“Is that what we’re calling it? Poor choices? Why didn’t he just call you?”
“Our family dynamic is complicated, Mrs. Fluffington.” He raised an eyebrow at the cat shifter, daring him to say anything. “Besides, you’re the one pretending to be a cat.”
He shrugged. “We needed a place to stay, and the owner needed animals that won’t shit on the carpet. It’s a win-win.”
Xavier automatically scanned the room at the dozen cats prowling around. “Are you all shifters?”
“Except Theobald.” He tilted his head at an ancient-looking cat that looked like it had merged onto the platform of a tall cat tree. Only the occasional flick of its tail revealed it wasn’t dead.
“Why did you break character?” He checked on the other customers, but no one appeared to be paying attention to them.
“He’s my mate,” the cat shifter said forlornly.
“Who, Jared?”
He nodded.
“How do you know?”
“Cat shifters know by scent.”
“Are you going to tell him?”
The shifter shrugged. “Maybe one day. He comes here once a week. I don’t think he even knows why.”
“You think he’s sensing the bond?”
He nodded. “As a chimera, his instincts are both enhanced and conflicting. There isn’t much information since he’s technically mythical.”
“And why won’t you tell him?”
“He isn’t ready.”
Before Xavier could ask more questions, he turned into a cat and slunk away. “I’m not getting involved,” he muttered as he left the café. He had enough issues without worrying about his brother’s love life. The cat shifter appeared more cautious than conniving, so he would leave things as they were. He considered it payback for Jared stealing Kat and making him worry. Xavier would step in if the cat shifter didn’t make himself known in a few months.
Right now, he had a mate to wait for.
CHAPTER13
They were still on the castle steps when Kat’s hackles rose. Jared returned them as promised, and ominous vibes poured from the closed double doors. He clutched his cookie container close to his chest as if it could protect him with its buttery goodness.
“Something is wrong.” He didn’t know if the scent in the air or the unnatural stillness of a castle that should have people moving about tipped him off, but his skin itched, and his inner cat’s hackles were raised.
“There’s evil magic here,” Jared confirmed.
Rance shuddered. “Evil nature magic.”
Kat barely heard Rance’s words over the thudding of his heart. “Can you tell what kind?” Nature magic wasn’t a tiny area of magic. It encompassed many fields. None of which should be this corrupt.
“Dryad magic,” Rance continued. “It’s not from my Grove. It’s something else.”
“Great,” Jared muttered.
“I don’t like this,” Kat whispered.
“Do you want me to take you home?”
“Take Rance. I’m not leaving Xavier.” If his mate were in the middle of this, he wouldn’t leave until he knew Xavier was safe.
