Maia leaned over just a bit and whispered to Maverik, “Daddy? Is that the Dragon?”
“Yes, Ma’am. She’s the ice Dragon. And that there,” he pointed at the other end of the table where Daniel sat with Avaleigh now in his lap, “that one’s the fire Dragon.”
Maia’s eyes got big, as she looked between the two, “Holy Shit!” she whispered.
“Every one of us is going with you when Matty calls. You know that, right?” Kaid asked him.
“I wouldn't ask that of any of you. But if you’d like to come, I’ll be most obliged,” Maverik told him.
“We are coming. Period. Like Daniel said, somebody threatens you, they threaten us. We’re coming,” Kaid told him.
Maverik smiled, looking to Maia, “Told ya when I go back, I’d be bringing hell with me.”
Maia smiled back, “Yep, you sure did. They won’t know what hit them.”
Maverik smiled, his own smile sinister this time, “I want them to know, I want them to know that it’s my boy bringing them to their knees, and my true family that stands at his side. With me in front, sending them all to hell.”
Suddenly he realized that nobody had said a word about him admitting he wanted Valerie, “Hey! Did ya’ll not hear me? I said I want Valerie. No teasing, no smart ass remarks, what the hell? Ya’ll been waiting forever for me to admit that she’s my Mate.”
Nobody answered him; they all just kind of looked around at each other, fiddling with their glasses, poking at the food they were nibbling, and just when he had lost patience, the door opened and Amos came in carrying a bag filled with pastries. “Well, I be damned! It’s wolf-man as I live and breathe!” he exclaimed as he made his way over to Maverik to embrace him and welcome him home. “Where you been? Joanne’s been worried sick about you!” Amos told him.
“Really? She’s been worried?” Maverik asked.
“Course she has, she got used to you coming by every morning and having coffee with her while you pretended you weren't watching your young lady in the insurance office across the street.”
Bam laughed, “I thought I was the only one who knew!”
“Knew what?” Sadie asked.
“That Maverik went to Joanne’s Books and Goodies each morning. He’d read a little, sip a little coffee, but mostly he’d watch Valerie working in the office across the street.”
“Bam, do you ever mind your own business?” Maverik asked him.
“Nope, everybody else’s is more fun.”
“And he learned some new cuss words, too. Ms. Joanne likes to cuss funny-like. My favorite is twatwaffles! She hollers twatwaffles every time she drops something!” Bam said.
Amos was chuckling, scratching his chin, “That she does, Bam. She’s pretty fond of the word twatcicles, too.”
“And how would you know that, old man?” Maverik asked.
“Spending a little time there, ain’t much to it. She’s a sweet lady that makes some tasty treats. And she don’t mind this old man hanging around,” Amos answered him.
“Yeah? Well, what are your intentions for Ms. Joanne? She ain’t one to be played!” Mav started to warn Amos against the lady that Maverik had come to call friend.
Amos barked out a laugh, “Do I look like a player?” Amos looked down at his clothing; he had on a worn, faded pair of jeans, over a worn pair of cowboy boots, a flannel shirt tucked in and a wide leather belt with a huge silver buckle on it. He tapped the hat on his head. He was a cowboy, past the prime of his life, but he’d worked hard all his life and still had a strong, sturdy body, and he’d heard the young girl that worked at Joanne's tell her that he was a silver fox as he left one day. He knew he still had it. “But don’t you worry none, Mav. I like her. I ain’t out to take advantage of her.”
Bane’s phone rang; he answered it with a grin on his face, “What do you want?????” he drawled at whoever was on the line. “Yup,” he answered. He paused a few moments as he listened. “Okay. Yeah. Alright, let me find out, and I’ll call you back. Okay, Bye.” He hung up and looked up to see the whole table watching him. “What?”
“Who was that? We are all right here…” Avaleigh told him, her hands held out to indicate the table of people.
“Except for Riley,” he answered. “That’s Riley. He wants to know what we’re doing later and tomorrow. Says he wants to talk to Daniel.”
“Me?” Daniel said.
“Yup, you,” Bane answered.
