by V. Vaughn
After the exam, I wait outside for Lucy to finish. When she walks out I ask, “How was it?”
“I actually think I knew what I was doing. Thanks to you.”
“You’re welcome. But you were smart enough to have figured it out without my help. You don’t give yourself enough credit.”
“Hey, do you want pizza in the room for dinner while we study instead of the cafeteria?”
“Definitely.”
“Good. Be ready to party when you get back from your date.”
I grin at her. “It’s not a date. He wants to talk to me about my job.”
“Right.” She hits my arm lightly. “Whatever you say.”
The parking lot where I keep my car is ahead, and before we part, Lucy says, “You look hot. That shirt makes your eyes look really green.”
“Thanks.” I give her a quick wave and make my way to my car.
The drive to the Cat’s Meow takes less than five minutes, and when I pull into the parking lot, I find a spot next to Keith’s Jeep. It’s a warm day, and I get out of my air-conditioned car to humid heat that makes my skin sticky by the time I’m at the entrance.
Keith is standing by the hostess station waiting for me. He’s in a polo shirt that’s strained across his chest and shows off his massive arms. I wonder where he gets his clothes, because he’s beyond extra large. He smiles and asks, “Did you crush it?”
I smirk. “Probably.”
I’m rewarded with his deep laugh, and it reaches all the way to the pit of my stomach to set a fire burning. My attraction is definitely too strong for me to deny, and I hope it’s the same for him.
I take in our surroundings as the hostess leads us to the back of the room. White tablecloths are on the tables, and a splash of red color adds vibrancy to the atmosphere. The scent of something curried makes my stomach growl when a waiter walks by.
Keith says, “I heard that.” Once we’re seated, he says, “I’m glad you’re hungry, because maybe I won’t look like such a pig when I order two lunches.”
“No way. You’d be a much sexier animal.” The menu is cool in my hands when I pick it up to browse the selections. And to hide my blush.
Keith pulls it down to gaze into my eyes. “Are you flirting with me?”
I close my eyes as my face reddens. “No.”
“Tori.” I open my eyes when he strokes my cheek with a finger. “This is me flirting with you.”
My jaw drops so far it almost hits my chest. Oh my god!
“I know you’re too young, and I know we shouldn’t, but I want to start something with you.”
“You do?”
He nods. “There’s a reason we’re attracted to each other, and it can’t be denied no matter how hard I try.”
I think about the words Lucy said earlier. “Sometimes attraction can’t be denied.” “So is this a date?”
Keith takes my hand. His warmth is overwhelming, and my pulse quickens when he says, “Yes. This is a date.” His jaw clenches as if he’s thinking about something unpleasant, but it’s brief, and he adds, “Now I really am starving, so let’s get lunch.”
My eyes glaze over as I try to read the words on my menu, because I want to squeal and tell my sisters and tell Lucy, and... “I need to use the restroom, but if the waitress comes, would you order me the curry thing they have on the menu please?”
The bathroom is a two-stall affair, and I stand by the sink to grab my phone. I quickly text Lucy.
It’s a date!!!!!
I decide to use the restroom after all, and a woman walks in after I close my door. When I wash my hands, she joins me. Water rushes as I glance in the mirror at myself. The woman is standing next to me, and her green eyes widen at the sight of me. They’re the same unusual shade as mine, and I realize she’s a thinner, older version of me.
I must mimic her reaction, because she asks, “What’s your name?”
“Tori. Short for Victoria.”
Her lips purse as her brow knits, making her appear mean. I’ll have to remember not to make that face. She says, “Interesting. Do you live around here?”
“I go to Orono.” A paper towel tears from the roll, and I wipe my hands as I ask, “We’re almost like doppelgangers or something, aren’t we?”
The woman’s expression warms up with a smile. “Maybe we are.”
“Cool.” The door squeaks as I push my way out. I glance over at Keith, and he smiles as he watches me approach.
When I sit, I say, “The neatest thing just happened. I met a woman who could almost be my doppelganger.”
“Really?”
