Max wrinkled up his nose. You sound like one of those crazy old clan elders. You know, the ones always spouting off clan rules and talking about the universe and destiny.”
“Well, I only say all of this because it’s true,” Theo said. “Come on. Come on out to the bar with me. If you’re going to threaten to move away from me you at least owe me a round. Besides, you need a night out to relax.”
Max grunted, but slowly stood. “Fine. I’ll go,” he said. “But I doubt I’m going to be able to relax.”
Theo stood too, then smiled and slapped Max on the back. “Come on, Grumps. Let’s get some beer in you.”
Chapter Six
The bar was already hopping when Theo and Max walked in fifteen minutes before five, and most of the crowd looked like it was from Theo and Max’s class year. Almost everyone who had been at the reunion last night was here now, already raising their beer glasses and whooping it up. Max would have thought people would be too tired after the reunion to want to go out again for a second night in a row, but everyone seemed really fired up. Max sighed as he headed toward their normal booth, where Theo’s brothers, Zane and Drake, were already sitting. Theo’s fiancé Maddie wasn’t there yet, but Max had no doubt she would be here soon. Those two did everything together.
Theo went to the bar to grab happy hour drinks, and Max settled into the booth, grateful that, at least for the moment, he didn’t have to talk to Cassie. Zane and Drake each gave him a small wave as he sat down, barely acknowledging his presence. They were in the middle of one of their arguments, which meant they were focusing all of their energy on being right. Max couldn’t help but crack a smile. Those two were so competitive. Right now, they were arguing over whether some new workout regimen was a good idea or not.
“It’s ridiculous,” Zane was saying. “I can do the same exercises in my garage. Why would I want to go to a gym and pay someone so much money for that?”
“It’s not a gym. It’s a box,” Drake corrected. “And the point is that you go and have a community of people cheering you on. It keeps you motivated.”
“See! A box! Who calls a gym a box? It’s like some sort of weird cult that tricks you into paying a bunch of money to work out in an empty room.”
“It’s not an empty room,” Drake protested. “There’s equipment in there, and like I said, the point is the community. You need people—”
Oh good god,” Theo interrupted, arriving at their booth with beers for Max and himself. “Are you two still arguing about Cross Fit?”
“What’s Cross Fit?” Max asked.
Theo rolled his eyes. “Either the greatest workout ever or the stupidest, depending on whether you ask Zane or Drake. Drake’s turned into a crusader for Cross Fit ever since one of his buddies decided to open up a Cross Fit gym here in town.”
“Not a gym. A box,” Drake corrected. Theo just rolled his eyes.
Max chuckled. He had to admit, he would miss these three like hell if he moved away. Theo was his closest friend, but Theo’s brothers had become good friends over the years, too. Since Max was a single child, they had always been his family. Now that Max’s parents had passed away, it was especially nice to have “brothers.”
And yet, life was always changing and moving on. Max was reminded of this as Maddie arrived, scooting into their booth and apologizing for being late. As soon as she was there. Theo had eyes only for her. Max wouldn’t be surprised if the two of them had a cub of their own within a year. These late nights out at the bar might become a thing of the past. And then what? How would Max fill his time? He needed to start looking for a family of his own.
A few minutes later, Theo waved Cassie over to their table, and Max felt his stomach tighten up. He wasn’t sure whether he should try to act completely normal and smile at her, or maybe just avoid eye contact altogether. He decided that avoiding eye contact was safest, and he stared down at his napkin while Cassie started taking food orders from the crew. When it was his turn, he quickly looked up at her and mumbled something about a cheeseburger and fries. He stared at her notepad, not at her face, and she didn’t ask him for any clarification on his jumbled words.
She left the table, and Max started breathing easier as Zane and Drake jumped right back into their argument. But then, Maddie piped up and brought the table to silence.
“Wait, what just happened, Max? Are you and Cassie a thing?”
All eyes turned to Max, and he felt his heart racing. Why were women always so goddamn observant?
