Page 32 of Grey
She turned to him with a smile. “Yeah?”
“I love you.” His eyes widened at how he’d blurted out the words with no filter.
Her mouth opened in surprise.
Taking in a quick breath to calm his flying pulse, he took her hand and said, “Tatum, I’ve honestly loved you since the moment we met. I know it hasn’t been a long time, but that’s how it goes with shifters. You’re my soulmate, and you’re perfect for me. You’re the sweetest, kindest, most beautiful female I’ve ever met, and I could listen to you talk about legends and myths for days on end. I find you fascinating and I love how strong you are, how you made the choice to change your life and struck out on your own. I want to spend the rest of my life with you, and I want you to join with the herd as my mate. But mostly? Tatum, I just love you.”
There was a moment of silence as she stared up at him, the air turning electric.
“I love you too. There was a little voice in my head telling me it was too soon, but that’s for humans, not for shifters and their soulmates. When you rescued me that night? I started to fall for you. I was so scared because I hadn’t been in town long, but I was so overwhelmingly attracted to you that I couldn’t stay away from you.”
“I want you to be an official part of the herd,” he said. “We have a mating ceremony—we can do it next weekend if you’re ready. Now that I know you love me, baby, I really do want you to move into the farmhouse. Not because it’s dangerous out there, and not because it’s convenient, but because I don’t want to spend any nights without you in my arms.”
“I’d love to,” she said.
She went onto her toes and kissed him, and it was the kind of kiss where the whole damn world dropped away and it was just the two of them.
When they finally parted, breathless, Grey smiled down at her.
He was about to tell her that he couldn’t wait to move her from the cabin into the farmhouse, and that they could go shopping for new linens and décor to make the bedroom a reflection of both of their tastes and not just his “thrift store chic” as Avi liked to call it.
But his senses flared to life and his stallion let out a grunt of worry.
He looked toward the woods beyond the pasture as a prickle of unease ran down his spine.
“Are you okay?” Tatum whispered.
Something was definitely wrong.
He pulled her a little closer and scanned the trees, his instincts screaming that something wasn’t right. He didn’t see anything but he sure as hell could feel something.
He was about to tell her that his mind must have just been playing tricks on him when a brief flash of movement caught his attention.
Sunlight reflected off something deep in the woods.
“Get inside, Tatum. Now.”
She didn’t question him, running directly to the farmhouse. By the time he heard the front door shut, he was already on the move, slipping through the trees and following whoever it was he’d seen.
He couldn’t afford to lose whoever it was.
It had to be one of Colton’s males.
As he moved, the figure in the shadows realized he was coming for him, and they darted away. Grey took off after them, aware that he’d just passed the line in the woods where they’d set up security cameras, so the bastard had been watching from just beyond where they could see.
The male was fast.
Grey pushed himself harder, sprinting after him.
The male wore dark clothing and a stocking cap pulled low on his head. He didn’t know which of Colton’s males it was, but he was sure it was one of them. The male ducked and wove between the trees and Grey snarled as he doubled down and pushed himself to move even faster.
The male disappeared into the thick darkness of the deep woods and Grey lost him.
He couldn’t even pick up a track to follow him, which was infuriating as hell since he was a trained tracker.
Listening carefully, he hoped he could pick up something like the snapping of a twig, but there was nothing. No sound. No movement. Just silence.
Panting, he turned in a slow circle and got his bearings and ensured he was alone, and then walked back to the farmhouse. Before he got too far, he saw something on the ground and picked up a monocular.
