Page 45 of The Purrfect Rival

The attacker struggled against Rust’s grip, twisting toward escape. Within seconds, Hezron appeared from the opposite direction.

“Always leaving me the cleanup,” Hezron grumbled.

Kalyna stood frozen, unable to tear her gaze from Rust. The sight of him half-transformed ignited something primal inside her. Her fox stirred, pressing against her human consciousness with unexpected hunger.Strong. Protective. Ours.

Heat bloomed across her skin as she watched the powerful muscles of his back shift beneath his shirt. When had she started noticing such details about him? The way his shoulders tapered to a narrow waist, how his hands—now tipped with lethal claws—managed to appear both dangerous and gentle simultaneously.

He turned toward her, concern etching his features. “Are you hurt?”

Those three simple words carried such weight. The low rumble of his voice sparked tiny electrical pulses along her spine. She wanted to hear that voice murmur other things entirely—private things, whispered against her skin in darkness.

Focus, Kalyna.

“No, I’m fine.” She stepped closer, drawn by something beyond conscious thought. The scent of him washed over her—cedar and spice with the distinctive undertone of lion magic. Her fox purred in response. “You protected me.”

His golden eyes searched her face. “I will always protect you.”

Something melted inside her at the simple declaration—no qualifiers, no hesitation. Just certainty. The librarian in her collected words like treasures; these four she wanted to preserve in amber.

His gaze dropped briefly to her lips before returning to her eyes. The air between them thickened with possibility.

Sheriff Ironclaw’s arrival shattered the moment. As statements were given and the attacker secured, Kalyna couldn’t stop stealing glances at Rust. He’d shifted back to human form, but something fundamental had changed. The careful distance he’d maintained—the professional mask of Mayor Leonid—had cracked irreparably.

What remained made her fox want to pounce.

FORTY

“So I heard the mayor went all ‘lion king’ defending his queen last night.”

The next morning, Lucella burst into Kalyna’s office, waving the Enchanted Falls Gazette. The headline splashed across the front page in dramatic typography:Mayor’s Midnight Rescue – Heroism or Something More?

Kalyna snatched the paper. “Give me that!”

Her eyes skimmed the florid account describing how Rust “transformed into a majestic golden lion to rescue the beloved head librarian from mysterious forces.” The article quoted no fewer than six “witnesses” to this spectacular event, including Mrs. Plumthorn, who claimed to have seen golden light emanating from the mayor’s skin.

“The library isn’t even mentioned until paragraph seven,” Kalyna muttered, torn between exasperation and secret pleasure.

“Half the town swears they witnessed it,” Lucella continued, perching on the desk edge. “Though considering Mrs. Plumthorn also claims she once spotted a unicorn in her garden, I’m reserving judgment.”

“It absolutely did not happen like that.” Kalyna tossed the paper aside, trying to ignore how her heart fluttered at the memory of Rust’s protective fury. “He partially shifted—claws, eyes, teeth. That’s it. And it wasn’t midnight, for crying out loud. It was barely past six.”

“So you admit the rescue part?” Lucella’s grin widened.

“It’s a security matter.” Kalyna straightened papers on her desk, striving for professional composure.

Without warning, the stack rose three inches in the air, suspended by wisps of crimson magic responding to her inner turmoil. The sight of her uncontrolled magic—something that hadn’t happened since she first discovered her powers as a kit—made her cheeks burn.

Lucella plucked the floating documents from midair, eyebrows raised. “Security matter? Honey, when a lion shifts to protect someone, it’s neverjustsecurity. It’s primal, it’s possessive, it’s?—”

“It’s going to make the festival preparations awkward if you keep talking,” Kalyna interrupted, though she couldn’t suppress a smile.

The truth danced behind her protest—the memory of Rust’s golden eyes blazing with something that looked remarkably like ownership. How that look had sent a thrill through her, awakening parts of herself she’d kept carefully controlled for decades. Her fox had practically preened under his attention, eager for more.

“Fine, change the subject.” Lucella hopped off the desk. “But the town’s betting pool on when you two announce your courtship has tripled overnight.”

“Let them bet,” Kalyna replied, surprised by her own boldness.

The thought of Rust—proper, controlled Mayor Leonid—publicly acknowledging whatever simmered between them sentdelicious tremors through her belly. Her fox, typically content with solitude and independence, now craved his touch with embarrassing desperation.

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