Changing Hearts (3 page)

She didn’t read like any of the other psychics he’d met. They’d known his kind right away. Other sensitive people knew something rang strange about him even before he told them. He hated sharing any part of himself.
Malcolm. I’m Malcolm Slade.

The old woman sat back on a porch swing he hadn’t paid any attention to and chuckled merrily. Slade felt his ruff rising.
Make fun of me, will she? Doesn’t she know that I could be up and across the porch before she could take aim with that stupid pistol?
His head dropped, though he maintained eye contact with the old woman.

He gathered himself to jump. Muscles tensed as his shoulders followed the line of his neck.

He could kill her in a heartbeat and… Slade stopped.
I don’t want to kill her.
His body flowed out of attack posture back to a more relaxed state. Until now there’d never been a pressing reason not to attack humans first and ask questions later.

He looked at this strange old bird sitting on the swing with her feet just grazing the floor. She watched him as carefully as he watched her, but he didn’t feel her in his head now. Still, she had to know what had almost happened.

What was it about her and the young woman? Something drew him in, but he couldn’t figure it out. All he knew was that the animal side of him didn’t want their blood. Yet. Surely this was just an anomaly.

The floor creaking and the soft sound of a footfall on the porch had his full attention turning to the door. Not because of the noise, but because she stood there.
Lilac woman, Joie.
Ignoring the pain in his side, Slade drew himself upright. As unreasonable as it might be, he didn’t want to appear weak in her eyes. Not that he had anything to worry about. And why did he care if this he impressed this human female, anyway?

She was so damn short he knew that in his present form his head would come nearly to her chest. Her breasts looked like soft, inviting pillows, calling him to bury his face and breathe in her scent. He let his mind wander in that direction for a moment before jerking it back on track.

Instant attraction wasn’t something he was used to. He’d certainly never felt it for any shifter female and never expected to feel it for a human, but there it was.

No, not for a human, Slade, humans are nothing but trouble. It has to be because I hurt so much. She’s being nice to me now, but sure as shit, the other shoe’s going to drop soon and she’ll be like every other human I’ve known. She’ll betray me, or she’ll hurt me in some other way.
He dropped his head slightly, keeping both women in sight.

Joie stopped. Not staring at this creature would have been impossible. She tried to control her breathing, but knew her pulse ran ragged. He fascinated her. Intense came to mind as she studied him. She’d never seen such a large wolf before. Now she knew how a deer must feel when it faced a predator like him.

From gray to black with some tan thrown in, his coat fell across his body in dense waves. She knew that if he were in the woods, she’d never see him with his camouflage. And those eyes!
I could fall into those beautiful eyes.
Intelligence shone there and something else, something more. She couldn’t put her finger on it, but it made her think a human looked back at her.
What nonsense!

His nose twitched and she realized she hadn’t put the water down. He waited for the bowl and until she had backed up to stand beside
Tante
Kay before he took a careful step forward.

Slade sniffed. Nothing but well water tainted with natural minerals, but caution never hurt anyone and he’d survived more than a few poisoning attempts that way. Except the one bitch who’d gotten past him by making him forget to be careful for just that one moment.

It had cost him everything, including his honor. He lapped the water up as though he’d been in the desert for months. The combination of the silver poisoning and his injuries had sapped his strength. Besides water and food, he needed to find a place to hide and he needed to do it quickly. His life depended on it.

He drank all the water in the bowl, and then licked it a few times for good measure. Movement brought his head up. The younger woman stepped forward carefully, but he didn’t want her near him. Those damn lilacs were making him insane. Baring his teeth stopped her for the moment.

She began making soothing noises as she edged away. He barely contained his growl as he backed away from the bowl. Lying down, he placed his head between his front paws to watch what she would do next.

The old woman gave that witch’s laugh. His ears flicked backward as he raised his head.
If I hear that again, I might just bite her on principle.
It made him edgy and he didn’t need to be edgy right now. Didn’t that old dried-up piece of leather know how much was at stake? Not just his life, but their lives as well rode on his being able to get out of here.

