Free Dark and Deadly: Eight Bad Boys of Paranormal Romance by Jennifer Ashley, Bonnie Vanak, Erin Kellison, Alyssa Day, Felicity Heaton, Erin Quinn, Caris Roane, Laurie London

Shifters couldn’t own property, but Liam could work for the human owner and manage the place.
    A number of Shifters greeted Ronan by name or slapped hands with him as he went by. Interestingly, many greeted Elizabeth by name, including the six-foot blonde called Glory who was a regular at Elizabeth’s store, but they were deferential, looking to Ronan first.
    Ronan led Elizabeth through the crowd, staying close by her side. Some of the groupies looked at her with envy, some with resentment.
    Kim Fraser came forward to meet her. She opened her arms to Elizabeth and gave her a hug with a squeeze. “I’m glad you came. Let’s go into the office.”
    Elizabeth threw a glance to Ronan, who shook his head. “What’s up?” Ronan rumbled.
    “Nothing terrible. Liam just wants a word.”
    Elizabeth stopped. “I want to call Mabel. We like to check in with each other.”
    “Mabel’s here.” Kim pointed across the bar to where Mabel sat in a booth with the lanky Connor Morrissey, Scott, and a dark-haired Shifter woman who was obviously pregnant. The dark-haired woman gave Kim a nod, said something to Mabel, and pointed. Mabel looked around and sent Elizabeth a cheerful wave.
    “Andrea will take care of her,” Kim said. “Mabel was getting antsy, cooped up at Ronan’s, so Liam said it was all right if she came. Don’t worry. She’s in good hands.”
    Elizabeth was going to have to have a talk with Mabel. Mabel was of legal age, so that wasn’t a problem, but she looked way too cozy laughing and talking with the Shifters. Mabel was very accepting of people as they were, something Elizabeth had always admired about her, but then, Mabel wasn’t the greatest judge of character, either.
    Or maybe Elizabeth was being too protective. She’d always gone back and forth about Mabel, torn between wanting to shield her from the evils of the world and fearing to stifle her with too much restriction.
    Kim guided Elizabeth to a door marked “Private,” and Ronan came so close behind her that Elizabeth felt his body heat.
    On the other side of the door she found Liam Morrissey inside a cluttered office. Liam sat behind a desk, his long legs propped on the desk’s top, and he held a baby on his lap.
    Elizabeth wasn’t sure which was more incongruous—the child held up by Liam’s big hands or the man standing on the other side of the room with a huge sword strapped to his back, the hilt slanting above his head.
    “He’s underage,” Elizabeth said, looking at the baby.
    “
She
,” Liam said. “Katriona Sinead Niamh Morrissey. Sinead for her auntie, Niamh for her grandmum, and Katriona because we like it. Born three months ago.”
    “And you’d think she was queen of the gods,” Ronan said. “The attention she gets.” Ronan went around Elizabeth to the baby and gently poked her stomach.
    “Shifter?” Elizabeth asked.
    Kim reached for the child. At the same time her hands closed around Katriona’s waist, Liam leaned up to Kim and kissed her on the lips. It was a warm, loving kiss, the look in Liam’s eyes heart-melting.
    Elizabeth’s thoughts flashed back to Ronan licking the corner of her mouth earlier this morning. His lips had been smooth and warm, soothing. And arousing.
    She swallowed and made herself not look at Ronan as Kim snuggled Katriona under her chin.
    “I can’t wait to see what her wildcat looks like,” Kim said. “We won’t know for a few years. Shifter-human cubs are born human and then shift when they’re about three. Pure Shifter cubs do it the opposite.”
    Kim bounced Katriona as she talked, Katriona looking at everyone with round blue eyes, while trying to stuff her entire fist into her mouth. Kim moved across the room to the swordsman, who relaxed his grim stance to touch the baby’s nose.
    Ronan was the only one not at ease. “What do you want, Liam? Elizabeth’s had a long day. I brought her here because I thought she could relax a little and then go home.”
    “She will.” Liam