by Dana Archer
“To make you into the female you are today. Strong, independent, and respected. You, my darling Mira, are unlike any woman I’ve ever known.”
She rolled her eyes. “Don’t give me any lines.”
“I’m not. Things happen for a reason. It is why I have never found my true mate or even met a woman who captured my interest for more than a night.”
He tugged her closer so his body was wedged between her legs. “I’m supposed to mate you now, not three hundred years ago. This modern era where we hover on the verge of discovery is the one our children are meant to alter. The animosity between the humans and the shifters is the one they will conquer, not some mystical nonsense.”
“I never agreed to mate you. My father chose you.”
“But you will. It’s only a matter of time.”
“No, I will not blindly fall into the role assigned to me at birth. Prophecy or not. It is my choice who I want to be with.”
Aron studied her for a long time. Finally, he sighed. “You’re only saying that because of the human, aren’t you?”
“Josh,” she corrected automatically.
A wan smile graced Aron’s mouth. “Josh, of course. Well? Do you love him?”
“I don’t think I’m capable of loving anyone.” At least she wouldn’t be, not once she cut Josh out of her life.
“You love your twin.”
She smiled. “Yes, I do. Devin has always had my back, even when I thought his actions were unreasonable, but the twin bond goes beyond love.”
“And often greater than any other.”
“No, that’s not true. Devin loves me. Of that I have no doubt, but his devotion to Lena is greater. She’s his true mate, the light of his world.” Mira had been shocked to see with her own eyes the deep connection between her brother and his little human. “That kind of devotion is rare. It surpasses all, as it should.”
Aron stared at her with unblinking eyes for a long breathless moment. “Breeding partners can love too.” Slowly, he raised his hand and trailed a finger down her cheek. “I want to be the male you love. Maybe in time we’ll realize we are true mates too. It can happen. If it doesn’t, we’ll still be friends. I’d like that, to walk through eternity with you, true mate or not.”
She pushed against his shoulders. “It’s late. Let’s call it a night.”
Instead of obeying, he cupped her cheeks and leaned close. She pressed her lips together. He sighed and let his hands fall away.
“Yes, let’s call it a night.” Aron stood and dropped a twenty on the table where the food was long gone, paying their bill. He took her hand and led her to the door. “I won’t walk away as easily this time.”
After tonight’s revelations, she figured as much, and wasn’t so sure she was happy about it. Scratch that. She was positive she wasn’t pleased with the turn of events, but her life had never been about happiness. No, her life had revolved around the prophecy.
The bitter reality was the goddesses didn’t care about her as long as she popped out the kids destined to change the world.
Josh walked down the hallway of his house. He knew it belonged to him yet it didn’t look the same. Instead of the ugly brown carpeting under his feet, sleek hardwood gleamed. Drywall replaced the faded wallpaper and solid wood doors hung in place of the hollow fake ones that blocked off each room. He glanced at everything, but didn’t stop to ponder the changes. A baby’s cry urged him forward.
He flung open the door at the end of the hall. The shrill scream of a newborn met his ears. A quick scan of the room showed three cribs, a rocking chair, and a changing table. He frowned at the sight and ignored the oddness in the next breath. The baby’s demands beat at him.
He strode to the middle crib. A red-faced infant in a blue onesie with a healthy head of black hair lay on his back with his fists curled by his hips. Josh scooped up the child and lifted him to his shoulder.
The crying didn’t stop. Each wail increased Josh’s compulsion to comfort the little boy. Josh rubbed circles over the baby’s back, gently patting after each pass. After a few strokes, the child belched.
Josh chuckled.
After a moment, the little boy made those happy gurgles babies often made. Josh kept up the soothing caresses, while the child drooled over Josh’s shoulder, and studied the room.
A safari theme decorated the walls. Cartoon pictures of lions, tigers, and jaguars formed scenes across the surface. Stuffed animals and a leopard-print throw blanket folded neatly over the back of the rocker added to the wild motif.
He was dreaming again. That was the only explanation. But when had his dreams become so vivid? Or his participation in them feel so real?
