The Tribe Boxed Set: A Shapeshifter Paranormal Romance

by Terra Wolf

  19

  Josh

  I squeezed Tessa’s hand. “You okay?”

  The airport in Atlanta was a madhouse. We had found two seats together in the boarding area.

  “Nervous, I guess. I don’t want to feel like we’re running.”

  “It’s not running. It’s buying time,” I reminded her.

  “Right.”

  She checked her phone again. “And your mom is going to be fine. I swear.”

  She leaned her head on my shoulder. “I know. I’m worrying about everything and nothing.”

  “Is there any part of you excited about our honeymoon?”

  She giggled. “Two weeks with you in Venice? Oh, I’m a little excited.”

  “Good. I like the whole honeymoon and no wedding thing anyway. I can’t believe some guy didn’t come up with this already.”

  She punched me in the shoulder playfully. “So how did you explain the trip?”

  “I called Drew.”

  Her eyes widened.

  “Don’t worry. Yes, he is Case’s brother, but he’s also my best friend. And if anyone gets what we are going through, he does. He’s going to cover for us with Case, okay? That’s all that matters.”

  “No Tribe surprise visits while we’re gone?”

  “Nope.” I knew I could trust Drew with my life. I would trust him with Tessa’s too. “We have two weeks of total naked honeymoon time.”

  “I thought we were coming up with a plan.”

  “Well, when we take breaks for air, we come up with a plan.” I grinned at her.

  There was nothing more serious than what we were facing, but I was trying to shield Tessa from the danger. I could give my mate a beautiful, romantic honeymoon. There was nothing wrong with that.

  “Oh, I think we’re about to board.” She pulled our tickets from her purse and handed my boarding pass to me.

  She stood to get in line, but I tugged on her wrist.

  “Gorgeous, wait.”

  “What is it? We’re boarding.”

  I reached in my pocket before dropping to one knee. Tessa covered her mouth, but I still heard her say, “Oh my God.”

  I opened the velvet box where the diamond glistened. I saw everyone around us stop and stare.

  “Tessa, this is a ring I bought. Our ring. Nothing about us is conventional, but I want you to wear it to symbolize our bond. Will you?” I looked up at her.

  She nodded. “Yes, yes. Put it on.” Her hand shook while I slipped the diamond over her ring finger. She threw her arms around me while the other passengers clapped and cheered.

  I crushed her lips against mine. “Thank you,” I whispered in her ear.

  She pulled back. “It’s not an emerald.”

  “No. It’s not. It’s our own ring. Our own symbol. It can mean whatever you want. And if one day you want to walk down the aisle, I’ll be there at the end of it.”

  “Oh shit,” she whispered.

  I held her, lifting her off the ground. “Okay, let’s board this flight to Venice.”

  She wiped tiny tears from her cheeks. “You completely surprised me, you know that?”

  I laughed. “Yeah, I was hoping it would be a surprise. Your mom knows about the ring.”

  “She does?”

  “Yep. And she is fine with whatever we decide, Tessa. She loves you. She wants you to be happy. For you to be safe.” I kissed the top of her head.

  She stared at the ring, twisting it on her finger.

  “This is a freakin’ huge diamond.”

  I laughed. “I thought you deserved it. Besides, it’s just one more way to show everyone you’re mine.” I didn’t realize I was the jealous and possessive type until I saw how other men looked at my mate. She was too beautiful to leave any open questions.

  She threw her arms around my neck. “Only yours.”

  I growled against her ear. “I can’t believe I have to wait ten hours to take you again.”

  She purred. “Maybe.”

  I laughed so loud the guy behind me cleared his throat. But that guy had no idea what life had in store for me.

  I had the most beautiful and intelligent woman by my side. A mate that was my partner. A goddess in bed. A gentle heart and spirit.

