Love may be blind, but hell hath no fury like a
Hawk being denied his mate.

Hawk shifter Gage has never felt like he fit in—not
when he was a teen struggling to survive on the
streets and not now that he’s part of the coalition.
But he puts on a happy face to hide his feelings
and his battles with his inner demons. The only
thing that brings Gage any happiness is Branson, a
blind Lion shifter who is sexy as hell and smarter
the rest of the coalition put together. Too bad
Branson has made it clear that he wants nothing to
do with Gage.

Branson has no idea why a hot young Hawk

sifter would want damaged goods like him. For
years, the rest of the coalition has ignored Branson
and he’s gotten used to the solitude, making
Gage’s attentions particularly unsettling. Despite
his misgivings, Branson finds himself becoming
more and more drawn to Gage.

Then a shocking secret from Gage’s past is

revealed—a secret that could destroy not only the
Hawk, but the whole coalition. Branson finds
himself facing the biggest dilemma of all—does he
choose the coalition or the man who’s managed to
capture his heart?

The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this
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monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is
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fine of $250,000.

Please purchase only authorized electronic editions,
and do not participate in or encourage the electronic
piracy of copyrighted materials. Your support of the
author’s rights is appreciated.

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters,
places, and incidents either are products of the author’s
imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance
to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is
entirely coincidental.

Gage’s Awakening

Copyright © 2012 Stephani Hecht

ISBN: 978-1-77111-093-8

Cover art by Martine Jardin

All rights reserved. Except for use in any review, the
reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in
part in any form by any electronic, mechanical or other
means, now known or hereafter invented, is forbidden
without the written permission of the publisher.

Published by eXtasy Books

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Gage’s Awakening

Lost Shifter 16

By

Stephanii Hecht

Tiffany, Amber and Amanda—Thank you for taking

such good care of him for me.

1

Chapter One

age tensed, trying to breathe past the pain that
was burning a path of fire down the middle of

his back. The only sounds in the small, brightly lit
room were his occasional hisses of pain and the
steady buzzing of the tattoo gun.

“I told you this was going to hurt like a bitch,”

Carson, the resident IT and unofficial tattoo artist,
said.

“It didn’t hurt this bad the last time I got one,”

Gage replied, gripping the edges of the medical
table so tightly his knuckles turned white.

“Yeah, but that was made before you shifted for

the first time, and it was a human version of a
tattoo, which is why you don’t have it anymore.
The first time you changed into your Hawk form,
your body automatically healed it. That’s why
shifters have to use special ink and metal
whenever we pierce or tattoo ourselves. That way
it sticks.”

Okay, to be fair, Carson had warned Gage it

would hurt, but this went beyond normal pain. It

G

Stephani Hecht

2

felt as if the guy was using a knitting needle to
inject lava into Gage’s back.

“I still don’t know why you wanted to make it

so big,” Carson commented.

“Because I never want to forget again.”
“Forget what?”
“That I’m a Hawk and, no matter how much I

want it, I’ll never be something else.”

Carson paused so long that Gage turned to look

at him. As per the norm, the Cheetah could have
easily passed for an employee at Hot Topic. With
inky black hair that had purple streaks running
through it to the numerous piercings, Carson was
the most unconventional character of the coalition.
This is maybe why Gage felt such a strong
connection to the guy.

Not in a sexual way or anything. No, some

other feline had stolen Gage’s heart a long time
ago. It was just that Carson was an outcast, much
like Gage was. Although Carson wore his
differences outside and proudly, like some kind of
badge. Whereas Gage did his best to keep his
hidden and tried every day to deny to himself that
they existed.

“So what? You’re a Hawk. We already knew

that, so you didn’t need to get one tattooed across
your back to prove it. You could have just shifted
in the cafeteria in front of everybody and saved
yourself a lot of pain,” Carson said, getting back to

Gage’s Awakening

3

work.

“It’s more of a reminder for myself. Somebody

recently went out of their way to remind me that
I’m just a dirty bird and that I shouldn’t even be
associating with felines.”

God, how it hurt to even repeat those words,

and they had been spoken to him months ago.
One would have thought that he’d have gotten
over it by now. But nooooo, lame ass that he was,
he continued to wallow in his hurt feelings and let
the words marinate in his brain until they seemed
to have taken a permanent front row seat in his
thoughts.

“Let me guess, this somebody was Branson,”

Carson surmised.

And there they were, on the topic of the said

feline who had stolen Gage’s heart along with any
hopes of him ever finding a mate. For he knew
that now that he had fallen for the Lion, no other
would do for him. Gage wasn’t sure how he was
so certain of that fact, but he just knew that it was
true. And where did that leave him? Well and
truly fucked and not in a good way either.

“He still hasn’t come for it,” Gage replied dully,

his heart breaking just a bit more.

“Come for what?”
“The coin I took from him.”
“Yeah, he did. It was November I think and he

chased you down in the cafeteria and mauled you.

Stephani Hecht

4

Jacyn said that if you hadn’t have shifted, they
would’ve had to give you stitches.”

“They would have only had to have given me a

few and it was my fault for trying to pull my leg
out of Branson’s mouth when he was in Lion
form,” Gage immediately defended. “Besides,
that’s not the time I’m talking about. Right before
Christmas, I snuck into the historical archive room
and stole the coin again.”

“Why? I know you do it to get his attention, but

it doesn’t seem to be having the effect you’re
looking for. If anything, I think the guy dislikes
you even more.”

“I know, which is probably why he hasn’t come

looking for it this time,” Gage replied glumly.

The pain continued to radiate across his back,

but all of a sudden it didn’t even begin to compare
to the ache in his chest. Even then, the coin rested
in his pocket, seeming like some heavy weight
despite the fact it was no bigger than a modern
day quarter.

“What were you going to do if he came after

you a second time? Thrust your head in his mouth
and give us all a circus show?” Carson drawled.

“No, worse. I was going to confess my feelings

to him…again.”

“I take it the first time you did it, things didn’t

turn out too well going by what you’ve already
said.”

Gage’s Awakening

5

The resigned way Carson stated that hinted that

the Cheetah knew something about Branson’s
past. While Gage wanted to beg for Carson to
spill, experience had taught Gage that Carson
wouldn’t reveal anything until he was damn good
and ready. Which was usually after Gage spilled
his guts first.

Left with no other option, Gage did just that.

Letting out a deep sigh, he said, “Branson said he
was too old for me and even if he did go for young
brats, a bird would be the last shifter he’d be seen
with. He said he’d rather fuck a Scorpion and suck
a Tarantula.”

“Ouch! Branson always did have a way with

words.”

“Why did he have to be so hateful?” Gage

asked, knowing the question probably made him
sound every bit like the brat Branson accused him
of being.

“That’s just the way Branson has always been.

There’s a reason why Mitchell put him in the
historical archives room. Hell, haven’t you noticed
that Branson doesn’t have any friends?”

Come to think of it, Carson did have a point.

The only one Gage ever saw going in and out of
Branson’s office was Skye and that was only
because he was the Lion’s younger brother.

“I just assumed people kept their distance

because they considered Branson defective

Stephani Hecht

6

because he was blind,” Gage said.

Carson let out a snort. “That may have been the

case several years ago, but since Mitchell has taken
over, he’s made it a point that nobody is to be
treated like a misfit. Or maybe, better yet, he tries
to make sure it doesn’t happen. Some of us are still
treated like freaks when his back is turned, but it’s
not nearly as bad as when his father ruled.”

Gage knew Carson spoke from personal

experience. Up until a few years ago, he had been
unable to hold his Cheetah form, and many in the
coalition had treated him like trash, even going so
far as to call him by the nickname Rat. That had all
changed when Carson mated with Keegan,
Mitchell’s younger brother. Now, not only could
Carson hold his shift, but he sometimes even went
out on missions. Which must beat always being
stuck in his cramped IT office.

“I don’t think Branson is defective,” Gage said

in a near whisper.

“I know. Even when some said you were

stealing things from him just to be mean to the
blind guy, I knew you were doing it to get his
attention.”

“The only time he would even talk to me was

when he was chasing me down to get something
of his back.” Gage let out a groan that had nothing
to do with the pain in his back. “How pathetic is
that? The only way I can get noticed by the only

Gage’s Awakening

7

guy I’ve ever really liked is to commit petty
larceny against him. And now, that’s not even
working, because I’ve had this damn coin a month
and he has yet to come and get it.”

“Maybe it’s because he hasn’t noticed it

missing, yet?”

“Come on, we both know that’s not true. Blind

or not, Branson knows every inch of that room. So
if anything turns up missing, he’s the first to
notice.” Gage paused, desperately trying to think
of something—anything that would get Branson’s
attention. “Maybe if I snuck in there and moved
all his furniture around? That’s sure to make him
mad enough to come after me.”

Carson froze, a look of disapproval going over

his face. “Dude, did you just suggest moving stuff
around in some blind guy’s home? Not even I
would stoop that low, and I’m the asshole of the
coalition.”

“I thought that was Shane.”
“No, Shane is the psycho. Big difference. He

loves to kill people, and I just like to annoy the
hell out of them.”

Gage thought that one over. “Okay, I guess I

see your point. So I assume you won’t help me
move the heavy stuff around then?”

“No, in fact, I think you may want to think of a

better plan. Like a candy-gram or something.”

“Asshole,” Gage muttered.

Stephani Hecht

8

“See, I told you that’s what I am,” Carson sang

way too brightly.

He gave Gage’s back one last wipe with a cloth,

before saying. “Okay, I’m finished. You want to
take a look?”

Carson arranged a couple of mirrors so Gage

had a clear look of his back, and the results were
everything that he had hoped for, and more. A
Hawk adorned the entire width of his back, its
wings spread in midflight.

“It’s only black right now, but if you want, I can

add some color later on,” Carson offered.

“No, it’s perfect the way it is,” Gage said, his

gaze drinking in the image of the tattoo.

He couldn’t help but wonder what Branson

would say if he saw it. Since the Lion could only
see while in his animal form, it would probably
be, Oh, lookie, somebody dressed up my meat for the
day. Still, a small part of Gage wished that Branson
was the type who found tattoos sexy.

Of course, since it was a bird and Branson

despised that form of shifter, he would probably
hate it and have a couple of scathing remarks to
throw his way. It was probably for the best that
Branson never saw it.

“Branson has never been able to forgive the

Hawks for the part they played in the mass Raven
attack,” Carson suddenly revealed.

Gage spun around, shock and dismay coursing

Gage’s Awakening

9

through him. “But that was over twenty years ago.
I was just three years old then and my family had
nothing to do with it.”

Or at least Gage didn’t think so. Until he ran

away from home, he had only known his drunk of
a mother and he had never met his father. Hell, he
didn’t even know the sperm donor’s name. And
that’s all Gage considered the man since he didn’t
stick around long enough to even see Gage being
born.

“It doesn’t matter. Both of Branson’s parents

died in the attack and he never really got over it.
He’s one of the few who weren’t able to get over
the fact that the Hawks were technically aligned
with the Ravens at the time of the attacks either.”

Gage sucked in a breath, his hopes sinking

lower than ever. “But the Hawks intervened and
saved all the children. Doesn’t that count for
something?”

“For most of us, yes. But Branson thinks the

Hawks should have given the Lost Shifter children
over to the coalition instead of integrating them
into human society.”

“The Hawks only did that to protect

themselves. If they had turned the children over to
the felines, then the Ravens would have found out
and wiped us all out as retribution,” Gage argued.

In the end, it hadn’t mattered anyway, since the

Ravens had found another reason to turn on the

Stephani Hecht

10

Hawks. Now, there were only a handful left and
they were only able to survive because they had
aligned themselves with Mitchell’s coalition,
which was kind of a blessing in Gage’s opinion,
since he tended to get along with the felines better.
Some of the Hawks were okay, but a vast majority
of them were, well…dill-holes.

Yet, that was the story of Gage’s life. Not the

dill-hole part, but the feeling of never quite fitting
in. Even when he had been living in that beat-
down apartment with his gang of fellow stray
shifters, Gage had always felt as if he was different
somehow. Almost as if there was something that
he should know about himself, but whatever it
was had always eluded him. Kind of as if the
answer was just out of his grasp and he was
forever catching only blank air.

“How much do I owe you for the tattoo?” Gage

asked, abruptly changing the subject.

“I have to go out on a mission next week and

you know how antsy Keegan can be when I’m not
here. If you could take him to the mall or movies
to keep him occupied, we’ll call it even.”

“If Keegan has so much trouble with you going

out on missions, then why is Mitchell still sending
you out?”

Carson applied some ointment to Gage’s tattoo.

“He only sends me on the missions where we
have to hack into the computer on site.”

Gage’s Awakening

11

“Doesn’t he have other computer nerds?”
“Yeah, but none of them are as good as me.

This is a real high profile job and with the way the
Ravens are going out of their way to piss off the
humans, Mitchell is doing everything he can to
make their military happy.”

Gage could understand that since most of the

money that went into running the coalition came
from doing jobs for the military that no human
soldier would be capable of doing. Gage had only
been on active duty for a while and he had already
gone on numerous missions. Not that he was
complaining since he finally found something he
was good at—shutting up, obeying orders and
being a damn efficient soldier. He was already
quickly working his way up the ranks, much to
the displeasure of some of his fellow Hawks, who
thought that it was just Mitchell showing
favoritism, since Gage was close friends with one
of the leader’s brothers.

Slipping his black uniform shirt back on, Gage

meticulously tucked it into his pants. One of the
things he always took pride in was making sure he
was up to regulation, even going as far as keeping
his chestnut hair clipped short so it didn’t ever
look messy.

Next, he strapped on his guns and various

other weapons. It still surprised him how quickly
those weapons had nearly become a part of him.

Stephani Hecht

12

So much so that if he left his room without them,
he felt naked.

Once he was sure he was all in place, he

reached into his pocket and felt the coin. A sigh of
resignation went through him. While he had
already pretty much given up any hope as far as
Branson was concerned, the conversation with
Carson had put the final nail in Gage’s dreams of
ever having the Lion as a mate.

That left Gage with only one other option, he

would have to return the coin and forget about
Branson.

Then an image of Branson came to Gage’s mind

as he recalled the first time he had seen the Lion
shifter. It was the first time Gage had been sprung
from the infirmary and was given a tour of the
coalition. He had just been some scared street-rat
that had been rescued from some slavers. Gage
had been happy to be free, but terrified of what
lay ahead of him. He knew next to nothing about
the coalition so he hadn’t been sure of the
reception he’d receive.

HQ had been very busy that day since all hands

had been called in to help with the mass rescue so
it was chaotic. Feeling overwhelmed, Gage had
huddled closer to their informal pack leader,
Ranger.

That was when Gage had first seen

him…Branson…aka the most handsome guy to

Gage’s Awakening

13

ever exist. With closely cropped blond hair,
piercing blue eyes, he was hot enough, but once
the sensible slacks and sweater had been added in,
Gage was a goner.

Gage had always gone in for the smart, sexy,

bookish types and that was exactly what Branson
was. He even had a thin, unimposing build unlike
all the other felines who looked like they had been
bench-pressing Chevys in their spare time.

From that moment, Gage vowed that he’d make

the man his mate someday. Unfortunately,
Branson didn’t see things the same way and he
never would.

