Page 93 of Stubborn as a Shadow

Unlike Jake, Jeremy had taken the time to grab his winter jacket before plunging outside to greet his mate, Adrian. When they collided, Adrian picked Jeremy up and spun in a circle. It was strange to see my old teammates so joyful, but I understood that joy better now that I’d met my own mate. We’d never had people waiting for us to return from a job before, now we did. Even me.

“Eric? Where is…?” Carter’s question trailed off.

I glanced around to see that the backseat of the limo was empty, and Eric was nowhere to be seen.

“Shit,” Carter muttered.

“Go find Eric. Don’t worry about all this.” I waved to the inn. “Someone will debrief you later.”

Carter didn’t wait for anyone else’s opinion. He sniffed the air, then in a whoosh of magic he shifted into his bear form and lumbered after the missing man.

The vampire had exited the limo too. He was leaning against the nose of the vehicle with his arms crossed over his chest. Everyone eyed him curiously, but no one approached him.

Morgan slipped his hand into mine and squeezed. He stood a little behind me, and when I looked over my shoulder at him, his eyes were wide as he took in all the supes. I hated how unsure he suddenly was. Morgan was never unsure.

He swallowed hard. “I should have put on my wig and grabbed my cloak before getting out.”

“Hey, it’s okay. These people are safe. They are my friends.”

“But they’ll see me.”

Then Ogden appeared in the doorway. His mate, Simon, peered over his shoulder, much the same way Morgan was looking over mine.

“Morgan,” Ogden breathed. “It’s really you.”

“Oh! Hey!” Morgan’s fear eased at the sight of the dragon shifter. He waved.

“Come in, come in,” Odgen said. “It’s freezing out here.”

Still clutching my arm, Morgan stepped forward. I matched my pace to his. The vampire didn’t move.

“Come on. You’re coming in too,” I huffed, waving for the vampire to follow us. I hadn’t known a lot of vamps, but I was pretty sure they didn’t actually need spoken invitations to enter a building.

Keenan nodded and walked along behind us with a sense of confidence he always seemed to carry. But he wasn’t my concern. Morgan was.

I wanted him to like my…

Huh.

This strange little mix of people were more than my acquaintances. They weren’t even my friends, were they? They were my family. It’d just taken finding my mate before I could see what was right in front of me all this time.

35

OPERATION: POT OF GOLD

MORGAN

As soon as I was through the door, Ogden yanked me into a tight hug.

“Are you really okay?” he whispered in my ear.

I nodded, even though I could feel at least a dozen sets of eyes watching me. I was okay. I was safe. I was with my mate. And after Nelson got the crystal looked at, I’d finally get the answers I needed.

“Good.” Ogden pulled back, holding me by my shoulders as he studied me. His blue eyes snagged on the pretty lock of hair that showed I was mated, at least according to Nelson. I knew he hadn’t lied about it, but it was still a novel idea to me.

“That’s new.” The dragon’s gaze darted to Nelson’s hair with its matching mark. “That makes sense. Congratulations on finding your mate.”

I grinned and patted the patch of hair. “It looks good, right?”