“Damn,” I whispered, shaking my head. “Jake, if they really believe all that, it’s going to make them incredibly dangerous!”
“Oh, you think?” he growled sarcastically. “Why do you think your mom and my dad forbid you to go out alone—especially at night? That fucking asshole, Sorenson, has probably been stalking you for days, trying to get you alone. And tonight, when you snuck out, you gave him the perfect opportunity! If I hadn’t come when I did—”
“Why did you come?” I demanded. “Why did you just happen to be there in the parking lot at just the right time?”
“I followed your scent trail,” he said, frowning. “I could tell by the way you were acting this afternoon you were going to sneak out.”
“What? How could you possibly know that?” I asked.
“Because I did it myself, when I was your age, all right?” Jake snapped. “The room you’re in now used to be mine—it’s too damn easy to climb down that trellis and get away.” He shook his head. “Don’t know why your mom lets you stay there. You must really have her fooled into thinking you’re some good little girl who never breaks the rules.”
“I don’t break the rules, when I don’t have to!” I exclaimed, stung at his accusing tone. “But I felt like I was being held prisoner in that damn house. Nobody told me there was a crazy cult following me!”
“It sounds to me like nobody has told you much of anything,” Jake growled. “Your mom was supposed to explain all about being a Were and what to expect during the full moon and how you have to watch out for the Worshipers of the Moon and all of that shit.”
“Well, she didn’t!” I snapped. “She said I’ll probably marry a ‘non-Were’ and so I’ll never have to worry about any of the crazy shit you guys believe in!”
“We believe in it because it’s true,” Jake said tersely. “Look, I realize you weren’t raised in a Were family and you only recently found out about your bloodlines, but you need to respect what you are, Ani. What all of us are.”
“I don’t believe any of that,” I told him frankly. “But it’s enough for me to believe that you believe it and that the crazy people following me believe it, okay?”
“No, it’s not okay.” We were home at that point. Jake drove through the front gates and up the front drive of the big old Antebellum mansion before he parked the car. Then he turned to look at me, an intense look on his face. “Ani, there are things you really need to know. Whether you wind up with a Were or not, you’re one yourself and it’s going to affect you.”
“Affect me how?” I scoffed. “Am I going to turn furry and start howling whenever there’s a full moon?”
“No, female Weres don’t shift like male Weres do,” he said stiffly. “But there are other changes that will affect you. Look… you’re virgin, aren’t you?”
“What?” I couldn’t believe he’d asked me that!
“You are, aren’t you?” He shifted forward, looking into my eyes intently. “I can tell it by your scent. You smell…” He inhaled deeply, his eyelids fluttering for a moment, like someone smelling something really good. “You smell pure—you’ve never been bred or knotted before by any male, have you?”
I slapped his face.
“None of your Goddamned business!” I snarled, now thoroughly pissed off. “How dare you ask me a question like that or start making assumptions about my sex life?” Or lack thereof—but he didn’t need to know that.
Jake put a hand to his cheek, where I had slapped him. His pure-gold eyes flashed but he didn’t retaliate in any way.
“Fine—have it your way. See how you like it when your first Heat Cycle comes on you,” he growled. “Your mom may think she can keep you safe by making my father adopt you and keeping you away from most other Weres, but you’re in the house with two Alpha males of the Royal Line—your body is going to react, no matter how hard I try to stay away from you.”
“What are you talking about?” I demanded. “And if you’re really trying to stay away from me, why did you follow me tonight?”
Jake looked away.
“I didn’t want you to get hurt. Look, those people—the Worshipers of the Moon—they caught me once, when I was a few years younger than you are now.”
“What? Really?” I suddenly felt bad about slapping him. “Jake, I’m sorry,” I said in a low voice. “What…what did they do to you?”
“Let’s just say it wasn’t a good time, all right?” His voice was hard and he wouldn’t look at me—he stared out the windshield instead. “My dad had to hire some professionals to get me back, but it took them a while to find me. So those fucking assholes had plenty of time to—”