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“It’s prosecute, and go ahead and try it. You threw a punch at a police officer, Sean. I was well within my rights to defend myself. Be glad I only hit you once,” Deacon growled out.

  “You broke my goddamn nose,” the prisoner whined again as Deacon drove back to the station.

  Deacon thought hard about stopping the car and slapping the young man until he stopped talking. He had pulled the twentysomething cougar shifter over after seeing him driving erratically on Old Ridge Road near the Grey Mountain Ski Resort. It turns out the car was stolen, and Sean Bowen, one of the cougar shifters who had moved into Grey Lake from Connecticut two years ago, was heavily intoxicated. I better not hit him. I’ll just end up with more paperwork. I need to get some sleep.

  “You better watch it, wolf. I have lots of friends that won’t like that I was arrested.”

  What an idiot. This little punk had no idea who he was talking to. Deacon Clay was a wolf shifter who was born and raised in Grey Lake. After his mother was killed and his sonofabitch father was put down a few years later, Deacon was raised by the then-alpha and his family. Ted Jensen and his human wife, Annie, had taken Deacon in when he was a messed up 12-year-old and raised him as if he were one of their own. His foster brother, Heath, was the current alpha as well as the Chief of the Grey Lake police force. His younger foster sister, May, was also a cop and a pain in both Deacon and Heath’s asses.

  Deacon was the beta in the wolf pack and essentially served as Heath’s right-hand man and main enforcer. He was a beast, and that wasn’t bragging—it was just true. Deacon and the Jensen siblings were wolf shifters since birth, as were a good number of the Grey Lake townsfolk. He had used his impressive abilities as a fighter to help Heath control a lot of out-of-control shifters including other wolves, panthers, and bears ever since he started shifting in his teens. It was probably the only useful thing he’d inherited from his abusive father, the ability to fight.

  He groaned, thinking about the cougars. Ever since they moved to Grey Lake, they had been nothing but trouble. A large pride of them had moved from Connecticut to work on the construction of some new businesses that had sprung up in the area. As long as they were busy working, they were OK, but after-hours, a good number of them were a drinking and drugging bunch of trouble. Sean was a repeat offender, liked booze a little more than he should. When the kid drank, he tended to do stupid things like steal cars and break into the homes of the few humans who lived in Grey Lake.

  It was important the humans never found out about shifters. The only humans who really knew of their existence were those that were mated to shifters or those human children born from shifter parents, which happened every now and then. When the cougars committed crimes against the humans, it was a risk they’d catch one of them in the act of shifting, and that would bring a whole lot of unwanted attention to Grey Lake.

  He pulled into the police station and led the handcuffed cougar shifter through the prisoner entrance.

  “Sean, nice to see you again,” Chief Heath Jensen said as Deacon took off the man’s handcuffs and locked him into one of the station’s six shifter-proof reinforced cells.

  “Screw you, chief. I want to file a complaint against him.” Sean gestured to Deacon with his head as he rubbed his wrists.

  “Yeah, I’m sure I’ll hear all about it in a few. I’ll be back to talk to you,” Heath said, following Deacon out to the front of the station where most of the officers had their desks and where Heath’s private office was at one end through a frosted glass door. Heath gestured for Deacon to follow him. Deacon trailed Heath into his office and sat down while the chief closed the door and walked around his enormous desk.

  “So, did you beat up the kid?” Heath asked after sitting down at his desk and leaning back in his chair.

  “What? No! He threw a punch so I hit him once, but that was it. He went down quick, and I cuffed him.”

  “Were there any witnesses?”

  “No, but it’s the truth,” Deacon yelled, but then realized he should have more respect for his alpha. He bared his neck and lowered his voice, “I’m telling the truth. I’m sorry if I sound upset, but I haven’t been sleeping worth a damn.”

  “Nightmares again?” Heath asked, eyebrows furrowed.

  Deacon flinched. He hated talking about personal, touchy-feely stuff with anyone, especially his other brother. He could only nod.

  “Your mom?” Heath asked, leaning forward onto his elbows on top of the desk.

