Page 128 of Secret Shifters Next Door

Kellan poked a finger into Ryland’s chest. “If you were smart, you’d move on along, and forget about my sister.”

Kris, finally seeing what was going on, barked at Ryland from where he sat. “Get out of here. We don’t want trouble, but we aren’t afraid of it.”

I couldn’t see Ryland around the three men who were blocking me. Even without seeing his face, I knew he had to be fuming from the way his voice quavered. “You’ll regret choosing to lie with some filthy beast, April. Trust me on that. You can hang on him like a parasite all you want, but I don’t have any problem taking care of a few fleas.”

EIGHTEEN

STEFF

I nearly forgot who and where I was. I was less than half of a second from flying off the handle and shifting, then I would show April what kind of monster I really was.

Before I could do exactly that, Miles put a hand on my arm. “Easy.”

My head snapped toward my friend, and for a second, I wanted to punch him right in the face. How could he tell me to calm down? Hadn’t he heard what I had?

Ryland leaned forward and murmured so quietly that only I could hear it. “Go on. Show the monster. That would be a sight.”

April pushed through and put a hand toward Ryland’s chest, warding him off. “Why are you doing this? Acting this way?”

“Get back,” I growled. April jerked away, her body reacting to instinct and preservation. My voice was deep, too deep to be human. Her expression was one of fear. Ryland smirked at me again, and I unleashed a deep and throaty and distinctly inhuman growl.

April reacted to the sound by staring at me, her jaw hanging open, but to her credit, she recovered after a few seconds. “Ryland, it’s time for you to go. It’s none of your business what I choose to or choose not to do.”

Ryland’s face twisted with revulsion, his eyes narrowing and his lips pursing. “You’ll regret this. I can swear to that.” He looked at April, his revulsion turning to fury. “April, you better not forget that I warned you.” He pointed a finger at me. “I warned you aboutit. Whatever happens after this isn’t on me.”

With one last look of disgust at me, Ryland walked away. Kellan shot me a worried glance. I’d told him about the hunters, but I’d neglected to tell him about Ryland. It looked like he’d made the connection. Miles glared at Ryland as he pushed through the crowd, his jaw clenched. The fact that Ryland had been so open with his hostility and anger was not a good sign. I had a bad feeling about what was to come.

My own rage was threatening to boil over. I tried to calm myself, but the bear wasn’t having it. I clenched and unclenched my fists. Breath hissed in and out of my nose, and my face flamed from the anger. April appeared in front of me and cupped my face between her hands. The coolness of her skin was like refreshing ice against my own skin.

“Look at me, Steff. Not him, me.”

It was all I could do to tear my eyes away from the figure of the departing hunter. I did, though. I brought my eyes to hers. As soon as I did, her own eyes widened in surprise and confusion.

“It’s… uh, it’s all okay,” she said, her voice stammering.

Her touch and the eye contact finally got my bear’s fury to taper down. My breathing slowed and the heat that had been coursing through my body receded. The need to sprint through the crowd and drag Ryland down and rip his head off disappeared. I let out a long sigh, my shoulders relaxing.

April looked relieved. She grinned at me, but the smile never made it to her eyes. I saw what was there. And when I took a breath, I could smell the fear. She was scared of me. Scared of me, yet she took my hand and led me away from the crowd.

“We’ll be back later,” she called over her shoulder.

I followed blindly, moving between camp chairs and blankets, all with couples and families enjoying the day. That should have been us, but that hunter had to come by and ruin everything. Now, I wasn’t sure what was happening.

April led me back to my truck and held her hand out. “Give me the keys.”

I looked at her outstretched hand dumbly.

She shoved her hand closer to me. “Give me the keys, Steff.”

I did as she said, pulling the key ring out and dropping it into her palm.

“Get in the truck. I’m driving.” April walked around the front of the truck and got in the driver’s seat without waiting for me. My bear whined in fear and trepidation. The same feelings were flooding through me. I opened the door and got in with a sigh, not liking where this was going.

She pulled the truck out onto the main road and drove away from downtown. I watched her pensively for a few minutes before I opened my mouth to speak. “April, what are we?—”

She held up a hand. “Not yet.”

I sagged into the seat and was silent. After a few minutes, I started to notice where she was taking us. She was going back home. My suspicion proved to be true when April pulled into our neighborhood. She slammed the brakes, barking the tires, and put the truck into park. Without another word, she got out of the truck and walked straight toward my house. I got out to follow her and watched her find my house key on the key ring and let herself in. I heard my alarm panel start beeping, and I jogged up to turn it off before the siren wailed.

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