“Alright, I’ll call him,” Daniel said as he got up reaching to pull his cell phone out of his pocket and go outside to make the call.
“Boil tomorrow?” Kaid asked,
“Yassss! Boil tomorrow,” Maverik answered. “I so need some seafood, dude!”
“It’s on then!” Kaid answered. “It’s too late in the season for crawfish, but we can do shrimp and throw in all the fixings, too.”
“I want fried,” Delilah stated bluntly.
“Fried what, Monster?” Kaid asked her, leaning over to kiss her on the cheek as she munched on a dinner roll.
“I do not care, fried anything,” she answered. She did love her fried foods.
“Of course, my love,” he told her, “We’ll fry some fish, too. And some shrimp.”
Delilah smiled at Kaid, then looking at Maia said, “The little Wolf is out of food,” gesturing to Maia’s bowl. It was still very important to her that everyone in her family have enough to eat. And the “little Wolf” as she called Maia was now part of her family.
Avaleigh stood to get Maia another bowl of bisque, “I got it, Delilah.”
Kaid, Bane and Goldy were talking about the boil for tomorrow. Delilah, Janie and Ms. Sadie were talking about a new recipe for pecan pie that had chocolate in it, and Delilah was insisting that she didn’t care how good it might be, not to change her pies.
Mav turned to Bane, “Can I hold her? I’m sorry I missed so much.”
Bane smiled warmly at Maverik, “Of course, you can. I’m glad you’re back, brother.” He handed Daisy over to Maverik, who immediately brought the baby to his face so he could rest his forehead against hers. She squealed and grabbed his hair, pulling him to her. He cuddled her and played with her as she yanked happily on his hair and his beard. Bane reached over and handed him the tiny stuffed wolf that he’d given her in the hospital. “It is indeed her favorite. She won’t sleep unless she has it,” Bane told him.
Maverik grinned, taking the wolf to play with her a bit more before he broached the subject that had been eating at him for the last little while. Still holding Daisy, and looking at her while he made the toy wolf “get” her, he asked Bane, “Why is no one talking about Valerie? What’s going on, Bane?”
Bane didn't answer right away. Finally, Maverik looked up, pinning him with a stare, “What’s going on, Bane?” he repeated.
Bane took a deep breath, giving Maverik time to ask another question, “Is she okay? Is she sick, hurt?” Maverik was starting to get panicky.
“No, no, man. She’s not sick or hurt. She’s okay. She just…” Bane tried to tell him, but just didn't know how.
“She just what, Bane?” Maverik pressed.
Janie reached over and took Daisy from him, smiling sadly at him, “Come by and hold her later all you want, okay? It’s time for her dinner,” she told him.
“Yeah, okay, I will, Janie. Thank you,” Maverik told her.
Then he turned his attention back to Bane, “Bane, tell me.”
Bane heaved a deep sigh, “Fine. You waited too long, my brother. She’s engaged.”
Chapter 8
Riley hung up the phone and watched as the little boy, Remington, played with Cristie. He’d brought the child home the day before when he’d had a run in with the child’s aunt at the daycare. He’d been there to pick up Cristie, and as they left the daycare and headed toward his truck, he’d overheard the woman screaming at the boy. Telling him to get his worthless ass in the car and stop ruining her fucking day. She’d reared back and slapped the child, and Riley had
not been able to help himself. He’d been holding Cristie close, her head cradled in his hand against his chest as he watched, and her sharp intake of breath when the woman hit the child had him looking down at her. She had tears in her huge golden eyes. And she whispered, “Her hurt Remi,” as she looked up at him with her lower lip quivering. Riley lost it; he put Cristie in the truck, “Stay here!” he told her as he barely maintained control. He stalked toward the scene unfolding a few feet away. She reared back to hit the child again, and Riley grabbed her wrist from behind, pulling it toward him a little more sharply than necessary. “Do not hit that child again!” he snarled at her.
She tried to yank her arm out of his grip, but he just tightened his hold on her, “Don’t fucking touch him. And just to be sure you understand, whatever you do to that child, I’m planning to do to you,” he snarled directly in her face.
