A Twitch of Tail (Wiccan-Were-Bear)

by Butler, R. E.

  The old man winked. “It’s been my experience that women love men who cook for them, and as long as it’s edible, they really don’t care what it is.”

  Melo laughed and thanked the man, walking away from the meat department to visit the deli and produce departments. Half an hour later, he unloaded the groceries and took a shower. By the time Tera was due home, the steaks were keeping warm in the oven, and the table for two was set with candles and flowers.

  The front door opened and Tera called, “I’m home.”

  Melo walked to greet her, hugging and kissing her, enjoying the sweet, natural scent of her skin.

  “It’s just you and me for a while, sweetheart. Tahl’s meeting with Midas about the ambush.”

  “Oh?” She smiled and her eyes crinkled, the lavender color darkening slightly. It took him a moment to remember that he was planning to show her that their lives didn’t have to be just sex all the time, even though at the moment he thought it was a pretty damn good idea.

  Kissing the tip of her nose, he released her from the hug and took her hand, leading her towards the kitchen. When they were halfway through the front room, the doorbell rang. Tera looked up at him. “Expecting company?”

  “No,” he said, letting her hand drop and walking to the door. He swung the door open, assuming it would be someone from his ambush. To his surprise, four women he didn’t recognize stood on the front porch.

  “Yes?” Melo asked.

  The woman in front, who looked to be in her early thirties, said, “We are here to see Wysteria.”

  Tera moved to Melo’s side with an audible gasp. “Mother?”

  After a long moment, Tera’s mother sniffed. “Isn’t it customary to invite guests inside?”

  “Oh, I’m sorry,” Tera rushed, her voice high and nearly panicked sounding, “come in please.”

  Melo eased away from the door with Tera while the four women walked into the house. They were dressed the same: black high-necked, floor length dresses, black shoes, and black cloaks. As Melo shut the door, Tera led the women into the front room and encouraged them to sit. The three women perched on the edge of the couch, and Tera’s mother looked in disdain at the recliner before sitting stiffly.

  Melo pulled a chair from the kitchen table for Tera. She seemed frozen, so he guided her gently to the chair and stood behind her, one hand on her shoulder for support.

  Silence hung heavy in the air for a few moments before Tera’s voice squeaked out, “I’m surprised to see you, Mother.”

  “Are you?” Her mother raised a brow. “You left me a message on Tuesday that you were pregnant and joining to two were-animals in a ceremony this weekend. Did you think that would go unanswered?”

  Tera stumbled over her answer. “I-I-I’m not sure what I thought, Mother. When I left the coven, you said you weren’t interested in the choices I made with the rest of my life. I called, uh, as a courtesy.”

  “A courtesy? Such as offering your guests some tea?”

  Tera stood up so quickly the chair tipped back, hitting Melo’s body. “I’m sorry! Sorry!” She darted away into the kitchen, and Melo ground his teeth together and followed.

  Tera was slamming cabinets and muttering to herself in a panicked whisper when Melo grabbed her shoulders and spun her around. She was trembling, her eyes filled with tears.

  “Love, calm down.” He kept his voice low and held her against him. Her skin was cold, and she looked pale.

  “I don’t know what she’s doing here. I’m not ready for this. I’m not. I’m not.” She started to shake her head, and Melo pressed it gently to his chest and cradled her close. A sob escaped her throat, and her body shook.

  “Baby, you don’t have to impress her.” He tipped her chin up, forcing her to look into his eyes. “You’re gorgeous, powerful, and mated to two extremely lucky cats. She should be so lucky to be part of your life. You’re amazing.”

  She swallowed audibly, tears slipping over her cheeks.

  He growled. “I’ve got this, sweetheart. Trust me.”

  He kept one arm firmly around her and walked back into the front room. Leading Tera to the chair, he pressed gently on her shoulders until she sat down, and then he stood next to her. “My name is Melo Thorne. Tera is the shared mate of myself and my brother, Tahlon. We are both were-tigers. If you’ve come to wish us well, then you are welcome to stay. We’ll order pizza and beer and hang out.”

