by Anna Lowe
“Oh God. Wait,” Anjali said, scaring him to death. Was she having second thoughts already?
But her lips curled, forming a huge smile, and she touched his cheek. “I never said it. I’m so sorry. I love you. I love you, Dell.”
He exhaled in relief and pulled her back into the hug. “Love you too. And you,” he added, touching Quinn. “I love both of you.”
Anjali raised an eyebrow in a tease. “No more bachelor days. Are you sure you can handle that?”
He nodded vigorously. “Never been so sure of anything in my life.”
Chapter Twenty
One week later…
“Mmm,” Anjali murmured, running her chin along Dell’s neck. “I can’t believe we just did that.” Her neck tingled, and her body hummed with satisfaction.
He held her closer. “Believe it, my love. Now you’re stuck with me.”
She caught herself rubbing her chin along his jaw and laughed. “Look what you’ve done to me.”
Dell made a show of inspecting her naked body, right down to the point where they were still joined after the hottest sex of her life. “And the issue is…?”
She swatted his arm — gently, because some of his wounds still showed. Connor, Chase, and Tim had all but carried him out of that hangar and to the helicopter that awful day a week back, and while most of his injuries had healed incredibly quickly, the worst were still on their way.
“You’re a bad influence. One week with you, and I’ve already developed all these bad habits. Sleeping in. Having sex at all times of day…”
Dell grinned. “Who says those habits are bad?”
She went on as if she hadn’t heard. “And I’m already acting like a lion, nuzzling you like this. But I can’t help it.” Even before she finished speaking, she went back to dragging her cheek against his skin. It felt so good. “Did I really just let you bite me?”
He flashed a huge smile and held her closer. “Correction — you begged me to bite you.”
She melted into his arms, smiling in spite of herself. Yes, she pretty much had begged for the mating bite. A concept that seemed totally foreign when Dell had first explained it. But Jenna and Hailey had added some juicy details, and the idea had slowly grown on her until it became a burning need. Dell kept suggesting they wait, but the craving in her was so irresistible, she’d convinced him in the end.
Destiny, a little voice whispered in her head.
She smiled, touching the pearl hanging around her neck. She still had a lot to learn about the shifter world, but the destiny part she could feel in her bones.
She stifled a naughty giggle. I can feel it in other places too.
“Besides, you’re corrupting me, too,” Dell said.
She closed her eyes and listened to his heartbeat. “I am not.”
“Of course you are. It’s terrible. I’m going to bed before ten p.m. Checking nutrition labels. And — God, it kills me — I even made a schedule for next week.” He shivered. “All these responsible things.” He let a silent second tick by before adding, “And the crazy thing is, it’s worth it.”
She ran a hand over his chest. “Told you.”
For the next long minute, they held each other quietly. But then Dell pulled away, and she whimpered in protest.
“I’ve created a monster.” He laughed, kissing her. “Just let me clean up. Be right back.”
“You’d better,” she called, settling back in the sheets and touching her neck. There was no blood, no pain. Just a glowing heat that ran through her veins. “We have about five minutes before Quinn wakes up, and I need to…to…” She searched for the word.
“Bask?” Dell suggested, grinning like a cat. Or rather, like the lion he was.
It was so obvious now. The blond beard. The thick, wavy hair. The golden-brown eyes. How had she missed it before?
He’d told her all about shifters in the past few days. How his great-great-grand-somebody had been the first lion in the family, a rare survivor of a shifter attack. How Dell had met the Hoving brothers in the military, and more recently, how he’d come to settle on Maui. That meant all Dell’s friends at Koakea were shifters, as was everyone at the neighboring estate — all except the calico cat, Keiki.
She’s just a little thing, but she’s got the heart of a lion, Dell had explained.
He’d also explained about mates and destiny. It should have sounded insane, but somehow, everything had clicked into place.
Anjali settled back a little deeper into the sheets. She had been so sure it would take ages to warm to the idea of a mating bite but, wow. Had she really just begged a lion shifter to bite her neck, making her his forever?
A little zing went through her body, and a sultry voice purred in her mind. Oh yes. We sure did.
