Camden looked from Tyler’s face to the back of the twin’s heads. Would they talk to her? Would either of their elementals talk to her or to her elemental? Or to Eden, or hers?

Griz cleared his throat. She glanced at him, wondering what was next.

“I shouldn’t have omitted a few things,” Griz admitted.

“You shouldn’t have omitted anything,” Camden corrected, taking a spoonful of the creamy concoction.

He blew out a breath with a whoosh. “You’re right. And there are things I still can’t tell you.”

She slammed her spoon down.

Trista and Tessa flinched and jumped to their feet, embracing each other, fear etched in their faces.

“I’m sorry,” Camden said. “I dropped my spoon. Don’t be afraid.”

The little ones studied her face.

“I’d never hurt you,” Camden said. “Maybe later we can visit and introduce ourselves properly. And the ones that give us fire, ice, wind, and move the earth.”

The girls said nothing, but they looked at each other for a measured moment, then turned back to Camden. One nodded. It was Tessa.

She’d noticed both girls’ eyes had the golden flashes of their bears, but Tessa’s had an amber that joined the gold, whereas Trista’s other secondary color was a light blue.

Yes, that was Tessa, for sure.

Camden nodded back and smiled. In return, a smile tipped the corners of the little girls’ mouths, then they resumed their seats on the carpet and went back to their movie.

She looked at Eden sitting at the table, fiddling with the ice cream, almost in a daze still. She’d never seen Eden this way. That bear—they’d need to talk. Camden and Eden had no secrets from each other… So what was that about? It was more than simple fear; it had to be.

Camden turned her attention to the conversation at hand. She couldn’t help but note that something seemed different about Tyler.

She used her panther’s senses to survey the difference. It wasn’t his scent so much as it was his pulse. It had lowered, as though relaxed.

She looked in his eyes, finding herself getting sucked in while the world fell away, and all the noise that surrounded them became distant.

His gaze pierced her, to the very core. His bear flashed a dark gold color, making her panther react with an intensity that caught Camden off guard. Her panther roared and paced, over and over.

Camden had to look away, but she couldn’t tear herself from the force of his stare.

“Thank you,” Tyler said.

That snapped her out of it. “For what?” She managed to get the words out, nearly stumbling over her own tongue.

Since when am I tongue-tied?

“For that. What you just did for Tessa and Trista—putting them at ease.”

“You’re welcome, but really, it was nothing.”

“No.” Tyler shook his head. “You don’t understand what it’s been like, how they don’t accept anyone. It’s—”

He didn’t need to finish his sentence. She could see it in his expression. It was hell. It had been a hellish ordeal.

“We’ll help.”

Eden looked up from the bowl of ice cream. Her face carried no expression, no indication of how she felt.

Camden looked at her quizzically. Was it okay? Did she do something wrong? Did Eden not want to do this? If they didn’t, who else could?

* * *

Camden drummed her fingernails across the wooden nightstand in the room she would occupy while she and Eden were helping the twin little girls. Eden’s room was just across the hallway, but at the moment, Eden was sitting in one of the plush reading chairs by the window in Camden’s.

“This reception up here sucks,” Camden griped.

Eden raised a brow. “Because we’re in BFE.”

“I’m on hold,” Camden explained. “She said that Circe’s out. Didn’t say where, then she said she had to get the other line.”

Eden nodded.

This was nothing new, the Order of Elementals were kept hopping with one issue or another.

Finally, Marie returned with a breathless apology.

“Everything okay?” Camden asked her.

“Just fine,” Marie laughed. “You know how it is. So, what’s going on? Is everything okay—” There was a spell of silence.

“Damned reception.” Camden grimaced, looking at Eden.

Eden shrugged.

Marie’s voice came back. “—for you two?”

“It’s fine.” Camden pulled on her bottom lip.

“What gives,” Marie asked.

She clearly knew Camden too well.

“Nothing.” Camden paused, then, “Well, it’s just a weird situation.”

“Weird how?”

“The two little girls are here and their guardians are two guys.” Camden didn’t mention the guy she’d met was hot as hell; that had nothing to do with the conversation.

“Just guys? No mates? No wives? No—”

More of the dead zone.

This is ridiculous, Camden thought, then answered Marie. “No. And I guess I don’t rank high enough to find out why they are here. They had nannies, but it seems that doesn’t work out very well.” Understatement of the year.

“So why don’t they get placed elsewhere?”

“There’s this guy, Griz, I guess he’s pretty powerful or something. He calls the shots, I think. Anyway, he says the two guys are uniquely qualified to take care of the girls.”

“But your tone begs to differ.”

Camden paused. She couldn’t put her finger on it. “I’m not sure, Marie.”

Eden nodded, then mouthed, Put her on speaker phone.

“Hold on, I’m putting you on speaker.” Camden wondered if that was wise, with a shifter in the house. What if Tyler overheard?

She glanced out the window and saw him walking with the twins, each holding on to his hands, looking up at him with adoration. Seemed they’d have some measure of privacy as long as he was out of earshot, even shifter-earshot.

She pressed the button and Eden sat next to her on the bed. Camden put the phone between them and they leaned in.

“Hey, Marie.”

“Hi, Eden. So, what do you think? Seems Cam doesn’t think they are uniquely qualified—”

“Whoa, I didn’t say that,” Camden countered.

“No, but your tone said something like that.”

“It’s a weird situation,” Eden agreed. “And we only met one of the guardians. The other one is gone for work.”

“Doesn’t that seem odd, having men as guardians to little girls?”

Camden raised a brow at Marie’s tone. Now, she was really uncomfortable and almost taking umbrage herself at Marie’s tone. “I don’t think they’re bad guys, Marie.”

“Then what is your concern?”

Camden filled her lungs, pausing to think then let out the air. “The guardians are twins. So they have that in common with the girls. I get that might be something Griz is considering. But they don’t have elementals in them…”

“Interesting. What is it that this Griz thinks they can bring to the table?”

Good question, Camden thought. But she wasn’t going to encourage this line of what almost seemed like an attack on Tyler’s motives.

She liked him. And there was something innately good about him.

She glanced out the window again.

And the little girls wouldn’t trust him this way if there was cause for concern, would they? Their elementals wouldn’t let that slide. She needed to talk to their elementals; maybe they could shed light on the situation.

“I’ll get back to you, Marie.”

More dead zone time.

Then, “Bye.”

“Bye. Give Circe a hug. Marco, too, if he’s there.”

But Camden suspected Marie was already gone—disconnected or in a reception dead zone again.

She sighed and punched to end the call.

“So, ready for this?”

Eden nodded.

“Even with that whole bear thing?”

Eden’s nod was a bit smaller. “It’s an assignment. And I need to deal with it.”

“What about Piria?”

“We’ll deal.”

Cam hoped they could, but she didn’t want to voice her concerns about Piria to Eden. Not when they had to stay focused on the twin girls.