Tyler walked through the fields the next morning, checking the crops as he did his rounds. He didn’t really need to be this thorough, but he was hoping the walk would clear his head. He needed to get his shit together. He knew he’d worried Parker last night, and that was unacceptable. She didn’t need to be stressing over him.

He had to suck it up and tell her that he was a shifter. That he could turn into a wolf. That supernatural beings were real.

How the fuck was he going to tell her this shit?

He saw Garret working on one of the sprinkler systems and walked over to see how things were going. And yeah, for a distraction from his thoughts.

Garret looked up and nodded at him. “Still haven’t told her yet, have you?”

Ty stared at him in surprise for a moment before his eyes narrowed. “I hate when you do that shit.”

Garret shrugged. “Sorry. You were loud.”

Ty growled in his throat. “I don’t know how to tell her, man. I don’t want her to run.”

Garret stared at him for a moment, his light gray eyes intense and penetrating. Ty fought off a shiver. Garret was so different than how he’d been even a year ago, and while Ty was glad he’d finally seemed to grow up, this new version of Garret was a little unsettling.

“I think you should give her some credit. There’s a good chance she’ll surprise you.” With those cryptic words, the fox shifter turned and strode quickly toward the woods.

“What the hell does that mean? Do you know something? Garret!” Ty boomed, voice echoing. Garret didn’t even slow down, just disappeared into the woods. “Fuck!”

Ty let out a string of curse words as he turned to finish his inspection of the fields. Trust Garret to drop shit like that and then leave.

What had he meant by that? Would Parker truly be accepting of his world, of what he really was?

Suddenly exhausted of the constant back and forth in his thoughts and emotions, and more than ready to put this uncertainty behind him, Tyler resolved to tell Parker the truth tonight. Determination filled him, and relief as well, to get this out in the open. It was time. He was ready. He only hoped Parker was.

His cell rang and Tyler pulled it from his pocket, answering without looking at the screen. “Tyler MacKeltar.”

“Ty,” Chase said urgently. “Get your ass to the house. Ian just called. He’s been tracking the wolf shifter, and she’s back on the property and headed toward the house. I’m on my way back from town, so I’m not close.”

Ty cursed as he flung his phone down and instantly let his wolf have his body, uncaring that he ruined his clothes. They were replaceable. Parker and the pup weren’t.

He took off as soon as all four paws hit the ground, streaking through the woods like lightning. Making it back to the house in record time, he skidded in the lawn, razor sharp claws digging into the dirt to stop his forward motion, and took in the situation.

A massive orange and black striped tiger was pacing in front of pig pen. A cream colored wolf was cowering against the corner of the fence and the barn, alternating between whines and snarls. She was scared, but defiant, and desperate to get free. She lunged to the side, but the tiger followed, hissing and snarling, pushing her back into place.

The sound of the front door opening hit his ears, and Ty turned his head to see Parker coming down the front steps. She had her camera in her hand and was looking down and fiddling with it, not seeing the commotion in front of her. The cream wolf snarled and Parker looked up, shock filling her eyes as the camera fell unheeded to the ground.

Heart stopping and his chest filling with fear, Tyler shot toward her, intent on getting between her and the other shifters.

Protect mate, his wolf growled.

Ty almost stumbled over his dinner plate sized feet. Mate? His wolf was finally calling Parker his mate? Shaking himself free of distracting thoughts but unable to stop the relief that flooded him with his wolf’s revelation, Ty resolved to get back to that once Parker and their pup were safe. His animal’s timing definitely needed work.

Just barely catching a glimpse of the shock on her face as he passed her, Ty skidded to a stop in front of her, placing himself between her and the cream wolf.

“Tyler?”

Ty couldn’t stop his head from whipping toward Parker at her whisper. She knew it was him? How did she know that?

And she was looking at him with awe in her eyes. Not fear.

Hope filled his chest as Ty gave her a loaded look, full of meaning. He hoped she could read the reassurance, the love, in his eyes, but he couldn’t take the time to find out. He had to protect her from the unknown shifter right now.

He looked forward to see the wolf hunched in the corner, head down and posture defeated. She knew she was outnumbered, with no hope of escape, now. The tiger disappeared in the blink of an eye, leaving a big man with long black hair in his place. Ian.

