“I will only meet you in public,” I blurted out. “I’m at the diner with my m- boyfriend.”
This wasn’t news to Mike. I had told him in one of our previous exchanges that I had moved on with a new man. I just couldn’t tell him that it was mate since Mike was human.
“Fine.” Mike the Annoying Ex grumped in my ear. Yeah, he probably didn’t like the reminder that I had moved on.
I tapped on my phone screen to disconnect the call.
“I’m here, my mate,” Leo whispered.
It seemed like hours, but in reality it was only ten minutes before my stupid ex, who had been harassing me with phone calls and text messages, walked into the Holbrook diner. The one thing he didn’t know would be that half of the people in there for dinner were probably shifters who would take him out without a second thought if he showed the least bit of violence toward the pride enforcer.
“Mike.” I spoke curtly when he approached Leo and me. “Sit down and let’s get this over with.”
“I wish…there is no need to be hostile. Thank you for seeing me, Kit.” Mike cleared his throat and motioned to Leo. “And…”
“This is my boyfriend, Leo Pard,” I made the introduction. “We met a couple months after I moved here.” I beamed up to Leo while at the same time he reached under the table for my hand and squeezed gently. His strength and support were invaluable to me.
Mike sat down on a seat opposite Leo and me.
“Look Kit, I know I fucked up things…and I’m…I feel I need to tell you that I’m sorry. I got no idea why I did any of it.”
Mike and I stared at each other in silence. Suddenly I realized that perhaps the creepy vibes I had been feeling was actually Mike being all mixed up and feeling the need to apologize. It was honestly anticlimactic.
I opened my mouth and found myself unable to form a sentence. I was completely lost for words.
“I will admit,” Mike continued. “When I first got in contact with you I did want to get back with you. I wanted to pick up where we left off.”
Leo growled low in his throat. If Mike thought it weird he didn’t comment on the noise.
Mike hastily added, glancing warily at Leo, “I don’t know for sure when I changed my mind to simply apologize to you without thoughts of getting back together. But I don’t want to be that weird, stalker ex who loses his mind because I fucked up so completely. And so here I am, and all I want to say is I’m sorry for being an asshole. I’m sorry for leading you on and cheating on you. Like the saying goes, I didn’t know what I had until I lost it.”
There was a long silence. Leo barely moved a muscle, I really think that he was confused about the entire situation.
I finally just looked at Mike and asked, incredulous, “And that was why you kept ringing and texting about seeing me?”
“As I said, at first no, but definitely for the last few weeks.” Mike nodded.
I was still a little skeptical of the whole thing. “Oh. Okay. Well, thank you for the apology. I’ve found my happiness with Leo. I hope one day you find yours.”
Seriously, remember that humanitarian award I spoke of earlier? I really deserve it now. I just wished the man good luck for this love life.
“So soon?”
I’m not sure why my ex felt a right to be skeptical, but I conceded to myself that Mike was a human. He knew nothing of the connection between mates, and unless he was a mate to a shifter or some other paranormal, he probably never would know.
I nodded.
“When it’s right, it falls into place perfectly with a bit of work.”
Leo added, “What can I say? The attraction was magnetic. Kit has definitely moved on.”
Ok, so my big brave lion was being territorial. Not that I can blame the man.
I continued as if Leo hadn’t spoken. “Everything was just right for me when it came to moving here from San Diego.” I nibbled at my lower lip, trying to figure out what to say. “The work is what I want to do. The people are wonderful…and more than anything, like Leo said, the attraction between us is so strong and perfect.” Mike was giving me his best poker face. “I don’t know what else to say to you. After we finished…yes, I was hurt but I took the move here to Holbrook as a clean slate.”
Mike gave me a weak smile. “Yeah, I can see you’ve embraced life here. And judging by the stares I’m getting in here everyone is protective of you, Leo, or both.”
Leo snorted with dark amusement. “Probably waiting to see if I get angry and punch you.”
Mike was a little stunned by that remark.
I patted Leo on the shoulder. “Don’t go into your bad cop routine, sweetie.”
Leo only grunted at me. Mike appeared to be incredulous.
I added, “But yes, this is a small town. Everyone knows everyone. Everyone is protective of each other, even the relatively new vet from the city who they may or may not still be wary of.” After all, I had been accepted by the pride, but the humans and other species of shifters had no reason to immediately warm up to my presence in Holbrook.
“I suppose all that’s left is to wish you luck, Kit.”
Mike looked around the diner. “I got a room at the motel. I figure I might as well take a look around town before leaving. I’ve not told you, but after you left San Diego and I turned down that job in Arapahoe and broke things off with Nate—the cowboy, I took a couple months and found a job in Albuquerque.”
“So you’re in New Mexico now? And single?”
“Yes, and yes,” Mike admitted. “I learnt a big lesson at a horrible cost, Kit. From a situation I had been an absolute idiot to let happen. I acknowledge it was my fault. But life is also falling into place for me in New Mexico. I was going to fly up here, but ended up doing a drive.”
“You know that does sound creepy.”
Mike gave me another weak apologetic look. “What can I say? My conscious got the better of me.”
