Page 13 of Secret Shifters Next Door

“Okay…” Miles started, “…we can all have a nice calm weekend, but we have to have our heads on a swivel. There’sno other way to explain these disappearances except that the hunters are here. We are the only shifters in this town, so if they come here, we are the only targets. Make sense?”

We agreed solemnly. Our typical banter and ball busting was non-existent, but I had to admit even with the heavy atmosphere, I felt freaking great. Ever since I got back in town, it was like a weight had lifted off my chest. I couldn’t explain it, and as we filed out of the office, I found myself walking down the sidewalk to the park.

In all the time I had lived here, I couldn’t remember ever going to the park, but I was in a fantastic mood and wanted to enjoy the fresh air for once. On the way, I noticed that some sort of food festival was going on in the park. There were around twenty little tents set up with different food vendors, with tons of people milling around. It looked like a great place to set up, and people watch. Maybe one of them would be a shitty actor and show himself to be an obvious hunter.

I leaned against a lamp post beside a Greek food tent. The smell of falafel and gyros had my stomach grumbling, but I was a professional, and I kept my composure as I scanned the crowd, looking for anyone that didn’t seem to belong in one way or another.

A young girl caught my eye at one of the carnival game stations. There was something vaguely familiar about her, but I couldn’t quite place it. She was doing her level best to try and win some gigantic stuffed dog. The game was pretty simple. Two dollars got you three darts. There were three balloons in a circle. All you had to do to win the prize was pop all the balloons. Simple enough, but as I watched, the girl pumped twenty bucks into trying. The guy manning the station had a grin on his face. He knew he was making a killing off the kid.

I sighed, and pushed away from my resting place. If there was one thing I hated, it was watching futility play out. Plus,knowing how these things worked, there was probably some trick to it. That’s how all carnival games were. The house always won. Didn’t matter if it was a sports bookie, Las Vegas casino, or a small town carnival.

The girl had just failed her last attempt to pop the balloons and was digging in her pocket for another round of dollars. I stepped up and slapped two bills down on the counter. “Give me a shot. Maybe I can get you that dog before you pay for this guy’s kids to go to college.”

She glanced up at me, eyes wide and surprised. Her face softened and she appeared to relax. “Oh. It’s you. Sure, give it a shot.”

I frowned, still not sure where I knew this girl from. “I’m sorry, do I know you?”

She rolled her eyes at me. “I’m your neighbor? Duh.”

Harley’s daughter. That was where I knew her from. I’d only seen the two girls for a moment when I confronted Harley the other day. Great. Now I was stuck here for a few minutes. Maybe I could get this over with before Harley showed up. I didn’t need that awkward situation.

“Uh, right. I remember now. What’s your name again?” I asked.

“Jordyn. So, how good are you at darts?”

I shrugged. “I guess we’ll see. My name’s Tate, by the way.”

The guy handed me three darts and reset the board with three fresh balloons. My first dart missed. The second managed to somehow hit two balloons at once. I aimed and flicked my wrist on the third and final throw. The dart just skimmed the outside of the balloon, but the friction of the fins on the back of the dart was enough to pop the balloon.

“Winner, winner, chicken dinner,” the attendant said with a smile, probably knowing he’d made a hefty profit regardless.

Jordyn put her arms in the air. “Yes!”

I sighed in relief. The last thing I’d wanted to do was look like an idiot in front of the kid. “Okay, your choice. Which one do you want?” I said, pointing to the giant stuffed animals on the wall.

“Jordyn?”

I froze. I knew that voice. I hadn’t been able to get out of here fast enough. Harley was here. Not only was she here, but she walked up on me having a conversation with her young daughter. Great.

Jordyn took a dalmation as her prize. It almost dwarfed her as she turned around. “Mom, look. Tate won me a dog.”

I glanced up and saw Harley standing with her older daughter. My heart jackhammered in my chest when I saw her, and something deep inside me roused from slumber. My dragon had been in a long, dormant sleep. Not being in a pack with other dragon shifters, I very rarely felt the need to shift or fly alone. Steffen, Blayne, Miles, and I formed a makeshift pack, but it wasn’t the same. It gave us camaraderie and prevented us from going feral, but it didn’t give our beasts the species-specific bonding they needed. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d shifted or felt my dragon stir, but for some reason, seeing Harley right then had awoken it.

The deep rumble in my chest meant the dragon saw something it wanted. Usually, this only happened when we spotted deer while flying, which made this… unusual. Being away from its kind made the dragon lonely, which bled over to me as well. The sight of Harley perked the beast up, and that scared me more than I could say. It had never reacted to a human like this. It hadn’t reacted all those months ago in New York when I first met her. What was different now? It had been years and years since the dragon had taken such interest inanything.

Thinking back on it, maybe the dragon had stirred in that bar in New York. Something had made me look up and notice her.This was an altogether different matter though. It filled me with want, need, and desire. It was almost physical in its power. I bit the inside of my lip to pull myself together as Harley continued toward us.

She stepped up and grabbed the girl’s hand. “Sorry about that. Jordyn’s never met a stranger she didn’t like. You didn’t have to do that for her.”

I nodded. “No problem. I was glad to help. She looked like she was about to burn through a month’s allowance.”

“Jordyn, did you say thanks?” Harley asked.

“Oh shoot.” Jordyn turned to me. “Thanks Tate.”

“You’re welcome,” I said smiling, and glancing back at Harley.

Unbidden, my dragon dragged out a memory. My hands sliding across Harley’s breasts, my tongue on her nipples, between her legs, her moist lips as she moaned beneath me. I blinked the memory away, my breath catching in my throat. Despite my best efforts, I caught myself staring again, and I had to shake the thoughts away, terrified I might pop a boner right there in front of the entire family. I’d be damned if I’d let my dragon do that to me in public, especially in front of children.

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