Heart heavy with defeat, Gage left the room

and headed for Branson’s office. The sooner he got
this over, the sooner he could get on with his life.

Even as Gage told himself that, he knew it was

a lie. No matter how much time passed, he didn’t
think he’d ever be able to get over Branson.

Stephani Hecht

14

Chapter Two

ranson smelled Gage before the sounds of the
Hawk’s heavy military boots hitting the tile

filled the air. It was always the same scent, a bit
like chicory mixed in the coffee that Gage seemed
fond of drinking all the time.

Branson curled his fingers around the edge of

his desk, both dreading and anticipating the
encounter that was about to take place. For while
he was attracted to Gage, there was no way they
could have a relationship.

Not that Gage wasn’t good looking. While

Branson may be blind as a human, in his Lion
form, he could see just as well as anybody else,
which was how he knew that Gage was actually
too good looking.

With thick brown hair and innocent brown eyes

that were at complete odds with the man’s
personality, Gage looked like he had stepped
straight out of Hollywood or something. In fact,

B

Gage’s Awakening

15

the Hawk was so hot, he had almost every
available male shifter panting after him.

Why the little brat had decided to fixate on

Branson was both an annoyance and aggravating.

Long ago, after Branson made his first change

after the Raven attack and realized once he was
human, he still remained blind, he resigned
himself to a life of solitude. While Mitchell made
great strides in eliminating the worst of the
prejudices, when it all boiled down, Branson was
still a blind nerd who was only good for deskwork
and nothing more.

There were plenty of virile, healthy, whole

shifters, both feline and Hawk out there, and Gage
could have his pick of any one of them. Branson
had no clue what kind of mind games the kid
seemed intent on playing. Branson was done with
the whole thing.

The fact Gage kept insisting that he was

attracted to Branson could only be part of a cruel
joke the Hawk seemed intent on playing on the
poor blind Lion.

When Gage first came to the coalition, Branson,

fool that he was, had dared to believe that Gage
was different than the other birds. That he didn’t
have the arrogant, asshole streak that most of that
kind of shifter carried.

How wrong Branson had been.
When Gage began to steal stuff from him, it had

Stephani Hecht

16

enraged Branson. The only good thing about the
whole matter was when he hunted down the little
brat, Branson had done it in his Lion form so he
had been able to see how cute and sexy the Hawk
was.

Which in the end had turned out to be a curse

in the disguise of a blessing, since now Branson
found himself dreaming about the little twerp on a
nightly basis, each dream somehow being more
erotic than the last. It had gotten to the point
where jacking off in the shower had become part
of Branson’s morning ritual.

The smell of Gage grew closer and despite all

the emotions churning inside him, Branson’s body
began to react, arousal slamming into his chest as
his cock swelled to life. Meanwhile, his Lion
roared to be let loose so it could hunt and pin
down the Hawk in order for Branson to claim
him—to mark him with his scent so no other feline
would ever dare even look twice at his mate.

His mate? Now where in the hell had that come

from? Not only was it inaccurate, but it was
dangerous for Branson to even think such a thing.
Gage may be small and thin, but he was a soldier
and he deserved to be mated to somebody of that
caliber and not some jerk who couldn’t even walk
through HQ without bumping into something.

Gage was in the room now…or rather he stood

on the threshold. While Branson couldn’t see the

Gage’s Awakening

17

Hawk, he could hear his rapid breaths and the
way his heart nearly thundered in his chest.
Branson could also smell the fear…and
regret…coming off the other shifter.

“I’m sorry,” Gage rasped.
What Branson would have given to see the

expression on the other man’s face. Was there true
shame there, or the mocking expression that went
along with the laughter and snide comments that
had been thrown Branson’s way since the day he
had been blinded?

Then, just like that, Gage was gone, both his

scent and the sounds of his footsteps fading as he
retreated. Branson made his way over to the door
and reached down on the small table that stood
there. Reaching out, his fingers encountered the
ancient coin, the one that Gage stole over a month
ago.

Branson picked it up, feeling the heat of Gage’s

body lingering on the antique metal. Branson
tightened his grip on it, to the point where the
uneven edges bit into the flesh of his palms and
drew blood.

A sense of relief went through him to know that

the games were finally over and things could get
back to the way they were before Gage set his
attention on Branson. Yet, at the same time, a
sense of disappointment went through Branson.
Which was as confusing as hell because he had

Stephani Hecht

18

wanted things to end this way.

Hadn’t he?
To be honest there was a small part of him that

missed the banter and the thrill that always came
as he chased Gage down. The way the Hawk’s
grin would always morph into a full-out laugh
before he took off running. Even though they both
knew that Branson would always catch him in the
end because never once had Gage shifted and
flown away.

For the first time, it occurred to Branson that

Gage’s laughter had never been mocking or cruel.
There had been genuine happiness behind it and a
bit of mischief as if he and Branson were in on
some private joke that nobody else was allowed to
be part of.

“Dude, what did you say to the bird? He looked

like somebody just kicked him and his favorite
puppy in the ribs,” Skye drawled as he came into
the room.

Branson bit back a groan of irritation. The last

thing he needed now was to have to deal with his
mess of a younger brother. While Branson loved
the punk like crazy, Skye was a bit of Spicoli, the
character played from Fast Times at Richmond High,
mixed in with a heavy dash of Beavis and Butt-
Head. In other words, it was a good day when
Skye’s mind was clear and he was operating on
more than one brain cell.

Gage’s Awakening

19

At least Skye had ditched the dread locks,

although dying his blond hair bright blue hadn’t
been much of an improvement. Carson said it
looked like Skye had head-butted the entire Smurf
village. While the IT guy could be a bit of a
smartass at times, Branson did have to concede
that Carson had called that one right.

“Aren’t you supposed to be at training?”

Branson asked.

His gut clenched because even without hearing

a word, the fact that his brother was in Branson’s
office in the middle of the day instead of at the
training facilities could only mean one thing. His
brother had fucked up big time…again.

“God, those Jaguar brothers can be such a drag

sometimes,” Skye huffed.

A plopping sound indicated that his brother

had sat on the couch, which was his favorite place
to be when he wasn’t hanging out with his loser
friends. How Branson wished that Skye hung out
with more levelheaded shifters, kind of like Gage.
While Gage’s clique of friends may be a bit crazy
at times, Branson was willing to bet they didn’t
consider grand theft auto to be a weekend hobby.

“May I remind you that those Jaguar brothers

are related to our coalition leader?” Branson asked
tightly, his head already beginning to pound.

“That still doesn’t mean they need to walk

around with sticks up their asses all the time.”

Stephani Hecht

20

Sticks up their asses? What in the hell was Skye

talking about. Most of the Jaguar brothers were
laid back, almost to a fault.

“What did you do this time?” Branson sighed

heavily.

“Why do you always assume it’s my fault?”
“Because it usually is.”
“I just wanted to see if I shot at the ceiling if the

bullet would pierce the metal roof or bounce
around.”

Branson groaned upon hearing those words,

but Skye wasn’t finished yet.

“How was I supposed to know that a flock of

Hawk shifters would be flying overhead at the
time?”

The pounding in Branson’s head gave over to a

full-blown headache. “Please, please, please tell
me you didn’t hit one of the birds?”

“I just winged one a bit. Ha! Get it? Winged

him.” Sky laughed at his own joke.

“That’s not funny. You could have really hurt

somebody,” Branson yelled and instantly
regretted it when it made his head hurt even
more.

“Relax. Since when have you given a damn

over what happens to a bird?”

Ever since one started sneaking into my office and

stealing stuff just to annoy the hell out of me. Not that
Branson would ever admit that one aloud. First,

Gage’s Awakening

21

Skye would never let him live it down and
secondly, Branson might then have to face the fact
that he actually had some real feelings where Gage
was concerned.

“I don’t, but since Mitchell is aligned with

them, we have to play nice. You shooting them is
not exactly a way to extend the olive branch.”

When there was a long pause, Branson sighed,

knowing what he just said had flown right over
his brother’s head. Damn it, but if he found out
the punk was doing Tar again, Branson would
hand his brother his ass in ten different ways. Tar
was a very potent and illegal shifter drug.
Unfortunately, one of the side effects was a
decrease in intelligence. And since his brother
hadn’t made an effort in school beforehand, he
had precious little knowledge to lose.

“Why do we have to even be part of the

coalition anyhow? Many felines just go civilian
and live on their own,” Skye grumbled.

“Because I can’t protect us from other

aggressive shifters. So long as I work here,
Mitchell lets us live in an apartment at HQ and I
don’t have to worry about us being vulnerable to
attack.”

It ate at Branson, too. As a Lion shifter and the

eldest, he should be more than capable of
protecting his brother. Still, it was kind of hard to
see a threat coming when you were blind. The fact

Stephani Hecht

22

that they had to count on the coalition for
protection was just one more reminder of how
defective Branson was.

“I can protect us,” Skye protested.
Branson let out a snort of disbelief. “Before

today, you never managed to shoot anything and
then that was only by accident. Despite the fact
that they take you to the shooting range every
day, you can barely manage to hold a gun, let
alone hit what you’re aiming at.”

“Ouch, dude! Way to cut deep there.”
“Sorry, but it’s the truth.”
“So if you’re okay with living with the birds,

then how come you keep chasing Gage away?
Everybody knows he has a huge hard-on for you.”

“Do you have to be so crude?”
“Do you have to always be such a prude?”
Yup, there was no doubt about it, a full-blown

migraine had set in between Branson’s temples
and it wouldn’t be leaving any time soon.

“Gage is just playing a game. He’ll eventually

grow bored with me and move on.”

Damned if it didn’t hurt like hell to even think

of that possibility, but deep down Branson had no
doubt that’s exactly what would happen.

“Yeah, you’re probably right. I hear the Hawk

twins want a piece of him.”

The Lion inside Branson roared at that

possibility, but he fought to keep his face neutral.

Gage’s Awakening

23

“I thought they left after the whole Riley
incident?”

“They’re back and word is they’ve set their eyes

on your little sticky fingers. They’re not the only
ones either. I also heard that Damian is eyeing up
Gage.”

“You mean the Cougar shifter?”
Alarm, along with a fresh wave of jealousy

filled Branson, neither of which he had any
business feeling. If Gage wanted to move on, then
he had every right to, especially after the cruel
way Branson had rebuffed the Hawk when Gage
had admitted his attraction.

Sorry, but you’re way too young for me and even if

you weren’t, the last guy I would hook up with would

be a bird. I would rather fuck a Scorpion while I suck a
Tarantula.

Even now, Branson winced at how harsh he

sounded. While he hadn’t been able to see the
expression on the Hawk’s face, he had smelled the
embarrassment and despair pouring off Gage. If
there was anything Branson regretted in the whole
messed-up un-relationship he had with Gage, it
had been saying those damn words.

Now Gage had given up. Willingly returning

the coin, he had delivered that message loud and
clear. Branson knew he should be relieved, happy
even. Instead, he found himself wanting to chase
Gage down and not to retrieve some damn coin

Stephani Hecht

24

either. What Branson wanted was to claim the
Hawk as his mate.

He knew he would just have to get over it. For

that could never happen. No matter how much
Branson wished otherwise.

Gage’s Awakening

25

Chapter Three

age sat in the cafeteria, idly picking at his food
as he continued to mope. Which really had

turned into a nasty habit, but he just couldn’t
shake it. Not even when his friend Riley had
threatened to buy him all black clothing and a
whole collection of Nickleback CDs if Gage didn’t
snap out of it.

Three days. That’s how long ago Gage had left

the coin on Branson’s table, thus ending the little
game they had been playing for nearly a year.
Maybe that should have motivated Gage to get on
with his life, but instead he found himself thinking
more and more about the Lion. It was as if the
word Branson was branded into Gage’s head and
had become a permanent fixture.

Gage glanced across the room, locking eyes

with Skye. The Lion gave him a sympathetic smile,
which only served to make Gage feel all the more
like a pity case. If the resident druggie felt bad for

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26

him, then that just showed how low Gage really
had sunk.

“You’re really not going to eat that, are you?” a

smooth voice interrupted.

Looking up, Gage found Damien towering over

him, a charming smile gracing the Cougar’s face.
What a handsome face it was, too. With bright
blue eyes, sandy blond hair and dimples, Damien
was the perfect combination of boy-next-door
combined with sex-god.

Somewhat confused, since the guy hadn’t said

two words to him before, Gage shrugged. “It was
the best looking thing they had to offer in the
cafeteria today. There’s something that they claim
is fish there, but not even Shane is touching it, and
he eats almost anything.”

“So you settled for this instead?”
Damian took a spoon and stirred what was

supposed to be lasagna, the gloopy stuff sliding
over Gage’s plate. Letting out a sigh, Damian took
Gage’s tray and dumped the contents into the
trash.

“Hey! I was going to eat that…or at least try

to,” Gage protested.

That earned him a droll look. “That was what I

was worried about. Come on. Let’s go get a real
meal.”

That suggestion came so out of left field that

Gage gave a start of surprise. “Excuse me?”

Gage’s Awakening

27

Placing his palms on the table until their faces

were just inches apart, Damian slowly enunciated,
“I’m…asking you…to go out…to dinner with me.
As in on a date.”

“A date?” Gage repeated dumbly.
He had never been asked on a formal date.

Sure, there had been plenty of guys that had
suggested one-night stands. Some had even
offered to pay for Gage’s services for a few hours.
Something he regretfully had to resort to when he
had first run away from home. Yet, nobody had
ever asked him a real, bona fide date.

Gage should have been honored—elated even.

Even he knew that Damien was considered one of
the biggest catches of the coalition. He had
countless males and females all battling for his
attention, yet he had chosen Gage to spend the
evening with.

However, he couldn’t shake the feeling of guilt

that if he accepted, he would be betraying Branson
somehow. It was stupid as hell though, since the
Lion had made it painfully clear he wanted
nothing to do with Gage. Undecided, Gage nipped
on his bottom lip as he glanced up at Skye who
seemed to be watching the exchange with great
interest.

Giving a gentle smile, Skye mouthed, Go with

him.

Well, there Gage had it. Even Branson’s brother

Stephani Hecht

28

knew Gage was a helpless case.

Damien reached out and gently ran the back of

his knuckles over Gage’s cheek. “It’s just dinner. If
you don’t want to, we don’t have to do anything
else. I know that you’re still hurting over the
whole Branson thing so why don’t you let me get
you out of here, so you can forget about it, if only
for a few hours?”

Glancing once more at Skye, who gave him an

enthusiastic thumbs-up, Gage nodded, then stood.
“Okay, I’m not on duty tomorrow or anything so I
have no reason to rush home.”

Putting a hand in the small of his back, Damien

directed Gage out the front door. “Great. I know
this place that makes the best pizza in Michigan.
Trust me, you’re going to love it.”

Gage seriously doubted it, but anything beat

going back to his lonely apartment where he’d
only continue his mope-fest. Giving one last
regretful look back at the cafeteria, as if he
expected Branson to suddenly show up and
protest the new turn of events, Gage gave a soft
sigh.

Protest? Hell, Branson would probably start

jumping around and cheering over the fact that he
had finally been able to shake his Hawk stalker.

