Until You: A Malsum Pass Novel

by Forrest, Kimberly

  There were two mismatched recliners and Sebastian settled into one. The only other furniture was a television that sat on a small folding table. It was obvious that Mary Beth had cleaned out the house when she left.

  Christian seemed to know exactly what he was thinking as he sat in the other recliner and motioned with his good arm toward the room. “I know, right? She’s such a fucking bitch. I’d offer you a drink but she even cleaned out my liquor.”

  Sebastian cleared his throat and decided to dive right in. “What happened?”

  Christian grunted. “Where do I even start?” He let out a humorless chuckle. “The marriage was shit right from the beginning. She was a money-hungry, grasping little bitch. I should have divorced her right away. Hell, I never should have married her!”

  “Why did you?” Sebastian asked, storm clouds gathering behind his eyes as he leaned forward aggressively. “Better yet, why don’t you tell me why you even fucked her to begin with? I was your brother!!”

  Christian sighed and pushed his hand angrily through his hair. “I know; I can’t even begin to tell you how sorry I am, Seb. I was thinking with my dick. You know I never had much control or integrity when it came to sex and she was constantly coming onto me.” He shook his head, “But that’s no excuse – there is no excuse. I just hope you can forgive me.”

  Sebastian sat back and grunted. “Why didn’t you divorce her?”

  Christian shot him a hard look. “I fucked over my brother for her. I ripped apart my family for a slut. It seemed like a fitting punishment to have to live with her.”

  Christian was silent for a moment and then continued. “Did you sign the paperwork for the house?”

  Sebastian nodded. “I did.”

  “Good, good. That was the main thing she wanted you know. She loved that place so much I’m pretty sure she would have done just about anything to get it.” Christian chuckled. “So I made sure she’d never have it. When she found out that I’d encouraged our parents’ plan to bring you back she completely lost her shit.”

  Christian used his good hand to lift his shirt up and tucked it under his sling where it wouldn’t slide back down. He then lowered the waistband of his pants to just above his groin to display four horizontal pink slashes extending from one hipbone to the other. “Not sure if she was trying to castrate me or disembowel me. Probably a good thing I have fast reflexes. She left that night while I was getting her handy work patched up and cleaned me out.” He snorted. “She must have had a goddamn moving truck on speed dial.”

  “If you were punishing yourself by staying married to her then you should have been relieved when she left yet the way it’s been told to me you started drinking and brawling. That sounds more like you were drowning your sorrows rather than celebrating.” Sebastian pointed out.

  “It was celebrating at first. I was having a grand old time partying and indulging every vice I could get my hands on. About a month, maybe six weeks later word got back to me that Mary Beth was fucking that cat shifter Liam Murphy.” Christian growled. “Neither one of us was faithful in that sham of a marriage and I honestly couldn’t give a rat’s ass who she fucks but the shit they were spreading about me, that I was a limp-dick coward, no way could I let that go. They made sure I heard about it no matter where I went. No way was she going to make me into a laughingstock. They wanted me to retaliate. As far as I’m concerned, Liam was challenging me and I accepted.”

  “Did you kill that pregnant female that night?” Sebastian asked.

  Christian looked shocked and then disgusted. “Hell no! All these years married to a woman I couldn’t stand and I never once raised a hand to her even drunk. That little cat was a sweetheart and I feel badly that she died, but whatever happened to her, it wasn’t me who killed her.”

  Sebastian nodded. He believed him. “Did you see what happened? I spoke to Colin Murphy and he believes it was an accident but no one seems to have seen anything.”

  Christian grunted. “Colin told me the same thing when he came to the hospital to question me. I had my hands full with the fight. By the time the cops came to break things up my eyes were pretty much swollen shut and I couldn’t see shit. I didn’t even know she was dead until Sheriff Stone came to question me the next day. Next thing I know, all hell’s breaking loose and the pride leader is calling for my head on a platter.”

