Shifter Secrets: Shifter Romance Collection

by Juniper Hart

  “Lane, I’m serious. I don’t know what lies he told you, but they aren’t so. I know these beings much better than you do, and I know they would sell out their own mothers. Will you be like them?”

  “Mom, I would never do anything to hurt you.”

  “Your mouth says that, but your eyes tell me differently.”

  “Mom, I would never—”

  “I guess time will tell, won’t it?” Julia sighed angrily, turning away. “I get the feeling you’re lying to me, but if you choose to be destroyed by the Seven, I guess there’s nothing I can do to stop it, is there?”

  Lane watched miserably as her mother walked toward the kitchen. She could see the weariness in Julia’s walk.

  What am I doing? she asked herself. Mom is right—I don’t know anything about anything. I just let the first guy who showed me any attention sweep me off my feet. I’m too naïve to go out into the world.

  “Mom,” she called, hurrying after Julia. “Tell me what to do.”

  “I told you what to do,” Julia retorted, collapsing into a worn wooden chair. Lane immediately went to fix her a tea, a tradition she did every night when Julia returned home from her shift.

  “You want me to work for Henry and get close to him.”

  “Yes, but not to your detriment. Do you think you can handle that?”

  Lane thought of the way Henry’s kiss had set her body on fire, the feel of his hands around her waist.

  Does he really believe I’m his mate, or did he say that because he’s trying to get me in bed?

  In her heart, Lane didn’t believe the latter was true. They were in each other’s heads, reading one another’s thoughts.

  “I knew it,” Julia growled. “You can’t handle this at all. You’re going to get caught up in the glitz and glamor of being one of the Seven!”

  Lane hadn’t realized there was any glitz and glamor associated with being one of the Seven, but she didn’t share her thoughts with her mother.

  “I can do this,” she replied slowly. The words pained her to say aloud. Even though she didn’t know Henry, the idea of betraying him did not fill her with glee. I’ll just tell Mom what she wants to hear, but I won’t do anything—to him or the others.

  Julia’s face relaxed, and she offered Lane a small smile as the kettle began to whistle.

  “You’re a good girl, Lane. I knew you wouldn’t deceive me, deep down. Forgive me for being so cynical.”

  Relieved that she was being let off the hook, Lane hurried back toward the stove and removed the kettle from the stove, pouring it into the waiting cup on the counter.

  “You’ll go in tomorrow. Get to know him well, and—” Julia stopped speaking abruptly and cocked her head to the side. “What is that noise?” she demanded. Lane heard it, too. Her brow crunched as she shook her head, and they followed the sound into the hallway leading to her bedroom.

  “It’s coming from your room.”

  Dread suddenly seized Lane as she realized what it was she was hearing.

  “Oh!” she gasped, but before she could think of a suitable reason to stay out of her bedroom, Julia had entered and frozen.

  “What is this?” she hissed, snatching the cell phone Lane had forgotten on her bed earlier in the day. “Who gave you this?”

  “The Council,” Lane choked. “It’s standard issue. Everyone has one.”

  “And you didn’t think to tell me about it?” Julia spat. She threw the iPhone at her daughter. “I guess I know whose side you’re on!”

  The phone had stopped ringing, and Lane looked at it helplessly.

  “You better call Henry back,” Julia said sarcastically. “I’m sure it’s a Council matter for him to be calling you on that phone.”

  Lane sank down onto the bed as her mother stormed from the bedroom, slamming the door in her wake.

  I can’t do this, she thought again, hanging her head. I can’t play both sides. I haven’t even started and I’m already going crazy.

  The only question was, who was going to get her loyalty? Henry or her mother?

  9

  Henry had forgotten about his promise to join Raven and Drake for drinks until he was leaving the Aldwin cottage and his personal cell started ringing.

  “We’re at O’Malley’s. You better not stand us up again. I’ve had a hell of a day,” Raven told him by way of a greeting.

