The morning after they’d made love for the first time, Michael had shifted for her. Abby had immortalized every detail, and could recall with perfect clarity how fluid the transformation was. His bones had reshaped, and his skin had stretched, and hair had cascaded down his back like water falling from a tap.
And then, before she’d known it, a tiger stood before her. Sleek, powerful, and fearsome, but best of all, all hers.
“But that’s not why we’re here,” Abby said. It was time to refocus the conversation on the topic they’d gathered to discuss. Tiffany had called them all together, and Abby wanted to know why. “Tiffany, what’s going on? Why do you need all of us here?”
“Oh.” A sly smile spread Tiffany’s lips. “You know, it’s really nothing…”
Languidly, she stretched her left arm across the table, fingers pointing downward. The light from the restaurant’s window sparkled in the diamond on her finger, and Abby and Carmen gasped at the same time.
“No way!”
“Tiff, oh my God!”
Tiffany looked pleased with herself, and Carmen wasted no time in snatching her hand so that she could look closer at the ring. Abby leaned in to do the same.
“Jason proposed?” Abby asked. It had been about three months since the speed-dating event, and while Abby thought that was a little early, she knew she couldn’t judge her friend. It had been love at first sight with Michael, after all.
“Mmm hmm,” Tiffany said. “And so I listened to my heart and said yes.”
“I am so happy for you,” Carmen chimed in. “The two of you are a great couple.”
“So now we’ve just got to wait on the last great couple to make it official,” Tiffany said, beaming. She turned her gaze to Abby. “Is that why you’re not interested in leaving?”
“I…” Abby knew she was blushing yet again. Michael hadn’t proposed, but things were very serious between them. He pretty much lived with her in the cabin now, and while they made love every day, usually several times a day, they’d never used protection.
Abby was still having a normal cycle, but she knew that they were flirting with pregnancy.
The thought of it thrilled her, and she was sure Michael was actively trying to get her pregnant.
There was no illusion between the two of them—they were in it for life. They just hadn’t said as much.
“One day,” Abby admitted, and both of her friends laughed.
“Well, make it one day soon and we can plan our weddings together.” Tiffany winked at her. “And maybe, if we plan it right, our kids can grow up being best friends just like we were.”
“Well, if that’s the deal, then the two of you’d better hurry up and get settled,” Carmen said, eyes alight with joy. “Kevin and I just found out that we’re pregnant.”
“Shut up!” Tiffany gasped. “Carmen!”
“I’m so happy for you!” Abby said. It looked like it was good news all around.
At long last, the three of them were happy.
Abby hoped that it would stay that way forever.
* * *
“Listen to this, Tiffany and Jason are engaged.”
Michael lay beside Abby on the couch. It was early, and neither of them was fully awake yet, but she’d been chatting about the things on her mind.
“Did you know?”
“No.” Michael wasn’t surprised, though. Since they’d met, Jason had always bemoaned his love life. Now that he had a fantastic woman like Tiffany by his side, it was no wonder why he wanted to make things official.
Michael would have done the same if he was a human, but as a tiger, the significance of marriage was lessened. What was important was that Abby was his mate, and that was already well established. The two of them hadn’t talked about it, but Michael was sure she understood what was happening between them.
Since he’d brought up the endangered status of his pack and she’d replied that they’d fix it, he’d been trying to get her pregnant. Abby had never stopped him, or expressed disinterest in having kids.