Shifters Forsaken: Shifter Romance Collection Bks 1-5

by Mia Taylor

  “Cypher? Cypher Maison?”

  It was a woman’s voice on the other end but he didn’t recognize it.

  “Maddison?” he guessed, unsure of who else it could be.

  “Who is Maddison? Is she a woman you’re meeting here in Milwaukee? The woman you called you wife? Did you get married to someone in Milwaukee, Cypher? Are you on your honeymoon?”

  “What the hell?” Cypher sat up, rubbing his eyes as if that would help make sense of what was happening. “Who is this?”

  “This is Glinda Charles of TMZ. We’re just hoping for a statement as to what you’re doing in Milwaukee and who the woman is you checked in with yesterday.”

  “Who is it?” Chloe demanded. “What’s going on? Is it Maddison?”

  She jumped from the bed to run for her phone but Cypher shook his head and slammed the phone down, anger bristling through his bones.

  He leapt from the bed and threw open the drawn curtains.

  “Dammit!” he cursed, remembering the bellhop from the previous day. He’d purposely checked into the hotel under his agent’s name, knowing what would happen if the locals got wind of his presence there but he should have known the kid wouldn’t keep his mouth shut.

  On the sidewalk outside of the hotel, half a dozen entertainment reporters stood, chatting amongst themselves.

  “What’s going on?” Chloe demanded again, joining him. “Oh.”

  “It’s okay,” he assured her but he wasn’t sure if it would be. Depending on the reporter, it might not be so simple to dodge them.

  “What are they doing here? How did they know?”

  Cypher scoffed.

  “They’re vultures. They can smell a celebrity anywhere in a ten-mile radius.”

  Chloe was silent as she continued to stare down at the crowd and Cypher could see it had never occurred to her that she would be dealing with the press.

  “Chloe, it’s going to be all right,” he promised. “I’ll—”

  The phone rang again and Chloe’s cell began to chime simultaneously.

  Cypher snatched up the receiver.

  “I have no comment. Stop calling here,” he growled, hanging up the phone before dialing out again.

  “Who are you calling?” Chloe wanted to know, a dark shadow creeping across her face.

  “Front desk, may I help you?”

  “This is room 316. Please don’t let another call come through here. And also, fire your bellboy from yesterday afternoon. I would think as a hotel, you would value the privacy of your guests.”

  He didn’t wait for a response, slamming the phone down and turning his attention back to Chloe who had moved away from the window and was reading her texts.

  “The viewing is at eleven,” she said dully. “How are we going to do this with the paparazzi on our tails?”

  Cypher felt a pang of worry but he forced a smile.

  “I’ve dodged them before,” he told her. “The Wisconsin press is nothing like LA, I promise you.”

  Chloe didn’t look convinced as she stared at him.

  “If we bring this to the funeral home, Cypher, my dad—”

  “I said not to worry!”

  His tone was much harsher than he’d meant it to be but Cypher could feel his stress levels rising as they spoke. He couldn’t guarantee such a thing but telling that to Chloe made him feel helpless.

  It’s my duty to protect her, not make her fears worse. I brought this to a private family matter.

  “It will be okay,” he tried again, his tone much gentler as she gaped at him.

  “If you say so,” she murmured.

  She’s already losing faith in me. After two days.

  “Let’s order breakfast,” he suggested and she shrugged.

  “I should be getting back to the house. My brother and sister have been calling me all night and I should be with my family.”

  The words stung him but he nodded.

  “You’re right,” he agreed. “I’ll drive you.”

  “No!” she almost shouted, shaking her head in disbelief. “What if they follow you? Do they know who I am?”

  Cypher cocked his head and studied her face closely.

  “Chloe, are you worried that the reporters are going to ruin the viewing or that they’re going to learn about you and me?”

  She didn’t answer and the quiet unnerved him.

  “Chloe!”