  “I’m not standing you up,” he promised, even though he wanted nothing more than to return to his penthouse in the city and catch a few hours of shut-eye. The late afternoon sun had faded away into twilight, and while it wasn’t his usual time to sleep, the exhaustion of the last couple days had caught up with him.

  Could I only have met Lane yesterday? I feel like I’ve known her forever.

  Of course, that was always the way it was with mates.

  “Good,” Raven said. “Hurry up. I’m hungry, too.”

  “Then order some food,” Henry laughed. “What are you waiting for?”

  “Your credit card,” Raven retorted. “How long are you going to be?”

  “I’ll be there in forty-five.” He disconnected his Bluetooth and drove on, through rush hour traffic, into the heart of Manhattan.

  He was uneasy about how simply Julia had given into his request, but he wasn’t sure that there was anything to worry about. Even though Julia was an Aldwin, she was hardly a practicing witch from what he knew about her. Then again, how much did he really know about her? The rest of the Council was going to have to help fill in the blanks for him.

  Lane’s circumstances were strange, to say the least. The fact that she didn’t even have a cell phone of her own was a troubling matter. On a whim, he dialled out to the Council phone in Lane’s possession, eager to hear what the aftermath of his visit had done to Julia, but Lane didn’t answer.

  Tomorrow, when she comes to the office, I’ll have her set up with her own phone, he thought. The sooner I release Julia’s hold on her, the better.

  He wondered if he had his work cut out for him.

  “Your trial’s going to pieces already?”

  Henry cast Raven a sidelong look. “Opening statements were postponed until tomorrow. Why?”

  “You’re distracted.”

  “I’m a lawyer,” he replied flippantly. “It’s in my nature to have my mind in fifty places at once.”

  “No, I don’t think that’s it,” Raven said slowly. “It’s something about Lane Aldwin, isn’t it?”

  “How could you possibly know that?” Henry demanded, feeling his face growing warm.

  “You guys were making googly eyes at each other throughout the entire ceremony.”

  “Googly eyes? Really?”

  “Well, she was certainly looking at you with stars in her face.”

  Henry realized this was his chance to talk about Lane’s delicate predicament. “Did you know that Julia Aldwin has kept her completely out of the loop for two decades?”

  Drake muttered something under his breath that Henry didn’t hear.

  “What?” Henry demanded.

  “The Aldwins have ridden off the coattails of Alaric long enough. Each generation seems more batshit crazy than the last,” Drake said.

  “Drake,” Raven snapped warningly. “I think you’ve already had too much to drink.”

  “Miriam wasn’t crazy,” Henry denied. “Everyone liked Miriam.”

  “You don’t think that there was something presumptuous about her casting that mate spell on everyone without asking permission?” Drake insisted, his blue eyes flashing. “The Aldwins have always overstepped. Julia is no different. We should be grateful we haven’t had to see her running around, crying about Council for all these years. But I guess that will change now.”

  It was clear that Drake didn’t see the irony of him complaining about Julia complaining. Drake was the first to go off about the Council, but Henry had always seen it more as jealousy than anything. It must have been hard for his macho demon blood to be reigned by his mate, who was
a dozen times more powerful.

  “We owe who we are to the Aldwins,” Raven interjected, nervously looking at Drake. She knew she probably didn’t have much to fear in the way of Henry ratting out her lover’s too-free speaking, but if Drake said something like that to one of the other members of the Council…

  “We owe who we are to Alaric, not his successors. If it wasn’t in the rules that one of the Aldwins needed to sit on the Seven, would we really have them on the Council at all?”

  Henry glanced at Raven, who had paled.

  “Drake,” she growled. “You are not on the Council. I wish you’d remember that.”

  It was enough to make him shut his mouth, and Raven seemed relieved that he had stopped talking. Henry took the opportunity to steer the conversation back to Lane.

  “I’ve hired her to come and work for me,” he told them. The demon mates gaped at him in shock.

