Chapter 828 Chapter 828
Blanche was leaning inside the van when the two men walked up behind her. Turning, she smiled at them and closed the door.
Rory tried to yell to warn her. Tell her to run, but no sound would come out of her mouth.
Bolting upright, Rory fought to catch her breath. She looked around in the dark. She wasn’t there. She was in a bed in Beth’s house. Wiping the sweat from her forehead, she focused on taking deep breaths and calming her heartbeat. She didn’t need to shift in the house again. Staring at the window, she tried to see if she could feel her animal and what she was doing. Surely, she was content after being out and running. She couldn’t feel her at all. Sighing, she flipped the blankets back. Getting up, she grabbed her clothes. Maybe going outside for some fresh air would clear the nightmare from her mind so she could settle and get some more sleep.
The air was cold, but each breath brought her more clarity. The air smelled fresh. She didn’t know how to explain why she felt that it was; she just knew that in the city, it never smelled this way. She took a deep breath. After shifting, she could pick up more than before. She was hearing faint sounds that she wouldn’t have noticed before. Inhaling scents that wouldn’t have registered any other time. It was weird, but she wasn’t upset about it. She also didn’t know why she wasn’t upset about it.
Going down the steps, she walked carefully along the path. She really needed to get new boots, ones that didn’t require her to lift her foot so high to take a step. A movement to her left had her freeze. She held her breath. Turning, she saw a house cat paused in mid-step, staring at her. It opened its mouth, and a hoarse mew came out, and then it bolted across the yard toward the repair shop.
Rory was calmer, she realized. A week ago, an encounter like that would have startled her and given her a fright. What had changed? She had, but it wasn’t a result of any conscious decision. It was her animal. It was being here and learning about what had been going on for decades, and she’s never known about it. Somehow, she had unconsciously decided she wasn’t going to be a victim.
She stopped when she was standing in the middle of the area they parked in. It was Jake. Much of the changes were linked to him. He was her partner, her animal’s mate. Somehow, knowing about him had given her strength she didn’t have before.
A sound had her spin around, and she looked in the direction of the shed. Jake stood there in his jeans and boots, holding the rest of his clothes. He’d been for a run. How many times had he shifted today? Three? Four? He was so at ease with it that she felt something close to envy. She’s never felt comfortable or any kind of acceptance about the fact that she turned into a tiger.
“Rory?” He started walking toward her. “Are you all right?”
She hugged her waist and nodded. “I thought some air might help clear my head.”
He pulled his shirt on and then his jacket.
She could smell him. There was at least ten feet between them and she could still distinguish his scent in the clear air. Something stirred inside her and she knew it was the cat. Her animal knew he was near. Her gums started to ache, and then an image of her biting his neck flashed in her mind. She gasped and covered her mouth, then turned to leave.
“Wait.”
She froze and listened to his steps on the ground. He was right behind her now. A shiver of awareness moved through her.
“What is it?” He touched her shoulder and then moved to where she could see him.
“I had this—” She bit her lip. How did she explain it? “I wanted to bite you,” she whispered.
There was no shock on his face, no questioning expression. “That’s normal with mates.” He cleared his throat. “My cat has had the thought a few times too.”
“This is crazy. People don’t commit themselves to a relationship after a few days…”
“We’re not just people. This is completely normal for shifters. Think of it this way, once, there were a lot of us around. The chances of finding your mate were rare even then, so fate made sure you knew when you found yours. That one person you will connect with like no other is meant to be, and there’s no courtship and long engagement needed.” He moved closer and leaned down so she could see his eyes. “One-forms spend years dating, trying to find that one person. It might be harder for us to meet ours, but once we do, there’s no doubt about who they are…”
“It all seems so crazy.” She took a deep breath, and all she could taste was him. “So I’m supposed to bite you?”
He opened his mouth and then shook his head. “No. Not unless you want to.” Jake straightened up and looked around. “Look, I don’t know how much you know about our kind—” He held out his hand. “No offense, I just think that you’re missing pieces that most are around their entire life and know.” He shrugged. “Have you watched any of the mated couples around here?” He snorted. “I watched Ed and Beth growing up and always thought they were the most in-synch couple ever, and then I saw how Kelsey and Gage are and Blair and Kobie—” He sighed. “They just know when their mate is close. They seem to know when they need them or what they need.” He snorted again. “I don’t know about you, but that’s like a cheat sheet to me to ensure I don’t screw something up in an epic way.” He shrugged. “I’ve been known to do that.”
She had heard enough stories to know he wasn’t joking. “I don’t know, Jake. My animal wants to bite you, and we’ve never even kissed. What if…”
He put his hand lightly against her mouth. “What if we kiss and take the unknown out of this?” He leaned closer and moved his hand. “You were thinking, what if there’s no spark, right?” He searched her eyes. “I can tell you there will be, but you seem like someone who needs proof to believe.”
He wasn’t wrong. “I don’t like guesswork.”
“Who does?” He smiled, and it was playful despite the serious look in his eyes. “Our cats already know, but we should find that proof you need.”
She felt a little silly when he put it that way. “So, you think we should kiss?”
He nodded, and his hair bounced along with the motion.
“This isn’t some excuse for you to claim me?”
His playful look sobered. “No. I can’t.”
“What do you mean you can’t?” She hugged her waist again. Since coming here, she always had the feeling she had missed something.
“There’s a rule - a law actually, that no male can claim a female until she has claimed him.”
Rory leaned back and looked at him. “That’s real?”
“I didn’t make it up. I don’t know why it’s that way, but I can only guess that way back when some males were pushy about it, so—” he shrugged. “We guys just suffer in silence until our woman is ready to start things.”
Rory had never heard of such a thing. “I didn’t know.”
“It’s okay, you do now.”
He was so understanding with everything. All her feelings about being a shifter, the fact that she didn’t know what was going on in the world around her. He didn’t judge her. “I feel silly sometimes.”
“It happens. A lot of clans gave up on doing things certain ways because they were just trying to survive, so not everyone knows the way it was before.” He frowned. “That sounded better in my head.”
She smiled. “I have a lot of those moments. It always makes sense in my head.”
He continued to stand there and watched her.
It was a kiss. She doubted it was going to cause a flood of answers, but it couldn’t hurt to see. What if kissing him was like kissing a friend that you had no chemistry with? She knew that wasn’t going to happen.
“I’m trying to decide if you’re talking yourself into it or out of it.” He gave her a lopsided grin.
She smiled. “A bit of both.” She sucked in a breath and blew it out. “Okay. A kiss to find out.” She nodded.
“Yeah?”
“Yes.”