Wild Panther (Full Moon Protectors Book 4)

by Sammie Joyce

  “Don’t turn this around on me,” I told her. “You’re the one who wants the date. Go for it.”

  I fully turned my back on her, the discussion over in my mind. Nothing good could come of a double date with Brigit or any other human. I was better off throwing myself into work and the Council. Eventually I’d forget about the man who had been haunting the recesses of my mind all day… wouldn’t I?

  * * *

  Brigit squeezed my arm and giggled. I froze where I stood, wondering if there was something psychologically wrong with me.

  “Come on,” she urged me. “You can’t stand in the doorway.”

  “I still can’t believe you talked me into this,” I moaned, all my doubts flooding back as we walked into the entranceway of The Galley Restaurant. It was a higher-end place, not exactly five stars but certainly not an Appleby’s. I’d passed by it a dozen or more times on the way to work, always filing it away in the back of my mind to try one day.

  I guess that day is today, I thought, shaking my head as the hostess smiled at us.

  “Table for two?” the young woman asked. I eyed her, sensing her shifter blood, but she didn’t meet my eyes.

  That’s right. The Galley is owned by shifters.

  I had forgotten.

  “We’re meeting people,” Brigit interjected. “There was a reservation under Tillman?”

  “He made a reservation?” I heard myself mutter although I didn’t know why that irked me. I was just looking for excuses to be annoyed so I could run for the door at the first hint of trouble.

  “Ah, yes. Party of four. Mr. Tillman and his friend have arrived.”

  Brigit shot me a gleeful look out of the corner of her eye but I pretended not to notice it.

  She had shown me a picture of her Tinder date on her phone and I had to admit that he was an attractive enough man with dark hair and light brown eyes. He was no jogger at the park but I could envision him with Brigit. I sincerely hoped she had a nice date but I wasn’t looking forward to my role that night.

  “He’s going to bring someone for you,” Brigit explained. “But his friend isn’t on Tinder.”

  “Well, at least he’s got that going for him,” I offered. Brigit scowled but eventually, she won me over and there we were, walking toward the center of the dimly lit restaurant, our heels clicking in unison as we were led through.

  I had to admit that I liked the ambience of the establishment. I counted three separate fireplaces, one in the center of the room and two others along the perimeter. The smell of a woodburning oven filled the air and made me feel comfortable despite the intense unease shooting through me.

  I hate small talk, I remembered, shaking my head. It was one of the other reasons I didn’t care to date with any regularity. The insipid conversation was too much for me to bear most days. I wanted deep, meaningful discussions, not ones about popular music and new apps.

  I’m not going to last ten minutes and Brigit is never going to forgive me for this.

  “Oh…” Brigit breathed. “There he is.”

  My eyes traveled toward where she was gazing and I saw the same man I’d seen online.

  “Looks like he’s using his real pictures,” I said but my eyes darted around the table for another body. Brigit’s date seemed to be alone, a fact that made me intensely more apprehensive. Brigit came to the same conclusion at the same time.

  “Where is his friend? He messaged me at four and said we were still good to go,” she whispered as we got closer.

  “Your guess is probably better than mine,” I replied, trying to keep my voice light, even though my stomach was in knots.

  I didn’t know whether to be relieved or offended as we neared the table. On one hand, Brigit wouldn’t expect me to stick around and be the third wheel, but on the other, what had turned off her date’s friend so much that he’d bail at the last minute? Had he seen a picture of me and decided against it? There was no time to ask Brigit if she’d sent one.

  Instantly, the man was on his feet, a smile touching his lips as he looked from me to Brigit as if he couldn’t figure out which one of us was his date.

  Because we look so much alike, I thought sarcastically, noting how Brigit’s blonde mane glowed like a halo in the candlelight.

  His gaze finally settled on Brigit, his beam growing as he extended a hand.

  “Brigit?” he asked.

  “Hi!” she purred, accepting his proffered palm.

