What they hadn’t expected was to see a line of vehicles parked in front of the house, curbside, with only the driveway clear for them to drive in. She hoped they hadn’t had a break-in here.
As soon as they hesitated to pull into the driveway, Stryker called Dan. “Hey, come on in. We’re all here to help you unload your car so you can hit the sack faster.”
“Hell, Stryker, can I say you guys are the greatest? Though we hadn’t planned to unpack tonight.”
“Yeah, but we need you at work tomorrow. A slew of reporters are still hanging around for the latest news.”
Dan laughed and drove the SUV into the garage. Everyone poured out of the house, gave them hugs, and started hauling in boxes—Leyton and Travis, Jack and Carl, even. Calvin and his wife were there. Dan’s dispatcher, Amy, was there too.
Dan hoped Addie wouldn’t mind all the help from the cougars, without okaying it with them first. She was smiling, like this had been the best welcome home ever.
Dottie, Shannon, Bridget, Kate, and Tracey wouldn’t let her carry one box, but started to ask her what she wanted to do for the wedding. Even Yvonne was there, ready to make a list for invitations. Dan had to smile at his mate when she cast him a “help me out here” look, but he was helping the guys put the boxes in the right places, and he had already warned her that a ton of the ladies would want to help with the wedding.
Mrs. Fitz showed her a book of pictures of various cakes Addie might like to have for the wedding.
Chase and Hal were out back grilling steaks for everyone.
“Where are the kids?” Addie asked.
“We had sitters come over to stay with them, in anticipation of your arrival home,” Shannon said, all smiles. “It was much too late to drag them all over here this late at night.”
Coming home to Yuma Town, at any hour, was a celebration like no other. Dan was glad Addie seemed to appreciate it as much as he did.
“Of course, we wanted to welcome you home right,” Stryker said, grabbing another box, “and I did want you to take care of the reporters, but we wanted to share the good news, if you didn’t hear it on your way here. Clinton Briggs has resigned his position, and has lawyered up. We got him.”
Dan smiled. “Hell, that’s great news.”
“I know how you really want to get back to work, but I can handle everything for a few days longer, including the reporters, so you and Addie have a chance to spend some real quality time together.”
Dan glanced back at Addie and she said, “Let’s go to the cliffs, camping.”
“First thing in the morning? You don’t want to rest up a bit?”
“No. I want to see what you said you had to offer me. In the surrounding area,” she quickly added.
“North Peak Cave and Carver Falls.”
After the steak dinner and the cake Mrs. Fitz made saying, Welcome Home & Congratulations!, everyone said their goodnights.
“One thing I don’t understand,” Dan said. “The name Alicia that was written on that one piece of paper and left behind at my house when the assassins tried to take us out.”
Rick raised his bottle of beer. “Forensics came back on that piece of paper today. One thumb print belonging to Briggs.”
“He intended to implicate her and take her position once she went down for her part in this,” Dan said. “His goose is cooked.”
The next morning, early, Dan and Addie packed the vehicle with everything they needed for a fun camping trip. They drove by the sheriff’s office and saw Stryker with hands on hips speaking to a bunch of reporters. When he saw Dan and Addie driving by, he smiled and tipped his Stetson to them.
“I love your town and everyone in it,” Addie said, settling back against the seat and closing her eyes. She needed more sleep. After making love to Dan last night, she couldn’t believe how tired she was, like she’d been on an all-night stakeout. Except that being with Dan was lots more rewarding.
She woke when he parked the vehicle.
“Here’s where we start our hike.”
They carried all their gear toward the cliffs in the distance and she loved this, loved being with her sheriff cougar. “Do…do you smell a lot of cougars’ scents that have been here recently?”
“I wouldn’t be surprised if some of the folks who came over to welcome us home last night, didn’t leave a little something in the cave we’ll be camping in.”
Now she couldn’t wait to see what they might have done. “Why do you think so?”
“Not only because we smell their recent scents, but because we did something special like that for Kate and Leyton when they were camping, and because the cougars want you to feel at home here.”
Addie walked even faster.
Dan laughed. “Are you rushing us?”
“Yeah, aren’t you curious?”
“Yeah, but what if I’m mistaken?”
She sighed. “Then I’ll be disappointed.” She frowned. “You said this path leads to the cave up in the cliffs straight ahead, but their scents go off in that direction.”
“We have a choice, follow their scents, or go up to the cave and drop off our stuff first. I suggest we go up to the cave first.”
