Change of Heart

didn't know that Logan marked you; your hair covers the mark, and because Logan has not... you don't smell like him, so for that, his life was spared. But make no mistake, for a semel to touch another semel's mate—you know the punishment for that, Jin."
    "But I'm not his mate."
    "All other cats, even semels and yareahs, must have mating ceremonies to seal the bond between them. But a semel finds his reah, and once the mark is given, they are a mated pair. You belong to Logan Church just as surely as the rest of us do."
    "And so because Christophe touched me...."
    "His choice was to meet Logan in the pit or accept whatever punishment Logan saw fit to give."
    "Which did he choose?"
    "The punishment, of course," he said like I was crazy.
    "Have you ever seen Logan Church in his panther form?"
    "No. When would I have?"
    "Yeah, well, if you were Christophe, you wouldn't want to fight him either."
    "So what did Logan do?"
    "Not enough."
    "Tell me."
    "He assembled Christophe's tribe, and then he slapped him."
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    I scowled at Yuri.
    "I know. The things he does... I just don't get it."
    "He slapped him?"
    "Yeah, he just... I mean, there he was. He just stood there and told Christophe to never touch anything of his again and backhanded him really hard like he was nothing. Like he was dirt."
    "Christophe must have been humiliated."
    "Who cares? Humiliation isn't going to hurt him."
    But it would. In front of Christophe's entire tribe, Logan had slapped him and made him look weak. Christophe should have met Logan in the pit if he wanted to keep the respect of his people. Instead, by allowing Logan to hit him in front of them, Christophe had lost face. I wondered how he would ever regain their respect. A leader had to appear strong, powerful, and untouchable. Logan had stripped all of that from the semel of the tribe of Pakhet with a single blow.
    "I would have killed him."
    "And made Christophe a martyr instead of the pathetic excuse for a leader that he seems like now," I educated him.
    "Logan's brilliant."
    He squinted at me. "Maybe that's why you're his mate; you get how his mind works."
    I didn't want to debate that with him. "Let's eat."
    Inside the diner, I ordered breakfast while Yuri had an enormous burger. He called Logan toward the end of our meal and explained that he was bringing me back. When he got off the phone, he looked miserable.
    "What's wrong?"
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    "He's pissed at me for not calling him the second I found you."
    "Why?"
    "He wants to see you now."
    "But he's not mad at you, not really."
    "No, you just frustrate him to no end."
    I couldn't help that.

    * * * *
    The car ride up the mountain was so calming that I almost fell asleep. Yuri didn't seem in the mood to talk, and I wasn't really either. When we rolled through the front gate of Logan's home, I felt my stomach twist into a knot. It was funny to want to be there and not at the exact same time. I decided to stand outside on the porch instead of following Yuri inside. I just wasn't quite ready to face Logan Church.

    "Jin."
    Turning, I found my mate was suddenly there in the doorway.
    "Hi." I smiled over at him.
    I saw him swallow hard, saw how raw and red his eyes looked, how haggard and worn out he was. He was a mess.
    "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to worry you."
    His eyes raked over me from head to toe, taking me all in.
    "I'm fine," I told him softly, holding out my arms. "Come see."
    He moved so much faster than I thought he could, and when I was crushed to his chest, his arms wrapping me up, his face buried in my shoulder, I realized that just his 131
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    presence soothed me. The man belonged to me, and there was no way around it.
    "Look at me."
    My head tilted back so I could see his face.
    "Did anybody hurt you?"
    I shook my head. "I already told you, no."
    "Were you touched?"
    "No, I—"
    "What the hell?" he growled, noticing my wrists, grabbing each one tight. "The cuffs he used were silver?"
    "He didn't purposely try and hurt me," I said gently. "The cuffs are just made of silver because he probably plays his bondage games with other werepanthers. If he doesn't use silver, what's the fun in it? If everyone can just break free, where's the game?"
    "Jin—"
    "He made a mistake, Logan," I told him, trying to soothe the pain and rage I saw in his eyes. The simmering fury was right there below the surface. I understood that he was holding it together for