An odd feeling of emptiness swelled in his chest. His hunch about the woman had to be correct. Rena must be Zed’s mate. That was the only explanation that made any sense.
His brother’s mate. Not his. Good. It was as it should be.
If she had connected with Zed in the dreamrealm, then it would make the rest of the journey even easier. Things were going better than he could have hoped.
So why didn’t he feel any better?
He paid the old man at the deli before picking up the coffee tray and small, brown bag. Zander’s gaze skittered over the street, scanning the area for any danger. It was a habit he’d picked up soon after being cursed. Without the keen senses of his dragon, or any of the other powers that came with it, Zander had learned how to navigate the world as a man for all intents and purposes.
Albeit an immortal man.
Coffee tray in hand, Zander trotted up the steps of Rena’s building. He had to keep his focus on getting Rena to Zed and lifting the curse. Nothing else mattered except freeing his brother and, if there was any kind of justice in the universe, maybe himself too.
When he reached Rena’s office door, he paused for a moment to steel his resolve. There was no denying he was attracted to her, but she wasn’t for him, and it was a fact he had to keep mind; otherwise, history would surely repeat itself.
“I know you’re out there! I heard you coming up the stairs.” Her voice was muffled but welcoming. “Come on in. We have paperwork to deal with.”
Zander balanced the coffee tray carefully and opened the door before quickly stepping inside. His secret hope that she would somehow be less attractive than yesterday was swiftly squelched when he got an eyeful of her. Wearing a well-fitted brown leather jacket, a clingy black blouse, jeans that seemed to be painted onto her rounded derriere, and a pair of tall, black boots, she looked even more desirable than the day before.
He must have stood there staring for longer than was socially acceptable, because the look on her face quickly shifted to one of concern.
“What?” She brushed at her blouse and closed the file cabinet drawer. “Did I get something on my shirt?”
“No.” He looked away quickly and adjusted the tray of coffee in his hands. “You look fine.”
“Gee, thanks,” Rena said with a sigh. “Just the level of awesome I was going for.”
He had insulted her. Perfect. Sure. This was exactly how he wanted to start their journey. Could he be a bigger asshat? Rena must have been asking herself the same question, because she gave him the side eye before opening the folder in her hands.
“Please, sit down.” She slipped into the chair behind her desk and gestured to the seat across from her. “I have the forms you need to fill out a—”
“Black, right?” Zander placed the cardboard cup on the desk along with the bag and sat in the chair across from her. “I wasn’t sure what you wanted for breakfast, so I got a couple of options. There’s a chocolate doughnut, a bagel, and in case you’re one of those noncarb eaters, I threw in some beef jerky and a cheese stick.”
“Thank you,” Rena said slowly.
She stared at the coffee for a few seconds before finally picking it up. Her energy signature rippled as her fingers curled around the cup, and those big, brown eyes widened slightly. He had obviously surprised her. Good. He liked knowing he could ruffle her tough exterior. This was a woman who tried to act like she had it all together, and for the most part, she probably did.
Zander blew on the steaming cup in his hands and tried to hide a satisfied smirk. Rena studied him warily and opened the lid, peeking at the liquid inside before closing it up again.
“You did say you take your coffee black, didn’t you?”
“Yes.” The word fell from her lips slowly. “Thank you.”
She glanced in the bag and, to his great delight, pulled out the chocolate doughnut and proceeded to take a big bite.
“That’s really flipping delicious,” she said around a mouthful of the pastry.
“I’m glad you’re enjoying it. It’s refreshing to meet a woman who isn’t afraid to indulge in something sweet or worried about getting fat.”
He liked women with curves. It gave a man something to hold on to, and Rena McHale certainly had a body he would—
What the hell was he thinking?
Zander cleared his throat and sat up straighter in the chair. Rena was about to take another bite, but the doughnut hovered in midair, and she gave him yet another look that told him he was an idiot.
“I’m not saying you need to watch your weight. I just meant that—”
“Don’t worry about it,” she said, rolling her eyes.
“I’m sorry if I offended you. I’m not great with people, and I put my foot in my mouth a lot.”
Why was he bringing her coffee and breakfast, anyway? He should stick to business and keep the pleasantries to a minimum. Trying to be nice was only making it awkward between them.
“Then you and I should get along great,” she said with a laugh. “I’m not one to beat around the bush. I prefer being direct.”
“Yeah, I noticed.”
Rena’s intelligent eyes peered at him above the rim of her cup, and she took another sip. Zander stilled as she studied him wordlessly. A surge of heat flashed in his chest as he held her gaze, and even though he wanted to blame it on the hot coffee, he knew that would have been a lie. There was no denying that she stirred something inside him, a deep, primal urge to claim her and mark her as his, but he also knew it was not to be.
Not if he wanted to free his brother. Keeping her all to himself would have been selfish, and it was that kind of bullshit that had gotten them into trouble in the first place.
“You mentioned paperwork,” he said quietly.
“Yes.” Rena blinked and shook her head. “Sorry, I spaced out there for a second.”
“Do you do that a lot?”
