Read Online Jaguar Pride by Terry Spear - Free Book Online Page A

cats, and they were as important to him as any others, but he’d prefer to have a mate who’d like to do some of the same things he did, and running as a jaguar in a jungle was one of them.
    â€œTrue. What about you and Genista? You must have had fun telling each other about what went down on your missions. Each of you would at least understand what the other had gone through.”
    â€œNot really. When she was through with her assignment, she was through. She didn’t want to examine any aspect of it. Which I could understand. But I like discussing it and getting it out of my system. My brother and I always talked about what went down on a job and how we could do better the next time. Just part of the winding-down process for us.”
    â€œThat’s really nice.” Melissa finished eating the food on her plate.
    Done with dinner, they carried their plates into the kitchen. “Let me throw my second load of wash in the dryer, and you can do your laundry while I do the dishes. After that, we can start the movie and have some wine or beers,” Huntley said.
    â€œWine, if you don’t mind.”
    â€œSure thing.”
    Before long, they were sitting on the couch, close together. They had finished their glasses of wine, and they’d both removed their shoes. Huntley’s sock-covered feet were stretched out on the coffee table, while Melissa’s naked feet were tucked to her side as she snuggled against Huntley.
    He was watching the show, but he was thinking about holding Melissa close and how nice this was, compared to how he’d started the night when he first arrived home. Genista gone for good. Him watching TV alone. No one to talk to, just a bag of popcorn to munch on.
    When her wash cycle ended, he put away his dry clothes. She put her clothes in the dryer, threw in another load, and rejoined him on the couch.
    He could really get used to this.
    Melissa said, “He has family in Amarillo.”
    â€œOliver has?” Huntley guessed.
    She looked up at Huntley, a smile tugging at her lips. “Jackson, I mean. The poacher. The one who got away from us in Costa Rica.”
    He nearly laughed. He couldn’t believe she wanted to talk more about the mission. And he was all for it. If it hadn’t been for being with her, and being…distracted a bit, his thoughts would have drifted that way too. “Yeah, Martin said Jackson had a sister living in Canyon and a mother living in Amarillo.”
    â€œOkay, here’s a thought I had. Tomorrow, I can spend the day looking for a furnished apartment, and if I find one and it’s available right away, I’ll move in. We can have dinner out and see a movie after that. Or ,” she said, “we can take a road trip, eat dinner out, and chill out that way.”
    â€œRoad trip as in drive out to Amarillo?” Melissa was an agent after his own heart. He smiled at her. “You want to go after Jackson.”
    â€œOr we can just be on leave and do what normal people do.”
    â€œThey take road trips.” Damn, he was ready to go. Not completing a mission bothered him. If they could get some satisfaction in bringing Jackson down, he was all for it. “You want to call the boss, or do you want me to?”
    Melissa smiled. “You know Martin. He’s not going to like it that you haven’t taken your vacation. I had one fairly recently, so I’m good.”
    â€œI’ll call him and tell him we’re taking a road trip—and vacationing along the way. On second thought, my stuff is clean and I need to pack. Yours is still washing. Why don’t you call him, and I’ll pack my things.”
    â€œCoward.”
    He laughed. And headed for the closet.
    â€œWe’ll go first thing in the morning, right?” she asked.
    No way did he want to give up sleeping with the she-cat. “Yeah. As soon as we both wake up and are ready to go. No rush. We’re on vacation, you