kill you…slowly.” He considered the matter, and then reached out and pushed the button on the escape pod hatch. The door slid open. The small pod lay waiting, the curved seat with its gleaming instrument panel blinking and humming to life, ready to go. He turned the Pangaean in midair, so he could see it. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (62 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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“Tell me what I want to know, and here is your escape,” he offered. “Refuse, and…” He flexed his claws in the fellow’s suit, the curving tips digging into tender flesh. It felt good. The Pangaean arched in pain, gasping. “I—I am a member of…the PlanetFirst group,” he managed. “We—we protest the mining of chlorodine ore on our…planet. We want it stopped!” “And you thought to send a message by destroying the Orion,” the Tyger finished for him. “Yes! Well, actually, it—it was not supposed to be destroyed, if our demands were met! Just…just damaged.” The Pangaean essayed a sickly smile. “Well, you have failed,” the Tyger growled. “And I do not believe you—you detonated the bomb, fully intending to destroy the ship, and all who are on board.” The Pangaean gazed longingly at the escape pod. “Yes, I failed! So—so I shall tell the other PlanetFirsters—” He faltered. “Yes, so you shall tell them,” the Tyger repeated. He dropped the Pangaean sprawling into the pod, and stepped in after him. “But you won’t need your voice. Your blood will speak for you!” He struck savagely, his claws ripping the Pangaean’s throat open even as the fellow opened his mouth to scream. Dark green blood spurted. Again, and the neat flight suit split from throat to belly, and his green torso with it. More blood spurted, and then yellow guts oozed out as the slender body fell back across the seat, the face frozen in horror. The Tyger threw back his head and screamed, the hunter victorious. When the sound died away, he stepped back and hit the release button on the pod. The door slid closed, the inner door closed and sealed, and the pod floated away, bearing its file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (63 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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grisly burden. “Jag!” shouted the captain’s voice in his ear. “Damn it! I wanted to question him!” The Tyger flexed his shoulders, and turned to go back to his lair. “He entered my territory,” he rumbled. “Threatened my female, and my ship. I have dealt with him, as was my right.” As Jag stalked back into the clearing, Calla gasped at the sight of the green blood smearing his claws, and splattered across his broad chest. His face was terrible, still carved with the savagery of the kill. She started to go to him, but he warned her back with a low growl. “No! I will not soil you with his blood.” He stalked into the bathroom, and she heard the shower come on. It ran for a long time. She paced back and forth beside the pool. Everything had changed now. A terrible thing had happened, and although she did not yet understand why Jag had killed the Pangaean, she was sure he had had good reason. The vegan had clearly been up to something. On a more practical note, this crisis meant they were no longer isolated from the rest of the ship. There would be other officers coming into the arboretum, and guards. She needed clothing—now. She pressed the tiny button of the com link in her ear. “Commander Mra? This is Calla.” Within moments, two of the female Serpentian guards knocked softly on the door of the arboretum. One of them handed Calla a duffel as she entered. “You are well, Interpreter Fellura?” the other asked, scanning Calla for injury. “I am well,” she said, flushing a little. “I thank you for your kindness.” file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (64 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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“Commander Jag?” “He is…washing. May we have a little more time?” “Certainly. We will return when requested.” Calla took the duffel to the bathroom. She raised her hand to knock, but then opened the door, and slipped inside. The Tyger stood braced with his hands high on the walls of the shower stall, his head bowed. The water ran over him, splashing unheeded to the floor. Everything in her yearned to be with him. He was her mate, and she must go to him. She glided nearer, and when she was just outside, she spoke softly. “Let me join you.” He lifted his head slowly and looked at her. He was clean now, but his eyes still bore the wild glare of violence. His claws flexed slowly on the ceramstone walls. She saw that he was fully aroused, his cock thrusting into the streaming water. The Tyger was truly uppermost in him. He looked away, and she realized that he was not going to ask her to take him, after what had he had done. It was up to her this time. And she found that she very much wanted to offer him any comfort she could. She opened the low door, and slipped into the stream of warm water, reaching up to hold him. He trembled slightly under her hands, his muscles like iron. He opened his eyes, and looked down at her. His nostrils were flared, his jaw flexed. “I killed him, tyger-lily,” he rumbled. “You know this?” “I know you must have had a good reason,” she answered, looking into his eyes. “Let me hold you, Tyger.” He simply lifted her up, one huge hand under her bottom, his claws stinging her lightly, and thrust into her, seating himself deep inside her with one lunge. She locked her legs around his narrow hips, and her arms around his neck, pressing file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (65 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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little kisses to his face. He groaned her name, and began to thrust immediately, harder and harder, growling unceasingly deep in his chest. He was shaking in her grasp, his eyes closed, teeth bared in a snarl of desperate need. He kept one hand braced against the wall, and curled the other under her bottom in a tight fist. She knew he was protecting her from his claws, and her heart swelled with tenderness and the fierce desire to comfort and succor him. He climaxed with a roar that shook the walls of the shower stall, and then slowly fell to his knees, still holding her as he settled onto his haunches. He reached up to turn the water off and sighed deeply, resting his forehead against hers. “I have never killed before. I suppose I should feel regret. But I find I have none.” She stroked her fingers through his wet hair. “What was his crime?” “He was a filthy eco-terrorist. He wanted to bomb the Orion—destroy the ship and all on board—to make a point.” She growled in her throat, anger flaring. Her hands tightened in his hair. “Ow,” he grunted, his eyes softening with amusement. “Fierce little cat.” “A bomb—that is the most cowardly of all things!” she said fiercely. “For catching him, you will be a hero on Bryght!” He shrugged. “Not on Pangaea. There will be an intergalactic inquiry, I suppose.” “Then I will tell them how he threatened me as I lay defenseless in sleep.” She held his face in her palms. “And my brave Tyger was forced to protect me, and all his shipmates, from this scourge of the galaxy.” “Pretty words.” He licked her chin affectionately. “You would speak up for me?” “Of course.” A smile glinted in his eyes as he looked down at her. “I will let you know if I need a defense.” file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (66 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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He sighed deeply and lifted her to her feet. “I suppose we had better see about getting some clothing. I have work to do. That little rodent tampered with my nav system.” “I have already arranged clothing,” she said serenely. “Also the guards are waiting outside. They will corroborate what happened. Then you can get to work.” He gave her a look of surprise, and then admiration. Warmth glowed inside her, but she merely raised her eyebrows calmly at him. “You are not the only one with a com link, you know,” she said. As they dressed, Tryon briefly explained to her about the bio-bomb, leaving out the fact that he suspected it had been successful in destroying the auto-nav hard drive. If these were to be her last hours, he did not want her to spend them with her pretty face white with fear. Though he intended to see that they were not her last hours, or his. The thought of Calla dying was insupportable. And the Orion had some very skilled techs on board. If there was a way to patch into another hard-drive to power the auto-nav, they would find it. A few hours later, he and the other crew chiefs were grim-faced. The techs had found nothing to patch into. The volatile acids in the bio-bomb had done their work well, seeping down into every crevice opened up by the initial chemical explosion. The incredibly complex, artificial intelligence of the hard drive was so much scrap material. The crew chiefs sat around the console in the command center. Tryon paced the perimeter of the room restlessly. His soft suit pulled and chafed at him, and the sleek room seemed sterile, the discussion of his teammates irritatingly repetitive. The Orion had become a giant, floating space hazard. She was stationary now, but soon the pull of the moons would begin to work on her, and suck her straight into file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (67 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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a collision with the nearest asteroids. “Why don’t we have a tow ship run out and steer us in,” Ogg suggested. “It works around the docking bays. I know it’s a long shot, but it might be worth a try.” “We don’t have time,” Tryon said. “We’ll begin to drift as soon as the moons rise.” But something Ogg had said was pulling at his consciousness. It works around the docking bays… What else did they do around the docking bays that they did not try out here, because there was no need to? The manual drive system. In the old days of space travel, all ships had been piloted with manual as well as autopilot. It had simply been the most efficient way to steer the small ships on their short planet hops. Then the sophisticated auto-nav systems had evolved, to go with the ever bigger, faster space shuttles and ships. Some of the mammoth cargo ships now ran with a mere skeleton crew. One of the cargo captains swore he hadn’t put his hands to a single control on a quiet Earth-Pangaea run last month. With the armed guards, and sophisticated video and holo-cam surveillance systems on ships now, this was the first recorded instance of terrorists managing to penetrate the auto-nav system on a ship. “Captain,” he said abruptly. “I am returning to the navigation center. I will communicate with you shortly.”

