She felt like she had died and gone to heaven. She was warm, surrounded by the world’s greatest electric blanket with arms and a heartbeat…finally something for the lonely people, she thought. Pausing in her thoughts for a minute… wait, what the hell? She opened her eyes and she shot up as if from a nightmare. She knew what was coming, she just didn’t want to turn around and look at the evidence of her weakened state. She closed her eyes and clasp her hands as if in prayer whispering, “There’s no place like home, there’s no place like home” as she clicked her heels of her bare feet together. Finally, she opened her eyes and turn to stare directly at the most exquisite man she had ever laid eyes on.
With his hands placed behind his head and chest area exposed his smile was broad and beaming, “Morning.”
Making a sound between a whimper and one of disgust Ami continued to pray, “Jesus, it didn’t work.”
“Praying isn’t going to make me go away.”
“You never know… stranger things have happened,” Ami said as she snatched the sheet from the bed and wrapped it around herself leaving Ty bare. With him laid out on the bed the way he was, as if he belonged there he looked to be that sinfully delectable desert that always tempted the strictest diet. She caught herself taking a step towards the bed wanting to fall back into it with him and have a second helping of what happened last night. Hell maybe even third or fourth.
Looking at the room at the mess they had made, pillows thrown about the room clothes carelessly stripped off and dropped on the floor. When she spotted her panties, she went to bend and snatch them up but a sharp pain at the back of her neck prohibited her from doing so. Feeling the back of her neck for the sore spot Ami felt the tenderness of the surrounding area and then the teeth marks, and suddenly she remembered Ty mounting her and the breath left her body. She backed up trying to brace herself against a wall as her legs weakened as if they could no longer support her. Ty was up and out of the bed taking hold of her in an instant.
“Relax.”
Ami looked up at him in sheer shock. Her lips trembled and she swallowed reflexively before her mask of shock turned into anger. “What have you done?!”
“Ami… baby, relax.”
“Baby? You don’t know me well enough to call me baby, now what the fuck have you done?!” Ami’s voice rose exponentially every other word as she tried to rein in her fury.
“Ami it was the mating tide.”
“There is no God damn mating tide,” she said as she balled her fist.
“Yes there is,” Ty said as his temper began to flare. “Just because you’re human doesn’t mean that I don’t feel it and as much as I hate for this to happen right now it is what it is.” Ty knew the instant the words left his mouth that it sounded wrong but it was the truth and if there was nothing else Ty could give Ami, it was the truth.
Unable to find the words to explain just how fucked the situation had become Ami finally just simply stated, “I need a shower.” And walked off into the bathroom locking the door behind her.
Knowing Ty was still in her apartment Ami would not allow the tears stinging her eyes to fall, it would be the icing on the cake of his macho attitude to have to comfort the weeping human. No, she would be strong and try to talk some reason into him, but the more she thought about the night before where she was literally begging him to fuck her she knew that it would be useless. And the bite, the bite was something she couldn’t reason her way out of, it happened and there was nothing she could do to erase it and that made her want to cry even more. The helplessness of the situation, she knew, would wear her down if things weren’t taken care of quickly and that meant going to visit the witches today to determine if it really was a mating tide.
Stepping from the shower Ami could hear the teapot whistling. She didn’t know if she could face Ty but not facing him meant not really accepting that there was a problem to handle.
She quickly dressed and managed to tame her hair just as he turned off the burner on the stove. Raising an eyebrow Ami was a bit surprised, “You cook?”
“Yeah I do, I actually enjoy it once in a while. I’m no Iron Chef but I know my way around a toaster.”
Placing a plate of buttered toast and eggs in front of Ami, Ty began to talk as she seated herself on the stool at the kitchen counter.
“Having had time to calm down I realized just what exactly this means and before you go into detail let me start by saying that I apologize if you regret last night, but I don’t.”
Ami looked at Ty gauging his sincerity. “Well to be fair I was a bit unreasonable with my reaction.”
“No you were fine, I don’t know how many other women would have reacted to being mated to a married man without at least some screaming.”
“Wait… what?”
“Ami, I’m married.”
Getting up from the stool Ami was furious. I should have known, what man like him walks around and doesn’t at least have some sort of wife or girlfriend, Ami thought. Not only had she slept with a Pride Leader which was socially taboo but she had slept with a married one at that. She felt betrayed, hurt, and angry most of all, she wanted to strike out at something or someone, and as Ty came from the kitchen, she found her target. Faster then she thought she could move Ami raised her hand, smacking Ty squarely on the cheek. She raised her hand a second time but Ty was able to grab her wrist and spin her entire body so that her back rested on his front. Crossing her arms over herself Ami fought to break his hold, she felt an anger burning within her, one that she had never experienced and it both scared and thrilled her all at once.
