I’m not really sure what I have to offer her. I have no inner animal to shift into to defend her. My warrior skills are excellent, and in the water, not many can best me, but I still doubt what I can bring to the team. Mer are looked down on by a high percentage of the influential shifters, and me being Colbie’s mate could be detrimental to her rule.
Watch Team One explained she’s only shifted once, and that it’s our job to get her used to it over the next few days. They also told me that I am not the only new member of their team. Apparently, they’ve always known there are six of them, but the final member had been missing. When the magic activated today and I almost drowned on dry land, two more were added to their group—me and another unknown.
General Bryson ordered for me to join Watch Team One, saying he will inform my old team of the switch. He assured me I will retain my title as captain, but that my responsibilities now lie in keeping the queen safe. That’s not all it entails though. No, this woman is my mate, and not only do I want her to feel safe, but I also want her to feel the same kind of unconditional acceptance that she showed me. Unlike an animal shifter, there’s nothing inside me pushing to be near her, but I feel it all the same—the pull to my mate and urge to hold her close and never let her go, amongst other more carnal desires, which will have to wait for now. We have a job to do, and making sure she has a handle on her new abilities is at the top of the list, as well as retrieving this other shifter.
It didn’t surprise me when they explained the reasons they think he stayed away. More mer than I can put into words feel the same way, but my cousin Elliot and I could see that it was not productive to continue to shun the rest of shifter society. It builds animosity and hate, and a civil war between species won’t do any of us any good, especially with the rise in feral shifters. We don’t need to be fighting a war on two fronts. The two of us joined the shifter military in hopes that we could attempt to foster better relationships.
King Lucas has made every effort to reintegrate the mers, fairies, and equines into shifter society, but he has forever been rebuked. Hopefully with the new queen, we can usher in a change that is so desperately needed. When Colbie said she invited mer and fairy representation to the council, it renewed my hope in our cause. I can only pray that the mer council doesn’t reject her offer, but I know my people are stubborn. Hopefully seeing her with a mer mate will be the chance we need, especially one whose father is head of the mer council. I will send my own missive to my father, asking for him to consider the offer. I just hope whoever he selects to interview aligns with the same ideals of fostering better relations.
“Come on. I don’t know about you, but I’m dying to get my eyes on Colbie’s gorgeous creature again.” Brodie, who is a bit of a clown, stands up and stretches before grinning at us. “Let’s shift and run there.” His grin drops, and he frowns at me. “Right, you can’t shift on land.”
“Neither can Colbie if she’s a water creature,” I point out a little slowly. Maybe he’s taken one too many hits to the head.
“Colbie’s animal is as comfortable on land as she is in the water,” Hunter replies, also getting to his feet. “But I don’t think she should shift so close to the palace. We’re trying to keep her creature under wraps for now, so she has a card up her sleeve on challenge day, but I’ll shift, and Micah and Colbie can fly with Gem and me to the waterfall.”
What kind of animal is she that is at home both in the water and land? I rack my brain, trying to think of one, but come up with nothing.
“How about we make this interesting then? First one there gets to have the queen in their bed tonight.” Liam stands up and is already walking toward the exit.
My eyes widen, and Colbie’s mouth drops open in shock as Brodie and Gryffin jump to their feet and hurry after him, stripping off their shirts as they go. Gem huffs and rolls his eyes.
“Well, the palace staff are in for a treat with Watch Team One half naked in the halls. Rumors will be flying within minutes.”
“Not going to join them?” Hunter asks with a gleam in his eye as he reaches out and tugs Colbie to her feet, dragging her along behind him.
“What the fuck?” she splutters, struggling to keep up with him as he all but drags her through the palace.
“One thing you need to know about us is that although we love each other fiercely and are loyal to one another beyond anything, we’re competitive as fuck,” Hunter explains as Gem and I hurry after them.
“Yes, and Hunter and I have a distinct advantage in that we can fly,” Gem gloats. “They need all the head start they can get.”
“Is my bed going to be a regular incentive?” Colbie asks, sounding exasperated. “I don’t want you fighting with each other.”
“Relax, darling,” Gem coos. “When we come to your bed, there will be no fighting, only complete cooperation and focus on your pleasure, but anything else is fair game.”
“I’m not a toy to be fought over.” She sounds annoyed, and I feel the urge to soothe her, but before I can say anything, we arrive outside of the palace, and Hunter strips.
Colbie’s expression becomes heated as she takes in all of him in his naked glory. I’m not into guys, but even I can admire his toned body. Like me, Watch Team One has honed their bodies to be lethal weapons, and you can see it in all the rippling muscles on display.
“We know, but there’s nothing like a little incentive to get the blood flowing. Fancy a ride?” He smirks, and nobody misses the dragon’s suggestive tone, but Colbie just huffs and waves a hand.
“Well, go on then. They already have a head start.”
She and I watch as Gem also removes his clothes. The men, although similar in height, couldn’t be more different. Hunter is large and brawny, his build similar to mine, but Gem is more streamlined, like a runner or a swimmer, but neither of them have an inch of fat. They are pure muscle. We watch as they shift. Unlike mine, which is only a slight change, both of them change completely.
Hunter’s body twists and grows, morphing until he towers over both of us. His deep, eggplant purple dragon stretches his wings and shakes his body similarly to what I’ve seen a wolf do. He lowers his head, which is bigger than us, and smoke drifts out of his nostrils as he blinks large eyes with elongated pupils.
Gem’s transformation is very different. He shrinks slightly, and flames cover his whole body as he turns from human to bird and hovers in the air. The phoenix shrieks loudly before pulsing his wings and shooting off into the sky like a flaming rocket. Hunter’s dragon nudges Colbie, and she offers me a hand. “Come on, we don’t want them to beat us.”
She drags me over and tries to scramble up the side of the dragon, but she’s just too small, so I wrap my hands around her waist and give her a boost before leaping up after her. We’re barely seated before his wings expand, and with a leap and pulse of his wings, we’re airborne. Colbie tips to the side, and I grasp her, hauling her up against me and holding her tightly while I grip one of his dragon’s spikes.
“Whoa, thank you. I almost slipped,” she shouts over the rush of wind as I tuck her in close, making sure she’s secure. She wriggles back into me, and I feel her warmth seeping through the thin cotton of my shirt. Her rounded bottom presses against my groin, sending a wave of desire through my veins. Her scent of frosting and cake batter tickles my nose, and I can’t stop the possessive rumble that leaves my mouth as I lean in to get a larger dose. Her hair whips around as I tuck my nose into her neck, unable to stop my tongue from darting out to see if her skin tastes as good as she smells.
“Did you just lick me?” she asks, turning to gawk at me incredulously.
My cheeks heat with intense embarrassment, but I shrug and smile. “You know what they say. I licked it, so it’s mine.” I don’t wait for her response before I lean in and kiss her. I know she’s new to this shifter dynamic, but as a whole, if we see something we want, we take it, and she’s my mate, so there’s even less of a reason to wait. Her lips are soft as she gasps, but her body melts into mine as she returns my kiss with enthusiasm.
Before it can get too out of control, the bastard dragon dives, and Colbie shrieks and grabs for his spikes to stop herself from falling. We plunge down, but as we rapidly approach the ground, he spreads his wings, and our descent slows before we touch down with a shaking thud. Colbie glances around, and there’s no sign of the rest of the team.