Anjali held perfectly still. Dell had said every human had an animal side, and mating with a shifter would bring it out. But so fast? Was she really hearing her inner lioness?
“Oh yes,” Dell murmured, slipping back into bed beside her.
She stared. “Wait a minute. You heard that?”
He started nuzzling her all over. “Heard my mate.” Then he looked her in the eyes and pushed a gentle whisper into her mind.
Oh, yes, he said, mimicking the sultry voice inside her.
Anjali gaped then buried her face in the pillow. “I’m going to have to be careful what I think from now on.”
He laughed. “Just wait. You’ll see. It comes in handy.”
She pulled the sheet over her head, groaning. “Yikes. Can everyone read my mind? We have that meeting today, and…”
He kissed her through the sheet. “Don’t worry. Only me for now. You’ll have to learn to communicate to the others that way, and you can block your thoughts when you want to.”
She exhaled a little. Phew.
Dell pulled the sheet back and finger-combed her hair. “Now, stop distracting me, please. I have to admire my mate.”
She closed her eyes and let herself drift off under the magic of Dell’s touch for a while. Eventually, she cracked her eyes open, taking Dell in. “Do I really get to turn into a lion?”
Dell nodded, cupping her cheek. “Whenever you’re ready.”
Part of her was scared of what that might feel like, but somewhere deep inside, a restless, yearning need stirred. And, heck. Learning to care for Quinn had terrified her at first, but she’d mastered that. Theoretically, she could master being a shifter too.
Still, to have her body completely transform… The idea was terrifying but tempting at the same time.
“I promise it will be good,” Dell whispered in a wickedly sinful voice.
She wound her leg around his, getting heated up all over again. Damn it, Dell really was corrupting her. She shuffled around until their hips lined up, and—
Quinn gurgled from the next room then broke into an all-out cry.
Anjali groaned, letting her head sink to Dell’s shoulder. “Now?”
Dell laughed. “She did give us all morning.” He kissed her one more time before pulling away. “And I promise, the second she goes down for her next nap, we’ll pick up where we left off. Okay?”
He tossed Anjali the shirt he’d stripped off her earlier and pulled on his boxer shorts. When they were alone, naked worked best. But some unwritten code of conduct made them pull clothes on — at least the basics — when Quinn was around.
“Good morning, sweetie. Rise and shine,” Dell said, striding to the next room.
Anjali grinned. She, Quinn, and Dell had been holed up at his house for the past few days, slowly recovering from everything that had transpired. Dell had been a champion dad the whole time. They’d talked it through and concluded that was best for Quinn to grow up as normally as possible, knowing about her birth parents while calling them Mom and Dad. Anjali hadn’t been so sure at first, but it felt right. One night, she’d stood at the shoreline at sunset, thinking of Lourdes, and she swore she felt her friend’s spirit smiling, assuring her it was all right.
I
just want the best for her. Lourdes had once said in Chicago, and Anjali was sure she had whispered it again that night at the shore.
She glanced over at the dresser across the room where she’d placed that picture of herself and Lourdes in the tree house. Dell already had plans to build Quinn a tree house according to that exact design, and Anjali loved the idea.
She sighed, unable to believe how everything had worked out. And not just for her and Dell. Apparently, Cynthia had been trying to organize an adoption, and Anjali felt sad for the couple Cynthia had found. The amazing thing was, that dragon shifter couple had called to announce their totally unexpected pregnancy. They were beside themselves at that news, and so was Anjali. Destiny, it seemed, had been at work in more ways than one.
So, yes. She truly was a mom now, and Dell was a dad. Her mother was over the moon that Anjali had found herself a man — so over the moon, she didn’t even make a fuss when Anjali revealed that he wasn’t Indian or a doctor or a lawyer. Which just went to show how desperate her mother had become for Anjali to find someone — anyone. All her mother cared about was meeting Quinn and all the future grandchildren she was confident would be coming along soon. It didn’t matter how Anjali tried to put the brakes on — her mother’s enthusiasm wouldn’t ebb.