  Deacon nodded again and kept his head down. He couldn’t face his alpha—he was ashamed. He had been having dreams of his mother’s death for years off and on, but they had become worse, more vivid as he had gotten older. He could hear her screams as if he were still in the room with her. It wasn’t worth sleeping if he kept having those same horrifying dreams.

  “We can’t help you if you won’t talk about it,” Heath said quietly. “You were only a kid. There was nothing you could do to help her.”

  “It’s fine. I know. I just need some sleep. I’ll be fine.” Changing the subject, Deacon raised his head and said, “Did you know that Tessa hired an outsider to work at her shop? Some girl from Rhode Island according to the plate on her jeep. Something’s off with her, though. She smells like a shifter, but doesn’t act like one.”

  Strangely, Heath did not appear surprised. “Maybe she can’t shift. That’s rare, but not impossible. How’d you hear about this?” Heath asked.

  It was true that sometimes shifters, especially those born from human-shifter pairings, inherited some shifter abilities but were unable to completely shift into their animal form.

  “I found her at Hanover Hill. She pulled her car over and tore through the woods after her dog, only her dog is not a dog. She was leading around a wolf shifter on a leash. He had a collar with his name on it and everything.”

  Heath frowned. “You’re sure it was a shifter?”

  Deacon huffed a laugh. “One-hundred percent wolf shifter—I could tell. He smelled a little off, not quite right, but he behaved like a submissive wolf. I think he saw the cougars that were hidden in the trees. He was staring right at them and growling. The woman seemed completely clueless. I don’t think she had any idea three cougar shifters were watching her. There were three males. She could’ve been attacked,” he said angrily. His face turned hot. It could have been bad. She really could have been hurt and she had no idea. She was defenseless.

  “I’ll have a word with Tessa and try to find out what’s going on. You better get some sleep. You look like shit. If you can’t get some sleep, I’ll have to insist you see someone about these dreams for your own good. I need my officer and my beta fully functional. This isn’t over, but your shift is, so go home.” Heath stood, rounded the desk, and grasped Deacon’s shoulder as Deacon stood. “I’ll go deal with our cougar frequent flyer.”

  “Thanks,” Deacon said quietly and walked out of Heath’s office ready to collapse into sleep.

  Chapter 3

  Iris and Tessa spent the next hour unloading the boxes from her jeep. After giving Riley some food and water, the women returned to the bakery. The rest of Saturday consisted of Iris learning the layout and routines of the shop. She returned back to the cottage close to six with a promise to head to Tessa’s with Riley for dinner at seven.

  Standing under the spray of the shower, Iris ran through the events of the past few months. She couldn’t believe her luck. She had emailed and snail-mailed her resume out to small bakeries and restaurants all throughout New Hampshire, Vermont, and Maine about a year ago, hoping for a fresh start. At that point she had been working as a pastry chef at the Union Depot in downtown Providence for almost six months and was really tired of trying to keep her anxiety levels down. Medication had almost no effect on her. She had been prescribed a variety of different pills since her teenage years in an effort to control the anxiety that gripped her, but nothing seemed to work. She was doing yoga three days a week and trying to meditate for relaxation. She also played with Riley, w
ho functioned as her therapy animal, any time her anxiety levels peaked to help calm her down.

  She’d gotten so tired of just existing in the city. There were so many people, so much noise, so much congestion. She was tired of fighting to just be. She was sick of feeling like she was drowning. She’d thought a small town in a beautiful setting would be a nice change of pace. She’d been so excited when Tessa called her to offer her the position of head baker in her coffee shop slash bakery in the vacation spot of Grey Lake.

  On top of the stress of living and working in the city, she had to deal with the constant nagging of her family to go back to school for a real career. To say they were not supportive of her vocational interests was an understatement. She came from a long line of what her father liked to call “distinguished land barons.” She liked to think of them as upscale real estate salesmen. Her family, especially her father, Alden, and older brother, Aiden, had expected Iris to follow in their footsteps and, after getting a degree in business at an Ivy League college, would learn the ropes of the family empire. Her chest hurt just thinking of Aiden. Her only sibling was a good ten years older than her and had been her protector from the day she was born until he went off to college in Boston. When he returned four years later, his once sunny disposition was replaced by cold indifference at best and hostility at worst.

