by Jane Jamison
She was to the point of begging. If she’d known what kind of trouble she’d cause, she never would’ve let Jasmine talk her into going. “Please, Daddy. They didn’t touch me and they didn’t hurt me.” Her gaze jumped to a nervous-looking Marty. “None of them. They didn’t bother me at all. Let’s go home, okay?”
For the first time, her father seemed to acknowledge that he was outnumbered by the werewolves. Still, it wouldn’t have stopped him if he’d thought they’d harmed her. He took her roughly by the arm. “Girl, you have a lot of explaining when we get home.”
With a growl, he whirled them around to head in the other direction. When she glanced over her shoulder, Case and Brennan were still watching her, their sad expressions making her humiliation complete.
Chapter Two
Present day
“That’s pretty, honey. Although I’m not too fond of the animal on the front.” Evelyn Monroe held the blouse out and shook it, drawing Nicole’s attention away from the one she’d held up to show her mother.
“So you don’t really like it, do you? Why not just say so, Mom?” Her mother’s tactics hadn’t changed. She’d say she liked whatever Nicole picked out and then show her a different item that fit more with her style than with her daughter’s.
“No, I do.” Her mother wrinkled her nose. “Although it’s a little flashy for my taste.”
Which, as far as Nicole was concerned, was the point. Still, she couldn’t turn down her mother’s choice. If she did, she’d have little to no chance of getting out of the store with the clothes she liked. “You might be right, but I’d like to go ahead and try it on.” She took the one her mother was still waving. “And the one you chose, too.”
“Oh, good. The color is perfect for your complexion.”
Yeah, it’s perfect. And something my grandmother would’ve worn.
Nicole headed for the single dressing room located at the back of the store. Shopping in the small town of Shatland was hard enough without arguing with her mother. Whenever she could, she and Jasmine would sneak off and go into Forever where the owner of the local boutique didn’t care that she was a werebear as long as she paid in cash. They’d get into the store, buy what they wanted, and be out before any of the other werewolves in town knew they were there. Or, if they were really lucky, they’d take a road trip and do shopping the right way at the big department stores in Dallas, good old Big D. By the time they made it back home the next day, their feet would hurt, their wallets would be empty, and their credit cards would be maxed out.
She hurried into the dressing room, hung up the blouse her mother had selected, then tried on the T-shirt with the roaring lion’s head on the front. The shirt fit her curves with just enough snugness but not too much to look slutty. She’d pay for it, of course. Her job at Ethel’s Beauty Box brought her enough money to do what she wanted, especially to pay for her own clothes. That, and saving up to open her own salon one day. Still, even though her mother had offered a free shopping trip, she knew better than to expect her mom to pay for anything she didn’t like.
Her parents were wonderful. Loving, kind, and everything she and her older brother Sam could have ever wanted. But they were as stubborn as a rock pushing against a hard place. Both of them had their opinions and they stuck to them. And, as long as one of their kids was living with them, they made sure that kid played by their rules. As werebear parents went, they were even stricter than most. At twenty-two, she shouldn’t let them influence her so much. But why fight them if it wasn’t worth it? She liked to pick and choose her battles wisely.
By the time she came out of the dressing room, her mother had a stack of clothing in her arms, all for her to try on. “Mom, you can’t be serious? I don’t need so many things.”
“What’s need got to do with it? Go on. Make your mother happy. Give them a try. If you like them, then great. If you don’t?” She shrugged. “Then you don’t.”
Yeah, right. And if I don’t choose at least one of those ugly things, she’ll be offended and I’ll feel guilty.
“Okay. But I’m going through these fast. Don’t forget you promised to stop by Mrs. Cosgrove’s.”
“I remember. Are you sure you don’t want to go with me?”
Abso-fucking-lutely. “No thanks. You two don’t get together often enough. I’ll stop by Jasmine’s and see what she’s up to.”
“Probably up to no good as usual.”
