Chapter 44

Evanna set the phone down like it was burning her fingers and then stared at it. She looked out the window to see Jesse was still talking on his phone. Getting up she paced the length of the trailer; Leah was nothing like she’d imagined. Her voice was so soft and gentle, the opposite of her own.

Turning she looked at herself in the small mirror in the bathroom, then stepped in and leaned closer. It was ridiculous, they had one body to share, one face, but Leah looked completely different. Her mouth formed a small smile that she watched in the reflection. It wasn’t surprising now that Jesse could take a glance and know who was out. She stared at her own dark eyes and thought maybe Leah’s were somehow a lighter shade. Would the memories they carried be the reason there was such a difference? Taking a deep breath, she held her reflection hostage for a moment and then turned and went back out.

Spotting the journal, she went to it and opened it, just to check if Leah had added more after the video. There was no entry. What she’d said in her message was her decision. Flipping the book shut, she held it down with her hand and looked out at Jesse again. Leah wanted to be mated to him as much as she did.

A nervous wave went through her stomach. It was great that they agreed, but now there was just one thing she had to figure out. How did she go about it? Did she tell Jesse straight out that they wanted his mark?

Straightening from the table, she put her hand against the side of her neck and moved it slowly down to where the muscle from her shoulder started. This is where his mark would be placed. Her stomach clenched, could she stand him touching her neck? She didn’t know.

Dropping her hand away, she closed her eyes. The last thing she needed was to botch that up by being triggered. Taking a deep breath, she blew it out and reached for Minn, she was going to have to work with her to do this. It startled her to realize the cat was there, just beneath the surface, so close that she wasn’t sure how she didn’t sense her before now. “You’re going to have to help me,” she whispered, knowing the animal could hear. Opening her eyes, she looked down at the phone. She honestly hadn’t expected Leah to agree immediately. Rolling her eyes, she smirked well, she knew how she felt about Jesse because it was the same as her own feelings.

Biting her lip, she sat down and picked up the phone, the doctor had told her it would help them? The connection to their mate would help them? She didn’t know how that worked. How would she? Until recently she hadn’t even been able to connect with her own animal side without expending every ounce of energy she had. Setting the phone back down, she got up grabbed her jacket, and slipped her feet into her boots. Putting it on quickly, she went outside and closed the door.

Jesse was still on the phone, his expression was hard, making her wonder who he was talking to. When he looked over at her, he smiled, wiping the serious look off his face. She did that for him, she thought. The smile changed as he tilted his head and sent her a concerned look.

She realized then she was standing here scowling at the man. She smirked and gave her head a shake, hoping to convey it had nothing to do with him, why she was looking at him that way. Get it together.

He spoke into the phone again, and then hung it up and tucked it into his pocket. With long strides, he came toward her. “Is everything okay?”

She blew out a breath, trying to rid herself of the tension that had settled in her guts. “Yeah, just,” she waved her hand in front of her face, “stuck in my head.”

“The video from Leah?” He stopped right in front of her.

Evanna cursed at herself for having a face that was so easy to read. “It wasn’t bad, just,” she gave him a wide-eyed look, “it was weird seeing her and hearing her outside my head.” She inhaled and could only smell him. She loved his scent. “She, um, was talking about some things she and Doctor Collins talked about.”

“Oh? Anything I can help with?”

The look of genuine concern filled his pale eyes, making her stomach knot up more. “I don’t,” she looked at his mouth, which was a mistake, distracting, “I’m not sure yet.”

His gaze flicked to her mouth, then back to her eyes, “okay, well let me know if I can do anything to help.” He gave her an easy smile, “Feel like going for a walk? The guys are coming to work on the fence, and I want to tell them to work away from the lane for now, until we’re not here.” He glanced at Thera, “or Thera’s not here.”

“Yeah, sure.” She shrugged; it would give her more time to work out how she was going to do this.

He smiled at her and then looked down at her feet. By the time it dawned on her that he was telling her to tie her boots, he had already knelt and was doing them up. Evanna swallowed the strange feeling in her throat. How was it something so simple felt so endearing? She had to focus hard to mask the expression on her face as he stood up. She knew she failed when he pulled her jacket together and zipped it halfway up. There was no amusement in his eyes though when he leaned down and kissed her mouth softly. She could only stand there like a stunned idiot by his caring gestures.

Jesse took her hand and gave it a tug, so she started walking. She didn’t know if it was natural or if he adjusted his stride, but they were walking in sync with each other as they headed down the lane.

She looked around to avoid staring at him. “This land is gorgeous, Jesse.”

He smiled down at her. “First time I looked at it, I knew this was home.” He squeezed her hand gently, “I walked to the top of the hill where the trailer is and just knew I had to buy it.” He chuckled, “I wasn’t even looking for land then. I was just out driving and saw it.”

“It’s perfect.” She said quietly.

With a quick glance her way, he nodded.

“Are the people doing the fence our kind?”

“Yeah, I think they all are.” He paused to watch Thera startle some birds and send them scattering in all directions. “There’s some one-forms that know about us and are okay with it.”

She watched as he spoke, drawn to the easy manner he talked about things.

“Most of them are second or third generation, so it’s normal for them.”

“I don’t think it is that way for all one-forms.”

His gaze connected with hers for a moment. “No, but some of ours even marry outside out clans, even to one-forms.”

“Really?” She wondered how that worked.

Jesse grinned, “Yeah, Devin’s sister is one of those.”

“The king’s daughter married a normal person.”

He chucked, “who’s to say what’s normal?” He looked down at her, “I think shifters are normal.”

She thought about that for a moment. “I guess you’re right. So, a one-form is less offensive to use.”

He nodded. “I think so.”

“I have a lot to learn.”

