Chosen Mate (Catamount Lion Shifters #2)

by J. H. Croix

  She’d tried to call Jake before they left, but all she’d gotten was his voice mail. She worried he’d misunderstand why she chose to go with Shana. Phoebe shook her thoughts away and strode to the counter. A few minutes later, she tucked the keys to the rental car in her pocket and turned to find Shana leaning against the wall nearby, talking furiously into her phone. When she approached, Shana swore and ended the call.

  “Let me guess, Dane’s pissed off?”

  Shana nodded and began walking. Phoebe followed her, wheeling her suitcase behind her. “So, what did he say?”

  “He and Jake are on their way tomorrow,” Shana said tightly. “He doesn’t get how stupid that is. If the shifters we believe are out here are, in fact, here, there’s no way they don’t know who Dane and Jake are. Their faces were all over the local news after Chloe’s kidnapping. I tried to tell him we’d be careful, but he won’t hear it.”

  They walked the remainder of the way to the rental car in silence. Once Phoebe was driving out of the parking lot, Shana spoke again. “Oh, and Dane said to tell you to call Jake. In fact, he said to tell you he knows what’s going on with you two, so you’d better understand why Jake is upset. Mind filling me in on what’s going on with Jake?”

  Phoebe sighed. She hadn’t been trying to hide anything from Shana, but she hadn’t had a chance to talk to her either. Every time she thought about it, she hesitated for fear it would hurt Shana because she couldn’t imagine Shana watching someone else start a new relationship while sifting through the ashes of her husband’s death and the knowledge of his betrayal. The additional complication involved Phoebe’s own mixed feelings. She’d loved Jake for years, but she was finding it confusing and confounding to accept the reality that they might have a chance. She couldn’t quite trust it.

  Phoebe came to a stoplight and glanced at Shana. Shana met her eyes, steady and concerned.

  “Jake and I, uh, I guess we’re kind of in a relationship,” Phoebe blurted out.

  Shana’s eyes widened slightly and then the corner of her mouth tipped up. “You two have been circling each other for years. How long has this been going on?”

  “Not long at all. With everything going on, I guess it just…happened.” Phoebe looked away to check on the light. She drove through the intersection, her heart pounding wildly in her chest. Saying aloud what was happening between her and Jake somehow made it feel more real. She took a shaky breath, trying to gather her wits. “I wasn’t trying to hide anything from you. So much has been going on…”

  Shana interjected. “I’m guessing you’ve got yourself all worked up about it and didn’t know if I could handle hearing two of my best friends finally did something about how they felt. My heart breaks every time I think about Callen dying and the fact that he wasn’t who I thought he was. But I would never begrudge you finding your own happiness. You never said a word about it, but it was obvious to me you’ve loved him for years. What does Jake have to say about all of it?”

  Phoebe turned into the parking lot at the hotel once she saw the sign. She waited until she found a parking spot before turning the car off and looking at Shana. “Jake said he’s wanted me for years. He said he wants us to have a chance.” She paused, her throat tight with tears. She couldn’t sort out why, but somehow experiencing intimacy with Jake had twisted her to knots inside. Because if it didn’t work out for them, she had no idea how her heart could handle it. “When we’re together, it’s amazing. You’re right that I’ve loved him for years. But I never talked about it because he swore for years and years that he’d never be with any woman who wasn’t a shifter. And now, I’m scared because I don’t know if I can take it if things don’t work out for us. What if he changes his mind? What if it is best for him to be with a shifter? I don’t know what I’ll do.”

  Shana’s mouth twisted in a rueful smile. “I may not be the best one to give advice since I hardly trust anyone after what Callen did, but I’ll try. The list of people I trust is super short, but you’re on it and so is Jake. Jake isn’t much of a talker. If he says he wants a chance, he wants a chance. Dane told me years ago that he thought Jake had a thing for you, but he was too stupid to do anything about it. I can see why you might get hung up on the shifter thing because he was so weird about it after what happened with Naomi. I’m not going to be ridiculous and pretend like you should just believe it will be amazing, but I know you shouldn’t try to shut it down because you’re scared. If two people ever should be together, it’s you and Jake.” Shana’s words were strong and confident, an antidote to Phoebe’s swirling confusion and self-doubt.

