Page 119 of As The Shifter World Turns

I was a guy who met his one true love, the one fate set on this planet for him. That was it. There was nothing special about me.

“I was talking to some of my colleagues.” My stomach dropped. I should’ve known he would. Not once did I ask him not to. Why didn’t I ask him not to?

“Historians?” I clarified.

“And some scientists I work with.”

“Scientists?” Nothing about this felt good.

“Your daughter’s birth is something to celebrate, but also something we can learn from. For so long our kind has thought her birth impossible and that has led to our population dwindling. But if unicorns can mate with other shifters, why would they roam the world searching for a unicorn and possibly never mating?”

I hated that he had a point. “What does this have to do with me and Archer? Do they want to interview us?”

“Maybe, but more… they want to run some tests on Elune. Nothing invasive, just to see what it means to be of mixed lineage.” That sounded too sci-fi, dystopian mash-up for my liking.

“Other shifters mate without concern for their mate’s animal. I’m sure it’s the same.” It had to be, right?

“We think so, but we’d like to do the tests to make sure. Maybe I could email you the information and you could speak with your mate about it?”

“Okay.” Not making a decision felt like the best choice. “It’s the same one I’ve always had.”

I hung up and went back to rocking my sweet girl.

She was perfect. Absolutely fucking perfect. So why was I so scared of them doing tests on her?

Because what if she wasn’t perfect? What if they discovered something awful, something that would rotate our world on its axis? What if… what if everything wasn’t as amazing as it seemed and this was all a mirage?

I waited for Archer to come home to open the email. I was going to let him decide, my brain wasn’t in a good enough place to do so. He read everything, taking his time so as not to miss any detail.

When he set the phone down I knew before he spoke the words. He wanted to do this.

“I vote yes,” he said.

“I’ll call him.” It was the hardest phone call of my life.

45

GOODBYE

Ivor

It was time to get out of the house. I was tired of going to work and coming home. And not doing much else. I told myself I wasn’t hiding away from Ryder and I needed to prove it.

“I know you’re excited but we’ll be there soon.” Toby’s voice drifted in from the porch. He must have been talking to Patch. Archer was upstairs with Neil and must have brought the dog over with him. I guessed Toby was taking Patch to the park. Martin allowed his son to go there with the dog and back as long as he took his phone and he didn’t wander off anywhere else.

“Hey, Toby, do you mind if I come with you and Patch? I need some fresh air.”

“Sure you can come. Patch is really excited.”

“I can see that. He loves you taking him for a walk.”

“I wish he still lived in Sunshine Manor,” he grumbled

“Mmmm. I miss Archer and Elune too.” I pointed between the manor and the next house. “But if you look through the alley, you can see their place. If you squint.”

“Oh, look, someone’s on the roof.”

I shaded my eyes. “Of Archer and Micah’s place?”

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