Eternally Bound: Paranormal Romance Boxed Set by T.J. Michaels Page A

“And why didn’t you tell me whether Gary was a worthy mate or not?” Delaine ground her back teeth, agitated at having asked the question before she’d really thought it out. She already knew the answer, and Sapa, if anything, was straightforward and a lover of I-told-you-so’s.
    * If you recall, Suta, I expressed dislike for the Gary person several times before you married him. Yet, I am your guide, not your master. You will do as you will .*
    “Yeah, yeah, I remember,” Delaine sighed. The fact that she’d never shared Sapa with Gary spoke volumes. “By the way, thanks for the heads-up in the ladies room. Who was the blonde woman in my house begging for help? I assume the woman tied to the chair was a different one. What did the vision mean? Who are those women?”
    * I was not told or shown. But do not worry. We are never given a glimpse of things to come in order to hurt us, always to aid us. Now sleep. We must rest for tomorrow .*
    “Tomorrow? Other than my hair appointment with Pam, there’s nothing going on tomorrow.”
    But Sapa only purred, her long feline tongue lolling to the side as she began to disappear. Oh lord, the lioness was grinning.
    “Sapa, you come back here!” Delaine called. “What happens tomorrow, you stubborn old thing you!”
    Sapa sent serenity and reassurance along their bond as she shimmered away to her quiet place inside Delaine’s mind.
    Delaine was asleep in seconds, her dreams filled with a redheaded, six–and–a–half– foot, gorgeous hunk of a blue-eyed man.
     

 
    Chapter Five
     
    Who in the world could be calling her this early in the morning? Delaine grumbled, rolled over in her bed and snatched the phone off the hook. “Hello?”
    “Hi, Mom!”
    “Hey, babies! How are you?” she said happily, bolting straight up in the bed, now wide awake. “What are you two doing today?”
    “We’re working in La Boulainge for brunch,” said Tanna, her oldest.
    “Then we’re going to play a round of golf. Finally!” Michael declared. He was Tanna’s spitting image, born only a few minutes behind his sister. Both were enrolled in the Le Cordon Bleu culinary bachelor’s degree program, and Delaine was infinitely proud of them. They’d taken the departure of their father with amazing grace and rallied around her like little soldiers during that rough time. They still had a relationship with their dad, though by his and his mistress-turned-new-wife’s choosing, it was somewhat cool.
    “We just called to check on you. How do you like Charlotte?” Tanna asked.
    “It’s nice. Lots to do, plenty to see. You’ll love the house. Most of my upcoming assignments are on the East Coast, so I’ll be staying here for a while.”
    “Will our stuff get there in time for Christmas break?”
    “Yep. And I can either set up your rooms before you get here, or wait until you arrive so you can pick which rooms you want.”
    “It doesn’t matter to us. Can’t wait to see you. The next two months are going to feel like forever, Mom,” Michael’s deep voice filled the line.
    “I look forward to seeing you too, sweetie.”
    “We’ve gotta run,” Tanna said, always the diligent one. Shooing her brother off the phone she said, “We’ll call you next week, Mom.”
    Delaine felt a tug along the bond. “Oh, Sapa says hello to you both. She misses you as much as I do.”
    “Hi, Sapa!” they chimed in unison. “Love you, Mom! Bye.”
    “Love you too.”
    Even as tired as she was, she was so jazzed at hearing from her children she couldn’t possibly go back to sleep now. With that, Delaine was out of bed and headed to the shower.
    While she lathered up in the oversized stall, thoughts of her children filled her mind along with a nagging guilt she hadn’t felt in a long time.
    Tanna and Michael still had no idea she was a spy. Front companies like Aegis understood that agents, especially those with families, needed to maintain as normal a life as possible. Since she had