by Lauren Dane
She neared the front door and slowed, pausing to look around slowly. It wasn’t time to leave yet. Just...wait. The decks of tarot cards on the nearby display beckoned and she fondled them. So pretty and colorful. The shop smelled of rosemary and sage, of amber and magic. Briefly she wished Susan could see just how special the shop was, but at that point, Renee knew it was a lost cause. Ah well, she could enjoy it just as easily.
Her phone rang and she smiled, relaxing as she picked up. “Hello there, handsome. I’m getting ready to leave now.”
The sound of his voice was like caramel, thick and sweet. “Evening to you, babe. Just calling to check in. I brought some dinner home from the deli.”
“Yum. I’m good, just leaving now. I’ll be home in about ten minutes. I love you.”
“See you in ten. I love you too.”
She was still smiling as she got outside while she fumbled to tuck her phone back into her bag. She hadn’t even noticed where she’d been going until she ran straight into someone a few steps up the street.
“I’m sorry.” She bent to help him pick up the things he’d dropped, oranges, apples and fresh bread. “These look good. Mrs. Unger has the nicest produce.” She finally looked up as they both stood and everything just sort of stopped as pale blue eyes met hers. And saw straight to her bones.
Her knees went a little weak at the energy between them. Wow. So not her usual type, it was as if a Southern California surfer boy simply appeared before her eyes. Olive-toned skin, golden-blond hair, just a tad too long, an open, assessing gaze and from what she could tell with the clothes he had on, an athlete’s build too.
A breeze brought it, the scent of forest and loam. She breathed deep, turning the notes of the music the smells made over on her tongue, in her brain. Sometimes Renee experienced things differently than most people and right then this blond man had flipped every switch in her brain and body. Just looking at him and smelling his skin threatened overload and still she could not get enough. The sharpness of it, the total unexpected edge of desire she felt in her gut alarmed her even as she tasted the rich and heady flavor and craved more.
But at the back of her mind she knew this was not okay. She pulled herself back from that edge and shook her head a bit.
He reached out and touched her arm, just quickly. And yet she felt the echo of it even after he’d moved his hand away.
“Are you all right?”
What a voice. Lazy, redolent with sex, deep.
Hopefully he didn’t hear the slight breathy quality of her reply. “I’m fine. Your apples might be bruised.”
A puzzled look skirted over his features briefly until he smiled. Big white teeth, pale blue eyes, that hair. Renee took a step back to try and break the connection forming between them, but he took a step forward.
“I’m Jack Meyers.” He held out his hand and she took it. Instead of shaking it, he turned her wrist, bending to press a kiss just there, his lips against her pulse.
He straightened slowly and she practically yanked her hand from his grasp, even as his gaze held her still. Those golden threads of connection she’d felt just moments before were back.
“I really need to get home. I’m glad you’re okay.” Her smile was too bright, she knew. Too false and cheery. But he did something to her insides. Her insides belonged to someone else, thankyouverymuch.
“Wait.” He took her hand again and she didn’t want him to let go, which startled her into doing just that. This was not okay.
“I need to go. It was nice to meet you.”
“Have dinner with me.” She tugged and he let her hand go, but she saw his features, knew he didn’t want to. “Candlelight, wine and a few slow dances.”
Something inside her liked that, responded to the idea and that scared her. She loved Galen. He was her man and she wasn’t supposed to get all tingly and breathless about anyone else. She was being stupid and it was time to simply walk away right then. “Thanks for asking, Jack. I’m flattered, really. But I can’t. I’m with someone. Really with someone. I don’t have dinner with anyone but him.”
That was the truth, or as simple as she could make it anyway.
She took one step, and then another, letting the threads of connection between them pull and snap, feeling her connection to Galen right where it should be. “Night.” She raised a hand to wave and turned away from him, toward home where she belonged. Once she’d done that everything felt better and she relaxed.
“Hey!” he called out and she kept walking, but turned her head. “You never said what your name was.”
“I guess I didn’t. Night, Jack.” She grinned and turned away again.
Jack stood rooted to the spot on the sidewalk as she walked away. As his mate walked away. The strain on his muscles burned as he held himself back, held his wolf from grabbing her and heading for the hills.
One moment he’d been caught by the glimmers of gold and burgundy in her short, curly hair and the next, as he kissed her wrist, he’d been breathing her in, filling himself with her scent until he nearly shook at the recognition of who she was. She was in him, rushing through his veins, becoming part of him.
Just beneath her scent, lay the scent of a cat.
A cat and sex. And as she’d been there, reacting to him, her body had warmed and the spice of her want of him had taken over everything within him. His skin tingled with awareness and need. The need to claim her and mark her as his until not even the memory of that cat remained in her mind. Tension washed away with the knowledge that he’d found her. The ever-familiar ache, wanting the one woman he couldn’t ever have, he realized, was gone. He let his breath out slow.
For the first time since he’d become Grace Warden’s anchor bond, she wasn’t the woman dominating his thoughts.
