“I’m going to have to kill him, aren’t I?” His voice rumbled through his chest and into her body and she let it comfort her.

“You can kill him again after I do.” Nina hugged her from the other side and Gabby’s laugh sounded over the three of them as she darted into the room and launched herself toward them.

Megan extricated herself from Lex and Nina to fill her arms with her niece, who snuggled into her hold and covered her face with slightly sticky kisses.

“You’re home.” Gabby looked up at Megan through wise brown eyes and nodded once, as if that solved the problem.

“I am. I missed you, Gab.”

“I missed you, too. Come on, The Little Mermaid is on and mommy made fish sticks and macaroni and cheese.”

Of course to an outsider the conversation wouldn’t have been as clear but Megan had been around Gabriella Warden since her very first breath of air and she understood exactly what her niece had said.

“My favorite.”

She set Gabby down and allowed herself to be pulled into the family room.

“I’m glad you’re home.” Nina hugged her shoulders. “Will you stay over tonight and tell us the whole story?”

Megan nodded and allowed them to take care of her.

***

Shane paced the length of his bedroom and back. Over and over. She’d been gone three days and he felt it in every muscle. Her scent lay upon his sheets, in his bathroom, in wisps of air as he moved through what now felt like a big empty shell of a house. Hebe angry at her. At times he managed it. Usually when he felt like death warmed over at her absence. He resented that physical connection to her as much as he craved feeding it.

At times he vacillated between wanting to call her and never speaking her name again.

She hadn’t called and it pissed him off. Made him sulky and petulant.Nothe felt very often. Normally if he was this upset he’d call Sid and Layla but he got the feeling Lay would be ready to cut his heart out.

Work had filled his time but once he got home he found himself unable to sleep and so he paced and thought. Not always a good thing. He considered, for a brief moment , calling

Cynthia. But in truth, he was married and he had no desire to break his bond with Megan, even as he struggled with his confusion over how to make things work.

Just a week before, his life had been relatively simple and now it just wasn’t.

A pounding on his front door roused him from his thoughts. He hurried to answer, thinking it might be Megan. Instead it was his father, standing next to Sid.

“You’re an idiot. Now let me in.”

His father pushed him aside and Sid followed, kicking the door closed.

“Well hello to you too, Dad. Have a seat, why don’t you?” he said as the two men went into the living room and sat. “You want to tell me what this is about?”

His father’s eyes widened a moment and then narrowed. Shane couldn’t recall ever seeing him this emotional.

“You, boy, sit your ass down and listen up.” Those normally calm green eyes sparked dangerously and Shane found himself obeying just because he was fascinated at this side of his father.

“Sid.” Shane tipped his chin in greeting to his cousin. “I imagine thishasto do with Megan?”

His cousin just shook his head and leaned back.

“You know, it would be nice to get a call from my only child telling me when he mated!

Such an important thing and I have to hear about it second hand. Second hand after you’ve apparently messed it up. I blame myself. I’ve made mistakes. Mistakes you should learn from right now before you throw away the best thing you’ll ever have.”

“I didn’t know how to tell you. Does Mom know?”

Sid, his normally very laid back cousin leaned forward and nearly snarled at him, “I can’t believe you’re worried about that right now. Megan is back in Seattle and Layla is beside herself. The Wardens have drawn a tight circle around her right now and you are public

enemy number one. The only thing keeping Lex Warden from showing up here and beating you senseless is Megan threatening to slice him into pieces if he so much as says boo to you. What is wrong with you? Shane, why did you Claim her if you didn’t mean to keep your oath? You feel it don’t you? Don’t tell me you can’t feel her running through your veins, beating in your heart, the breath in your lungs. How can you think of throwing that away? And for what?”

“What your mother feels is beside the point.” His father shoved a hand through his hair.

“You know she’s unhappy. It’s who she is and I’m sorry I let it go this far. I love her.

She’s my mate and I did the best I could, or I thought I was doing the best I could.”

“Not that I’m not happy to see you and all, but this is not anyone’s business but mine and Megan’s. She wants me to give up everything I am to move up there. How fair is that?

How much does she love me, huh? She wants to change me!”

Sid’s wolf bled into his voice “Bullshit. You want her to stop being a werewolf and pretend to be human. You’re the one who wants to change her in a way that is simply impossible. She’s not asking you to not be a doctor. She’s not asking you to give up your life. She’s asking you to let her be what she is. And if you weren’t such a selfish ass**le you’d see that what she is, is pretty damned important. She’s one of the most powerful werewolves in the country. Most of her family, one she’s close to, is in Seattle. You don’t visit your family, you don’t have many friends here. What are you giving up other than your f**king fantasy that you’re not a werewolf?”