Read Online Sheer Bliss by Leigh Ellwood - Free Book Online Page A

would watch with a twinge of envy. Sure, being a shifter
might not grant her superpowers beyond enhanced senses, and it
wouldn’t make her a better or more successful salon owner. Still,
to be different, special…
    She closed her eyes. The
wineglass slipped from her hand and fell with a dull thud to the
grass. A tingling sensation in her belly radiated sparks that shot
through her limbs. She smiled, picturing handsome Caleb dressed to
the nines in a sharp, dark suit, checking his watch and all points
of entrance for her.
    Her right hand came to
rest on her left breast and squeezed gently, rolling the nipple
between her fingers. Yes, she’d be late for the ball. Soon as she
took care of one last thing…
    Arousal quickly morphed
into concern. She couldn’t move her legs.
    She couldn’t move any part of her body. The tingling rapidly took over,
leaving her frozen and numb and very sensitive to the breeze. The
sensation overcoming her now, she likened to an all-encompassing
toothache, the kind that sliced through your brain the second cold
air hit an exposed nerve. Calla wanted to cry out but her throat
had dried, then closed, forcing her to breathe heavily through her
nose.
    That’s when the change
started.
     
    * * * *
    “ Caleb. Good to see you
again.”
    “ Likewise.” Caleb took Dr.
Wes Dillon’s hand in a firm shake. A fellow panther and friend
since high school, Wes looked very handsome in his charcoal suit
and with his blond hair slicked back. The expression on the man’s
face no doubt mirrored Caleb’s, and Caleb imagined they shared
similar thoughts about the ball. Why, for instance, could the
planning committee not acknowledge that August was too damn hot for
a formal event?
    Looking around at the
others, Caleb noticed varying ranges of discomfort. “I’m giving
serious thought to taking over for next year,” he told Wes. “Beach
casual attire, Jimmy Buffett cover band, and more selections at the
open bar.”
    “ I hear you.” Wes laughed.
“How about we get a beer to cool down?”
    “ Lead the way.” The two
panthers cut across the crowded hotel ballroom, past many Bliss
residents Caleb knew by name or sight, and took their place in
line. “Hey, Wes,” he said, leaning closer to be heard over the
swing band, “I heard Aunt Sheila paid you a visit.”
    “ I’m sorry to disappoint
you, buddy. Your aunt’s going to live a long, long
time.”
    “ Cute. She seemed more
concerned about Calla Savitch’s good health.”
    Wes colored beet red,
obvious even in the dim of the ballroom. For a moment a wave of
guilt ebbed in Caleb for having put his friend on the spot, but he
wanted to know for certain that Wes offered up a correct evaluation
of Calla. Of course, he couldn’t imagine why Aunt Sheila would make
up something like a recessive shifting gene…unless that was her way
of giving Caleb permission to pursue a relationship on his
terms.
    “ Caleb,” Wes replied with
a nervous chuckle, “you know I can’t breach doctor-patient
confidentiality.”
    “ You’ve done it before,
apparently.”
    “ Shit.” Wes looked away,
rocking on his heels. Then, glancing around to ensure privacy, he
leaned close with a hissing whisper. “Your aunt can be very
persuasive, you know. She just wouldn’t let it go.”
    “ I’m convinced she’s part
viper, too, but don’t worry. I’m not going to say anything. I only
wanted to confirm what you told her is true.”
    “ Yeah.” Wes nodded. “It’s
not like it’s uncommon, though. For all the griping the elders do
about mixing, it happens. With Calla, she probably had a
great-great something who was a shifter and mated with a
human.”
    “ It happens, like you
said.” Now at the front of the line, they ordered their drinks.
“Does having a recessive gene for shifting mean your children can
shift, though?”
    Wes shook his head. “No,
and I told Sheila that. It’s like being recessive for
left-handedness or blue eyes. Calla has blue eyes and