Her energy signature skittered around him nervously. She looked away and put some papers and a pen in front of him on the desk. When her body language matched the shift in her energy pattern, he realized what it was. She was hiding something, and it had to be connected to the way she spaced out here in the office and last night at the bar.
And he was damn sure going to find out what it was.
“I haven’t been sleeping well lately.”
“I have,” he said flatly.
“Yeah, well, if you don’t, I highly recommend some of that Nite-Aid stuff. I took one of those babies last night and I was out for the count. Actually, last night was the first good night’s sleep I’ve had in months. I don’t know why I didn’t think to try some of that stuff sooner.”
Son of a bitch.
Rena hadn’t connected with Zed last night, or with him, because she’d taken a sleeping pill. Zander’s brow furrowed, and a nagging sense of unease shimmied beneath his skin. That explained why Zander wouldn’t have seen her in the dreamrealm, but where was Zed? Why wouldn’t they have battled again, just as they had every night for the past five centuries?
Rena waved a folder at him. “Are you awake? Looks like I’m not the only one who’s tired. Anyway, you need to—”
“I’m not filling out those papers.”
“What?” Her brow furrowed. “Why not?”
“I handed you thirty thousand dollars in cash last night, and after we find my brother, I’m going to give you another thirty grand.” He lifted one shoulder. “I like my privacy, and unlike most of modern society, I’m not comfortable having my business floating around online or in anyone’s filing cabinet. I want absolute discretion. That’s part of what I’m paying you for.”
A slow grin curved her lips as she scooped up the papers and slipped them back in the folder.
“I figured as much.”
“How so?”
“I ran a background check
on you.” Rena rose to her feet and placed both hands on the desk, leaning toward him. “You don’t exist, Mr. Lorens, and in this day and age, that’s one hell of an accomplishment. I’ve never had a client who hadn’t left some kind of electronic footprint in the world. No pictures. No social media. I couldn’t even find a birth certificate that matched. No businesses or marriages or divorces. Not so much as a parking ticket. Nada. Nothing. Zip.”
“Your point?”
“My point is that you are lying about something, Zander Lorens, and I’d have to bet it starts with your name and goes from there.” She shoved herself off the desk and settled her hands on her hips. “I don’t like being lied to.”
“I’m not lying to you.” He kept his voice calm and even. “My name is Zander Lorens, and my brother needs your help.”
The air was thick with silence and her obvious frustration, but Zander refused to budge. He wasn’t lying to her. He wasn’t exactly telling her the whole truth either, but how was he supposed to do that?
“I can’t work with you if you’re not going to be straight with me.”
“I need your help finding my brother.” He stood up and tossed his empty coffee cup into the small garbage can next to her desk. “His life depends on it, and he’s running out of time.”
“If you want me to help you, then you have to be honest with me. Who are you?” Her voice wavered. “I know you’re not who you’re pretending to be, but there’s more. For starters, why is there such a time issue? Is he going to turn into a pumpkin at midnight?”
She folded her arms over her breasts, and her energy signature fluttered wildly around him with an unmistakable whisper of fear threaded through it. Damn it. He was cocking this up at every turn. First he insulted her, and now he was scaring her. What the hell could he say or do to put her fears at ease? If he told her the truth, she would call him crazy.
There was no way to prove who and what he really was.
Hell, she didn’t even know who she was.
“What are you hiding, Zander?”
Her energy signature, thick with frustration, rolled around him, and a split second later, Rena’s eyes shifted into the glowing amber eyes of her clan. There was no doubt in his mind which clan she was descended from. Only the Fox Clan had those shimmery, amber eyes flecked with gold. His heart squeezed in his chest because hers were so much like Arianna’s had been centuries ago.
Rena’s body had an instinctive, involuntary reaction to her intense emotions, and it was exactly what he needed to help his cause. It was also a sign that her connection with Zed in the dreamrealm was moving things forward. Her eyes had shifted twice in the past twenty-four hours. That could only mean the connection with Zed was deepening and her Amoveo powers would continue to emerge.
They were running out of time on all counts.
“Stupid mascara keeps getting in my eyes.” Rena swiped at them quickly and let out a hiss of irritation. “I must be allergic to it or something.”
“It’s not your makeup.”
“Oh really?” She smirked. “Wear a lot of mascara, do you?”
“Rena,” he whispered. “Turn around.”
“Why do you want—”
“Just turn around and look in the mirror.” He pointed to the wall behind her desk and slipped his hands in the pockets of his jeans “You’ll see.”
“Great,” she huffed. “What? Do I have it all down my—”
Full of fire, she spun around and was likely ready to give him a piece of her mind, but when Rena caught sight of her reflection, she fell silent. Her mouth opened slowly as a look of utter disbelief washed over her lovely face, and her energy signature whipped around the office like a tornado.
“What on earth?” Her voice shook as she brought her quivering fingers to her cheeks and moved closer to the mirror. “My eyes… They’re…”
“Beautiful,” Zander murmured.
He meant it too. It had been so many years since he’d seen the clan eyes of an Amoveo, Zander had forgotten how utterly exquisite they could be. A longing swelled in his chest, and a rush of loneliness fired through him. Time had soldiered on, and so had Zander. He’d become accustomed to his solitary existence and rarely lingered on how isolated he had been, but seeing Rena like this made it all painfully real.
