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swear."
    Grio nodded. "It doesn't matter if it isn't. You're my mate."
    That was what he wanted to hear. "We'll figure it out."
    "We will." Grio pulled on a pair of jeans and headed out of the bedroom. "Come on. Laptop is downstairs."
    "Okay. Uh. Clothes?" The ones he'd been wearing were in tatters--he'd seen them. And he hadn't exactly worn any since then. Fur was very good at keeping a body warm.
    "There's sweats in the top drawer of the dresser." Grio's voice got fainter as he moved farther away.
    "Thanks." He found a pair of sweats, a shirt. He ran his fingers through his hair, trying to get ready.
    "Nix?" Grio called up to him. "Come on, mate."
    "My hair is a mess."
    "We'll put a hat on you, cover it all up. I'm starting the call."
    Oh, that was a good idea. His mate was pretty practical. Phoenix shoved his hair in a knitted hat and joined Grio just as he made the connection.
    "Boss. Hey."
    "Grio. It doesn't usually take this long for you to check in with us." The words were clipped, very prim-sounding.
    "Yeah, well. I'm checking in now."
    Phoenix found himself growling, rumbling deep in his chest. The guy on the screen was older, with short gray hair and a scar across his face.
    "So? Did you find Lamoure?" asked Grio's boss.
    "I did. We're at the safe house. Learning what he needs to know."
    "I need you to bring him in."
    "That's not standard op." Grio's back stiffened.
    "Finding a royal isn't standard either, though, now is it? Bring him in."
    "I'm not going anywhere." Phoenix bent down, looked into the computer. "I have work to do."
    "Ah, Professor Lamoure. We should meet in person. Grio can bring you in."
    "No." He wasn't going anywhere. He didn't do that. Hell, Grio had had to kidnap him.
    "Let me put it another way. You're coming in." The boss sounded even prissier now.
    Phoenix wasn't going to be intimidated, though. He'd spent a lot of years thinking his mother was crazy. He'd be damned if he let anyone walk all over him now that he'd discovered she was right--he was special. Well, he was going to act special, damn it. "I said no."
    "Bring him in, Grio."
    Grio crossed his arms over his chest. "I can't do that, Nigel."
    "I said bring him in! And that's an order."
    Grio simply shook his head.
    Enough was enough and Phoenix was done. "Look. He's mine and I've got class in the morning. I'm willing to set up a meeting--in public--and we'll do...whatever we need to do, but he's my mate."
    The man's jaw dropped. "Mate?" That was definitely a squeak at the end of that word.
    Then Nigel's face hardened, mouth thinning into an unflattering line. "I don't think so. Grio, stop this nonsense immediately, put your dick back in your pants and bring Lamoure the fuck in."
    "I don't think so." Grio's back was stiff, his face a mask.
    "Let me see if I have this whole Saffron Tiger thing down, okay? One, you need me. I don't need you. Two... You know, there's not a two. You need me. I don't need you. Play nice or I don't play. There's no reason this has to be ugly, but you don't give my mate orders. Are we clear?" Man, he was good at this.
    The corner of Grio's mouth twitched, then his face settled back into a neutral mask. The so-called boss on the other hand looked like he was turning purple. It was not attractive. He sputtered a moment or two.
    "Now, let's arrange a meeting. How's next week for you? I'm free on Tuesday." That would give him a week to deal with life crap and being a tiger at the same time.
    Nigel looked at him like he'd lost his mind, but Phoenix just stared right back.
    Nigel looked away first. "Fine. Grio can bring you here, he knows the way."
    "Oh, I don't think so. The university commons. Right out in public." He was crazy, not stupid. "We'll buy our own coffee."
    That purple color was back, but at least the sputtering had stopped. "Very well. Ten A.M.?" Man, if Nigel's voice got any colder, they'd have frostbite, right through the screen.
    "That's perfect. Would you like a latte?"
    Grio's mask slipped, his