by Jane Jamison
“You’re going to stay away from our mate,” demanded Tonk.
“You broke the rules, John Abraham.” Anger mixed with sadness in Myler’s voice. “You know how it is, but you gave her your scent, anyway. That’s fucked up, man.”
It was. He couldn’t deny it. He’d gone against the code that prohibited one lion from interfering with another lion’s mate. In doing so, he’d risked not only a pounding from the Conway men but possible exile if they wanted to take their complaint to the others of the Lonesome pride. “I had no choice.”
Had they understood his mangled words? His mouth didn’t seem to work right.
“Bullshit. There’s always a choice,” argued Myler.
For a brief respite, the pounding stopped. “No. Not always.” He squinted at them, blood and blurriness blocking his view. “Once I saw her, I didn’t have a choice any longer.”
“Fuck that bullshit,” grunted Samuel.
John Abraham saw his opening and took it. “You would’ve done the same. You know you would have.”
Silence followed, giving him time to use the back of his arm to wipe the blood from his eyes. He lifted his gaze to the men and saw what he hoped was understanding in their hard expressions.
“You’re right. You saw her first, so I should’ve backed off.” He dragged in a painful breath. They’d laid into him good, but his wounds weren’t anything his shifter powers couldn’t heal. He did his best to sit up and grimaced as the pain seared through his side. “But I couldn’t. You know I couldn’t.”
“Fuck. It’s still bullshit,” asserted Samuel.
“He’s right. Damn it. I hate like hell to admit it, but he’s right.” Tonk paced away, wiping his bloody knuckles on a nearby rag. “We saw her first, but if it had been the other way around, I’m not sure I could’ve backed off.”
“This blows. Big time,” added Myler.
John Abraham was a persuasive man. And if there ever was a time to be persuasive, it was now. “She loves me. You saw her face. Tell me she doesn’t love me and I’ll back off.”
“Fine. She doesn’t love you.” Tonk growled. “Now back the hell off.”
“You’re lying, man. You know she’s my mate as much as she’s yours.”
“Nah. It’s only your allure that’s drawing her to you. She doesn’t love you yet.” Samuel knelt down, putting his face level with John Abraham’s. “She loves us and only us.”
He laughed, daring to get punched by Samuel. “She hasn’t known you much longer, so how is it any different?”
“It just is,” insisted Samuel. “We didn’t give her our full allure. At least not at the start. I’ll bet you did, though.”
He was right about that. He’d given her the full impact on the porch swing, but he’d had no choice. He’d already run out of time.
There it was again. No choice.
“Then we give her the time to let things settle, to let her think. She stays with us—all of us—and we let her figure it out. The Allure won’t keep her forever. Not if there isn’t love to go along with it.”
“She’s coming home with us.” Tonk planted his feet apart, ready to start hitting again. “I don’t give a fuck where you go.”
“And if she wants me there, too?” he asked.
They glanced at each other as though seeking the answer from each other. The fact that they did gave John Abraham hope.
He hurried on, sensing yet another opening. “Isn’t it better to share her than to lose her?”
“We’re not going to lose her. Not in any way and sure as hell not to you.” Yet Myler’s tone lacked confidence.
“But what if she chooses him over us?”
They all shifted their attention to Samuel. Samuel shrugged, a sadness drawing his expression downward. “It could happen. Are we willing to lose her forever?”
Myler took up his brother’s questioning. “So you’re saying it would be better to share her with John Abraham. But would it?” He shook his head, perhaps not so much for them as for himself trying to deny his next words. “I don’t want to lose her. Even if it means sharing her with a fourth man.”
“Shit. This is fucked up.” Tonk picked up a striped ball off the pool table and hurled it against the wall. It struck the wall, breaking the plaster and sending dust to the floor along with the heavy thunk of the ball. “Fuck!”
“Damn it. I hate like hell to admit it, but maybe you’re right. It’s better to share her than to lose her,” agreed Myler. “I don’t want to think about living my life without her.”