  “You look amazing,” he sighed. I read the genuine compliment in his words and I let myself feel happy for Brigit. She really had been through the ringer with dating and it would be good to see her with someone decent for once.

  “I’m Amity,” I offered dryly when the two didn’t move their gazes or their bodies. Brigit’s date looked at me, a slightly abashed expression on his face as he reclaimed his chair and Brigit followed his lead.

  “Dan Tillman,” he introduced himself. “Have a seat. My cousin just went to wash up.”

  A combination of tension and relief shot through me. I had been anticipating a quick exit but knowing that there was a blind date for me after all threw a wrench in that plan. I hoped the rest of the night wouldn’t be as much of a tailspin.

  I perched on the edge of a chair as the hostess left us with menus, assuring us that our server would be along momentarily, and I pretended to read the words. Through my peripheral vision, I caught Dan and Brigit making eyes at one another and even though I knew I was about to have a date of my own, I was feeling oddly out of place.

  “What’s your cousin’s name?” I asked bluntly, realizing that the silence over the table was too oppressive.

  “Wes,” Dan offered without pulling his eyes away from Brigit. “Wes Huffman. He’s…”

  Reluctantly, he looked at me, a bemused expression on his face. There was something familiar about Dan, now that I looked at him, something…

  It was right on the tip of my tongue but I couldn’t capture it as I studied his features.

  “He’s what?” I asked nervously.

  “He wasn’t really sure about this,” Dan confessed.

  That makes two of us, I thought wryly. Strangely, the declaration made me feel better about meeting this Wes and I sank back, permitting my shoulders to relax as I picked up the menu again and earnestly started reading.

  Brigit and Dan started chattering quietly but I didn’t pay them much mind until a shadow appeared at my side. My head raised toward the newcomer and as it did, my jaw slackened.

  “You!” we choked in unison, our eyes an identical shape of saucer. I was on my feet, head back to stare up into Wes’ hazel eyes.

  That’s why Dan looked so familiar. His eyes are the same as Wes’. I’d know those eyes anywhere.

  “W-what are you doing here?” Wes demanded, glancing at his cousin. Dan and Brigit appeared perplexed.

  “You two know one another?” Dan asked slowly.

  “No!” I cried, suddenly realizing that we couldn’t possibly explain our connection.

  “Yes!” Wes replied simultaneously. I held his eyes evenly and he quickly shook his head, retracting his comment. “I mean, no. We’ve never officially met.”

  He inhaled and extended a hand.

  “I’m Wes Huffman,” he said. I cautiously took his palm, relishing the spark of electricity shooting between us as our skin touched. He was much closer tonight than he’d been the other night and if possible, I was more taken with him now than ever before.

  “Amity Jackson.” My voice was raspy, almost inaudible. He didn’t release my hand and I didn’t move it away. For a long moment, time froze as we took in one another, my breathing quick. I could feel his pulse through my hand and I felt my own heart rate synch with his.

  “Well,” Brigit tittered. “I guess this isn’t going to be so bad after all, is it, Amity?”

  I pulled my eyes away from Wes’ and cast Brigit a rueful look. I didn’t answer her question but as I sat back down, I knew my face said exactly what I was th
inking.

  No. This isn’t going to be so bad at all.

  6

  Wes

  There was a surrealness about the dinner, a haze that seemed to unfold over the table with each passing moment. I couldn’t believe that Amity was sitting in front of me, her intense eyes searching me like she could see into my soul.

  What are the chances? I wondered.

  I’d had absolutely no interest in joining Dan that night and had made my thoughts clearly known when he’d begged me to come.

  “You’d be doing me a big favor,” my cousin had pleaded. “Brigit has a friend whom she really wants to come along and I feel like I connect with this girl, Wes.”

  Our dispute earlier in the week had been forgotten apparently, now that Dan wanted something from me, but I didn’t hold grudges. Even so, I didn’t want to waste my Friday night with some woman I didn’t know. And if Vero ever caught wind of the fact that I was on a date…

  “It’s not a real date,” Dan insisted like he was reading my mind. “It’s just a couple friends hanging out.”

