The Tiger’s Heart
Marissa Dobson
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When the Lieutenant of the Alaskan Tigers Raja Harrison rescues Bethany from the hands of kidnappers he gets more than he bargains for. It was supposed to be an easy rescue, instead he finds the injured Bethany—and his mate. For years he’s avoided the mating topic, believing his job is too dangerous to risk another. But now Bethany threatens to risk that fragile control he’s once had.
A rogue shifter wants Bethany Thompson and is determined to destroy all she holds dear, along with the tiger shifter population. When she’s kidnapped, beaten and forced into the world of shifters, her whole world is turned upside down. The shifter problems now are her problems as her family secret comes to light.
Can Raja and Bethany join focuses with the other elders of the Alaskan Tigers to bring down the rogue shifter? Or will the rogue destroy all Raja serves to protect?
Excerpt:
The table was cluttered with papers and maps, and their search for Pierce was underway. Information was slowly trickling in. They had men following up on leads, searching known vacations spots for Pierce and his gang. Most of the leads turned out to be dead ends, but still they followed up with everything, as the one lead they didn’t pursue would be the key to finding the rogue shifters.
The anxiety of the situation ate away at Raja’s gut, while Ty’s shown on his face. They seemed no closer to finding Pierce, yet they could feel his men were in the mountains watching them. His assassin teams were stalking the area, waiting for them. With the danger surrounding rarely did anyone leave the compound, especially not the women and children.
“Raja, stop pacing. You’re going to wear a hole in my favorite rug,” Tabitha teased, watching him over her coffee mug as he paced the study.
He smiled, unable to help it. Tabitha always had a way of lightening the mood. When I find my mate I hope she is able to make me smile the way Tabitha can. This woman has been through so much, yet she still is more concerned about the people around her than herself.
“You know I’m good for another one.” He couldn’t sit still. The hairs on the back of his neck stood at attention with the knowledge that something wasn’t right. He could feel in his soul that something was going to happen. Pierce would make a move before long, but what would that move be?
“I received word before coming over that Leo and Connor arrived in California and were on their way to locate Pierce’s sister. It’s extremely unlikely that he’s there, but maybe she’ll be able to tell us something.” He ran his hand over the windowsill. Outside looked like a winter wonderland. Everything was covered in a thick, white snow, with even more snow forecast for the next few days.
“Keep me apprised on the situation. I want them back within seventy-two hours, or we send in another team. We don’t have the time to waste on this,” Ty said, looking up from his e-tablet, where he was reading the reports from the teams trying to track Pierce and his clan. Teams were all over the country, yet no one had seen hide or hair of Pierce and his men. It wasn’t surprising that Pierce knew they were searching for him, but they didn’t expect Pierce to run and hide. Maybe the fact that his days were numbered, for the murder and attacks on other tiger shifters, had him scared.
Raja nodded, still gazing out the window.
“I need to go speak with some of the guards. Raja, could you look after Tabby until I get back? I don’t want to leave her alone in case there’s another attack.”
“Sure.”
“Thank you.” Ty rose, kissing her on the cheek as he did. “I shouldn’t be long, love.”
Once they were alone Raja heard Tabitha’s chair push back from the table, her sock-covered feet padding toward him.
“Raja, are you okay?” She laid her hand on his back as if she could give him the comfort she was able to give Ty. Unfortunately, it only worked on a mate, but the caring gesture touched him.
“I’m fine. You have enough to worry about; there is no need to be concerned about me. I’m fine.” Even he could hear the uncertainty in his voice—there was no doubt she could.
“I don’t believe you. If you ever need to talk, I’m here. It will go no further than us.”
“Mates don’t keep things from each other.” The reservation was thick in his voice.
“To help a friend in need I would do what needs to be done. Raja, I haven’t known you very long, but I consider you a part of my family and can see your pain.” She ran her hand over his back.
“Thank you, but everything is fine with me. It’s you I’m worried about. I can feel something bad is coming.” He wasn’t being entirely honest. There was something bothering him, but he couldn’t put his finger on it, let alone put it into words to tell his Queen.
“We’ll get through it. We know Pierce is still out there and after me. He has a larger following then we guessed. I know it’s your job as our Lieutenant to worry, but we’ll get through this.”
The invisible ear bud allowing him contact with command central and the ground teams sprang to life. “Breach. We have a breach at the main gate. All available units respond.”
“Shit. Where’s Felix?”
“Ty gave him the morning off since we were meeting with you and wouldn’t be leaving our quarters.” Tabitha joined him at the window. “Go. I’ll be fine.”
“Like hell I will. You have to be protected.” She had her own transmitter, allowing her to know what was happening, and he could feel her fear spilling off her.
“Raja, stay where you are. Felix is on his way. I’m proceeding toward the main gate,” Ty’s voice came through the transmitter.
“Be safe,” Tabitha whispered.
“Tabitha, come away from the window. Everyone always forgets about the windows. You feel safe and secure inside the houses, while the sharpshooter is just waiting. Waiting for you to walk past the window.”
He could feel her reluctance but his job was to keep her safe, not allow her to stand in front of the window for a glimpse of what might be happening. Unlike the other guards, his vow wasn’t made because she was their Female Alpha or because she was the Queen of the Tigers. No, his vow was made for Ty. Ty had saved his ass more than once, and the best way to show his appreciation for it was to keep Ty’s mate safe.
About the Author:
Born and raised in the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania area, Marissa Dobson now resides about an hour from Washington, D.C. She is a lady who likes to keep busy, and is always busy doing something. With two different college degrees, she believes you are never done learning.
Being the first daughter to an avid reader, this gave her the advantage of learning to read at a young age. Since learning to read she has always had her nose in a book. It wasn’t until she was a teenager that she started writing down the stories she came up with.
Marissa is blessed with a wonderful supportive husband, Thomas. He is her other half and allows her to stay home and pursue her writing. He puts up with all her quirks and listens to her brainstorm in the middle of the night?
Her writing buddies Max (a cocker spaniel) and Dawne (a beagle mix) are always around to listen to me bounce ideas off them. They might not be able to answer, but they are helpful in their own ways.
She love to hear from readers so send her an email at marissa@marissadobson.com or visit her online at http://www.marissadobson.com.
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