I turn my head back toward the restroom just as the woman exits. She waves at me with a smile. “Yeah, she’s coming out of the bathroom now.”
Keith grabs my hand and grips so tightly it hurts. I whip around to see why, and something not quite real flashes in his eyes. “Don’t ever talk to the woman again. She’s beyond evil.”
I blink at his anger. “Okay. Sure.”
He rakes a hand through his hair. “Let’s get lunch to go. We can eat in the park or something.” Keith raises his hand to the waitress, and she scurries over.
His behavior is strange, but for whatever reason, he really wants to get away from the woman, and I sense I shouldn’t ask questions. I watch numbly as he hands the server a wad of cash and tells her what he wants.
It must have been a lot of money, because the to-go bag arrives faster than I thought humanly possible, and we’re out the door. Keith takes my arm and pulls me close as if he needs to protect me, and when we get to our cars, he asks, “Do you have any more finals today?”
“No.” I tug at my arm, and Keith finally lets go. “You’re kind of freaking me out here.”
“Sorry.” His voice is softer now, and his eyes are back to normal. “Do you have any plans for the rest of the afternoon?”
“Not really. But tonight, Lucy and I are going to do a study session in our room. Why?”
Keith’s face lights up with a boyish smile. “Because I have someplace fun to take you. Can I steal you for the whole afternoon?”
I’m confused by his abrupt change but say, “Sure.”
“Good. We can go drop your car, and I’ll bring you back to campus later.”
“Okay.”
The heavy door to my vehicle slams as he shuts me in, and when I glance in the rearview mirror before I back up, my green eyes make me flash to the woman’s face. A shiver runs through me, and something makes me sure I’m going to see her again, no matter what Keith says.
Chapter 6
Lucy
I’m at the library and supposed to be studying for my last final, but all I can think about is Sven. Yesterday Carly got home before he returned from his run, and it bought me some time to accept my new twist of fate. What am I supposed to do with a feral polar bear as a mate? I let out a big sigh, and the guy across the table from me sends me the stink eye. I probably shouldn’t be on the serious floor, since this is where people actually study.
Paper rustles as I gather my things to leave. The metal panic bar thuds when I push my way out to the stairwell, and I slow the door’s return with my hand so it won’t slam. My footsteps echo as I descend the stairs. While I can’t get the image of Sven’s body out of my mind, who he is still overpowers it. I’m supposed to be with a guy who comes from a past so different from mine that I’m not sure what to say or do to keep from offending him.
Growing up wealthy has always been a blessing for me. I never cared what others thought of my good fortune, and I attributed any snide remarks made toward me to jealousy. But Sven doesn’t act jealous, and his opinion does matter to me. What will he think when he discovers I’m not much more than a rich girl whose punishment for bad grades is to live in a dorm like everyone else?
Heavy air hits me when I open the door to get outside. I glance up at the dark sky about to open up and relieve us of the humidity. I wonder how Tori’s lunch went. As much as I object to her dating Keith, my attrac
tion to Sven makes me understand how hard it is for her to ignore how she feels.
I wonder what it will be like for her when she discovers she’s half werebear, though. I’ve heard that the change is really painful, and I frown imagining it. But I’ll make sure to be there for her. I smile. It will make things between us easier. I lucked out with her as a roommate, because we really clicked, and she’s become a good friend.
A flash of lightning makes me quicken my step so I don’t get caught in the rain that’s sure to follow. When the thunder roars, I jog to my dorm as fat raindrops splash on the pavement. I’m soaked by the time I get inside, and the chill of air conditioning is multiplied by my wet clothing. When I get to my room, I’m surprised Tori isn’t here. It’s almost time for dinner, and I’m hungry.
I don’t have to wait long. Once I’ve changed my clothes, she arrives. She’s barely wet, and I ask, “Did the rain slow down?”
“No. Keith drove me right up to the door.” She’s got a grin a mile wide.
“And? I need deets.”
