by C. D. Gorri
Oliver crouched in front of his cub. He wanted the toddler to be able to look at the strange man who was his father, to see him eye to eye so that he could gauge the truth himself.
“Thomas, I promise no more bad men. I will protect you. Always.”
“Mommy too?”
Oliver looked up and saw Teresa standing there, holding her breath. She placed the two suitcases she was holding on the floor and bent to scoop Thomas up before he had a chance to answer the boy.
“That’s enough questions, buddy, come on,” she said, and smiled brightly at the child despite the tears in her eyes.
“I’ll get those,” Oliver said and reached for the two small suitcases before Teresa could try to lift them.
Despite what she said about being fine, he saw her wince when she lifted their son. He stopped and swallowed. It was a momentous occasion after all. Those two small words were now suddenly a part of his vocabulary.
My son, he thought with wonder as he preceded the mother and cub down the hall.
Even though she would not let him answer Thomas’s question, Oliver would always protect her and their cub with everything he had inside of him. That meant with all the strength of his Grizzly Bear.
The beast inside of him chuffed and grumbled at the idea that the two most important beings in the world to him, that his precious and newfound family, were in danger. He didn’t know what they were running from, but that wasn’t important. He would see them safe, then he would get answers.
Grrr.
After they’d reached his apartment, Oliver directed them to the parking garage and to his fully equipped black Range Rover. He was already packed for the trip up to his cabin deep in the woods behind Indian Lake in upstate New York.
“We’re not going upstairs?” inquired Teresa, and Oliver just shook his head.
“It’s a long ride, you might want this,” he handed her a small travel pillow and blanket that he had in the trunk from the last time he’d driven up there with Terrence and Daisy.
Terrence was an exceptionally talented Broadway director, and one of Oliver’s only friends along with Chance. He was also a Vampire and had recently mated a human woman by the name of Daisy who had a penchant for growing things. She’d been thrilled to come up to the cabin to explore the native flora, but in her delicate condition had required naps along the four-hour drive.
“Sleepy,” mumbled Thomas who was already close to dozing in his mother’s arms.
“Does he need a car seat?” Oliver stopped in his tracks.
“It’s fine. This model has a built-in booster,” she smiled.
It wasn’t a coincidence that Oliver had bought Teresa’s favorite car. It was one of those things he’d almost forgotten in their many silly little conversations they’d had about everything and nothing.
“He’s big enough to sit in the booster with the seat belt on,” she said softly.
Oliver held the door to the back of the SUV open while Teresa leaned down to open the booster then placed the precious cub on the plush leather interior. He watched as she competently buckled him in and checked to make sure he was secure before propping the pillow on the backpack he’d brought with him filled with his toys and things only a child would find important.
Teresa tucked a lock of thick glossy brown hair behind the child’s ear and rubbed the lobe. He was so small and innocent. Clearly, she cared for him a great deal. He could see it in the way she touched his forehead and dropped a kiss on his plump cheek, then covered him with the fluffy fleece blanket Daisy had left behind. He was grateful now that she had.
Teresa moved to climb in next to Thomas, but Oliver stopped her with a hand on her elbow. Even that simple platonic touch was enough to make his Bear growl and his heart thump heavily inside his chest.
He wanted her, he realized, and accepted it for the fact it was. She was his one true and fated mate. Desire was a byproduct. He’d known it the second he’d spied her reading in the park the very first time. Fresh as a spring flower just ready to bloom, she’d stolen his heart, then she ran away with it. The cut of her betrayal was still raw despite the passage of time and he tightened his hold momentarily before releasing her.
“Sit in the front,” he muttered the gruff order before turning his back on her.
Surprisingly, Teresa obeyed him. She took the long way around and eased into the passenger seat, wincing gingerly when she fastened her seatbelt over her ribs. They must still be bruised. The truth of her rather quick recovery bothered him as did the odd hint of something other in her natural peaches and cream fragrance.
“You want answers, I’m sure,” she said in a quiet voice without any emotional inflection apparent.
How can she be so calm when my heart is beating like a thousand drums and my brain feels like it’s about to explode?
He shook his head and started the vehicle. The tank was full and a small cooler with sandwiches and drinks was packed. It sat on the floor at her feet.
“Pass me a water, please,” he pointed at the cooler and watched her fulfill his request slowly.
Shit. He’d forgotten her injury already.
“Sorry, I shouldn’t have asked you to get that.”
“No, it’s fine,” she handed him the bottle and he gestured for her to take one for herself, which she did.
She drank thirstily, finishing the entire thing before she pulled it from her plump pink lips. He’d been hypnotized by that bee-stung mouth of hers from the first. He knew from experience just how soft and warm those lips were. How they tasted like her scent, fresh peaches with sweet cream to be savored under a warm spring sun.
Oliver swallowed his water along with the bitterness of his memories. Whatever was going on, Teresa definitely owed him more than she’d said so far. He glanced in the rearview mirror at his sleeping son and his beast rumbled.
Mine.
Whether he meant the cub or the woman beside him, Oliver wasn’t sure. He had the feeling his animal was laying claim to both. Unfortunately, he didn’t know if he had it in him to be rejected again. He might not survive it this time around.
