Serengeti Heat Read Online Free PDF

unsuitable females are sequestered. Any male who smelled you would have lost control.’”
    Zoe turned toward her sharply, tossing the hip-length mass of her dark golden hair over her shoulder. “He said he lost control?” she asked eagerly.
    “He said anyone would have,” Ava corrected.
    Zoe waved away the clarification, smiling smugly. “You made him lose control!” she crowed. “Of course, you did, he destroyed your jeans. Oh, this is good . Big, bad Alpha can’t keep it zipped around sweet little Ava. I love it.”
    “I’m glad one of us does,” Ava grumbled, hugging her knees to her chest.
    “Don’t you see, Ava? This is fantastic.”
    Ava grunted, not sharing Zoe’s enthusiasm.
    “Landon never loses control. He’s too busy playing master of the universe. But, you , Ava. You wrangled an alpha in a rage out of a bar fight, no mean feat. And then you incited him to jump you, without even trying. You ruled him tonight.”
    “Then why did he stop?” Ava blurted, blushing furiously when Zoe laughed throatily.
    “Kitten, if you want a spot in my brother’s bed, that isn’t a problem. But if you want to be his mate, his partner, the love of his life, rule the pride and breed little Landons off him, then you’re going to have to grow a spine and get ready to fight tooth and nail, fang and claw, for him, because no matter how much he wants you, he isn’t going to make you his one and only unless you can prove that you aren’t a submissive little doormat.”
    “Little being the operative word,” Ava snapped. “I can’t just run around challenging the female alphas, Zoe. Some of them have a hundred pounds on me in their human form. I wouldn’t last five seconds.”
    Zoe smiled, a purely feline curve of her lips. “There’s more than one way to skin a cat, Ava-dear. Just because you can’t take them in a fight, doesn’t mean you can’t dominate them.”
    “I don’t think—”
    “Then I guess you don’t want Landon,” Zoe cut her off brutally, frustrated by her prevarications. “Because until you stop meekly obeying every order, bowing down to your bullying brothers and the bullying cats angling to be Landon’s mate, you will never be strong enough to deserve him. If you want to mate the Alpha, you need to be the biggest, baddest kitty in the pride.”
    “But I am the smallest,” Ava wailed.
    “Physical size doesn’t mean shit,” Zoe snapped. “Size is a state of mind, kitten. And yours is only microscopic because you are too damn scared to go after what you want.”
    “I can’t—”
    “I don’t, I can’t, I won’t.” Zoe threw her hands up in the air and stalked to the opposite end of the bungalow. “I wash my hands of you. You need to change your attitude, but if you don’t want it for yourself, let alone for darling Landon, there is nothing I can do.”
    “Zoe…”
    “I’m done,” she said, her voice sharp and dismissive. Then she turned and her face softened at Ava’s stricken expression. “I’m glad you’re home safe,” she said, much more gently. “It just drives me crazy when people are too frightened to go after the things they want. You play it safe and all you end up with is a lifetime of should-have-beens.”
    Zoe turned to look out the window, once again dismissing her.
    Ava climbed off the bed, tugging at the wraparound skirt she had borrowed to replace her massacred jeans. “I’ll return this tomorrow.”
    Zoe waved away the comment without turning from the view. “Keep it. It’s too short on me anyway.”
    “Zoe…”
    “I’m not mad at you, Ava,” Zoe said, still without looking at her.
    Ava knew Zoe couldn’t stand indecision. Everything was black or white to her, but Ava couldn’t seem to stop seeing the grays in every situation. She waited for Zoe to go on, but the silence stretched. “’kay,” she said finally. “Good night.”
    “Night, kitten,” Zoe said, her tone affectionate even though she continued to gaze out the window.