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"He's also a black panther. That's all."
"Sure." She rested her elbows on the table and looked around the room. "So Kalen is married to the doctor, Mackenzie Grant."
"Mated, not married. Much stronger bond than some piece of paper," he said. "But yes, and they're expecting their first child."
"I sort of got that from the baby bump she's carrying around. Any other mated pairs here, as you call them?"
"Aric and Rowan. Aric has been with the Pack since the beginning, like a lot of the men, but Rowan recently joined the team. She's a former police officer from some vile place called Los Angeles." Daria snickered. Blue pointed to the redheaded wolf and his brunette mate. Then he gestured to a goateed man and a small blond woman.
"Then there's Jax and Kira. Jax is an original member, a silver wolf and RetroCog, meaning he can touch an object and see important events surrounding it. Kira is one of our lab assistants who specializes in DNA and gene strand stuff. Don't ask me more about that, it's confusing. She's also working to build a sanctuary for displaced paranormal beings, and I'm helping her," he said proudly. "That's my job here."
"I think you'll be wonderful at it."
He beamed at the praise, his feathers rustling. "I hope so. Kira is a dear friend of mine and I would hate to let her down."
"I doubt that will happen."
"We have several creatures depending on us, and I'm sure more will come."
That seemed to unsettle her, but she said nothing about it. Blue pointed out some of the other guys, but it was apparently too many people for her to take in. She just nodded politely and chatted with the prince, finishing her burger. When they were done eating, Blue rose.
"It's been a pleasure talking with you, Daria. I'm sure we'll get to know each other much better." He slid a sly smile at Ryon.
Ryon wondered if the prince had the ability to sense their bond, but he couldn't very well ask. He knew that Daria would likely start to feel it, too, if she hadn't already. He'd have to explain soon, as Nick advised, or she might think there was something wrong with herself. He was afraid she would be upset, too.
Blue left to join Kalen. Ryon wiped his hands and laid aside his napkin. "Would you like to see the compound?"
Her eyes held his for a moment, something sparking between them. "I'd love to."
His heart did a little happy dance, but he forced himself to stay cool. This was not a woman to be pushed, and yet he'd had no choice but to change her entire life without her input. He hoped she would forgive him.
Taking the handles of her chair, he guided it into the hallway and turned the corner. "How about the recreation room first? If you're by yourself and can't find who you need, there's always someone relaxing in there."
"Sounds good." She gestured to the place in general. "It's very homey. Not what one would expect."
"The women rallied when we first opened the place and demanded new paint, carpet, the works. They said if they had to live here, they weren't going to live in a drab white box."
"Nick approved that? He doesn't seem the type."
"Nick wouldn't have cared, but he wasn't our commander back then. Our boss was Terry Noble. He was killed in an ambush several months ago, along with some of our team."
"I'm sorry to hear that," she said honestly.
"Our job is dangerous, and death is always a high risk. But we all miss him, Ari, and Jonas. Those are the other guys we lost." He paused. "We thought Micah and Phoenix had been killed along with them, but it turns out that they were being held in a lab facility run by Malik, where his doctors were performing experiments on humans and shifters, trying to perfect a super-soldier."
"That's horrible! I'm glad you were able to get back two of your guys, though. Maybe the others are still out there somewhere?" she asked hopefully.
God love her. "It would be a miracle. All of Malik's labs have been destroyed, as far as we know, and none of the other Pack members were found."
"You never know."
"True. But on a happier note, this is the rec room." Pushing her inside, he came around to stand where they could see each other. "We have all sorts of games in here. Ping-Pong, board games, and the Wii. We're thinking about buying another TV and game system because there's always someone hogging the one we do have."
"Neat room, lots of comfy furniture. I can see why everyone likes to hang out here."
"Just beyond those doors is a field with a picnic area where we play football, baseball, grill out, and whatever other excuse we can think of to get outside."
"With scenery as beautiful as that outside your door, I can see why." She gazed outside thoughtfully. "How can you have a compound in the middle of the Shoshone when it's government land?"
"Because the government sanctions our being here. Those in power who need to know, do."
"I see."
They left the rec room and he took her to the gym. Micah was shooting hoops. Jax was there, apparently working off lunch, lying on his back on a bench, lifting weights. A small, furry brown creature was perched on his chest, curled up dozing with a look of pure bliss on its teddy-bear face. Ryon glanced at Daria, who was frowning at the creature.
"What is that?"
He pushed her closer, chuckling. But not too close. "That's Chup-Chup. He's sort of like a gremlin, or something. Nobody's really sure."
"One of the rescued critters Blue was telling me about?"
"Among others."
"Hey, guys," Jax called as they approached. He heaved a couple more bench presses, then sat the bar in the holder and wiped at the sweat on his brow with his hand. "Move slow and easy. You know how Chup is about strangers."
"You ought to know," Ryon said, ribbing him. "Took you and the furball long enough to make peace."
