Accidental Mates

8

Cassie

Cassie was having the most wonderful dream. She was in a beautiful forest, surrounded by the largest trees she had ever seen. The sunlight filtering through the leaves made a dappled effect on the smaller plants below as it mixed with the shadows made by the huge trees. Somehow, Cassie knew this was a peaceful place, a safe place where fear didn’t exist. As she walked along, following the winding trail through the undergrowth, Cassie caught the faintest trace of a very delicious scent. Although it seemed familiar, she couldn’t remember where she had smelled it before. It was a mixture of leather, woodsmoke, and something she couldn’t quite put her finger on.

Deciding to follow it, Cassie turned from the trail and made her way through the trees until she came to a small clearing. The sun shone brightly overhead, there were even a few little clouds peaking through the break in the trees. Cassie looked around at all of the colorful flowers that covered the ground throughout the clearing. Even though they were amazing to look at, and had an intoxicating fragrance, she knew the scent she had been following didn’t come from them.

As she started to walk across the clearing to continue her search, her mother appeared from among the trees. Confused, Cassie started to go to her when Laura smiled, “You know where we are if you need us.” Then she turned and disappeared as quickly as she had come.

Cassie hurried into the trees where her mother had just been, but Laura was no where to be found. Just then, she heard footsteps, but couldn’t make out from which direction they were coming. Thinking it would be better if she didn’t hang around to find out, Cassie turned to flee into the cover of the trees. Instead of shadows, however, she ran straight into the solid wall of muscle that was the chest of a male lion.

Cassie awoke in a room that was not her own, in a bed that held the same intriguing scent she had been following in her dream. She had no memory of how she got there and no idea why she had left the trials in the first place.

Looking around, she noticed there wasn’t any other furniture except the bed she currently occupied and a matching oak armchair in one corner. Sunlight was still filtering through the curtain, so she assumed she hadn’t been unconscious for long. There were a pair of doors on adjacent walls, the one facing the bed, which she assumed led to the rest of the house, was closed, but the other was slightly ajar, providing a glimpse into a large bathroom.

As she pulled the blanket back, Cassie was relieved to find she was in the same dress she had worn to the mating ceremony, minus her sandals which were on the floor beside the bed. Slowly rising from the bed, she dug her toes into the thick burgundy carpet before she turned and made her way to the bathroom.

Pushing open the door, Cassie stood staring in shock at how big the bathroom was! The tub alone was large enough for her to swim in, with jets along the inside. The shower head in the adjoining shower area was so high Cassie knew she wouldn’t be able to reach it without standing on something.

Trying to keep her anxiety at bay, Cassie turned to the mirror to give herself a pep talk before going in search of answers in the rest of the house. What she saw in the mirror, however, brought the memories flooding back. The thin straps of her dress showed in perfect detail every bruise Phillip had inflicted on her. Her lip still had dried blood from where he had hit her, accompanied by a ugly looking bruise on her cheek bone. She remembered how scared she had been when he had grabbed her, and how relieved she had felt when Logan pulled him off and threw him against the wall. Oh no! Logan! She had mated with Logan! Would he be angry that she had forced him after he had made it known to the whole pride that he would never seek a mate? Would he reject her and send her away? Cassie knew he had every right to do so. Although it wasn’t common, mate rejections happened occasionally. She knew she had to talk to him and apologize. After all, she had been the one to lay her hand on his arm, it didn’t matter that she had been trying to get him to release his grip on Phillip’s throat. Cassie decided that if he wanted to reject her, she wouldn’t fight him. But first, she had to find him. With her mind made up, she turned and headed out of the bathroom and across the bedroom to the door leading to the hall. Taking a final deep breath, Cassie opened the door. It was time to face her mate.

Descending the staircase to the main floor, Cassie got a good view of what she now assumed was Logan’s home. Although it was clean, she could clearly see that a male was the only occupant. There were no pictures on the walls or any other personal items that truly made a house a home. When she was almost to the bottom, the door at the base of the stairs opened and the object of her search appeared. Before she could say anything however, Logan’s face twisted in anger and he quickly turned back into the room he had just emerged from with a growl. Cassie stood rooted to the spot. She could clearly see that Logan was angry with the situation, but she had hoped he would be accepting of her as his mate. Fighting back tears, Cassie straightened her spine and prepared herself for his rejection. She was the daughter of the Mane and she would never beg a male to stay with her. Even if that meant she would lead the pride alone. Taking another deep breath for courage, she followed Logan into the room. After a quick look around, she focused her attention on the male pacing angrily in front of the fireplace. Other than a quick glance and another growl, he didn’t acknowledge her presence. He just kept pacing and mumbling something so low Cassie couldn’t make it out, even with her lion hearing.