* * * *

Gage’s Awakening

29

It was late and Branson was still in his office. The
whole episode with Skye had put Branson way
behind and he was just getting to listen to his daily
deluge of emails, which is why he almost missed
sensing Skye approaching.

When Branson didn’t immediately turn around,

Skye ripped off Branson’s headset.

“What in the hell are you doing?” Branson

snarled.

He was half-tempted to switch to his Lion form

just so he could see enough to give his brother a
good swipe or two. Branson resisted by reminding
himself that whenever he turned back into his
human form, it only served to make the darkness
surrounding him all the more depressing. Those
brief moments of sight reminded him of all he was
missing.

“I just wanted to stop by to give you the latest

news,” Skye announced with a false brightness
that immediately put Branson on high alert.

“Dear God, who did you shoot now?”
“Nobody. For once, it’s not about me. It’s about

your little birdie stalker.”

“Gage?”
“Do you have more than one Hawk hounding

you all the time?”

Damn it, but Skye could work sarcasm with the

best of them. Some would say he had it down to
an art form. Branson was just annoyed by it.

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30

“What is this news about Gage that was so

important that you had to come and interrupt me
yet again while I’m at work?”

Skye made a tutting noise and Branson could

imagine his brother giving a dismissive wave of
his hand. “What’s the big deal? It’s history. It’s
already happened, I don’t see why you think there
should be a big rush on the whole thing.”

The only thing that held Branson back from

strangling the dork was the fact he made a
deathbed promise to both his parents that he’d
always do his best to protect Skye. Like there was
a whole lot that Branson could do since that very
same attack had left him blind. While shifters can
heal from most brain injuries, the same hadn’t
proven true for Branson. One solid whack from a
Raven’s baseball bat to the head had scrambled
Branson’s insides enough to ensure that he’d
never see again in his human form.

Why he could see in his Lion form was a

mystery that so far had eluded the doctors, but
Branson didn’t try to overthink things. He just
figured it was one more way for the fates to kick
him in the ass—look at what you used to have all
the time, but now you can only enjoy it when
you’re an animal. Hello! Irony!

“Do you want to hear my news or not?” Skye

goaded.

Branson had a sneaking suspicion he didn’t, but

Gage’s Awakening

31

he still bit. “Fine, just tell me so we can get this
over with. What is the breaking story that you are
just dying to tell?”

“Gage just left with Damien.”
Branson paused, not even breathing as a flurry

of emotions went through him. So many that
Branson couldn’t even begin to separate them, let
alone name them.

“Were they going out on a mission or

something?” Branson finally managed to ask,
amazed at how steady his voice was.

Why was he having this reaction? Gage was a

sticky fingered brat who had gone out of his way
to make Branson’s life hell. Branson sure as hell
shouldn’t be feeling anything at the thought of
another man touching the younger shifter.

“Oh, no. They were going out on a date and,

from the looks of it, things are going to get cozy.
Damien couldn’t keep his hands to himself and
they were in the middle of the cafeteria. For a
second there, I thought he was going to pounce on
Gage and take him right there on the salad bar.”

While Branson was fairly certain that Skye was

over exaggerating a bit, Damien did have the
reputation of bed hopping. Finally, one emotion
took front and center in Branson and he had no
trouble naming it—jealousy. Red-hot and the most
intense emotion he had ever felt. Letting out a
roar, he flipped over his desk in a rage.

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32

It was a rage he had no right feeling, but there

was no more denying it. It was there and all
because somebody had dared to touch Gage. A
man that Branson had sworn he’d never claim, but
now knew that he could not do without.

* * * *

“Okay, you win. That was the best pizza, hands-
down,” Gage conceded as he and Damien entered
HQ.

It was later so there was only a skeleton crew

around, but Gage could feel them staring at him.
No doubt they assumed he’d been Damien’s latest
conquest. Which couldn’t be further from the truth.
While Gage had fun over dinner and Damien
seemed like a great guy, he just didn’t do it for
Gage.

“Are you sure you don’t want to go back to my

place?” Damien suggested for the fifth time.

Gage shook his head. “Sorry, I have to get some

forms in to Brent that I forgot to do earlier or he’ll
have my ass.”

It was a paper-thin, lame excuse and they both

knew it, but to Gage’s relief, Damien let it slide.
“Okay, then how about another time?”

Gage didn’t think so, but then again if he never

went out with anybody again, how was he ever
going to get over Branson? Maybe a hard, fast

Gage’s Awakening

33

hook-up was what he needed to recover.

The only problem was the instant Gage thought

of anybody other than Branson touching him, a
wave of unease went through him. One that
almost made him sick to his stomach.

He still managed to pull off a nonchalant shrug.

“Sure, why not?”

Damien gave him that smile, the one that had

most of the unattached members of the coalition
throwing themselves at him. As for Gage, it did
nothing. If anything, it made him want to see
Branson more than ever. Two minutes in his stuffy
office would suffice at the moment. Just so Gage
could drink in the scent of the man.

He was so lost in those thoughts that he didn’t

realize that Damien was going in for a kiss until
their lips were pressed together. Gage froze, his
stomach rolling as he waited for some
spark…anything. But all he felt was a sense of
guilt, as if he was betraying Branson.

Damien pulled back, let out a resigned sigh and

ran a hand through his perfect hair. “Just tell me
it’s because of him and not that I’ve lost my
touch.”

Gage put his fingers to his lips, the taste of

Damien lingering and feeling so wrong because it
wasn’t Branson. Not that Gage knew what
Branson’s kisses tasted like, but he had dreamed
of numerous possibilities, and Damien didn’t even

Stephani Hecht

34

come close to comparing.

“It’s because of him,” Gage admitted, hating

himself for his weakness.

Most other men would have gotten the hint by

now and moved on, but not him. No, he just had
to continue to yearn for the one guy who didn’t
want him. While Gage didn’t think he was a super
model or anything, he was certain he was good
looking enough to have had several hook-ups by
now. Instead, he had spent months mooning over
somebody who all but loathed him. Maybe Gage
had a masochist streak in him or something.

Damien’s grin showed he wasn’t offended. “I

can’t say I’m surprised. I’ve seen the way you look
at him.”

“I’m that obvious, huh?”
“No pun intended, but a blind guy could see

it…or rather he would if he ever bothered to get
his head out of his ass.” Fanning his thumb over
Gage’s cheek, Damien let out a regretful sigh.
“Which is too bad because you’re one of the few
that I’d be tempted to keep.”

That confession stunned Gage since Damien

was the poster child for bachelorhood. Nobody in
the coalition ever expected the Cougar to settle
down and find a mate. To find out that Damien
was that attracted to him did a bit in helping out
his battered ego.

“Thanks, I needed to hear that.”

Gage’s Awakening

35

“Branson has no idea how blind he truly is.

While he’s wallowing away in those historical
artifacts, he fails to realize that the real treasure is
standing right in front of him, just waiting to be
claimed.”

Before Gage could even begin to formulate a

response to that, the sounds of running footsteps
drew his attention. Turning, he was shocked to see
Skye booking a path in their direction. What’s
more, the laid-back stoner expression was gone
from his face, replaced with raw terror.

“Run. And by that I mean in the opposite

direction,” Skye yelled.

“Are you tripping on something? What in the

hell are you talking about?” Gage demanded.

A loud, ear-splitting roar filled the air. Chills

ran down Gage’s spine as a Lion came galloping
in their direction. Not just any Lion, but Branson.
Human or animal, Gage would have recognized
him anywhere.

Shoving Damien from him, Gage echoed Skye’s

order, “Run.”

Damien started to protest, but Skye grabbed the

Cougar by the arm and all but dragged him away.
The Lion paused, its gaze settling first on the pair
of runners before shifting to Gage.

Fear clogged Gage’s throat. As a Hawk, he

could smell emotions if they were strong enough,
and he could tell that Branson was pissed off big

Stephani Hecht

36

time.

“Hey, I returned the coin and I haven’t taken

anything else,” Gage said.

That had to be the reason Branson was

attacking him. Gage couldn’t think of any other
thing that he could have done to upset the Lion.

When Branson lifted his head and let out

another roar, Gage couldn’t hold in his yelp of
fear. Left with no other option, he turned on his
heels and began to run as fast as he could.

The only problem was, Lions loved nothing

more than to chase down their prey and right
now, that was exactly what Gage was. He knew he
had no hope of outrunning Branson. He only
hoped that when the Lion did eventually catch
him that he let Gage live to see another day.

Gage’s Awakening

37

Chapter Four

age made the big mistake of running. The Lion
inside Branson felt glee over finally being able

to chase his mate down—and not to reclaim some
old trinket or coin, but to finally let the brat know
whom he belonged to.

Okay, so maybe the 180 in his way of thinking

about Gage was confusing. Hell, Branson was still
having trouble wrapping his mind around it and it
was he who was having the feelings. All he knew
for certain was that his mate carried the scent of
another male feline on him and Branson didn’t
like that—not one bit.

Branson let out a triumphant roar when he saw

Gage dash into the cafeteria. Branson knew from
personal experience that the south side of the
doors to that room were locked at night. Ha! Now
there was no way the Hawk could escape him, not
unless he shifted. Past experience told Branson
that would be the least likely choice Gage would

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Stephani Hecht

38

make.

Maybe he was one of those shifters who didn’t

like to face that they had an animal side to them.
Or maybe Gage hadn’t learned to control his
shifting yet. Hell, the kid might not know how to
do it without it being painful. None of that
mattered now. Branson did intend to find out the
answer so he could help Gage get over it, but right
now there were more important issues at hand.
Like getting the stench of that damn Cougar off
his Hawk.

Branson was somewhat surprised to find the

cafeteria pretty crowded, mostly with Gage’s
friends, too. All of whom seemed to think the
situation was amusing. No doubt because they all
assumed it was just another one of his and Gage’s
usual games.

Oh, if they only knew the real reason I was chasing

him. They would probably be all shocked that they

would be speechless for once in their damn lives.

Unfortunately, they didn’t know so they were

all being very vocal. Some of them even going so
far as to offer Gage some advice.

“Watch it, he’s going to corner you if you go

that way,” Carson warned Gage.

Gage immediately zagged to the left, forcing

Branson to stop before he ran into a row of tables.
Letting out a roar, Branson changed directions and
began the chase again.

Gage’s Awakening

39

“Watch out for the spider. He’ll trip you,” Riley

called out.’

“I love you to pieces, Riley, but this really isn’t

the time,” Gage panted.

“What in the hell did you steal from him this

time?” Xavier asked.

“Nothing, I swear. Ask Carson, I finally gave

that up.”

Gage ran around a large round table, his

breaths now coming out labored and fast.

“Oh, no! You didn’t go through with your

threat and move Branson ‘s furniture around, did
you?” Carson asked.

“Gage, that’s not very nice,” Riley admonished.

“Maybe you need to talk to Dr. North about your
anger management skills.”

Even Branson paused in shock at that

suggestion. Gage had no issues with anger at all.
In fact, he was one of the sweetest shifters in the
coalition.

Xavier gave Riley a playful swat. “You’re

getting him mixed up with Carson again. You
would think that since you lived with Gage for
years, you would get that one right.”

“Oh yeah, that’s right.” The playful grin on

Riley’s face said that he had known that all along.
He probably said it to take a swipe at Gage for
poo-pooing his spider warning.

Gage shook his head at the twins before he took

Stephani Hecht

40

off running again and Branson instinctively gave
Chase.

Gage ran toward the salad bar and, without

pausing, leapt over it, his legs scissoring in the air
before he landed on the other side. Branson didn’t
bother with jumping, he just ran through the
damn thing. Lettuce, dressing, croutons and plates
went flying everywhere.

“Oh, no,” Riley breathed. “That’s not good at

all. Take it from me, the felines hate it when you
trash their salad bar.”

Gage glanced over his shoulder to give Riley

one more incredulous look before the Hawk made
a break for the doors. Gage let out a squawk of
fear when he pushed on them only to find that
they were locked, just as Branson knew they
would be. Ha! Gottcha now! If Branson could have
he would have smiled in triumph. Left with no
other option, Gage turned to face Branson. A
quick glance showed that Gage had a Glock
strapped to his side, but he made no move to pull
it out. Instead, he plastered his back to the doors
and nervously licked his lips, the sight of that pink
tongue only further arousing Branson.

“Look, if something is missing, it wasn’t me this

time. I swear it,” Gage said, his voice warbling a
bit.

Unable to stand the thought of his mate fearing

him, Branson moved forward until he was

Gage’s Awakening

41

standing right in front of Gage and then shifted
into his human form. Never before had Branson
cursed his blindness more as the image of Gage
immediately gave way to the all-too-familiar
blackness.

Branson could still feel though and he took full

advantage of that. Putting a hand on either side of
Gage’s head, Branson leaned in until their bodies
were pressed together.

A moan slipped past Branson as he noted how

perfectly Gage’s hard body fit against him. Unable
to help himself, he leaned in and buried his nose
in the crook of Gage’s neck, a sense of calm going
through Branson as he was still able to detect his
mate’s scent under all those vile layers of Cougar
stank.

While he couldn’t see Gage exposing his throat

in a sign of submission, Branson could feel the
subtle movement of Gage’s head tilting to the side.
Branson took the opportunity, running his tongue
up the expanse of skin that was slightly rough
with stubble.

Gage let out a shivering gasp, but Branson’s

nose told him it was from arousal not fear.
Reaching down to cup Gage’s erection further
confirmed Branson’s suspicion. Gage let out a
sound halfway between a sob and a moan.

“What are you doing?” Gage asked, his voice a

bit more stable.

Stephani Hecht

42

Rubbing his cheek over Gage’s chin, Branson

replied, “Getting his scent off you.”

“Why do you care? Last time I checked, you

didn’t want anything to do with a young, stupid
bird.”

While Gage may have sounded angry, the way

he thrust into Branson’s hand said otherwise. For
the first time ever, Branson cursed the fact that
whenever they shifted back into human form,
their clothes reappeared as well. Right then, he’d
give his left canine for some skin-on-skin contact.

“I changed my mind,” Branson replied simply

as he continued to rub his scent on Gage.

“You changed your mind?” Gage echoed

incredulously as he shoved Branson in the chest.

The move didn’t unsettle Branson at all. While

he may not be a soldier like Gage, he was still a
Lion and that made him stronger both in human
and animal form.

“When Skye told me that you took off with

Damien, I thought I was going to go crazy. All I
could think of was him touching you, kissing you,
claiming you.”

“What in the hell? Skye was the one who

encouraged me to say yes to Damien’s invitation
in the first place.”

Branson let out a chuckle. Maybe his brother

wasn’t so dense after all because he had managed
to find the one thing that would finally make

Gage’s Awakening

43

Branson take some action. Some good old
fashioned jealousy had managed to work
wonders.

“I think Skye knew that would finally make me

wake up and realize that I was being such an ass
as far as you were concerned.”

“It’s about damn time, too,” Carson called,

reminding Branson that they still had an audience.

Gage stiffened. “So you chasing me down and

rubbing against me is supposed to make up for all
the mean things you’ve said to me in the past?”

“No. I suspect that I’ll be doing a whole hell of

a lot of groveling for the unforeseen future. Right
now, I just want to take you back to my apartment
and fuck you senseless.”

