The Tigers Shared Mate

by Bonnie Burrows

  Lydia was whisked away to change for the last time while the attendants set up an impossible amount of tables in the field and brought serving trays of covered food to each table. A large table was set on the stage for the bride and grooms and special guests, with all the chairs on one side so that they would face their guests.

  Lydia watched from her balcony, her sleek evening dress clinging to her every curve and making her feel powerful. The fabric was primarily black, but changed color depending on the angle of the light. The colors spanned all the possibilities of the rainbow, and ensured that dinner guests would be arguing about what color they thought her dress was for a long while after the last guest had wandered home.There was a knock at the door, and Jareth and Carter flowed into the room.

  She smiled, genuinely happy to see them.

  “You’ve survived,” Jareth said with a laugh as he wrapped her in his arms and kissed her gently before releasing once more to admire her dress.

  “You look stunning,” Carter said, moving to her and embracing her.

  He lightly kissed her neck and her bare skin erupted into goosebumps. An electric chill spread through her body, giving way to the heat that followed.

  When Lydia finally pulled away from Carter, she caught Jareth with his arms crossed, staring at the two of them with a devilish grin on his face.

  “What?” Lydia asked, though she suspected she knew.

  “Nothing,” he said.

  “That smirk is Jareth’s way of letting me know that, no matter what happens between you and me, he got to taste your sweetness first.” Carter turned to Jareth. “Am I reading that right?”

  Lydia’s face colored, though she didn’t feel an ounce of shame. What had happened between her and Jareth was no secret, and neither was her attraction to Carter. But having it discussed so boldly and without jealousy wasn’t something she’d been expected.

  Siva cleared her throat in the background.

  “As fun as it is to speculate which of you handsome gentleman is better in bed, we have a party to go to.”

  Siva winked at Lydia.

  “I will admit, Lydia, I’m quite jealous. You’ve manage to snag not one, but two of the most handsome men most of us have ever laid eyes on.”

  “You’re too kind, Siva,” Jareth said, grabbing hold and spinning her for a moment before planting a friendly kiss on her cheek.

  Siva blushed bright red and laughed with Jareth, who put his arm out and offered it to her.

  “I’m sure Lydia won’t mind sharing me for a moment. A woman as beautiful as you should have an escort to the party of the century.”

  Carter held his arm out to Lydia. She threaded her arm through his and the four of them left to join the guests for dinner as the sun began its final descent towards the horizon.

  Lydia took her place at the center of the table, with Jareth and Carter on either side of her. Two empty seats remained, and Jareth hurried to pull the extra chair beside him out for Siva. Lydia looked into the crowd of guests chatting merrily with each other at their tables. When her eyes landed on Martin, she smiled at him and motioned him to her.

  He jogged up the center aisle and onto the stage, standing in front of the table before her.

  “Yes, my Lady.”

  “I can’t have my Tribute eating with the rest of the guests. Please, take the last seat up here with our family.”

  For an instant, Lydia could have sworn she saw a shimmer of tears in the older man’s eyes. The instant passed quickly and only his smile remained. He reached out and pulled her hand to his lips.

  “Thank you, Sweet Lydia.”

  He took his place beside Carter and the feast began.

  Lydia watch as the spread on their table grew, with every type of meat you could imagine, and artfully prepared sides placed before them. The delicious smells floated on the breeze and Lydia was suddenly ravenous.

  She handed her plate to Carter, who piled it high with a few samplings and placed it before her. She looked around at the guests, wondering what to do next. Carter noticed the tension in her and leaned over, whispering into her ear.

  “The time for rigid ceremonies has passed. Just take a bite so everyone else can start eating and we can plot our escape.”

  ***

  The sun had long-since set when Lydia was finally able to sneak away from the party. The wine had been flowing for hours, and the tables removed to create a large, open dance floor. She’d taken her first dance with Martin, who spun her around to the live music. She rested her head on his shoulder and sighed.

