The Panther's Rival

by Emilia Hartley

  “O-okay,” Jo complied. “Though I’m not sure my phone will last much long—” The line went dead in Nick’s hand.

  “Shit!” he spat, wrenching his shirt over his head. He turned to Tom. “Line’s dead. We gotta go. Now.”

  Tom was already undressing, but he had a foul look on his face. “What happened to her being ‘just human’, Nick? What happened to her ‘being safe’?”

  “Well maybe I was wrong, okay?” Nick shouted, feeling the beginnings of panic setting in. “It doesn’t matter right now. Jo’s in danger and we need to get her out of it. You can do your ‘I told you so’ dance later.”

  Tom gave a solitary nod that promised this talk wasn’t over before both brothers sprinted into the cover of the forest to shift.

  Nick’s change pounded over him in a combination of pain and exhilaration. It was forced and rushed, excruciating in its expedience. He didn’t have time to loosen his muscles or grind his teeth against the agony. It all washed over him in wave after wave of torture until finally a bear stood where the man once did. Without so much as a shake of the fur, he tore off in the direction of the cabin at full speed.

  Tom caught up when he was about half way there. “What’s the plan?” he growled.

  “There are four bears,” Nick grunted back. “We need to separate them. Two for you, two for me, and then make them fall back.” Tom nodded once and split off from his brother, taking a route that would best help execute the plan.

  It wasn’t long before Nick was within viewing distance of the cabin. It was still pretty far off, but he could still make out the figures of four brown bears surrounding the front of the cabin. The bear rattled dangerously at the sight, imagining just how terrified and alone Jo must feel being locked in the bathroom by herself. Stick to the plan… he reminded himself.

  Upon closer inspection, Nick could see Lucas, the leader of the Northern Wind Pack, wasn’t among the bears attacking the cabin. He’s assumed the bear Jo described as “huge” was Lucas. Lucas wasn’t an alpha like he was, but still he was formidably large. The largest bear appeared to be Dan, Lucas’s biggest muscle and second in command. He also noticed Flood, one of the smaller bears. The other two were completely new. Nick snuffed. The last thing they needed was a larger Northern Wind Pack to deal with, but there was always more the next time.

  Where the hell is Tom?

  As if on cue, loud rustling cracked and rattled through the forest, Tom playing the perfect role of the clumsy, loud bear. As planned, all four Northern Wind bears turned their attention to the noise. A few growls passed between them and then Dan slinked off into the woods to investigate, one of the new bears following closely behind. When Nick was sure Tom had lured them far enough away, he approached the two remaining bears.

  He didn’t try to hide anymore. If at all possible, he wanted to avoid fighting. But despite this, everything in him was screaming to protect Jo. The only thing that mattered was Jo. If he had to fight to keep her safe, he’d tear them apart with tooth and claw without a second thought.

  The remaining bears noticed Nick approaching fairly quickly, both standing to attention when they saw his large frame lumbering through the grass.

  “You’re here,” Nick heard as Flood inched closer. “Who’s the human?”

  “No one,” Nick growled, but even he could feel the defensiveness of his reply. “She’s human. You know the law. She is to remain unharmed and unknowing. Just walk away.”

  The bear he didn’t recognize hopped forward. “Join us, alpha.”

  Nick’s dark eyes glowed dangerously. “No.”

  “We were told you might say that,” the second bear rumbled, mischievously.

  “We’re to make you change your mind,” Flood added, and Nick could see the manic grin that curled on the Northern Wind bear’s lips.

  “We don’t want to hurt a human…”

  “But we will.”

  The threat in their words was clear, and Nick had to fight to keep from going savage on them. “Leave her alone. I will not say it again.” Nick’s muscles rippled as his body tensed eagerly for the fight. “She’s not one of us.”

  “We will leave if you join us!” the new bear roared.

  “I won’t!” Nick boomed back, rising onto his hind legs.

  “Not even to save your mate?” Flood asked impishly.

  What? Slamming the ground with his powerful front paws, Nick growled loudly. Tom wasn’t the only one watching as he fawned over Jo. Damn it! “She’s human. It’s impossible for her to be my mate, and you know it.”