  “I don’t know,” she admitted softly. “I—I guess I never gave it any thought but you’re in the public eye all the time.”

  “Yeah. It kinda goes with the territory,” he replied dryly. “That doesn’t mean that anything changes for us.”

  “Doesn’t it? Can’t you imagine what people will say when they learn you’ve hooked up with some nobody from Wisconsin? I can see the headlines now: Gold-Digging Ginger Gets Golden Boy. I am not a groupie, Cypher, but I don’t know how else I will ever be viewed by the rest of the world like this.”

  Cypher couldn’t help but snort with laughter but Chloe wasn’t smiling.

  “Who cares what people say?” he demanded, the smile fading from his face. There was no mirth in him anyway.

  “You should!” she snapped back. “This is your career, your fans. Your sales could take a hit—”

  “Chloe, are you deflecting your own insecurities under the guise of protecting my career?” he asked in disbelief. “Because if you’re not sure about us, you should say so instead of pretending this is about me.”

  She stared at him with haunted eyes and he felt a twist in his gut.

  “I didn’t think this through,” she whispered. “I didn’t think it through for either of us.”

  He blinked, waiting for her to finish her thought as he gnawed on his lower lip.

  “I’m sorry, Cypher. I—I should go.”

  She pulled her suitcase onto the bed to locate an outfit and Cypher could only stand and watch as she dressed, avoiding his eyes.

  Fury toward the server was almost choking him but Cypher knew it was more than that at play.

  I shouldn’t have expected her to simply fall into this so easily. She’s not built like me. It was too much at once and she’s running scared, especially now with what’s happening with her family. I can’t force the issue. I have to let it take its natural course, no matter how excruciating that may be.

  “Do you even want me to come to the funeral?” he asked and she raised her head to look at him, pain in her eyes.

  “I… maybe it’s not a good idea,” she murmured, looking away immediately.

  She wants me there, he realized, gritting his teeth together. But she’s overwhelmed right now. I have to be patient with her. It’s too much all at once.

  “Chloe—”

  “I have to go,” she said quickly, zipping up her case and pulling it toward the doorway. She paused to stare at him with wide, scared eyes.

  “Thank you,” she breathed sincerely, tears glistening her eyes. “For everything. I—I’m sorry, Cypher.”

  She bolted out of the room before another word was exchanged and he sank onto the bed, gazing blankly at the door in shock.

  What the hell just happened there? How did we go from finding one another to this in forty-eight hours?

  A part of him wanted to chase after her, to make her listen to reason and let go of her doubts but he knew there was nothing he could say to her in that moment which would make her listen.

  The paparazzi only forced her concerns to the surface. If it hadn’t happened today, it would have happened next week. She needs to deal with her inner demons before she can pursue what she has with me.

  The thought did nothing to alleviate his stress but Cypher knew there was nothing left to do but go home and wait.

  He picked up the hotel phone and dialed out.

  “Can you get me Timmerman Airport?” he sighed.

  ~ ~ ~

  The late afternoon sunlight spilled through the windows of the limousine as the airfield came into view.

  “The
jet is ready to go, Mr. Maison,” the driver told him. “It’s going to be a clear flight according to air traffic control.”

  No it’s not, Cypher thought grimly, staring out the window.

  He’d left the keys to the Camry in the mail slot of the Byler house when he knew the family was at the viewing, along with a note for Chloe.

  Hoping she would change her mind, he’d stayed close, his cell in hand as he waited for word from her but as the morning melted away into the bright, blazing afternoon, he knew it was time to go.

  “Thanks,” he replied to the driver. “It’ll be good to get home.”

  He wondered if the driver believed his empty words.

  They pulled up to the chartered jet and Cypher slowly stepped out of the car as the door opened, his heart heavy.

  His pain was just as much his as Chloe’s. No matter what she wanted or how much she tried to distance herself from him now, they were eternally intertwined.

  No amount of space would change that.

  “Are you all right, sir?”

