Ember

by Ophelia Sexton

  She hugged him fiercely. "I thought he was going to kill you!"

  "He sure tried his best," Daniel said wearily. "I got lucky, I guess."

  She laughed. "You never give yourself any credit, do you?" She kissed him. "You were magnificent. And I love you, too."

  Warmth spread through Daniel at her words, and suddenly his injuries didn't hurt quite so badly.

  Officer Jacobsen was radioing for an ambulance, using the special code that meant Messerzahn would be taken to the shifter medical center in Bearpaw Ridge rather than Steele Memorial Hospital in Salmon.

  Daniel didn't recognize the tall Native American officer standing watch over Messerzahn as the injured sabertooth cat slowly and painfully transitioned to the shape of a big blond man.

  As soon as the shift had completed, the second officer, whose name badge read Bagweshi, said, "Aaron Messerzahn, you're under arrest for criminal conspiracy and the attempted abduction of a minor. Your buddies at the bottom of the hill ratted you out before we shipped them off to the medical center."

  "They're lying," Messerzahn protested. His words sounded like he was forcing them through teeth gritted with pain.

  "Is that so?" the officer said coolly. He jerked his chin "Well, we have two witnesses here who say otherwise. We also discovered that you have outstanding warrants in New Mexico and California, so guess what? Even if everyone here is lying, you're still under arrest. Here are your rights—"

  Messerzahn groaned and curled around his bleeding belly as the officer continued to speak. Daniel fought the temptation to leave the wounded shifter to bleed out, but his conscience overrode his darker instincts.

  The sabertooth side of him had been victorious in battle. Now it was time to let the human side of him, the one who had volunteered to become a first responder because he wanted to help people, do his job.

  "Officer Jacobsen, will you get me your first aid kit?"

  Jacobsen ran to his SUV with shifter speed, opened his trunk and pulled out a big soft-sided first aid kit bag identical to the ones that the BPRFD EMTs used.

  "If you're hurt, sir—" he began, appearing at Daniel's side.

  Daniel shook his head impatiently, reluctantly released Margaret, and reached for the bag.

  "I'm fine," he interrupted. "This isn't for me...it's for him."

  He indicated Messerzahn with his chin as he unzipped the bag and quickly inspected its contents.

  Jacobsen stared at him incredulously. "You've got to be kidding me. He just tried to kill you!"

  "And I'm sure the judge will take that into account during sentencing," Daniel said over his shoulder, as he approached Messerzahn. "I want to make sure that this guy lives so that he can stay in prison for a long, long time."

  "You're a better person than I am, Mr. Langlais," said Officer Bagweshi. He gave Daniel and Margaret the once-over and winked at them before addressing Chris. "Good job defending yourself from the guys who tried to grab you, young man."

  Chris shook his head. "You should have seen Aunt Margaret—I mean, Mrs. Swanson," he corrected himself quickly. "She took those two guys down like a superhero!"

  "She's pretty awesome," Jacobsen agreed, grinning.

  "I agree," Daniel said, whole-heartedly, as he pulled on a pair of purple nitrile gloves and began examining Messerzahn's belly wound.

  She was awesome...and he hoped that her presence here meant that she was willing to give him a second chance.

  "We need to talk," he said to her. "As soon as I make sure that Messerzahn isn't going to die before the ambulance arrives."

  Chapter Thirty-Six – A Place to Call Home

  Daniel's plans to have a long talk with Margaret were delayed for several hours by the necessities of giving a statement to the police, followed by Margaret's insistence that she drive him to the shifter clinic in town so his wounds could be examined and treated.

  There, he showered off the coating of mud and blood, after which Dr. Nika cleaned and disinfected his wounds and stitched up a few of the deeper gashes while Margaret and Chris sat with him and told him about their encounter with Valentin Zǔb and Nikola Lakeĭ at the school bus stop.

  Messerzahn's two henchmen had been placed under police guard alongside their boss in one of the medical center's hospital rooms upstairs. All three of them were expected to recover from their injuries.

  A grim-faced Mark accompanied Elle to the hospital to get Daniel and Margaret's version of events. Then Mark and Elle went upstairs to confront the three trespassers to Swanson clan territory. Daniel wasn't privy to the conversation, since Dr. Nika was busily stitching up several of his deeper gashes, but when they re-appeared, both Elle and Mark looked satisfied.

  "How are you doing, dear?" she asked Chris.

  Her sharp gaze took in Margaret and Daniel's linked hands, and Daniel saw a slight smile thaw her serious expression.

  "Okay, I guess, Mrs. Swanson," he replied politely. "Those guys—what's going to happen to them?"

  Daniel heard the anxiety in his nephew's voice, and felt a pang of guilt.

  Elle answered. "As soon as they're healed up enough to stand trial, they're going to have to answer for what they've done here. And Judge Einarsson is a shifter. She doesn't have much patience for these kinds of old-fashioned territorial disputes."

  Elle added, "And no matter how the legal proceedings turn out, I informed them that they are banned from Bearpaw Ridge and the county for life."

  Chris's eyes grew wide. "Did you threaten to beat them up?"

