Mount Roxby Box Set

by Aimie Jennison

  Sometime during my story, I’d perched on the edge of Theo’s desk. I glance down at the ball of rubber bands I’ve been nervously rolling between my fingers. “Sorry, I didn’t think about TMI. I just wanted to tell you everything at last.”

  Theo releases a short sigh. “Well, one mystery is solved at last.” I frown at him, unsure what mystery he’s talking about. “I know why we suddenly had a new sofa after the wedding. What the hell did you do with the old one?”

  I laugh at the memory of that night and the realisation of the task before me—in keeping our betrayal a secret. After the night’s events, if a wolf had walked into the house, they would’ve smelt what we’d been up to. Selena’s scent and mine would be mixed together along with the tell-tale scent of sex. It was all over the sofa. “After…” I pause. Knowing he doesn’t want to hear the details, I hold back on spelling the situation out. “Selena told me that it changed nothing. She loved you with everything she had and wanted to marry you the next day.” My heart aches at the memory, even with the time that has passed. “She didn’t want anyone to find out, so I had to do everything I could to make sure it stayed between us. That meant the sofa had to go.”

  “Is that why you didn’t turn up for your best man duties?” Theo asks. His sadness fills the room, becoming so thick in the air it feels like I’m choking. I cough, trying to once again breathe.

  The guilt that runs through me reminds me of my reasons for missing my brother’s wedding. “I couldn’t face you, and to be honest, I didn’t know if my wolf would sit back and allow the wedding to go ahead if I were there. I needed to stay away for everyone’s sake.” I rub a hand over my face, trying to wipe away the tiredness that I’ve been collecting over the years. I’ve never fully been able to drop the guilt I’ve been carrying.

  Theo’s arms wrap around me in a hug. “It’s okay, little brother. You don’t need to feel guilty anymore,” he says, having clearly sensed it through the pack bonds. I give him a quick pat on the back and he pulls away. “I can’t believe Selena has known about us all this time and just played along pretending she didn’t.” He shakes his head in disbelief. “Why didn’t she tell me? There were so many times she could have used it as ammo against me. Especially towards the end when we constantly argued.”

  “Most probably because I told her how dangerous it was for her to know.” Thinking back on it, maybe I shouldn’t have told her. If she’d used that ammo in the heat of an argument like Theo had suggested, she could have been killed.

  Just the thought has my wolf on edge, has him wanting to break free and fight off anyone who may harm our mate. I close my eyes and take a deep breath.

  Theo’s hand rests on my shoulder, his energy giving me the power to push my wolf back.

  “Thank you,” I say, opening my eyes and locking them with his.

  He drops his hand from my shoulder. “You’ve been a lone wolf for far too long. I think you need us as much as we need you.” He pours us both another drink.

  Taking the glass, I swirl the drink around as I contemplate his words. “So, you still want me to stay?”

  “Of course, I do. Hell, I want you to stay more than I did before you started talking.” He laughs. “Who would have thought, telling me about how you slept with my wife could have such a happy outcome?” I laugh along with him. It is kind of crazy when you put it that way. “The only issue now is how are you going to claim your mate?”

  I shake my head in disbelief at how this is all turning out. “Selena’s a runner. She isn’t going to welcome me with open arms.” I sigh. It’s going to take time. But if I’m taking Theo up on his offer, I’ll have plenty of time and we’ll be under the same roof, so there’ll be plenty of opportunities to win her trust.

  I guess I owe thanks to Theo and Bel for not slamming the door in her face when she turned up on their doorstep, pregnant and homeless. From what I’ve heard, she’d returned hoping he would take her back and be willing to raise another man’s child. Which knowing Theo and the fact he’s always wanted to start a family, he would have done just that… if he hadn’t already found Bel.

  Theo spins his glass in his hand, his eyes pinned to the amber liquid swirling around it. “How do you feel about the bringing up another man’s baby?”

  Lifting my eyes, I lock them on his, hoping he can see my certainty. “A stranger may have brought the baby into existence, but it will be mine and my mate’s baby in all the ways that matter.

