Jaylon’s jaw clenched, but he held it together. “No, Alastair. Your half-baked plan failed. Like all the others. You’re nothing but a coward. Instead of coming at me, you chose to attack a woman. Becca already ruined your face and you know she could’ve shredded the rest of you in a heartbeat, but you’re too cowardly to face anyone head on. You have others do your dirty work. Hired thugs or women you use and manipulate.”

In that moment, the pieces fell together and Jaylon whirled his head around, his stare falling on Giselle standing with the rest of the crowd.

“It was you, wasn’t it? You’re the one who tipped this asshole about me and Becca. You’re the one who arranged for him to escape.”

Giselle shook her head, but her eyes were full of fear and guilt, especially with his cold stare on her.

“Jay, please. I…I…”

He lifted a hand. “Save your breath, Giselle. I’m not interested in anything you have to say.” He motioned to one of the men. “Take her. Hold her until I get around to thinking about what to do with her.”

Jaylon spared a glance for Becca and anger bubbled up fresh as he watched her cat struggle for each breath.

“She’ll be okay, Jay. She’s a tough cookie.” Lucilla nodded, giving him a small smile. “Give the shift time to work.”

He knew the older woman was right, but his wolf wouldn’t let it go so easily. His eyes found Alastair again and his wolf rose from his core with a thirst for blood.

“You’re a con artist, Alastair. A thief and a murderer.” The man was defiant even now and Jaylon’s wolf paced. “Only this time you won’t get away with it. You’re in my world now, and that means we play by MY rules. You tried to kill my Alpha Female, and in my world you don’t live to try again.”

Jaylon growled, taking a step forward. “How about I give you a coward’s head start?” His wolf burned, barely contained, ready to shred the man’s throat. “I want to watch you scramble, knowing I’m going to kill you nice and slow.” With a nod, Jay’s men let Alastair go. He jumped into the crowd, shoving people out of the way as he hit the sand running.

With a feral roar, Jay hurdled straight into the air, his body twisting and reshaping on the fly, black fabric from his tux fluttering to the ground, shredded.

He landed on the beach, heavy paws digging into the sand as he cornered Alastair with nowhere to turn.

The large black wolf snarled, advancing as Alastair backpedaled toward the party, his only chance to shift as well.

With a curdling scream, Alastair’s body bent and turned, his own clothes strewn in pieces across the beach. The tawny cat was no match for the massive wolf, but he lunged anyway, powerful jaws ready to strike.

The wolf’s lips curled back over bared teeth, his head low as he waited for the right moment. One massive paw swiped the cougar’s muzzle, knocking him to the sand. The wolf zigzagged, launching himself at the cat’s throat.

Giselle ripped from her guard and flung herself at the wolf. “If I can’t have you, no one will!” She pulled a knife from her sleeve and drove it into the Jaylon’s flank.

The wolf’s large head flew back with a painful yelp and his massive body jerked in response, thick paws knocking Giselle to the ground. Her head smacked the heavy planks at the edge of the beach and her body spasmed and then lay motionless in the sand. The wolf staggered forward, collapsing at her side, their blood mingling in the red stained silt.

“Jay! Behind you!” Lyssa yelled from crowd.

Alastair launched himself at the wounded wolf, the cougar’s teeth bared, but a feral snarl sounded from the back of the crowd. Becca flew through the air, the sleek leopard’s claws shredding the cougar’s flanks as the two collided.

Stunned, the cougar twisted to right himself, but the leopard held him, her teeth closing on the cat’s throat. The cougar rolled, its muscular body fighting to jerk free of the leopard’s jaws, but an audible crunch left the animal burbling blood, a slumped pile of fur with his throat crushed.

Rough gurgles were all that were heard as the large cat exhaled its last breath. The leopard shook the cougar’s limp frame, snapping its neck. The cat slumped still and silent and Becca released her hold and rushed to Jaylon’s side. She bumped the massive canine’s nose with her own, her tongue rasping his face.

The leopard chuffed, the sound more like a sob, and with a snap of bone and muscle, Becca shifted back to human, not caring she was naked in front of God and everyone.

“Someone call an ambulance!” Becca called into the crowed. She shuddered, ignoring the searing pain in her own chest and shoulder. “He needs to shift back and get to the hospital! I think the blade punctured a lung!”

Lyssa grabbed a tablecloth and raced to wrap it around Becca as she knelt in the sand beside the wolf.

“Jaylon, listen to my voice. You have to shift. Just like you told me. Do you understand? You have to shift.”

The wolf whined and Becca ran a hand through his blood-matted fur, tears streaming down her face. “Don’t you dare die on me, Jaylon Ross! You do and I’ll kill you myself!”

The wolf chuffed out a weak growl and Becca threw her arms around his furry neck. “Shift, Jaylon. Please. I know it hurts to breathe, but you’ve got to try.”

The wolf whined again but this time he lifted his head and licked her face. His body then tensed, muscles rippling beneath his fur as legs and arms replaced front and hind legs and his thick black fur receded into golden skin.

“Get that ambulance!” Becca shouted, but Jaylon touched her arm, shaking his head. He was pale and his face strained, but he was adamant.

“I don’t need the hospital, Bec. I just need you and a day or two in bed.”

“Seriously, Jay?! How can you think about sex at a time like this?”

He winced, chuckling. “Easy. You’re naked under a tablecloth. What else am I supposed to think about?”

She leaned down and kissed the tip of his nose. “How about the fact we have a hotel full of guests watching, for one. A ruined wedding courtesy of two gunshots to my chest, you with a stab wound to the lung and two dead shifters at the root of it all.”

He wrinkled his nose. “We’ve had a busy day, huh.”

Lyssa handed Becca another tablecloth and she covered Jaylon with the large round covering. “Let’s get you up to our room and we’ll see about what we have to do to salvage the day.”

“No,” Wyatt interjected, moving past the crowd to his son and daughter-in-law. “You both need rest. Jay will most likely have to shift again to make sure he doesn’t need the hospital, as should you, Bec. Why not let this mess wait? Matheus and I can handle everything on this end.”

“Wyatt’s right.” Lyssa shooed them off. “Now go with him before I get really angry. The rest of us will let you know what’s happening down here.”

Wyatt helped Becca and Jaylon, the three moving slowly toward the hotel’s private elevator and the honeymoon suite on the top floor.

Jaylon glanced over his shoulder to Lyssa standing on the path with her arms crossed over her chest. “I see what you meant when you said she was a pain in the ass.”

“I heard that!” Lyssa called after them, but Becca turned and blew her a kiss, mouthing the words, “Thank you.”

Lys waved back. “Love you, too, Becca Bee.”