Merrily Mated (Ouachita Mountain Shifters 3) by P. Jameson Page B

the Christmas spirit, and then made her way down the corridor to the security office.
    She knocked on the door and waited until she heard a sharp, “Yeah.”
    Peeking in, she found Ryan grinning from ear to ear while Gash bent over his hand where it rested on the desk. A buzzing filled the room and irritated her feline ears. Reaching up, she scratched her earlobe.
    “Hey,” she said, unsure.
    Gash looked up. “Well, shut the door, would ya.”
    She flipped him the bird and stepped in the room, closing it behind her.
    “I’m almost done,” he murmured, and then the buzzing started back up.
    In the cramped quarters, she couldn’t see what he was doing. Especially since his big body covered so much space.
    “What is this,” she asked Ryan.
    “Well. I’ve been thinking. I’m not a cat so I can’t really mark you as mine. And the human way, well, we do rings. But a ring won’t work for you because the first time you shifted, it’d be lost. Or you’d have to take it off all the time and put it back on when you changed back to human. Kind of inconvenient. But I want people to know you’re taken.” He clenched his jaw, giving her an idea of his frustration. “It’s been rubbing me raw for weeks now. The idea that the males coming in and out of here don’t know you’re mine…”
    She rubbed her hand through his hair. “Aww.” She gave him a fake pout. “I’ll tell them if they ask, okay?”
    He growled low in his throat and nipped playfully at her hand.
    “Be still.” Gash snapped.
    Ryan rolled his eyes and sat perfectly still for another few seconds until Gash sat back, and reached for a tube of cream.
    “Done,” he said.
    Ryan grinned and handed her a small picture of a male lion’s head. “So, here’s what I came up with.”
    She stared at it. “I… I don’t get it.”
    He pulled his hand away from the desk and held it out to show her. There, on the ring finger of his left hand, Gash had tattooed the face of a female mountain lion. A cougar. One that looked suspiciously like her.
    Her eyes went wide. “It’s beautiful .”
    “We took it from a picture of you in your cat form.”
    She narrowed her gaze at him. “How’d you get a picture of me as a cat?”
    “Oh, I’m very sneaky with a camera phone.” He winked. “And now, you’re here in my skin forever. On the finger that means commitment for my kind.”
    She chewed her lip, trying like hell not to tear up in front of Gash. “I love it,” she whispered, taking his hand for a closer look. The skin was red and angry, but the art was exquisite. Gash had talent. “Did it hurt?”
    Ryan smirked. “No. And even if it did, I wouldn’t admit it. But comparing it to the claws in my arm… let’s just say, no.”
    “Pussy,” Gash muttered, but Layna saw the teasing glint in his eye.
    “I got some, and you don’t.” Ryan quipped back without missing a beat.
    Gash shook his head and started cleaning things with alcohol. “You’re turn, woman.”
    “This one’s yours,” Ryan said, gesturing to the male lion picture. “Obviously, it’s not me. Gash drew it freehand. It’s more… symbolic, I guess.”
    She bent, kissing him hard on the lips, and pulling back with a smile. “It’s fucking perfect.”
    Switching places with him in the chair, Gash readied her hand for the mark. Instinctively, Ryan let his hand fall on her shoulder and slide up to grip the back of her neck in a possessive move. She could have purred, she loved it so much, this dominant side of him.
    “Alright, alright, human. I get the vibe you’re throwing off.” Gash shook his head, exasperated. “Must be tough shit watching another male mark your female.”
    Layna felt the tick of jealousy through their bond, and pushed her love back at Ryan in return. When his gaze found hers, she winked, reminding him of all the dirty sexy things they’d done last night. Making love in front of the Christmas tree was now on her yearly Christmas to-do list.
    She snickered