If Bryce and I had a future—and I was certain we did, though if the claw no longer existed, Bryce might be a shell of his former self—I would be part of the group. Maybe not a full member if such a thing existed for a human, but the Alpha’s mate. That had to stand for something.
I was tempted to barge into Bryce’s office downstairs waving the papers I’d whipped out of the printer in the spare bedroom. But what if they’d already looked at that and dismissed it. I’d be like a five-year-old racing home with a picture he’d drawn and his parents patting him on the back and saying, “Well done,” when they couldn’t make head nor tail of it.
Them pacifying the little human was not something I wanted. I’d never be a panther but I could damn well act like one—well, except for the whole shifting thing. Being Bryce’s lover and mate was not all I expected. I had to show I was his equal. And I needed more information.
But as I scrolled through sites, a pic of a placard-waving protester caught my eye. I sent the link to Bryce with a question mark.
18
Bryce
Doing research side by side with Corey had been amazing, the project we were working on—not so much. Maybe because Brad thought it was a waste of time, the records we had going back as far as they did were enough and pretty much irrelevant to the process, but Corey felt like there would be something important in the records, which in return had me wanting to help in any way I could.
All of the furniture in my living room was pushed out of the way, and going across the floor was a huge timeline, like the ones my teacher did back in junior high. Only unlike those, this one mattered. Maybe it wasn’t going to make a huge difference in our lawsuit, that relied on other things, things I didn’t quite understand about subsections and precedent, but it would be good for the claw. We had our history, the one we passed down from generation to generation. This? This was how others, humans, saw our history and the way we wove together throughout our time here.
It showed our times of isolation, both by choice and by plague. It showed our attempts to be part of the human world that failed and the ones that succeeded. It even showed the time back in the nineteen twenties when the humans were sure we were circus people and wanted to see our ferocious beasts, not putting together that the panther they saw had been one of us.
It was everything and at the same time useless.
“This needs to be put together in a usable way.” Corey started to take photos, starting with our earliest place in recorded human history and slowly working his way up to the present. “I don’t know if there’s a program for this, to put it on a poster, or if it would be better if we had it printed in a booklet. Probably both.” He snapped the last picture. “Should I send these to Brad?”
“I don’t know how it might help, but that’s not a bad idea.” I didn’t have the heart to tell him, or even truly accept myself, that we accomplished zip when it came to saving the claw.
“Okay.” He started to tap on his phone and found myself smiling.
“To think I thought you hated technology.”
“Only yours.” He sidled up to me. “I thought you liked your phone better than me.”
The truth of his words, no matter how he tried to disguise them in levity, hurt. I’d done that to him. I made him insecure.
“There is nothing I like better than you, my love.” At love, his eyes snapped to mine. “Is that okay?”
He threw his arms around me and held me close.
“I’ll take that as a yes.” I kissed the top of his head, my arms holding him just as tightly as he held me.
We stayed like that, just enjoying the feel of our bodies held together for no other reason than because we cared—we loved. No. ‘I love you’ hadn’t been said, but it didn’t need to yet. He was human, and while he adjusted to the idea of me being a panther like a boss, for now, this was enough.
“He likes this.” Corey told me as he looked up, his eyes hooded. “It makes me feel...I don’t know...happy’s not the word, but content when he does that.”
“Who?” I had no idea what he was talking about until he put his hand on my chest where a vibration was building. “Yeah, he does like it,” I agreed. “I didn’t even notice he was purring. He does that a lot around you. It’s kind of the norm now.” It never used to be. My panther was happier than he’d ever been. He’d be even more ecstatic when we finally claimed our mate, but I wasn’t going to push no matter how much I needed our bond to be complete. Patience made things better or whatever the phrase was.
“I like it when he purrs, he makes me feel safe somehow.”
“He would give his life for you—I would give mine.”
“Please don’t do that.” His lips brushed against my jaw. “I’d miss you.”
“And now you’re making the same sound as my panther. Are we going to be like those old people who dress alike?” I teased as his phone vibrated against my thigh.
“Oh shit. Sorry. I forgot to turn it off.” He stepped back fumbling in his pocket and eventually retrieving his phone only to drop it on the floor.
“I got it.” I bent down just as he did and we both bumped heads. “No more purring for you.” I rubbed my head, his face cringing as he apologized. “It’s fine. How about yours?”
“It could use a kiss.” He stuck out his bottom lip. So stinking adorable.
“I can do that.” I kissed his forehead and worked my way down to his lips, both of us tumbling the rest of the way to the ground, the phone still vibrating. “We’re quite the pair.” I reached over, grabbed his phone, and handed it back to him.
“Pair. I like that.” He pressed the button to shut down his phone, and his eyes went wide. “Holy crap...look what Gabe just sent me.” He twisted the phone around.
“What is that?” I asked. “A protest?” We didn’t get a lot of them, not around here. Those usually happened in larger cities.
“Yeah, I guess.” He flipped the phone back around and swiped a few times. He handed me the device again, and the photos showed fewer people and more land. “Claw land.”
