White Tiger (A Shifter's Unbound Novel) by Jennifer Ashley Page A

strangled yelp when she found the reclining form of a giant white tiger on the floor beside the bed.
    “Holy . . .” She cut off her exclamation and lowered her voice to a whisper. “. . . shit.”
    The tiger released a breath and slowly raised his head. Addie found herself meeting Kendrick’s green eyes in a broad white face. Black stripes formed a series of upside-down Vs on his forehead, and black spots dotted the base of his white whiskers. His ears, round, furry, and sticking straight up, moved in her direction, then one swiveled, listening behind him.
    “Please tell me that’s you, Kendrick,” Addie said in a hushed tone. “Not a white tiger that’s escaped from a zoo, walked a hundred miles, and broke into the house to find a snack.”
    The tiger huffed again, eyes glinting in amusement. Kendrick heaved himself to his feet, which put his back level with the high bed. He butted Addie’s hand, like a cat might do, and her palm landed on the top of his head.
    “Well, aren’t you warm and soft?” Addie stroked him a couple of times then daringly scratched behind one ear. The tiger’s eyes half closed, and he let out a quiet growl.
    The growl would have been a purr on a cat but the tiger was so large the vibration shook the bed. He rubbed against her hand, pressing so hard he threatened to dislodge her from the mattress.
    “I don’t think there’s much room for a tiger up here,” Addie said as she continued to bask in the silken feel of his coat. “Though you’d be soft to sleep against.”
    She had a sudden flash of curling up against him, gathering this wild beast into her arms as she slept without fear.
    The tiger ducked away and Addie’s fingers slid from him.She bit back disappointment then uttered a soft cry as the tiger’s fur rippled. Its limbs shrank, and the tiger’s head flattened until it became Kendrick’s face. Only his eyes didn’t change, the green pinning Addie with a piercing stare.
    Addie was left looking at a black-and-white haired man standing fully illuminated by the bedside light, not wearing a stitch of clothing.
    The last time Addie had seen Kendrick unclothed, he’d been covered with blood and grime at the close of a deadly battle. At the moment, he was clean and unscathed, the quiet bedroom a very different scenario.
    His hard chest was dusted with dark hair and another arrow of hair pointed from a firm abdomen to a place that wasn’t in shadow. No modesty for Kendrick as he remained standing two feet from her, every inch of him showing. The hair there was purely black, Addie saw. Not mixed as she’d wondered.
    “Well,” Addie said shakily. “Good to see you’re not a real tiger.”
    “I
am
a real tiger,” Kendrick answered in his low rumble. “The beast is the real part of me.
This
is what I show to humans to live in their world.” He splayed fingers across his chest.
    “I see.” Addie realized she was having a philosophical discussion about whether he was tiger-man or man-tiger, while he stood naked in front of her. “Clears that up. Don’t you want to . . . um . . . put anything on?”
    Kendrick shrugged and turned his back. “I will if it bothers you.”
    “It doesn’t
bother
me,” Addie said quickly. His back was as enticing as his front, his well-muscled torso narrowing to tight buttocks and strong thighs. “I’m as happy as the next girl to have a good-looking man like you on full display.” She let her gaze rest on his backside as he reached for clothes draped over a chair. “But Charlie might be embarrassed if he came in.”
    “Why should he come in?” Kendrick pulled underwear on over his delectable ass, to Addie’s regret. Although . . . he still looked pretty good in only the underwear.
    “I don’t know,” Addie babbled. “To check on us? Bring us a midnight snack?”
    Kendrick turned around, underwear in place. The briefs were dark blue and very small. “Charlie is asleep. I heard him snoring in a room at the other