“I ran across her scent and followed her here. She was just inside the woods, staring at the house, not moving. I don’t think she meant to, but she saw me coming and panicked. I chased her and cornered here, where we’ve been since. She’s tried to get free and leave, but she hasn’t tried to attack. I’m not sure what to make of her.”

Ty studied the wolf as she huddled into herself. He needed answers but he didn’t want to shift and leave Parker unprotected. He wasn’t sure he could trust her safety to anyone but himself.

The female wolf suddenly lunged up, a snarl in her throat. Ty shot forward, growling long and low in his throat, tensed to attack.

“Ty, stop! Now!”

Ty watched from the corner of his eye as Garret crept forward, arms held out in front of himself. Ty snarled at Garret for stopping him. He wanted this over, and his pregnant mate out of danger. Now.

“Ty, don’t attack. You’ll regret tearing her throat out, I promise you that.”

Ty growled, not so sure of that, but he reluctantly backed down. Garret’s shifter talent was powerful, and when he spoke, they all tended to listen.

Garret gave him a satisfied nod, motioning for Ian to back off, too. “Hey there, pretty wolf. It’s okay. They won’t hurt you, I promise.” Ty growled low at that, and Garret shot him a quelling look. “Can you shift for us? You’re safe.”

The cream wolf whined as her eyes darted between Garret and Ty. Ty huffed a sigh and backed toward Parker, sitting in front of her and trying to appear less aggressive. He started when he felt Parker brush her fingers through his fur and rest her hand on his back. He turned his head slightly to look at her, and she gave him a soft smile, appearing calm and collected.

Mate, his wolf sighed.

Yeah, they were definitely coming back to that.

Garret took a couple more steps toward the wolf. She allowed it, but tried to back into the fence when Chase approached the group in his human form. Chase stopped by Ty, watching.

“What the hell is going on?” Chase said in a low voice.

Garret hushed him. “Come on, pretty wolf. Change back.”

The wolf just watched them all warily, whining in the back of her throat.

Garret sighed. “Are you in there, Kelsey? Come on. Shift back. Wolf, let Kelsey come on out. You’re safe.”

Kelsey? Who the hell was Kelsey?

The wolf watched them for a moment before a smattering of bones popping rang out. A moment later, there was a girl huddled on her knees where the wolf had just been. Girl, woman, Ty couldn’t tell. She was skinny and dirty, hair matted with dirt and even a few twigs as it hung in front of her face, concealing her from them. He wasn’t sure, but he thought maybe it would be a light brown when it was clean, kind of like his own.

“Do you know this girl, Garret?” Chase asked, voice puzzled. “Kelsey, was it?”

Garret shook his head. “I don’t know her, but you guys will.”

What the hell? Chase and Ty exchanged puzzled looks while Garret shrugged out of his shirt, approaching the girl slowly and laying it in front of her. He told her to put it on in a hushed voice before he stepped back.

A long moment later, the girl reached a trembling hand out and grabbed the shirt, pulling it over herself awkwardly before she shakily stood up. The shirt devoured her small frame, the sleeves hanging halfway down her forearms and the hem almost hitting her knees. She took a breath before looking up at them, pushing the hair off of her face with a hand that still trembled.

Ty inhaled sharply as he caught a glimpse of her face. He heard Chase curse under his breath, and Ty knew he saw it, too.

Kelsey was a delicate, much more feminine, version of his dad.

That’s why Garret said he would regret it if he killed the wolf. She was his sister.

Parker’s hand tightened in his fur as she leaned into his side. “Ty, she looks just like you.”

Garret reached out a hand to Kelsey, but she flinched away from him, her wary brown gaze shooting between them all. Parker stepped forward and Ty stiffened, blocking her with his head and nudging her back.

Parker grabbed his face and looked him in the eyes, showing no fear. “Ty, if I’m not mistaken, that girl right there is your sister. And she’s terrified right now. All of you big brutes watching her every move probably isn’t helping. Let me go to her. Let me help her. She looks like she’s starving. She needs food, clothes, a shower. She hasn’t tried to hurt me. She hasn’t tried to hurt any of us.”

