As he stood over them, his thoughts returned to Jessie. He hadn’t expected to end up in her dream. Not as a living, breathing participant, albeit a bit ghostly. But now that he had, serious doubts about Cara’s plan emerged. And the uneasy sensation solidified—this was what was bothering him.
Only mates entered each other’s dreams. And it cast Kade’s previous dreams in a new light. Fate had ways of revealing the future if you paid attention.
He’d sensed the power of Braden’s hold over Jessie. And his assessment was that the injections were too little, too late. The choice he’d been fighting to give Jessie might not end up being much of a choice after all. If he was right, he might have to be there for her. As Kade, the man. Not the beast.
But he didn’t trust himself. He kept his animal half under rigid control but he always took care not to push the boundaries. If he did this, could he control the beast, or would it rule?
The thought of it breaking loose scared him to hell. Kade dropped his boot next to its partner and turned away. He moved back into the darkness, shedding his humanity to once again embrace his beast.
Perhaps one more circuit would bring him the clarity he so desperately sought.
* * *
Jessie forced herself to smile at Laura as she sat on the porch swing, although the blonde woman barely looked at her. “It’s a beautiful day to Were watch.”
“Didn’t know that was a thing,” Laura protested.
“It is now.” Jessie gestured to Neil. Who, admittedly, wasn’t hard on the eyes.
“I feel like crap.” Laura’s face lacked any healthy color. She had come when asked, but her thoughts seemed elsewhere.
“Yeah. My head feels like it’s stuffed with donkey fluff.” Jessie’s gaze followed the creature in question. Willow was shut in the corral with Storm but had occupied herself with reaching through the bars to molest the bucket of brushes. Most were already scattered at her feet. Tucker was missing, so the mare and donkey were alone.
Cara’s hands sketched a graceful gesture that automatically dropped Jessie’s heart rate by a few degrees. “I know this is difficult. But you only have a few days to process all this. When the full moon comes, you will change form. Whether you are ready to, or not.”
“There isn’t anything else we can do to stop it?” Laura asked. Not for the first time. Or the tenth.
And the answer was still the same. “No, I’m afraid not,” Cara said. “I wish you would reconsider the injections.”
“Didn’t stop Jessie from having the dreams last night,” Laura pointed out.
“Maybe not, but Kade was able to intercede for her. And it might stop Braden from laying full claim on you,” Cara said.
Laura’s lips compressed into a firm line and she shook her head. Cara exchanged a glance with Jessie.
“All right.” Jessie pressed her palms together. “I am ready to learn.”
Cara smiled and gestured to Neil.
Jessie had kind of hoped that Kade would be their model, but she’d seen neither him, nor Zach this morning. There was no sign of Spike, either. Buffy sat on the porch rail with her fluffy tail wrapped around her paws.
Neil’s clothes lay carefully folded on a chair. He’d stripped down to boxer shorts which appeared a few sizes too large for his human form. They hung low on his hips.
Were there any Sabres that didn’t look like a comic book hero? Broad, impossibly muscled shoulders tapering to slim hips, and thighs that rippled with every movement. Neil was just as gorgeous as the rest of them. Fresh wounds now overlaid the older scars, and to Jessie’s amazement, his other bruises had all but vanished.
“Do Weres heal fast?” she asked.
Cara nodded. “Very. That’s why I only bother with the most severe injuries. Healing takes a lot of my energy.”
Once again, Jessie was curious about Cara.
The woman gestured gracefully to Neil. “Okay, Neil. Nice and slow. Show them how it’s done.”
Neil’s rugged face was transformed when he grinned. “Okay. Usually, we start with the extremities. The face, hands, and feet. You visualize what you want them to become. It often helps if you are pissed off.”
Jessie snorted a laugh. “You get mad every time you change?”
“Not every time. But emotional energy can help fuel the shift in form. If you are feeling tired, or sad, sometimes you stagger your way through. And that’s not good. You need to concentrate.”
