Page 147 of Secret Shifters Next Door

“Sure.” I went to the kitchen and brewed her some tea. While it steeped, I found a can of cream of potato soup in the pantry and heated it, then dumped a few saltines on a plate. I carried it to her on a tray.

“Oh, my. What a chef,” April croaked.

“Smartass. I’d like to see what you can do with what’s in that kitchen.”

April sipped at the tea and took two small spoonsful of soap before she pushed it away and opted to nibble on the crackers instead. At least she was drinking something. I didn’t like seeing her look so miserable.

She put the teacup down and looked at me with exhausted eyes. “I really hate being sick. I feel like shit.”

“Well, I guess now is a good time to mention the good news.”

April raised an eyebrow. “You caught whoever gave me this and beat the shit out of them?”

I laughed. “Nothing that funny. I was going to tell you that once you become a shifter you won’t get sick anymore. Not even a cold.”

April’s eyes widened. “You never get sick? Like ever?”

I shook my head. “Not once I hit puberty. Flu, athlete’s foot, gonorrhea. It’s one of the perks.”

“But your uncle. Was he not a shifter? You said he got sick and died.”

My smile vanished. “Yeah, well. Even shifters aren’t immune to cancer. It’s rarer in us than in humans, but it’s still shitty. Our bodies can fight it off better than humans can even without treatment. If we’re lucky, our bodies do clear it out. My uncle wasn’t one of the lucky ones.”

April put a hand on my arm. “I’m sorry I wasn’t at his funeral. I didn’t even know he’d died until you told me.”

“It’s fine. How could you have known? We weren’t in contact, and I’m sure your parents had more important things to do than let their daughter know that the uncle of the guy she dated in high school had died.”

“Still, I feel terrible for not even sending flowers or something.”

“April, it’s fine. Seriously. Don’t worry about it.”

“Speaking of worry.”

“What? What’s bothering you?” She didn’t look nervous or upset, so I wasn’t too worried about what she was going to say.

“I’ve been thinking about becoming a bear a lot lately, and I’m not as worried about it as I was. It seems less scary every day.”

My heartrate skyrocketed. I kept my expression neutral, but on the inside I was thrilled by what she was implying.

April scooted up on the couch until she was sitting eye level with me, then took my hand in hers. “I’ve known since the moment I met you that I loved you. That I wanted to be with you forever.” She leaned forward and looked at me with so much conviction and intensity that I held my breath, afraid I would ruin the moment. “I have never loved someone the way I love you. Even when my heart was broken, I knew it belonged to you, that it always would. Being tied to you for life isn’t even a question anymore.”

Hearing that, after having spoken to my brother earlier, almost overwhelmed me. It was almost too much to handle forone day. I sat there, simply looking at her through a haze of emotions.

She pressed a finger to my stomach. “But I will gut you with a bear claw if you leave me again, mister.”

I chuckled and pulled her to me. She tried to pull away from my kiss. “I’m sick, remember.”

“I can’t get sick,remember.” I kissed her anyway. “I won’t even dream of leaving you again. Never. If you’re better this weekend, we should go on a date.”

April sagged back to the couch. “That sounds amazing.”

I stayed by her side for the rest of the day, binge-watching TV shows. After the excitement of the previous couple of weeks, it was nice to have a calm and peaceful reprieve. There were good things to be said for the simple life.

TWENTY-FIVE

APRIL

The awful cold had made its way through my system. By Friday, I was totally back to my old self. Steff’s promise of never getting sick again had sweetened the pot on letting him claim and turn me. I was drained and worn out, and in dire need of some pampering. So, I called Chelsea to see if she wanted to go out for lunch and a spa day—my treat.

---