Page 217 of Secret Shifters Next Door

“Oh my gosh,” Jordyn said when she met her, “I’ve read all your books. I love you so much.”

Celina’s eyes went wide. “All my books? Um…you mean?—”

“I think…” I added quickly, “…that she means the books under your actual name. Not any of your pen names.”

Jordyn’s eyes went even wider. “Are you serious? You have more books? What are your other names?”

“Well, I can tell you some of them, but there are a few that are”—she blushed and glanced at me—“maybe a little too much for someone your age.”

Jordyn took Celina by the arm and led her to the couch so they could talk books. April and Mariah joined them. I caught Celina’s eye and raised my eyebrows, giving her a questioning thumbs-up. She grinned and nodded. I went to the kitchen to check if Harley needed any help.

“Anything I can do for you?” I asked.

Harley shook her head. “Deviled eggs and pasta salad are made. Dressing and two different casseroles are in the oven, I’m boiling potatoes now to mash later. All I really have to do is bake the rolls. You can check on Tate and the guys outside. They’re helping him smoke a turkey.”

“Sounds good.” I stepped out onto the back porch.

Tate nodded and tossed me a beer from the cooler at his feet. Steff and Blayne were in the yard, tossing a football back andforth to each other. When they saw me, they stopped and walked over.

“How’s Celina?” Tate asked.

“Seems fine, actually. Jordyn accosted her about her books first thing.”

Tate winced. “Ah, shit. Do I need to go in there and pry her jaws off your lady?”

I laughed. “Nah, they seem good. Mariah and April swooped in to help. She likes talking about books, so it should be a nice safe topic.”

“Speaking of safety…” Blayne said, “…how are things going with the hunter chick?”

I sat on a patio chair. “Not great, actually, but that might work in our favor.”

I told them about the fight Celina had with Felicity about us and that she was trying to turn her against us. That she’d told Celina we were worthless and not worth her time.

Steff nodded. “She’s trying to lead her away from you. Turn you feral and get the curse to do its thing.”

It was the most logical thing for her to do. The hunters had hired Emily to do exactly that. The curse they’d told her to cast hadn’t worked out the way they wanted, but it still would cause us untold pain. They knew that if my mate rejected me, I would go feral and probably die in agony or of heartbreak or whatever the spell did.

Blayne pointed at the house. “Well, Celina is here. Looks like their little plan isn’t working.”

“Yeah, things are looking good. My wolf has been fairly calm for a while now.”

“That won’t last,” Steff added, then drank from his beer.

“I know. I really want to tell her what’s going on. The whole story.”

Tate and Steff gave each other a look. “That’s a big step…” Tate said, “…but I think things will work out. We can’t make that call for you. Let us know when you plan on telling her. We’ll give you any support you need.”

“Thanks, that means a lot.” I decided to change the subject to something equally pressing. “Any word on this Antonio guy?”

Blayne shook his head. “The guy went dark about two years ago. I searched his bank records and stuff, but he owns so many shell companies it’s almost impossible to figure out where he is. He covers his tracks by buying and selling houses, apartments, and penthouses, then reselling them to other companies, buying them back under false names.” Blayne rubbed a hand across his face. “It’s like a billion-dollar shell game. Constantly moving, constantly changing, no rhyme or reason.”

“Okay, then. What’s our next move?” Steff asked.

I tossed my empty beer can in the trash can beside the grill and stood. “I think we send word to every pack. Literally every single pack we know. Tell them what they are dealing with and to be prepared. I’ll call my old pack, talk to the alpha again. At this point, until we catch a break, all we can do is get everyone on the same page and stay ready.”

I hadn’t heard anything from my parents, but I trusted that the alpha had relayed my words to them. I’d thought about trying to contact Liz, to give her my condolences, but that was probably pointless. All it would do was make things awkward as she grieved.

We talked for a while as the turkey finished cooking, and I checked in on Celina a few times. To my relief, she seemed to be enjoying herself. I’d been a little worried that she’d curl into a ball in the corner and freak out. My wolf was overjoyed to see her enjoying being around my pack. These people were the closest thing I had to family, and I wanted her to enjoy being around them.

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