  Phoebe took a deep breath and met Shana’s eyes. “Have I mentioned you’re the best friend ever?”

  Shana rolled her eyes. “Not always, but I try. As far as friends go, you deserve an award. You’ve been a rock for me since Callen died and reality as I knew it was turned upside down.”

  Phoebe felt tears press behind her eyes. Another deep breath, and she thought she could keep it together. Between her raw feelings for Jake and the weeks of topsy-turvy news that had been so devastating for Shana and Catamount, she needed to pull herself together. They had to sort out their next steps while they waited for Dane and Jake to arrive. “Well, that’s what friends are for. What now?”

  Shana glanced around the parking lot. “Forgot to mention that Dane told me he arranged for two guards to follow us. Some friend who works in private security lives here.”

  Phoebe groaned. “Seriously? Dane and Jake are going all out with the alpha mode bullshit. I get they’re worried with everything’s that’s happened, but it’s damn annoying that they want to keep tabs on us.” As soon as she spoke, she realized she’d essentially done the same to Shana by accompanying her out here. She couldn’t quite put her finger on why, but somehow Jake’s overprotectiveness was annoying her more than she’d have guessed under the circumstances. She could only assume her feelings were gnarled with the uncertainty she felt about what was happening between them.

  Shana shrugged. “I’ll admit I think we can handle ourselves, but I’ll take some backup. We’re not exactly on our home turf here.”

  ***

  Jake tossed his suitcase in the trunk with Dane’s thudding beside his seconds later. He started the car and cranked the heat before stepping back out to help Dane brush the snow off the car. It was December in Montana, and it had snowed the night before with roughly six inches of snow coating the cars in the airport parking lot. They climbed back into the car, doors slamming simultaneously.

  Jake leaned his head back and sighed. “Please tell me Shana told you where they’re staying,” he said, rolling his head to the side to glance at Dane.

  Dane chuckled and nodded. “Yup. They booked a room at a place just down the highway from here.”

  “Okay, tell me where to go.”

  Moments later, they were driving down the highway. Jake took in the view as he drove along. Bozeman was situated in the Gallatin Valley, a beautiful valley with views of six stunning mountain ranges. Snow capped the mountain ranges and hillsides. With winter solstice still ahead, winter had a few weeks before its official appearance, but for all intents and purposes, it was winter in Bozeman. The mountains out West felt different than those in the East. In Maine, it felt as if one was part of the nooks and crannies of the mountains. Here, the mountains held themselves at more of a distance, their greater size dominating the landscape. The breadth and spread of the view was immense.

  Jake could see why wild mountain lions flourished out here. The logistical realities of more space had afforded them more capacity to elude the press of human expansion that had decimated eastern mountain lions before they evolved the ability to shift. The mere thought of what it would feel like to run wild and free here in lion form rippled under his skin. He had to fight the urge to shift. Shifters hadn’t kept themselves safe for centuries by shifting in plain sight.

  He glanced at Dane. “Any word from Shana?”

  Da
ne shook his head, lines bracketing his mouth. “Aside from her call earlier, no. She worries me. Ever since she got it in her head that she needed to help with the investigation, she’s been brushing me off. She’s so devastated about what Callen did, it’s like she’s trying to make amends for him by somehow fixing this. I know she knows it intellectually, but she’s not grasping how far this could go. If only we were dealing with one or two people, or shifters, but my gut tells me we’re dealing with far more than that.”