“No, we’re not a thing,” he said, trying to give her a look that said the mere suggestion was preposterous. But Maddie looked unconvinced.
“You two were acting completely awkward. Neither one of you were looking at each other, which is really unusual. Usually, you’re both laughing and cutting up with each other. Did something happen between you last night?”
Maddie narrowed her eyes in Max’s direction, and he tried to maintain his look of shock.
“We’re not a thing,” he repeated. Technically, it was true. Cassie had made it abundantly clear this morning that she didn’t consider them a thing. But now that Maddie had pointed out the awkwardness between them, the boys jumped on board with the interrogating as well.
“Wait, what?” Theo said. “I just told you that you and Cassie would be great together, and you shot me down. Were you just trying to hide something? How much did you guys dance last night?”
“I dunno, we just danced a couple songs. There’s nothing going on between us. And nothing is going to start between us because I’m actually moving away from Persimmon Springs,” Max said.
The table once again fell silent, with everyone turning shocked faces in Max’s direction.
“What?” Zane finally managed to ask his voice shocked. “You’re moving? Where? Why?”
Max took a deep breath. He hadn’t planned on making an announcement yet, since he hadn’t actually planned out any details. But the pressure he felt with a whole table asking him about Cassie had been too much, and he’d panicked.
“I’m not sure where. But I have to get out of here. Life’s passing me by, guys. I’m not getting any younger, and I’d like to have a family. I want to make something of myself. I want to leave a legacy. I can’t do that when all I do is coach football, teach a couple history classes and go out drinking every night. My tiger is restless.”
The table was silent for several moments. Finally, Zane smiled and shook his head.
“Aw, come on man. You don’t need to move away to find a girl and have a family. You’re just feeling antsy right now, but it will pass. There are plenty of nice girls in town. What’s wrong with Cassie, anyway?”
“She’s not interested in me,” Max said flatly. Now it was Theo’s turn to laugh.
“Come on man, didn’t you see the way she looked at you at the dance last night?” Theo asked. “I don’t know why you’re so convinced that she isn’t interested. She was definitely looking at you like a girl with a crush.”
“Trust me, she’s not interested,” Max said firmly. Then he drained his entire beer mug in a series of several large sips, never stopping to catch his breath. He motioned to Theo and Maddie to scoot out of the booth so that he could get out, and, to his surprise, they moved without protest. Theo could probably see the seriousness in his eyes. If there was one thing that Max’s friends had learned about him over the years, it was that you definitely didn’t want to mess with him once he got a certain look in his eyes.
Max made his way to the bar, grasping his mug and doing his best to avoid looking in the direction of the table where Cassie was taking an order right now. Max desperately wanted to run over and shake her shoulders, telling her that she should give him a chance. He wanted to tell her how well everyone else thought they would go together. But he couldn’t talk to her right now. She was working, and he knew she’d be angry at him if he tried to interrupt her work. That girl took work more seriously than anyone he’d ever met.
Max had intended
to order another beer, but by the time he got to the bar he was starting to think it would be better if he just went home. He hadn’t felt this restless in a long time, and his friends weren’t helping. All their prodding and teasing was riling up his tiger. Max could feel his inner beast pacing, and he knew he was getting close to the point of exploding in anger at someone. Tigers weren’t very good at keeping their tempers under control. Over the years, Max had learned how to avoid things that would trigger his anger. But today had been too much. His fuse had run too short.
Max set his mug down on the bar, then turned and walked back to the table where his friends were sitting. He pulled out his wallet and threw a fifty dollar bill down on the table.
“That should cover my food and drinks, and buy another round for y’all,” he said. “I’m gonna head home.”
No one protested. Theo just nodded with understanding. Max’s shifter friends could sense that he was feeling on edge, and they let him go. Even Maddie, who was fully human, seemed to understand that now was not the time to tease Max or rile him up. He needed space, and thankfully his friends gave it to him.
