by V. Vaughn
“You found my bracelet,” she paused, amusement lighting her eyes as they faded back to the beautiful blue. “Tom,” she finally said, with a wry twist of her lips. She fell silent again.
I felt like a teenager again, resisting the urge to shuffle my feet. Snap out of it. Pulling together the tatters of my dignity, and ignoring the muffled sniggers behind me, I caught her hand in mine, pressing the bracelet between our palms. “Could we come in?”
Her breath caught, then she frowned, staring down at our joined hands. “What…”
“‘Course you can.” Ester shuffled out of the way, sweeping her arm back in welcome. She wriggled her eyebrows at me. “Come on in, lover boy.”
“Ester!” Julie hissed out of the corner of her mouth, but she didn’t protest.
When she went to pull her hand away, I moved closer, then slipped the bracelet back over her wrist. “Back when it belongs,” I murmured, trailing my fingers across her wrist.
“A little better,” Owen muttered, sliding past me, followed by the rest of the group, who had equally good comments.
“Just wait until it’s your turn,” I muttered back as I followed Julie into the house.
Yep. Her ass had been worth the wait.
Once we’d settled in the living room, after dragging in a couple of dining chairs as extras, and Ester had fussed enough that Julie had fixed everyone a drink, we finally got down to it. Or, rather, Owen got down to it. I couldn’t take my eyes off my mate, who had taken up sentry next to her friend, eyes wide with confusion and something that looked a little like … fear?
“Why are you scared?” I said, cutting off Owen as he was detailing the last couple of hours. Leaning forward in my chair, I braced my arms on my thighs, willing her to look at me, something she’d been avoiding since we’d sat down. My wolf was jittery under my skin, not understanding why we had to do all this talking. He also didn’t understand why our mate was giving us the cold shoulder. We’d checked on the soulbond and it was there, the gossamer thread spindling between Julie and myself. Sure, it was still fragile since we hadn’t claimed each other yet, but it was there. Couldn’t she feel it?
Her eyes darted around the room as she hugged a cushion to her chest. Her friend patted her on the leg, as if giving her encouragement. “I don’t want to go with you,” she blurted out. Strain bracketed her mouth as she clamped her lips back together again. She glared at me, as if through thought alone, she could make me disappear.
She should have just put a gun to my head and pulled the trigger, it would have caused less pain. I sat back in the chair, ignoring everything that was going on around me, unable to think past the chasm that had opened up inside of me.
White noise buzzed in my ears. I had to get out of here. I jerked out of my seat and walked out of the room.
4
Julie
I stared after Tom as he walked away. He appeared angry. Or frustrated? Maybe they worked on some kind of bonus scheme or he was pissed that he wouldn’t be keeping a perfect record. Whatever. Just because they’d found me, didn’t mean I had to give up fighting and let them drag me away. Sharp pain flared in my palms and I glanced down, a strange feeling of detachment floating over me when I saw that my claws had partially extended, leaving pinpricks of red as I sheathed them. I rubbed my chest, trying to dislodge the weird pressure had started the second this group of shifters had arrived. It had to be because they were powerful shifters. The one trying to get my attention was definitely the Alpha, you could tell by the way the group surrounded him, standing at his back.
Though Tom had been the one at the door, the first to make contact. At his Alpha’s command?
“Julie!”
I turned to my best friend. “Hmmm, what?”
She jabbed a finger in the Alpha’s direction.
He looked ready to jump out of his seat and storm out of the house. At least one guy had already left to follow Tom, though I couldn’t tell which. I’d been too distracted to notice them before. The Alpha pressed his hands together, tension clear in the clench of his jaw. “I won’t pretend to understand why you just did that to him, but I need you to listen.”
I opened my mouth to ask what the hell he was talking about, but closed it with an audible snap when he glowered at me.
