by Beverly Rae
“Mom!”
“Oh, don’t be such a prude, Sydney. Would you think I’d not notice? I’m hardly blind.” She sent them the quirk of a smile. “Or dead.”
“Way too much information, Mom.” After today, would she ever see her mother in the same way?
Her mom shook her head. “Have you thought about how your father will react if he ever finds out? His only daughter with a shifter? It’ll kill him.” She sighed. “Right after he kills Jason, of course.”
Syd rushed to her mother and took her hands. “I’m sorry, Mom, if this hurts you or Dad, but I love him.” She checked with Jason, wanting confirmation. “And he loves me. I’m sure of it.”
“You don’t seem sure.”
“She can be sure.” Jason’s comforting voice swept over Syd, giving her another burst of support. “I love her.”
Joy sparked through her at his declaration and she searched her mother’s face for any sign of understanding. But she couldn’t find what she wanted.
“But how can you live with someone who kills men like your father? Innocents like your aunt?”
Syd felt Jason go rigid next to her. “Unlike the hunters who track us down, I’ve never killed anyone, even a hunter, except in self-defense or in defense of one of my own. Even then, I try not to kill. The shifters you’re talking about are outcasts and not part of any pack.”
“I see.” Miriam fell silent and studied him before examining Syd in a similar manner. “So you’re saying, like humans, it’s a matter of upbringing.”
“Pretty much.” Jason and Syd glanced at each other, thrown by her mother’s odd statement and easy agreement.
“I had always hoped the other half…” She appeared startled, then shook her head resolutely. “Never mind. Listen, both of you. This is very important. Sydney’s father can never know.” Miriam pulled her hands out of Syd’s grasp and stalked to the window to stare outside. “I won’t let anyone—not even you—hurt him.”
Syd followed, wanting to reach out for her, wishing her mere touch could comfort her mother. But something stopped her.
“I don’t want to tear Syd away from her family.” Suddenly, Jason was behind her and rested his hand on her shoulder. She brought her hand to his, joining both fingers and encouragement. “However, she’ll come to live with my family.”
His confident statement made her wheel to face him. What had he said? Had he simply assumed she’d follow him anywhere? Who did he think she was? The werewolf version of the little woman? “What do you mean, I’ll live with your family? I live here. My family is here, not to mention my teaching job. Where does your family live anyway?”
“I’m not sure I should say at this moment.” He nodded at her mother. “No offense.”
Her mother waved away any possible insult. “None taken. But if Sydney went with you, I’d never reveal your family’s location. I’d never put my daughter in any danger.”
“I know you wouldn’t.” Jason bowed his head to her mother, acknowledging the truth of her words.
“Still, how do you know your people would allow her to live with you? A human among shifters?” She arched an eyebrow at him. “Not that she’d ever leave her family and her friends to live in a cave. She’s used to another way of life.”
“Trust me. I’ll make sure my people accept her. As for being human…I’m not sure you understand…” His chuckle was laced with sarcasm. “Besides, you’d be amazed at how comfortable a cave can be. Our converted caves are the equal of city mansions in luxury and conveniences. Plus, I own a condo right here and split my time between homes. Syd could visit you any time she wanted.”
“I see.” Yet her mother’s tone didn’t sound very convincing.
Note to self: Ask Jason about the pimped-out caves later on. But for now, why are these two people deciding my future like I’m not standing right in front of them? Syd’s hard glare darted between them. If they think they can, they’re about to find out differently. “Now hold up, you two. Who says either one of you gets to make decisions for me? If—and I mean, if—I decide to come with you, I’ll be the one to make the decision. Simply because you’re my mom, and you and I are mated, doesn’t mean either of you get to boss me around like some kind of Shifter Stepford Wife.”
Her mom’s gasp interrupted Jason’s retort. “You’re mated? You’re not just having sex? Did he…bite you?”
Syd’s hand flew to the place on her neck where Jason had bitten her. Without checking in the mirror, she knew the wound was completely healed. “Mom, it’s not like I didn’t want it to happen.” Granted, he hadn’t explicitly asked to bite her, but if he had, she would’ve let him—sooner or later.