None of the tension left Gage’s body. “So is that

all you want? A quick hook-up and you decided I
would be convenient since you already know how
much I like you?”

Leaning in, Branson whispered in Gage’s ear,

“No, I want to take you back so I can finally do the
right thing and claim you as mine.”

“Y…y…yours,” Gage stammered in a way that

would have been funny under different
circumstances.

“Tell me you don’t feel it. The connection

between us,” Branson challenged as he continued
to rub Gage’s erection.

“Of course I feel it. I always have. It was you

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44

who refused to acknowledge it.”

Gage let out a keening sound as he rocked up to

meet Branson’s hand.

“I was stupid and wrong to treat you that way.”

Branson gave Gage’s neck another lick. “Please,
come back with me.”

“How do I know that you won’t feel differently

in the morning? I couldn’t stand to be rejected by
you again.”

“Trust me, babe. One taste of you is never going

to be enough for me.”

* * * *

How Gage wanted to believe that. He really, really
did, but some small sane part of him still worried
about getting hurt yet again. Then Branson
swooped in, capturing Gage’s lips in a heated kiss.
Rational thoughts fled and an all-consuming
arousal filled Gage.

He no longer could think of anything more than

he wanted to be sucked and fucked, and it didn’t
have to be in that particular order. Just so long as
he got that Lion’s cock inside him soon.

Lifting one leg, Gage hooked it around the back

of Branson’s knees, wanting to hold the man in
place lest he change his mind. At the same time,
Gage began to return the kiss in earnest, their
tongues sliding and tangling as they fought for

Gage’s Awakening

45

dominance.

Gage only kept up the façade for a moment

before he groaned and gave over complete control
to the Lion. While Gage might have been strong
and a highly trained soldier, he had no problem in
letting Branson take charge. Hell, a huge part of
Gage got a thrill out of it. A few catcalls and
whistles sounded, but Gage ignored them, too
caught up in Branson to care about anything else.

He knew that no matter what happened in the

next few minutes, everything would be okay
because Branson was protecting him. For the first
time ever, Gage didn’t feel the need to put up a
front. He no longer felt out of place and
unbalanced. He belonged in Branson’s arms and
that was all he needed. If things stayed that way
for the rest of his life, Gage would die a happy
Hawk.

When Branson abruptly broke off the kiss, Gage

couldn’t hold back his whine of displeasure. That
earned him a wicked grin from Branson, who then
gave Gage’s leg a gentle slap.

Obeying the unspoken command, Gage

lowered it. Branson stepped back and for one
horrifying moment, Gage thought the Lion was
going to walk away and just leave him there with
only his hard-on to keep him company.

Instead, Branson held out a hand and said,

“Come on.”

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46

Taking it, Gage let out a shiver of pleasure at

the heat coming from the man’s fingers. “Where
are we going?”

“To my room.”
“Why?”
Okay, maybe that was a dumb question given

what they had just been doing, but after being
rebuffed by Branson so many times, Gage was still
having trouble believing his turn of luck.

Branson smiled. “Do I really have to spell it out

to you? If you want, I can draw you a diagram. I
may be blind, but I’m still a pretty good artist. At
least that’s what they tell me. For all I know, they
could be lying just to make me feel better about
myself.”

When Gage didn’t laugh, Branson added, “That

was supposed to be a joke.”

Fumbling for a correct answer that wouldn’t

blow the wonderful opportunity coming his way,
Gage stammered, “I…I know that…it’s just…I
don’t like the idea of anybody making fun of you,
or treating you differently just because you’re
blind.”

“Says the guy who’s been stealing from me for

months on end.”

A heat covered Gage’s face. “I would have done

that even if you could see. It was just the only way
I could ever get you to acknowledge I even
existed. I guess that shows how lame I am.”

Gage’s Awakening

47

Branson pulled Gage in for a lingering kiss.

“I’m actually kind of flattered. Ever since I was
blinded, most of the coalition basically forgot that
I was even around. It’s kind of an honor to have
you going so far out of your way to garner my
attention, however bratty you may be.”

“I’m not bratty. I’m just stubborn,” Gage

argued as Branson began to lead him through HQ,
leaving their contingent of gawkers behind.

Given the confidence and ease as Branson

walked through the large building, one would
have never guessed he was blind. Gage wondered
if the Lion realized how truly amazing he really
has. Many shifters would have given up the will to
live after suffering such an injury. As fucked up as
it was, to be different in the shifter world was a
black mark against said person. Several years ago,
certain packs and coalitions had even been known
to kill off the weak or defective members.

Not that Gage thought Branson was weak. One

look at the way the hard muscles rolled under his
tight blue t-shirt spoke of the man’s strength. His
ass and legs looked well built, too, although it was
hard to tell since those damn dress pants covered
them. Gage wondered if Branson owned any tight-
fitting jeans and if so, how he’d be able to
convince the Lion to try them on for him.

They finally made it to the area that housed a

small amount of apartments for the few staff who

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48

lived at HQ. It used to be that only Mitchell’s
family lived there, but due to various
circumstances, a handful of others had been forced
to move in.

“How long have you been living here?” Gage

asked.

Branson unlocked the door and ushered Gage

inside, shutting them off from the rest of the
building.

“A few months ago. A group of Hyenas

attacked our home and Skye and I barely managed
to get out alive.”

“I’m sorry to hear that.”
Gage cast his gaze over the neat, but generic

looking room. The walls were white and the floors
were covered with a beige carpet, but other than
that, there had been no attempts to make the place
look homey.

“Do you miss your old place?” Gage asked as

he toed off his boots.

“Yes and no. It was the home we grew up in,

but it was also the same place my parents died.”

Gage’s heart broke at the hurt in Branson’s

voice. “I wish that had never happened to you.”

“Yeah, well at least they didn’t burn my home

down like they did to so many of the other feline
families. The damn birds.”

The words seemed to hang in the air, like a

deep, black, angry cloud. It wasn’t lost on Gage

Gage’s Awakening

49

that Branson had said birds instead of Ravens. It
only served to remind Gage how Branson didn’t
trust any form of bird shifter, and really, after
what had happened to his family, who could
blame him?

A look of sorrow crossed over Branson’s face

and Gage’s stomach clenched as he realized they
wouldn’t be getting together after all. Damn it, to
get so close only to fail at the last minute hurt even
more than hearing the hateful words Branson had
tossed at Gage during the first rejection.

Scooping up the meager supply of self-

confidence he had left, Gage nervously cleared his
throat. “It’s okay. I understand. I’ll just show
myself out. We can forget this ever happened.”

He started to reach for his boots only to stop

short when Branson yelled, “No! You’re not going
anywhere.”

Gage’s heart pounded nervously as he waited

to hear what Branson’s next words would be.

“Come here,” Branson ordered.
Gage didn’t have to think twice, he slowly

walked over, his mind now working on autopilot
as it waited to see what would happen next.

Reaching out, Branson wrapped his arms

around Gage’s waist and pulled him into a tight
embrace. Burying his nose in the crook of Gage’s
neck, Branson inhaled deeply.

“Look, I’m not going to lie and say that I

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50

wanted to be this attracted to a Hawk, but there’s
no denying it. This feels right,” Branson said.

Not trusting himself to speak without breaking

down, Gage just nodded as he sagged into
Branson’s embrace.

Gage couldn’t believe his luck. He wasn’t being

rejected. For almost his entire life he

had

been

shunned, first by his absentee father, then his
drunken mother and finally by Branson. Now, it
looked as if Branson wanted him after all,

It was all so good that Gage was terrified to

allow himself to believe that it was really true. For
all he knew, Branson could turn on Gage, just like
everybody else always had in his life. Heck, even
all his friends from his stray pack had gone on and
found mates of their own. Sure, they were always
friendly to Gage and invited him over for dinner
and stuff, but Gage always felt like the oddball or
third-wheel.

When he was in Branson’s embrace though,

Gage felt as if he

had

finally found his place in the

world. He only hoped that it wouldn’t be cruelly
ripped away from him, like everything else had in
his life.

Gage’s Awakening

51

Chapter Five

ranson reluctantly broke the embrace, but
only so he could take Gage’s hand and lead

him to the master bedroom. If one wanted to call
an 8x10 foot space master, but it beat having to live
in fear of there being another attack and him being
unable to protect Skye.

“This place is really nice,” Gage said.
That drew a burst of laughter from Branson.

“You don’t have to be kind. I know it’s tiny.”

“It’s way bigger than my apartment. Although I

can’t really complain since I’ve lived in much
worse conditions.”

Gage paused, the way he always did whenever

something embarrassed or upset him. Branson
realized that he really didn’t know that much
about the Hawk’s past. A bit of guilt came with
that realization since going by some of the things
Gage said, he had made it a point to learn all he
could about Branson.

B

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52

Reaching the room, Branson led Gage to the

bed and had him sit, but made no move to take off
their clothes just yet.

“Tell me about yourself,” Branson prompted.
There was the damn pause again and Branson

could almost feel the heat emanating from Gage’s
blush.

“There’s really not much to tell. It’s all in the

coalition archives. I banded with a group of strays,
we got captured, held by slavers for a year until
the coalition rescued us, and now, here I am.”

“No, I want to know about before then.”
Gage stiffened and Branson wished he could

see the man’s face. Was he mad? Scared? Angry?

“There’s not much worth telling,” Gage finally

hedged.

“What was your father like?”
“I never met him. He left before I was born.”
“What about your mother?”
“She spent most of her days locked in her room,

drinking and watching her soaps. She used to
drink the strong stuff made especially for shifters,
too. You know, the kind that’s illegal. They say it’s
because it rots the mind away.” Gage gave a bitter
laugh. “My mom was living proof that was true.”

The pain in Gage’s voice called to Branson and

he couldn’t help but reach out and wrap his arms
around the younger man. When Gage sank into
the embrace and let out a soft sigh, Branson was

Gage’s Awakening

53

glad he made the move. He had a sad, sinking
suspicion that there hadn’t been too many loving
gestures thrown Gage’s way.

“Did you have any siblings?”
“Supposedly there was an older brother. I never

met him since my dad took him when he left.”

“Why did he take one son, but leave the other

behind?”

Gage sniffed. “I don’t know. I’ve asked myself

that same question over and over as I was
growing up. Especially when my mother started
getting really bad. I don’t know what was worse,
the times she yelled and beat me, or when I would
find her passed out in her own vomit and I had to
clean her up.”

Anger coursed through Branson and his Lion

wanted to roar with pain, but he held it in. What
Gage needed was comfort, not another show of
anger. “Did she hurt you often?”

“Yes, almost every day. I never went to school

because she was a stray so I couldn’t go to a shifter
education center and she didn’t dare send me to a
human one for fear of me letting something slip.
So that meant that she didn’t have to worry about
anybody ever seeing the bruises because she never
let me leave home. I spent most of my childhood
locked up in my room, with only books to keep
me company.”

Branson’s heart broke over the thought of Gage

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54

being so young, abused and alone, with nobody to
care after him.

“How long did it go on?”
“Until I was fourteen. Then I was bigger than

her so I think she was afraid I would hit her back
or something. Not that I would have ever done
that because she was my mom. After that she just
yelled mean things, like how I was a freak and
that nobody would ever want me.”

Branson cursed himself for all the times that he

had

rebuffed Gage’s advances. Each rejection must

have felt like a punch in the gut to the Hawk
because it served as a reminder of what his bitch
of a mother had said to him.

Kissing the top of Gage’s head, Branson said,

“She’s wrong though. Everybody here likes you.
In addition, you managed to find a place in that
pack of strays you hooked up with. How old were
you when you found them?”

“Nineteen. I had been living on the streets for a

year before Ranger found me and took me home.
He’s a good Alpha. He always made sure we had
enough to eat and that we didn’t have to steal or
do…other things to get money.”

Branson’s gut clenched at the way Gage

worded that. “That year that you were alone, how
did you manage to get money and food?”

Gage buried his face in Branson’s chest. “Do I

really have to spell that out for you?”

Gage’s Awakening

55

“No, babe. You don’t. Why did you run away

from your mother’s home?”

“She brought home a new boyfriend. He was a

Raven shifter and well…sometimes he liked me
better than her. So I left. I figured that if I was
going to have to give it up, I may as well get paid
for it.” Gage stilled. “Does that make me sound
like an awful person? You must be so disgusted
with me? I know I am. There are some days where
I can barely stand to look at myself in the mirror.”

Branson tightened his grip on Gage. “I could

never be disgusted with you. All you did was
what you had to in order to survive.”

“My mother was right about one thing. I am

some freak. Even now that I’m amongst other
Hawks, I still feel different somehow. Like I don’t
quite fit in.”

“Maybe that’s because you’re not an arrogant

asshole like most of them are,” Branson only half-
kidded.

His effort worked, it brought out a small laugh

from Gage. “That’s true. A lot of them call me a cat
lover, like it’s some kind of insult.”

“They say that even though their leader is

mated to Mitchell’s brother? Last time I checked,
Brent was still a Jaguar.”

“Oh, they’re smart enough to never say that

kind of stuff when Daniel is around. They all
know he could kick their asses without even

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56

breaking a sweat so they always play nice with
him.”

“Does Daniel buy the act?”
“I don’t think so. He’s banished a few of the

bigger instigators, but I guess there will always be
a little prejudice between different breeds of
shifters. I mean you should know that better than
anybody since you’re a historian.”

“Those who fail to learn from history are doomed to

repeat it,” Branson quoted.

“Who said that?”
“Winston Churchill, although technically it was

said by George Santayana. Churchill just
borrowed the idea and worded it a bit
differently.”

Gage laughed. “I sometimes forget how smart

you are. It reminds me that I can barely read.”

“I can teach you anything you want to know

about history. In fact, it seems like I could use a
refresher course myself.”

“Why is that?” Gage asked.
“Because I didn’t learn from the past prejudices

of other shifters and it made me almost miss the
best thing that ever came into my life.”

“You did? What was it?”
Reaching down, Branson cupped Gage’s

cheeks, wishing more than anything that he could
gaze into the other man’s eyes. “You.”

A shocked intake of air was followed by, “Do

Gage’s Awakening

57

you really mean that?”

Allowing his fingers to wander a bit, Branson

caressed Gage’s face, somewhat surprised to find
the Hawk’s cheeks moist from tears. Not that
Branson considered it a weakness. He was just
humbled that Gage had let his defenses down
enough to show any emotion after the way
Branson treated him.

Gage held still and let Branson explore. While

in Lion form, Branson had been able to see Gage.
But never had Branson taken the time to truly
study Gage up close and this intimately. Now it
almost seemed as if this was the first time he was
truly seeing the other man.

“Beautiful. On the inside and out,” Branson

breathed.

“How can you say that after everything you just

heard about me?” Gage asked in a quavering
voice.

“Because it’s true, and now that I’ve finally

come to my senses, I’m never letting you go. That
is if you still want me.”

Gage’s answer came by way of a kiss. It was

shy, almost like a timid cub making its first steps.
Eventually, Gage grew bolder, even going so far as
to straddle Branson’s lap.

The sensation of that tight ass pressing against

his cock undid the last of Branson’s composure
and he took over. Never breaking the kiss,

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58

Branson twisted their bodies down until he had
Gage flat on his back and pinned down.