  In two weeks, when we landed in the U.S., I’d have a plan. Because nothing would tear Tessa away from me. Nothing. She had taught me how to love. She had taught me how to open my heart. And she taught me that sometimes, those were worth making a sacrifice.

  Seize

  1

  Donovan

  Nothing about this felt right. Nothing. I hadn’t felt this strongly about something since—I huffed. Since my family lost everything.

  I peered onto the beach, watching the last few beachcombers pick up shells and walk in for the night. I didn’t belong here. I didn’t like the water, or the way the heat felt. Jaguars weren’t meant to live here.

  I turned from the boardwalk, pulling my sunglasses over my green eyes to block the last rays of the sunset. I’d been here three days and I already missed the forest. I missed creeks and tall trees. I missed the seclusion of the woods. I missed my home. My birthright. My territory. This sand pit was no place for a cat shifter. It was great for tourists and humans, but Charleston was getting under my skin.

  But this was the assignment. The king of my tribe, Case, had sent me here. He wasn’t the kind of man I could question. I strolled across the street to the apartment I rented. I paused for a trolley car to pass.

  Charleston was fine, but it wasn’t as if I’d ever put roots down here. I was bored. Nothing was happening here. I climbed the stairs, shuffling the sand from the bottom of my feet.

  I groaned, knowing there wasn’t a safe place I could run tonight in my true form. I’d have to take to the streets and burn off this pent-up frustration like a man.

  I pulled the keys from my pocket. I was staying in a rented apartment on a week-to-week lease because Case didn’t know how long he needed me to stay in the coastal town. This building was one of those old Charleston-style narrow town houses that the owner had divided into four units.

  My apartment was one of the two on the top floor. I had a balcony where I could sit and watch the ocean, but it seemed to make me more restless.

  I hadn’t noticed anyone staying across the hall from me. The downstairs units were rented by a bartender who worked at a restaurant around the corner, and the other by a guy who I swore surfed every waking minute. Other than the occasional nod and a “hey” I didn’t talk to them.

  They weren’t shifters. They weren’t even supernatural. As far as I was concerned they couldn’t help me with my mission here. I needed to keep an ear to the ground. Case was worried about someone stepping this far east into his territory and it was my job to figure out who.

  I grabbed a beer from the fridge and twisted off the top. I walked to the balcony. The beer tasted cold, and for the first time all day it took the edge off. I didn’t like being stuck. I didn’t like being ordered. And I sure as hell didn’t like waiting around for nothing.

  I kicked my feet up on the ottoman and watched the last flicker of the red and orange glow disappear.

  I reached in my pocket when I heard my phone ring.

  “What’s up?”

  It was Eli, one of my Tribe brothers. “I’m calling to see if you’ve heard anything.”

  “Nope. No one is coming this far east. What shifter would want to be in Charleston?”

  “That’s not what I asked.” He sounded more surly than usual.

  “Eli, this is fucking insane.”

  “Have you heard anything? Seen anything?”

  I gulped the last of the beer. “No. All is quiet on the beach front,” I reported.

  “I don’t know if that’s good news or not.”

  “Considering I don’t know who I’m looking for and what they want with the city I couldn’t really comment.”

  Eli exhaled. “Just call me if you hear anything.”

  I snarl
ed. “I don’t report to you. I report to the king.” I wasn’t going to take orders from someone who held the same rank as I did.

  “Whatever. Just do it.”

  “Tell Case I’ll let him know if someone other than a voodoo queen shows up in the city.” The town was crawling with fortunetellers and women who promised they had mystical powers, but I couldn’t sense anything magical about them. The tourists loved them anyway.

  “Don’t let your guard down.”

  I rolled my eyes. “Eli, you’re as bad as Trev. There is nothing happening in Charleston. No rumors of a shifter war. No one is talking about an invasion or takeover.”

  “Something is happening,” he whispered.

  I walked back inside to get a second beer. “Don’t worry your pretty little head. I’ve got things covered here.”

  “Thanks, sweetheart.”

