Farmer Bear

by Anya Nowlan

  “She looks so peaceful,” Riley whispered. “Not a care in the world.”

  “As it should be,” Max replied, finally closing the door.

  The two of them snuggled up on the couch after that, the windows open to let in a cooling breeze. As they talked, Max started to act more like himself. Entertaining him with the wildest stories she had picked up in her law career, Riley soon found herself laughing, forgetting all about her earlier concerns.

  “You’re telling me robbers actually leave their own IDs behind as they flee the scene of their crime?” Max asked. “That has to be an urban legend.”

  “It happens more than you would think,” she replied. “I guess a lot can fall out of your pockets when you’re busy filling them with other people’s valuables.”

  “Makes the cops’ job a lot easier, doesn’t it?” Max cocked a brow at her.

  “Sure does,” she chuckled.

  Tucked into the crook of Max’s arm, Riley let herself sag against him, reveling in being close to him. Every minute they spent together, the further away the image of her back in Chicago, working at Latham & Ellis slipped from her mind.

  Only one thing dampened the mood, and that was the constant buzzing of Max’s phone. Finally, he fished it out of his pocket, glanced at the screen, and turned the vibration off entirely, resting the cell on the edge of the couch.

  While Riley appreciated him giving her all of his attention, she couldn’t help but wonder who exactly was texting him this much, and at such a late hour. Max offered up no explanation, and she wasn’t sure she wanted to pry.

  He was entitled to his privacy, after all.

  “A drink?” Max suggested after a while.

  “I could go for a beer,” Riley replied.

  “Coming right up,” he said, pushing himself off the couch.

  He had barely gotten to the fridge when the sound of Olivia crying cut through the silence in the house.

  “Probably a bad dream,” Max commented. “I’ll be right back.”

  Riley just smiled and nodded as he disappeared down the hallway. She decided to get the beers herself, grabbing two bottles and an opener from the kitchen nook. As she settled back down onto the couch, stretching out and getting comfortable, the blinking light on the top corner of Max’s cell phone seemed to taunt her.

  Riley had to admit – she was curious. Max was usually so open with her, it was odd he hadn’t said anything about his phone blowing up, when it was clear they were both very aware of it.

  When the screen lit up with a missed call, she started to think that something might be wrong. Was she keeping him from something? Maybe it was a friend that needed his help, or a family member that wanted to talk.

  Her curiosity getting the best of her, Riley leaned over, just enough to get a good look at the screen. A new text had just come through, with an unsaved number as the sender. Frowning, it took her a couple of seconds before the message really registered in her brain.

  I’ll be waiting for you at the motel. Don’t take too long ;)

  In the other room, Olivia had stopped crying, but Riley was only vaguely aware of that. Who the hell was waiting for Max at the motel? And what was with the winky face? Riley tried to come up with an innocent, reasonable explanation, but was coming up short.

  Maybe it was her career choice that made her suspicious, but there was definitely something shady going on.

  Riley nearly smacked herself on the forehead. It wasn’t a stretch at all to think that Max would already be involved with someone here. He knew most of the people in town, after all, and could have easily rekindled a former flame.

  I mean, look at him. Who wouldn’t want to get a piece of that?

  And it wasn’t as if they had really established what they were, or how serious the relationship was. Still, a keen sense of betrayal took over.

  Riley almost jumped out of her seat when she spotted Max standing in the doorway, looking from her to the phone.

  “Riley…” he started, but didn’t say anything else.

  She didn’t like the guilty tone to his voice or how he just stood there, arms slack at his sides. Immediately, Riley jumped to the worst conclusions. How could she not?

  “Who are you meeting at the motel?” she asked, trying to keep her voice even.

  “No one,” he replied, seeming to struggle with his answer. “No one you need to worry about.”

  “That’s not really an answer, Max,” she said.

  He took a step closer, holding out his hands. Looking torn, he seemed to be weighing what to say next. Riley, on the other hand, felt hurt and naïve, which she had thought she had grown out of. She knew better, didn’t she? Something about Max had been off all day, and suddenly she didn’t buy his story about meeting with his real estate agent anymore.

  “It’s private,” he said. “But it has nothing to do with us, I swear.”

  “And I’m supposed to just take your word for it?” Riley scoffed, shooting up from her seat. “If you have nothing to hide, why not just tell me?”

  “I don’t want to drag you into my problems,” Max replied.

  “That’s not good enough,” she shook her head.

  Max remained silent as he looked straight at her, an expression on his face that sent a sharp pain shooting through her chest. All Riley wanted to do was to go back to a moment before, when they were just talking, curled up on the couch, with her safely tucked away under his arm.

  But she had been played for a fool before. And she wasn’t about to just let it happen again. Tears brimming in her eyes, she brushed past Max and made her way to the door, forcing herself to not look back as she stepped outside and rushed to the main house.

  She listened for footsteps behind her, but they never came.