  Sebastian leaned his head back staring at the ceiling and sighed; processing everything his brother had told him. One brother had isolated himself to avoid trusting, the other had shackled himself to someone he detested as penance. Finally they could mend the rift and hopefully, both find happiness. An image of Bug smiling floated through his mind and Sebastian couldn’t help but grin.

  Christian, obviously having seen the smile was able to guess what Sebastian was thinking and chuckled. “So, Susan Fuller, huh? When’s the wedding?”

  An hour later, Sebastian drove the short distance to the shops to meet Susan. He felt like the weight of the world had left his shoulders and the future looked increasingly bright. He was even whistling as he stepped out of Susan’s car.

  He gave a quick look around to see which shop she was most likely to be in when he saw her and something ugly twisted in his gut. She was standing over by another parked car smiling up at a handsome, well-dressed man close to her own age who had his arm around her. She was pressed tight to his side, her hand on his chest, and the look she was giving him – a look of love. Sebastian wanted to go over there and pull them apart so that he could beat the man bloody but his feet seemed rooted to the pavement. Then the man bent his head and kissed Susan. It was just a small peck on the lips but Susan accepted it willingly; she even smiled and Sebastian felt like he was going to be sick.

  He couldn’t believe that he could have been so wrong. After ten years he’d finally let himself trust only to be betrayed again. He wanted to bellow with rage at the pain, the unfairness.

  He braced himself against the car and dropped his head down. He was panting and needed to bring himself back under control before he shifted for everyone to see. By the time he looked up, the man was gone, leaving the parking lot in his expensive sedan while Susan stood there smiling and waving.

  Hadn’t he just told Christian that Susan was nothing like Mary Beth? He shook himself. No, she wasn’t her sister. This was Bug. There had to be a perfectly reasonable explanation. He would trust her – he did trust her.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Susan spotted Sebastian walking across the parking lot and she grinned widely, waving to get his attention. She was excited to show him her purchases, most of them were of the novelty tee shirt variety considering his size and the shops available in this area, but she thought he’d find them amusing. Then she saw his face and her smile fell; he seemed pale, his expression grim. Had things not gone well with Christian?

  She walked quickly to him and took his cold hand in hers. “What’s wrong? What is it? Do you need to sit? You don’t look well.” She pulled him unresisting toward the tree lined curb where she’d left her bags.

  Sebastian glanced down at her and then quickly away, he grimaced as if he was in pain. Susan lifted her hands to cup his cheeks. “Please talk to me, Seb. You’re scaring me. Did something happen?”

  “Who is he?” He asked, barely above a whisper; his voice betraying his vulnerability. “The man I just saw you with. You love him.”

  Susan felt her chest clench knowing that Sebastian had misconstrued what he’d seen and it was causing him pain. “That was Jon Parks and he’s been my best friend since high school, so yes, I love him but not the way I love you.” She stroked her thumbs over his cheeks and hated that he wouldn’t meet her eyes. “He’s also married to a wonderful man I introduced him to in college.”

  She finally had his full attention and was glad to see some of his color returning. She made sure to hold his gaze so that he could see her sincerity. “I’m not Mary Beth, Sebastian. You can trust me. There was a very good reason why I was still
a virgin until recently.” She smiled gently up at him. “I had never found anyone to compare to you. I love you, Seb. I’ve always loved you and I always will. You’re it for me.”

  She squealed a bit when Sebastian picked her up into his arms and hugged her tight. “I know you’re not Mary Beth, Bug and I do trust you. I love you so much that it scares me a little. The thought of losing you…”

  Sebastian’s voice shook from the intensity of his emotion and Susan felt the prickle of tears behind her eyes as she said, “You’ve always held my heart, Sebastian, and no matter where you go, it will always be with you. I’d happily follow you to Timbuktu if that’s what you wanted.”

  He chuckled and buried his face in her neck, his voice muffled by her hair but his words filled her heart with joy, “That goes both ways, Susan…”

  She interrupted him with a gasp and squeezed him so tight she was almost strangling him. “You called me Susan.” She said and then promptly burst into tears.

