“Did you actually go to the town hall last week, just as my sister and Jeffrey were walking up the steps ready to get married, and haul him off in your truck?” She bit out the words, tilting her head back to glare up at him.
Light dawned on him. “Clover Jones. My God, have you grown up.” He looked her up and down with an appreciative glance, the kind of glance that never failed to make a woman melt into a puddle at his feet. All women except for Clover. Apparently she was immune.
“Yes, Sam, that’s generally what happens.” She stood there glowering at him.
“I’ll let you two work this out on your own,” Flint said with a grin. “Unless you think you need backup, Sam.”
“I think I’m good.” Sam scowled at him, and Flint sauntered out of the room, chuckling quietly to himself. Jerk. Now that Flint was happily married to that redheaded wolf shifter, he was all smug and superior about Sam’s love life.
He returned his focus to the hot bear.
“Yes, is the answer. I did indeed do that,” Sam said. “But let’s talk about you. Where have you been all these years? What brings you back to town? Not that I’m complaining.”
“I’m the one asking the questions here. I cannot believe you are attempting to ensure that my sister is a single mother. I thought you McCoys had strong family values.”
He nodded agreeably. “Very strong.”
“So what the hell is it? The premarital sex? It takes two to tango, you know.”
“Tell you what. Let’s swap information here. Answer my question, and I’ll answer yours.”
“I’ve been travelling around the country with my parents and my sister,” she answered grudgingly. “Then I went to college to get a degree in social media marketing.”
He nodded. “I heard something about a family of bears coming to stay at Imogen’s. I meant to stop by with a gift basket to welcome you to town. Didn’t realize it was you, or I’d have come over sooner. Who are all the younger kids? Brothers and sisters?”
“Yes.” She wasn’t in a chatty mood, obviously.
“Are your parents coming too?”
“Really not your concern. It’s also not your concern whether your brother gets married or not; he’s a grownup.”
Sam let out a contemptuous snort at that. “Barely. And the wellbeing of my family is always my concern.”
“And you think that if Jeffrey marries the mother of his child, that will be bad for his wellbeing? Because a few members of my family are criminals, we must all be lowlifes?”
“I judge each person on their own merits. And in answer to your earlier question, no, the problem is not the premarital sex. I’d hardly be one to talk.”
“So what is the damn problem?” she yelled at him. “He asked her to marry him! He totally wanted to marry her until you stepped in, and now he won’t even talk to her! Who the hell are you to tell him no?”
He knew that if he told her the answer, she wouldn’t accept it. Not yet. She was a bear; bears were very loyal to their family. “I’ll tell you some other time. When you’re a little calmer. Or you could ask your sister.”
“She doesn’t have any more idea than I do!” Clover balled her fists and looked as if she was ready to take a swing at him. He’d bet she threw a mean punch. He liked that in a girl.
“She’s broken-hearted and crying all the time! I want answers!”
He shrugged. “When the time is right, I’ll discuss it with you.”
“I answered way more questions than you did. That’s hardly fair.” She scowled at him.
He grinned at her and leaned back against his desk. “Who says I fight fair?”
A flush stained her fair cheeks and swept down her throat, spreading faintly over her chest. What would it be like to make her flush with passion? The thought made him shift uncomfortably where he stood as blood rushed to his groin.
“Tell you what. Come back tomorrow, have lunch with me, and we’ll talk.” He gave her his most winning smile. It was the smile that made women’s clothes fall off them and puddle on the floor.
“Have lunch with you?” she said scornfully. “I wouldn’t spit on you if you were on fire, much less have lunch with you. And I’m busy tomorrow. I am accompanying her to her doctor’s appointment tomorrow afternoon. Prenatal visit.” Her tone turned bitter. “And by the way, if you’re questioning that she’s pregnant, I saw the test results. Positive. She’s eight weeks pregnant. She got here ten weeks ago. Do the math. And also by the way, this is a tiny town where everybody gossips. If she’d been seeing anyone other than your brother since she got here, it would be all over town.”
He nodded. “That is true. It would.”
“So?” she glowered at him.
“Tomorrow. You like prime rib?”
“Yeah, I’ll pencil you in for about half past ‘never gonna happen’. You have no legal right to prevent two adults from marrying each other, and I will find a way to stop you from interfering. Have a terrible day; I’ll see myself out.”
And with that, the beautiful, sexy bear who smelled like cinnamon and made his loins blaze with lust flounced right out of his office. Not for long, he vowed to himself. He would do whatever it took to make sure that sometime in the very near future, her growls and snarls turned to moans of passion.
* * *
Clover stood blinking in the midday sunlight outside the Henhouse, a small diner where everyone in town gathered to gossip. That hadn’t changed since she’d left Blue Moon Junction.
They weren’t hiring at the moment, just like the last half dozen places she’d applied. Or was it just that they weren’t hiring a member of the notorious Jones family? That could also be the case. They’d all been very nice to her, at least. It was impossible to tell if they were just being polite or if they really didn’t have any work.
