“My brothers and I play shifters sometimes,” Bobbi added. “My older brother and my younger brother are always bears because they think that means they get to tackle people. I’m a cat.”
Liam’s mouth twitched. “Why a cat?”
Bobbi looked faintly offended by the question. “Because cats are elegant. And they don’t have to listen.”
She had a point there.
“Can you shift right now?” Bobbi asked.
“Bobbi,” I said.
“What?” she said. “I’m curious.”
Liam looked at me, the question hanging in the air between us. I should have said no. My nervous system was already walking a tightrope.
But I wanted to see.
God, I really wanted to see.
“It’s your house,” he said softly.
Bobbi clasped her hands together. “Please.”
I exhaled slowly. “If you break anything, I’m billing you.”
Liam stood.
There was no drama to it. No glow. No cinematic swirl. Just a change in posture, in focus. His body moved with controlled precision. Bones adjusted beneath skin. It should have looked wrong, but it was beautiful. His height folded into a new form. Broad shoulders restructured into something equally powerful but lower to the ground.
And then he was a wolf.
A massive, sleek wolf with thick fur that caught the last light and held it. The eyes were sharp, intelligent, and unmistakably Liam.
To say he was beautiful was inadequate and deeply unfair. He was magnificent.
Bobbi didn’t scream. She leaned forward and whispered, “Oh.”
Markie fluffed his feathers.
Liam lowered his head slightly, watching us both.
I forgot to breathe for a second—not from fear, but from the sheer physical reality of him. I could see the strength in the line of his back, the quiet alertness in the way he held himself. This creature, this ancient mass of instinct wrapped in muscle and fur, had been making me tea this morning.
Bobbi crawled a little closer. “Can I touch you?”
Liam looked at me again.
“Gentle,” I said.
Bobbi extended her hand and carefully ran it along his side. “Oh, you’re very soft.”
His tail wagged, and I couldn’t help but grin.
Then, before I could prepare for it, he crossed the small bit of space between us and pressed against my leg, his fur warm along my shin and thing.
I stilled.
He rubbed against me, his shoulder bumping my hip slightly, then he turned his head and pressed his face into my hand.