  Mark grinned. "Nope. I threatened to send Aunt Margaret after them. Mr. Zǔb actually begged Mr. Messerzahn to take that threat seriously."

  "You guys!" Margaret protested, laughing.

  "Aunt Margaret was awesome," Chris said enthusiastically. "You should have seen her! Both of those guys tried to shoot her, but she really messed them up."

  "She did indeed. A total of sixty stitches so far," agreed Dr. Nika, putting in a final stitch. "And I have Mr. Zǔb scheduled for surgery this afternoon to repair a severed hamstring."

  "There's a reason that my mother puts her in charge of the clan when she's out of town," Mark said.

  Elle nodded.

  She and Margaret traded looks, then Elle said, "So, Ash mentioned that he has a new version of his game that he'd like to test, and he's invited Matt and Sophie over after school. Would you like to come over too?" She glanced at Daniel. "I'm assuming that you and my sister would like to have the chance to talk in private once Dr. Nika is finished."

  Margaret smiled and squeezed his hand, but before Daniel could answer, Chris begged, "Uncle Dan, can I go, please? I haven't been an alpha tester in weeks!"

  "Sure, that's fine," Daniel said, gratefully.

  "Thanks!" The boy was grinning from ear to ear.

  Nika taped a gauze pad over the final set of Daniel's stitches. "Okay, I'm done here. Don't get in any more fights today," she ordered, patting Daniel's shoulder.

  "Don't worry, dear. I plan to keep him off the streets and out of trouble," joked Margaret. "Come on, Chris, let's go home."

  * * *

  It felt like paradise to be naked in Margaret's bed once again, skin to skin with her, her sweet scent surrounding him, her lips and hands and luscious curves touching him everywhere. Their stupid fight had driven a wedge between them for far too long.

  "I'm sorry I was so unreasonable about your plans, Daniel," she said, stroking his cheek. "I was so afraid for you that I couldn't think straight. I actually think that your plan to bring your pride members here was a good one, and I'll do everything I can to make sure that they feel welcome here in Bearpaw Ridge."

  "I haven't had the chance to thank you for what you did for Chris today," Daniel said. "And you were right about trouble following us here—I can't tell you how much I regret bringing Messerzahn and his two thugs here."

  "You didn't bring them here," she pointed out, tartly. "They decided to come all on their own and make trouble. As for Chris...well, I've told you before.
We Swansons take care of our own."

  "I'm happy to hear that you're claiming us as your own," he told her, kissing her forehead.

  "How would you feel about becoming part of the Swanson clan in truth?"

  His heart stopped in incredulous joy. Is she saying what I think she's saying?

  "I don't want to live without you, Daniel. I love you."

  "I want to be your mate, Margaret Swanson," Daniel said, pulling her close. He claimed her lips, kissing her deeply. "I think my cat has known that you were the one since the moment you opened the door to your home and welcomed me in. I just couldn't let myself believe it."

  He hadn't realized how lonely he'd been before meeting her, and how hard he had tried to fill the empty space inside of himself with work. And how good it was to feel complete at last.

  "I felt like I'd known you all of my life," Margaret murmured, her lips brushing his, every caressing contact sending a jolt of pure need shooting down his spine. "I was terrified that you'd break my heart."

  Margaret was hot and sweet and intoxicating warmth in his arms and in his soul. Every kiss, hot against his skin, every firm caress, every sigh of pleasure melted Daniel's defenses further as he began to make love to her.

  She is my true mate. My soulmate. The realization left him vulnerable and shaken.

  "Daniel, I've missed you so much," she whispered, kissing his throat, his mouth, his chin. "I couldn't sleep because my bed felt so lonely without you in it."

  "Never again," he promised her. "Even if we argue, I'll never walk out on you again, never."

  She kissed him on the lips, and took her time. When she drew back at last, her fingers stroked his face. "When I married Ryan, my mother told me that the secret to a long and happy mating was never to go to bed angry with your mate. She said that you shouldn't let hurt feelings and disagreements fester until they infected your relationship."

  "Your mother was a wise woman," Daniel said. "Look, I can't promise that we'll never disagree. We've both been living on our own for a long time, and we've gotten used to doing things our way. But if we disagree about something, I can promise that I'll do my best to talk to you about it and try to clear it up once we've both had a chance to calm down."

  "You've got yourself a deal, Daniel Langlais," she said, her smile making her warm brown eyes glow like brandy in firelight. "And I'll try to do the same. Just be patient with me—we bear shifters are known for being stubborn, and sometimes it takes a while for me to be able to see things from a different perspective."

  "Good," he said. "Enough talking. I've been starving for you, Margaret."

  He tasted every sweet inch of her skin, savoring every soft moan of need as he explored all of her most sensitive spots. Daniel's hunger for her rose in an irresistible tide of desire. He wanted her. He needed to feel her heat, inside and out.

  "Please, Daniel," she begged him at last. "I need you so badly..."

  He rolled them both over, pinning her beneath him on the soft mattress. She arched up eagerly to meet him. Her arms and legs were wrapped around him and her hot, wet core pressed eagerly against him, surrounding him in a tight grip as he slid into her at long last.

