Hour of the Lion

Jamie giggled. “I’ll probably be a cougar. And Uncle Alec is too.”

“God, I bet you’ll be beautiful,” Victoria said, the wonder in her voice sending a pang through him. “So what happens the first time you change? Is it anything special?”

Jamie answered in such a serious tone that Calum was warned. “Well, sparks come out of our hands, and we make a big boom-”

Victoria’s eyes widened.

He snorted as his evil offspring burst into giggles.

Victoria blinked, then gave her throaty laugh. “Little monster, you had me. Way to go.” She turned to Calum. “I take it the first shift is nothing special?”

“Much like you’ve seen. The major difference is a youngster’s lack of control.” He tried not to think about the children unable to trawsfur back, the ones that went feral, or those so overwhelmed and terrified that they ran themselves to death. His Jamie was level-headed. Smart. She’d get through it fine.

Jaw clenched, he turned away under the guise of removing the garlic bread from the oven. He handed the basket to Jamie. “Let’s eat.”

As they sat at the round oak table, he saw Victoria glance at the fourth place-setting, and answered her unspoken question. “Alec usually gets off around-” Before he could finish, the back door opened and slammed shut.

His brother appeared in the kitchen doorway. “Damn, that smells good. Did you eat al-” When he caught sight of Victoria, his words sputtered to a close, and he stared.

Bugger it. Having her here, in their home, had been a mistake. He was asking for pain for himself…and Alec…and even Victoria. He shoved out a chair with his foot. “Alec. Sit and eat before the food gets cold.”

Alec took the seat beside Victoria. “I’m in shock. We usually only have one lovely lady at our table.”

Jamie giggled. “I invited her, Uncle Alec.”

“Good job, kiddo.” He served himself up huge helpings of salad and lasagna and added a piece of garlic bread. “Sorry I’m late. Had to ticket a couple of city boys for looking ugly in a ‘no-ugly’ zone.”

Victoria’s brows drew together. “Are you serious?”

“Weeell.” Alec leaned back in his chair. “If I don’t like the looks of someone, we just keep an eye on them, make sure they’re not here to cause trouble. If needed, we’ll give them a nudge to move along.”

Calum smothered a smile. Alec had perfected the good-old-boy, we-hate-outsiders sheriff routine when he’d lived in Texas.

“I keep forgetting you have a nasty side,” Victoria murmured, looking more impressed than not. She popped a bite of lasagna into her mouth, stilled, and then hummed, her lids half-closing. Lost in pleasure. Herne help me.

Calum’s breath turned ragged as did Alec’s. Their eyes met in perfect understanding. Want this female for us. But she was human. They both looked away.

“We”-Calum cleared his voice to remove the huskiness-”We encountered Victoria in the bookstore today.” He smiled at her. “I noticed Thorson looks less unhappy. Did you talk more with him?”

She nodded. “He asked me to tell”-she glanced at Jamie and amended-”to talk about old times. He seems so lonely. Not many people come into his store.”

“He misses Lachlan,” Jamie said. “I miss him too. He was always fun.”

“Does Joe have no one else?” Victoria asked.

Alec shook his head. “His sister died years ago, and she’d had only two children. Lachlan is her daughter’s child. When Lachlan’s mother and her lifemate-um, spouse-were killed in a car accident, Thorson gave him a home. Technically, he’s Lachlan’s grand-uncle.”

“No kids of his own?”

“None he knows about,” Alec said. “He enjoyed the fight too much and never took a lifemate.”

Victoria stirred her fork around in the remnants of her meal. She’d eaten heartily, Calum was pleased to see. “How old is he anyway?” she asked.

Jamie spoke before Calum could stop her, “He’s gonna turn a hundred in two years.”

Victoria choked, swallowed. “Very funny, you rat. You got me twice tonight. Really though, how old is he?” She studied Jamie’s face. “You weren’t joking.”

Jamie shook her head.

Copper-colored eyes settled on Calum’s face. “Another shifter thing?”

He nodded, hoping she wouldn’t take it any farther.

No grace was given. “So how old are you?” she asked.

There was a reason very few humans were allowed to know about Daonain; this was one. But he didn’t lie. “Alec and I are in our late fifties.”

“Damn.” She eyed him and Alec, her gaze like dancing sunlight. “You carry your age well, guys. How long do shifters live then?”

“Around a hundred-twenty or so.” Alec winked at her. “No immortality, I’m afraid.”

“There’s a relief. A hundred-I almost got my butt kicked by a centenarian? Some bouncer I am.” Her face sobered. “Speaking of being a bouncer, I’m giving you notice, Calum.”

“What’s that mean?” Jamie asked.

Calum forced himself to take a breath. “You’re leaving me-us-Cold Creek?”

Her lips curved ruefully. “Yeah. I’ve kept my promise to Lachlan. And my knee’s healed up, good as new, according to the doc, so I need to get back to a real job.”

Jamie pushed to her feet and threw her arms around Victoria. “I don’t want you to leave,” she wailed, giving voice to Calum’s feelings as well.

Victoria hugged Jamie, blinking hard. “I know. But my people need me a lot more than your dad needs a barmaid. I go where I’m needed.”

To Vic’s relief, the evening ended early. They’d shared some wine in the living room, but Jamie was moping, Calum was quiet, and Alec… God, the unhappiness in his eyes wrenched her heart.

We screwed once, she reminded herself, as she went into the kitchen to get her coat. Once. Hell, he’d held a knife to her throat-what kind of relationship was that? She picked up her coat. Besides, if he… She blinked. The dinner dishes were piled by the sink, the table wiped clean of all spills.

She turned in a circle, but the place stood empty. Nobody had done the clean-up; they’d been in the living room. Surely Calum didn’t have a maid. Not a crumb littered the floor, although she spotted a small bowl of milk and a tiny piece of frosted cake on a plate in one corner. Did werecats keep domestic cats?

“Do you really have to go now?” Jamie stood in the doorway.

“Yeah, I need to pack.” Like she had much of anything to worry about. Vic nodded toward the corner. “I didn’t know you had a cat.”

“Oh, we don’t. That’s for the-” Calum’s hand on Jamie’s shoulder stopped the girl.

As he turned Jamie back to the living room, Vic sighed. Another fucking secret.

“Alec will walk you home,” he said, his smile not reaching his eyes. Oh, hell, he couldn’t be unhappy too, could he? But she thought of the evenings they’d spent talking, arguing over politics and books, the late night chess games. Simple pleasures. His quiet companionship had filled a hole she hadn’t realized was there. Both he and Alec had made her realize how alone she usually was…and would be again.

Yeah, this was why people shouldn’t get attached to each other-because it hurt like hell to leave.

Alec waited by the front door, tossing his car keys up, and catching them.

She just looked at him. Wanting. Those large hands had stroked her body, that clever mouth had… Inhale, Vic. “Alec, I can get home by myself.” She shook her head at him. “I need a quiet walk, and you and quiet don’t go together at all.”

Jamie snickered.

Alec’s smile was tight as he ruffled the kid’s hair. “You are a nasty lass, little niece, and Vixen is a bad influence on you.”