Ty debated for a quick second before shifting back to his human form. There were enough shifters present to stop the wolf… his sister… if she tried anything. As soon as he was standing on two legs again, he pulled Parker into his arms and held her tight for a moment before pulling back to look into her eyes.

“I don’t want you hurt.”

Parker stretched up and kissed him. “I won’t be. She’s not aggressive, just scared. Let me do this. You can stay close while I get her settled. Just stay out of sight.”

Ty looked at Kelsey, who was hunched into herself, staring at the ground. She was still trembling, and he had to admit that everything Parker had said was true. And they couldn’t stand around here forever without doing something,

“Okay. But I’m staying close, and I have sensitive hearing. I’ll be there before you can even finish calling for me.”

Parker smiled at him. “It’ll be okay,” she said, starting to move toward Kelsey.

Ty pulled her back to a stop, tugging her around to look at him. “Parker. You’re not scared? Or disgusted?” She looked at him with a question in her eyes and Ty gestured to himself. “Of me. You didn’t run. You’re still here.”

She shook her head, smiling softly at him. “Of course not, Ty. Besides, I already knew.”

Ty stood, stunned, as Parker walked slowly toward his sister, speaking softly. She already knew? How? He rubbed at his chest, where his wolf was alert but silent and content in his chest.

Shit. How many surprises could one man take in a day?

Parker sat at the table with Kelsey, watching as the girl ate slowly. Or maybe calling her a woman was accurate. She couldn’t be more than a few years younger than Parker. Kelsey was freshly washed, wearing some of Parker’s clothes. The leggings and shirt were still far too big, but they were clean, and Kelsey had seemed happy with them.

Kelsey still hadn’t spoken a word, to any of them, but the wariness had faded from her eyes just a bit. Parker thought she must have been starving, and she wondered when the last time the girl had eaten. She was eating a bowl of soup, going slowly but clearly wanting to wolf it down. Pun not intended, Parker thought with a secret smile that was tinged in sadness.

Kelsey was holding her spoon in one hand and clutching a dinner roll in the other, almost as if she were scared someone would take it. Parker reached out slowly and nudged the plate of rolls toward her. “There are plenty. Eat however many you like.”

Kelsey looked at her with a cross of suspicion and nervousness in her dark brown eyes, so like Tyler’s. Parker felt her heart break a little more for Kelsey as she gave her the most reassuring smile she could muster. Kelsey slowly raised the roll to her mouth and tore off a bite before quickly going back to the soup.

Parker studied her as she ate. Kelsey had light brown hair like Ty’s, just a shade lighter and more blonde, and eyes just a shade darker than his, bordering on black. Her facial features were a mix of Ty and Chase, but she was completely feminine. She didn’t have the brother’s towering height, just a touch taller than Parker, and she was skin and bones. But she was clearly a MacKeltar. That much was obvious to anyone with eyes.

Parker saw Ty turn his head just a tad to check on them from where he was sitting on the couch, pretending to watch television. She felt a small smile stretch her lips. He’d been hovering the whole afternoon, just a few steps away as she’d gotten Kelsey settled. She knew this was hard for him. He worried so much over her safety, and their baby’s, but he was doing so well tonight. Not speaking or intrusive, just there.

Parker caressed her baby bump, which was rapidly growing. The baby was measuring big, and her belly was reflecting that, but Parker didn’t mind. She’d assumed she’d have a big little boy, because his daddy was big, and she loved being able to see physical evidence that their baby was growing strong inside of her.

She let her mind wander as she waited for Kelsey to eat her fill. When she’d walked outside earlier to see a massive tiger growling at a much smaller cream wolf, she’d freaked out. She wouldn’t lie about that. It wasn’t often that you walked outside to find humongous animals looking like they were about to brawl in your front yard. Then Tyler’s black wolf came bounding in front of her and she’d instantly relaxed. She’d still been worried over Ty, but she knew he wouldn’t let anything happen to her; and he was so massive in size, that she knew he could hold his own if it came to that.

His wolf was beautiful. He was pitch black, with no markings at all, with eyes just as black. He’d stood proud, his head just as tall as she was, on paws the size of her head. She’d felt no fear. It was Tyler, and she’d seen him, shining through the wolf’s eyes.

