“The bears.”
“Yeah.”
“I still can’t wrap my head around that. Bears? How did we not know about them?”
Cooper shrugged. “Guess we weren’t meant to until now. One thing is for sure, they’re more evolved than us. Their instincts are sharper. They can take their clothes with them when they shift. They have way more knowledge about us than we do them. Which isn’t saying much. Oh,” Cooper’s eyes widened, “and they communicate with each other in both human and bear form at will.”
“Will we see them again?”
“Doubt it. My gut tells me they’re already gone. They’re from a town north of here, closer to the Canadian border, and it would seem they won’t be staying much longer in Montana. Grizzly bears are few and far between in this area now. Rare. They need to move farther north where it won’t shock anyone to see them shifted.”
“So they came down here just to help us?”
“It seems that way. Their instincts were spot on. And they have the same mission as we do—protect all species. I suspect they knew about the seismic activity and came to ensure we were doing all we could to save humanity in the area.”
Sharon shook her head. “Even when half the town is acting like imbeciles, they came anyway.”
Cooper nodded. “Hey, both towns are filled with imbeciles, and they run the gamut across species and races. No one group is more outspoken than another.”
Someone tapped at the door, making Sharon lift her gaze to find Melinda stepping inside without waiting for an invite. Her face was red and swollen.
Sharon jumped to her feet at the same time as Cooper. “What happened?”
She forced a smile. “Mimi’s gone.”
“Gone? What do you mean gone?”
Cooper lowered himself back into the chair slowly, his breath running out of him on a rush. “I barely even got to know her.”
Sharon’s heart started pounding. “Gone? You mean dead?”
Melinda nodded, a fresh tear running down her face.
Jackson jumped up to shut the door so they would have some privacy. “I’m so sorry. The stroke?”
Sharon wrapped her arms around Melinda and hauled her in close to hug her.
After several moments of silence, Melinda pried herself free and wiped her eyes on the back of her hand. “I should have known. She was acting so strange after you left. Mom and Laurie went home to their families. It was just me and Mimi. She was so serious. And she insisted I come after you. She knew.”
“She knew I was in trouble?”
Melinda nodded. “Among other things. She also knew she was about to die. When I look back on our conversation…”
Sharon cupped Melinda’s face. “You couldn’t have known.”
“I should have known.” She shrugged. “In a way I guess I did know. But this is what I was meant to do today. Not stay with her and hold her hand while she passed into the next life.”
“I’m so sorry. How did you find out?”
Melinda smiled through the tears. “To be honest, I knew she was gone while we were digging you out of the cave. I didn’t stop to acknowledge it, but I knew.” She tucked her lips under her teeth and met Sharon’s gaze head on. “She was in the cave with you, wasn’t she?”
Sharon gasped. She opened her mouth to confront the absurdity of that statement and then realized it wasn’t ridiculous at all. Mimi had been there with her. She’d sat next to her and soothed her the entire time. She’d probably saved Sharon’s life by keeping her calm and sane. “Yes.”
Melinda smiled broader. “I could sense her presence as soon as we broke free and then again as we hauled you through the hole.”
“She protected me.”
“From Sandhouse?” Cooper asked.
“From myself. She calmed me while I was losing my mind. She stayed with me while I figured out who I was and what had happened.” Sharon’s own tears tumbled now. “I’m so sorry,” she repeated.
“Mom found her about an hour ago. By that time she’d been gone a while.”
“She was doing so well when I left. I thought shifting had made all the difference.” Sharon stroked the side of Melinda’s face.
Melinda nodded. “I thought so too. Maybe she simply rallied in order to talk to us, or maybe she had another stroke. It’s hard to say.” Her shoulders slumped. It was going to take some time for her to adjust. Mimi was closer to Melinda than anyone else.
“We’re here for you,” Sharon said as Cooper and Jackson flanked her. “We all are.”
