20 Shades of Shifters_A Paranormal Romance Collection

by Demelza Carlton

  Barry shook her alpha’s hand. “Levon. Did your Officers Smith and Addams send for you?”

  The confused look on Levon’s face spoke volumes. She doubted he even knew about the vandalism to her home.

  “Warren Sharpton called me yesterday with the council’s verdict,” the alpha said. “I had a breakfast meeting with Alpha Hopkins this morning and we discussed what has occurred between the two of you. Frankly, we are surprised it hasn’t happened before in Eclipse. With the variety of shifters living so close to each other, it was bound to happen. We know couples in other parts of the country have broken from their communities to be together. No one speaks of it, but we know it happens.”

  Levon downed his mimosa and handed her the glass for a refill. She obeyed without comment.

  Barry looked at the bottle of sparkling wine and then at his watch. “What did Tobias have to say?”

  “Thank you,” Levon said after she handed him another drink. “Tobias and I want the community to be comfortable with the idea of interbreeding. It’s not something we want to promote, but then again, we don’t want to punish anyone for discovering a mate outside their community. We’re seeing too much spousal abuse among shifters who felt pressured to marry based on their parents’ wishes.”

  Samantha was shocked by what she heard. She had ignored Nancy’s struggles and it appeared her friend’s marital problems were just the tip of the iceberg.

  “I don’t want my relationship with Samantha on display,” Barry said. “Besides, I start my residency soon in Denver.”

  Her alpha took another gulp from his drink and placed the empty glass on the counter. “Tobias told me about your plans early on. My pride has helped to pay for your education. Strokes in our older population are having the same adverse affect on their ability to shift as well. Your research is critical for our future. We want you and Samantha to return home as often as possible and be visible within the community.”

  Everyone seemed to take it for granted she was going to leave with Barry. Things had become so hectic; they hadn’t had the chance to discuss it. She had every intention of joining him, but she didn’t want the decision to be made unilaterally by her mate.

  “That may be difficult, considering I have been thrown out of my family,” Barry replied

  “Your father may be a narrow minded asshole, but your alpha has not thrown you out of his pack,” Levon commented. “Nor have I cast Samantha out of our pride. We have issues within our communities we can no longer afford to ignore. That is why Tobias and I want to openly support your mating.”

  Samantha swallowed hard. “What exactly does that mean?” She was afraid she knew the answer.

  Barry watched the color drain from Samantha’s face again. He never realized how much other people’s opinion impacted her. However, he was affected the same way by Levon’s words.

  As if in a dream, Levon clarified what he meant. “We want to have a public mating. There will be representatives from all the clans. Including all their alphas or representatives. The full moon is Tuesday. It will be a perfect night to perform the ceremony.”

  He couldn’t remember the last time an old-fashion mating ceremony was performed. It was a gathering of shifters in both their human and animal forms. They ceased practicing the old ways when humans became more prevalent in the area. Today, shifters married in their human forms before the eyes of their community, God, and the state of California. There were few ceremonies where shifters gathered in their animal forms. Generally, it was only done when a challenge to the alpha was initiated.

  Samantha had lived a relatively solitary life in Eclipse. The thought of appearing naked before the whole town must’ve been overwhelming to her. She finished off her drink and pour the sparkling wine into her glass without the orange juice.

  “Levon, we appreciate your support, but we are private people.” Barry claimed the remaining mimosa and took a generous sip. He had to communicate what Samantha couldn’t. “We weren’t going to live together for the time being, but circumstances have forced me to move this relationship forward faster than I had planned. I know we are true mates, but we need time to get to know each other.”

  The cougar alpha shook his head. “We need a very public spectacle to present to our people that we need to move forward. Sticking to the old ways and beliefs will only cause dissension within and among the clans.”

  “But there has to be another way.” Samantha finally found her voice. “Meeting before the joint council was difficult enough, the idea of having a large crowd to experience something so personal is offensive to me.”

  “A wedding is a very public event,” Levon countered.

  “If we were to have a wedding, it would be a very small one,” Samantha said. “I don’t have many friends and my sister lives in Idaho. Barry has been disinherited by his family. There has to be another way.”

  Levon rubbed his chin. “I will discuss it with Tobias. Your feelings will be weighed with what is best for the pride and the pack. In the meantime, I will have a cougar guarding the property. You have a lot of land and I know it will not be difficult to get volunteers who are willing to roam freely. That is, if you don’t have any objections.”

  “That will be acceptable,” Samantha replied. “Whoever is assigned needs to know Barry and my scents in case we decide to shift and get some exercise.”

  Another smile crawled over the alpha cougar’s face. “That will be possible.”

  The doorbell rang and Barry knew it was his brother “I’ll get it. It’s Marc and the girls. How about I put the pups on the patio. They can play without the risk of breaking anything valuable.”

  Samantha leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. “Thank you.”

  “We’ll get started on fixing the window immediately.”

  Barry walked to the front door. He didn’t like leaving Samantha alone with the alpha. The man was overbearing and he didn’t want him talking her into something she didn’t want to do.