Ever since her father had hauled her butt back home from the werewolf bonfire party six years earlier and then found out Jasmine had talked her into going in the first place, her friend had been on their shit list. “Mom, she’s my best friend. Please, don’t talk about her in a bad way, okay?”
“Oh, all right. I’ll try not to.”
Which meant she’d keep on saying whatever the hell she wanted. “Thanks.”
Fifteen long minutes later, she emerged again from the dressing room with one God-awful shirt selected. It was the cheapest of all of them.
“Hey, look at you. Great minds think alike, I guess. That’s the shirt I would’ve chosen.” Her mother frowned at the pile. “Are you sure you didn’t like any of the others?”
“Not a one.” Nicole waved to Mrs. Hollis, the owner of the store. “Two separate purchases, please. Mom’s buying this one and I’m getting the lion shirt.”
Another fifteen minutes crept by as her mother tried to talk her out of buying the lion shirt. By the time they walked out into the sunlight, Nicole was exhausted and ready for a much-needed break.
“Are you sure you don’t want me to drive you to Jasmine’s?”
And have you stick up your nose at her? “No, thanks, Mom. I want to walk. Here. You take the purchases for me, okay?” She had to tell herself not to push her mother toward her car too fast. No matter how much she couldn’t wait to get free.
“If you’re sure.”
“I’m positive. See you at dinner, okay?”
She stood on the sidewalk and watched as her mother backed the car out of the parking space—almost running into Bert Wallin’s oncoming truck. She waved as her mother slowly drove down the main road of Shatland.
Taking out her phone, she pressed the speed dial button for Jasmine. “Hey, it’s me. I finally got free. Yeah. You know how it is.”
She started walking, passing by several people she knew. Most of those she passed were werebears. The others, those who stayed in the shadows, were the few vampires who ventured out during the day.
As usual, Jasmine dominated the conversation. And, as usual, Nicole only half listened to her. Instead, her gaze slid from one person to the next. It was a habit she’d cultivated for the past six years. A habit that had never been of any use. But she couldn’t stop.
Maybe, just maybe, one day, she’d see them again.
She was insane to expect them to come back to Forever. They’d left, no doubt to see more of the world. Why would they want to return to a boring small Texas town? Wasn’t that the definition of insanity? Doing the same thing over and over expecting a different result? Or was it wishing for the something to happen that was impossible?
“You’re doing it again,” accused Jasmine.
Nicole snapped out of it. “What are you talking about?”
“I’ll bet you’re walking down the street, scanning from side to side, looking for Case and Brennan.”
Case and Brennan. They always used their first names as though she’d become fast friends with them. Nothing could be farther from the truth. Yet it was no use lying to Jasmine. “So what if I am? I’m not hurting anyone.”
“Yes, you are. You’re hurting yourself. Give it up. They moved away from Forever six months after that damn party. You’re not going to run into them on the street.”
She couldn’t give up. Not after years of dreaming about them. A part of her knew it was ridiculous to hang on to a fantasy, but she couldn’t control what her mind did while she slept. And she didn’t want to anyway. “I’m telling you, I felt something that night. It was the
connection.”
“That’s bullshit and you know it. If you felt it, then they should’ve felt it. And if they’d felt it then—”
“They never would’ve left town.” She’d heard the same argument too many times to count. She was right, of course. If they’d felt the connection, nothing could’ve gotten them out of town. Jasmine made sense. But what did sense have to do with love?
She came back with the same argument she’d used in the past. “I heard they left town because they had to. They left to go and help their uncle get his ranch going in Montana.”
Jasmine’s exasperated sigh floated through the air waves. “That was a rumor. We don’t know for sure. Besides, the reason they left doesn’t matter. They left and they haven’t come back. What else do you need to know?”
Damn, she hated it when Jasmine was right. “Yeah. I guess so.”
“No guessing about it. But it won’t make a damn bit of difference, will it? You’re going to keep on hoping, aren’t you?”
“No.” Yes.
“Why didn’t you leave Shatland and go after them?”