“Let’s just get this over with.” Cassie sighed, taking a seat on the sofa in the center of the room.

“Clearly you aren’t happy with what happened, but I won’t apologize. I didn’t intentionally touch you in hopes that we would mate, but now that we have, it’s up to you to decide our future. If you want to reject me, that’s fine. But it will have to come from you because as unexpected as this was, I’m not going to reject you.”

Cassie looked up from her lap to meet the shocked but confused eyes of her new mate.

Her speech had apparently shocked Logan out of his pacing.

“Cassie,” he began, “Rejecting you? What are you talking about? What gave you the idea I’d reject being your mate?”

“Well, who could blame you?” Cassie threw her hands up in exasperation. “You didn’t volunteer for this, you were just doing your job and now you’re stuck with a mate you don’t want! No wonder you’re angry at me, I would be too if I were in your shoes.” Covering her face in shame, Cassie didn’t see Logan shake his head and come over to her, his anger replaced by the need to reassure his mate.

Dropping to his knees in front of her, Logan gently pulled her hands away from her face. “Cassie, look at me.” He waited until she raised her eyes to his before continuing,

“I am honored to be your mate. So an apology isn’t needed. I agree that it wasn’t anything like I was expecting, but fate has a way of stepping in and getting her way. It’s no secret I said I didn’t want to drag anyone into the issues I have from my past, but if anyone could handle it, I’m sure it would be you. I won’t be rejecting you, so I guess we will just have to stay mated.” He added.

Now it was Cassie’s turn to be confused. “Well, if you aren’t angry about our mating, then why were you so angry when you saw me?”

Shaking his head, Logan looked down to where his hands still enveloped hers. “How can I not be angry when you carry the evidence of what that excuse of a male did to you? You’re covered in bruises, Cassie.” To emphasize his point, Logan carefully ran a finger over the side of her face, drawing attention to the bruises left behind from Phillip’s attack. “And I’m not the type of male that can be ok with my mate being hurt.”

“So you really want to stay mated to me?” Cassie asked quietly, “ You realize that means you will be Mane of our pride one day?”

“Yes, I know what it means, but let’s discuss all of that later, huh? I’m sure your parents would like to see you to make sure you’re okay. And I bet Liz is dying to introduce you to her new mate Derrick.” Logan smiled at her, knowing the excitement of her friend’s mating would distract her.

Cassie gasped, grabbing Logan’s hand in excitement. “ Liz is mated too? How do you know?”

Logan looked down at her hand on his own. Slowly, giving her plenty of time to pull away, he intertwined their fingers together. Sparks shot up both of their arms as the mate bond reacted to their closeness. “ Mark texted me right before you came down. He said she is happy and is impatiently waiting for us at your parents’ house.” Logan stood and pulled Cassie to her feet. “I promise this will be the only time I ask this of you, but can you go shower before we go? I can smell all of the other males on you and my lion doesn’t want to listen to reason right now.”

Cassie chuckled, knowing how territorial males were. “ I’d love to,” she shrugged “ but I don’t have any more clothes here. And as upset as he is from smelling other males on me, I’m pretty sure he would hate it even more if I were to walk through the compound naked.”

Logan’s eyes went black for a second as he struggled to control his lion. Deciding to take pity on him, Cassie added. “ I’m sure you can find something I can wear though. It shouldn’t be that hard, I’ll just use one of your old shirts or something.”

Logan growled in response but nodded and led the way back up to his bedroom and through the door to the bathroom. “You can adjust the water while I get you something.” He said pointing to the shower as he moved toward the adjoining closet.

Cassie smiled to herself as she turned the hot water on. She hadn’t realized how much fun it would be to have a mate. She had never let herself think about what her future would look like, but if the brief time she had spent with Logan was any indication, she would guess she was in for an interesting life indeed.

Turning from the shower, Cassie saw Logan return to the bathroom carrying one of his black T-shirts and a pair of shorts. Giving her a wry smile, he held them out to her.

“These are the smallest I have. The shorts have a drawstring so maybe you can tie them up. Regardless, you’ll still look like a kid playing dress up, but at least you’ll be covered.” As Cassie took them he joked, “ I’ll adjust the shower head for you while I’m here, don’t want you to drown.”

Laughing, Cassie retorted, “ At least I don’t have to worry about hitting my head when I walk into a room. Now enough of the short jokes, let me shower in peace!” She added while shooing Logan out of the door and closing it behind him.

