Figure of Speech

“Hold it right there.” Jim held up his hand. “From what I understand, even you thought Gabe was her boyfriend.”

“Mate.”

“Whatever. The relationship between them almost broke Gabe and Sarah’s mating. Can you honestly tell me that Chloe is completely innocent in why I stayed away from her for so long?”

“Chloe’s young, and let her jealousy over your relationship with Sarah color her reactions.” Steven looked him dead in the eye. “Which, I might add, was also responsible for almost breaking Gabe’s mating to Sarah.”

Jim sat back. “I know, and it’s something I’ll regret for a very long time.” He ran his fingers through his hair. “Why did you send me a message that she was all right? Alex and Ryan told me recently that she nearly died. By the time I got to the hospital she was up and speaking.”

“What the fuck are you talking about?” Steven scowled as his claws came out.

Laura’s lip curled up in a snarl. “That’s not what happened.”

Oh no. No, no, no. “What do you mean?”

For just a second, sympathy flashed across Laura’s face. “We couldn’t get ahold of you, so we got Emma to give us your parents’ number. We talked to your mother and told her that Chloe was in the hospital and in bad shape, and that she needed you.”

Jim felt like he was going to pass out. “What?”

Laura nodded. “She told us she’d pass the message, and when we called to make sure you were on your way she told us you were.”

Jesus. Fucking. Christ. “She lied to you.” The mumbling of the rest of the clan was barely audible over the buzzing in his ears. “She did call me and tell me about Chloe, but she said she was fine. Then we fought about Spencer and I didn’t speak to her for two weeks.”

“Why would she do that?” Laura sounded horrified.

“To punish me.” He rubbed his hands over his face wearily. “My parents are going through a very contentious divorce. At the time, I’d just found out about Spencer and I was trying to get him to come to Halle with me. I was also dealing with the arguments, the lies and the sheer hate the two of them were spewing at each other. I wouldn’t back down on Spencer being family, so it was probably her way of trying to hurt me the way she was hurting.” And if Chloe had died he never would have forgiven her.

Laura snarled, the sound barely human.

“Shh.” Steven reached across the table for his wife’s hand. “We’ll get to the bottom of this, sweetheart.”

“We will.” Will stood with a nod to the others, who quickly followed suit. “Don’t do anything until we give you the okay.”

Jim stood as well. “I’m going to claim Chloe as soon as she allows it.”

“Good.” Steven’s stiff posture relaxed. “You’ve got our permission for that.”

“And if your mother gives my baby a hard time, call me.” Laura’s smile wasn’t cheerful anymore, and her fangs were showing. “I’d love to show her the error of her ways.”

Damn. Jim was glad he’d made nice with her. “Yes, ma’am.”

Laura laughed and patted his arm. “We’re going to get along just fine.”

He did the only thing he could when a female predator was facing him with that expression. “Yes, ma’am.”

Chapter Seven

Chloe shivered, unsure why she was so uneasy. Nothing seemed out of place, and she couldn’t scent anything wrong, but her Fox was about to jump out of her skin.

She dragged the trash bag to the dumpster, dropping it in with a metallic clang. It was a bright, beautiful day out, sunny and warm, the kind of late spring day she used to love before the attack. She’d go to the park and just lie on the grass, breathing the air while children played all around her and other college students chatted and laughed.

Today all she wanted to do was curl up in her apartment and hide from everything, and for the life of her she couldn’t figure out why.

Chloe checked all around the dumpster, but she couldn’t find anything amiss. The scent of the garbage kept her from scenting if anything was getting close to her. If she shifted into her Fox her senses would be sharper, but she wasn’t willing to take the risk that she’d be seen.

Besides, whatever was making her Fox antsy couldn’t be so close that it could grab her. She’d smell it otherwise, even over the garbage. She began walking back to the front of her apartment building, rubbing her arms as the chill intensified.

What the hell was going on? Chloe took a whiff of the air, but all she could smell was…

Cat?

Just as she was about to give in and run, something streaked past her, a golden blur that knocked her off her feet. She landed with a pained grunt, the asphalt cutting into her palms. “What the…?” Glancing up, she saw a pair of golden eyes glaring at her before the cat took off once more. “Fuck.”

Chloe stumbled to her feet and dashed toward the door to her apartment building. After what she saw, though, she knew if the cat wanted her it would have her.

A Cheetah. In Halle. Fastest of the shifters, it could move at speeds of up to seventy miles per hour. No wonder she hadn’t scented anything. It had probably stood far downwind. Why it had chosen to show itself to her and then run away she didn’t know, nor did she care. All she knew was it had the same scent as the cat that had attacked Cyn and Tabby behind their old shop.

She managed to get inside and slam the door shut, but something slammed into it a half second later. She shrieked, aware that if she’d been a fraction of a second slower she’d be staring at teeth and claws instead of cracked linoleum.

“Chloe? What’s wrong?”

Oh, thank fuck. “Julian?”

“I sense your fear.”

Duh. Chloe was terrified the person behind the cat would try and force the door open. “I got fun down by a Cheetah.”

Super Bear was silent for a moment. “Cyn and I are on our way.”

She gasped as something slammed into the door again. “Hurry.”

“Call Jim.”

She nodded even though she knew Julian couldn’t see her. She fumbled her phone out of her pocket as the door shuddered behind her a second time. “C’mon, c’mon,” she chanted, listening to Jim’s cell phone ring and ring.