Once I got back from seeing Marcel and the kids at the river, my sadness turned back to anger again. The pages of my spell book rustle as I flip through them, searching for something that can suppress my twins’ shifting. While Marcel is out there teaching them god knows what about being werebear, I think he’s making it so my kids will shift more. And while I know it’s probably a good thing considering that is who they are, we still have a big problem on our hands. My children can’t shift in public, and I have to find a way to stop them. My husband may think two is old enough for our kids to understand what they are, but I’m darn sure Ava and Adam can’t comprehend why they occasionally have to suppress it, let alone when they should.

“Damn it,” I mumble as I scan the page I was looking for. Unfortunately, getting rid of rodents in your house isn’t quite the same as suppressing a werebear’s animal side. I move on to love spells and search for one that deals with broken hearts with the hope I can bury their desire to shift instead.

I stomp my foot in frustration. I didn’t sign up for this. When Marcel and I decided to have children, I thought my kids wouldn’t shift until they were teenagers. And truthfully, at the time, that seemed far enough away I didn’t worry about it. Besides, the clan has ways of dealing with new shifters, and systems in place to keep them safe. Once in a while, I’ll have a teenager who’s struggling to learn to shift come to me, but it’s usually got to do with raging hormones and insecurities.

My phone vibrates in my pocket, and when I check it, I notice two things. My next client will be here any minute, and Izzy wants to get together for more ceremony planning. The appointment, I can handle. Izzy, though? My breath catches in my throat as I begin to panic. She’s too close to me for her not to notice something’s wrong. I’d tell her about my kids in an instant if she weren’t the alpha’s wife, but because she is, I can’t put her in the position where she has to keep a secret from her mate. I text Izzy to buy myself time. Today is out. I’m overbooked. Maybe tomorrow?

Sounds good, she replies, and I let out a sigh of relief.

Someone knocks on my door, and I go let the man who is my next appointment in, and it doesn’t take long for me to get immersed in my work. Because what I do is emotionally draining, by the time my last client leaves and Marcel and the children come home, I’m too exhausted to get angry again.

The kids are tired from their eventful day too, and Adam nearly falls asleep in his dinner. The bedtime ritual is quick, and Marcel makes his way into the kitchen, where I’m scouring my spell book, trying to piece together something to keep the twins safe. “Hey,” he says. “Want to talk?”

“Yes.” I snap my book shut as I do my best to remain calm. “I’m uncomfortable with what you did today, Marcel. I’m sure being bear was fun for them, and you’re right that they need to learn, but I’m afraid now they’ll want to shift just to be one again.”

“That’s fair,” he says as he sits down across from me. “I’ve been thinking about how we can keep them safe. Ouellette Yachts has a preschool for the employees’ children. Most of them are werebear, and the teachers definitely are. I think it could work.”

I sigh. Ouellette Yachts is the clan’s major business, and most members work there in some capacity. It’s not a perfect solution, and there are a few details we’d need to iron out, like telling Jean Luc, but it does buy me time. “Okay,” I say. “Maybe that can work. It certainly takes the pressure off me to create a spell to teach the kids to understand it as soon as possible.”

Marcel frowns. “As soon as possible? I thought we were going to wait until—”

“Until they were old enough to understand?” I clench my fists as my blood begins to boil. “Like with shifting?”

My husband holds up his hands. “Hey. They started to shift without any prodding on my part. So we’re dealing with it.”

“Oh, no, you don’t.” I slap my hands on the table and stand up. So much for staying calm. “We need a way to control their shifting in public because we can’t rely on them having the ability by the time they’re five.”

“So magic is the answer? A little wave of your hand, and poof, no nasty bear parts coming out.”

“What?”