Some time later, Cassie stepped out of the shower feeling refreshed. The hot water having washed away the remaining tension from the trials as well as the scent of the other males. Looking over at Logan’s clothes on the counter, she realized she didn’t have anything to wear under them. She didn’t wear a b*a with her dress because it had one built in, and she didn’t want to put dirty underwear back on. Shrugging her shoulders she decided to just go without. It was only to get to her parents’ house after all, then she could change into her own clothes. Dropping the towel she pulled Logan’s shirt over her head. As she turned to look at herself in the mirror, she laughed. She owned dresses that were shorter than this! The hem of the shirt reached almost to her knees, the sleeves coming down her arms past her elbows. Examining herself, she decided Logan had been right. She looked exactly like a kid playing dress up, but she wasn’t going to admit that to him. Forgoing the shorts altogether, Cassie put her wet hair into a messy bun on top of her head, with no way to brush it out, it was best to just get it up out of the way. While putting her hair up one of the sleeves of her borrowed shirt had slipped down, exposing her shoulder. Thankfully it wasn’t showing any bruises, so Cassie decided to leave it.

Making her way downstairs, Cassie heard Logan in the kitchen. Following the sounds of a knife cutting through something, she opened the door to Logan putting the final touches on a sandwich that could only be described as massive.

“Hey I thought you might be hungry.” Turning from the counter to look at her, Logan stopped in his tracks.

“What is it? Please tell me you can’t see through this shirt.” Cassie begged.

“No.” Logan cleared his throat, “you can’t see through it. It’s just, my lion likes seeing you in my shirt.”

Blushing at the attention, Cassie pointed to the sandwich Logan had made.

“Is that for me? Because if I eat all of that, I won’t be able to make it to my parents’ house. Wanna share?” Picking up the knife from the cutting board, she cut the sandwich not quite in half. Turning around, she gave Logan the bigger piece. Sitting on one of the stools at the island, Cassie took a bite and groaned. She didn’t realize she was so hungry, but skipping breakfast would do that to you. About halfway through her half of the sandwich, she looked up to see Logan watching her.

“What is it? Do I have something on my face?”

He chuckled, “No, I just don’t have many visitors, so I’m trying to get used to seeing you here. Other than your mother, you’re the first female that has ever been inside my house. I’m trying to wrap my brain around the thought of having you here every day.”

Smiling shyly, Cassie returned to her meal. When she was done, she put her plate in the sink. Turning, she leaned against the counter. “Are we ready to go?”

Following her lead, Logan added his plate to the sink. “ Sure, whenever you are ready.” Waving her toward the front door he added, “After you.”

Walking through the compound, Cassie knew she was drawing stares. She didn’t know if it was from her clothing choice or the male at her side. Knowing the gossip mill was probably already in full swing, she reached out and took Logan’s hand.

Looking down at her, Logan tucked her hand into his elbow before returning his gaze to their surroundings. Cassie knew his lion was on high alert, looking for potential threats from the few pride members that they met.

When they reached her parents’ house, Cassie could tell something was wrong. She could hear raised voices coming from inside, one of which was her best friend. Glancing quickly at Logan, Cassie rushed inside to find her parents’ den had become a war zone.

Phillip and Liz were in the middle of the room, in what looked to Cassie to be an argument that was on the verge of becoming physical. Liz was being held back by a male Cassie had never seen before, while Phillip’s father was trying unsuccessfully to get Phillip to quiet down.

Meanwhile, Calvin and Laura were sitting quietly together on the sofa, seemingly enjoying the show.

“Enough.” Laura said quietly, effectively silencing the chaos with that one simple word. “Cassie and Logan have joined us, so let’s get this impromptu visit out of the way so our new mated pairs can get to know each other. Come in you two, have a seat.” She added, motioning to the sofa across from her and Calvin.

As they crossed the room, Cassie could feel everyone’s eyes on her. Settling into her spot on the sofa with Logan, she glanced around. Laura and Calvin were beaming at her and Logan, looks of pride shining on both of their faces. Phillip had retreated to the far corner, seemingly content to glare at everyone for the moment.

Liz, whom Cassie had assumed would have the most to say, was oddly silent. Facing her lifelong friend, Cassie was surprised to see her shake her head and refuse to meet her eyes. Confused, she turned to Laura and Calvin instead.

“Mom, Dad, what’s going on here?”

Before either of them could answer, Phillip leapt from his corner.

“I’ll tell you what’s going on! I demand a retrial! I didn’t get my fair chance at the mate bond and I demand that you give it to me! Everyone knows I’m destined to become the next Mane. A destiny I had ripped away by this outsider’s interference!” He pointed his finger at Logan.

