"Holy cow, Liam. That was the best yet!" I said happily, patting my full stomach. "I gotta tell you, you turn cooking into an art form."

Liam blushed slightly and shook his head. "Thank you, kid. Now what's this shit about you not shifting this whole damn month? I assumed you were hanging out with other shifters while I was working and going for runs. Dammit, now I feel bad."

"No, don't feel bad." I rushed to reassure the big guy with the soft heart. "I just didn't want to impose."

Liam rolled his eyes and turned his attention to Hector. "My backyard is safe from any prying eyes if you shift on the patio. The whole yard is probably fine, I just like to take every precaution. Just leave your clothes on the patio bench, and head on out into the trees. If you go up the mountain, or to the west, you'll be in neutral territory. To the east, you'll be on den lands. Which is fine, since our Drew is a citizen, but it's not entirely safe. We don't think that any rogues are around the area at the moment, but we have no way to know for sure."

Hector leveled him with a serious look. "Would you feel safe to take your omega out there?"

"Hell. My omega is former military. He'd probably be more likely to be the one out there covering my ass than the other way around. But yeah. You'll be safe if you stay in the town side of the mountain. Diego's cousin, Jules? You know him, right? He lives with his family just a little over a mile to the west, if you want to go talk to him now that things have calmed down from earlier."

Shaking his head with a wry grin, Hector said: "I'll just put that off for now, especially given the fact that we'll be naked if we shift back in his yard. That's just not exactly the kind of disadvantage I want to have with another jaguar shifter if he's pissed at me."

I giggled a little more omega-ishly than I would have preferred as I said: "Trust me. If Diego left without sinking his claws into you, then you're fine. Jules would only be upset if his primo was. And Jules' mate Colin was the one who stopped everything and spoke to me before we left to come here and eat."

Hector pretended to let out a mournful sigh and looked back at Liam. "What is an alpha to do then? I begged for a nap, and the imp wants a run. I guess I'm going for a run."

Liam winked at me and turned back to Hector with a grin. "I'll just have a tray delivered to your room later. And I suppose that I'm correct when I assume that my guest room will be empty tonight and you will need sustenance."

I blushed beet red while Hector gave Liam a lazy grin. "That sounds good, my friend. Perhaps a carafe of coffee and some earl grey as well? We may very well need the caffeine, if we're up as late as I hope to be."

Rolling my eyes at the two alphas’ casual discussion of my impending loss of virginity and mating, I stood and said as indifferently as I could muster: "Shall we go for that run then? I mean, we probably should do it before your old man body decides to poop out and take that silly nap?"

* * *

After Hector closed the patio door after following me outside, it dawned on me. He was about to see me naked! I gulped, braving a glance in his direction as I slowly pulled my shirt over my head.

Almost as if he read my mind, or more likely, smelled my nervousness, Hector spoke. "It's okay, lindo. There is no need to be shy with me, but if you prefer, I will turn around."

I shook my head. I mean, how would I ever get to mating with him if I couldn't undress and shift in front of him? Raising my head, I looked Hector in the eyes as I slowly began to unfasten my pants.

Hector smirked at me. "I like your style, lindo. Your response to shyness is to perform a striptease? Way to push your boundaries, Daddy likes. Now turn and show me that round little ass while you slowly push down your pants."

I bit my lip to contain my giggle and slowly turned and did exactly as he'd requested. At his low growl of approval, I knew that he liked my choice in underwear. He was on me before I heard him move, his breath hot against my ear as his hand moved around to cup the lacy crotch of my black manties.

"What is this deliciousness? Are you trying to drive me mad?" He spoke in an urgent rasp, his hand stroking my hard length as he teased it through the lace.

I gasped and leaned back into his strong chest. "Y-you should p-probably—" gasp "—stop doing that or we'll never get to go explore."

"Maybe I am already exploring, lindo." His sharp teeth nipped at my earlobe before sucking it in between them into the moist heat of his mouth. I could feel the steel rod in his pants as he pressed up against me from behind. "My cat is intrigued, he loves to find shiny new toys. This may derail things now. It's okay, lindo. Don't be shy."