  Shaking, he kissed her long and deep as he sheathed himself to the hilt inside her welcoming body, bathed in heat and fiery desire more potent than any whiskey.

  Deep inside his soul, he felt their mating bond click into place like a missing puzzle piece completing a beautiful picture.

  For the first time in his life, he felt whole. Complete.

  Strong.

  This was what he had wanted, all along, and what his previous girlfriends hadn't been able to give him.

  Only Margaret. Gentle and sweet on the outside, inside she was strength and passion and pure intoxicating fire. She was strong enough to give him what he needed.

  The knowledge both terrified and uplifted him. He knew how damaged he was, how many times he'd disappointed the people who cared for him. How could she have ever wanted to bind herself to him?

  And yet...she just had. She knew his many failings and still looked at him with genuine desire.

  She was his. And he was hers, and the truth of that could not be denied as he moved against her with long, deep thrusts.

  He made love to her with every bit of skill he had, using everything he had learned about her since becoming her lover.

  And when she climaxed, he drowned in the sensation of her heat wrapping around him, caressing him in long, squeezing pulses, summoning his own release.

  Just as she touched, stroked, nibbled, kissed, and caressed every inch of him, he did the same to her, glorying in her soft gasps, her whimpers of need, and the tensing of her muscles as she begged for what he wished freely to give her.

  He made love to her again and again, until they were both satisfied at last, and she lay relaxed and pliant in his arms.

  Even then, sated as he was, he couldn't keep from kissing her soft lips. She responded to him with the same eagerness that had so captured his interest—and his heart—the first time they kissed.

  I'm home at last.

  "So, about your pride," Margaret murmured, her arm tightening around his waist. "What would you think about renaming them the Cougar Lake Pride?"

  "I like it. I'll put it to a vote at our next pride meeting," he told her. "Now I have a question for you. How would you feel about a Christmas wedding?"

  "Are you asking me to marry you?"

  And Daniel realized he'd been thinking so far ahead that he'd skipped a step. "Yes. Marry me, Margaret Swanson, and move to my house when it's done. I'll serve you breakfast in bed every morning for the rest of our lives."

  She snuggled closer, and he saw her mouth curve into a joyful smile.

  "Yes! Yes of course I'll marry you," she said, laughing, and added in a teasing tone, "but only if you promise to wear a Santa hat with your tux."

  "You've got a deal," he told her.

  Chapter Thirty-Seven - Happily Ever After

  Bearpaw Springs Resort

  Christmas Eve

  "Do you, Daniel Langlais, take Margaret Einarsson Swanson as your wife, to cherish and to love, promising to stand by her in good times and bad, in sickness and in health?" asked Elle Swanson.

  Dressed in a dark blue cocktail dress, the matriarch of the Swanson clan stood in front of the huge fireplace in the resort's lobby, smiling at her sister.

  A towering spruce Christmas tree decorated with antique blown glass ornaments and candles stood at her back, and its scent mingled with the scent of woodsmoke from the roaring fire. Outside, the noon sun shone on a dazzling white landscape of fresh snow.

  For years, Margaret had been the Grizzly Creek Ranch's wedding officiant. She had presided over the marriages of all five of Elle's sons, not to mention dozens of the B&B's guests who had booked their weddings and receptions on the ranch. When she had informed Elle of her plans, her sister had insisted on doing the honors.

  "I do," said Daniel, clasping both of Margaret's hands and looking deep into her eyes.

  A man of his word, he was wearing a red and white Santa hat with a stunning gray morning suit. He looked sleek and sexy, like the award-winning chef who had once been featured in magazines as Albuquerque's Most Eligible Bachelor.

  Margaret was wearing a Christmas-themed wedding gown on this special day. It was a full-skirted, long-sleeved burgundy velvet gown done in a vintage style that flattered her full figure. It was trimmed with white fur at the cuffs and neckline. Her hair had been braided and pinned into a coronet decorated with red and white roses, and Hannah had come to the resort's honeymoon suite early this morning to help her mother with her makeup.

  She and Kayla now stood flanking their mother as her bridesmaids. And Patrick had flown in from Alaska with his wife Jessica and daughter Olivia, braving a major winter storm to stand as Margaret's gentleman of honor.

  Daniel's cousin Teddy, who was a cheerful dark-haired man, stood with Justin, and, surprisingly, Mark, as Daniel's grooms
men.

  It had been a very busy autumn and winter so far.

  Aaron Messerzahn and his two accomplices had been extradited to New Mexico, where they were currently in jail, waiting to stand trial for the murders of four Sandia Mountain Pride members in Albuquerque.

  The newly-relocated members of the Sandia Mountain Pride had voted in October to rename themselves the Cougar Lake Pride. With assistance from Daniel and Justin, the newcomers were rapidly assimilating into the Bearpaw Ridge community. It helped that there was a badly-needed high school science teacher among the refugees, as well as a registered nurse and a physical therapist, both of whom were immediately hired at the Bearpaw Ridge Medical Center.