  Something changed in the posture of the two bears in front of Nick, but before he could react, it was too late.

  “Then you won’t have a problem with us killing her!” came Dan’s powerful roar from behind. Nick turned in time to see the massive bear descending on him at breakneck speed before getting caught up in a tackle.

  Nick bit back a painful roar as claws ripped into his back. He managed to turn around before too much damage was done, swiping downward on Dan’s head. Nick’s claws sank home, cutting deep into Dan’s face and making him back away with a startled whimper.

  Flood launched himself at Nick, but compared to Dan’s massive frame, Flood was easy to handle. Nick batted him down, knocking the wind from the smaller bear as he hit the ground. The nameless bear sank his teeth deep into Nick shoulder, but with a booming roar, Nick managed to shake him free. He pressed down on Flood’s shoulder until he heard something buckle, and then swiped viciously at the new bear.

  Dan charged Nick, but blood was leaking into his eyes from the wound Nick had created. Nick dodged the charge easily, clamping down on Dan’s shoulder and tearing into him. The new bear leapt forward with a snarl, and Nick got one good blow across the smaller bear’s nose before he was down for the count, whimpering at the spray and foam of blood that spilled from his snout.

  Standing as tall as he could, Nick roared aloud, the sound echoing through the trees. He stood taller and larger than even Dan, his dominance clear. His lips curled back, his teeth bared, blood dripping from his claws.

  “This isn’t over,” Dan snorted, finally turning to slink away. “Lucas will have what’s his to take. That means you, your brother, and anything else he wishes. You better watch your back.”

  Nick didn’t move, his roars of triumph sounding long after the three bears of the Northern Wind pack had disappeared into the forest. Only when the immediate scent of the three bears faded did he finally fall back on all fours. In the distance, he heard his brother’s roar. He was fine, and the fourth bear was taken care of. He huffed in relief. The threat was gone. Jo was safe.

  Even though this calmed the bear significantly, his blood was still rushing, his heart still racing, adrenaline only just beginning to fade. He couldn’t change like this. He slinked off into the woods to wait for his bear to grow quiet.

  Then he could check on Jo.

  Chapter Nine

  The change back to human was agonizing, the bear’s painful roar ending in a man’s scream as his bones shrank and muscles snapped. The injuries he’d sustained in the attack weren’t as gruesome on his human skin, though he had a few gashes that he’d have to patch up and allow to heal over the course of the next few days. He ached all over, the battle taking its toll on his body in more ways than blood.

  Dressing as quickly as he was able, Nick made a slow walk through the trees to the cabin. His body was most vulnerable now, broken, battered and human. Moving recklessly and without thought would make noise, and inhibit senses. He needed to be extra careful in case Dan and his crew decided that they wanted to go one more round. Nick hoped to the heavens they didn’t. The numbers definitely were not in their favor.

  Tom had offered to go to the cabin to assess the damage so that Nick could go home and dress his wounds, but Nick quickly declined. He could have come up with any excuse in the book, but both of them already knew why. Nick wanted… needed to check on Jo. He needed to see with his own two eyes that she was ali
ve, breathing and safe. He had to be sure that he’d fulfilled his duty to protect her the way he promised he would when Tom was lecturing him about the fragility of humans. They’d agreed to meet up at the shop after Nick properly assessed the cabin to talk strategies now that Lucas had made a move, and parted ways.

  Flood’s words floated to the forefront of his mind, ‘Not even to save your mate?’

  Taking another limping step, Nick shook the thought from his mind. She’s human. It’s impossible.

  That’s what he’d said to Flood at the time, and what he thought now as well, but the more he thought about her, the closer he got to the cabin, the more he remembered her scared voice crying and screaming on the phone… he wanted nothing more than for the impossible to be true.

  Even though he knew it would never be.