  Theo downs his drink and pats me on the back. “Drink up. We’ve got a grieving pack to deal with, and you’ve got a woman’s heart to win.”

  With a smile, I salute him with my glass before downing it. As I grab my bag from the floor, I revel in the settled feeling that flows through me. I have a pack. I instantly realise Theo was right: I’ve been a lone wolf for far too long.

  Eight

  CAT’S DON’T LIKE BAGS

  Selena

  I stop in my tracks as I face my biggest mistake. To this day, my heart and head can’t decide whether the mistake was sleeping with him or letting him go.

  I’ve been avoiding him since he first arrived back in town. The day I came face-to-face with him after all this time… my God, I felt like running for the hills. Most of me still feels like running, but that little piece of me, the tiny bit that thinks letting him go was the mistake, keeps me here. Well that, and the life growing inside me. I need to stay here for him or her. I’ve got friends and support here in Mount Roxby. Even if they did come from a failed marriage. As soon as I’m able to work and get some money behind me, I’ll find my own place. I’m just grateful that Theo and his new wife, Bel, are willing to let me stay under their roof for the time being. I’m not sure I’d be as understanding if I were in their shoes.

  “Selena.” My name rolling off his tongue makes my legs turn to jelly. I’ve missed him saying my name.

  “Cain,” I breathe his name. It’s barely a whisper but I know he’ll hear it with his wolf’s hearing. He’s the only one who knows I’m aware of their secret. After all, he told it to me years ago, but he also told me we’d both be in danger if anyone found out. So I never let on that I knew, not even after I was married to Theo.

  Cain’s eyes drop to the hand resting on my growing stomach. “How far along are you?”

  I look down at the bump in question and stroke it lovingly. I’ve found myself doing it more and more as it’s grown. “Seven months. I already look like a beached whale. I dread to think how I’ll look nearer my due date.”

  “You couldn’t look anything but beautiful.” The words seem to leave his mouth before he realises what he’s saying. He clears his throat and drops his eyes to his feet.

  My eyes follow his. Spotting the bag at his feet, my heart sinks. He’s leaving again?

  “No. Not anymore.” His answer has me snapping my eyes back to his. I register I must have said the question out loud. “I’m needed here. Wes….” He doesn’t finish the sentence, but I was here when it happened. Wes has been killed and somehow, they all knew without even receiving a phone call. It was as if they were psychic. Obviously, it has to be a wolf thing, and it’s not like I couldn’t question it. In fact, I have a feeling they’ve forgotten I’m still here.

  But Cain knows.

  “So, he is… dead.” I struggle to say the word. The last time I had to think about that word, I’d lost my baby brother and father.

  The grim look on his face is answer enough, but he still gives me a quick nod.

  “I’m sorry. He was….” Glancing around, I spot people looking at us, clearly eavesdropping, and I let my sentence fade off. I don’t want to say anything that could alert them to me knowing their secret.

  “Pack. Yes. He was beta, which is a huge part of the pack. Theo’s….” The horror must show on my face because he reaches out and takes my arm as my legs wobble threatening to give way. I’ve kept this secret for so long. Now he’s going to get us both killed. He pulls me towards the window seat. “Sit down before yo
u fall down. Then tell me what made you look so terrified.”

  I glance around the large formal dining room again and notice one of the guys glaring at Cain. “You said…” I lower my voice. “Pack.”

  “Oh.” He laughs. “That cats out the bag now, beautiful. I’ve just spent the last hour telling Theo everything.”

  My eyes well with tears. “Everything?” I repeat, as dread fills me. He’s in a world of trouble and it’s all my fault.

  He crouches before me and brushes away a tear as his hands frame my face. “Don’t look so worried. Everything is going to be fine. No one will be upset with you. Okay?” He clearly has the wrong end of the stick. I’m not worried about me.

  I pin him with a stern look. “It’s not me I’m worried about. What’s going to happen to you?” I bite my lip in concern, part of me not wanting to hear his answer.

  “I told you a long time ago, I was the only person who could tell you. You’re my true mate, and whether I’ve claimed you or not, I’m allowed to tell you.” He pops my lip from between my teeth with his forefinger. “So, stop chewing on that poor lip.”