  “Yeah.”

  He started toward the ladder, again looking over his shoulder as if he expected to see the green Camry racing toward him on the tarmac but Cypher knew it wasn’t a movie.

  “Welcome aboard, Mr. Maison,” the pilot announced as an air hostess smiled at him beguilingly. “We have all your favorites stocked for the flight. If you’ll just follow Ana, we’ll get the flight underway.”

  His cell rang and he jumped, his eyes filled with hope. It was gone as soon as it surfaced.

  “Hey,” he answered dully as he sank into a leather pod.

  “Dude, where have you been?” Fox screamed in his ear. “I’ve been trying to reach you for days!”

  “I’m heading back to San Fran now,” he sighed. “What’s going on?”

  “We just got invited to play the Green Man!”

  Cypher’s brow furrowed.

  “That’s next week,” he remembered. “Are you sure?”

  “I’m sure, buddy. Get home so we can get rehearsing because we’re going to Wales!”

  “I don’t know, Fox—”

  “You don’t have a say,” the bassist said flatly. “We’ve already agreed. Your only job is to show up. Can you handle that or do you have something else more pressing? Like a little redhead who has suddenly taken over your life?”

  A stab of regret sliced through Cypher. He’d only put them on hold for two days but what would happen if he ended up working out things with Chloe? The band would be put on the backburner.

  The invitation was good for him and the band and it would give Chloe the space she needed while he was gone.

  He’s right. What else will I be doing? The Green Man is a good festival and the boys will love it. I won’t be tempted to go and plead with Chloe if I’m in a different country. This is a win-win for everyone.

  “I’m on my way home,” he promised. “I’ll call you when I land.”

  Fox exhaled in relief.

  “Thank God. I was sure you were going to fight me on this.”

  “No,” Cypher said sadly. “I’m done fighting now.”

  As the jets of the engine whirred, Cypher cast one last look out the window but for the first time since Chloe had left, he knew for certain she wouldn’t be there.

  I will give her the space she needs. I was ridiculous to think that we could jump into something like this so quickly. Green Man is exactly what we both need and when I get back, I’ll try to connect with her again with slow, small steps.

  The plane taxied down the runway as the pilot’s voice came over the speaker, explaining their destination times and weather forecast but Cypher didn’t hear any of it.

  Each mile they moved closer to take-off, the twisted sensation of fear clung heavier to his stomach.

  By the time the aircraft soared into the sky, Cypher was nauseous and it took him several minutes to realize why he was so overwrought with guilt.

  I left her behind instead of protecting her as I swore to do.

  But it was too late to turn around now and there was nothing Cypher could do but watch the state of Wisconsin disappear below him.

  Chapter Nine

  Fears Not Laid to Rest

  Chloe would have been blind not to notice the looks of naked pity bestowed upon her by her sister even from the distance between them.

  All that Maddison knew was that Cypher had left and she had made her own inferences about it.

  I wish she’d stop doing that, she thought angrily, shifting her blue eyes away from Maddison’s wide-eyed looks. The action proved futile when she met her father’s glowering gaze.

  He was still angry that she’d brought Cypher to the house at all that first day and he took every opportunity to make a dig at her about the rock star’s absence.

  “I bet you feel foolish now, don’t you?” Dennis snickered coldly. “He left you high and dry at your own mother’s funeral. What a prince!”

  “Dad, you don’t know what you’re talking about,” she muttered. “I asked him to go home.”

  “Oh yeah! I’m sure that’s what happened! You ordered your celebrity boyfriend to go home.”

  Her father seemed to think it was hilarious, as if she had performed some teenaged rebellion which had horribly backfired.

  Chloe didn’t bother to explain it to him or anyone else, even Maddy who made it very clear she wanted all the details.

  It’s no one’s damned business what happens between Cypher and me, Chloe thought firmly. Or should I say happened, not happens.