Gage didn’t fight the new position, but just laid

still and let Branson run the show. This made the
Lion in Branson growl with pleasure. One kiss
morphed into another and then another until
Branson lost count.

Gage’s lips were so soft and enticing that

Branson could have gone on tasting them all night
long, but the erection straining against his pants
had other ideas. Giving Gage’s mouth one last
kiss, Branson began to move lower, slowly peeling
away Gage’s layers of clothing at the same time.

Branson may not have been able to see the

beauty spread out under him, but he could
certainly feel the way Gage’s skin was rough in
some areas, soft in others. The way the man’s
muscles tensed in pleasure when certain spots
were touched. Branson could also hear every
moan of pleasure, hiss of arousal and whispered
plea for more. And he could taste…oh, God was it
good, too. Gage’s flesh had a unique flavor that
Branson knew he’d never tire of.

Most of all, Branson could smell and was able

to detect his scent mingling with Gage’s, wiping
out all traces of that damn Cougar. If Branson had
his way, no other scent but his would ever cling to
Gage again either.

Once he had Gage completely naked, Branson

Gage’s Awakening

59

worked his way back up to the man’s cock. While
he couldn’t see it, one experimental touch let him
know the Hawk was an impressive size. Feeling a
bit of pre-cum leaking from the tip, Branson
dipped his head down and licked it clean. A
rumble sounded from his chest at the musky taste
of his man’s essence.

“Please tell me you have lube somewhere in

here,” Gage gasped.

Branson chuckled. “It’s in my top dresser

drawer. Go grab it.”

While Gage scrambled to do as ordered,

Branson quickly took off his clothes. The bed
dipped as Gage got back on. As soon as he
slapped the bottle of lube into Branson’s hand, the
Lion issued his next order, “Get on your knees and
grab onto the headboard.”

Gage didn’t reply, but the sounds of the

bedding rustling, followed by the noise of skin
slapping against wood told Branson that Gage
was obeying.

Reaching out, Branson ran a hand over the

smooth globe of Gage’s ass. “Such a good soldier.
Always following orders.”

“I try my best.” Gage replied breathlessly.
Branson opened the bottle of lube, squirted

some on his fingers before he moved up and then
began to rain a soft trail of kisses down Gage’s
spine. At the same time, Branson circled one

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60

slicked finger around Gage’s hole.

Finally sliding the finger inside, Branson

moaned, “Damn, you’re tight.”

“It’s been a while since I’ve been with

anybody.”

“How long?”
“Well…since I first saw you,” Gage admitted.
Damn, how humbling was that? If Branson

hadn’t already fallen for Gage, those words alone
would have made him a goner for sure.

“Then we’ll have to make sure this time is extra

special for you,” Branson said.

“It already is,” Gage replied.
Since he really did want to make sure the

moment was perfect, Branson took his time. He
kissed, licked and nibbled on every inch of Gage’s
back, while at the same time slowly sawing in,
first one and then two fingers.

It wasn’t until Gage’s body was slick with

sweat and he was begging that Branson thrust in a
third finger, twisting his wrist so the digits
brushed against Gage’s sweet spot.

“Oh, fuck…fuck me now before I come,” Gage

nearly shouted.

Since Branson could obey orders with the best

of them, too, he pulled his fingers out and
replaced them with his cock, slowly breaching the
tight ring of muscles until he was fully seated
inside Gage’s hot body.

Gage’s Awakening

61

Branson paused, wanting to savor the moment,

but Gage was having none of that, pushing back
against Branson, the Hawk groaned, “Please, give
it to me.”

“Eager, aren’t you?” Branson teased.
“Hell, yeah. I’ve been waiting forever for this

moment.”

“You do know that once we finish this, there’s

no going back?” Branson warned even as he began
to thrust into Gage.

“Don’t worry, I’m not going anywhere. Now

that I finally have you, I’m not ever letting go,”
Gage replied, his words coming out a bit
punctuated because Branson was giving it to him
hard.

Not that Gage seemed to mind. He was even

arching his back to meet Branson’s thrusts. Then
Gage let out a muttered curse and said, “Please,
Branson. I need to come.”

It was only then that Branson remembered that

he

had

ordered Gage to hold onto the headboard

so the guy hadn’t been able to stroke himself off.
Branson took care of it himself. Reaching around
their bodies, he found Gage’s cock and wrapped
his fingers around it.

It only took a few strokes before Gage found his

orgasm, his cock shooting off hot ropes of semen
as he screamed out Branson’s name. The sensation
of Gage’s body tightening and convulsing around

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62

Branson’s cock was enough to send him over the
edge.

Throwing his head back, Branson let out a loud

roar as he came, filling Gage, thus marking him
from the inside out.

They collapsed into an untidy pile, Gage letting

out a soft grunt when Branson landed on top of
him. Branson tried to roll over to give him some
relief, but Gage let out a whine of protest and said,
“No, don’t move.”

“Are you planning on sleeping this way?”

Branson teased.

Gage laughed. “Yes. I don’t care if we’re all

messy and sticky. I want to stay like this forever.”

Now that was a plan Branson could get into.

Pulling Gage more closely to him, Branson buried
his nose in the crook of his mate’s neck and
inhaled deeply, savoring the fact that Gage now
carried Branson’s scent.

My mate? Funny, those words didn’t send one

ounce of panic through Branson. Instead, they
gave him a deep feeling of peace. One that he
hadn’t felt in years. Closing his eyes, Branson
allowed himself to drift off to sleep, a content
smile on his lips.

Gage’s Awakening

63

Chapter Six

age woke up and immediately realized that he
was alone in the bed. A bit disappointed, he

then rolled over and smiled when he saw that
Branson had left behind a token. On the pillow lay
the ancient coin Gage pilfered from him all those
weeks ago.

Picking it up, Gage squeezed it hard, hoping to

feel some of the Lion’s warmth still lingering, but
the metal was cool. Not that it mattered, while
Gage may be a Hawk, even he could tell the way
Branson’s scent clung to him. If anybody came
within five feet of Gage, they would know exactly
what he had been up to and with whom.

Getting up, Gage went to the adjoining

bathroom to snag a quick shower before putting
back on his now, very wrinkled uniform. He
started to tuck his shirt in, only to realize it wasn’t
worth it so he just left the ends hanging over his
waistband.

G

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64

He walked to the living room just in time to see

Skye walking in.

“You’re just getting in?” Gage asked, slightly

incredulous.

He glanced at the clock and saw it was seven in

the morning.

Skye cocked a brow. “You just leaving?”
Okay, touché there. Gage looked the other

shifter over, noting how Skye’s clothing was more
wrinkled than his own, and that the young Lion’s
eyes were bloodshot. Unfortunately, it was a look
that Gage knew all too well and it brought back all
kinds of bitter memories.

“What were you out doing?” Gage asked.
Damn it, but he didn’t want Branson to have to

go through the same kind of pain he had. Nothing
hurt more than to watch a loved one slowly kill
themselves.

Skye rolled his eyes. “Just because you’re mated

to my brother doesn’t mean you can butt into my
life now.”

“Mated?” Gage echoed.
Sure, they had a great time last night and

Branson had mentioned them being exclusive, but
Gage wasn’t sure that Branson considered them
mated yet. Not that Gage wouldn’t be totally on
board for that idea. He had known for a long time
that no other man would do it for him but
Branson.

Gage’s Awakening

65

“Don’t be so coy. After the little display

Branson put on last night, he all but branded his
name on your ass. Plus, my brother isn’t into one-
night stands. If he took you home that means he
intends to keep you.”

Keep you. Damn, but those words brought a

warm feeling to Gage’s chest, until he glanced up
and took in Skye’s condition again.

“Is it drugs or booze?” Gage asked dully.
“Look, I know you’re the straight-laced soldier,

but don’t make a big deal out of this. I was just out
having some fun. I don’t make a habit of it.”

Gage really wanted to believe Skye, both

because he cared for Branson and because he had
grown fond of Skye, too. Gage wondered if maybe
he was just being overcautious due to his past.
After all, most shifters Skye’s age went clubbing
and stuff. That didn’t make them drunks like
Gage’s mother.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to come off as bossy,”

Gage said.

There was still a niggling worry in the back of

Gage’s mind, however, and he made a mental note
to keep an eye on Skye. The last thing Gage was
going to allow to happen was for the young shifter
to ruin his life and mind. Seeing that happen to
one person had scarred Gage enough and he
didn’t want to relive the experience.

Giving a wave that Skye clumsily returned,

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66

Gage walked out. His face reddened as he realized
how busy HQ was and how many glances he was
getting. He ducked his head slightly, while at the
same time hiding his smile, as he thought back to
the previous night. It was well worth the
embarrassment.

“Well, look who’s doing the walk of shame,”

Carson snarked as he came up.

Gage flipped him off. “I’m not one bit ashamed.

It was fucking amazing.”

Carson leaned in and took in an exaggerated

sniff. “Oh, it seems somebody is wearing eau de
Branson today. I hear that fragrance is all the rage
this year.”

“Are you finished? I have today off and I was

planning on going to my place to get some fresh
clothes.”

“Sorry, Lion Lover-Boy, but Mitchell just called

and he needs to see you, me and Shane in his
office ASAP. He has some kind of mission that we
need to do today.”

Gage bit back a groan because he had no doubt

why he had been chosen for the mission. It was to
babysit Carson and Shane. The two were
destructive apart, but when put together they
equaled a natural disaster. It would be Gage’s job
to make sure the two behaved themselves and
didn’t blow anything up.

“Fine, just let me go get a fresh uniform from

Gage’s Awakening

67

my locker,” Gage said.

He wasn’t about to appear in front of the

coalition leader in a wrinkly, just-been-fucked get-
up. He quickly dashed into the locker room,
ignoring the playful taunts from some of the other
soldiers as he put on his fresh uniform.

He rushed out and bumped into one of the

Hawk shifters. Gage had never bothered to learn
his name since the guy seemed to be a big asshole
and not worth Gage’s time.

The Hawk glanced down, his lip curling up in

disgust. “Damn, I knew you were a cat lover, but I
didn’t think you’d actually fuck one. No wonder
everybody thinks you’re such a freak.”

Before Gage could come up with a scathing

response, a hand fell on his shoulder. Turning, he
saw Shane, and he looked pissed. Good thing that
all his anger was directed at the other Hawk
though, because had Gage been on the receiving
end of that glare, he would have pissed kittens.

“Do you have a problem with felines?” Shane

asked in a calm voice.

Gage knew from experience the calmness

masked the sinister disposition that lurked
beneath. While Shane had been somewhat tamed
since he mated, he was still a Leopard and that
breed was known to be coldblooded killers.

The Hawk paled and swallowed loudly. “No, I

just think that we should stick to our own kind,

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68

that’s all.”

“Have you shared this view with Daniel? Or

even Colin. Last time I checked, they both had
rank over you, and yet neither one of them is
mated to a Hawk.”

“What? Are you going to go running and tell on

me?” the Hawk challenged.

Shane gave a chilly laugh. “No, that’s not the

way I work. I take care of things for myself…my
way. Now, usually when people piss me off as
much as you just have, I just kill them and get it
over with, but I promised Mitchell that I would be
a good boy today. Know this though, if you so
much as breathe in Gage’s direction again, I’ll pull
your beak out through your ass.”

At that moment, Gage considered himself very

lucky that he was one of the few that Shane
considered a friend because he would never want
to end up on the bad side of the Leopard.

The Hawk gave a stiff nod before he turned

heel and practically ran in the opposite direction.
Gage waited until he was out of earshot before
turning to Shane. “Thanks, but I could have
handled that one my own.”

“I realize that. That’s the real reason I let him

live.”

In other words if Shane had thought the Hawk

presented a real threat to Gage, then the Leopard
would have just eliminated him without a second

Gage’s Awakening

69

thought. In a way, it was almost a touching
gesture if one looked at it through Shane-colored
glasses.

“Thanks?” Gage ventured.
Shane gave him a look so boyish it was almost

easy to forget he was a highly trained assassin.
“Hey, Trevor considers you a brother so that
makes you my family, too. And we have to look
out for each other.”

Leaning in, Shane sniffed. “And it would seem

we have a new member in the family now. I was
wondering when Branson would finally get his
head out those damn artifacts long enough to
realize that he had a perfect mate standing in front
of him.”

There went that word again—mate. Gage felt a

heat come over his face. “Well, Branson hasn’t
exactly come out and said I was his mate yet.”

“Trust me, no feline covers somebody that

thoroughly in their scent unless they want it to
stick for good.”

“You think so?” Gage asked hopefully.
Shane gave Gage’s shoulder a playful punch. “I

know it.”

Carson let out a sharp whistle from across HQ.

“Hey, Gage! Are you done primping yet? Mitchell
said ASAP as in…Assholes Sure Ain’t Pretty.”

Gage laughed. “That’s not what ASAP stands

for.”

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70

“I know, but I like my version better.”
“It doesn’t even make sense,” Shane grumbled

as they joined Carson.

“Neither does beheading your kills and

bringing them home, yet that never stopped you,”
Carson countered.

“I don’t do that,” Shane protested, before

amending, “at least not anymore. Trevor said that
it wasn’t appropriate, so I stopped that
practice…well, mostly.”

“Yeah, I still owe you for putting that Tarantula

head on my keyboard,” Carson drawled.

“Would it make you feel any better to know

that he was a very, very naughty boy who liked to
go after small prey?”

“No, it would have made me feel better if I had

been able to get the blood out of my keyboard. I
eventually gave up and had the damn thing
replaced.”

Gage bit back a grin. “The head or the

keyboard?”

Carson gave him a droll stare. “I think you’re

hanging out with Shane too much.”

Probably, but Gage couldn’t help himself.

Shane had a way of growing on you, once you got
past

the

coldhearted,

psycho,

assassin,

bloodthirsty part of him. Besides, he made Trevor
happy and that’s all that mattered to Gage. After
all his friend had gone through, he deserved to

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71

have a happily ever after.

As they walked into Mitchell’s office, it struck

Gage that he was the only one in official uniform
attire. Carson wore all black, but his clothing
consisted more chains and rips than anything else,
Shane was a little better since he did wear a
uniform of sorts, but it was all black clothing with
a matching hooded cape He once told Gage it
helped him blend into the shadows better so he
could get the draw on his targets.

A shiver went through Gage. He had seen the

stealthy, predatory way Shane moved in battle. In
his opinion, the hood wasn’t needed. Once Shane
had the enemy in his sights, the poor sap was a
goner. That was one of the reasons Gage asked
Shane to have weekly sparring sessions.

While it usually ended with Gage sporting a

few bruises, it had worked wonders for his hand-
to-hand fighting skills. He knew he’d never be as
good as Shane, but Gage was the best amongst all
the Hawks and most of the felines, which made
the confrontation outside the locker room all the
more troublesome.

The Hawk had to have known that Gage could

have easily taken him out so why had he been so
offensive? Did he think that Gage was such an
obedient soldier that he wouldn’t risk a public
fistfight or was there some other motivation?

Gage put that worry to the back of his mind.

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72

Right now, he needed to focus on the meeting
with Mitchell.

The Jaguar sat behind his desk, his speckled

brown head bent over some papers. He made
them wait for only a brief moment before glancing
up at them, his amber-eyed gaze as friendly as
ever.

