“I should have let her walk these trails in those killer heels,” Nina’s lips twitched at the corners. “I know it’s mean.”
“Is Grandma going to take us away from you?” Jonas suddenly asked. He’d been so very quiet throughout the whole journey into the mountains. Saffron assumed he was enjoying his first real glimpse of the mountains, but instead his mind had been turning everything that had happened over and over.
“No, she’s not.” Nina slipped her arm around her son’s shoulders. “Your grandma just likes to have things her own way. But she can’t. None of us can.”
“Does that mean she doesn’t think you are crazy anymore?” He swallowed hard. “Now that she’s seen Wes shift?”
“She can’t exactly argue that I’m making it up, can she?” Nina asked. “Not when she’s seen it with her own eyes.”
“What will she do?” Jonas asked, there was a hint of fear in his voice.
“The one thing about your grandma,” Nina began as she tightened her arm around Jonas, “is that she loves you and Wes. She would never do anything to hurt you.”
“But she wanted to take us away from you, even though we told her we love you and wanted to stay,” Jonas replied.
“Grandma thought she was doing the right thing for you and Wes. She just never looks at things from someone else’s point of view.” Nina dropped a kiss on her son’s head.
“This is as far as we go in the truck.” Mac pulled the truck over to the side of the road. “From here we walk.”
“Great.” Jonas leaned on Nina’s shoulder. “I love you, Mom.” Then he opened the truck door and spilled out onto the side of the road, although at this point the road was no more than a stony trail.
“Are you sure you don’t want to wait here?” Saffron caught hold of Nina’s arm as she went to follow Jonas.
“I’m absolutely sure,” Nina confirmed and then pulled away from her sister.
“She’s running on adrenaline,” Mac told Saffron quietly. “She’ll crash eventually but for now let her do this.”
Saffron nodded. “I know I couldn’t stop her if I tried.” She turned to face Mac. “Thank you.”
“That’s what family is for,” Mac leaned forward and kissed her cheek. “Welcome to the mountain.”
“It’s amazing. When this is all over, can we come up here and explore properly? I want you to show me your favorite places. I want you to show me the hidden places that only a shifter might find.” Saffron looked up at the sound of her mom’s car door closing. “And thank you for talking to my mom.”
“I just want us all to get along. She is your mom.” He reached out and took hold of her hand. “But that works both ways. If your mom upsets you then I’ll send her on her way.”
Saffron chuckled. “Send her on her way back home and tell her to never come back.” She groaned and leaned her head back on the headrest. “Honestly, I just want us all to get along, too. I accept she will never love me and Nina as most mothers do, but she does love her grandsons. She just needs to get it into her head that they are happy and safe with their mom.”
“Okay, it’s time we went to find Wes.” Mac let go of her hand and she passed his phone back to him. “It’s not going to be too much use up here, the signal is terrible.”
“It’s a good thing you have your super senses,” Saffron called to him as she jumped down onto the ground and took a deep breath. “Wow!”
“You’ve chosen to live in a beautiful place.” Deirdre approached Saffron, her expression guarded. Perhaps she figured she should be more concerned about her daughter biting her head off than a bear shifter like Mac.
“It’s where Nina wanted to live. To feel closer to Evan.” Saffron turned to face her mom and tried to keep her body language relaxed. “She can cope, you know.”
“With your help.” Deirdre shielded her eyes from the low afternoon sun and looked up at the high peaks in the distance. “She’s lucky to have you.”
“She needs love and support. From all of us,” Saffron told her mom frankly. “Not threats and accusations.”
Deirdre’s hand dropped to her side. “Being a mother never came naturally to me. I worked on it just like I worked on my marriage, which also never came naturally.”
“I’m not saying that you never tried to be a good mother,” Saffron told her. “But you treat motherhood as a business deal. And we all know you don’t like to lose in business.”
Deirdre gave a short laugh. “You always were astute at reading people. I miss you at work.”