“Fuck you! It ain’t your kid! And you ain’t got to deal with the little fucker! I do! And he’s evil! He’s fucking possessed; he ain’t right! So don’t you fucking tell me what to do!” she yelled drunkenly in his face. Even if he hadn’t been a shifter, he could have smelled the alcohol on her breath.
Still maintaining his grip on her arm, he looked down at the little boy, Remi, Cristie had called him. What he saw shocked him. The child stood there, a red mark across his cheek, head held high, and orange eyes blazing and swirling with gold and red. A tiny puff of smoke drifted from his nostril. Holy fuck! Riley thought to himself.
Riley pulled the woman close again, his own eyes glowing their panther gold, “If you hit that child again, I will whip your ass! There is nothing wrong with him, he’s a child!” he snarled as he got close enough for their noses to press together.
The woman tried to jump back out of his grasp, “You’re just like him! You’re one of ‘em! Get away from me!” she stumbled as she panicked and tried to escape him. He let her go and she fell flat on her ass. She crawled away from him hurriedly and circled around to where the child stood, head still held high, proudly holding his own against the worthless woman that now scurried behind him, placing him between herself and Riley. She looked between Riley and Remington; then, suddenly she reached out and shoved the boy toward Riley. “Here! You so worried about him, you take him! You’re his kind! I’m tired of struggling, and tired of trying to live my life and make arrangements for him. My old man left ‘cause of him. I didn’t make him, shouldn’t have to be saddled with him. And ya’ll are evil! Devil’s spawn! Take him and leave me alone!” she shoved the child toward Riley again and ran as well as her drunk ass could to her beat-to-shit car, jumped in and sped out of the parking lot, screaming, “Fuck both of ya’ll,” out of the window as she drove away.
Riley, who had stepped forward to take the child's hand, stood there and watched her go. He looked down at the child, who looked back up at him. He smiled at Remi, Remi smiled back. But it was a wary smile. One that said he didn't trust anyone or anything. Riley said, “Guess you’re coming with us tonight.”
Remi nodded.
Riley said, “You know she’s wrong, don’t cha? There is nothing wrong with you. You are not evil. And she ain’t worth a pimple on your a…butt, you know that, right?” he’d caught himself about to say ass to the little boy.
Remi nodded his little head one time, still looking Riley in the eye, never once breaking eye contact. And Riley was an Alpha, so this little dude had guts. He decided to see just how long the little man would stare him down. He called on his Alpha powers and pushed them just a little at Remi as he continued to stare him in the eye. He barked out a laugh when the little guy raised one eyebrow, and threw his own little powers right back at Riley, eyes swirling from a shiny black pupil to a once again brilliant orange and back again.
“Come on, little man, Cristie’s waiting. Let’s get you in the truck and figure out what the heck we’re gonna do next.”
That was how he became the caregiver of the little boy that Cristie now played with on the living room floor of his one bedroom walk-up apartment. He really didn't have room for him, but there was no way in hell he was going to leave the child with his aunt, not that she’d given him much choice. But he’d not have allowed her to drive away with him anyway after he found that she’d been drinking. And then the way she’d been beating on him, no way in hell he could turn his back on that child and the situation the little guy was in. She’d actually made it easier for him by giving him the child, cause he was not allowing the bitch to take the child with her when she left that parking lot. Truth be told, he’d known that when he saw her hit the child. Now they’d spent the day together, and he was more convinced than ever that he knew what Remington was. And he also knew he was not equipped to deal with raising him properly. Even if he had the means, he just didn't have the knowledge to do it properly. But he thought he might know someone who did. Remi was a good kid. Seemed to be anyway. He was kind to Cristie, he was about 4 years old, so he was more advanced than she was, but he was patient with her, and when she wanted to play dollies, he dutifully held one while she pretended to feed it. He did stuff it in the dump truck that Riley had bought him and drive it around the room later on, but hey, that’s a boy for you. His phone rang and