  “What?” they chorused.

  “Henry, you of all beings know that’s a terrible idea,” Raven said.

  “She needs a job,” Henry argued. And to get away from her mother, he added silently.

  “And you know what can happen when the Enchanted work under the same roof,” Raven insisted. Henry didn’t need a reminder. It was bad enough that he saw Marjorie every day.

  But Lane was different. She was not going to cause trouble for him or the firm. She wasn’t schooled enough in the ways of the Enchanted to fight with him.

  And she’s on the Council. There’s no fight. We’re equals in that area.

  “Are you doing this to curry favors with her?” Drake asked. “In case there are decisions that need to be made.”

  Henry glared at Raven in a way that told her to rein in her unbridled mate. Drake really was becoming too comfortable after such a long time as a Council mate.

  “She’s his mate,” Raven answered for Henry.

  “No way!”

  Raven ignored Drake and turned back to Henry. “Even so,” she sighed. “I don’t think it’s a sound idea, Henry. So many things could go wrong.”

  “Nothing is going to go wrong.” Henry’s voice rang with conviction, even if his heart was heavy with wariness. It wasn’t Lane who concerned him—it was Julia.

  The sooner I unhinge Julia’s claws from her daughter, the better.

  But Henry also knew that he couldn’t afford to make an enemy of Julia Aldwin. The Council maintained order and stability. The Seven were intended to be impartial, not caught up in the middle of chaos. Otherwise, the Council was useless. Yet Henry couldn’t just sit back and watch how things played out with the older Aldwin and Lane.

  Not when the time I have with Lane is limited. It was going to be hard enough to convince Lane that they were fated to be together without Julia’s influence.

  He cleared his throat.

  “I… have a question,” he said tentatively. As soon as the words left his mouth, he wished he hadn’t said anything.

  Two sets of cerulean eyes peered at him curiously, but Henry shook his head. He already knew the answer to his question. Bringing it up in front of Drake especially was only asking for trouble.

  “Are you going to make us guess?” Raven bantered.

  “Never mind. I’m exhausted.” He rose from the table, and the couple looked at him in disbelief.

  “You can’t be leaving already!” Raven protested. “You just got here!”

  “I still have a trial in the morning,” he reminded her, slipping his wallet out of his back pocket and withdrawing his platinum credit card. “Drink the night away—on me, of course.” He placed the card on the table and downed the last of his beer before grabbing his suit jacket. “Good night, boys and girls.”

  He smiled winningly at them, but as he moved away from the table, Raven caught up with him.

  “Henry, I’ve never seen you like this. What is on your mind?”

  He sighed and shrugged. “I really am beat. It’s been a long couple of weeks. I just want to go home and relax.”

  “No,” Raven said slowly. “It’s more than that. You’re thinking about doing something you’re not supposed to do.”

  His brow knit into a vee, and he stared at her.

  “What do you mean?” he asked innocently, even though he had a bad feeling she knew exactly what was on his mind.

  “You can’t turn her, Henry.”

  He feigned surprise. “Of course I know that!” he scoffed dubiously. “Why would you ever suggest something like that?”

  “Maybe because I’ve known you for over a thousand years,” Raven said, “and I know what goes on in your head probably better than you do.”

  “I would never turn her. That would mean instant death for both of us; no trial, nothing.”

  Raven didn’t look reassured. “Henry, I believe she’s your mate too, but you must also know that just because you meet your mate, it doesn’t mean that you’re going to be together.”

  “Raven, this conversation really is too heavy for me right now. I appreciate your concern, but I need to head home.”

  She opened her mouth to say something else but released a sigh instead.

  “Okay,” she muttered. “If you say so.” She pivoted to return to Drake, and Henry stared after her a moment, wondering how she had known what he was thinking.

  That is not a question to be asked aloud, he told himself firmly. There is no way to ensure immortality for Lane.

  Raven’s other words lingered, too.