Because she’d been underage until last year. Because finding out where they were would’ve meant getting the information from the werewolves. Werewolves who hadn’t grown any fonder of werebears in the last few years. “You know why.”
“Then I don’t know what to tell you. Until you get it through your head that what you felt wasn’t really the connection, you’re never going to let it go.”
“I’m trying.” Sort of. “But how will I know for sure until I see them again?”
“I just hope you don’t miss meeting your real mate because of this dream of yours. Hopefully, when you feel the connection for real, you’ll forget all about Case and Brennan.”
“We can always hope.” It would be a whole lot easier if she did meet someone else. One or two men, werebear males, who would turn out to be her real mates. Until then, she’d keep on dreaming.
Besides, she’d already felt the bond that brought all shifter mates together. Growing up, she’d listened to other shifters as they described what it felt like to have the connection with their future mates. Then when it had happened, she’d known. Maybe not that night, but once she’d thought about it and compared it to what others had said about the connection, she’d known. Case and Brennan were her mates. She couldn’t turn her back on what she knew to be the truth.
“Damn it, Jasmine, I know what I felt.”
“It was years ago. You were just a boy-crazy teenager.”
“Hey! I wasn’t boy crazy. You were.”
“Sorry. No, you weren’t a boy-crazy teenager.”
She waited, knowing Jasmine well enough to expect more.
“But you’re acting like a boy-crazy adult. Whatever it was you felt was just what any teenage girl would’ve felt. It wasn’t the connection.”
She couldn’t bring herself to argue any longer. “Fine. I get it. It wasn’t the connection.”
“Besides, they’re werewolves. Have you ever heard of a werebear connecting with a werewolf? Can you imagine minds blowing all over Forever and Shatland if that actually happened? Your father’s head would be the first to explode.”
“Yeah. I know. We’re two different shifters from two different towns. And from two different groups of people who don’t like each other. You’re right. I should forget all about them.”
Forgetting about Case and Brennan would be the sensible thing to do. Even if they’d shared the sizzling bond all mates shared when meeting, how could two werewolves and a werebear be together? And yet, weren’t they all humans, too? Didn’t the human side of them count for anything?
“You’re just saying so to end the discussion, aren’t you? You’re treating me like you do your mother. Damn, Nicole, that’s messed up.”
She was placating Jasmine just like she did her mom, all right. “I’m sorry. But I know how I felt. How I feel. I know damn well it was the connection.”
“Okay, okay. I can’t change your mind so why try? Let’s talk about something else.”
“Good idea. How about—” She froze, the air around her thickening. Blinking once, then twice, she stared at the two men crossing the road. People around them gave them a wide path, but she could see the snarls on the others’ faces and hear their low growls.
“Nic, what’s up? Are you still there?”
Was she? Or had she fallen, hit her head, and gone blissfully into a coma, then straight into her dreams? “I’ll call you back.”
“Wait! What’s going on? Nicole?”
She didn’t hear the rest of whatever Jasmine said as she ended the call, then slipped her phone into her jeans pocket. Numbly, she watched as Case and Brennan Cagle strolled toward her.
* * * *
“I told you we’d find her soon enough.” Brennan slapped the back of his hand against Case’s chest and picked up the pace. Nicole was walking along the sidewalk, her phone to her ear, oblivious that they were anywhere near.
Case clutched the back of his shirt, slowing him. “Down, boy. Remember where we are.”
“I don’t give a fuck. I’ve waited too long to see her again and I’m not waiting a second longer.”
Case was just as anxious to see her as he was. Ever since the night at the bonfire years earlier, they’d thought of her every day. Hell, every night, both in their waking hours and while asleep. They’d felt the connection with her long ago and, since they were all adults now, they were ready to send the connection soaring even hotter.
“We did what we had to do and that’s what we’re going to do now.”
His brother was right. Although it had been harder than hell to do, they’d left Forever, needing to get away from Nicole before they screwed up and did something that would’ve brought the people of Shatland and Forever to the brink of a shifter war.