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Chapter Four

In the navigation center, Jag paced for a time, staring at all the instruments, thinking, considering. In the front of the console, right where they could be reached and manipulated from the nav chair, raised two short posts, with hand grips on the ends. These were the manual control sticks. He was familiar with them, could manipulate them almost in his sleep. But he had only ever used them to ease a ship in and out of the docks, on arrival and departure. He sat in the nav chair and slid it forward, reaching out to grasp the handles. He felt, rather than heard Calla enter the room behind him. “Tryon? What is it?” she asked, her voice hushed. “I must decide whether I can do something that Tyger navigators and pilots did for hundreds of years,” he said slowly. “But that I have never done. Nor do I know anyone who has.” He explained the gravity of their situation to her. “They might be able to get a tow ship out to us in time,” he mused, looking out the window at the golden sliver of Felinus slowly rising on their right. “But maybe not. We are entering the heaviest asteroid concentration in the belts. And Felinus is rising fast. He’ll begin to tug on us in half an hour’s time.” He leaned back in the chair, and looked up at her. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (69 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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“So, do I tell them to let me pilot the ship myself?” he asked.

The two PlanetFirst earthlings watched, riveted as the short, but lethal battle played out on their computer screen. They winced as the Tyger lifted Pyl by the throat, went pale as the little Pangaean fell back into the escape pod, his life spilling out. Swallowed as the Tyger turned, and stalked back across the arboretum, splattered with green Pangaean blood. “Whoa!” The blond fell back in his chair. “That was…amazing. This guy is awesome!” “Well, he’s one of those Tygers, dude. They’re like, naturals at this.” Rat shook his head. “Poor old Pyl,” he said with vague sadness. Nels shrugged. “He was prob’ly gonna die one way or the other, man. He didn’t have a chance against this Tyger. Man, this guy could star in action holo-vids. Fighting, fucking, and flying, this dude can do it all.” He snickered, but his companion looked at him in mild dismay. “Hey, as good as he is, you don’t think he’ll be able to, like, steer the ship even without the navigation system, do you?” he asked uneasily. “Yeah, our demands won’t be met, man, if the Orion doesn’t crash.” Rat chewed his dirty thumbnail. “About that—I never heard anything on the spy-cam from the Pangaeans. No demands, nothing. What d’you think happened?” “You’re right! We should have heard something.” They stared at each other, as several puzzling anomalies in their dealings with the Pangaeans began to dawn on them. “They haven’t given us any money for a while.” file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (70 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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“We could never contact them—they always came here.” “They were too slick, man. Just too slick.” They fidgeted for a few moments, and then the blonde one slapped his knee. “I don’t like it, man. We’re outta here.” “Yeah,” Rat agreed. “We’ll pack up the computer stuff and disappear. Go underground.” They worked quickly. Rat gave the screen one last look before he shut down the hard drive. “You think the Tyger dude can save the Orion?” he asked again. “Nah! Man, no one can drive one of those big space hogs without the auto-nav. Hasn’t been done for a thousand years.” Shouldering their equipment, they melted out of the room, and into the shadows.

Calla’s face was pale, drained of the lovely rosy color it had gained from their sensual romp, but her eyes were fiercely determined as she gazed down at her lover. “Yes. You can do it,” she said. “I know you can. You are a powerful Tyger, with all of your senses attuned to the moons. You have to try it!” Jag raised her hand to his lips. He had already made his decision, but for some reason, he wanted her approval. With his other hand, he flicked the holo-link back on. “Captain, Commander Navos,” he said without taking his eyes from hers. “I can get us through to Bryght. I’ll use the manual pilot.” There was a chorus, a babble of protest from the other end of the com. Then it quieted abruptly, as the Indigon held up one long, narrow hand. He and Lyon faced each other on the holo-link. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (71 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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“I have heard of this being done, in the old days of space travel,” he said thoughtfully. “You have studied these tales, Commander?” “I don’t need to,” Tryon answered arrogantly. “I’m a Tyger. The knowledge of the moons of Bryght is bred in me. I’ve been piloting ships through these asteroid belts for over 10 years.” “That was with full auto-nav.” Jag was surprised the ice in the Indigon’s glacier blue eyes did not freeze the holo cam. Deliberately, the Tyger flexed his claws, and bared his fangs. “I am in full Tyger shift,” he growled. “I have a command of my senses that you can only imagine, and every one of them is attuned to the moons around us, and every other obstacle in our path.” The Indigon raised his brows, but he nodded. “We’ll do it,” Craig rapped out. “We have no choice. We’re already past the first moon, and well into the asteroid belt, and we’ve lost our window of opportunity on getting a tow ship. What do you need, Commander Jag?” “I need to be able to concentrate. Turn off all com systems,” Tryon ordered. “Anything that makes noise. All passengers must cease activities, as well. I don’t want even a recycolet to flush.” “Running silent,” the captain said with a wry twist of his mouth. “Sounds like one of Ogg’s holo-vids from the ancient Earth wars of the twentieth century. Very well, Commander Jag. You are in command of the ship. The fate of 365—er, 364 lives, as well as our cargo, rests in your hands. May God be with us.” “And may the Great Tiger be my co-pilot,” Tryon answered gravely. The captain nodded, and then straightened his shoulders. “All right,” he said. “Let’s go to an all ship holo-vid.” He looked into the camera. “Attention, all passengers and crew of the Orion. This is your captain. As you all file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (72 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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know by now, a terrorist attempt was made to sabotage our voyage, and prevent us from arriving safely on Bryght. The attempt failed, thanks to quick action on the part of our crew. The bomb has been contained, and the terrorist…neutralized. However, our navigation systems were compromised in the attack. With your cooperation, we will make it safely into port. Crew leaders will now order the shut-down of all com-systems, especially voice com. Passengers, find a safe, comfortable place, and stay there. Crew; await further orders from your unit commanders. You will all be notified as soon as it is safe to resume normal activities. That is all.” Tryon and Calla watched on the holocam grid as all over the huge ship the passengers and crew hunkered down in small groups. Some held each other, some merely stayed close, using universal sign to talk silently amongst themselves. Faces were grim, many afraid. There were tears in some eyes. One by one, the different systems went quiet, until only the sigh of the air systems could be heard. Jag leaned back in his chair, put his hands on the stick controls that protruded from the console, and closed his fists about them. “Going to manual, Captain,” he said quietly. “Very well.” He could feel it all—the pull of the first moon coming up on their hard right, the sharp pulsing push of the asteroids looming in the moonlit void of the night before them, their jagged black faces gleaming sinisterly. The slow but mighty pull of Bryght beyond them all, beckoning him home. And the faint, pleasant purr of the presence of his female, standing at his shoulder. The big ship shuddered, protesting the change from neutral to forward drive, and he tightened his hands on the controls. Then the Orion responded like a frisky but well-trained catamount-pony, surging forward, tilting to the left and skimming file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (73 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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over the surface of the first moon, the wing dipping under the first asteroid, then swinging up over the second before leveling out to slide into the long alley before the second moon, a dull gold crescent as it waned. “Mee-yah!” he growled in quiet jubilation. “Damned if I don’t think this will work, tiger-lily.” “It had better work,” she said, her voice trembling a little. “Or I am coming back to haunt you, and yowl under your window for the entire afterlife!” He grinned. “I’d rather have you yowling in my arms, as you did last time I took you.” She hissed, but then quieted abruptly as they swung rather close to the next asteroid, a particularly vicious jagged mass of black rock. He pulled hard on the control stick, and they lifted up and over at the last moment, so close that Tryon clenched his jaw, waiting to feel the scrape of the asteroid on the bottom of the ship. It never came, and through the next few hours, he continued to steer the great ship safely through the deadly obstacle course of the asteroid belt. Finally, they cleared the last one, and there was Bryght, and a clear course before them. He let out a huge breath and relaxed, his hands loose on the stick controls. He was exhausted. “Captain,” he said. “As you can see, we are through the asteroid belt. We are clear to planet.” “Nice work, Commander Jag,” the captain said jubilantly. “Let’s let everyone know.” In the next moment, Tryon’s words echoed through the ship. Pandemonium erupted, as crew and passengers alike let out whoops and cheers and howls of joy and relief from the terrible tension of the last hours. Tears fell, embraces were exchanged, and even the Indigon unbent enough to smile and nod his satisfaction. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (74 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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The Tyger grabbed Calla, pulled her onto his lap, and kissed her so thoroughly that she was breathless. She smiled glowingly at him, and kissed him again. “I knew you could do it,” she told him. “You were wonderful.” “Yes,” he agreed. “I was. And as soon as we dock, you can show me just how much you appreciate my superior skills. I’m locking the doors to this place, so we can have some privacy.”

