Page 15

My throat tightened again. “We’ve got a lot of shifter business to cover,” I said to Dylan. “You want to get started?”

“Yes!” Dylan punched the air with excitement. “Let’s do it.”

I led Harley and Dylan back downstairs, then out the back door.

Hawk was grilling on the deck, with Mia and Bella supervising.

They waved at us as I led Dylan down the wooden stairs and onto the wide, grassy expanse between the house and the lake.

Harley followed a moment later, with a quilt Mia had given her and a glass of lemonade.

Harley spread the blanket out on the grass a few paces away from us and sat down. She took off her shoes and swept her braids back off her shoulders. Already there was a thin sheen of sweat on her forehead in the midday sun. She smiled at us.

Logically, I knew she was watching us to keep an eye on Dylan. She hadn’t seen me in ten years—of course, she wouldn’t leave us to our shifting lessons alone. Having her eyes on us only made me more determined to get this right.

I knelt in front of Dylan. Now that we were outside, about to start, he worried his lower lip in his teeth. “What are we gonna do this time?” he asked. “Is it gonna hurt? Like my teeth did?”

“It’ll probably feel weird, but it won’t hurt that badly,” I said. “When it happens involuntarily—without you deciding to do it—it always hurts a little more. If you learn to shift in bits, like I’m going to show you, it’ll hurt a lot less.”

Dylan watched me for a moment, then nodded. My dragon rumbled, pleased that my son was checking me for lies.

“It’s a little scary, isn’t it?”

Dylan nodded again.

“I remember when I was your age, when I went through my first shift. My dad was so excited, but I was really scared. But my dad was a good teacher, and that made it a lot easier. So, we’ll do the same, me and you, okay?”

“Okay,” Dylan said.

My first shift had been complicated by the fact that Sean hadn’t shifted.

Not at the same time, at least. Sean was my twin brother.

Although I had been born first, we should’ve shifted around the same time.

But when I started my shifter puberty, he had yet to show any signs, and it made him miserable.

He watched Dad walk me through it, and I knew he was jealous.

Those few months between my shift and his had been awful.

And then when he had shifted, three months after me, Dad wasn’t nearly as excited as he’d been for mine.

To Sean, it was just another way I was the favored son. He was always competing with me. I, on the other hand, only wanted my brother.

I shoved those thoughts aside. Now was not the time. It was Hawk’s fault for bringing him up, anyway.

“We’re going to start with some partial shifting,” I said. “It’s a good way to ease in.”

“Partial? What does that mean?”

“This.” I raised my hand in the space between us and extended my claws. They were long, sharp, and a deep, abyssal black. They shone like onyx in the space where my fingertips were moments before. Partial shifting was as easy as breathing to me, but it hadn’t started out that way.

“Whoa!” Dylan said. “That’s so cool!”

My dragon rumbled in delight. “You’re going to learn how to do it, too.”

“Seriously? You think I can learn today?”

“I know you can,” I said with a smile. “You were so good with your fangs, this will be a snap.” I retracted my claws, and my hands went back to normal. “First, I want you to close your eyes. Take a few deep breaths. You’re going to feel your dragon. Really focus on him, okay?”

Dylan closed his eyes and nodded. He took a few breaths. My dragon rumbled again. We could both sense Dylan’s dragon—awake, energetic, and eager to be freed.

The sun rose higher in the sky as I walked Dylan through the mechanics of partial shifting.

It wasn’t easy to explain. A lot of shifting was instinctive and emotional.

It was more like teaching a nine-year-old how to meditate.

I could sense his frustration when it didn’t work, as well as his determination to get it.

He and his dragon both wanted to make me proud.

Of course, he’d already made me proud. But I was glad to feel his determination, anyway.

Then, after about an hour, he got it.

“Dad!” Dylan’s eyes shot open. He lifted both hands, displaying ten perfectly formed, small, sharp claws. They were the same onyx-black as mine. “I did it! Look! I did it!”

Dylan jumped around with excitement, only pausing to stare in wide-eyed awe at his claws. Then he raced toward Harley, who was still sprawled on the blanket, watching us. “Mom! Look! Look! I’ve got claws!”

Harley laughed and admired his claws while Dylan posed and bared his teeth ferociously.

I sat back on the grass, propped on one elbow, and watched them as Dylan played around. The sun was warm overhead, and the lake lapped at the bank behind us. The smoke from the grill smelled good, and soon we’d all be sitting down on the deck to have lunch together.

