Tempting Tabitha

by Tianna Xander

  “Someone had seen you shift.” Her grandfather picked up where her grandmother left off. “Apparently, you and a few of your friends were out showing each other your abilities, and the wrong person saw you. All of the families involved had to disappear.”

  “It was my fault?” The years of loneliness, the years Charly spent being shuffled from foster home to foster home and, worst of all, their parent’s death was all her fault? Tabby’s knees buckled, and Deno caught her before she fell.

  “It’s okay, kechi,” he whispered in her ear. “You did nothing wrong. Any blame lies with those who would have wanted to do harm to your family.” He dragged her close, pressing her back tight against his chest.

  “No!” Her grandmother rested her hand on her arm. “It’s not your fault, sweetheart. Our kind has been running from people who fear or envy us for centuries. If they aren’t afraid we’ll harm them, they want to be like us.”

  “But I was careless.”

  “You weren’t any more unwise than any one of us has ever been when we were young.” She glanced back at her mate. “When your grandfather and I were in our adolescence, we shifted where we pleased. We were so arrogant that anyone who saw us would think they were mad, we never considered that anyone could believe shapeshifters existed.”

  “Even we have been pursued by those who would attempt to destroy us.” Her grandfather moved closer. “Never blame yourself for the actions of others, child. If you do, you could find yourself living in a perpetual state of fear and guilt.”

  “But Mom and Dad are—”

  “Yes, dear,” her grandfather interrupted. “They are gone, but you had nothing to do with their deaths. An unfortunate series of events occurred twenty-two years ago, and there is nothing we can do to change that. What we can do is try to make the best of this new time given to us.” With a half smile, he rubbed his hands together, seemingly all business. “Are you going to introduce us to your friends?”

  “I... um...” Her cheeks burned when she thought of how Deno held her, her back still pressed tight against his front. She nearly leaped away from him but thought better of it when she felt the hard ridge of his cock pressing against the cleft of her rear. Instead, she leaned back against him and smiled.

  “This is Deno.” She glanced between them, fighting the urge to bite her lip. She didn’t know how, but she remembered her grandpa hated such obvious displays of indecision or weakness. She gestured to her grandparents. “Deno, meet my maternal grandmother and grandfather, Elizabeth and Ian MacCleod.”

  “I’m sorry I was rude to you on the porch, but you understand that my first priority was to see to your granddaughter’s safety.”

  Deno reached around her, offering his large hand to her grandparents in greeting. It was amazing how large he was, even in comparison with her grandfather, who had always seemed huge to her when she was a child. At six-foot-two, he wasn’t a small man, by anyone’s standards, but Deno and his family stood much taller and wider.

  “We thank you for protecting her, but that is no longer your responsibility,” her grandfather reached for her, obviously expecting her to take his hand.

  “She isn’t going anywhere unless she wants to.”

  Deno growled behind her. The slow rumbling vibrated up from his solar plexus and through his chest. She shivered at the sound. Something deep inside her warmed, melted, and she felt herself relax against him, her hands covering his arms, stroking, soothing.

  “Ian,” her grandmother reached out and rested her hand on her husband’s arm. “Don’t do this. She’s safe here.”

  “She belongs with us.” Tiny flickers of red flame flickered in his eyes.

  “She belongs with her mate.” Deno’s voice rumbled behind her. “But I will concede that she should stay where she wishes to stay until she acknowledges my claim upon her.”

  “You’d let her choose?” Her grandma looked shocked.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  “Of course, I would give her the choice. The female always has the last word among our people.” Deno eyed Ian MacCleod with surprise. “To force her to do anything against her will would be criminal in any civilized society.”

  “That is an enlightened manner for a shifter male.” The older woman eyed him with renewed interest. “What clan are you from?” She glanced around, obviously noticing the resemblance between the males surrounding them. “I imagine you’re all related. And though your scent is... strange, it is still the scent of a shifter. What kind, if you don’t mind my asking?”

  “We are tiger shifters, madam.”

  “No. That’s not it.” She tilted her head and inhaled deeply. “I’ve scented tiger shifters before, and they smell nothing like any of you.”

  Deno’s father stepped forward and bowed. “Perhaps it is because they were Earth tiger shifters, or perhaps they come from yet another planet in the universe. Or maybe all shifters are from somewhere else, and only humans are indigenous to Earth. I am Geno. My sons and I are from a planet called Zolon. My four eldest sons crashed here some years ago and made a life for themselves.” He gestured to his older sons. “As you can see, they have begun to mate and start family lives.”

  “You-you don’t intend to—”

  “Of course they don’t intend to abduct your grandchildren, woman.” He sounded almost exasperated. Whether his annoyance was with the woman or his sons was anyone’s guess. “They intend to stay here and live happily ever after, despite my urgings to take their families back to Zolon where our people are nearly extinct.”

  “There’s a reason we’re dying on Zolon, Dad.” Reno stepped forward, always their representative when their father demanded something contrary to their wants. “The planet itself is dying, and there are no women there who aren’t already mated. What kind of life would our children have there?”

  “Well, then, if you plan to stay, he—” Elizabeth began.