He rolled back, balancing on the balls of his heels as he inhaled her scent on the breeze. His wolf wanted to howl with delight. Something else. More than a cat in her bed. His mate was something more than human. She smelled of magic, of amber and lavender sugar. He smiled at the memory of the sugar his foster mother made for tea in the winter. It boded well, this memory. This woman was meant to be on that sidewalk when he’d walked by.
Of course it couldn’t be easy, no. He’d watched his friends find their mates and not a one of them had just bumped into another wolf at a dinner party and mated, end of story, happily ever after achieved. She’d said she was with someone and he scented a cat. From what he understood of cat shifters, they didn’t idly live with others, especially in a romantic sense. They shared their space with their imprinted mates, their spouses under their law.
Still, he didn’t need to jump to conclusions. If she was mated to another, she couldn’t have rung his own mate bell. The mate bond wasn’t so cruel to a wolf that he’d find his other half and have her totally unattainable.
This called for some thought. She needed to be courted, showered with attention. He was old enough to realize most modern, non-shifter women would not appreciate the wooing of the wolf sort straight from go. No scooping up and claiming against a wall with feverish urgency on the first date for her. He’d loved women long enough to have perfected the art of seduction and this would be the most important seduction of his life.
Smiling as he watched the last of her turn a corner a few blocks away, he turned and headed into the shop she’d just exited.
A magick shop of sorts. But her stamp wasn’t the one on the place overall, not that he could tell. There was some overkill, especially toward the registers. His little witch didn’t seem to be the overkill type. Still, her magic hung about, intertwined with the magic of the place. It liked her.
“Excuse me.” He sent his most boyishly charming smile at a woman nearby.
She looked to him, assessing his wallet most likely. The woman had crafty eyes. He’d studied people long enough to know which peopl
e to avoid. This one was bound to come with trouble. “Can I help you?”
“I’m looking for a woman who works here. God, I...her name escapes me just now. Small, probably about five feet or so. Dark, curly hair, big eyes.”
“Renee?”
He nodded, relieved. Her name was Renee. Mentally, he rolled the sounds around, liking them immensely. What he didn’t like was this woman he was speaking to. She of the shifty eyes and thin, sharp scent of lies. His mate was in contact with this woman every day? He shuddered inwardly but kept his smile in place.
“She went home for the day. She closes the coffee and juice bar down at three thirty every weekday. If you’re looking for a coffee, there’s a diner across the street.”
“Thanks. I’ll drop in to see her another time.”
The woman he’d been speaking to crossed her arms over her chest. “You a friend of hers?”
“Yes. Have a nice night.” He turned and waved as he headed out the door.
He had his work cut out. Of course he never doubted he’d be successful. She was his mate; their connection and attraction would be very strong. Strong enough that once she got to know him and trust him, she’d drop this cat and come to him. If she hadn’t been his, he’d have felt guilty about trying to break up a relationship. But she was and he was meant to have her. He looked forward to spending every moment of the rest of his life making sure she was never sorry.
Starting the next day, he’d make himself a regular part of her life. He’d be there and get to know her, let her know him. It would be a challenge, but one he relished.
Satisfied, he headed toward his condo, opposite where she’d gone, and relished the next part of his life. The last years had been pretty quiet, peaceful, and he’d been dying inside each day as he watched Grace and Cade together, totally in love and united, their children underfoot and just as lovable as their parents.
He’d known being an anchor meant that the male would feel bonded to the female much like her mate did. But no one told him what it would be like to love Grace and know he could never have her. On top of knowing how much Grace adored her husband, Cade and Jack had become close friends. They were his family and his love of them was double edged in a way Jack knew Cade understood very well until the moment he’d met Grace. Cade had loved his sister-in-law for a very long time as well.
He changed course, heading toward the building just a few doors down from his, where Cade and his family lived. He wanted to share this with them.
Chapter Two
“Jack!” Grace looked up from where she sat at the kitchen table, trying to guide a spoon into baby Henri’s mouth. The boy ate like he was not quite convinced he’d come into contact with food again, guppy lips seeking the spoon and sending the food half into his mouth and the rest all over his face and Grace’s arm.
Henri said Jack’s name a few times until Jack leaned down and brushed a kiss on the top of his head. “Hey there, kid.” He stepped back, moving to the fridge to get a soda. “Hey, short stuff, what’s happening?” he asked Grace.
She smiled up at him, looking just as lovely as she always did, and while he appreciated it, loved it because it was part of her, he wasn’t affected by it the way he was when he thought of those wine-hued curls.
“Something exciting must have happened. It’s all over your face.”
“Weren’t you just here two hours ago?” Cade wandered into the kitchen, Annabelle on his hip, her fingers wrapped in the front of her dad’s shirt to keep her balance.
“I was. I left. Flirted with the ladies at my local produce stand only to have a woman rush out a door and knock my apples to the pavement.” He paused when Becca bounced into the room. Becca, Cade and Grace’s oldest child, was the spitting image of her mother and while her mom and dad were first in her heart, Jack followed a close second. Jack had long since decided that was a good place to be.
“You’re here!” Becca launched herself toward him and he caught her, hugging her tight.
“I am, dollface. Give me some sugar while I try to look hungry enough to get invited to dinner.” Jack kissed her upturned face, reaching out to tweak Annabelle’s toes when she swung her fat little foot into his reach. He wanted this. He wanted a family of his very own. His babies, his mate, his kitchen.