  I laughed. The Tribe may have been separated, each one of us on a different quest, but there was a still a brotherhood that brought us together. And sometimes that meant giving each other a hard time.

  I hung up, and settled back on the wicker chair covered with palm tree print cushions. I could hear the waves crash on the shore. I didn’t know why this was my mission. I didn’t know why I was the one who had been sent.

  What pissed me off the most was that my mission didn’t include the list of mates I was expecting.

  All the other Tribe members had been given their orders and those orders included a list. I was the only one I knew of that was sent to keep an eye on a territory that didn’t have a single panther in its city limits.

  Hell, why hadn’t the Council generated my list yet? That would be a cause I could get behind. I wanted to meet my first mate. Finding her would be a worthy cause. Not sitting here drinking alone on a dark porch, waiting for a shifter apocalypse that was never going to happen.

  2

  Caroline

  I wasn’t running, I told myself. It wasn’t an escape. It was a vacation. A regular normal vacation that any other girl would take. I turned the radio to low so I could listen to the GPS call out the directions as I meandered through Charleston’s cobblestone streets.

  It was a last minute decision to rent out an apartment for the week, but it was almost my twenty-second birthday and I couldn’t sit around Gables anymore waiting for my mate to show up. He should have been there by now.

  So I was taking the reins in my own hands. I wanted a last hoorah. One last thing to check off my bucket list before I became Mrs. Jaguar Somebody. It was crazy. Ludicrous. Insane. I didn’t even know my future husband’s name.

  “Turn right,” the device ordered.

  I steered onto a side street. I could smell the salt as I rolled down the windows. I inhaled the ocean breeze, feeling the freedom of vacation wash over me.

  My long black hair fluttered over my shoulders. This was the opposite of the north Georgia mountains. I was already in love.

  “You have reached your destination.”

  I put the car in park and looked up at the house. My apartment was upstairs in the divided home. It was like something out of a Southern postcard. I smiled. It might only be a week, but this was going to be my one last epic live-it-up trip before my world had to change.

  That was the reality. It had to change. I had been raised to be a she-panther to fulfill her duty. I lugged my suitcase out of the trunk and started up the wide staircase. This was one week I didn’t want to think about my shifter duties. I didn’t want to think about getting married and the responsibilities associated with being someone’s mate. This week was about me.

  A week to soak in the sun. A week to hear the waves crash. A week to make memories that I’d have the rest of my life, so when my mate did show up I’d have something to savor forever.

  The breeze made the palms sway overhead. I looked up and my spine tingled. I saw a guy sitting on the upper deck, but as quickly as I saw him, he disappeared inside.

  I had the instant sensation that he was carrying a shifter aura, but I shrugged it off. I had been thinking about my fate too much. I had been carried away with my obligations. This was the last place a shifter would show up. I was probably the only panther who loved the beach as much as I did.

  I loved the freedom of the open shoreline. I loved the wind in my hair. I loved the way the salt smelled. Every sensation poured through me here. I wanted to experience it one more time before I got married.

  The key was in an envelope like the owner promised. I carried my suitcase upstairs. I felt the same sense again, but turned toward the door labeled 2B and inserted the key. I walked into the dark room ignoring the nagging curiosity in the back of my head.

  I turned on the lights and looked around my home for the next week. There were seashell decorations everywhere. I guessed that was fitting for a beach retreat. I walked onto the balcony and closed my eyes. It almost felt as if I were standing on the beach. From up here I could take in everything from the surf.

  There was a solid wall to my right, blocking the view of my neighbor’s deck.

  I walked back inside, closing the door behind me. The kitchen was small, but it would work. Tomorrow I would make a trip to the market and stock the pantry. This was definitely the kind of place where a glass of wine at sunset would be in order.

  The next morning, I stretched my arms over my head as the sunlight streamed through the balcony blinds.

