After packing up her bathroom and then hitting the kitchen, she was done.
It made her sad to think it only took them about two hours to sift through her belongings and say good-bye to the rest. But none of the furniture had any sentimental value, and most of it couldn’t have been saved. Who wanted a soaked black couch?
Insurance would cover the loss.
By noon they were done and had everything loaded in the back of the truck.
Their next stop was Griffen’s parents’, and they followed Sharon through the streets of town until they came to the base of the ski resort where his family lived. Rebecca was awed to learn that Griffen’s parents owned this gorgeous mountain home she’d envied every time she drove past it.
Although she and Sharon had been friends for a while, Rebecca had never been to this enormous, two-story log home against the mountainside. Considering she now knew how Sharon felt about introducing friends to her brothers, it wasn’t surprising Rebecca had only met up with her friend in other locations.
The house was intentionally rugged on the outside, blending in with the trees and mountains unobtrusively—rough logs and dark green trim. It was amazing, and it took her breath away. “How many of your siblings still live at home?” she asked Griffen.
“Everyone but Trace. My parents are very respectful of their privacy. We’re all adults now, of course, but Mom and Dad love having us around. They still gripe about Trace and I getting our own place.”
Miles chuckled. “You are thirty-two.”
“Exactly.” Griffen opened the truck and stepped down.
“How old are you?” Rebecca asked Miles as she followed him out of the truck.
“Thirty.”
“I’m older, and so much wiser,” Griffen teased. “We better get inside. I’m sure they’re chomping at the bit.”
His mom had insisted on preparing lunch for them, and the moment they stepped onto the porch, she opened the door.
She smiled warmly and wrapped Rebecca in a huge hug. “Welcome to the family. Rebecca, right?”
Rebecca nodded.
“I’m Carlie. So good to meet you.”
Still holding Rebecca by the arm, she gave a half hug to Miles next. “You too, Miles. We couldn’t ask for a better addition. Please, come in. Lunch is almost ready.”
Rebecca followed Griffen’s mom into the house and through to the kitchen. The inside was no less impressive, though shockingly modern and sleek in contradiction to the log cabin look of the outside. The kitchen was done in stainless steel with a gray and black marble counter and white cabinets.
Sharon propped up on a stool at the bar, still grinning.
Griffen’s father came in from the back as they entered. He was a tall man, perhaps taller than Griffen, and he surprised Rebecca by pulling her into his embrace the same as his wife had done and hugging her tight. When he released her, it was to hold her at arm’s length and smile down at her. “My son is a lucky man.” He winked while Griffen moaned at her side.
“Nice to meet you, Mr. Masters.”
“Call me Adam.” He turned slightly to greet Miles with a firm handshake and an arm to his back. “Please, sit. Is lunch almost ready, hon?” he asked his wife over his shoulder.
“Yep. Sharon, help me get everything on the table, will you?”
It seemed to Rebecca all these wolf clans ever did was eat and feed her.
Griffen pulled out a seat for her and scooted her in. He sat at one side of her while Miles took the chair on her other side. Both men set a hand on her thighs, making her gasp and slap them away.
It was bad enough when they were alone. No way could she concentrate in front of Griffen’s parents with them touching her.
“I spoke to my brother yesterday,” Adam announced.
It seemed like a strange segue to Rebecca, but she watched him as he continued.
“Not sure if you remember,” he said to Griffen, “but all four of his boys in Oregon mated with two people.”
“Yeah. I thought of that.”
Sharon set a dish on the table and gave a fake pout, looking at Rebecca. “They have a sister too. Tessa. Apparently the luck did not extend to her.”
Rebecca laughed. Leave it to Sharon to think this arrangement was over the moon and feel envious.
“Must be a generational thing,” Adam continued. “Damn strange if you ask me. But here we are.” He smiled again as his wife kissed him on the forehead and took the seat to one side of him. “Your brothers are a little leery, it seems.”
“I’m sure,” Griffen said. “I would be too if I were them. Now they have to wonder if every man they run into is destined to share a woman with them. And the truth is they probably won’t know until they meet her.” He turned to face Miles.
Rebecca never thought of it that way.
Griffen grabbed her hand and squeezed. “I’ve known Miles for years. Never would have expected to sleep with him,” he teased.
Trace walked in at that moment, shocking Rebecca. She hadn’t realized he was in the house. He froze in the doorframe, grabbing the wood with both hands. “Please tell me it isn’t like that.”
Griffen laughed, tipping his head back for several seconds while the sound vibrated through him and warmed Rebecca’s entire body. God, she loved that sound. Finally, he wiped his eyes with one hand and met his brother’s gaze. “No. Not a chance, Trace. This arrangement is strictly two on one.”
Trace’s shoulder visibly relaxed as he eased farther into the room, his brow still furrowed.
Rebecca fought to keep from giggling. How comical was it that every one of his brothers now had to worry about what man they knew was destined to share a woman with them? Or was it possible they didn’t even know the male component yet?
It certainly wasn’t a topic she had ever entertained in her life.
Lunch was wonderful. Carlie served Mexican—every conceivable item anyone could want to make soft- or hard-shelled tacos with all the fixings.