  When she instead decided to go to culinary school to learn how to be a pastry chef, both her Dad and brother concluded that if she wasn’t going to be a developer, then she could marry one. By the time Tessa had contacted her with a job offer, she’d had enough and was ready to get away from it all. She’d replied to Tessa that she was definitely interested, and now, three months later, she was out here on her own.

  She dried off, quickly dressed in a yellow floral sundress and sandals, and threw her still damp chestnut hair up in a loose bun. She gave herself a once-over in the full-length bedroom mirror and grabbed the keys to lock up the cottage. Normally, she would have brought dessert, but having just arrived in town, she hadn’t had the chance to buy any supplies. Tessa insisted that all she needed to do was bring herself and Riley. “Come on, boy, let’s go try to be social.”

  They walked the short distance to Tessa’s farmhouse. Just as Iris had raised her hand to knock, Tessa’s front door opened.

  “Change of plans, guys. In honor of your first night in town, we’re going out to eat, my treat,” Tessa said, walking out the door.

  “But I’m not dressed to go out in public. I’m a mess,” Iris sputtered, following Tessa to her shiny white Silverado.

  “What! Your dress is cute. You’re fine. We’re not going anywhere fancy anyway. We’re just going to the pub,” Tessa insisted, getting into the truck. “It’s laid back there, and they allow animals on the patio. You’ll love it.”

  “Oh, ok…great,” Iris said, trying to sound as enthusiastic as Tessa. “Come on, Riley.” She opened the back door of the cab for Riley. She then climbed up into the passenger seat as lady-like as she could in a sundress and closed the door.

  “Trust me, there’s almost no place in Grey Lake that doesn’t allow casual. Remember, this is mostly a tourist town. Mostly city folk coming up for the weekend or for the week to enjoy themselves. It’s not real stuffy anywhere, except the Grey Lake Inn Dining Room or the Yacht Club,” Tessa said as she drove toward the main drag. “We’re going to the Hawk’s Eye Pub and Grille tonight. My friend Sadie and her husband Linc own and manage it. They have their own brewery on the premises and a great chef that they stole from one of those fancy Boston restaurants.”

  “Sounds great,” Iris said, forcing a smile, but she was already starting to feel uneasy. Her heart started to beat faster and her face flushed with blazing heat. As if he could sense it, Riley started to whine and sat up on his haunches, leaning his head toward Iris. She turned to the side and scratched between his ears. His mottled gray fur was so soft and thick. His coat was not as fluffy as she had thought Alaskan Malamutes’ were, though. Riley’s coat was smoother and sleeker than the pictures of his breed she had seen online. She figured he must be a mutt, a malamute and something without a fluffy coat. She started to feel her pulse slow as she rubbed his muzzle. “That’s a good boy,” she cooed to the dog as the action calmed her.

  “We’re here.” Tessa announced a few minutes later as she pulled into the parking lot of a gray two-story colonial-type building. Being a Saturday night, the parking lot was just about full. Tessa shut off the truck and opened her door, surveying the parking lot. “It’s a full house tonight.” The tiny woman somehow managed to gracefully leap from the truck. Iris mimicked her, trying not to flash anyone walking through the parking lot, and then opened the door for Riley.

  “Whoa. Is it always this crowded?” Iris asked.

  “Over the past couple of years, we’ve been getting more and more tourists. Years ago, we mainly would get an uptick in visitors in the middle of summer and the winter, but recently we’ve been seeing tourism year-round.”

  “I guess word got out this is a beautiful place. It must be good for the bakery?” she asked.

  “Sure, but there are pluses and minuses to everything,” Tessa said noncommittally.

  Tessa walked toward the front door with Iris and Riley close on her heels.

  “Sweetie, how are you?” Tessa greeted a tall, thin brunette manning the front desk.

  “I’m fine. I haven’t seen you for a couple of weeks. What have you been up to?” the hostess asked.

