Momma's Got a Brand New Jag: BBW Shifter Romance (Seaside Shifters Book 1) (5 page)

“I just came by because I wanted to meet your mate for myself,” Brett said as he finished his apple and folded up his knife, placing it in his boot. He stood up and the two therians with him followed suit, flanking him. “Where is she?” he asked.

Next to Joven, Darren tensed, ready to shift and defend Joven if necessary.

“She’s at the beach right now,” Joven said. It wasn’t a flat out lie since he knew Rina was staying there. “She’s never been before. I wanted her to take the day and relax before meeting the community.” Again, not entirely a lie. If Brett assumed he meant Freya, that wasn’t his problem.

“Pity,” Brett said as he started to walk for the front door. He turned to face Joven and Darren as he reached it. “I trust that she’ll be here soon. It’d be a shame if anything were to happen to her.”

He walked out the door with his lackeys right on his heels and Darren went to go lock it behind them. “I’ll have a locksmith come out tonight to rekey your locks.”

Joven shook his head. “Don’t bother.” Darren started to argue, but Joven cut him off. “Look around. There aren’t any obvious signs that they broke in. He probably picked the lock, so there’s no point in changing it. Apparently I just have to piss all over everything or scratch up my doors to keep people from barging in.”

Darren nodded. “Okay, yeah, you’re right. But what are you going to do?”

Joven was walking around examining other doors and windowsills just to be sure, but saw no obvious signs that they’d been tampered with. “He was just trying to intimidate me. If he’d actually meant to hurt me he would have jumped us as soon as we got in.”

Darren sighed. “You’re lucky Brett’s so cocky. That idiot couldn’t tell you were lying about Freya since you smell like the woman from the plane. You still don’t have a mate.”

“I know, I’m going to go find her though. Right now,” Joven said. He knew it couldn’t wait any longer. Without a mate, the clock for a challenge was ticking. But from what he’d just seen, it was more likely that Brett would ambush him and kill him instead of arranging a fair fight per patch rules. And people said today’s youth lacked ambition.

“Well, I’m coming with you then,” Darren said. Joven was about to argue with him when Darren said, “No, no arguing. You’ll need someone to drive if you have to shift. Plus I don’t trust Brett not to escalate things.”

Joven didn’t want to waste any more time. “Okay, fine. Let’s go,” and they headed for the oceanfront.

He had no idea where Rina was staying, but he’d know her scent anywhere. He’d tracked Rina’s scent to a boutique hotel in the middle of the strip, but smelled that she had left, tracing her path to the boardwalk located behind the hotel. Joven walked along the boardwalk, coming finally to a pier. Sniffing the air, he realized that she’d been with not one, but two different guys as he followed her path to a small parking lot. He gritted his teeth as he waited for Darren to bring the car around. She was his mate! His! She hadn’t smelled aroused, but the two males she’d been with had a scent that reminded him of Brett. He hadn’t liked it. The scent trail led to a secluded beach located away from the main tourist strip, flanked by trees. Rina’s scent was stronger here, but smelled of distress. He ran into the woods with Darren close behind.

Chapter Eight

Rina was the only girl there, and she’d found that more than a little weird. Dylan had told her not to worry, that more girls would be on their way after they got off work. Apparently all of the people hanging out tonight worked down at the oceanfront, and shifts were often irregular due to the stores being open 24/7 from April to December.

The beachy patch of sand was surrounded on both sides by wooded areas which had surprised her. For some reason she’d thought it would look like the golden glittering beaches she’d seen on television and in movies. She liked the privacy of the small beach though. Back in the city there wasn’t any place like this where she could hang out with her friends.

There was a giant bonfire burning now. When they’d first arrived Dylan and Brendan had built the fire themselves, gathering fallen branches from the woods and using a starter log that had been in the Jeep. Rina had called Cely and Kris to check in while she watched them start the fire. Cely was about to get a massage, while Kris was headed to the hotel fitness area to do some light cardio. She told them she’d check in again with them later and hung up.

More people were arriving now. Rina was sitting on the beach with her knees folded up to her chest watching the water when Dylan came over to introduce her to the new arrivals. There still weren’t any other girls, and she started to feel a niggling doubt in the back of her head. What was going on? She didn’t feel comfortable. None of this felt right to her. She decided to leave.

