Page 31 of Shifters Awakening

“Yeah,” Emma said, “but I don’t know what I’m going to do now.”

Before I could comfort Emma, Olivia frowned anddarted from the room, her face ashen. That was when I smelled the sharp scent of concern in the air. Pounding on the front door followed. Moments later, Olivia led a trio of shifters into the dining room. They’d been the source of the concern.

“Logan, we have a problem,” Olivia said.

I waited for her next words. Which threat had decided to show itself now?

“It’s Marcus Steele, and he’s demanding a meeting with you.” She paused. “To discuss recent developments.”

“Put him off,” I said. “We’ll see him in a month at the annual gathering beneath the Hunter’s Moon. I have no interest in seeing him until we all meet in the non-aggression tract of land.”

“No can do. He’s setting up camp at the border between our territories, and he’s adamant he’s not going home until he meets with you.”

“Did he say anything else?”

Her shoulders drooped. “He says he’ll only talk to you.”

Well, shit. Secrets never kept.

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

emma

“Everybody out!” Logan barked, startling me so hard a piece of pineapple slid off my fork. “Breakfast is over.”

Every shifter in the dining room hustled toward the exit as I stabbed the pineapple again and crammed it in my mouth. Only cantaloupe remained on my plate. Even the guard Logan had posted outside the bedroom scurried out.

When I stood to follow the others, Logan pointed at me. “Not you. You wait.”

For a tiny sliver of a second, I considered defying him and taking myself back to bed for a nap. Instead, I ducked my head the way all the others had done.

Logan marched the trio of shifters into the hall, and Olivia followed. In the now empty dining room, I was left with my own thoughts as I pushed a piece of cantaloupe back and forth across my plate.

How the hell had I landed right in the middle of a pack of wolf shifters in the middle of Louisiana? My camping trip had turned into something completely unexpected.

No, that wasn’t the question at all.

My mouth twisted in a wry grin as I stacked my used silverware and napkin on my plate and stood to locate the bin to place each used item.

More to the point, how the hell hadIturned into a shifter on a random September midnight? The attack of the mountain lion had scared me shitless, and it had been enough to launch me into some kind of special, latent multi-shifting ability.

Whatever that meant.

My plate clinked against the others in the bin, and the silver knife clattered in the stainless-steel pan, splashing cleansing solution over the side onto the pushcart. These shifters were clearly more civilized than beasty werewolves in comics or on television. Who knew there was a kernel of truth in all of it? A handful of used plates rested where they’d been abandoned when each attendee had left.

Logan had given the impression my shifting ability was something to keep secret from the rest of the pack, and I didn’t understand why. Next time I cornered Logan, it would be the first question I asked.

In no time, I had the dining room cleaned up, and I plopped back down in my seat. None of this mattered since I had to get back to Willow Creek. Sully-Boy would be coming in for his check-up, andmaybe I’d get a chance to chat with Sheila about everything.

Suddenly, Logan marched back in with Olivia cursing behind him. He whirled, hooked his hand in the crook of her elbow, and dragged her into the corner of the dining room, whispering furiously at her.

If that asshole thought I was going to put up with being treated like that… With as many shifters as he had in his pack, I’d have to be careful about telling him off, but they would all probably enjoy the explosions.

From the corner, Olivia groaned, and her gaze cut to me. “You can’t be serious. Stop fucking with me, Logan.”

He shook his head, turned her away from me, and whispered adamantly some more. Something about training and being taught and a magnetic pull.

She cursed his stupid dick, and I bit back a rush of laughter as I busied myself with picking at my fingernails. Eavesdropping wasn’t my forte, but Olivia was a riot when her bullying wasn’t directed at me.

---