“He is my son.”
It was a statement. Oliver waited a beat before looking at the woman who’d turned his world upside down then tore it to shreds when she’d left him with a single callously scrawled note.
“Yes. He is our son.”
“When?”
“I think he was conceived the last time we,” she swallowed, “uh, it was just after Christmas. Anyway, he was born early, the second of May.”
“Shifter pregnancies are usually a few months less than normal ones. Did you have any difficulty?”
“At first, you see I didn’t know I was pregnant, and my father, well,” she was grasping her hands tightly together.
The scent of her anxiety was making his own beast want to hunt something down and kill it, whatever it was that had made her so afraid. That sounded fine to his Bear. Hunt, kill, protect.
“What? I knew so little about your home life. Other than the fact you’re the heiress to the great man Mathias Witherspoon himself-”
“My father is not a great man,” she said angrily, “my father is a madman who experimented on his own child. He injected me with something, I don’t know what it was, but it’s bad, Oliver.”
“What? Teresa what are you saying?” he gripped the steering wheel tightly in his hands.
“Witherspoon Tech isn’t just making applications for medical research and development. They have a research facility, a secret one. And I don’t know how, but my father knows about your kind.”
“What do you mean? Did you tell him?”
“No,” she gasped, “I would never betray you like that.”
“Oh no? You left me, Teresa, I can’t think of any worse betrayal than that,” he sneered before he could stop himself.
“I know. I don’t expect you to believe me , but he threatened to put you in a cage. I couldn’t allow that, Oliver. And no, I didn’t tell him, he had vi
deo of you in the woods.”
“What?”
“Our one camping trip we took out of the city. He had me followed. Look, he knows and he did something to me after I left you, I let him do it. I wanted to protect you, but I am so scared now. Whatever he did, it was bad, Ollie, I mean Oliver,” her frightened words reached his ears over the hum of the engine.
“What are you saying exactly?”
“I have something bad inside of me, Ollie,” she whimpered and cleared her throat, “I have it locked down right now, and yes, I know I sound like a crazy person, but I am telling you the truth. I’m scared, Oliver, for Thomas’ sake. I don’t know if I can keep it under control much longer,” she whispered that last bit.
Oliver turned his head briefly to look at her as they made their way towards the bridge that would take them out of Manhattan. Her ashen face was like a knife to his heart, as was the stoic way she swallowed her tears. She looked at him with her head held high. She always was brave when he’d expected her to cower. Like the first time he’d shown her his Bear in an effort to stop her from seeing him.
Oliver thought he was doing the noble thing, but she’d walked right up to his thousand-pound animal and petted him like a dog. Stupid Bear went belly up for her. Even now, she still was brave, despite the fact he didn’t have a clue what she was talking about.
She faced him like a stowaway about to walk the plank, he thought as he watched resignation leak into her gaze. She clenched her jaw, eyes darting to the cub who sat sleeping in the rear seat before returning to him again.
“I won’t bother to explain why I did what I did. It’s enough that you trust me so far as to take us out of the city and away from Witherspoon Tech. Some of my father’s men spotted me this week and I can’t be sure but that ER doc didn’t seem legit,” she shrugged.
“There was something off about him,” Oliver muttered and turned his head to the street in front of him.
It was nearing on two o’clock in the morning, but he was wide awake. She’d given him a lot of food for thought, and there was his Bear to deal with the animal couldn’t understand his reticence. All the beast knew was that he had his mate within reach and he wanted to hold on tightly to her.
He tried to refocus on the reasons he should stay away, to keep his heart distant, but it was a losing battle. Even a Grizzly couldn’t take on the Fates. Oliver inhaled a deep breath, allowing the subtle sweetness of her scent to invade his senses.
He knew the exact moment Teresa succumbed to sleep in the quiet interior of the vehicle. All tension left her bruised body, and she slumped away from him, her head resting on the cool window. She looked so small and tired.
Oliver frowned, but he made no move to touch her. Still, he didn’t want her uncomfortable. Concern got the best of him, and he took off his suit jacket and draped it over her, keeping one hand on the wheel at all times. After all, he was hauling precious cargo.
The fact that he was a father astounded him. Pride, love, sadness, and anger warred within him for dominance. He was sad that he’d missed even a second of his sweet little cub’s life. He was angry that Teresa had run from him, but he wasn’t quite sure if that anger was directed at her or the monsters, real or imaginary, that she was still running from.
He decided to settle on the love he felt for Thomas. His heart swelled with the irrational feeling, almost impossibly so. He felt like the Grinch at the end of the story, when his heart grew so large it burst through the measuring slide. How could he love someone so much that he just met?
Easy, his Bear answered, ours.
His feelings toward the cub’s mother were a bit more complicated. Teresa was his fated mate, there was no denying that, but it was impossible to just forget the hurt and pain she’d caused him. Was he big enough to let all that go? He supposed he would have to wait and see what the rest of her explanation was when they got to the cabin, and what her plans for the future were.
Mate, said his Grizzly Bear.
The animal inside of him didn’t seem to care about the past, only that she was with him now, and his furry beastie had no intentions of letting her go a second time around.