  As expected, Marc was standing in front of the door when he opened it, a little girl’s hand in each of his. His third daughter was holding one of her sister’s hands. They wore yellow dresses with ladybugs sprinkled across the fabric. The triplets strongly resembled their father. Each of the girls had red noses from their recent summer colds. He momentarily wondered what Samantha and his children would look like.

  Barry picked up one of the girls. “It’s a beautiful day. How about we put the kids on the screened in porch.”

  “Take the girls and I’ll take a look at the window,” Marc replied. “From what I saw walking up to the house, I think we are looking at replacing the whole frame. I’ve got the specs with me, as well as the correct color paint.”

  He kept Sara in his arms, Tina and Holly followed. The girls had seen him enough over his last couple of trips to know who he was and trusted him. They didn’t make a fuss when they were separated from their father. Each of the girls had a doll clutched to their chests.

  “Daddy said we are visiting a pretty cougar,” Sara said. “Does she have any kids?”

  Marc had prepared the children well. “Not yet, sweetheart. And she’s more than pretty, she’s beautiful.”

  “Are we beautiful, Uncle Barry?” Tina asked.

  Barry laughed at the self-serving question. “You are the most gorgeous girls in all of California. Maybe the whole United States.”

  That answer seemed to placate the girls. They looked around as they headed for the patio. He purposely took a route that kept them out of the kitchen. Samantha needed privacy to complete the discussion with her alpha.

  Samantha wasn’t making headway in coming up with an alternative to the mating ceremony. The alphas seemed set upon having a very visual event that would show their support to her and Barry being a couple. She didn’t understand the urgency. Maybe she and Barry needed to leave for Colorado sooner than he originally planned.

  The alpha took her hand and ran his thumb across her pulse. “Are you sure he is yo
ur true mate? Any cougar in the community would take you as a mate in a heartbeat.”

  If he was expecting her pulse to accelerate with his touch or his words, he had another thing coming.

  “I’ve never been physically attracted to any of the cougar boys I met in school or the men who asked me out over the years,” Samantha replied. “There were a handful of men I had relationships with so I wouldn’t be so lonely.”

  “There are men you never gave a chance,” Levon claimed.

  He was obviously talking about himself. In high school, he dated one girl he ended up marrying. After fifteen years of marriage, Blythe Baker took off with a jaguar shifter she had met on a retreat. At that point, Levon dated most of the eligible women in town, but never came after her.

  She shook her head. “I was tired of being disappointed and gave up. When I met Barry, my cougar knew he was the one. Do you think I would go through this mess for a great lay?”

  Levon’s coloring reddened. “I just needed to make sure. There will be cougars patrolling the grounds. They will check in with you before they start their shifts during the day. Whoever has the night shift will introduce themselves before the sun sets.”

  Samantha walked Levon to the front door and thanked him for his support. She hoped he and Tobias came up with a more palatable approach to announcing to the community their support of the mixed couple. Hammering in the living room grabbed her attention and she went to investigate.

  Marc was working outside and he was in the process of removing the broken window and frame. “Hi, Samantha. The brick impacted two of the wooden lites, as well as the glass. It’s easier just to replace the whole frame. After I finish pulling out the old one and installing a new window, I’ll paint it so you’ll never know it’s new.”

  “I appreciate you coming out on your day off, Marc,” Samantha said.

  Barry’s brother laughed. “Where family is concerned, there are no days off. I should be done before the girls get too rambunctious.”

  After an initial inspection, she was pleased with Marc’s work. “I’ll check on the triplets and make sure Barry is not overwhelmed with them.”

  Marc said something in response, but she didn’t hear him. It was probably some insignificant remark, not worth returning to the living room for. She heard laughter from her covered patio. She found herself smiling at the joyful sound.

  When she stepped into the patio area, the girls were climbing on their uncle. She couldn’t remember the last time she had any of her friend’s children in her house. How had she let work monopolize her time and prevent her from having a more rounded life? The answer came quickly; she hadn’t found the right man.

  It was at that point, she knew she’d do whatever was necessary to keep Barry and assure her children grew up in a tolerant environment. She was no longer her first and last consideration. After a lifetime of living in that manner, she knew it was going to be difficult, but she had to make whatever sacrifices were called for.

  Chapter 19

  Samantha thought spending time with the three-year-old triplets would cause the afternoon to drag along. She had been proven wrong. When Marc finished replacing her window, he came to collect the girls to head home. The children complained bitterly. They were enjoying looking at the pretty rooms in her portfolio and making up stories about the people who lived there.

  Barry and Marc went to examine the house to determine what further work needed to be done. She was left alone to watch the children. At first she was nervous, but quickly became comfortable with the girls.

  It had been so long since she was a child, she was amazed by the vast imaginations they possessed. At one point, the girls made up a story about a couple with four children and wanted her to draw a playroom for the house. She asked them a variety of questions and her design was based on their input. The girls jumped up and down when the room was completed.

  “Your babies play there?” Holly asked when she was prepared to rip the page from her notebook.