“And we find out you are human after all.” I murmured dryly.
We basically left things there. The next day Mike was seen about town, and indeed he did explore the local area and surrounding towns. I suppose he had to make the ten-hour drive worth his while since he didn’t have his cowboy lover anymore.
That night Leo reminded more than once, and in more than just words, that I belonged to him and his beast. It was really just his animal half’s way of ensuring his claim on our mating bond and less about jealousy. It was hot and totally sexy.
Epilogue
Two months later – beginning of October
Kit Pryde
After Mike’s less than dramatic appearance, I had really been hoping for an all-out brawl like in the soap operas, things in quiet old Holbrook went back to normal. Leo and I found that merging our lives together had been, in the end, relatively simple, but probably because we had both been committed to making our mating everything pack elders would tell the young children about as they grew up and became one with their animals.
I still loved my job at the vet clinic in Arapahoe. I especially loved when a certain sexy cop would come and pay me a visit. Since all the shifters in the local area knew that we were mated, everyone from my clients to the vet nurses and the other two vets in the practice, would look at me as if they were waiting for Leo and me to make out as soon as we were in the same room.
Just a few days ago I found out that, despite my parents’ insistence that they wanted to wait until my brother Eli was more settled in life, my mom was pregnant. I suppose accidents happen, but part of me wonders if it was unconsciously intentional since my brother is a coyote and he had plenty of time to find his mate. Shifter pregnancies last for seven months, and I’d been told that she was already six weeks along.
The thought of being a big brother was actually pretty cool. The only thing I didn’t like was that I lived so far from my family and so getting to know my baby siblings would probably be difficult. Leo promised that we would make frequent visits, but still that wasn’t the same as occupying t
he same city, if not the same house. I mean, I’m human, and for the most part with humans, siblings do not have a thirty plus year age difference.
Now I spoke with Eli. I had given him the usual spiel of how much I loved my mate, the dates that Leo still took me on, and I threw in some funny stories from work.
“I’m taking some time off work,” Eli explained wearily. “I have so many holidays owed to me. The bosses can threaten me with termination all they want, but they know they don’t have a legal leg to stand on.”
“You work too hard, big bro. I really hope that you will get a good chance to have a proper rest down here,” I told him. “I can’t wait for you to meet Leo. And the pride will love to meet you. There are also some real nice clan and pack members, too.”
“You make your little corner of Nebraska sound like a paradise.” His mirth was clear in his tone. “Nonetheless, I would like a break from the business of the city.”
“I’m sure between Leo and I, we can find some handsome men for you to meet. I know you like the big and muscley and totally dominant types.”
Eli had told me not long after my confrontation with Mike that he too had ditched a dud boyfriend. Eli had never spoken about his ex much in the past, but I noticed the difference in his voice recently, he was much more relaxed these days.
“We’ll see, Kit. I’m not ready to jump into another relationship.”
Eli’s voice reflected his trepidation, but if I could find a burly lion, bear or wolf for my brother and give him a happily ever after, I would in a heartbeat.
“Ok.” I decided to let the topic go. “I can’t wait to see you. It’s only going to be three and a half weeks ‘til you come. You’ll be in time for the Halloween festivities. There’s a lot going on—the pride have their own party in Holbrook, Leo’s immediate family do a family dinner the following weekend. Then there’s this massive party in Arapahoe, hosted by the alphas of the bears, wolves and lions. I’ve been told it’s quite a show.”
I had to dangle that carrot in front of my brother, just to add temptation. Eli was a massive fan of Halloween and took his celebrations very seriously.
Eli chuckled softly on the other end of the line.
“Don’t worry, little brother. I’m coming to see you no matter what. However, I intend to come fully prepared for Halloween.”
I grinned. “I can’t wait to see you again. You’ll have to tell me how everyone in the pack is doing.”
“Will do.” Eli snorted, still amused. “But I’ll catch you around.”
“Yeah. Talk to you soon though, yeah?”
“Yes, we’ll talk soon.”
Now Eli sounded like he was indulging me.
That was definitely the cue to end the call.
I tapped on my phone screen and tossed my cell on the seat of the couch beside me. I leaned back in mine and Leo’s comfy leather couch and put the volume on the television. A moment later, he came in and plopped down next to me.
“So, how’s your brother?”
“All fired up to come and visit us at Halloween.” I grinned at my mate.
Leo leaned in and kissed me on the lips. “We better get the house sorted out properly by then.”
It may have been two months, but it felt as if we had been mated forever, but we still hadn’t got the house fully in order. Specifically, we hadn’t organized the spare room properly. Since Leo lived with his pack he had never really worried about having a well-stocked guest room, but it was definitely something we needed now.
“We can get onto that…tomorrow,” I assured my mate. “Right after you’ve fucked me into oblivion.”
“As my mate wishes.”
Leo gave me another sweet kiss. I snuggled into his arms.
Looks like my wish was happening sooner rather than later, and I wasn’t about to object to that.
THE END
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The Vet's Big Cat [Furnas and Gosper Shifters 1] (Siren Publishing Classic ManLove) Page 9