Gage had a bit of hero worship when it came to

the feline leader. While technically, as a Hawk, he
answered to Daniel, Gage felt a closer connection
to Mitchell. Not that Daniel wasn’t a great leader,
because he was. When Gage had been rescued
from the slavers and had awakened in the
coalition infirmary though, it had been Mitchell
who had stopped by Gage’s bedside to ask if he
was okay and to let him know that he and all his
friends were now safe and free. Ever since then,
Mitchell had taken the place in Gage’s heart that
had been missing due to the older brother he had
never met. Gage liked to think that his true older
brother, wherever he might be, was a good man
like Mitchell.

“So what’s the mission?” Carson asked.
“Do I get to kill anybody?” Shane added.
Mitchell pinched the bridge of his nose before

replying. “No, at least I don’t think so. It should be
just a simple recon mission. There’s been some
reports that a small pack of Hyenas are squatting
in an old abandoned crack house. I need you guys

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73

to go see if it’s true. With this whole Raven mess
already thrusting shifters into the public eyes, the
last thing we need is a group of strays fucking
things up by attacking innocent people.”

“If it really is Hyenas, we all know it’ll only be a

matter of time before they do attack. Everybody
knows how much they love human flesh,” Shane
said, his upper lip curling in revulsion.

“That still doesn’t mean you need to kill them.

Some of them are tamer and curb those urges. I
need you three to find out what kind we’re
dealing with and either chase them off, or take
care of the threat,” Mitchell ordered.

“Why don’t we just blow up the building and

save us all the trouble?” Carson suggested.

When Mitchell and Gage gaped at him, Carson

shrugged, “What? It was just a suggestion.”

Gage wanted to bang his head against the wall.

What had he ever done to piss Mitchell off enough
to saddle him with these two wackos? Surely,
there could be somebody else that would go out
on the mission.

Even as Gage thought that, he knew it wasn’t

true. If things got violent, he would need Shane by
his side. Plus, Hyenas were known for setting up
surveillance devices. In fact, there was nobody
better at them…except for Carson.

So like it or not, Gage was stuck. The creamy

middle of a crazy Oreo Cookie of sorts. Wasn’t he

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74

just soooo lucky?

As if sensing Gage’s inner sarcasm, Mitchell

gave him a sharp-eyed gaze. “By the way, I heard
there was some ruckus between you and Branson
last night.”

Gage narrowed his eyes. He knew that Mitchell

could scent Branson on him so the leader already
knew damn well what had happened, but he was
going to make Gage come out and say it. What
was it with the Jaguar brothers? Did they all have
to have this sadistic teasing streak in them?

Deciding to turn the tables a bit, Gage took a

page out of Carson’s book and used snark as a
weapon, “Yes, sir. Don’t worry though, we settled
our differences with a good, hard round of
fucking.”

The last thing he expected was for the room to

erupt in laughter, but that was what happened.
After a moment, Gage gave in and joined them.
Sucky mission ahead or not, how could he not be
happy? For once in his life, everything was
working out perfectly.

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75

Chapter Seven

ince the team had a few minutes before they
were due to leave for the mission, Gage used

the opportunity to sneak over to Branson’s office.

Branson’s back was to the door and he

appeared to be deep into some paperwork, but
before Gage could even announce his presence,
Branson said, “I see you finally woke up.”

Feeling a bit unsure of himself all of the

sudden, Gage lingered in the doorway. “Yeah, it
looks like I don’t have today off after all. Mitchell
needs me to babysit Carson and Shane while they
go out on a mission.”

“When are you leaving?”
When Branson continued to keep his back to

him, unease filled Gage. He couldn’t help but
think that maybe he had been wrong all along and
that it had only been a one-night hook up as far as
Branson was concerned. Maybe the coin had been
left as a token of pity rather than as a show of

S

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76

affection.

Clearing his throat and fighting to keep his

emotions in check, Gage said, “Well, I guess I’ll
get going now.”

“Wait.”
Turning around in his office-style chair,

Branson opened up his arms. Heart light with joy,
Gage didn’t hesitate a moment. He rushed across
the room and crawled into Branson’s lap, cuddling
into his chest. The chair creaked in protest at the
added weight, but Gage was pretty certain it
would hold. If not, then they would just have
another funny memory to laugh over.

“I missed you this morning,” Gage confessed.
“I didn’t want to leave, but I had an early

conference call with one of the Wolf packs and I
couldn’t miss it.”

“The bed was cold without you.”
“Hmm…that bed has a really nasty habit of

being chilly.”

Gage laughed at Branson’s teasing tone. “Does

it now? It must be awful for you.”

“It is. Maybe you better come back over tonight

so you can keep me warm.”

Gage tilted his head slightly so he could give

Branson’s neck a few love nips. “Is that an order?”

“You’re damn right it is.” Branson let out a

moan as Gage began to suck on his neck. “Are you
giving me a hickey?”

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77

“Yes. I figure it’s only fair that I leave my mark

on you since I’m coated in your scent.”

“Are you?” Branson asked with false innocence.
Gage shifted positions so he was straddling

Branson’s lap, luxuriating at the feeling of the
Lion’s hard erection pressing against him. “Don’t
play coy with me. Almost every male shifter I’ve
run into this morning went out of their way to tell
me how much I smell like you.”

“Does that upset you?”
“Not in the least. I’m proud to carry your

scent.”

“Even though I’m just some blind guy who

spends all his time with historical artifacts?”

Gage gave Branson a not-so-gentle love bite.

“Don’t talk about yourself like that. I happen to
like the bookish type.”

“Really? I thought that you would want

somebody more like you?”

Gage pulled back so he could study Branson.

“We’re a lot alike. What’s your favorite TV show?”

“Anything on the History or Military Channel.”
“Me, too.”
Branson gave him a skeptical look. “You’re just

saying that.”

“I’m being completely honest, although, I have

been known to watch Beavis and Butthead, too.”

“Skye watches that sometimes. It sounds pretty

funny.”

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78

Gage moved in and began to suck on Branson’s

neck again. He had already left a couple of hickeys
and he planned on leaving a few more before he
left. “Next time it’s on. I’ll sit next to you and
explain the action as it goes down on TV.”

“They already have services that do that.”
Gage moaned against Branson’s skin. “Maybe,

but they probably don’t explain things in such
interesting detail as I would.”

To prove his point, Gage rocked his hips,

rubbing against Branson’s erection. Branson let
out a hiss of pleasure, his hands shooting out to
grab Gage’s hips.

“Probably not.”
Gage glanced at the clock and let out a regretful

sigh. “I really do need to get going.”

“Okay, just let me do one thing first.”
Branson then captured Gage in a kiss so hard

and demanding, it made his head spin. Pulling
back so their lips were just inches apart, Branson
whispered, “Be careful out there. I would be very
upset if something were to happen to you.”

It wasn’t the best declaration of affection Gage

ever heard, but he’d take it. Climbing off, he
replied, “Yeah, well now that I know I have a real
reason to come back, I’ll be extra cautious.”

Giving Branson another quick kiss, Gage left

and went to the armory. As per usual, Shane was
loading up with enough weaponry to supply a

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79

small third-world country. Carson just leaned
against the wall, a bored expression on his face.

“Did you get the grenade launcher?” Carson

asked.

Gage rushed forward, his heart pounding with

horror. “No! We’re not taking any explosives with
us, especially anything with that much power.”

Carson blew a raspberry. “Buzzkill.”
Damn it, Mitchell better be paying him double

time for having to put up with this pair.

Shane let out a sigh and handed the large

weapon back to the feline manning the armory.
“Fine, the Girl Scout says we can’t have anything
that makes a boom.”

“You are such a bore,” Carson told Gage.
“No, I’m just sane.”
“Which makes you boring.”
Since Gage didn’t know if that was an insult or

not, he just let the comment slide, stepping
forward and requesting just the standard issue
weapons. They all then checked them before
loading up and heading out to the parking lot.

“Hey, Gage! Rawr!” one of the female felines

called as they passed.

“Was that supposed to be a Lion’s roar?” Gage

asked, blushing.

“Yeah.”
“It was kind of lame,” Carson criticized.
She just shrugged her shoulders. “Hey, I’m a

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80

Puma. It’s the best I can do.”

Her name was Ashley and Gage really liked her

a lot. They had even hung out a few times. “Hey, I
hear that you’re pregnant.”

She ran a hand over her still thin stomach.

“Yeah, my mate is very happy. I’m pissed because
that means I can’t go out on any missions for a
little while. But in the end it will be worth it when
we have our new cub.”

“Congratulations on the new addition. Make

sure you send me an invite to the shower,” Gage
said.

“Invite? Hell, I’m putting you in charge of

running it. If not, then Casey will insist on doing it
and we all know how bad her cooking is.”

All of the males winced since they had tasted

the female Jaguar’s feeble attempts at cooking
before. The last time, Gage had spent three days
puking. “No problem, I’ll make sure everything is
perfect.”

“I’ll help,” Shane volunteered.
Ashley pointed a finger at him. “Okay, but no

dismembered body parts and no blood either.”

She then softened the command by running

over and giving Shane a quick kiss on the cheek.
Shane acted annoyed, but Gage knew it was all an
act. Ashley was so sweet it was impossible for
even a meanie like Shane not to adore her.

“Fine, but I’m buying the baby a gun. I can’t

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81

deal with any of that blue and pink crap,” Shane
grumbled.

Ashley laughed. “I wouldn’t expect any less

from you. Just make sure to get the baby
something high-end.”

Shane winked at her—actually winked. Who

knew the guy had a charming side to him? “Don’t
you know it. I would never buy any cheap knock-
offs for your kid.”

Shaking his head, Gage walked over to the

Hummer and climbed in behind the wheel. He
half-expected Shane or Carson to object to him
taking control of the driving, but they just got in,
Shane stretching out in the backseat.

“Do we know where this place is?” Gage asked.
“It’s on Mott Street in the North end of the

city,” Shane replied.

Gage repressed a cringe. That place wasn’t

exactly the best area. They would have to be on
the lookout for all kinds of trouble. The drive took
about fifteen minutes, which was still way too
long since Carson had decided it was his duty to
sing along with the radio and the Cheetah suffered
from a severe case of tone-deafness.

Gage parked the next street over, praying that

when they got back all their hubcaps would still
be in place. They carefully approached the house.
Carson moved around looking for any signs of
surveillance equipment only to find nothing. His

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82

brow furrowed in confusion as he wordlessly
shrugged at the others, then rejoined them. Using
hand signals, Shane indicated that he and Carson
would take the rear while Gage entered from the
front.

Gage nodded and they stealthily made their

way into position. Gage had to tread carefully on
the ancient steps leading to the porch for fear they
would squeak and announce his presence.

He inhaled deeply, almost gagging at the scent

of the city mixed in with the stink of Hyena. They
were almost as slovenly as Ravens so the breed
carried its own distinct smell of gross-as-hell.

One good thing…Hyena shifters were known

for not being able to smell other shifters. Nobody
knew why they lacked that skill. Some thought it
was from too much inbreeding while others just
chalked it up to them being an inferior type of
shifter. Whatever the case, Gage was glad because
it would make it easier for them to sneak up on
this pack.

The front door was flimsy and Gage easily

picked the lock, using a method Shane had taught
him. Opening the room, he wrinkled his nose as
the scent grew ten times worse. It was a
combination of rotting carcasses, body odor and
urine.

Glancing over, he was somewhat shocked but

relieved to see that the only dead bodies lying

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83

around were various animals and not human. So
while there was definitely a Hyena pack squatting
here, they weren’t human killers.

From the corner of his vision, Gage caught

some movement and he spun around to meet the
threat. He reacted too slowly though, and before
he knew it, his attacker was on him. The Hyena
tackled Gage and brought him down to the
ground.

They fell with a loud thud, Gage instantly going

on the offensive. Then the Hyena spoke, “Now
you wouldn’t kill your own brother, would you?”

Gage froze, shock and disbelief shooting

through him. He finally stopped struggling and
gazed up at the Hyena. What he saw made his gut
clench. The Hyena could have been his
twin…well, in a wrecked, emaciated, dirty kind of
way.

There was no denying it. The Hyena had the

same dark hair and eyes as Gage. While that alone
wouldn’t have been enough, since most Hawks
had that coloring, the Hyena also had the same
bone structure and full lips as Gage. Fuck, they
even shared the same long girly eyelashes.

“How? My mother is a Hawk,” Gage rasped, all

the while wondering where Shane and Carson
were.

“True, but out father is a Hyena. I just took after

him while you favored our mother. Didn’t you

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84

ever wonder why he took me when he left and not
you?”

Yes, every day of my damn life. But Gage would

never admit that aloud.

“If you’re my brother, then what’s your name?”

Gage challenged.

“Kallen.” The Hyena gave him a triumphant

grin.

Gage’s stomach dropped. He had no doubt that

the Hyena was telling the truth so that would
mean that he was…oh, sweet fuck…half Hyena.
That was almost as bad as being a Raven. Once
word of this got out, would the coalition even
want him? How about his friends? Most of all,
would Branson reject him—this time for good?

“Why are you here?” Gage asked.
“I’m going to make a little deal with you. I

know that you would rather die than for your new
family to find out that you’re a half-breed. So if
you give me something, I promise to leave and
never come back.”

“What do you want?”
“Nothing big. Just the list of the Lost Shifters

who haven’t been found yet.”

Gage cocked a brow. “Why would you want

that?”

“The Ravens are offering half a million to

anybody who can bring them the list. As you can
see, I’m not exactly doing so well for myself. I

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85

could use the cash.”

“Even if it means that helpless felines will be

killed as a result? You have to know what the
Ravens will do with that list. They will hunt down
and kill the cats.”

Kallen let out a sound of distress, his face

crumpling as he rolled off Gage. For a second,
Gage froze, the one-eighty in behavior throwing
him for a loop.

“I don’t have any other choice,” Kallen said in a

half-sob. “When my friends and I refused to kill
humans, Father threw us out. We’re trying the
best we can, but we’re cold and hungry. I don’t
want to hurt the felines, but at the same time I
don’t want to see my fellow strays die either.”

“Come back to the coalition with me. We can

help you,” Gage offered, his heart breaking at the
despair in his brother’s voice.

Kallen let out a snort. “They’ll kill us on sight.

Felines have always hated our kind.”

“Mitchell isn’t like other felines. He is good and

fair. If you state your case to him, I know he will
grant you asylum.”

Jumping to his feet, Kallen let out a snarl. “No,

he won’t. Father warned me that you would be
just like her and try to trick me. Come back here in
two days and you better have that list. If not, then
I’m going to make sure everybody knows that
you’re a half-breed.”

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86

Before Gage could say anything else, Kallen ran

out of the house. Gage stood and watched him go,
his stomach sinking.

“So I take it you heard everything,” he finally

said.

Carson and Shane came out from the corners

they had been hiding in.

“Yes, and just so you know, it doesn’t make a

fucking difference to me. You’re still the same
asshole I always thought you were,” Carson said.

It was Carson’s way of trying to lighten the

mood while letting Gage know that the Cheetah
didn’t give a damn about the whole half-breed
issue. Gage smiled in appreciation.

“If you want, I could go and take Kallen out for

you. That way your secret would die with him,”
Shane offered.