Max quickly made his way out of the bar, keeping his gaze low so he wouldn’t accidentally make eye contact with Cassie. Then he breathed in deeply as he stepped outside, willing himself to calm down. He climbed into his truck and cranked up his favorite country station, trying to drown out the chaotic voices inside his head. But even the music wasn’t enough to soothe his soul tonight. He needed to run free. After he pulled into his driveway on the outskirts of town, he kicked off his boots, his jeans, and his shirt. He looked around carefully to make extra sure that no one else was around, and then, he shifted.
His human form expanded and transformed. His skin thickened and then became covered in fur of orange and black stripes. He felt immediate relief for his aching heart as he became fully tiger. Something about being in tiger form always eased his human worries. With a low growl, Max started off toward the empty fields that bordered Persimmon Springs.
His tiger needed to run.
Chapter Seven
Cassie was so exhausted that she couldn’t see straight. She counted out the stack of bills in front of her once more, making sure that she had added everything up correctly so she could close out for the night.
It had been a good night, tip-wise. Fridays usually were. Everyone was in a good mood, and they drank a lot which ran up their tabs. Good moods and high tabs were a winning combination when you worked for tips.
Cassie closed the little black folder that she used to carry bills when she was working, then slipped it into the front pocket of her apron. She walked to the back office, where Alex was sorting through some receipts.
“Do you need help with anything else?” Cassie asked. To her relief, Alex looked up and shook his head.
“Nope, I’m good. Go home and get some rest. Thanks for all your hard work today.”
“No problem,” Cassie said. She was about to turn and head out when something about Alex’s expression gave her pause. He had a distant, forlorn look in his eyes, and he was twiddling his thumbs in the way he always did when something was bothering him. Cassie wanted nothing more than to go home right then, but she couldn’t live with herself if she didn’t at least take a moment to ask him if he was alright.
“You okay?” she said. She had a feeling that he was about to indulge in another night of heavy drug use, but she knew he would never admit that to her.
“I’m fine,” he said. “Just tired. Don’t worry I’m not going to get high tonight. All I want right now is to go get some shuteye.”
Cassie sighed. “Okay. Promise me you’ll stay away from the drugs tonight?”
She expected him to hem and haw his way around to avoid giving her a straight answer, but, to her surprise, he nodded.
“Don’t worry. I have no plans right now for anything except sleep.”
Cassie nodded. “Okay, see you tomorrow,” she said.
He gave her a little wave, and she went home and collapsed into her bed. She was so tired that she fell asleep almost instantly—but not before an image of Max’s face crossed her mind. She’d been trying not to think about him all night, but here, as she slipped off into dreamland, she couldn’t fully escape.
* * *
Cassie opened her eyes and rubbed them in confusion. Everything was pitch black, so it must still be the middle of the night. But something had woken her up.
As the heavy fog of sleep began to lift, Cassie realized that her phone was vibrating loudly on her nightstand, ringing over and over. The digital clock behind the phone read 4:12 a.m. For a moment, Cassie stared dumbly at the clock, trying to figure out why her phone was ringing at such an hour. And then, in the next instant, she sprang into action, jumping up quickly and grabbing for the phone. A feeling of dread filled her as the pieces of the situation fell into place. If her phone was ringing so insistently at four in the morning, then something was wrong. The phone screen read “Unknown Caller.” Cassie frowned and answered the call.
“Hello?” she said, trying not to sound completely breathless.
“Hello, Cassie James?” a very proper voice said.
“Yes, that’s me. Who’s this?
“My name is Angela Jones, I’m with Stay Safe Alarm Services. Our alarm is picking up possible smoke at your property on 175 Main Street. This is triggering a fire alert, so we’re just calling to check on you and the property. We tried to call the other contact listed for the alarm service, Alex Ward. But he’s not answering his phone. Are you at the property now?”
“Oh my god,” Cassie said. “The bar’s on fire?”
“Well, it appears that it might be,” Angela said. I take it you aren’t at the property right now, then?”