“And I just had the most amazing afternoon.” She plops down on her bed. “So first we went to lunch, and I said something embarrassing about him being hot.” Her hands are moving as she speaks quickly. “And he asked if I was flirting. I wanted to die, but then he touched my cheek.” She sighs as she reaches up and does it, too. “He said that he was flirting with me.”
“Aw, he’s adorable.”
“I know, right? But then I went to the bathroom, and the weirdest thing happened. I met a woman in there, and she looked so much like me she could have been my mother. Only my mother doesn’t look like her. She thought I was nuts when I asked if we were doppelgangers. But that’s not the strangest part.”
She gets up, because apparently her excitement needs full-body motions. “When Keith saw her, he freaked out and got all protective and stuff. He told me she was evil and to never speak to her again.”
A chill runs down my spine. “That is super creepy.” I stare at Tori as puzzle pieces click into place. The straight dark hair. The green eyes. I can’t believe I never noticed it; she’s a Veilleux.
“Yeah. So he got our lunch to go, and we went to his house to eat it.” She stops and hunches up her shoulders as a dreamy look covers her face. “He has the most amazing back yard. It’s like a fairy forest, and you can see it through an entire glass wall of his house. I swear it’s just like my dreams.”
“Whoa. You saw the exact same house from your dreams?”
“Yup.” Her intense stare is emphasized by the green of her eyes as they widen. “It’s the craziest thing, because Keith says he has the same dreams. I know I should be weirded out by that, but I’m not.”
I frown. “So now you guys are a thing?”
“I guess. He wants us to take things slowly.”
I’ll bet. It can’t be easy to tell someone that you’re a werebear and they’re one, too. “That sounds very grown up of you,” I say with a smirk.
She squeals and throws herself back down on her bed. “I have to call my sisters. This is too good not to share.” She bolts back up. “Wait. I’ve blabbered on about Keith, and I forgot you met some guy. You need to tell me all about it.”
Now it’s my turn to get animated, and I tell her about Sven while leaving out the polar bear parts. But I do share the shirt story because it’s too good not to.
When I’m done, Tori gets up and walks over to her backpack. “Should we order the pizza? Because I really need to study tonight.”
“On it.”
An hour later, our stomachs are full, and I’m struggling to concentrate. I stare at the ceiling, and Tori says, “I bet I can guess what you’re thinking.”
I smile as I turn to look at her. “Yeah, I don’t think blond hair and massive arms are going to be on the exam tomorrow.”
She says, “So I need to find an apartment this summer. Are you going to go home, or would you be interested in rooming with me?”
I think about how nice it’s been to have a friend to share things with this year, and I say, “That sounds great. I have some connections already, so it shouldn’t be too hard to find something we like.” I glance down at my notes for tomorrow’s final. “But if I don’t get a good grade in philosophy, my parents might have me in summer school.”
“Yeah. I need to focus, too.”
I try once again to concentrate, but this time it’s not Sven who is distracting me. Instead I’m thinking about what Tori said about Patricia Veilleux. If Tori is related to the Veilleux clan, she’s going to need protection. No way will Patricia let a Veilleux descendant get mixed up with the Le Roux. Patricia lost her son, Victor, to them, and I doubt she’s about to let Tori help secure the next Le Roux generation.
When I get to work tomorrow, I’d better share this with Carly. Because something tells me more than two mate attractions were set in motion this week. I glance over at my innocent human roommate. Oh, Tori. I tried to warn you. Except fate had other ideas. And I think both our lives are about to be turned upside-down.
Chapter 7
Annie
Because I’ve already had one fancy wedding, I don’t want my second one to be too much. I sigh as I take my cup of coffee outside to wander through my gardens. The early morning air is cool, and my feet dampen with dew. Of course, the moment Tristan pointed out that I also become a prima that day, my idea of a simple garden ceremony with just immediate family was scrapped. Instead, I’m going to have to invite the other alpha leaders in our council, which means Richard and Marion Robichaux as well as Lily and Patricia Veilleux.
Lily is a human who the Le Roux called. Unfortunately, she ended up being Victor Veilleux’s true mate and is now his widow, a stepmother to infant triplets and the acting leader of her clan until one of her children is old enough to take over. She’s also my friend.