“You’re an unregistered shifter, which means you have to come live in one of the shifter towns.” Behind him, the massive guy folded his arms over his chest and gave me a puzzled look. It wasn’t meant to intimidate, though he managed that through sheer size alone, more like he couldn’t quite figure me out. Also, he looked kinda sad. “Of course, you don’t have to come with us to our town. If you’d prefer to be further away from Tom, then—”
I held out my hand. “Wait. What?” I peered at him. “Okay, let’s gloss over the little fact that I’m not going anywhere for a moment … what’s this got to do with Tom?” I jabbed a thumb in the direction that the most gorgeous guy I had ever met in my life had dashed off to.
It was as if I’d hit the group of wolf shifters with the mute button, their mouths were flapping, but no sound was coming out.
Ester nudged me, lowering her voice to a mock whisper. “That’s an awesome power.”
“I know,” I whispered back. “I’ll try and teach you.”
She nodded vigorously, then curled her lip. “But I’m not calling you master. No way.”
“Save that for Mac.”
Her eyebrows winged up. “Kinky. I like it.”
“You want to stay for your friend.” Tom’s voice came from the doorway. Apparently, he hadn’t gone far. My cat purred inside of me, her tongue scratching beneath my skin, as if she wanted to taste the man in front of us. Okay, I could agree that he looked tasty, but he was off limits. I didn’t even know the guy, no matter the fact that he smelled good enough to eat. Or lick. Or maybe chew on. Turns out, when it came to my imagination, I wasn’t picky.
I forced myself to nod, as if I wasn’t having a party for two inside my head. “She’s my family and…” I made a vague gesture at the size of Ester’s stomach. “She needs me.”
Tom’s gaze flitted to my friend. “You’re married? To this Mac?”
He got a brilliant smile in return. “Eight years. He works shifts, so Julie has been helping keep an eye on me.” Her smile turned devious. “Until the baby’s born, of course. Which will be at Christmas, because that way I get to call him or her Rain Dearing.” She looked around as if expecting applause.
There was a pause, then faintly, “Because you’re Ester Dearing?”
“Exactly,” my friend crowed. It was a running joke, coming up with the weirdest names, but this was the first time we’d gone with a theme. She’d obviously been saving this up, plotting her evil masterpiece in secret, just waiting to unleash her awesomeness on the world.
I grabbed her hand and squeezed. “Wow. Mac’s going to hate that he missed that one.”
“I know.” She looked smug.
Underneath my easy banter, tension was coiling in my stomach, as if waiting for someone to finally explain what I was missing. Because I was definitely missing something. I’d even patted my shoulders, checking for a second head, but no luck. Just plain old me. Who was clueless. Trouble was, I didn’t know whether pressing for answers would be to my advantage.
“When are you officially due?” Owen asked Ester.
“Six weeks, but they’ve told me this baby is coming any day now. Which is fine.” She patted her stomach. “He or she is a big size and everything’s developed, so, yeah…”
Owen turned his attention to Tom, who jerked his head in the direction of the kitchen before stomping off with the other man.
I turned my attention to the rest of the group, who finally introduced themselves, flashing friendly smiles.
“What’s it like in the shifter town?” I was half making polite conversation, half actually wanting to know. I’d never actually met someone who lived there.
“Heartsridge is great,” Grant replied,
stretching out his long legs and crossing them at the ankle. He was a good looking guy and the silver flecks in his hair were really something, but he wasn’t as good looking as Tom. I snuck a peek at the rest of them, silently assessing. Nope. None of them were. “We’re still building and we’ve got new people arriving every day, but we’ve got a great community going on.”
Daryl took over, flashing me an easy grin. “Our Mayor is a lion shifter.”
“Really?” A lion shifter? Damn.
“Yep. The rest of the cats tend to work in tourism, running the hotel and the bars and restaurants. Shops as well, though we kinda all mix in together.”
“Apart from the security.” Owen had rejoined the group, Tom trailing behind him. “The pack is in charge of the security of the town. My enforcers—” he indicated the group of men with him, “—coordinate and oversee everything. The bear teams run the perimeter checks. Everyone pitches in.”