They lay in the moss, sated and relaxed. She was lying on top of him, holding his quiescent cock still inside her, both of them reluctant to part. They had missed the huge celebration on the docks when the Orion arrived safely in port, the city having been alerted to the unusual situation. Emergency vehicles, the families of the crew and passengers had swarmed the docks, creating a hubbub unseen in Lyonsgate since the arrival last summer of the galaxy-wide star of action/romance holo-vids, Chaz Jaguari. Neither of them cared. Tryon knew he had done something unheard of in the annals of recent navigation, and he was looking forward to a certain amount of admiration and approval from his peers, family and friends. But for now he was more interested in enjoying the last glow of his mating time with his chosen female. Calla was thrilled to be alive, of course, and happy to be home. But she would have hidden, in any case, from the strobes of the holo-cams, and the curious eyes of the gawkers. She had no particular urge to be famous for being the female with whom the Tyger had commandeered a huge cruise ship’s arboretum. She was proud to be with him—there was no shame in being chosen as a shift mate, but usually a couple found a much more private venue. For now, she wanted to enjoy the last of their private time together. She was also file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (75 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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searching for the right, casual but sophisticated words to ask him if he would come to dinner at her apartment and meet Renne. And then maybe fly home the next weekend and meet her mother. As infuriating as he was, chauvinistic and arrogant, he also had a roguish sense of humor, he was tenderly protective of her, and as a lover…well. She could not imagine spending the rest of her life without him beside her. “It’s almost sunrise,” he said lazily, combing her hair gently with his claws. “Soon we should dress and disembark. I’m sure the gardeners are waiting to get in here.” “You will be able to do this?” she asked, rubbing her cheek affectionately on his chest. “You don’t want to disembark in just your fur, or perhaps my sarong? I know where you hid it.” He grinned lazily, giving her a mild swat on her bottom. “Minx. The moons are starting to wane. I can feel their grip lessening with every hour. I’ll shift back completely within the next day or so.” “Calla…I don’t want us to part.” She went very still. Her heart missed a beat, and then thumped very quickly. O Tigress, he was going to tell her that he, too, had strong feelings for her. Then her sweet bubble burst. “I have a little place in Lyonsgate, high over the city,” he went on. “You can see the sun set from there, and moon rise is beautiful. I’ll be with you whenever I can. I travel a great deal, but I’d like to know that you’d be there when I come home. You can shop, and decorate it any way you wish. Perhaps you’d like a new wardrobe to go with it.” She lifted her head, looking down at him. “You are asking me to come and live in a…sex lair?” she asked carefully. “I thought…you had an estate outside the city.” file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (76 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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He grunted, continuing to trail his fingers through her hair. “I do, but it’s the family home,” he said. “A great barracks of a place. One day I’ll have to marry, and fill it with cubs. But I’ve a few years yet to do as I wish. And what I wish is you, tyger-pussy.” He smiled at her, and her heart froze as she realized two things with sudden, crystal clarity. She had stupidly fallen headlong, tail over ears in love with this gorgeous, infuriating alpha male, and he…he wanted her to come and be his mistress, until he tired of her. She blinked, and then moved, levering herself up and off him. He held her, letting her go only when she pulled insistently at his hands. She was shaking, she realized with dim interest, and she felt cold suddenly. “Calla?” he growled, sitting up, his eyes searching her face. “What is it?” “I…don’t know what to say,” she managed. “I can’t answer you now. It’s too soon.” He gave a rasp of laughter, and ruffled her hair. “Not going to promise to move in with a male you’ve only seen in full shift? You show signs of great wisdom, tyger-lily. Very well, I won’t rush you. Now, come here. Perhaps I will have you one last time before we must go.” She stumbled to her feet. “I—I have to use the bathroom,” she mumbled, and hurried away. She didn’t cry. Not now. If she began, she didn’t think she would be able to stop, and she couldn’t bear for him to see her with her face red and swollen with tears. The thought of him looking at her with distaste or even pity was more than she could bear. All of it was more than she could bear. She needed to be off this ship and away from him. She wanted her tiny apartment, and her sunny little balcony, her pristine white bed. She wanted her mother, but since she was far away in the file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (77 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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provinces, she wanted Renne. He would make her tea and hold her hand. She showered quickly, and dressed in her clean flight suit. Reaching into her duffel, she withdrew the small bag of cosmetics she kept there. She smoothed lotion into her face, highlighted her eyes with shadow, tinted her lips with a little color. Then she brushed her hair and pulled it up and back into a smooth coil on her head, fastening it with a pair of silver sticks. Zipping her bag, she stared at herself in the mirror. She looked…lovely. A little pale, but her eyes bore the sensual shadows that the days and nights of intense pleasure had placed there. And she was armored by the feminine accoutrements that women had donned since time immemorial—makeup and style. To hell with Tryon Jag! She was going to do what all the sophisticated Tyger females did—walk away with a cool little smile. Her head high, she walked out of the bathroom.

Chapter Five

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realization that something had gone very wrong in his pleasant plans for himself and his little playmate. After listening to his offer to become his mistress, she had gone into that bathroom a tousled, thoroughly taken tyger-mate, and come out a remote, lovely statue in full dress uniform. Although she curved her lips when he looked at her, and answered when he spoke, none of it seemed to reach her eyes. They were shadowed, veiled by her heavy lashes. And she looked…fragile, somehow. After the ordeal they had been through, coupled with her intense introduction to mating, to see her like this made him deeply uneasy. He felt he should be able to fix it, but he had no idea how. He offered to take her to lunch at an exclusive little café where they could have a private garden room, but she shook her head, saying she wanted to get home. To see if her damned plants had survived, he supposed with savage irritation. After the way she had surrendered to him, now she seemed to wish nothing more than to be rid of him. Very well, if she was going to play it cool, so would he. Perhaps after a night in her lonely little bed, she would see how much sweeter the night when it was spent in the heat of his embrace. He put her into a private transport pod at the dock, and when she turned her face away at the last moment, so that his kiss landed on her cheek instead of her lips, he simply gave her a casual salute, a careless smile, and stepped back to let the pod carry her away. As he watched it lift into the air, his teeth bared in a soundless snarl. Women! He would never understand them.

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From a small sleek ship hovering between the moons of Bryght, a small group of Pangaeans watched as the Orion sailed slowly and safely into the docking bay on Bryght. “Great rotting gremels!” one of them snarled. “That was a spectacular failure!” He turned away from the holo-vid screen and scowled at the others on the command deck. Three of them watched nervously as his green hair whipped around his head, but one, a sleek, lovely female, rose to glide around the console. Her hair writhed, too, though not as wildly. “Yes, Rra, so much for ‘without the auto-nav, they will be as helpless as a beached starwhal,’” she said sarcastically. “I told you Pyl was a fool. He not only failed, he managed to get himself killed. Now we have one less tool in our arsenal.” Rra’s eyes narrowed, although he allowed her to approach him, and stand beside him. “We have enough tools, Lly, my sweet. We will destroy the Orion.” “How?” she said fretfully. “They will double their security now. We will not be able to get any more bio-bombs on board.” “There are other fragile points on a ship besides the navigation system. We will simply target another. And the next time we will succeed.” She looked up at him. His hair had returned to its former ordered state. Reassured, she smiled slowly, and her own hair settled down. “And the Orion is the flagship of that upstart Lodestar Company. Once she is gone, it will be a simple matter to destroy the other new ships they have in production.” He smiled back at her, his narrow face cool with intent. “And our company will once again have a monopoly on the Pangaea runs.” The other three Pangaeans relaxed, smiling as the mood of their commander file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (80 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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improved. “We still have the PlanetFirst group, also,” one of them piped up. “They are quite useful. They provided the bomb, and the surveillance system.” Commander Rra threw back his head and laughed. “Yes, we still have the PlanetFirsters,” he agreed. “Those fools, Earthlings and Pangaeans alike, do not even realize we are using them.” Lly smiled up at him. “Don’t you just love fanatics?” “They do have their uses.”

