Page 57 of So I Won a Werelion

He shook his head. “He doesn’t think of anything but himself—but here’s what I worry about. The reporters will make it sound like I’m a predator. Like I shouldn’t be around humans. That’s what the members of the advisory board said when theyhammered the nail in the coffin on my career. They thought I’d damage the sport’s reputation, and humans would be afraid to come see me compete.”

“Gabe, they’ve been watching you compete for years. They know who you are. And if they don’t, this episode will show them.”

“I’m not talking about the viewers. I’m talking about your sister. Your friends. Can you be with me if everyone who loves you fears for your safety?”

I rose from my chair and went over to him. He was tense, all animal energy. Like he thought he could lose me. Which was crazy, because when he walked in the door, I was afraid of losing him.

“I’ve never felt safer than I’m with you.”

He’d been among the best in the world, and still, someone took him out. Skill and confidence had been no match for bad intentions.

“Kiss him,” Hannah groaned.

Gabe didn’t wait for me to initiate. He put his knee between my legs. His gaze raked over me like a wildfire, and his hands were on my hips, pulling me into him.

Those green eyes told me everything I needed to know before he kissed me.

“Aren’t you perky this morning.” Bibi held a mug in front of her purple lips. Her lipstick matched her wig, and she was wearing a sheer silver paisley print top with a camisole underneath. “Didn’t expect to see you for a few hours.”

“Speak for yourself. You’re already perfect.” I headed to the cabinets and selected a little mug. Bibi was a tea drinker, but she had an espresso machine. “I couldn’t sleep last night, and so I started putting some plans into motion.”

She clicked her tongue. “I let you interview Gabe, and now you’re angling for my job.”

“Not exactly. More like I’m angling for my old job back.”

“At the realty office?”

“Hell no. As an archeologist.”

“Care to talk about it?” She waggled her brows. “I’m sure there are years of frustration to get off your chest.”

“I’d love to.” I smoothed my hair as Bibi set her camera on the tripod, angling it to film both of us.

“Gabe’s story last night reminded me a lot of yours, Wendy. I have a feeling you're very good at what you do, and shifters didn’t want you to do it. How does that make you feel?”

I felt raw. Frayed around the edges. Filled with a renewed purpose and reminded why I started this journey in the first place.

“It pisses me off.” I’d always had to play it calm, cool, and collected. But behind closed doors, I’d beat my fist into many a pillow in a tear-filled rage. “I get it. I’m human. It’s not my business. But ever since Gabe told me the story of the Scepter, I’ve been fascinated by it. I was always a little obsessed with shifters, because they can become something bigger than themselves.”

“You have that capability too,” Bibi said quietly. “You don’t need an animal inside of you.”

“There was so little information available about shifter history and lore. That’s why I can’t wait to get into the library. I was afraid to ask Laura to look at the books before. She might not know what kind of information she could be sitting on, and that could make her a target, too.”

“Colorado Ranch is well-protected. We’ll head there after breakfast. But first, I want to hear more about your journey. This is your chance to fight back against all the rumors and stories.”

“I was getting there.” I gave Bibi a coy smile. “I was denied admission to the shifter studies program in college because I was human. There were special classes that weren’t open to us. So I did whatever I could to get closer to that information. It was how I wound up in the archeology program.”

“Why is the Scepter so important to you? I’ve been around shifters all my life. If they were aware of the relic, they seemed to be at peace with the fact it was lost forever.”

“The story stuck with me. I felt like shifters had been robbed of the chance to live forever. That, somehow,I’dbeen robbed of that chance too.” I’d never been asked to put this into words before.

Bibi raised her eyebrows but simply nodded. “Tell me about that last dig. The one that took you out of the business?”

“We weren’t looking for the Scepter. We were studying ancient Coloradan civilizations. But I’d managed to get my hands on some documents that suggested we might be close. But the problem was, they contradicted each other. We got access to an ancient settlement. A place that thrived thousands of years ago. The timing for when the Scepter was taken from the shifters was unclear, but we found some amazing things that suggested that shifters lived very differently from humans back then.”

“Tell me about the day the shifters drove you away from the settlement.”

I shuddered, thinking of that day. “They came in their animal form and chased us into a cave. It was terrifying. They kept us there until one of them shifted and told us to get the hell away from their land and if they ever caught us there again, they’d eat us for lunch. It was enough to scare me out of the business.”

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