She knew she’d surprised him when she said she’d already known what he was. But now there was nothing to hold him back. He knew that she knew. Once they talked, they could get everything straightened out and in the open.

And then they could begin their life together.

The sound of a spoon hitting a bowl jerked Parker from her thoughts, and she looked up to see that Kelsey had finished her dinner, and was sitting with her head down, staring at her lap.

“Are you still hungry? Would you like some dessert, cake or ice cream maybe?” Parker asked her softly. Leah looked up from where she was cleaning up, ready to fix another plate but Kelsey shook her head. “Okay, then. Would you like to lay down and get some rest?”

Kelsey looked up and nodded, gratitude and wariness waring in her eyes. Parker stood and Kelsey followed suit. Parker led her up the stairs and to one of the rooms on the other side of the house from hers and Ty’s. The room was next to Chase’s, where he could keep an eye on her if she needed anything, he said.

Parker thought they just wanted to make sure Kelsey didn’t leave.

Parker opened the door, gesturing Kelsey through. It wasn’t as pretty as the room Parker had occupied when she first came here, where Parker had wanted to put Kelsey, but it was still nice. It was clean and safe from the elements, which Parker supposed was all that mattered. She had a feeling that Kelsey had been sleeping outside for far too long.

Kelsey came inside and Parker started to turn to go back out when Kelsey’s whisper stopped her. It was low and scratchy from disuse, and Parker had to strain to hear her.

“Thank you.”

Parker smiled at Kelsey, pleased. “You’re very welcome, Kelsey. Please, don’t hesitate to ask if you need or want something. No matter what it is.”

Kelsey nodded, looking down at her hands. “You’re my brother’s… Ty’s… mate?”

Parker nodded, eyebrows raised in surprise. She hadn’t expected Kelsey to say more, and she wasn’t sure exactly what ‘mate’ meant, but if it meant her being Ty’s, then she absolutely was. “Yes, I am.”

Kelsey nodded, gesturing with one hand to Parker’s middle. “Congratulations. And thank you again.”

Parker watched as Kelsey turned away, apparently finished talking. Parker walked out of the room, shutting the door softly behind her, not in the least bit surprised to see Ty down the hall, leaning against the bannister of the stairs.

“She all settled in?”

Parker nodded, walking toward him. “Yeah, she’s all good.”

“Good. Are you hungry?” Ty asked, taking her hands in his.

“No, I’m fine for now. You?”

Ty shook his head, lacing the fingers of one hand with hers and tugging her to their bedroom. Once inside, he shut the door and then pushed her up against it, taking her mouth in a scorching kiss. When he finally pulled back, they were both breathing heavily and his erection was pushing into her stomach.

“No more of that,” he said, leading her to sit on the bed. “Talking first. Loving later.”

Parker laughed as she sat. “And you think putting us together on a bed is going to accomplish that?”

“Good point,” Ty said wryly. “But I want answers first. Such as how long you’ve known I’m a wolf shifter?”

“Is that what you call it? Shifting. It fits,” she mused. “I’ve known since I was fifteen.”

Ty looked at her, incredulous. “Since you were fifteen? Seriously?”

“Yeah. I saw you shift one day.” Parker proceeded to fill him in on what led her to the clearing that day, seeing him shift and fleeing right after. She got up and rummaged through her underwear drawer, coming back with the scrap of shirt she’d kept all these years. She handed it to him as she sat back down. “It was windy that day, and that blew over to me. I picked it up before I ran home. I knew I’d kept it, but I didn’t realize I had it with me until I moved my stuff in here. I found it in a pocket of my suitcase.”

Ty sat quietly for a moment, fingering the old scrap of his shirt. “I think I remember that day. I was pissed at my dad again, and then Jared came over, full of his plans to tell Cassie what he was and ask her to be his mate. I told him I was going to fight for her, and we argued. After he left, I ran to the river and then went wolf. I stayed that way for almost three days before I changed back.” He looked at her. “So all this time, you’ve known? Why didn’t you say anything?”

Parker sighed. “Because it wasn’t my secret to tell. I wanted you to come to me, to trust me with it. I didn’t want to force it from you.”

