Animal Attraction (14 page)

I took the gold-embossed card. “It’s my
pleasure, Mrs. Warner. Give us a few days to check into some
things.”

“Of course.” She thanked me yet again,
looking at me like I might answer all her prayers. Great, no
pressure.

Gerald and I listened to her footsteps recede
down the hall. She wore denim kitten heels, too cute to be
believed. What? I love shoes.

The werepanther looked at me when we couldn’t
hear her any longer. “Tattingail. I’d love to find out that piece
of garbage has something to do with our missing shifters.”

I mentally rubbed my hands together. This
could shape up to be the break we were hoping for. “We need to find
out if my sister’s husband has something besides some old bad debts
and illegal gambling hanging over his head. Something really
juicy.”

Gerald cleared his throat. “About your
sister, Brandilynn—”

I shut him down fast. “Ashley doesn’t need to
know it’s me. When my parents disowned me, she went along with it.
They told her to cut me out of her life and she obeyed. She always
did what they wanted, no matter what.”

“You agreed to help her. There must still be
something there.”

I didn’t want to talk about it. Old hurts
surfaced, bringing anger with them. “She came to my funeral. I’ll
cut her a little slack for that.”

He looked at me like he knew better. He did
not. “I remember that. When the woman who looked like the pictures
of you in the newspaper walked up to the casket, I thought I’d
gained the ability to see ghosts. You were identical twins.”

“Not really. Our eyes are different colors.
And we are nothing alike in personality. I never would have turned
my back on her if things had been reversed. I don’t owe her
anything ... but I’ve seen her kid. He’s an innocent in all of
this.”

I thought about little Jesse. He was what,
five years old? Too young to be dealing with the awfulness of his
dad nearly dying and then being condemned to be a shifter for the
rest of his life.

I’d seen my nephew the same day I’d come upon
Ashley crying in the park. The little guy looked a lot like my
sister ... and therefore, a lot like me. It was jarring to think I
might have had a son had I lived long enough.

I shook off a wave of sadness. There was no
point in thinking of all the might-have-beens that death had denied
me. Things were the way they were and nothing would change that. I
had to worry about the matters I could do something about.

I told Gerald, “I think I’m going to be
hanging out at the hospital’s para wing come daylight. Maybe Ryan
Warner’s deep, dark secret will reveal itself and we’ll get some
answers for Ashley and our shifters.”

Before he could reply, loud yells drifted
through the open door from elsewhere in the hotel. It sounded like
cheers. We exchanged a look.

I blurted, “Oh my gosh. Do you think—?”

I didn’t bother to finish the statement. I
bolted out from behind my desk to join Gerald in running down the
hall towards Para Central.

We entered the ballroom in time to be
showered in silver and black confetti. People jumped up and down,
laughing and crying and cheering. It was celebratory
pandemonium.

Behind falling bits of paper Gerald grinned
at me. “I think Tristan won.”

I laughed though my quiet heart lurched a
little. Even when touched by grief, one couldn’t help but smile
with all the triumph surrounding us. “I think you’re right. I guess
we better join our newest state senator.”

We wove our way through the crowd. Those who
didn’t know or didn’t care that Patricia’s body was under new
management – mostly shifters and gargoyles – patted my shoulders as
I passed. Calls of congratulations rang in my ears. I held my smile
despite the initial feeling of success receding. Tristan had won.
He would be leaving soon. Any hopes of real conciliation were
dead.

I waded through the throng and gained the
stage. As the only person who saw Dan, I nodded to him. He gave me
a wink and a thumbs-up. He was probably glad to know Tristan would
be going soon. Even though the competition between the men had been
settled, it was no doubt a relief to have real closure in the
matter.

He walked over to me and yelled so I could
hear him over the victory yells. “With over 80 percent reporting
in, Tristan squeaked ahead. Cooper conceded though the race was
tight enough that he could have called for a recount and slowed
things up.”

“The man is a gentleman,” I acknowledged.
Emory Cooper really was. He’d not based any of his campaign in a
‘norm vs. para’ way.

