Morning came in gently, with the sound of rain on the roof and soft light streaming through the window. Taya let her eyelashes flutter open to face the day. For a moment, she lay there and reveled in the memory of the night before.

The scent of his skin. The drag of his tongue. The feel of his hard body against hers.

Had that really happened? Had she really slept with Etienne? Beautiful, amazing, heroic Etienne?

She let out a low, happy sigh, relishing the dull soreness between her thighs as she rolled slowly to her side to face him, only to find that she was alone in the bed. It took a few seconds before she noticed the muffled sounds of a male voice and the running water of the shower.

Was he singing? The thought that just maybe he was as happy as she was after their night together made her heart skip a beat.

She tugged the sheets closer around her and she swung her legs over the side of the bed as she eyed the bathroom door. Too bad she didn’t have the nerve to push it open and climb in with him. What a way that would be to start the morning. But it was too new. Too fresh for her to be so bold in the light of day. Maybe someday…

What if there is no someday?

The thought made her stomach clench, and she couldn’t ignore it. If the past few days had taught her anything it was that there were no guarantees. Now that she was aware of the true dangers that lie in the darkness, life seemed so fragile and uncertain.

A shiver of apprehension went through her, but she pushed past it and stood. Before she faced those dangers again, she would take advantage of this tiny oasis of time with Etienne.

She’d crossed the room and had one hand on the bathroom knob when the doorbell rang. She swallowed the stab of disappointment at the sound. It was probably Willa and Drake with news about Mikhail and that, even more than squeezing out a few more moments with Etienne, took precedence.

She yanked on her balled up shirt and pants, and then made her way to the front entrance of the house, taking a moment to peer through the peephole right as the bell rang again. If someone was there to do her or Etienne harm, surely they wouldn’t ring the bell, but she couldn’t be too careful.

She eyed the porch and then drew back with a start. Not Drake or Willa. Instead, a raven-haired woman dressed in black, leather pants and a cropped, matching jacket was standing there, arms crossed over her chest, tapping her toe. She leaned in to stare into the opposite side of peephole as if she could sense Taya on the other side.

“Sooo…” the woman called through the heavy, oak door. “Did you plan to open the door any time soon? It’s raining out here, in case you weren’t aware.”

Taya bit her lip, gears grinding. It was rude to leave the woman out in the rain, but it wasn’t her house. She felt strange opening the door to this person who might or might not be a friend to Etienne.

Before she could decide what to do, the voice sounded through the door again, sounding markedly sharper than before.

“Look, I know you’re there. My name is Mina Silva and I’m here on urgent business. Your master is going to want to see me ASAP, so if you’re not going to let me in, can you at least run along and get him please?”

Master? What an odd term to use. Maybe she thought Taya was the housekeeper. The woman had the hint of an accent, so maybe she’d said “master” when she’d really meant “boss”?

In any case, this one-sided conversation was getting stranger and stranger by the second, and Taya was wishing she’d ignored the bell altogether now.

She was just about to leave and drag Etienne out of the shower when their visitor’s voice sounded again through the door, stopping her in her tracks.

“You’re not very bright, are you?” she said with an exasperated sigh. “Very well, then. Stand back, at least.”

It took one second for the words to sink in and another for Taya to get their meaning, but by the time the door went flying open so hard that it splintered, she was cowering against the foyer wall, heart hammering wildly.

The woman stepped into the house and smoothed her hands over the front of her jacket before turning to glance in Taya’s direction.

Her eyes were an icy blue, her face sheer perfection. It was hard to look away from her as she paused for a moment before leaning in toward Taya and tipping her head back to sniff the air.

“Ah. The human. So you’re the cause of all this trouble, then. Interesting.” She took a step back and glanced around the empty room before lighting her gaze back on Taya. “I should’ve realized you’d be here. It is Etienne, after all. I had assumed you were one of his harem girls when you came to the door.”

Taya’s world was spinning further out of control with every word this gorgeous but terrifying creature spoke, and she couldn’t keep up.

“Harem? T-trouble?” she sputtered. She tried to think rationally, but the adrenaline coursing through her made it a near impossible task. How did this woman know who she was at all?

