Shifter’s Surrender

by Jennifer Dellerman

  She decided to be blunt. “So how did you get through the mating heat before sleeping with Caleb?”

  Tess choked and spit out what was left in her mouth into a hastily snatched napkin. “Excuse me?”

  “And how long does it last?”

  Tess gaped, her face filling with color. The sight of her sister blushing made Kaylie feel better, and she raised an expectant eyebrow for an answer. That never came.

  After several moments of silence, watching as Tess looked everywhere but Kaylie, Kaylie urged her on. “So?”

  Tess cleared her throat. “I told myself to be ready for your questions but I didn’t think you’d just blurt them out like this.” She sighed. “Though I should have known better.”

  Kaylie frowned. “What do you mean you were going ‘to be ready for my questions’. How could you know what was going on with me before I did?”

  Rolling her eyes, Tess pressed a finger to her nose, and Kaylie let out a little squeak of alarm. “Are you kidding me?” She recrossed her legs and put her arms on the table to lean in low. Hissing, she said, “You can tell when I’m …” unable to finish, Kaylie waved her hand wildly, nearly knocking over her glass of Coke.

  “Unfortunately, yes.” Tess calmly picked up the drink and moved it out of harm’s way.

  Falling back in her seat, Kaylie stared at her sister for a minute. “I have to admit that the scientist in me is fascinated, but the female part of me is mortified.”

  Tess only shrugged. “Welcome to the club. And let me just tell you that my super sniffer isn’t even as strong as the male shifters’. And having a super sensitive nose is not all it’s cracked up to be. I mean why scent? Why not super hearing like Caleb has. But no. I get to smell — ”

  “Got it.” Kaylie held up a hand to halt her sister’s tirade. “Wait. Do you think the men can smell out diseases?” Her brain suddenly shifted gears into the world of scientific possibilities.

  “Uhm. I’m not sure. Maybe?”

  “Fascinating. I need to talk with Caleb about this.”

  “Uh huh. But first we need to talk about you, and Dean, and what you two are going to do about this.”

  Unable to answer, Kaylie turned her head to stare out one of the side windows. As if on cue, Dean appeared from behind a building, heading to Dolen’s Cafe. Her heart picked up speed as she greedily drank in his lean, muscular physique encased in his usual jeans and long-sleeved shirt. She could see that the top two buttons were undone, and the glimpse of bare skin was enough to make her mouth water. His hair was pulled back in its customary tail; the afternoon sun revealed nothing but sleek, gorgeous black strands that dazzled her eyes.

  Out on the walkway Dean paused as a woman came up to him. Inside the cafe, jealousy unfurled in Kaylie as she scowled out the window. Momentarily forgetting about her sister, her lunch, and their conversation, she could only think about how, after dumping her at the hospital, a supposedly attentive and concerned Dean had never come back, never called. Not in any way had he sought Kaylie out to find out how she felt. Was the woman he was now speaking with the reason why? Kaylie could only see the back of her short auburn hair and couldn’t identify her. Though the color was familiar.

  Still scowling, Kaylie tapped agitated fingers against her arm.

  “What’s so fascinating out the window, or are you just thinking?”

  Kaylie jerked her head back to face Tess. “Just thinking.”

  “So?”

  So? So what? What had they been discussing before she’d gotten distracted by Dean and his bimbo? Oh, yes. “I really don’t know what’s going on, especially since I haven’t even heard or seen Dean in the last week.” The coward. “But first off, I’d like to know just how long this … thing … lasts.”

  Tess took a drink of her iced tea. “Honestly, I don’t know for sure. It started about a week after first contact—which sounds like some bizarre alien encounter—and lasted until I had my period.”

  Kaylie twisted her lips. “Well that’s just not going to work for me. I had mine last week and certainly don’t relish feeling like this for another two.”

  Tess’s face appeared more than a little remorseful. “I’m sorry, Kaylie. I just don’t know for sure. Have you talked with any of the other mates in town?”

  “The two female shifters that know me said it lasted less than a week, but they both accepted their mates right away. The others have either left town or are still single. The married ones that don’t know me well are too uncomfortable speaking with me on shifter-related topics.” Kaylie shrugged. “Who can blame them when they’ve been taught from birth to hide their other halves from humans. It’s a difficult concept to get over.”

