Dane shook Blue’s hand and greeted the rest of the pack.
My sisters pulled me into a group hug.
So it was over. Creed was dead, along with several of his followers.
Blue had promised that Blake would be punished for his deception, but I was just glad that it was finally over.
As I pulled from my sisters’ embrace, I glanced out in time to see the pack kneeling at Dane’s feet.
Oh no! Did this mean that Dane would become their pack leader? That would mean he would leave us.
I’m sure my face registered alarm and Dane and I locked eyes.
His smile was reassuring me that all was okay. I took a deep breath and Dane announced that he was not interested in leading their pack.
“It seems I have a little pack of my own,” he said with a smirk, looking in our direction.
I felt giddy at his words. He was staying, and then I felt my heart sink, because the facts had not changed and therefore we still could not be together.
Dane appointed Blue to be the new pack leader. It would now be led by a were-jaguar and that was just fine with everyone. Even Blake seemed relieved.
Dane approached me, and I could see pain in his grey eyes as he took my hand in his.
I had a new respect for him after the realization that he was that teen were-lion that defeated Creed all those years ago. He was the one I would dream of that would come and rescue us again from Creed’s evil clutches. He was my hero.
“Cali, now that you know who I am I have to ask you to forgive me.”
I shook my head in confusion. “Forgive you? What on earth for?”
“If I had killed Creed back when I first defeated him, your parents would still be alive today. I’m so sorry.”
I stood on my tiptoes and took his face in my hands. “You have nothing to apologize for. Everything happened the way it was supposed to. You were very brave to take on Creed at such a young age. And you defeated him. You couldn’t have known he would come back. You are my hero, Dane Savage. Now—and forever.”
* * * * * *
Dane’s POV
I said my goodbyes to the pack. They would be just fine now. They had a good man as their pack leader. He would lead them the way they should be led.
I watched Calico as she embraced her sisters, and I knew she too would be just fine, but it wouldn’t be with me. That reality was killing me, but I would always watch over her—always protect her.
I turned to leave with my chest heavy and my heart broken.
Chapter Eighteen
As the pack began to disperse, taking the bodies of their injured with them, the girls and I began the long cleanup.
I glanced out the window and spotted Dane leaving. He glanced back at me and then disappeared into the woods, headed for home.
I sighed and sat down.
Tabby touched her hand to my shoulder. “I think it’s time we talked.”
She took me to the front porch swing, which somehow had managed to stay unharmed during the battle.
She took a deep breath and began. “There is something I need to tell you. It won’t be easy for you to hear, but it’s time.” She took my hand in hers. “Because I’m the oldest, Mom confided this to me. I’m assuming for such a time as this. A long time ago, when Kiki and I were very young, Mom was assaulted by a were-lion. He was trying to scare her and it went too far. He forced himself on her.”
I felt my heart restrict in pain. “Oh no! Poor Mom. What did Dad do?”
“He challenged the lion but was injured. The lion was too powerful. Anyway, this will be hard for you but you must know.” She turned to me and took my face in her hands. “Nine months later you were born.”
My eyes grew wide and the tears formed in pools there. “Are you saying that Dad wasn’t my real dad and that this were-lion was my dad?”
She nodded. “I’m sorry, Cali, but Dad always loved you just as much as the rest of us, if not more. He had such a big heart.”
“I know he did. I’m very grateful for that.” My heart suddenly jumped and I sprang to my feet. “It was Creed!”
She nodded again.
I slumped back down on the swing, and she took me in her arms and cradled me as she moved the swing back and forth.
Even with all the pain flooding within me, something grabbed my attention, something that was bubbling up inside of me that I never expected; hope.
“Wait,” I said, sitting up straight and wiping my tears. “If I am half lion then that means…”
Tabby’s smile grew wide. “Yes. You and Dane are not different after all.”
I wiped away the last of my tears and stood, looking down at her one last time.
“Oh, what are you waiting for?” she asked. “Go! Go!”
With those words, I threw caution to the wind and sprang from the porch. My feet barely touched the ground, and I darted through the trees with a fervency I never knew I possessed.
I could see him standing in front of his beloved garden, his back to me.