“Really?” Saffron asked. “I thought you would have been happy when I left. I figured you’d hire a PA who didn’t question your actions.”
Deirdre pressed her lips together into a thin line. “I like that you question my actions. It keeps me on my toes. I always hoped you would take over the business one day.”
“Really?” Saffron was shocked. “I thought I was a disappointment to you.”
“No, I admire you, Saffron. I’m not very good at showing my feelings, I admit it.” Deirdre had never opened up about her true feelings before. Perhaps her visit to Bear Creek hadn’t been a complete waste.
“I once thought I wanted to be like you,” Saffron admitted. “I’d have been so happy to hear you say that. I grew up knowing I never wanted to get married or have children because you made it all seem…distasteful. But then Nina met Evan and I saw a different side of things and I knew that was what I wanted.”
“And you have found it in Mac?” Deirdre arched a well-manicured eyebrow.
“I have. He is the man for me, a man I hope I might one day have children with. If I’m lucky.” She half turned to look for Mac who had started to lead Nina and Jonas along a trail leading toward a large rocky outcrop. “We need to go.”
“Then let’s go find my grandson.” Deirdre walked after the others at a fast pace as if she were trying to run away from Saffron.
Saffron sighed with longing and pain pierced her heart. If only she’d had a good relationship with her own mother like Nina did with her children. It was as if she’d been denied a part of life that other people took for granted. She’d never been bitter about it. By the time she was old enough to look back and see that her upbringing hadn’t been the same as most other children, she’d been old enough to realize that everyone was different.
“Are you okay?” Mac slowed down and waited for her as they followed the trail toward the crag.
“Yeah.” She nodded and slipped her hand into his. “I am.”
“Did you mean what you said?” Mac asked.
“You overheard me talking?” Her eyes widened. “Of course you did.”
“Sorry.” Mac looked toward the crag. “I shouldn’t have eavesdropped. But shifter senses are a hard thing to switch off.”
“I’ll have to remember that.” Saffron understood now how easy it would be for Jonas to overhear conversations between Saffron and Nina. He might not have intended to even listen in when he heard them talking about the possibility of Evan still being alive.
“I can sense the others.” Mac lifted his head and shifted his gaze away from the crag. He was staring at the side of the mountain but Saffron couldn’t see anything other than bare rocks, green grass, and sparse shrubby bushes. “They’ll reach the crag in five minutes.” He strode forward but Saffron reached out and grabbed the sleeve of his jacket.
“Yes,” she blurted out. “I meant all of it.”
Mac stopped in his tracks and turned around to face her. “You are the man for me. And I do hope more than anything that we can raise a family together.” She smiled weakly. “I think you feel the same way.”
He took a step forward and slipped his arm around her waist, pulling her close. “If you only think I feel the same way, I have not been doing my job as your mate.”
She placed a hand on his chest. “It’s okay, you’re still learning.” Saffron tilted her chin and looked up at his handsome face with its deep laughter lines. She wanted to memorize every line,
every wrinkle, every scar that told the story of his life. “And we have the rest of our lives together for you to practice.”
Mac’s mouth curled up in a smile before he lowered his head and kissed her lips. Warmth flooded her veins and she clung to him, never wanting to let him go. But as his brief kiss ended, they had to part, they needed to focus on why they were here. Wes.
“I love you, Saffron.” Mac reached for her hand as he turned and walked in the direction of the crag.
“I love you, too, Mac. There aren’t many people who would have dropped everything to come and find a runaway boy.” She hurried after him, her strides not as long as his, but she didn’t want to hold him back.
“My family is your family.” He gave her a wicked glance over his shoulder. “And your family is my family. Even your mom.”
Saffron gave a short laugh. “I’d hold back on that offer until you know her a little bit more. Personally, she would be a dealbreaker for me.”
“People can change, Saffron. Maybe give her one last chance to prove that to you.” Mac’s suggestion was heartfelt and difficult to refuse. However, Saffron’s lifelong experience of her mother made it difficult, if not impossible to believe Deirdre could ever change. “For me.”
