A Shifter's Healing Love

by T. Cobbin

  Leo had been brought up to know any woman was to be treasured, loved, and adored. He looked toward Gracie. He’d break any man in half if they ever laid a hand on her in anger. Turning to glance at Danielle, he knew he’d do the same for her; she just didn’t know it yet. He made a mental note to find out whom she was running from and break every single bone in his body.

  “Pops, can Ollie and I sleep in the same room?”

  Leo loved hearing Gracie call him Pops. When her parents had died, she’d been so lost, his heart had physically hurt for her. It had taken him many months to pry her out of the dark world she’d been left in. Gradually, over time, she began to smile again and enjoy the things around her. Three years after her mother’s death Gracie suddenly asked him if she could call him Pops.

  When he asked her why Pops she’d said, “I don’t want to call you Daddy because I don’t want you to take his place. But I know ’cause he ain’t here, he can’t tell me what to do. So…” She’d looked down at her shuffling feet before peeking back up at him. “If I call you Pops, you can share me with him. You get to be like him, and tell me I’m a good girl.”

  Leo had readily agreed to her request with pride and sorrow mixed in his heart. After becoming her legal guardian, he had vowed he wouldn’t adopt her until she was old enough to understand what that meant. He wanted to give her the chance to accept or not.

  “Pops!” Gracie shouted. When he lifted an eyebrow at her, she giggled. “You were thinking too hard again. I saw steam coming from your ears.”

  Leo gasped dramatically. It had been a long-standing joke between them that he was always thinking too hard. “Cheeky madam, and to answer your question, that’s not just up to me, you have to ask Danielle too.”

  All eyes turned toward the woman whose cheeks suddenly tinted rather pink. Leo thought it made her look fetching. He wanted to see that color on her cheeks after he’d made her come.

  “I don’t mind. I think Ollie would enjoy that. You would have to choose where to sleep though.”

  “My room,” they both shouted out together. Then, realizing what they’d done, they laughed.

  Thinking about how bare Gracie’s room currently was, he offered them a different option. “How about you sleep in Ollie’s room as your stuff isn’t unpacked yet? Is that okay, Mum?” Leo asked Danielle, using the word Mum for Ollie’s benefit.

  “It’s a good idea,” Danielle responded.

  The children glanced at each other, then nodded.

  After a few moments silence Prue stood. “Well, I don’t know about you two...” She motioned toward Gracie and Leo. “But I’m pooped. I’m going to unpack and head to bed.” Prue tucked her chair back under the table. Before she walked away, she kissed Gracie on the head. “Leo, I’ll grab you in the morning and we can chat about how you want Gracie’s lessons to continue.”

  It was Leo’s turn to nod now. Although he and Gracie were on a holiday as such, he didn’t want the young girl’s education to suffer. He would also talk to Prue about doing something with Ollie being the lad was there too. With it looking like the two children would be joined at the hip, he was sure Danielle wouldn’t mind.

  Prue had been working for Leo for about five years, ever since Gracie had turned three. She worked not only as a tutor but a kind of nanny too. During those times that work had demanded his attention and made him late going home, she’d looked after Gracie. Prue was also a gorilla shifter, which helped Gracie.

  A group of gorilla shifters were called a band. Unlike in the wild, a shifter band was often led by two males, an alpha and beta. But since the death of his best friend, Leo had downsized his group, choosing to remain alpha on his own. Gradually, his females left to join other bands, and his males had gone off to lead their own. All Leo had left now was himself, Gracie, and Prue.

  All gorilla shifters homeschooled their children. This was because from a young age they could shift to their beasts. To her parents’ delight, Gracie had shifted to her gorilla when she was a few months old. Now, at eight years old, Gracie had her gorilla shift mostly under control. It was only in times of intense emotion that the little girl sometimes lost her restraint over the animal inside her. Before they’d left for the island, he’d had a word with Gracie, reminding her to be careful around Danielle and Ollie as they had no idea their kind existed.