A few weeks later, Tryon Jag was still snarling at everyone who crossed his path. His friends were raising their brows, his employees were eyeing him very cautiously, and as for Calla—she had not returned any of his calls, had not been home when he knocked on the door of her apartment, high in a tier of lessexpensive rentals over the back bay of Lyonsgate, and had refused the huge bouquet of orange lilies he had sent to her by an exclusive florist. Even though he was fully shifted back to his normal state, and should have been comfortable once again in his life, he was not. Food did not taste as good, drink interested him not at all, and any woman who tried to get close to him met cool indifference. His huge bed was the one that felt empty, his house, inherited from his grandparents, and of which he was justly proud, felt like the empty barracks he had deemed it. He wondered uneasily how just one small female could have left such a huge hole in his life. The sex had been incredible, certainly. He had intended to continue that in any case. But what about the way he had enjoyed just looking at her, file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (81 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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watching the play of expression on her lovely face? What about the way she had stood staunchly by him through the dangers of the space voyage, believing in him, encouraging him when he held the fates of 364 beings and a priceless cargo in his hands? What about the way he found himself wanting to share little things with her throughout the day—to chuckle about something he found amusing? He even wanted to argue with her. He also wanted to share with her the success of the contract with the Orion’s parent company, Lodestar Industries. The Lodestar executives were ecstatic about the way he had brought the Orion safely into port, and had given him a fat bonus as well as his regular fee. He had accepted it with pleasure, and then found himself scowling with discontent as he left their offices. It just didn’t matter as much as it would have a few weeks ago. Finally he sought refuge with the two people who understood him best—his parents. His mother fed him, eyed him closely and sent him off for an after-dinner drink with his father. After the usual conversation about his business, his leisure pastimes, and the progress of the local catamount-pony polo team, his father regarded him with narrowed eyes. “So. Something is wrong, Try. What is it? A female, perhaps?’ Tryon grunted an assent, scowling into his snifter of golden jaguari-honey brandy. His father nodded. “A prospective bride, or the other sort of woman?” “The…other sort.” Tryon shifted his big shoulders uneasily. “But she won’t have me.” “Ah…would this be the young female with whom you mated on shipboard?” “Yes. And after all that, she refuses to be my mistress!” His father tsked in sympathy. “A regular slut, then. Wants to continue to have her pick of Tygers in shift.” file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (82 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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“No!” Tryon growled, scowling at his father. “I was her first shift mate. She’s had only one other male and he was just a boy.” “Well, then…no spirit, I suppose. Can’t face the lusty side of her nature.” “Ah…wrong again,” Tryon said huskily. “That’s not an issue.” He felt the heat rise in his cheeks, remembering the very lusty side of Calla’s nature. “Well, it’s too bad you are ashamed to bring her into society with you,” his father sighed. “These low-born women can be somewhat crude.” “Calla is a lady,” Tryon snapped. “She may not be well-born, but she is as far from crude as Mother is. She is…” He shook his head, realizing the impossibility of describing his tyger-lily to someone in words. After a time, he realized that his father was silent, and he looked up to find the older man regarding him with something like pity. “What?” Jostyn Jag sighed. “Tryon. You are not describing a mistress. You are describing a wife.” Tryon choked on his brandy, gasping as the fiery liquid went down the wrong way, and coughing convulsively. By the time he had recovered, he leaned his head back on the leather easy chair, and closed his eyes. “A wife,” he said weakly. He covered his eyes with his hand. “Scat!” “Yes,” his father murmured sadly. “I’m afraid the time comes to all of us unwary males, my son, when we realize that somehow, a particular female has inveigled her way past our defenses.” “A wife,” Tryon repeated numbly. “Mee-yarrgh! No wonder she was so hurt.” “Yes,” said his mother over his head. “You spent five days mating with an inexperienced girl, no doubt training her to respond to your every whim, you handsome creature. She, of course, thought you were going to ask her to betroth file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (83 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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herself to you. Stupid male!” He opened his eyes to find her scowling at him upside down, her lovely face bent over his. Then she dropped a kiss on his forehead. “You may give her your grandmother’s betrothal collar.” “Marowa!” his father said reprovingly. “First you eavesdrop, and now you are jumping ahead of the boy.” “Am I?” Tryon groaned. “No,” he admitted. “You are not. Thank you, Mother, Father. I have to return to the city now.” His mother curled up on the arm of his father’s easy chair, and they regarded him with identical looks of fond amusement. “Let us know how it goes,” his father said. “It will go splendidly,” his mother said serenely. “What female can resist my son?”

