Enforcer Ewan “Cal” Calder hasn’t shifted into his Scottish wildcat form in two years. He should’ve gone crazy by now, because that’s how these things are supposed to work. The governing body of all shifters, the Council, has sent him and his adopted teenage son Kit to a sanctuary in Finland. It’s a last-ditch effort to wean Cal off the morphine he’s been using to keep his cat at bay. If he doesn’t shift soon, there’s no way he’s going to retain his sanity.<br><br>Two years ago, Council security officer Derek Lamont was tentatively dating and getting to know Cal, but then he lost an eye in a tragic accident. While he was recuperating in the hospital, Cal and Kit vanished from the house they’d all shared. Derek has been searching for them ever since, traveling the world and grasping at straws because of the undeniable truth: Derek knows Cal is his mate, even though humans aren’t supposed to be able to feel the mate bond.<br><br>When Derek finds Cal and Kit at a small farm in the middle of nowhere, Finland, he feels relief. But their problems are far from over. From Cal’s guilt over the accident, to stray hunting dogs, to figuring out how to deal with the Council, things keep piling up.

Off and On Again

Kit brought him and Cal their coffees and they settled down to chat for a while.Cal had very pointedly signed the original release paper which stated that he was using the mate clause as the reason for resigning and expected full release from any Council operations.


Derek hoped the Council would just roll with it.He understood that Cal was a valuable asset for them,but they had so many other enforcers who also had seniority and could do the same jobs.Frankly,Cal didn’t owe them anything,hadn’t in a long time.


“Oh,and Derek?”Anna said.“That demotion of yours was bullshit.”


Nico snorted and Kit giggled with surprise.


“I’m glad you think so,”Derek replied,grinning.


“They’re far too detached from the human world to understand human capabilities,”she mused.“I mean,you’re not that different from us.We have the enhanced senses and the animal side,but that’s about it.”


“Losing one eye isn’t enough to be declared useless in a job someone has done for decades,”Cal added.


Chapter 28