Dylan was talking with Brendan while other people mingled around the bonfire. She walked up to him and he turned to face her with a smile.

“Hey, having a good time?” he asked.

Rina shook her head. “Hey, I’m sorry, but I think I’m gonna be lame and bail. I’ll call a cab though so you don’t have to drive me back.”

Dylan’s smile never faltered. “Hey, c’mon, babe. The party’s just getting started.” Dylan bent down to kiss her, and she jerked her head away in confusion.

“What are you doing? I said that I wanted to leave,” she said. Dylan looked at her, then nodded his head at Brendan. “Do it,” he said.

Too late, Rina realized that Brendan had come up to grab her from behind. His breath was hot in her ear as he said, “You’re being very rude for someone who’s here as our guest.” Rina struggled against him as he laughed. “Looks like we’ve got a wild one here, Dylan.”

Dylan moved to stand in front of her and pulled the top of her dress down, exposing her bra.

“Look at those big ole’ titties,” he said as he caressed her through the fabric. Rina was furious. She brought her left leg up smashed her knee right into Dylan’s balls. He collapsed to the ground in pain and Brendan released her to tend to Dylan.

“You bitch!” Dylan was still on the ground curled up in the fetal position, groaning as Brendan helped him up.

“Help me please!” The other people were standing to one side watching with interest, but no one made a move to help her. They started walking over to Dylan and Brendan.

Rina ran to the other side of the bonfire to keep some distance between them. She picked up a heavy branch from the wood pile and held it out in front of her. “Stay back. I’m warning you.” She hoped her voice wasn’t as shaky as she felt.

Dylan laughed, and it wasn’t pleasant. “Fuck you, you stupid bitch. We’re the only ones out here. Scream as loud as you like. No one will hear you.”

Rina could feel a scream building in her throat. This couldn’t be happening.

Just then there was a series of loud growls coming from the woods. Dylan turned his head. “The fuck was that?” He jerked his head toward the woods and Brendan and one of the Watchers walked over cautiously to investigate. They walked partially into the woods using their phones as flashlights, but walked back out a few moments later.

“Well?” Dylan asked impatiently.

Brendan shrugged. “I didn’t see any—”

With a loud growl, a jaguar shot out of the bushes and sent Brendan flying with one swipe of its large paw.

Rina froze. She wasn’t sure if you were supposed to run away from a large cat, or climb a tree, or stay perfectly still…other people started to run and the jaguar immediately went after them so she decided to stay close to the fire. She could hear Dylan screaming in pain and more loud growling before the screams abruptly ended. She thrust the branch she’d been holding into the flames until the end caught on fire. The fire killed her night vision and she couldn’t see far past the light cast by the flames. If the jaguar wanted to eat her it wouldn’t be without a fight first. Brandishing the flaming stick, she looked from side to side. Where had the jaguar gone?

A quiet voice at her side said, “Could you put that down, please? He doesn’t really think it’s necessary anymore.”

Rina thought her heart would jump out of her chest. She turned, holding the stick out in front of her wildly. Standing a few feet to her side was the jaguar, but also…a man? She didn’t recognize him as one of the people she’d met tonight. Why hadn’t the jaguar attacked him?

“Who are you?” she said.

“You can trust me. I’m a friend,” he said simply, as though that explained everything. She decided to ignore that for now.

“And him?” she said, nodding at the jaguar. “Is he your pet or something?”

The jaguar let out a low growl at this. Its golden eyes looked like they were glittering in the low light.

Shit!
thought Rina. She tightened up her grip on the branch like it was a baseball bat. She wasn’t sure what she’d said to piss it off, but she wasn’t taking any chances.

The man chuckled, which startled her. “No, he’s not my pet. Far from it.” He looked at the jaguar for a moment and it seemed as though they were communicating although Rina didn’t hear any talking. What the hell was going on? The man nodded at the jaguar, then looked at Rina.

“He’s Joven,” the man said.

“Joven?!” she said in disbelief. She dropped her makeshift torch in the sand. It was too much for her. For the first time in her life, Rina fainted.

The last thing she remembered before the world went black was the jaguar coming over to sniff her and lick her face.

