Page 5

Even three days later, that surreal feeling of being trapped in a James Bond movie with a paranormal twist hadn’t faded. Faith couldn’t believe she was about to meet with a bunch of shifters to discuss the details of her fake relationship with one of them.

Tala had texted her the time and location—a well-known art gallery Faith had been meaning to visit for some time. Their choice of meeting place had surprised her. She hadn’t expected the shifters to have an affinity for art.

And maybe that was exactly why they had picked this location. Few humans would expect shifters to hang out in a gallery.

God, they had really perfected hiding in plain sight.

She clamped her hand around the strap of her purse, hoping it would hide the slight tremble of her fingers. Come on. You can do this. For Chloe.

After a steadying breath, she entered the art gallery. It felt like walking into the lion’s den. Or maybe the fox’s den, since that was the kind of animal Tala could turn into, according to the tabloid article.

To her left was a section with sculptures made of household objects, while the larger area straight ahead showed paintings on plain white walls, each one illuminated by strategically placed spotlights. Soft classical music played in the background, and patrons commented quietly on the pieces.

Everything looked real, not like a place that had only been set up as a cover-up for shifter operations.

A gallery employee in dress pants and a white shirt approached her. “Good morning. How may I help you?”

Faith forced herself to return his friendly smile. “I’m Faith MacAllister. I’m here to meet—”

“Yes, of course,” he said before she could finish her sentence. “If you’d follow me, please.”

He led her along a dimly lit corridor, the walls to both sides adorned with watercolor sketches. His steps were light, his shoes not making any sound on the marble floor.

Was he a shifter too? Did he know why she was here?

He turned left, into a hidden alcove, and paused in front of a door with a small brass plaque engraved with the words private viewings .

No wonder the shifters had lived among humans without being detected for centuries! They were very good at this cloak-and-dagger thing.

“Your guest has arrived, sir,” he called through the door without opening it.

Almost immediately, the door swung open, and a burly man with military-short hair peeked out. He raked his gaze over Faith as if he had X-ray vision and could search her for weapons with a single look, then he opened the door wider and gestured at her to come in.

Her heart thudded against her ribs as she stepped inside.

At first glance, this room resembled the other parts of the gallery, but Faith didn’t take the time to study the artwork on the walls. Her attention was immediately drawn to the long table in the center of the room.

Two people rose from behind it—Tala and a tall man with silver-gray hair who had claimed the seat at the head of the table.

Faith recognized him immediately. She had seen the leader of the Wrasa on TV hundreds of times in the past year, since the shifters had revealed their existence.

“Welcome, Ms.MacAllister,” he said, his voice deep and commanding. “I hope you don’t mind us picking an art gallery as the location for our meeting.” He swept his arm toward the huge painting directly behind him, like an art aficionado showing off the favorite piece in his collection.

But Faith could tell there was more to it, so she took a closer look.

Flanked by smaller canvasses depicting dense forests and winding rivers hung the portrait of a majestic wolf. He stood tall and proud on a rock, ears perked forward and nose lifted as if he was about to howl. His silvery fur had been painted in remarkable detail, making Faith feel as if she could reach out and touch every single strand.

“Stunning, isn’t it?” Madsen asked.

Faith hadn’t noticed his eye color during any of his TV appearances. Now she realized they were the same yellowish brown as the wolf’s.

Was this him? His animal form? Faith had a feeling the answer was yes—and that he had wanted her to realize it. Was it just vanity or an attempt to intimidate her and remind her his kind could turn into predators with sharp fangs at the blink of an eye?

She realized he was still waiting for her reply.

Faith had no idea what the correct answer was. Yes, you are? She glanced at Tala, who regarded her with a level gaze.

The guy with the military haircut was no help either. He had retreated to the back of the room, where he stood with his arms folded across his chest.

All three shape-shifters studied her closely as if gauging her reaction.

“Yes,” Faith finally said. “Exquisite brushwork, Mr.Madsen.”

