Stay

by Alyssa Rose Ivy

  “I’d take more classes if it meant more of that.”

  He smiled. “I was hoping you’d say that.”

  ***

  The sound of my phone ringing had my entire body tense. Was it my mom calling back? Was it Vera? We’d moved to the couch and were curled up under a throw blanket. We still had an hour before Eric would get into Coffee Heaven. If I had to wait, at least I got to do it naked with Toby. I moved to grab my phone.

  “I’ll get it, relax.” Toby moved out from under me. I missed his warm strong body immediately, but I knew he’d be right back.

  He glanced at the screen just as it stopped ringing. “It was Tiffany.” He handed me my phone.

  “Oh! I should probably call her back.”

  He handed me my clothes. He knew me well enough to know I didn’t like talking to people while naked. Well, people who weren’t Toby. “Yeah, she seemed pretty shaken up after you were taken. I’m sure she’s back in New Orleans.”

  “I’d hope so.” I called her back and waited for a few rings. I was about to set the phone aside when she answered.

  “Casey? Hey.”

  “Hey, Tiffany. How are you?” I really hoped she wasn’t too messed up from anything. I’d heard this wasn’t her first run in with paranormals, but it didn’t mean it got any easier to handle. It was hard for me, and I wasn’t human.

  “I’m fine. It’s you I’m worried about.”

  I smiled. She was so sweet. “I’m absolutely fine. Toby’s with me, and we’re safe.”

  “Ohh, Toby.” She laughed. “You guys are so cute together.”

  “Thanks, now if we could just hear from Jared and my sister I’d be great.”

  “I’m sure they are both okay. You really need to focus on yourself.”

  I pushed the conversation off me. I was never particularly comfortable with a lot of attention on me. “Are you back in New Orleans?”

  “No, I decided not to go back right now. I need a break.”

  I felt a surge of guilt. The wedding was only crashed because of me and now she was probably afraid to go back to school. “I understand that. Thanks for calling.”

  “Of course. I really want to be friends. Even if Allie weren’t around, I’d still want to hang out.”

  That was a funny way of wording things. “I’d like to hang out again sometime too.”

  “Great. Maybe I’ll make it up to New York in the next few days.”

  “Where did you say you were?”

  “I’m visiting some family friends a few hours from New York City.”

  “Oh cool.” I hadn’t realized she had connections on the east coast, but I also didn’t know her particularly well.

  “Tell Toby I said hello.” She hung up.

  “She sounds fine, right?” Toby ran his hands through my hair. He always found an excuse to touch me, and I didn’t mind at all.

  “Yeah. I’m sure she’s still upset about things, but she’ll recover.”

  “None of this is your fault.”

  “How did you know that was what I was worried about?”

  “Because I know you.” He took the phone I still held in my hand and set it down. “Come on, let’s make some breakfast.”

  Chapter Six

  Vera

  I needed a drink. A strong one, preferably whiskey. I needed to start stowing flasks with my extra changes of clothes. Without fail I seemed to always find myself without alcohol when I needed it most—and that usually timed up when I also needed clothes.

  The walk through the woods to the far side of the cave hadn’t taken long, and I’d waited to shift back into my bear form until I was nearly at the mouth of the cave. That decision wasn’t for any strategic reason other than I wanted to be able to find my clothes quickly on the way out. It turns out that was a smart move. Just as I was ready to shift I sensed other bears approaching. I hid in the brush, waiting for them to go inside. I knew I would have to wait hours. Post-hunt was the worst time to run into bears. Full of food and adrenalin, we are unstoppable in either form. They’d have destroyed me without thinking. Any human side in the bears would be pushed to the back so they could enjoy the fruits of their labor. I sat down and leaned against the trunk of the tree. I really hoped Jared was hiding himself well.