Dell didn’t say anything, but he sure seemed to like the idea. And as for Anjali — well, she wasn’t ready to admit it, but she liked the idea of having lots of kids too. So, who knew?
“Go to Mommy,” Dell said, handing Quinn over.
“Hey, little girl,” Anjali said as Dell stepped away to prepare a bottle.
Quinn’s eyes were bright and full of wonder, as they always were. Anjali rocked the baby in her arms, marveling the whole time. Lying in Dell’s arms gave her one kind of warm glow, but holding Quinn did too, if in a different way.
“Luckiest girl in the world,” Anjali whispered. “I mean me, you know.”
She had Dell, a daughter, and a beautiful new home. No job, but then again, she’d been saving money for a long time. She could afford to take a maternity break, right? She had called in to work long enough to resign, and somehow, that had felt liberating, like a lot of other aspects of her new life.
Quinn gurgled impatiently.
“Coming,” Dell called from the kitchen. A minute later, he returned with a warm bottle and an indulgent smile. “Greedy little cub, aren’t you?”
The three of them settled down on the bed, with Quinn in the middle, Dell holding her bottle up from the left side, and Anjali looking on from the right.
“I could watch her for hours.” Anjali murmured, thinking how quickly her life had changed — for the better.
She could watch Dell for hours, too. His smile had always been a thing of wonder, but the special smile he only flashed at her and Quinn moved Anjali every time.
“Me too,” he whispered. Then he grimaced. “Damn. We do have that meeting soon.”
Anjali chuckled. “You also offered to cook.”
He groaned and flopped down beside Quinn. “What was I thinking?”
“You were thinking how nice it would be to treat everyone to a good meal.”
Anjali leaned over and kissed him. It was meant to be a peck on the cheek, but somehow, it ended up on his lips instead. A long, deep kiss she never wanted to let go of.
“Love you,” she whispered.
“Love you, my mate.”
Time slipped by, and soon, the rest of the morning had drifted away — in a way totally unlike what Anjali was accustomed to. Back in her office, she had worked full tilt from morning to night, and there never seemed to be enough hours to get everything done. At Koakea, every minute was a gift that ticked by slowly, pleasantly. She could laugh at Quinn, inhale the scent of tropical flowers, and listen to the bubbling creek. Time felt richer — purer, almost — and her soul finally felt at peace. No ringing phones, no overfull inbox, no meetings. Still, at some point, she glanced at the clock and wondered where the time had gone.
“Not gone,” Dell said when she mentioned it. “Invested.”
That idea, she loved. Investing in things far more important than material gains. Like Quinn. Like Dell. Like happiness.
Life would have been pretty perfect if it hadn’t been for that meeting. No matter how Dell had reassured her, she was still nervous about facing the others. Of course, she had met everyone at Koakea Plantation before, and they were all nice. But that was before she’d found out they could shift into bears, wolves, lions — and whoa, dragons. Plus, she’d gone and fallen in love with Dell. Were the others truly ready to welcome a stranger into their tightly knit clan?
She stood in front of the mirror, checking her leggings and the cotton Kurti blouse she’d picked out. Too casual? Too dressy?
“It’s fine,” Dell had assured her earlier.
Of course, everything was fine with Dell, who went ahead with Quinn to prepare lunch at the plantation house. Anjali, meanwhile, had procrastinated as long as she could. Now, she really ought to go.
“Hey,” a friendly voice called, making her head snap up. It was Jenna, waving from the other side of the creek where she stood with Hailey. “We came to pick you up. Are you ready?”
Anjali put on a smile she hoped would mask her nervousness, but before she could speak, Hailey did. “Believe me, we know how it is. The guys love these meetings.” She rolled her eyes. “I think they miss it from the military or something. At least we don’t have reveille in the morning.”
Jenna laughed. “If we had reveille, I’d be out of here. But yeah, I don’t think they know how intimidating they can be.”
Anjali flashed a grateful smile, letting herself forget that Jenna could change into a dragon and Hailey into a grizzly.
Someday, we’ll shift too, a voice growled from inside Anjali. But into something better. A lion.