While the offer was nice, in a Shane kind of

way, Gage shook his head, “No, he’s my brother.”

“Are you sure? I could make it quick and

painless.”

“Yes, I’m sure. He may be a Hyena, but I saw it

and I know you guys did, too. There’s some good
in him. We have to figure out a way to help him
and the others,” Gage said.

Carson cocked a brow. “Are you sure? You do

this, your secret will be out.”

Gage shrugged. “If it gets Kallen the help he

needs, I’ll take the hit.”

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87

“How do you want to approach this?” Shane

asked.

“We need to call a meeting with Mitchell and

Daniel and let them know what’s happened.”
Gage took in a deep shuddering breath. “I’m
going to ask Branson to come to the meeting, too.
Since we’re in a relationship, he has every right to
know what he’s getting into.”

Gage only hoped that the news wouldn’t push

Branson away, this time for good.

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Chapter Eight

ranson sat tensely in what had to be the most
uncomfortable chair in Mitchell’s office. He

felt edgy and worried because he still had no clue
why he had been called there. All he knew for
certain was Gage had requested his presence and
that his Hawk was somehow in trouble.

Mitchell and Daniel were there, but the others

hadn’t shown up yet. The three of them sat in an
uneasy silence, the tension so thick Branson could
almost taste it.

His arms ached to hold Gage—to know that he

was safe, happy and cared for. Branson cursed the
fact that he was relegated to being the historian
due to his blindness. If not for his disability, he
could be out there, fighting beside Gage and
protecting him. Maybe then he would know what
had upset Gage so much that he deemed it
necessary to call this damn meeting. Branson
didn’t like not knowing what in the hell was going

B

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89

on. It made him feel more useless than ever.

Finally, the door opened and the sweet smell of

Gage reached Branson. He inhaled deeper, trying
to detect the scent of blood, but there was none.
There was a whole lot of fear and anxiety coming
off Gage though, and that bothered Branson—a
lot.

“What happened?” Mitchell asked.
“We found the pack of Hyenas,” Shane replied.
Shit, even the Leopard’s voice sounded

strained, and it took a lot to get any kind of
emotion from that guy. So whatever happened
must have been bad.

“Did you eliminate them?” Daniel asked.
“Not exactly,” Carson hedged.
“Why not?” Mitchell demanded a bit sharply.
“For one thing, they aren’t man-eaters. In fact,

that’s why they’re strays. The other Hyenas threw
them out for refusing to kill humans,” Carson
said.

Gage had yet to speak, but Branson could sense

him pacing the room, almost like a caged animal.
He could also sense the way Gage’s heart beat
rapidly and how his breath was short and labored.

“And you just trusted their word on that? I

mean they are Hyenas and we all know they can’t
be trusted,” Daniel pressed.

“One of them is my brother,” Gage blurted.
The room fell so silent, one could have heard a

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90

feather dropping.

Daniel finally broke the silence. “What exactly

are you saying?”

“It appears that my father was a Hyena. I’m a

half-breed,” Gage admitted in a harsh voice.

“I thought it was rare for two different species

of shifters to breed,” Daniel said.

“It can happen. Cassie is a perfect example of

that.” Mitchell let out a sigh. “Although the
offspring usually takes after the father.”

Gage let out a bitter laugh. “Leave it to me to

buck the trend. I’ve always felt like I didn’t quite
fit in. Now I know why. It’s because I don’t. I’m
not a Hawk, I’m some kind of freak. Just like my
mother always said.”

Unable to take it anymore, Branson reached out

and snagged Gage’s wrist. He pulled the other
man onto his lap, not giving a damn that they had
an audience. At first, Gage seemed reluctant, but
he eventually gave in and cuddled into Branson’s
chest.

“You are not some freak,” Branson growled.
“Yes, I am.”
“No! You want to know what you are?”
“What?”
“A Hawk. A soldier. And most importantly, my

mate.”

Gage’s breath hitched a bit. “You don’t have to

say that because you feel sorry for me. I’ll

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91

understand if you don’t want me anymore.”

Branson tugged the back of Gage’s hair and

tilted his head up. Not that he could lock gazes
with Gage, but Branson wanted the other man to
see how serious his expression was.

“You are my mate because you are my Gage. I

wouldn’t care if you were a three-legged
hippopotamus. I’d still love you no matter what.”

Gage let out a gasp of surprise. “You love me?”
“Of course I do. Why do you think I kept

chasing you down?”

“Well, because I kept stealing stuff from you.”
“Don’t you think I could have stopped you

from even getting into my office in the first place if
I wanted to? I knew every single time that you
were coming before you even entered my space.”

“Then why did you tell me that you didn’t

want me when I first told you how I felt about
you?” Gage asked in a slightly trembling voice.

“Because I didn’t think somebody as good as

you should have to be saddled with a defect like
me,” Branson admitted.

Damn, but it hurt to say those words aloud. He

figured though, it was the least he owed Gage
after all Branson put him through.

“You’re not defective at all. You’re perfect,”

Gage protested. “Did you really mean it when you
said I was your mate?”

“Yes, I want to wake up every morning for the

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rest of my life with you in my arms. That is, if
you’ll have me.”

Gage let out a watery sounding laugh. “Of

course I will. I’m the luckiest shifter in the world
to have you.”

They shared a deep kiss, eventually interrupted

when Mitchell pointedly cleared his throat,
reminding Branson that they had an audience.

“That was sweet,” Shane said in his normal flat

voice.

“Yes, it was,” Mitchell conceded. “But we still

need to find out what else happened between
Gage and his brother.”

Still sitting in Branson’s lap, Gage gave a

detailed report of the conversation he had with his
brother, including the part where his brother
threatened to blackmail him. A low growl filled
the room and Branson didn’t realize it was coming
from him until Gage began to softly stroke his
chest in an attempt to calm him down.

“So, Gage, what do you suggest we do?” Daniel

asked.

“I know you are all going to think I’m crazy,

but I feel sorry for my brother and his friends.
While he may have asked me to do an awful thing,
I could tell he felt bad about it. I tried to convince
him to come in and ask for asylum, but he’s too
afraid.”

“Well, we can’t exactly hand him the list,”

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93

Mitchell said.

“I understand,” Gage said. “If he makes good

on his threat and lets everybody know that I’m a
half-breed, I’m willing to take some lumps for it. I
just don’t want anybody to get hurt on my
account.”

“Are you sure about that? You know what kind

of assholes Hawks can be when they think
somebody is different,” Carson spat.

Daniel let out a grunt. “They better not treat

him badly or they’ll see the back end of my boot. I
know my Hawks can be jerks at times, but both
Colin and I are working on changing that. We’re
sick of their behavior and things are going to start
changing, or else feathers are going to fly.”

“It’s about damn time,” Carson grumbled.
Shane let out an evil laugh. “You need some

help in the ass kicking department?”

“No, but thanks,” Colin said.
“Okay, but just so you know, if I hear of any

Hawk treating Gage with disrespect, I’m going to
take it very personal. Gage is one of the few
people who doesn’t annoy me around here,”
Shane said.

Strange as it seemed, that warmed Branson a bit

to hear. It was good to know that the scariest
assassin in shifter history had his mate’s back. Not
that Branson didn’t think Gage could handle
himself. He had heard from several different

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94

sources that Gage was a good fighter. It was just
nice to know that Gage had an extra layer of
protection.

“I think I have an idea on how to handle my

brother, but you guys may think it’s crazy,” Gage
hedged.

“That’s nothing new,” Carson snorted. “I’d be

amazed if one of us came up with a sane plan.”

“I think I should meet my brother and act as if

I’m cooperating, but just as a ruse.”

“How so?” Mitchell asked.
“I think we should have a couple of teams

ambush my brother and his strays and capture
them.”

Carson let out a low whistle. “I think that may

piss him off.”

“Maybe so, but if they are in our jail, at least we

know they are getting fed and cared for. You saw
the conditions they were living in. Plus, my
brother looked like he was sick and too thin.”

“Are you sure? He could end up hating you for

this,” Daniel warned.

Branson was willing to bet that Gage’s brother

would hate him for it. There was no could about it.
Branson suspected that Gage knew that, too. Still,
ever the sympathetic guy he was, Gage would
take the hate if it ended up helping somebody else
in the end.

“I’m positive. It’s the only way I can think of to

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95

get him the help he needs,” Gage replied firmly.

Branson hated to play devil’s advocate, but he

felt he, at least, had to voice some of his concerns.
“Are you sure that you’re not letting your
personal emotions get in the way? There have
never been any reported cases of a Hyena being
able to be tamed enough to be trusted unguarded
in society.”

Branson could feel Gage nod. “I know it may

sound sappy, but I could see the humanity in his
eyes. Maybe it’s because he’s half-breed, but I
don’t think Kallen is all bad like other Hyenas.
Besides, didn’t people used to say the same about
Leopards and Ravens? Shane, Chance and Dulla
proved us all wrong on that opinion.”

“Not so quick, Skippy. The jury is still out on

Shane,” Carson cut in.

A grunt filled the air, no doubt because Shane

gave Carson a love tap.

“At least I know why it always hurts so much

when I shift,” Gage said.

“You never mentioned that before,” Daniel

replied.

“It wasn’t something I was proud of because I

thought I was just crappy at shifting. Now I think
it may be because I’m half-breed so it’s harder on
my body.”

“That would make sense. If you want, I could

ask Doc Featherstone about it,” Mitchell offered.

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96

“I often wondered why you never shifted to get

away from me all those times I chased you,”
Branson said.

Gage nuzzled his neck. “Oh no, I didn’t shift

then because I wanted you to catch me.”

“I never thought I would be the one saying this,

but you two have one weird relationship,” Carson
joked.

Branson had to admit the Cheetah might have a

point on that one, but he wouldn’t change it for
the world. For in the end, it got him the best mate
ever.

Mitchell cleared his throat. “I guess I don’t have

to try to convince Gage to move to HQ in order to
keep him safe until this thing boils over?”

Branson shook his head, which wasn’t an easy

feat since Gage was still nuzzling him there. “My
mate belongs with me so he’s already as good as
moved in.”

“Okay,” Gage agreed, “but you have to let me

do some redecorating. The place needs to have a
homey touch.”

“Deal, but only if you promise to buy a big

recliner first. I like holding you this way.”

Gage snuggled in deeper. “I’m not too heavy

for you?”

“No, you’re a perfect fit.”
“And on that note, I’m out of here. I can only

take so much sweetness before I get sick to my

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97

stomach,” Carson groused.

“Oh, please. You and Keegan are just as bad,”

Mitchell laughed.

“I’m still leaving.”
“I’m going, too, but only so I can get sappy

with my own mate. Trevor likes it when I do that,”
Shane added.

The sound of footsteps was followed by the

door closing. Gage leaned in and whispered,
“We’re alone now. Should we get frisky?”

“As tempting as that sounds, I don’t think

Mitchell would appreciate it.”

“You’re probably right.” Gage gave a pause

that showed he was thinking too hard. “Did you
really mean it?”

“What? That Mitchell wouldn’t want spunk on

his desk?”

Gage laughed. “No, did you mean it when you

said I was your mate?”

“Yeah, I thought I already made that perfectly

clear last night.”

Gage snuggled in. “I was too afraid to believe it

for fear of being hurt if it wasn’t true. I didn’t even
allow myself to hope when everybody else started
referring to you as my mate today.”

Branson ran his hand up Gage’s back, savoring

the warmth coming from his mate. “They scented
me on you?”

“Yeah, Shane said I was saturated in your

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98

scent.”

Damn if that didn’t fill Branson with a sense of

Alpha pride.

“Did you make sure that Damien jerk smelled

it?”

Gage gave him a playful swat on the arm. “I

think that poor jerk got the message last night
when you went all primal on him.”

Branson couldn’t help but smile over that fact.

He bet that it would be a while before Damien
tried to poach somebody else’s mate.

Gage started to nuzzle Branson’s neck again. It

seemed to be the Hawk’s newest hobby and
Branson was more than happy to accommodate
him. Shivers of desire shot down his spine and he
almost forgot that they were in Mitchell’s office
and sex was a no-no for the moment. Once
Branson got Gage to their bed though, all bets
were off. He was going to spend the entire night
claiming and re-claiming his mate.

“I meant what I said earlier,” Gage whispered.

“I love you. More than anything.”

“I love you, too.”
Branson wrapped his mate in a tight embrace.

He only hoped that Gage’s plan for the Hyenas
worked. He also hoped that there was a way to
tame Kallen because Gage had suffered enough
heartbreak in his life. The last thing he needed was
yet another one of his family members hurting

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99

him.

Branson made a vow to himself that he would

make a way for those who had hurt Gage in the
past to pay for what they did. He didn’t care what
it cost him. His mate deserved some justice for all
that had been done to him.

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100

Chapter Nine

age approached the house, his heart
hammering so loudly, shifters two cities away

could probably hear it. His mouth was dry while
sweat clung to the back of his shirt, despite it
being colder than Satan’s left nut.

He wondered how his brother and the strays

had been managing to keep warm. Since the house
was abandoned, the gas and power wasn’t on. In
addition, going by what little Gage knew, Kallen
and the others had been trying to keep a low
profile so they probably didn’t even want to take
the risk of lighting a small fire to get some
warmth.

While he couldn’t see them, Gage knew the area

was surrounded by three different teams of
coalition soldiers. Both Daniel and Mitchell had
insisted on coming along as well in order to try to
convince the strays to come in willingly. Not that
anybody really expected that to happen. The

G

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101

strays had been raised all their lives to fear and
hate felines and Hawks so they weren’t likely to
just all of the sudden trust them on Gage’s word
alone.

Gage closed his eyes and said a silent prayer

that they would be able to pull this off without
anybody getting hurt. In his hand, he clenched a
piece of paper. It was a mock list that Carson had
done up for him. Gage only hoped it fooled his
brother long enough for the teams to move in and
capture the strays without any shots being fired.

Reaching the door, Gage took hold of the knob

on instinct and found that it was unlocked this
time. He opened it, once again gagging as the
scent of the place hit him. Now he knew why the
clean-up crews on those hoarding shows always
wore heavy masks. The stench in the house was
downright toxic.

Nobody should have to live like this. Especially my

brother. Gage only hoped that Kallen didn’t end up
hating him for what was about to happen.

Walking into the main room, he found Kallen

surrounded by a half-dozen other male Hyenas.
While none of them appeared too threatening,
each of them had the same emaciated, washed out
look about them. They varied in age, going from
maybe late-teens to around a year or so older than
Gage. It was somewhat hard to tell with the adults
since shifters aged slowly once they reached

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102

adulthood.

All of them wore ragged clothes that looked

like Goodwill castoffs and every one of the men
looked in desperate need of a shower. They all
eyed Gage suspiciously, but he didn’t sense any of
them presented a threat to him.

“Did you bring the list?” Kallen asked.
“Are you sure we want to do this?” one of the

younger Hyenas asked.

“Yes, Manny. We don’t have any other choice.

It’s either do this or die,” Kallen replied.

Gage noted how his brother was unable to meet

anybody’s gaze as he spoke those words. It gave
Gage another sliver of hope that maybe some
humanity remained in his brother.

“Your men look sick. Let me take them back to

the coalition. They have the best doctors and
medical staff there,” Gage offered.