Shaking my head as I pulled myself into awareness, I hissed between my teeth: "Hector! Anyone can see us here. This isn't me being a shy virgin, this is me not wanting an audience."

That was the right thing to say because his hand immediately dropped and he stepped back abruptly. He was in full protective alpha mode as he spoke again.

"My apologies, Drew. You are quite right. We need privacy, and I do not wish for anyone to lay eyes on your aroused body but my own."

I quickly finished undressing, and laid my clothes on the bench after taking care to tuck my lace undies into my shoe. I stole a peek, okay, a few peeks, at Hector as he quickly undressed and laid his own clothing beside my own. My mind raced as I took in the size of his erect cock, wondering how in the world I would accommodate that monster later tonight. His body was nearly hairless, with just a smattering of black hair in the center of his chest and a silken trail leading from navel to crotch.

I tore my eyes away from his sleekly muscular body. Each sinewy muscle was covered in that caramel hued skin. If I had time and privacy, I would drop to my knees and lick my way over the ropy muscles in those long legs. As I turned to step away, I realized that he'd been watching me check him out. He winked and slowly turned in a circle.

"It's okay, lindo. Look your fill, it's all for you now."

I about died when an embarrassed squeak came out of my throat. I turned instead, and bent forward with my arms outstretched and let my bear come to the surface. Within a matter of seconds, fur was sprouting from my flesh as my bones twisted and changed into my smallish brown bear.

I walked into the main yard and dropped to the grass. Giving in to my bear, I rolled in the grass and let the sun soak into my hide. I heard a loud purring noise, and looked up to see a magnificent jaguar slinking toward me. His pelt was nearly orange with its pure honey brown color. Black spots spattered over him, in a thicker concentration over that long spine, then spreading out in a looser pattern over the rest of his body.

When I looked into his eyes, I nearly swooned. A violet glow emanated from within those glorious eyes. It was if I could feel him touching my soul as I looked into those unworldly eyes. Power came out of them, and for a moment, it seemed as he were surrounded by a purple aura. Which was a silly thought and an obvious trick of the eyes.

Hector came closer and swiped his rough tongue over my muzzle, as though letting me know that he knew what I'd seen and that it was okay. I had no idea what to make of it. I'd heard gossip in school about rare shifters with glowing eyes, but I hadn't listened since it was obviously a made up tale. Except, maybe it wasn't?

I rolled over to my feet and stood, surprised that I was about the same height as my mate. Granted, my bear was small. But his cat was huge! Hector rubbed up against me, brushing along the length of my body as though marking me. He walked around behind me and rubbed his way back up the other side.

I was entranced by the way he purred while possessively marking me. After he finished with my body, Hector moved around in front of me and rubbed his cheeks against my own, first one and then the other. With a light bump of his forehead against mine, Hector spun and led the way to the trees.

We climbed the mountain easily, playfully cavorting through the trees as we went. I led him to a creek high on the hillside, then flopped down in the sunshine of a small clearing. Hector stopped to lap up his own fill of water before coming over to curl up against me. I closed my eyes, comforted by the heat of my mate's body and his rumbling purr.

I must have dozed, because when I opened my eyes again, the sun was lower in the sky. Hector was sitting there possessively guarding me, his eyes trained on mine. The only movement in his body was the swish swish swish of his tail as it fanned over the dry grass from side to side.

Blinking my eyes, I stretched and stood. After stopping to rub my snout into Hector's neck, I lumbered over to the water for another drink of the cold, refreshing mountain water. Hector stood patiently until I turned, then swooped in to lick the water dripping from my muzzle. Then he chuffed at me almost affectionately and headed back towards the treeline.

We ran back down the mountain, well, I ran. Hector just kept pace with me. I knew his cat was capable of far greater speeds that he was portraying at the moment. Once we made it back down to the B&B, we headed for the patio and smoothly shifted. We both quietly began to dress, awareness simmering in the air between us.

I started to forgo my manties, and was about to shove them in my pocket before stepping into my jeans when a hand shot out and grabbed my wrist. I looked up at Hector curiously.