  A human is much too weak to be with a shifter. She’s human. A fragile, delicate, gentle little human, he chastised himself. All it would take is an accidental flex of a hand, an arm curled too tight, the lazy swipe of an enemy’ paw… they were simply too easy to kill to make viable life partners. So shifters stayed away. It was one of the first things shifters were taught. Humans and shifters don’t comingle. So why…

  Why couldn’t he walk away?

  He was nearly to the porch when the smell hit him. It was bitter sweet, salty like tears, and numbed the tip of Nick’s tongue. Jo’s fear hung like a wet blanket in the air, and his heart ached for her all over again. All other thought left his mind, and in that moment, all that mattered was making that fear go away.

  “Jo?” he called, hammering on the door. The door rattled and shook, broken and battered from the assault that the bears had put on it. The windows were shattered on either side, and Nick tried peering through to see if Jo had come downstairs. “Jo, are you there? It’s Nick. I need to know that you’re okay.” He tried knocking again. “The bears are gone. Tom and I chased them off. It’s safe to come out now. I promise.” The door groaned under his fist, raining paint flakes into Nick’s hair as he tried to get Jo’s attention.

  Finally, he heard the distant noise of a door opening and closing deeper in the cabin. He breathed out a sigh of relief as the soft, quick pitter-patter of footsteps made their way down the stairs, and the way her hands scrambled against the door as she rushed to unlock it made his heart happy. She wanted to see him. That was good.

  After what felt like an eternity, she finally swung the door open. The look of joy he had readied on his face died almost immediately when he saw her. Her face was splotchy and pink, swollen from the sheer amount of tears she’d shed. Despite having on a thick university sweatshirt, her entire body was trembling uncontrollably and she was holding her left hand close to her body like she’d hurt it.

  Nick tried to speak, but the words wouldn’t come. He tried to get angry, but even his bear was eerily quiet. All that he could see, smell, and feel was Jo. My Jo, he thought he’d heard his bear growl, but he couldn’t be sure. All he knew in that moment was her sadness.

  “Jo,” he whispered, opening his arms. She launched herself at him with a sob, and he caught her up in a strong hug. He winced as she coiled her hands around his still-bleeding wounds, but it was a small price to pay by far.

  She stood back from him with a look of shock on her face, and asked, “Oh my goodness, what happened to you?” at the same time he asked, “Are you alright? Did you get hurt?”

  “I—” he began, cutting himself off; he didn’t really have a good explanation for his wounds. “It doesn’t matter. I-I just got a little too close to the action, that’s all,” he stammered half-heartedly.

  She raised her hand to her lips in further surprise. “A bear did this? I… how? How did you get away? Is Tom alright? How did you chase them off?? How can you—”

  “Okay, okay, one question at a time,” Nick tried to joke, but chuckling made him wince. “Like I said, Tom and I know bears. You could even call us experts on all things bear. We know how to beat ‘em, we know how to join ‘em, and everything in between. Tom’s fine, he’s back at the shop, practically unscathed. Me? I just got a little caught up in the action and the big boy caught me by surprise,” he said, indicating his wounded shoulder. “Nothing a little gauze won’t fix. I consider it a lesson learned.”

  “Oh,” Jo nodded. “I suppose that’s one way of looking at it.” Though the look on her face was more worried and less amused.

  Nick gently lifted her chin with his finger. “Hey, don’t worry about me. I’m just glad you’re okay.”

  She gave him a quick smile, but it fell flat before he could truly appreciate it. “Yeah, I’m fine. I mean, a bit shaken up, more than a bit exhausted, and I spilled scalding hot coffee on my hand, but ultimately fine.” She peered around to his shoulder and grimaced, watching as the blood seeped through his t-shirt from the wounds he’d sustained. “You didn’t have time to put anything on… those?” she asked, jutting her chin at the bleeding claw marks.

  “Oh, uh… no,” Nick replied, daring to look slightly apologetic. “All I was really worried about was getting back here. I may scar a bit, but this is nothing. Your life is way more valuable than my flawless skin.”

  “Oh,” Jo replied, and he could tell she was genuinely grateful. “I… thank you.” She smiled. “I’ve never had someone say they felt the need to run to my rescue before.”