“Yeah, it’s fucked up, but it’s the best bet we have. I’m not taking any chances. But first, we see if she really wants him. Maybe we’ll get lucky and she’ll send him packing.”
“Dream on, Conway,” quipped John Abraham. “There’s no way she’s giving me up.”
Samuel’s lip jerked upward in a silent snarl. Soon enough, however, he dropped the snarl and replaced it with a scowl and an outstretched hand. “Fine. Then get your ass moving. Looks like we’re going to have to see this thing through together.”
John Abraham accepted Samuel’s hand. Groaning, he got to his feet then leaned against the wall. As soon as he was able to stand, albeit a bit unsteadily, John Abraham staggered to the door. The Conway men were close behind him. He stumbled, but Tonk grabbed hold of his arm and kept him on his feet. “Thanks.”
“Don’t thank me. I not helping you do shit. Still, we can’t have you slowing us down.”
John Abraham gave Samuel—my new co-mate—a curt nod. He wouldn’t push his luck by contradicting the big guy. Tonk’s simple act showed that they were beginning to accept him.
As he pushed through the crowd in the main room of the Whiskers and Whiskey Saloon with the Conway men at his side, he searched for Julia but didn’t find her.
“Maybe it’s better to leave her alone. At least, for now. Maybe we should let her cool off,” advised Samuel.
Leaving her alone was the last thing John Abraham wanted to do, but he had to admit Samuel made sense. “For now. As long as she doesn’t leave town, that is.” Their combined allure should keep her close, even though she was angry. At least, he hoped so.
“Damn straight,” added Myler. “Let’s head out to the ranch.” He skimmed not-so-friendly eyes over John Abraham. “You might as well get to know the place.” After his brothers gave him low growls, he hurriedly added, “Just in case hell freezes over and she wants you.”
As in we’re not going to live on your tiny farm.
Which was, as far as John Abraham was concerned, fine with him. He’d live in a box under an overpass as long as Julia was with him.
“Now all we have to do is to convince Julia to stay with all of us.” He chuckled then winced at the pain. “Come on. Let’s go get our mate.”
Chapter Seven
With her head down, Julia barreled outside the Whiskers and Whiskey Saloon and ran straight into Miss Kitty. “Oh! I’m sorry. I wasn’t looking.”
“No, you weren’t.” Miss Kitty took her arm and pulled her to the side and then urged her to get into the passenger seat of her car. “Get in so we can talk. Once we’re done, I’ll take you anywhere you want to go. In fact, I came looking for you. After the thing that happened back at my house—”
Julia plopped into the car, thankful that the vehicle was hidden in the shadows of the tree line. “You mean the thing where a werelion shifter gave me his scent and made me want him? That thing?”
“So you know?” Miss Kitty twisted her body toward Julia.
“Oh, I know, all right. The Conway men and John Abraham explained it all to me. I was drugged. Not with a pill or medication or whatever, but by their scent.” Yet, even as angry as she was, she couldn’t help but keep glancing at the door of the saloon, hoping they’d come after her. Maybe if they kept explaining it to her, she wouldn’t feel so angry.
Am I angry? Or am I more upset than mad?
Damn it. It would be a lot easier if I didn’t want them so much.
“Don’t try and make it like they’re perverts drugging you.” Miss Kitty’s eyes flamed with bits of amber. “They gave you their scent to attract you just like you dress pretty and wear perfume to attract them.”
“Holy crap. You’re one of them, aren’t you?” She studied Miss Kitty. How had she missed the signs? The amber flecks. The sharp teeth. “You’re a shifter, too, aren’t you?”
“Yes, I am and damn proud of it. And what’s more, you’re lucky because they’ve chosen you to be their mate. If you want, you can become a shifter. Three men and the chance to be a powerful werelioness. What more could any woman want?”
“Not three. You forgot about John Abraham. That makes four.”