  I heard the desperation in his voice and eventually, I caved, realizing how important it was to him. Dating in our forties was no easy feat and if my older cousin thought he’d made a good match, who was I to crush his dreams?

  Never could I have ever expected that Amity Jackson would walk through the door with Brigit. I’d barely managed to put her from my mind after that week, focusing on work and working out. It hadn’t been easy but she wasn’t consuming nearly as much of me as she had, but I still caught whiffs of her when I least expected it.

  Now I’m never going to get her out of my mind.

  “Is Brigit a shifter?” I asked, my voice low as I leaned in to whisper at Amity. I didn’t think she was and I’d gotten a good gauge of the supernatural beasts among us over the past few years. Still, I’d been surprised before.

  Amity shook her dark mane, her eyes enlarging.

  “No,” she murmured. “And I don’t think she knows about them.”

  I didn’t tell Amity that her assumption was slightly naïve. With Anticlaw on the rampage they were on, it was impossible to keep the worlds apart now. But we were having such a good time, I didn’t want to ruin it by bringing up politics.

  Dinner had been delicious but honestly, I didn’t remember much about what I’d eaten. I’d spent so much time enveloped in Amity’s beauty, I could have been eating rock salt.

  On the other side of the table, I caught Dan and Brigit sneaking curious but amused glances at us as they, too, whispered among themselves.

  “Not much of a double date, is it?” I mused, reaching for my glass of Chivas.

  “It’s better than what I was expecting,” Amity admitted, seeming embarrassed. She looked down at the half-finished cheesecake in front of her. “You want a bite?”

  Gone was the defensive, guarded panther I’d seen the first time we’d met. In her place was a gorgeous woman, her makeup flawless, the lines of her neck dipping into the high swell of her cleavage, even as I tried not to gawk at her.

  I’d never seen anyone so breathtaking in my life.

  “You won’t attack me if I do?” I teased, reaching for my fork to sample some of her dessert.

  “I didn’t promise that.”

  I chuckled and took a mouthful, my eyes popping as the sweetness melted in my mouth.

  “Mm,” I mumbled, swallowing. “I’ll have to remember this for next time we come.”

  I’d said it innocuously but Amity didn’t miss it.

  “We?” she echoed. “Are we coming here again?”

  I eyed her warily. I hadn’t forgotten how powerful she could be and I didn’t want to antagonize her but there was nothing in her face but admiration as she waited for me to answer.

  “I think that’s probably more up to you than me, isn’t it?” I sighed, realizing that was true. As a shifter, she had more rules to contend with than me. I must have said the wrong thing. Her face darkened slightly and her shoulders tensed. She set her body back slightly but she was still facing me.

  “Not that we have to decide anything now,” I continued before she could shut me down then and there. Amity sighed and lowered her eyes.

  “It’s complicated,” she muttered.

  “I imagine,” I agreed. I gestured my head toward the restaurant.

  “Is it just me or are there a lot of you here tonight?” Again, my tone was reserved, not wanting my cousin or Brigit to catch wind of our conversation. Amity turned her eyes toward the restaurant, her brow furrowing slightly as she stared.

  “Yes…” she murmured in agreement. “There are a lot of shifters here tonight.”

  She moved her eyes back toward me.

  “How can you tell?” she asked, genuine curiosity in her voice.

  “Oh… well, I’ve known about you—them—for a while now so I suppose I know what to look for,” I began haltingly, wondering what it was specifically that told me I was in the presence of a shifter. “There’s certainly something in the eyes I can see but that’s not everything. I don’t know. It’s hard to explain.”

  I paused.

  “How do you know?” I asked. She laughed.

  “We can smell one another,” she replied. I felt slightly foolish even asking. I should have known it had something to do with heightened senses. I was happy that she was talking to me so freely. I had so many questions I’d been sitting on and Amity was just so open about speaking to me. I had to wonder if she didn’t feel the same way about me, that she was happy to be explaining shifter experiences to a human for once in her life.

