Despite all of that, convenience isn’t the best way to make this decision and I know it.
“Justin, you know how I feel about you.”
He sighs as he nods. “Misty, I know you’re attracted to Sam. You don’t have to feel bad about that. I get it.”
“No. I don’t think you do.” I’m not quite ready to admit the full extent of my feelings. That’s probably why I can’t choose. I’ve told him I love him, but I couldn’t tell him all the reasons why. I can’t. I’m too afraid to give him false hope, because wild declarations will only confuse everything even more. But he needs to understand how hard this is for me because he’s talking about this as if I’ve already made a decision. “Justin, I have these freaky monster eyes because I have strong feelings for all three of you. This happened when we were all together for a reason. And I can’t make it go away until I make an impossible decision. Please tell me you understand that.”
He doesn’t. I can see the conflict on his face as he tries to reconcile what I’m saying with what he’s feeling. “I can’t stand the thought of losing you,” he tells me.
I wish I could tell him he won’t. I feel like such an asshole.
“I can’t stand it either,” I say quietly, feeling like I just closed the lid on a coffin.
He nods, and turns toward the door. “I should make sure everything’s prepped to go. You should ride with Tyler. I’ll just follow.”
I watch him leave, unable to say anything because a nasty lump is forming in my throat. We won’t get over this if I choose Sam or Ty. Won’t be able to work together anymore. I can’t stand the thought of not seeing him every day. Damn this trip to hell.
I start wishing Ty had never called me. He’s the reason I came back here. If he hadn’t, nothing would have changed.
He comes out of the bathroom and I toss a glower his way.
“Hey, what’s up?” He seems confused.
I shake my head. “It’s nothing. We need to go.”
I can’t blame Ty for this. He’s blaming himself for enough. I’m the one who has too many feelings for too many men. I’m the one who turned out to be half-gator. I’m the one who has a heart-breaking decision to make.
Forty-Three
Justin
I drive along behind Ty’s car, trying to forget what’s going on with Misty to concentrate on work. Trouble is work is Misty. I’ll be filming her. There won’t be any escape from her sparkling smile and curvy body.
I groan as I realize the moment she picks someone else I’ll have to quit my job or put myself through the torture of seeing her happy with someone else. Both thoughts make me anxious, but it’s the latter that I couldn’t stand to be around constantly.
She’s supposed to be mine. I know it deep down. I felt it the moment I became a shifter. An all consuming sense of possession washed over me at the very thought of her. My woman. My mate.
Was that all a delusion? Did I fixate on her because we were about to take our relationship further before I was attacked? Or was it because I was already head over heels for her?
Does it even matter?
I don’t think it does. Things are how they are. Nothing can change what’s already happened.
I feel my phone vibrate inside my pocket and I sigh deeply.
Should have turned it off. I don’t want to see my brother’s stupid goading messages right now. Things are depressing enough.
We pull up outside a party supplies store and Misty goes inside with Ty. I wait in the van, desperate to get the day over with. Not that tonight’s going to be any better. I’ll be in that hotel room alone while Sam’s claiming the woman I was convinced was my mate as his own.
I’m going to have to find something to do while she’s gone. I can’t sit around thinking about it.
They come back out of the store and we get moving again. Misty’s grandmother’s house turns out to be a few streets away from her mother’s place. Probably would have gone to see her the day we went to her mother’s, if Misty hadn’t been so preoccupied after seeing Sam again.
I wonder about his involvement in the murders. Misty seems positive he wasn’t involved. She seems the same way about Ty, but he was pretty insistent that something happened. It’s all so damn weird.
That’s when something clicks in me. I’ve been trusting of Sam and Ty both ever since they inducted me into the shifter world. I saw something of their souls when we bonded in that swamp. I wouldn’t have believed them as murderers either. And neither of them was the gator who attacked me.
Something very strange is going on in this town, and I need to protect Misty from any threats. Even if those threats come from one of the other men she has feelings for. That’s all I need to concern myself with. Protecting her.
She might not be safe with Sam. I guess that means being close to where they are tonight. Good thing I already know where her mother lives.
Forty-Four
Misty
“Shit,” I curse as I struggle to put the contacts in. If there’s one thing I hate, it’s touching my eye. I get the shivers for the rest of the day any time my mascara wand slips and pokes me. This is a bazillion times worse.
“You want me to do it?” Ty offers, his voice low and sexy enough to dampen the lining of my panties.
I take a breath. “No, I can manage.”
I seriously need to get a grip of the lust I seem to be drowning in. I want to throw the contact down and slip into Ty’s lap. Get him to do something about the situation his proximity is creating in my panties. This is insane. Probably my own fault for the epic dry spell I’ve been through.
I squirm a little in my seat, creating not-unwelcome friction and actually making it worse. I feel my nipples awakening inside my bra at the throb of my needy clit. I clear my throat as I make another attempt with the lens. I can do this. It’s nothing. I just have to ignore how desperate I am to mount the man sitting next to me and pull his cock out of his pants while we’re sitting in his car, in the middle of a street in broad daylight.
I steady my breathing and manage to touch the lens to my eye. “I did it!”
