When he returned to the kitchen, Misty was washing the dishes again.

Graham paused, remembering what had happened when he’d come up behind her doing dishes the last time. He pictured how he’d wet her with the spray then licked her skin, how he’d drunk her, how she’d made him feel incandescent joy.

He was rock hard again—not that he was ever very flaccid around her.

“Leave it,” he said.

Graham knew she wouldn’t stop, and Misty didn’t. “It’s not a lot,” she said. “Sean’s much neater than you are.”

“He must be a joy to live with,” Graham said. “Neat and clean, Irish accent, bloody Feline grin.”

“He is pretty good-looking,” Misty said without turning around. “I can understand why Andrea is madly in love with him.”

“He’s Feline. She’s Lupine. It’s wrong. Of course, she’s got Fae blood in her, which probably messed with her head.”

Misty stacked the clean plates in the drying rack and started scrubbing down the griddle. “I know you’re thankful they came and helped. You’re just being a shit. You can’t not be one.”

“It’s traditional with me.”

Graham leaned on the counter next to her. If he came up behind her, he’d bend her over, lift her skirt, and do her right there. To hell with dignity.

Misty cleaned, rinsed, and dried the griddle and rested the heavy thing back on the stove. It was the kind that stretched across burners, using the stove beneath to heat it. She washed her hands, dried them on the towel, then hung the towel neatly on the towel ring that had come with the house.

“What did you want to say, Graham?” Misty asked. “If you’re going to meet with Eric, I need to get back to my store. I have a ton of things to do.” She let out her breath. “I hate to leave you alone, but Eric can take care of you. Sean looks pretty capable too. I’m going to try to find Ben, and ask him again about curing you. I should have Reid talk to him with me—”

“Misty, would you stop?” Graham thrust his hand over Misty’s mouth. She looked up at him over his large fingers, indignant. “First, your brother went to your store with Xavier, plus I sent Shifters to help out. You don’t need to worry about it. Second, you’re not talking to that Ben person without me there—who the hell knows who he is? Third, I need you here.”

And now Misty was getting mad again. She moved her head so she could speak. “No, you need to go with Eric. If we both work on this problem today, we can pool our information later.”

But that would mean Misty not being here when Graham got back. “You have to stay,” he said. “I mate-claimed you.”

Misty’s eyes widened. “You what?”

“Mate-claimed. It means—”

“I know what it means. I’ve hung around Shifters long enough.” Misty spun away from him, her skirt swishing. “It means you’re saying you want me to be your mate and do the ceremonies. And have me live with you and have your kids—cubs.” Misty ran out of breath and stopped. “Are you insane? I know everyone expects you to mate with a wolf Shifter. One of your wolves even tried to attack me, remember?”

“And she’ll be disciplined. Things are different now.”

“What things? No, they’re not.”

Graham looked into Misty’s stubborn eyes and knew the truth. Everything was different. His life had changed the moment Misty had turned to him on the barstool at Coolers and asked, You a Shifter?

“I’ve been lying to myself,” Graham said. “I thought I could keep it cool with you, go out with you for the fun of it, to enjoy being with you. Then say good-bye when I chose a mate. But I can’t. Letting you go is something I can’t do. All right?”

When Graham had mate-claimed Rita, she’d nearly passed out in shock that the son of a clan leader had chosen her, then she’d recovered and thanked him for the great honor.

Misty only stared at him and didn’t look honored at all. “You can’t change your mind like that.” Her voice was shaky. “I know your Shifters won’t shrug it off and say, Oh well, our great leader knows best. They’ll fight you.”

“I’m prepared for that.”

“I’m so glad. What about me?” Misty pressed her hands to her chest. “I’ll have to fight too. That Shifter woman—Jan—who tried to attack me, was very angry. And her Collar didn’t go off, so that won’t slow her down, will it? And what about the other women who hope they can be with someone so high in Shiftertown? I’ve learned a lot about Shifters since I started dating you. You’re a good catch, apparently, and they’re not going to step aside so I can have you.”

Graham gave her a growl. “What you don’t understand is that I’m alpha. They do what I say.”

“And what you don’t understand is how someone not alpha thinks. Sure, they’ll obey you—until they can figure out a way to get rid of me, permanently. Or replace you with someone who will do what they want.”

“And you don’t understand how leaders get chosen. I have to die before another one takes my place.”

“Exactly my point.”

Graham started to say that would never happen, but he stopped. Of course, it could happen. Challenges for leadership had occurred a lot in the wild—not to Graham, but to others. It happened less often now, but Collars were gradually coming off and some Shifters were hoping for changes. Liam Morrissey had fought his own father and won, thus replacing him as leader. Dylan Morrissey was a hard man with a lot of experience, so Liam besting him said something.