“Okay.” She gave a brief nod. “For you.” For a man who believed in being there for his family no matter how hard things got, she would give her mom one more chance.
Chapter Twenty-Four - Mac
“Hex!” Mac lifted his hand and waved at his brother as he and the others crested the steep trail and made their way toward the crag.
“You made it.” Hex grinned as he waved at his brother.
“We did.” Mac looked around, taking in the cold, pinched faces of Saffron’s family. They needed to find Wes fast and get down off the mountain. Even at this low altitude, the breeze had a bite to it that would only become more savage as the day slipped away and night took its firm grip on the wintry world.
As if to prove winter’s dominance on the landscape, a flurry of snowflakes blew down from the higher peaks above them. Mac loved the mountain, but he loved his mate more and he needed to protect her.
Hex read the concern on his brother’s face. “Wes’s trail went off to the south. It’s more sheltered down there.”
Mac nodded and looked over his shoulder. He doubted Nina could walk too much further. This had been a mistake, even the short hike from the truck had zapped her energy. Although, her expression was bright and alert, as if she was searching for something.
Or someone, his bear said.
Do you think she can sense Wes? Mac asked his bear. He’d never considered that the connection between a parent and child could be as strong as between mates.
Possibly, his bear replied.
“Nina, why don’t you go and wait back in the truck?” Saffron was obviously as concerned about her sister as Mac.
“No, I’m fine. Honestly, I’m absolutely fine.” Nina’s insistence was matched by her actions as she headed toward the head of the trail that led down the mountain. “This way?”
“Maybe I should shift and carry you.” Kelos strode toward Nina. “Wes would never forgive himself if you injured yourself because of him.”
“Isn’t it too light?” Nina looked up at the clear blue sky. There was hardly any cloud cover and Kelos would be exposed. “It won’t start getting dark for another half an hour.”
“I would rather risk my dragonhide than your health,” Kelos told her.
“I’m okay.” Nina’s conviction was difficult to argue with.
“Nina…” Saffron dashed forward but Nina brushed off her concerns.
“I’m just fine.” Nina forced a smile onto her face. “I need to do this.”
“Okay.” Saffron hooked her arm through her sister’s. “But we do this together.”
“Thanks, Saff.” Nina’s mouth dropped at the corners before she forced the smile back onto her face. “I need to find him.”
“Where to, guys?” Saffron asked Mac and the others.
“I’ll show you the way.” Kelos slipped past them and headed down the trail he’d come up only moments before. Everyone else followed, with Deirdre walking side by side with Jonas.
“The trail led this way.” Beck pointed to a narrow game trail. “Can anyone sense him?”
“No, but the trail is fresh.” Kelos looked over his shoulder at Saffron and Nina, his expression one of concern.
“Go,” Nina told him. “It makes more sense for you to find him. We’ll follow along behind.”
“I’ll stay with them,” Kelos told Mac. “You and your brothers can shift and go on ahead. When it’s darker, I can shift, and we can find you.”
Mac nodded and then glanced at Saffron. “We’ll find him for you.”
“I know you will.” Saffron let go of Nina and dashed forward. Her arms encircled his neck, her lips grazed his cheek before she let him go and went back to Nina.
Mac took a couple of steps backward, his eyes fixed on his mate before he let go of the world and allowed his bear his freedom. The air shimmered as his mate faded from view and he felt a sense of loss. Then his bear took his place, standing on four massive paws in front of Saffron and Nina.
Behind them, Deirdre yelped as Hex and Beck also shifted. There’s no way she can deny shifters are real now, is there? his bear asked before they swung around and ran off down the trail. There was no time to lose.
His paws pounded the ground as he ran along the trail. Wes’s scent was easy to follow, the young shifter wasn’t too far ahead and now that they were on four legs, the Winter brothers would make sure he didn’t escape them. They were all committed to bringing him home.
