“We were alerted to Megan’s adoption and came down to investigate. We arrived the evening I saw you at the bar. The fire had already claimed Tony’s life, and I’d worried it wasn’t an accident. That Tony was murdered, and Megan was gone. When Devin found Megan safe, I was free to focus on you.”
“Focus on me?”
“I couldn’t keep my hands off you.”
The lust in his gaze set her on fire. She glanced at where his fingers were twined with hers. “It wasn’t deliberate, then? You weren’t just trying to get information on my boys.”
He tipped her chin toward him. “I didn’t know about your boys until you mentioned them. I touched you because I needed to. You caught my attention.” He rubbed his thumb over the corner of her lips. “You still have it. You’ve mesmerized me, Jasmine.”
His words brought back all the warm feelings she’d experienced the night before. She swayed closer to him, but stopped herself from taking the kiss she desired. There were more important things than her emotions.
“And now? Do you still think the fire was an accident?”
He released her and ran his hand through his shoulder-length hair. “I don’t know. The fire chief seems to think Tony’s death was an accident. Part of me agrees. If it had been Jon, why didn’t he go after Megan as soon as Tony was out of the picture?”
“Jon is the shifter who caused the accident?”
“Yes, and I don’t ever want you to fall into his hands.”
The hard expression Rafe wore didn’t invite questions, but she needed to know what they were up against. “How do you know him?”
His nostrils flared. “He’s the one who took my sister.”
“Oh,” she mumbled, unsure what else to say.
He laid a hand on her thigh. “As long as you’re with me, he won’t make a move. He’s not stupid, which is why we haven’t caught him yet. He knows coming at me head-on is suicide. He’ll sit and wait for us to leave you unattended. Same with your kids, but I won’t. You’re safe with me, and this time I will catch him.”
Seth and Levi. Of course Jon would want to get his hands on them too.
“Do you think Jon knows about them? My boys?”
“If he doesn’t, it won’t take him long to figure it out.”
She nibbled on her lower lip. Was she wrong to be cautious where Rafe and his family were concerned? Maybe she should go with him?
But one night of passion and a few minutes of honesty weren’t enough to base decisions on that involved her kids.
Waiting was the right thing to do. She had to be sure.
Rafe sighed. “You also need to know that you’re in as much danger as your boys. Jon knows you’re important to me. He’ll come after you for that reason alone. To take you from me.”
Jazz swept her gaze over the woods surrounding them. No lion. No glowing brown eyes. He was gone, but the way he’d looked at her in the hotel scared her. He’d be back.
She turned in her seat and studied Rafe, looking for any clue that what he was telling her was false. Hoping for it, maybe.
“You really think he’ll come after us with you here?”
“Yes. He hates my family, me especially.”
“Why you?”
“He took an interest in my sister.”
“And you got between them?”
“Not exactly, but he blames me for his fate because I’m the one who made him face it.”
“Which was?”
“That he could never be with her, and if he loved her, he’d leave her alone.”
“Why couldn’t they get involved?”
“Because she was meant to mate a male like her, one who could shift into three animals not one. No one else. Breaking that rule hurts everyone involved. It’s not fair, but many things about our lives aren’t.”
“Jon wouldn’t accept that and took your sister anyway.”
“Yes.”
“I’m assuming she didn’t want to go with him.”
He shook his head. “My sister had already met the male she wanted to spend her life with, but he was waiting until she got a little older to make it official. He still searches for her, but every year that passes dims his hope of finding her.”
Rafe’s features tightened, and his voice lowered. “Jon knew that. He didn’t care. He wanted what being with her could give him, but it’s physically impossible. She couldn’t share her strengths with him. When I’d pointed that out, he mentioned that there were scientists working on solving our species’ limitations. That if he waited long enough, nothing would stop him. I told him to go cool off. That he was being a fool, and those so-called scientists were getting their data by experimenting on women and children. Within an hour, Jon was gone, along with my sister.”
“That’s horrible.”
“Yes, yes, it is.”
The haunted look on his face chilled her. She hadn’t meant to upset him with her questions. Time to redirect the conversation. “So you came for Megan. What were your plans for her?”
“Honestly, I don’t have an answer, but it’s not our intention to rip families apart. We do what’s best for all involved. Often, these kids are skittish, afraid of humans and shifters. First we make sure they’re safe, then we sit back and evaluate the situation to decide on our next steps.”
A wave of relief swept over her, and the last bit of unease faded. She blew out a rough breath. “Okay. What happens now?”
“We’re going to catch Jon, then help you, Josh, and the kids, but I can’t have you running off. You need to stay with me so I can protect you. Do you understand?”
Her back went ramrod straight. “I’m not stupid.”
“I’m not implying you are, but you need to realize even going to the grocery store by yourself is a bad idea.”
She rubbed at her pounding temples. “Protect me. Yes, okay. I understand. I don’t go anywhere by myself.”
“Good. Now don’t worry. You and your kids will be fine. I’m going to
