“Richard and the others thought the Caedo were a nonissue, but it seems they started acting up again. They got wind of the little civil war we had with the Purists and decided to exploit the rift. Anyway, you wouldn’t have to worry about that. All you have to do is come to the ranch and check out the horses. When you’re done, you can split.”
“You’re killing me, you know that? Today was supposed to be my first day of vacation in the three years since I opened this place.”
“Perfect.” Layla smiled brightly. “You can vacation in Montana at the ranch. It’s gorgeous in the summer. Actually, it reminds me of the farm where we grew up.”
Tatiana glanced down at the sleeping puppy in her arms.
“You can bring the dog.”
“Thanks.” Tatiana chuckled. “Actually, he seems to be an empathetic little soul. I have a hunch he’d be a great therapy dog.” She locked eyes with her sister as an idea bloomed. “I’m bringing more than the dog. I’m bringing Matt too.”
“Shit.” Layla laid her head back on the sofa and tapped her jean-clad legs with her trimmed fingernails. “Bringing a human to the ranch is not going to go over well with anyone, especially not with the Guardians. Dominic in particular—he’s a big one for rules and tradition.”
“Sorry, sis,” Tatiana said all too sweetly. “That is a deal-breaker. No Matt, no doc. Whoever this Dominic guy is, well, he’ll just have to like it or lump it.”
Tatiana meant it. She wanted to help her sister, but she needed a security blanket, a way to be sure she wasn’t going to get schooled by the Amoveo twenty-four-seven—a bunch of shifters trying to talk her into this mate nonsense. If she brought a human with her, then the Amoveo would have to be on their best behavior. Otherwise, they would risk letting the proverbial cat out of the bag.
“Fine. I’ll run it by Richard and Salinda. If that’s the only way we can get you to help, then I’m sure they’ll be okay with it.” Layla stood up. “So you’ll come to the ranch and help us find out what’s making the horses sick. Right?”
“Yes.” Tatiana rose from her spot on the desk and met her sister at the center of the room. “I’ll book Matt and me a flight and be there in a couple of days.”
“Right.” Layla nodded. “I’ll pick you up at the airport.”
“No,” Tatiana added quickly. “I’ll rent a car and drive there myself. Really, it’s fine.”
Layla let out sigh of frustration as she hugged her sister vigorously, which elicited a whine from Cass.
“It’s okay, little buddy.” Layla rubbed his ears and looked fondly at Tatiana. “I’m sorry as hell that the horses are sick, but I can’t say I’m disappointed to have you visit.” Her smile brightened. “Hey, you never know, maybe you’ll find your mate, or at least get a visit from him in the dream realm.”
“No thanks.” Tatiana laughed and shook her head vehemently. “When love finds me, it will be the old-fashioned way. No dreams. No weird shit. Just good, old-fashioned, true love and romance. We are half human, in case you’ve forgotten.”
“I guess that means that you and Matt aren’t…”
“Nah.” She made a face. “I think he’d like more, but we’re better as friends. No sparks. Y’know? I want a guy who will knock me out and have my head spinning.”
“Oh, I know exactly what you’re talking about.” Layla’s face turned as red as her hair, and she stuffed her hands in her pockets. “Actually, until I met William, I didn’t really know what sparks were, and believe me, when you find your mate, you’ll know what I’m talking about.”
“When I find the love of my life, there will be plenty of sparks.” Tatiana winked. “See you in a couple of days.”
Tatiana watched as Layla’s image wavered as though she were underwater, and as static crackled in the air, she vanished in a blink. As quiet settled, guilt swamped her.
She lied to her sister.
Tatiana already found her mate, or more to the point, her mate found her. She watched him time and again from the shadows of the dream realm as he hunted and stalked her in his tiger form. She had no idea what his name was or what he looked like as a human, but she did know he was dangerous. A predator. Yet for all his searching, she managed to stay hidden, and if she had anything to say about it, she would keep it that way.
“I’d have killed him twice if I could’ve,” Dominic growled, his voice bouncing through the sterile medical facility.
“Easy there, tiger,” Steven teased as he inspected the injury on his face. “You may be a badass from the Tiger Clan, but you’re still my patient, so sit still or you won’t get a lollipop.”
Steven’s teasing did nothing to improve Dominic’s mood. He was itching to get back outside and patrol the property, but the doctor was taking his sweet time. Steven, a member of the Coyote Clan and an excellent healer, was known for his use of humor to put his patients at ease, but right now, the last thing Dominic wanted to do was laugh. He was surprised Steven even had a sense of humor left given the suffering he had endured over the past year.
Dominic’s sense of humor, on the other hand, was nowhere to be found. There was nothing funny about what had transpired in the past week. Two Caedo assassins, members of the one human family who knew of the Amoveo’s existence, snuck onto the ranch and attempted to murder the prince. Dominic killed one, but another shot Eric, the other Guardian, and escaped into the surrounding mountains.
Dominic sat unmoving on the hospital bed as Steven inspected the almost-healed injury, which ran down the left side of his face. Hands balled into fists in his lap, he stared past the healer to the blank wall behind him and concentrated on keeping his fury in check. Getting pissed at Steven wouldn’t help anything.
“The stitches have dissolved, and the wound is beginning to fade. You’ll have a scar, but from what I hear, chicks dig scars.” Steven removed the latex gloves and tossed them in the trash. “I have to be honest. I’m surprised you healed this quickly, especially considering you haven’t found your mate yet. Most fully mated Amoveo take longer to heal from a laceration as severe as this one.”
Steven picked up the tablet on his desk and entered information as he continued speaking.
“I guess you Tiger Clan boys are as tough as they say you are. Some say the tigers are the fiercest of all ten clans, and after treating you, I’d have to agree. However, you can’t avoid the inevitable outcome if you don’t connect with your mate.”
Frustration flared, and despite Dominic’s best efforts, his sharp brown eyes flickered and shifted into the glowing amber eyes of his tiger. He breathed deeply as he struggled for self-control and willed them back to their human state.
“A mate is irrelevant,” Dominic said evenly. “As Guardian, my loyalties and responsibilities lie with the prince and his family. Wounded or not, I will continue as Guardian and keep our prince, and everyone else on the ranch, safe.”
“Right.” Steven ran a hand through his shaggy blond hair and shook his head. “I get it, dude. You are not one to fuck with. You more than proved it when you killed that Caedo assassin and ripped his head off like he was made of tissue paper.”
“I would’ve done the same with the other one if I’d found him, but Eric’s wound looked severe and—”
“And you did what anyone would do. You stopped to help your friend and fellow Guardian. Eric healed as quickly as you did, by the way. It’s too bad we can’t figure out what’s making the horses sick, but from what I hear, they’ve got someone in mind to help.”
“Yes.” Dominic’s mouth set in a tight line. “One mare died this morning, and given the recent Caedo activity and the continued animosity with lingering Purists, Richard is reluctant to bring in the local veterinarian.”