by Ashley Shay
Before she could finish her sentence, four cougars shimmered into existence, their eyes sparking green fire. She glanced curiously at Gabe, and her brows rose.
“Go ahead,” he said with a smile. “Someone has to get the doors. I’ll catch up.”
Carly closed her eyes and made the most ridiculous wish a woman could make.
“I wish for you to come out and play.”
She caught the brief shimmer before she dropped to the floor. She chirruped then scampered to the door, following behind her pride of cougars.
* * * *
Tyler nodded to the pretty dark-haired woman standing outside Suzie’s playhouse. Carly knew she was a Tomcat by her black polo shirt, though she didn’t know which number. The woman smiled at them both, and Carly thought the female Tomcat might be another sort of big cat, possibly a panther.
“Everything under control?” Tyler asked the woman.
“Right as rain,” she said. “I’ve been invited to cowgirl tea when I’m off duty.” The woman winked.
“Just don’t ask for sugar,” Tyler said with a grimace. “I heard she keeps dirt in the sugar bowl.”
The Tomcat laughed. “No sugar.” She patted her nonexistent stomach. “I’m on a diet.”
“Good call.” Tyler knocked on the little yellow door.
Carly heard Suzie’s voice beyond. “I’m coming! Just a minute.”
When the door opened, Suzie stood there smiling, her powder blue cowgirl hat tipped back on her head and the ruffles of her blue skirt swinging around her legs. In her arms she held a bright-eyed teddy bear wearing a matching outfit.
“Are you busy, kitten?” Tyler asked.
“Just dressing Betsy,” Suzie said. Then her brows drew down, and her lips puckered. “What’cha doing here, Daddy? Somethin’ wrong?”
“Nope,” Tyler said. “Nothing in the world is wrong.”
“Come to visit then?” Suzie asked. Her gaze ticked between Tyler and Carly.
“We did,” Carly said.
“Then you wanna come in?” Suzie stepped back and swung the door open.
Carly and Tyler both ducked through the opening, and Tyler immediately folded himself onto a tiny chair so his head wouldn’t bang on the ceiling. Carly sat down as well and tucked her hands around her knees. Tomásina lay curled on a small bed in the corner. Sleeping soundly, the cute bundle of gray fur was nothing like her namesake.
Suzie held up the teapot. “Would you like some tea?”
“Sure,” Tyler said. “But no sugar for me. I’m on a diet.” He patted his stomach.
Suzie laughed. “Oh, Daddy, you don’t need to diet. At least not until you’re really really old…” She tilted her head and tapped her cheek. “Like when I’m ten.”
Carly pressed her lips together and shot a glance at Tyler. He was having a hard time holding his laughter in. He caught Suzie in his arm and gathered her against him, pulling her onto his lap.
“You just let me know when you think I’m fat,” Tyler said. “Deal?”
She nodded. “Deal.”
Tyler glanced at Carly over the top of Suzie’s head, and Carly gave him an encouraging smile.
“We wanted to talk to you about something, kitten.”
She lifted her face. “Okay, Daddy. What is it?”
Tyler simply stared at his daughter. Carly smiled inwardly. Her big strong alpha seemed a bit apprehensive of telling her their plans. She watched him swallow, and he glanced back up at her.
Suzie put her hand on her head to hold her hat and tilted her face back farther. “Daddy?”
“Carly and I were talking…”
“’Bout what?”
“About…” He scratched the back of his neck. “About maybe getting married.” Suzie gasped. “What would you think of that idea?”
“Married? For real and true?” With wide eyes, she stared at them both, her gaze darting rapidly between them.
Carly nodded. “For real and true.”
“Yes, yes!” Suzie cried. “I want that.”
Tyler cupped her face. “That would make Carly your mama, Suzie. Would you like that idea too?”
Suzie’s eyes sparkled with tears. “A mama again? For me?”
“Yes, angel, for you.”
“I loved my mama,” Suzie said softly, “but I’ve wanted a new one.” She grabbed Tyler’s shirt and hauled herself closer to his face. “Is this for real, Daddy? You’re not teasin’ me, are you?”
Tyler shook his head. “No, darlin’, I’m not teasing you.”
Suzie turned toward Carly as a tear slid down her cheek. “Do you want to be my mama?” she asked softly.