Ty rubbed his head wearily before scooting closer to her and taking her hand in his. “I wanted to tell you. More than anything, but I was scared. I didn’t know how you would react, and I couldn’t bear it if you ran. I need you.” He dropped a hand to her belly. “I need him. I need you both, and I didn’t want to see you run.”

Parker laced her fingers with his. “You didn’t trust me enough to know I wouldn’t do that? Don’t you know me well enough to know I wouldn’t run?” Parker asked, unable to keep the hurt out of her tone.

“Parker, no, I trust you. Please believe that. I do. It’s me I don’t trust.” He looked up and sighed when he saw the confusion on her face. “I didn’t trust that I was good enough. That I would be enough to make you stay, even in the face of something like that. This is what I didn’t tell you about Cassie. She hated what Jared is. She called him unnatural.

“Jared didn’t tell her what I was. He only told her about himself. I guess I just spilled his secret, since you probably didn’t know about them,” he said ruefully. “The Montgomerys are grizzly shifters. When Cassie turned eighteen, Jared told her what he was and explained to her about shifters. He told her that she was his mate, and that he wanted to claim her. She freaked out and disappeared for a few days. When she came back, she told him she loved him and would be with him, but only if he never talked about being a shifter in front of her again. She said he was a freak of nature. And if Cassie, his best friend since he was five, who he’d been with for years, could react that way… how would you react? You and I connected five months ago, but it was brief. We only started really getting to know each other a couple of weeks ago. I just… I couldn’t trust that I would be enough to keep you, when Jared barely held onto Cassie, even after all that time.”

Parker tightened her fingers around his and lifted her other hand to his cheek. “Oh, Ty.”

“There’s more,” he said, interrupting her when she would have said more. “They managed to be mostly happy for a few years while Jared hid his true nature, but then she got pregnant. She freaked out again. She was carrying a bear shifter. A cub. And she wanted nothing to do with it; she didn’t want it. She thought shifters were abominations. She was taking stupid risks, doing things pregnant women shouldn’t do. Jared thinks she was doing it on purpose, hoping to lose the baby. She was out horseback riding one day, when she was almost as far along as you are now. And she tried to jump a fence that was too high for the horse. She broke her neck.”

Parker pulled her hand away from her mouth, sure that her eyes were the size of half dollars right now. “Oh God. So much makes sense now, Ty. I can’t even imagine what Jared went through, or what you went through, for that matter. That’s why it makes you so nervous when I do more than you think I should. I can see now, too, why you would put off telling me the truth for as long as you could.”

Ty closed his eyes briefly as he shook his head. “I didn’t know how to tell you in a way that didn’t scare you. Jared tried to tell me that maybe Cassie’s reaction had been an aberration. He said that Ellie, Jake’s mate, had hardly blinked an eye when she found out about shifters. I couldn’t make myself take the chance, though. How could I be so lucky to have you accept it? And so I kept putting it off, putting myself through hell, torturing myself with all the ways you’d react badly… and here you’ve known the whole time.”

“You could have avoided that if you would have just told me. You would have had to eventually anyway, Ty. This baby is part wolf. I even tried to push the conversation with that stuffed wolf last night, but you ran instead of fessing up the truth.”

Ty laughed ruefully. “I even wondered if you were trying to tell me something with that, but I brushed it off as a coincidence. I know I would have had to tell you sooner rather than later, but I kept putting it off. I wanted to keep you as long as I could. I had decided this morning that I would tonight, though. I was determined. I needed to put the uncertainty behind us.”

Parker squeezed his hand. “You should have listened to Jared. He sounds like he gives good advice. I’m not Cassie. We’re different people, with different reactions. I’m glad you were going to tell me tonight, though.”

Ty put a hand to her cheek. “You’re right, you’re not Cassie. You’re so much more, Parker. I wouldn’t have been able to bear it if I disgusted or scared you. I was just being a chickenshit, and I knew that, but I couldn’t stop.”

“It’s okay. It’s done now. Just trust me for now on, okay? Nothing is going to make me run. You’re stuck with me.”

He leaned in and kissed her, slow and sweet. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.” Ty sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “What a day it’s been.”

“Yeah, agreed. Kelsey… She’s your sister, isn’t she? Judging by your and Chase’s reactions, you didn’t know about her.”