“Dane!” I cried. “Dane!
He turned.
“Dane!”
Even from the distance I could see that he had opened his arms wide. He had no idea what I was about to tell him and yet his arms were open—ready for me.
“Dane! I’m coming! I’m coming!” I repeated the words that I remembered in my subconscious. The words I heard him yell to me when he was coming to rescue me after the crash, because now I was coming to rescue him, and he would rescue me right back—forever.
Epilogue
The girls and I were in the heat of planning my wedding, and all was going just great until we received news from the pack that Axel and Blaze had run off. The worst part of that; they had taken Blake with them.
Blue had assured us that they were in pursuit and would catch them, but I was more worried that Blake might try to stop my wedding. It was three months away, and I was biting my nails with worry. Now I’m not normally a worrier, but come on, this was my big day. I’ve heard the horror stories of the disasters that happen on your wedding day. I could see it now; I’m in my beautiful dress, walking down the aisle toward the most handsome man in the world and Blake shows up to crash the whole thing. He sprays smoke into the room, confusing everyone, and grabs me, taking me far away from the man of my dreams.
“Cali! Snap out of it! Do you like this dress?” Fancy was asking, twirling in front of me.
It was at least the twentieth dress she had tried on, and I hated it. It was green and made her look like a tent, although I would never tell her that.
I shook my head. “I’m sorry, Fancy, but I don’t like it at all.”
She huffed. “Really? This is getting ridiculous.”
“Oh, stop your complaining and try on the next one already.”
“Fine, but you better love this one or I’ll take every last one of your Spree rolls and never let you have any more for the rest of your life.”
Okay, that was a bit dramatic.
In the meantime, I pulled out my phone to text Dane and see what he was doing. He was supposed to be getting him and his groomsmen fitted for their tuxes. Blue was one of his groomsmen, and he was staying with Dane at the farm for a few days. He had left Talon in charge of the pack during his brief absence.
After a few minutes, he finally messaged me back, stating that they were having a bit of trouble with the tuxes. Since some of them were such big men, the store wasn’t sure they had anything that would fit them. They were informed that the tuxes may have to be specially made and in that case could take longer to come in.
Oh great!
I was messaging him back when I finally heard Fancy yelling at me. How long she had been talking to me, I didn’t know.
“What do you think about this one?!”
I gazed up and gasped. It was perfect! It was lavender and strapless. It made her look like an angel, which was a very big feat, mind you.
I decided to mess with her. I placed my finger on my chin a
nd tapped it. “You know, I think I like the last one better. Can you try it on again?”
She saw right through me and took off one of her shoes and launched it at me. “You bully!”
I laughed, dodging the shoe, and said, “You look so beautiful in that dress. I think you’re gonna give Blue a heart attack.” I smirked playfully.
“Oh, please.” She rolled her eyes at me. “That guy is large and scary. Why do I care what he thinks?”
“Oh, you care. You can’t fool me.”
“Well,” she said, “you need to stop playing matchmaker and concentrate on all the other things you have to do; like getting this wedding planned, marrying the man of your dreams without too much drama, oh and you have to help us find a way to get our little ghosts, May and Ivey into heaven.”
“Yes! That’s been bugging me. They deserve to be in heaven.”
I huffed and slouched forward. She was right. I had a ton to do. To add to the growing list, I needed to find my sisters husbands and move my things into the Farmhouse and turn it into a lovely cottage. I wasn’t sure how Dane was going to feel about that one.
How am I going to get it all done?
I stopped and thought about it for a minute and then perked up. Wait! I’m Calico Cross, and I’m a she-were-cougar-lion. There is nothing I cannot do.
The End—for now
A Note from the Author
First off, I want to say that I don’t necessarily believe in ghosts. I do, however, agree that they can add character and even fun to a story, which I believe happened to this one.
Also, if you have not read my Charity Series, starring Levi Drake, the leader of the werewolf pack that was briefly mentioned in this story, please go to Amazon and check it out.
I would like to give a special thank you to my beta readers and friends, Sydney, Haley, Emily, Cassi, Tammy, Ana, Hannah, Ashley, Kami, Erin, and Dominique. As always, you guys are amazing young women and mean the world to me.
