Page 24 of Secret Shifters Next Door

ELEVEN

TATE

With every sweep of the hose over my car, I glanced at Harley’s house. I’d been washing my truck for about twenty minutes longer than I usually would, using it as an excuse to look over there. Since I’d found out she was pregnant, I was desperate to talk to her again. The problem was, I couldn’t think of a way to approach her. Especially after the way I’d treated her the last few times I’d been around her. Along with that, my dragon’s reaction to her put me on edge. Not the nervous, irritated edge. No, it was the excited edge, like a kid getting ready for bed on Christmas Eve, or waking up on the morning of their birthday. It was annoying. Even though he hadn’t reared his head, I could still feel my dragon’s lingering emotions.

While I was lost in my thoughts, I neglected to realize Harley’s door had opened. As I scrubbed my truck’s rims and cursed my dragon’s uncontrollable needs, the youngest King girl had made it across the street and was standing behind me.

I scented her before I saw or heard her. My head snapped around, and I blurted a very unmanly yelp of surprise.

“Damn, girl. You scared the hell out of me.” I chuckled.

She grinned like she was proud of herself. It took a second for her name to pop into my mind. Jordyn. While I turned off thehose, she walked around my truck, checking it out. I couldn’t tell if she liked it or not. She bounced around on her toes and looked to be just as full of energy as at the fireworks show.

I put my hands on my hips and asked, “How’s it been going?”

She studied her reflection in the chrome of the truck’s grill. Without looking up, she said, “Pretty good.” She then looked me in the face and unloaded a barrage of words I was barely able to keep up with. “My sister and I went shopping yesterday. We got a bunch of new clothes for when school starts. We went to get pizza in the food court, and then got a giant cinnamon roll to share. Mom didn’t want us to, but we did anyway. She didn’t get mad. We saw a movie too, do you like superhero movies?” Before I could even answer, she went on. “Anyway, we saw the new one, and then we came home. Mariah drove there and back, and we didn’t even die. Pretty impressive on her part. So, how have you been? Haven’t seen you much since the Fourth of July.”

My eyes widened as I tried to take in everything she’d said. Once I had it mostly sorted, I replied, “Been good. Working a lot. How… uh… how’s your mom?”

Jordyn made a face. “Not so great. She was sick yesterday, which is probably the only reason she let us go to the mall alone.”

My dragon stirred at the news that Harley wasn’t well. Not just my dragon, I realized; I was worried too.

“She stayed home and slept.”

“Is she feeling better now?” I asked.

Jordyn shrugged. “I think so, but not all the way. Plus, she’s got more to worry about now. The air conditioning went out, and the water isn’t getting hot anymore. She called the number for the maintenance guy, but he’s busy and can’t get to us for a few days. My Uncle Maddox—well, he’s not really my uncle, he was Daddy’s partner—anyway, Uncle Maddox has a company he uses to take care of the house, but it looks like there’s quite a bit thatneeds to be done. It’s a nice house… just… sort of sick? I know houses can’t get sick, but you know what I mean.”

I was familiar with the maintenance company. I’d seen the truck parked there every other month. It was the same company that maintained a lot of the rental cabins, and since we were in the peak of summer, they were probably busy as hell. Harley and the girls didn’t have a man around who could fix little things like that. God, that sounded sexist even in my head, but Harley obviously needed help if she was calling the repair guy.

Desire flamed in my chest, fed by my dragon. I should step up and help them. Jordyn was talking about how nervous she was about going to a new school, but I barely registered her voice. All I could think of was helping them. My dragon was almost physically clawing to get out and do some good.

I interrupted Jordyn. “Hey, I’ll come over later and fix your stuff. You know, so your mom can feel better without worrying too much.”

Jordyn’s eyes widened in delighted surprise, and a big smile appeared on her face. “Oh my gosh, that would be great.”

I’d always been a pretty stoic guy. I wasn’t a crier or sensitive about most situations, but it was hard to ignore the immense satisfaction I felt when Jordyn gave me that smile. Even my dragon purred with delight.

I was suddenly struck with a possessive feeling toward Jordyn—a familial possession. My dragon was imprinting on her as someone to protect and care for. It was viewing her as a fledgling dragon.

Before I could even process all those new feelings, Jordyn grabbed my hand. “Come on. Let’s go. It’s so dang hot in there.”

Mariah’s face had a comical expression of surprise when I came in. She gave Jordyn a questioning look, trying to be subtle. The younger girl didn’t seem to get it.

She shrugged. “What? I found a repair man. What more could you want?”

The house was boiling. It had to be at least eighty-five or ninety degrees inside. Even with all the ceiling fans going, it was miserable. Coming to my senses, I gently removed my hand from Jordyn’s.

I glanced around the house. “Let me go grab my tools. I can’t do anything without that. Where’s your mom?” I asked, trying to sound casual.

Mariah nodded at a closed door. “She’s taking a nap. Said she was tired.”

My eyes slid toward the door. “Okay, I need to peek in there real quick to… see how many air vents are in there.” I added the last as a bullshit reason to see Harley. The number of air vents didn’t mean shit to getting the air con to work. “I won’t wake her up.”

“Okay. Jordyn, did you do the dishes like Mom asked?” Mariah said, her attention already away from me.

“Ugh. I want to help Tate. Dishes suck.”

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