Danger in a Fur Coat (The Fur Coat Society Book 4) (5 page)

Wyatt had heard the lifemate bond described before, but never in such emotional terms. It always been described him as somebody knowing when they met someone that that person was who they were supposed to be with for the rest of their life, but he had never heard someone explain it as an aching for someone whom you hadn’t met yet. The more he thought about it as he sat there, draining the whiskey from his glass, the more he realized that he’d felt a similar sadness himself. There had been many times over the years where he had been inexplicably lonely, even though he had a good life and good friends. At times he’d even had girlfriends, although that had never lasted too long. He was too much of a free spirit for most girls. Besides, when it got to the point in a relationship where he had to explain that he was a dragon, things always got a little awkward. He usually avoided the subject until his girlfriend thought that he was lying to her about something important or was cheating on her and then left him.

“What’s wrong?” Juno asked, pulling him out of his reverie.

“Nothing,” Wyatt said. “I was just thinking that maybe I have felt that lifemate bond before.”

Juno shrugged, “You would know better than me.”

Wyatt was silent again. Was this what he was feeling now? This aching for Juno? He had just met her, and yet he felt like he couldn’t get enough of her. But if they were lifemates, then shouldn’t she feel the same thing towards him? She didn’t seem to be interested in him beyond a general friendship sort of thing.

“What’s wrong?” Juno asked. “You’re frowning.”

Wyatt looked up at her and tried to smile, but he couldn’t manage a very convincing one at the moment.

“You say the lifemate bond comes and goes,” he said. “Do you feel it strongly now?”

Juno bit her lip thoughtfully. “It’s hard to say. I would say yes, because I’ve felt the pull very strongly the last few days. I feel like my lifemate is calling to me more than ever before. But then I wonder if it’s just the emotions of trying to save the world and all that. It’s a pretty big thing.”

Wyatt felt a glimmer of hope in his chest. Maybe she did actually feel something for him, after all, and just hadn’t realized it yet. He looked out over the water thoughtfully. It was strange being up here. He had come to this restaurant a few times on dates, before the city had gone to ruin. He’d sat here in this very room with beautiful women, trying to impress them. But he’d never wanted to impress anyone as much as he wanted to impress Juno right now. She was different. Special. She had a certain life and energy to her like no one he’d ever met. And it wasn’t just the fact that she was a shifter. He’d met plenty of shifter woman over the years, and no one had ever been quite like her. She was so matter-of-fact about saving the world, which was a lot of pressure to put on herself. Not only that, but she was trying to protect her clan while she did it. Wyatt thought it was a little silly of her to leave her clan behind. He was a big believer in letting people make their own decisions about what kind of dangerous situations they wanted to get into. Still, it was sweet of her to try to protect them, and to protect the romantic bonds that her friends had made.

Wyatt stood and started to pace. He felt uneasy, like there was an itch growing in him that he had to scratch. He knew that Juno was the only one who could scratch it, but he wasn’t sure how to move forward in this situation. It’s not like he could exactly take her out on a date, and the only food they had up here was his stash of nonperishable food that he’d acquired over the last month or so by raiding homes and businesses. But he wanted to somehow show Juno that she meant something to him, even though they had just met.

He had begun to question whether life was even worth it anymore before her. The human race was dying. Shifters were hiding in the shadows, and many of the world’s most beautiful cities were in ruins. Something about Juno had brought him to life again, and made him realize that there was hope for the future as long as you had someone to care about. Juno cared about her clan, and cared about humans. And now he cared about Juno.

Juno let him pace, seeming to sense that he needed some space. After several minutes, he decided that he would make this into a date. Maybe he only had simple boxed food to cook. And maybe the situation wasn’t exactly ideal. But the important thing was that there was something deep within him telling him that Juno mattered. It wasn’t just the fact that she was the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen. Her story was intriguing. He wanted to know more about her, about her clan, about where she came from, and about what kinds of things made her happy. He had a feeling that no matter how much he learned about her, it would never be enough. He’d thought that he was in love before, but those feelings paled in comparison to how he felt about a woman he had only known for a few hours.

Call it fate. Call it destiny. Call it the urgency brought on by the fact that the world was ending. But whatever it was, Wyatt knew that he wasn’t going to dance around the truth. He was falling for Juno, and he was going to make sure she knew it.

“Do you need a refill?” Wyatt asked. He carefully carried two plates piled high with spaghetti toward the table, where Juno was sitting.

“No thanks. I’m still good,” Juno said, glancing over at him for just a moment before glancing back out the window. She had a faraway look in her eyes, and it took her a moment to even notice that Wyatt had put food down.

“Oh wow,” she said when she finally turned back and saw the plates. “This is way better than a meal replacement bar.”