Chapter Nine

Rina was was running her for life through the woods. Dylan and Brendan were chasing her, and she knew if they caught her it wouldn’t be pleasant. They were getting closer now. She could hear them yelling, taunting her with the things they would do to her once they caught her. The woods were growing more dense as she ran. Branches whipped at her face and limbs and she tripped on a root sticking out of the ground, falling flat onto her face. She rolled over onto her back with a groan. They had caught up with her. Dylan climbed on top of her, forcing her thighs apart with his knee. She screamed as loud as she could, but no one was coming to help her. Dylan was looking right at her and his eyes began to glow golden as his features shifted to that of a jaguar. Rina continued to struggle as the jaguar let out a low growl.

“Miiiiiiine,” it said.

Rina screamed.

***

Rina awoke with a start, covered in cold sweat and heart pounding. This wasn’t her bed. Wait…this wasn’t the hotel. Where was she? She sat up, clutching the sheets to her chest.

She looked around the room. The lights were off, but the moonlight streaming through the window gave her enough lighting to see. The house was right on the beach judging from the view and she realized that she could hear the ocean waves crashing. Whose house was this? She could hear someone out in the hallway walking closer to the door, then a man’s voice. “Yes…she’s awake now.” A pause, then, “If you think it’s for the best.”

The door swung open and Rina scooted off the side of the bed to stand in the corner. The man she’d seen earlier at the beach stood in the doorway.

“It’s okay. You’re safe here,” he said as he reached out to hit the switch on the wall for the light. Rina continued standing in the corner. The jaguar that had been with the man at the beach pushed past him and approached her. Rina tried to stand as still as possible, not even daring to breathe.

The jaguar padded over silently to sniff her and lick her hand. She thought she might faint again. “Nice kitty?” she said. Wait…wasn’t there something important about the jaguar? Something…
holy shit
. Hadn’t the guy told her it was Joven?

“Joven?” she asked hesitantly. The jaguar began to purr and lay down on the floor at her feet, rolling over to expose his stomach. She hesitantly stroked his short, silky fur and the purring got louder. She looked at the man in the doorway, who was staring at her with a bemused expression on his face. “That’s new,” he said. “He really likes you.”

“Uh…are you going to explain what’s going on?” Rina asked. “I mean, I don’t even know your name.” The jaguar had started licking his fur.

“Sorry,” he said, looking embarrassed. “It’s Darren. I’m Joven’s lieutenant,” he said.

“Lieutenant? So then you’re a therian, too?” Rina asked.

Darren nodded as the jaguar sat up at her feet.

“What were you doing at the beach?” she asked.

“We were looking for you. We’d tracked you to your hotel, then to the pier, and finally found you at that beach,” he explained.

Rina was surprised. “You can do all that? I mean, I only talked with him once, on the plane this morning.” She scratched the jaguar behind the ears and he started purring again.

Darren shook his head. “Not many therians can track like that. Joven can, but he’s alpha and the leader of our patch.”

Rina shook her head, her ponytail swinging back and forth. Therians, patch…alpha? It was all so much to take in at once. Darren sensed her discomfort and smiled, trying to put her at ease.

“I know it probably all sounds crazy right now, but Joven promises he’ll explain fully in the morning,” Darren said.

“I don’t understand,” Rina said. “Why doesn’t he just change back into being a human?”

Darren shook his head. “It doesn’t work like that. The movies and television have it only partially right. We’re able to shift
into
our animal forms at will, and we uncontrollably shift on the night of the full moon, but we can’t just shift back into human form whenever we want.”

“So how do you change back into humans then?” Rina asked. Cely hadn’t told her any of this. Maybe she didn’t know?

“Our animals want to be in control just as much as our human sides. It’s sort of a constant tug-of-war. But if we go unconscious for any reason while we’re in our animal forms we’ll revert back to human.” Darren looked like he wanted to say more, but the jaguar let out a huge yawn. “And that’s my cue to make myself scarce,” he said. Darren turned to leave, then paused.

“Can I get you anything?” he asked.

Rina thought. She was a little hungry, but figured it could wait until the morning. “A glass of water please?” she asked.

Darren nodded. “Be right back,” he said.