I stoop down to yank at a weed. The earthy scent that follows wafts up my nose. I imagine it’s stressful to have a clan that lacks an alpha. And I chide myself for not doing a better job of keeping in touch with her. I pull out my phone to send Lily a text and arrange a lunch date. We’ve got a lot to catch up on.
Once I’m done texting, I resign myself to returning inside to make the guest list. The number will determine the rest of my plans. But I already fear my wedding is going to be a big affair despite my wishes. My stomach rolls with nerves as a greater concern floods my mind. I need to understand what I’ve taken on with Tristan’s girls and Helga. I don’t think it’s going to be an easy conversation.
The screen door slams behind me as I enter the house, and Tristan smiles at me when I enter the kitchen. I walk over to him and wrap my arms around his waist as he pours a cup of coffee. “Just the man I need to see.”
He turns, breaking my embrace, and lifts my chin to give me a quick kiss. “I’m all yours, love. What do you need?”
“Explanations.”
His smile falls. “Yes. I suppose you do. Where is my mother?”
“She went out for a run a little while ago. That woman doesn’t sleep much.” The girls have adjusted to the time difference, and we should have a half hour before they wake.
“No. She doesn’t.” A chair scrapes against the tile as he pulls it out from the table to sit.
I seat myself across from him and take the hand he offers. “Tell me about her condition. I suspect she has mental issues.”
He nods. “My mother is bipolar.” He lets out a tiny laugh that is not from amusement. “Got to love the irony of that one. Anyway, all human medications for it don’t work, and as far as I know, there is no medical way to contain her mood swings.”
My knowledge of the condition is not vast, and I ask, “Explain how they work in Helga’s case.”
“She seems to follow the patterns of the sun. And if I’m correct, it’s the arctic pattern, since she’s not crashing at night here. Right now she’s approaching her manic phase and will be harder to contain each day until the summer solstice.”
“
Contain?” Visions of a cage come to mind. “How exactly do you do that?”
“We keep an eye on her. She tends to make crazy decisions and do odd things. He glances out the window at the flower beds. “Like plant an entire set of gardens overnight.”
“Oh, Tristan.” I gaze outside at the array of color and recall how I showed her videos online to learn about gardening and then she took it upon herself to stay up all night to plant my flower beds. “That’s tough. Has she always been like this?”
“Yes. I’m sure you can imagine my childhood now.”
I frown, because while a crazy mother who has too much energy must have been difficult, it doesn’t seem that bad. But that’s her manic phase. I ask, “What about the other half of the year when it’s dark?”
His brow furrows, and he takes a deep breath through his nose before blowing it out. I watch his nostrils enlarge as he does. “Humans get depressed and enter a dark phase of their life where they contemplate suicide. My mother does not.” He takes a sip of his coffee as if he’s trying to find courage in the caffeine. “She gets angry. Her rages make Isabelle’s forest tantrum look like a hissy fit.”
I take a deep breath as well while I fathom what that means. I recall how Isabelle went on a rampage the day Tristan and I sealed our mate bond within hearing distance of her. She thrashed her way through our woods and did enough damage to clear a wide trail. The implications of what my mate said hit me. “Oh my god.”
“God has nothing to do with this. Satan does.”
“Oh, Tristan.” I squeeze his hand. My heart hurts imagining what his childhood had to have been like. “What do we do when September comes?”
He removes his hand from my grasp and closes his fingers into a fist as his stare becomes blank. My mate’s voice is distant when he says, “We contain her. Because it’s my duty to keep her and the clan safe.”
I ask the question I should be afraid to speak. “Has it always been this way?”
Tristan gazes at me without words. He appears to be struggling with what to say, because his chest rises as if he’s going to speak but then falls again. When he finally does, it’s telepathically. “As long as I can remember. My father didn’t have the heart to do what is necessary, but I do. My— Our daughters will never be subjected to my mother’s hand ever again.” He growls loudly and slams his fist on the table hard. A loud crack sounds as he breaks the wood, and his eyes flash. “Never.”