“Anyway, don’t mind them,” Hailey said, giving Anjali a huge, sisterly hug once she had crossed the creek. “They’re puppies inside.”
It had taken Anjali a while, but she’d finally figured out why Hailey seemed so familiar. Hailey had modeled for the Boundless fragrance campaign overseen by Anjali’s company. She hadn’t had much time to talk to the others, but according to Dell, Hailey also had been targeted by Moira some time back. Maybe that explained why Hailey felt like a long-lost sister, as did Jenna. Anjali couldn’t wait to get to know them both better.
Jenna grinned and hugged Anjali next. “I’m so glad you’re here. It’s just been me and Hailey here—”
“So far,” Hailey added with a wink. “We’re working on Chase.”
Anjali remembered how the soulful wolf shifter and the shy woman from the smoothie truck had tiptoed around their feelings for each other. It would be nice to get the two of them together, for sure.
“And believe me, the more feminine influence we can exert on these guys, the better,” Jenna concluded. “Well, there is Cynthia. But she needs to loosen up, big time.”
“She’s our next project,” Hailey said, though she didn’t look as hopeful.
She didn’t have to explain why. Even Anjali knew Cynthia would be a hard nut to crack. There was something stiff and sad about Cynthia, even if she hid it well.
“Anyway, don’t worry. It will be fine,” Jenna said, leading the way.
Anjali felt like the new kid at school who’d unexpectedly found great friends. Maybe the meeting wouldn’t be that bad, after all.
“Wait till you see Dell.” Jenna chuckled once they came in view of the main house. “And Quinn.”
Anjali tilted her head, but Jenna didn’t give anything away. Cautiously, Anjali ascended the stairs and peeked into the kitchen. She nearly burst out laughing a moment later, though she managed to hide it and jam her hands on her hips instead. “Dell, just what are you doing?”
He whirled from where he’d been tending the stove. Joey stood on a chair next to him, wearing a mask and cape, and sporting a mustache drawn in above his lip.
“Aha! Our next vi
ctim — I mean, customer,” Dell announced. “Captain Spectacular, inspect the imposter.”
Joey leaped down, making zooming sounds as he ran around Anjali, demanding, “Are you a good guy?”
Anjali held her hands up. “Um, I think so. Princess Anjali, remember?”
“I don’t know,” Dell drawled. “It could be a trick. What does our Lieutenant think?”
Joey zoomed over to the baby carrier Quinn sat in, placed in the middle of the floor where she had a view of all the goings-on. She had a cape and mustache, too, and Anjali burst out laughing. “Dell!”
“What?” He grinned. “Every superhero needs her cape, right?”
“Lieutenant, is that really the Princess?” Joey asked, squatting down beside Quinn. He tickled her cheek, looking every inch a proud big brother.
Quinn gurgled and waved her arms.
“I think that’s a thumbs-up,” Dell announced. “Allow the imposter to pass.”
Joey zoomed back over, flicking his cape over his shoulder. “You can pass.”
“Why, thank you,” Anjali said, stepping over to kiss Dell. And kiss him…and kiss him…
“Yuck,” Joey squeaked, making them break apart.
“Sorry, kiddo. I got distracted.” Dell winked at Anjali. “Later on, you can distract me all you want. Right now…”
She nodded and retreated to the porch, catching his subtext. Dell had spent the last week focused on Quinn, and now, he was determined to show Joey their friendship wasn’t over just because he’d been busy with his new mate and child.
One by one, the other men appeared, and one by one, they shook Anjali’s hand or gave her a peck on the cheek, saying sweet things like Good to have you here and Welcome. Connor, the most intimidating of them all, was on his best behavior, as if Jenna had lectured him on keeping scary dragon vibes locked away. Tim was as kind and polite as he always was, and anyway, his attention was locked on Hailey. Chase showed up, quiet and shy as ever. When he leaned in to shake hands and welcome Anjali, Jenna winked from behind.
Anjali nodded back. Yes — she would help this sweet man find his mate. He’d been the first to rush in at the shifter fight, and though he’d scared her at first, it was impossible to overlook his dedication to his family.
