“You can hold on tight to every second you’re given like it’s all you’re ever going to have,” Trevor said firmly. “And you fight with everything you have for more.”
Connor didn’t say anything. That all sounded well and good, but he knew deep down that all he was doing was setting himself up for one hell of a heartbreak. More than he could live through. Because while everyone in the Pack had been dreaming about findingThe Onefor them, none of them had ever thought about what it would mean to lose them.
***
“I don’t need all these clothes,” Kat complained, looking at the three pairs of jeans and as many tees, a flirty sleeveless dress, a pair of strappy black sandals, a set of pink sweats, running shoes, underwear, and even some sexy lingerie she, Rachel, and Khaki were holding in their arms as they stood in one of the department stores in the fancy Galleria Mall. “I’ll be back in my feline form in less than a week, and then all of this will be a waste of money.”
“Don’t say that! There has to be a way to fix this,” Rachel said, her expression so desolate and sad that it was all Kat could do not to cry. “You’re a witch. Isn’t there something you can do to stop the change and break the spell?”
Kat took two pairs of jeans from Khaki’s arms and put them back on the rack, then studied the sandals dangling from Rachel’s fingers, debating whether she should forget about them, too. They were cute but not very practical. Neither was the lingerie. When would she even have a chance to wear them between now and turning back into a cat?
And yet, she couldn’t help thinking about how much Connor would enjoy seeing her in them. She smiled a little as she imagined the way his eyes would glow gold when he saw her in the cute dress and sandals, his eyes blazing to full brightness when they were in his bedroom and she was wearing nothing but the sexy lingerie.
But then reality intruded and reminded her that fantasies like those would only set her up for heartbreak.
“I’ve been trying to come up with a way to break this spell for four years,” she said quietly. “I’ve read hundreds of ancient grimoires, talked to dozens of witches and warlocks, and even tracked down a few other supernatural magic users. It always came down to the same answer. Marko’s magic locked me in this torturous cycle of human and familiar, and it will have to be his magic that releases me.”
Rachel and Khaki didn’t bother asking if that was a possibility. The answer was obvious. Kat was trapped in this vicious cycle for the rest of her life—or until Marko caught her and she became his permanently mindless familiar.
“What are you going to do about Connor?” Khaki asked as she took the two pairs of jeans off the rack and draped them over her arm.
Kat would have protested, but Rachel and Khaki were already heading to the checkout counter. They were both so stubborn.
“What do you mean?” Kat asked when she caught up to them.
“You’re already sleeping with him,” Khaki said. “Does he realize your…condition…can’t be cured?”
The woman behind the counter tallying up Kat’s purchases tried to hide the fact that she was eavesdropping, but it was impossible to miss the way her eyes kept curiously darting to them.
Kat didn’t say anything as Rachel put everything on her credit card. Knowing Rachel was paying for the stuff made Kat feel horrible, but there was nothing she could do about it. She hadn’t owned a wallet, credit card, or driver’s license for four years. It was like she didn’t exist. Well, as a human, at least. Which was technically true for fiftysome weeks out of the year.
The cashier took her time folding the clothes and slipping them into shopping bags, probably hoping she’d hear a little more about the man Kat was sleeping with and hercondition. But Kat didn’t feel like sharing with a complete stranger, so she remained silent. Much to the cashier’s obvious disappointment.
Once they were out of the store and heading toward the food court—because it had been at least two hours since Rachel and Khaki had eaten, and they were already hungry again—she finally decided to answer Khaki’s question.
“Connor and I only slept together for the first time yesterday,” she said, leaving out the part about making love several more times throughout the day and into the night, then again this morning. “And yes, he’s fully aware that I don’t have a lot of time left in my human form. That’s kind of why we ended up in bed together. It’s probably naive, but I’m trying to stay focused on the present and let the future take care of itself.”
Neither of her friends said anything, keeping their thoughts to themselves as they reached the fast-food chicken restaurant. Rachel put in the order for three chicken sandwiches with waffle fries on the side. Kat was definitely going to miss fries when she went back to her cat form. Nobody would ever give her fries when she was four-legged and furry. They thought they weren’t good for her. And ketchup? Forget about it. There’d been times over the past four years that she’d actually dreamed about lapping up a bowl of ketchup. That told her how much she’d missed it.
“You really like Connor, don’t you?” Rachel asked when they sat at a booth in the far corner of the food court.
Kat dunked a fry in ketchup and nibbled on it thoughtfully. “Would you think I’m weird if I admit I fell in love with Connor the moment I met him back when I was a cat? He smelled so good and looked so damn sexy in all that tactical gear. And when he started scratching behind my ears, I knew he was a keeper.”
Her friends laughed.
“Hard to go wrong with a man who knows how to scratch that special itch,” Khaki said, pausing to take a bite of her sandwich. “How’s he at giving belly rubs? That’s the true test of a good man.”
“Absolutely divine,” Kat admitted. “He could probably be a licensed massage therapist if he wanted. Not that I’d let him touch another person’s belly, of course. Or anywhere else for that matter.”
“Of course not,” Rachel murmured with a smile.
As Kat ate, she caught Rachel and Khaki glancing covertly at each other, making it impossible to miss the fact there was something they wanted to talk about.
“Go ahead and say whatever you’re thinking,” she said with a sigh. “I can tell there’s something on your minds.”
“Do you think Connor could be your soul mate?” Khaki asked. “I know you heard us talking enough on the subject over the past nine months to recognize the signs. Is there any chance at all that Connor isThe Onefor you?”
That question probably should have provoked some kind of denial on her part. There’d been times after she’d heard the endless conversations around the Pack about what it felt like to find your soul mate when she wondered if it was even possible for a cat to develop that kind of bond with a werewolf.
