With a pained expression, Trent said, “I never meant to hurt you, Mika. I did it with your best interests in mind.”
“My best interests?” I shouted. “So let me get this straight. You thought it would be better for me to watch you go off and take up with Silvia? You know how I feel about her. Bad enough you acted as if I didn’t exist, but to have to watch you lock lips with that witch.” I had to stop and take a deep breath as tears threatened to rise to the surface. “Yesterday took the cake, though. How could you’ve just sat there and let Silvia do that to me?”
Moving faster than I thought possible, Trent had my face cupped in his hands in a blink of an eye. “I told you before, I screwed up. I only went to Silvia to save you. I knew doing that would be the one sure way to make it so you wouldn’t want anything to do with me anymore.”
“But why? To save me from what?”
Trent lowered his head until our foreheads touched and closed his eyes. “To save you from me.”
Before I could ask him to explain what exactly he meant by that, Dad opened the front door of the house and called my name. He stood in the light spilling out of the open doorway as he cast his gaze around the front yard. Trent pulled away and disappeared into the darkness.
Feeling more confused than ever, I headed toward the house. “I’m here, Dad,” I called.
Dad stood with his arms crossed over his chest as he watched me cross the street. “What were you doing over there?”
Obviously, Dad hadn’t seen Trent. “I thought I saw something.”
“How can you see anything? The field’s almost completely pitch dark.”
“I thought I just saw something. Okay?” I snapped.
Dad backed up to let me inside. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to make you angry. How was the movie?” He shut the door behind us.
“Pretty good. It’s getting late. I think I’ll head up to bed now.”
“All right. I’ll see you in the morning then.”
Inside my room, I changed into my pajamas—a pair of pink pajama bottoms with the word “princess” in red printed all over them, and a pink, long-sleeved t-shirt that matched. I covered my mouth as I yawned. The lack of sleep from the night before, and the turmoil of emotions Trent had stirred inside me, had suddenly caught up with me. I wanted nothing more than to crawl into my bed and sleep for a year.
Before I got into bed I went over to the window and pulled the curtain aside. When I looked down at the yard, I caught the dark silhouetted shape of the black cougar. He had his nose to the ground sniffing where the other cougar had been the night before. As if he sensed me watching, he lifted his head and looked right up at my window. I pressed my hand to the glass. We stood and stared at each other for a few seconds before he sniffed the ground once more and then disappeared into the shadows.
I pulled the curtain shut and turned off the light. As I got into bed I sighed. I had no idea what I’d do if Trent showed up at the house tomorrow. A part of me wanted to give him the chance to explain, to have him back in my life. But I didn’t know if I could do it. He’d hurt me once. I wasn’t sure I could ever trust him not to do it again.
* * * *
I slept like a baby until eleven the next morning, then laid in bed until almost noon. After the confrontation with Trent last night, I wasn’t too keen on facing the day. I still didn’t know if I wanted to go anywhere with him or not.
Mom knocked on my bedroom door once, then opened it. “Are you going to get out of bed any time soon?”
Rolling over onto my back, I pulled the covers up higher under my chin. “Do I have to?”
Mom sighed. “How can you lie around in bed for so long? If I did that I’d have a sore back.”
I shrugged. “I’m a teenager. Aren’t I supposed to sleep in really late?”
Mom chuckled. “I guess you are. Just try to get out of bed before dinner time. At the very least, come down and have something to eat soon.”
After Mom closed my door, I snuggled in deeper under the covers. I must have dozed off again, because I woke up to someone knocking on my door again. Thinking it had to be Jared this time, I shouted, “Go away, dumbass. I’m trying to sleep.” I rolled over onto my side and pulled the covers over my head.
The next thing I knew they were yanked off me. With a shriek of outrage, I rolled onto my back ready to blast Jared for actually daring to come into my room let alone do what he’d done. The words froze in my throat. It wasn’t Jared who stood there but Trent. Even though my pajamas covered me as well as my clothes did, I shrieked and crossed my arms over my chest.
“Trent! What are you doing in my bedroom?”
He flashed me a crooked smile. “I’m making you get out of bed. What else would I be doing?”
My mouth opened and closed a couple of times as I tried to get past the fact Trent actually stood in my room. “How…how did you get past my parents? I know my dad wouldn’t just let you come up here.”
Trent chuckled. “Your parents are downstairs talking to my dad. Your mom was the one who said I could come up here and get you out of bed.”
I sat up. “Why is your dad here? And I can’t see my mom just letting you waltz up here. She knows you dumped…” I let my words trail off.
“That I dumped you? I think when my dad and I showed up at your door a little while ago and had a little talk with your parents they came to realize it was all just a misunderstanding between us.”
“A misunderstanding? I would hardly call what you did a simple misunderstanding!”
“Look, I’m not going to get into this with you right now. Get up and dressed so we can leave.”
“I’m not going anywhere with you.”
Trent stepped closer to the bed and leaned down until he was right in my face. “Yes, you are. My dad’s already okayed it with your parents. So get up and dressed or I’m going to throw you over my shoulder right now and you can leave in your pajamas. Which will it be?”
