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Returning my attention to Jack, I throw my arms around him, clearly taking him by surprise. Burying my face against his neck, I inhale his clean scent and hold on tight. He doesn’t take long to get over his shock and quickly returns my embrace. It goes on for just a second too long for a hug between friends, and as we release each other and our eyes meet, my cheeks flame red at the want I see staring back at me.
Stepping away, I take a deep breath and press my tongue against my gums, trying to stop them from giving away just how much I enjoyed holding him so close. He seems to be having his own control issues, rubbing a hand over his short hair and smiling ruefully. Gesturing towards the visitors room just to the side of the reception, he opens the door for me, and I enter without any further comment.
“Trust you to make friends with an ogre,” he comments as he shuts the door behind him, his brow raised as he smiles. “Did you know that they are incredibly difficult to impress?”
“Oh, Tracey?” Surprise raises my voice before I snort and wave the comment away. “Nah, she’s a sweetie. She looked down one day, so I picked her some flowers and gave them to her.”
Jack stares at me like I’ve grown two heads. “You gave an ogre flowers?”
“Yes, although she did eat the flowers, which took me aback.” I shrug at the memory and brush a curl behind my ear, smiling slightly. “She claimed me then, and we’ve been friends ever since.” Wandering over to one of the padded benches, I take a seat and pull my legs up under me, watching him walk across the room to join me. “What did she mean about you being an animal?”
I don’t even bother to pretend that he didn’t hear our conversation, and to his credit, he doesn’t try to hide that he heard us. Instead, he just laughs and sits back on the bench, his expression amused.
“Have you not figured it out yet?” He smiles, seeming surprised.
I frown slightly and tilt my head to one side, clearly missing something here. Tracey just knew, simply by looking at him, so perhaps I’m just looking at the wrong details.
At my questioning look, he chuckles, his eyes warm with humour. “I’m a shifter. I change forms.”
My jaw drops open. A fucking shifter. Tracey’s comment makes sense now. The question is, though, was she right about shifters being good in bed?
No, that is not an appropriate line of thinking right now, and if I’m not careful, my fangs will make an appearance. I certainly don’t want to give away that I’ve been having dirty thoughts, so I quickly close my mouth and try to pull myself together. Jake seems to find this whole thing hilarious, so I force myself into producing a normal reply and not one that makes me sound like more of a moron than I already do.
“Whoa, that’s amazing! Can I guess what you are?” I crow, my voice too high and enthusiastic, but I’ve started something now, and I don’t seem to be able to stop. “Some sort of big cat for sure. A panther?”
Thankfully he doesn’t find any of my blathering insulting and grins as he leans back into the bench. “Close. My other form is a tiger.”
A tiger. He’s a fucking tiger. This whole situation is insane, and I would worry that it’s all in my head, but it’s far too elaborate for me to have made it up. My eyes search him for any hints of the tiger that shares his skin. He just seems to be a regular handsome guy, a muscled one, but human all the same. As I think back to the times I’ve been threatened, though, I recall the hiss he produced, not to mention the flashing amber eyes that make the occasional appearance.
He watches me process everything, giving me a few minutes to think over what I’ve learned, something I’m grateful for. I’m not sure what to say to him. What do you say to someone who has just told you they can turn into a tiger? I’m quickly coming to realise that all creatures from folklore, myths, and fairy tales are true, which makes some sort of sense as the stories would have been inspired by something. There are so many things I could ask, sensible questions like how he manages to hide his other form from the humans, and then there’s the not so sensible ones. Mostly, I want to know if I can ride on him in his other form, but I’m thinking that’s not appropriate to ask.
He watches me as I process, his expression gentle and his eyes warm. There are no signs of impatience, he’s simply enjoying my company, even when we’re not in conversation. After several minutes, he leans back against the bench with a curious smile.
“How did you know I was a cat?”
Returning his smile, I wave him off as though it was an easy conclusion to come to. Really, I don’t know how I figured it out. Perhaps it was a lucky guess, but I just had a feeling in my gut, and I went with it.
“You have cat energy,” I reply after pausing to ponder. “It had to be an alpha type animal. You’re no house cat.” I snort with amusement at the thought of him turning into a cute cat, rubbing around my ankles for a saucer of milk. “Not a werewolf though, you didn’t give off that energy.”
Werewolves are pack animals, and although he works with the SNPD and will have to work as a team, I’ve only ever seen him working solo. He carries a confidence about him that tells me he’s protective and defends his territory, but he also has a softer side for those he loves and needs his protection. Not to mention, he’s got muscles on top of muscles, yet he still manages to move around with the grace of a cat.
He laughs and shakes his head with a wry expression. “Never call a wolf shifter a werewolf until you’re trying to offend them. They are two completely different creatures.”
Groaning, I let my head fall into my hands. “I’m never going to learn all of this.”
“You have time, don’t worry. Most of us grew up in this world, so we have a head start.” He waves it off as though it’s no big deal. “How are you getting on in here? I’m sorry I couldn’t come before now, they cancelled all of your visits. The only reason I was allowed in today is because I’m a cop and they know I would start asking questions otherwise.” His whole demeanour changes, and he leans forward, resting his forearms on his thighs, brows lowered with concern. “Are they letting you have access to Zane? What about feeding? Has Gabriel caused you any problems?”
I take a deep breath and think over his questions. While I knew that they cancelled my visits, I thought this was just procedure and that I was being punished for my midnight flight. However, the fact that they only let Jack see me because he would ask questions makes me think this isn’t normal after all. I bet bloody Dorine had something to do with that. My parole officer clearly has issues with me.
“Thanks to my new ogre friend, Tracey, Gabriel hasn’t dared to get close to me. I’ve seen him around and caught him watching me, but no contact.” My heart aches at that fact, and I’m not sure if it’s because of the betrayal or since he’s not tried to reach out to me. I push those thoughts away and focus on the rest of his questions. “I’ve seen Zane once since the assessment, and I fed the same day. I’m doing okay, trying to keep busy. I’m so glad to see you though. I’ve missed you.”
What I don’t tell him is that I’m struggling with being away from my mate and only feeding once. I know the other blood drinkers in the unit are being allowed to feed several times a week, so I don’t understand why I’m not. I won’t make a fuss, though, as that will probably cause backlash. I’m still waiting to hear how long they plan to keep me here, and I’m hoping that showing I can restrain myself, even when lacking blood, that it will play out in my favour. They will feed me again soon—I hope.
Jake’s eyes soften for a moment at my sweet words, and he reaches out to take my hand in his. “I’ve missed you too, Emmy. I’ve been thinking of you every day.”
My heart does a little flutter in my chest, a blush colouring my cheeks. I’m acting like a teenager with her first crush, but I can’t seem to help it, he just brings out that side of me. Our cute little moment doesn’t last long, though, his smile shifting into concerned frustration.
“They should be feeding you more than once a week! You’re a new vampire, they are practically starving you. The same goes for access to your mate. They should know better than this.” His eyes flash amber, and he starts to get to his feet. “I’ll sort it out, don’t worry.”