“I get it, Tally. Humans don’t like to see the animal side with our big, scary teeth. It’s probably horrible for you to imagine your children are so—”

“Stop!” My magic is coiled up inside me as a natural reaction to intense anger, and I keep my fingers curled into my fist so I don’t throw out a fireball in a fit of rage. “There is nothing about my children that horrifies me.” I glare at him as I wonder if this misconception is why he hardly ever shifts in front of me, and my anger subsides a little. I add, “Or you.”

“Humpf,” he says as he stands up. “You sure don’t act that way.”

“Marcel.” Tears of frustration fill my eyes, because he’s so off base about what’s bothering me, and making it about him. I say, “I’m scared to death for our kids and the clan. Hunters who want to wipe out werebear are everywhere. Can you imagine how easy it would be for them to get Adam or Ava?”

Marcel comes toward me. “That’s what you’re worried about?”

I nod as hot tears roll down my cheeks.

“Oh, honey.” He pulls me into his arms. “I’d never let that happen. First of all, we haven’t had a problem with hunters for five years now.” His voice changes to a cocky tone. “But more importantly, have you forgotten I’m a big deal with the warriors?”

I chuckle. “I know.”

He returns to a more somber tone. “You know we have guards on duty at all the schools. But if the kids still don’t understand things at five, we’ll start a private werebear-only school. And maybe it’s time we got you a nanny. That way, the kids don’t have to run errands with you in the human population.” He slides his hands down my arms and catches my fingers. “We’ll figure this out, Tally. Please don’t be afraid.”

I want to believe what he’s saying, but a little voice in my head won’t let me. Even though I’m not fully convinced, fighting with my husband isn’t going to solve anything, so I say, “Okay.” What he said about me being horrified about his animal side comes back to me. I place hands on his chest. “Marcel?”

“Yes?”

“Do you really think I don’t like you as a bear?”

He shrugs. “I imagine it’s scary for you.” He reaches out and rubs his thumb on the soft spot he’d like to mark with his bite. “I also have a very distinct smell in that form.”

I laugh. He does, but it’s one of those things I can’t help be attracted to. “Babe, your scent is sexy as hell.”

“Really?” He gives me a cocky grin. “What else do you like about me? Because I do this growling thing that’s usually a hit with the ladies.”

I shake my head and wonder how it is he can flip my anger off as if it’s a switch, and make my body tingle with desire for him in less than a minute. I hook a finger in the collar of his shirt and tug it down to reveal the smattering of hair on his chest. “Growling, huh? I might need to hear that.”

His smile disappears. “Tally. Promise me you aren’t going to use magic on the kids. Tell me our deal still stands.”

I take a deep breath and remember how we decided to try to keep the extent of my powers secret until the kids were old enough to understand. For many reasons, but most of all to keep them safe. I’m the kind of witch evil people want to disarm for good. Chances are good my kids will have strong powers too, and if they’re not ready to use them properly, it will be like spontaneous shifting. I blow out air slowly. “Our deal still stands.”

“Well then,” he says as he backs me up toward the sink as his sexy smirk returns. “About that growling thing. It only happens in certain situations.”

“I see.”

Marcel grabs my hips and lifts me up to sit on the counter. He pushes my thighs open to place himself between them and sears my lips with a kiss that makes me wish I could growl. When he pulls away, he takes my face in his hands. “Tally, I’m sorry I didn’t tell you what I had planned this morning. I thought we were on the same page with this. Didn’t we agree to not try to change what nature intended for the twins?”

“We did.” I sigh, because both of us have avoided dealing with our situation since we got home from Kimi’s. “But I assumed we’d talk about what we were going to do before it happened.”

“I swear nothing bad is ever going to happen to our children. Not on my watch. I promise.”

But what about mine? Fear sends a shiver down my spine, but I paste on a smile and decide to let this go for now. Even if he’s right that Ava and Adam are safe, we’re not in the clear. We still have to tell Jean Luc. I hold that thought, though, because Marcel threads his fingers through my hair to tug my head back and kiss my neck. I close my eyes and savor the sensations that rush through me, and tell myself we can deal with our problems tomorrow.