by E A Price
Jess twirled a lock of hair round her finger. “Do you want to maybe…”
“No,” he said, flatly. “I’ll see you around.”
She stared at him, dumbfounded as he dragged his feet back to his curious friends. He got back up on his stool, and lay his head down on the bar.
Hunter slammed his beer down, inches from Casey’s head. “Alright, you’ve been acting like a complete dick since New Year’s, and just now, you almost made that raccoon pee his pants, and then you turned down Jess. What the fuck is the matter with you?”
Casey let out a protracted groan. What was wrong with him? He felt like the world was coming to an end, just at the thought of not seeing her again. He’d felt instantly attracted to her. Well, who wouldn’t? She was an angel. But it was more than that; every tiny part of her appealed to him, and made him want to cry and laugh at the same time in happiness. Now, with every day that passed, his obsession with her just deepened, and the longer he didn’t see her, the more he ached to be with her again. He’d met girls, and liked them straight away before, but this was different. This was more natural, more primal; he wanted her with a need that only his wolf seemed to understand. It was just dawning on him who she was to him. He was sure of it. She was his mate.
His wolf howled in triumph, as Casey finally came to the conclusion the wolf had in the first five seconds of meeting her. She was his; she belonged to him and was meant to be with him. Casey felt unbelievable glee at the realization, but then this turned to anger. He was furious with himself for not understanding who she was the first time they met.
His wolf rumbled in sympathy, and for the first time since New Year’s the beast wasn’t actually irritated. He couldn’t blame himself for not seeing who she was. Some wolves, but not all, knew who their mates were instantly, but they tended to be older wolves who were more in tune with their beasts.
Shifters could only find their mates after they turned 19, and even then it was a bit hit and miss. It had taken his friend, Mal weeks of dating to realize Terri was his mate. Casey had only met his mate twice; he could be forgiven for not recognizing who she was straight away. Although the lust and attraction were clearly there from the get-go… Besides it wasn’t like his mate recognized him either. God, his mate!
Casey rapidly sat up, startling Jimmy, who almost dropped his beer. A punch-drunk smile spread over his features. His mate! That would take some getting used to, but he was lucky to have someone so lovely, and so sexy. She was beautiful; right from her sparkling violet eyes to her cheeky, little mouth, her cheeky, little, voracious mouth… Hell, he was one lucky wolf! At least, he would be if he could find her.
Casey felt a renewed zeal about finding her. No more moping around, no more sitting around in O’Neill’s like a loser, waiting for her to come to him, dagnabit! He was going to find her.
“How do I find a bobcat?” he blurted, in a rush.
Jimmy and Hunter exchanged worried glances.
Hunter hesitated. “What do you mean?”
Casey pushed his beer away. He’d had more than enough in the last couple of weeks. “I need to find a female bobcat.”
Jimmy frowned. “Any female bobcat? You mean like a prostitu…”
Casey cut him off mid-sentence by swiping at his friend, and knocking the beer out of his hand. “She is not a prostitute!” he protested, loudly, making the other bar patrons turn their heads.
Jimmy wiped beer off his hands. “You owe me a beer.”
Casey shrugged an apology and ordered his friend a new beer. As his swell of anger receded, and his wolf backed down, he reflected he was lucky that Jimmy was pretty easygoing. Other pack mates would not have been so understanding of an outburst like that. He needed to rein that in, pronto.
He breathed in and out a few times. “I met a girl… no a woman, a bobcat shifter, on New Year’s, and I need to find her.”
His friends blinked at him for a few beats before bellowing with laughter. Jimmy almost choked on his beer. “Awww, is little Casey in lurve?”
“Fuck you!” muttered Casey, his good mood deflating. Why was he friends with these guys, again?
Hunter managed to calm down a little. “No, seriously, man, that’s great. Will she be carrying around your testicles for you, like Terri does for Mal?”
Beer was almost shooting out of Jimmy’s nose, because he was laughing so hard. Seriously, why were these wolves his friends?
“I could give a shit what you two think, but I do want to find her…”
Hunter rolled his shoulders, unconcernedly. “So, what’s the problem? Can’t you just look her up? Google her, or something.”