“He’s not part of our pride, just a sad little cub that no one wanted, turned Mane favorite because he volunteered to stalk the Mane’s daughter!” With a satisfied smirk at Logan he turned to Cassie, “ Didn’t know about that huh? Oh yeah, Lover Boy here has been following you around for years, under Daddy’s orders of course!” Clearly pleased with himself, Phillip turned his attention to Calvin. “He should have not been allowed in the trials. He ruined my chance and I demand a retrial or there will be consequences!” Phillip stuttered to a stop and took a hasty step back as Logan rose slowly to his feet.

“I’ve had enough of your nonsense. Cassie, “ He turned to look at his young mate, hoping she would give him a chance to explain,

“ I promise I’ll answer all of your questions a soon as Phillip here is taken care of. Please just trust me?” At her slow nod, Logan shot Cassie a thankful smile before turning to her father,

“If I may, Calvin, I’d like to address these complaints myself, considering they concern my mate.”

At the word mate, Phillip scoffed “ Unlikely. That’s probably just a cover story to keep anyone finding out she’s preg-..”

“Don’t you dare insult my mate like that.” Logan growled at Phillip, without taking his eyes off his soon to be father-in-law. At Calvin’s nod he turned fully toward Phillip.

“First, I’ll address your accusations before addressing your disrespect. You had just as much chance at forming the mate bond as anyone else, more so if we include the part where you tried to force yourself onto Cassie. Of all the males that participated in the trials, you were the only one who thought he was so entitled that the rules didn’t apply to him.”

At Phillip’s outraged expression, Logan continued. “

Therefore, you will not get a retrial even if she hadn’t bonded with me. And since we are all well aware that bonded pairs can’t form multiple mate bonds, your point is moot. As for accusing me of stalking her, I’m sure you remember the day by the lake where you and a few of your buddies forced my hand and made it necessary for Cassie to have a guard.” Logan started moving forward as Phillip shook his head.

“Lies! I’ve never done anything to Cassie! Don’t tell me you believe him!” He added, sending a pleading look toward Laura and Calvin.

“You don’t remember?” Logan asked, giving Phillip a murderous smile as he continued to stalk Phillip around the room. “Shall I remind you of what your beating felt like? Maybe that will help.”

Cassie could see the predator come out in Logan as he slowly worked Phillip into a corner. When Phillip’s back hit the wall, a look of panic crossed his face before he covered it with fake bravado.

“Fine, if you want her so badly, be my guest. I don’t care much for damaged goods anyways. Of course you’re used to getting hand me downs though. Right, orphan boy?” He sneered.

Logan towered over the smaller male, giving Phillip a deadly smile. “Make fun of me all you want. My past is no secret.” Logan slowly wrapped his hand around Phillip’s throat, seemingly oblivious to the smaller man’s attempt to stop him.

“But if I hear one more word from you about my mate, a beating will be the least of your worries. I think it’s best if you leave. Now.” He growled before releasing his grip and stepping back to point toward the door.

Until that moment, Phillip’s father had been silently watching the exchange between his son and the others in the room. But as Logan released Phillip, he rushed forward and grabbed his son by the arm,

“You lied to me! How dare you make a fool of me in front of our Mane and his family? I thought you had grown out of your young obsession over our Mane’s daughter, but apparently I was mistaken. I am putting an end to this today!”

Turning to Calvin he stuttered.

“I’m sorry about all of this. Hearing your account, it’s clear I was misled concerning the day’s events. I hope there are no hard feelings?” He added, watching as Logan returned to Cassie’s side and gently rested his arm on the back of the sofa behind her.

“Of course not Maxwell, we all know how young males can get carried away sometimes. It was clearly wishful thinking on young Phillip’s part. We both have been through the trials ourselves and know how stressful they can be. I’m glad it was all cleared up. And now that Cassie is happily mated, I don’t think it will take poor Phillip here long to get over his infatuation with her and move on to preparing himself for the next trials and hopefully his own mate. Here, I’ll walk you out.” Calvin chuckled, rising from his own seat and slapping Maxwell on the back.

As the two older men turned to the door, Phillip sent a final glare Cassie’s way. “Mark my words, you will regret this.”

“No, I don’t think I will.” she replied, smiling up at her mate before giving Phillip a bored look,

“Now run along like a good cub, your father is waiting.”

As laughter followed Phillip from the room, Liz turned to her best friend.

“Can you please explain to me why you’re wearing Logan’s shirt and nothing else?”