"But—"
"Go," Vane growled, "and have a good birthday."
She sighed, then patted him on the arm. "All right." She grabbed her sweater and purse from under the bar.
"I'll punch you out," Kyle said, lifting the bar counter for her so that she could step out.
"Thanks."
Vane started pulling the glasses out of the rack and putting them away while Kyle went to help Wren bus the tables.
Colt Theodorakopolus sauntered up to the bar. The Ursulan Arcadian stood even in height with Vane, who felt an instant dislike for the were-bear. Though, to be honest, Colt seemed decent enough. His mother's mate had been killed while his mother was pregnant with him. Knowing she would die as soon as her cub was born, she'd come to Sanctuary and begged the Peltiers to raise her son for her.
To Vane's knowledge, Colt had never met another Arcadian bear member. As a Sentinel, Colt should have one side of his face covered by Sentinel markings—strange, geometric designs that appeared as a birthmark once the Sentinel reached maturity. But Colt, like many Sentinels who lived outside of their clans or in seclusion, chose to hide them, along with his powers.
No one knew how powerful Colt was until they crossed him. Then it was too late.
A hiding Sentinel was a most dangerous thing.
Unlike the other bears, Colt had short black hair and looked remarkably clean-cut.
"Give me whisky," Colt said to Vane. "And hold the human hair."
Vane nodded at the phrase that meant Colt wanted the hard liquor that would completely inebriate a human with one shot. Since their kind had a higher metabolism, they could handle a lot more alcohol.
He poured a large shot glass, then placed it on the bar in front of Colt. The instant he pulled his hand back, he felt a strange burning sensation.
Hissing, Vane blew across his palm. He moved to one of the bar lamps to see what he'd done to it.
As he looked, a strange scrolling design seared itself onto his skin.
"Oh shit," he breathed as he saw it take form.
Colt ducked under the bar and came up behind him. His jaw went slack. "You're mated?" he asked incredulously. "Who's the lucky she-wolf?"
Vane couldn't breathe as he saw the marking. How could this be?
"It's impossible."
Colt laughed. "Yeah, right, you sound like Serre when he got mated. Trust me, it happens to the best of us."
"No," Vane said, meeting the bear's gaze. "She's human. I'm a wolf. I can't be mated to a human. It's not possible."
The color faded from Colt's face as the full impact of Vane's situation hit him. "You unlucky bastard. It's not often that an Arcadian mates to a human, but it does happen."
"I'm not Arcadian," Vane snarled. There was nothing human in him. Nothing.
Colt grabbed his hand and held it up to Vane's line of sight. "Argue with this all you want to. But face it, Vane. Your three weeks are ticking. Either you claim the human or you'll live out the rest of your life without ever feeling another female's touch."
"Ow!" Bride snapped as her hand started burning. She pressed it up against her glass of water.
"What's wrong?" Mina asked as she picked out another oyster to eat.
"I don't know," Bride said. "My hand just started hurting."
Tabitha touched Bride's plate. "Nothing's hot. Did you cut your hand on an oyster shell?"
"No," Bride said, pulling her hand back to look at it. There was a beautiful design on her palm. It reminded her of some ancient Greek design. "What on earth?"
Mina frowned as she looked at it. "Did you get a henna tattoo?"
"No. I didn't do anything. I swear. It wasn't there five seconds ago."
Tabitha leaned over to look at it. "How weird," she said. "And coming from me, that means something."
That was very true. Tabitha Devereaux was the epitome of odd.
"You've never seen anything like this?" Bride asked Tabitha.
"Nope. Maybe we're all delusional. Maybe it's like Plato's theory and there's nothing there but skin. Maybe we're just seeing what we want to see."
Mina snorted as she poured Tabasco sauce on her oyster. "Just because you live in a constant state of insanity, Tabby, doesn't mean the rest of us do."
Bride laughed at them.
She traced the design on her palm and wondered what on earth could have placed it there.
Colt gave Vane a hard stare. "Look, I know you can't stand me. But I've got your back. Go see your woman and I'll cover here in the bar."
"I don't need you to—"
"Stop being so damned stubborn," Colt said from between clenched teeth. "You have a mate out there, Vane, and whether you're Arcadian or Katagaria, you know the one law that governs us all. Your mate's safety comes above all else."