Tom retook his earlier seat, looking a lot more relaxed. The little chat with his Alpha had done him good. “We’ve got some great amenities already, everything you’d find in a normal town. Bowling, cinema, swimming pool, nightclubs, plus a large forest to run in whenever we like.”
I sat back, not having realized I’d leaned closer. “Huh.”
“Sounds like a fancy resort,” Ester commented.
It kinda did. But there was still the whole not being allowed to leave thing. “I don’t want to give up my family.” I didn’t have to point to Ester, I’d already made myself clear.
Tom inched forward on his seat, clasping his hands together. The movement pulled his t-shirt tight across his biceps, which was an unfair move. How the heck was I meant to concentrate while part of my brain was distracted with ogling? “Humans can come visit for a week at a time.” He turned to Ester. “Your family would be welcome at the packhouse.” Owen inclined his head in silent agreement.
Now, I didn’t know a lot of shifters and their ways, but that sounded suspiciously like a big deal. In fact, I was going to capitalize that sucker: Big Deal.
While I sat there listening to them all pipe up with their favorite thing about this town called Heartsridge, I realized that at some point the anger had drained out of me. The fight as well. It was as if my subconscious was trying to tell me to listen, that this was a good thing. Or was it instinct? I hadn’t spent a lot of time in my ocelot form, since I didn’t have anyone to go running with, so what did I know? I was used to thinking things through and making decisions based on facts. Or maybe love, like with Ester.
But, honestly? I wasn’t sure I saw a way out of this. They’d caught me, fair and square. Running would just deprive me of the reason I’d resisted being rounded up so far. I’d be alone out there, so I might as well be alone in this haven for shifters.
I realized that while everyone had continued talking, oblivious to my face off against my new reality, Tom had his attention wholly fixed on me. When I caught his eye, he stood up, crossed the room and crouched down before me. His whole demeanor was intense, from the set of his jaw, to the stiffness of his shoulders. “Owen?” he muttered, without turning around. As if the man had been waiting for the signal, Owen rose and ushered everyone else into the kitchen, including Ester, who looked like she was going to put up a fight until one of the guys whispered something in her ear. Her eyes widened and then she was leading the way.
That left myself and Tom, who was still giving me his undivided attention. “You can stay here until the baby comes.”
A reprieve. Overwhelming relief, then confusion filled me. But… “How?” Shifters were rounded up and taken to the towns. That was that.
“Owen’s agreed to cover for us.”
“That’s so—” Wait a goddamn minute. My eyes widened. “Us?”
Tom gave me a half smile, but he seemed nervous about something. “How much do you know about shifters?”
I shrugged. “Pretty much nothing. My mom raised me and she was as human as they come. The shifter gene came from my dad.”
All at once, the tension in his shoulders melted away and his smile brightened.
A tickling sensation lurched inside my chest, heat spooling through my stomach as I fought back the sudden urge to reach out and touch this man in front of me. I couldn’t just go around touching people willy-nilly, now.
As if sensing my hesitation, he carefully slid his hand over mine. “Julie, can you describe my scent for me?” When I gave him what must have been a weird look, because, hello, he’d just asked me to sniff him, he shook his head with a low chuckle. “Don’t overthink it, let your instinct lead the way. Trust me, it’ll all be explained.”
“Okaaaay.” I leaned forward and sniffed. Not that I’d really needed to, but I’d gotten so used to ignoring my nose in the human world, I’d turned off my inner scent processor. Or I just wanted another sniff. Because, damn, he smelled good. So good. “Chocolate dipped in gooseberry jelly,” I whispered, sneaking another whiff. Catnip. This man smelled like catnip.
A rumbling noise had me jerking away.
He held up his free hand in a placating gesture. “Sorry, my wolf really… Well, you’ll understand in a second.” He looked down, then glanced back up at me, his eyebrows drawn up tight. “Gooseberry jelly?”
“So good.” I slapped a hand over my mouth.
This time his smile was one of pure male satisfaction. If he’d been a cat, he would have been purring. “Thank you.”
