by Sophie Stern
I coo back.
Then I start making silly faces.
Then I start singing him a song.
It’s a song my mother used to sing to me, long ago when I was a little cub. I don’t think I’m even getting half of the words right, but somehow, it seems appropriate to sing to this little guy.
Soon I’m standing, walking around the living room, bouncing him softly as he falls back to sleep. Holding this little miracle is incredible to me. No, he hasn’t had the easiest life so far, and if the drama with his father continues, he’ll have problems as he gets older, but Tina loves him more than anything else in the world. He’s so incredibly lucky to have her as a mom. He couldn’t ask for a better parent.
And then he’s asleep.
I carry him to the bassinet that’s beside the couch. I’m guessing Tina sleeps in the living room with him. Maybe it makes nursing easier at night or maybe she just doesn’t want to sleep upstairs. I’m not sure. It’s a two-story house, so surely, there must be bedrooms upstairs.
Then, as Blake sleeps, I start tidying up the house. It’s probably really weird. I know this. It’s not normal to come over to someone’s house and then clean, but I’m filled with this urge to help Tina as much as I can.
Her house isn’t dirty. It’s just messy. She’s a busy mother, after all. She doesn’t have time to do all of this herself, and you know what? She shouldn’t have to. Tidying up is a really simple thing, and I walk around, cleaning up boxes of baby wipes and putting away glasses and dishes.
By the time Tina comes down from her shower, the pizza has arrived and is sitting on the coffee table, along with a bottle of wine I found in her fridge.
“Landon,” she whispers, looking around the spotless living room. “You cleaned my house.”
“I’m sorry,” I say, but she just comes over and wraps her arms around me.
“Thank you,” she says. “That was really, really nice of you.”
I hug Tina back, happy to have the contact with her. Touching her feels nice, normal. It feels comfortable. I usually avoid touching my clients at all costs. During an emotional, stressful time, it’s easy to make poor decisions and later regret those choices. I do not need a sexual harassment case of my own to deal with, so I keep to myself.
I’m breaking every rule in the book when it comes to Tina, but I can’t bring myself to stop. She’s different, and I wonder if she really is my mate. I wonder if something between us could actually work. I wonder if there’s any chance we could be together.
Before I have a chance to get ahead of myself, she pulls away and sits down on the couch.
“Pizza?” She asks, opening a box, and I grin.
“Of course. It’s why I came here.”
“I thought you came here for my sweet booty,” she wiggles her eyebrows at me.
“I’m not going to lie, Tina,” I look at her seriously because this is a serious moment. “You’re fucking gorgeous. I would love to spend a night making love to you, but that’s not why I asked you out. I want to get to know you, too, on a deeper level than just sex.”
“That sounds like a line.”
“Then why are you blushing?”
“Because I like lines.”
I sit down next to her on the couch and scoot close. She smells amazing. She’s wearing a light pink sundress that brings out her eyes and makes her skin practically glow. Running my hand down her cheek, I bring my lips to hers. Softly, gently, I kiss Tina on the couch.
Then I pull away.
“I just wanted to get that out of the way,” I whisper. “I couldn’t stand waiting another moment to kiss you.”
“Don’t stop,” she says, and kisses me again. She wraps her arms around my neck and brings her mouth to mine. She’s tender, but passionate, and she makes me feel like she wants me, like she needs me.
Mate, my heart screams, but I try to ignore it so I can enjoy the moment. Every time she touches me, I feel like I’m going to explode. Each touch seems more electric than the next. Each touch seems to last an eternity.
And then she pulls away and smiles.
“You’re really something, Mr. Fee,” she whispers.
“Landon.”
“Landon. You’re not really what I expected.”
“What did you expect?”
“Well, most lawyers are stiff and proper, aren’t they?”
“So I’ve heard.”
“And most lawyers don’t make out with their clients.”
“I guess I missed the memo.”
“And most lawyers don’t make me feel like I can fly.”
Her words hang in the air for a long second. I’m just about to kiss her again when a cry from the bassinet breaks into the moment.
“Oh, Blakey,” she whispers, and quickly hops up to get him.
“What can I do to help?” I ask, looking around.
“He’s fine. Just needs a change,” Tina seems to have everything under control. She spreads a blanket on the floor and sits down with Blake to change his diaper. Then she settles onto the couch with him in her arms and looks longingly at the pizza.
“So,” she says. “Pizza?”
Chapter 9
Tina
I won’t say it was an awkward first date, but it wasn’t really what I expected. Then again, I’m not totally sure what I expected. I haven’t been on a date since the divorce, haven’t been on a date in years at all.
At 26, I’m not exactly young, but I’m not old, either. I just happen to be divorced already and have a kid. You might say I’m ahead of the game, in some ways. Maybe.
The thing about Landon is that he doesn’t make me feel lame for being divorced. He doesn’t make me feel like there’s anything wrong with me. Obviously, my marriage wasn’t perfect. We were pretty much doomed from the start, if I’m honest. Sometimes, I question whether I’ll ever be able to find love again. I wonder whether anyone will find me valuable and whether they’ll find me worth loving.
I wonder whether my son is going to have a male role model in his life.
