“Those are the basic abilities that every shifter has. There are more that are specific to certain shifters and their animal forms”. I leaned back against the cushions and waited for her to ask the questions I could see were almost bursting from her. I smiled and nodded at her, “go ahead”.

  Jules looked excited as she asked. “Are there shifters for all of the different kinds of animals, because that would be a lot. What is the most rare one you can think of?” She looked at me, her big eyes round with excitement as she waited for the answer.

  “No, there aren’t shifters for every kind of animal, but there are a lot.” She looked a little deflated until I told her, “the most rare shifters ever were dragon shifters, but there are no more”.

  Her mouth formed a little o shape, her eyes round with disbelief. “Noooo…. Dragons”, she whispered. “Did you ever see one?”

  I shook my head. “Sadly, no”.

  Raife took that moment to chime in. “I saw a number of dragons in flight, one time many years ago. They were magnificent”.

  Jules sat in stunned silence, just staring at him. Needing to get back to the discussion, I continued.

  “The reason we’re discussing our abilities at all is because we wanted you to be aware of what you may feel when you turn twenty five and your abilities manifest. We can be relatively certain that you will have both speed and strength. Most likely your hearing, sight and sense of smell will also be enhanced. Everything else, we really can’t be sure, especially what you may inherit from your fae side.”

  She grimaced and asked, “What special abilities do fae have?”

  “Well, for lack of a better description, they have magic. They would not call it that, but for practical purposes, that’s what we can call it.”

  “Magic”, she breathed out almost reverently.

  “The fae are a very closed off society and they do not divulge their secrets with just anyone. Even the few people who may call a fae their friend, they are never aware of exactly what they can do. Because you are part fae, there is no way for us to know what you may have inherited.”

  Jules' face scrunched up a bit at that and she bit down on her lower lip. Holy fuck, seeing that plump lip held in her teeth sent a jolt right to my cock. I quickly looked out the window and tried to think of anything else. Darvon, yup, just thinking of that asshole sent ice through my veins.

  “We have just three days until your birthday, so you need to understand how vital it is that one of us be with you at all times. The best chance they have against us is before your power manifests on your birthday.”

  Jules looked a bit pale. “At all times?”

  Raife squeezed her tighter and added, “Yes, all times”.

  I stood up and stretched, walked to the railing looking out into the darkness of the lake. I let all my senses range as wide as I could reach, searching for anything out of the ordinary. Any snap of a twig or the tiniest scent that did not belong. Feeling nothing, I turned back to the other two. “I’m going to meet up with Jay and the others and run the perimeter, we can switch around two.”

  Raife gave a brief nod and stood, bringing Jules with him. I moved silently down the steps and into the darkness, leaving my clothes on the bottom step and letting the change take me. I loped a small perimeter around the house before leaping the fence and heading to meet Jay and the guys.

  I found them about a thousand yards into the woods, gathered by a large oak tree. I quickly shifted back and stared hard at each one. “Nothing gets inside this perimeter”, I growled. Nothing else needed to be said. Each one of my guys knew their job and would not let anyone get past them. As long as they were still breathing. The six of us shifted back and set off in different directions.

  Chapter sixteen

  Jules

  Raife followed me up the stairs and into the bedroom I slept in last night.

  “I don’t know who these clothes in the closet belong to and I feel bad just borrowing them without asking.”

  “Jules, those clothes belong to you.”

  “What?”

  “I bought them because I was always hopeful that you would be here with me. I’m sorry that your things were destroyed. I wish I could have saved you from that pain, but I’m glad that at least I had clothes for you here”.

  I stepped closer to him and ran my hand down his arm, clasping his hand in mine.

  “Thank you Raife”, I whispered. Tears pushed at the back of my eyes and I knew if I didn’t do something quick I was gonna lose it. I strode quickly into the bathroom. The reflection staring back at me from the large mirror over the sink looked too pale, faint smudges of purple under my eyes that were glassy with unshed tears. I splashed cold water on my face and willed the tears back down. I was stronger than this for fucks sake.

  I finished up in the bathroom, went into the closet and chose a beautiful peach colored short nightgown and went back into the bedroom. Raife was standing in the doorway, much the same way he had been the first time I laid eyes on him.

  “Will you stay with me until I fall asleep?”

  “Of course, my love.”

  I slid between the silky soft sheets and patted the bed beside me in invitation to Raife to join me.

  He lowered himself onto the bed, on top of the covers and turned on his side to face me. I clasped his hand in mine, feeling his warmth all around me, my eyelids already heavy. He leaned in and brushed a kiss on my forehead. “Sleep sweetheart”.

  Thunder boomed overhead reverberating all through the bedroom and I jolted upright in bed. Lightning flashed, illuminating the room and I stared wide eyed at the unfamiliar room as another clap of thunder shook the very walls of the house! Raife’s house, right. Where was he? I slid back down in bed pulling the covers up to my chin. I was alone and I could admit to myself, the storm was scaring me.

  Lightning flashed so strong the electricity charged the air, making a weird strobe light effect, as the thunder continued at a deafening level. I closed my eyes against the bright flashes and tried to take deep breaths, willing myself to stay calm. It was just a storm, a bad storm, but still. I was okay.