The corner of Tala’s mouth gave the tiniest twitch.

“Ah, so I see introductions won’t be necessary,” Jeff Madsen said. “Good. Then let’s get started. We have a lot to talk about.”

On legs that felt a little unsteady, Faith crossed the room and sat facing Tala, while Madsen retook his seat at the head of the table.

There were no lawyers present, no contracts or NDAs ready for her to sign resting on the table. Would the shifters just trust her word—or did they have other means to make sure she would honor their agreement? Was that why Madsen had pointed out the portrait of his wolf form?

A shiver went through her.

“Rest assured, we mean you no harm. We’re here to discuss the details of our…arrangement.” Madsen softened his voice to a grandfatherly tone.

Had he noticed the slight tremor?

Faith sat up straight, hoping to appear more confident than she felt. “I’m glad to hear that. So, what exactly do you expect of me? Of us?” She flicked her gaze at Tala, who sat at attention, hands resting palm-down on the table, her expression unreadable. She didn’t exactly give off “we’re in this together” vibes.

“Starting tomorrow, the two of you will be seen in public together,” Madsen said. “At first, it’ll be just romantic couples’ activities—candlelight dinners in cozy restaurants, love-struck photos on social media, that kind of thing. Of course, we will cover all costs.”

Money was the least of Faith’s concerns. She imagined posting a selfie of Tala and her with their cheeks pressed together. What would her colleagues and neighbors think? How would her father’s friends react? Would they judge her—the way some of them had when she’d come out as bisexual?

She hoped her dad had carefully considered the consequences. The longer she thought about it, the less sure she became. Was it really worth it?

In any case, she had to tell Jon. Even if they left everyone else in the dark, she had to let her ex-husband in on their plan.

“Once we’ve established your whirlwind romance with the tabloids and the social media influencers, we’ll start phase two of Operation Make-Believe Mate,” Madsen continued.

Operation Make-Believe Mate? Was that what the shifters called their bizarre idea? Faith swallowed. “Phase two?” That sounded like a battle plan put together with military precision.

Madsen nodded. “You’ll start to attend charity galas and political events that indicate a shift in your attitude toward a pro-Wrasa rights stance.”

So that was what they wanted? For her to publicly speak up for their rights—and against her own father?

This confirmed Faith’s earlier impression that they hadn’t picked her for this fake relationship at random, just because of the tabloid article. Tala wasn’t supposed to date Faith; she was supposed to date Peter MacAllister’s daughter.

Had her dad considered the effects it might have when he had encouraged her to agree to the pretend relationship? Some members of HASS might start to turn against him.

“You want me to speak up for shifter rights? Would people really buy that? I have always stayed out of politics.”

Tala gave a low grunt. “That’s a privilege only humans have,” she muttered. “We Wrasa can’t stay out of politics when our mere existence is political.”

Madsen ignored her comment. “There doesn’t have to be much speaking involved. Just you showing up at a Wrasa rights protest or fundraiser hand in hand with one of us will speak for itself.”

Hand in hand. Faith licked her dry lips and peeked at Tala’s hands, which were still resting on the table. They were small yet strong and capable, with graceful fingers. Muscles flexed subtly beneath her smooth skin, hinting at their latent power. Even though they lay very still, coiled energy seemed to vibrate through them as if they were ready to spring into action at Madsen’s order.

“Um, speaking of holding hands… What exactly would I be agreeing to in terms of PDAs?”

“Well,” Madsen said. “I’ll leave the details up to you two, but it’s paramount to convince everyone you’re in love with—”

“You won’t have to do anything that makes you uncomfortable,” Tala said firmly.

So far, she had come across as pretty harsh, so Faith had expected her to demand a convincing performance at all costs. She certainly hadn’t anticipated Tala interrupting her head of government, who didn’t seem amused by it.

“Humans vary in their comfort levels with public displays of affection, right?” Tala continued.