I wonder whether my son is going to have a father – a real father – who loves him.
I wonder so many things, but when I’m with Landon, those questions just disappear. How does he do that?
Somehow, the two of us manage to completely devour two entire pizzas. We watch a movie, but we spend the entire film talking and getting to know each other, and it’s just so comfortable and wonderful.
Landon kisses me goodnight, but doesn’t ask for more. Part of me wants to invite him to stay the night, but I know I shouldn’t. I know I shouldn’t rush into things. I know I should be patient. Still, a little part of my heart breaks when I tell him goodbye, but he promises to call me tomorrow.
And then he’s gone.
And I’m alone in my house with my son.
I close the door and lean against it for a long moment, and then I just smile and smile and smile. Something tells me that everything is going to be just fine.
Everything is going to be okay.
*
Over the next two weeks, Landon and I start officially dating. We spend almost every night together, save for the evenings he’s tutoring. On those nights, we talk on the phone when he gets home. Landon and I talk about anything and everything: our childhoods, my job, his family, my family.
I return to work and my colleagues welcome me back with a surprise cake and a ton of balloons, which makes me feel special. It takes my mind off the fact that Blake is in daycare now, and it takes my mind off the fact that I feel like I’m missing part of myself while he’s gone.
Somehow, I find a new sort of “normal.”
I’m still tired a lot. Blake still doesn’t sleep through the night. I still feel overwhelmed sometimes. I still wonder whether I’m going to be a good mother.
But I’m not alone anymore.
And that’s kind of an incredible feeling.
Two days before the custody hearing, I go to work as usual. Time passes quickly. L
andon and I text a little bit throughout the day and all of my patients are really kind and calm.
I work at a family practice clinic, which sounds like it would be boring, but it’s actually really interesting. Most of what I do is scheduling patient appointments, pulling charts, and handling billing issues, but sometimes I get to deal with insurance companies and patient questions, as well.
I don’t mind my job.
I love helping people. I like being around people. My bosses gave me a full three months of maternity leave. I used some of that leave during my pregnancy when I was on bed rest in the hospital, but having a full two months with my baby, Blake, was amazing.
Not all mothers have the chance to truly bond with their kiddos before it’s time to go back to work. Financially, rushing back to work is essential for most people. I feel blessed and lucky that I didn’t have to do that. I feel thrilled I had the extra time with Blake.
“Good afternoon, Miss Tina,” a little girl with brown pigtails comes up to my desk. It’s the last appointment of the day.
“Why, hello, Miss Polly,” I say. “How are you doing today?”
“Just fine, thank you very much. I’m here to check in for my appointment.” Polly’s mother stands behind her and smiles, petting her hair softly.
“All right. I’ve got you right here. 4:30 with Doctor Mortimer. Would you like a sticker today?”
“Yes, of course!” Polly jumps up and down and I hand her a fairy princess sticker. She places it on the front of her shirt and goes to the children’s play area to wait for the nurse to call her. Polly’s mother steps forward.
“How are you doing today, Bernadette?”
“Hanging in there,” she says. Polly has a series of chronic health problems, including severe asthma and allergies. Her mom has been through the ringer for the last six months trying to get her daughter’s problems under control. “But I wanted to ask how your baby is. I haven’t seen you since you had him.”
“He’s good!” I tell her. “Growing like a weed, as I’m sure you know.”
She casts a wistful glance at Polly, who is jumping up and down in the center of the play area with another little boy.
“I do,” she says. “It really is incredible.”
“I have a picture, if you want to see.”
“Of course.”
I pull out my phone and show Bernadette a picture of Blake I took just that morning. He’s in a blue onesie with matching pants and he’s got the cutest, tiniest little socks on.
“Isn’t he just the sweetest thing?” Bernadette smiles as she takes the phone from me and looks at my son.
“He really is. Actually,” I tell her. “Since you’re all checked in, I need to get going. It’s time for me to pick him up.”
“Thank you for taking the time to show me the picture,” Bernadette hands the phone back. “He really is beautiful, honey.”
I wave goodbye to Polly and clock out. Then I say goodbye to Dr. Mortimer and let him know I’m heading off for the day.
Blake’s daycare is only a five-minute drive from my office, so I don’t even bother turning on the radio while I drive over. I need to get there before 5:00 to pick him up, which isn’t difficult because my office is so close. When I pull into the parking lot and head inside, though, I immediately know something is wrong.
Something isn’t right.
“Tina?” Fawn, the front desk clerk, looks up at me. “What can I do for you?”
“I’m just here to pick up Blake,” I say. I hold up my little key-card to the sensor that lets me into the back of the daycare where the classrooms are, but before I can swipe it, Fawn stops me. She looks confused.
“But Tina,” she says. “Blake’s daddy just picked him up twenty minutes ago. He said you weren’t going to make it today.”
“Blake’s daddy?” I ask, my mouth going dry.
“He had a copy of the birth certificate and proper ID,” Fawn says. “You didn’t list him as an emergency contact, but he had the note from you, as well.”
I think I’m going to be sick.
Chester was here and he took my baby.