  “Hmmm.” Tess chewed a tomato thoughtfully. “Maybe Caleb can help with that.” At Kaylie’s bemused look she explained, “I mean speak with the women about talking to you. If he told them to they would.”

  Kaylie was already shaking her head. “An order is not going to make them feel any more comfortable, and they’d end up resenting me for it. No. I need to find another way. And frankly, I need to speak to a human mate.”

  At that thought Kaylie shot her eyes back out the window. Human mate. As she locked on Dean and the female still chatting on the sidewalk, the woman tilted her head back and laughed. That’s when Kaylie recognized her. It was Rachel Hodgins, Jack Hodgin’s—hardware store owner and shifter—wife.

  Kaylie slumped in her seat, feeling like a fool. Then she tensed. Rachel was a human mated to a shifter, a sweet woman who had been quite helpful in the past.

  “You know,” Kaylie said absently, speaking more to herself than to Tess, “I did speak with Rachel Hodgins about a year ago. Her situation with Jack was odd.” She shoved the last bit of hamburger in her mouth and chewed quickly.

  Tess raised a sleek brow. “Odd, how?”

  Kaylie swallowed the food and took a big gulp of her dwindling Coke. “Both Jack and Rachel grew up here, but didn’t get together until she was twenty-two. She told me that she’d been heartbroken at the time, believing she wasn’t Jack’s mate. She’d always adored him and had touched him constantly, but nothing ever sparked, until one day, it did.”

  “Hmm. So maybe the mating heat is an age thing.”

  Lips pressed together in thought, Kaylie mulled that over. “I don’t think so. Well maybe. It’s so frustrating that all shifter documentation was lost in the Pack Wars. Nowadays their history is passed on orally rather than via written material which means a lot of the information is probably skewed.”

  “And you want to change that? You know it’s dangerous to have written data on the shifters.”

  Kaylie rolled her eyes. “Come on, Tess. You know I’m not going to sell it to the tabloids. I’m a doctor, my father and sister are shifters, and you’re going to marry one. I would like to understand shifter relations and want to keep detailed records. Not to be a nosy neighbor but to help those I care about and future generations of shifters from misunderstanding or struggling against their dual natures. Help them live with it and not shove it down into a corner of their soul like my pain-in-the-stubborn-ass sister did.”

  Tess blinked at Kaylie’s impassioned expression. “Well. Guess that put me in my place.”

  Kaylie blew out a hard breathe. “I’m sorry. I just feel like there’s probably a lot of females alone out there, confused and terrified.”

  One perfectly manicured brow rose. “And how do you expect to get that information out there for those who really need it without sending it to the tabloids?”

  After a minute of frantic thinking, Kaylie slumped in her seat. “I have no idea.”

  Instead of answering, Tess tilted her head, looking behind Kaylie’s right shoulder.

  Penny, the afternoon waitress at the cafe, appeared to refill their drinks and ask if the sisters needed anything else. When they declined, Penny plopped down the bill and told them to just leave the money on the table. Evidently the cook, Sean, was having oven problems and needed Penny’
s assistance while Dolen was stuck in his office on the phone, yelling at the repairman.

  Ah, Kaylie grinned. The ease of small town living. After Penny left, Kaylie took a moment to remember what she and Tess had been talking about, and then wondered why she was having so many problems lately focusing. Oh, yes. Shifters and the tabloids.

  “I don’t know what to do. Shifters like sex. A lot. And I’m not saying that’s wrong. I’m just …” Kaylie sighed at the hot look in Tess’s eye. “I’m concerned about the children resulting from a union, whether a one-night stand or a long-term relationship in which the shifter parent died. Those kids need to know that there’s nothing wrong with them. They aren’t cursed or worthless. They need to understand how their bodies, minds, and senses are different. They need to know how to protect themselves, that hormonal birth control doesn’t work for them …” Kaylie’s voice trailed off and she glanced out the window again.

  “What?” Tess asked softly. “You thought of something?”

  “Birth control.”

  “Huh?”