  The faces that the four women made would have been comical if the situation wasn’t so serious.

  “How dare you talk to us like that,” her mother hissed. “You’re nothing but an animal.”

  Melo laughed. “I’m the animal? If your intention was to come and upset my mate, then you’ve succeeded. All that you’ve done is proven what a lousy mother you are. I thought my mom was bad, but lady, you’ve got her beat in spades.”

  Her mother looked at Melo with daggers in her eyes and then turned a saccharine sweet smile to Tera. “I came to tell you, Wysteria, that if you’re willing to put this silliness behind you, the coven is willing to allow you to join with us once more.”

  Melo snarled at the term silliness, and her mother made a face but continued, “And when a position opens up, you will become the new West Corner.”

  Tera gasped. “Mother?”

  A look of triumph flitted over her mother’s face. “Of course, my dear. We’re family. You belong with your family.”

  “But my coven? My job? My mates?” Tera asked.

  Her mother hummed in her throat. “As if you would turn down an opportunity to become Corner. It’s what you’ve been striving for your whole life.”

  She shook her head. “No, it’s what you wanted for me. I don’t care whether I ever become Corner, as long as the members of the coven are caring and treat me kindly.”

  Her mother sniffed. “What did you get in exchange for all that you gave up? A coven filled with powerless humans, working at a monster hospital for pennies, and,” she glanced at Melo with derision, “two beasts rutting on you as if you were an animal yourself?”

  “Now hold on a damn minute,” Tera said, standing to her feet. Her voice was low and even. “My coven is the most powerful in the Midwest. The hospital is filled with amazing people. And my mates aren’t animals. The only animals in the room I see now are the rats in front of me.”

  Her mother rose to her feet with a shriek. “You ungrateful brat!”

  Melo’s blood chilled as her mother’s eyes flashed iridescent purple, and she raised her hands in the air.

  Tera yelled, “Mother, no!”

  Melo didn’t know what was happening, but Tera’s fear was so strong that he could feel it beating against him like a strong wind. He didn’t think; he simply gave into his tiger’s desire to protect her and shifted into his form. His clothes tore from his body as his beast was set free. Knocking her mother to the ground with a roar, he pinned her to the carpet with his mouth around her throat, his fangs digging into the flesh of her neck but not breaking through the skin.

  “Get this beast off me!” her mother gasped harshly, the scent of her terror filling Melo’s nose.

  Tera came to stand next to Melo and stroked her hand down his back. “I didn’t invite you here, and I don’t ever want to see you or your cronies again. My mates are my family now, so hop on your broom and go back to Massachusetts. And if you ever think of interfering in my life again, just know that there’s a whole town of were-tigers here who would love to go hunting racist, were-hating Wiccans who overstep their bounds.”

  Melo echoed her threat with a growl, and her mother sobbed in fear. After waiting another a moment longer, he released his hold, and she scrambled away, clutching her neck as she met her friends at the door. “I disown you, Wysteria. You are no longer my daughter.” She stepped out onto the porch with her friends, and Tera strode to the door with purposeful steps.

  “Couldn’t care less. Have a nice life. Or don’t.” She slammed the door in their surprised faces and turned arou
nd, leaning against it.

  She exhaled loudly as she sank to the floor, and Melo padded over to her, nuzzling her neck. She wrapped her arms around him and rested her forehead against his shoulder. “Thank you for being here with me, Melo. I don’t know what I would have done without you.”

  He purred in his throat, sitting on his haunches and letting her lean against him. She held onto him for several minutes, stroking his fur, until she was ready to stand. He followed her into the kitchen. She looked at the table and smiled. “You did this for us? It’s so sweet.”

  Dinner was ruined now, thanks to her meddling mother. Melo could see that the candles were burned out, and the food was most likely cold. The steaks in the warm oven had probably turned from rare to well-done. Tera scratched him behind the ear and walked into the front room, returning a moment later with the afghan from the back of the couch. She spread it out on the floor next to the table and moved the dishes from the table to the floor. Opening the oven door, she used a potholder and pulled out the tray with steaks and set it on the counter. Touching one with her fingertip she said, “They’re pretty well done. Do you still want one?”

