“Are you really thinking of buying this house?” she asked, when they were both dressed.
“Yes. I am. I’m moving back to be near to my parents. My mom had a health scare and it brought it home to me that I’ve spent years working away, only seeing them for a week or two each year.” He looked sheepish, before he added. “You know, I was becoming broody. I hoped to move back and maybe meet my mate one day and raise a family here. It’s important kids know their grandparents, don’t you think?”
“I’m not so sure my parents, or at least my mother, would agree.” Zoe adjusted her skirt, giving her hands something to do and her eyes an excuse not to meet Caleb’s.
“Want to tell me about it?” he asked, coming back toward her and folding her in his strong arms. She breathed in his scent, storing it in her memory.
“There’s not much to tell.”
“It might have some bearing on how Tony behaves. He’s insecure.”
Zoe homed in on Caleb’s words. “Is that what he says?”
“No, but when I listened to him today, it was obvious he doesn’t cope well around others. Maybe it has something to do with your mom.” He stroked her hair, and kissed the top of her head. “I think you’ve been more of a mom to him.” She pulled back, but he wouldn’t let her go. “Tell me, let me help you both.”
“It’s tough to talk about, because she’s our mom and it’s not her fault.” Zoe rested her head on his broad chest, happy to be in his arms. He had a right to know what he was getting into. Especially if there was a chance Zoe would go through the same thing when they eventually had kids. “She suffered from post-natal depression. Only it never went away. I think, perhaps, she was depressed before she met my dad, but the excitement of being with a shifter lifted her spirits.”
“And then?” he asked.
“Then she had me, and she was still OK. But when she had Tony, she flipped; she closed down on so many levels. That’s why he blames himself, he used to say we would all be better if he had never been born, but that is not true.”
“And you brought him up?” Caleb asked softly. “What about your dad?”
“My dad worked hard to keep things going, he picked up the slack as much as he could. But there were days when Mom couldn’t even get out of bed, so I would get Tony up and get us to school. As I got older, I’d cook the evening meal. I didn’t mind, I just wanted my mom back.”
“But that didn’t happen?”
“No, she was better, but somehow vacant. Then when I began to shift, she lost it. I have spent a lot of time thinking it all through.” She took a long, shuddering breath. “My dad never shifts. I mean, I cannot remember him ever changing in front of me. I’m not sure if it’s because my mom found it all a bit weird.”
“So he lives a normal life, keeping a low profile around your mom. And then suddenly your mom is confronted by the fact her kids are shifters.”
“That’s about it. She seemed to distance herself even more. I wanted to move out, but I couldn’t leave Tony. Then he started going out with his friends on evenings, and I’d stay late at work. Mom seemed happier, as if she could pretend we didn’t exist for most of the day.”
“That’s tough.”
“It got tougher when Tony came home with a police officer in tow the first time.” A tear slipped down her cheek as she remembered that moment. “My mom went a little crazy, saying Tony wasn’t her child, and couldn’t the police officer see he wasn’t her child.”
“Were you there?” Caleb asked.
“Yes, Luckily, I told Mom to go and make a cup of tea while I dealt with it. My mom said to make sure the police officer took that child with him.” She wiped her tears. “I told the police officer that my mom was not feeling herself. He gave Tony a stern warning, and told him if he got caught stealing again, they would press charges.”
“And that’s what happened?” Caleb asked.
“Eventually. It went on for months: I slowly lost my brother, and he lost his sister as I became the adult who nagged him about everything. Our roles changed and I was like the mom he never had, and he rebelled against that.”
“Wow, that’s messed up.”
She pulled back from him, going to dig around in her purse for a tissue to blow her nose on. “I think you’re right, though. He wanted our mom’s attention, he wanted someone to take notice of him.”
“We can work it out. It’ll be OK. Between us—you, me, and Dylan—we can help him. Today was a breakthrough.”
“I hope so.” She looked at her phone; it was 11:45 p.m. “We have to go. I just hope when I get home, he’s still there.”
