“Yep.”
“Let’s meet on my property—our property—go over the plans, and head into Cambridge or Sojourn for supplies.”
“You think it’s that simple? You think we’ll run into her by chance if we head out together?” Logan looked doubtful.
“I think that’s exactly what will happen. And I’d even go so far as to bet she’s Native.”
Logan grinned. “Why? Because I’m white and you’re fifty-fifty?”
“Exactly. Seems like a trend. I mean between the two of us, we aren’t upholding the ratio.” He chuckled and took another swig of his beer, relaxing as they continued to banter.
Logan lifted his gaze. “You’ve thought this through.”
“Not really.” Sawyer shrugged. “Just an observation. If Fate is enjoying this little game, I’m betting part of Her big plan involves mixing the races.”
“You think?”
“Don’t you?”
Logan shrugged. “I guess it’s pretty obvious.”
“What brought you to Cambridge?”
Small talk. Sawyer figured it was essential if they were going to spend their lives together. “Work.”
“Why couldn’t you get a job in Spokane?”
“Not a lot of need for hotshots there.”
“I thought you were a fireman.”
“Better than that.” Sawyer turned his head when Mimi stepped outside. She smiled warmly and whispered something to Trace.
Trace grabbed Keegan by the arm and dragged him into the house.
Just when Sawyer thought things couldn’t get any weirder…
He watched his grandmother warily as she approached. She knew things. She had her entire life. And she was rarely wrong.
∙•∙
“Mimi…” Logan began. “What’s going on?”
The woman took a seat on the porch swing across from them. She gave a small push and took a breath. “Don’t get up, but I thought it might help if I warned you.”
“Warned us of what?” Logan asked, sitting straighter, his skin crawling.
Mimi had a sixth sense he was well aware of.
Suddenly her face changed, and she stared at Logan, her foot hitting the ground to stop the swing from moving. The look she’d had when she first came out had been one of ambivalence. In an instant it changed to shock. “What happened?” She directed the question at Logan.
“When?”
She shook her head as if to clear it and then glared at him again, her eyes narrowing. “I don’t know. You tell me?”
He stiffened, remembering his jaunt through the woods yesterday, before he’d met Sawyer, before he’d found out from his sister that he was destined to mate with a man he’d never met and a woman neither of them knew. He swallowed. “The spirit you mean?”
Sawyer flinched at his side. “Pardon? You saw one?”
Mimi nodded. “What did you see?”
“I went for a run yesterday in the middle of the day.” He pointed at Sawyer. “To get this Hamilton guy out of my head and clear my mind before I met him.” He hoped his voice held the teasing lilt he intended.
“And,” Mimi prodded.
“And I came upon some loggers north of here on the edge of the rez. Something felt off. I think they’ve been there too long. I don’t know what they were supposed to clear, but it looked like a lot.”
“And?” Mimi asked, her brow furrowing further.
“And I think I saw one of your spirit thingies.” It still unnerved him she’d picked up on this just by walking out onto the porch. Why hadn’t she realized it earlier during dinner? Granted, he hadn’t gotten this close to her while they were eating. He’d been at the other end of the long table they occupied.
“What did it look like?”
“Black smoke. It gathered into itself and hovered in the middle of the worksite. It didn’t get any closer to me or show any sign it knew I was there, but it remained for longer than I could go without blinking.”
“Did anyone else see it?”
“That’s the strange part. It appeared that not a soul working the site noticed a thing. Of course no one at the site was a shifter.”
Sawyer leaned in closer to Mimi at Logan’s side. “What does it mean?”
Mimi shook her head. “No way to tell. But I’m not surprised. This happens every time one of you enters the mating phase.”
“You think it has something to do with our mating?” Logan asked.
Mimi shook her head again. “Not precisely. I think it’s the other way around. I think Nature arranges for the next group of you to mate when She needs your services again.”
“What?” Sawyer proclaimed. “You really believe that?”