Tryon parked his sleek, racy glider in front of Calla’s apartment block, and got out. He climbed the steps to her door, rather than taking the elevator. He needed the physical outlet to get his brain pumping again. He was still reeling from his conversation with his parents. A wife. Calla, presiding over his dinner table, pouring him a drink of brandy in the evening, and conversing with his friends. Calla, there to listen to him when he brought home a business triumph, or a problem. Calla, there to laugh with him in that private way that couples had, in the midst of company. Calla, there every night in his huge bed, waiting for his tender commands. When he pictured her round and lush with his child, and found himself with a besotted smile on his face, he knew his fate file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (84 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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was sealed. He pounded on the door of her apartment with no real hope that anyone would answer. He would have to hire a private investigator to track her movements, and find out where she was hiding. Perhaps she had gone back to the provinces to visit her mother. The door of the apartment opened, and a slender, handsome man stood there. He wore an unfriendly expression on his face. Renne, the roommate. “Where is she?” Tryon asked. “She’s gone,” the other man said truculently. Tryon’s hackles rose. He had made his decision, accepted his fate. Now he wanted his bride. He loomed over the smaller man. “Tell me where she is,” he snarled. Renne paled, but he stood his ground. “No. Calla is my friend—she’s like a sister to me. She asked me not to tell you.” Tryon wanted to pick him up by his scrawny throat, but he backed off, shoving his hands in his pockets. “You’re a good friend to her,” he said grudgingly. “How is she?” “How the hell do you think she is?” Renne hissed, planting his hands on his slender hips. “You ripped her heart out and gave it back to her on a plate, you big alley-bred bastard! She is not some side dish for a royal house scion—Calla is the real deal. She deserves better than you offered her.” Tryon blinked at this colorful imagery, but he felt his cheeks redden as the accusations hit home. “You’re right,” he said quietly. “I made her the wrong offer. But now…I realize my mistake. I want her as my true mate. I can find her myself—and don’t think I won’t, but I can do it much faster with your help.” Renne’s blue eyes widened. He put one hand to his face, and then bit his lip. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (85 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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“You want to betroth her?” he asked in a hushed voice. “Oh, my. Very well, then. Listen, you’re going to have to hurry—she’s shipping out this evening! On one of those new cruise lines that planet-hop out to Pangaea and back. She got the head interpreter job.” Tryon’s blood froze. “She’s shipping out?” he croaked. “By the Great Tiger, man, do you realize what phase the female moons are in? They’ll be full tonight. And after Calla’s mating with me, she’s due for her first shift.” Calla’s friend put both hands to his head and let out a little scream, his eyes wide with horror. “O Tiger! That must be the other half of what’s been wrong with her! She’s been just wild. Hurry!” he cried. “It’s the Pandemion Cruise line—the Felix dock. Go, man, go!” Tryon dove into his sleek little cruiser, and hit the accelerator, lifting and turning even as the hatches were closing. “Call me!” Renne shrieked as he flew over. Tryon threw him a salute, grinning. Calla paced the soft moss of the PanLa’s small arboretum, lashing her tail. “Bring me a male,” she hissed into her com link, “Or I will inform your esteemed guests from Andromeda that the captain wants to fuck all their women, one by one, on the dinner table.” There was a startled silence on the other end of the com link, and then she heard the rumble of a voice in the background. The young captain spoke again. “Yes, er, we are working on that, Interpreter Fellura. Er, any special requirements?” “Yes,” she snarled. “He must be clean, and male, and Tygean! With dark hair,” she added, hissing to herself and flexing her claws as she thought of one file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (86 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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particular golden-haired male Tyger. “We’re sending someone in,” the captain said, relief clear in his voice. “He’s coming in now.” “Good. Then this conversation is over.” She turned to face the door, tail curling about her legs. She was going to mate with whatever lucky male walked through that door, and damn Tryon Jag to the cold, wet, slimy mines of Pangaea! On the crew command deck of the PanLa, before the door of the elevator that would take him up to the arboretum, Tryon began to unzip his flight suit. The crew leaders gaped at him. When he had walked onto the ship, and told the nearest crew member that he had come to help with the problem with their new interpreter, he had been escorted directly here. With grim triumph, he realized by the look of extreme relief on the woman’s face that he was right—Calla was in shift, and her new crewmates had no idea how to deal with a Tyger female in heat! The captain had kept Calla busy on the com-link while Jag explained the situation to the co-captain. He had been on his own com-phone in the glider as he took the fast lane across the city, and made two flying stops, first at the family bank vault, then a little shop on the upscale end of the city docks where the cruise lines docked. There he purchased a few very important items, including the duffel he now carried. He had not had time to stop by his home. “What are you doing?” one of the older women demanded as he shrugged his powerful torso out of the flight suit, and began to slide it down his hips. “Any clothing I wear in there, Interpreter Fellura will rip off of me,” he said dryly. “I happen to like this flight suit.” file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (87 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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He stuffed the rolled-up flight suit into the duffel and walked into the elevator, holding it before him as he turned to face them. He noticed that none of the women had looked away. He winked at them. “Have some food sent in later, please. Mating is hungry work.” One of the women, a green Serpentian, waggled her fingers at him. “Enjoy,” she said with a saucy flick of her forked tongue. “I intend to. That’s my future bride in there.” The captain shook his head. “You’re either a brave man, or a fool.” Tryon was grinning as he pushed the button to go up. The man spoke truer than he knew. He stepped into the arboretum, closed the door firmly behind him, and dropped the duffel. It contained new shaving things, a supply of the finest chataulette, and a lovely jeweled betrothal collar—his grandmother’s—that would drape the neck of one particular Tyger female. Then he stalked into the mossy open area. He didn’t have long to wait. The hair on the back of his neck stood up, even before his ears caught the sound of her chillingly soft growl. Turning his head, he saw a lithe female form prowling in the deep shadows of the foliage. “Hello, tyger-lily.” He heard a snarl of pure fury and his blood ran hot in answer. His cock stirred. That was his Calla—she was angry as hell at him, and he was going to be lucky to escape with a whole skin. He had the scars to show that he had been chosen as Tyger mate to other females in mating shift, and they had been experienced, more able to control their ferocious tempers. This tyger-kitten was going to need careful handling as she learned to deal with the flood of hormones and moon-pull raging inside her. He file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (88 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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was annoyed himself—she had some nerve, demanding a dark-haired male! She stepped into the light and he froze, transfixed by her beauty. Her hair curled about her head in a wild nimbus of red-gold, and the rest of her, from her lovely face to the tip of her toes, was covered in the finest silk fur imaginable, just a tracing of it, enhancing her golden skin, and every curve and hollow of her naked body. Lashing about her legs as she prowled toward him, flexing her delicate claws in rage, was a slender, beautiful, sexy tail. O Great Tiger, a tail! Not every Tyger female grew one when she shifted, and those who did were highly prized by Tyger males. He shuddered with delight, already feeling it stroking across his bare skin. She was his every fantasy embodied. And she was not a happy kitty. “You!” she spat furiously. “No-ooo! Tell them to send someone else! Anyone else!” His own anger rose, and he clenched his jaw, narrowing his eyes down at her. “Sorry, tyger-princess,” he said implacably. “I am your only choice.” “You lie,” she hissed, her eyes narrowing to slits, shooting sparks at him. “Males from every planet would fight to fuck a tiger female in heat!” “Yes, and they would die,” he growled through his teeth. “I am the only male who will ever have you! I will kill any other who tries.” She screamed, the sound rising to a register of fury that nearly deafened him, but at the same time excited him unbearably. His nipples tightened, his balls drew up tight, his cock flexing eagerly. “I do not belong to you!” She glared at him, her lovely eyes flashing with rage and the echo of pain. “I will not be your pussy on the side, while you lord around on Bryght with your fine wife and family! I will take every male I choose, when I choose!” file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (89 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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“Try it and every last one of them will die, by my claws,” he promised her very quietly. There was a lethal edge to the words. She heard it and recoiled, watching him carefully. He nodded grimly. They both remembered that he had killed for her, and that he would do it again. “I see we understand each other, princess,” he said gently. “So, what will it be for you? Me or no one?” He palmed his cock, offering it to her, knowing exactly how much she needed to be taken, knowing that the sight of it would drive her mad, but knowing that she had to surrender to him, or they would both lose. She screamed at him again, and slashed the air with her claws, but prowled forward, flaring her nostrils to take in his scent, drawn by needs more powerful than her will. He preened himself for her, flexing his muscles, and moved his hips slowly. His cock thrust out at her, enticing her. She had to break—had to accept him. She growled, a soft, longing sound, glided closer, and trailed her claws over his ass. He moaned at the light touch. “Please,” he groaned. “Please, tyger-pussy! Let me have you. I’ll make it so good for you, sweet one. You won’t regret choosing me.” “Regret!” she spat. “You’ve already shown me the taste of it! I gave you everything!” She slashed at him with her claws. He gasped as a white hot pain slashed across his flank. But then she gave a cry of distress, and he watched in a surge of joyous relief as she dropped to her knees before him and lapped the welling drops of blood she had drawn. The rasp of her tongue was healing, arousing. “You…” she growled, pain and desire mingled in the single syllable. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (90 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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“Yes,” he answered. He cradled her sweet head in his shaking hands, her silky hair twining around his fingers. “Me, for you, tyger-blossom. Only me.” She opened her mouth and put out her long, lithe cat tongue to lap up the welling drops of arousal on the head of his cock. Tryon thought he would pass out. He cried out helplessly at the delicate, rasping caress on his sensitive flesh, a deep guttural sound. He was rigid, shuddering with the need to come. She curled her tongue around his shaft, and purred, her hands sliding down to caress his rock-hard thighs. She gave him one last lick, and then, her eyes drooping with invitation, she turned her back on him, and dropped forward on her hands and knees on the moss, presenting herself to him. Her tail curled high over her back, and she arched her back, her thighs wide. “Take me then,” she said over her shoulder. “If you want me…” He fell to his knees, mesmerized by the sight of her gorgeous ass cheeks framing her pink pussy, wet with arousal, while that beautiful tail arched and lashed her back. He was deeply touched by her submissive posture, and by the hint of uncertainty in her cat eyes. She was blind to her own feline beauty, and too inexperienced to know that her shift so enhanced her strength that she could have easily knocked him to the ground, and overpowered him, taking charge of their sexual union. She needed to be taught, and reassured. And he was just the Tyger for the job. “Oh, Calla,” he promised deeply. “Oh, tyger-pussy…I’ll take you. You’re the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen, and I want you more than any female I’ve ever known.” “Hurry!” she snarled. “I can’t bear it—I need you…” “I know, sweet one,” he crooned. “I’m here. I’ve got you now. Let’s have you come this way first. I want to taste you again.” file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (91 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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Ah, even in her desperation he couldn’t resist teasing her with some delicious foreplay. She was so completely his that he knew she would let him set the pace, even now. Taking her hips in his hands, he crouched behind her and leaned close to lick the glistening drops of arousal from her labia. Her musky scent filled his nostrils, and she tasted of woman, faintly salty, absolutely heady. She made a helpless mrrowl of longing that was the sexiest thing he had ever heard, and he knew she hovered on the edge of her orgasm. He cupped her mons in his fingers, finding the small swollen bud of her clitoris and jerking it firmly. She screamed and he smiled savagely as he thrust two fingers deep within her pussy, feeling the frantic spasms of her hot, silky channel as she came. Ah, Great Tiger, to shove his cock into her sweetness again! He bit her ass cheek, hard, knowing that he could not hurt her, knowing the love bite would enhance, even prolong her orgasm. Then he rose onto his knees, and covered her. “Now,” he said. “Now, tyger-pussy. I’m going to take you the way we both need.” He positioned himself at her lovely portal, grasped her hips and thrust hard—ramming himself into her tight, slick heat, watching his shaft disappear in her, enveloped in his very own pocket of heaven. O Tiger, it was so good! He knew he could not hurt her. In fact, any attempt to be gentle would only drive her mad with impatience. Her tail lashed back and forth across his chest, stroking him like a velvet whip, as her hips began to flex helplessly in his hands, taking him on a wild ride. Calla felt his cock—at last! Where she desperately needed it to be, deep within her, so deep that she felt him lodged against her womb, so big she could barely move, impaled on him this way. She was at once enraged by his possession, and file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (92 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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exquisitely delighted by her own surrender to him. This was what she had been made for—to love this Tyger with her heart and with her body. His hands bit into her hips, and he withdrew, and thrust again, and again. She bucked wildly in his grasp, screaming as her body lost control, orgasming so hard that she nearly lost consciousness. It was terrifying, it was glorious. She fought him, trying to escape, trying to get nearer, wanting to climb inside his skin, and devour him. He dug his powerful hands into her hips, holding her for his powerful, rhythmic invasion. She heard his voice, deep and commanding, reassuring her, telling her that he had her, that he would hold her fast. She gave in to the sensation, and to him, letting the next wave take her as he thrust on and on. She felt his seed inside her, felt each hot spurt of his come with exquisite clarity and triumph, and let it fill her, marking her as his, his, his. She continued to move, gliding on his shaft, feeling the deep rhythm of a purr begin to roll through her as she came again, slowly, sweetly, her surrender complete. At last her body relaxed, and she laid her cheek in the cool moss, and purred louder, her eyes nearly closed, claws flexing rhythmically in the moss as he crouched over her, sweating and panting, his heart pounding along with hers, enclosing her in his male heat and strength, his cock still a throbbing presence inside her. He laid his head on her back, and rubbed his cheek on her. “My beautiful tyger-pussy,” he managed, groaning. “You nearly squeezed my cock off.” She smiled a totally feline smile, and flicked her tail, stroking his face with the sensitive tip. “Don’t wander too far away,” she purred. “I’ll want to squeeze it again soon.” He started to laugh, the deep rumble reverberating through her, hugging her to file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (93 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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him with his powerful arms. “I am your Tyger in sex-thrall,” he assured her. “The crew needs you to make this a successful tour. I am here to service your every need, and make that happen.” “Tell them I’ll consider it in a few hours,” she purred. “What about you? What do you need me for, Tryon Jag?” She held her breath, waiting for his answer. Her claws flexed into the soft moss. If he gave the wrong one, she was going to turn and slash him with them! If he gave the right one…well, she was still going to use her claws on him, but perhaps more gently. She would make sure he liked it. “I need you forever,” he said. “My one true tyger-mate.” Her heart swelled, and nearly burst. With joy and lust rolling through her, she felt him bite the back of her neck with a playful nip, and lick the fine, silky fur there, growling approvingly. “And as my little tyger-pussy,” he added goadingly. With a growl she turned on him and rolled him onto his back, crouching over him with her tail lashing. He merely smiled up at her, lazy with satisfaction, too handsome and appealing for his own good—her Tyger. “Just for that, I’m going to give you the licking you deserve,” she warned him. He shuddered in patent anticipation. “Oh, thank you, Great Tiger,” he said fervently. He bared his teeth at her. “You’d better lash me with your tail, too. I plan to be a very bad Tyger.” She did. And he was. He showed her how exquisitely sensitive she was in her shift, how he could make her come just by biting at her nipples while she arched back over his arm, his cock resting inside her. How just the teasing graze of his fingertips on her clitoris when she was ready to mate could make her cry out with joy, riding his hand to a swift orgasm, before file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (94 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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she leapt on him to demand his cock. How her enhanced cat tongue delighted both of them when she used it to flay his smooth skin, and explore the crevices of his big body. How he groaned with joy when she kissed him with it, long languorous kisses. How beautiful he found her, and how the sight of her tail, and the feel of it on his skin, made him swell with helpless lust. How delightful it was to be female to his male, letting him teach and guide her to enjoy the full range of her sensuality. He was as autocratic as ever, and she hissed at him when he raised his arrogant brow at her, and bade her to assume a submissive position when her shift was screaming at her to assume control, but he could make her melt with just a look, and he took her so thoroughly that she found herself purring every time, unable to believe the heady pleasure of his rewards. Sometimes she pouted, and snarled at him, lashing her tail. Then he would simply lounge back on the moss, and watch her, one heavy brow raised, and wait, his huge cock thrusting enticingly up at her. Her rampant desires always got the better of her, and she would soon find herself grooming him, and doing just as he asked, needing the satisfaction only he could give her. For his part, Tryon found he held his breath a time or two as he laid down the boudoir law to his little cat. He had a tyger by the tail, and he knew it. But her submission was so utterly sweet, for both of them. There was something about her that made him want to own her sexually. And he was just an arrogant alley bastard enough to try to convince her that this was the way it should be between them. If he could tame her now, he foresaw a long, happy lifetime together. As she crawled across the moss to him, where he lay sprawled comfortably after a file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (95 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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swim, he stroked his fingers through her silky hair, enjoying the sight of her heavy breasts hanging between her arms. “What, tyger-pussy?” he asked lazily. He knew what she wanted, but he loved to have her ask for it. She rubbed her head into his palm, her eyes heavy. “Take me,” she growled sweetly. His cock twitched, and began to swell as sweet desire tightened in his groin. “Mmm,” he agreed. “First, why don’t you let me have a taste of tyger-honey?” Her eyes flared, the pupils narrowing. “How?” He stroked his hand over her breast, cupping the sweet weight in his palm. “Well,” he considered. “Are you wet for me?” She reached one hand between her legs, having learned he liked to watch her touch herself, her eyes drooping with pleasure. He watched her closely, and then took her hand away before she could climax, bringing it to his lips, sucking her glistening fingers into his mouth. “Mmm,” he approved. “Nice and wet. Come up here.” He guided her to kneel over his face, pulling her down just enough so that he could tease her unmercifully. He looked his fill, blew soft puffs of air on her, listening to the growing intensity of her entreaties, then licked her lightly, raking his tongue up through her labia. Finally she reached back and dug her claws into his chest. He groaned, and attacked her swollen clitoris, sucking on it until she keened with delight, shivering against his mouth. Then he set her on his cock, and let her ride him to delicious oblivion. She sank onto his chest afterward, a silken blanket of sated kitten, purring loudly.