“When did this happen?”
“When did what happen?”
Jason, Syd and her mother turned toward the opened front door.
ƒ
A man almost rectangular in shape due to his wide frame and short height stood with his brawny arms crossed, bushy eyebrows diving for his broad nose, and waited for someone to respond. His dark suspicious eyes bored into each of them one at a time, and a frown turned down his mouth. Thinning hair stuck out at odd angles, and his clothes covered his boxy shape in wrinkled layers. “Well? Isn’t anyone going to answer me? Who the hell is this guy?”
Jason’s fangs started to sprout in the same instant Syd clutched his arm and yanked him toward the bedroom. The force of her pull jerked him along with her, clamping his fangs down on his tongue. “Ow!”
“I’ve got to remember to keep my front door closed and locked.” Once inside the room, she slammed the door shut and threw her body against it. “Oh, shit. My father.” Her eyes grew even bigger as she pinned them on him. “That’s my father.”
What was this? Meet the Family Day? “Thwat’s thwyour fwather?” When his words sounded muffled, he stuck out his tongue and checked for permanent damage.
“Isn’t that what I said?” She grumbled a few choice words and tossed him a scowl. Then an expression of relief passed quickly over her face. “Thank God that alley was dark. Obviously, he doesn’t recognize you from the other night.”
“Sydney Skeller, get back out here!”
The relief he’d seen disappeared and she cringed, keeping her back to the door. “Oh, crap. He doesn’t sound happy. What if he overheard us?”
Satisfied his tongue was still intact, Jason pressed his body to Syd’s and shifted barely enough to heighten his sense of smell. He certainly didn’t need sensitive hearing to hear the jackass in the other room.
“Miriam, what are you doing here? I thought we were going to join up at the meeting?”
“Don’t you yell at me. And calm down before you have a heart attack. I simply dropped by for a visit.”
“Who was the guy she took into her bedroom?” Her father muttered something incoherent before raising his voice again. “What the hell is going on here? Do I smell what I think I smell? I’d swear I caught a whiff of… Naw, it couldn’t be.”
Jason snorted, disgust filling his very core. “He thinks I smell? I can smell gunpowder on him all the way in here. Can you spell hunter?” Curses from Syd’s father echoed in the adjoining room. “I’ll give him something to cuss about.” He narrowed his eyes and visualized landing a solid right hook against her father’s jaw.
The wallop against his chest broke his train of thought and zapped him out of his partial transformation. “Hey!” Placing his palm over the spot where she’d struck him, he gawked at a seething she-devil. “Why’d you hit me?”
“Don’t you even think about hurting my father,” she hissed at him, keeping her voice low and mean, “or I’ll track you down and blow off your balls myself. And keep your voice down.”
Geez, she’s beautiful when she’s mad. “Why? It’s not like he doesn’t know I’m here.”
“I don’t want him to hear what you’re saying, you hound dog.”
She poked him in the same spot, making her point very clear, while her lovely shoulders—perfect, bitable shoul
ders—enticed him.
“Hound dog? Ouch. Now that really hurt.” Yet, contrary to his tone, his grin grew bigger. Yup, she’s absolutely gorgeous when she puts her whole body behind her words. “Okay, darlin’, okay. Don’t go all Elmer Fudd on me.”
“Sydney, you come out here right now and bring that coward with you.”
Who the crap did he think he was calling him a coward? Jason bristled at the name and fought to keep from morphing into full wolf form. “I’ll show him who’s a coward.”
Again, Syd grabbed his arm, this time hauling him toward the bathroom. “Come on. I have an idea.”
“If this involves my jumping out the window from this height, you’re going to have to let me finish shifting first.”
She stopped and gaped at him. “You can jump out a third story window and not get hurt?”
He didn’t like the glint in her eye. “Only if I shift first.” Before she forced him to do anything rash, he glanced at the small rectangle of a window over her tub. “But trust me. This big body ain’t going through that small window any time soon.”
She paused, obviously considering asking him to jump, then nodded and pushed him into the tub. “Take off your clothes.”