“I agree. You don’t see that too often these
days,” Dan said. “Tristan will come out momentarily – here he
is.”

I looked toward the back of the bandstand.
Tristan emerged from behind the curtains with Taylor at his
side.

Their gazes immediately settled on my face.
Taylor blanched as she always did when confronted with her
girlfriend’s body. However Tristan smiled and held out his
arms.

I went to him, the dutiful and proud sister
for the members of the press who looked on. We hugged and brushed
cold lips against each other’s cheeks as Taylor stepped aside.

Tristan spoke in my ear as we continued to
embrace. “I wasn’t sure it would happen. It was close right up to
the end.”

“Congratulations, Tristan. I’m happy for
you.” No tears clogged my voice. I deserved a gold star.

My former sweetheart pulled back and looked
at me. Sadness brushed over his face, and I wondered which woman he
saw at that moment.

He said, “Thank you. Thank you for – well,
for being patient with me. I’ve failed you too many times to count
now, but you’ve risen above that.”

I couldn’t stop myself from brushing my thumb
over his cheek. “You know she would have been proud of you,
Tristan. She would have been bursting with it.”

He nodded, sorrow again touching his
expression. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Taylor turn and take
a few more steps away. She’d heard what I’d said.

Tristan regained his composure. “I’m going to
ask you to play along one last time, sweetheart. For those who we
don’t want to know.”

I’d expected it. “Of course.”

Tristan looked over my shoulder. As he often
did, Gerald stood nearby. He held out his hand. With a laugh,
Tristan released me and wrapped his arms around the surprised
shifter, hugging his longtime employee. Gerald chuckled and hugged
back, slapping the vampire’s back with enthusiasm that would have
shattered a norm’s spine.

Tristan grinned at the panther. “And you, you
big, bad cat – Gerald, what am I going to do without you?”

Gerald winked a glowing green eye. “Same as
ever, boss. Charm ‘em when you can, harm ‘em if you must.”

Tristan laughed. He turned to me again,
taking my hand in his. When he pulled me to the center of the
bandstand, I went obediently.

We stood there before all of them, taking in
the applause and cheers. Everyone else’s happiness washed over me.
I played my part, reminding myself that I had Dan as my forever
sweetheart. He was not second best to Tristan. But my love for the
two men had been equal, and it hurt each time I realized I had to
let this one go.

The people who made Para Central operate
quieted down. Tristan beamed at them all, his thrill over winning
dimming his usual dangerous vampire vibe. “You all know I’ve always
got something to say. I am not going to change that at this
moment.”

Loud laughter and more cheers. Tristan waited
for them to settle again before continuing. “For once I’ll try to
keep it short. I want to thank you all, from the bottom of my
heart. You did this. You supported me. You put up with me. This
night is about you and all you’ve done. This is your victory as
much as mine.”

More cheers. Several yells of “Get ‘em,
Tristan!” Applause.

“We are finally represented in this state.
This is a success for paras in Georgia, but we still have a long
way to go. I will do all in my power to repay you for this
opportunity by serving you to the best of my ability and making
sure our voices are always heard.”

He turned to me. “Most of all, I have to
thank my beautiful sister Patricia. She always encouraged me.
Failing that, she yelled at me.”

The laughter renewed and I joined in ... but
the tears I saw in Tristan’s eyes were a reflection of my own. We
were ready to weep together, but over different things.

How we held our gazes on each other I’ll
never know. Somehow we did as Tristan continued to laud the sibling
whose face I wore like a sick Halloween mask. “Patricia never
failed to tell me how much she believed in me, how I could be the
man to make good things happen for us all. It is for her that I
work so hard. My success ultimately belongs to her. Thank you,
Patricia.”

I smiled and nodded. It was then that I
realized Tristan’s broken heart would never truly heal over the
loss of his sister. Her memory owned the best of him. Maybe I had
always been second in rank.

We were truly over forever.

Tristan turned back to the crowd. His own
mask had fallen into place, the triumphant winner rejoicing his
election. “Thank you all! Celebrate!”