  With a wave, Prue bid them all goodnight, left the dining room, and headed up the main stairs. Danielle stood and started to gather the plates. Leo jumped up and helped, feeling guilty that she’d cooked and was now cleaning. Hadn’t he told her earlier she wasn’t to be a maid?

  “It’s okay. I can do the dishes,” she immediately said.

  Leo snorted. “You cooked,” he simply stated. Danielle dropped her hands to her sides. Immediately, he felt the need to reassure her. “It’s okay.” He smiled. “You cooked, so I’ll clean.”

  A small smile lifted the sides of Danielle’s plump lips. “Well, how about...” She turned toward the children. “I take these little monsters and get Ollie’s room ready for tonight?”

  The two kids whooped with delight and bounded off their chairs and up the stairs. Danielle’s tiny smile was still on her face as she followed the children upstairs.

  Leo couldn’t take his eyes off her backside and its hypnotizing sway. Her breasts bounced a little even with being bound in a bra. Shit! His cock was hard enough to break concrete. With her fear being so prominent, how long was he going to have to wait to mate her?

  Chapter 4

  Three months later

  Leo, along with Danielle, leaned back against the sofa and breathed out a sigh of relief. It was Christmas Eve and they had spent the last few hours wrapping presents for both children.

  “I can’t believe the amount of presents under the tree. Ollie’s eyes are going to pop out of their sockets when he sees them,” Danielle said.

  Over the last three months, Leo had done everything possible to show Danielle he was good with his hands and his heart. First, he turned one of the bedrooms into a playroom as well as a classroom for the children. The idea had hit him one wet, cold morning when the children were playing in the dining room with Ollie’s toys. The children needed somewhere to play that was theirs, and not just in the corner of a room where they ate. And Gracie needed some toys, because she’d only brought a few dolls with her.

  The next morning Leo had asked Danielle and Prue to watch over Gracie and he’d gone shopping on the mainland. It had taken him several trips across the water to bring everything he’d bought back to the island. It had then taken him a whole lot more trips with both the kids, Danielle, and Prue to carry it all to the house.

  He’d not only bought a ton of toys for both Ollie and Gracie but furniture and decorating equipment for both a playroom and classroom, as well as stuff to build a blackboard. Leo knew he’d gone overboard, but he wanted to make sure Gracie and Ollie were happy. Over the next few days he kept everyone out of the room he was converting until the project was completed.

  The day he had revealed his work, the kids had whooped and danced around like monkeys. Prue had laughed and applauded his handiwork, whereas Danielle cried. Upon seeing her son’s distressed reaction to her crying, she quickly explain that she thought it was lovely. Later that day she’d told Leo in more detail that they were happy tears. She’d said seeing Ollie’s name alongside Gracie’s painted on the walls had gobsmacked her, because she never imagined Leo doing that being she was only hired to look after the house.

  Leo had to bite his tongue to keep from explaining she was his mate and this was her and Ollie’s home as much as it was his. In fact, while he’d been on the mainland he’d phoned his lawyer and not only changed his will, leaving everything to Danielle, but he also asked for ownership of the island, including all properties on it, to be transferred to her name now. If the Goddess deemed his life was to end, whether it was before or after they were mated, she would receive all his assets, as well as guardianship for Gracie if she wanted it.
In the end, he’d simply told Danielle that he wanted her to feel at home with them.

  Leo had pulled Prue aside, quietly informing her that Danielle was his mate and telling her what he’d done. Prue was more than happy for him and wished him well. He also told Prue that he would be tying up his work in the city and moving back home permanently. He told her she would always have a room there on the island with them, and when she found her mate, he too would be welcome if they wished to stay.

  But here Leo was, three months after coming home, on Christmas Eve, sitting in the living room in front of a roaring fire with his mate beside him. She still didn’t know about his shifter side. Gracie had been careful too. Only once had she become distressed after a nightmare that her gorilla had made a show. Luckily, Danielle had been asleep and Ollie had been in his own room. The children quite often shared a room, either his or hers.