I could feel the heat creeping into my cheeks, despite trying to fight it back. It never worked. “You can’t help the way you smell.”
He shrugged, his thumb sliding over the back of my hand. Acting all sneaky like. A stealth attack. Next thing, he’d be rubbing my feet. “Or that you like the way I smell.”
“What do I smell like?”
“Pine trees and spiced apples.” The way he said it sounded like so much more than simple words. “You smell like the forest at Christmastime.”
After a moment, I grinned. “Both yummy and festive. I’ll take it.”
Something flashed in his eyes, and I wasn’t talking about the silver sheen that had taken over. “Final question and don’t think about it, just answer.” When I nodded, he repeated his instruction, before continuing, “And how does my scent make you feel?”
I froze my answer on the tip of my tongue as it formed instantly.
He squeezed my hand. “Tell me, Julie. I promise I’ll explain.”
“I— You—.” I swallowed, searching his face. “It makes me feel like … I’ve come … home.”
I’d expected him to be shocked. Maybe freaked out. At the very least, he should look a little unsettled by the crazy woman in front of him, but instead he was staring at me with a look that I could only describe as joy. “That’s because we’re fated mates.” His hand came up to cup my cheek. “Our souls recognize each other.”
Okay. Now I wasn’t the one spouting crazy stuff. I knew about mates, but fated mates? How could that even be a real thing?
I don’t know what he saw on my face, but his mouth twitched, as if biting back laughter. “Don’t worry. We’ve got two weeks for me to explain everything.”
“And then it will all make sense? I’ll suddenly believe you about this fated stuff?” I winced. “Because, hmmmm, not going to lie here, it sounds a bit mystical and airy-fairy.”
This time, he couldn’t hold back the laughter, the corners of his eyes crinkling.
I shot him a scowl. “Glad you think it’s all funny.”
Shaking his head, his laughter died down, then he was back to being serious Tom. “Julie, sweetheart—” he brought my hand to his lips, his touch not quite a kiss, more of a caress that I felt move through my whole body, his eyes darkening and taking on a look that was pure hunger, “—I’ve got two weeks to convince you to fall in love with me and take me as your mate. Trust me, I’m taking this very seriously.”
Ah, heck. He had smooth lines. That did stuff to me. Tingly stuff. Stuff like this didn’t happen in rea
l life. Gorgeous men didn’t storm into people’s houses and declare someone—me—the object of their infatuation, spouting off about Fate and love and souls recognizing each other. But when I squinted at him, he only nodded. When I squinted harder, trying to figure out what he could possibly be up to, I received an alarmed look, but yet another nod. Finally, I collapsed back in my seat, retrieving my captured hand to join my other in dragging over my face. I peeped out from between my fingers. “Seriously, you’re not shitting me?”
The corner of his mouth kicked up. “Seriously. Two weeks, sweetheart.”
I couldn’t decide if I should take it as a threat or a promise.
But, it looked like we were both sticking around, so I was going to find out.
5
Tom
“Who the hell are you?”
Light blinded me and I jerked awake.
A large, tired looking man stood in the doorway to the living room, rubbing the scruff on his jaw and looking bemused. Probably wasn’t used to coming home after four days and finding a strange guy sleeping on his couch, which is where Ester had settled me last night after the guys had dropped my bag off on their way out of town.
Swinging my legs around, I pushed myself up, sticking my hand out. “Mac, right? I’m Tom.”
Switching his coffee to his left hand, he gave mine a perfunctory shake. Smoke and dirt clung to him like a well-loved aftershave, bonded at a cellular level that no amount of soap could remove. He took a swig of his coffee, watching me over the brim. “Want to tell me why you’re crashing on my couch?”
“Mac!” I was almost bowled over by the Ester shaped missile that flung herself into the room. Damn, I’d underestimated how fast that woman could move, especially when motivated.
“Essie,” he murmured, folding her into his arms. His wife came up to his chest bone and almost disappeared, even with her being heavily pregnant. The man was one of the largest humans I’d seen. “How’s our baby doing?”