Chapter Thirty-Six
As soon as Melinda left to be with her mother and sisters, Cooper hauled Sharon against his chest and kissed the top of her head. “I have to go back to work. My men are probably wondering what the hell happened to me.”
She nodded against him, grabbing the sides of his shirt and fisting the material in her palms. “I know,” she muttered.
“Go home with Jackson. Rest. You’re exhausted. I’ll wake you when I get back.”
“Be careful,” Jackson added as Cooper released Sharon and stepped from the room.
He took a quick look around the bustling activity of the sheriff’s office and then hurried from the building at a jog. His phone was already ringing in his pocket before he made it to the truck. He didn’t bother to answer. He would see his men in a matter of minutes.
The drive through town toward the college made him thank any deity who would listen. People lined the streets, probably too scared to sleep or even go inside after all the seismic activity of the day and the volcanic eruption keeping everyone on edge.
Buildings were crumbled on every corner. Some structures stood seemingly untouched. Others were destroyed from the tremors.
People sat on the curb nursing all manner of injuries. So many of them had cuts that bled in a line down their faces or chest or arms.
He swallowed as he turned the last corner and pulled into the lot adjacent to the Shepley Building. Yanking the keys out of the ignition, he whipped the door open and then ran toward the front door.
In moments, he’d taken the stairs two at a time and arrived at his makeshift office.
All four of his men were inside, peering over data that constantly ran out of several printers.
“Hey, boss,” Chuck greeted him. “Check this out.” He pointed at the printout in front of him. “The tremors are slowing down by the hour.”
Cooper narrowed his eyes as he stared at the readout. “The lava?”
“Also slowing. As if the Earth needed to burp. She did so, and she’s done now. At least for a while,” Chuck stated.
“Hopefully for about a thousand years,” Cooper muttered under his breath. He intended to live in this town and raise his family here. He wanted it still standing when all was said and done.
He’d never been to Cambridge before last week, and he’d only been to Sojourn a few times. But somehow the entire area called to him. He belonged here. It was the birthplace of his ancestors. Sharon was raised here. Jackson was raised in Sojourn. They were meant to be together. The two families completely intertwined. He knew it in his bones.
He’d come here to do a job. He would need to talk to his boss about a permanent transfer. It surely wouldn’t be a problem. Seismologists would be needed in the immediate area for decades to come.
“Coop?”
He hadn’t realized he’d been inside his head, not hearing a word Chuck spoke. He yanked his gaze up to meet his coworker’s. “Sorry. What were you saying?”
“I was saying we need to drive out and take a closer look. Make sure the lava has indeed stopped. Measure the distance it has flowed. The volcanologist is meeting us here.” He pointed to a spot on the map. “He’s already there with the US Geological Survey.”
Cooper nodded. “Right. Let’s go.”
Chuck and Jason grabbed their coats. The other two men waved. One of them spoke, “We’ll call if we see anything develop.”
Cooper gave them a smile. “Good job, team.�
�� He followed his men out to their van and rode in the back, letting Chuck drive and Jason take the front passenger seat. He needed to pull himself together.
His men knew he’d been trapped on another side of the mountain helping rescue a woman. But they had no understanding of what that woman meant to him or why he’d been there in the first place. And Cooper was grateful they didn’t bombard him with questions.
“Jesus…” Cooper stared out the window, seeing the horizon as the sun came up. From their distance, it appeared the flow of lava had stopped. A small eruption from higher up the mountain than the initial release of fumes. Thank God it wasn’t larger. There was every indication the danger was almost over.
In the distance he saw nothing but black with steam rising off the lava as it cooled. The front edge was tinged red and burning everything in its path, but it had slowed considerably.
So much destruction. “Do we know if anyone was caught up on the mountain?”
Jason twisted around to face him. “A few people. Some campers that refused to heed the warning.”
Cooper nodded, a lump forming in his throat. You can lead a horse to water…
When they came to a stop, he jumped down from the car and pulled his binoculars out. They were still a mile from the edge, as close as they could safely get. He lifted the lenses to his eyes and scanned the area in awe of Mother Nature and Her capabilities. It was truly a wonder to behold.