“Sure, babe. But don’t you think the timing’s a bit off to share a shower? I mean, I know your mom already saw us going at it, but I’m not thrilled about putting on a show for your dad.” At her exasperated huff, he shrugged and stripped off his clothing. “But, if you insist. I’ve gotta say, you’re my kind of girl. When you want sex, nothing can stop you.”
“Close your eyes and shut up.” She took his clothes from him, dumping them on the floor outside the tub.
“Whatever you say, darlin’.” Yet the moment he closed his eyes, he knew he’d made a mistake. A cold liquid splashed on the top of his head, startling him into opening his eyes and reversing his metamorphosis. Fangs and ears receded quicker than they had appeared. When he saw Syd pick up a bottle containing pink liquid and aim it at his bare chest, he raised his hands in a futile attempt to shield his body. “Shit! What’re you doing?” He squeezed his eyes closed a second before the fumes from the perfume assaulted his nose.
“I’m trying to save your butt if you’ll just be quiet and let me.”
Splash after splash hit his body from head to toe. He kept his eyes closed this time and shivered.
“Turn around. I need to get your backside.”
He complied, making sure he didn’t slip on the slick surface of the tub. “Will you tell me why I’m being doused with all this stinky stuff?”
“I’m putting perfume on you to cover up your shifter smell. My dad’s already gotten a sniff of you, but I’m not about to let him get a better one.”
Jason gritted his teeth against another shudder racing through him. “I don’t get it. You think I stink, too?”
“Yes. I mean, no. I mean, I like your smell. And very few people can smell shifter. But apparently my father did. Now I want to convince him otherwise.” The liquid assault against his body stopped, followed by shattering sounds. “This awful perfume my cousin Rose gave me last year for Christmas would cover a skunk’s stink.”
“Hey!”
“Oh, sorry. I didn’t mean anything by it. There. I think it’s dried. You can open your eyes.”
“Damn, I reek.” Jason dared to glance at his body. Fortunately, none of the vile-smelling liquid had made his skin change color or given him a rash, but the aroma wafting to his nostrils made his stomach flip over.
“Good.” She picked up his clothes and handed them to him.
“Why didn’t you simply douse my clothes instead of me?”
“Then we’d have to explain the wet clothes and he’d figure it out. Let’s hope the perfume will be enough to cover your scent. Get dressed and come out to the living room, but be prepared to run. If my father smells more than just bad cologne, he’ll grab anything he can find to use as a weapon and take you down where you stand.”
“Great. In his mind, I’m either a stinking cowardly friend or a dead shifter. Two super choices.”
Syd’s lips quivered. Whether from a smile gone wrong or from the apprehension he saw in her stiffened body language, he wasn’t sure. He tried to smell the fear on her, but couldn’t get past the rank perfume coating his body.
“I’m thinking I’d choose a stinky coward over a dead shifter.” She helped him from the perfume-slickened shower and turned to face the bathroom door. Without a moment’s hesitation, he threw on his clothes.
Syd placed her hand on the doorknob and mouthed, “Ready?”
He lied and nodded.
“We’ll be out in a sec, Skeller, uh, Dad.”
Skeller? He flashed back to the alley when Syd had called her father by his last name. Why doesn’t she call him Dad all the time? He hurried after her, his head down to button his shirt—and ran directly into her father.
“Oh, hell.” Skeller stumbled away from him, holding on to his nose. “What in the frickin’ world is that stench?” His repugnant expression latched onto him and ran up and down his body. “Is that you?”
“Skeller! How rude!” Syd linked her arm through Skeller’s and dragged him away. He twisted his head around to frown at Jason.
Depositing her father on the other side of the room, Syd kept her arm hooked with his and tipped her head in a silent message. A message Jason didn’t understand. What did she want him to do? “Uh, hi, Mr. Skeller.”
Syd’s pointed look told him she’d expected him to say something more. But what did she expect him to say to a hunter? Hey, how ya doing? Kill any of my friends lately? Uncle Mort went missing about a week ago. Can I check to see if he’s hanging on your wall? Jason shot her a frustrated look. Get real, Syd. Meeting a Mafia boss would be easier. Not to mention safer.