“I was going to say to follow their scents, but you’re right. Dumping our gear would be a better idea, and then we can explore.”
Dan and Addie climbed up the cliffs with their climbing gear, backpacks, sleeping bags, and cooking equipment and set up camp in the cave overlooking Carver Falls. “It’s beautiful,” Addie said, practically forgetting the mystery of the cougars’ scents. “Just beautiful. I could listen to the sound of water falling over rocks all day and night.”
“I could too. Ready to check out the scents?”
She started stripping off her clothes. “As a cougar, yes!” In no time, she’d turned into her cougar and was bounding down the cliffs, wanting to check out the waterfall and the pond below it first.
Dan was chasing after her, springing onto the next shelf beside her, until they were at the base, but next to the waterfall. She realized they couldn’t reach the waterfall from the path as humans.
She ran beneath the rock face and the waterfall, sticking her tongue out to gather the water on it and drink. Then she saw through the screen of water, a canopied café sat on the flat rocks nearby, the green canopy trimmed in flowers and sparkling lights. A couple of beach balls were bobbing in the waterfall pool, and two ice chests were sitting next to the table.
She leapt into the pool and swam to the slab of rock and climbed out. Dan was right behind her. She shifted and peeked into the ice chests. Cooked shrimp on ice, champagne, vichyssoise for lunch, and the other ice chest had salmon steaks to grill for tonight.
Dan rubbed her arms and kissed her cheek. “Aren’t you glad you stayed?”
She wrapped her arms around him. “Yeah. Now the only question is, do we make love after lunch, or before?”
He leaned down and closed the lids to the ice chests. “You have to ask that question? The question should be: where?”
She pulled him into the pool. “I would think the answer to that would be obvious.” And then she wrapped her body around him while he paddled to keep them afloat and began kissing her.
She had found heaven in her faux agent husband, and would never let him go.
Dan couldn’t have been happier, that from all the men on her list, she had chosen him to protect her that day at the Hamburger Stop. And she was damn good at protecting him too. He loved her with all his heart as he held onto his naked mate, the water splashing about them, and made love to her.
He would never look at the waterfall, the pool, and North Peak Cave the same way. “I love you.”
She smiled up at him. “You make every day special, Dan. I love you.”
They might be out of the Bureau business, but they’d have all kinds of wild adventures on their own. And with work too.
Epilogue
Dan decided he’d put Stryker in charge of all media announcements when he
returned to work, though Stryker was hoping he was kidding. The ladies had all figured out how the wedding would go, and the event was even wilder than Kate and Leyton’s wedding. Mainly because Kate’s water broke in the middle of it.
With a rush to the hospital, they were one unified cougar pack. Who says only wolves have packs?
The new doctor, Dr. William Rugel, had been on board only a week at the clinic, but he was ready to deliver his first cougar shifter babies. Would they be two boys, two girls, or a boy and a girl?
That was the mystery.
The mystery woman in Dan’s life? She was for real, and loved being a deputy sheriff, though Dan had to counsel her on writing too many speeding tickets for out-of-towners. When she gave him one, he knew she was the right cat for him.
Addie was having a blast living in Yuma Town with her sheriff husband and being part of the cougar community. She was glad he had a great sense of humor, but even so, she was serious about him paying his speeding fine. She smiled, loving the alpha male cat.
Stryker swore the next mystery woman was his. Guaranteed.
Acknowledgments
Thanks so much to Donna Fournier for all the time she takes to keep me straight on my worlds. And to Dottie Jones and Donna Fournier who did a wonderful job critiquing. And thanks to all my cougar fans who keep me writing in the cougar world!
About the Author
Bestselling and award-winning author Terry Spear has written over sixty paranormal romance novels and four medieval Highland historical romances. Her first werewolf romance, Heart of the Wolf, was named a 2008 Publishers Weekly’s Best Book of the Year, and her subsequent titles have garnered high praise and hit the USA Today bestseller list. A retired officer of the U.S. Army Reserves, Terry lives in Spring, Texas, where she is working on her next wolf, jaguar, cougar, and bear shifter romances, continuing with her Highland medieval romances, and having fun with her young adult novels. When she’s not writing, she’s photographing everything that catches her eye, making teddy bears, and playing with her Havanese puppies and grand-baby. For more information, please visit www.terryspear.com, or follow her on Twitter, @TerrySpear. She is also on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/terry.spear. And on Wordpress at: Terry Spear’s Shifters http://terryspear.wordpress.com/
Afterword
Note from Author
* * *
Thanks again for everyone’s love of my shifter worlds. Next up in the world of cougars—well, I can’t decide. Either Chet’s or Stryker’s story.
