Page 55 of Shifter's Homecoming

“We didn’t want any animals getting into your pool of poison,” the guy said.

That stopped Rowan cold. No one was supposed to know what was in that water.

“Don’t worry,” the guy said. He took something out of his pocket and held it up. A badge. He stuffed it back in his pocket again. “I’m Troy. This is Reed. We know everything.”

Rowan only stared. She was completely thrown. The local government owned the land and the building and the reservoir and they had hired Danark Environmental Cleanup, and Rowan even knew that Mr. Danark met with the Deputy Chief of Police and walked the land regularly, but she hadn’t expected the police to come out and install fences.

“You know everything?” she said. Even she didn’t know everything.

Someone spoke behind her. It was a male voice, deep and rumbly and beautiful.

“Rowan,” he said.

Her skin goose-pimpled like he had touched her. She spun around, feeling breathless and off-balance, having to see who had said her name like that.

He was coming out of the forest, walking swiftly away from the same path that she’d released the mice on. He was wearing the same clothes as Troy. The plain blue t-shirt spread so beautifully across his broad, well-muscled chest that she hoped she wasn’t drooling. He was heavily bearded and he had long hair, like an actual mountain man. Normally, she hated that look, but this man … this man could pull it off. He could pull off anything. She tried to keep herself together, but she suddenly felt too hot… too aware … too female.

Wolfish, she thought, again hearing her mom’s words in her mind. His face was definitely wolfish, like he was a wolf turned man. She liked it more than she wanted to admit. It made him look sexy and dark and dangerous and strong and sure. Here was a man who knew who he was and what his place was in the world. He looked to her like he would always have all the answers, like he would alwaysbethe answer.

“How do you know my name?” she said, thinking it was a stupid, stupid question, and she was a stupid, stupid woman, but what he said next disarmed her completely, making any fears she had for her own safety completely evaporate.

“Don’t you know mine?” he asked. He tucked his chin down and turned his head slightly to watch her better.

Her dream came back to her. The kiss. She touched her lips lightly, then found herself walking toward him without meaning to. He smiled at her as she moved, a very slight but very sexy smile.

She stopped a few feet from him, her mind a complete blank.

He put his hand in his pocket and pulled something out, something that trailed a gold chain. “This belongs to you,” he said, holding it out to her and opening his hand.

On the chain was a thick charm of a snarling wolf. Rowan stared at it for only a moment before a strange certainty filled her.This was it.This was the neutralizer she’d been looking for. This would changeeverything.

“What is it?” she said, reaching out to pick it up. It was thick, it was heavy, and on the other side of the charm was an angel with bent head and open wings.

“Your pendant,” he told her. She looked into his eyes and saw confirmation there. He seemed to think she should know what he was talking about. She didn’t, but she was seized by a sudden need to rush into her lab and dip this thing into the poison. His hand was still held out and she grabbed it, intending to pull him along with her, if he would come, but when she touched him, that was when everythingreallychanged.

Her whole world seemed to go sideways and everything lost its sense of importance and value, everything except this man. Pleasure rippled up and down her body, almost orgasmic pleasure, pleasure that told her she was home, or she was whole, or she was complete or some other cliché that had no business happening to her outside in the sunshine on a late-summer day. The only thing that was clear to her was thatsomethinghad happened, and she didn’t know what.

“Oh,” she said, like he had spoken, but he hadn’t. His eyes had closed partway and his own body had relaxed slightly, like he was feeling exactly what she was. A low noise exactly like a growl started in his throat and all she could think was wolf, wolf, wolf, but it did not scare her.

He moved in closer to her, and her dream filled her mind. He was going to kiss her, and she was going to let him. Hopefully he didn’t have plans to press her up against the shed, strip her naked, and slip inside her, because right at that moment, she might even let him do that.

Right at that moment, she might encourage it.

***

Trent twined his fingers in his mate’s fingers. He grabbed her around the waist, pulling her close to him in the hot sunshine, his eyes on her lips, her face, her neck. He bent to her, intending to kiss her, then carry her inside and take her.

She didn’t seem to have ever seen the pendant before, which made him wonder how Grey had gotten his hands on it. He would piece it together later. For now, he had his female in his arms and that was good enough for him. He bent to kiss her.

“Historic moment,” Troy said, way too loud, making Trent remember that he and Rowan weren’t alone, and that a world existed outside of the two of them.

“Shh,” Reed told Troy, but it was too late.

Rowan remembered herself. She looked around. She took a step back, extricating herself from Trent’s hold. She gave him a look that made it clear that she didn’t know whatthatwas all about, and she didn’t intend to repeat it.

She held up the pendant. “This is really mine?” she said. “I can do anything I want with it?”

“Yours,” Trent confirmed, shooting daggers at his brother with his eyes.

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