“Griswold, this is Sydney’s friend, Jason Cannon.”
Griswold? Jason bit the inside of his mouth to stifle a snicker. Damn, no wonder the man wants to kill something. Syd caught his near-slip, narrowed her eyes and sent him an unmistakable don’t-you-even-think-about-it glare. This time he understood her message.
The deep folds on Skeller’s forehead could have hidden treasure. “He’s a friend of Sydney’s? But I thought I smelled shifter.”
Syd and her mother laughed identical hyena titters. “Oh, Skeller, don’t be silly. A shifter in my apartment? Come on.” Syd squeezed his arm and averted her head to let only her mother and Jason see the worry on her face.
Miriam followed her daughter’s lead. “Really, Griswold, you think you smell shifter everywhere. Remember when you thought you smelled shifter at church? Poor Pastor Paul will never be the same. Perhaps you’re mistaking one stinky smell for another?”
Jason frowned but knew better than to correct her. He’d let her implied insult pass. Besides, now he did actually stink.
Skeller’s glower lessened while his taunting smile grew. “Yeah, I guess. Boy, I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone who uses as much cologne as you do. And girly-smelling cologne on top of it.”
Jason opened his mouth to protest, but Syd beat him to the punch. “Skeller, stop.” She let go of her father to stride across the room and take Jason’s arm. “He’s a metrosexual.” She tucked her head down and he heard the slight gagging sound she tried to cover.
Hey, Syd, remember you did this to me. Go ahead and gag, darlin’.
“He’s a what?”
Jason scoffed and waited for Syd’s response. He couldn’t believe she expected Skeller to know what a metrosexual was.
She answered with a roll of the eyes. “You know. A man who likes to take care of his appearance, has a regular stylist and gets manicures. He keeps himself looking handsome. Besides, I happen to, uh, like his choice of cologne. I think he smells great.” She inhaled and plastered on a smile.
Jason had to give her kudos. Somehow she’d managed to breathe in without making a sick face. Yet he hadn’t missed seeing her face lose its color for a moment. He shuffled his feet
and crossed his arms, keeping his un-manicured fingernails hidden. Couldn’t her father hear the lie in her tone—even if he’d missed how she’d almost choked on the words?
“You do? Well, I guess there’s no accounting for taste.”
Well duh, dude. How else would an attractive, smart, classy lady like Miriam get hooked up with a dumb hunter like you? Jason glanced from Skeller to Miriam and nodded, silently hoping a shower was in his near future.
“Still…you look familiar to me.” Her father’s beady gaze locked onto him and Syd tightened her hold. “You ever done any hunting?”
Jason squeezed Syd’s arm in warning and chuckled under his breath. “You mean like in bird hunting? Or maybe deer hunting? What is it you hunt, Mr. Skeller?”
The hunter checked his wife before answering. “Creatures of the night. Vile, repulsive minions from hell.”
Oh, this is gonna be fun. He put on a baffled expression. “You mean like…bats?”
“What I hunt is far worse than those furry little fliers, son.”
Son? Oh, shit. A hunter called me “son”. Jason didn’t know whether he wanted to toss his cookies or roll on the floor in hysterics. Maybe both. Instead, he adopted a curious reaction. “You mean like vampire bats?” Syd elbowed him in the ribs, but he covered his grunt.
Skeller’s delighted chuckle made his stomach flip over. The choice of tossing his cookies took the lead. “Naw. I’m talking about wicked evil things, boy.”
“Do you mean like Dracula? Or Frankenstein?” Ladies and gentleman, the Oscar goes to…Jason Cannon for his performance of an ignoramus.
“I know what you’re thinking, boy, but I’m not kidding. I’m talking about things like shape-shifters. You know, werewolves.”
“Werewolves?” Damn, what I wouldn’t give to shift right now and see who’d hunt who first. But Syd’s warm body next to him reminded him who this man was and what he meant to the woman he loved. Should he act like a regular boyfriend and call the men in white coats? Locking a hunter in an asylum would give him a shitload of satisfaction. Especially when he knew the hunter was sane.