  A torrent of rain and howling wind beat at the windows and I thought I heard a cracking noise like tree branches breaking. It was hard to tell with the level of noise, but I thought I heard it again, only this time it sounded like glass breaking! Had a tree branch broken through a window?

  I thought about getting up and searching for Raife or Dallas, but not sure if I should, I lay somewhat paralyzed by fear and indecision.

  The door to my bedroom flew open and bounced off the wall. A man stood in the doorway, a wild look about him with his long, dark, wet hair plastered to his head, his eyes darting about the room. He took a step into the room and I screamed. I jumped to my feet and screamed again as loud as I could, although whether anyone could hear me over the noise of the storm, I had no idea.

  The man darted toward me and I quickly jumped onto the bed and off the other side, keeping the bed between us. He snarled and lunged for me and I threw myself toward the doorway. Another scream tore from my throat. Before I reached the door, another man tore past me and slammed into the intruder. They both went flying to the ground, their movements so fast I couldn’t track them. I pressed myself against the wall trying to avoid the fighting men. They broke apart as one man threw the other across the room where he slammed into the wall. He turned and I recognized Raife! He yelled, “Jules run!” just before he was thrown to the ground. My heart galloped in my chest and my breathing faltered, but I ran.

  In the hallway I could hear other noises above the storm, bangs and thuds and the pounding of feet. I forced myself down the stairs on shaking legs, clutching the railing and trying to make myself move faster!

  At the bottom of the staircase I paused, listening. There was crashing coming from the kitchen but no one was in the great marble foyer. I took a step toward the front door and then I bolted. I grabbed the doorknob and yanked the door open, hit with the full force of the storm! The rain was coming sideways, blown by the gale force winds and I quickly raised my hand to shield my eyes. I pulled the door shut and took off down the front stairs trying not to be blown over by the onslaught of the wind! I skirted the driveway not sure if anyone was out here and stuck to the grass, aiming for the road. I darted behind the large pine trees that grew alongside the imposing stone wall that encircled the property. If I could stay between the trees and the wall, I should be able to stay hidden.

  With one hand on the wall and the other shielding my eyes, I crept forward. The darkness was nearly complete, broken only by the flashes of lightning that lit the sky. The ground was cold and wet beneath my bare feet and I began to shiver from the relentless rain and wind. The silk nightgown I had on was plastered to my body like wet tissue paper and did nothing to stop the shivers now racking my body. I kept moving forward slowly, aware of every sound and movement around me, my legs shaking with every step.

  I paused, the thunder and lightning seemed to be moving away but the rain still came with bruising force, making it impossible to see any distance. A moment before I saw him, I heard the splashing from feet pounding into the wet earth. A huge gray wolf ran toward me and I froze! My back was flattened to the wall, terror seized my whole body and I screamed! My heart thundered in my chest and though my brain screamed at me to run, my legs shook so violently I couldn’t move! Through the rain I heard the deep growling of the wolf as his lips curled back over enormous teeth! He stalked toward me, his yellow eyes mere slits of malice as his body coiled to jump!

  Before his body could slam into mine, a giant black wolf crashed into him, slamming the gray wolf into the ground, then lifting him by the throat and shaking his body back and forth like a dog with a chew toy before tearing out his throat. My breath caught in my throat and it felt like my heart stalled as the enormous black wolf turned his head to me, blood dripping from his fangs.

  My knees gave out and I slid down the wall, my bare butt landing on the cold wet earth. I started to tip sideways as I felt the blood leaving my brain, dark spots before my eyes.

  When my eyes opened, I was being held against a broad, wet, warm chest. Dallas. His arms held me cradled against him as his worried eyes sought out mine.

  “Are you hurt?” His deep voice rumbled in his chest and I could feel it, although the shivering started up again now that I was conscious. I tried to answer but my teeth were chattering so violently, I could only shake my head.

  Instead of going back in the house, Dallas carried me to his truck. He grabbed a blanket from the back and wrapped me in it, before setting me in the passenger seat. He quickly shut the door, got in the driver’s side and started the truck. He turned the heat up full blast and flipped on the heated seat for me before driving down the driveway.

  “What about Raife?”, I gasped.

  “He’ll catch up to us.”

  I pulled the blanket more tightly around myself and tried to relax my frozen body enough to let the heat warm me up.

  “What happened?”

  I looked over at Dallas and realized that he was naked.

  “We’ll talk later. Right now we need to get you warmed up”.

  The shivers wracking my body began to ease as the heat from the seat started to penetrate my frozen limbs. Dallas pulled into a driveway that curved into a dense woodland and snaked slowly uphill. He stopped in front of a massive log home, like the kind you saw gracing the cover of some architectural magazine at the grocery store. I sat still, the shivers mostly gone as Dallas came around the truck and opened my door. He unbuckled the seat belt and quickly lifted me in his arms, slamming the door shut with his foot and striding up the front steps. He opened the massive wooden front door, again pushing it shut with his foot and took off down a wide hallway. I tried to take in my surroundings, but he was moving pretty fast and all I could really glimpse were the huge beams of the ceiling, towering some twenty feet above us.

