Page 130 of Secret Shifters Next Door

She sighed in obvious relief. “At least my brothers weren’t keeping secrets all these years. I don’t think I could handle that.” She looked at me with sadness. “This is… a lot to take in. One thing you should know is that I believe you. It does explain a bunch of stuff from back then. I mean, we never had sex. You kept from doing that.”

I cleared my throat nervously. “That didn’t really have anything to do with being a shifter. It was more the threat from Kris and Kellan that they’d cut my dick off if they ever heard it was in their sister. Good-natured joking, but part of me was always a little scared that they were serious.”

April snorted a laugh and shook her head. “That sounds like them.” She wiped the tears from her eyes and sighed. “This is wild. I can’t get my head around it.”

I nodded, not sure where to go from there.

April stood up, then stepped toward me and laid her hand against my cheek. “I have a lot to think about. Thank you for finally telling me the truth. Even though I had to force it out of you. I know it couldn’t have been easy.” She leaned down and kissed me. It was light and sweet. Like a first kiss when you were ten years old. “Bear, dragon, wolf, even if you were an alligator or a phoenix, it wouldn’t change how I feel. I’ve always loved you. I do need a little space to figure it out and accept everything.”

For the first time since seeing her again, true hope filled my heart. Not the false hope that I used to raise my courage and try to win her back. This was the hope of life. “Does this mean you aren’t rejecting me?” My heart filled with joy that she wasn’t running away screaming.

April looked at me. The sadness in her eyes almost brought me to tears. “Steffen James, you’ve had my heart all these years. It’s a little late to ask for it back now.”

NINETEEN

APRIL

There was no way I could go back to the park. Too much had happened, too much to think about. Not only was the guy I loved a magical creature, but magical creatures were fucking real. Like really real. This was world-altering information. Shifters, witches, magic curses? How did you go about your daily life after finding out about something like that?

I’d gone back over to my house because I needed some time away from Steff to decompress. The four walls of my place weren’t usually so comforting. Tonight, it was exactly what I needed. Being with Steff was great, but I needed this alone time. I pulled out my phone and shot Kellan a text:

I know everything.

Less than a minute later,my phone rang. It was my brother. “April? By everything, do you mean…”

“Yes, Kellan, everything. Magic and all that,” I said, trying not to roll my eyes.

“Oh, shit. Well… how are you? Like, are you okay? It’s pretty earth-shattering news, right?”

“That’s the understatement of the year. I’m a little overwhelmed. Knowing my whole life has been put on a path all because the man I loved was… not human? It’s crazy.”

“It was the same for me. Maybe not at the level you’re at, but my mind was blown. Still, after he explained it, everything sort of fell into place. It made sense, you know?”

I sighed. “I guess you’re right. When are you going to tell Kris? He’s got to know. This isn’t a secret you and Steff should keep for long.”

“Working on it. He’s ready to forgive Steff. I need him to be 100 percent before we spring that on him. I think it’ll be soon, though.”

“It’s nice to have someone to talk to about this.” Even as I said it, I remembered Harley giving me her number earlier. If anyone understood this, she would. “Thanks for talking, Kellan. I need to get some rest. I’ll call you again tomorrow. Love you.”

“Love you, sis. Talk to you tomorrow.”

As soon as I hung up, I sent Harley a text asking if it was too late to talk. Just like my brother, she called me within seconds. “It’s Harley, I was hoping you’d call. I thought it would be soon, but I wasn’t sure. Steff called Tate a few minutes ago and let us know he broke the news to you. How are you, sweetie?”

I took a breath and sighed. This was the final nail in the coffin of a normal life. It meant that everything Steff had told me and Kellan was true. Tate was one of these shifters, too, and Harley knew. Jesus, if what Steff said was accurate, she was a dragon shifter. I didn’t even know how to fathom that.

“Can you…” I wasn’t sure what to ask. “Can you start from the beginning? Tell me everything? Unless that’s too personal.”

“No, not at all. I’d have given my left arm to have someone tell me what I was in for. Basically, it began in New York City…”

We talked for hours. There was a ton of stuff to talk through. A lot of it was scary, a lot was amazing, most was like somethingout of a dream. She told me about meeting Tate, moving across the country and having the curse somehow place her across the street from him. Was that why I’d wanted to come home so bad? Had the curse pulled me toward Steff? That was something that made the hairs on my arm stand up.

Harley went on to explain the ways shifters were different, the claiming and mating bond. There were things about witches and hunters. That was the most disturbing thing of all. The idea that people were out there actively trying to kill people like Steff and Tate, and their friends.

Finishing her story, Harley said, “The last time we saw them was out in my backyard. The one who was doing all the talking pulled out a gun and shot me.”

I gasped. “Shot you? Actually tried to murder you?”

“Yes. If I hadn’t been wearing Emily’s necklace, I’d be dead, and my baby along with me. April, the guy who shot me was the same guy you went on a date with. Ryland. I think that’s his name.”

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