I ground my teeth. “All right. I’ll get dressed, but not until you get out of my room.”
“Good girl. I’ll be out in the hallway, waiting.”
Grumbling about pushy males, I quickly dressed in a pair of jeans and a sweat top. I could have done with a shower, but I settled for pulling a brush through my hair. I opened my bedroom door and pointedly ignored Trent as I marched to the bathroom to brush my teeth. I slammed the door in his face.
Through it, Trent said, “I’m starting to get the impression you aren’t a morning person, Mika.”
I didn’t respond to that comment. I took my time brushing my teeth. I had to use the toilet. Since Trent stood on the other side of the door able to hear everything, I turned the water on hard in the sink and went about my business. After I finished I yanked open the bathroom door and glared at him. He motioned for me to go first, then followed me downstairs.
Just as Trent had said, his dad sat in the living room, talking to both Mom and Dad. They all stood when Trent and I entered the room. I couldn’t help but notice how Trent’s father towered over mine. He seemed to fill most of the living room.
Mom was the first one to speak. “Well, I see Trent managed to do what I couldn’t.”
I gave Mom a stare that said I wasn’t impressed.
“Don’t look at me like that, Mika. Trent and his dad have made plans to spend the day with you. I think you should go.”
I shot a look at Dad. He nodded in agreement with what Mom had said. “Whose side are you guys on anyway?”
“We’re not on anybody’s,” Mom said.
Grumpily, I shot back, “Well, I think you’re both traitors.”
Trent’s dad bit back a laugh. “Your parents haven’t betrayed you, Mika. Trent would just like the chance to explain a few things to you.”
From the pointed look Trent’s dad gave me, I knew exactly what he meant. He wasn’t referring to Trent dumping me to take up with Silvia, even though I bet that was what he’d told Mom and Dad.
My curiosity got the bett
er of me. Here was my chance to have all my questions answered. I nodded. “Okay, fine. I’ll go with you, though I’m not thrilled about this.”
Trent walked beside me as we all walked to the front door. I wondered if he thought he had to stay close to me in case I decided to run back up to my bedroom and barricade myself inside.
Once Mom and Dad said goodbye to Trent’s dad, we headed out to his car. I got into the backseat and slammed the door shut before Trent could even think of joining me. He only shook his head. He went and sat up in the front with his dad.
I waited until we were well away from my house before I spoke. “All right, spill. You got me out of the house so start talking.”
Trent’s dad chuckled and shot Trent a quick look. “Boy, she does like to get right to the point, doesn’t she?”
“That she does.”
“Hello,” I said. “I’m sitting right here in the car, you know.”
Trent turned partway around in his seat. “Just relax. You’ll get all your answers after we get there.”
“And where would ‘there’ be exactly?”
“We decided, my dad and I, that is, that it would be best if we took you to see my grandfather. He knows our family history better than anybody. He’ll be able to answer any questions you may have.”
I didn’t know if that was a good or bad thing. I’d a feeling I’d be getting more than I asked for. It also made me wonder how Trent’s grandfather would react about an outsider learning of the family secret.
The paved roads turned into gravel ones when we reached reservation land. I sat in silence and watched the scenery go by. All too soon, Trent’s dad pulled into the driveway of a small bungalow. Trent opened the back door and waited for me to get out before we joined his dad at the front door of the house. For some reason, I felt anxious, as if I’d gotten into something over my head.
The door opened after Trent’s dad knocked. An older man, who looked remarkably like Trent and his father, stood in the doorway as he greeted us. His gaze lingered on me before he motioned us to come inside. He then led us to the small living room. Trent took my hand and pulled me to sit on the couch with him. His dad and grandfather sat in the two armchairs across from us.
“So this must be Mika,” Trent’s grandfather said to the room at large.
I nodded as I looked at him. He wasn’t as old as I thought he would be. For being someone’s grandfather, he looked pretty spry. I’d expected him to be old and frail, though why I thought that, I’d no idea. It wasn’t as if both my grandfathers were old and frail. The only thing that marked him as the eldest male Hunter was the streaks of gray in his long hair and the small array of lines on his face.
Trent’s grandfather gave me a wink as if he knew I’d checked him out. “Did my son and grandson tell you why they brought you here?”
I cleared my throat. “Yeah, sorta. Trent said you’d answer all my questions about the…” I left my words hanging.
“About the black cougar.” He said it as a statement, not as a question.
“Yeah,” I answered softly.
“Good. Trent has told me you’d figured out the connection between him and the black cougar you encountered at the lake. Very observant. Not too many people would have been able to do that. Most would be more concerned about coming face-to-face with what they thought was a wild cougar, rather than trying to look past it to see what it truly was.”
“So Trent’s really the black cougar? He’s never come out and admitted it.”
Trent’s grandfather smiled and nodded. “That he is, my girl.”
Even though I’d known it, now that it had actually been said out loud, my heart pounded against my ribs. I licked my suddenly-dry lips. “How? How is it possible that a person can shape-shift into a big cat?”