Chapter 10
Landon
I’m surprised to see Tina calling, but I pick up the phone on the first ring.
“Tina? Is everything okay?”
“He took my baby, Landon. What the hell do I do? He took him. He couldn’t even wait the next two days. He just took him.”
“Tina, what happened?” I grab my keys off the desk and head to the front of the house. I don’t even bother telling anyone what I’m doing, but my colleagues are fucking good. Their ears perk up at the first sign of trouble and when I head outside, all three of them are following me. “Tell me everything.”
“I’m at Blake’s daycare, Landon. I just got here. The police are coming now, too. Chester came in and had a note from me saying he could pick up the baby. He took him. Holy dragons, Landon. I feel sick. He has my baby.”
I take a deep breath but inside, I’m fucking pissed.
This asshole couldn’t wait two more days for the custody hearing?
Oh, I think I know why.
Tina and I have gone out together on more than one occasion, and I’m not exactly a low-profile lawyer. People know me, know my face. If Chester happens to be the jealous type of ex, which I suspect he is, he probably follows her sometimes. He probably saw us together and knew who I was. Now he knows there’s no chance in hell he’s going to get custody of that kid.
So he just stole the child.
What is he going to do now? Blackmail her? Get her to give him ransom money? Trick the judge into saying she’s an unfit mother?
It’s wrong, and I’m not letting him get away with it.
Fuck the law.
I’m saving Tina’s son.
“Where does he live?” I ask her. I’m in my car now. Joyce, Casa, and Lyon are all in my car, too. They’re not saying a single thing and I know they’re listening to every word Tina says. Though the call isn’t on speaker, it doesn’t matter. Their hearing is good enough to know exactly what she’s saying.
“Landon…what are you going to do?” Her voice is a whisper.
“Address,” it’s not a request.
“He lives at the Riverdale Apartments,” she says. “I think…on the first floor, I think. I don’t know which number, though.”
“I’ll get your child back,” I tell her. “Don’t you worry about a thing.”
I’m about to hang up when Tina says, “Wait! Landon! You need to know something about Chester.”
“More than the fact that he’s a huge piece of shit?” I’m driving now, heading directly for the apartments. I’m sure the police will be sending someone shortly to question Mr. Chester, but I plan to beat them there. I plan to beat them there and get that baby back, and I’m going to make sure Tina never has to deal with Chester again.
“He’s…oh shit, how do I say this?” I’m surprised because Tina rarely swears and she rarely struggles to speak her mind with me these days. We’ve gotten very close and very comfortable with each other, but the fact that she’s not just blurting it out speaks volumes.
“Just say it, baby.”
“He’s not human, Landon. Do you know what a shifter is?” I hear Joyce chuckling from the backseat, like she knew it the entire time.
“I’m familiar with the term,” I say dryly.
“Well, Chester’s a shifter, Landon. He can change into an animal. I don’t know what you’re planning to do, but if you’re planning on fighting him, you need to know he won’t fight fair. He’ll shift into his animal form. He’ll shift and he’ll try to kill you and I just can’t lose you, too.”
She’s crying now and I need to calm her down.
But I also need more information.
Chester is a shifter? I had no idea. Tina never mentioned it before, never mentioned her son is going to be a shifter, never mentioned she’s familiar with animals. For weeks now I’ve been debating on whether to ad
mit to her that I’m a bear, but I wasn’t sure how to tell her, wasn’t sure how she’d take the news.
Apparently, I needn’t have worried.
Apparently, Tina is one tough motherfucker.
“What kind of animal is he?”
“He’s…um, some sort of big cat…” I hear Lyon growl, and I know what he’s thinking: not all cats are created equal. My buddy is a tiger with the heart of a lion. He’s a damn good man, but he’s not above letting another cat get away with something evil.
We’re shifters, and we protect our own.
Even before I knew Blake was a shifter, too, I considered him and Tina to be a part of my family. I consider them to be under my protection. As far as I’m concerned, she’s my mate whether we ever get married or not, and I’m going to spend the rest of my life protecting her.
I’m going to spend the rest of my life taking care of her.
I’m going to take care of that woman.
I’m going to fucking cherish her.
But first, I’m going to beat the hell out of her ex.
“A jaguar,” she says, finally. “Yes, that’s it. He’s a jaguar.”
“Have you seen him shift?”
“Yes,” she whispers. “I’ve seen it.”
“And what did you think of that?” It’s not the time to ask if she was scared of him. It’s not the time to ask if she thinks shifters are big and bad and mean. I’m almost to the apartment building and I’ll be getting off the phone soon, but I can’t help myself.
I have to ask.
“It was beautiful. He’s beautiful, Landon, but he’s evil. Not all shifters are, babe. I don’t know if you’ve ever met one before. Most of them are pretty cool, but not him. Not Chester.”
“Don’t worry,” I tell Tina. “I’m going to get our baby back, sweetie. I’m going to get our little boy.”
I hang up the phone then and push the gas down.
“Whew,” Joyce says. “When did things get so serious between you two? I mean, I thought you didn’t even believe in mates.”
“I don’t.”
“Then why did you say our little boy?” Lyon asks from the backseat.