The family made her feel so welcome in their gorgeous mountain home. Griffen’s parents regaled her with tales of his childhood until he finally told them to stop and save some of his embarrassment for another day.
They had finished eating, and Rebecca was helping Carlie and Sharon clear the table when the ground shook.
Everyone froze in their spots and grabbed the edge of the counter or wall or table to steady themselves for the five seconds that seemed to last much longer. The rattling and clanking of dishes in the kitchen made Rebecca cringe, but nothing fell.
“What was that?” Sharon voiced.
Adam stood and headed for the back door. “Earthquake. Small one.”
“Shit.” Griffen came straight to Rebecca’s side and wrapped his palm around the back of her hand.
She still gripped the edge of the kitchen island, her knuckles white.
“You okay, baby?” he asked.
She nodded. She was physically fine. Emotionally, she was hanging on by a thread.
Miles’ phone rang in his pocket, and he yanked it out. “Melinda, you okay? Grandma?” His shoulders lowered as he listened to his sister on the other end of the line. “Good. Stay close to the house. I’m in Cambridge… No, I don’t think it was very big. The house shook, things rattled, no real damage… Good. Okay… I’ll call you later.” He disconnected and put the phone back in his pocket.
Adam came back inside. “No visible damage in the vicinity.” He sauntered to the living room and flipped on the television. “Never expected an earthquake in northwestern Montana,” he mumbled while shaking his head.
Already there were reports coming in from all over the place. The first channel that came on with the TV had switched to news coverage that fast. The broadcast started inside the studio but quickly switched to various reporters out on the streets as the entire family watched.
The scenario was eerie. It had been many years since there had been noticeable seismic activity anywhere near northwest Montana.
Chap
ter Twenty
When the excitement finally died down, Griffen talked Trace into staying at his parents’ house, and he brought his mates back to his condo for the night.
Rebecca was obviously antsy. She had to work tomorrow, which made Griffen nervous also. Besides, another day had slipped away without her being able to get her workout in. She was growing concerned about her upcoming race. It was important to her. She’d worked hard for months preparing for the race. He could tell it was eating at her.
Griffen’s apartment was smaller than Miles’ house. He wondered what his mates thought of his personal space as they each wandered around, taking in their surroundings.
His possessions were nice. He liked nice things, but he was a bachelor, so he realized his condo wasn’t particularly well decorated.
“I’ll make dinner,” he said as Rebecca and Miles stared at his collection of CDs.
Rebecca didn’t turn around as she spoke. “If you feed me one more time today, I’ll explode.”
He chuckled and headed to the kitchen. Whether or not the woman wanted to eat, he and Miles would need to. “Burgers okay?” he asked as he stuck his head in the refrigerator and surveyed the pickings.
“Perfect,” Miles consented, leaning his chin on Rebecca’s shoulder as they moved on to the DVDs.
Griffen watched them from the kitchen island, a smile spreading across his face. A few days ago, if someone had told him he would find another man fondling his mate so appealing, he would have laughed them off the planet.
And here he was. In his apartment. His mate right in front of him. And one of his best friends wrapping his arms around her waist to pull her in tight.
His other mate, he reminded himself. A man he would rely on for the rest of his life to help protect and worship her. As weird as that may have seemed just days ago, it was a comforting thought now.
He almost laughed out loud when Trace had popped into the room at his parents’ earlier, concern on his face about Griffen’s sexual interactions with Miles.
Trace had a close friend named Keegan, and Griffen had suspected for many years the two of them liked to share women. Griffen did not think that attraction swung both ways. He smirked to himself as he got dinner started. Maybe there was something to the idea that this generation of Masters men was destined to mate in threesomes.
If that was the case, Trace must have been shaking in his boots worrying if his male mate would turn out to be Keegan.
It didn’t take long for him to have the burgers grilling on his small back deck.
When his mates gave up their perusal of his music and movie selection, they wandered into the kitchen.
Griffen grabbed three beers and held two of them out with raised eyebrows. Miles took one and popped the top. Rebecca chewed her lower lip and scrunched her nose before she finally grabbed the bottle.
“Not mandatory,” Griffen said. “We’ll keep you even if you don’t like beer.”
“Oh, I like it all right. I just don’t usually drink much when I’m training so hard. But after the week I’ve had, I think I’m entitled.”
Griffen smiled. “No doubt about that.”
The three of them took long draws off their bottles at the same time and sighed.
If Griffen could manage to ignore the insanity following them around everywhere they went, he’d be the happiest man alive. As it was, until they managed to escape whatever demon—human, shifter, or otherwise—that insisted on fucking with them, he couldn’t fully relax.
But he could give it his best effort.
As soon as they finished eating dinner, he intended to do just that.
Tomorrow reality would seep back into their lives. Rebecca had to go to work, and Miles had to return to the reservation to catch up on his rounds. He had rescheduled patients so many times in the last few days, his clients were growing restless.
Griffen imagined he would stay close to Rebecca and the hospital, keeping his errands local until she got off work. Thank God his parents had insisted on him taking some time off. His brothers would handle the hiking tours for a few days without him.