I glance his way and catch Ty’s smile before I see the intense heat in his gaze. Then I notice, his breathing is catching a little, and when my gaze drops to his crotch I see the massive bulge and realize I’m not the only keyed up person in this car.
He catches me looking and smiles wryly. “You smell incredible, Misty. I guess it’s the whole being ready to mate thing.”
“Oh,” I say, my eyes widening. Oh my God. He can smell that I’m horny? Kill me now.
“You look so cute when you’re freaked out.”
I shake my head at him. “How does my eye look?”
“Your eye? Oh. Right.” He puts a hand under my chin and scrutinizes my face. “I don’t know. It looks a little off.”
“Off?” I pull away and check the side mirror, closing my reptilian eye so it doesn’t try to steal my attention. “Damn.” He’s right. If I only had to fool passers-by on the street, it would be fine. They wouldn’t get close enough to see the yellow glow behind the blue. The lens doesn’t actually fully cover my gator eye. It won’t work on camera. “Shit.”
What the hell am I going to do?
“Can you film outside maybe?” Ty asks.
“Outside?”
“So you can keep the shades on.”
It’ll piss Tom off, but it might be my only option. I sigh, ready to pick the stupid lens out of my eye. Even if my fingers are shaking a little. Okay, a lot.
“Come here,” Ty says, motioning to me to let him get it.
I draw out another sigh before conceding. He’s gentle and he gets it out in a move so swift I barely feel it.
“Wow,” I say, looking at it in his hand. “That was fast.”
“Are you ready?” He asks.
I nod, putting the shades back on. I check them in the mirror. They’re jet black. Justin’s camera isn’t going to pick up on my weird eyes beneath the lenses.
/> “Let’s go do this.”
Forty-Five
Tyler
Misty’s grandmother is kind of how I’d imagine her to be when she’s fifty years older, if she was cat-crazy and actually liked the color pink. Her hair is dyed platinum and she looks about twenty years younger than she is. She’s smiling when she answers the door, a black and white kitty in her arms.
“Misty!” She cries out, putting an arm out to hug her granddaughter while keeping hold of the cat.
Misty takes the hug. “Grammy. It’s so good to see you.”
Her grandmother steps back. “Let me get a good look at you.”
Misty spreads her arms. “I haven’t changed a bit. Well, except for the cat hair.”
“You don’t suit that color,” her grandmother says, shaking her head. “Those TV people are morons. You look good in green. That should be what they put you in.”
I have to smile. She does look good in green. Then the older woman’s attention slips to me, a curious expression forming.
“And who might this be?”
“This is Tyler, Grammy. He’s a friend.”
“Is that what we’re calling it these days?”
“Grammy,” Misty warns.
“Fine,” the woman shrugs. “What do I know? Oh, now, who’s this young man?”
I glance back and see Justin has arrived behind us, his equipment in tow. Huh. Who knew there’d be so much of it? I probably should have offered to help him carry it.
“That’s Justin. He’s another friend.” Misty’s voice softens when she talks, glancing at Justin.
“My, Misty. You’re a busy girl.” Her grandmother steps back. “Come in, everyone. I don’t want the curtain-twitchers across the street getting any ideas.”
I think I like this woman. We follow Misty inside. The house is decorated like the inside of an ice-cream cake, all white and pink. I glance at Justin but his mind seems to be elsewhere. I never would have pegged him for moody, but that’s what he’s become ever since Misty said yes to Sam’s plan. I guess he didn’t believe me when I told him she’ll still have gator eyes tomorrow.
Doesn’t matter. He doesn’t have to believe it. Things happen whether or not you believe they’re going to. It’s called life and it takes some really weird turns when you least expect them.
“Going by that dress of yours and the time of day it’s coming up to, you’re here to film,” Misty’s grandmother says, as she leads us through the house to the kitchen.
“Uh, yeah,” Misty says, her surprise obvious. “I’m sorry, Grammy. I meant to call you first.”
“You know you don’t need to do that,” the older woman says. “But let me go put some make up on. You can make yourself at home in the kitchen while you wait.”
Forty-Six
Misty
“Where are we setting up?” Justin asks, not meeting my gaze.
I push back the guilt that surfaces and move toward the back door. I have a slight moment of worry as I unlock it, panic swelling as I cross my fingers that the garden will still look as vibrant as it did before I left town. Then I see it hasn’t changed one bit and I let out a relieved sigh.
“Wow,” Ty whispers at my ear. His hands touch my waist as he leans over my shoulder to take in the crazy floral explosion that is Grammy’s backyard.
There are kitties roaming around, enjoying the little stations that are placed around the yard especially for them. Mostly those are pillars with cushions on them, but there are a few little tunnels carved out of hollows in tree stumps too. There are a ton of different plants, but pink and white roses are the most prevalent.
I step outside, and Ty follows close behind. Justin takes a few minutes to come out and set things up, and I realize the problem when he starts to sneeze.
“Oh, crap,” I say, remembering. He has allergies. This garden is probably his idea of hell.
“I’m fine,” he murmurs, taking a tissue out of his pocket.