  Sixteen

  Max

  With Addison looking after Olivia, Max slowly loped to the edge of Gage’s property, where woods took over, an expanse of lush green against the backdrop of dark mountains. His body was tense, his bear nearly out of control, and all he could think to do was to go for a run to attempt to clear his head.

  His bed had felt empty without Riley in it, and he hadn’t gotten much sleep. The hurt on her face when she asked him about the text was haunting him, yet instead of talking to her, he had decided to keep his distance.

  Riley had enough of her own problems, and there was no way he was about to drag her into this situation with Eve. That was too much to ask from someone he had only just met, mate or not.

  No, actually it had been the fact that she was his mate, and that he had been falling in love with her ever since he had first seen her, that made up his mind about not getting her involved. This was his burden to bear, and he wasn’t about to give in to his selfish side.

  Besides, he had to think of Olivia now, more than ever. There were no guarantees that after Max gave Eve the money, the woman would leave them alone. Maybe she actually did want Olivia back. He had to be ready for that battle.

  More likely, though, Eve was in it for the cash. But what would happen once she burned through that? Would she be back, demanding more? Would he have to bend to her threats again?

  With so much uncertainty in his future, and the fear that Olivia might be ripped away from him regardless of whether he was her father or not hammering through his mind, Max told himself he had made the right decision in keeping Riley in the dark.

  She deserves to be happy, and I don’t know if I can give that to her right now.

  Coming to a stop near the tree line, Max breathed in the familiar scents of the forest, forcing himself to focus on that instead. His bear was already impatient beneath his skin, needing to work out his frustrations in a physical way.

  Letting his animal side float to the surface, Max felt his body begin to change. Giving himself over to the bear, he sank down onto all fours, bones snapping and realigning under his flesh. It was a smooth process, practiced and quick, but he could still feel every part of the shift as his frame rippled and took on a new
shape.

  Mouth turning into a muzzle, fur breaking out over his skin, Max let out a growl. Large paws now thudded on the dirt as he slunk into the woods, his huge grizzly casting a shadow in his wake.

  Pushing himself into motion, he steadily picked up steam as he maneuvered around the tall trees, the scent of moss and smaller woodland creatures in his nose. Sniffing the air, he let his muscles work, propelling himself forward faster and faster.

  Familiar sights and paths whizzed by, with him sensing nothing out of the ordinary for a long while. But as Max started to circle back, the smell of someone very familiar hit his nose. Slowing down, he followed the scent back toward the ranch, until he could hear a padding of paws, mirroring his own.

  Gage appeared not long after, his hulking grizzly frame hard to miss. They looked at each other for a moment before continuing on with the run, this time together. Sometimes Max led the way, sometimes Gage took the lead, and by the end of it, they were both panting slightly.

  They shifted back at the edge of the woods, the bears retreating to let the men take over again. Max rolled his shoulders as he got back on two feet, and watched Gage do the same.

  “Something tells me you being here is not a coincidence,” Max commented.

  “Just thought we could talk,” Gage shrugged.

  “Did Addison put you up to this?” Max asked.

  “She might have mentioned you royally screwed things up with Riley, but I’m here to get your side of things. What happened, Max? I know Riley is your mate, so we can get that out of the way right now,” Gage replied.

  Letting out a sigh, Max rested his back against a nearby tree.

  “She saw a text she wasn’t supposed to see,” he said. “So she made her own conclusions, and I didn’t dissuade her.”

  “Why the hell not?” Gage asked.

  “Because I’m not getting her involved in my crap,” Max insisted. “And before you ask, I’m not getting you involved, either.”

  Gage rolled his eyes at him, but knew better than to try and talk Max out of his decision.

  “You can be stupidly stubborn sometimes, you know that, right?” he asked.

  “Now this is definitely a case of the pot calling the kettle black,” Max replied.

  “Look, I don’t know what’s going on, but I know you’re going to regret pushing Riley away,” Gage said. “And you might tell yourself you’re doing it for her, or because of Olivia, or whatever reason you can come up with. But at the end of the day, don’t let it be fear that guides your decisions.”

  “Gage…” Max began to argue.

  “I know Olivia’s happiness is the most important thing to you, but you can’t be the best father you can be if you’re unhappy yourself,” Gage cut him off. “That’s all I really wanted to say.”

  With that, Gage took off, striding toward his house. Max was left to wonder if his friend had a point. Was he letting fear get the best of him? Was he throwing away his shot at a family with both his daughter and his mate?

  Somewhere down the road, the guilt he had initially felt over not being a part of the first months of Olivia’s life had turned into a deep need to always put his little girl first. And while he would continue to do that, he knew he couldn’t let his life fall to the wayside.

  Gage had hit on something very true – how could Max be the best dad to Olivia when he himself was miserable, regretting letting Riley slip through his fingers? And Olivia had already grown attached to Riley as well.

  The more he thought about it all, the more frustrated he became. It didn’t escape him that he was letting Eve control his decisions, which he did not like one bit. Still thinking of what his next move might he, he stomped back to the guesthouse, weighing all the options.