“Right,” Faith said, trying not to sound relieved. “Maybe we could make everyone think we prefer to keep our affection private.”

Tala nodded. “Fine with me.”

Madsen pierced her with a chiding glare. “I couldn’t care less whether you tear each other’s clothes off in the middle of a gala dinner or always keep a chaste distance, as long as you sell being head over tail in love. But you’re forgetting one thing.”

“Which is, sir?”

“We’re not just trying to fool humans. We need our fellow Wrasa to fall for it too.”

What was that supposed to mean? Faith looked back and forth between them. Did shifters behave differently when it came to relationships and PDAs?

Finally, it was Tala who interrupted their intense stare-down. “We’ll make it work, sir.”

“See that you do,” Madsen replied. “We can’t afford any slip-ups. Understood?”

His tone was laced with a meaning Faith didn’t understand.

Tala clearly did, though. Her back went even more rigid, and she clamped her hands around the edge of the table. “Understood, sir. I won’t fail you.”

“No dating other people. No talking about this with anyone.” Madsen’s piercing gaze seared into Faith, making her start to sweat. “No lovers’ spats in public. You’ll have to present a united front at all times. And make sure your stories align.”

“Where will we say we met?” Faith asked, partly to ease the tension in the room and partly out of genuine curiosity.

“Easy,” Tala answered. “At the parade. Like the tabloids said, you were instantly captivated by my pretty golden eyes.”

Faith waved her hand. “Oh, are they golden?”

The corners of Tala’s lips curved up into a smirk. “As if you didn’t notice.”

Okay, she had. But only because that color was so rare. At least among humans. Not because they were pretty.

“Good.” Madsen gave them an approving nod. “Keep up the flirting. Very believable.”

“Flirting?” they echoed at the same time.

“We weren’t flirting, sir.”

“Not at all,” Faith added. Shifters apparently struggled to interpret human body language correctly.

Madsen grunted. “Like I said, I couldn’t care less as long as you convince the world you’re the modern version of Romeo and Juliette.”

“Um, that story ended with both of them dying,” Faith said. Didn’t that matter to him either, as long as he got what he wanted?

Madsen ignored her remark. “So, do we have a deal? You’ll go through with it and make sure not a word about it gets leaked to anyone?” His attention was solely on Faith, not on Tala, his gaze drilling into her as if he could see through all her defenses and recognize the truth of why she was really doing this.

He didn’t demand to know her motivation, though. Was it a case of not looking a gift horse in the mouth, or was something else going on? Maybe they didn’t care why she’d agreed to help them as long as she did.

It took all of Faith’s self-control not to squirm under Madsen’s probing stare. “Deal.” Her voice came out sounding scratchy.

The word seemed to echo through the room.

Faith’s stomach clenched. Oh God. Had she just made a deal with the devil? She peered at Tala, seeking some form of reassurance, but the shifter’s expression remained inscrutable, so she turned back toward Madsen. “Under one condition.”

“Your daughter stays out of this,” Madsen said before she could. “Yes. Tas Peterson let me know.”

Tas? Was that Tala’s title? Or maybe a rank? So many things she didn’t know. But for now, she had to focus on making sure Chloe wouldn’t get caught up in any of this. “It should be easy to do since my ex-husband and I have shared custody. We can go on our dates on the days Chloe’s with her father, or I can get a babysit—” A thought occurred to her, and her stomach dropped. “We’re not expected to live together, are we?”

“No!” Tala sounded as appalled as if Faith had suggested moving into a glass enclosure full of tarantulas—if shape-shifters had an aversion to spiders too.

A muffled sound came from the back of the room. The burly guard pressed one hand to his mouth, then straightened and put on a neutral expression.

Madsen barked out a laugh. “Not unless you want to make this arrangement a lot more permanent than we’d planned.”

“You really don’t know much about us, do you?” Tala said. “If a Wrasa couple moves in together, everyone considers them mated for life. It’s our equivalent of getting married.”