If not, she would be just about ready to wash her hands of Tony. But when she let herself in, after a long lingering kiss from Caleb, she found Tony asleep in bed. Zoe stood and watched him, as she had so many times through the years. She only hoped her brother would find happiness, and she would find a way to make everything work out so they were all happy.
Chapter Nine – Caleb
“You look better today,” Caleb said to Tony. He was in Zoe’s kitchen, drinking coffee, while waiting for Tony to get dressed and ready for work. If he happened to be kissing Tony’s sister while he waited, well, that was just a perk of the job.
“Thanks, I feel better.”
“Here,” Zoe said, thrusting some toast at her brother. “Eat. I’ve also made you a packed lunch.”
“Thanks, Zoe,” Tony said. “Are we going back to the house we were working on yesterday?” Tony asked Caleb.
“We sure are. I thought I’d let you have a go with the lathe.”
“Really?” Tony said. “I thought you only trusted me with the hammer.”
“If you had gone out last night and caused your sister any more trouble, I wouldn’t even be trusting you with holding my hammer, let alone using it.”
Tony looked from Caleb to Zoe and then back again, a small frown creasing his face, which fortunately Zoe didn’t notice, she was too busy grabbing Tony’s lunch off the counter. It was a good job she hadn’t seen it, because Caleb had the feeling they were busted. He wasn’t sure how Tony knew; they had come home in separate cars, although Caleb had insisted on following her back to make sure she arrived home safe. Oh, and kissing her on the doorstep.
But Zoe said Tony had been asleep, so how did he know?
“Those days are behind me,” Tony said, and with lunch in hand, he headed out of the door with Caleb.
“Thanks for the coffee,” Caleb called.
“My pleasure.” Zoe’s voice held a hint of amusement, and he smiled, liking the way things were turning out. It seemed that if Tony did know about them being mates, he wasn’t against the idea.
“OK, let’s get this job done. I want to have the spindles back in place today and the handrail measured and cut. Then we can spend some time getting it right. These old houses don’t exactly conform to measurements, so we may have to adjust the rail to get it to fit properly.”
“So being a carpenter takes patience?” Tony asked. They were leaving the outskirts of town and heading out along the road, through fields filled with cattle and sheep, and up toward the lower slopes of the mountains. It was here where houses dotted the landscape, close enough that they didn’t feel lonely, but far enough apart that they were private, away from prying eyes. It would be bliss living here after his years in the city. Him and his bunny. He smiled to himself before turning to answer Tony’s question.
“Patience, yes. You can’t rush it; it takes a calm mind.”
“How do you keep your mind calm, when it’s so easy for thoughts to crowd in?” Tony asked.
“I learned aikido,” Caleb said, turning the work truck onto the road that took them up to the house that had been a scene of so much passion last night. Keeping calm and having patience might not be so easy today. Not when thoughts of Zoe were never far from him.
“Aikido, I’ve heard of it, isn’t that like karate?” Tony was genuinely interested, and Caleb was ready to have his mind taken o
ff his mate. If he didn’t focus, he was going to be useless today.
“It’s not really like karate, it’s more of a self-defense set of movements. You practice on your own. I can show you. Might be useful when someone wants to give you another black eye.”
Tony put his hand to his face. “I’d almost forgotten it was there.”
“It’s fading fast. Want to tell me exactly what happened?” Caleb asked.
“Why? So that you can go running home to my sister and tell her?” Tony said, and Caleb saw him fighting to keep calm.
“This is a good time for your first lesson,” Caleb said. “I can see you’re angry. Now, when you get angry, you don’t think the same way. With aikido, you learn to slow it all down, and think things through. At least the way I do aikido, you do. Come on.”
He wasn’t sure if Tony had been expecting an argument, or some denial from Caleb; whichever it was, he wasn’t going to get one. He would have learned about the relationship between Caleb and Zoe sooner or later. At least, this way, no one had to tell him.
