Midnight Wolf (Shifters Unbound #11)(70)

She had a point, Angus thought glumly. No one could ever know about this, least of all the fanatic Haider and Shifter Bureau.

“Obviously Shifter Bureau heard some rumor of it,” Angus said. “Or Haider wouldn’t have wanted to interrogate you.”

“Who knows?” Tamsin’s shoulders slumped. “Maybe Gavan hinted at it when he was taken in. Maybe he thought it would save his butt or, more likely, he wanted to prove what a badass Shifter he was. I don’t know where Haider heard about me—maybe one of Gavan’s followers mentioned me, and Haider kept an eye out in case I drifted into his territory.” She groaned. “I don’t know. I didn’t tell any other Shifters about the stash, because I was as afraid of them as Shifter Bureau. What if the Shifter I told shared Gavan’s beliefs and wanted to use weapons against humans? Or even other Shifters? There’s always a dominance struggle somewhere, and living in Shiftertowns must make you all crazy. You really think Dylan wouldn’t want this arsenal for the army he’s putting together?”

Angus lay down again, suddenly tired. “I wish I could say no.”

Tamsin stretched out next to him, turning on her side to put her face close to his. “What do I do, Angus? Keep running and hope they give up? Tell Dylan and trust that he won’t blow up the nearest Shifter Bureau compound? Tell Haider and try to convince him it was a one-off, and no other Shifter would dream of doing such a thing? And hope he doesn’t use it for his personal vendetta?”

Angus let out a low growl. “Don’t know. Need to think about it.”

“See what I mean?” Tamsin brushed a piece of dried grass from his shirt. “If you want to kick me down the road and have no part of this, I understand.”

“No,” Angus snarled. “I just told you, you’re my mate. Mine. For always. This is a problem, and we’ll find a solution. Then we’ll figure out how to be together and live our lives. Even if we have to follow a human carnival run by a bear Shifter with weird fashion sense.”

Tamsin’s smile lit her face. Angus’s heart turned over every time she did that. “I like Dante. He’s amazing.”

Angus frowned. “We’re not telling him about this.”

“Of course not. We barely know him.” Tamsin exhaled, her breath touching his skin. “You know, I’ve held that secret in me so long it feels weird to have it out. I never told another living soul. Only you.”

“Mmph. I’m not sure how to take that.”

Tamsin tapped his nose, then leaned to brush a light kiss to it, her warmth comforting in the cool breeze. “You’re the only one I’ve been able to trust. Since . . . well, ever.”

“You didn’t take long to decide that,” Angus observed.

“With you, I just knew. Or maybe it was seeing how you are with Ciaran. You’d never hurt him—you were willing to throw me to the wolves, so to speak, to keep him safe.”

“Which started to kill me.” Angus gentled his voice. “I want you both safe. We have to fix this, not only for us, but for Ciaran. He doesn’t need to be hurt by it.”

“It’s another reason I told you.” Tamsin traced his cheek. “To help me figure out what to do.” Her eyes were on his, golden and thoughtful, waiting for his answer.

“Well, if you figured I was a genius who would instantly solve your problem, you were wrong.”

“Of course I didn’t think that,” Tamsin said with conviction.

“Huh. That could be insulting if I let it be.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. You’re plenty smart, Angus, and I’m smarter. I figured two heads were better than one.”

Angus raised himself on one elbow. “If you’re smarter than me, why did I catch you so fast?”

“Because I stayed human so I wouldn’t lose all my money. And anyway, you didn’t catch me, the gator did.”

Tamsin shivered, losing her lighthearted look. She’d be haunted by the trauma of that attack for a long time.

Angus slid his hand behind her and drew her down to him. “I’d have done anything to save you. I still will.” He brushed back a loose strand of her hair and kissed her soft lips. “We’ll get through this, Tamsin. I promise you. Then you and I will say to hell with the world, and spend a long, long time by ourselves.”

“With Ciaran.” Tamsin settled down into the crook of his arm, while the September sun warmed them. “Sounds good to me.”

Tamsin returned with Angus to the carnival, reluctantly releasing his hand when they reached the fairgrounds so they could take up their various activities.

She could get used to this life, she thought, even as she watched Angus’s fine ass as he walked away. Working hard, being friends with Celene and Dante, moving on when each weekend was over, heading out to another town, another state. Living with Ciaran and Angus and falling more and more in love with them every day was something she didn’t want to let go. She’d been terrified that revealing Gavan’s secret would force her to do just that.

Angus hadn’t walked away from her or shouted at her that he hated her, nothing like what Gavan had done when she’d turned down his offer to be part of his ménage. Angus was furious—but his anger was directed at his brother, not at Tamsin.

Relief rolled over her in waves. Wasn’t there a saying—A burden shared is a burden halved?