Tugging her hand, he pulled her closer. Lifting their clasped hands, he kissed the back of hers. “You don’t have to do it all at once, there’s a lot of time.”

Who would have thought having her hand kissed would make her insides turn to mush? She cleared her throat, “just don’t let me do anything stupid around others.”

“Promise.” He winked at her.

Her cat was working hard to convey something inside her and she couldn’t figure out what. Glaring at the ground in front of them for a few steps, she mentally conveyed to the animal to back it down a bit, so she didn’t have to concentrate so hard just to talk. “I guess necks are an important feature to our kind.” She blurted out, then stared straight ahead, trying to figure out how she’d wanted to say it. She was afraid to see what his expression was after that.

“I’ve never thought of it that way,” he said after what felt like an eternity. “But, yeah, they are very important.”

“That figures,” she snorted, “that I’m broken when it comes to my neck.” She was messing this up so bad, that there was probably no way to save it.

Jesse stopped and stepped in front of her. “You are not broken. Everyone, shifter or not has some part of them they don’t like touched.” He moved his head in any direction she tried to look, so there was no way to avoid eye contact.

“Everyone?” She asked, there was no hiding the doubt in her tone, it was drenched with it.

“Yeah,” his expression lightened, “everyone.” With a simple shrug, he nodded, “I don’t like—”

Her cat snarled inside her. “Wait.” She put her hand over his mouth. “Don’t say it if it has to do with your being with a woman.” She frowned, “My cat just got all rage-y inside me.”

Taking her hand away, he kissed it then grinned, “relax, tell her to take it down a notch. I was going to say I hate my sides being touched because I’m so ticklish.” He gave her a wide-eyed stare, “my uncle used to tickle me to the point I couldn’t breathe when I was little.”

“Oh.” She nodded her head slowly. “I’ll try to remember that.”

“A normal touch is okay, but no poking or you know, lingering touches.”

She frowned, “I don’t know what a lingering touch is exactly.”

His gaze held her prisoner with an intense look. “Like this,” he tilted her chin up with one hand, and slowly, barely touching her, he ran his fingertips from her jaw down her throat. “It took a long time before I could handle a normal touch on my sides, without tensing and freaking out.” His voice was soothing, almost hypnotic, “but,” he leaned down and pressed his lips against her jaw, “with practice,” he kissed her again, just below her jaw, “anything,” his mouth touched the pulse in her neck, “can be overcome.” He kissed the side of her neck, and a shiver of awareness went through her whole body. There was no panic, only pleasure.

“Don’t stop.” She said so softly she wasn’t sure if she’d said it out loud.

A low rumble came from him as he pulled her closer and kissed her neck again. When he licked over it, her cat went completely still inside her.

“Jesse,” she gasped and what she wanted to say was forgotten when he crushed her mouth with his. She no longer cared what she thought she’d needed to say. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she grasped his hair, holding him so he couldn’t pull away from her. This, her cat and mind echoed. Just this, was all she wanted. His mouth commanding hers. His taste flooded every pore of her body. His scent consumed her until she didn’t know where she ended, and he started. Just this. Just him.

Jesse tore his mouth from hers, his darkened eyes held hers in a look that set her insides ablaze. “I should stop.” He blew out a ragged breath.

Her tongue touched her sharper teeth that now filled her mouth. Her cat’s not too subtle a hint of their objective today. “What if I don’t want you to?” She whispered, stretching up so her lips brushed his as she spoke.

He lifted his head and searched her eyes. “What about…”

“She agrees.” She said quickly. Evanna didn’t know if he was going to say Leah or their cat or what exactly, she just knew that she needed him in a way she never thought possible, ever.

A low growl came from him as he boosted her up against his body. She wrapped her legs tight around him and clung to him. When he turned and started walking back up the lane, his mouth moved back to hers, devouring her slowly.

Before her mind was completely filled with him, it dawned on her how strong he was as he moved quickly toward the trailer—and yet he’d never shown her anything but tenderness. A low sound, almost a growl came from her throat, and she knew her cat was right there with her, guiding her along. She wanted her mate claimed and marked. Today.

Her back hit the trailer as he pinned her against it and opened the door. There was no way they’d fit through it like this, so he picked her up away from him and set her on the step.

She stumbled backward; his hands clamped on her hips guiding her. When she reached the top step, she unzipped the jacket and tossed it in the direction of the couch.

Jesse’s followed hers. Dropping to his knee, he undid her boots and pulled them from her feet. She heard them clunk down the steps as he straightened and stood in front of her.

His cool hands ran up under her shirt over her ribs as his breath brushed over her mouth.

She felt her nipples tense and wanted the material gone from her body. With a jerky movement, she tore the shirt over her head. Before she could get her arms freed, his mouth closed over her breast, and she thought her knees were going to give out.

Shaking the shirt off her arm, she gripped his head and held it so he’d keep doing that. She felt him undo the button of her jeans and released his head to undo them and shove them down her hips.

Jesse switched to her other breast, she sucked in a breath from the intense feeling his mouth created. With a frantic movement, she jerked on his shirt, trying to pull it up his body, she wanted to touch him, to feel his skin.

He lifted his head and got rid of his shirt in a fast move. His eyes never left hers as he pulled her jeans down far enough that she could step out of them. When he stood up again, she ran her hands down his chest and felt the muscles clench beneath her fingers.

Leaning forward, she touched his skin with her tongue. His skin was hot, his flavor caused heat to rush between her legs. Jesse stood there, massaging her hips in his grip, allowing her to do what she wanted. She had no idea if it would affect him the same way, but she had to try it. Moving her lips over his skin, she placed her mouth over his nipple and sucked on it. His grip tightened and a deep rumble went through his chest. Spurred on by his reaction, she did it with the other one as she moved to undo his jeans.