  When I’d first shifted into a bear, it had freaked me out. What girl wants to be covered in hair? Isn’t that why hair removal is a multi-million dollar industry? But, pretty quickly I learned that the hair part was worth it. I was so much stronger as a bear. I felt nearly invincible, and unless I was up against other bears or other paranormals there was little that could hurt me. I was also faster. There was something about the wind rushing over me as I ran. Nothing else could compare. I wondered if that was how flying was for Casey. Maybe it was even cooler. If I survived my attempted rescue mission I’d have to ask her about it. I’d have to talk her into taking me flying someday. I loved every form of travel except for boats. Both Casey and I had always gotten sea sick.

  I checked all around me before stripping down. That was another thing that had happened since shifting for the first time. I was no longer as embarrassed about being naked. Naked was natural. I only wore clothes because society said I had to, and I didn’t particularly like having skeevy guys stare at me all the time.

  After stowing my stuff carefully in the bushes I stretched before shifting into my bear form. My bear senses took over immediately, and I searched the north wall of the cave looking for another entrance. Several minutes later I found the loose rocks and started digging. Satisfied I had enough space, I squeezed myself through the narrow opening I’d created. One benefit of being a smaller bear was that I could fit through a space like that. Finn had been right. The passage was treacherous and steep. It was much easier to manage while in bear form.

  Once inside the cave, I took things slow. I knew the cave well, but not this part. I wasn’t sure where it would open up to. I smelled Finn, but no one else. That was a good sign. Hopefully Finn was really the only one who even knew these back tunnels existed. He was definitely the most curious of the bunch. I hadn’t even considered it. I’m not sure what that said about me.

  I sniffed around, wondering if the others were still up. I was banking on them falling asleep after eating. Like many human men, a full belly was all they needed to pass out for the night.

  I froze when I heard a voice.

  “Did you sleep well?” A female spoke.

  “It’s morning already?” A somewhat familiar male voice answered. It was Jared.

  Who was in there with him? I couldn’t place the voice at all.

  “Are you in the mood for some breakfast?”

  A scraping sound caught my attention. What was that? Chains? “Like I’m going to eat anything you give me?”

  “Would you rather starve to death? These bears are just dumb enough they’d probably eat you for breakfast.”

  Who the hell was this bitch?

  “Or you could let me go.”

  The female laughed. “That’s not going to happen yet, although once things are done I might. You’re starting to grow on me.”

  “Great. Maybe we can just speed up the process then.” Jared was trying to play things off like he was in control, but he obviously wasn’t. Was he the kind of guy who could never admit defeat?

  “If you don’t want breakfast, I’ll leave then. Maybe you’ll change your mind at lunch.”

  “That’s doubtful.”

  “You will.”

  I crouched down low as I waited for the woman to pass. I watched eagerly to see who it was. I took in a sharp breath as a robed figure walked down the passage carrying a candle. Those robes belonged to the boss. The boss was female? And what was she doing with Jared?

  I waited until I couldn’t hear or smell her anymore before sniffing my way around to find the entrance to the room where Jared was.

  “I know you’re in here. Who is it this time?” Jared yelled out.

  Damn it. He was going to blow my cove
r. It was pitch black, so I followed his voice.

  “Who is it? Speak!”

  I had no choice, if he kept yelling we’d both be dead. I shifted back to my human form. “Shut up, idiot.”

  “Vera?” He said my name with a familiarity he shouldn’t have had considering we’d barely spent any time together. I couldn’t believe he knew my voice so quickly. Then again I’d recognized his.

  “Yes, now stop talking so I can get you out of here.”

  I reached around for the chains but ended up grabbing something else. Something that should have been covered up by clothes. “Are you naked?”

  “Uh, yeah. Not by choice.”

  “Great.” I carefully avoided his lower region as I found the chains. “You really couldn’t break these yourself?”

  “No.” He moved, making more noise with the chains. What was wrong with him? Did he want to get caught? “She did something to me. Some sort of crazy magic.”

  There was my answer. The boss was a witch. I’d suspected magic, but I hadn’t been allowed close enough to the boss to find out for sure. Did Murphy realize that’s who he was working for? He looked down on witches, and any other paranormals out there. “It’s got to be strong magic to work on you.”

