Shifted Love Volume 1 - Fiona Davenport Page 0,76
for the cover of Vogue to the desert an hour outside the city. He wanted me on set to oversee the dress, and since I had said no to Fashion Week in New York, Milan, and Paris for the past ten years straight, I gave in. Besides, I couldn’t argue with his brilliance. The setting was perfect for the deep red dress with a plunging neckline that went all the way to the waist where the skirt poofed just a little and fell to the ground.
We showed up at the site and waited around for over an hour until we finally received word from the model that she couldn’t make it. Everything was set up, and the cover needed to be shot today, so it was a disaster. Then things took a turn for the worse when Trinity suggested I step in for the model. I promptly told her she’d lost her freaking mind and threw a donut at her.
Unfortunately, everyone else thought it was a brilliant idea. Even Tane...which shocked me at first, but I should have known better. He was so proud of me, and no one thought I was more beautiful than my sexy tiger. According to him, he had no problem letting the world see what belonged to him. The next thing I knew, I was all dolled up and wearing my creation in front of a camera.
Speaking of my husband...I glanced around, looking for him, and my anxiety ratcheted up another couple of degrees without his presence to soothe me.
“It’s missing something,” Brian, the campaign director grumbled.
“Like a professional model?” I muttered.
“No, you’ll do,” he replied absently, causing Tabara and Trinity to roll their eyes. “If only we had some kind of animal or—” he broke off and let out a girlish scream, scrambling backward until he knocked into the snack table.
Everyone was suddenly staring behind me, though Brian was the only one who looked completely terrified as he tried to scramble under the table. Confused, I glanced to the side, and that’s when I noticed the huge shadow falling over the ground. My lips grew into a smile as my beast of a mate ambled up next to me. My tiger bumped his head into my thigh and purred, making me laugh as I stroked his soft head. I immediately felt one hundred percent calm and at peace. Like always, he’d known exactly what I needed, and he’d found a way to make it happen. Adding a tiger to the photo would be amazing, but it was the comfort of having him next to me that gave me the confidence to go through with the whole thing.
After a moment, I realized why Brian was the only one who was terrified of the situation. He was the only other human on set. Even Cree, the cameraman, was from a local pack. I’d met him in the industry a few times and was ecstatic when Salazar was able to book him for this shoot.
“Fucking perfect!” Cree shouted with a pump of his fist. “Brilliant!”
“What’s wrong with you people?” Brian screeched as he peeked out from under the table. “There’s a murderous monster about to kill us all, and you want to take pictures with it?”
“Hey!” I snapped as rage infused my blood. “He’s not a monster, and he wouldn’t hurt—” I broke off when I heard the threatening growl coming from the six-hundred-pound cat beside me. “I mean not unprovoked or anything.”
Tane took a step forward, and Brian let out another bloodcurdling scream before he disappeared under the table again. Then he popped up on the other side and took off toward his limo. Once his car had burned rubber—so to speak—and disappeared over the horizon, Cree burst out laughing. Trinity, Tabara and I began to giggle, and I even heard Tane’s amusement rumbling in his chest.
After a few minutes, we calmed ourselves and got down to business. The photoshoot was bound to be unbelievable with my stunning tiger by my side, and I couldn’t wait to see the proofs.
“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