  “Don’t you dare give your blessing to a union with an alien.” Ian waved his hand to encompass everyone in the room. “We have no idea who they are—what they are—I am not going to just stand by and watch our only grandchildren mate with these... these...”

  “Aliens?” Charly finally stood up and decided to put in her two-cents worth. “Well, for one, they have been perfect gentlemen. I haven’t met an Earth male who has ever treated me half as well as Xeno has. As for the mating part...” Her face reddened, and she lifted her chin. “You’re too late for me. I’ve already mated with Xeno, and I wouldn’t undo it if I could.” She held out her hand. “Before you go all crazy and start preaching to me about weddings, the act of mating is the wedding in their culture. Applying for a marriage license was just a formality that Xeno agreed to only to please me. In fact, he knew applying for a marriage license could test the veracity of his manufactured identification and his entire family could be discovered. Yet, he did it anyway.”

  “We have all done similar things to please our mates,” Ceno added.

  “And they have done many things to protect and honor us,” Sela said as she, her grandfather, and Birgit entered the room. “We’re sorry for letting ourselves in, Deno, but no one heard us knock.”

  “That’s okay, sister.”

  “People were trying to drive us off our land when I met Ceno.” She gestured to Clyde. “My grandfather and I were living hand to mouth, barely able to live off our land and what money he had coming in from social security. Then Ceno came along and exposed those who were exploiting our land and stealing from us.”

  “Plus, there are other aliens out there who aren’t so nice.” Birgit stepped forward. “Unfortunately, I’ve met a few, and believe me, you want these guys on our side if they decide to make an appearance.” She rested her hands over her stomach as though just thinking about the Argarians could harm her unborn child. “They aren’t an army, but having them here with us is more protection than a human,” she paused with a nod toward Ian, “or an Earthborn shifter could ever give.”

  “How can you all l
ive here in this town without drawing attention to yourselves?” Elizabeth smoothed her hair back with trembling fingers. “Sooner or later, someone is going to notice you’re different, and you’re going to have to leave.” Then, she nodded toward Clyde. “And anyone with half a brain is never going to believe that man is your grandfather, even shifters don’t age that slow.”

  “We do,” Deno’s father replied. “Hell, our children are barely out of adolescence at twenty-five.” He grinned. “I’m over one hundred Earth years-old, and I look younger than you do.” He tilted his head. “What are you sixty-five, seventy? And, no offense, but you both look older than me. As for this town.” He grinned. “Magic, New Mexico is unlike any other town I have ever seen here on Earth. Almost everyone here is... different.”

  “As for me,” Clyde said, stepping forward. “I was born human. I looked a lot older than you two not too long ago, and I was ailing when Ceno met my Sela.” He smiled toward his grandson-in-law. “But they healed me and gave me their blood. It changed me.” He grinned and thumped his chest. “Now, I’m a shapeshifter, too, and I’ve never felt better in my life.”

  “Such wonderful... testimonies,” Elizabeth said, holding her hand over her heart. “You men sound too good to be true.”

  “Yes, they do,” Ian agreed grudgingly but managed a small smile. “I thank you for taking the risk to make my granddaughter happy,” he said to Xeno. “If you hadn’t, we might never have found them.”

  “It was providence that led me to take the job here over that one in California. Remember, darling?” Elizabeth turned to her husband. “I told you something told me to accept that position.”

  “The gods work in mystifying ways.” Reno wrapped his arm around Birgit. “I realized that when I found you, lincha.” He kissed her temple.

  “So...” Their father interjected. “What do we do now?”

  “I say we all go out to the Krazy Kettles for dinner.” Reno laced his fingers with his mate’s. “Ceno’s buying. He’s the one who married into a gold mine... literally.”

  “Oh, haha.” Ceno reached out and slapped his brother on the back of his head. “How about you pay? You’re already getting your gold at a substantial discount.”

  Deno relaxed his hold on Tabitha when it was clear that she could stand on her own. At first, she barely moved away from him. Then inch by inch, she moved away, holding herself in front of him.

  Her actions made him want to laugh. She held herself as a shield between her grandparents and him. Did she do it because she thought her grandfather would attack him, or was she just keeping the older couple from noticing the raging hard-on he’d gotten when he pulled her back against him?

  It wasn’t necessary either way. Deno had no intention of harming the older couple, and he hoped her grandfather didn’t have any grand plans of his own. Besides, for the most part, his cock had decided to behave itself. For the time being anyway.

  “Can I...” Elizabeth moved forward. “Can I hug you, child? It’s been a lifetime since I’ve been able to hold you in my arms.”

  With a sob, Tabitha rushed into her grandmother’s embrace.

  “I missed you and Grandpapa so much.” She held onto the older woman as though she would ever let her go. “I’m sorry I was so angry with you. I should have known you looked for us.”

  “Shh, sweetheart. It’s okay. We know you were hurting. It’s natural to strike out when one is in such pain.”

  “Maybe.” She pulled away and looked her grandmother in the eyes. “But it’s no excuse for being rude.”

  The two women stared at each other for a moment before they both burst out laughing and crying at the same time.

  “You remembered!” Elizabeth hugged her again. “I didn’t think you would remember such a boring lesson from so long ago.”

