Page 26 of Secret Shifters Next Door

Before I could answer, Mariah surprised both of us. “Why don’t we cook Mr. Mills dinner?”

I flinched at being called “Mr. Mills”. “Please don’t call me Mr. Mills. I’m just Tate.”

Jordyn and Mariah both looked at their mom for confirmation that she was cool with that. Harley looked irritated but waved a hand at them. “Whatever Tate says. It’s his name.

I laughed, then looked at them. “Okay, just call me whatever you’re comfortable with.”

Harley sighed in obvious exasperation. “Fine, dinner it is. I’ll send Jordyn over to get you when it’s ready.”

“Oh, Mom,” Jordyn said. “Can you make dessert?”

Harley looked like she was going to object, but Mariah spoke up, and said, “Oh my gosh, yes.”

“Good lord,” Harley said, “Fine,I think there’s a box of cookie mix or something in the pantry. Are you all happy now?”

My heart almost jolted out of my chest as I watched their little family interaction, and a longing I’d never noticed lurking inside me resurfaced. It wasn’t just my dragon who wanted to protect them. That was becoming easy to see, yet not as easy to understand. I left with a smile, pondering everything I’d seen and felt.

TWELVE

HARLEY

My forced smile stayed in place while I waved at Tate as he left. It slid away the second the door closed. I turned and looked at Jordyn, who had left her spot on the floor by the air vent and was rummaging in the pantry for a snack.

“Jordyn, what on earth possessed you to ask Tate to fix our things?”

She looked at me over her shoulder, frowning in confusion. “You weren’t feeling well. It was hot and miserable. He’s a big guy, and I figured he might know how to fix some things. I don’t see what the big deal is.”

My sigh was one of frustration. “The big deal is that he’s a stranger. We don’t know him.”

Jordyn looked at me like I was speaking Spanish. “He’s not a stranger, he’s ourneighbor. Besides, he doesn’t have to be a stranger if we don’t want him to be. He’s really nice.”

Jordyn seemed hellbent on befriending Tate, and I had no idea why. If I had time to think about it, maybe I could figure it out, but I didn’t have time. The girls had me on the hook for cooking dinneranddessert.

It was irritating, but I’d been sweating buckets with the AC broken. I should have been grateful. The air in the house wasmuch cooler than it had been. If I’d been in my right mind—and the situation was different—I’d have showered the guy with thanks and praise. But with the way things were now, him being around just put me on edge. If he came around more often, it would only be a matter of time before he noticed my belly bulge when I started to show.

“Mariah, can you help me get started on dinner?.”

“What do you girls think Tate would like?”

Mariah shrugged. “He’s a pretty big guy. Something filling? Pasta maybe?”

“Nah,” Jordyn said. “That guy is a steak and potatoes dude if I ever saw one.”

I couldn’t disagree with that. It seemed to hit the nail on the head. “Okay, I like that. Steaks, baked potatoes, maybe a salad?”

The girls nodded, and Mariah said, “That sounds good. I’m getting hungry thinking about it. We didn’t eat lunch today. First, it was too hot to eat, then we were busy helping Tate. I’m starving.”

“Well, we have everything for a salad. What we don’t have is potatoes and steaks. We’ve got sour cream and butter and all that. Why don’t you two run to the store real quick and get everything else? You can grab the list off the fridge and get the other things we need.”

Mariah brightened. “Yes! Jordyn, road trip.”

I rolled my eyes. “You aren’t going to Malibu, you’re going to get groceries. It’s a three-minute drive, not a road trip.”

Mariah grinned. “We’re taking atripto the grocery store, whiledriving, on theroad.Hence, a road trip.”

“You better end up being a high-profile lawyer when you grow up. Fine. Grab the list and my wallet, then get out of here.”

Once the girls were out the door, I mixed up a quick marinade for the steaks and put it in the fridge.. I decided to takea shower while I waited for them to get home. In my room, I stripped down naked before jumping into the shower.

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