Page 73 of Bria and the Tiger

“Shut up, Lincoln.” Jace buttoned his shirt.

“Are those bite marks?” Lincoln grinned at him. “Nice! What little hellcat did you pick up at the bar this weekend? And is it serious? Because if it isn’t, give me her number. I’d love to get into the pants of the woman who -”

Jace growled at him, his eyes glowing bright green. Lincoln held up his hands. “Easy, buddy. What’s gotten into you?”

“Nothing. Just be quiet.”

Lincoln’s eyes widened, and he studied the open door before turning back to Jace. “Motherfuck. Bria did that, didn’t she?”

“No.”

“Bullshit. After you kicked me out of the office on Friday, you helped her with her heat.”

“Keep your voice down.” Jace shut his office door.

“Don’t try and deny it, my friend,” Lincoln said. “You don’t normally stand half-naked in your office with the admin staff.”

Jace scrubbed his hand across his face as Lincoln said, “Hell, I had no idea Bria had that in her. She’s so tiny and sweet. Maybe for her next heat, I can convince her to give me a chance. I’d love to feel those claws of hers sinking into my -”

He grunted with pain when Jace slammed him against the wall. “Keep away from Bria. Do you hear me? If you go anywhere near her, I’ll tear you apart.”

“Holy shit.” Lincoln’s voice was soft. “You’re falling for Bria.”

“No, I’m not.” Jace let him go and returned to his desk. He sat down and scowled at Lincoln when the lion shifter sat in the other chair. “I’m busy, Lincoln.”

“Are you and Bria dating?”

“No, I just helped her with her heat. I don’t want to be in a relationship anymore. You know that.”

Lincoln leaned forward. “I know you keep saying that, but I haven’t quite figured out if it’s because you don’t want to be in one, or because your parents don’t want you to be in one.”

Jace growled at him but Lincoln continued anyway. “You can’t live your life for your folks. I know what happened with Jonah was awful, but who’s to say it wouldn’t have happened even if Davra hadn’t left him. Jonah needed therapy and medication and -”

“Are you forgetting what happened when Tabitha and I broke up? Depression runs in our family. My aunt killed herself when she was only thirty-eight, and then Jonah, and then I…”

“You were nowhere near that point,” Lincoln said. “Don’t let your parents convince you that you were. You were hurting, you got help, end of story. You’re letting your parents’ fear dictate your life, buddy.”

“You weren’t in my head,” Jace said. “How I felt, the things I thought about when Tabitha and I ended it, it was awful and -”

“And it doesn’t mean you were going to off yourself like your brother did.”

Jace winced. Apparently, Lincoln couldn’t contain his usual bluntness any longer.

“Look,” Lincoln tugged at the crease in his pants, “your mom and your dad are terrified that you’re going to get in a relationship, break up and then kill yourself just like your brother did. I understand why they’re afraid, but that fear is smothering you and stopping you from living your life.”

“It isn’t.”

“It is.” Lincoln continued relentlessly. “Maybe you didn’t help alleviate their fears when you went a little squirrely after that bitch Tabitha broke your heart. But what you and your parents are both conveniently forgetting is that you didn’t spiral down until you thought suicide was the only option. You recognized what was happening and got some help.”

“My parents met Bria.”

“You’re shitting me.”

“I’m not.” Jace grabbed his tie from the desk and traced his finger along the pattern. “They dropped by my house on Sunday afternoon. Bria’s heat was finished, but she was in the kitchen making us something to eat. They walked right in and saw her.”

“What happened?”

“Nothing. My mom was a little horrified by the way my chest and back looked, Bria was incredibly embarrassed and left immediately. Mom and Dad stayed, and we ate brunch.”

---