“Ace.”

I looked up. Hawk was standing at the railing of the back deck with Striker next to him.

Striker’s arms were crossed across his broad chest, and there was a deep furrow in his brow.

He’d recently cut his dark hair down to his scalp, and sweat dripped from his temples.

He looked pissed. If he was showing up at my home, looking like that, then something serious had happened.

I jumped up and hurried onto the deck. I glanced down at the yard. Harley’s attention was torn between Dylan still showing off his claws and me above her with Striker.

I sighed and turned to Striker. “What is it? Is it Blakely?”

“No,” Striker said. “There’s been a problem with one of our shipments.”

I stepped away from the deck railing and moved closer to the house, out of Harley’s eyesight. “What happened?”

“We lost the whole shipment,” Striker said. “Stolen. Two of our guys got a little beat up.”

“Everyone okay?”

“Just bruised and pissed off,” Striker said. “Nothing a little retribution won’t fix.”

“You know who it was?” I asked, though I already had my suspicions.

“Sean,” Striker said without hesitation. “We know it was him.”

“Fuck.” I rubbed my forehead. Two guys down and a theft? Sean was escalating. This was not the time for this to happen.

Harley came up the deck stairs with Dylan behind her. Hawk was still at the grill, finishing up the steaks, while Mia and Bella had retreated inside to get out of the sun. “Stephan? Is everything okay?”

Striker glanced between us. “I’ll wait out front,” he said and descended the stairs of the deck to walk back around the house.

It wasn’t okay. This kind of thing was exactly why Harley was hesitant to let me into Dylan’s life at all.

I didn’t want to lie to her—but I didn’t want to tell her about this, either.

Not yet. “I’m sorry,” I said. “I’ve got to handle some business.

I know I said we’d have the whole afternoon, but… ”

Harley frowned. Behind her, Dylan slumped, and his claws retracted of their own volition. My dragon whined. I was disappointing them both. But Striker respected my time. If he said it was serious, I knew it couldn’t wait.

“Stay here, have lunch,” I said. “Stay as long as you want. Mia and Hawk will be here for a while.”

“Yup,” Hawk said in confirmation. He caught my eye and gave me a small, serious nod. “And I just finished these steaks, so Ace will be the only one missing out.” He winked at Dylan.

Harley sighed. “No, that’s not?—”

“Please, Mom?” Dylan grabbed her hand and tugged at it. “I’m hungry! And I want to hang out in my room before we go back to Mama Liz’s.”

“Okay, we’ll stay for lunch,” Harley said. She nudged Dylan. “Say bye to your father, then go see if you can help with the dishes, okay?”

“Will you show me more soon?” Dylan asked me, those wide eyes boring into mine.

“Of course,” I said. “Don’t worry. I’ll teach you everything you need to know.”

Dylan threw his arms around my middle again, and this time, I was ready to return it. I hugged the boy close, and my dragon rumbled happily. This was where we were supposed to be. With our son. Our mate.

And yet I was walking away. Again. All because my twin brother had some kind of death wish.

Dylan let go. I smiled and nudged him toward the back door. “I’ll see you soon, kiddo.”

He nodded, disappointed but appeased, and rushed inside shouting for Bella.

Then, Harley and I were alone on the deck. Mia and Dylan’s laughter was barely audible through the windows, and the midday breeze rustled the trees at the edge of the deck.

“So, what is it now?” Harley asked. Her tone wasn’t accusatory, just… resigned. Somehow, that was worse than anger.

“It’s work,” I said. “I’ll be back soon.”

“Work.” She scoffed, her gaze cutting to the side. “I don’t want to know what kind of ‘work’, do I?”

“Probably not,” I admitted. I wasn’t going to tell her that Hawk was sticking around to make sure she and Dylan were safe. I didn’t think Sean would try anything crazy, but… I couldn’t be too careful with my son in the picture.

The breeze rustled between us. A lock of auburn hair fell across Harley’s forehead and into her eyes. I reached out and tucked it behind her ears. My fingertips skimmed across her warm skin, and those blue eyes that had lingered in my dreams for ten years met mine.

Her lips parted a fraction. The air seemed to crackle between us. My dragon longed for me to reach forward, kiss her, claim her.

Harley took a small step back. “Be safe today, okay? Your son is counting on you.”

“That’s my first priority.” I nodded, then left to meet Striker at the front of the house.

I didn’t know what the hell Sean was thinking, but I was determined to find out.