  I walked onto the deck. I could see myself here. Living in a town with no other cat shifters. Waking up to the sounds of the beach every morning. My inner panther growled in protest, but I didn’t care. It felt good to be bathed in sunlight instead of hiding in a dark forest back home. I was tried of prowling at night. Tired of keeping my territory safe. Most of all, I was tired of waiting for my mate to show up and shut it all down.

  I turned from the ocean scene in search of some coffee in the pantry. I prayed that whoever had stayed here last had left a packet or two. I checked the cupboards. Other than some leftover salt and pepper and a few soy packets from a Chinese restaurant, the place was devoid of food. My stomach grumbled.

  First I needed a shower. I loved the quaint apartment. Even the bathroom tiles were charming. I turned the water to hot and stepped in. I rinsed the shampoo from my hair and quickly toweled off.

  I threw on a pair of shorts and a tank top. I dabbed a few strokes of mascara on my lashes. The green in my eyes seemed more vibrant here. Maybe it was the salt air.

  I grabbed my bag and locked the door as I turned for the stairs. I stopped, feeling the hair on the back of my neck stand up. I felt the same eerie shifter presence I did last night, but the hall was empty.

  It wasn’t worth being paranoid. I couldn’t let myself get sucked into the guilt of leaving Gables for a trip. I needed this before I fulfilled my duty.

  I jogged down the stairs. There was a market a few blocks from the apartment. I would load up on groceries for the week and then hit the beach for a run. Open air was exactly what I needed to shake the feeling that I was being watched.

  3

  Donovan

  I paced in my apartment. I could sense it. Feel it. Something had moved in across the hall last night. Whatever it was, it wasn’t human.

  It must have shown up when I went out for my run. I had a route that took me through the downtown district and back to the apartment in an hour’s time. Running gave me the perfect cover to blend in while keeping an eye on the city. It also seemed to help with the restlessness. My jaguar was starting to feel caged.

  I wasn’t going to call Case until I had answers. The king didn’t want to hear speculation or theory. He only dealt with facts.

  I stepped into the hall, pressing my ear to the door opposite of mine. It was quiet inside.

  Whatever or whoever had moved in was gone now. I twisted the handle. Locked. I didn’t know how much time I had before it returned. I ran to the supply closet in the laundry room to search for a screwdriver or a pick that I could use to break in.

  I returned, t
wisting the fine point of a file inside the keyhole until I heard a click. I smiled. Breaking and entering wasn’t so difficult. It would have taken me two seconds to rip the handle off, but I wanted to keep my interests concealed. I didn’t know what the consequences would be if my new neighbor knew they were under investigation. I had no idea what kind of shifter had moved in.

  I was careful not to touch anything as I walked inside. If I could sense something supernatural, the chances were it could too. It would know I had been here.

  The kitchen was bare. There was nothing in the living room either. I walked to the bedroom and stopped. There was a black lacy bra hanging on the end of the bed. I turned to the bathroom and inhaled shampoo that smelled like wild rain. Shit. It was a girl. A nice-smelling, sexy-lingerie-wearing girl.

  I rifled through her suitcase, but there was nothing but sundresses and shorts. I tried to ignore how skimpy some of the clothes were. There weren’t any other clues in the bathroom either. She had left a makeup bag and a few things in the shower. If she was part of a plan to take over this area, it wasn’t as if she was going to leave a detailed outline lying around.

  She must have her phone with her. There was nothing with her name.

  I backed out of the apartment and locked the door on my way out.

  What in the hell was going on? I left without much more to go on than I had started with. All I knew was a shifter girl was here. But why?

  I didn’t have many options but to wait for her to return. I made a cup of coffee and sat on the deck. The early morning joggers were out. People loved this damn beach. I watched the couples walking hand in hand. The moms pushing strollers. The tourists posing on the boardwalk with the seagulls flying behind them.

  I watched. I waited. I counted the minutes on my phone. Where was this damn girl?