The trail swept around a bend before it headed into a clump of short, stocky trees that clung to life in a wide valley where they were shielded from the worst of the weather. Here, Wes’s scent was stronger, and Mac was convinced the little bear was close. Perhaps he’d tired and stopped running, feeling safe in among the trees.
There’s someone else, his bear slid to a halt.
Hex and Beck nearly ran into the back of him, but they dug their claws into the ground, spraying him with small stones and dirt. Beck swung his head from side to side and opened his mouth as if to roar. He’d probably intended to tell his older brother to give them more time to react next time but instead, his mouth snapped shut and he inhaled deeply.
Beck had sensed it, too. There was another shifter heading their way.
Mac inhaled deeply. No other scent, other than Wes’s, hung on the air. Whoever was out there hadn’t passed through this valley on their way up the mountain. Hopefully, if they came across the young bear shifter, the other shifter would simply pass on by. Or, if they stopped, it would be to help. Nothing more.
Will Wes get defensive? Mac’s bear asked.
That we don’t know, Mac answered. It was a risk he couldn’t take. With a swift glance at Beck, he ran on, heading to where his senses told him Wes was. He was no longer working on scent alone. His other senses could pick up Saffron’s nephew, too.
The other shifter is getting closer, his bear said and put his head down, his stride lengthening as he closed the distance between them. Wes had stopped moving now. He must be aware of the stranger approaching. If he had any sense, he would slink into the trees and avoid meeting with a stranger on the mountains. Most shifters were friendly, but not all.
Beck increased his speed and ran neck and neck with Mac as they rounded a bend in the trail and then headed up a steep incline. Wes was close, they were no longer simply following his scent trail, Mac’s bear could smell the young bear cub as the wind blew directly at them.
The other bear is moving, Mac’s bear told him. He’s coming this way.
Then we’d better reach Wes first, Mac replied.
His bear pushed himself harder, his lungs working like bellows as he inhaled and exhaled. As the blood thundered in his ears, Mac kept his attention fixed on their goal. There was no time to lose.
> Beck and Hex had his back. If this other bear meant Wes harm, they would take him on together. The three Winter brothers against the world.
Not for the first time, his bear reminded him.
But hopefully, for the last, Mac replied. I’m getting too old for this. I just want to settle down with Saffron and start a family.
Me, too, his bear replied.
Wes had left the trail and the three bears ducked under the low trees and pushed their way through the undergrowth as they raced to reach the young bear shifter. But so was the stranger. He was taking a direct route toward Wes. It was a race to see who would get there first.
I see him, his bear said as a low branch snagged at his fur. The bear didn’t slow, he simply yanked himself free and kept running. Beck and Hex were close behind him, he could hear their breathing along with the steady drum of their paws on the ground.
They burst through the trees to find Wes’s bear drinking from a pool of water formed as the ice melted. He looked tired but otherwise okay.
For now.
Wes’s bear looked up as they approached, his expression filled with concern. Mac wanted to shift and tell him everything was going to be okay, but he needed to stay in his bear form. The stranger bear was close.
Wes took a couple of steps toward Mac, his head down as he approached. Then he sensed, or heard, the other bear and swung around, his hackles raised, and his feet planted wide apart.
The little bear has courage, Mac’s bear said with pride.
He does, but he is no match for a full-grown bear. And the other bear was full-grown. Mac glimpsed him through the trees. Even though Wes’s bear was now surrounded by a protective force, he was still coming toward them.
What’s his game? Mac’s bear bared his teeth, ready to fight if he had to.
His brothers stood firm as the bear approached. Mac was certain he’d never seen this bear before, although he’d be the first to admit he didn’t know all the bears that visited the mountains.
I don’t want to start this fight, Mac told his bear. But if we have to, we have to.
The bear approached with his head down. He huffed a warning as he inhaled deeply, his eyes fixed on the small bear.
Mac (Winter - Shifter Seasons Book 3) Page 18