The Jaguar Star (Tales of the Were: Jaguar Island Book 4) by Bianca D'Arc (e book reader android .TXT) 📗

Mark seemed more focused. More grounded, somehow. And, when he put his arm around his wife’s shoulders and smiled congenially, Katrina figured it had to be because he was connected on a deep level to Shelly.

Mark’s wife had already impressed Katrina as a down-to-earth sort of woman, and the love between the couple was more than obvious to anyone who looked closely. They leaned into each other like newlyweds, and Katrina remembered that their marriage was still relatively recent, only a year or two since they met and wed in what had been described in the papers as a whirlwind romance.

They were chatting politely about the film when a large tough-looking man arrived at Mark’s side, a woman at his side. Mark clapped the man on the back and brought the couple forward for introductions.

“Katrina, this is our Head of Security, Nick Balam and his wife, Sully. You may recognize her as someone from your own line of work,” Mark teased.

“Sullivan Lane,” Katrina stated, reaching out to shake the woman’s hand. “I’m a big fan,” she gushed, as the others smiled indulgently.

“And I’m a fan of yours,” Sully shocked Katrina by replying. “Sonia sent me some clips from your work this past week, and it’s like you were born for the part, Kat. I was really impressed.”

Hearing that from an actress she admired so much struck Katrina speechless, but Ren came to her rescue, stepping in to greet the new couple. By the time she’d recovered, there were other people to meet, though Sully and her husband, Nick, stayed with their small group throughout the next half-hour.

When a meal was announced, they all walked into the room next door together. It turned out to be a grand ballroom that had been set up with round tables and a giant buffet. As Katrina had come to expect, the cast members descended on the food with gusto. Ren seated her with Shelly and Sully at one of the large tables and went off with their husbands towards the buffet.

Katrina decided to wait until the crowd around the buffet died down a bit to get her plate and take advantage of the time to get to know Sully and Shelly a bit better. They talked of the film and Sully’s experiences filming big-budget features, and before Katrina realized how much time had passed, the men returned. She was floored to find that Ren had put together a plate of food for her, much as Mark and Nick had done for their wives. Ren had even seemed to note the kinds of foods Katrina preferred and had made the portion only a little larger than she would have taken for herself.

“You’ll catch flies if you leave your mouth hanging open like that,” Ren whispered to her as he sat at her side, lowering his own heaping plate to the table at the same time.

Sputtering a little, Katrina managed to thank him and close her gaping mouth. She had no idea what was going on here, but it certainly felt like Ren was playing the part of her… What? Boyfriend?

She shook her head slightly at her own thoughts and decided to turn her attention to her plate for a moment while she regrouped. Conversation flowed around her as Nick and Mark talked with Ren, and the other ladies put in a few words here and there.

“What are your plans for later?” Mark asked Ren as Katrina remained quiet.

“I thought I’d show Kat around the island a bit. Maybe take her up to the rim and show her my place,” he replied easily, surprising her yet again.

“Well, there’s a room for you here if you want it. We have plenty of space,” Shelly said, speaking directly to Katrina. For some reason, Mark and Nick were frowning but didn’t say anything. Katrina didn’t understand a lot about these people, but she took Shelly’s words at face value and thanked her for her thoughtfulness.

After dinner, Katrina found herself in an open-roofed Jeep heading up the mountain on a twisty track that was more overgrown jungle than road, but Ren seemed at home behind the wheel, guiding the vehicle competently upward. The Jeep was green, blending in well with the foliage around them.

She thought she caught occasional flashes of something moving at speed alongside their path, but it couldn’t be what she thought. It couldn’t be cat eyes that met hers for a brief instant as they rolled along the jungle path. And it couldn’t be golden fur that showed through the tiny breaks in the leaves as it passed beneath the thick foliage. No way… Right?

Katrina began to fear that they were being stalked.

“Uh…Ren? Are there like…um…jungle cats on this island?” she asked, talking loudly to be heard over the engine noise and gentle breeze that ruffled her hair.

“Don’t worry. Nothing here will ever hurt you,” he replied.

“That doesn’t really answer my question,” she told him, speaking a little more softly and keeping her eyes peeled for another flash of golden-brown fur streaking alongside them in the undergrowth.

They were climbing steadily, and he slowed as they came to an area of the path that seemed to be carved into the side of the mountain. It was open on one side, the dense jungle falling below the side of this small stretch of road. Ren pointed toward the jewel blue of the ocean far below.

“Take a look at that view,” he said, doing just that as he rested his hands on the top of the steering wheel. “That never gets old.”

Katrina had to admit he had a point. “It is beautiful,” she admitted in a quiet voice that was tinged with wonder.

“I’m glad you like it because my house is right around the bend, and this view is why I chose the spot to build on.”

He started the Jeep rolling again, and she looked all around, wanting to see what his home would look like. It certainly didn’t seem like there was a house anywhere nearby. All she could