He tucked his lips under his teeth and fought a chuckle when he considered the workout she had planned for tomorrow afternoon. His mate was going to kill him if she kept up her current pace.
•●•
Rebecca entered the hospital at seven o’clock Thursday morning surprisingly well rested and calm. Thank goodness her men had taken pity on her the night before. After the amazing burgers, they’d whisked her to the bedroom, made love to her, and then let her sleep.
And she’d slept well.
She realized when she woke up she still didn’t have a car. Both men were nonchalant about it. Miles intended to head back to the reservation quickly in his truck, and Griffen intended to take her to work and pick her up.
Luckily, she kept several sets of scrubs in her locker at the hospital. Until she had a chance to deal with the mess of clothes from the apartment, she would need to rely on her stash.
She had just shut her locker and turned to start her day when the nursing supervisor for her department stepped in. “Ah, Rebecca. Good. Can I see you in my office before you get started?” The woman turned and left without waiting for an answer.
Rebecca took a deep breath. She was growing so accustomed to having the rug yanked out from under her, anything was possible.
But she also knew Marian Pierce was a reasonable boss, and whatever she had on her mind couldn’t be too bad. She’d smiled as she made her request.
Rebecca followed her boss out of the locker room and around the corner to the woman’s office.
Marian shut the door with a snick and tucked her thick, blonde, shoulder-length hair behind her ear. Her initial confident stance slipped a bit as she took a seat behind her desk while Rebecca lowered herself into a chair across from the woman.
Shit.
“So sorry about your apartment. Have you been able to get in it yet?”
“Yes. I took out what I could salvage yesterday. Mostly clothes and jewelry. The rest is a loss.”
Marian’s brow furrowed. “I’m sorry. That really bites.”
Rebecca nodded. This is not what Marian called her in to discuss.
Marian grabbed the edges of the desk and glanced down while she took a deep breath.
Rebecca held hers. At this point, nothing the woman could say would surprise her. Would she fire her for taking a few days off? That didn’t make much sense since Marian was the one to call and offer the repose.
“It really sucks that I have to do this, but it can’t be helped.” Marian’s hands shook as she picked up a manila folder from the desk and held it. “Normally when I receive complaints regarding an employee, I’m very careful to decide whether or not the complaint was warranted and worth telling the nurse herself.”
Fuck.
Rebecca was a stellar employee. She loved her job. She worked in the emergency room, so naturally there were occasional deaths and extremely sick patients, but to her knowledge, she’d never done anything that made a patient or their family unduly upset.
Marian remained guarded, hesitant as though she still wasn’t sure she should share what she held.
“Did I upset a patient?” Rebecca swallowed past the lump in her throat.
Marian shook her head. “No. Nothing like that. This is personal.” Finally, she set the folder in front of Rebecca and released it. She kept her lips pursed, and she nodded toward the file.
Rebecca closed her eyes for a moment and then tentatively opened the folder.
Her breath caught in her throat as she stared at the single page in front of her.
Oh. My. God.
“Marian…” She didn’t know what to say as she scanned the entire page, yanking her gaze from the huge picture front and center to the typed lines above and below. Her vision blurred as she refocused on the distinct photo taken of her Tuesday morning on the front porch of Miles’ house. She was wrapped in nothing but the sheet she’d
taken from the bed, and she was sitting on Miles’ lap, her head tipped back into Griffen’s hands as he kissed her.
Her face heated as she squeezed her eyes shut.
Marian broke the silence, her voice barely above a whisper. “I’m not here to judge, Rebecca. What you do in your free time is your business. You’re a fantastic nurse and a pleasure to work with.”
Rebecca lifted her gaze. But…
Marian’s eyebrows were so close together they became one. “I only showed you this because I thought you should know about it. Clearly someone isn’t very happy with you.”
That’s an understatement.
“Were you aware you had a stalker?”
“Sort of.” It wasn’t as though she could explain irrational paranormal phenomenon, including wolf shifters, to her boss.
Suddenly Marian gasped. “Was the fire an accident?”
Rebecca wished she could confirm it was. Instead she shrugged. “I don’t know.”
Marian leaned forward. “Rebecca, this is awful. Have you called the police?”
“No.” Until Marian handed her this file, she’d had nothing but a premonition to go on. Well, that wasn’t entirely true. “I mean, not here in town.” She pointed at the photo. “That was taken on the reservation. A few weird things did happen out there over the weekend. The local law enforcement came out.”
“Rebecca, this is serious. I think you need to go to the police here in Cambridge.”
“Apparently.” She shivered as she closed the file, unwilling to look at it another moment. She wasn’t sure about calling the cops, either. They were already involved in investigating the cause of the fire. If it was arson, they would find out.
Telling them she thought her apartment had been trashed before the fire would only distract them from solving the cause of the fire. Plus, she wasn’t in the mood to enlighten Griffen or Miles about the state of her apartment. And this e-mail? It would push them both over the edge.
Overprotective would be too mild a term to describe how they would react. They’d probably put her on twenty-four hour surveillance and make her quit her job.
Rebecca's Wolves (Wolf Masters Book 6) Page 16