“Stay for dinner?” Grace wiped Henri’s face and began to clear away the remnants of his meal. “Meatloaf, mashed potatoes, asparagus, salad, bread and macaroni and cheese.”
“Awesome!” Becca looked up at Jack as he put her down, her face expectant. “Will you stay?”
He knew without a doubt that he was welcome. He was family, as they were to him. “Sounds good. I’ll even set the table.”
“Typical. Show up after I do it.” Cade said. “Grab an extra bottle of wine from the rack behind you.”
“I’m off duty, boss man.” Jack snorted and waited to see if Cade would rise to the bait.
Cade just raised one of his eyebrows. “Must be why you’re here, mooching dinner.”
“Pfft, I’m here to look at your women. All lovely ladies you don’t deserve.”
Becca giggled and patted his hand before reaching to take her dad’s.
“Fine, fine. For meatloaf, I can get the wine.” He looked down at Becca. “And some milk for these sprouts.”
He and Cade spoke about nothing in particular as Cade put Annabelle into her toddler seat. Grace returned with Henri, who happily sat in his high chair now that he had been topped off. Becca put some crackers on his tray and he grinned before shoving two of them into his mouth.
Dave, Cade’s cousin and Grace’s personal guard, strolled into the room and put the potatoes down on the table. “Yo. Akio says to check your voice mail. He had to make a shift change and wanted you to know about it in advance.”
Jack laughed as he poured milk for the kids and wine for the adults. “Akio’s been one of my top lieutenants for ten years; I’m sure whatever choices he made were appropriate. You people would have outsiders think I’m an ogre.”
“You are. Other things I can’t say in front of the children too.” Dave sat across the large table from Jack. “He appreciates your respect. You do a good job with your people. Don’t repeat that, I have a reputation to uphold and all.”
“Secret’s safe with me.” It pleased him that people thought he was good at his job. He worked hard at it, had spent his entire adult life protecting the National Alpha pair and the Pack itself. Protecting wolves nationwide because they were his too. He knew he was feared, but being respected had to go hand in glove with that or he’d have gone too far.
No one spoke for several minutes as food was dished up and people started eating. Slowly, folks began to talk and laugh; Becca talked about school and Jack relaxed happily. This was his life and even before he’d met Renee, it was good. But now that the ache, the longing for Grace was dulled by his attraction to Renee, it felt even better. The what ifs were all things he could have instead of those things he never would.
He had a future. Filled with possibility. It washed over him, bringing a satisfied smile to his face.
Grace finally sent an amused look Jack’s way. “Are you going to tell us or what? You’ve been a terrible tease to hold it back this long.”
“As it happens, I do have something exciting. I met my mate today.”
Everyone began speaking at once and Jack continued eating until things calmed down.
Finally, true to his nature, Cade whistled and told everyone to quiet down. He turned to Jack, a grin on his face. “What’s the story? Where is she? Why are you here without her instead of Claiming her?”
Of course Cade would ask these things. Because Renee was Jack’s mate, she’d also be one of Cade’s Pack, wolf or not. Cade took care of people, he had been born and bred to be an Alpha and Jack was his right hand. They’d been through a lot t
ogether, had forged a family of wolves there in Boston and all across the country with Cade at the helm. He was proud to be part of the new future they’d all forged when they’d taken Warren Pellini out five years prior.
“She doesn’t know. About being my mate. It’s complicated. No, don’t get that look, it is.” Jack shrugged. “She’s human, well, more than human, she was dripping magic. I’m pretty sure she knew I wasn’t human, though. She was attracted to me, we had amazing chemistry, but she’s with someone.” He sighed. “So I had to let her walk away. For today anyway. As for where she is, at her house, I’d wager. Hardest thing I’ve ever done, watching her turn a corner, knowing she was going to someone else. Yeah, that part.” He sped ahead, cutting off the question he knew Grace would ask.
“It wasn’t a man she smelled of. She had cat on her skin, in her hair. She lives with this dude, I can tell that much. I don’t know why though, cats aren’t one for casually living with partners.”
“Well what did she say exactly?” Grace’s frown was brief, but Jack caught it anyway. He wasn’t sure if it was that he’d found someone or if she worried about him getting hurt or a combo of all those things.
“I asked her out, she told me she was with someone and said no. But I know, my nose knows, she was interested.” He didn’t go into any more detail with kids at the table but her body had warmed to him; he scented her arousal, it wound around him, tying him to her, needing more of that scent. “She’s mine, but I’m going to have to show some creativity with this woman. I have to approach the situation carefully and be strategic.”
Grace exhaled, her impatience clear. Despite her size and how quiet she usually was, she was just as much an Alpha as Cade. Jack hid his smile behind his steepled fingers. “Can it be that she’s mated to this cat? Well, no it can’t. Of course it can’t or he wouldn’t have connected with her that way.” She put more potatoes on Cade’s plate and added some more meatloaf to Dave’s. “Too bad for the cat then. No one else can have her. She’s Jack’s mate and that’s that.” She decreed it, so it must be true. He loved that about her.