She paid him no mind as she spoke to the younger woman. “Joie, go get that creature the leftover stew. I can hear his stomach growling from here.” She cackled as she sent to him,
That better be your stomach, boy. I don’t wanna hear no growling from you no more, you hear?

Joie stared hard at him, then nodded and moved toward the cabin again. Slade backed up so he could see both the doorway and the old woman. He didn’t deign to answer Granny.
Does this old broad think she has me under control? Why am I even hanging around here?
It would be so easy to just leap off the porch and disappear into the swamp again.

Yeah, it would hurt, but once he changed a few times, that pain could be dealt with. When Joie came back out carrying a cast-iron pot in one hand and a big hunk of cornbread in the other, he realized that he didn’t want to leave just yet. He needed to figure out why this tiny human captivated him so much.

“Are you sure this won’t be too spicy for him? He’s been pretty badly hurt and I’d hate to upset his stomach on top of that.” She addressed the old woman, though she stared at him. Slade dropped his lower jaw while stretching back his lips to give her the equivalent of a wolf grin even as the old woman replied.

“No,
cher
, it won’t be too spicy. Something tells me he’s really gonna like it. Just put the pot down and watch him.”

Joie slid the pot and the cornbread onto the ground, then backed up to stand next to Tante Kay again. She watched the wolf. He tracked her movements, sending a shiver up her arms. When he seemed convinced of her holding her position, he took one step forward, then another. His movements were cautious, but controlled. Even with the limp caused by his injured front paw, she found herself mesmerized by the fluidity of his walk.

The wolf sniffed at the stew. His ears flicked forward as he raised his head to look at her godmother, almost as if he were speaking to her. Joie wouldn’t doubt it. Just as she always knew when an injured animal came into the area,
Tante
always seemed to be able to communicate on more than one level with the wild things.

He lowered his head to the food and didn’t look up again until the pot gleamed clean. The cornbread followed in three quick bites. Tossing his head back to catch the last piece, he sat down. His never-wavering gaze had Joie wondering if he might still be hungry.

She took a step forward. He levered his rear legs to stand. She stepped back and he sat down. With an impish grin, she eased forward, but the wolf held his ground. He didn’t growl or bare his teeth. He simply watched her the last time as if he knew she would stop.

Joie hunkered down in front of the beast to study him. So unlike other animals she’d treated, he didn’t seem threatened by her holding his eyes. In fact, his eyes held hers until she looked away. He stood up again to turn a complete circle, almost as though showing himself to her.

She’d noticed some strange markings in his fur when he’d been on his side and now that he stood facing her, the one around his left front leg almost looked like it formed a pattern of sorts. If she concentrated hard enough, she’d be able to discern the pattern.

Something tickled her brain again. She thought back to that moment in the moonlight when a man had been where a wolf was.
Joie Sue! Get your mind out of your fantasy books! Next thing you know, you’ll be carrying knives for the
feu follets
!
The old stories about sticking a knife into the ground to distract the fairy lights ran quickly through her mind as she reached out to the wolf.

“Careful there, child.” The seldom-heard sharpness in
Tante
Kay’s voice caused her to jerk back.

The wolf hadn’t taken his eyes off her face. Joie smiled slowly, then dropped her gaze. He took a step forward, which had her stumbling back quickly. The wolf looked at
Tante
Kay, then at her. His tongue lolled out of his mouth a bit. He sneezed once and shook his head. Joie thought she saw a grimace of pain in his expression, but knew that couldn’t be true. She watched him move to the edge of the porch.

“I’m goin’ to bed. You watch that creature for a bit longer, Joie, then you go on to bed too. You sleep in a bit. I think you gonna need it.”
Tante
Kay stared at the wolf. Joie could almost hear her message, but she didn't understand why Tante would be warning the wolf in any way. Still, her message came through loud and clear, You mess with my girl and I'll mess you.

Joie picked up the pot. The inside shone back at her, but he didn’t indicate in any way that he might still be hungry, so she set it on the porch, then sat on the step next to it. The sky had started to lighten, easing deep purples and blues into the sky.