Ty exhaled heavily. “We had no clue. If we had, she never would have been out there, alone and hungry, for God knows how long. I hope she talks to us soon. It’s hard, not having answers.”

“Give her time. She came to the farm on her own, even if she didn’t expect to get caught today. She’s scared, though. You and Chase are going to have to be patient with her.” Parker paused for a moment, trying to figure out how to word the next question she wanted to ask. “Did you know your father was having an affair? Kelsey had to have been born before your mother passed away.”

He laughed, but there was no humor in it. “The word affair implies a form of commitment, and my dad wasn’t committed to anyone but himself. He slept around on my mom, sure. He lived for his own pleasures. Gambling, whoring, even drinking. It takes a shit ton of alcohol to get a shifter drunk, but he managed it a few times. He was a poor excuse for a man, and anything he could throw money away on, he did. He’d almost pissed away the farm before he died. Me and Chase inherited it just in time to save it. A month more under my dad, and we’d have lost it. It’s taken a lot of years of slaving away to get to where we are today, but we’re finally making some progress. Even turning a profit these days, although it’s a small one.”

“You guys did good. If you were that close to losing it, I think you’ve done well to be back to making even a small profit so soon.”

“We can’t totally take the credit for that. Our shifter talents helped a lot. Had we gotten different ones, we might not have been able to save it, no matter how hard we worked.”

“Shifter talents?” Parker asked, looking at him in question.

“Yeah. Every shifter has something they’re especially good at. Like Jake, over on Bear Claw. He can fix anything mechanical. His sister Kendall, the vet, can tell what animals are feeling, and can heal them. Chase’s is a gift for management. He always knows the best way to get things done, the best ways to manage the farm. By rights, he should be the one stuck inside at a desk for half the day, but he refuses. He gets claustrophobic if he’s forced indoors for long stretches of time.”

“What’s your talent?” Parker asked curiously.

“Weather,” Ty replied with a rueful grin. “I always know what the weather is going to do, and I can sense it months in advance. It makes planting and harvesting the crops easy. We never lose any now, not like we did when our dad was running things.”

“That’s why you always know when it’s going to rain!” Parker exclaimed. “I knew that weather channel excuse was bullshit.”

He laughed. “You almost caught me a couple times on that. I’m not used to censoring what I say so much.”

“So our baby will have some sort of special gift?” Parker asked, caressing the swell of her belly.

Ty leaned over and put his hand next to hers, smiling when he felt the baby move under his palm. “He sure will. There’s no telling what it’ll be, and it likely won’t become evident until he’s somewhere between five and ten years old, but he’ll have one.”

“I have so many questions about this whole shifter business, but I’m really curious about one thing right now. You mentioned that Jared told Cassie she was his mate, and that he wanted to claim her. What does all that mean?”

“Every shifter has a person that’s meant to be theirs. Who’s perfect for them in every way. We call that person our mate. Shifters want nothing more than for our mates to be happy, well cared for, and safe. We’d do anything for them. Kill for them, die for them. Anything. A shifter’s mate is everything to them.”

“Oh,” Parker said softly, looking at her hands. What did it mean that Ty hadn’t called her his mate before? Was it possible that she wasn’t that person for him? She felt her heart crack at the thought.

“Look at me, Parker.” Ty waited until her eyes reluctantly met hers before he continued. “My wolf… he’s broken. I can’t remember the last time he felt right. When my mother was still alive, probably. When she passed away, every hint of security and affection I’d had in this life went with her. I focused on trying to protect Chase from our father, but I had no one to protect me anymore. I channeled all of that into Cassie. When she chose Jared, my wolf broke a little more, and when she died, the last little bit of sanity he had left went with her. I’ve just been trying to get through every day, one day at a time, working to get the farm in the best shape possible for my little brother before I needed put down.”

Parker nodded, keeping her head down as she looked at the fingers she was twisting together. Hearing this hurt, but she needed to know where she stood.