“I’m not going to hurt you,” Mina said, her tone still abrupt but not as sharp. “Stand up straight and come here.”

Taya considered screaming, but this woman was clearly no more human than Etienne was. And, judging by the state of the front door, if she wanted to kill Taya, it would go down long before he could respond to her cry for help. For the time being, she’d have to work off the assumption that she was in no immediate danger and that the woman’s presence, while unexpected, wouldn’t be entirely unwelcome by Etienne.

And why was that?

A spike of jealousy pierced her heart at the thought but she forced it back as she straightened on trembling legs.

“That was unnecessary,” Taya said stiffly. “I’m sorry I left you outside, but I’m just a guest in the house and I didn’t feel right opening the door while Etienne was in the shower. He should be out any second now,” she felt compelled to add, but the leather-clad beauty had already turned away and was cutting a path into the living room, leaving Taya to trail behind her.

“Well then let’s have a seat and get you up to speed while we wait for him, sound good?”

She eyed Taya expectantly, and Taya nodded despite the ball of dread forming in her stomach. Mina took a seat in a leather armchair in the corner and gestured to the seat across from her. Taya sat obediently, feeling a little like a confused and scruffy puppy in the presence of a purebred Doberman.

Mina’s full, red lips quirked into a sympathetic facsimile of a smile. “I don’t want to cause trouble here, but it seems like your boyfriend told you half of a story. I’m going to tell you the other half, and then you can decide whether you still want to be here when he gets out of the shower, mmkay?”

That ball of dread grew to epic proportions and Taya’s mouth went dry. She wanted to get up and run from the room or cover her ears, because she knew with one hundred percent certainty that she didn’t want to hear what came next.

Mina must’ve sensed her hesitance, because she didn’t wait for a reply before continuing.

“Etienne shouldn’t have told you the things he did. By doing so, he put you in grave danger.”

Was that all? Hope fluttered in her heart as she met the other woman’s gaze, but she squashed it quickly, and tried to keep her expression blank. This could all be a trick to get her to admit that Etienne had told her anything at all. “I’m not sure what you think he told me,” she began carefully.

“Don’t bother trying to protect him. Even if I couldn’t smell him on you, I’d know you went flying with him last night. We’ve had eyes and ears on both he and Drake for months now. You need to think about yourself here, Taya. And if you want to live, you need to walk away and forget you ever met Etienne. I’m authorized to help you do that, help you start fresh somewhere else, far from here, but that window is closing fast. Keep in mind, he had no qualms about dragging you into this, despite the danger—”

Taya cut in, still clinging to one important distinction. “He warned me of that before he told me anything at all. I was the one who made the decision—”

“Did he tell you that the second you had knowledge of the shifter world, you would be made a literal target? That there would be assassins lining up to find you and ensure your silence?” Mina shook her head slowly and pursed her lips into a sympathetic frown. “Already there is a price on your head. Which is why I’m here.”

Taya swallowed hard as fear rose to choke her. If she were to imagine what a female assassin might look like, Mina would fit the bill perfectly. Now, though, the serious expression on her cameo of a face vanished as she let out a snort-laugh.

“You think I meant me? Don’t be ridiculous. I could’ve collected that money ten times over by now if that was my goal. No, I meant I’m here to protect you.”

She might be confused, but she couldn’t let that pass without at least giving her savior his due. “That’s what Etienne has been doing all along.”

“Has he? Because from where I’m standing, the only reason you’re still in danger at all is because of him. If he’d kept his mouth shut—”

The backbone that had bowed beneath the presence of this woman finally stiffened and Taya cut in, anger displacing fear at the forefront.

“If he kept his mouth shut, I would be in the dark and alone, with a wolf-shifter hell-bent on finishing the job it started. I was in danger before he said a word. What’s so different between then and now?”

“Then, a mangy mongrel was your foe. Etienne would’ve taken care of him soon enough and you could’ve moved on with your life. Now, that’s not possible. Not after all that he told you. Unless you come with me.”

“Come with you? Where?”

“Away. I’ll get you a whole new life. A new identity. So long as you follow a few simple rules, I will keep you safe. I swear it.” Her blue eyes blazed with sincerity and Taya looked away.

