Free Claiming Shayla by Zena Wynn

of them are still hoping he’ll choose them to be his mate. They aren’t going to be happy to see Shay, and they’re sure to try to discredit her and make her life miserable if they possibly can.”
    “Well, hell, Shannon. You couldn’t have mentioned all this earlier when you were convincing me to give Rory a chance?” Shay asked.
    Shannon gave her a lopsided grin. “I didn’t want to scare you off.”
    “Anything else I need to know?”
    “Yeah. Don’t go in the basement,” Shannon said, her expression as serious as Shayla had ever seen.
    “What’s down there, the boogeyman?”
    Kiesha and Mary Elizabeth laughed. Shannon did not.
    “Something like that,” Shannon agreed.
    “We’d better go before the guys come looking for us,” Kiesha interrupted.
    Shayla trailed behind the others, curiosity working overtime. First chance she got, she’d have to take a little look in the basement. That’s what Shannon wanted her to do, right? She had to know telling Shay not to do something was like waving a red flag at a bull. The results were almost guaranteed.
    As she neared the opening to the pool, she noticed a tall, lean figure standing in the shadows that was vaguely familiar. Shay thought she knew him, and that in and of itself was enough to capture her attention since she didn’t know many folks in Refuge. In actuality the only people she knew were in the wedding party, which meant this guy wasn’t from here. Why was he lurking, and how was it that no one—werewolves and vamps included—noticed his presence?
    No time like the present to find out.
    She detoured away from the others and headed straight for him. If he noticed her approach, it didn’t send him running. As she drew near, recognition struck like lightning. “ Conor! Dude, you’re here! Why are you hiding in the shadows? Come on out.” She launched herself at him, grinning and hugging him tight.
    This Indian was a favorite of hers. Kiesha had thought him old and senile in a harmless sort of way. Shay thought Conor was a hoot and he told the best stories.
    He hugged her back, his grip strong. “Shayla Nei, I see you’ve found your mate. Pregnancy becomes you. You glow.”
    Shay didn’t even question how he knew. Back in Pirate’s Cove he’d always done things like that, just popped out with some bit of knowledge. Used to freak Kiesha out, but of the two of them, her cousin had always been the doubter. If Kee didn’t believe in it, it couldn’t exist, and there was a lot of stuff she didn’t believe in. Or there used to be before she’d ended up mated to a werewolf.
    “Nice job, by the way, what you did for Kee,” she complimented him as she gazed up at him from within his loose embrace. Conor was responsible for Kiesha meeting Alex.
    He grinned, and she caught a glimpse of his slightly crooked front tooth. “She was the catalyst. Look at all that’s happened since she’s arrived.”
    “While I’m happy for Kiesha and Mary Elizabeth, I think you went a little too far with the matchmaking when you threw me into the mix,” she groused, not truly angry.
    He threw back his head and laughed, causing his silver-streaked black hair to float around his shoulders and the fine wrinkles around his eyes in his deeply tanned face to scrunch. He really was a stunningly attractive male, even if he was at least as old as her father. “You are just what that red wolf needs. The Creator makes no mistakes.”
    “He might need me, but what am I getting out of the exchange?”
    Conor gazed down at her, his black eyes deep and mysterious. “Someone who loves you totally and completely, just the way you are. Never forget that, Shayla Nei, no matter how rough things get. It will all be worth it in the end.”
    Hearing the warning, she asked, “What’s coming?”
    His eyes seemed to lose focus. “You must fight to hold on to what is yours. Treachery surrounds you. Only by uniting together will you be victorious.” His gaze drilled into hers with