  “Tell me about it.”

  “I need to shift back to break these.”

  “Okay.” He moved his arm, brushing his hand against my chest. “And you’re naked?”

  “Nice one, Captain Obvious.” I tried to ignore the surge of excitement that went through me from his touch. It had been just an accident.

  “Weren’t you supposed to be shifting?”

  “Yeah.” Jerk. I let my animal side take over and the familiar strength and instincts pulsed through my veins. I used my claws to break through the chains. I couldn’t get the ones on his legs with my paws, so I used my mouth.

  I stayed as a bear and nudged him to move. Hopefully he’d get the hint.

  “Did you just bite those chains? Is your mouth that good as a human?”

  I couldn’t talk to him as a bear. He was lucky. He would have had another thing coming.

  “You wouldn’t happen to have any extra clothes, would you?”

  I pushed into his side harder. He needed to shut up.

  “Ok, I get it.”

  It was strange walking next to Jared as a bear. I couldn’t get the same read on him.

  He let out a groan. I wished I were in my human form so I could see what was wrong. Was he hurt? Was I really worrying about that? What was wrong with me? I pushed my head into his side to keep him moving.

  He patted my head. Was he serious?

  We moved slowly through the passage. I had no clue who was awake, and that witch was still around. When we reached the fork I pushed against him again to make sure he followed me toward the back entrance. He bent down. “Why should we walk further into this place?”

  I’d never been more frustrated by a lack of ability to speak before. Usually it was one of the nice parts of being in my bear form. Some things were easier when talking wasn’t involved.

  Before I could worry about it for long (or bite him to make him listen), I heard talking. I couldn’t be sure where it was coming from, but I wasn’t going to take a chance. I quickly shifted back. I needed to be able to communicate with Jared. I yanked on his arm and pulled him back into a crevice. The space was tiny, and considering we were naked, it wasn’t exactly the most comfortable hiding place ever.

  “She’s dead if he ever finds her.”

  I didn’t need to listen long to realize the male voice was talking about me. I also knew exactly who it was, Jim, an annoying member of the pact.

  “I can’t believe she’d do that.”

  “The girl was her sister.”

  “So? She’s been with our pack for years. That should count for something.”

  Jim lowered his voice to a whisper. “Yeah, but maybe she didn’t feel loyal to the boss. She is a witch after all.”

  “Shut up!” The second voice, it was his friend Ray, snapped. “Do you want to get us both killed?”

  “How do we know she isn’t going to turn on us too?” The first one asked. “I mean we know she’s more powerful than us. We should get rid of her while we can.”

  “It’s too bad about Vera though.” Ray’s voice was louder. It sounded like he was right next to us. I took in a breath.

  “Why?”

  “She’s hot. I didn’t even get any from her yet.”

  Wow. Abrupt subject change.

  “I did. You missed out.” That son of a bitch. I didn’t sleep with him. Jared’s breathing picked up next to me and he let out a tiny noise.

  “Did you hear that?” Jim asked.

  I wanted to smack Jared. Really? Did he have to blow our cover?

  “I thought I heard something from over there.”

  I held my breath and pushed myself as flat against Jared as possible. The problem was he was facing me, and he wasn’t staying flat, at least not all of him was.

  “Shit, we’re late,” Jim yelled. “It was probably just a bat or something.”

  When their voices faded away I finally stepped away from Jared. Being naked next to him when he was just as naked wasn’t good for the sexual tension that buzzed between us despite our precarious situation. “Just follow me.”

  “To our death? Why walk further into the cave?”

  “I’m the one who came back to save you,” I hissed. “Give me some credit.”

  “But why? Why double back that way?”

  “Trust me on this. There’s another way.”

  “You better be right.”

  “It’s my life on the line too.”

  “I know.” He let out a deep breath. “Thanks.”

  “I’d say no problem, but it was one.”