“Ahh, so that’s your problem: you think we’ve been skulking behind your back,” Caleb said, once they were both out of the truck and facing each other. This was not going to end up in a fight, not in the way he suspected Tony was used to. And anyway, if they came to blows, Tony was not stupid enough to think he could win against Caleb. Was he?
“Haven’t you?” Tony asked, lifting his fists up to defend himself.
“No. We only met yesterday, by chance at Dylan’s yard. I did go with her to help find you yesterday, and it was my idea to take you under my wing. But I like you, Tony.”
“Of course you do, you like me because you want to get in my sister’s pants.”
Caleb laughed. “That’s going to happen whether we are friends or not. But let me tell you something: she was willing to put me off, put off her own happiness for you. Hell, she’s already given up her old life for you.”
“I didn’t ask her to,” Tony said, circling around Caleb, looking for an opening. Thinking he’d found one, he lunged forward, but Caleb moved, and took Tony’s weight forward so that he fell on the ground.
“Calm. You are letting your emotions take over.” He offered Tony his hand, but Tony brushed it away.
“I can manage on my own,” Tony said, springing to his feet, and Caleb was reminded of a bunny hopping along. He was going to keep that thought to himself.
“No one is expecting you to.” Caleb moved, and Tony tried to defend, but he ended up on his butt.
“Sure, you’re going to want the trouble-making kid around.”
“Two things: you aren’t a kid and you don’t have to be trouble. I want to help you, I meant every word I said yesterday, and I have not shared anything with your sister. Same as I will not share anything she’s told me with you.”
“Is that what you get off on? Keeping secrets?” Tony lunged again, his fists full of power, but Caleb moved and knocked his hand so he overbalanced, landing on the ground once more.
“I don’t get off on anything.” He frowned. That was a lie, he got off on Zoe’s perfectly voluptuous body, but Tony did not want to hear that.
“Then what’s your goal? How do you see this working out? Or has she decided to ship me back to my loving mom who never wanted me?”
Tony lunged again, dangerously close to hitting Caleb, and he decided it was time to end this. He grabbed Tony’s T-shirt and swung him to the ground, pinning him down, his bear close to the surface. They were starting to see Tony as a threat; this had to be stopped now before someone got hurt.
And while Caleb knew he would be the victor in any physical fight, he also knew that Zoe would do whatever it took to keep Tony happy and out of trouble. She’d seen a glimpse of this new brother of hers, and Caleb suspected she’d do whatever it took to keep him from slipping back into his old ways.
“I don’t know the full story about your mom; I only have a small idea. And then it’s not a thing I would understand because I haven’t walked in your shoes. All I do know is that your sister picked up the role your mom dropped. And I also know we both love her. So, let’s make life easy for her, and get along with each other.”
Tony huffed on the ground, his fists still clenched, but somewhere, Caleb’s words had found a chink in his defenses, and he let out a sob. “She’s all I have.”
Caleb eased his weight back off Tony’s body. “I’m not taking her away from you. I know how important family is. And now that Zoe is my mate, we’re family too.” Caleb ruffled Tony’s hair. “And wait until you meet my folks, they always wanted more children. They’re going to love you.”
Chapter Ten – Zoe
“He just dropped you off?” Zoe asked, looking behind Tony to where she’d hoped Caleb would be. Despite trying her hardest to work all day, she had kept drifting off into daydreams about her and Caleb. Not all of them were X-rated, some of them were filled with hopes and dreams of their future. Although she had to admit, no matter how they started they usually ended up in bed.
“Yes,” Tony said, going to the sink and washing his hands.
“You should do that in the bathroom,” Zoe said.
“I know,” Tony agreed, and then stood watching her cook dinner as he dried his hands.
“What?” She looked up at him sharply; that look said he had something to say. “You didn’t get fired, did you?”
“No.” His voice threatened a rise in his temper.
“Sorry.” She stood up and put her hands on her hips. “It was wrong for me to jump to conclusions.”
He shrugged. “I don’t blame you.” Tony went to the fridge and took a soda out, opened it, and took a real long drink. “I know he’s your mate.”