he answered, “Hell-oh.” It was Daniel. Daniel told him that they’d decided to have a shrimp boil slash fish fry the next day and that he was welcome to come and bring Cristie. They made small talk for a few minutes, before Daniel said, “Bane said you wanted to talk to me. What’s up?” Riley explained what he had in mind and Daniel listened without interrupting him. When he was done, Daniel asked a few questions about the aunt. And Riley stepped outside, so the kids couldn't hear him quite as well. He told Daniel all he knew, all the lady that ran the daycare had told him about Remi’s mom dying in childbirth and how the aunt came to have him. He told him about the things he’d witnessed, how the aunt had treated Remi, and how the child's eyes flashed orange. After they spoke for a while, he had a good feeling, so good, in fact, that he was sure he’d made the right decision. He walked back inside the apartment, both kids pausing in the finger painting of the refrigerator to look at him. “Really? I’m gone outside for two minutes, and ya’ll finger paint the refrigerator? Really?” he said again. He’d bought the finger paints because he wanted to make prints of Cristie's hands and his own on a couple pieces of paper before she got big. He’d seen them all over the daycare of the kids’ hands, and he wanted to do theirs together. Now he was going to have to get more, because just that quickly they covered the refrigerator. He looked at the floor, and they’d painted the floor in front of the fridge, too. He sighed as he grabbed a roll of paper towels and spray cleaner and leaned down to clean the mess; damn, he hoped this worked out tomorrow.
<> <> <> <> <>
“Naw,” Maverik chuckled, “You’re fucking with me. Valerie is not engaged.”
“She is, Maverik. At least that’s what she’s telling everybody at the bar,” Bane answered.
Maverik opened his mouth like he was going to shout, paused, closed his mouth, closed his eyes.
Everyone still in the kitchen stood where they were, no one saying a word. None of them not quite sure what his response would be. They’d just learned of how his first Mate had hurt him, now this one was engaged to another male.
Maverik opened his eyes, looked directly at Bane, “She wearing a ring?”
“I didn’t see one, but I’ve only seen her once. I been staying close to home with Janie and Daisy,” Bane answered.
Maverik looked to the rest of his clan, raised his eyebrows in question.
He got several shrugs and a couple of “I didn’t notice one’s.”
“She ain’t wearing a ring -- it’s just words,” Maverik said to no one in particular. He picked up his spoon and took another bite, trying like hell to control his snarling, freaking-the-fuck-out Wolf. The Great Father wouldn't do this to him again. He just couldn’t, he thought to himself.
Bam spoke up from the other side of the table, “No, he couldn’t,
but if a damn fool male allows too much time, a broken-hearted female will take a kind word as honest. Even if it’s not.”
Maia reached out a hand and placed it on his wrist where it sat on the table, “Daddy,” was all she said in a hushed, concerned tone.
“It’s almost too late, Maverik,” Bam said.
Maverik looked up at Bam, but made no move.
Everyone startled when Bam yelled, “Now! Move it! Now!!! You’re out of fucking time!”
Maverik jumped up, shoving his chair away from the table, “Aw Hell Naw! She ain’t marrying nobody else!”
He took off running toward the front door, came to a sudden stop, ran back to the table, grabbed Maia’s face in his hands, “You good, baby girl? Daddy’s gotta handle some sh…stuff, yes?”
Maia grinned huge, “Yes, Daddy. Go handle some shit. Get her!”
“Hell, yeah!” Maverik yelled as he kissed her forehead and ran back out of the kitchen, yelling over his shoulder, “Don’t cuss, baby! It ain’t ladylike!” The sound of his Harley firing up and tearing out of the yard was drowned out by the rest of the clan laughing at him trying to be Daddy and Maverik at the same time.
After the laughter died off, everybody looked at Bam. He looked back.
“What?” he finally said.
“Where the hell did that come from?” Kaid asked him, chuckling.
“What?” Bam asked again.
“The yelling, the bossiness! Where did that come from?” Goldy asked him, smiling himself.
“Well… he was wasting time. And tonight’s the night, and if he don’t stop her, she’s going to mate the wrong male,” Bam answered, like duh, they should know that.
“Keep telling you people, you really don’t want to piss Bam off. He’s good and gentle, but you piss him off, you got hell to pay,” Bane said good naturedly.
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