He shook his head and walked to the other cribs. The one on his right held a sleeping blonde baby in a pink sleepsack. He ran a finger down her chubby cheek. Beautiful. She had a tiny dip in her chin and a delicate nose that reminded him of Mira’s.
Of course. These were Mira’s kids, the prophesized ones. Why he dreamt of them in his house, he didn’t understand. Dreams didn’t always make sense, though. They were a jumble of emotions and triggers.
The little girl stretched and rolled onto her back. A black streak showed in her blonde hair. His heart sank. She had Aron’s hair. The confirmation hit him like a physical blow, turning his gut into a mess. Josh ignored the sick feeling. No matter her father, the child was gorgeous.
She brought her fist to her mouth and sucked. He smiled and gave her cheek another stroke. He adjusted the baby still cradled against his shoulder and moved to the next crib.
Patchwork hair covered another little boy’s head. Mira’s hair. He ran his hand over the colorful strands. The baby opened his eyelids. Josh’s heart stopped.
Blue eyes stared back at him. Familiar blue eyes.
My eyes. He has my eyes.
The child he held wiggled, fussing with a grumble of annoyed sounds that warned he’d soon start screaming again. Josh shifted the small bundle in his arms and glanced into his face. Another pair of dark-blue eyes met his.
No. They can’t be mine.
Yet, his mind fed him details which made the impossible theory grow. The child in his arms looked hauntingly similar to his baby pictures. The little boy even had a cowlick in the same spot Josh did. Could this one be his and the other two be Mira’s and Aron’s babies?
The boy Josh cradled scrunched his nose and bared tiny fangs at him.
“Dear God,” Josh muttered.
The girl cried. He scooped up the other boy, not wanting to leave him, and made his way to her crib. She stopped fussing as soon as he stepped up to the side and looked at him with dark blue eyes that had specks of gold in them.
His. The babies were his.
The dream shattered, and he jerked up in bed. He untangled himself from his sweaty sheets and scanned the room. The pants he’d taken off lay discarded on the floor, and the laundry basket with his folded clothes sat in the corner. Everything looked the same as it had when he’d fallen asleep.
He jumped from his bed, grabbed his sweats, and flung the door open. Brown carpet, white doors, peeling wallpaper greeted him. He peeked into Megan’s room and found her sleeping with her stuffed wolf, the toy lion she’d arrived with long since abandoned.
He made his way to the end and opened the door to the room he’d dreamt about. Boxes sat stacked in the center. No cribs, no babies.
He closed the door with a soft click and dropped his forehead against it. “I’m losing my mind.”
Chapter 18
Josh paced the length of his house. His restless path took him from the kitchen to the living room. A few lonely, gut-wrenching hours had gone by since he’d last seen Mira, held her soft body against his, and given her pleasure. He ran his tongue along the roof of his mouth. The memory of their liaison played over and over in his mind.
He forced himself to stop pacing and stared at his reflected image in the glass above the hall table. With splayed fingers, he traced the four slashes that ext
ended from above his ear to his chin. Because Mira had licked the deep gashes, only white lines remained.
At the moment, the shadow of his beard camouflaged most of the claw marks, but the stubble didn’t diminish the response touching the marks elicited within him. Tingles ignited at the base of his spine and spread outward. If he closed his eyes, he could feel each swipe of her roughened tongue as she’d healed the cuts.
He groaned and dropped his balled fist. Deep breaths and sheer will zapped the horny state thinking about Mira had caused.
He resumed his restless pacing. Ever since she’d left him last night, he’d been agitated. Besides his skin itching and muscles twitching, his bones ached. A sharp pain in his chest stopped his strides. Cursing, he pressed a balled fist against his rib cage.
Although he felt as if he’d aged twenty years in the past few days, he was too young for a heart attack. At least he hoped. Anxiety attack? Nah, the label didn’t exactly fit. Zoe had those from time to time, usually before she grabbed her bag and took off. Whatever caused the pain stealing his breath, the sensation sucked.
Shallow breaths eased the tingling in his limbs. He dropped his hands and continued prowling his house. At the hall mirror, he stopped once more to study his likeness. Something about it bothered him.
