“Got it,” said Logan. “Is he any good as a cook?”
“He did all the cooking for our cousins. I figure he and Steel can take turns and with Theo there to help, it’ll at least provide a short-term solution.”
“Hmmm, well you should know that Quin knows about Dakota. Theo spilled the beans during the pajama party when he suggested doing a baby shower for Kieran and me. My guess is Mason will also find out shortly.”
Snorting, Jackson rolled his eyes. “Great, well that takes care of one problem. I need to have a discussion with Theo and Norm about keeping pack secrets. Regarding Quin, Hunter will be calling me this afternoon, so I’ll run it past him.”
“Okay, you should also know if it turned out Quin wasn’t a member, he was planning to have everyone sign a petition.”
Chuckling, Jackson said, “Let me guess…Kieran’s idea?”
“Uh-uh…my lips are sealed.”
“Wise man. It doesn’t matter because I don’t think it’ll come to that,” Jackson smirked.
“Good. It will do Quin a world of good to be part of a pack again,” Logan said.
“Why is that?” asked Jackson.
“Don’t know but our spirit thinks so. I get the feeling he hasn’t had a very happy life.”
“Yeah, when I first met him, his fear of me was so strong, I could taste it,” Jackson said.
“Youarea very scary dude, you know,” Logan chuckled.
“Fuck off! I’m half Omega and they are notscary, as you put it.”
Chuckling, Logan stood. “Yeah? Maybe you should have your Omega half tell that to your Alpha half.”
Jackson gave his twin a fake frown. “Go! I have work to do.”
Laughter trailed after Logan as he headed up to his studio; his mate needed a fucking dance and Logan was up for it, in more ways than one.
~/~/~/~/~
After a restless night brought on by her anger at Josiah, Willow rose early, slipping out the French doors of her suite. Breathing deeply, she closed her eyes, concentrating on finding her inner calm to relieve her of negative feelings.Not going to happen.Giving up, she shifted, giving herself over to her tiger, hoping a run in her animal form would do what she apparently could not. Bounding into the woods, her tiger took over, running at a breathtaking pace until she was deep into the forest. Finally slowing down, her tiger explored different paths, relishing the freedom that Willow had denied her for so long.
After an hour, Willow’s tiger slowed to a walk, ascending a steep path until she was near the top of a mountain. Clearing the last patch of brush, she reached an outcropping of rock where the Shaman and a Siberian tiger were calmly waiting, watching her. Stopping ten feet away, her tiger whined, dropping to the ground, cradling her head between her paws. Sniffing, her eyes widened when she scented one of Hope’s sons.
“Hello, Willow,” Kieran said, walking slowly over to her.
Catching a movement behind the Shaman, she saw the other tiger padding docilely behind Kieran, obviously trying to show he meant no harm. Returning her focus to the Shaman, who was now within touching distance, her tiger chuffed.
“May I touch you, Willow?” he asked softly. After hearing another chuff, Kieran placed his hands on the back of the tiger’s neck burying his fingers in the fur. As he closed his eyes, his hands grew warm, allowing his spirit to pass through them and into the tiger until it found Willow. Increasing the heat, he began to remove the guilt and anger from her, replacing the empty spaces with love.
Seeing his mate’s aura darken from his exertions, Logan wrapped his paws around Kieran’s legs, giving him additional strength. When Kieran had insisted Willow needed to shift into her tiger so he could help her, Logan was concerned her tiger might seriously hurt his mate and their pup. That’s when Kieran suggested Logan shift into a Siberian tiger; it would keep Willow’s tiger calm, his mate assured him. Although still somewhat on edge, Logan had to admit that being a tiger was pretty cool.
After shifting, he first became aware of his size, followed by the strength rippling through his muscles, but overshadowing those attributes, was the speed at which his tiger could run. Even with Kieran on his back, Logan’s tiger was easily twice as fast as his wolf. After hearing Kieran laugh and shout with joy during their journey to the spot where Willow’s tiger was headed, Logan knew he’d want to do it again…and soon.
Releasing his hands from Willow’s tiger, Kieran leaned back against his mate, grateful for his support. His eyesmet the glowing eyes of Willow’s tiger and, seeing her pain gone, he grinned. “Feeling better?”
Searching her tiger and herself, Willow found the anger and hatred that had plagued her since the massacre was gone, leaving both of them with a sense of peace and acceptance. Thinking back over the last six years, she finally realized how much keeping her secret had cost her. Nodding in response, she chuffed, thanking the Shaman for his help in freeing her from the cage she’d put herself in.
“Perfecto!” Kieran said. “We’re heading back, want to join us?”
Nodding, Willow’s tiger stood, watching the Shaman climb on the Siberian tiger’s back and then, with Kieran’s laughter floating on the early morning breeze, she followed them down the mountain.
~/~/~/~/~
