Chapter Ten
Rafe
“You came back.” I wasn’t sure what else to say, but my heart was leaping as I looked up at Pierce. “I owe you an apology.”
“No you don’t. It was a misunderstanding. You never said it was a job at the club.” He looked over at Quill and held out a hand. “I’m Pierce.”
Quill shook but didn’t let go. “Welcome. We’ve been hoping you’d come back.”
“Me?” The human let Quill keep his hand but shook his head, looking beyond puzzled. “I’m not even sure why I did. Who are you, and why do you smell so good?”
“Sit down, and I’ll introduce you.” My heart was beating hard. This couldn’t be the third time I lost a mate—the second time with Pierce, even if he didn’t know it. And the human had to be completely puzzled by the two of us sitting there together. I’d seen the surprise in his expression, which had quickly disappeared, replaced by something I couldn’t read.
But their connection, their hands, their gazes, were electric. My wolf was beating at my chest, wanting out to meet this new mate, the third and final of those Fate would give me in this life. He was sure of that, and since he always seemed to know about such things, I believed him. His instincts were so good that I often wondered what connection our beast had with Fate herself.
But if it was a strong one, wouldn’t he have been able to get us to our original mate before someone with a gun and no heart murdered him? Or in time to save him even? I pushed down the feelings that remembering that day brought back every time they came up.
And now was not the time. A part of me would always hold that person dear, but Fate was moving us on. Taking us into a new time when we could experience joy in mating. What would that be like?
“Rafe?”
“What?” I blinked at Pierce, who it seemed had been trying to get my attention for a minute or more. “I’m sorry. Just taking in what’s happening. It’s a lot for someone who never thought he’d have anyone. And I…I’m sorry again. I’m sorry that I suggested a loveless union to someone who the goddess has named my fated mate. Our fated mate.”
“I’m so confused.” Pierce jerked around to watch a bobcat and raccoon race by. “Why are there animals here? Oh, are they part of the entertainment because it’s named Animals?” He still wasn’t sitting down.
Quill released his hand and stood up. “We have a lot to tell you. What are you drinking?”
“I have a feeling I’d like something strong for this.” Pierce sat down, finally, and slid over. “Maybe two.”
I waved a server over and he recommended one of their specials. “Tastes like punch, punches like so much more.”
“Do you want that?” I wasn’t sure how good an idea it was. I’d heard humans had a low tolerance. “Or maybe something a little less intense?”
“No, sounds perfect.” While the server dashed off to get his drink, he settled in, and Quill sat on his other side. “This whole night is surreal. Did that woman just fly past us?”
“Oh, goodness. All right, what do you know or not know about shifters?” I asked. We needed to know where we had to begin.
His dropped jaw and wide eyes worried me until he said, “I know they exist. When I was in high school, my best friend got very sick one day, and the teacher had me accompany him to the nurse’s office. Halfway there, he dug in his heels and said we had to go outside. The school was backed by a wooded area, and I followed him there. By the time I passed the tree line, my friend was becoming a mountain lion.” He sucked in a breath. “Are the animals here shifters? Is that why it’s called that because it’s a shifter club?”
“They allow everyone, but yes, it’s primarily a club for shifters, and since the only actual animals allowed are the service kind, odds are, every creature you see here is a shifter or…fae.”
“The lady with wings was some sort of fae,” Quill added helpfully. “I can never keep track of them.”
“And are you…you two…like my friend?”
“Sort of,” I said, relieved he had already had a good experience. “What did you feel like when your friend shifted? Were you frightened?”
“No, well, for a minute.” He grinned, revealing an adorable white smile with one incisor just crooked enough to give him personality. “He was a mountain lion, after all, but he wasn’t coming at me or growling, and he was standing in a heap of torn clothes, panting and looking so distressed I just walked up to him and held him close until he stopped shaking.”
“You were there for your friend’s first shift,” I marveled. “That’s a sacred trust. And you took care of him. How brave you were.”
“He was my friend. Still is, in fact.” He shrugged. “And you…are you lions? Raccoons? Skunks?”
Quill shuddered. “Goddess forbid. Trash pandas or stinky kitties?” He threw back his shoulders. “I’m a porcupine. One of nature’s wonders.”
Pierce nodded and faced me. “And your other side? Porcupine, too?”
“No, although I agree that they are magnificent creatures. I’m a wolf.”
“And why am I so drawn to you? I mean, when I left here before, I was confused enough to come back, but now all I want to do is snuggle here between you and breathe you in. That’s not normal.”
“Yes it is.” I lifted his hand and smoothed the back of it. “For shifters. You sure you’re not a polar bear or something?”
“Me?” He jerked free and spluttered, “C-could I be a shifter and not know? After watching Bobby’s first shift, well, it was pretty brutal. Is it always like that?”
“Don’t tease,” Quill chided gently. “There is such a thing as latency, where someone’s first shift is later than usual or even never, which is rare. But if you don’t know of any shifters in your family tree, it’s unlikely that anything will happen to you.”
“Good.” He blinked. “Not that I don’t think it’s awesome to be a shifter, but I’m a little scared of that first time. So, tell me what it’s like otherwise. Bobby moved away shortly after that time and although we’re in touch, I’ve never seen him shift again. I kind of thought it would always be violent, bloody, and painful.”
“Ouch.” I shook my head. “No. It’s not for me, and even the first time isn’t always that bad. Your friend got unlucky there, but he’s probably fine now.”
“Is everyone here a shifter or a fairy or vampire…are there vampires?”
“Everyone is not. There are some other humans here most likely, and yes, there might be vampires. But they are under the strictest regulation when they come in here, and if they pull any shenanigans, they get banished. Nobody wants Animals to banish them.”
Pierce’s drink came, along with another round for us, and we drank them in silence for a few minutes, allowing him to adjust to everything that he’d been exposed to for the first time. Thank heavens for his friend Bobby. I’d have to get his address and send him a nice gift.
“Can I see them?” he suddenly burst out with. “Your animals, I mean?”
“Of course.” I was out of the booth and on my feet in seconds. “My wolf would love to meet you.”
Outside, we undressed and laid our clothes over a bench before taking our fur or quills in Quill’s case. Then we stood still while Pierce walked around us, touching gently and speaking in a soft voice. I could imagine what it had been like for his friend, frightened and, from his description, in pain, to have him calm him.
He was a dream come true. If he wanted this relationship. Fate drove us to it, but humans weren’t always as sensitive to fated matings. His return gave me hope. His soft petting made my heart warm after a long, cold decade.