Casey bit his lip. “I would if I knew her name.”
Jimmy rolled his eyes. “Really? I take it this is the girl you were with the bathroom on New Year’s, and then again at Risty’s party, and you didn’t even bother to find out her name.”
He prickled at his friend’s censorious tone. He was about to snap a retort about Jimmy’s behavior, but he held his tongue. He had to admit Jimmy did treat girls better than he did; he was always faithful for one thing…
But, mostly because he knew Jimmy was right, he didn’t react to the rebuke. He should have at least asked her for a name, before he let his desire overtake him. In his defense, his bobcat hadn’t offered her name or asked him his either. His wolf snapped his jaws, and Casey felt immediately bad for trying to push the blame onto his mate. This was his fault; he was the man, and he took full responsibility.
Casey looked suitably chastised. “Yeah, it’s her, and now I don’t know how to find her.”
Jimmy fidgeted uncomfortably; this new, repentant, uncertain Casey was a bit hard to swallow. “I don’t really know a lot about bobcat shifters, but they tend to live in extended family groups. You know, grandparents, kids, grandchildren, all living under one roof.”
Hunter scratched his neck. “Why don’t you ask that Deputy back in Rose for help? What’s her name? Deirdre, Dorothy…”
“Deanna,” supplied Jimmy. “Yeah, maybe she’ll even know who your bobcat is.”
Casey frowned. “Deanna? I didn’t even know there was a bobcat in the Sheriff’s department.”
Jimmy gave him a look of exasperation. “You’re kidding, right? She’s been a Deputy for months, how can you not have seen her around town?”
Casey scoffed. “I go out of my way to avoid anyone who works for the Sheriff – do you know how many fake IDs Alec has taken from me?”
“How many?”
Casey pursed his lips. “Well, two, but they were damned expensive.”
“Alec mentioned her at a pack meeting a few weeks ago. Deanna was there when Kira got attacked; she shot one of the fuckers who came for Kira.”
Yeah, he remembered that, he just didn’t realize it was a female bobcat Deputy. He had it in his mind that it was a coyote shifter called Donald. He didn’t know where he got that from…
“Surprised you didn’t hear.”
“I don’t go to pack meetings, and since when do you?” Casey cast an accusing eye on Hunter.
The other wolf bristled. “What? I’m interested in pack business.”
Jimmy gave Casey a significant smirk. Yeah, right. Whenever Hunter took an interest in the pack, it was for one reason, and only one reason. A girl. In particular one girl – Noa Lucas. If Hunter went to that meeting, it was in the hope of seeing her again. He was so predictable.
His wolf huffed at him. Wouldn’t he do the same thing if it were his bobcat? He’d do anything for just a glimpse of her.
Casey coughed to change the subject. “Yeah, maybe I’ll go talk to the bobcat tomorrow.”
Jimmy looked at him thoughtfully. “So, I guess you’re not interested in Jess anymore then?”
“Up until ten minutes ago I thought her name was Lisa, or Laura, so no, not interested. I’m still kinda pissed that she kissed me at Risty’s party, the bobcat saw it, and I think she got the wrong idea.”
Hunter absently picked at th
e label on his beer bottle. “Yeah, seeing a puma attached to your mouth will do that. Women overreact about those kinds of things.”
Jimmy said he would go and cheer up Jess, who looked a little lonely. A miserable looking Hunter mumbled something about an early start in the morning, and took off.
Casey was feeling nervously elated, and his wolf was almost peaceful. He ordered a soda and sipped on it, while eagerly looking to the door every time it opened. It was never his bobcat, but that was okay. He was going to find her; he knew it. He was almost positive. He just had to be patient. He prayed it happened soon.
*
Casey quietly pushed open the back door of his parent’s house. He pricked up his ears, and heard scuffling, and giggling coming from the kitchen.
He groaned and pushed the door open to find his parents canoodling in front of the open fridge. Not a new sight for him.
His parents met when they were both 19, and nine months later Casey arrived. He was unplanned but not unwanted; his mom told him that over and over. His mom was a wolf shifter, and had lived in Rose her whole life, while his dad was a puma who was visiting the town. But after they met, he never left. His dad took an apprenticeship with a wolf shifter and trained to be a carpenter, and his mom worked as a receptionist at the Sheriff’s station.