She’d been sixteen, and they’d only been two and four years older at the time. Although they would’ve been allowed to claim a mate, a mate they would share, her age and her being a werebear had made their union impossible. Instead, they’d done what they’d had to do. They’d gotten out of town, determined to wait until she turned twenty-one.
But that had been over a year ago. They hadn’t planned on life getting in the way. Not only had they gotten involved in helping their uncle get his ranch up and going, they’d ended up having to stay even longer. The cancer had ravaged their human uncle, leaving him incapable of doing any work. They’d stayed on, doing what was right by their uncle, until he’d finally succumbed to the disease a month earlier. Although their uncle had left the ranch to them in his will, they hadn’t wanted it. Instead, they’d sold everything and headed home.
Home to Forever, Texas.
Home to Nicole.
“Don’t make a scene, Brennan.”
He dragged in a deep breath. “People are already staring at us. How much more of a scene can we make?”
“If I did what I want to do? A hell of a lot bigger scene. I’d get our asses busted so fast we wouldn’t know what hit us.”
Brennan grinned. “If you’re thinking the same thing I want to do to her, then, yeah, you would. But it’d be worth it.”
“You’re right, but we have to think of her.”
At that moment, Nicole shifted her gaze in their direction. She came to an abrupt stop, her eyes widening as she shoved the phone into her pocket.
“She’s seen us.”
His pulse raced. She was even more beautiful than she’d been as a teenage girl. Her figure had filled out, giving her more womanly curves. Her breasts were larger, yet not too big. Her hair flowing around her shoulders made him ache to tunnel his fingers through the brunette strands. She was dressed in a T-shirt and jeans, but she couldn’t have looked any better if she’d been wearing an expensive jeweled gown and a diamond tiara.
“Damn, man. She’s even better-looking than before.”
“Let’s hope she thinks the same about us.” He started walking faster, but again,
Case slowed him down. “Damn it, bro, will you quit stopping me?”
“We can’t meet up in the middle of the damn town.” Case stepped out in front of him, then jerked his head to the side, indicating the alley between two buildings.
“They’ll see us go into the alley. What good’s that going to do?”
“Not if we wait a little. I’m counting on her catching the hint and knowing to be sneaky about it.”
Sure enough, Nicole’s gaze flicked toward the alley. Then, pivoting around, she headed in the opposite direction.
“Great. So either she got the hint and she’s going to meet us in the alley in a while, or she got the hint and headed the other way on purpose.”
“Maybe.” Case grabbed his arm yet again, making a quick right turn to head away from Nicole. “We’ll find out soon enough.”
* * * *
They’re back.
Nicole rubbed her arms, unable to believe she’d really seen them. Was it her imagination playing tricks on her? Had she seen two guys who only looked like the Cagle brothers or had she really seen them? But no two guys could ever compare to the real men. They were bigger, stronger, more handsome than she remembered. Their broad shoulders filled out their shirts, their lean waists leading to perfectly fit jeans that had seen better days like their worn boots. While Case wore black—a black hat and black shirt—Brennan had gone the opposite way with a white hat and white shirt. They were the best sides of a similar coin and she couldn’t wait to cash them in.
Oh, my God. Case and Brennan are back.
Maybe if she ran the words through her mind enough times, she’d actually believe it.
She’d picked up on Case’s subtle hint to meet them in the alley. And she’d known enough not to head straight for the meeting place. It had taken every ounce of willpower she had to put her back to them and walk away, but she’d done it. All for the chance to meet them in secret.
The next twenty minutes had been spent roaming around town, letting as many people see her as she could. Then, once she’d thought she’d let enough time pass, she’d slipped out the back of the All Night Pharmacy and into the road running behind the length of the shops, then over to the alley. She was thankful the vampire, Deacon Slater, hadn’t seen her. He was one of only a few people who dared to have businesses in both Shatland and Forever.