Ty touched her cheek. “Don’t look like that. I’m not finished yet. I’ve already told you that I didn’t love Cassie like that anymore, but she was my best friend. Losing her felt like losing everything good left in my life. My wolf has been a snarling mess, uncontrollable on a good day, insane on most. Until you. That first night at Crazy Pete’s… I followed you outside because when our eyes met in the bar, he went quiet inside of me, for the first time in longer than I could remember. I wanted more of that. I didn’t expect what happened between us that night, but I could never regret it. It was the best night of my life. My animal was calmer after that, saner. And then you walked back into my life a couple of week ago. Told me you were pregnant, let me get to know you, and the change in him was remarkable. I haven’t had to fight so much for control, and for the first time in years, I felt like I was going to make it.

“I still didn’t know for sure, though. My wolf was content, but he’s still on the broken side. I’m not sure that will ever change. He was completely silent, and I begged and pleaded with him to talk to me, tell me what you really were to us, but he wouldn’t. So I decided that you were mine and it didn’t matter if he never spoke to the words to me. And it truly doesn’t, Parker. You’re my mate. I feel it in here,” he said, putting a hand to his chest, “and have from the beginning. I chose you, in every way I could choose. But today, when I thought you were in danger, the wolf finally talked to me. Called you our mate. Let me know that both sides of my nature adore you. Every part of me chooses every part of you, Parker. You’re my mate.”

Parker looked at Ty through a sheen of tears. She couldn’t imagine ever hearing anything sweeter. He’d chosen her. She was sure that she would have felt just as special if his wolf had spoken to him from the start. But there was something about knowing that Ty the man had chosen her, that he had been determined to have her regardless of how his wolf felt, that hit her like a sledgehammer, right in the heart.

She couldn’t deny, though, that having his wolf confirm it for him finally brought a measure of relief. She wouldn’t have handled that well, knowing that there was possibly another woman out there that the wolf could choose over her.

“Tyler… I choose you, too. I don’t have an animal, but every part of me chooses every part of you, as well. I love you.”

She heard his breath catch and he looked away for a moment, a muscle in his jaw jumping as he clenched it. He turned back, cupping her cheek. “My wolf and I both love you, Parker. We adore you, and the pup you’re carrying. I’d like to claim you one day, but you’ll have to think hard about that. We’d have to do it after you gave birth, and I’d have to bite you. My bite will change you, though. You’d become a wolf shifter, like me.” She opened her mouth to reply and he put a finger to her lips to hush her. “Don’t answer me now. Think about this long and hard, throughout this pregnancy and longer, if you need to. Ask questions, take your time. There’s no rush, and I need you to know that I don’t need you to become a wolf. I will love you forever, regardless if I’ve claimed you or not. Being a human or a wolf won’t ever change that.”

Parker kissed his fingertip. “I’ll think hard about it, Ty. I promise.”

Ty smiled at her, his gorgeous chocolate brown eyes full of love and the promise of a lifetime together. “There is something I’d like an answer to sooner rather than later, though.”

Parker watched, puzzled, as Ty took a deep breath before standing up. He reached into his pocket for something and then dropped to his knees on the floor in front of her. He opened his palm and Parker gasped and covered her mouth with trembling hands when she saw the ring sitting in his palm.

“I ran into town and picked this up the other day, after I decided that I didn’t care what my wolf wanted. I love you, Parker. I want you in my life forever, and while I honestly don’t care if you ever become a shifter, I want you in the human tradition. I want you to have my last name. I want everyone to know that you’re mine, and I’m yours. Will you marry me?”

Parker blinked the tears from her eyes as he held the ring up. It was modest, with a white gold band, and two small diamonds nestled on either side of a slightly larger princess cut diamond. It was gorgeous. She took a deep breath, and held out her hand, fingers trembling like mad, so he could slide it on. “Of course I’ll marry you, Ty. Yes. A thousand times, yes!”

Ty gave her a breathtaking grin as he slid the ring onto her finger. He surged up from the floor, kissing her passionately as they fell back onto the bed together.

Today had been eventful and a little bit crazy. Seeing Ty’s wolf, an unknown sister showing up, a long, heartfelt conversation. Then declarations of love, and now a marriage proposal.

When she’d made the decision to come back home and tell Ty about the baby, she never would have been able to guess that it would end in love and marriage. Her imagination hadn’t been good enough for her to even dream this up. But she couldn’t imagine her life going any other way now. She had everything she’d ever wanted, right here in Ty’s arms.