Her lips felt like silk, heaven, and candy all wrapped up in one and served with a side of ambrosia. Tania moaned low, and he didn't think he could stop himself from tasting more of her softness, savoring it leisurely. The tiger inside Ian wanted to rush to the surface and play with his mate. It took all his self-control to rein him in. Knowing that there would be no controlling the beast if he didn't stop, Ian stepped back. He was panting as if he'd just finished a marathon, and so was she. 

"That was a shifter thing?" Tania asked. 

She'd been so incredibly understanding until now, but that little tidbit of information might have freaked her out, so Ian acquiesced. 

"Yep. I figured that, with everything going on, now wasn't the time to make a move on you. My beast disagreed. Shifter thing." 

Another half-truth. One day would come when he’d be able to tell her everything.

If she survived the anti-shifters after her. Until then, Ian would have to keep the most important part of him to himself. 

He dropped her off at the lake house and placed a chaste kiss atop her head. 

Days passed without any change. She'd get up, go to work, or hang out in town by herself, safe in the knowledge that there was a shifter round her at all times, watching from a distance. Every day, whoever was in charge of her safety confirmed they'd seen, heard, or smelled people watching her, but they weren't making a move. If they were trying to drive her to madness, it was a good plan. Between having to worry about them and the infuriating way Ian was treating her like porcelain, someone was going to have to have her committed soon.

He was kissing her once a day, and stepping back as soon as she tried to deepened the kiss. Seriously, being stuck at first base sucked. She needed to buy herself a vibrator, stat. 

Tania got used to Lakesides, to the lake house, and to the suit she had to wear every day, wash every night. To be honest, she absolutely loved the suit. Not only did it entirely absorb any form of impact—from bumping on furniture to lessening a kick to the stomach—but it also made her faster, and stronger. For fun, Tania started to attend the kids' sparring lessons when she wasn't working. All of them, including little Lola, could take her without breaking a sweat, but she was a lot stronger than she had been when she'd first arrived in Lakesides. 

Before she knew it, a whole month had passed. 

Her phone rang that morning and she stared at the screen for a full fifteen seconds before answering the call. 

"Hey, Don." 

"If that isn't my favorite niece." 

"Your only niece," she replied with an eye roll. "What can I do for you?" 

"I wanted to let you know, my therapist said I'm on the mend. I should be able to go back to work part time in a couple of weeks." 

Oh. 

Somehow, over the last month, she'd forgotten that this wasn't her life, that she was just here for a short time. She cleared her throat. 

"That's...that's great." 

He caught the nuance in her tone, because he said, "I know you had to leave your job to replace me, T. I'm definitely not throwing you out the door. Paula is still on maternity leave, anyway. Stay as long as you want to. I just wanted to let you know I can lessen the work load a bit, soon." 

She breathed out. 

"Oh, right. Sounds great. Sorry. I guess I got used to things here." 

Here being in Lakesides, with the pack and with Ian. 

"Everyone tells me you're a godsend. You have a permanent place with us if you want it." 

She hadn't expected that offer, and she didn't know what to do with it yet, so she replied, "Thanks. Really. I...I'll think about it." 

Her expression must have been telling, because the moment she entered the pride house that day, Rain asked, "Oh dear. What is it?" 

The entire pride looked up from their breakfast with concern. 

She wondered if they took it for granted; having so many people who cared about each of them. It was new to Tania, and she wasn't sure how she could go back to her old life. She'd liked it well enough at the time, but now she saw that it had been quite lonely. 

"Nothing. My uncle called. He's a little better." 

They exchanged frowns and glances. Ian was watching her closely, and Hsu kept eating her cereal without paying them any attention. 

"So, you want to go back to LA?" 

Did she? She was asking herself that when she realized that her head was already moving from side to side, signaling a clear negative. 

"No, not really. And Don offered me a job." 

"Are you going to take it?" 

She bit her lip. 

"She isn't," replied Hsu. "She's staying here. She's happy. Or she will be, after today."

Now the pride's attention was on Hsu. 

"What's happening today, Hsu?" Ace asked. 

But Tania knew, before the girl said anything. 

“You said I can’t tell scary things around the other kids,” Hsu reminded the alpha.

Shit.