~
“Now, don’t freak out…” Bailey moved fast.
If she’d been able to blink then she would have missed it, but he was in front of her in a heartbeat, and Jenny yelped in surprise as she threw her body backwards away from him…
“What does that even mean…?” She bit out.
“Oh, I think you know…” Bailey’s smile was teasing, but she didn’t want to be teased … she wanted some answers.
She’d read the stuff on the internet about vampires – all of it that was on the news as bit by bit the world learned about them – and she’d read the stuff on true mates… but she didn’t believe it – not if it applied to her…
Jenny opened her mouth to speak, but the sound of Bonnie racing outside with an oomph in her breathing as she carried the baseball bat high against her shoulder as if she was about to take a running hit, dragged her attention away from the man and towards her friend…
“Night baseball,” Bailey offered with a smirk. “Good for us, not so much for you two.”
Bailey could hear the sound of the shifter as he stalked towards them. He knew that once Bonnie had made an appearance it was only natural that the protective bear within the man would not want the vampire that close to her without having his body in between them…
“What’d he do?” Bonnie demanded, eyeing the vampire as if he was about to take a bite of her best friend.
“N-nothing…” Jenny said, and then her lower jaw flapped around on its own for a moment, but no words came out.
“You shrieked…” Bonnie said it like an accusation.
“It was … him…” Jenny tossed a hand towards the shifter as he stalked towards them.
Karl hesitated in step…
“It wasn’t me…” he growled.
“What’d you do?” Bonnie demanded of the man…
“I have no idea…” Karl grumbled.
“Stop right there…” Bonnie said, tightening her double handed grip on the baseball bat and planting her feet, ready and willing to take a swipe…
“He said he was my mate…” Jenny lifted her hand and pointed an accusing finger at Bailey…
“Wh-a?” Bonnie started, but Bailey took a small step towards Jenny…
“Tell me, would that be such a bad thing?” he tilted his head and regarded her with a smirk.
“You’re doing it again, aren’t you?” Jenny hissed at him…
“What?”
“That – look into my eyes thing that you do…”
“No.” Bailey tried for innocent, and in truth, he was only using the tone of his voice to try to calm her.
“Liar.”
“Technically not.”
Jenny huffed and Bonnie eyed all three of them.
“Why can’t you people leave us alone?” Bonnie demanded.
“Because – he’s your mate…” Bailey lifted his hand and pointed to the shifter.
Both Karl and Bonnie’s head snapped back on their necks at the same time, but for very different reasons.
“That’s not funny,” Bonnie bit out.
“Am I laughing?” Bailey shot back…
“Now, hold on a…” Karl started on a low rumble of a growl that made Bonnie start backwards towards the front door. Then she turned on her heels, rushed inside, and started snapping on locks and bolts – there was even a jingle of the chain.
“I don’t think she likes you…” Bailey offered to Karl and the bear grumbled and growled, and said every dark word that was pinging around inside his mind as he started towards the cabin…
“Yeah, hello?” Jenny called. “What about me?”
Karl felt a buzz of amusement as his mate went through the list of dark words that she knew on the other side of the door, and she appeared to know a lot of them. Then those same bolts started to snap back off again.
When Bonnie wrenched open the door – there he was – as big as the opening and staring back at her with so much intensity that she swallowed hard.
“We should talk…” Karl growled.
“You’re not coming in!” Bonnie snapped out.
Her eyes were wide and her heart was pounding out a tune all its own as she looked up at the man in disbelief.
“Just for the record – I don’t need an invite,” Karl said, and kicked himself in the backside when her lower jaw started to slide downwards…
Then she gave a fast shake of her head to clear the haze, and she scowled up at him through narrowed eyes…
“Is that a threat?” She bit out.
“What?” Karl looked at her as if she’d lost her mind. “No!”
Bonnie stretched her neck to try to see around him…
“Get in here!” She snapped out to Jenny, and she caught Karl’s movement out of the corner of her eye. “Not you!” She hissed up to him as her eyes glared and her eyebrows were pulled down low in a scowl…
“I’m not going to hurt you…” Karl bit out – surprised that she didn’t seem to have a clue about his kind and what a mate truly meant.
“Yeah? Well, I can’t say the same if you don’t back off,” Bonnie bit out as they glared at each other for a long moment.
Karl was debating what to do next. He wanted to take a step, wrap an arm around her waist, draw her near, and boy did he want to take her scent at source.
What he didn’t want was for her to panic and try to use his head for batting practice…
“She means it…” Jenny warned from just over his left shoulder, and the man grumbled something under his breath as he hesitated for a moment longer, before he caved and stepped back.
“Good choice,” Bonnie bit out.
She was done being afraid. She was done with not sticking up for herself…
This wasn’t just her anymore – she’d inadvertently dragged Jenny into this one, and she needed to step up and protect her as best she could.
“I’ll see you later,” Bailey offered in his melodic smooth tones as Jenny sidestepped the shifter and squeezed around Bonnie who still stood clutching her bat at the doorway.
“I really don’t know what to tell you…” Jenny said over her shoulder as the reality and enormity of what being a mate meant…
Bonnie noted the small movement that Karl made and kicked the door closed in his face. She dropped the bat from her shoulder and started snapping on bolts once more…
“I somehow don’t think that’s going to keep the big guy out if he wants in…” Jenny said, stalking over towards the bottles of booze on the side cabinet and reaching for a bottle of Scotch.
“It’s better than nothing…” Bonnie said, able to take a reasonable breath in as she turned back into the room, and placed her back to the door.
“I say we get poop faced…” Jenny announced, holding up the bottle by the neck, and trying to shrug off the last fifteen minutes of her life.
“I hear that…” Bonnie agreed with a nod. She pushed off with her backside from the door and started towards the sofa.
Then she turned in place and dropped her backside down against the cushions like a dead weight.
“I take it back,” Jenny offered, considering her words. “Living in the countryside isn’t dull at all.”
Bonnie opened her mouth to speak, but there were no words that came readily to mind – at least, none that she was willing to repeat. She closed her mouth and dropped her head back against the sofa on a huff.
Why is life conspiring against me?