  “I only remembered a few of the rules. There are so many things I know I’ve forgotten.”

  “Look at you.” Her grandmother held her face between her hands. “You’re all grown up, and you look so much like your mother. You both do.” Stepping back, she pulled out a handkerchief and dabbed at her eyes. “I must look a fright.”

  “Really, Grandmama?” Tabitha looked at Charly and rolled her eyes. “Do you believe that?”

  “What?” Charly appeared as confused as the rest of them.

  “After all these years, she’s just the way I remember her.”

  “Yes,” Ian interjected. “She’s still uptight and a slave to the rules and convention.” He smiled at his wife. No doubt to soften the sting of his words. “And I love her all the more for it.”

  “Ian, really! Not in front of the children.” Elizabeth blushed.

  “Children, really?” Tabitha rested her hands on her hips. “We’re all grown up now. You’re going to have to stop picturing us as the children you knew.”

  “I know. I know. It’s just that this is all so overwhelming. I’d almost lost hope.”

  “Well, now that you’ve found us, maybe you and Grandpapa should think about moving here, too. After all, this is supposed to be like some sort of sanctuary town for people like us.”

  “What do you think, dear?” Her grandmother glanced at Ian. “We’ve been hoping to find them and settle down somewhere. What town could be more perfect than the one where our granddaughters live?”

  “Well, now that that’s decided, Ceno said as she started walking to the door. “Let’s all go get something to eat. I’m starved.” He glanced over his shoulder. “Move it, or I might change my mind about picking up the tab.”

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  “I’m beat.” Tabby yawned and stretched her legs out and crossed them in front of her.

  “You look tired.” Deno wrapped his arm around her and tucked her under his arm as they sat on his porch, looking at the stars.

  Their dinner celebration took longer than Tabby had expected, and it was late. She didn’t have much experience with eating in restaurants, so she had no idea how long it could take to prepare food and serve fourteen people. As much as she’d wanted to be alone with Deno, she had wanted to spend time with her grandparents as well.

  “I’m sorry it took so long. I know you wanted to be alone.” She rubbed her cheek against his chest and took a deep breath. Inhaling his unique scent that always managed to draw her closer to him and make her insides melt.

  “How could I ever begrudge you time with your family?” He leaned over and kissed the top of her head. “I didn’t think we were ever going to convince your grandparents to go to the bed and breakfast for the night.”

  “Me either.” She laughed. “Grandpapa was bound and determined to save the virtue of one of his granddaughters.” She reached up and played with the buttons over his heart. “It was almost more than I could bear to see the disappointment on their faces when I told them I would stay here with you.”

  “I’m glad you did.” He took her hand in his, turned it over, and lifted it to his mouth. “If you had gone with them, we wouldn’t have been able to do this.” His legs rocked back and forth with the swing.

  Tabby shivered at the touch of his lips on the inner side of her wrist. They continued to rock, and she would have been perfectly content to sit there all night. She loved rocking chairs. She adored the motion. It was one of the reasons she’d always liked sleeping in trees, especially if there was a light wind.

  “I love this.” She leaned her head against his chest with a sigh.

  “Me, too.” He sat silent for a moment. “I could sit here like this all night.”

  “I was just thinking the same thing.” She chuckled. “It’s too bad we have to go inside and go to sleep.”

  “Who said anything about sleeping?” He gave her a leer. “Perhaps we should start up where we left off in the safe room.”

  Tabby shifted her gaze to her lap and stared at their clasped hands for a moment. Was that what she wanted? Was she ready to make things permanent between them? He had warned her once, that making love with him could tie them toge
ther permanently. Especially now that his tiger had already begun the bonding process. What would become of him if she decided she couldn’t remain human?

  Her heart ached at the thought of leaving Deno. Did that mean she was ready? She wished she had more experience with this kind of thing.

  “No pressure, love.” He kissed the side of her head. “I was just throwing it out there.” He shifted in his seat and then stood. Turning to her, he held out his hand. “Come on. Let’s go inside. It’s getting late.”

  There was no anger, no censure in his voice. He didn’t look angry, but Tabby couldn’t shake the feeling that she had hurt him. What if he thought she didn’t want him? She wanted to cry out, it’s not you, Deno. It’s me, but didn’t everyone say that when they wanted to end a relationship? She didn’t want their association to end.

  “I’m sorry.” She took his hand and let him pull her to her feet. “I didn’t mean to hurt you.”

  “Don’t.” Deno grasped her arms and pulled her close. He rested his forehead against hers. “I don’t want you to be sorry, baby.” He ran his hands up and down her arms, warming her when she hadn’t even realized she’d felt a chill. “I want you to be sure.”

  How many times over the last few days had he done something sweet just to make her smile? How many times had he held her close and made her feel safe and warm when she hadn’t felt truly safe in such a long, long time? Even now, she was sure she had hurt him in some way, yet he denied it to spare her feelings.

  When would she ever find another man like him? Hadn’t she wished for such a man when she was a teenager? Hadn’t she prayed that she could finally find her sister and settle down somewhere where she could make a life for herself? Wasn’t Deno offering her just that?