The bear shook her head and Brittany just stared at her hands and thick arms obviously starting to climb back into hysterics.
“Don’t you dare,” Cecilia snapped. “Remember how your mom got you out of it before? She got you to remember that day when you won that mathlete thing.”
Peter took up the reins. “Remember that day clearly, Brit. You won because you’re so smart. And that boy asked you out. What was his name?”
“Jordan,” Brittany said as she closed her eyes. “Jordan and I kissed,” she murmured as she clearly relived the event. And again, in that soft yellow glow, Brittany returned to human. Right at the exact moment her father drew up short.
“You kissed? What do you mean you kissed?”
Brittany gave her father a very human eye roll. “Dad, I’m sixteen. I’ve been kissed before.”
“You have not! I mean, you have? When?”
Cecilia held up her hand and the two abruptly stopped. “It’s Abby’s turn.” She looked at Hank.
“Same thing Abby,” he said. “Remember who you are. Remember that you’re Brittany’s mother and Peter’s wife.”
“We’re here for you, Mom,” Brittany said, her voice strong.
“Yes…” Peter’s voice cracked, and he had to clear his throat before he could speak again. “Yes, honey. Remember our…remember…” He softened, right there before their eyes. His shoulders relaxed, and his face took on a nostalgic glow. “I remember the first time I saw you on our wedding day. We should have picked a church with air-conditioning. I was sweating bullets in that tux. And then the doors opened and there you were with your father. I’ve never seen anyone look so beautiful before. You were so perfect, I couldn’t believe how lucky I was. That’s what I kept thinking. About how I was so damned lucky to be marrying my best friend.”
The bear opened her mouth. At first Hank thought she was panting or trying to speak, hard to tell. But then came the golden glow, the fur dropping into it. Her face pulled in and there she was. A full human leaning against the bed with her eyes on her husband.
“Peter,” she whispered.
He didn’t answer. He was too busy kissing her.
Hank watched it, his heart squeezing tight. Right here was the best of human kind. The happy result that everyone longed for. Mom, dad, and kid buried in love. He remembered that kind of love from his own family, but it just hadn’t seemed to be in the cards for him. Girls shied away from him when they saw his scar, but the real problem started after his parents split up. Everyone thought it was because of his brother’s death, but the reason was that his father couldn’t handle what he’d learned about his own children—that they changed into animals—so he’d left. Hank had realized then that any woman would not only have to see past his scar but his shifter nature, too. Wasn’t going to happen, he’d thought, but now suddenly he had hope. If there was a future for these three, then maybe he and Cecilia could make it work. Maybe Cecilia—
His thoughts froze when he caught Cecilia’s expression. She was focused not on the sight in front of her, but on her tablet, which she’d grabbed sometime in the last minute. She wasn’t seeing Mom and Dad find themselves despite the massive revelation. And she wasn’t seeing teenager Abby groan as she threw a blanket over her mother’s bare shoulders. No, her attention was away from the love and deep into the science. He could see the scans she was tapping as she apparently studied the last of the data that had been uploaded from whatever machines he’d unplugged. And she wasn’t smiling; she was frowning in annoyance. Because he’d screwed up her data.
Hell.Had he fallen in love with a woman who was all work, all the time? Someone who couldn’t stop long enough to live a full life?
“Damn it! Damn, damn, damn it!” she cried.
Everyone turned to look at her as she started stabbing with her finger on the tablet.
Hank shifted, his protective instincts looking for danger even though his mind knew she was angry at something on her computer. “What is it?” he asked, his voice tight.
“The data! It’s corrupted.”
“I’m sorry—”
“No, you don’t understand. Not just that data,” she jerked a finger at the machines. “All of it on Brittany.” She dropped the computer on the bed while she threw up her hands. “It’s like there was a glitch or something in the records. Our one good outcome, gone!”
She threw up her hands in disgust and glared at the ceiling as she obviously tried to get a hold of herself. Hank wanted to reassure her. He wanted to suggest maybe it was on the backup or the server or the cloud, but he knew it wouldn’t help.
Thanks to the magic, the data was gone. He knew it as surely as he knew his own name.
“I’m sorry,” he said.
She glared at him. “It’s the…the magical force thing?”
Hank nodded. It didn’t make sense, but this wasn’t the first electronic glitch that had helped hide shifters.
“Fucking damn magic!” she spat. “I’m so done with it.” Then she grabbed her tablet and jerked open the hospital room door. She was about to stomp out when she noticed the circle of medical personnel and security who stood there. “What?” she gasped, obviously startled.
“Dr. Lu, is everything all right?”