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Later he laid the jeweled collar around her neck. “Will you have me as your one true mate, Calla Fellura?” he asked her tenderly. “Will you join my family house, and bear my children, and honor and obey me?” She fingered the smooth, silky contours of the collar, feeling the huge glittering topaz and diamonds set in it. It was the most beautiful betrothal collar she had ever seen. She wanted to scream with savage joy. “Will you be true to me, and forsake all other females?” she asked him in return. “Will you honor me as well, and keep me close to your heart?” He kissed her hand, and smiled down at her, his eyes alight. “I will. I swear it on the moons of Bryght.” “I will,” she answered. “I, too, swear on the moons of our home.” She lifted her chin, and he snapped together the links on the collar that would never again leave her neck, through all the years of their lives together. He laid her down in the soft moss, and looked down at her with satisfaction blazing in his golden eyes. “Thank the Great Tiger for the slow customs agents on Earth,” he said. “Without them, who knows how long it might have been before I realized my tyger-mate was right before my eyes. I thought you too young and inexperienced for me.” She bared her fangs at him, even though she was already purring deeply in contentment. “Perhaps we should send them a thank-you hologram,” she murmured, rubbing her breasts against him. “I’m sure they don’t receive many.” He chuckled, thinking of the irritating experience of dealing with customs. “No, I’m sure they don’t.” But then he forgot about it as he pressed a kiss to the jeweled collar, already warmed by her fur-traced skin, and then kissed his way down to one tightly budded nipple, suckling it deeply into his mouth. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (97 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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She arched her back beneath him, wrapping her legs lithely around his hips, and she too, forgot about everything else but his touch. Port Seattle, Earth: NewsComLink The blonde announcer spoke sincerely, yet authoritatively, her holo-vid image clear as she stood on a dingy space dock. Behind her, rain fell in a fine mist. “Police today uncovered what looks like a regional headquarters of the ecoterrorist group, PlanetFirst, in an abandoned warehouse here on the Port Seattle space docks. Ownership of the warehouse is said to be a Pangaean shipping company, GreenStar Ltd. GreenStar representatives did not return holo-vid calls. “The terrorists have fled, and police continue to search for this dangerous group. Earlier this month the space ship Orion, flagship of Lodestar Transport, was targeted with a bio-bomb, thought to be the work of PlanetFirst. While they did succeed in destroying the ship’s auto-nav system, you may recall that the Orion was piloted to safety by the heroic actions of its Tygean navigator, Tryon Jag. “And now back to the station, for the weather report. It looks like our last forecast was right on target. Lots of rain here in Port Seattle.”