  Jake had been battling his fear and frustration with Phoebe ever since he’d learned she’d left with Shana yesterday. Unlike Shana, he didn’t think she was being buffeted by grief and the array of emotions connected to Callen’s betrayal of Catamount shifters and everyone close to him. He understood why she hadn’t wanted Shana to go alone, but he somehow wished she’d waited to talk to him first. He didn’t want to be angry with her, but he was. Behind that anger laid intense fear. Before he’d finally given into his feelings for her, he would have been worried and scared if she’d taken off like this. He’d have been doing precisely as he was now and chasing after her. Yet, now that he’d experienced the intimacy he’d craved for years with her, he was near out of his mind with worry and fear.

  “Jake, you listening?”

  He glanced to Dane and back at the highway unrolling in front of him. “Huh?”

  Dane shook his head. “You drove past the exit for the hotel. Might want to turn around.”

  Jake swore and quickly took the next exit and headed back from where they came.

  Dane was quiet until they were back on the highway. “I’m guessing you’ve got Phoebe on the brain. Has she called yet?”

  “She left a message. When I tried to call back, it went straight to voice mail.”

  “Whatever’s going on between you two, you’re gonna have to play with a level head here.”

  Jake slanted his eyes to Dane. “No worries about that.”

  “Maybe you could convince me if you didn’t look so pissed off.”

  “I’m not pissed off. I’m worried. Big difference.”

  “Whatever. Keep a lid on it,” Dane said bluntly.

  Following Dane’s gesture, Jake exited and swiftly turned into the hotel parking lot Dane pointed out. He parked and turned to Dane. “You don’t need to worry. Just like you kept it together with what happened to Chloe, I’ll keep it together here. I’m not gonna relax until they’re back on a plane to Maine though.”

  Dane nodded. “You and me both.” He paused and glanced around. “I don’t see their rental car. Let me call Jon.”

  Jon Cross was one of Dane’s old college friends. Jake knew him in passing, but Dane had gotten to know him when they worked together at a landscaping company. Jon worked in private security and had agreed to monitor Shana and Phoebe. Dane tucked the phone against his shoulder while he spoke to Jon.

  “Where? Have you talked to them?” Dane asked, pausing and nodding along to whatever Jon was saying. “What? You’re fucking kidding me. We’re on our way.”

  Dane tossed his phone on the dashboard. “Go. They followed Shana and Phoebe to some place for lunch downtown. Shana knew I asked Jon to monitor them, I can’t fucking believe she lost them!”

  “What? What the hell do you mean?!”

  “Just what I said. They went to lunch, went to the restroom, which was out of sight, and that’s the last he saw of them. I don’t have time to tear him apart like I want, but we’re going to find them.”

  Jake’s heart clenched, fear and anger clashing inside. He tore out of the parking lot and back onto the highway. His anger was shoved out of the way with pounding fear. He couldn’t stand the thought of Phoebe putting herself in danger like this. He didn’t know if she and Shana had purposefully tried to dodge the protection Dane arranged, or if something else had happened. With what he’d pieced together from Callen’s online communications, he had multiple contacts in this area. They were interested enough in Catamount shifters to solicit allies within the community and send two shifters their way. Whatever that meant, it didn’t bode well for Phoebe’s safety. He knew she was bright and savvy—the opposite of a pushover, but she wasn’t a shifter. Unlike Shana, if she was physically threatened, she didn’t have the ability to shift and attack.

  He could hardly bear to consider the thought she could be hurt, but the reality of it loomed much closer than he wanted. His cat strained to get out, but he had to drive and they had to lay low. He tightened the reins on his control and drove as fast as he could.

  Chapter 9

  “Shana,” Phoebe whispered fiercely.

  “Hang on, I’m trying to see where they are.”

  Phoebe sighed and leaned against the cabin. They were in the foothills of the mountains outside of Bozeman. Shana was convinced she’d seen Paul, the patient they’d thought to be a shifter at the hospital. She’d started to argue with Phoebe when Phoebe had pointed out they should wait for Jake and Dane. After waiting far too long for Shana to return from the bathroom at lunch, Phoebe found her sneaking out the back of the restaurant. Resigned, Phoebe had gone with her and followed Paul out here. They’d stationed themselves at what appeared to be a hunting cabin on the outskirts of the forest and were watching a cluster of people in a small valley nearby.