  When he got to the house, Olivia and Addison were nowhere to be seen. In their place was Riley, sitting on his couch, clearly waiting for him. Jaw set, there was a determination emanating from her that was difficult to ignore.

  “We need to talk,” she said simply, and for a moment, Max was ecstatic she was even speaking to him after the disaster that had been last night.

  “We do,” he agreed, things finally falling into place in his mind.

  I can’t let Eve win. She won’t take Olivia from me, and she won’t take Riley.

  Seventeen

  Riley

  Max actually looked relieved to see her, which momentarily caught Riley by surprise. She quickly gathered herself, though. After talking things over with Addison, she had made the decision to not give up as easily as she had the previous night.

  Addison herself had nearly left Black Oak without talking things out with Gage, so she had warned Riley to not make that mistake. Whatever Max was hiding, Riley felt she was owed some closure at least.

  Folding her hands in her lap, she cleared her throat, willing herself to speak before she had a chance to change her mind.

  “Look, I know we haven’t promised each other anything, and you are entitled to your privacy, but I thought we really had something. I don’t want to leave things the way we left them last night, and if nothing else, we had a good time together and…” she started, until Max cut her off.

  “Stop,” he said, stepping closer. “We do have something, Riley, and I don’t want to you think anything else. The truth is…”

  Hesitating for a moment, Max sat down next to her. Riley almost held her breath as she waited to hear what he had to say. She didn’t know what to expect, but there was hope blooming in her chest.

  “You’re my mate,” Max admitted, making her eyes grow wide as saucers.

  “Your mate,” she muttered numbly.

  The words rattled around in her head, slowly starting to make sense. Now that she really thought about it, it actually seemed odd she hadn’t even thought of it. The connection between her and Max had been immediate and powerful, not unlike how Addison had described her own bond with Gage.

  “I know this might seem totally out of left field, but I’ve known it for as long as I’ve known you,” Max said, inching closer to her. “You’re smart, beautiful, funny… And the only woman I could ever love.”

  Riley was sure her heart had literally skipped a beat. Had Max really just dropped the L-word on her? Her throat felt tight as something powerful inside her wanted her to yell it back.

  I love you, too!

  It was not something she had let herself think, but now that Max had confessed his feelings, she could feel everything she had suppressed rushing to the surface. She couldn’t imagine herself with anyone else either.

  A big part of her was overjoyed. It all made sense. They were meant for each other. All these crazy intense feelings were almost as if justified all of the sudden. But none of it excused what had happened last night.

  So instead of proclaiming eternal devotion, she took a step back, forcing herself to come back down to earth.

  “But the text,” she said.

  Max’s features tightened. For a moment, she thought he might clam up again, but fortunately, he didn’t.

  “It was Eve,” he replied.

  “Eve? As in your ex, Olivia’s mother?” Riley asked, her voice uncharacteristically high. “She’s here in Black Oak?”

  “I met with her yesterday,” Max admitted. “I should have told you right away, when she first contacted me. But I didn’t want to involve you before I knew why the hell she was even here. After I found out, though, I thought I would be protecting everyone by keeping the whole thing to myself.”

  “Tell me everything,” Riley said, placing her hand on his.

  And he did, starting from meeting Eve at the local motel, to the conversation they had, to his reasons for wanting to keep Riley in the dark. All Riley could do was listen, as the story went from bad to worse, almost unable to believe that someone like Eve existed.

  Abandoning your child and then demanding money to stay away, completely disregarding what was best for the little one? That was as low as it got, in Riley’s opinion.

  No w
onder Max was so bent out of shape.

  “I’m so sorry, Max,” she said. “Do you think she could be telling the truth about you not being the father?”

  “I don’t believe it for a second, but I can’t take the risk, can I?” he asked. “If they took Olivia away from me…”

  “No way, not going to happen,” Riley shook her head. “And you don’t have to deal with this alone. I’m in your corner.”

  Max gave her a weak smile.

  “You’re amazing, you know that?” he asked.

  “Yeah, I know,” she shrugged, earning a laugh from him. “And I’m also a lawyer, in case you’ve forgotten. You should have come to me. You don’t have to do this alone. I don’t need to be protected or coddled, and I don’t want you to make decisions for me. Going forward, nothing but honesty, okay?”

  “Okay,” Max nodded. “I made a mistake, I know that now.”

  “You were under a ton of pressure,” she replied. “What matters is that you’re trusting me now. And I know that together, we can figure this out. Now I’m not going to lie, this is going to be complicated. Eve is still Olivia’s mother, and you didn’t petition the court to terminate her parental rights. You moving away without notifying her could be a problem as well.”

  “I couldn’t even get a hold of her,” Max argued.

  “I know that and you know that, but if it actually comes down to a custody battle, it’s all about what we can prove,” she said.

  “Or I could pay her like I told her I would,” Max replied quietly.

  “You know that’s not a long-term solution,” Riley said. “She will take you for everything you’ve got. You’ll lose your savings. That means no more house for you and Olivia.”

  “I’d gladly give up that dream as long as I have my daughter with me,” he replied.