He watched as the bartender moved a full-sized beer keg around like it weighed nothing at all before helping Davina’s daughter restock the coolers behind the bar, filling them with rack after rack of beer, wine coolers, and all kinds of fancy drinks Trevor didn’t recognize.
“Apparently her coworkers were making some kind of huge dinosaur costume and the mold got stuck together,” Trevor added. “They asked her tocome in to help break the thing open. I guess she’s some kind of mold whisperer or something. She promised it wouldn’t take too long and that she’d come over as soon as she was done.”
Trevor wasn’t quite sure how molds worked or the ins and outs of how to get them open, but that seemed enough to satisfy Hale because he turned and pointed to the couple behind the bar.
“You’ve probably already figured this out, but this is Davina’s daughter, Lydia. And this is Kamden Lang, one of the club’s bartenders.”
Trevor gave the man a nod in greeting, unable to stop himself from leaning across the bar a little bit and inhaling the guy’s scent. It was just so…different. He tried to do it as nonchalantly as he could, but Kamden must have caught him doing it, because he threw a frown Trevor’s way.
“Before you ask, no, I’m not human,” he said, gray eyes full of annoyance, his tone a cross between defensive and plain pissed off. “But you’re not either, so don’t get all judgy on me.”
Trevor held up his hands in surrender. “I wouldn’t dream of it. I’m curious is all.”
“Kamden is a skin walker,” Lydia said casually as she continued stacking beer bottles in the closest fridge. “But don’t worry. He’s an ethically sourcing skin walker, which means he only assumes the bodies of the recently deceased.”
Mike lifted a brow. “If that’s considered ethicalsourcing, what would you consider the unethical alternative?”
“Killing a person so I can assume their body,” Kamden said flatly. “Doing it my way means the body won’t stay stable and viable for as long, and my fine motor skills can be adversely affected sometimes, but if I eat right and exercise, it works out okay. It’s easier on my conscience too.”
Trevor had no idea what to say to that. The implications of an entire race of creaturesassumingother people’s bodies was a bit much to wrap his head around. He suddenly remembered Davina saying something in passing conversation several weeks ago—when she was helping them with another case—about Lydia and Kamden being involved with one another. And the issues they’d have to face when it came time for him to change bodies. Trevor didn’t even want to consider how the hell that was going to work out.
He was still thinking about their imminent predicament when Mike spoke.
“So now that you’ve slept with Jenna, have you figured out if she’s actuallyThe Onefor you?” he asked as casually as if he was talking about the weather. “Or are you merely having a good time with Connor’s sister to piss him off?”
“What? No! Of course I didn’t sleep with Jenna to piss off her dumbass brother,” Trevor barked, ignoring the glances Lydia and Kamden gave him.
He sniffed the T-shirt he was wearing as subtly as he could. He’d taken a shower this morning—a long one. But apparently, it hadn’t been long enough. Then again, he and Jenna had made love quite a few times last night. Definitely more than a single shower could erase.
“So that means she’sThe Onethen, right?” Hale prompted. “Have you said anything to her about it yet? Let her know how you feel?”
Trevor’s mind flashed back to last night and their lovemaking, then what it had been like to slip into bed and sleep with her afterward. But as amazing as all that had been, it was waking up with Jenna in his arms this morning that really did it for him. He’d known he was hooked and that he couldn’t imagine not having her with him every day for the rest of his life. Even if he had no idea how he was going to make it happen.
“Yeah, I’m pretty sure she is. My soul mate, I mean,” Trevor said softly. “No, actually, check that. IknowJenna is my soul mate. But no, I haven’t even tried telling her how I feel about her yet. I was going to talk to her this morning on the way over here, but then she got that call from work, and it messed up my plan, so I’ll have to find another time to tell her. Soon.”
“Have you thought about what you’re going to say to her?” Mike asked, turning to lean back against the bar. “I mean, are you going with the soul-matething first or straight to the claws and fangs, then use that to explain how soul mates are possible?”
Trevor ran a hand through his hair. “Truthfully, I don’t have a frigging clue. I kinda think telling her about the whole werewolf thing is off the table. Not just now, but maybe forever.”
“What the hell does that mean?” Hale asked, clearly confused.
Mike looked just as baffled. “Why wouldn’t you want to tell her you’re a werewolf?”
Trevor dropped onto the nearest barstool. He wasn’t sure how it was possible, but he was physically exhausted from going round and round in his head about the subject.
“Jenna has had her entire life turned upside down by monsters,” he said quietly. “I completely hate that I have to hide that part of my life from her, but how can I tell her the truth? What am I going to do if she doesn’t want to have anything to do with a werewolf? I can’t take that risk.”
“O-kay,” Mike said slowly, his tone suggesting he clearly disagreed with him. “But if you don’t tell her, how do you see this all working out? You can try and hide what you are, but you have to know that it will come out sooner or later. I mean, seriously, how many times have we watched this same thing blow up in our pack mates’ faces. Usually in spectacular fashion and at the worst possible time.”
Trevor couldn’t argue with that assessment. Forsome reason, all his pack mates had run into some serious drama when it came to revealing to their soul mates that they were werewolves. It usually involved lots of shouting, misunderstandings, and tears.
It wasn’t a pretty picture.
“I know all that.” Getting to his feet, Trevor paced back and forth for a minute. The more he tried to figure out what to do, the more frustrated he got. “But what the hell am I supposed to do? Tell her and risk losing her right off the bat, or keep it from her and risk everything blowing up in my face at some point in the future?”
“That’s a choice you’re going to have to make on your own,” Mike murmured. “But I can tell you from experience that when you’re lucky enough to find the person you’re supposed to be with for the rest of your life, you do whatever you have to do to be with them. You don’t waste time and you don’t take chances, because you never know when it could all be taken away from you.”
Trevor resisted the urge to ask questions, even though he wanted to. Everyone on the Dallas SWAT team knew that Mike had been in a serious relationship and that something bad had happened to his fiancée, but none of them knew the details.