That earned more cheers. Bottles of bubbly
and Blood Potion came out. There was endless toasting by Tristan
and many others. It only made sense that Patricia would join in, so
I found the appropriate words and spoke them. A band came in to
fill the bandstand. The rows of desks were pushed back to clear the
parquet floor for dancing. The party got underway for real,
rivaling a New Year’s Eve celebration.

It was a long night for me. By the time
things wound down, my face ached with the strain of the fake smile
I’d stretched upon it.

* * * *

I was always happy to send Patricia’s body to
ground. The morning after Tristan won the election, I was doubly
delighted.

I’d already told Dan where to meet me at
dawn. I transported straight to the lighthouse on Hamilton Island
as soon as my spirit left its nighttime prison. I appeared on the
railed gallery outside the lantern room.

I ‘ported right behind Dan, who stood looking
out over what’s known as Pier Village, a favorite with tourists and
locals alike. Hamilton Island’s Pier Village is a quaint area. It
has a road with cute little shops and restaurants that leads out to
the pier where fishermen haul in sheepshead, bluefish, and trout.
There is a waterpark that stays jumping through the long summer
months, along with a park and a playground.

Since visiting hours of the old landmark
hadn’t begun yet, we had the lighthouse to ourselves. Before I let
Dan know I’d arrived, I inhaled deeply of the salt air and took in
the view. From the top of Hamilton Island Lighthouse I could see
not only Pier Village, but also the tiny spit of Turtle Creek
Island across the river. Further in the distance the sweeping
Seymour Ladner bridge that connected north Fulton Falls to
marsh-surrounded south Fulton Falls spanned the horizon. With the
sun rising behind the bridge, casting its gorgeous coral-colored
glow over the water, it was a beautiful sight.

I moved my gaze from the gorgeous start of a
new day to a sight more splendid. In his usual white button-down
shirt, Dan’s shoulders were broad and strong. His exposed forearms
showed corded working man’s muscle. Instead of leaning on the
railing, he stood with legs slightly spread as he looked over the
same land and seascape I’d enjoyed. His khakis clung lovingly to
thick thighs. And that fine round butt – happy sigh.

I moved slightly, wanting to catch a glimpse
of his face while he was still unaware of me. My ghostly heart
remembered to thump as his handsomely weathered features came into
view. Like the luckiest men, the creases only added to his rugged
good looks, making him appear stronger and more masculine. Good
heavens, what a handsome man he was.

All my cares seemed to vanish as I took in
Dan’s contented visage. He had a little smile on his face as he
watched the sun come up. It made me realize I rarely saw him look
so at ease. The months we’d been together, it always seemed like we
were up against one emergency or another. Yet again we faced issues
what with missing shifters and Tristan’s election madness. These
were small matters compared to the angst we’d been through. It made
me feel a deep joy to see a look of peace on my sweetheart’s
face.

My being filled with love, I stepped up
behind Dan and wrapped my arms around his waist. His hands covered
mine and our fingers laced. I rubbed my cheek between his shoulder
blades, loving the feel of him against my body.

He murmured, “Good morning, beautiful.”

“Funny. That’s what I was going to say to
you.”

Dan chuckled at that. Maybe it was having his
rugged good looks referred to as ‘beautiful’. But he was. In heart
and body, the man was stunning. I snuggled against him, loving him
with all my heart.

A note of concern crept into his voice. “Are
you all right?”

“Right now? Perfect. Being with you makes
everything right.” For the moment, it was true. I wasn’t torn
between the two men I loved. Tristan would perhaps always own a
piece of my heart, but that was done. I had Dan. For once, it was
enough.

Dan sighed, a sound of quiet pleasure. “I’m
glad you wanted to come here. You know, I can’t remember the last
time I visited this place. Maybe not since before I died.”

“Has it changed much?” I’d grown up in the
area and I knew it had expanded. It was hard to notice because
things shifted so gradually in our little piece of Georgia.

Dan said, “Some changes. More stores and the
pier has been enlarged and updated. I remember when there were no
railings on it and it was all wood. The pavilion and waterpark
weren’t here either. So modern. It’s still pretty though.”