“Has someone moved in with you? I thought it was just you three men.”
The sheriff says the last part with barely veiled disgust. He probably thinks we’re fucking each other like rabbits and clearly disapproves.
“Oh,” Marcus says smoothly, waving a dismissive hand. “My cousin is visiting from New York. He’s here for the school break.”
“I see,” the sheriff mutters, clearly unconvinced.
Once the door closes behind them and they leave, I shake my head at my brother. “No idea how you keep your cool in a situation like this.”
He chuckles and pats me on the back. “Years and experience.”
Kieran and Goldie come back downstairs, Goldie’s eyes round and wary.
“We were eavesdropping,” she says, and I snort. I could smell them, hear her breath catch when the lawmen explained why they’re here—she doesn’t need to tell me when she’s listening in.
“Don’t worry, Goldie,” Marcus says, determined. “We’ll protect you. You’re not going back to that family.” The way he spits outfamilyhas my eyebrows rising. Kieran looks at him strangely again, chewing on his bottom lip.
“Okay, what’s going on here? There’s something you two aren’t telling me,” I say, waving my head to encompass my brothers.
Marcus sighs, seemingly coming to a decision. Nodding at Kieran, he puts an arm around my shoulders and leads me to the couch.
“Kieran found something today when he was setting up things for Goldie,” he begins once we’re all seated. The brown bear looks at his clasped hands, while our girl looks between us, hardly breathing. “It looks like Goldie’s fiancé’s family… There’s no easy way to say this, Adrian.”
I stand up, unable to stand still. “What’s going on?” I ask again with a growl. “Tell me!”
“I think they’re connected with Sylvie’s abduction,” Kieran answers quickly, the words jumbling together. Goldie gasps, covering her mouth with her hands.
“We think they’re the reason she’s dead,” Marcus finishes grimly.
“How?” I demand, my vision blurring at the edges. My bear prowls beneath my skin, his coat bristling, making me itch to shift.
“There were some money transfers between the Westons and the Harlowe’s right when… when it all went down. I’ll look into it more, but so far?—”
Whatever else he was about to say gets cut off when I roar loud enough to rattle the windows. In a corner of my mind, I register Goldie’s fearful gasp. But I’ve lost control over my form, over my emotions and urges. My hands turn into paws, claws extended. My nose grows into an elongated snout. I drop to all fours as a thick, white coat replaces my skin.
“Oh, shit!” Kieran hisses.
I rear back and roar my pain into the rafters.
15
KIERAN
“Get her out of here, Kieran!” Marcus shouts the command, but I ignore him.
Adrian is prowling toward the front door. It’s wider than your average doorframe, for occasions such as this. We try to shift outdoors, but when emotions run high, we don’t always have full control. Like now, and this is my fault. I know Adrian is still triggered by his sister’s unsolved murder, and bringing up any new information will be tricky. But I am also certain that this time, Goldie is the key to bringing him back to us.
Marcus shouts my name again, but I continue to ignore his anxious commands. Goldie stands to his right, and I hold out my hand to her. “Come here, Goldie. Adrian won’t hurt you. He needs you.”
Her big blue eyes widen further, but I don’t smell fear, only her honeysuckle scent and a slightly elevated heartbeat. “How does he need me?” Goldie’s voice is soft, as if she thought speaking loudly might spook the massive polar bear.
She takes my hand all the same, Marcus staying on the far side, ready to wrangle Adrian if we need him. “He’s hurting.It’s been ages since we found information on Sylvie, and sometimes when we get emotional, we shift. I’ve seen you calm him, and I think having you close would help now, too.”
“What should I do?” she asks with a nod, absorbing my words without a single hesitation.
Our girl is so fucking brave, and I know in my soul this is the woman for us. “Talk to him. He can still hear you and understand you. We don’t lose our humanity completely in shifted form. He’s still very much the grumpy book lover in there.”
Goldie’s lips turn up a little at my words. She walks slowly to stand in front of him and blocks the doorway. “Adrian. Did I ever tell you about this book I read, about a girl who gets revenge on all kinds of bad guys?”
