Page 157 of Secret Shifters Next Door

“I didn’t tell Harley what was going on with me,” Tate said. “That was a mistake. It would have made things easier if she’d known what was going on inside me.”

I nodded. “Okay, I’ll tell her soon. I want Ryland out of the way first. Neither of us can make a decision this big with that kind of danger still roaming around out there.”

TWENTY-NINE

APRIL

With the baseball camp over, my mornings were suddenly my own again. It took me a solid week to get used to not waking up so early. It also meant Steff and I were free to hang out with each other. I stretched out in bed that morning, enjoying the fact that I’d gotten over nine hours of sleep. It was amazing. I swept my legs out of bed and padded to the bathroom to pee.

My stomach rumbled. I was starving. It would be nice to take Steff out for breakfast, I thought. When I got back in the bedroom, I was surprised to see he was still asleep. Usually, when I got out of bed, he was either already awake, or my movement woke him up. Steff was a pretty light sleeper, especially the last few weeks. He’d been edgy and on alert, and usually was up before the sun rose.

Peeling back the covers and sliding in next to him, I wrapped my arms around him, peppering his face with kisses. He stirred and groaned, finally waking up. Sliding my hand down his side and across his stomach, I decided I wanted to see if he was ready for a quickie before we went for breakfast.

As my hand brushed his crotch, he exploded in movement. In one swift motion, he spun around, straddled me, and grabbed both my wrists, pinning my arms above my head. I let out asqueal of delight. Thiswasgoing to be a fun morning. Then I looked at his face, and the smile died on my lips.

His eyes were blazing with intensity, and they weren’t human eyes. The bear was there, front and center. He was looking at me like I was something to devour, and not in a good way. His teeth were bared, and I could almost swear I saw the canines starting to lengthen. A pit of fear opened in my stomach.

“Steff?”

My voice was small and afraid, and it seemed to take him a moment to realize I’d spoken. He blinked and shook his head. The primal look that had been in his eyes faded, and he suddenly looked like himself again. He stared at me in confusion, almost like he didn’t recognize me. Then, as though a flip had been switched in his mind, his face went deathly pale. Fear, or more appropriately, terror washed over his features. He jerked his hands away from my wrists, pulling his hands back so fast it looked like he’d been burned. He climbed off me and started pacing the room.

I rubbed my wrists as I sat up to watch him. He ran his hands through his hair viciously, like he wanted to tear it out by the root. He kept murmuring to himself, but I couldn’t hear what he was saying. This wasn’t like him, and frankly, it scared me.

“Steff, what’s going on?” He didn’t answer, didn’t even seem to register that I’d spoken. “Steff, you’re scaring me. What?—”

“Shut up! Give me a fucking minute, okay? Jesus.”

I gaped at him. He’d never spoken to me like that. I’d never heard him talk to anyone like that. The moment the words were out of his mouth, he clamped his jaws shut and growled, then slapped his palm against the wall.

Shaking his head, he said, “April, I didn’t mean that. I’m sorry.”

It was nice to hear him apologize, but it didn’t take away what he’d said. I gritted my teeth together, trying to keep my voicecalm. “I don’t know what the issue is, but if you ever talk to me like that again, I’ll have your balls in a jar on the counter. Do you understand that, Steffen?”

He hung his head and looked completely miserable. “I’m sorry. I’m so overwhelmed, and I shouldn’t be taking that out on you. You deserve better than that.” With his shoulders slumped, he walked toward the bedroom door. “I’ll give you some space.”

I didn’t try to stop him. He left, and I remained sitting there, trying to figure out what the hell had just happened. He’d never acted that way before. Ever. The whole thing with the hunters was intensely stressful, yes, but that had seemed like something else. Some other issue was eating at him, making him snap. I wanted to know what the hell was going on, but I didn’t want to push and make things even worse. When he had calmed down and was in a better mood, I’d try to get him to talk to me.

After I was dressed and ready for the day, I headed downstairs to find Steff. He wasn’t inside. I was on the verge of panicking when I saw him outside with Bently. Sighing with relief, I watched him. It was disconcerting to see him just sitting in the yard, staring off into space as the dog rested its head on his lap. He seemed to be lost in his own head. I really wanted all this shit to be over so we could relax again.

Deciding to give him space for a little while longer, I started making breakfast. This was not how I’d imagined the morning going. Going out didn’t seem appealing now, and it didn’t look like either of us was going to be great company. While I made him a breakfast sandwich, I let my mind wander. I probably looked the same way Steff did—a thousand-yard stare, zoned out and oblivious to the world.

The bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich smelled delicious, but I had no appetite anymore. Setting his plate on the table, I went to the back door to call him for breakfast. But only Bently was in the yard. The dog was sniffing the ground where Steff hadsat. After walking out to see what the dog was sniffing, I found several massive bear paw prints leading off into the forest.

It annoyed me a little that he’d go on a run without telling me. I sighed. Over the last couple of weeks, Steff had done everything possible to be near me and make sure I wasn’t alone. Now he’d vanished into the forest without even saying a word.

Taking Bently by the collar, I led him back inside, then closed and locked the doors and set the alarm. The dog immediately climbed onto the couch and lay down for a nap. Wishing I could do the same, I tried to busy myself with cleaning the kitchen. After almost twenty minutes without Steff returning, I thought over the way he’d acted this morning in bed. It was completely out of character for him, and I needed to talk to someone who would know what was up with him.

Harley answered on the third ring. “Hey, April. What’s up?”

“I need some advice. I didn’t know who else to call.”

“Sounds like man trouble. What did he do?”

I grinned despite myself. “Steff’s been acting really weird. Not at all like his usual self. Is Tate there? Maybe he has some insight.”

“Yeah, hang on.” She called for Tate, and a few seconds later he took the phone.

“This is Tate. What’s the problem, April?” He sounded worried. Which, in turn, made me even more worried.

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