Carly nodded, feeling tears burning her eyes. “I can’t think of anything I want more in this whole world.”
Suzie scrambled across Tyler’s lap and into Carly’s. She knelt on Carly’s thighs and wrapped her arms around her neck. She glanced up at her shyly. “Did you know my real name is Suzannah?”
Carly nodded. “It’s a beautiful name.”
Suzie turned toward Tyler and smiled. “Mama, my first mama, gave it to me, right, Daddy?”
“Right, Suzie Q.” He pulled his daughter from Carly’s lap, gave her a hug, then adjusted her cowgirl hat. “Now, when do you think we should have the wedding?”
Suzie hopped up and down. “Tomorrow!”
Tyler glanced at Carly, and she nodded, laughing as the tears rolled down her cheeks.
“I think that can be arranged,” Tyler said. “Tomorrow it is.”
* * * *
Talon spread his wings a bit wider and soared through the sky above the Louisiana bayou. The moist air felt like a shroud weighing down on his feathers, and he remembered he’d hated this area of the country more than any other he’d been forced to work in. He rode the soggy currents over the swamps and to the outskirts of New Orleans. Once he’d crossed the border, he glided through the city to the balcony of the high-rise hotel. One more stop and he’d be off to Miami to free his brother. Raptor must have given up on ever seeing the light of day. Talon couldn’t wait to see him. Brothers had to stick to together, but twins had to stick like glue. He hoped Raptor didn’t hold too much against him. He’d been working for both their futures.
He landed on the stone ledge of the balcony then folded his wings. Once he’d hopped to the balcony floor, he twisted his back and let the shimmer embrace him. He loved being in eagle form and feeling the wind rustling his feathers, but when he became a man, he loved the feel of the earth under his feet. He liked being able to travel in both worlds.
A light snapped on inside the hotel room, and the glass door slid open.
“Buenos noches, mi amigo.”
“Evening, sir.” Talon stepped over the threshold and followed the shadowy figure toward the dim light on the other side of the room. He heard the clink of ice in a glass then took the proffered drink. He took a sip and let the slow burn of the whiskey wind its way through his insides. Not his choice for a blistering-hot night in New Orleans, but a drink was a drink. “And how is everyone at Cattail Ranch?” the man asked in a smooth Latin accent.
“Sorry to say they’re all still alive and kicking, sir.”
“Ah, then Juan has failed.”
Talon drew a line across his throat with a thick nail. “He’s deader than a doornail, sir. Decapitated.”
“Es que la verdad? Truly? Cómo es posible?”
“Honestly, I don’t know how it’s freaking possible. But he came out in two small pieces. He never even got a chance to shift back.”
“Una mangosta,” the man said.
“A mongoose? Fuck me. And you think it’s…”
“Sí, la mujer.” He nodded then took a sip of his whiskey. “He strayed from the path for a reason, mi amigo. Juan does not stray.” He drained the amber fluid and tapped the empty glass with a nail.
“No, not usually,” Talon said. “Carly Barnes has more power than we thought. Who’d have thought? She seemed like such a little city mouse.”
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The man sighed. “Mi pobre hijo.” He stared into his empty glass for a moment then raised his head, his serpent eyes glittering in the darkness like pinpoints of starlight in a moonless night. “We shall avenge my son, Talon. We shall finish this woman and those fucking pumas, and that senator will die. Montgomery will not be permitted to fuck over everything I’ve worked for all my life. If it takes my own hand to complete the job, so be it. But hopefully it will not come to that.”
“What do you need me to do, Señor Santos?”
“Free your brother and return to New Orleans. It’s time to bring my daughter back into the fold. Whether she likes it or not.”
THE END
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Ashley Shay and Josie Hunter both live in Ohio and have discovered they love creating worlds together. They hope you enjoyed visiting Catamount, Texas.
Contact Ashley at [email protected].
Contact Josie at [email protected].
Also by Ashley Shay
Ménage Everlasting: The American Heroes Collection: Arizona:
Sinful Pleasures
Also by Josie Hunter
Ménage Everlasting: The Lost Collection: The Gold Digger
For titles by Josie Hunter writing as
Amber Carlton, please visit
www.bookstrand.com/amber-carlton
Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com