  She’s here with a human but Brigit doesn’t know about her—or she doesn’t think Brigit does.

  If I had to wager a guess, I would say that Brigit was happier being oblivious. In that moment, she was caught up in whatever Dan was saying, her smile lighting up the room. I was inordinately pleased to see that the date was going so well for them too.

  That’s only because Dan has no idea that Amity is a shifter. If he did…

  Well, I certainly wasn’t going to tell him.

  “Look at them all,” Amity murmured and I saw that she was once again gazing at the shifters. “Hanging out with you guys without a care in the world.”

  There was a note of awe in her voice as though she’d never noticed how much the shifters socialized with us day to day.

  “Why do you sound so surprised?” I asked, mildly perplexed. “You work with us, don’t you?”

  I’d learned earlier that she was a curator at the Junction City Museum of History. It was just another fact that I found so intriguing about her.

  “Well, yes, of course,” she replied, her brow furrowing. “But I didn’t realize how much the worlds comingled on a social level.”

  “And the sky hasn’t fallen,” I joked. She eyed me, a peculiar expression on her face.

  “There is a good reason that we tried to separate our paths for so long,” she told me quietly. “Once upon a time, humans were ruled by superstition and religious zealousness. Anything that couldn’t be explained was automatically deemed evil.”

  “Like shifters,” I understood. She nodded and sighed.

  “Times are changing,” she went on. I couldn’t tell if that was meant to be a good thing or a bad thing. I got the sense that she was just as confused by what she was learning.

  “I never really noticed,” I offered. “I mean, it’s commonplace for the shifters to be around humans. I know there are specific places for your kind—”

  “My kind?” she echoed, a slight scowl appearing on her face. I was instantly abashed.

  “I—you know what I mean.”

  “Do I?”

  “I mean the shifters,” I went on quickly, embarrassed at my faux pas. “You know what I meant.”

  Why is she picking a fight with me now? It’s like she’s looking for a reason for something to go wrong tonight.

  “What are you two arguing about over there?” Brigit demanded. We both fell
back, shaking our heads.

  “Nothing,” we answered in unison.

  “We’re thinking about taking a drive to Harrisburg for coffee,” Brigit explained, eyeing us warily. “Are you two interested in joining?”

  Amity and I exchanged a look. I didn’t want the night to end but I could feel the tension reforming on her. Whatever spell we’d been under for the last couple hours seemed to be losing its hold and I knew that was my fault. I had brought her back to the reality of our worlds inadvertently.

  “What do you think?” she asked in a low voice and I was both surprised and pleased that she was asking me.

  “I wouldn’t mind,” I replied truthfully before nodding at Dan and Brigit. “Sure, we’ll tag along if you don’t mind.”

  I thought I saw Dan’s eyes shadow slightly, and I belatedly realized that he wanted to be alone with Brigit, but it was too late now. I thought that Amity might bail if they asked to be alone.

  They can have their own dates. They forced us to come here and now we’re staying.

  Dan waved at the server, signaling for the bill, and a moment later, she returned with the check. I moved for my wallet as the women did the same but Dan and I waved them away.

  “We’ve got this,” I assured them. They glanced at one another. Brigit seemed elated by the gesture but Amity didn’t look sure. She opened her mouth to protest as I dropped my platinum Visa on the table but before she could get a word out, the front door flew open and half a dozen men charged through the front. Their faces were covered in bandanas and I felt my back stiffen.

  “Nobody move!” one of the men growled, raising a baseball bat above his head. “We’re here for one thing only.”

  “Oh God!” Brigit mewled, her face paling as she crouched lower into her chair. “It’s a robbery!”

  But I knew this was no robbery and a feeling of dread made my stomach drop substantially. From the corner of my eye, I saw Amity’s face darken as she realized what I had just figured out.

  “No,” Amity corrected flatly as the gang flooded the restaurant. “They aren’t here to rob us.”