"Please," he said in a sultry voice. "I want to take them off you later. But first, I would like to eat another lovely meal in the dining room while I imagine you wearing that lace under your mundane jeans and t-shirt. It is quite a juxtaposition, no?"

I could feel my cheeks burning as I blushed, but simply nodded and stepped into my underwear. Hector watched as I wiggled them into place and adjusted my junk. Once I'd put on my jeans, he quit watching me and put his own clothes back on. After we were dressed, we headed back inside.

Our table from this morning was taken, but Liam and Frankie were at a large table in the corner with Alpha Mikael and his mate. Alpha Mikael caught my eye and waved us over with a pleasant smile.

I smiled as I heard Hector's soft sigh behind me when I dutifully led us to the table. I took his hand as we approached, presenting myself as half of a united pairing.

"Drew," Alpha Mikael greeted warmly, his appraising eyes on Hector as he stood and held out a hand to my alpha. "Liam was just telling me your good news. Congratulations to you both, fated-mates are a rare and precious gift from the gods."

Hector reached for his hand. "Hello, Alpha. I can tell from the power emanating from within that you are the leader of Drew's den? I am Hector, it is my honor to meet you."

They shook hands briefly and Alpha Mikael gestured to the empty seats at the table. "Won't you join us? We took the larger table in the hopes that you two might return from your afternoon in time to share a meal."

My mate inclined his head and pulled out a chair for me beside Alpha Mate Taylor. "We would be honored to join you, Alpha. I am pleased to meet my mate's people."

Liam snorted as Hector slid into the chair beside me. "Well, we're pretty much it. My cousin was best friends with Drew growing up. I think this scamp spent more time in our house than his own."

Taylor said: "Where is Dylan? Aren't he and your sister back from their trip yet? I bet you miss him! I missed my bestie so hard when I came to the den, and he's only an hour away at the wolf lodge. Of course, I have Mik's cousin Steffy as my bestie too now, but it's been rough since he mated with Diego. His little cat gets a little pissy if he thinks I'm spending too much time with Stef." He rolled his eyes. "As if. Right?"

I grinned at the pink haired little twink, knowing full well how possessively jealous that Diego was with Alpha Heir Stefan's time.

Hector asked our Alpha: "Your cousin is the mate of Diego? I met him briefly this morning. It was a bit of a misunderstanding, I'm afraid."

Taylor giggled while Alpha Mikael merely gave a half smile and said: "Yes, so I heard. They are staying with us until this abominable war has ended. But, I believe that my cousin was quite vocal about your presence when they were leaving this morning. Don't worry though, he was much calmer when they returned."

"I apologize," Hector said sincerely. "I had no idea that Diego was mated, nor did I come here to try to win his hand. I merely wanted to apologize and find the solution to the perplexing dreams I'd been having that were pulling me here."

He smiled over at me before looking back to Alpha Mikael. "Now that I've scented my mate, I have a better understanding as to part of the reason that I was needed here."

Frankie looked at him curiously. "And the other part? Does it relate to our conversation last night?"

Hector jerked his chin in a nod, then turned to Alpha Mikael. "I felt it in my gut when I shook your hand that I am to remain here to help you settle this thing. I cannot tell you more than that right now, or explain in more detail." He looked around the crowded dining room before turning his eyes back to the Alpha. "But I promise that when I have a better idea of what my role is in this, and what is needed to bring it to an ending, I will contact you immediately."

Frankie leaned across Liam to look at Alpha Mikael. "This is one of those need to know type deals, Alpha. You have my word as well. I'll do my best to work with our guest and see what we can find to bring this to a final closure."

Mikael inclined his head to Hector. He spoke in a meaningful way that hinted at being in on some secret that I didn't know. "I understand what you are referring to, Hector. I would never force to you to show your hand, especially in a public setting. You know, something about you reminds me of an Irishman I knew once. He was a red fox shifter, strangely enough."