"Don't remind me. There are body parts that still hurt at the memories." Laughing, Jax stroked the beast's small head. "He likes me well enough now, though."
"I think the steak treats probably helped change his attitude."
"Hey, he has a fondness for women. I had to fight dirty."
Daria leaned forward. "Can I hold him?"
Jax considered Chup warily. "I don't know. Depends on him."
Just then, the creature sat up, stretched and yawned. Ryon privately thought the thing was cute as hell, but he wasn't about to touch it. He'd seen the little shit almost take off Jax's hand once, and that had been enough to convince him that his calling did not lie in taming animals.
Jax sat up carefully, cradling Chup against his stomach as he let the creature become aware of Daria. It leaned forward, sniffing curiously, eyes wide. Then it started straining against Jax's hold, wanting to get to her. Jax allowed it to crawl into her lap, watching it carefully for any sign of aggression and to make sure it didn't hurt her broken arm. So did Ryon, but all the creature did was to begin making his contented little chup-chup noises.
It cuddled against her, whirring like a small motorboat as she scratched its ears with her good hand, both of them clearly in heaven. "I've never seen anything like this," she said in awe. "This is just amazing."
Jax nodded. "He's come a long way. He rarely bites anymore, only if someone startles him, and we're damned careful not to do that."
"I'll bet. Do you know where he came from?"
"Originally? No idea. We found him on an op a couple of years ago when we were dispatched to eliminate some rogue demons. Chup had been in their cave, but we're not sure why he was with them."
Of course, her mind caught on one word, and she stilled. "Demons?"
Jax cringed. "Uh, yeah. Anyhoo, he's happy these days, thanks to Kira working with him."
"He sure seems to be."
She was really taken with the creature, and Ryon enjoyed watching her so much he hated to leave. Eventually, Chup scrambled from her embrace and reached for Jax in a clear plea to be taken back.
"Spoiled rotten little menace," Jax grumbled. But he scooped up the beast, his actions belying his words.
"Thank you for letting me hold him."
"Hey, don't thank me. The brat makes his own decisions." With a wink, he went back to his workout.
Ryon escorted her from the room, taking her outside. She was quiet as they enjoyed a turn around the grounds, and he could tell she was still thinking about the gremlin.
"It's a real shame the world can't find out creatures like Chup exist," she said, almost sadly. "But I understand why that would be a disaster."
"It is a shame, isn't it? We can enjoy them here, though. In the end, that's the safest thing for them and the general population."
"Don't you worry about Chup or the others getting loose?"
"Some. We take precautions, though. Chup has earned full run of the building, and Blue has improved in being integrated, but some are still in cells in Block R-that's rehabilitation. We're replacing Block R with the sanctuary Kira and Blue are starting."
"Blue was in a cell at one time?" She was horrified by this news.
"For a while, until Kira joined us. When we brought him here, he was traumatized and uncommunicative. He was severely depressed and tried to harm himself, and we didn't know what else to do with him. It took Kira to make us see that he needed compassion, not chains."
"She sounds like a special woman."
"She is. Kira has totally changed our ideas on dealing with paranormal beings. Not all of them are bad, any more than all humans are bad. Some are just confused and hurt."
Daria thought about this. "In a way, she does what I do-study different life-forms around her and tries to make sure they're thriving."
"That's a good comparison, yes."
When her questions tapered off and her head started to nod, he knew she was getting tired. "You need to rest after your ordeal. Why don't I show you to your quarters and you can sleep for a while?"
"That sounds good. I guess I'm not as healed as I thought."
"A couple of days and you'll feel like a million dollars."
At her door, he punched in the security code Nick had texted to him while they were walking, and then told it to her. "I'll write it down so you can keep it with you. Once you learn the number, it's quicker and easier than using a key."
"Okay."
He rolled her inside and found the rooms were sort of bare, devoid of the homey touches that cheered these functional spaces. "Sorry it's kind of plain. This room has never been occupied, that I know of."
She gave him a droll look. "I'm used to camping outside, with bears, wolves, big cats, and any number of snakes and insects that love to inhabit my sleeping bag. I'll deal."
"Good point." In her bedroom he gave her a hand up out of the wheelchair, and then sat her on the bed. "Do you need me for anything else?"
"I'm fine for now, thank you."
Damn. He was hoping she'd say yes. Give her time, Ryon.
Leaving her temporarily, he went and found a notepad and pen on the bar that separated the kitchen from the living room. Quickly, he wrote all the information he thought she'd need and carried it back into the bedroom. She was lying curled on her side, drowsing, when he got there.
"I wrote down my cell phone number, the number to my quarters down the hallway on the right, and the code to your door. If you need anyone else here, there's a list of extensions in the nightstand drawer."
"Thanks. I don't have a cell phone anymore, though, to call you with."
"Use the one there," he said, pointing to the cordless by the bed. "We'll run into town tomorrow and get you a replacement."