“Well, if you want to look at it from our family’s history—what has been passed down from generation to generation—the story goes a thousand years ago one of our ancestors took a male cougar as her mate. The sons from that union were born human, but had the ability to take on their father’s form as well. They passed this ability on to their sons, and they on to theirs, and so on and so on.”
“So is it just your family who can shape-shift, or can others in your tribe do it as well? Because I’m pretty sure the other cougar I saw wasn’t your typical wild cougar either.”
Trent’s grandfather smiled and looked at Trent. “You weren’t kidding when you said much wouldn’t get past her.” He turned back to me. “You’re right. The other cougars, the one you saw at the lake and the one in your backyard, are shapeshifters as well. There are only four families in our tribe with this ability. We’re all descended from that one ancestor.”
“You said only the males can shape-shift. Does that mean you two can do it too?” I looked from Trent’s grandfather to his father and back again.
His grandfather nodded. “Yes, both my son and I have the ability, as does Trent.”
My breath left my lungs in a rush. “Oh, boy. Talk about fairytales coming to life. Can you all shape-shift into black cougars?”
Trent, who’d sat silently beside me until now, spoke up. “No. Only I can do that. And because of it, I tried to save you from me before it became too late.”
Chapter Nineteen
I turned on the couch so I could pin Trent with a gaze. “Okay, you keep saying you have to save me from you. Would you please for once tell me what you mean?”
“It’s because I can shape-shift into the black cougar. It’s rare. Only one male in our family every hundred years or so is born with the black cougar inside him.”
“And?”
“I’m getting there,” Trent assured me. “Being the black cougar marks me differently than it does the others. The cat is stronger in me. The cat rules me as much as the human side does.”
“And?”
Trent blew out a deep breath. “How to word this so you don’t run screaming out of the room? Okay. You have to know I want you as my girlfriend.” He held up his hand to stop me when I opened my mouth to speak. “Don’t even say it, Mika. I already told you why I did what I did. As I was saying, I want to be with you, but the cat part of me wants something more permanent than merely being boyfriend and girlfriend. He wants you as his mate.”
That, I hadn’t been expecting. “As in mated for life kinda thing?”
“Yeah. That’s why I bit you on the neck when I was in cat form. It’s a mark to show you’re my mate, that you’re taken, and that I’ll fight off any male who dares to claim what’s mine.”
A shiver of awareness ran down my spine. A part of me wanted to throw myself at Trent and bite him to leave my mark, claiming him as mine. I forced myself to remain were I sat. “Is it just that the cat wants me as his mate or does the boy as well?”
His eyes flashed gold for a split second before they returned to brown. “He mostly definitely wants you as well.”
Trent’s grandfather cleared his throat. “What Trent has failed to tell you is that the male who can shift into the black cougar will seek to be mated at a younger age than most. Once he’s found the one for him, the cat will ride him until he’s tied her to him. Be it through a verbal commitment or another way.”
Without taking my gaze off Trent, I asked, “And if this girl doesn’t want to be claimed as his mate? What happens then?”
“Then the cat could become more aggressive,” Trent said. “Try to take control of me so he can seek to claim his mate on his own. The fight for control can be…a strain, to say the least.”
I reached over to Trent and smacked him in the chest. “You idiot. If you know that’ll happen, then why put yourself through it by pushing me away?”
“Because you’re only seventeen and you have years before you have to make a decision about who you want to find yourself permanently hooked up with.”
I gave him another smack. “So? You’re only seventeen too. And it’s not as if we have to run out and get married tomorrow, you dolt.”
Trent rubbed his chest. “Quit smacking me.”
“Then quit being such an idiot. You’ve not once asked me how I felt about you. As for the whole teenage romance thing, I know for a fact some of them work even into adulthood. My parents are living proof of that. They first started dating in high school.”
“I don’t think you understand the consequences, Mika.”
“What could they be? I like you and you like me. It can’t get more complicated than that.”
Trent’s dad spoke before his son could reply. “Mika, I think what Trent is worried about is what would happen if you ever decided to break up with him.”
I focused my attention on Trent’s dad. “What would happen?”
“Once a black cougar gets a commitment from his mate there never will be another for him. He mates for life. Even if you left Trent, he would never be able to take another as his mate.”
Oh, no pressure there. “I see.”
Trent moved closer and picked up my hand before he said, “That’s why I tried to put some space between us. I never meant to hurt you, but I didn’t know what else to do. Things hadn’t gone so far as to have my cat demanding I take the choice from you. Though I have to say having to watch you with Jeff at school all week, and then knowing you went out with him last night, didn’t exactly help matters.”
“As I said before, if you’d taken the time to ask how I felt in the first place all this could have been avoided. If it’s a commitment you want, then—”
Trent put his hand over my mouth before I could finish. “Don’t say anything right now. You need time to think this over.”
I pulled his hand away. “Okay. In that case, no more avoiding me at school. I want to start over again. There’s no reason why we can’t have lunch together. Actually, I want it that way.”
“What about your buddy Jeff? If you’re still going to sit with him at lunch I can’t be with you. He’s a rival. The cat’s first instinct will be to get you away from him, by any means possible.”
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