  Sebastian held her while she cried. Once she had wound down to sniffles and looked at him with a watery smile he continued, “When you left Malsum Pass you took my heart with you. I had no choice but to follow. Wherever you go, I go.”

  She nodded, her tears falling freely again. He leaned his forehead against hers. “For right now, why don’t we just follow each other home? I have no intention of leaving Mariposa anytime soon, and never without you. You’re part of me; the best part.”

  Susan squeezed her arms around Sebastian’s neck again, overcome with emotion and unable to speak. She was too happy for words. Sebastian said it all, “Let’s go home.”

  Once they’d gotten all of Susan’s purchases loaded into the trunk of her car they headed back to her house, deciding they would wait until the next day to visit the ranch. It was getting late and they were both hungry. While Sebastian drove he told her about his visit with his brother and she was happy that things were healing between them.

  When they arrived, her father wasn’t there but he’d left a note that he and his nurse friend had decided to go grab some dinner together. Susan laughed out loud when she read his “don’t wait up” with a smiley face at the bottom.

  While she and Sebastian fixed dinner, Susan told him about how she had met her friend Jon when his family moved here from Washington and how she had met Jon’s now husband Gary while she was away at college and had known immediately that she had to introduce the two. “I’m not usually one for matchmaking but I just knew that they would hit it off.”

  Susan grinned slyly. “I can’t believe you were jealous of poor Jon. Wait until I tell Gary. He’ll get a kick out of that.”

  Sebastian gasped dramatically and put a hand over his heart. “You mock my pain, woman?”

  She let out a trill of laughter and wrapped her arms around Sebastian’s waist. “I seem to recall someone being rather amused when I was jealous of the flower kitties, so I think it’s only fair.”

  Sebastian let out a bark of laughter, “The flower kitties?”

  Susan grinned and shrugged. “I forgot their names.”

  “I’ve forgotten every woman’s name but yours.” he said between kisses to her forehead and nose.

  Her look turned disgruntled. “You know, it feels like I’ve waited forever for you to finally call me Susan without being prompted and when you finally do, I realize that I’ll miss it if you never call me Bug again. How weird is that? It obviously grew on me while I wasn’t looking; like mold.”

  Sebastian chuckled low and gave her a squeeze. “I’ll call you anything you’d like.” And then with a comical wiggle of the eyebrows, “As long as I can call you mine.”

  Those words were like music to Susan’s ears and she leaned up on tiptoes to kiss him; a sweet kiss meant to show her appreciation until he nudged her lips apart with a low growl. Her passion escalated quickly and when the oven timer dinged, Susan regretfully pulled away and had to resist the urge to kick the oven for its retched timing. Sebastian looked equally frustrated as he glared at the oven before running a hand through his hair. Her father may come home at any time, regardless that his note implied he’d be out late, and getting caught making love on the kitchen island was not her idea of fun.

  She cleared her throat; a change in topic was needed. She grabbed the potholders and opened the oven door as she said, “Anyway, I was telling Jon all about you and he can’t wait to meet you. He and Gary always come to my dad’s annual Christmas party so you’ll meet them then.”

  Susan watched Sebastian carefully from the corner of her eye as she settled the hot casserole dish on a trivet. Sebastian had come a long way since she’d first seen him again in Malsum Pass but how would he feel about a gathering the size her father had every year? She didn’t want to force him into a situation where he would feel uncomfortable.

  He grunted. “I remember your father’s parties. They were fun.” Then he inhaled and his stomach rumbled loudly.

  Susan laughed. “Let’s get you fed.”

  Once they’d eaten, Sebastian settled on the couch in the living room and Susan started pulling her purchases out of the bags to show him. She had found a sweatshirt and a T-shirt both displaying the Yosemite National Park logo, a T-shirt with a picture of a bear that read I’m a Bear without My Coffee that Susan found particularly amusing, a Keep Bears Wild T-shirt, and finally a nice marled tan funnel-neck alpaca pullover.