Zoe nearly dropped the pan of potatoes she had been mashing, but she managed to set it down on the counter; she’d worked hard to make dinner, she didn’t want to start over. Not that she thought she would have the energy to start over, not after those words came out of Tony’s mouth.
“He told you?” she asked. So much for the loyal and honorable Caleb and his promises.
“No. I guessed.”
“Oh,” she said and returned to pummeling the potatoes.
“I’m happy for you.”
She stopped mid-mashing and studied Tony. “You are?”
“He’s a good man, he’ll be good to you and you deserve the best.”
“OK, who are you, and what’s happened to my brother?” She had to fight the tears from spilling down her cheeks.
“I am your brother.” He came to her and put his arms around her. “I think I lost sight of that.”
“And now?” she asked.
“Now I’m growing up. I really like Caleb, and I think for the first time I am able to see what’s been wrong with me for so long.”
“There’s nothing wrong with you.” She took off her oven gloves and hugged him back. “It’s all got a bit jumbled up, that’s all.”
“I was scared and confused.” It seemed as though now Tony had started talking about himself, he couldn’t stop. “Mom was so odd.” He winced at those words, and she hugged him tighter, letting him know it was all right to speak. “Growing up, all I ever wished was that she would be normal. That I’d wake up one morning and find she loved me.”
“She does love you.”
“Are you sure?” he asked. “I can’t get that night, when I came home and she told the police officer I wasn’t her child, out of my head.”
“We’re different, being shifters. And she’s struggled to understand it.”
“Doesn’t that scare you?” Tony asked. “You have a mate, and I know he’s great, but we trust in fate, and in Mom and Dad’s case, fate seemed to get it wrong. Mom would have been happier if she knew nothing about shifters.”
“Hey. I don’t believe that. I don’t believe it’s just about us being shifters.” She took Tony’s hand. “I think Mom’s always been a bit different, even before she met Dad. I also know that dad loves her beyond eve
rything else.”
“Do you love Caleb beyond everything else?” Tony asked, his bottom lip trembling.
Zoe pulled him close. “It’s different for me. I have you. I have the years of us being together, of helping each other. There is enough love in my heart for you both.”
“Why isn’t there enough love in Mom’s heart?”
“I don’t know, Tony. I really don’t know.” Zoe thought for a moment. “But you know what?”
He shrugged, looking like a lost boy, and her heart broke for him. Zoe slipped her arm around his shoulder and hugged him.
“I’m glad we have each other. I’m glad I didn’t face any of this crap alone.”
“Even if you gave up your life for me?”
“Hey. That was my old life, and look, you say you don’t believe in fate, but if it wasn’t for fate, our parents wouldn’t have met, if it wasn’t for fate, Mom wouldn’t have Dad, who adores her and would do anything for her. And if it wasn’t for fate you wouldn’t have got caught stealing, and…”
“You wouldn’t have moved here and met Caleb.”
“Now you’re learning.” She let him go and went back to mashing the potatoes. “Now you have to learn to live your life on your terms. One day you’ll have a mate of your own, and she will teach you to love, and you will go into that relationship with so much knowledge of what not to do too. Not if you want your kids to be happy.”
“I will.” He took two plates out of the cupboard and set them down on the table. “So, Caleb said I can live with you.”
“Did he now?” she said. “What else did Caleb say?”
“Nothing I can tell you. He said it was private between us.”
“That sounds like Caleb,” she said. “Now let’s eat.”
“And after dinner, you might want to go across the mountain. Caleb told me where he was going for a run.”
“What happened to not telling me his secrets?”
Tony laughed. “He was so specific in telling me where he was going, I think he wanted me to share that piece of information with you.”
“Is that so. Well, I think I may go pay him a not-so-surprise visit.” She put the mashed potatoes on the plate and took the chicken out of the oven, before fetching the vegetables and gravy. She needed to eat to keep her strength up if she was going to go hopping over the mountains after her big bear.
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