Page 144 of Secret Shifters Next Door

That night, we went over to Kellan’s for a cookout. As usual, Aiden talked incessantly about what he was learning at baseball camp. Apparently, some of the kids at the camp had parents who’d recognized Steff from his playing days. Word had spread quickly, and everyone had been impressed that Aiden knew a famous baseball player.

“They were like, ‘I can’t believe your uncle was a pro ball player’, and I was all like, yeah, he’s pretty cool.”

My stomach lurched. Apparently, Aiden saw the look on my face. “Oh, yeah, I know he’s not really my uncle yet, but you guys are gonna get married, and then he will be, so it’s cool.”

Steff grinned and put an arm around my shoulders. He didn’t correct Aiden, which sent a shiver of butterflies through my stomach. Aiden wolfed down his grilled chicken, the ran outside to play. Kellan and Kris rolled their eyes, but they didn’t say anything else about it. I was thankful for that. I couldn’t go through with having that conversation with my brothers yet.

Kellan handed Steff a beer and nodded toward the TV. “Saw the news a couple days ago about a body that was found in the parking lot in front of your office. What the hell was that about?”

I glanced at Kris and saw him give Steff a knowing look. Steff had told Kris about it the other night when they reconciled at the bar. It looked like Kellan hadn’t heard yet.

Steff took a seat at a stool at the kitchen island. “I was waiting for the cops to give us more info. I didn’t want to worry you too much. I only mentioned it to Kris the other day. The guy was one of April’s stalkers. Real psycho.”

Kellan glanced at Kris, then back to Steff. “Are you serious?” He gaped at me. “Is he serious?”

I nodded, not knowing what else to do.

“Why didn’t you tell me right after it happened?”

“Cops told us to keep it quiet until their investigation was finished. Now that the news has it, I guess it’s not as secret as it was,” Steff said.

Kellan sighed. “I can’t believe they made you stay quiet about a damn dead body being dumped outside your door. Especially one that has connections to April.” He gave Steff a warning glare. “Screw the cops, keep me in the loop from now on.”

Steff nodded. “You got it. I was only doing as I was told. I wasn’t even supposed to mention it to Kris, but… well, I was trying to mend bridges.”

Kris grabbed his own beer from the fridge. “You know, if you wanted to make up, all you needed to do was give me a big sloppy kiss. Lots of tongue, maybe a butt squeeze—all would have been forgiven.”

Everyone, including Kellan, laughed at that. Thankfully, things went back to normal, then. I was relieved they hadn’t started arguing, because I would not have been able to handle it.

As we were leaving, Kellan pulled us aside. “Does that dead body have something to do with those hunters?”

Steff glanced across the room. Chelsea, Kris, and Aiden were playing a board game and weren’t paying any attention to us. Steff nodded. “We think that Ryland guy kidnapped April’s stalker, then tortured and killed him. As a gift for her or something.”

Every time I remembered the puddle of blood in the parking lot, I got chills. The outline of the body under the sheet haunted my nightmares. It only made things worse to know that a man I knew had done that in some sick attempt to impress me or steal me away from Steff.

Kellan hissed through his teeth. “What a sick fuck.”

Steff nodded in agreement. “That’s accurate. I’ll tell you the same thing I told Kris. Keep an eye out for anyone suspicious. We have no idea what the hunters’ next move will be. I want to be as proactive as possible.”

Kellan nodded and shook Steff’s hand before giving me a hug. “Be careful, guys.”

As we lay in bed later that night, I stared at the ceiling while Steff read. After twenty minutes, he put his book aside. “What’s on your mind?”

“What do you mean?”

“You’ve been kind of, I don’t know, distracted all day.”

I sat up, surprised that my internal thoughts and debates had manifested outwardly. I’d thought I’d done a good job of hiding it. Again, I remembered I was a fucking terrible actress.Might as well tell him everything.

“Sorry. I’ve had a lot on my mind today. Actually, I’m thinking about retiring.”

Steff shifted his position, sitting straighter. The look on his face was both worried and intense. “You mean not going back to LA?”

“Yeah. I talked to Larry, and he wanted me to go back to LA and jump back into that life like nothing had ever happened. But I don’t know that I can. Even with the whole Ryland thing going on, it’s still so peaceful here. It’s the only place I can really be myself. The thought of going back to that world? It’s exhausting to even think about it.”

“This isn’t about me, is it?” Steff asked. “I don’t want you to give up on something you love to be close to me. I already said I’d go with you and visit as much as possible. I wouldn’t want this big of a decision to be based on me.”

“It’s only partly about you. It’s… about everything. My family is here. All I have in LA is a bunch of fake friends—money-hungry, fame-hungry leeches. The closest person I have in that world who I could call a friend is freaking Larry. That’s not something to hang your hat on. Having you is a bonus, not a deciding factor.”

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