It wasn’t a protest—some kids sneaking a smoke found something and somehow that something drew a crowd. Weird.
19
Corey
“Babe?”
Bryce was bent over his laptop, his long legs flung out in front of him with his heels resting on the coffee table. Feet, table. Not a good combination. Breathe in, breathe out. In and out. I was doing my best to conquer my A-type personality by not complaining about the feet. I scratched my neck, a sure sign it wasn’t working.
I’d long since discovered Bryce had fibbed that day when he told Brad he loved cleaning. Sure, he wasn’t Gabe level of slob, which based on a chart I’d created, was in minus territory. He was actually similar to Brad, and I rated them both as a five, whereas me, I was a very proud ten plus.
But I’d irked Bryce with my constant need for order so we’d reached a compromise. If he came to my place, I set the rules. But because of the government wanting to seize the claw land and Bryce working long hours as that case could eventually end up in court, when we were together—which was often—we were usually at Bryce’s. Otherwise, I’d never see him.
“Yeah?” he answered, lifting his head, his lopsided smile pinning me against the couch and making me weak in the knees.
“How do I get into the shifter universe search engine? I need an extra something on my computer.” I’d been reluctant to ask him, thinking it might be similar to the dark web, which would be horrifying and a place I wouldn’t want to visit. It might result in the police breaking down my door in the middle of the night.
I knew Gabe was sworn to secrecy and I'd given Brad my word I wouldn't pressure my best friend, though it turned out my bestie could only use the bear section.
The only person who could give me access was my panther shifter.
My question got Bryce’s attention. “How do you even know about that, Corey?” He tugged at his ear, an exasperated expression on h
is face. “Did I talk in my sleep or was it after we’d had sex and you tricked me into spilling secrets while I was enjoying post-coital bliss?”
Poor guy. He was so tired he couldn’t recall if he’d disclosed the secret or not. “Gabe mentioned it.”
“What? That was sloppy of him.”
“Don’t blame Gabe. I overheard him talking and then asked Brad. He refused and got annoyed with me.”
“As he should have,” Bryce replied. “Why do you need it?”
“Remember I told you I was looking into information about panther land.”
“You need the claw library for that, though I assume these days most of it is online.”
And we’re back to this. We’d discussed my meeting the claw, but I wasn’t ready. It was too early in our relationship. “Please.” Did I have to make a pinkie promise I’d never copy or share it. Or even admit it existed?
He sighed, and I suspected if he had more energy he’d have refused. But I’d worn him down with very little effort on my part. “I’m beat. You can use my laptop. But first I need to adjust it and you can’t watch.”
“Really? Are you going to enter a super secret code?” I asked, wide-eyed.
“Actually, yes.”
“Really?” I bounced on the sofa. This was more exciting than I’d imagined. I closed my eyes, and after a few clicks on the keyboard, he placed the computer on my lap.
The screen wallpaper was dark with red scrolls in each corner, and there was a paw imprint in the center. “This is so cool.”
“It’s not cool, Corey. It’s our history. Panthers only. I’m not letting you see the other shifters’ search engines.”
“But you can see the other shifters sections?”
“Yes. Alphas and their Betas. Plus the elders and scholars. Anyone else has to apply. Please be respectful.”
“Of course I will, and thank you. I gave him a peck on the cheek. “How do I look for something?”
“Click on the paw.” He leaned over my shoulder as I negotiated my way around the panther online universe. “What are you hoping to find?”
“An in-depth history of claw land.” I was surprised Brad hadn’t taken this route, but when I’d heard him and Bryce discussing it, the legalese made my head hurt. “Awww. Look. There’s a whole section on Bagheera. I wanna come back and read that.”
Bryce puffed out his chest. “Panthers are very proud at how one of our own made it into a classic human novel.”
“Oh my God, was he based on a real panther? A panther shifter?” I grabbed his shirt. “You have to tell me.” If this got out it would upend the world of English literature. Dump it on its head and give it a serious concussion. “Does Gabe know this?” As an English Lit professor this would make his head spin.
“Corey, what did I say?”
“Panthers are very proud of him…” I repeated.
“Lips are sealed.”
“Oh right, that. I’ll take the information to my grave.”
“Good.”
We sat in silence except when Bryce directed me how to get from one site to another. “See this? Despite being shifters, you and Brad and even me… we were all looking at this case from a human perspective.”
“How else are we supposed to interpret it? Despite us shifters having our own society with rules and expectations, we’re surrounded by the human world and have to abide by the laws. If I jaywalk, I’ll get fined, and if I cheat on my taxes, I might go to jail. They’re human laws.”
I nudged his shoulder. “I’d visit you in jail, you jaywalking tax evader.”
He pointed to the screen. “What about this is so important?”
“Humans and shifters co-existed together in the past, both acknowledging each other’s existence.”
“So? I’m aware of our history. I studied it in school. Shifter school at the claw headquarters.”
