"I didn't know Triana felt that way about him."
"It should have been obvious, Tarrin," Kimmie laughed. "Didn't you see the way they looked at each other when you met Thean?"
"I was a little overwhelmed with other things at the time, Kimmie," he said defensively.
"I guess you were at that," she admitted with a smile. "You're guaranteed never to be alone, Tarrin," she chuckled. "Jesmind and Mist are going to fight over who gets to keep you next, I know that."
"Mist?" he said in surprise.
"You're the only male she would trust enough to be mates with, Tarrin. And she does like you, a great deal. In her own way, she loves you as much as Jesmind loves you. Is it a stretch to think that she'd want you for mate again, after Eron is grown and on his own?"
"Well, no," he admitted after thinking about it a moment.
"Mist isn't the only one. I'd like to have a turn," Kimmie said with a slight, shy smile. "I like you. We can relate to each other in ways the others wouldn't understand. I think we could be good mates."
"You'd better keep that to yourself around here, Kimmie," he said seriously.
"Jesmind knows I wouldn't dream of trying to steal you, Tarrin."
"You just did."
"No, I didn't. I told you that after you and Jesmind part, I wouldn't mind being your mate. There's a difference. I won't even think about it until after you and Jesmind part ways." She looked at him. "But when you do, don't make yourself too hard to find," she said with a smile.
Her admission surprised him, but he also knew that it didn't change the way he thought about her. He'd become accustomed to both the strange ways of females and his own Were-dominated feelings on such subjects.
"That could be quite a wait."
"If anything, Tarrin, we have time," she told him. "I figure Jesmind will manage to keep you for about ten years or so, and only that long because of Jasana. By then, you'll really start to gnaw on each other's tails, and you'll split up for a while. After you're free, you're fair game." Kimmie picked up a small twig that had fallen out of the woodbox, then tossed it into the fire. "Face it, Tarrin. You'll never be able to have a marriage the way humans do. But you were human, so part of you will want that. So I suggest you choose two or three females you really like, and form something of a rotating relationship with them."
"Listen to you," Tarrin chuckled. "And why three?"
"Well, Jesmind, Mist, and myself, of course," she said with a sly smile. "Any more than that, and we'll be having fights over who gets the next turn."
Tarrin laughed.
"Well, I'm not joking about it, Tarrin. Part of you wants a permanent relationship, but you know you can't have it. So form a permanent relationship, but just with different females. You can stay here, and we'll come to you. That way you feel like you're in a marriage-"
"It's just that the woman I wake with every morning changes."
"Variety spices life," she winked.
Jesmind padded out of the hallway. She too was nude, looking down at the two of them with just a little jealousy in her eyes. "I didn't think you'd be chasing after my mate, Kimmie. I'm surprised," she said in an ominous tone.
"I won't touch him so long as he's yours, Jesmind," Kimmie told her sedately. Years of putting her life on the line with Mist had made Kimmie all but unflappable. "I never hid the fact that I'm just as attracted to him as you and Mist are, you know that. Furies, woman, you've heard us gossip about him over the table when you came to visit with Jasana. I'm talking with him about after you and him split up."
"Oh. That's alright, then," Jesmind told her with a yawn. "You two should go back to bed."
"Gossip over me?" Tarrin said in surprise.
Kimmie gave him a wicked smile. "Jesmind and Mist were, comparing," she said with a naughty catch in her voice.
"Comparing?"
"Of course," Jesmind told him with a fanged smile. "We were curious what the other thought about how well you-"
"That's enough of that," Tarrin interrupted. "Jasana may hear you."
"She heard us the first time," Jesmind told him bluntly. "Mist feels a bit cheated," Jesmind told him with a mischievious look. "You were injured when she had you. She wants another go at it with you healthy, so we can do a full comparison."
Tarrin actually blushed.
"I might give it to her," Jesmind mused. "I'd lend you to Mist, since she's such a good friend now."
Tarrin stared at the fire. He knew if he looked Jesmind in the eye, he'd lose his composure.
What was it about Jesmind that always made him feel like that same naive little boy he'd been when she found him?
"After hearing the glowing stories about you, a girl can't help but be curious," Kimmie pressed relentlessly.
"You too, Kimmie?" Tarrin groaned.
"Don't let the blue eyes fool you, Tarrin," Kimmie smirked. "I'm just as hot-blooded as any other female. I'm just better at hiding it, that's all."
"And here I thought I found someone I could talk to," Tarrin grumbled.
"You did. I think we're good friends," Kimmie told him, patting him on the shoulder. "But you're a Were-cat, Tarrin. We can be good friends and mates, and it won't change our friendship."
He knew she was right. Tarrin laughed ruefully, laying down on his back and looking at the two females. "Well, I certainly feel like I'm wanted," he told them.
"I know of about six females chomping at the bit for when Jesmind parts ways with you, Tarrin," Kimmie grinned. "I'm just making sure the line forms behind me."
Jesmind laughed. "I almost feel jealous again," she said. "Can't you wait until after we've worn on each other enough to split up?"
"Too much competition, Jesmind," Kimmie said with a teasing smile.
"If you can't sleep, Tarrin, I think I can find a way to keep you occupied without having to worry about the sneaky one here trying to talk you out of our mating," Jesmind told him.
"Well, that sounds like a dismissal to me," Kimmie said mildly. "I'll wander back to bed now. Just try to keep it down, you two. Jasana's still asleep," she said with a wink, getting up and padding past Jesmind, towards the stairs.
Jesmind came over to stand over him. "Come on then, my mate," Jesmind said, holding a paw out for him. "If you have this much nervous energy, I think I can burn it off for you."
Tarrin laughed, taking her paw and letting her pull him up. "I'm surprised you're so calm about Kimmie," he said.
"She said she wouldn't touch you until after I let you go," she told him calmly. "That's all the assurance I need. Besides, I like Kimmie. I wouldn't mind seeing you two together after I release you. You were both human once, so at least you'd be on level ground."
"Strange to be choosing my mates for me before you've gotten tired of me, Jesmind."
"I'm not tired of you yet, Tarrin," she told him with a grin, patting him on the backside. "Worry more about me and less about who may be sharing your bed after we part."
Tarrin followed Jesmind into the bedroom, mulling over his conversation with Kimmie. It had been eye-opening, in more ways than one. Kimmie had proved to be an intelligent, keenly observant woman whose insights had opened his eyes to many subtle aspects of Were-cat behavior. He had learned about Jesmind's feelings for him from her, and he found he was very much honored to think that a Were-cat like Jesmind could form such a lasting bond with him. He had loved Jesmind once, and in a way he still did. The thought of forming a repetitive relationship with her was very appealing to him. He knew that time would eventually force them apart, but those partings would always be followed up with reunions. Just like Thean and Triana.