About Cathryn Cade

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Cathryn Cade has always looked up at the stars and imagined beings like us, and yet not like us, living in stellar splendor. To learn more please visit www.cathryncade.com. Mountain man or mountain lion? In his case-one and the same.

Rachel’s Totem © 2008 Marie Harte A Feral Attraction story. When Rachel arrives in Cougar Falls for a reading of her aunt’s will, she finds herself in a typical mountain town. Except that it’s not quite…typical. It’s full of the requisite, rough-hewn mountaineers, but these men seem more animal than man. And one of the rude strangers brings out the animal in her during an embarrassingly orgasmic-and scorching-sexual encounter in an alley. The fantastic tales that the townsfolk tell about the Ac-Taw, a clan of people who can shift into animals, are nothing but folklore. Or are they? Burke is stunned by his response to Rachel, and even more so when she innocently shows signs of possessing Ac-Taw blood. And this puts her in more danger than she knows, danger that only increases the urgency to mark her as his own. Rachel comes to realize she’s inherited much more than just property. She has also inherited a destiny to protect her newfound home. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20B...20Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (99 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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For the Ac-Taw aren’t just legend-they’re real. Warning, this title contains the following: graphic language, ménage a trois, growling, and hot, steamy sex between shifters in love :) Enjoy the following excerpt for Rachel’s Totem: “I’m not sure.” Gerald frowned and shook his head. “I’m sorry, Rachel. Not exactly polite to discuss other matters when you’re here for Charlotte’s will.” “No, that’s okay. I’m in no rush.” Well I am. Burke took a seat next to Rachel across from Gerald, who sat in a huge leather chair behind his desk. Let’s find that totem and get back to the important things in life. Like how I’m going to seduce Rachel before she turns all prickly again. “It’s just that my assistant, Julia, is always a rock, always here and helping. And something came up with her family in Washington so she had to leave yesterday—” “Gerald, can we please get on with this?” Burke sighed. Gerald cleared his throat and smiled apologetically. “Right, well. Before we begin, is there anything I can get you, Rachel? A glass of water, a soda, or maybe some coffee?” Rachel shook her head. “Thanks, but Burke’s right. Since we’re here, no sense putting it off any longer. You might as well tell me what Aunt Charlotte wanted done with her things.” “Of course.” Nice how the SOB completely ignored Burke, who could have used something to drink. In a steady drone, Gerald read through most of the generalities of the will. All of Charlotte’s personal possessions and money, investments and the like, went to Rachel. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20...0Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (100 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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“And as the only relative Charlotte truly cared about since your father passed away, you’ve inherited everything she considered dear to her. Including the house.” Shit. “The property, however…” Gerald paused, and Burke wanted to punch him for drawing this out. “The property is divided between you and the Chastells.” Gerald turned to Burke. “You’ve been wanting to buy from Charlotte forever. Well, Burke, now’s your chance. If Rachel decides to sell, everything on the property, to include the house and the material within it, becomes yours.” The totem, he meant but didn’t say. With the totem back in the hands of protectors who both understood and respected the ancient relic, peace would surely return to Cougar Falls. No more clan wars, and no more threats of strangers having a hold on something as valuable as the totem. Rachel stared at Gerald, her gaze narrowing with suspicion as it lit on Burke. “Are you saying Mr. Chastell wants my aunt’s property? And that she steadily refused to sell it?” Burke had a sudden ache in the pit of his belly, a feeling that often preceded something bad about to happen. “That’s what I’m saying.” Gerald stacked his papers and squared them. “Charlotte’s property and the Chastells’ border one another. They’ve always been friendly, don’t get me wrong. But it’s no secret Burke and his brothers want to reclaim the land that their great-great grandfather gave to one of your relatives so many years ago.” “I see.” She glared at Burke, and he stared back, confused. “What?” “Nothing,” she snapped. Turning back to Gerald, she pasted a sugary-sweet smile on her face. “So the house is mine, and the property is split how?” file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20...0Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (101 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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“It’s a bit complicated. I’ll drive you out to the property so I can show you both. Charlotte was very clear about this.” Gerald turned sharp eyes on Burke, as if willing him to listen. Burke, however, didn’t understand what the hell had crawled up Rachel’s ass. He couldn’t deny her fury made him hot, but he didn’t understand what he’d done wrong. Was she suddenly blaming him for their time together in the alley? It wasn’t as if he’d staged that fight with those knuckle-dragging wolf Shifters. And he sure as hell hadn’t planned to come in his jeans while dry-fucking her against a dirty brick wall. “Burke, I said I’ll drive Rachel out to the property now. Perhaps you’d care to follow, so I only have to do this once?” Burke nodded. “Fine, sure. Look, why don’t you go file your papers or something? I need a word with Rachel.” “Yes, Mr. Winter. I’d like a word with Mr. Chastell as well.” Rachel’s glare could have cut steel. Gerald glanced from Rachel to Burke and unsuccessfully masked a grin. “Fine. I’ll be waiting outside when you’re through.” Grabbing his papers and shoving them in his briefcase, he left the room, closing the door behind him. The minute he left, Rachel stood ramrod straight and glared down her sexy little nose at Burke. “You arrogant asshole.” “What’s your problem?” Burke honestly had no idea why she’d grown so upset. “You thought screwing me would sway me into selling my aunt’s place to you?” Burke scowled. “Now wait a minute, Rachel. I—” She leaned down and poked him in the chest, hard, stirring his instincts to fight back. Or perhaps, to turn their tussle into something more…intimate. “You wait a minute, Chastell. If you wanted to buy the place, all you had to do was ask. That scene in the alley was totally unnecessary. And not that good to boot.” file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20...0Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (102 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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He launched himself out of his chair to glare down at her. “Not that good, Miss Penny? First of all, that ‘scene’ in the alley, as you put it, was not staged. Second, that was anything but a real fuck. We had all our clothes on, for Christ’s sake. And third.” He paused to close what little distance remained between them. Staring directly into her eyes, nose to nose, he growled his last words. “The orgasm we shared was more than good, it was explosive. Lie to yourself if you want to, but you came hard, like a shot.” He licked his lips, unable to help how turned on she made him in her anger. “And I can still smell your come creaming your panties. Hell, right now you want nothing more than a hard fuck right on Gerald’s desk, isn’t that right?” Her pupils dilated with lust, and her scent filled the room. Pure, unadulterated sex. “Fuck. You.” “Sure thing, honey. You just name the time and place.” He watched in amazement as her pupils began to elongate. He could smell the familiar scent of feline musk flooding the room and waited, his breath held, as Rachel amazingly began to turn. Her hair began to rise as her body was covered in a field of static energy, and her teeth grew sharp as she hissed at him in anger. God, she made him burn. The mixture of mountain lion and woman was almost more than he could take. Glancing at Gerald’s desk, Burke figured he could have it cleared in one swipe of his arm. He’d bend her over the solid oak on her belly and yank those jeans and panties off her legs. Within seconds he’d lower his own clothes, just enough to spring his cock free before he’d shove it hard and deep into that honeyed, wet pussy. Rachel’s hands fisted into paws as she raised one arm as if to strike. Do it. Please, touch me and I swear I’ll mark you as one of mine in a heartbeat. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20...0Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (103 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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The choice, even unknowingly made, had to be hers. Gerald, damn his ass, chose that minute to knock at the door. “Hey, is everything all right in there?” Son of a bitch. Burke knew Gerald could smell the passion raging in the room, the scent of a female in heat overpowering enough to easily reach the lawyer outside the office. Rachel blinked, and that suddenly her shift vanished as if it had never been. She swayed and righted herself, still miffed enough not to want Burke’s touch. “Come near me again and I’ll geld you.” Sniffing, she turned on her heel and stalked out the door, nearly knocking over Gerald, who waited impatiently on the other side. Gerald watched Rachel go with amusement, his lips quirked in an aggravating smirk. “Not one word.” Burke stormed through the door, knocking Gerald into the wall as he passed, heading for the bathroom to finally clean up. “Not one fucking word.” Red-hot animal attraction.