»»•««
“Are you sure we’re safe?” Sharon asked as Cooper dragged her shirt over her head and tossed it haphazardly to the floor.
“As sure as I can be.”
The lava had stopped flowing entirely by mid-morning.
Cooper shrugged. “Volcanos are unpredictable, of course, but it’s not uncommon for something like this to happen. The Earth opened up, released the building pressure, and did what She needed to do. It could be years or decades or centuries before it happens again in this area.”
“Could it also be hours?” Jackson asked as he stepped up behind Cooper.
“It’s possible. But we’ll keep a close watch on the seismic activity. That should give us enough advanced warning to evacuate if it happens again. The epicenter is far enough away that we’ll never be in any imminent danger that isn’t escapable.”
Sharon blew out a breath and set her forehead on Cooper’s chest while she grabbed his biceps and squeezed. “I’m sorry about your grandma.”
Cooper stiffened. “Me too, baby. I only met her a few times, but I know she was a great woman. And I have no doubt Melinda will also be destined for incredible things.” He paused and then continued. “And her daughter will also learn our ways and make the world a better place someday.”
Sharon lifted her face. “Are you sure she wants to have kids? She has been pretty adamant about that with Trace and Keegan. I’ve seen her give them a glare that could cut through glass a few times when the subject came up.”
A slow smile spread across Cooper’s face. “Well, that may be, but she better get ready because she has nine months to prepare.”
“Nooo…” Sharon’s voice trailed off with her shock.
Jackson swung around to the side. “She’s pregnant?”
Cooper nodded. “Yep. I’m not sure she even knows it yet. I might not have noticed if I hadn’t spent so much time with her up close today, especially with so much going on.”
“You don’t think Trace knows?” Sharon asked. “Or Keegan?”
Cooper shrugged. “I’m sure they do by now, but perhaps not before all the shit hit the fan this morning. She hasn’t been home much in a few days. I’m betting they have been coming and going at odd hours and missing each other.” He grinned.
“Whoa,” Jackson said, glancing back and forth between Sharon and Cooper, “what the hell are you saying? If Melinda doesn’t know and no one else does, how the hell do you know?”
Sharon released Cooper’s bicep to wrap one arm around Jackson. “He can scent it.”
“Pregnancy?”
“Yep.” Cooper chuckled.
“Like immediately?”
“Yep,” he repeated. “Well, within a few hours, usually. I mean once the egg and the sperm get together.”
“Jesus.” Jackson looked pale. “That’s intense.” He released Sharon and slipped out of her grip to walk slowly backward and sit on the edge of the bed. Without looking at either of them, he ran a hand through his hair and stared at the floor.
“Jackson?” Sharon prodded.
He tipped his head back to stare at the ceiling and then flopped onto his back and didn’t move.
Sharon let go of Cooper and padded over to Jackson. She still had on borrowed jeans and a bra, but no shirt. She crawled up next to him and cupped his face, even though he didn’t meet her gaze. “What is it? What has you so spooked? You’ve learned so much about us in the last few days. And you’ve taken it so well. What about this has pushed you over the edge?”
Cooper sat on the other side of Sharon and ran a hand up her back, giving her chills.
“I don’t know if I can do this,” Jackson muttered.
“Do what?” Cooper asked.
Sharon flinched. A silence filled the room for several seconds that seemed like hours. “Jackson…talk to us.”
He finally inhaled long and slow and turned his gaze to hers, glancing at Cooper and then back. “It’s like you two belong to this secret club, and there are a lot of members, but membership is invite only and exclusive. Since the club has existed for hundreds of years, there are general principles that are widely known and accepted.
“But see, I don’t know those norms. And I never will know them all. And it’s frustrating and confusing.”
“Babe…” She reached out for him, but he grabbed her wrist midair and kept her from touching his skin. Her chest hurt. She hated making him feel left out or inferior.