  “All in a day’s work, ma’am.” He grinned and tried to give Jo a mock salute, but winced hard when he raised his arm. It hurt like hell, but it made her laugh, so it was worth it.

  Her smile faded back to concern as her eyes drifted back over the wound. “But I mean, there has to be something small at least that I could do to help with the bleeding? Consider it a thank you. Also, you’re beginning to drip.” She pointed to the little droplet of blood on the porch, both watching as a second drop fell from the hem of his shirt to join the first on the concrete.

  She looked back up at Nick. “Is there a First Aid Kid or anything around here?”

  As much pain as Nick was in, he couldn’t help but feel immediate arousal at the thought of her touching his bare skin again. He swallowed past the thick feeling in his throat and replied, “There should be. Somewhere in the kitchen.”

  She smiled up at him. “So you don’t mind if I…?” She let the question trail off, turning towards the kitchen and waiting for a response.

  Not really trusting his voice, Nick only nodded. Shifters don’t mate with humans, he told himself. Shifters don’t mate with humans. He would have to make that his mantra before it was over and done with.

  “I’ll boil some water,” Jo called from the kitchen, tossing him a glance. “You might want to take that mess off,” she said with a light smile.

  “Right.” As Nick awkwardly pulled off his shirt, even he had to admit that he was flustered and there was no denying it. He could see the amusement on her face as she watched him stare off into space or fumble over words. He didn’t have time to feel embarrassed about it though, because he was too busy being happy that she was happy. It made him feel at peace, like he was doing the right thing. His bear felt the same. Plus, when she smiled, she looked absolutely jaw-dropping.

  Shifters don’t mate with humans. Shifters don’t mate with humans…

  Jo sucked in a soft hiss. “These look pretty bad,” she murmured. Nick’s skin sizzled anywhere her gaze touched, and he fought not to shiver in delight.

  He shrugged and then winced. “Like I said, file it under a lesson learned.” She chuckled, placing one soft hand on his good shoulder. It was his turn to suck in a hiss.

  “Yeah I know, this probably isn’t going to be too comfortable for you, so I apologize in advance,” Jo murmured, too focused on the wound to notice his reaction to her touch. She ran the warm cloth down her open wounds in gentle pats, slowly cleaning the gashes that the attack had given him.

  “This might hurt a bit,” she warned, before pressing firming on the center of the wound. Nick held back the growl that wanted to spring f
orth, but even to an alpha like him, that was painful. “Yeah, I know,” Jo said, as if reading his thoughts, “but the bleeding wasn’t stopping. I needed to apply pressure.”

  After a thick layer of antiseptic cream, Jo dressed the entire wound in gauze, sending shocks electricity down Nick’s spine with every press of her fingers as she sealed the bandage closed. “There,” she said after what had felt like a torturous, amazing eternity. “I’ve done all I can.” Her nose scrunched as she thought, and Nick felt the overwhelming urge to kiss it. “Though it really looks like you might need stitches.”

  Nick chuckled, voice breathy from both his arousal and the pain, but overall just loving the attention she was giving him. “I’ll be fine.”

  She tut-tutted playfully at him, feigning disapproval. “If you say so, bear wrestler. At the very least, promise me no more learning lessons this way, you hear? Doctor’s orders.”

  He grinned up at her, internally struggling with the urge to sweep her into his arms and carry her to bed. “I’ll be a good boy from now on. Scout’s Honor.”

  Chapter Ten

  “Okay, go ahead and stand up. See if the dressings hold…and don’t forget to breathe.” Jo stepped back from the chair, thankful for a moment without the sparking electricity that ignited between them when they touched. It made it hard to be helpful when all she wanted to do was run her fingers over his body until he used those huge muscles to carry her all the way upstairs and introduce her to bliss.

  Nick did as he was told, standing and stretching gingerly to the left, then the right, then leaning forward. With no shirt on, Jo was painfully aware of how each movement flexed a different muscle group, his entire body rippling like ocean waves trapped beneath his skin. “Breathing appears to be top notch,” he declared with a lopsided grin.