The Deputy and His Enforcer (Kincaid Pack #3) - Kiki Clark Page 0,45

with a shifter?

“Oh no,” Patrick said, shaking his head. “She just knows me well. Doc and Rick both mentioned my instincts might be more heightened for a while with a vulnerable mate and newborn in the house, and they were definitely right.”

Robson nodded absently, then said, “Can you explain more about what that means, ‘your instincts’?”

“Oh yeah, sure. So shifters have their human and animal sides, right?” He waited until Robson nodded before continuing. “And while they’re separate in that their animal and human halves each have their own needs and desires, there’s a lot of overlap. So really they’re more like two sides to the same coin, you know?”

His nod was slower but still there. “You almost make it sound like the animal side is a separate entity, but Marcus said shifters are in control even in their shifted form. That it’s still them.”

“We are, but everything is… extreme when you’re your animal.”

Robson raised his brows.

“Okay, yeah, that was clear as mud.” Patrick rubbed his chin. “So I’m a fox shifter, right?”

“I didn’t know that, but okay. Marcus is a wolf, right?” He hadn’t had a chance to verify it, but he was positive the wolf he’d met at his house had been Marcus. When he’d thought about bringing it up at the diner, he’d hesitated, wondering how he could ask about the way Marcus had lain on top of him in his wolf form yet barely smiled at him as a human.

“Yes. So for canine shifters like us, scent and pack are everything, no matter what form we’re in. But when I shift into my fox, it’s like a hundred times more intense. The instincts I have in my human form—to protect my family and pack, to scent mark them, to provide for them—are turned up to a thousand.”

“When you’re in your human form, how good is your sense of smell compared to a regular human’s?”

Patrick tilted his head as he thought about that, reminding Robson of Marcus’s confused face. “I’m not sure. I’ve never been ‘regular,’ so I can’t really compare the two, but full-blooded shifters can smell out scents left by humans and animals up to an hour earlier. Stronger shifters, like alphas and Enforcers, have even stronger senses. I’ve heard Rick can hear his mate’s heart from the other side of the manor despite the noise of other people and the soundproofing on most of the rooms.”

“Whoa. What kind of scents do people give off? Like, body odor?” Should he run home and reapply his deodorant?

Patrick laughed. “You smell fine, don’t worry. Most shifters don’t pay attention to surface scents like that. We learn from a young age to pay attention to what’s beneath that—emotions and intentions.”

Robson’s mouth dropped open. “I’m sorry, what? You can smell my emotions?”

“Sure. Not as well as stronger shifters, but I can smell your surprise and that the idea makes you uncomfortable.” Patrick inhaled through his nose, eyes closing as he concentrated, and Robson flashed back to every time he’d seen Marcus breathe in like that when he was near Robson. Had he been trying to read Robson’s emotions? “Now you’re a little angry.”

“Stop that,” he snapped, then shook his head when Patrick’s eyes popped open, hurt clouding his blue eyes. “Sorry. I just… That’s kind of invasive.”

Patrick’s mouth twisted to the side, and he looked away. “Teresa felt the same way at first. We nearly broke up over it.”

“What changed her mind?”

Patrick smiled. “I finally convinced her of the advantages of having a mate who could read her so well, know what she needed even if she couldn’t voice it, and be completely devoted.”

“Completely devoted? What, like you can’t cheat on her?” He tried to make a joke even as his hands were clenching and his heart picking up speed at the idea of having someone being that in tune with him. Not being able to have secrets sounded scary at first but… with the right person, why would he want to have any?

Patrick looked horrified. “Of course not! We’re mates. It doesn’t matter that she’s human—my fox knows and is absolutely committed. Shifters mate for life.”

Robson sucked in a breath but tried to keep his body from reacting too obviously, hyperaware now of what Patrick might be getting from him. “People keep talking about mates like they’re different than spouses.”

Chuckling, Patrick kicked back in his recliner and threaded his fingers behind his head, looking completely at ease. “Real mates are. Sometimes shifters will say they’re mates, but they