Mine.
Chapter Four
Oliver stopped at the last gas station and minimart before they reached the mountain and his log cabin. It was just after five o’clock in the morning and the air was nippy but typical for early spring.
“Resa,” he called her by the nickname he’d given her back when they were together, and watched in fascination as she slowly blinked those creamy jade green eyes up at him with a small smile on her face.
That soft expression lasted all of a few seconds before the hard mask fell once more and she shot up too fast. He felt guilty when she winced against the pain such a fast movement had surely sent through her healing bones.
“Are we there yet?” she asked.
“No, I just wanted to ask if you needed anything? I am stopping for some perishables before we head up to my cabin.”
“A cabin? Oh, um, I have some money,” she started rummaging through her jeans, and shame welled up inside of him.
“I have money,” he said, “just tell me what you need.”
“Thomas likes orange juice and milk, um, eggs, bacon, sausage, and wheat bread. Peanut butter and honey with bananas,” she whispered.
“That’s my favorite,” Oliver said and watched in amazement at the pink blush that spread across her face.
Still lovely after everything that had happened, he thought. Without meaning to, Oliver reached out with his hand and touched her wan cheek. His heart pounded with feeling as she pressed her soft, warm skin against his palm. He narrowed his eyes at her and, as if he’d been burned, he took his hand away.
“I’ll get everything,” he said and cleared his throat, “lock the doors till I get back,” he left the car running just outside the entrance to the minimart.
It was still early and no one else was there, but he wanted Teresa and their son in his line of vision at all times. Oliver entered the tiny, but adequate store and waved hello to Mr. Barad, the owner and proprietor of both the station and the small minimart. He walked down the store’s four aisles gathering supplies, stopping suddenly at a small stand displaying a variety of cheap but cute children’s toys.
He pursed his lips before grabbing a couple of plastic play cars and some coloring books and crayons. He added two gallons of milk, three cartons of fresh squeezed orange juice, and as many packages of butter, eggs, bacon, and sausage that he could fit in his basket. He also grabbed some bags of salad, broccoli, carrots, onions, potatoes, tomatoes, and peppers. A boy needed his veggies.
Oliver had plenty of peanut butter and honey at the cabin already. Along with other non-perishables he used for cooking. At the checkout counter, he added four loaves of sliced wheat bread to finalize his order.
“Will that be all?” Mr. Barad asked as he started ringing up the items.
Oliver nodded and took out some cash, for some reason a little voice inside of him told him to forego paying with his credit card. Whatever. He grabbed his bags and walked to the back of his Range Rover waiting for the telltale click of the lock.
He settled the bags safely inside the spacious trunk, snug against their luggage and the cardboard box containing his work. He’d forgotten he was heading out to the cabin to finish the score for Where Beauty Lives.
“How much longer is it to your place?” Teresa asked.
“About forty minutes. My cabin is just behind the lake.”
“Are there lots of people around?”
“Hmm? No. I like my privacy. There’s a woman who lives up there year-round. Her home is about a fifteen-minute walk through the woods from my place. Everything else would take over half an hour by foot and longer by car.”
“I’m sorry we’re intruding on your privacy, Oliver.”
“I have a son, Teresa, he is no intrusion. I want to get to know him.”
“I see. Well, thank you, it means a lot.”
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“We will figure something out. I have a lawyer who handles my contracts and I am sure he can recommend a family lawyer to come up with some kind of custody agreement-”
A sob tore from her throat, and he looked up in shock to see her face buried in her hands. Noise from the backseat had his eyes glance to see Thomas stirring. Teresa must have heard it too because she covered her mouth tighter and slowed down her gasping.
“Mommy?”
“Yes, honey?” she answered the cub with false brightness, but Oliver still gave her points for trying.
Damn. He was a callous ass for bringing up custody. Especially when that wasn’t what his Bear wanted him to say at all.
“You sad, Mommy?”
“No, honey boy, of course not. Look outside, see all the trees,” she distracted their sweet cub who ooohed and aaahed for the next few minutes while playing I Spy with his mother.
The bags under her eyes and frown lines around her mouth, though taking nothing from her beauty, they also did nothing to appease his guilt. Oliver felt like an even bigger douchebag now for bringing up lawyers. His Bear grunted angrily inside him.
This was new territory for him, but he supposed it was for her as well. He made a mental note to apologize once they were settled and turned his attention to the narrow road that led to his cabin.
He’d purposely had it built into the landscape to discourage random stalkers, and yes, he did have some, from trying to find him. The address was unlisted, buried beneath several aliases and corporations so as to be untraceable to Oliver.
What could he say? He was a Bear who appreciated solitude. The air was nippy for spring, but it was to be expected at this altitude. Still, he hoped Teresa had packed appropriately.
Hell. It was thoughts like that one there that was going to wreak havoc in his life. When was the last time he’d cared about someone other than himself?
Oliver growled, ignoring her questioning stare, and turned into the semi-circle driveway. There were still patches of snow on the rocky ground. Combined with the buds on the trees, it looked as if mother nature had yet to make up her mind on what season it was. Typical for the Northeast, he supposed.