26. Jess

I'd gotten myself out of the situation with Thylor, but it wasn't until Gravod had his tentacles wrapped around me that I'd felt truly safe. And turned on. The way he took charge, gave orders… Fuck, I needed to get a grip.

My feelings for Gravod went way beyond where they should be this early in a relationship. Hearts in my eyes, the L-word dangerously close to the tip of my tongue. It made no sense.

I wanted to keep holding him, keep him near me. But he needed to go after Thylor, I understood that. At least I wasn't worried about Gravod's safety. I honestly didn't think Thylor was dangerous. The guy hadn't even tied my legs. He was just desperate to be free.

My gaze settled appreciatively on Gravod's ass while he led the small battalion of well-built men into the field.

Not men, I reminded myself. I was pretty sure they weren't all Lydaxians, though. Gravod had mentioned shifters…

The wolf in the parking lot.It all clicked.

Jake cleared his throat, and I took a close look at him. Tall, bright blue eyes, a bit of a scruffy jaw. There was something a little wild about him, an aura of dominance. I was going with shifter.

"Let's go wait in the bar," he said. "They might be a while."

"Sure." What was this guy? Was it rude to ask? I glanced around as we walked, our steps echoing on the pavement. "Um, did you hear a wolf out here earlier?"

He snorted. "That was me." His brows went up. "I assume Gravod mentioned shifters to you?"

"He did. I'm sworn to secrecy."

Jake blew out a breath. "It's a secret that gets harder and harder to keep, with cameras everywhere and the internet and social media. At least these days people can't believe what they see in photos and videos. Images have gotten so easy to manipulate."

"I'm amazed you've all been able to keep it quiet."

We got to the door of the bar and he held it open for me, then followed me inside.

"It would be suicide to reveal ourselves. And we've perfected the art of hiding in plain sight. The biggest issue is being careful who we tell. Very few humans know. Usually, you'd have to be mated to a shifter."

I sat down at one of the tables.

"Shifters can have human mates?"

"Yep." He walked behind the bar. "Want a drink while we wait?"

"That sounds great."

He came back to the table with two bottles of beer and handed me one. I took a grateful sip as he sat down across from me. My nerves were still a little rattled.

"You okay?" he asked.

"Yeah. I'll be fine. It's been a crazy day."

"Tell me about it," he muttered, taking a drink.

"What do you do?"

"For a living? I'm a lawyer. I take on a few human clients, but mainly I'm responsible for dealing with any legal issues my pack might run into, usually related to real estate and finance. And I help out with neighboring packs and sleuths, too."

Sleuths… That was familiar. Oh yeah, a group of bears. Because there were also bear shifters. Right.

I still needed to ask about dragons.

"Sounds like a lot of work. How many members are in your pack?" I was proud that I said pack without skipping a beat. Yep. Totally normal conversation with a wolfman. The shifter romance novels I read must have helped.

Oh god. Were those accurate? Edna would probably know. Maybe she'd know if there were dragons.

I almost laughed out loud.Jake didn't seem to notice.

"We're up to twenty-eight. Everything's running pretty smoothly, except that our Alpha isn't mated."

"Oh yeah?" Interesting that he'd mention that. "Is the Alpha…?"

"Me." He took a long drink from the bottle, eyes narrowed at a random scratch on the tabletop.

Ah. That fit. Power oozed from the guy. But he didn't seem particularly happy.

Relationships were hard for everyone. I sighed and leaned back in my chair.

In the Fated Mates bar.

"So, is this place like a magical location for finding a mate?"

"Fuck if I know. My wolf seems to think so. He wants to be here every single fucking day."

"Huh." I started picking at the beer label. Another question had occurred to me, and I was nervous to ask it.

A low rumble sounded in the room, and I looked up with a start. Jake was glaring at the strip of torn label I held in my fingers. On instinct, I dropped it and folded my hands together in my lap.

"Sorry," he mumbled, not really looking sorry. "Fidgeting makes me antsy."

The blue flare in his eyes gave me a glimpse of the predator inside him.

"Got it."

He shook himself, and his eyes went back to normal. "You want to ask me something. Go ahead."

I closed my eyes and took a breath before opening them again. He was a safe person to ask.

"Babies." Jake jumped in his seat. Maybe I said it a bit too loud. I brought down the volume. "How do you hide that they're not totally human? What about medical care?"

He blinked for a second and cleared his throat, shifting in his seat. Was he fidgeting now?

"We have our own doctors. Plus, our kids don't shift until puberty. It's usually not an issue." He leaned forward. "But I've never asked Gravod how it works with them. They brought a doctor, but I'm not sure if they know what will happen."

"You've seen what they really look like?"

He winced, and I realized Jake was probably the one who told Gravod that his real form looked disgusting. That got me feeling defensive.

"Yeah. A baby with tentacles and horns won't exactly blend in."

"I love how he looks, you know." My voice was growly.

"Okay, okay." He leaned back with a wry grin. "He, uh, told me I might have been off in my assessment of his attractiveness." His brows furrowed. "But you have to admit, if anyone caught a glimpse of a kid who looks like him, it would be a big problem."

Jake's expression turned sympathetic, even pitying, and I wanted to throw my bottle at him.

"I don't want to live in hiding," I whispered, almost to myself.

The shifters seemed to have it all dialed in. Systems in place, normal lives among humans. In another situation, I would have quizzed Jake about it more.

But he didn't know about Lydaxians. He didn't know what a half-human, half-Lydaxian baby would be like.

He didn't know how much I'd have to give up to be with Gravod. And neither did I.

The door opened, interrupting my anxious thoughts. A familiar scent wafted over me, making my body hum. Without turning around, I knew it was Gravod.

When I faced him, the burning look in his eyes seared my skin. I had the urge to run into his arms, but he moved faster. His tentacles surrounded me as soon as I was out of my chair, pulling me against his hard chest. It was almost embarrassing how good it felt. How much I missed his touch.

Jake stood. "Did you find him?"

Gravod's grip around me, arms and tentacles, tightened.

"No. We caught his scent, but then we lost it. He's good at hiding." His silver eyes fastened on mine. "As long as he's out there, you're in danger. You need to stay with me or one of my crew at all times."

I was already shaking my head.

"I have a life, Gravod. I didn't sign up for this."

A look of pain flashed in his eyes, and my heart gave a sharp thump. He bent down to my ear.

"I know. I'll take care of it." He pulled back, stroking my cheek with the back of his fingers. "Come on. Let me show you the ship."

His touch soothed me, his voice wrapping around me like a warm blanket. I was in this too far already. If it didn't work out… I didn't want to think about it.

"Okay."

He took my hand in his and walked me outside.