For years, they scrimped and saved, and lived at his grandma’s house while his dad worked up his business, until finally, they were comfortable. That was when his parents decided to start breeding their own basketball team. He had three sisters, all under 10, and his mom was pregnant again. He would bet anything that is was going to be another girl. Probably for the best. All his sisters were little angels, he, on the other hand, had been a hellion when he was young. He still kind of was.
His grandma, Jeanette, told him he took after his mom, she was apparently pretty wild in her teenage years. Well, he certainly took after her when it came to his wolf. They were making bets on whether his sisters would be wolves or pumas. They were guessing pumas, given how well behaved they were.
Casey sighed as his dad kissed his mom’s neck; they knew he was there. “Aww, come on, you guys. People eat in here.”
Kristy Shaw smiled indulgently at her son, as she pulled out a pint of ice-cream from the fridge. “Hey, honey, what brings you by so late?”
It was 11pm, but Kristy couldn’t remember a time before tonight when she wasn’t in bed by 10.30. She was usually exhausted.
“I was on my way home, thought I’d drop by and pick up a casserole grandma made for me.”
Casey lived in a small cabin, not too far from his parents’ house. It gave him a little freedom but also meant he was close-by for babysitting, and so he could pop in whenever he wanted. He actually got a little homesick more often than he cared to admit.
When Casey moved out, his grandma, Jeannette, moved into his room. In true grandma fashion, she was convinced he wasn’t eating properly. It was true he wasn’t, he lived on pizza, cake and beer.
“You don’t mind me dropping in, do you?”
Kristy ran over to him and gave him a hug. “Of course not, honey. This is your home; you’re welcome here anytime. You know, if you’re not happy living alone, you can always move back here, we have plenty of room.”
Casey knew that wasn’t true, but didn’t like to say so, her bottom lip was already wobbling. His mom cried the day he moved out, and would love for him to come home. She missed him and wasted no opportunity to tell him. Kristy had always lived with her family, and didn’t like the idea of her baby being on his own.
James Shaw gave his mate a disapproving pout, as he ladled some ice-cream into a bowl. “Kristy, leave the boy alone.”
She turned and stuck her tongue out at him; he in turn blew her a kiss. Casey rolled his eyes. His parents had always been crazy about one another, something that hadn’t diminished with age.
Casey put his hands on her shoulders. “How are you feeling, Mom?”
Kristy grinned. “Great, honey. I’m just hungry all the time. Speaking of…”
She eagerly grabbed the bowl and started wolfing down her ice-cream.
“Yikes, Mom, don’t forget to breathe.”
Kristy swallowed and let out a monstrous yawn.
“Baby, go on up to bed, I’ll be up in a minute.” James gently led his mate to the stairs and patted her rump, which she wiggled in response. Casey pretended not to notice.
Kristy pecked her son on the cheek. “Will we see you tomorrow night, at the pack gathering? It’s a full moon.”
“Sure, you won’t be hunting will you?”
“No, can’t because of the baby, but grandma will. See you then, honey.”
“Night, Mom.”
James looked his son up and down. “You want a drink? I’ll grudgingly let you have a beer.”
He didn’t exactly approve of his son drinking while he was still underage, but he knew Casey did drink. James had when he was underage too; it was just different when it came to his own son.
“Nah, I’m kind of tired.”
James’ eyebrows shot up his head. He’d never known his son to say no to beer. “You okay?”
Casey shrugged. “Yeah, I guess.”
James chuckled. “You guess? You sure you don’t want a beer?”
“I, umm, I think I’ve found my true mate.” Casey looked at his dad sheepishly.
His dad blinked. “Wow… that’s wonderful Casey; I’m so happy.” He gave his son a quick, back-slapping hug.
“Yeah…”
“You don’t sound so sure. Is there a problem with her?”
Casey’s wolf roared. “No! No, she’s perfect.”