Kallen paused, uncertainty flickering over his

face before he gave a slight shake of his head.
“Thanks, but I can’t risk it. With the money we
make from the Ravens, I’ll be able to afford to pay
for them to get medical care somewhere else.”

“How are you so certain the Ravens will keep

up their end of the bargain? For all you know they
will just take the list, then kill you so they don’t
have to pay out the reward money,” Gage said.

Panic crossed over Kallen’s face, showing Gage

his brother never considered that possibility.

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103

Gage, on the other hand, knew that outcome
would probably be a certainty. There is no way in
hell the Ravens would willingly give over so much
cash when they knew they could just use force to
steal the list from Kallen.

“That’s a chance we’re going to have to take.”

Kallen stretched out his hand. “Now, give me the
list and I’ll take my group and leave the city.”

With shaking fingers, Gage passed over the list.

Kallen snatched it away before taking a couple of
steps back. Opening it, his gaze swept over it.
After only a few moments, his face grew red with
anger. “What in the hell? This isn’t a list of the
Lost Shifters.”

“What is it then?” Manny asked.
“A list of this year’s Golden Globe Nominees.”
Damn it, leave it to Carson to make a joke out of

even this situation.

Glaring up at Gage, Kallen snarled, “What kind

of game is this?”

As if answering a preplanned cue, the teams

swooped in. Coming in from all sides, they rushed
through the doors, guns drawn and pointed at the
group of strays. Kallen let out a yelp of outrage as
he looked around frantically for any way out, but
there was none. The Hyenas were surrounded by
felines and Hawks.

“How could you do this to me?” Kallen

shrieked.

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104

“I had no choice. I knew there would be no

other way that you would come in,” Gage
explained, his body tense with anxiety.

Please don’t let anybody get hurt, please, please,

please.

“So, you would turn in your own brother? Do

you think that would make them forget that
you’re a half-breed? They’re all going to hate you
as much as they do us now,” Kallen seethed.

“Gage is one of us and that’s never going to

change,” Carson spat out, his eyes glinting
dangerously.

Mitchell took a step forward, palms up to show

he was unarmed. “I promise, my coalition doesn’t
mean you any harm. We just can’t have feral
groups of strays running in our territory. Not with
the way things are going with the humans at the
moment.”

“We never hurt any people,” Kallen protested

angrily.

“I am aware of that, but we still need to take

you in.”

“So you’re going to lock us up?”
“Just until we know that you’re safe. If you can

prove that you pose no threat to the coalition, we
will welcome you into our fold.”

“Yeah, right,” Kallen scoffed. “Why would you

do that?”

“Because Gage seems to think there is some

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105

hope for you and your friends.”

Kallen glanced over at Gage. “Did he really say

that?”

Mitchell nodded. “Think about it, Kallen. You

and your men will be locked up for a bit, but we
will make sure you are fed, clothed and taken care
of. I can already tell that some of you are pretty
sick. It doesn’t make you a weak leader to
surrender for the good of your strays.”

A tense silence filled the room before Kallen

finally gave a defeated nod. “Fine. It’s not like I
have any choice, do I?”

“Not really? We would just take you in by force

if you refuse. At least this way, you all can save
your dignity,” Mitchell said.

Kallen let out a bitter laugh. “Dignity? That was

something we were never allowed. Even as kids,
we were treated like crap. If you are lying to us
and plan on torturing us or something, bring it on.
We’ve all faced worse before.”

Gage felt sick to his stomach as the implication

of those words hit him. It looked as if his brother’s
life had not been any easier than his life was. No
wonder their mother had fallen in love with their
father. It sounded as if they shared a sadistic
streak.

Mitchell and the others led the Hyenas out to

the waiting transport vans. Never once did Kallen
look over at Gage. It hurt, but Gage knew he had

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106

done the right thing. He only hoped his brother
would someday forgive him for it.

Shane came up and put a hand on Gage’s

shoulder. “You were right.”

“About what?”
“He does have a piece of humanity left in him.”
“How can you be so certain?”
“Because I know all the tricks somebody uses

when they’re trying to hide it. Lucky for Kallen,
you’re like Trevor, and have a knack for seeing
through those kinds of shields. Otherwise there
would be no hope for monsters like me and
Kallen.”

Gage blinked in surprise. “Neither one of you

are a monster.”

Shane smiled. “And that is what I mean. You

are one of the rare few who look on the inside of a
person before the outside. If there was only more
like you out there, the world would be a fuck of a
lot better place to live.”

Before Gage could thank him, Shane walked

away. Carson watched him leave before cocking
his head to the side and saying, “Damn, if the
assassin gigs ever dry up, Shane could make a
kick-ass living writing fortune cookies.”

“And you could make a living writing the

scripts for porn movies,” Gage drawled in return.

Carson grinned at him. “You’re getting to be

more of a smartass every day. I’m so proud of

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107

you. At least you’re learning something from me.”

“God help me.”
Carson laughed. “Come on. Let’s get out of this

place. It smells like a zombie’s armpit in here.”

Over the next day, Gage busied himself by

moving all his belongings from his tiny apartment
to Branson’s slightly larger place. While Gage was
thrilled that he would be living with his mate, it
was going to take some getting used to living at
HQ. It felt kind of weird residing in the same
building he worked. Yet, if Branson and Skye
could get accustomed to it, then Gage knew he’d
be able to eventually adjust, too.

Once he had everything kind of in place, he

finally decided to go to the jail housed downstairs
to see how his brother was doing. Gage had
wanted to go sooner, but Branson had wisely
suggested that Gage might want to give Kallen
twenty-four hours to calm down.

Gage nodded to the guards as he walked by.
“Your brother is in the last cell on the left,” one

of them offered.

The guard was a Hawk and Gage looked

closely to see if there were any signs of disgust on
the man’s face now that he knew Gage was a half-
breed, but the guard just smiled at him, as friendly
as ever. It would appear that Colin and Daniel had
made good on their promise to make sure that

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everyone still treated Gage with respect.

Gage made his way down the long, sterile

white hallway. The cells were more like rooms
since they had four walls and only the doors had
bars on them. It could have been worse, but Gage
still hated the idea of Kallen being locked up in
one. He reminded himself it was for the good of
the coalition. A part of him still felt sick over the
situation though.

His brother must have somehow sensed Gage

approaching because he was waiting at the door,
his fingers curled around the bars. He had a fresh
white sweat suit on and looked a hell of a lot
cleaner. In addition, the dark circles were already
beginning to fade from under his eyes.

Gage searched his brother’s face, looking for

any signs of anger, but there were none. Kallen
even managed to give him a tiny smile.

“Hey,” Gage said, not sure how to start the

conversation.

“I was wondering how long before you came

down here,” Kallen replied.

“Are you still mad at me?”
Kallen shook his head. “I know now that it was

the best thing for the strays. The doc said that at
least two of them would have died within the
week. Thanks to you, they’re now going to get
better.”

“What was wrong with them?”

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109

Kallen shrugged. “It was some kind of hard to

pronounce disease that affects half-breed Hyenas.
Luckily, your doc here was able to recognize it
and treat it.”

“I told you he was the best.”
“Yeah, although his bedside manners could use

some improving. Plus, he tells some of the lamest
jokes.”

Gage chuckled, “Yeah, that sounds like Doc

Featherstone. Don’t worry, if he’s joking with you
that just means he likes you.”

For a moment, the brothers just studied each

other. It seemed so weird to finally be this close to
Kallen after them being separated most of the their
lives. It was almost surreal.

Gage took a deep breath and asked a question

that had been plaguing him. “What is our father
like?”

A haunted expression came over Kallen’s dark

eyes. “He’s one the meanest bastards ever created.
When he found out that I wouldn’t live up to his
potential, he treated me more as a pet than his
child. By that, I mean he made me sleep outside on
the ground and eat scraps. When he wasn’t
ignoring me, he was beating me. Trust me, you
were lucky that he left you behind with Mom.”

That wasn’t necessarily true, but Gage didn’t

have it in his heart to tell Kallen otherwise.
Stepping forward, he grabbed the bars so his

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110

fingers were wrapped around Kallen’s. When
Kallen didn’t pull away, a heavy weight was lifted
from Gage’s chest.

“I promise that nobody will ever treat you like

that again. Not so long as I have a breath left in
my body,” Gage pledged.

Kallen gave him a crooked smile. “Hey, I’m the

big brother. Isn’t it my job to take care of you?”

“No. Family takes care of family. You’re my

brother and now that I finally have you back and
safe, I won’t ever let you go hungry or be cold
again.”

Kallen’s eyes teared up a bit and he looked

down at the ground. “I can’t remember a time
where I didn’t have to fight for food.”

“Are they feeding you good here?”
“Yeah. The doc has us on a strict diet right now,

since we were all so malnourished, but it still beats
eating road kill and whatever we found in the
dumpsters.”

It took everything Gage had in him not to weep

over those words. While their mother may have
been a she-bitch most of the time, at least she’d
never starved Gage.

“What’s his name?” Gage rasped.
Kallen’s brow creased in confusion. “Whose?”
“Our…”Gage paused, trying not to choke on

the word, “father. Mom never would tell me what
it was.”

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111

“Fredric Climes. Why does it matter? You’re

not thinking of trying to meet him, are you?
Because I have to warn you, he really hates you
and Mom.”

“No, I’m not going to pay him a prodigal son

visit. I want to know his name so I can hunt him
down and take him out, like the animal he is,”
Gage growled.

“It won’t be easy. Dad is always under heavy

guard.”

Gage gave a grin he knew was wicked. “That’s

okay. I happen to be good friends with the best
assassin ever.”

“Is it that scary looking guy in the hood?”
“Yes, and he’s good at what he does.”
Kallen let out a shiver. “Man, I almost pity Dad.

I would not want that guy coming after me.”

Gage allowed himself a secret smile. Knowing

the way Shane worked, Fredric wouldn’t know
Shane was coming for him until the Hyena’s
throat was already slit and he was bleeding out.

That thought didn’t give Gage an ounce of

regret either.

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Chapter Ten

hane pulled up his hood and ducked inside an
open window of the ramshackle mobile home,

his nose crinkling at the scent of unwashed bodies,
strong booze and Raven.

Even though it was dark in that area of the

home, Shane could still easily see. He cast his gaze
over what he assumed was the master bedroom.
Cocking a brow when he saw a set of handcuffs
hooked to the headboard. Well, well, well, it
would seem that even Ravens could get their kink
on sometimes.

One thing Shane noticed was there wasn’t any

pictures of Gage. There were none present on the
dresser or on the walls of the hallway. Not that
Shane was surprised. After all, the entire reason he
was here in the first place was because Gage’s
mother was a heartless bitch.

Shane peeked out in the living room, seeing a

thin woman and a fat man sitting on the couch

S

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watching some lame reality show. The woman
wore one of those cheap, flowered housecoats that
looked as if it had seen better days. As for the
man, he was living up to his stereotype by
wearing all black, albeit, it was a pair of torn sweat
pants and a t-shirt that had more holes in it than a
plot from a Uwe Boll movie.

The Raven was the first to sense something was

wrong. His nostrils flared as he scented Shane.
Letting out a growl, the bird sprang to his feet, but
it was already too late. Taking out his blade, Shane
moved forward and, in one swift motion, sliced
the Raven’s throat.

The Raven’s eyes widened in shock as he

grabbed at his gullet. Shane gave him one last
disgusted look before he kicked the body away
from him. Trevor hated it when Shane came home
covered in blood and the Raven was spurting a lot
of it, so Shane decided to let the cheap, stain-
covered carpet soak it up instead.

The female Hawk crawled back into the corner

of the couch, screaming her head off. Lifting the
now bloody blade to his lips, Shane said,
“Shhh…we don’t want to disturb the neighbors.”

“Who are you and why are you here?” she

demanded, her voice shaking with fear.

Good, Shane hoped the bitch felt a ton of fear.

After all the terror she put Gage through, she
deserved some of her own medicine.

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“I’m somebody who happens to care for Gage a

lot. You could say he’s like a brother to me. So
when I found out what your Raven boyfriend did
to Gage, I had to make sure he paid for it.”

They both glanced down at the now dead

Raven. The female in horror, Shane wearing a
satisfied grin.

“Are you going to kill me, too?” she finally

asked, her hands going to her throat in a
protective gesture.

Shane slowly sucked in a breath and made the

female sweat it out for a couple of moments. “You
know, if it were up to me, you would already be
dead and lying next to that piece of shit Raven,
but I know that would upset Gage. For some
reason, he still cares for you, even after all you put
him through.”

Shane took a threatening step closer. “Don’t

make any mistake about it though, if I find out
you so much as look in Gage’s direction, I will
come back and I will kill you. You are no longer
his family…we are, and I protect those close to
me.”

Pulling out a picture, Shane held it up for her to

see. “Does this guy look familiar to you?”

Hands still on her throat, she nodded. “It’s my

ex-mate.”

Taking the bloody knife, Shane stabbed through

the picture, pinning it to the cheap imitation-wood

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115

coffee table. “If you happen to see him, let him
know he’s next.”

Then, deliberately turning his back on her,

despite the knife being within her grasp since he
saw her as no threat, Shane started to walk away.
He had his hand on the door when he paused and
gave a pointed look to all the empty bottles of
illegal shifter booze, “You know, you really need
to cut back on that shit. It can kill you.”

He then walked out of the house and went to

the waiting car, sliding into the driver’s seat,
Shane turned to Branson, “Okay, it’s done.”

“You just killed the Raven, right? Gage’s

mother is still okay?” Branson asked.

“Yes, but I did leave her a message, but that’s

related to a favor I’m doing for somebody else.”

If Gage wanted Branson to know that he’d put a

hit out on his own father, it was up to the Hawk to
tell his mate. Shane wasn’t about to spill his
friend’s secrets.

“Are you going to tell Gage that the bastard

who raped him is dead?” Shane asked.

Branson nodded. “Yes, eventually I will.”
“Is he still having nightmares?”
“Sometimes, but they are becoming more

infrequent now that he lives with me.”

That alone was payment enough for Shane.

* * * *

Stephani Hecht

116

Branson went back to his apartment and made his
way directly to the bedroom. Since it was late,
Gage was already in bed. Branson quietly took off
his clothes, then slipped into bed with his mate.

Gage mumbled something in his sleep before

turning over and cuddling into Branson’s chest.
Gage said something else and Branson thought he
was talking in his sleep again, until he made out
the words, “I love you, Branson.”

Holding Gage close, Branson breathed in his

scent and said, “I love you, too.”

At that moment, Branson could not have been

happier. He had his mate by his side, they were
both happy and there was one less monster in the
world.

While it may have been rough getting there,

Branson finally knew that all was right in his life
and it was all thanks to a brat who had sticky
fingers and the determination to never to give up.

Yes, this was what true happiness felt like and

Branson knew he would never be stupid enough
to ever overlook it again. Just because he was
blind didn’t mean he couldn’t see the perfection
that was his mate.

About the Author

Stephani Hecht is a happily married mother of
two. Born and raised in Michigan, she loves all
things about the state, from the frigid winters to
the Detroit Red Wings hockey team. You can
usually find her snuggled up to her laptop,
creating her next book.

Contact her at:
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