Nikolas by Faith Gibson Page A

his computer and find out who currently occupied room ten seventeen. While he was at it, he’d also check on the room next door. Nik had his hands full with Sophia, but his curious nature wouldn’t allow him to dismiss the intriguing conversation. As he continued toward the restaurants, he was overwhelmed with another blast of honeysuckle. This one was much more potent than the last. It led him to a small bed and breakfast. He was certain he’d checked all manners of hotel, motel, and inn, so asking if Sophia was there would be a moot point. He did, however, step inside the small inn. Someone was definitely staying there who smelled as sweet as his mate. He added it to his mental list of places to double-check once he returned to his hotel.
    The odds of Sophia staying at either place were astronomical. Julian would be able to calculate those odds almost instantly were Nikolas to ask him to. He was okay with not knowing the exact percentage since it would only make him depressed. After leaving the inn, Nik entered the first restaurant he came to. While he was waiting, he sat at the bar and ordered a beer. He had finished his first and ordered a second when his name was called. He paid the bartender and made his way to a small table in the back of the restaurant. Nik had become so accustomed to the southern cuisine of New Atlanta that he wasn’t sure what he would enjoy. He ordered three entrees off the menu and prayed he would find one to his liking.
    As he sat sipping his beer, a text came in from Julian letting him know Tessa’s condition. He texted back telling him he was at supper and would call as soon as he returned to his hotel. When his three plates arrived, Nik snapped a photo of the food and sent it to Julian. How he wished his brother was there with him. He would have some smartass comment about the amount of food on the table, but Nik would welcome it. He wondered what Sophia was doing and if she was feeling as alone as he was. He ordered another beer and dug into his food.
    Nikolas was pleasantly surprised at how much he enjoyed two of the three dishes. He made a mental note of the one he didn’t care for so he wouldn’t order it again. He passed on dessert and headed back to his hotel. As he passed a small boutique, he noticed the figurines in the window. Most were cats, but he noticed one in particular that called to him. Nik entered the shop and gently lifted a yellow and white ceramic hare. It wasn’t a cute bunny, but it held his interest, nonetheless.
    “She is the symbol of fertility and renewal.”
    Nik turned toward the voice. The shopkeeper was an older woman dressed in the traditional style of clothing. He had noticed a wide variety of styles as he was walking down the street. The older women preferred the customary clothing, while the younger women dressed more modernly like the women in the States.
    “Fertility, huh? I’ll take it.” Nikolas had every intention of mating with Sophia and producing a houseful of little shifters. A fertility trinket couldn’t hurt. After he paid for his purchase, he made his way back to his hotel. Even though he was tempted to stop once again at the Nile Grand, he forced himself to continue on. Once in his room, he took the hare figurine out of the bag and placed it on the desk in front of him.
    Instead of calling Julian immediately, he hacked into the computer systems of both the large hotel and the smaller inn. Room ten seventeen was registered to a Clara Fort, but he couldn’t rule out the possibility of an alias. He dug a little deeper to find her credit card and passport information. While he was waiting for that information to populate, he began another search at the bed and breakfast. There was no one registered by the name Sophia or Clara. He ran through the list of names and made note of them all. Once he did that, he set up a program to search credit card and passport information there as well.
    His computer dinged indicating the first search was