“Oh.” A nervous chuckle escaped Faith. “Yeah, no. Definitely no U-Hauls on the second date, then.”

Tala’s sharp features softened the tiniest bit, and her lip twitched in the way Faith was coming to recognize as a secret grin.

So she had understood the inside joke. Did that mean she was a lesbian or bi? So far, no one had even mentioned them both being women, as if that was no big deal to the shape-shifters at all. Was it?

“A lifetime commitment won’t be necessary,” Madsen said. “It shouldn’t take long before the tabloids lose interest in your harmonious, drama-free relationship. We figured six months, tops, then you can amicably split up.”

Six months? Faith was determined to end this farce much sooner. Hopefully, it wouldn’t take long to find some incriminating evidence against the shifters.

“Are you okay with that?” Madsen asked when Faith didn’t say anything. “This won’t be something you can hide from your father. How do you think he’ll react?”

It felt as if he had tiptoed up to the one topic that really mattered: her father. “It’s no secret that he’s not a fan of shifters,” Faith said as honestly as possible.

“That’s like saying I don’t mind fried chicken,” Tala muttered. “Talk about an understatement.”

Faith chose to ignore her. “But he loves me and would never do anything to hurt me or the people I love. As long as Tala treats me well, she’s got nothing to fear.” A bit of a silent warning couldn’t hurt, right?

Tala met her gaze with a glint in her eyes, yet Faith couldn’t tell whether it was challenging or amused or both.

“Good,” Madsen said, drawing Faith’s attention back to him. “If you’re available tomorrow evening, you two could get your first date over with.”

Tomorrow? The shifters seemed to be in a hurry. But dragging it out would only make Faith more nervous, so she nodded.

A low sound from the door made all three Wrasa turn toward it.

“Tell them I’ll be right there,” Madsen said without raising his voice, as if fully expecting whoever was on the other side of the door to hear him even through that barrier.

So what they said about shifter hearing was true. One more reason to be careful around them.

Madsen turned back toward her. “I have an important matter to attend to. It was a pleasure to meet you, Ms.MacAllister. I’m sure our cooperation will be mutually beneficial and help us work toward a peaceful coexistence. Tas Peterson will pick you up for your first date tomorrow at a quarter past five.”

“Um, why don’t I pick her up?” Faith didn’t want Tala in her home. Besides, her father expected her to bug Tala’s apartment, and she could only do that if she got to see Tala’s den.

“I’ll leave the details up to you two.” Madsen waved at the burly guy leaning against the wall. “Brett, please make sure Ms.MacAllister gets to her car safely.”

“Yes, sir.” Brett walked over and lingered next to her until Faith stood.

Clearly, this wasn’t so much about ensuring she made it to her car safely but more about her not stopping anywhere along the way to sniff around the art gallery. She just hoped Brett wouldn’t come along as a bodyguard on their dates, or she wouldn’t get a chance to spy on the shifters.

She nodded at her fake girlfriend across the table. “Tala.”

Tala nodded back. “Faith.”

“Great Hunter,” Madsen muttered. “Such heartfelt emotion. What a touching goodbye. I can only hope you two will do a better job in public.”

“Don’t worry, sir,” Tala said. “We will.”

Faith walked to the door, with Brett shadowing her closely.

“Wait,” Madsen called after her. “I nearly forgot something really important.”

Tension crept up Faith’s neck. She carefully turned her head. “Yes?”

“Before you go, I need you both to see Jean-Paul. He prepared something we want you to wear for your date.”

The shifters had spared no expense. Apparently, they had hired a haughty French designer to create outfits for them.

“Brett will walk you over. Oh, one last thing. You’re not prone to seasickness, are you?”

“No.” Faith felt sick to her stomach, but that had nothing to do with getting queasy on the water. “Why?”

He flashed her a wolfish grin. “You’ll find out tomorrow.”

~ ~ ~