Rebirth - Book 1 Rogues Shifter Series

by Gayle Parness

  Chapter Eleven

  I dressed quickly the next morning, intending to grab a cup of coffee and then a shower. Outside my room I practically collided with Ethan who held my shoulders so I couldn’t pass him. After a few seconds he let go and backed up.

  “I see you’ve met Garrett.” Ethan scowled. “You reek of vampire.”

  I sniffed my hands. I liked the scent. “Not a fan?” I teased.

  “He’s okay at times, but I hate the stench. Most bloodsuckers are trouble.” Ethan grabbed both of my hands, sniffed them again and before I could pull away, licked each one, grinning hugely. He called out as he walked past, “Now you smell healthy, like a shifter.” I laughed as I turned back to the bathroom to wash my hands, ridding myself of vampire and cougar.

  After breakfast Rob took us out to the yard and had me place my hand on Ethan’s shoulder as he crouched and shifted into his cougar and back again twice. Having a handsome naked guy under my hand one minute and a large furry beast under my hand the next was sometimes disturbing, sometimes cool and sometimes blush producing, but the two guys treated it like it was no biggie, so I tried to also.

  Rob had Ethan explain what went through his mind as he shifted. “I see myself in cougar form, feeling each specific physical difference in my head before it happens. As soon as I sense the power surge, I force myself to breathe deeply and focus on my hands and feet changing form. They always transition first. There’s pain but then the change itself flows naturally after that. It’s gotten pretty quick with practice.”

  I tried to do the same, struggling at first. Rob and Ethan continued to encourage me. After several frustrating tries, I felt an overwhelming urge to allow the shift free rein. I was able to shift more quickly and less painfully if I relaxed into the pain, instead of fighting against it.

  My larger feline companions led me into the woods to hunt for the first time. Opening my senses to the forest around me, I heard the heartbeats of several warm-blooded creatures in the area. I narrowed down my focus to one unlucky hare and set about the task of stalking it until I saw it up ahead nibbling on a loganberry bush. Lying in wait for the perfect moment to attack was difficult for me as I’ve never been patient when a goal was in reach. Rob had to practically sit on my tail to make me wait for the right moment to rush from the cover of the blackberry bushes. Happily, my instincts kicked in at the perfect time and I pounced on the surprised brown hare, biting into his neck to make a clean kill.

  My human side might have cringed to see the cheetah kill and eat the terrified animal, but my appetite was satisfied in a way I would never experience as a human. The chase had given me an adrenaline rush unlike any other, and my physical strength seemed to increase with each bite as I shivered in ecstasy, licking the bones of the unlucky hare. When I’d finished and was grooming myself in the usual feline way, Rob’s leopard cuffed my head playfully with his giant paw and Ethan’s cougar licked my face. Somehow, I didn’t mind at all.

  That afternoon, Ethan taught me to play backgammon while Rob emailed a few people and made some phone calls. Ethan turned out to be a good teacher, but after a couple of hours I was ready to stretch my legs and take a human run. Ethan said he’d tag along, so I slowed down my pace and we made it to the ocean together. We sat on an outcropping of rock and stared at the sea, both of us lost in our own thoughts for several minutes.

  I glanced at Ethan’s unusually serious expression and decided to break the ice. “Solo Island, huh? I guess I understand the name. It is kinda lonely out here.”

  “It’s peaceful.”

  “It is, but why are you here? I mean if you’re okay with shifting into your cougar then…?”

  He shook his head and looked away. “Not now, okay? I’ll tell you one day.”

  “Sure.” I touched his arm hoping to offer some comfort. I’d never push him to talk about something painful when he wasn’t ready. I had plenty of garbage in my past I wouldn’t be sharing anytime soon. I changed the subject. “What do you know about Garrett?” Now there was a subject I could get my teeth into. Ha.

  Ethan’s mouth turned down. “He’s dangerous. There’s nothing else you need to know. Just stay away from him.”

  I frowned at his snippy retort. The memory of Garrett’s concerned eyes along with the gentle touch of his hands on mine, still made me smile. “There’s something familiar about him. I think we can trust him.”

  Ethan sighed in exasperation. “Even though he’s Rob’s friend, he has a bad rep, so it’s probably better if we have as little to do with him as possible.”

  “We’ll be training with him soon.”

  “Yeah, I know.” Ethan didn’t sound too enthusiastic; not surprising considering how he felt about vampires in general and Garrett in particular.

  I decided to file away Ethan’s words of caution, knowing that he meant well. But as I nestled under the covers later that night, I wondered when I would see Garrett again. I didn’t realize it would be quite so soon.