  “Martin. I couldn’t have chosen a better Tribute. Thank you.”

  “It is I who should be thanking you. You’ve made my dream come true. If only for a few days. If I’d been given a daughter, I would have been blessed if she were you. You breathed new life into this old man’s heart.”

  Tears streamed quietly down Lydia’s face. Mostly from happiness, but she was suddenly sad that this wedding, and this marriage were just a piece of paper. She couldn’t have imagined a more perfect wedding.

  When the song changed, Jareth stepped in for the next dance and Lydia hugged Martin good-bye. Jareth gently wiped away her tears, kissing her cheek and pulling her against him.

  He didn’t have to say a word, he knew why she was sad.

  Carter stepped in and Jareth disappeared into the crowd. Carter held her close, his head resting on hers.

  “I’m going to dance with my aunt for the next song, and this would be a perfect time to slip away. I’ll meet you both at the house.”

  “Are you sure no one will notice?”

  “Some might, but it’s customary for the bride and groom to slip away during this time. If no one knows, it’s considered good luck for us. But, for the person who spots you leaving and says nothing, it’s a lifetime of good luck.”

  “I don’t really feel lucky right now. I feel like a phony.”

  They whispered through their smiles and Carter continued to dance.

  “I understand. We’ll talk about it later. Right now, my aunt is so drunk that no one is going to be able to turn away. Now is your chance.”

  He kissed her and released her near the edge of the crowd, a few feet from the open bar where his aunt stood on wobbly feet. He grabbed his aunt, spinning her into a circle as the crowd cheered. Lydia slipped away while their attention was on the two of them.

  She was walking along the shadows covering the back of the house when a shadow emerged in front of her.

  “Oh good, Jareth. I was hoping to run into you.”

  The man stepped out a little further, letting the moonlight fall dramatically across his face. Lydia sneered.

  “Adam. Look at you. Lurking in the shadows like a little weasel. To what do I owe this displeasure?”

  “Joke all you want, Lydia. But I know your secret and Gavin will be angry to find out that this was all for show.”

  Lydia’s stomach sank, but she didn’t let her fear show in the dim moonlight.

  “Do you really think that someone would go through all of this just for fun? I’m exhausted. Please move out of my way.”

  “Maybe your marriage is real. That’s something only you can answer to. But Gavin expects his proof. Within a year as the decree states.”

  “What decree?”

  “Don’t you know? Oh, my, my, my. I guess your husbands didn’t see fit to tell you about your obligation.”

  “Stop playing games, Adam. You’re annoying enough without it. Say what you mean to say or move out of my way.” She pitched her voice low. “I don’t want to embarrass you by kicking your ass here in the shadows.”

  “We shall see how confident you feel when you’re struggling to explain why you’re not pregnant within the prescribed time.”

  “Pregnant? What are you talking about?”

  “Ah. I knew they hadn’t told you. Funny how all three of you signed a paper you know nothing about. You see, Lydia, Gavin is not a fool. He knows your marriage is a farce. The only wa
y to prove that your love is real is for you,” he jabbed his finger into her collar bone to make his point, “to become pregnant within a year of today.”

  “There’s no way they agreed to that. We haven’t even discussed children.”

  “Oh, they did, Princess.” The last word dripped with disdain and ugly hatred. “If you do not comply, you face the same penalty as before. Such a shame, too. You are a lovely catch.”

  Lydia stood in the darkness, anger building into blind rage, but she said nothing.

  “Cat got your tongue? That’s too bad. I’d love to see you explain away this little tidbit.” Adam finally stepped to the side, allowing Lydia to pass. “Best wishes on your marriage. Seems to me there’s already trouble in paradise.”

  He laughed as Lydia passed, the sound deceptively joyful. Clearly, he was enjoying himself a little too much.

  Lydia kicked him in the shin as she passed, feeling a bit of satisfaction when he hissed in pain and limped away into the night. She stomped angrily towards the front doors and all but ran to her room.