I’m off to work on Billionaire Wolf Christmas next!
Also by Terry Spear
Heart of the Cougar Series: Cougar’s Mate, Book 1
Call of the Cougar, Book 2
Taming the Wild Cougar, Book 3
Covert Cougar Christmas (Novella)
Double Cougar Trouble, Book 4
Cougar Undercover, Book 5
Heart of the Bear Series
Loving the White Bear, Book 1
The Highlanders Series: Winning the Highlander's Heart, The Accidental Highland Hero, Highland Rake, Taming the Wild Highlander, The Highlander, Her Highland Hero, The Viking’s Highland Lass, His Wild Highland Lass (novella)
Other historical romances: Lady Caroline & the Egotistical Earl, A Ghost of a Chance at Love
Heart of the Wolf Series: Heart of the Wolf, Destiny of the Wolf, To Tempt the Wolf, Legend of the White Wolf, Seduced by the Wolf, Wolf Fever, Heart of the Highland Wolf, Dreaming of the Wolf, A SEAL in Wolf's Clothing, A Howl for a Highlander, A Highland Werewolf Wedding, A SEAL Wolf Christmas, Silence of the Wolf, Hero of a Highland Wolf, A Highland Wolf Christmas, A SEAL Wolf Hunting; A Silver Wolf Christmas, A SEAL Wolf in Too Deep, Alpha Wolf Need Not Apply, Billionaire in Wolf’s Clothing, Between a Rock and a Hard Place, SEAL Wolf Undercover (2017), Dreaming of a White Wolf Christmas (2017), Flight of the White Wolf (2018), Billionaire Wolf Christmas (2018)
SEAL Wolves: To Tempt the Wolf, A SEAL in Wolf's Clothing, A SEAL Wolf Christmas, A SEAL Wolf Hunting, A SEAL Wolf in Too Deep, SEAL Wolf Undercover (2017)
Silver Bros Wolves: Destiny of the Wolf, Wolf Fever, Dreaming of the Wolf, Silence of the Wolf, A Silver Wolf Christmas, Alpha Wolf Need Not Apply, Between a Rock and a Hard Place (2017)
White Wolves: Legend of the White Wolf, Dreaming of a White Wolf Christmas (2017)
Billionaire Wolves: Billionaire in Wolf’s Clothing, Billionaire Wolf Christmas (2018)
Highland Wolves: Heart of the Highland Wolf, A Howl for a Highlander, A Highland Werewolf Wedding, Hero of a Highland Wolf, A Highland Wolf Christmas
Heart of the Jaguar Series: Savage Hunger, Jaguar Fever, Jaguar Hunt, Jaguar Pride, A Very Jaguar Christmas
Romantic Suspense: Deadly Fortunes, In the Dead of the Night, Relative Danger, Bound by Danger
Vampire romances: Killing the Bloodlust, Deadly Liaisons, Huntress for Hire, Forbidden Love
Vampire Novellas: Vampiric Calling, Siren’s Lure, Seducing the Huntress
Other Romance: Exchanging Grooms, Marriage, Las Vegas Style
Science Fiction Romance: Galaxy Warrior
Teen/Young Adult/Fantasy Books
The World of Fae:
The Dark Fae, Book 1
The Deadly Fae, Book 2
The Winged Fae, Book 3
The Ancient Fae, Book 4
Dragon Fae, Book 5
Hawk Fae, Book 6
Phantom Fae, Book 7
Golden Fae, Book 8
Falcon Fae, Book 9 (TBA)
The World of Elf:
The Shadow Elf
The Darkland Elf (TBA)
* * *
Blood Moon Series:
Kiss of the Vampire
The Vampire…In My Dreams
Demon Guardian Series:
The Trouble with Demons
Demon Trouble, Too
Demon Hunter (TBA)
* * *
Non-Series for Now:
Ghostly Liaisons
The Beast Within
Courtly Masquerade
Deidre's Secret
* * *
The Magic of Inherian:
The Scepter of Salvation
The Mage of Monrovia
Emerald Isle of Mists (TBA)
Terry Spear, Cougar Undercover
(Series: Heart of the Cougar # 5)
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