  Danielle was more relaxed around him than she had been when they’d first met. She smiled more and looked up at him rather than the floor, which pleased him immensely. He’d often find a way to place his hands on her, small touches here and there. At first, she’d freeze, but slowly, over time, she calmed. Tonight, he planned to test her limit a little more. If she allowed him to, he wanted to feel her sweet lips against his.

  “I’m sure Gracie will be just as stunned as Ollie. The last few Christmases I’m ashamed to say I was working an awful lot,” he admitted with a grimace. “I left most of the present picking and wrapping to Prue. This year though I’m quite proud of myself.” And he did feel proud. In fact, over the last few months, since being home and around Danielle, he felt like the father figure he was supposed to be to Gracie.

  As they both watched the fire, Leo cautiously dropped his hand down between them and onto the top of hers. Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw her gaze quickly shift from the fire to his face. He smiled but continued staring at the fire.

  “Thank you,” he said. “Being here and around you, I feel like a better man.” He blew out a breath, the smile on his face dropping. “I was always obsessed with what I thought was the right thing.” He paused, lost in his thoughts of work and money.

  “What did you think was right?” she asked softly, twisting her hand around in his to entwine their fingers.

  “I thought Gracie needed a better life, like lots of toys, a huge house, fancy clothes, and eventually college and cars. I have plenty of money to do those things, believe me, but I suppose I always feared something would happen to me like her parents.” He sighed. “I didn’t like thinking of her having nothing if I wasn’t around. Besides Prue, I’m the last of the band. I didn’t want her to have to scrape through life if she was on her own.”

  He tightened his fingers around Danielle’s. He wanted his mate, so much, to touch her, to love her. To have her love him in return. It had been a long three months. He couldn’t wait any longer. His gorilla was pushing harder against his skin, constantly wanting to get out and meet his mate.

  “Band? I remember you mentioned that before. You mean like a music band?” she asked.

  Fuck! He’d slipped up. Good thing he was a fast thinker, albeit a bad liar. “I meant family, as in band of family. I know it sounds weird, but one day I’ll explain more.”

  She gave a small nod, and he was glad that it seemed she’d accepted his weak excuse.

  “So,” he said, hoping to start a new conversation, plus he wanted to get to know Danielle better. She’d shared a little of her upbringing with him, but not much else. “This Christmas must be weird with us here after being on your own for so long.” He had also yet to share with Danielle he was coming home forever. Hopefully, she’d be sharing a lot more Christmases with them.

  “It is.” She chuckled slightly. “At first I felt quite overwhelmed with everyone here, but slowly I’ve become accustomed to you being here. I enjoy it. It feels…homey.”

  He briefly caught a glimpse of her eyes as she looked toward him. They sparkled with love and affection.

  “I love the fact that Gracie and Ollie get on so well. It makes things all the much better,” she said.

  Leo wanted so much to ask about Ollie’s father, to know if it was him who had hurt Danielle. He wanted to know if she’d felt homey with him, but with her relaxed and comfortable, holding his hand, he didn’t want to ruin it.

  Danielle jumped and her head spun around to the window when the strong wind blew something against it outside. The hand holding his squeezed harder.

  “You think I’d be used to that by now.” She puffed out a breath and turned back to the fire, her hand still holding tightly to his.

  “Even after growing up here and visiting many times over the years, it still spooks me when that happens. Even a big man like me can get frightened by something as simple as a spider.” A cold shiver of fear shot down his spine; he really hated those bloody insects.

  Danielle looked at him with suspicion, her lips twitching in the beginning of a smile.

  “I mean it.” He nodded earnestly.

  Danielle didn’t hold her smile back any longer, and she started laughing.

  “All those eyes and hairy legs,” he continued. “Eww. Gracie thinks it’s hilarious when I see one and call for her to get rid of it. I can’t believe that little girl can pick one up and take it outside as if it’s a pet.”