  I lift my hands and wipe at my eyes, feeling marginally better. “He’ll hate me. Oh God… the night before the wedding. And I’ve lied all this time, pretending not to know.” I hide my face in my hands as thoughts of Theo kicking me out of his home and running me out of town run through my mind.

  “I don’t hate you, Selena. In fact, it helps me forgive you.” Theo’s voice has me peeking out from between my fingers. He’s crouched before me where Cain had been only moments ago.

  “Really?” I ask. Seeing him smiling at me genuinely helps me relax. I slowly drop my hands from my face.

  “Yes. I understand why you and Cain did what you did. Neither of you had a choice in the matter. You were meant for each other. It’s as simple as that.”

  Meant for each other. Is it really that easy? If we were meant for each other, wouldn’t we be together now? The thought makes my heart ache.

  Part of me wants to look around for Cain, to see if Theo’s words hurt him as much as they do me, but I don’t. Instead, I give Theo a smile that I’m not really feeling. “Thank you.”

  Looking in his emerald eyes makes me remember how much I loved him. He is the one person who made me believe the saying “one’s eyes are the window to one’s soul.” His eyes say so much.

  “I did love you… so much. I hope you don’t question that.” I feel the need to make him understand. I wipe a tear from my eye and look away. Seeing a number of people looking at us, my stomach sinks as I’m suddenly aware we aren’t the only ones in the room. How could I have forgotten?

  “I don’t, Lena.” The nickname he used to call me has me snapping my attention back to him. He really doesn’t hate me. “You wouldn’t have stuck around if you didn’t love me.”

  I give him a genuine smile as a weight I didn’t realise I was carrying lifts from my shoulders.

  Feeling freer than I have for as long as I can remember, I glance around the room, and for the first time tonight, I really see the people here. See the solemn expressions on everyone’s faces. And I realise it doesn’t take a werewolf to feel the sadness in the room. The loss of Wes has hit everyone hard. “How’s Alyssa?” I ask, knowing what the answer will be before the words leave my mouth.

  Theo sighs as he stands and then sits beside me in the window seat. “She’s a mess. She can’t bear to be near any of us. It just makes her miss him more.”

  I nod, conscious of what it’s like to grieve someone. “She needs to deal with her own grief before she can deal with all of yours.”

  “How did you know that?” The surprise I hear in the high pitch of his voice has me turning to look at him.

  I shrug. “My dad went through the same thing when we lost Mum. It was a hard couple of years.”

  He nods. “Of course. I’m sorry.”

  I place my hand on his forearm. He always seemed to be comforted by touch. “It was a long time ago.” A throat clears, and I glance up to see Bel step up beside Theo, causing me to remove my hand quickly. I don’t want her to get the wrong idea. I give her a quick smile before speaking again. “If Alyssa can’t handle being around the pack, she’s not going to be able to go home. Where will she be staying?”

  “As much as that statement has me wanting to ask a number of questions, the main one being the fact that Selena seems to know about the pack, I’m going to let that slide because I want to know the answer to Selena’s question more.” Bel prods Theo in the arm. “But you better fill me in later.”

  Theo pulls Bel into his lap, enticing a laugh from her. Watching them like this, I can’t help but think they really are made for each other.

  “I wouldn’t dream of keeping you out of the loop,” he says, giving her a quick peck on the cheek before turning his attention back to me. “I’ve sent her to a safe house. It’s one we haven’t used before, so there will be no wolf scents inside.”

  “Is she on her own?” Bel asks frantically. “She shouldn’t be on her own.”

  Theo rubs a hand down Bel’s bicep. “Hey. You know I wouldn’t leave her alone. Jared’s with her. He’s going to stay for as long as she needs.” Bel relaxes in Theo’s arms and hearing his words, I relax too. Having lived in the same house as Jared for a while now, I know Alyssa will be well looked after. He’s a protector, not unlike Theo.

  “I’d like to go and visit her. Maybe give her another shoulder if she needs one.” Theo looks at me with distant eyes, making me think he must be weighing up my plan. “We were close once, and I’m not part of the pack.”

  He nods. “You might be right. Give me your phone and I’ll put the address in.”