Even though his instinct was to move closer, to gather her in his arms and comfort her, he stayed where he was, with the desk between them. He could be her friend and guide her on this journey, but he knew, for his own sanity, there had to be a line in the sand. If he allowed himself to explore the physical attraction—the one he knew was only a product of being Zed’s identical twin—it would lead to disaster.
“Why aren’t you freaked out by this?” She captured his gaze in the mirror. “D-did you do this to me?”
“No.” He kept his voice calm and even. “And you aren’t all that freaked out by it either, are you? You’re different, Rena. You’ve always known that.”
“I—I know, but…what’s happening to me?”
Her voice, a shaky whisper, tugged at Zander’s heart, and when one tear rolled down her cheek, he thought it would break him. Sucking in a deep breath, he moved slowly around the desk but still kept some distance between them.
“Your true self, the part of you that has been dormant, has woken up and is beginning to emerge. You are Amoveo, Rena, or at least part Amoveo.”
“Amoveo?” Her brow furrowed. “I—I’ve heard that before…in a dream…but…”
“They are an ancient race of shapeshifters with ten animal clans among them. You are descended from the Fox Clan. Though, I have to admit, you are the first Amoveo I’ve met who isn’t from a pure bloodline. I didn’t even realize they could mate with humans.”
“What the hell are you talking about?” She spun to face him, and her surprise was replaced with anger. “I’m human. I’m not a shapeshifter. There’s no such thing.”
“Yes, there is. You are human, and you are Amoveo.” His mouth set in a grim line. “Had any interesting dreams lately?”
“Oh my God,” she said in a breathy rush. “Are the nightmares because of you or something?”
“Not exactly. Dreams play a pivotal role in a shifter’s…evolution.” He paused, debating whether or not he should mention the part about Zed being her mate. “When you walked in the dreamrealm, it was the first step toward embracing who you really are and your future. The rest of your abilities will manifest over the next few days, and they’ll come to full power when you connect with your mate. The dreams come first, then telepathy, and finally the mate tattoo, but—”
“Mate tattoo?”
He was pretty sure she had only heard about a quarter of what he had just blurted out. Zander could practically see the wheels turning in her head as she tried to wrap her brain around everything he was dumping on her.
Could he be a bigger moron?
“The man in the dream… He said something about… It was you! You were really there,” she whispered. Her brows knit together, and an expression of understanding slowly covered her face. “I’m not crazy. The voice in my dream… It was you in the cave. You saved me from that thing that was chasing me and then you told me to pick up…”
Zander removed the lump of quartz from his jacket pocket and held it up between his thumb and forefinger.
“The stone,” she whispered. “That’s it. It’s the same as the one I picked up in the dream. What the hell is going on?”
“It’s how I was able to find you, Rena. When you touched this in the dreamrealm, I imprinted on your energy signature, and it led me to you.”
“How the hell is all of this possible?”
“This is the spirit stone of my cl—my family,” he said, quickly correcting himself. “It’s connected to me, and everyone else in my family, spiritually and physically. We are all given one the day we are born. It com
es from the caves deep in the earth on our family land.”
“S-so you’re an Amoveo too? One of these shapeshifters?” She studied him warily. “Then why aren’t your eyes glowing?”
Zander’s jaw clenched as he wrestled with exactly how much he should share with her right now. Too much too fast, and she could totally freak out. Who was he kidding? She was already freaking out. Not that he could blame her.
“No,” he said. “I am not Amoveo.”
It wasn’t a lie exactly. The Dragons were cousins of the Amoveo, and he hadn’t been a true dragon for centuries. It was a generous stretching of the truth perhaps, but definitely not a lie.
“I’m only a man, a man whose job it is to reunite you with your people, including the man who will be your mate.”
“My mate?” She scoffed. “You do know how ridiculous that sounds, don’t you? How every inch of this sounds?”
“Yes, I do, but all of the Amoveo have one predestined life mate and—”
“Do me a favor,” she said quickly. “Stop with the mate stuff, okay? This is weird enough without adding that little tidbit.”
“Sorry.” He briefly held up both hands, as if in surrender. “I know this is a lot to digest.”
“Yeah, and please, keep telling me you’re only a man. A regular guy wouldn’t know about shapeshifters and act like it’s no big deal that my eyes are glowing,” she said through a shuddering breath while looking him up and down. “Why now? I’m twenty-five years old. Why is all of this happening now? Where the hell were you when I was living on the streets as a kid or running from one foster home to the next, fighting for my life?”
Her energy signature undulated with frustration, but sadness and confusion were woven between, creating a heartbreaking tapestry of emotion. He sucked at handling tender emotions and had done his best to avoid them, but standing in the midst of Rena’s swirly energy pattern, there was no escaping it.
No escaping her.
“I’m not entirely sure.” Zander rolled the stone between his fingers. “The universe isn’t fond of explaining itself. But you are Amoveo, Rena. I came here to bring you to your people. They can teach you everything you’ll need to know and show you how to make the most of your abilities. Their leader has a ranch in Montana.”
Undiscovered Page 7