Either way the results were the same. She was a college dropout who needed to support her four younger siblings for who knew how long, and she was stuck here until she could get her sister’s current crisis worked out. For that matter, she could hardly afford to go anywhere else at the moment. She didn’t have money for rent and she couldn’t buy enough gas to get them out of the state. And she couldn’t mooch off Imogen forever. If only she had anything worth pawning, she thought gloomily.
Her cell phone rang. It was Autumn calling.
“Are you in jail?” Autumn asked.
“No, the bear will live another day. But if he’s smart he’ll sleep with one eye open. Is Sapphire back yet?”
“No, she called and said she’s spending the night at a friend’s house.”
“What friend?” Clover felt annoyance flare up in her. Sapphire tended to have questionable friends who liked to party hard and drive too fast. Now that she was pregnant, those days should be behind her.
“She didn’t say. You should probably head back here now. There’s some lady from social services at the house.” Autumn’s voice was perfectly calm, as if she were reciting the menu for dinner.
“What?” Clover’s heart seized up in her chest. “Why? What does she want?”
“I don’t know. Imogen came and told me about it. I told the rest of the kids to shift and beat it. They’re all in the woods hiding out in trees right now. I’m hiding behind the shed out back. I don’t deal well with authority. Also the no climbing thing.” With a bear shifter for a mother and a coyote shifter for a father, all of the children were bear shifters – except Autumn. Her coyote form could run, but couldn’t climb worth a damn.
“Fine. I’ll be back in fifteen minutes. Don’t panic.” Clover struggled to keep the fear from her voice.
“You’re the one panicking. I am calm like Buddha. Also fast like ninja. She won’t get her claws into me.” Autumn hung up.
Clover quickly headed back to the boarding house, her stomach turning to water as she careened around sharp curves in the narrow country road. What if the social services lady made a big stink about the kids being there? Autumn didn’t have money for next week’s
meals, much less a lawyer.
She pulled up in front of the boarding house in a cloud of smoke, noting the station wagon parked out front.
Imogen and Rick met her at the door. “Don’t you worry,” Imogen said reassuringly as Clover ran up the front steps. “I told her nothing but good things about you and the children, and it’s all true.”
“Thank you.” Clover cleared her throat; her mouth had gone dry and her palms were sweaty.
Imogen led her to the living room. Rick followed them in, and stood with Imogen just inside the doorway.
A thirtyish woman with a tailored pant suit and a frosted bouffant sat in one of the armchairs. She was a bear shifter. Clover’s heart sank. Was that just coincidence? Had Sam sent her, for revenge?
“Clover Jones?” the woman asked, surveying her critically. Clover winced at the woman’s obvious disapproval and wished she’d dressed better, in one of her few nice outfits.
“Yes. And you are?”
The woman handed her a card. Bonnie Rhoads. Social services.
Clover sat down on the couch and tucked the card into her purse.
“Can I help you?” Clover asked, trying not to show how nervous she was. “What is the reason for your visit?”
“We received some information about your family that caused us to be concerned,” Bonnie said, surveying Clover with a critical eye and wrinkling her nose just the tiniest bit. “Are your parents here?”
“I am the legal guardian of my siblings. I can show you the paperwork.”
“Yes, I’d appreciate that.” Bonnie’s tone was clipped, her smile tight. She’d judged Clover and found her wanting, Clover could tell.
They’d just arrived in town the day before. Who could have called to complain? It had to be Sam, trying to run them out of town before Clover got a chance to speak to his brother. That bastard.
Clover hurried upstairs and brought the paperwork down. She handed it to Bonnie and sat back down on the couch.
Bonnie looked over it very carefully for several excruciating minutes.
Then she looked up at Clover.
“Where exactly are your parents?”
“Traveling. Currently out of touch. As you see, I’m the legal guardian of my brother and sisters, so it doesn’t really matter where they are.” Clover struggled to keep her temper under control. Yelling at this woman would only make things worse.
“You’re staying in a boarding house, so you clearly have no permanent residence. You’re single, and you’re only twenty-one.” Bonnie recited each fact as a damning indictment. As if they were living in the woods and eating out of dumpsters.
Damn it. Yes, she had no permanent residence at the moment. Clover had just left behind her waitressing job and her apartment in New York. Had that been a mistake? Should she have found a bigger apartment, settled down there with the kids and let Sapphire deal with her own mess? At least she’d had a job there. If only her parents and her sister hadn’t decided to have major crises at exactly the same time.
“My age is irrelevant. I’m legally an adult. I’ve never been in trouble with the law, and I am perfectly capable of caring for my family,” Clover said, hoping that her voice wasn’t shaking.
“And how are you employed?” Bonnie looked down her nose at Clover. Clover’s heart sank. Living in a boarding house, absent parents, unemployed…
“She works for my company doing social media marketing,” Sam’s voice boomed out from the doorway.
Clover started. She had been so distracted by Bonnie’s inquisition that she hadn’t even heard Sam pull up.
Sam strode across the room and sat down next to Clover. The couch creaked and groaned under his weight; he was a big, solid man. Clover found herself sliding up against him and desperately tried to scooch away, but the couch was slanting downward towards him. He was wearing cologne with notes of cedar and lemongrass in it, which mingled with the animal scent of his own musk.