  Eyes sparkling Kaylie explained. “I asked Rachel if she’d changed her diet, medications or anything right before the mating heat triggered between her and Jack. She told me she’d stopped taking the birth control pill because it was making her nauseous the first two days she started a new pack. Since she wasn’t seeing anyone, and never had painful or long periods, she decided she didn’t want the hormones in her body.”

  Kaylie sat quietly as she let Tess mull that over. “So you think the pill somehow prevents the mating heat?”

  Excited by the possibility, Kaylie leaned over the table again, and Tess quickly snatched her drink up to avoid Kaylie’s flailing hand. “Think about it. Female shifters are immune to the pill. We know the pill alters the chemicals in a woman’s body, so it’s possible it alters her scent as well. A shifter might find a woman interesting, maybe even enticing, but the altered chemistry makes mate recognition impossible, even with touch, and thus the mating heat never occurs.”

  Tess leaned over the table as well until their noses where inches apart. “Are you saying,” she hissed, “that there could be mates living in the same city, seeing and even touching each other on a daily or monthly basis and they would never be together because the female is on the pill?”

  “Yes. Well, a theory actually.”

  “But you’re on the pill, Dean touched you last Friday and now you’re in the mating heat. So that theory doesn’t work.”

  Kaylie sat back, her fingers tapping against her arm in consideration. “Actually, I ran out before I moved back and never picked up a new subscription. I was thinking about restarting after my next period …” Her voice trailed off as her gaze drifted once again out the window. Dean and Rachel had ended their conversation and he was even now heading toward the cafe. “But I think I might wait.” Not that she wanted to get pregnant, because hey, condoms were a necessary evil regardless. But damn, if it caused Dean to loosen up around her, maybe even act on their mutual attraction, was that such a bad thing? Besides, it was her body.

  Her racing heart plummeted when she saw Dean pause and then adjust his direction to head to the rear of the cafe.

  As she watched him stride past the window, his gait determined and a little tense—but somehow really hot at the same time—Kaylie’s fingers tapped faster, in frustration now. If shifter senses were really as keen as Tess said, Dean could have easily scented Kaylie. And now the coward was avoiding her by going through the rear entrance.

  Kaylie’s eyes narrowed. His continued avoidance was pissing her off. She knew Dean wanted her, but he didn’t want to want her. Even with the mating heat. But dammit! He wasn’t supposed to be able to resist her! Damned stubborn wolf!

  She wanted to growl in frustration. She wanted to hurt him like he was hurting her. She wanted to know for sure what the hell was going on in that bull-headed brain of his.

  Her eyes narrowed as a plan formed. Maybe not an adult plan, but a plan nonetheless. Dean might be fighting temptation by avoiding the sight of her, but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t hear her. And if she didn’t garner even the tiniest reaction from him, she might just leave it alone.

  Yeah, right.

  Though Kaylie could barely hear the rattle of pots and pans from the kitchen, she imagined just enough time had passed for Dean to get to the door. She needed to get this conversation rolling in the right direction before she missed him.

  Kaylie peered around the room, waving goodbye to three patrons exiting the cafe. Now the cafe was empty, save Kaylie and Tess. Perfect.

  Kaylie lowered her voice, aiming for a husky, yet audible tone. “So. Since we don’t know for sure how long the mating heat lasts, let me ask you something else. Was the sex better because you craved it all the time? Or is sex with a shifter the way to go?”

  Thankfully, Tess had finished her salad and had nothing to choke on. “What?” She squeaked out.

  “And the orgasms? I mean mine have been out of this world the last couple of days.”

  Slack-jawed, Tess only stared at Kaylie who continued on as if she was chatting about the weather. “Seriously. I’m curious as if my substitute pales in comparison.”

  Suddenly out of the kitchen came a roar that was followed by a harsh and loud thunk as something hard met something immovable. Tess jumped up just as Dolen was heard to bellow out, “What the hell is going on?”

  Unable to hold back a smirk of female satisfaction, Kaylie grabbed Tess’s arm before her sister could run to the rescue. “Relax, Tess. It’s nothing for you to worry about.”

