Banded Brothers 03 - To Enchant An Eagle by Amber Kell Page A

never know the feel of the hawk shifter’s hands across his body.
    He’d nervously stayed away, hoping Marty’s feelings for him might grow. His desire to be something more than another feather on Marty’s belt had led to him resisting Marty’s advances. Now he worried Marty wouldn’t wake again and Eaton would never forgive himself for the opportunity lost.
    “I didn’t know you had a boyfriend. Is he an eagle, too?”
Eaton blinked to focus. He frowned as Gallen’s words sank in. “You know I’m an eagle shifter?”
Gallen nodded.
Eaton scraped his memory, but couldn’t recall telling Gallen he was any kind of paranormal at all. “How?”
Gallen laughed. “I’ve known a lot of shifters. I grew up in a shifter town. Besides, Eaton, you’re probably the only person who hasn’t asked me about my eyes, which immediately pegs you as a paranormal. I creep out most of our classmates.”
“I figured if you wanted me to know, you’d tell me.” Eaton shrugged. He didn’t care what a person was as long as they treated other people well. If they were jerks, he kicked their ass and moved on. He might not look like a tough guy, but Aden Gage, his best friend’s dad, had taught him how to fight dirty and handle a gun. No one messed with him more than once.
When Gallen had been paired up with him as a lab partner, it hadn’t occurred to Eaton to protest. He had wondered about Gallen’s unusual silvery eyes, but not everyone enjoyed discussing their true nature. Eaton rarely told anyone what he was unless he knew for a fact they were friendly to paras. Paranormals might be the worst kept secret in Seattle, but as long as no one confirmed there were things that went bump in the day and night, humans could live in their happy bubble of denial.
“I’m a sorcerer,” Gallen confessed.
“Oh.” Eaton tilted his head as he regarded his fellow student. He’d never met a sorcerer before. At least not that he knew of. “Why are you studying physics?”
“Physics and magic have a lot of the same properties. There are rules that both must follow. A natural guideline, if you will. If you wander outside either of those boundaries there are consequences.” Gallen’s gaze slid up and down Eaton’s body before he looked away. “What’s wrong with your boyfriend?” he asked abruptly.
Remembering Marty’s broken body brought anger rushing through him and his fingertips transformed into talons. It took several long, slow breaths before he could speak and even then he could feel the bird trying to come out. If he hadn’t already killed the hawk that had hurt Marty, he’d go back and rip him apart, slowly. A bullet to the head was too fast for the bastard.
“He’s in a coma recovering from an attack. I’m worried he won’t ever be able to shift and use his wings again.” Pain ripped through Eaton at the thought of a grounded hawk. His hawk. Nothing felt better than the breeze sliding across his animal form, and he didn’t know a single bird shifter who felt differently. To be denied that pleasure would rip out Marty’s soul. Eaton stood up and began to move back and forth across the room, unable to sit still while Marty lay so still. As if compelled into action for both of them.
Gallen tilted his head as he watched Eaton pace. “He’s an eagle, too?”
Eaton shook his head. “No, a hawk.”
“That explains the flock circling your house. I wondered about that,” Gallen said, amusement lighting his silvery eyes.
When Carey had returned to town, he’d settled the hawks into the third floor, cleaning out the rest of the attic rooms that had been abandoned long ago. Every few hours, one of the hawk shifters located their balls and dared to peek in on Marty, but none of them stayed for long, not after Eaton glared them down. They hadn’t protected Marty when he needed it, they didn’t deserve to watch over him now. Eaton didn’t allow any of them too close to his hawk. They knew better than to defy him after he