  Danielle laughed harder. “You can’t really be afraid of them, right?” she said between chuckles. “I mean, you’re a huge man with muscles everywhere, you could just stomp on them or pick them up yourself. I’m sure the spider would be more afraid of you than you are of them.”

  He quickly shook his head, denying it. “Nope, definitely not. Eww. No.” Leo grimaced, slicing his hand through the air. Just the thought of one touching him made the tiny hairs on his skin rise.

  But his disgust fell away when he realized what she’d said. He stared at her, his head tilted, an eyebrow raised, and a smirk grew on his face. Goddess, how her eyes sparkled when she laughed.

  “You’ve been looking at my muscles,” he teased. “Oh, my word, you’ve been checking me out.” He chuckled and rippled his muscles under his t-shirt. He lifted his left arm and flexed his bicep, giving her even more of a show.

  She looked at him through her dropped eyelashes, a slight blush covering her face, and both of them giggled.

  “They’re hard to miss when you walk around bare-chested,” she said defensively.

  Oh, he had done a lot of that in the last three months. Every time he had the chance, he’d taken his shirt off, or not worn one at all. If he’d been a peacock, he’d be mated and have an infant already on the way. His heart thumped at the thought of Danielle swollen with his infant. One day, Leo. One day.

  Leo whipped his shirt off and knelt up. Flexing each and every chest muscle, he teased her a little more. “Come on, I mean what is there not to like about these?” He gave her a wide smile, indicating his chest.

  Her cheeks now were a ruddy shade of red. He saw brief glimpses of fear flash through her eyes before she stared down at her wringing hands in her lap. He wanted so badly to know who had put that fear into her sweet, lavender-colored eyes.

  Concern had him edging toward her a little more. He tucked a finger underneath her chin and raised it. “Hey now, I was only having some fun. It is Christmas.”

  It was as if she couldn’t look at him; even with his finger lifting her chin, she didn’t meet his eyes.

  “I’m sorry. I just… It’s…” She blew out a breath and then met his eyes. Hers sparkled, but this time with unshed tears.

  “Talk to me, Danielle.” He pulled her into his arms as he settled back to sitting on the floor with his back against the sofa. “You told Larry you wanted time away after breaking up from a bad relationship.” Leo knew he was treading on thin ice asking her about her past, but he knew if he didn’t, she might always be afraid to be with him. “Tell me about him?”

  Danielle stayed cuddle up into him but remained quiet. As the silence stretched between
them, Leo was afraid she wouldn’t speak.

  “He wasn’t a lover,” she said finally.

  Leo’s heart pounded as he waited for her to continue.

  She raised her head quickly, nearly butting his chin. “If I tell you, please, you have to promise me one thing.”

  He frowned but nodded his agreement, silently swearing to himself that if she asked him not to beat the man to a pulp, he’d hunt the fucker down and do it anyway.

  “You said something to me earlier that I feel the same way about. You said being around me was a blessing in disguise. Well, being around you has been the same for me. I feel relaxed with you, calmer than I thought I could be around a man again. But what I’m about to tell you, Ollie must never know. Please.” Her eyes grew large as she pleaded with him.

  “I promise to never intentionally hurt you or Ollie.”

  She relaxed once more against his chest and stared back at the dancing flames in the fire. Again, she lapsed into a long silence, and her body tensed a little as if she were reliving her life before she came to the island.

  “I was kidnapped and held against my will for about a year.”

  Shit! Leo tried to keep the shocked reaction to her statement from his muscles she was laying against. His gorilla, however, hooted and howled, beating his chest inside Leo’s mind. His beast wanted to find this person who had hurt his mate and kill them.

  * * * *

  Danielle couldn’t believe she was about to tell Leo about Master.

  Over the last three months she’d enjoyed being around him as well as Prue and Gracie. It had taken her nearly a fortnight to accept that she liked Leo. Not just liked him, but felt something toward him more than friendship. She became more aware of her own body when he was around. Her nipples would peak, her pussy would become slick. Her heart would thump heavily and her breathing picked up. She also realized she smiled more around him.