  The truth was, Chloe wasn’t sure where they’d left things that day in the hotel room.

  She couldn’t deny that the press appearance had been a major slap in the face, a reality check to whatever dream-like state Cypher’s presence seemed to have over her.

  The fears she had presented to him were very real and she didn’t apologize for wondering how their relationship would affect them both.

  You didn’t look at the big picture, at what would happen if you and he pursued whatever it is happening. Or whatever it was that happened.

  Selfishly, Chloe had expected Cypher to ignore her instructions and show up at the viewing the previous day.

  Instead, they returned home to the keys to the rental car and an impersonal note which read, “Chloe, please call me.”

  She knew she had no right to be hurt that he didn’t come, not when she had pushed him away, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t hurt.

  You’re acting like a lunatic, she told herself, grabbing for a glass of wine as a liveried server walked by with a silver tray. You’re behaving exactly like a hormonal teenager. No wonder he left; I’d have left too if I were dating you.

  Instantly, she thought of the room service trays at the Iron Horse and blushed at the memory.

  Why did I even leave that room? We were so happy in there, the two of us alone, cut off from the outside world. We could have stayed there forever, couldn’t we?

  It was too late for that now. She couldn’t very well pick up the phone and order him to come back when she’d sent him home.

  How much of her crazy was he going to take, really?

  It seemed that she saw Cypher everywhere. If not his face, then a whiff of his aftershave or the outline of a tattoo.

  “Honey, you need to stop moping around,” Maddy whispered in her ear, guiding her away from the living room toward the terrace.

  Chloe looked at her sister in disgust.

  “It’s my mother’s funeral,” she reminded Maddison coldly. “I think I’m entitled to a little bit of moping.”

  “You know what I mean,” Maddy sighed. “He’s gone but you had to know it wasn’t going to last. I mean, what were you thinking bringing him here?”

  “You sound like Dad,” Chloe snapped, not wanting to hear it. She was already in a sour enough mood for letting him go.

  “On the bright side,” her sister continued as if she hadn’t spoken. “You can always say you banged a rock star.
”

  Chloe gaped at the crassness of her sister’s statement.

  “Is that what you think? That Cypher is just some—” She abruptly stopped talking.

  Why would I bother explaining anything to her? She’s only going to hear what she wants to hear.

  “Oh, come on, Chloe. Are you going to claim that you had some spiritual bond? That he’s your soulmate?”

  Chloe didn’t answer. Instead she downed her wine in one gulp and slammed the glass down on the bistro table with startling force.

  “Maybe you should go upstairs and rest,” Maddy suggested, suddenly looking uncomfortable by her outburst. “You’re not acting like yourself.”

  Chloe scoffed.

  “And who would that be, Maddy? Who am I?”

  She stared balefully at her blonde, perfect sister who only returned her look with concern.

  “Chloe, you’re—”

  “I’m not acting like the doormat you’re used to mocking?” Chloe suggested. “I’m not acting like the good girl who makes no waves?”

  “Chloe—”

  “I’m not acting scared enough for you? I’m not the same kid you and Blaine pushed around,” she growled. “The sooner you wrap your pretty little head around that, the better off you’ll be.”

  She didn’t allow her sister to reply as she spun her way back into the house, the wine hitting her in a wave.

  “Chloe,” Blaine said gruffly, grabbing her by the arm. “Come with me.”

  “No,” she tried to protest but he didn’t release her and steered her into the office where he shut the door.

  “I really would rather be alone right now,” she told him, trying to shove her way out.

  “It won’t take a minute.”

  Chloe eyed him, crossing her arms over the high-necked black dress she’d chosen for the funeral.

  “What are your plans now?” her older brother asked.

  “My plans?” she echoed. “My plan is to get through today and head back to San Francisco to start my life.”

  Blaine stared at her pensively and Chloe sensed he wanted to blurt something out.

  “Do you have a job lined up?” he asked quietly and she was instantly defensive.