“You’ll have to tell me more about that some other time,” I said. “Sounds fascinating. But here it says archeologists have discovered remnants of an ancient society on the land.”
“How does that help us? Yes, we were bulldozed into allowing them to make a small dig on our property. They found a few old bones and pieces of pottery. But what they found was considered to be of minor importance. Nothing that changed what they understood of human history. They’re not aware of the panthers living there at the same time. All the remains were ‘human’.”
“That’s odd.”
“We always suspected they knew something was not quite kosher which is why they were eager to get in there. But no one wanted to announce it for fear of being blacklisted by the scientific community. Labeled conspiracy theorists. Nutjobs. Crazy!”
“So do DNA tests on the claw members, link that back to the burial site. Show that they are your ancestors. Your ‘human’ ancestors. While this is everything about shifters, the courts are human as you say. Show them they can’t build a freaking highway on our land. It has historical significance. And what you’re not saying is how important it is for the claw.”
I was out of breath from my long-winded explanation. Bryce took the computer from me and scanned the maps, photos, and description of the site. His finger traced over the lines of text and he tapped the screen while chewing his bottom lip.
“You might have stumbled onto something, love.” My heart did somersaults when he called me that.
“It says here that if at all possible, panthers are to be buried on the land.”
“Yes, in the woods behind the headquarters. It’s where I’ll be buried.”
Taking his hand, I brought it to my lips. I hated the thought of him dying. “Then it’s sacred.”
He nodded.
“And look,” I said. “There’s a section here written by someone in the claw that says the archeologists found an old bone. A really old one but it was never catalogued. It’s in the claw library. What if we use that as a catalyst to get people interested in digging again—prove the land is sacred. Then we can build our own protest.”
“A protest? People won’t care about that here.”
“No. A protest is powerful. Start a ‘Save our land’ petition online—connect it back to history, but focusing on the human side. Get a local human historical society on your side and museums. Contact university students and professors who are keen to protect the past. Go on TV and radio.”
We could do this. We could save his claw land—our claw land.
20
Bryce
“I gotta go, Brad.” I typed on my phone that I was on my way as I got up from my seat at the table. “I feel like this is on the right track.”
“Getting laid?” he barked in laughter. Fair enough. I was chatting about the new documentation we were going to submit as part of our case one minute and then racing like a bat outta hell the next.
“Naw, Corey needs me, though. He’s been out sick the past couple of days and he just messaged asking when I was coming home.” I hated seeing him sick and he swore he was better this morning, but still—if he wanted me home, there was no place I’d rather be, and if he wasn’t better, then it was best that I be there for him.
“You could’ve told me—Zoom is an option.”
“Next time.” I reached for my portfolio. “Let me know if you need me for anything.”
“At most it will be signatures. Ninety-nine percent of lawyering is paperwork.” Which I’d already witnessed firsthand through this entire process.
“Lawyering? Making up words now?”
“Go be with your mate.” He went back to his work.
“Thanks, Brad. Really. I couldn’t do any of this without you.” As it was, I felt off kilter, part of it my panther needing more than just a verbal connection with Corey. My panther was getting to be a pain in the ass wanting to claim our human as our one true mate, but I’d already committed to myself that I wouldn’t do it unless Corey asked for it.
We’d talked about it—the searching of the panther history was the perfect inspiration as C
orey had also read about an alpha shifter claiming his mate, but that was pretty much where it sat.
On the ride home, I stopped at Corey’s favorite café and grabbed a couple of kinds of soup and some rolls, passing on the cheesecake, not wanting to exacerbate his illness.
I walked in quietly expecting him to be in bed, instead finding him vacuuming, dancing behind the machine.
“I brought soup.” He jumped and dropped the vacuum. After grabbing the bag and setting it down, he threw himself at me, nearly toppling me over as he peppered my face with kisses and then went in for a searing kiss.
“I needed that,” he spoke, our lips barely apart as he caught his breath. “You were gone.”
“I had a meeting, but I’m back with soup to help you feel better.” Although he looked okay to me.
“I feel great. I woke up on top of the world and…” he ground into me, “horny. It’s been too long.” Corey whimpered. “I need your knot.”
I scooped him into my arms. “It’s been three days and you were sick.” I started off to the bedroom, yanking the power cord from the wall to shut off the vacuum, far from ideal but I was on a mission. “And you need to get back to bed.”
“That’s what I’m saying.” He snuggled into me.
Once inside the room, I went to deposit him on the mattress only to find the bed not only made, but with a completely different bedding set than was on it when I left. “Did you clean all morning?”
“Yep.” He popped the P. “I feel fantastic.
“Then you need to get your head on the pillow.” I set him down long enough to get the comforter and sheets pulled back. “Now let’s get you under the covers so you don’t get yourself feeling horrible again.”
“One condition.” He undid his jeans, stepping out of them and climbing onto the bed.
“Name it.”
“You take a nap with me.” He patted the spot beside him. “Just sleep. I think I just need to be near you.”
Matched To His Panther Page 8