  She was shaking with anger as she threw off her gown and changed into jeans and a loose shirt. She began shoving clothes into her back pack, gathering what she could as she angrily moved about the room.

  How could they hide something like this from her? No wonder they weren’t upset that she would be staying an extra few months. Why not keep her there and continue to live as they had. Eventually, there was a chance that one would get her pregnant. It wasn’t like she and Jareth had been careful themselves. It was only a matter of time.

  And then what? She’d be forced to stay with them or give up her child? Were they counting on her being unwilling to do that?

  Jareth walked into the room just then, the smile on his face slipping when he saw her flying about the room, packing up her things. When she saw him, her eyes flashed with rage and she advanced on him, stopping a few feet away.

  “How could you?” she screamed at him.

  “How could I what?” He looked confused.

  “You kept the decree from me, but you were willing to sign my name?”

  Jareth didn’t have to confirm that it was true. His face said all she needed to know.

  “Lydia, it wasn’t like that.”

  “Really. What was it like then?”

  “When that decree came over, we were shocked. We didn’t know what to say. You were finally starting to look content, and we didn’t want to stress you out.”

  “Stress me out? So it’s better that I don’t know that my life is in danger if I don’t produce a baby in a year?”

  “Technically, you just have to conceive within a year.”

  Lydia picked up a glass figurine from the table and threw it at Jareth. He ducked and tiny shards of glass tinkled as they fell to the floor.

  “I can’t believe you did this to me.”

  “It wasn’t our choice, Lydia.”

  “But you hid it from me, and I had to find out from that weasel, Adam.” Her voice caught and she swiped away at the angry tears streaming down her face. “I thought we were in this together. Turns out I was wrong about you two. And to think, I was starting to feel sad that this marriage wasn’t real.”

  “It could be if you wanted it to, Lydia.”

  Lydia shoved the last of her street clothes into the bag and went to the nightstand to retrieve her car keys.

  “Lydia, what are you doing?”

  “I’m leaving. Better to leave now, while everyone is busy partying and no one is likely to notice my exit.”

  “Lydia, please. You can’t leave.”

  “Watch me.”

  She stormed out of the room without so much as a backwards glance.

  CHAPTER NINE

  Carter was making his way to the house when he saw Lydia and a man in the dark. He could barely make out her outline, but what he saw bothered him. Her posture was rigid, her body language silently screaming her distress. Carter quickened his pace, but he was too far away to call out to her. He heard the man laugh and his heart sank.

  Adam!

  Carter was running now, but Lydia had already stormed past Adam, kicking him as she went so that his laughter stopped abruptly. Adam watched her go, unaware that Carter was almost upon him.

  Carter closed the distance moments before Adam turned, his right fist landing solidly on Adam’s cheek and taking him down before he was even aware that Carter was there.

  Carter yanked him up by the front of his shirt and punched him again, holding him up off the ground and leaning down into the man’s face. Adam returned his glare, utterly unapologetic.

  “What did you do?” Carter hissed.

  “Ah, Carter, so nice to see you,” Adam spat out.

  “What did you say to her?”

  “I’m sure you know. I can’t believe you would keep something like that from her.”

  His voice was heavy with mock concern, and Carter saw red. He considered ending his life right then and there, but he couldn’t. If Gavin knew where Adam was tonight and he suddenly disappeared, it wouldn’t take long for Gavin to put two and two together. It looked like they were in a big enough mess to begin with.

  “We didn’t tell her because it wasn’t the time.”

  “When was the time, Carter? Or were you hoping that she’d fall in love with you fools in time to fulfill the decree on her own?”

  “It’s not up to you to decide what’s right for our family.”

  “Your family?” Adam snorted. “Please. She’s at most a plaything for the two of you. Everyone knows that your marriage, your entire story is a farce and nothing more. Gavin isn’t a fool, he’s just waiting for you two to bury yourselves. Then, he can get rid of all three of you in one swoop.”

