Page 6 of Brandon’s Mate

She breathed in again, taking in the scents of jaguar and mango shampoo from the oversized shirt carelessly thrown over the back of the swing next to her. Her mother was roaming the forest tonight.

That was nothing new—Jasmin hated being closed in, especially at night, and she was a restless sleeper.

Kitty tore open the cellophane package and bit into a cupcake, savoring the thick layer of frosting, the chocolatey cake and the creamy center. She amused herself by trying to get some of all three into each bite without also getting frosting on her nose.

Fail.

Through the smell of artificial ingredients came a familiar scent, and a huge tawny jaguar with black spots came silently out of the trees, padding up to the porch with deadly grace.

“Hey, Mom,” Kitty said. “Want a cupcake?”

With a shimmer and a crack of bones, the jaguar turned into a lithe, hard-bodied woman with jet-black hair down to her waist.

She was in her mid-forties but like most shifters, looked younger. As usual, Kitty wished she had her mother’s build, instead of being tall and sturdy, with big boobs and rounded hips.

Jasmin rolled her eyes at the offer of junk food, as Kitty knew she would.

“God, no,” Jasmin said. “That shit is poison.” She strode up onto the porch and pulled the still-buttoned button-down shirt over her head. It came down almost to her knees. Definitely not one of hers.

“Stealing Dad’s shirts again, I see,” Kitty said. “You know he hates that.”

Jasmin snorted. “Bullshit. He loves it. He also loves to complain about how much we supposedly abuse him, so it’s a double win for him.” She settled herself on the swing, stretching out her long legs.

Kitty grinned to herself. Look who was talking. Bitching was her mom’s “I love you.”

She waved the open cupcake package in Jasmin’s face. “Mmm, chocolatey chemical goodness. Deep down inside, you know you want one.”

Jasmin wrinkled her nose and gave an exaggerated sigh. “Two professional chefs for parents, and this is what I find you eating.” She shook her head. “Who even raised you?”

Through a mouthful of cupcake, Kitty said, “Raised by wolves. Well, one wolf. And a Monster Kitty—that would be you. Face it. I’m dooooomed.”

That got a faint grin from Jasmin. Bingo. Making her perennially grumpy mother smile against her will was a favorite hobby of Kitty and her dad.

“What are you doing up?” Jasmin asked. “You usually sleep like the dead. Like your father.”

“Bad dream,” Kitty said.

Her mother was quiet for a few seconds. “The fire?” she asked.

“Yeah.”

Jasmin reached over and rested her hand on Kitty’s legs, rubbing them with a small, soothing motion. Kitty’s wolf calmed some more. Her mom wasn’t much of a toucher by nature, but she’d learned over the years how much wolves needed touch, so she did it for Kitty and her dad. Another “I love you” from a woman who rarely showed her emotions.

“Want to tell me about it?” Jasmin asked.

“Not really. It sucked even worse than usual.”

Jasmin waited quietly, her hand still on Kitty’s leg. Kitty finished her cupcake. Jasmin waited some more. Kitty sighed.

“It started like the other nightmares, but then it changed.” She glanced sideways at her mother. “All of a sudden I was somewhere else. Some other building that was burning. I was outside, but…” She stopped, then took a deep breath. “Brandon was inside. I saw the ceiling crashing down, right over his head. I tried to save him, but…”

She shook her head. “The roof crashed in, and then I woke up. The end.”

Jasmin went still. Kitty wasn’t surprised—the crew rarely talked about Brandon. To Kitty he was her childhood protector. Her first crush. The boy who’d broken her heart when he left the crew six years ago, when he was twenty-one and she was only fifteen.

To the rest of the crew, he was a wound that had never healed—the one they’d lost. The one who’d left them.

She said tentatively, “I don’t suppose anybody’s heard from him lately?”