Miss Kitty smiled smugly. “So all four of them? See? You’re even luckier.”
“I’m not sure that I am.” She pulled out her phone. “And where’s TJ? Have you seen her? She didn’t answer my last text.”
“Sorry, but I haven’t seen her. Still, I’m sure she’s safe. She’s with the Rogen men, after all.”
“And what are they? Are they werelions, too?”
“We’re talking about you and your men.”
Julia studied Miss Kitty. Which means they are, but she doesn’t want to say.
“Why did you come storming out of the saloon? What’s wrong?”
Julia scoffed. “What’s wrong? Oh, nothing other than the fact that they lied to me and then used their scent to draw me to them.”
“They didn’t lie to you.”
“They sure as hell did. They should’ve told me from the start that they were shifters. That may not be a bald-faced lie, but it’s a lie by omission.”
“And if they’d told you as soon as they’d met you? Would you have stayed around? Or would you have run like crazy?”
She opened her mouth to answer then shut it. What would she have done? Especially if she’d found out early on that they were cat shifters? She’d like to think she would’ve stuck around, eager to get to know real, live shifters. But would she have been ready to do so? Could she have overcome her fear as quickly? Being in the middle of the festival and seeing people costumed as lions and other cats had unnerved her a little, but she’d quickly gotten used to them. And now that she knew some of those costumes weren’t costumes at all, it made staying easier.
It was the way she’d started thinking. Shifters weren’t like the cat that had hurt her brother.
Fantasizing about shifters—especially werewolves—was one thing, but hanging out in a town where shifters lived—even if not overtly out in the open—was different. She’d sensed all along that some of the party-goers were real shifters, but she hadn’t had to confront that belief head-on. At least, not until the men had finally revealed themselves to her.
“They still played me. Using their scent. That’s just not right.”
“Do you love them?”
“What?” Yes. Yet could she really answer that question without a doubt? “I don’t know. How will I ever know if I love them or if it’s that allure thing that’s keeping me with them?”
“You’ll know, all right. The Allure can only do so much. The rest is up to you and the men.”
“But how will I know for certain?” she asked, hope mixing with her anger.
Miss Kitty placed her palm over her heart. “You’ll know it exactly like you’d know it if the men weren’t shifters. You just will.”
“I don’t know.” Her thoughts jumbled together. “Maybe I should get TJ and leave. Put some distance and time between us so I can think straight.” She pulled her phone from her pocket and texted her friend. Why wasn’t TJ texting back?
“No, girl, don’t you dare leave. You have to see them again. Hell, you need to see them again. Once you do, I promise you, you’ll know.” She reached out and put her hand on Julia’s arm. “Listen to me. I’ve been around long enough to know these things. Does it really matter how and why you fell in love? Does the beginning of a relationship matter when the end is so wonderful?”
“Yes, of course it does.”
“But why? What were they supposed to do? Walk up, say hi, and then tell you they’re shifters? Come on. How do you think that would’ve turned out?”
“I don’t know.” She might have run, the fantasy turning into reality being more than she could handle. And if she’d run, where would she be now?
Alone.
Without the men I love.
An empty sensation, yet filled with angst, churned in her stomach.
“You love them. That’s easy enough to see.”
Julia fought the tears back. “I do.”
“Then forget how you got to where you are and get excited about the future. The Allure will only hold a woman for so long. Once it’s gone, it’s the love that keeps her with her men.”
“I don’t know.”
“But I do. I can tell you, as a woman who has loved and lost, all that really matters is that you love them and they love you. And they definitely love you. It’s as clear as a bell that they do. So, girl, trust me on this. You’re never going to find three”—she smiled—“four better men, shifter or human. Don’t blow your chance at happiness because your feelings are hurt. After all is said and done, your head may be all twisted up, but your heart’s got it right. Listen to your heart.”
