Deja blinked her eyes as she stared at Dixon.

What did he just say?

There was no way that she heard him say what she thought he said. A shifter? A tiger shifter? She stared at Dixon in shock at first, but then she smiled.

A nervous laugh escaped her as she stared at the man that helped her create her perfect little bundle of joy, who was resting quietly in the other room. She must be losing her mind.

“You’re joking, right?” She smiled at him, waiting for him to crack a joke or something, but he stared at her with a serious look. Her smile slowly faded as she waited. She jumped as he stood, and began to move her furniture out the way. He pushed her fake Christmas tree far back into the corner of the room. “What are you doing?”

Once he was satisfied, he began to strip his clothes off. She was baffled at his behavior.

“Dixon—”

“Please, Deja. Just sit. I’ll explain everything in a few minutes.”

She plopped down as he tossed his clothes onto her small loveseat. Once he was fully naked in front of her, she tried to keep her eyes from dropping to take a quick peek at his cock, but failed. She squeezed her thighs together at the sight of his thick length hanging in between his legs.

“Eyes up here,” he announced. Her eyes flew to his. “Don’t be afraid. He won’t hurt you.”

Her face grew warm as her eyes met his. She saw the twinkle in his eyes before the air seemed to shimmer around him. Her eyes widened at the sound of bones rearranging. Orange fur burst forward on his skin. She gasped as Dixon fell to the floor, and within seconds, a massive tiger stood in front of her.

“Oh my God,” she whispered, frozen in place. Her eyes met that of the tiger’s, and she saw Dixon in them. “Dixon?”

Her heart thumped against her chest as the tiger came toward her. She scooted back in the chair, afraid of being eaten by the massive cat.

He growled low in his throat as he stopped in front of the chair.

“Don’t be afraid” Dixon had said.

The tiger paused and tilted his head, as if to ask her to scratch his head. She reached out a hesitant hand and ran her fingers through his thick fur. She laughed as his chest rumbled. She scratched behind his ear, and he turned his head to lick her hand with his long tongue.

She blew out a deep breath as she met the tiger’s eyes. She could see Dixon in them. They were the same amber as his and Augie’s.

Her son would be like his father.

Her son would grow up to be a shifter.

Who knew that shifters truly existed?

The tiger turned as best he could in her small living room and headed off to the back room.

She scrambled from her chair and ran behind it, no longer afraid. She watched as he gently pushed the door to her bedroom open and crept into the room. She paused at the door and watched as the tiger stood next to the bed and breathed in her son’s smell. He turned his massive head to her, and she would have sworn she’d seen pride in the tiger’s eyes.

The air around the animal began to shimmer, and she watched as the body reshaped itself and the fur disappeared, leaving Dixon kneeling on the floor.

“How?” she asked as he stood from the floor. He glanced back at Augie before motioning her back out of the room. She paused in the hallway as he closed the door, then he stepped up to her, pushing her against the wall.

She swallowed hard as she watched his head come toward hers, and his lips met hers in a gentle kiss. She sighed and leaned against him, meeting him for a hot, open-mouthed kiss. His tongue dueled with hers as it swept into her mouth. A deep moan erupted from her at the feel of his stiff member pressing against her stomach.

“I want you,” he murmured against her lips. She opened her eyes and met his stare. She could barely think after that kiss. “I came back for you. To find you. To see what this was between us.”

“It took you a long time.” She smiled as she looked into his eyes. She saw the sincerity. Her heart pounded at his admission. He came back to find her? “But you have to answer me. How are you able to change into a massive animal?”

He cupped her cheeks as he stared down at her.

“I was born this way.” He placed another kiss on her lips and led her back to the living room. He guided her to the loveseat before grabbing his jeans and slipping them on. She made a mental note that he didn’t wear underwear.

He threw his shirt back on and sat next to her on the small couch. He pulled her over to him and placed her across his lap.

“How are you born this way? I mean, are there others like you?”

“There is much you need to know. First thing you need to know is that humans don’t know about the paranormal world.”

Dixon blew out a deep breath as he stood from the couch. Deja had left to go check on August, or Augie, as she sometimes called him. He grabbed his phone from his jacket and dialed Percy’s number.

“Where the hell are you?” His friend’s voice asked when he picked up. “The meeting started five minutes ago—”

“We got a problem,” he interrupted.

His friend must have heard the urgency in his voice.