  He opened his mouth and yowled softly as he stretched out on the floor in front of the empty plate.

  “I’ll take that as a yes,” she chuckled, using tongs to lift one steak from the tray and place it on the plate in front of him. She set a second steak on her own plate and then hummed as she looked over the meal he had prepared for her: steak, deli-made au gratin potatoes, and a tossed salad with sliced cucumbers and cherry tomatoes. She fixed her plate, drenching the salad with ranch dressing, and then lifted the glass of apple juice and took a drink. After taking a bite of everything, she licked her lips and smiled. “Yummy. Thank you so much, Mel. It’s delicious.”

  He purred at her, glad she enjoyed what he had made, and turned his attention to his own meal. Although overcooked, the steak still tasted good, and he listened as Tera talked about her time at work and the upcoming mating ceremony.

  She put the dishes in the sink and left the potatoes and salad out for Tahlon, wrapping his steak in plastic to keep it from drying out further. Melo followed her into the front room. She stopped in front of the couch and patted the cushion. He climbed up, careful to sheath his claws so he didn’t tear the leather, and she surprised him by lying on top of him, her cheek against his shoulder and her body stretched out over his.

  Reaching for the remote, she turned on the TV and said, “Did I tell you I love you today?”

  He purred.

  “Good. Because I do. There’s no amount of power in the world that I would take over being mated to you and Tahlon. You’re my family now.”

  He wished that he could say something in response, but he knew that she understood the feeling was mutual.

  She flipped channels until she found a police drama, and they stayed cuddled on the couch until Tahlon came in the door.

  Tahlon looked down at them with an amused smile. “I have a feeling there’s an interesting story behind this.”

  Tera laughed and hugged herself closer to Melo. “There is. Dinner’s in the kitchen. Come join us.”

  Tahlon came back into the front room after a few minutes and sat in the recliner, balancing the plate on his lap. Tera sat up slightly and recapped the evening’s events.

  Tahlon said, “Did you tell her where you lived now?”

  “No. I’m sure she just used a location spell to find me. It’s a simple spell to cast for someone as powerful as my mother, and we’re related, so it makes it that much easier.”

  “Who were the three women?”

  “Members of the coven and my mom’s closest friends.”

  “I’m sorry, kitta. But I’m glad Mel was here for you. Was she going to cast a spell or something?”

  Tera sighed. “I’m not really sure, but her eyes changed color, and that’s usually a sign of increased power in Wiccans. Whatever she was going to do, it would have been bad. She was pissed that I wasn’t going to come back and join the coven. I’m not sure what made her come to see me now, and it doesn’t really matter. There isn’t anything in Massachusetts for me any longer.”

  “Are you safe?” Tahlon asked, and it was a question that Melo had wanted to know the answer to as well.

  “I believe so. But just to be sure, I’ll ask Lorene and the Corners to come over tomorrow and cast a protection spell on all of us, okay?”

  Tahlon nodded and Melo agreed. “Our kitta’s happy, then?” Tahlon asked as he put his empty plate down on the coffee table.

  “Very,” she said.

  By the time Melo was able to shift back into his human form, Tera had fallen asleep. Tahlon picked her up and carried her into the bedroom. Melo shifted and stretched. He had enjoyed Tera feeling comfortable enough with him in his shifted form to fall asleep on top of him. He felt closer to her now and was thankful he had been there for her.

  Tossing his shredded clothes, he cleaned up the dinner dishes and joined his brother and their mate in bed. Tahlon had stripped Tera and tucked her in, lying on his back with her head on his shoulder. Melo stretched out next to Tera and put his hand on her waist, closing his eyes. Tomorrow they would join together officially, but it was just a ceremony. She was already their mate and they were hers. Nothing on earth would destroy what they had between them, and he would spend the rest of his life keeping her safe and happy, because she was everything to him.

  Chapter 10

  Mari knocked on the front door at three Saturday afternoon, along with four other tigresses. Melo and Tahlon had come home from work early and taken her to lunch and then disappeared to get ready for the party.