She leaned to the left so she wasn’t pressed right up against him, but her leg was still pressing against his. He was like solid rock.
“Oh, Mr. McCoy!” Bonnie simpered. “I didn’t see you there.” Then her expression turned doubtful. “She just arrived in town yesterday, and already she has a job with your family?”
“I believe that’s what I just said thirty seconds ago, yes.” Sam’s voice had an edge to it. “She came to our property today, applied for the job and we hired her. She starts tomorrow. Nine a.m. sharp.”
He glanced at her for confirmation, and Clover nodded in agreement, at a loss for words. Why would he help her?
“Well, they’re living in a boarding house.” Bonnie frowned doubtfully.
“Which is not illegal. It is a very clean and well-kept residence, which has been run by the same family for generations. A very well-liked local family. Are you saying there’s something wrong with this boarding house?” The edge in Sam’s voice had gotten considerably sharper.
Bonnie wilted visibly. Sam could get away with saying that kind of thing; Clover couldn’t have.
“Not at all,” she said. She stood up and glanced back at Clover. “But who will watch the children while you’re at work?”
“I will.” Imogen’s normally sweet voice had turned hard. “We’ve already worked it out. The youngest is ten and the oldest is thirteen, so legally they could supervise themselves, for that matter, but they will be under my supervision.”
Bonnie harrumphed. “I’ll need to interview the children right now, to make sure that everything is in order.”
Clover tensed. Her siblings wouldn’t interview well, she was sure of that. They were nice to everyone who was nice to them, but like her, they tended to be on the defensive side when snooty authority figures looked down their noses at them. It came from growing up with ragged hippie parents who proudly wore hand-me-downs and vowed not to be oppressed by the man.
“Then you’ll need to bring a lawyer. And all of my employees have access to the family law firm,” Sam said coldly.
Bonnie’s expression turned frosty and indignant, but she gave a short, sharp nod and turned and left the room.
“Breathe,” Sam said, and Clover realized she’d been holding her breath.
“She said that someone called her and reported some concerns about my family. At first I thought it was you, trying to run us out of town.” She looked at him accusingly.
“It most definitely was not me,” Sam said. “I don’t use underhanded tactics. If I want someone to leave town, I’ll tell them to their face, and I’ll tell them why.”
She had a feeling that was true.
“What brought you over here in the first place?” she asked.
He held up her wallet. “You left this in my office. Fell out of your purse.” She took it, and realized that her hand was shaking. Mingled anger and frustration swirled in the pit of her stomach. Now she owed Sam a favor, and she hadn’t even resolved the issue with her sister, and…
“She’s left the property,” Imogen said, looking out the window. “Shall we go give the children the all clear?”
“You are a lifesaver.” Clover rubbed her face with her hands. “Yes, that would be lovely. Thank you so much for your help.”
“Oh, pshaw. I didn’t like that interfering twit from the second I saw her climb out of her car.” Imogen left the living room.
Sam turned to smile at Clover. She was still sitting so close to him that they were crushing up against each other. She could stand up now; Bonnie was gone. Why didn’t she stand up? Any minute now, she’d stand up.
“Actually, you might want to make it 8:30,” Sam said to Clover. “So you can fill out the paperwork.”
She stared at him as if he’d grown two heads. “Huh? Did I miss part of the conversation somehow?”
“You need to fill out paperwork,” Sam said patiently. “For the job.”
“You… Oh, I thought you were just saying that to cover for me.”
“Nope. We really do need someone to do social
media for our company. Should have brought someone in a long time ago.”
Was he making fun of her? No way he really wanted to hire her. “I promised my sister I’d go to the doctor with her tomorrow afternoon. I already told you that.”
“Then just get set up tomorrow morning, and start your first full day the day after tomorrow.” Great. He had an answer for everything. Except the one thing she wanted to know.
“Are you ready to tell me what you have against my sister?” she demanded.
“Not yet.”
She stood up so she wouldn’t be pressed up against his hot, hard body anymore. “You are a control freak and an asshole.”
He stood up too, towering over her and standing way too close. “Could be. But I’m also handsome and charming and I grill a kick-ass steak .” He flashed a winning smile. “And don’t even get me started on my blueberry pie. You should try it sometime. It melts in your mouth.”
She maintained her stony glare, which was hard to do because she was struggling not to salivate. Was it the thought of that blueberry pie or his delicious scent or the heat from his body that was making her knees weak?
“Am I cracking those walls even a little bit?” Still smiling down at her. Bastard
Yes, he was. If he were to accidentally brush against her she might burst into flames.
She put on her best poker face. “You’re strengthening them. With reinforced concrete.”
“Ouch.” He put his hand to his broad chest.
“Why would you even hire me, of all people?” she asked suspiciously. “There are other social media marketers out there.”
“I saw your online website, with your blog posts on social media marketing. Your website is very attractive and professional, your blog was funny and engaging and it explains social media in a way that even a numbskull like me could understand. You know your stuff. You went to one of the top schools in the country. I assume you left early to take care of your family?”
My Heart Laid Bear (Blue Moon Junction) Page 2