Julia turned to stare at the tree line, the shadows sliding into darkness. Was Miss Kitty right? A year from then, five years, a lifetime would she care how they came together? She turned back to the older woman. “I left them inside. Should I go back in?” Yet before Miss Kitty could respond, she had her own answer. “No. I have a better idea. Will you still take me where I want to go?”
* * * *
Julia heard the sound of the two pickups. Taking a deep breath and knowing that the next few minutes would decide the rest of her life, she stood up from the rocking chair and strode over to stand at the top of the steps. Part of her worried about TJ, but Miss Kitty had assured her time and again that her friend was safe with the Rogen men. Until TJ decided to return her texts, she’d have to trust Miss Kitty.
Right now, however, she had to find out if her future included four men—or none.
The men were out of the pickups, the Conway brothers in their pickup and John Abraham in his, almost before the trucks had stopped. They strode toward her looking like giants in a world filled with small men.
Damn, but they’re amazing.
She’d never imagined having even one such incredible man love her, much less four of them. Not only were they strong, larger-than-life men, they were good men. She’d won the lottery of love.
Or, at least, she hoped she had.
But if she couldn’t have all of them, she wouldn’t have any of them. If she had to leave Lonesome, if she had to leave the men behind because they couldn’t accept John Abraham as one of the men she loved, then her heart would break apart. What would be the difference if it broke for one man or for four?
She held up a hand, stopping them before they reached the steps. “We need to talk.”
John Abraham stood off from the other men, separate yet there with them. Cuts and bruises covered his face and arms, telling the story of what had happened after she’d left the saloon. She hated that he’d gone through that, but at least, they weren’t fighting now.
“Yeah, we do.” Samuel stuck his hands in his pockets. “Do you want to go first or should we?”
“Let me get out what I want to say first. Once I do, you can decide if there’s anything left for you four to say.” She put a little more emphasis on the word four, giving them a not-so-subtle hint.
“Go right ahead, darlin’.” Myler’s smile was tentative, almost as though he was fearful of hearing her out.
She drew in another breath and hoped her hands would stop trembling. “Okay. Here goes.” Each breath was a little harder to take in as her anxiety tightened her chest.
“Go on, baby,” encouraged Samuel. “We’re all ears.”
“I understand
about The Allure.” She paused. “Well, kind of. But I understand enough to know why you did it and what it means.”
“Then do you forgive us for using it?” asked Tonk.
“Yes. I do. Miss Kitty—” She shook her head. “Never mind about her. Anyway, it’s like this. You’re shifters, and that’s amazing. I can’t begin to understand what it’s like, but I’m not afraid of you. Not as men or as lions.”
Wow. My men are werelions.
“We’d never hurt you. Not ever.” John Abraham glanced at the Conway brothers. “None of us ever would.”
“But here’s the thing.” She was ready to jump in with both feet. “I love you.” Their smiles came, but she hurried on. “I love all of you. Whether that’s The Allure making me love you or not, well, I don’t care. I know that if I wanted to walk away right now, I could. It would hurt like hell, but I could.”
“We sure as hell don’t want you to do that, sugar.” Tonk’s tone was soft. “We’d be lost without you.”
She jutted out her chin, determined to go on. Determined not to let either The Allure or the love in their eyes sway her decision. Although it was really their decision.
“I love you.” She met each of their gazes one by one. “I love each and every one of you, including John Abraham. So here’s the deal. Either we all stay together or I leave.” She let out a breath, thankful that she’d finally said it out loud. “I won’t be anyone’s mate unless I’m everyone’s mate.”
They were silent a little too long for comfort. She remained quiet, too, even though she wanted to shout at them, demanding an answer before her trembling body broke apart.
At last, John Abraham took a few steps toward her. “You’re asking us—” He smiled a rueful smile. “No, you’re telling us that unless we accept each other as your mates, then none of us will have you. Is that right?”
“I think I’ve made myself clear.” She swallowed hard. “So? Have you four made a decision?”