“What’s going on?”

“The lions prowling around. I’m not sure how they know, but I think I know why they’re here.” Dixon walked over to the window near Deja’s small fake tree and looked out. His keen shifter eyes took in the neighborhood in the darkening light. His tiger was pacing, and he didn’t know why. His gut told him that something was off about the neighborhood.

“What’s going on? What did you find out?” Percy asked, shushing the voices near him.

“I have a son,” he admitted. Silence greeted him. “Hello?”

“I’m here. What did you say? I think something is wrong with the connection. I could have sworn you said you have a son.”

“I have a son. A baby. He’s three months old. She named him August.” He couldn’t help the proud feeling that spread through his chest at the thought that his son—his seed—was in the other room.

“The waitress?”

“Yes.” He smiled as he thought of August’s chubby cheeks and amber eyes. “He’s beautiful, Percy. He looks just like me.”

“Congratulations, man. That’s awesome. That’s why you were drawn to find Deja.”

“Thanks, but I think that’s why the lions are prowling around here. I’m not sure if they know about Deja and August, but they could be in danger.”

He glanced out the window and saw another SUV parked a little ways down from him. He could see a shadow in the front seat with his keen shifter vision.

“What do you want to do?” Percy asked, waiting on the word from Dixon.

“I want to get them to safety first. It may or may not be anything, but I don’t trust Tyson.”

“Send me your location, and Mason and I will make our way to you.”

“Give me a second.” Dixon disconnected the call and sent his location to his best friend.

“Why would August and I be in danger?” Deja’s voice appeared from behind him. He turned to her and sighed. He didn’t want to start this fragile relationship out on a lie.

“There are some men who don’t like me because of my position in our hierarchy of shifters,” he admitted. There was much he’d have to teach her. Even if they never mated, she was the mother of his child, and would be in danger.

“What does that have to do with me? I’m not a shifter. I’m just a human.” She gripped August close to her chest. He closed his eyes briefly before opening them again to look at her. He moved to her, needing to be close to her and August.

“A man by the name of Tyson Rollins is the leader of the lion shifters. He’s a dangerous man who I have had to fight against ever since we both came into power. He will do whatever he feel he needs to do to ruin me.”

“August and I would be your weakness?” she asked. The smell of her fear permeated the air.

“No need to fear anything.” He gathered her close, needing to have them in his arms. “I will protect you with my life, as will Percy, the council, and my family.”

“Why would they protect me? They don’t even know me. I understand August since he’s your son, but I’m not anything to you.”

He tipped her chin up so that he could look directly into her eyes. “You are my mate. My people would die for you.”

“That seems a little extreme,” she chuckled nervously. Her smile faded as she saw he was serious. “I don’t want anyone dying for me.”

“Hopefully, it will never come to that. I have my men coming now to make sure that your place is secure. Tyson’s men have been spotted here in Breckenridge, and I don’t want them finding out about you or August.”

He could feel her eyes on him as he stared down at August. He couldn’t stop touching him. His hand reached out and rubbed his son’s back as he cooed and sucked on the back of his fist. Dixon smiled as he watched, fascinated as his son’s sucking noises grew louder.

“Can I?” he asked, his eyes moving to hers. She nodded and gently passed him over. His tiger huffed, detecting that the baby was in his arms. He knew that his tiger rising to the surface would settle little August down. He may not shift yet, but his tiger would be there, deep down, and would recognize Dixon’s.

“If you think that this Tyson guy is a real problem, what do suggest we do?” she asked.

“It might be best for you to leave Breckenridge. If they saw you with me, they may become curious about you, and I don’t want you on Tyson’s radar.”

She nodded and began to pace the room. He hated that his problems were going to follow her and August, but it was the way of shifters. They weren’t too far off from their wild counterparts. The strongest were the ones to survive.

“I can leave. I’ve been thinking of moving out of Breckenridge. I have a tiny nest egg set aside.”

His heart leapt in his chest at the mention of her leaving. It didn’t sound as if she were thinking of leaving with him though. He glanced down at August and found his eyes on him. He smiled at his son, but it faded when he looked back to Deja.

“Move where?” he asked slowly.

“Colorado Springs, with my best friend, Niki. She’s been trying to get me to move with her. She’ll be able to help me with Augie.”

He swallowed hard, and unconsciously rubbed the baby’s back as he stared at her.

“I was thinking of you moving in with me.”