  “Dammit, Kinigos, what the hell burrowed up your ass?” Dolen’s voice faded and a door slammed shut.

  Tess turned accusing eyes to Kaylie. “Did you know Dean was back there?” At Kaylie’s too innocent look, Tess shook her head. “You have no idea what you’re playing with.”

  Kaylie quirked a brow. “Fire?”

  Settled back in her seat, Tess glared at her sister. “More like you just pulled the pin out of a live grenade. Dean is already one shifter teetering on the edge of sanity, and heaven only knows how much more he can take before falling into that abyss. You messing with his emotions like this will only push him faster.”

  “Well if I don’t push, I’ll be dead before he starts anything between us. I know he’s interested but he’s extremely resistant.”

  Sighing, Tess bowed her head. “Maybe there’s a reason for that.”

  Kaylie narrowed her eyes. “What do you mean?”

  “Maybe,” Tess’s voice was so low that Kaylie had to lean over the table again. “Just maybe, he doesn’t feel worthy of you.”

  “What male really is?” Kaylie tried to joke, but her pulse hammered at what her sister was trying to say.

  Tess tilted her head up, and glared. “Dammit, Kaylie, I’m being serious. Dean’s got a past, a past that’s made him hard. When I first met him I thought ‘this man is a killer’ and I didn’t want my baby sister anywhere near him. But over the months, working with him at the lumber company and seeing him with his pack and as the town mayor, I’ve come to understand that his hardness is a shell. A very thick shell to be sure, but I’m betting that it’s there to protect him from being hurt, or from accidentally hurting others. He’s tough and unforgiving when he needs to be, and he’s taken on some seriously dangerous responsibilities that I would never desire. He really does give a damn for this town, and we all need him. But between the haunts from his past and the current pressure he’s under from his pack, this town, and now you, he’s on the edge. Please don’t push him over.”

  Well, that was unexpected. Properly put down, and feeling an eensy bit sorry for her childish behavior—but only a little damn, darn, it—Kaylie kicked at the table leg. “I don’t want to push him over. I just want him.”

  Tess reached across the table and took Kaylie’s hand in her own. “I know. But you need to take it slow and careful. Which,” she added before Kaylie could speak up, “I know goes against
your very nature. But in the end, maybe you can bring him back from the brink, and maybe,” now Tess’ eyes twinkled, “just maybe, he can tame you.”

  “I don’t need to be tamed,” Kaylie grumbled.

  Tess gave a very unladylike snort, turning the seriousness of the conversation into a more comfortable sibling badgering. “Please. You’re brash, impulsive, a daredevil, and you take way to many chances.” She squeezed Kaylie’s hand when she tried to tug it away. “But never think I’m not proud of you. You’re so smart and caring and brave. But it’s the impulsiveness and risks you take that worry me, and Mom.”

  “Oh, don’t even pull the mom card.” Kaylie glared at her sister.

  “I’ll do what any big sister needs to to make sure you stay alive.”

  Kaylie managed to get her hand away and dug through her purse. “I need to get back to work.” She glanced up and noted Tess’s eyes lingering on the menu board above the cafe’s counter. “You’re not seriously still hungry, are you?”

  A flush crept up her sister’s face and she bit her lip.

  “What?” Kaylie asked. “What’s wrong?”

  Tess looked around the empty dining room. “I … Don’t say anything to anyone, but I … I think I might be pregnant.”

  Kaylie’s jaw dropped. “Seriously? That’s fantastic! And really quick. Holy cow. If so, you’ll need to move up the wedding. Have you taken a pregnancy test? Are you ill in the morning?”

  Tess blinked at the rapid questioning. “You are such a freak. No, I haven’t taken a pregnancy test because I don’t know if they will work on shifters and no, I haven’t had any morning sickness.”

  Kaylie set out money and a fat tip for her half of the bill. “You’re right. A human urine test may not work, but a blood test will.” She paused in putting her wallet away, noting belatedly the deliberate silence from Tess. “You should see Dr. Chavez. Jacklyn? She works mainly with the shifter populace, and any lab work is done in-house.”

  Tess glanced briefly away before returning her eyes to Kaylie’s with a hint of desperation. “I don’t really know her.”