Page 77 of Baseball and Shifters

“We’re coming with her,” Liam declares.

The kid’s adams apple bounces like he wants to protest, but he doesn’t. Rachel gives him a tight nod and rises to her feet. She’s pretending to be calm, but I can feel her truth in our bond. Liam and I fall into step beside her and we make our way to the opposite side of campus.

We take a shortcut across the parking lot and as we approach the admin building we see a man pacing out front.

Ranger St.James

I may have already had the displeasure of meeting him, but if I hadn’t, Rachel’s fear in the bond would be a dead giveaway.In a full suit, he would be the picture of a perfect business professional if his hair wasn’t sticking up all over the place.

I know the moment he catches sight of us. He stops mid stride, turning to face us. His eyes glint with something malicious and everything about the way he holds himself screams cold cruelty.

“What the hell is this?” He snaps the moment we’re in ear shot. “You have some nerve to be gallivanting out and about like this.

Rachel steels her spine. “You’re not supposed to be here.”

“I am your father,” he snarls. “And I have every right to check on my investment. I do pay for you to be here, you know.”

“That’s all I’ve ever been to you, an investment,” her voice is firm and strong despite the storm of emotion assaulting the bond.

“Yes, and a failed one at that. I see you’ve broken every rule I’ve put in place for you. You’ve bonded with four males and proudly display your marks like a common whore. Like you don’t care who sees you or how it reflects on me. You will be coming home with me now, it was obviously a mistake to allow you to come here.”

“I’m not going anywhere with you.”

“You stupid little slut.” He steps forward towards my mate but Liam and I take a step forward and position ourselves between her and her father.

“Shut the fuck up,” Liam’s voice rings out deadly and low.

Ranger’s dark chuckle sends a chill down my spine. “Youboysthink you can protect the little bitch. Good luck, she’s just like her whore mother and I won’t have that depravity tied to my good name…”

The air shifts.

Rachel takes a step forward putting herself between my twin and I. I turn to tell her to step back when Ranger’s body explodes. He lunges forward in his massive orange and black striped tiger form, fur on end, eyes wild with rage. I’m sure we’reall dead as I reach for my mate and my twin to pull us all back when a piercing roar rings through the air.

Derrick lands in between us and Ranger, in his glorious green and gold dragon form, swatting him out of the air mid leap. Ranger goes flying, landing hard against one of the nearby lamp posts causing the metal to warp and bend.

The crash draws attention from almost every direction. Students and staff peek out of windows and doors, everyone keeping a healthy distance from the obviously pissed off dragon currently standing over my mate. He brings his large dragon face down to her level to check her over and when he’s sure she’s unharmed, he turns his focus back onto Ranger.

He’s shifted back to two legs and is looking a little worse for wear. His suit is crumpled and he seethes with rage. When he stands, I notice he even has a slight limp.

“This isn’t over,” he snarls pointing a trembling finger at Rachel. “You’ll all regret this. Every last one of you.”

“I already regret being your daughter,” she fires back.

Before he can retaliate the dean stumbles out the front door of the admin building looking frazzled and confused. His shirt is wrinkled, tie askew, and his glasses slip down the bridge of his nose.

“Mr. St. James!” He calls, clearly overwhelmed with the situation. “There was no authorization filed for a visit today. I was not informed you were on campus, this is a violation of academy protocol. I must…”

“You think I give a fuck about your damn protocols?” Ranger shouts cutting Dean Harold off. “Your school is a fucking joke. If this is what you allow to happen on your campus, you should be fired. She’s a disgrace just like her mother.”

That’s my final straw, I step forward ready to break his nose when Derrick shifts back to human form. He steps forward directly into Ranger’s space.

“I suggest you leave. Now.” Derrick’s voice is low and deadly, laced with his dragon’s hiss. “Or next time, I might dent more than the lamp post.”

For a moment it seems like Ranger is going to argue. His mouth opens and closes a few times, like a fish out of water. He must think better of it though because he turns and marches into the parking lot. We all watch as he climbs into the driver seat of a black SUV and peels out of the parking lot.

Dean Harold approaches our group, wringing his hands. “Miss St. James, I-I’m so sorry. I had no idea he was on campus, I assure you I never would have allowed that to happen if…”

“Yeah, well you need better security, or better training protocols, because it’s your student assistant who came to get her. You’re lucky we were already with her. I hate to think what would have happened if he had confronted her alone.” My words are said with a growl, my wolf still riding me hard after our mate was in danger.

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