  He came to a stop in the kitchen in front of a fireplace that was easily tall enough for me to walk into without stooping! He settled me on a plush armchair facing the fireplace and quickly grabbed the throw blanket that sat on the ottoman in front of the chair and tucked it around me.

  Next, he threw some kindling and a few logs into the fireplace and within minutes he had a roaring blaze going, before moving into the kitchen and putting on a kettle. The man was the very model of efficiency!

  Chapter seventeen

  Dallas

  I waited for the water to boil and tried to calm the tremors wracking me. The combination of adrenaline and absolute terror for Jules had left my limbs trembling with a feeling that I was unfamiliar with and did not like.

  When I’d seen that wolf a mere second from leaping on Jules and tearing her throat out, the rage that had coursed through me was unlike anything I’d ever felt! Even gutting him and tearing his throat out, almost severing his head from his body had done little to lessen the rage. Then to see her collapsing to the ground! The absolute panic that overwhelmed me at the thought of her being injured… I don’t know what I’d do if she’d been taken from me! If they’d been successful tonight. To kill her… my mate!

  I pulled in a deep shuddering breath, willing a calm upon myself that I did not feel. I couldn’t let her see me so torn up, she was already scared enough.

  I made two cups of tea and carried them on a tray to place it on the ottoman in front of Jules. I felt only the slightest tremor in my hands as I lowered the tray and hoped she wouldn’t notice. I handed her a cup of the hot tea and settled myself in the chair next to hers.

  She held the cup with both hands and hesitantly gazed at me.

  “Um, Dallas”, she murmured.

  I looked at her expectantly, waiting for her to finish what she had to say.

  “Um, you’re….. you’re naked”.

  She quickly dropped her gaze to the floor but that didn’t hide the crimson blush coloring her cheeks.

  Well shit, I really was distracted! As a shifter, being naked was no big deal. You had to lose your clothes before shifting or you just ended up having to replace a lot of clothing. It was just something you became accustomed to as a kid. Jules, however, was not accustomed to nudity, so I got up and went to the closet in the mudroom where I kept a supply of sweats. After pulling on a pair of black sweatpants, I sat back down with her.

  She chanced a look back up, her eyes slowly scanning my bare chest before meeting my eyes. A small smile lifted the corner of my mouth. Can’t say I didn’t enjoy the look she gave me even if it was too brief. She returned my smile with one of her own and I finally felt my heart calm.

  We sat for a few moments, just sipping our tea and letting the fire warm us. It sounded like the storm had finally passed, just light rain fell now and the thunder was far off in the distance.

  My phone buzzed against the stone countertop, breaking the peaceful moment and I rose to answer it.

  “Tell me she’s okay”, Raife barked into the phone.

  “Yes, she’s here”, I answered.

  There was a slight pause before he spoke and I didn’t have to imagine the relief he felt.

  “We have one guy still alive and we’re questioning him now. I’ll be there when it’s done.”

  With that, he hung up. I looked at the phone a moment before putting it back down on the counter.

  “Fucking vampires,” I muttered.

  I raked a hand through my hair and moved back to where Jules sat.

  “Would you like to have a shower then get some more sleep?”

  “I would”, she answered.

  She started to pull the blanket aside, but before she could I just leaned over and snatched her up in my arms. I took the stairs two at a time, strode through my bedroom and directly into the attached bathroom where I deposited her on the counter before running the water in the shower.

  Gently, I stood her up on her feet and tilted her chin up to meet my eyes.

  “You okay now?”

  “I’m okay now…..thank you.”

  I pointed to the towels then shut the door behind me as I left.

  I couldn’t bring myself to leave my bedroom, even though I knew she was right on the other side of the bathroom door. So instead, I busied myself with starting a fire in the fireplace across from the bed. Then I took a clean tee shirt from my drawer and slipped into the bathroom to leave it on the counter for her. She had no clothes here. My eyes were drawn to her in the shower where her outline was visible through the steam. With both her arms lifted to shampoo her hair, I had to hold back my groan at the sight of her breasts, water sluicing over them. My dick rose quickly in response and I had to tear my eyes off her. I slipped back into the bedroom and waited for her to finish her shower.

  When she emerged from the bathroom wearing my tee shirt that fell to her mid thigh I went and took both her hands in mine.

  “You should try and sleep, you’ve got to be exhausted.”

  “I’ll try”, she gave my hands a squeeze.

  I pulled the covers back on my oversized king bed. She slid under the covers and I tucked them around her before rounding the bed and lying down on the other side.

  “Will you hold me Dallas”? Her chin quivered slightly as she looked at me, her big eyes bottomless depths of blue. I yanked the covers back before getting under them and reaching for her. My arm around her middle pulled her back into my chest, fitting her snugly under my chin against my frame from top to bottom. I wrapped both arms solidly around her not leaving even an inch of space between us. I rumbled softly from deep within my chest and let the sound envelope us. I felt her begin to relax and she sighed deeply. Her breathing slowed and our hearts synced in their beats. She slept.