Page 55 of Hot for the Holidays (Breeds 13.5)

“Coyote told me.” Grandfather Kee smiled a little. “Coyote told me many things. About how you tried to bond like a Changer.”

Jamison nodded, and Naomi again felt the sadness of their failure. “We tried. It didn’t work.”

To Naomi’s amazement, Grandfather Kee burst out laughing. She’d never heard him laugh before.

“Jamison, you are such a fool,” he said. “You think a ceremony with turquoise and smoke is what it takes to make a bond. Did you not tell me that when you took coffee with this woman the first time you knew she was meant for you?”

“Yes,” Jamison said slowly.

“When you were born, your grandmother prophesied that you would find happiness only outside your own kind. You were so angry about that, remember? And didn’t you tell me after you met Naomi that your grandmother had been right?”

“Yes to everything, Grandfather.”

“You are already bonded to her, Jamison. You are bonded by spirit and by soul. By love. I knew it when you first brought Naomi home.”

“I thought you didn’t approve of me,” Naomi said.

“Not true, child. I saw how much in love you both were, and how much Jamison loved your daughter. It reminded me of what your grandmother and I had together, what I had lost. While I am happy for you, it also makes me sad.” His dark eyes filled. “I am only half a man without her.”

Jamison’s eyes grew moist. “Grandfather.” He enfolded the man in a heartfelt hug.

Grandfather Kee pulled Naomi down to give her a kiss on the cheek. He took her hand and Jamison’s and pressed them together.

“You are one,” he said. “The bond between you is true. I am shaman. I can see.”

Naomi’s hopeful gaze met Jamison’s, and Jamison realized that his grandfather was right. The instant connection he’d felt with Naomi had been his destiny fulfilling itself. And hers. During his absence she’d remained true to him, even while telling herself she shouldn’t. She hadn’t sought comfort elsewhere or even gotten rid of his things.

Julie had known, and his grandfather had known. Even Coyote had known.

“Why didn’t the Alpha know?” Naomi asked. “You said that he thought we hadn’t completed the bond.”

“He wasn’t a true Changer,” Grandfather Kee said. “He just wanted to be one.”

“I guess I need to catch up too,” Jamison said.

Naomi laughed in her beautiful, unself-conscious way. Her smile was wicked. “I can think of many things we can catch up on.”

Jamison’s grandfather regarded her with twinkling dark eyes. “After your Christmas day in Tucson, you will come to see us and bring young Julie. We all miss her.”

“We’ll be there,” Jamison said. He embraced his grandfather again, his eyes wet. “Thank you.”

Grandfather Kee squeezed Jamison’s shoulders, gave him a dignified nod, then turned and walked away, fading like the ghosts into the lingering darkness.

Jamison took Naomi’s hand, led her to her warm, familiar truck, and drove her home.

ater as Naomi snuggled down on Jamison’s bare shoulder, she murmured, “We have so many homes now. This one, my folks’ place in Tucson, and your family in Chinle. Kind of nice for an only child.”

“Julie’s an only child,” Jamison said in a speculative voice.

Naomi laughed and kissed the tip of his nose. “If we keep this up, she won’t be for long.”

Jamison’s eyes warmed, his kiss when he pulled her down to him both loving and heat-stirring. “Then as the years go by, we’ll have even more homes to go to on Christmas.”

“Fine with me.” Naomi opened her arms as he slid on top of her. “My Changer mate. I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

Allyson James writes nationally bestselling, award-winning romances, mysteries, and mainstream fiction under several pseudonyms. She lives in the desert Southwest with her husband and cats and spends most of her time in the world of her stories. A list of Allyson’s current books and upcoming releases can be found on her website, www.allysonjames.com, or contact Allyson via e-mail at [email protected] And keep an eye out for Stormwalker by Allyson James, coming in Spring 2010!

Sweet Enchantment