He smiled at Frankie before looking back to Hector thoughtfully. "When I was a young man, I traveled through Europe. I had a brief friendship with an alpha there. His eyes had the most unusual swirl to their jade green depths. If one didn't know better, they might say that they glowed. Funny, thing about that Patrick. He had a knack of knowing beforehand if there was going to be an accident or something that would bring harm to those close to him. He was practically, well, for lack of a better word: psychic. Everyone in his clan joked that he did indeed have the luck of the Irish."

Tipping his water glass to Hector, the Alpha took a sip and set the glass down before speaking again. "Hmm. I haven't thought of Patty in many years. I wonder how they are faring over there on the emerald isle? Well, anyway. I appreciate your willingness to stay and assist us in this matter. I'm too desperate at this point to decline such a generous offer. Instead, I'll just say thank you and that my door will be open any time day or night if you need to speak to me."

"Thank you, Alpha. I appreciate that," Hector said easily. "You know, if memory serves, I believe that I have also met that fox family during my travels. Patrick is mated now, and has a few young kits of his own. I ran into them about a year or so ago. He and I share a certain, shall we say, gift of lucky dreams?"

Mikael nodded silently, then asked with grin, "So, since you mentioned sticking around to help finish this, shall I assume that I am losing a certain young omega citizen when you leave?"

Hector and I smiled at each other before I nodded and spoke to my Alpha. "Yes, Alpha. I am leaving with my mate when he goes. Apparently, I need to see how my bear likes living in tropical regions."

Taylor gasped with excitement. "Tropical? Really? Where will you be living?"

At Hector's nod, I began to explain to everyone that Hector was from Belize. Taylor was practically vibrating with excitement when I mentioned that it would be our home base because we would be traveling a lot for Hector's business.

A beta waiter name Ben brought several large platters of food to the table while I spoke. Apparently, Liam had arranged for a family style meal of pasta with different sides and finger foods. Along with a huge salad and a large basket of garlic bread, there was more than enough food here for all of us and another dozen shifters as well.

Taylor looked over at Hector while I took a bite of spaghetti and asked: "Doesn't it get annoying though, to deal with flying in those airplanes with all the humans shoved in together like sardines in a can?"

Hector shrugged nonchalantly as he picked up a piece of garlic bread. "I would not know, to be honest. I always use one of my family's private planes when I travel."

"Wait. ONE of your family's planes? As in you have more than one? Or you guys have replaced them over the years?" Taylor asked curiously.

Hector grinned at the nosy little wolf. "My family own three planes. And yes, we do swap them out from time to time."

Taylor's eyes widened with delight. "That's so cool! I bet that's the only way to travel." As if realizing that he was being rude, he quickly rushed to apologize. "I'm sorry if I sound rude or if I'm overstepping. I've just never heard of people who own planes as casually as the rest of us do cars. I think it's exciting."

Hector grinned, his eyes lit with amusement. "I'm not offended, my friend. And trust me, if you have to fly as much as I do? It is the only way to do it. I get a lot of work done while I'm being flown around the globe."

Liam spoke up then. "Drew has been dreaming of traveling ever since he was old enough to know that there was a larger world out there. It would seem as though the fates knew what they were doing, when they put you together."

I smiled happily, realizing suddenly that there had been someone paying attention to me all these years after all. Who would've known it was Dylan's cousin? He'd always been a nice guy. It made me feel good, to think that he thought of me as family.

After dinner finally ended, Hector looked at me with a slight quirk to his brow and a silent question in his eyes. I smiled at him softly, then turned back to my friends.

"Thank you for including us for this lovely meal. It was great to visit with you. But, I hope that you'll excuse us now. We've had a long day and I think we're going to head upstairs." Everyone at the table smiled politely and said their good-byes but Taylor leaned over and batted a hand against my arm.

"That was code for you wanna go get you some, don't try and play us! Have fun, I'd tell you not to do anything that I wouldn't do, but Mik can attest that there isn't much that I won't do."

I blushed furiously as I stood to my feet while Hector chuckled and Alpha Mikael gave his mate a pained look. Hector took my hand, and calm flooded my body.

He smiled easily at Taylor before turning his attention to the rest of the table as he said: "You guys enjoy your evening, my mate and I will certainly be doing the same."

With a wink, he led my speechless self through the lobby and up the stairs to his room.