A great blue heron glided down the bayou on its way to a fish breakfast somewhere. The wind picked up just enough to set the Spanish moss swaying like bearded ballerinas.

“You’re so beautiful, but what are you doing here and what on earth happened to you?” She couldn’t help it, talking to the beast seemed so natural.

She held her hand out to him in the vain hope that he would sniff her hand like a dog might. Her one bane in life would always be her need to connect with her patients. And she wanted to bury her hands in his coat again, wanted to feel that lush thickness tickling her palms. But the wolf looked at her, then lay down at the bottom of the steps, well out of her reach. He put his head on his forepaws, his eyes never leaving hers.

“I wish you could tell me what happened. I’m pretty sure you were in a fight.” She paused with a finger to her lips. “And it looks like you lost, poor thing.” At those words, he lifted his head. One ear flicked backward followed by the other and she could swear he rolled his eyes. “Okay, so maybe you didn’t lose, but if that’s the case, I’d hate to see the other wolf.”

At those words, he broke into another wolf grin and Joie shivered. Intelligent didn’t begin to cover this animal. He did know what she said! Staring at him, she whispered, “If you understand me, stand up and turn around once.”

The wolf just looked back at her.
Well, that was dumb.
She brushed the thoughts of human intelligence in him away again as she rose to say, “I think you’ll be okay, I’m going to bed. If you’re still here when I get up, I’ll feed you again. Or
Tante
Kay will get you something.”

Joie grabbed the pot, then got up to go inside. She stood in the doorway, taking comfort from the rough wood under her fingers. Staring at the wolf for a moment, she said, “Well,
bon nuit
, or
bon matin
,
Monsieur
Wolf.”

She didn’t feel foolish at all, it only seemed polite to say goodnight. He’d sat up when she’d stood to go into the house. She looked back at him. He stared at her as though he wanted to say something.
Now that’s foolish! Wolves that can talk! Honestly, Joie, where is your head?
She smiled, then turned her back on him to go into the house.

Slade watched her. His whiskers quivered, his muscles twitched. Every fiber of his being demanded he speak to her. But he fought the urge to change. The girl, Joie, spoke to him like she knew. Part of him urged him to show her what he really was. When she’d stood in the doorway, the light from the cabin had outlined her shape in the thin cotton gown.

Large breasts, just the way he liked them, over a small waist and curvy hips. Honest concern for him had colored her voice. He couldn’t remember the last time anyone—shifter or human—had been worried about him. Still, he knew what she’d feel if she knew what he was. Fear. Disgust. Her kind didn’t mix with his kind often. And when they did, bad things followed.
Besides, does she think I’m a trained dog? Stand up? Turn around?

Slade moved stiffly up the porch steps to sniff at the door. He followed the porch around to the side of the house where the curtains were open, only the screen separating him from the room. A shadow flirted across the wall, then she entered the room like a nighttime goddess. He caught his breath even though she had no idea he watched. He didn’t require the early dawn light to see her. His animal-enhanced vision did a fine job of that.

She didn’t turn on a light, simply walked over to the bed, dropped her shawl on the foot of it and climbed in. Her gown rose to expose the curve of her calf and one knee. Slade felt his body react.

If the gown rose just a bit higher her upper thigh would join the picture forming in front of him. But she shifted under the sheet so it fell over her leg. Disappointed, Slade waited another moment as she sighed and burrowed into her pillow. Then her scent wafted through the window.
Lilacs and woman.
She smelled damn good.

Slade lay down under the window. His intention only to rest for a few minutes, then go deeper into the bayou again. He didn’t want to be here in the morning. But he would stay until the sun had completely risen. No need to leave the two women unprotected when they couldn’t see or smell as well as he could. If someone tracked him, he could get away before they even knew he’d gone.

* * * * *

Joie threw a hand up in front of her face.
Where is that light coming from?
She stretched, reaching out with her arms and pushing down with her feet until things popped here and there.
Sun. It has to be the sun.
A yawn split her face as she came awake. She inhaled deeply at the scent of coffee. God bless
Tante
Kay.