“No, no. That’s my workplace. I forgot that Alex listed me as an alternate contact for the alarm service. Oh my god, I hope he’s okay. He still hadn’t left the bar when I left last night.”
Cassie suddenly felt her blood run cold. Why wasn’t Alex answering the calls from the alarm company? He always kept his phone on, no matter the hour. Was he off somewhere, high again? Or worse, was he in the bar that was on fire?
“Ma’am, I’m going to call the Fire Department as a precaution, in case the alarm signal we’re getting is accurate and there really is a fire. Are you able to go check on it yourself as well?”
“Yeah, I’ll go right away,” Cassie said. “Can you tell the fire department there might be someone in the building? My boss, Alex, is the other one on your contact list. I’m not sure why he isn’t answering his phone.”
“Will do,” Angela said. “Please don’t enter the building yourself if it’s burning. I’ll make sure the fire department is aware that someone might be inside.”
With that, Angela ended the call. Cassie started madly running around her house, throwing on some real clothes and searching for her keys. As she started running toward her front door, she felt a sudden need to call someone, anyone. If she had to potentially face something happening to her boss, who was also a dear friend, she didn’t want to have to face that alone. Before she knew it, she found herself dialing the only person she could think to call right now.
Max.
She didn’t think too much about it. She didn’t have time to debate whether or not he would read too much into the early morning call, or whether or not he was angry at her. He had ignored her all night, after all. All she could do was call him, breathless and frightened and hoping he would answer.
“Hello?” his voice came on the line. He sounded confused and cautious, but he didn’t sound as though he had just woken up. In fact, he sounded almost like one might after a vigorous workout. Cassie felt her whole body tense up. Was he with another woman right now? Was she a fool for calling him, thinking he would care about her or her problems?
“Hello? Cassie?” his voice came again. Cassie realized it was too late to turn back now. She’d already made the call, so she had to speak to him. Whatever the detail
s of his love life might be, it wasn’t something she could worry about right now.
“Max, I just got a call from the bar’s alarm company that they think the place is on fire. I…I’m scared that Alex might be inside. And…he does drugs sometimes, so I’m not sure if he’d be in a coherent enough state to realize he needed to get out of a burning building. I’m scared. I don’t want to go face this alone.” Cassie’s voice broke as she spoke. She had never said anything to anyone before about Alex’s drug problem, and now she realized that she might have waited until too late. She couldn’t bear the thought of it.
There was a short pause, and then Max spoke. “Are you at the bar right now?”
“No, I’m on my way,” Cassie said. “But I’m just now leaving my house. The alarm company called the fire department.”
“Ok,” Max said. “I’m coming. Don’t go in a burning building, alright? Promise me you won’t.”
“Ok, I won’t,” Cassie said. “But please hurry.”
Max just grunted, then hung up the phone. Cassie ran to her car, still wearing pajamas, and fired up the engine. She took off speeding toward the bar, praying she wasn’t too late.
She was much closer to the bar than the fire department, so when she arrived, no one was there yet. The bar was indeed going up in flames, the hot orange-yellow tongues licking the dark night sky. Cassie had no idea how long the fire had been burning, but it must have been a while because it was engulfing the whole building. She realized with horror that Alex’s car was in the parking lot. His lone, beat-up silver Honda was reflecting back the orange light of the fire, and Cassie felt her heart dropping. She felt sick, and had to swallow back the bile that was rising in her throat.
“No, no, no,” she whispered under her breath as tears started to form in her eyes. “Please don’t be in there. Please don’t be in there.”
She resisted the urge to run into the building. She wanted nothing more than to race in there and find Alex, pulling him to safety. But she knew Max was right. She needed to stay out of the burning building. She might not even be able to find Alex, and he might already be dead, anyway. Despite how much her heart wanted her to run into that building, she tried to remain logical and wait for the firemen. She could hear their sirens in the distance now, quickly growing closer.
Lone Star Tiger (Shifters in the Heart of Texas Book 2) Page 4