The clock ticked, and he stared at himself hoping to pinpoint the difference. Finally, he realized there wasn’t anything different. That was the problem. He looked exactly the same as he had last night and the night before that. The stubble on his cheek, the point where the roughness turned to softness, dusted his jawline and chin.
He ran his palm over it and chuckled. It felt exactly how Mira liked it. She’d commented on her preference so often he made a point of letting himself look a little unkempt for her. But still… He could’ve sworn he’d shaved before going to bed. His hair didn’t grow that fast.
The front door opened, pulling him out of his thoughts. No knock. Devin walked in as if he lived here, too. The shifter wore denim bibs, one strap unbuckled, and a white T-shirt. In one hand, he held a bunch of plastic bags from the local hardware store. A soggy, paper-wrapped hoagie in a bag from the town’s only deli shop dangled from the other.
Josh studied the outfit, focused on the price tag still hanging from the leather tool belt Devin had slung over his hips, and shook his head. “Halloween isn’t for another couple of weeks, buddy.”
“Very funny.” Devin dropped the bags. Rolls of duct tape and plumber’s putty spilled out. He kicked them to the side. “I’m here to work.”
Josh glanced heavenward and counted backward from ten. With his patience held in place, he asked, “On what?”
Devin bent, pulled out a PVC joint, and held it up like some sort of trophy. “The new plumbing, of course. Those lines in your kitchen are old. They make the water taste funny.”
Of course. Josh ground his teeth. The shifters were a close-knit group, willing to help raise each other’s kids, protect their friend’s mates, and back their neighbors in whatever endeavor they attempted.
He’d been awed by the support they’d showed him after becoming an honorary member of their extended family. Josh had been showered with casseroles, offers to babysit Megan, and investors for his bar. In some ways, the shifter community was the epitome of what every small town should be. However, the meddling in things they knew nothing about needed to stop.
“I thought I made it perfectly clear I didn’t need any help with repairs.”
A streak of crimson flushed Devin’s cheeks. He rubbed at the back of his neck and glanced out the window in the direction of the garage which boasted a huge hole in its ceiling. “How was I supposed to know the roof wouldn’t hold the weight of two shifters?”
Josh chuckled, despite the annoyance of seeing Devin in his house with a bunch of tools. “Especially when you decide to fight over whose turn it was to use the nail gun.”
A grin spread over Devin’s face. “It was my turn.”
Josh held his hands up in front of him, his smile widening. The lighthearted expression looked natural on Devin. Since Lena came into his life, it had become the one he wore more often than not. “Hey, I’m not starting that argument again.”
Devin hefted the bags and strode toward the kitchen. Josh followed, nerves settling in his gut. He liked Mira’s twin, but Devin wasn’t exactly what you’d call handy, more of a disaster waiting to happen.
Devin unloaded the bags, lining everything up on the table. At least he’d gotten the right supplies. Then again, the guy at the local store was better at helping his customers than the big warehouse outlet the shifter had gone to for the roof tiles.
After arranging everything by first color then size, Devin stared at the table. Josh waited for him to broach the subject he’d really come over to talk about. Finally, Devin pushed everything into the center and sighed. “Lena wanted me to see if you’d be willing to let us keep Molly at our house. No more sleeping over here. Or visiting.”
Josh tensed, wondering what brought on the change of heart. “Molly belongs in my family with Megan. I promised Tony I’d take care of his daughter if anything ever happened to him. I don’t break my promises.” He worked his jaw and tried to come up with the right words to express how he felt about the little girls. “I love them. Do you understand? They’re my kids.”
“I do, but—”
“No buts. I’d adopt Molly right now if I could.”
“Nobody’s disputing your claim of being either girl’s guardian.” Devin picked up a small baggie of washers and studied it with narrowed eyes as if wondering why he’d bought them before dropping the baggie in the pile. “You are legally Megan’s guardian. That’s been accepted by your government and ours.”
“And do you actually think splitting up the girls is a good thing? Because I don’t. They need each other.”
