Raphael: Bayou Bites (Bayou Heat Book 1)

Raphael
Bayou Bites
by
Alexandra Ivy
and
Laura Wright


Raphael
Copyright © 2020 Alexandra Ivy and Laura Wright
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems—except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews—without permission in writing from the author.
This book is a work of fiction. The characters, events, and places portrayed in this book are products of the author’s imagination and are either fictitious or are used fictitiously. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental and not intended by the author.


Table of Contents
RAPHAEL
Copyright
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
More Books by the Authors


Chapter One
I slide through the thick foliage. I am death.
Silent.
Focused.
Unforgiving.
I reach the edge of a shallow river. I step into a pool of silvery moonlight, allowing it to shimmer against the droplets of dew that cling to my tawny fur. For a moment I stand still, savoring the primitive beat that pulses through the Wildlands. It sings to me, stirring my blood.
The hunt is on…
Ashe was done. D.O.N.E. Done.
It was near midnight as she stormed out of the house and headed for town, recalling, as she went, the numerous times her mother had exclaimed that Ashe was wearing on her last damn nerve. Granted, the woman had been drunk when she’d said this, but Ashe could at least empathize with those frustrated feelings now.
Crossing the communal center where the Pantera gathered for meals and celebrations, she didn’t bother to stop and admire the tiny lavender water lily that was just beginning to bud on the edge of the clearing. The Dyesse flower could only be found in the Wildlands, and infused the Pantera with happiness, warmth and a sensual sense of euphoria when it was in full bloom.
Instead she entered the vast building that served as HQ. The previous headquarters had been destroyed a few years back, and this new one still smelled of freshly sanded wood and paint.
Ashe bypassed Raph’s office and headed straight to the conference room on the top floor. She knew her mate well enough to guess he wouldn’t be sitting behind his desk at this late hour. The male hated paperwork. No, he would be locked in a powwow with the leaders of the Pantera factions, discussing the latest threat to the pack.
Because there was always another threat. And another. And another.
Reaching the top floor, Ashe tossed back her long, dark hair and smoothed her hands down the light yellow sweater she’d pulled on that morning along with a pair of faded jeans. They were Raph’s favorites. He said they made her ass look edible.
Not that the aggravating male had noticed. Lately he didn’t find anything about her edible.
With a grimace she squashed the painful thought and shoved open the door. It swung hard enough to bang loudly against the wall, bringing the two males inside to their feet. The thick scent of musk and danger prickled through the air. Cats didn’t like to be startled.
Well too damn bad.
Ashe glanced around the long table. There were enough seats for the leaders of the various factions, along with a dozen others who might be needed to offer their opinions on whatever was being discussed. Tonight there were maps spread across the glossy table along with stacks of files that had recently arrived from the Pantera Security League, who were busy tracking down a hidden danger.
Her gaze returned to the two males. Closest to her was Parish, a Hunter with cat-gold eyes and long black hair. He stood over six foot with broad shoulders and scars near his right ear and mouth. Not that the blemish in any way diminished his stark, feral beauty. But Ashe barely noticed him. It was the male stalking toward her who truly captured her attention. And her breath.
Damn him.
Raphael.
The leader of the Diplomat faction, the unofficial head of the Pantera, was six feet two of gloriously lean, hard muscle covered in a black T-shirt and jeans. His thick, dark blond hair was long enough to brush his massive shoulders, and his golden eyes flashed with a hint of jade in the overhead light.
Ashe released a low hiss, her heart racing and her palms sweating. It didn’t matter how many years she spent with this male. The sight of him always hit her like a punch to the gut.
Damn him.
Hungrily her gaze clung to his lean, predatory face, an aching sense of loss tugging at her heart. Granted, the two of them still had sex. Great sex. But during the ever-present years of battling one enemy after another, they’d lost the romance.
It sounded clichéd. But that was what it felt like.
Goddess, she wanted intimacy. She wanted fun and laughter. Hell, right now she’d settle for some privacy. Something that was in short supply. Raph was the leader of an endangered species that was under constant attack. An emergency was always interrupting their “alone time.” And if it wasn’t a Pantera disaster, then it was Soyala.
Their beloved daughter might be a miracle, but as a seven-year-old, she was also a precocious, hyperactive panther shifter who could try the patience of a saint.
Tonight Ashe wasn’t feeling very saintlike.
“Ashe.” Raph furrowed his brow as he caught sight of her tense expression. “What’s wrong?”
“Your daughter.”
She heard Parish curse as the scent of Raphael’s cat slammed through the air, his eyes glowing. “Soyala? What happened? Is she hurt?”
“She’s missing,” Ashe told him hurriedly. She was pissed, but she didn’t want him going into full Pantera-mode.
“Oh.” Relief eased the savage heat that swirled through the air. “Is that all?”
Ashe clenched her hands, resisting the urge to screech in frustration. As per lately, he’d said exactly the wrong thing.
“I tell you that your seven-year-old daughter is missing and that’s your reaction?” she said through gritted teeth.
Raph shrugged with confidence, a move that made him look both irritatingly calm