“You have conversations around me that make no sense.”
She swallowed. “I’m so sorry. We didn’t mean to—”
He shook his head and heaved himself off the bed, dropping her wrist and then pacing the floor. “I know you don’t. And I’m not mad. I just don’t fit into your world.”
“Of course you do,” Cooper said from behind her. “It’s fated.”
Jackson chuckled sardonically and whipped around to face them both. “See. Like that. Fated? What does that even mean? Do you realize how ridiculous it sounds?”
He was probably right. It was all Sharon knew, and she had no way of understanding how normal humans met and married as if joined by nothing but whimsy. “Yes. I hear you, but you’re a part of this, whether you like it or not. It’s who you are now. And yes, it’s going to take some time to learn about all of our idiosyncrasies, but you’ll get there. Everyone does. Rebecca did. Amanda did. You will too.”
“What if I don’t believe in your Fate? What if I’m not up to the task of fitting in?”
Cooper squeezed Sharon’s bare shoulder. “You don’t really have a choice. And it’s not entirely true that you don’t have some of the same abilities. Maybe they wouldn’t have been as developed without meeting us, but now that you have, you must admit you’ve experienced things you never dreamed possible.”
“Watched, yes. In shock most of the time.” He threw his hands in the air, and his voice rose as he spoke again. “Who smells when their woman is ovulating? Or pregnant? That’s crazy.”
“Okay,” Cooper said, “so you don’t have that one particular finely tuned ability. And no, you never will. But you do scent some things. Why do you think you returned to the ski resort over and over all winter? Because you were drawn to Sharon.”
Jackson rolled his eyes. “So what. Men do that every day. She’s smokin’ hot and funny and lights up a room with her smile. Who wouldn’t come back to witness that?”
Sharon’s face heated at the unintended compliment.
Cooper shook his head. “It’s more than that, and you know it.” He pushed himself off the bed and dra
gged Sharon to standing also.
Shocking her with his timing, he reached for the button on her jeans, pushed it through the hole, and then lowered the zipper. Before she could manage to comment, he tugged the denim down her legs and off her feet. He hooked his fingers into her panties and drew them down also, and then he reached around her and unclasped her bra, leaving her naked while both men were clothed.
It was unnerving, and she couldn’t imagine what his intent was. “Cooper…”
He shot her a glance. “Just let me make my point, baby.” He lifted her onto the bed by her waist and set her about a foot from the edge. And then he drew her legs up and set her heels down wide, spreading her open to his gaze and Jackson’s.
“Cooper? What the…?”
Cooper stepped back.
Sharon met Jackson’s heated gaze, his eyes glassy as he stared at her. He licked his lips. “What’s your point, Cooper? She’s fucking hot. I know this. I’ve known it for a long time. She doesn’t need to be naked for me to know this. It changes nothing.”
“Really? Close your eyes.” Cooper leaned against the mattress at her side. “Do it. In fact, turn around and face away from her. Close your eyes and just breathe.”
Jackson tipped his head to one side and narrowed his gaze. “What is that going to prove?”
“Just do it.”
On a sigh, Jackson turned around slowly, his arms crossed and one leg cocked out to the side, putting all his weight on the other foot.
Cooper waited until Jackson couldn’t see, and then he faced Sharon and held her gaze. He reached between her spread legs and stroked a finger through her lower lips and over her clit. Again. And again.
Her brain swam. She tipped her head back and bit her lower lip to keep from moaning. Her arousal ran out of her pussy and down toward her rear hole.
And still Cooper gathered her wetness and drew it out, swirling it around her clit and down toward her tighter hole. His gaze remained on hers. “Breathe in, Jackson. Long and slow.”
Sharon almost shot off the bed when Cooper reached inside her with two fingers and crooked them to drag out her arousal again. She wanted to throttle him.
Sharon's Wolves (Wolf Masters Book 10) Page 27