“Ami calm down!”
“You fucking bastard, how could you? You were married all along and you didn’t think to tell me! I hate you, I hate you, let me go and get the hell outta my apartment,” Ami screamed. She tried her best to break Ty’s hold on her but he held her tightly against him. And suddenly the anger and the fight disappeared and the tears that threatened to overwhelm her in the shower came back anew and a wretched sob escaped her lips.
Instead of fighting her all Ty simply felt he needed to do was hold onto Ami and let her react. However, when she began to cry and he felt a knife twisting inside of him, gutting him as he stood holding her. Because of the mating tide, Ty could feel Ami’s pain, confusion, and knowing that he was the cause of her tears just made it all seem so much worse.
He picked her up and carried her over to the couch where he sat holding her until she calmed down. Just as the quickly as the tears and sadness came it all disappeared. Ami felt a complete a mess, she didn’t know what was wrong with her, with her attitude going from calm and collect to teary and weepy all within the space of a few seconds, she didn’t know what came over her, she felt like she were going crazy.
Taking a deep breath Ami was the first of the two to speak, she still felt hurt and angry but in all fairness she felt it was her fault for not giving Ty a chance to explain himself. “I’m sorry I hit you.”
“I’m sorry that I didn’t come out and explain everything earlier.”
“But how could you, I was the one running away from you.”
“Which in itself is an oddity, not very many women run from the sight of me,” Ty said giving her a smile. “Ami I’m only married out of obligation. I absolutely do not love that woman. We’ve been married for ten years and we don’t have any cubs together. She does her thing and I do mine.” Lifting her chin so that she looked him in the eye Ty felt her vulnerability at the moment. “Ami I need you to know that I didn’t come here with the intention of mating you in mind I swear I didn’t. I came here to merely talk about the mating tide. I know with you being human that you don’t feel it as much as I do but I feel it. And I know we don’t know each other but believe me, I am willing to go about this at whatever pace you want.”
Ami didn’t know what to say, she really felt flabbergasted that he would be so kindhearted with her even after she had blew up in his face.
“Ty this mating tide that you feel, did you ever think that someone could be setting you up? I mean I know it’s a bit far fetched but how ridiculous does it sound that someone would curse you or put a hex on you to make you believe that I was your true destined mate. Especially now that I know you’re married, what if they were trying to separate you and your wife.”
“Well I’d surely welcome that consequence.”
“Be serious. But doesn’t it sound in the least bit at all plausible?”
At Ami’s mention of being set up Ty’s body tensed. He didn’t want to admit that it was a possibility because it meant that admitting that he were playing right into someone’s trap, but why would Roman go to such lengths?
“Okay lets say I believe this to be true, why would anyone want to use you in any plot, granted you are the most beautiful woman I have ever laid eyes on not to mention the sexiest, but why toss you into whatever existing conflict?”
Smiling at his comment Ami replied, “Because you’re a Pride Leader and for years Pride Leaders have only been with females that have the strongest were genes, and they rule together, but never ever in history has there ever been one such as myself as one of the Pride Leader’s consorts let alone a true mate.” Ty caught on to Ami’s logic and saw, just as she did that, having her for a mate, a human basically, could mean the Naeri genetic line will weaken through their union. It was seen and held as a revered truth, that if a Pride Leader could not produce genetically sound heirs that he would be seen as a weak leader. It would be anarchy; everyone from the lowliest cub would try to challenge him for the role of leader of the pride.
When Ty failed to comment about Ami’s perception of the situation Ami went on to say, “So you believe me? I mean it all adds up for you doesn’t it? I don’t know what you have going on in your financial life right now but it must be something so that you had to travel all the way here for my dad’s expertise. And now this with me, perfect timing.”
Ty heard the note of desperation in Ami’s voice as if she could will all the elements into place to make everything they had shared a falsehood. As much as he wanted to try and place himself in her shoes, so to speak, to really understand how her life could be affected by the mating he couldn’t because as he sat there with her neatly fitting into his lap with her head resting on his shoulder he realized that he didn’t know enough about her.
“Okay Ami I give... I can’t possibly come up with a reason as to negate yours. So what do you propose now?” Ty said as he let go of the issue to allow Ami full reign of handling the situation.
Once again, Ami was taken aback by just how much his attitude had changed. She took in a big deep breath and finally answered Ty, “We go see the witches.”