Wyatt had scrounged around his stash of food to find the best meal he could come up with. Spaghetti was kind of boring, true. But he did have a decent selection of pasta sauce, and the one he had chosen was a Cabernet infused red sauce. It smelled amazing, and he hoped it tasted amazing, too. He would’ve loved to add meat to the meal, but fresh meat was a thing of the past right now. He would have killed for a steak dinner, but it wasn’t happening anytime soon. In fact, he didn’t really know if it would ever happen again, the way the world was falling apart. But he didn’t want to focus on the negatives right now. He wanted to focus on the fact that he at least had a beautiful woman sitting here with him. A beautiful woman whom he hoped he would be able to impress just a little bit with his attempt at dinner.

“So, you were a scientist before everything fell apart?” Wyatt prompted. He wanted to learn everything he could about Juno.

Juno nodded. “Yeah, I was getting my PhD in biology, actually. Right outside of Chicago. I worked at a lab as a research assistant. Ironically enough, I was assigned to work on the shifter scanners when they were still in development. I love science, and I loved my life here in the city. But I don’t think I’ll ever live here again, even if things turn around for the better. Chicago will never be the same, you know?”

“Yeah, I know what you mean,” Wyatt said. “I’ve lived here for a while, too, and it’s sad to see how the city has fallen apart.”

“What did you do here?” Juno asked “It’s a shame I never met you before the shifter scanners arrived.”

Wyatt smiled, and nodded in agreement. He would have loved to have met Juno in happier times, but he tried not to dwell on that, and to instead be happy that at least he had met her now.

“I did a lot of odd jobs,” Wyatt said. “A lot of construction in the summer. In the winter, I would help plow snow. Or, if I was feeling really ambitious, I would go up to Wisconsin and work as a ski instructor. I taught a lot of kids to ski up there. I did some other stuff here in the city, too. Washed windows, worked as a painter…mostly physical labor. I guess that probably sounds silly to someone who was going for her PhD, but I just have never been able to sit still. Wasn’t really my thing. I couldn’t handle school, or an office job.

“I don’t think it sounds silly,” Juno said. “I think there’s something very therapeutic about physical work. It was an adjustment for me when I moved from Alaska to here. I was used to having a lot of space to roam in the wilderness, and everything here felt confined.”

“Alaska, eh?” Wyatt said. “Is your family still there?”

“Yeah,” Juno said. “At least I hope they are. It’s been difficult to keep in contact with my parents lately. But they had a pretty good hiding place in some underground caverns up there, so I’m hoping they’re doing okay.”

Wyatt took a bite of his spaghetti. He hadn’t tried it yet, because he’d been so enthralled by watching Juno and listening to her talk. He was pleased to find that the sauce did not disappoint. The flavor burst in his mouth, and he smiled.

“This stuff is pretty good,” he said.

“Yeah,” Juno said. “It’s the best pasta I’ve had in a long time. Thanks for making it for me, and for inviting me up here. And for getting me into the lab…and, well, for a lot of things. I haven’t even known you that long, but you’ve already done a bunch to help me out.

Wyatt shrugged like it was nothing, but on the inside he was pleased by Juno’s praise.

“It’s no big deal,” he said. “Truth be told it’s nice to have the company. As much as I enjoy solitude, sometimes the quiet gets to be a little too much. Especially after living in such a busy city for years.”

“It’s weird, isn’t it?” Juno said. “And frightening. I feel like the whole world is hanging on by a thread, and Chicago is just a tiny microcosm of that.”

Juno looked over at him with frightened, concerned eyes, and Wyatt felt his heart melting at her vulnerable expression.

“What if I can’t do this, Wyatt?” she asked. “What if I can’t figure out a cure for bear flu? What if humanity really does disappear?”

Wyatt shrugged. “Then I guess the shifters have free reign.”

Juno frowned. “I guess. But it would be pretty sad to lose all of humanity, even though they’ve done some awful things. Some of them have been amazing, and some of them are my family members. Like my mom. She’s full human. I…I’m not too worried about her because I know the whole clan is in hiding. I don’t think they’ve come into contact with the flu. But, still. What if they did? I couldn’t bear to lose my mom, and I know it would kill her on the inside to see the rest of humanity destroyed.”

Wyatt leaned back in his chair and stroked his chin thoughtfully. “I don’t know what to tell you, Juno,” he said. “We’re in a hard place right now. Nothing is guaranteed, and things are a little bit scary. I guess the only thing I can say is that you can’t put too much pressure on yourself to save the world. Just the fact that you’re trying is amazing, but there’s no way to know what the future holds. All we can do is face the challenges as they come, and hope that things somehow turn out okay.” 

Juno looked down at her hands and didn’t say anything. Wyatt knew that his words were not much comfort to her, but he didn’t know what else to say. No one knew what the future might hold, and he didn’t want to make false promises. Still, he wanted to comfort her. She looked so small and vulnerable sitting across the table from him. Her beautiful face wore an expression of sadness, and it crossed Wyatt’s mind that it was the most beautiful sadness he had ever seen. He couldn’t help but stare at her, wishing that he could take her into his arms. Finally, she looked up at him and caught him staring.