Thank you for taking the time to read this story. If enough people love it I’m considering making this a series, so if you enjoyed it, please go to Amazon.com and leave a review. God bless you.
About the Author
DeAnna Kinney is the author of the successful Charity Series, a Young-Adult Paranormal series with a twist. She is also the author of New Adult and Adult Romance, Action Adventure, and Children's books. She is a wife of twenty years and the mother of three amazing kids. She considers herself as fun-loving and a bit peculiar. Besides writing, she loves reading, all things purple, Star Wars, decorating on a budget, and dancing while she cooks (she can see her kids rolling their eyes as we speak). She believes whole-heartedly that chocolates and a good book go hand in hand. And, having experienced it herself, believes utterly in the power of true love.
She lives in North Carolina with her husband, three children, a fish named Hector, and a turtle named Little Ninja.
Visit her website: http://deannakinney.wix.com/deannakinney
Or visit her on Facebook at Deanna Kinney, author
**KEEP READING FOR AN EXCERPT OF CHARITY MOON (CHARITY SERIES BOOK 1)
Charity Moon
Charity Series Book 1
I stopped and stood there for a moment trying to decide what to do next. I scrambled through my purse until I felt my cell phone. I wanted to scream when I glanced down at the screen—blast—no signal! I decided to go back to where the truck had been and follow the tracks to the road, if I could even see the tracks. Though the moon was full, the woods were thick, and I could barely see my hand in front of my face.
As I worked my way back through the dark forest, I felt a drop on my cheek. I stopped and looked up as rain drops began to fall. “Great, what else can go wrong?” I mumbled. Then I heard it—a low, menacing growl. It was in front of me and it was close. I stared out into the dark, squinting against the rain, and that’s when I saw them, a pair of yellow, glowing eyes. They were higher than I expected, much higher, and I froze in fear. After a brief moment, I somehow compelled my legs to move and began backing up slowly, turning and bolting in the opposite direction. Whatever it was I wasn’t going to stand there and wait for it to eat me.
The rain pelted me in the face as I ran through the trees. Branches were clawing and scraping, tearing my dress as I passed. I heard something behind me, chasing me, and I ordered my legs to run faster, jumping and dodging trees frantically. I could hear it closing in on me. I could almost feel its hot breath on my back. I took a risk and glanced behind me, but saw nothing. Just as I was about to turn back around, I screamed, falling over an overturned tree and hitting the right side of my head on something hard.
As I lay there, motionless and in pain, I braced myself for the impending attack, but there was nothing. Besides the rain, the forest was quiet and still. I laid there for a moment waiting for my breathing to regulate before trying to move. I moaned as I tried to get up, my arms jello beneath me, but the effort was useless.
I’m not sure how long I lay there, perhaps only minutes, drifting in and out of consciousness, until I was suddenly aware of two arms sliding under me and lifting me effortlessly from the wet forest floor. In that flicker of a moment, I thought about struggling, but the thought left as quickly as it came. And, without further thought of my own safety, I wrapped my arms around the guy’s neck and held on as he began to run. The rain continued to drench us and I was so cold. Within seconds the heat from his body engulfed me—warming me instantly.
It was then that I noticed he was shirtless. I was puzzled but not alarmed—I guess I should’ve been, but—I wasn’t. I rested my head on his shoulder and let him carry me off through the dark forest. I was too weary to resist even if I wanted to, but as crazy as it might sound, my only concern was that I didn’t want him to put me down. Somehow my senses told me I wasn’t in danger. I felt safe—something I hadn’t felt since the last time my dad held me in his arms so many years ago. I lifted my head weakly and tried to make out his face hidden by dark, wet hair. And, as the moon peeked through the trees, the dim light casting a soft glow, I caught a brief glimpse and then was unnerved as a strangely familiar scent hit me.
It couldn’t be.
“Levi?” I asked groggily. There was no answer. Then my consciousness left me, and I slipped away into darkness.
**THIS BOOK IS AVAILABLE ON AMAZON**
Calico Cross (Cross Series Book 1) Page 8