“No,” she murmured, sounding about as sure as she felt. She didn’t know this woman at all. Why would she take her word over Etienne’s? And still…

Harem.

Mina blew out an exasperated sigh. “He’s just a man, Taya. A sexy one, I’ll give you that, but a man nonetheless. You can find another.”

Mina hadn’t even finished her sentence before Taya began shaking her head in denial.

She didn’t want another. She only wanted Etienne. And she hadn’t even gotten a chance to tell him that. Who knew? Maybe this was all lies or misunderstanding. Maybe their night together had been enough to convince him that they deserved more than just an oasis. That they deserved a chance, once all this was over. A chance to see if this could turn into something real.

Mina stood abruptly, breaking into Taya’s fantasy.

“I can see it in your eyes…can almost hear the wheels turning in that little mind of yours. You’re wondering if he actually cares for you.” Taya’s cheeks flamed at the astute observation, but she refused to look away as the other woman’s perceptive gaze skewered her. “I don’t know the answer to that question, but I can promise you that it doesn’t matter one way or the other. You can never be together.” She shook her head slowly and leaned in. “Never.”

The words landed on Taya’s heart like acid rain, and she tried to hold back the response that leapt to her lips. Asking it would be admitting far more than she was ready to admit to this stranger, but she couldn’t help herself.

“Why are you saying that? Are you his…” She swallowed hard and forced the last word out despite the fact that it nearly choked her, “fiancé or something?”

The low, silky laugh did nothing to reassure her, but the gorgeous creature in front of her shook her head, sending her inky fall of hair swaying.

“No. He doesn’t have one of those yet. Although he does have a handful of gorgeous, female shifters at his beck and call, who service his every sexual need. Because that’s what it takes to satisfy a man like Etienne. And, even on the off chance that you’re that special snowflake…that one, perfect woman who fits him like no other and satisfies his every desire? He still couldn’t be with you for long.” She shrugged her elegant shoulders. “You see, Etienne can only mate with another shifter.”

She dropped that bomb so cleanly, so emotionlessly, that for a second, Taya wondered if she’d misheard it. But as she looked into the other woman’s eyes, she knew the truth of it.

Her body went numb as it all sunk in, but unfortunately the same couldn’t be said for her brain, which flopped from one revelation to the next.

If what Mina said was true? If Etienne had other women—loads of other women—and knew they could never be together, then why hadn’t he told her? Why had he looked at her that way? And made her feel things she’d never felt before…

“Taya? What the hell is going on in here?”

Her heart fluttered at the sound of his voice and she turned to see Etienne padding into the room, his golden hair still damp from the shower. He locked eyes with Mina and any remaining hope Taya had that this had all been a misunderstanding or the ranting of a crazy person fizzled away when she saw the recognition on his face.

His jaw flexed and he stopped, mid-stride as he leveled Mina with an icy glare.

“What the fuck are you doing here?”

“Good to see you as well, Etienne.” Mina’s chin rose as she arched a challenging brow in his direction. “I was just explaining to your friend here why she should come with me.” She snicked her tongue softly and frowned in disapproval. “Seems you neglected to share some important details with her, eh, dragon?”

“Watch your step, Mina,” he warned.

“You’re the one walking through landmines here.” Mina didn’t back down, crossing her arms over her chest as she met Etienne’s stare. “Taya has the right to know exactly what fresh hell you’re dragging her into and that the big, juicy carrot you’re dangling in front of her is one she’ll never get a chance to sink her teeth into. At least, not for the long term.”

“Is it true?” Taya heard herself ask, unable to remain quiet another moment. They were talking past her, like she didn’t even exist. And for a second, it felt like she didn’t. Her voice was barely a whisper, but she swallowed hard and forced herself to speak again. “Is what she said true? You can’t mate with a human? And you already have a…harem?”

Etienne turned to face her, his expression going from flinty to soft and full of regret and she knew before he spoke that his answer would break her heart.

“Taya…it’s complicated and we need some time to sit and talk this thr—”

“It’s a yes or no question, Etienne. Either she’s telling the truth or she isn’t.” Her voice broke as she peered at him through tear-blurred eyes, her whole world crashing down around her, snuffing out the last light in the darkness.

“So which is it?”