His dad chuckled at his tetchy son. “Then, what’s wrong? You don’t seem as happy as you should be. I mean I know you’re young, and the idea of settling down, and mating is kind of daunting…”
“It’s not that, I just… I’m not sure who she is.”
James’ eyes narrowed to slits, and Casey held his breath. He was 20, and he still got the same tingles he always did when his dad was about to berate him.
His dad pulled out two chairs from the table, and motioned for Casey to sit. “To save me from guessing about what’s going on, why don’t you just tell me?”
Casey was about to argue, but a look from his dad quelled him. He resigned himself and related the story, trying to gloss over the more intimate details. His dad listened wordlessly.
At the end of the story, James let out a long breath. He’d had numerous conversations with his son regarding women over the years, about behaving responsibly and treating them respectfully, but nothing seemed to sink in. He knew his son wasn’t cruel to any of the women he’d dated, but before now, Casey could never have been considered considerate or loving, and James often despaired at his behavior. Not that Casey was any worse than the other young wolves; they were all horny shifters, ruled by their libidos, as far as James was concerned. He, perhaps, couldn’t understand Casey’s behavior as well as he could if he were a wolf shifter. Pumas were different animals altogether.
But, seeing his son looking a little forlorn melted his heart. He squeezed his son’s shoulder reassuringly. “It’s gonna be okay. You’ll find her, son.”
He was still a little doubtful. “How can you be so sure?”
“I have faith in you, champ.”
Casey smiled, immediately feeling reassured. “Thanks, dad.”
James stood up and stretched. “I better go to bed; your mom’s either asleep or about to come and find me.”
Casey smirked. “I’m guessing asleep, I think I can hear her snoring. The window frames are almost shaking.”
His dad playfully slapped his head and headed out. He stopped at the door and looked back at his son. “Look, when you do find her, my advice is that you actually slow down, and talk to her before you jump into bed again… figuratively speaking.”
Casey felt his cheeks flush and nodded as his dad said goodnight. He found his grandma’s casserole and set off for
his cabin.
He shook his head, and decided to stop worrying over what had previously happened with his mate. Yes, thing could have gone better, yes, he could have acted more like a gentleman, in particular he winced about forgetting birth control the last time they were together, but that was in the past. All that mattered was the future. He just needed to find his mate, and then he was sure that everything would fall into place.
She must be feeling the mating pull too, and by the time they met again, like him, she would be so excited to see him that nothing else would matter. His wolf yapped excitedly. Yep, things could only get better.
Chapter Eight
16th January
Deanna tapped her pencil against her desk. Nothing was happening. Nothing much ever did happen in the small town. Oh, they had their moments, now and then, but on a day-to-day basis, the most exciting thing to happen was when an elderly bull shifter would run around naked, or when the Tanner boys would find some way to start raising hell.
The Tanner boys were the most mischievous wolves in the whole Grey pack, and given how much competition they had, that was really saying something. Most recently the three youngest Tanner boys were suspected of breaking into the houses on the fancy-pants, rich housing estate and taking swims in their pools. Usually, all that was left behind was a pile of wet towels. At one house, one of the perpetrators had actually made themselves a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, but they left a note, and enough money to cover the ingredients they used. Thoughtful criminals.
Then there was the Mayor’s house… The Mayor hadn’t considered the situation serious, until they broke into his house. One of the perpetrators left a Baby Ruth bar in the bottom of his pool. Apparently they had been watching Caddyshack recently. The Mayor was hopping mad. Deanna wished she had seen his face when he found it; she had a hard time not hooting with laughter when he was around. The only thing that quelled her was a stern glare from Alec; he didn’t find the situation funny at all.
God, she wished she had something to do. Even all her paperwork was up to date. She needed something to take her mind off the two major problems in her life. Her mom and her mystery wolf. Not that they were problems, really. The situation with her mom was just business as usual, and her wolf wasn’t a problem, more like a distraction… to the point where she couldn’t get to sleep at night, because images of him were flashing before her eyes. She licked her lips, remembering his divine taste. It was spicy, yet homey, like warm pumpkin pie. Lord, what she wouldn’t give for a nice, big slice of pumpkin pie, or maybe just a piece of her wolf… damnit!