“We can’t film out here,” I tell him, wondering where that leaves us.
“Don’t we kind of have to?” Ty asks, raising his eyebrows at me.
Shit. I need to wear the glasses. There’s no getting around that. Outside, it kind of makes sense. We film inside and it instantly does not.
“I’ll be fine,” Justin insists, sneezing immediately afterward. Damn. It’s so loud.
“Really doesn’t seem like you will be,” Ty says.
Justin scowls at him, before turning to me. “Honestly, Misty. I’ll sneeze for five minutes and then I’ll be fine. There’s time to film your section without incident. It’ll be out of my system before we roll.”
“Okay,” I say, nodding. I trust him. If he says he’ll be fine in five, he’ll be fine.
Now where the hell’s Grammy? I take a mirror out of my purse while I wait, checking my make-up and scowling a little at the sunglasses. I’m going to take shit for them from Tom, I just know it. I put the mirror back and check my phone. No new messages. I check my emails and my heart just about stops.
“Oh my God!” I exclaim, re-reading the email to make sure I didn’t get something wrong.
“What is it?” Ty asks, hands on my waist again as he leans over my shoulder to see what I’m freaking about.
“Mercy Dahlen wants to meet me.” I can barely believe it. “She’s my idol, and she knows who I am.”
I put the phone away, unable to strip the smile from my face.
“That’s in a couple hours,” Ty murmurs, making me aware he actually read the email before I put the phone back into my bag.
“We’ll make it,” I tell him, trying to remind myself Mercy’s on my suspect list for the attacks.
“I guess,” Ty says, sounding a little disappointed.
I wonder why for a second, until I realize I’ll need to meet Sam after that. There isn’t going to be much time left to spend with Ty and Justin today.
“You’ll have me all to yourself tomorrow night,” I tell him, kicking myself mentally when Justin winces. I tell myself it doesn’t matter who I spend time with first. I’ll mate to whoever I’m supposed to mate to. Somehow, I doubt that will make Just feel better.
Ty shakes his head, pressing his lips briefly to my cheek. “Spend tomorrow night with Justin. I can wait.”
He hugs me from behind and it feels like he’s lying about being able to wait. I get those same twinges in my panties that I got in the car when the bulge in his pants rubs against my ass. He’s rock hard and I want everything else in the world to disappear so I can find out what it’s like to have him inside me. The feeling fades when he backs off. I sigh, half-relieved and half-disappointed.
“Okay, I’m ready for my close up,” Grammy declares from the doorway, striking a dramatic pose before she steps out into the garden in her Sunday best, not carrying a cat in her arms for a change.
We get ready to film and Ty keeps out of the way while Justin sets up the equipment and establishes a link to the studio. I make sure I’m not on camera until the last moment, to avoid demands to remove my sunglasses until the viewers are already watching.
I get some irritable grumbling in my ear-piece but it’s easy to ignore that when I’m talking to my grandmother about her cat paradise and the cute sweaters she knits for the local Vet practice.
The session goes without a hitch and I sign off with my usual, “Back to you, Diane.”
I blow out a breath, Justin lets out the loudest sneeze I’ve ever heard, and my grandmother deftly removes my sunglasses with an unexpected snatch.
“Well, now, I don’t know what I expected but it certainly wasn’t this,” she tells me, pursing her lips. “I think we know who your father is now, child.”
What? I stare at her as she inspects my gator eyes. “I thought there were too many… gentleman callers at that time to work it out?”
She smiles. “Yes, but only one of them was cursed to shift forms.”
I ignore the fact that she knows something I never would have guessed she knew
in a million years. She’s got far more valuable information now. The man I was never able to track down, the story I was never able to crack. She knows who he is.
“I need to know,” I tell her, as she passes me the glasses back.
“He was a friend of Jeremiah’s, from a congregation he belonged to before he moved here with his wife. Went by the name of Max, but he never gave his full name.”
Speechless, I just stare as my grandmother gives me a wistful smile. “I suppose that’s why you have these two with you. Shifter blood calls to shifter blood like nothing else. Your mother told herself that when he left. She knew he had a mate out there somewhere.”
“She knew?” I don’t understand. Why wouldn’t she tell me?
“She didn’t expect to ever see him again, Misty. He was in town for a few weeks and then he was gone.” She sighs. “Trust it to be him. I suppose we should have known. He was the one who broke her heart. The others were just consolation prizes until it mended.”
Ty clears his throat. “We should really get moving,” he says, reminding me we have someplace else to be in a little while. He’s right. We need to pack up and go.
“I have a meeting with Mercy Dahlen,” I tell Grammy.
“You do?” She smiles. “I remember when you used to walk around the house with a salt shaker, interviewing your stuffed toys, pretending to be that witch of a woman.”
Ty snorts. I slap his chest lightly.
“I was six. We all do weird things when we’re kids. And she isn’t a witch, Grammy. She’s just a woman who knows who she is.”
Now my grandmother snorts. “Oh, Misty. You always were a little blind in your admirations. Just don’t be disappointed when she tears a strip off you for assaulting her eyes with that abomination of dress.”
Flashing Her Gators Page 13