  “Maybe one day, precious,” she answered. “They would be your cousins.”

  “We want girl cousins,” Tina announced. “Boys play too rough. We will be good cousins.”

  All three girls climbed into her lap and closed their eyes. They’d been going all afternoon and had warn themselves out.

  When the phone rang, she was helpless to answer it. Either Barry would pick up the phone or it would transfer to voicemail. The phone stopped ringing after the third ring, indicating Barry had taken the call. She heard the low timbre of his voice as he talked to whomever was on the phone. It was too long of a conversation to have been one of her clients. They would have just left a message.

  After the conversation ended, the men came into the room. “I’ll take my girls,” Marc said.

  Samantha was reluctant to give them up, but knew she had no choice. The girls barely stirred when they were lifted from her lap into their dad’s arms. Marc left and Barry stayed behind. She wasn’t sure how Marc was going to manipulate the front door with the girls, but he was probably used to navigating through life with his precious cargo.

  “That was Tobias Hopkins,” Barry informed her. “We are invited to join him and his wife for dinner at The Hidden Lodge. Levon will be joining us.”

  The Hidden Lodge was one of the most expensive, but popular restaurants in town. They supported local farms and ranches, serving only meals prepared with the ingredients they purchased within fifty miles of Eclipse. It was the place to be seen.

  Samantha stood from sitting too long and stretched. “I don’t suspect it was an invitation, but a demand.”

  “Something like that,” Barry answered. “It beats running around naked in front of the whole town.”

  Her eyes widened in reaction to that comment. “Have they abandoned the mating ceremony?” She crossed her fingers hoping it was true, knowing the outcome wouldn’t be impacted by the action. Better safe than sorry was her motto.

  “We didn’t discuss that, but I said we’d meet them there at seven,” Barry commented. “That gives us approximately an hour before we have to leave. I better go through the luggage my parents sent and see if there is anything appropriate for me to wear. It’s too late to go into town and buy at least a dinner jacket.”

  Through her business, she had attended several high-end events and had a variety of outfits to choose from. She decided to select something to wear, take a shower, and then she’d do her hair and makeup. She needed every minute available. Barry was on his own to figure out what to wear. People never looked at the men, they always looked and judged the women in the party.

  She gave him a peck on the cheek. “I’ll be down in an hour. There is a shower attached to the mudroom or you can use the guest bathroom.”

  Barry laughed. “What, you don’t want to share a bathroom with me?”

  “Not when I only have an hour to get ready.”

  Samantha took the steps two at a time and jogged into her bedroom. She opened the closet and examined its contents to determine what to wear tonight. They weren’t attending the Academy Awards, but dinner in Eclipse. She didn’t want to overdo it, but she wanted to be the best dressed woman in the restaurant. If she was going to be judged, it wasn’t going to be on her appearance or taste in clothing.

  She decided on a black Badgley Mischka sheath cocktail dress. It had a deep V in the front, but didn’t expose too much bosom. There was also a deeper dip in the back that would keep eyes still plastered on her. She wanted people to talk about how she looked, not who she was with.

  Where shoes were concerned, she rarely wore high heels and didn’t purchase them unless they were comfortable. Tonight, she decided to wear a pair of black Naturalizer dress sandals.

  She rummaged through her jewelry box. In the end, she decided to wear her diamond earrings and not bother with a necklace. Simple, but elegant.

  Samantha stepped into the shower and washed away the trials and tribulations today presented. The massage showerhead she purchased
was worth every penny she spent on it. She placed it on the briskest setting and let the shower of water work out her tired shoulder and neck muscles.

  Tonight, she went a little overboard with the eye makeup. Maybe she didn’t want to be immediately recognized. She couldn’t help being nervous about dinner and everyone who was going to be present in the restaurant.

  To finish things off, she twisted her hair into a bun. She used several bobby pins to secure her tresses.

  Before she headed downstairs, she looked at herself in the full-length mirror. It had been so long since she had examined herself so closely before heading to dinner. She had debated between nude and black stockings and was pleased she chose the black.

  Part of her didn’t want to leave her reflection in the mirror. She was safe here. No one was going to judge her while she was in her own home. But she wasn’t safe and the two alphas were trying to remedy the situation. She should at least give them a chance.

  Barry looked at his watch for the fourth time in the last five minutes. He paced the entry hall, waiting for Samantha to appear. They were going to be late if she wasn’t down in the next couple of minutes. Punctuality was important to him.

  He needed to be doing something, not standing around waiting for his mate. They needed to find a home that was theirs together, where he would be comfortable. There was nothing he could do the coming week, but it was something they would have to discuss.

  The door to her bedroom shut and he gazed at a vision coming down the stairs. This was a woman who belonged on the cover of Vogue, not on his arm. He liked how down to earth Samantha normally appeared.

  “You look beautiful tonight.” He leaned in to kiss her but had second thoughts. The last thing he wanted was to mess up her makeup that was painstakingly applied. “We’ll take my rental car, if that’s all right with you.”