“What?” she asked. “Is there something on my face?”

“No,” he said, lowering his voice. “I was just thinking about how goddamn beautiful you are.” Wyatt held his breath as he waited for the words to register in Juno’s mind. It was a risky thing to say—he was making it absolutely clear what his feelings toward her were. If she didn’t reciprocate, things could get awkward. But he couldn’t hold back. If recent months had taught him anything, it was that you never know how much time you have left. You have to take the opportunities you’re given while you can. Juno blushed deeply in response.

“You’re not so bad looking yourself,” she said. Wyatt could’ve sworn that his heart skipped a beat as he looked over at Juno. He realized that he had never wanted anything more in his entire life, and he didn’t want to dance around the truth or hold back. Especially not when it was unclear whether the city would even be there tomorrow. Wyatt pushed aside his plate and rushed to Juno’s side of the table. He knelt beside her and took her hands in his hands.

“Juno, listen,” he said, his voice husky. “I don’t know what tomorrow will bring. I don’t know what the future holds. I don’t need to explain to you how things are crazy right now. You already know. But what I do know is that ever since the first moment I met you, I haven’t been able to stop thinking about you. All I can think about is how beautiful you are, and how my heart aches for you. It’s funny that you said all of those things about lifemates, because, well, I never really believed in them before. But something about you feels different, and I can’t help but wonder whether maybe we’re meant to be together. I know I probably sound crazy right now, but I just can’t let another second go by without telling you how much I want to be with you.”

“Wyatt,” Juno said, letting his name trail off on her tongue. She didn’t say anything else. She just looked at him with pleading eyes, as though she was trying to explain something just by her expression. In the soft light of the room, her skin was glowing and her deep green eyes looked dark and mysterious. Slowly, Wyatt leaned over and tilted his face up toward Juno’s. He was so tall that he was almost at eye level with her, even though he was kneeling and she was sitting. He moved slowly, giving her plenty of time to back away if she wanted to. But she didn’t back away. Instead, she kept looking at him with those intense eyes of hers.

“Wyatt,” she said again, her voice full of emotion.

“Juno,” he answered, his voice deep and husky. And then he covered her mouth with his. As soon as their lips touched, he felt a shock of heat go through him unlike anything he’d felt before. His whole body warmed even more than it did when he was breathing fire. Juno moaned slightly, and melted into his kiss. He slipped his tongue past her lips and let it dance with her tongue, then moved his hands so that his palms were on her cheeks. Her skin was impossibly soft, and he felt a thrill go through him. This right here was heaven. He’d never felt anything like this before, and he didn’t ever want the feeling to end. But moments later, Juno pulled away. Wyatt tried not to appear disappointed, but he looked up at her with questioning eyes.

“Juno?” he asked.

“Wyatt, I…I can’t.”

“Can’t what?” he asked.

“I can’t get involved with you. There’s too much going on right now. I need to focus on getting a cure for the bear flu. I can’t be distracted by a relationship.”

“It doesn’t have to be a distraction,” he said. “I’ll help you find a cure however I can. I’m here for you. You don’t have to do this alone.”

But Juno shook her head no. “It’s just…I don’t know. I have feelings for you, obviously. I’m attracted to you, and I can tell that there’s some sort of connection between us. But I just can’t focus on romance right now. It’s not the right time. Maybe when things settle down.”

Wyatt bit his lip and tried to hide his disappointment. He wanted to take Juno by the shoulders and shake her, telling her that things weren’t going to settle down anytime soon. The devastation sweeping across the world was too great, even if they came up with a cure for the bear flu tomorrow, it would be a long, long time before things got back to anything that resembled “normal.” But Wyatt could see the determination in Juno’s eyes, and, if he had learned one thing about her over the last several hours, it was that she was the kind of person who was extremely unlikely to change her mind once she got an idea in her head. So he just smiled and nodded.

“Okay,” he said, pulling back and going to sit in his chair again. “I understand. But just know how much I care for you. I want to get to know you better, and I mean it when I say I want to help you with finding a cure for the bear flu. I’m here for you, whatever you need. And when the time is right, I hope we can revisit these feelings.”

Juno nodded and looked relieved. “Okay,” she said. “I really appreciate that. Thanks for understanding. It’s not that I don’t like you. It’s just that…” she trailed off again.

“It’s just that the world is crazy right now,” Wyatt said, finishing her sentence for her. “I know. It’s okay. Don’t put so much pressure on yourself, alright?”

Juno nodded and started swirling pasta on her fork again. They ate in silence for a few minutes, and then Juno started talking about how much she missed her favorite Chicago restaurants. Wyatt smiled and listened, but on the inside his dragon was clawing at his heart.

“
Claim her
,” it said.

Wyatt ignored his inner beast. The timing wasn’t right. He had to have patience, and patience had never been his strong point. But for Juno, he would do his best. He could only hope that, when the dust settled on everything, she would let his dragon fly her off into the sunset.