In the middle of the living room, sprawled on the floor like it owned the damn place, was a cheetah.
Not a threat. Only his mate in his cat form.
Just a lean, golden shape with wide amber eyes, tail flicking like a heartbeat.
Psycho inched forward, one slow paw at a time, ears alert, body low but not hostile. Her eyes stayed fixed on cheetah, even as she grew close enough to sniff it. Then, just like that, she flopped onto her side and rolled onto her back, exposing her belly.
Miguel leaned against the archway, arms crossed. He didn’t say a word.
Jared let out a low yowl like it was a victory cheer.
He shifted back into his human form, just skin where fur had been, legs tucked under him, dark hair a wild mess.
“You see?” Jared whispered, eyes wide as he cradled the cat like she was made of glass. “I told you that you can trust me.”
He gently stroked Psycho’s fur, like this was the first honest approval he’d earned from her in weeks.
Miguel chuckled, making Jared’s head whipped around. He didn’t look guilty for being caught naked with a cat in his arms. Just smug.
“Told you,” Jared said with a wink. “I knew she’d like me once she gave me a chance.”
Miguel watched him, still sitting there on the rug, grinning like a kid who’d just been handed proof that the world wasn’t as cruel as it pretended to be.
He thought about the cheetah who’d driven to Blackthorn with a single purpose in mind. The same one who’d gotten caught in a damn ambush, had taken on hyenas and still didn’t back down. The one who challenged wolves, snuck behind his own family’s back, and broke whatever speeding laws, just to get here. Just to stay.
Maybe Jared had been chasing more than a place to land.
And maybe Miguel had been waiting for someone like him without even knowing it.
Two shots of whisky that led to one disastrous omelet that led to their very first kiss.
He glanced at the room which was nothing like Jared’s parents’ house. The scarred floors, dented walls, and a cat that didn’t trust anyone, that now melting into the arms of a naked cheetah shifter Miguel loved with all his heart.
It wasn’t about the house, but who you let inside.
THE END
