Free UnexpectedFind by Nancy Corrigan

wondered
if maybe they could make exceptions, especially for beautiful blondes.
    He pushed those thoughts aside for the time being and moved
quickly through the woods. At the end of the long gravel road, a small
two-story home, surrounded on all sides by thick undergrowth and trees, was
nestled near a stream. He crouched behind the bushes near the yard and surveyed
the house. The inside was lit up. He saw Jasmine talking animatedly with an older
human male who stood off to the side.
    The front door opened and hugs were exchanged. Rafe’s eyes
landed on Jasmine first. She stepped to the side, revealing the two cubs behind
her. His heart stopped. They had chestnut hair with dark highlights and light-brown
eyes that looked hazel in the moonlight. The essence of the gods shone through
their eyes. He’d bet money that their lineage could be traced back to the
goddess who’d birthed his clan. The sense of recognition was strong.
    They were Alexanders. Royals. Blood of his blood. His pulse
quickened. Possibilities teased his mind. With the number of his family members
lost over the years, he couldn’t guess who they belonged to but they were
family. Pride members. He sent a prayer to the gods for the blessed finds he’d
stumbled upon here in this backwater town.
    With his lips parted, he inhaled, needing to memorize their
signatures, and had to cover his mouth to stop the gag. They stunk. Not in an
offensive way, at least for humans. But they smelled as if they’d rolled around
in a meadow. It obscured their animal scent. If he didn’t know who he was
looking at, hadn’t seen their eyes, he might not have noticed them for what
they were. With a pair of sunglasses, most shifters would walk by them on the
street and never know they’d been in the presence of a royal.
    Although he couldn’t help wondering where the knowledge came
from or why she felt the need to hide their scent, Rafe was thankful for
Jasmine’s actions. They most likely had saved the boys from being discovered by
those who’d harm them. Before they’d started chemically neutralizing their
animal’s smell, it’d been common to mask it with perfumes. He remembered being
forced to bathe in scented water as a youth before he’d been allowed to go to
the village.
    His older cousins had chastised him. Not all shifters could
pass for human and therefore couldn’t move through their world easily. Devin
and Mira had that problem. In the shifter world, their unusual hair and eye
coloring labeled them as prized—the elite amongst the privileged. In the human
one, they were viewed as freaks. Thankfully, in this age, contacts and hair dye
eliminated their seclusion but in years past they’d lived in the shadows.
    Rafe watched as the royal cubs, who were lucky enough to
appear human, climbed into the back of the little red car. They drove off and
he followed, but by the time he made his way back to his car, they were long
gone. His pulse raced and the tightness in his chest didn’t ease until he
reached Jasmine’s home and caught sight of her blonde hair in the kitchen
window.
    He waited until the porch light went off before making his
way to the tree line.
    Kade stepped up quietly behind him. “I can hear your heart
pounding, brother. What’s wrong?”
    Rafe licked his lips and muttered, “Nothing.”
    “Liar.”
    Since he didn’t know why he was acting so oddly, he asked, “Did
you get a chance to run the perimeter?”
    Kade crouched next to him. “Yeah. There’s no scent on her
property from the cubs or any stray shifters.”
    “She’s masking it.”
    Kade made a noncommittal sound. Rafe turned to look at him
and demanded, “Say it.”
    “I can’t help wondering why the woman would be so fearful.
Most of the humans who’d become unknowing parents of shifter children didn’t
even know they were different. So, either Seth and Levi—”
    “How did you learn their names?” And why did jealousy rise
and heat his blood knowing his brother knew the