  Once she’d refolded the last and added it to the pile she popped a movie into the DVD player and settled down next to him on the couch. She sighed as he put his arm around her. “I would have picked out some pants for you as well but I didn’t think to ask your size before I left. I mean the shirts were pretty easy; I just went with extra, extra large.”

  He kissed the top of her head. “You did great. I think I now own more clothes than I collected over the entire ten years I was away.” He said with a chuckle.

  The movie began and Susan nuzzled her face into his shoulder. “We really need to get you a cell phone though. We should probably plan to do that tomorrow.”

  Sebastian nodded against her hair and rubbed her back. Before the movie was even halfway over, she was asleep. He ignored the screen and leaned his head back against the couch, the day’s events playing through his mind. He had to admit that reconciling with Christian had felt really good. Just a few days ago he would have said that he didn’t have that kind of forgiveness in him; he was glad to be proven wrong. If it weren’t for his mother’s letter he honestly didn’t know if he would have even made the effort to see his brother.

  Thoughts of his mother brought on another longing; it had been ten long years since he’d spoken to either of his parents and he had good news to deliver. His mother’s letter had included a cell phone number. Sebastian lifted his head and looked around for a phone. He didn’t see Susan’s cell phone, but there was a cordless phone in a cradle by the recliner.

  Carefully, so as not to wake her he shifted out from under her and gently resettled her against the cushions. She stirred a bit and sighed but otherwise, remained asleep.

  Within minutes he had retrieved the letter and was dialing the number listed. While it rang he glanced at the clock. He had no idea where in the world his parents currently were, but he hoped they weren’t sleeping at the moment.

  His mother answered the phone, her voice concerned. “Marcus, has something happened?”

  Sebastian hesitated, realizing that the number had obviously come up on her caller ID. Now that he’d heard her voice, he wasn’t sure what to say.

  “Marcus?” His mother prompted loudly. Sebastian could hear lots of noise in the background; people talking, honking horns, and what sounded like a gusty wind so she was obviously outside.

  He took a deep breath and said, “Hi, Mom.”

  There was a long pause, but Sebastian could hear a catch in her breathing despite the background noise before she yelled “Sebastian?” and then probably to his father, “Honey, Sebastian is on the phone!” before a mewling cry came
through the line and she said, “Oh, my Sebastian.”

  “Mom, I’m home.” Sebastian said with a smile, trying to reassure her. “I’ve come home.” Unfortunately his attempt to cheer her only made her sob louder.

  There was a muffling sound like a hand being drawn across the mouthpiece of the phone and then Sebastian heard his father’s voice. “Sebastian?” While he heard his mother in the background between sobs say “Give me back the phone, I need to talk to my son!”

  “It’s me, Dad. I’m home.”

  His father let out a grunt and then there was more muffling until he heard his mother, “We’ll be on the next plane home, Sebastian. Don’t you dare leave!” and his father’s agreement, “We shouldn’t have any problem getting a flight today. Are you at the ranch?” His parents had obviously put the phone between them to share.

  “We plan on going out to the ranch tomorrow but right now I’m at Marcus Fuller’s house.”

  There was only the background noise for a moment and then he heard his mother ask “We?” a second before his father said, “You aren’t with Mary Beth are you?”

  Sebastian smiled softly and glanced into the living room where Susan was still sleeping peacefully. “No, not Mary Beth; Susan found me and brought me home. I love her and I have every intention of marrying her.”

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Sebastian had spoken a little longer with his parents. They had informed him that they were currently in Saint Petersburg, Russia but that they would be booking their flight back home post haste. He had wanted to do the unselfish thing and reassure them that there was no need, but he wanted to see them too badly. As if his father could read his mind he had said, “Your mother and I may want to see the world, but we will always come home for our family.” And then his mother chimed in with “Besides, this will be the first Christmas in ten years that the family can be together and I refuse to be the cause of another separation. As for the future, we absolutely expect to be invited home for all weddings. Of course any birth of future grandchildren goes without saying.”