  “Hi Mari!” Tera held open the front door as Mari and the other tigresses came inside.

  “Hi Tera. You remember Kaya, and this is Gina, Lacey, and Paige.”

  Tera greeted the tigresses as she shut the front door.

  Mari said, “First things first, let’s go to your bedroom and get set up.”

  Tera led them back to the guest bedroom. Tahlon and Melo had told her that the master bedroom was off-limits until they returned from the ceremony. They’d done something inside the room, but she didn’t have a clue what it was. They’d locked the door and taken the little key with them.

  The two spare bedrooms in the home shared a bathroom between them, and Tera walked into the one with a bed and sat down. The other room held weight lifting equipment.

  “Did you shower and wash your hair today?” Mari asked as she and the tigresses put down the things they’d been carrying on the bed.

  “Yeah,” Tera said with a laugh. “Do I smell bad?”

  Mari chuckled, shaking her head. “Not at all. Part of preparing you for the ceremony involves you bathing in oil made from pressed flowers. It’s hell on hair, so if you hadn’t showered yet, I would have recommended you do that first and wash your hair with your own shampoo.”

  “Okay.” Tera followed Mari into the bathroom and turned on the tub, closing the drain when the water was warm enough so that it began to fill.

  Mari held a glass vial that was filled with orange-tinted liquid. She pulled the cork stopper from it and held it under Tera’s nose for a moment so she could smell it.

  “Oh, that’s nice. What kind of flowers?”

  She turned the vial over into the tub and said, “It’s said that were-tigers originated in Indonesia. So when tigers join together, they want their mates to smell of their homeland. This is oil made from the Moon Orchid.”

  Mari urged Tera to take a long soak in the tub while she and the other women prepared her dress and accessories for her. When the bathroom door shut, Tera stripped and tested the water with her toe, finding it comfortably warm. Turning off the faucet, she stepped into the tub and settled down. The small bathroom filled with steam and the delicious scent of orchids. Pulling a washcloth from the rung, she wet it thoroughly and began to press it against her face and neck, making sure the oil-scented water covered her body. When she was d
one, she placed the cloth on the back of the tub and lay against it so the cool tile didn’t chill her skin.

  Just as she felt herself begin to doze off, Mari opened the door and said, “Tera, we’re ready for you.”

  “Thanks, Mari.” Tera pulled the plug and stood up, reaching for the towel folded on the toilet seat and patting her body dry. As she wrapped the towel around her body, she moved into the bedroom.

  The women stood by the bed. A pale lavender gown had been laid on the surface.

  Mari helped her step into the satin dress, which gathered at the shoulders and fell to her feet. Kaya climbed up onto the bed and patted the space in front of her at the end. Tera sat down, and Kaya began to brush her hair, pinning it up into a simple twist. Paige knelt down with a pair of white sandals, slipping them onto Tera’s feet and buckling them.

  Lacey attached two golden cuffs to Tera’s upper arms. They were etched with symbols Tera didn’t recognize. Lacey explained, “These are passed down to the females in this ambush from the last mated female to the next. I was mated last, just a few weeks ago, in fact, and it’s my honor to give them to you. You’ll give these cuffs to the next female to mate in the ambush. They’re inscribed with symbols that wish you a long and happy life with your mates.”

  Gina handed Tera a bouquet of orchids tied with white ribbon. “The color of the orchids represents our hope for your mating. Blue for peace. White for honesty. Pink for happiness. And purple for passion.”

  Mari snorted good-naturedly. “With two mates, passion will always be in supply in this home.”

  Gina fanned herself in exaggeration. “You’ll melt from the inside out, Tera.”

  Tera blushed and laughed. She stood and went to the full-length mirror that hung on the inside of the bathroom door.

  The gown clung to her curves. Her skin glowed, and even the cub collar looked rosier, like a nature-made necklace to celebrate their new life. She placed a hand across her stomach where her cub lay safe. “I’m going to go marry your daddies, sweetie,” she whispered.

  The women called for her. She looked in the mirror once more, brushed away a happy tear, and joined her new friends.