  “Gavin doesn’t have the balls to take us out.”

  “Maybe he doesn’t, but once the humans find out what happened with Lydia, you’ll be hard-pressed to find a human that doesn’t want to kill you on sight. Causing the death of one of their own won’t help your cause. It’s only a matter of time before one of the anti-shifters takes you both out.”

  “Won’t happen. Because we’re not going to let Gavin get his hands on Lydia.”

  “You can’t stop him,” Adam spat in Carter’s face. “Do you think that going through with any of this will deter Gavin? He might not dispatch with Lydia now. Maybe not even this year. But someday, when you least expect it, she’ll get what she should have gotten the day you found her. She witnessed something she shouldn’t have and Gavin isn’t going to let her live. Then you’ll be right back where you started, two desperate playboys playing house together in a gaudy mansion in the middle of nowhere. And Lydia will just be a memory.”

  Carter roared with rage, slamming Adam against the wall of the house before dropping him to the dirt. Adam gasped and wheezed, but Carter didn’t wait around to see if the man was

  “What would you have done then, Lydia? Let’s be honest. Would you have reacted well?”

  “It doesn’t matter. You should have told me.”

  “And then what? We wanted to take it to the council, to figure out if Gavin could even demand such a thing. We were going to fight it, and we didn’t want to upset you without a good reason.”

  “Of course. Because getting cornered by Adam on my wedding day wasn’t upsetting enough, right?”

  Jareth stood in the background, watching from behind the pair of them as they squared off in the hallway. Carter stood firm, blocking Lydia’s exit, eyes locked on her, trying to find the words that would help her understand his intent.

  It wasn’t going well.

  “We didn’t know that Adam was going to be here,” Carter began. “Even if we had, he’s not known for his bravery. We couldn’t have guessed that he would hunt you down like that.”

  Lydia stood there, her face still defiant, her arms hanging loosely at her sides. He grabbed her hands in his and she yanked them away.

  “Don’t, Carter. It doesn’t matter what Adam did. The fact is,
you guys lied to me and I don’t know what to think now. Maybe this was all a lie.”

  “What part of it? I’ve never said a thing to you that wasn’t true. So what if we didn’t drag you into the middle of this shit. You were stressed enough as it was. It came over just when you were starting to relax and we were afraid it would ruin that for us all. Would you have dealt with it well? Honestly?”

  “Probably not, but that’s not the point. How is this relationship supposed to work if we can’t be honest with each other?”

  “There’s a difference between being honest and knowing that you’re not ready to hear something, Lydia. We did what we thought was best.”

  Carter caught Jareth’s eye, and tilted his head slightly. Jareth knew immediately that he meant for Jareth to leave. Lydia was still outwardly defiant, but something in her posture had deflated. She was still angry, but Carter’s words had taken the wind right out of her sails. Carter had Lydia under control and Jareth was needed elsewhere.

  “But why wouldn’t you trust me to make that decision for myself?”

  Carter reached out to her and this time, she didn’t fight him when he took her hand.

  “Lydia. I wish we could take it all back. Yes, we should have told you. But our intentions were good. I mean, can you really blame us for keeping things from you to protect you? It’s not like you’ve been completely straightforward with us either.”

  Lydia’s eyes flashed but she didn’t move away from him. She bit her lip, trying to come up with a response but failing.

  “We were and still are willing to let you share your secret when the time is right. We trust you, Lydia. I know that you would tell us if you felt you could and Jareth and I are both okay with that.”

  Lydia looked over her shoulder, but she didn’t see Jareth.

  “Where did he go?”

  “He’s going to call some of our friends. I’m not sure how Adam is, but when he wakes up, he’ll probably go running to Gavin.”

  “Wakes up?”

  “I wasn’t far behind you when Adam cornered you. I saw enough to know that Adam needed his ass kicked.”