  Phoebe wondered where Jake and Dane were and how pissed off they were at this point. A part of her knew she needed to be the voice of reason with Shana, while another part of her figured they should act on whatever they found. She was savvy enough to take care of herself out here and would retreat if needed. Her main concern was Shana. She was quickly coming to realize she hadn’t grasped the depth of Shana’s drive to handle this. Shana wasn’t being reasonable, and Phoebe feared she’d shift and bolt. If that happened, Phoebe wouldn’t be able to stop her.

  Shana suddenly came back around the corner of the cabin, immediately coming to Phoebe’s side and resting against the cabin wall. She handed over the binoculars she’d been using. “Well, they’re definitely shifters.”

  “They are?”

  Shana nodded. “Just watched two of the men, Paul included, shift. I don’t think all of them are though. It’s hard to tell this far away, but they don’t all have the look.”

  Phoebe nodded. Tension was knotted so tight in her gut, she didn’t know what to do. Between worrying about Shana and aware that they were far from home in a potentially risky situation, her anxiety ran high. “Shana, I think we need to get back to the hotel and call Dane and Jake.”

  Shana glanced at her and then away. “I know. I just wanted to see if we could figure out where Paul was going, and we did. I’m not stupid enough to take them on myself. Let’s go.”

  Phoebe was so relieved, she hugged Shana quickly. When she pulled away, she saw the lingering sadness in Shana’s eyes, but her eyes had lost the touch of recklessness she’d seen earlier. “Come on. Let’s go.” Looping her arm through Shana’s, they walked quickly back to the rental car parked at the gravel lot near the trailhead that led to the cabin they’d found.

  As they drove back to the hotel, Phoebe considered what she’d say to Jake when she saw him. By the time they arrived, she’d come to no conclusions. Shana had called Dane on the way, and he and Jake were waiting in the parking lot when they pulled in.

  When she climbed out of the car and saw Jake lounging against the car, she couldn’t stop herself from running to him. Even though his gaze could have burned a hole through her, he looked so angry, his arms reflexively went around her when she raced up and threw her arms around him. She tucked her head against his shoulder and held on. She was confused, scared and tired, but being in his arms was like coming home. She knew she had to sort out how she was going to handle whatever this was, but for now, she just needed to know he was here.

  His strong arms held her until she finally lifted her head. When she met his eyes, he slowly let her slide down his body. His mouth kicked up at the corner in a rueful grin. “I was plenty pissed off and scared, b
ut I get why you came with Shana.”

  She nodded. “I tried to call you…”

  Dane cleared his throat. “Sorry to interrupt, but it’s fucking freezing out here. Let’s get inside. You two lovebirds might not notice, but the rest of us do,” he said wryly.

  Phoebe glanced over at Dane and then met Shana’s eyes, a blush racing up her neck and face. “Right. Let’s get inside.”

  Shana rolled her eyes and started walking toward the hotel lobby. As she did, she glanced over her shoulder at Jake. “I told Phoebe it’s about damn time.”

  Jake chuckled and hooked his arm around Phoebe’s waist, walking in stride with her.

  ***

  Hours later, they’d filled Jake and Dane in on their afternoon escapade and were sitting at the small round table in their hotel suite looking at a map of the area. They’d had to put up with a lecture from Dane and Jake, but all in all, they’d kept it civil thus far. Phoebe sensed Jake had quite a bit more to share about how he felt about her taking off like that, but he was holding back for now.

  Dane penciled in the area where Shana had seen the shifters and had Jake pull up his data from the various ISP addresses he’d identified. Phoebe was wired and tired at the same time. She sat beside Jake, her legs in his lap. He absently stroked one leg with his palm, the heat of it sifting through her leggings like a drug. She’d thought she’d be more self-conscious being like this with him in front of their friends, but strangely she wasn’t. She figured she might find it more difficult in Catamount where the change in their relationship would be obvious to all. Somehow, here in another place so removed from home, she found it easier to relax and accept the way they were.