Claiming Their Mate © 2008 Paige McKellan A Feral Attraction story. Jules Kingston is a WereLion destined to be the next Lioness of the White Sands Pride. Her fathers, having decided to step down as Leos, have put out a call for a pair of lions to mate with their daughter. Before settling down with mates and a litter of cubs, though, Jules wants to spread her wings. Of all the Lions in the Pride, Gabriel and Lucas Beckett are the only two who file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20...0Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (104 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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make her panties wet-and the last two she would ever take on as mates. When the brothers stake their claim, she runs, cursing her hormones for reacting to such prime specimens of her species. Gabe and Luke have known for years that Jules is meant to be their mate. The trick will be to convince their woman she belongs to them. As expected, Jules leads them on a merry chase. Then a mate fight and hunt is called by a rival pair. To win Jules as their own, Gabe and Luke must prove their dominance over the Pride-and their woman. Warning: Contains explicit sex, graphic language, stubborn men, an independent woman and red hot romance. Enjoy the following excerpt for Claiming Their Mate: There were so many parts of this mess that made her angry she didn’t know what to scream about first, but that would have to wait until she was on the road. Jules grabbed the duffle and slung her laptop case over her shoulder then opened the double French windows overlooking the back of the driveway and the pastures beyond. The last time she had snuck out of the house through this window was during her senior year in high school to meet a boyfriend her fathers had not thought highly of. It was ironic this trip out the window was to get away from two men her fathers expected her to get involved with. Somehow she thought the irony would be lost on them. A quick look out the window told her the coast was clear. For her sake she hoped all the people she was trying to get away from were still in the dining room, on the other side of the house. Jules dropped the duffle to the ground, and reached through the open window, latching on to the ivy trellis. It was only a twenty-foot drop, one her body could handle, but she opted to climb down halfway and not risk an injury she’d have to shift to heal. file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20...0Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (105 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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She felt ridiculous sneaking out; she was twenty-three, not thirteen. She should be able to hold her head high and walk through the front door like an adult. And she would have if Gabe and Luke weren’t downstairs. Seeing them again was a risk she wasn’t willing to take. For so many, many reasons. Hitching her computer case higher, Jules put one leg out the window, found a foothold on the trellis, then pulled the rest of her body through and started down. Midway between the window and the ground she let go and jumped. Into the strong arms of one very pissed-off Lion. *** Luke heard them before he saw them and when they finally came into view he laughed as his brother came around the corner of the house, or rather limped around the corner of the house, with a very angry, very loud mate, ass end up over his shoulder. “Put me down you rotten, no good—” Jules demanded, her words punctuated by the blows she rained over Gabe’s back but cut short by the hard smack of his hand on her ass. “Ow! Damn you! You have no right—” “I have every right, Jules. Settle down!” When she failed to comply he smacked her ass again, this time harder, which only made her fight him more. “Damn it, I said stop!” he yelled when her fist connected with his kidney; she was no match for a Lion in his prime but her blows packed enough punch to bruise. “That’s enough. As soon as we get you home I’m going to paddle your bare ass until it’s bright red if you don’t stop acting like this.” “Home?” she screeched. “I’m not going home with you. I’m not going anywhere with you. Let me go!” “Need some help, Gabe?” The smile in Luke’s voice was as big as the one on his file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20...0Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (106 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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face. “Take her bags,” he grunted, tossing his brother her duffle and computer case. “What are you so damn happy about?” “That she decided to sneak out the back instead of coming out the front.” Luke caught the bags with one hand, reaching out to tug on Jules’ hair hanging over his brother’s ass with the other as Gabe came up next to him. Luke laughed again as Jules swatted blindly at him, letting out another screech. “If she had come my way I’d be the one limping, not you.” “Luke, make him put me down. He can’t do this.” Jules arched her neck, raising her head to look at Luke. She had always thought of him as the more reasonable brother and hoped to find help in his quarter. The smug smile creasing his handsome face had her back to cursing instead of asking for help. “This isn’t right. I don’t want to go with you.” “If I were you I’d listen to Gabe and calm down.” “What is it going to take to get you jerks to understand that I don’t want you? I am not going to mate with you.” “You’re already our mate, Jules. Once we get you back to the ranch and claim you, you’ll understand that.” This edict came from Gabe as he yanked open the passenger door of their pick-up truck. Claiming? Back to their ranch? No. No, no, no. “There is no way I’m going to your ranch with you so you two can fuck me. I decide who I fuck and you can damn well bank on it not being you two.” Smack, another hard swat on her ass from Gabe before he lifted her off his shoulder and pushed her into the truck. “Don’t talk like that, Jules. That kind of language doesn’t suit you.” “How do you know what suits me or not? You don’t know me.” In the truck she was pulled onto Gabe’s lap, his arms wrapped around her, keeping her hands file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20...0Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (107 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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trapped from doing any damage. She ignored the dark look Luke sent her way as he got behind the wheel. Neither one of these men were listening. “My parents will not put up with you taking me.” She hoped that was true but their complete lack of concern cut that line of reasoning short. “Your fathers know we’re taking you to the Roaring Lion. This is a done deal, Jules. Start accepting it.” Luke started the truck then headed down the long drive to the main road. “Your body already has, Jules. Open your mind to what your body already knows and this will be easier for you.” The casual mention of her attraction and resulting arousal to the brothers filled the truck cab like humidity filled the late summer air, making it hard to breathe and her body uncomfortably warm. Gabe’s erection pressing into the curve of her ass showed her she wasn’t the only one affected by Luke’s comments. The fight didn’t go out of her, instead it shifted from thoughts of escaping these two to controlling her reaction to them. “Don’t flatter yourself. Yourselves. What you think is attraction to you is nothing more than my having a normal, healthy sex drive.” “How many other pairs have you let know about your healthy sex drive?” Jules snapped her mouth closed. That was the whole problem, why these two worried her more than all the others combined. No other pair affected her the way Gabe and Luke did. If she thought she could get away with it Jules would have lied through her teeth, claimed she’d had a similar reaction to another man or men, but she didn’t. She kept her mouth shut. If she wasn’t able to believe the lie how would they? The remainder of the short ride to the Roaring Lion was completed in silence. No one was talking but that didn’t mean nothing was going on. Jules sat stiffly on Gabe’s lap, trying her damnedest but failing miserably at ignoring his hard-on. The sexual tension inside the cab was stifling. The Beckett brothers were file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/User%20...0Burning%20Bryght/TygerTygerBurningBryght.htm (108 of 109) [18/07/2008 10:04:36]

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determined to take what they wanted and Jules was silently scrambling to think of a way to stop it.

Samhain Publishing, Ltd. It’s all about the story… Action/Adventure Fantasy Historical Horror Mainstream Mystery/Suspense Non-Fiction Paranormal Red Hots! Romance Science Fiction Western Young Adult www.samhainpublishing.com

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