  “I’ve been working like a dog—ha!—but I finally have some help. Sadie Hall, this is Iris Williamson, my new baker extraordinaire,” Tessa put her arm on Iris’s shoulder, slowly drawing her closer to Sadie.

  “Well, nice to meet you. And who is this?” Sadie asked, gesturing to Riley.

  “Nice to meet you, too. This is Riley. I hope it’s OK for me to bring him?” Iris answered.

  “Sure,” Sadie said, briefly glancing at Tessa. “We love animals in Grey Lake, that is as long as they behave.” She furrowed her brows at Riley, a look of confusion briefly passing over her features.

  “Oh, he’ll behave. He’s a sweetie,” Tessa answered for Iris, rubbing Riley’s head.

  “How about a nice table on the patio?” Sadie asked.

  “Perfect. That would be great,” Tessa answered cheerily.

  They sat down on the patio at a table facing the woods. It was close to 7:15, so it was starting to get dark out. The pub had lanterns, making it a very cozy experience. They each ordered one of the on-site brewery’s craft beers along with a dish of water for Riley. Iris had just started perusing the menu when a tingling sensation crawled along the back of her neck.

  Chapter 4

  Deacon was exhausted. He had just walked up to his front door after finally leaving the station when his cellphone rang. From the annoying ringtone, he could tell it was May. His little sister had set the tone soon after he bought his new smartphone. She thought it was hilarious that every time she called Deacon, “It’s Raining Men!” came screaming out of his back pocket. There was no point in resetting it again since she managed to get her hands on it each time he tried. He groaned and answered the phone, “Yes, May, what can I do for you?” His sister was so crazy.

  “That’s no way to speak to your favorite sister,” she teased.

  “You just have that title because you’re my only sister,” he mumbled back to his foster sister and fellow police officer. “I’m tired. I just got done with my double. I need a shower and sleep, not nonsense.”

  “Well, you get a shower, but no sleep just yet. We’re going out tonight, my second favorite brother,” May said. “Tessa says we need to go to the pub. She is taking out her new baker and wants us to come meet her.”

  “Oh, no. Not tonight. I’m in no mood for that witch’s games tonight. I’m tired. Besides, I’ve already met the woman,” he muttered angrily.

  “Stop it. You know she’s a phoenix, not a witch. She always has a good reason for her so-called games,” May cont
inued. “She just wants us to come down to the pub and eat dinner, her treat. She’ll stop by with her new friend on their way out. That’s it. No big deal. By the way, how come you’re so tired? You’re not that old. And how do you know this woman?” May said.

  “I just haven’t been sleeping well. And you know it’s always a big deal when Tessa is involved.” He grunted, rubbing his beard, thinking about the mysterious phoenix. He was used to fighting all sorts of shifters and didn’t fear much, but even he had to admit he was sort of afraid of the only phoenix shifter in existence—well, the only one he knew of.

  “You never want to go out anymore. It’s always work, work, work. You need to get out a little, see the townsfolk you work so hard to protect,” May argued.

  “It’s because I’m exhausted after all my work, work, work. I need sleep, sleep, sleep,” he answered.

  “C’mon, I already said we’d go. Tessa won’t be happy if I have to call and tell her you refused.”

  “Well, I suppose you won’t let this go until we do this, right?” he asked.

  “Exactly, so the faster you get ready, the faster this will be done and you can get your grumpy butt to sleep, you boring old man,” May teased. “And you still haven’t answered my question.”

  Old man, huh? He had just turned 30 last month to May’s 24. He wasn’t as old as Heath, who was 34. He studied himself in his entryway mirror while trying to get off the phone with his sister. Not old, but pretty damn tired.

  “I’m surprised you don’t know. I thought you knew all the gossip that happened in this town. This woman is the one I found out in cougar territory, wandering around trying to get herself killed.”

  “Oh, the shifter who doesn’t know she’s a shifter? Heath mentioned something about it. Sounds like an exciting story.”

  “You need to watch it. Don’t say anything about shifters to her before we speak with Tessa. We don’t know what, if anything, she knows about us.” Deacon groaned. “Ok, what time is this free meal scheduled for?” he asked.