Page 49 of Secret Shifters Next Door

Once shifters found their mate, they didn’t look back. There was no time limit on loyalty or love, no set amount of days it took to feel these things. Once the mate was found, it was one-hundred percent. My instincts were screaming at me to protect these women, and by God, I was going to. Plus, baby or no baby, Harley was my mate, and I would die to protect her and her kids.

I didn’t say all that, though. “I’m a firm believer in following my gut. And my gut is telling me this is where I belong. I’ll keep earning your trust, but I’ve fully made up my mind about what I want. I want you, and by you, I mean all of you.”

Harley was crying again, but it seemed to be happy tears. She grabbed my face and kissed me. It was not passionate or sexy, but it was still intense. Intense and full of what I hoped was something deeper.

TWENTY

HARLEY

I woke up to the now familiar disorientation of an arm draped around me. For the last several nights, since Tate moved in, he couldn’t sleep unless he had me in his arms. It had been awkward for me at first, but I always fell asleep and had the most restful night ever. It had been so long since I’d been held like that, I’d almost forgotten how good it felt. Luis had, not surprisingly, not been very affectionate. It had been years since I’d had the experience of melting into someone else as we fell asleep. I hadn’t realized how much I missed it.

Having Tate around helped me feel more balanced, too. With the stress of the move, the pregnancy,andthe threat of Luis, I had been on the verge of a mental breakdown. I’d been jumpy and half crazy. The last few days with him had really calmed me down. It was almost like I was a new person.

Tate stirred and pulled me closer, pressing my back against his chest and stomach. He breathed deeply and sighed, making my hair flutter around my neck.

He leaned close to my ear and said, “I’ll get breakfast ready for the girls. You need to rest.”

As Tate rolled out of bed and headed downstairs, I rolled onto my back and closed my eyes. There was no way I was goingback to sleep, but getting more rest sounded amazing. Not only had it been a long time since I’d had the physical connection, but it had also been just as long since I’d had help with the girls. Now that they were older, they didn’t need much help, but any help at all was a huge help, and very appreciated.

As I lay in bed listening to Tate pulling pans out, I heard Jordyn’s voice. Both girls were already up. It sounded like Jordyn was giving Tate a hard time.

“Hey, Big Guy. Are you gonna burn us some eggs or something?” Jordyn laughed.

Tate responded, “Nope, gonna blend up some broccoli and onions for a smoothie. Sound good?”

Jordyn giggled. “Eww, gross.”

“Can I help you?” Mariah asked.

A smile played over my face as I listened to the three of them together. How had we gotten to this point? Six months ago, if someone had told me I’d be in Colorado, pregnant, and living with the sexy guy I’d met in a bar once, I’d have called them something even crazier than crazy. Now? Well, here we were. Were we turning into a family? God, it was insane to think about.

Dangerous to wish for.

Before my mind was able to spin down that rabbit hole, the doorbell chimed. I groaned and finally got out of bed. I wasn’t expecting anyone, so I had no idea who it could be. Maybe it was one of Tate’s friends stopping by.

Tate called toward the door, “One minute. Be right there.”

I slipped on my fluffy robe and got halfway down the stairs by the time Tate got to the door and opened it.

I saw Emily at the door, and immediately grinned. She gave Tate a blazing white smile and put her hand out. “I’m Emily. You must be Tate. I’ve heard so much about you.”

Tate took a half step back and… sniffed. Was he smelling the air? That was weird. Then he glared at the hand, not takingit. The look on his face was not friendly at all, which was strange. What was wrong with him? Emily didn’t seem to mind, though. She dropped her hand and stepped inside, brushing past Tate. Under his breath, Tate breathed a word that sounded like ‘witch.’ Or maybe he said ‘bitch?’ Emily’s steps faltered a bit after he said it, but she regained her composure quickly and smiled at me. I watched their interaction with a mild mix of confusion and horror.

Emily acted as though nothing had happened. She also acted like she’d never met Tate before in her life, but the way Tate was scowling at her made me think there was some history there. I attempted to keep the look of uncertainty off my face as she stepped forward and gave me a quick hug. I glanced over her shoulder at Tate and tried to catch his eye, but he looked uneasy and wouldn’t take his eyes off Emily. In another situation, I might have felt slighted, but the look in his eye was not of attraction or lust. If it was anything, it was rage and hate.

After we hugged, I noticed the velvet bag in Emily’s hand. Trying to put the weird vibe between her and Tate at the back of my mind, I said, “What’s that?”

She looked at her hand, like she’d forgotten she was carrying anything, and laughed. “Oh, this? I almost forgot. I brought you and the girls some jewelry. It’s stuff my grandma had, that I thought you guys might want.”

The girls’ eyes lit up when she mentioned jewelry. I shook my head. “You guys are gonna be late for the bus. You can go through it tonight when you get home.”

“Ugh, fine,” Jordyn said, grabbing her backpack.

I glanced at Tate, who had moved from the doorway over to the girls. He was still looking at Emily like she was a rabid dog. I wanted to tell him to stop, but didn’t know how without making things awkward.

I nodded toward the door. “Tate, did you want to take the girls out to the bus?”

“Yeah. Sure.” His clipped words didn’t go unnoticed by the girls. They both raised an eyebrow at each other before walking to the door.

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