  He laughed.

  “I’m shifting back.” I quickly moved back into my bear form. Hopefully I’d gotten my point across, and he’d follow.

  Chapter Seven

  Casey

  Coffee Heaven looked just about the same as it always did. We’d waited around long enough that the morning crowd had already passed through the place, leaving nearly all the tables empty and surprisingly clean. I wondered who was working that morning.

  I got my answer moments later when Eric walked out from the back. If two people had been working, one would have been at the counter. “Are you actually running the place yourself?”

  “What’s a manager supposed to do when his employees up and disappear?” There was a different sort of teasing in his voice that I preferred to the creepy one he usually used with me. I wasn’t sure exactly what had changed, but I liked it.

  “Yeah, well, next time I’ll tell my kidnappers to wait for me to call in first.”

  He wrapped his arms around me in a nearly bone crunching hug.

  I stood there startled for a moment until Toby cleared his throat.

  “Sorry.” Eric stepped back. “I’m just glad you’re okay.”

  “Me too.” I smiled. It was still a little bit awkward with Eric. Finding out he was a bear was one thing, but knowing that he’d been hiding my true identity from me since I met him made it worse. I reminded myself that he really was only trying to help me. That seemed to be a pattern lately. People were holding things back from me in order to protect me.

  “I assume this isn’t a social call, so what’s up?” He pointed up at the ceiling.

  Toby nodded and put a finger in front of his lips. I assumed all the charades meant that the place might be bugged.

  “We’re just stopping in for some coffee. Casey says I can’t brew it for anything.”

  I smiled. I was definitely not a coffee snob. Hopefully whoever was listening in didn’t know that.

  Eric banged down a display on the counter. I assumed he was trying to make it sound like he was working. “We’re actually all out of the kind she likes.”

  “That’s too bad. Any suggestions of where else we can get it? I promised Casey a
good cup of coffee this morning.” Toby was laying it on too thick. Or maybe it was all a code I didn’t quite understand.

  The jingling of the door announced a customer. Eric and I looked at each other, and I nodded. I’d help the person while he set up a meeting with Toby. They quickly walked into the back room.

  “Hi. Can I help you?” I hurried back behind the counter. I didn’t bother with an apron.

  “Hey, I haven’t seen you in here in a while.”

  I looked harder at the girl. Did I know her from somewhere?

  “No. I’ve been away.” That was putting it mildly.

  “I get that. It’s been a busy summer for everyone. I’m taking a bunch of business classes myself.”

  Business classes. Then I remembered. “You dyed your hair. It looks great.” I hadn’t recognized the girl with her black locks. They’d been blond the last time she’d been in.

  “Thanks!”

  “Do you want your usual latte?” I smiled to myself. I prided myself on remembering faces and drinks.

  “Yes, that would be great.”

  I prepared the girl her drink—a low fat latte with whipped cream. I’d decided on day one not to mention how pointless it was to use low-fat milk if you’re just going to smother it in heavy whipped cream. It wasn’t my place. Sometimes we all need to be a little delusional—or give ourselves the smallest of treats.

  As soon as the customer left and turned the corner I flipped the open sign to closed. Toby and Eric walked back out.

  I wiped down the counter out of habit and turned to the guys. “Where else can we go for that kind of coffee?”

  “I’ll show you.” Toby smiled, and I followed him out the door. Eric trailed out behind us.

  Toby glanced over his shoulder. “In the mood for a boat trip?”

  “A boat trip?” That was the last thing I was in the mood for, but I assumed there was a good reason Toby was suggesting it.

  “Yes. Well that’s only after we take a flight first.”

  A flight sounded much better. “A flight?” I turned to Eric. “How are you getting there?”

  He ran a hand through his blond hair. “I’m not coming.”

  “Oh, I assumed that’s why you’re walking with us.” I knew he wasn’t coming to enjoy our company. He wasn’t exactly best friends with Toby, although they did seem to end up having more meetings than you’d think.