Page 12 of Siren in the Rain

I start to growl in the back of my throat and my tail bristles.

Then I register it.

The iron fucking collar around his neck.

Someone put a magic containment collar on this beautiful man in order to control him. Everything in me revolts at the idea.

We’d been warned about devices like this, but most of the ones I’ve seen have been wrist or ankle cuffs. The collar is so much worse.

An unexpected warmth in my pocket has me pulling out the gold coin I found. “Wha—” I start to say as it shimmers in my hand.

The writing on the coin from earlier disappears to be replaced with, Help him.

I jolt because it’s right. Here I am, failing to do my job as a member of this team.

Opening my magical senses, I read a complex mix of emotions coming from Shae. Pain, sorrow, anger, exhaustion—and fear. It’s so powerful that it makes me gasp.

But beyond the snarl of tangled feelings coming off him, I sense something else.

For the first time since I entered the room, I instinctively sniff the air, edging closer to the bed as if in a trance.

The scent of the sea, sunshine, and something sweet tickles my nose. I inhale deeply and take it all inside me, savoring how the tantalizing smell curls up and makes itself at home in the very core of my being.

I’ll admit, I’m sometimes a little slow to catch on to the obvious. I know this about myself. But I never thought it would happen with something as earth-shatteringly important as this!

My ears perk up and my tail starts swishing like mad.

I throw back my head and howl with joy.

“Time and place, bro,” Cal says, giving me a poke in the ribs that I ignore.

Ruby facepalms. “I’d say we’ve officially lost the professionalism battle.”

“What the hell is happening right now?” Dallas demands, loud enough to be heard over my howl.

Harper’s eyes twinkle with merriment and he gives me a knowing wink. “Oh, my. Things are going to get very interesting now.”

While everyone’s still staring at me like I’ve lost my mind, I let my howl die away and kneel beside the bed, my tail going a million miles an hour just like my heart. I’m the empath on our team—think Deanna Troi from Star Trek: The Next Generation, and my own personal hero—but I can do more than just understand and feel the emotions of others. I also have special pheromones—and no, they don’t always have to be sexual—that can soothe those in distress. It’s what I like to call my Super Charged Surfer Scent, and it brings all the chill and peaceful vibes to others. Right now, I’m pumping the SCSS at maximum output to assist our latest rescue in calming down. I want to help him more than I’ve ever wanted to help anyone before.

“Get away from me, Wolf Boy!” he says.

“I’ve found you at last, my fated mate!” I announce as I get to work on getting my scent all over him—from a respectful distance, of course.

That weird coin I found was right.

It is my lucky day!

Chapter

Three

Shae’s List of Life Goals

2. Get even but don’t go full dark side. A little dark side is acceptable.

Shae

One minute I’m being surrounded by a seriously bizarre group of oddball strangers, and the next, a hot guy with a fluffy tail and big pointy canine ears is kneeling by my bed and being all kinds of weird.

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