The Shifter's Kiss

“Burns,” her father said, in tune with her thoughts. Then he quickly added, “He was a firefighter.”

She nodded and continued her chore. Seeing that she was apparently in no rush, her father pulled up a chair opposite her and sat.

“It’s been too long, daughter.”

“It has, and I’m sorry. But it’s no longer safe for me to visit too close to shore. I wish I could visit and spend more time, but you know that after a week, each day that passes makes it harder to shift back.” Holding the man’s arm, she wiped it clean and tried to ignore the skitter of desire at the feel of his skin beneath her fingers. Tried to keep her gaze from wandering to the leanly muscled body whose beauty was not diminished by the scars. If anything, the scars were like a badge of courage from his past profession.