“None of us wants to split up the girls. So as soon—”
“Then, that’s your answer.”
“As soon as Molly shifts back,” Devin went on ignoring the interruption, “we can go back to our original plan—weekends at my house, weeknights here. Until then, we think it’s in Molly’s best interest if she remains in a shifter home.”
“No. Being with her sister on a full-time basis is what Molly needs. The twin bond is powerful. You know that.”
“In a perfect world, I’d agree.” Devin rubbed the back of his neck. “Actually, Lena was wondering if Megan could stay with us for a while, too.”
Josh fisted his hands and growled. “No. Way. I agreed to weekends because Megan loves staying with you guys while I work. Nothing more.”
Devin tilted his head, the predator assessing his prey, and studied him for several long heartbeats. Josh held the other male’s gaze while he tamped down his temper. Logically, he knew Devin didn’t want to steal his nieces. Instinctually, Josh saw the move as a threat to his family. At the moment, attacking Devin sounded like a great idea. Josh wouldn’t, though. Devin was important to Mira. That meant Devin was important to Josh.
“You’re being unreasonable,” Devin finally said.
Was he? With the itch crawling over his skin and the pressure in his chest, he couldn’t tell. He only knew that Megan and Molly belonged with him. They were his family. Not that he had one beyond the two little girls. Still, the rightness of the thought resonated through him. Instinct, maybe? No, it was more than that.
He pictured both girls as he’d last seen them. Megan had been giggling, and Molly had been…playing, even while Zach had sat on the couch watching TV.
“No, I’m not. Molly tries to attack every shifter who gets near her, except you and Kade.”
“That’s why we need to get her used to other shifters.”
“But she doesn’t when she’s with me. She ignored both Evan and Zach while they were at my house.” Josh let that sink in. “You see? She feels safe with me.”
Devin watched him for several long moments. Finally, he broke his focused study with a small shake of his
head. “So be it. If she starts having issues over here, we’re reevaluating. For her sake, not yours. Understand?”
Josh unclenched his fists. “Agreed.”
Devin leaned against the counter, ankles and arms crossed. He pointedly glanced from Josh’s white knuckles to his face. “You’ve been spending too much time with shifters, human. You’re picking up our traits. That was a very realistic growl.”
Josh forced a chuckle. “Hey, maybe I’m turning into one.”
“You know that’s impossible.”
Impossible and depressing. Josh had asked if he could be converted—a desperate request in his bid to find a way to be with Mira. Everyone had told him the same thing. Being a shifter wasn’t a disease or a contagious condition. Their bodies housed animal spirits—separate entities that lived and died with them. Unless he was born with animal souls, he was out of luck.
Josh shrugged. “So I’ve been told.”
Sympathy filled Devin’s eyes. “I wish it weren’t. If I could pick a male to be my sister’s mate, it’d be you.”
Josh pressed a fist to his chest before he could stop the reaction. He dropped the balled hand and jerked the fridge open to get a bottle of water. Devin’s words made that ache he’d developed worse. He hated dealing with emotional crap, but he couldn’t help feeling a wave of…he wasn’t sure what. Relief, maybe? Happiness? He’d worked so hard to earn the shifters’ respect, Devin’s especially. Knowing he’d finally gotten it made him feel…good.
“Thanks, Devin.”
“I still think it’s a bad idea.”
So much for the elation. Josh slammed the door, rolled Devin’s water across the countertop, then twisted the top on his. “Gee, thanks for the support.”
“I fear Mira will try to share her cats’ immortality with you. It would support Kade’s vision. She’d need to deliver a mortal wound to do that.”
Josh took a swallow of cold water. It did little to soothe his dry throat or wash away the lump lodged there. “Because you think it’s impossible?”
Devin took a sip, capped the bottle, and rocked it back and forth. He watched the air bubble seesaw inside the plastic. With a sigh, he let it clunk to the surface next to him. “I don’t think it’s impossible. I know it is.” He held up his hand, stopping Josh’s retort. “I’ve checked with several elders sympathetic with Mira’s circumstances to get a second opinion.”