Her Tiger - Fiona Davenport Page 0,24

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“Mommy! Mommy!!” Kyla, our nine-year-old, came running into the kitchen waving something around wildly in her hand. “It’s here!” She skidded to a halt in front of me and held up a copy of the Vogue that showcased my dress and my magnificent mate. “You look so beautiful, Mommy,” she gushed with a dreamy smile.

“How is that different from any other day?” Tane piped up as he strolled into the kitchen with our two-year-old son, Rush, on his hip. Azlyn, who was a year older, trailed after them, her thumb lodged in her mouth and her ever inquisitive eyes taking in everything around her.

“’Cause she’s on a magazine, Daddy,” Kyla informed him indignantly. With one hand propped on her small hip, she looked every bit the diva that she was.

“I think she’s even more beautiful right now,” he replied with a wink in my direction.

I snorted as I brushed some of my unruly hair away from my face. I’d been lost in my studio all day, and I looked a complete mess from the pencil holding up my hair, to the chalk residue on my fingers, to the ratty sweats I’d thrown on after hopping out of the shower this morning.

Kyla cocked her head to the side, squinted, and looked me up and down. Then she nodded matter-of-factly. “Yeah, you’re right, Daddy. Mommy is always beautiful.”

I laughed and pulled my baby girl in for a hug. “Thanks, sweetie. Right back atcha.”

“All my girls are gorgeous”—Tane sighed as he slid his free arm around me—“which is just one more reason to be grateful that we’re shifters. I don’t have to worry about any pups sniffing after my mate or my daughters.”

I laughed and turned my head to kiss his cheek. “Famous last words,” I teased.

“What the fuck did you just say?” Tane shouted at Kace. His hands clenched into fists, and a growl that warned how close he was to shifting emitted from his throat.

“Calm down, Tane,” Kace commanded. In just about any other circumstance, Kace’s tone would have Tane lowering his eyes and baring his neck in submission to his alpha. Tane was as loyal as they come, and normally, his allegiance to his alpha was unwavering. The only exception was when it concerned his mate and cubs. Something Kace understood, which was likely why he didn’t force Tane into submission...yet.

“You want me to calm the fuck down? When you just told me that your son is mated to my daughter? My sixteen-year-old daughter?” He roared the last words, and his canines elongated as his skin rippled. If I didn’t defuse the situation fast, Tane was going to shift and try to tear his alpha apart.

“Tane, honey,” I called softly, laying a hand on his arm. His whole body lost some of its rigidness as my voice and touch penetrated the cloud of anger surrounding him. “I’m sure Kace is as concerned about this as you are.” Honestly, I wasn’t sure what to think about the whole thing. Finding a fated mate wasn’t exactly common in the first place, but to have it happen so young was unheard of as far as I knew.

Kace nodded and folded his arms across his chest as he watched Tane with wary eyes. “Talon and I had a talk. He knows nothing can happen until she’s eighteen.”

“I don’t want him anywhere near my Kyla,” Tane snarled.

I sighed and gently patted Tane’s arm. “You can’t keep them completely apart, honey,” I murmured. Allegra's oldest, Jake, and Talon had always been close with Kyla. But as they’d gotten older, I’d started to notice the way Talon and Kyla had seemed to gravitate more to each other with each passing year. They were best friends. That alone would make tearing them apart impossible. But now, knowing how strong the bond was between fated mates, I was actually afraid of what it would do to them if they were kept apart.

Tane glared at me and shook his head stubbornly. “She can go stay with Mom and Dad in New York.”

“And what would you do if I decided to up and move away?” I raised an eyebrow and waited for him to stop looking for a way to answer without lying.

Finally, he grunted in frustration and muttered. “Follow your ass and drag you back home.”

I nodded. “Is it really such a bad thing? Not only do you know your daughter won’t spend her life searching for her fated mate, but it’s Talon. Deep down, you know he would never hurt her. He’ll put her first in everything he does, and he’ll love her like you love me.”

“Over my dead-fucking-body will he love her like I love you,” Tane growled.

Kace snickered, and I threw him a glare that made it very clear he was not helping. Honestly, I was flying a little blind here because I had no idea if Talon and Kyla were experiencing the same desperate physical need for each other that Tane and I had when we were first mated. I sent up a fervent prayer that it wasn’t that strong, or my next words would end up being a lie. “I’m sure nothing will happen until they’re adults. Talon respects you, and more importantly, he respects Kyla.”

Tane vibrated with energy, and for a minute, I wondered if I’d failed to calm him and he was about to shift and race off to rip Talon’s throat out. I breathed a sigh of relief when he took several deep breaths and seemed to become a little more in control.

Tane must have been having similar thoughts to mine because Kace spoke up, answering my unasked question. “Talon loves her. He loved her before they knew they were fated mates. But he swears that the sexual”—Tane growled, and Kace threw him a warning look before continuing—“pull isn’t overwhelming like it was for us. Clearly, we are guessing here, but I think that just as our bodies and beasts are aware that we have an eternal mate, they also know when the time is right to seal that connection.”

Kace’s words confirmed one thing, though; Talon was obviously feeling desire for Kyla, even if it was manageable at the moment. Tane picked up on that too because his eyes narrowed, and he pointed at Kace, growling, “If my baby girl ends up pregnant before she’s married, I’ll make it impossible for Talon to have any more kids. He won’t even have the ability to try.”

“Fair enough,” Kace agreed. He watched my mate in silence for another minute, then spoke again. “Talon wanted to be the one to tell you, but I didn’t want you to kill my son before he could explain. He was trying to be a man, to respect you as his mate’s father and his alpha’s third. I convinced him to let me take the brunt of your reaction, but he still wants to talk to you. Can I trust if I send my son over here that you will be reasonable?”

“Of course,” I replied immediately. Tane didn’t respond verbally, but he gave Kace a sharp nod, and I saw one corner of his mouth tick up. We both knew what courage it was taking Talon to come over and face Tane himself. He was an amazing kid and was quickly growing into an amazing man. When it came down to it, I wasn’t upset over the mating, though I would have preferred it happen when they were a little older. And I wasn’t sure how Kace had managed to keep Larissa from rushing over to start planning a wedding and baby showers.

Curious about Larissa’s dad? Link appears in My Father’s Rival and will get his own story soon!

Join us over in Fiona’s Smutaholics on Facebook for sneak peeks before it releases.

If you’re in the mood for more shifters while you’re waiting, Rochelle Paige (the Davenport half of our writing duo) has the first book in her shifter series FREE! And Elle Christensen (aka: Fiona) has some great Fae romances, starting with Protecting Shaylee which is FREE!

*prices current as of June 28, 2020.

About the Author

The writing duo of Elle Christensen and Rochelle Paige team up under the Fiona Davenport pen name to bring you sexy, insta-love stories filled with alpha males. If you want a quick & dirty read with a guaranteed happily ever after, then give Fiona Davenport a try!

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