  I glance around, feeling somewhat stupid. “I don’t have a phone.” Theo and Bel glance at each other, both frowning. “I don’t have anyone to keep in contact with.” I swallow and lower my voice, feeling vulnerable and somewhat ashamed. “I don’t have any friends.”

  “Here.” A phone is held out across me, towards Theo. “Put it in mine. I’ll take her,” Cain says as Theo takes the phone and starts tapping at the screen. Cain’s fingers brush my shoulder and I look up.

  “I’m perfectly fine getting myself there if you have things to do.” I glance around the room at the people filling it. The room has a sorrowful feel to it, although people are chatting whilst giving small touches here and there—comforting each other.

  “I’m sorry, Selena, but I don’t think you’ll get that bump behind the steering wheel.” Theo’s words have me snapping my attention his way. He might as well have said I was a beached whale. Although, he’s right. The last time I drove it wasn’t exactly comfortable being squeezed behind the wheel, not that I’ll let him know that.

  Bel smacks him in the chest. “I can’t believe you just said that.” She turns to me, a blush on her cheeks as she smiles, obviously embarrassed by her husband’s comment. “Don’t listen to him, Selena. He can be so insensitive sometimes.”

  Cain holds his hand out to me. “Shall we?” Taking his hand, I use everything I have not to groan as I stand. I may feel and look like a beached whale, but I don’t need someone else to point it out. I do have some dignity.

  We barely make it two steps before we’re stopped by Frankie and Jesse. From what I’ve read between the lines, they’re from Western Australia. I’m assuming another pack, since Jesse has the same intense feeling that Theo and Cain both give off. Frankie is different. She has a warmth to her the others don’t. Not even the women in Theo’s pack. Frankie had been missing, and somehow Cain ended up finding her. She’s timid around everyone except Cain, even her husband, Jesse. I can’t help but feel jealous of the connection she has with Cain. Have they slept together? It’s irrational; it’s not as if Cain’s mine. Hell, I’m his brother’s ex-wife. I have no right at all to be turning all hulk over thoughts like that.

  “Cain,” Frankie says quietly as she edges forward towards his already open arms. It’s like he knew she wante
d a hug without her even suggesting it. Like I said, they have a unique connection.

  “Hey, darling.” Cain greets her as she settles in his arms, her head tucked nicely under his chin.

  I watch her husband and can’t help but wonder if he’s feeling jealous, too. The tightness of his jaw and clenching of his fists at his sides confirms my thoughts. Jesse closes his eyes and takes a deep breath. Upon opening them, he looks behind me, and I can only guess he’s looking at Theo. With a sharp nod, he walks past me.

  “We’re leaving,” Frankie says, lifting her chin to look up at Cain. “Theo needs to focus on the pack and I don’t think he can, not with another alpha in his territory.” She lets out a small sigh. “And to be honest, Jesse’s struggling having me around all these wolves we don’t know.” She rests her head back on his chest and he gently rubs her back.

  “I’m going to miss you and Angel. Give her a kiss from me.” He smiles the sweetest smile as he talks about Angel. I can’t help but wonder who she is? The green-eyed monster comes through even stronger than before.

  “We’ll miss you, too. You could always come back with us.” I can hear the eagerness in her voice, but it seems to make Cain stiffen.

  “You don’t need me anymore, darling. You’ve got Jesse and his whole pack.” He pulls her off his chest and holds her at arm’s-length leaning down to get to her eye level.

  I look around the room, wondering whether I should leave? I feel like I’m intruding on something intimate.

  “You’ve got to let him in, Frankie. It’s the only way you can both heal,” Cain’s says, his tone soft yet insistent.

  She nods. “I know.” I watch entranced as a tear runs down her cheek. Cain’s quick to wipe it away before giving her a kiss on the forehead.

  I feel a hand brush my back and I jump, my hands going straight to my stomach, protecting my baby. “Sorry. It’s Selena, isn’t it?” Jesse asks as he steps around me holding his hands up in an “I’m not going to harm you” gesture. I nod. “There’s just a lot of people in here. It’s hard not to touch people as you pass.”