  What if fate kept him and Lane apart, even after bringing them together?

  Too many questions. Too much to consider and not enough sleep, Henry thought to himself. Tomorrow, Lane will be with you, and you can work out the details of your future… after you deal with that murder trial hanging over your head.

  Henry left the pub and made his way back to the parking garage on Broadway.

  He hoped that Drake and Raven wouldn’t go crazy on the company credit card out of spite. It would be just like the impish demons to do something like that. Not that the Vampire Regent couldn’t afford whatever damage they might cause.

  He was parking in his spot in the underground of his condo building, and he sat inside for a moment, collecting his thoughts.

  We’ve started something here, Lane and I; something I intend to see through. I may not be able to turn her immortal, but I will not let anyone stand between us now that we’ve found one another.

  Henry exited the vehicle, his confidence in the upcoming future vaguely restored. No matter what Raven might think, he and Lane would make it through.

  He would just have to keep a better eye on Julia.

  10

  “How nice,” Julia said casually the following morning. “A stretch limousine. For a receptionist.”

  Lane ignored her mother’s biting words and looked out the window where the car had pulled up.

  “I better go,” she said nervously, turning to look at herself in the hallway mirror once again to be sure she looked presentable.

  “For someone who promised not to get involved with Henry Brandis, you certainly do seem to care about how you look,” Julia snarled. “Oh wait, I forgot—you’re on the side of the Seven now.”

  “Mom, I told you—”

  “You mean you lied to me,” Julia corrected shortly. “I won’t believe you until I see actions, Lane, though something tells me you’ve already made up your mind.”

  “Mom, I swear—”

  “ACTIONS, Lane, ACTIONS!”

  Lane chewed on the insides of her cheeks. She didn’t much care for being spoken to like a child, but she also knew her mother was frustrated.

  “I better go,” she repeated, grabbing for the door handle.

  “Have a good day at work!” Julia yelled sarcastically. “I bet you get paid better for being the boss’s mistress, too!”

  Lane flushed crimson at the idea that she was being paid to sleep with Henry. It’s true. I can’t get involved with Henry no matter what. Between being on the Council and him being my boss
…

  Lane realized the hypocrisy of her thought. If not for his affection toward her, Henry wouldn’t have offered her a job in the first place.

  The chauffeur raised his cap jovially and opened the car door for her to enter.

  “Good morning, Ms. Aldwin. Mr. Brandis has a message for you. He says you are to meet with Sylvie Pendle when you arrive, and she will show you where you need to be.”

  Lane gaped at him. “He’s not going to be there?” she demanded.

  “I’m sorry, ma’am. I don’t know anything else.”

  Lane’s eyes darted back toward the house, where her mother glowered from the threshold. Her impulse was to run back and secure herself in the cottage.

  No, she decided. This is what you’ve wanted for yourself for as long as you can remember. You already embarrassed yourself at the ceremony. Don’t screw this up. She slid onto a leather seat, and the driver closed the door. You can do this, she told herself. Even if Henry isn’t there.

  She hoped she was right.

  The building housing the law firm of Brandis, Carter and Ross took Lane’s breath away. She’d never seen such a tall building, but she quickly came to realize she was surrounded by such towering structures in the financial district of New York City.

  The bustle of people moving hurriedly through the streets was both unnerving and exhilarating. It took the driver clearing his throat subtly for Lane to realize that she remained frozen in place inside the limo.

  “Oh, right,” she mumbled, stepping from the car and onto the sidewalk. “Sorry.”

  “No need to apologize, Ms. Aldwin. First days are always nerve-wracking.”

  You don’t know the half of it, Lane thought, though she only offered him a smile and a thank you before moving toward the steps leading to the massive entryway.

  She’d never felt so small or insignificant in her life.

  Inhaling, she forced her feet to move forward.

  She stared at the bored security guard at the front, his massive frame nearly encased behind the marble counter.

  “May I help you?” he greeted her.