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  He frowned. “You know what I’m talking about. The scent of an unmated Juvie tends to get males all riled up—especially Betas who don’t have the strength to control themselves.”

  “No, I mean what are all those weird words you’re using and what do they mean?” Sadie gestured with one hand, sending bubbles flying. “Everywhere I go people are calling me ‘Juvie’ like it’s some kind of curse word. And people keep saying ‘Alpha’ and ‘Beta’ like it’s supposed to mean something. Is there some kind of secret cult here in Cougarville? Because I feel like everyone is speaking a foreign language and I’m the only one who doesn’t understand!”

  Instead of answering, Mathis just looked at her for a long moment.

  “Sadie,” he said in a low voice, at last. “Tell me you’re kidding.”

  “Kidding about what?” Sadie was getting more and more frustrated. “Kidding about the fact that I don’t know what all those words mean? Or kidding about the part where men half my age are fighting over me for no discernible reason?”

  “Of course they’re fighting over you,” he growled. “You’re Rejuvenating and you’re fucking gorgeous! Your scent alone is enough to drive any male within sniffing distance of you crazy—add that to your face and that body . . .” He gestured at her submerged form under the bubbles. “It’s a fuckin’ lethal combination.”

  “What does that mean though—Rejuvenating?” Sadie asked, determined to get to the truth despite the way his compliments made her feel hot and cold all over.

  “You don’t even know . . . ?” Mathis got up and started pacing the bathroom floor. “You don’t even know what it means? What’s happening to you?” he demanded, staring down at her with apparent disbelief.

  “For the last time, no,” Sadie nearly shouted. “So could you please, please just tell me?”

  “God, I don’t even know where to begin.” He sank back down on the side of the tub and ran a hand distractedly through his hair. “I’ve never met anyone with the Gene who didn’t know what they were. It’s gonna be like explaining the birds and the bees to a kid.”

  “All right,” Sadie said, trying to hold on to her temper. “Explain it to me like I’m a six-year-old. Assume I don’t know anything—anything at all. Because I don’t.”

  “Well . . .” He looked at her warily. “I’ll tell you, but you’ll probably think it’s crazy. Most outsiders do.”

  “Try me,” Sadie said evenly. “At this point after all the weird things I’ve seen in Cougarville, I’m willing to believe in almost anything.”

  “Even if it’s supernatural?” Mathis asked. “Paranormal?”

  “What? Is Cougarville a town full of witches and warlocks and vampires or something?” she demanded.

  He snorted laughter again. “Hardly. Witches don’t usually like to mingle with Shifters. And as for vampires, well . . .” He frowned. “They’re pretty scary sons of bitches, even for a big guy like me.”

  “What?” Sadie could feel her eyes getting wide. “You’re telling me there really are such things as vampires and witches?”

  “And Shifters,” he said evenly. “You’re gonna have to get used to the idea that the world is a much bigger and stranger place than you ever knew before, Sadie.”

  “All right . . . okay.” Sadie took a deep breath and nodded. She could deal with this, she told herself. She had to deal with this. “‘Shifter’—that’s another word I don’t understand. What is a ‘Shifter’?” she asked, trying to get a handle on the terminology he was throwing at her.

  Mathis looked at her directly. “A Shifter is a person—usually male but there are some females too—who is able to change his or her form to that of their spirit animal during the full moon. Of course, Alphas can change anytime,” he added. “But Betas—the nondominant members of our community—can usually only let their animal out when the moon is full.”

  He stopped then, probably because Sadie was staring at him in disbelief.

  “You . . . you expect me to believe that people can really change into animals?” she demanded at last. “Mathis, that’s . . . that’s the plot of a movie, not reality.”

  “See? I told you that you’d think it was crazy.” He frowned. “It’s true though—Cougarville is a community of Shifters and you’re one too—or you will be, once you get mated.”

  “I didn’t come here to get married or mated or whatever!” Sadie protested. “I just wanted to start a new life away from my cheating ex-husband and his new girlfriend. I only came to Cougarville because my mom left me the cabin in her will.”

  “Mmm-hmm. Then your mother was a Shifter too—a Juvie with the Gene. She must have been.”

  “A what with the what?” Sadie shook her head.

  “A Rejuvenated female with the Shifter Gene,” Mathis explained patiently. “Look, this is how it works: in Shifter males, the Gene manifests itself right away. Once they turn seventeen or eighteen and reach full sexual maturity, they’re able to Shift during the full moon. But with females, it takes time. The Gene doesn’t kick in until they’re in the middle of their life. You know—late thirties to early fifties. And even then it won’t become active if they have a mate or a husband. Really any male that claims them and who they regularly have sex with.”

  “What . . .” Sadie cleared her throat. “What happens if they don’t have a husband, and this, uh, Gene kicks in?”

  Mathis shrugged. “You’ve probably seen for yourself. The clock rolls back—usually about twenty to thirty years, depending on the age they are when the Rejuvenation starts. I mean, look at you—you told Fiona you’re forty but you look more like twenty to me.”

  “The way I look doesn’t change the age I am,” Sadie protested. “I’ve already had my youth. I mean, not that I’m complaining about looking and feeling younger but this is just weird.”

  “That’s part of the appeal of a Juvie,” Mathis said earnestly. “She’s got the body and fertility of a younger female with all the wisdom and experience of a more mature one. That and the fact that only Juvies can pass on the Shifter Gene to their offspring.”

  “What? What a minute—that can’t be right,” Sadie protested. “I have two kids—twins, already off to college. So it can’t be true a, uh, Juvie can only have children after they go through this . . . this Rejuvenation process.”

  “I never said females with the Shifter Gene couldn’t have kids before it activated,” Mathis protested. “They can have as many as they want—but none of them will have the Gene themselves. Only after a female goes through Rejuvenation can she pass on the Gene. It’s one reason Juvie females are so rare and valuable—every Shifter male wants to pass the power of his spirit animal to his offspring but it’s impossible unless he mates with a Juvie.”

  “I . . . I don’t know.” Sadie shook her head. “This is too weird for me, Mathis.”

  “Look,” he said patiently. “You want to know why everyone was looking at you in the Piggly Wiggly? It’s because everyone in there could smell your scent—the fragrance of an unmated Juvie is about the most tantalizing, sensual, sexual thing in the whole damn world.”

  “You’re kidding,” Sadie said blankly. But then she remembered the checker’s words—something about “flaunting” herself—and began to wonder. She looked up at Mathis—his dark face was serious. “Oh. You’re not kidding, are you?”

  “Hell no, sweetheart. You want to know why the males were staring at you? They want you. And the females? They hate you for flaunting what you are—what most of them will never be. Juvies are rare—damn rare. You might as well have been walking around the store naked, showing your ass to everyone, and handing out coupons for free blow jobs with that scent of yours on display!”

  “What? That’s terrible! I didn’t know,” Sadie exclaimed. “I mean, how could I know? My mother never told me anything about this weird Gene thing. She never said a word about any of this before she died.”

  “She didn’t leave you a letter or any kind of clue?” Mathis asked, frownin