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feel them as if they were extensions to her own
body.
    She finally felt like she
belonged somewhere. She belonged with them, in their arms.

Chapter Eleven
     
    The sun peeked around the
edges of the curtains, casting little rays of light dancing about the room. Not
wanting to get up, Trey snuggled deeper into bed, his arm tight around Ivy’s
waist, his head buried in her hair. His bear was content and had no desire to
move anytime soon. This was what life was all about; these moments were what
they fought for every time they went out on a mission. Turi might doubt their
goals, but for Trey, finding his mate had reaffirmed everything. He wanted to
make a safer world for her.
    With the future in mind, he
decided to slip out of bed and take Turi’s place with the morning check on the
sleuth. It would be one step to proving he was fully committed to their mating
and the sleuth. He slipped into his jeans and grabbed his shirt from the
bedpost before sneaking out of the room without waking either of them.
    Strolling out of the house, he
tugged his shirt over his head, and squinted in the sun as his eyes adjusted to
the brightness. He tipped his head back to the sky and let the morning breeze
coming off the water wake him up. The gentle swoosh of the waves as they hit
the beach, the crisp salty air—it was home. For the first time he wondered if
they’d be able to convince Ivy to stay on the island if Chad resurfaced. The
older Brown brothers might have left, but he had no plans to.
    “Trey…” His father called out
as he neared his parents’ house, where he was sitting on the porch.
    “Morning, Dad.”
    “What has you up this early?
Ma mentioned you and Turi found your mate. I figured you boys would be spending
a late morning with her.”
    He climbed the steps and took
a seat in one of the handcrafted rocking chairs that lined the porch. “They’re
still sleep. I thought I’d check on sleuth and see if there was anything you
needed dealt with.”
    “It’s been a quiet morning.
Everyone is still recovering from the party last night. Even your brothers are
still in bed.” Devon yawned. “That’s where I’d be if it wasn’t for your mother
up baking all those sweets you boys love so dearly.”
    “Bears and their sweet tooth,”
Trey joked, though it was true.
    “You boys are worse than any
bear I know.” Devon brought the mug of coffee to his lips, taking a deep gulp.
“Ma tells me your mate is part of the Arizona Tigers. I didn’t think they had
any humans in their ranks.”
    In spite of himself, Trey
laughed, sincerely amused at the way his father stretched human out, not
as if it was a bad thing, but it was his way of asking for Ivy’s story without
actually asking. “Turi didn’t tell you last night?”
    “He only said she needed a
safe place, he was about to explain something when he started to stare into
space. Next thing I know he’s rushing back to his cabin.”
    “Shit!” Trey rubbed his sweaty
palms over his jeans. This should have been coming from Turi; he was the
diplomat twin and could smooth out any problems before they had a chance to
arise. Without Turi here, Trey took a deep breath and dove in. “She’s
Randolph’s niece.”
    “What?” His father set the
coffee mug aside and looked at him with concern.
    Over the next few minutes he
explained everything. Hoping to avoid dealing with the same anger Turi
originally had when he found out Ivy’s heritage, Trey went over her commitment
to the tigers in as much detail as he could. He wanted his father to accept
her, without wondering if she was going to bring danger to the island.
    “Dad…” He paused for a moment,
deciding how best to approach it. “We’ve decided that we only want the
immediate family to know. Mom, our brothers, and you. Otherwise it puts her in
too much danger.”
    “So that’s why Turi gathered
us last night after the celebration.” He took another long drink of coffee. “I
should beat his ass for gathering