“I am,” Kit confirmed, and then put his hand on the small of Suzie’s back and guided her out of the hospital. “Have a good evening, Cindy.”
They left the warmth of the hospital and immediately Suzie regretted it. “Wow, the storm has worsened.”
The cold didn’t appear to bother Kit; he wrapped his arm around Suzie, and sheltered the baby with his coat. Storm slept on. “If she has shifter blood,” Kit informed Suzie, “she won’t feel the cold as much as a normal human.”
“Lucky her,” Suzie said, her voice rising so Kit could hear her over the wind. Unfortunately, every time she spoke, giant snowflakes tried to fill her mouth. “When I was a kid, I used to think snow was fun.”
“Snow is fun,” Kit said.
“I’m not convinced,” Suzie told him, as she shuffled through the thick layer of snow on the ground.
“But not when you are trying to get home,” he conceded. “Here, this is mine.”
Kit certainly was prepared. His SUV was powerful, with snow chains on all four wheels, and a heater that soon warmed up the interior. While Suzie waited inside, with Storm in her arms, Kit went to the trunk, and returned with a car seat for the baby.
“You just happened to have one of those with you?” Suzie asked.
“Be prepared, that is what my mom always told me,” Kit said, fixing it securely and then placing Storm in it with the utmost care.
Suzie watched him work, and fell in love with him just a little bit more as each minute passed.
Chapter Four – Kit
The drive home was treacherous, but Kit knew the roads and how to handle his vehicle. As part of the mountain rescue team, he’d driven in worse conditions. However, he had never made such a journey with his mate by his side.
Her presence was more than a little off-putting. Not in an unpleasant way. Nothing about Suzie could ever be anything but wonderful, and amazing, and incredible…which was the issue. Having Suzie there right next to him was intoxicating.
“Are you OK?” Suzie asked.
“Why do you ask?” Kit replied.
“You seem tense.” Her hand rested protectively on Storm’s car seat.
“I’m OK, I just need to make sure you and Storm are safe,” Kit answered, which was the truth.
“We’re doing OK,” Suzie reassured him, but the strain in her voice told him she wasn’t so sure.
“We’re nearly home,” Kit said. “Just over the next hill.”
The snow chains bit into the virgin snow, and they slowly inched their way along the road. The snow was coming down heavier, hitting the windshield almost horizontally. But he could still see the high hedges bordering the side of the road, and kept the vehicle straight and true. Breathing deeply, he pushed everything else out of his mind, focusing on the job at hand, just as he did when he was at work.
As a doctor, he had experienced times when the fears of a parent would have put him off doing his job. Many times when the anguish of a child had to be put aside so that he could make them better. The same talents that made him a good pediatrician were what would get them through this. Never once did he second-guess his decision to take them back to his house, never once did he think they should turn back.
“There,” he said at last, as he turned left off the road and headed up a steep narrow dirt track. “This is home.”
“Hear that, Storm, we can get in out of the cold, and you can have your next feed,” Suzie told Storm, who was still dozing, the motion of the SUV rocking her to sleep. But Suzie was right, as soon as they stopped, he had a feeling Storm would be exercising her lungs, asking for food in the only way she knew how.
Kit steered the vehicle along the last stretch of track. The snow seemed to ease a little, and as it did so, he caught a glimpse of something behind them. He checked the rearview mirror, but whatever it was had gone.
Glancing at Suzie, he was about to share what he thought he had seen, and then changed his mind. She looked tired and cold, and he didn’t want to give her anything else to worry about. Not when he had no idea who or what might be out there. For all Kit knew, it was just a bear trying to make his way home in the snow.
Hell, if Kit had been on his own, he would probably have left his truck at the hospital and come home on four paws. But he wasn’t alone. He would never be alone again.
“I’ll come around and help you two ladies out,” Kit told Suzie.
“Thanks,” Suzie said, unbuckling her seat belt and then doing the same to free Storm’s car seat.
Kit opened the passenger door and held out his hand. Suzie passed him the formula, and then the car seat, before slipping out of the vehicle to stand next to him in the snow. Slamming the door behind her, she said, “OK, lead the way.”
Kit held out his arm, and she looped her hand through it. “I don’t want to lose you out here.”
“Good, because I don’t want to get lost out here,” Suzie said in return. The snow was already settling on her hair and her coat. Large flakes rested on her eyelashes and she blinked them away. “I’ve never seen so much snow.”
“I have,” Kit said, looking up at the heavy clouds above their heads. It should be dark, but the clouds gave the world an eerie glow. “Let’s get inside and get a fire going. We’ll soon warm up.”
Kit turned toward the large spacious cabin he called home, after giving the track one last sweeping glance, but there was nothing there to see. Pulling Suzie along, he took one large stride, and then another, making a pathway in the snow, until they reached the porch steps. The snow was thinner here, and Suzie let go of his arm and took hold of the formula, so he could open the front door and switch on the light.
“Shake off the loose snow, but keep your coat on for now. I’ll get the fire going and the stove on. A nice hot cup of coffee, and a bottle of milk for Storm, and we’ll soon forget the weather outside,” Kit said as he entered the house.
“I like the sound of that,” Suzie said, through chattering teeth.
Kit wanted to drag her into his arms and use his body heat to warm her through, but he didn’t. He didn’t want to overpower her with his intense need to feel her close to him, preferably skin to skin.
It took a moment for him to register that he was standing there like an imbecile, staring at his mate, while she shivered in the cool air of the house. “Here, you take Storm.” He set the car seat down, unbuckled the restraints and picked a wriggling Storm up, passing her to Suzie. “Put her inside you coat if you have to.”
Suzie took the baby, and Kit dragged himself away, busying himself with the fire. He was an expert at getting a fire going, but tonight his fingers fumbled with the matches. Taking a deep breath, he tried again, letting the sense of satisfaction sweep over him as the kindling sparked into life.
Taking his time, not wanting to smother the crackling flames, he fed smaller pieces of wood onto the fire, allowing them to catch fire, before he added more. As he watched the flames, he realized that his relationship with Suzie had to be made in the same way. Slowly, or else he might suffocate her with his intense desire.
“There,” Kit said, standing up. He turned to Suzie, who was sitting on the sofa, with Storm still wrapped in her coat. “You two stay here. I’ll be back soon.”
“We are not going to argue with you there, are we, Storm?” Suzie asked, checking on the little girl, who seemed quite content. “I think she’s gone back to sleep.”
“I expect she can hear your heartbeat,” Kit said. “And the rise and fall of your breathing, it will comfort her.”
“Even though I’m not her mom?” Suzie asked, gazing down at the adorable baby.
“Even though you are not her mom.” Kit picked up the formula and took it to the kitchen, where he busied himself getting the stove lit and a pot of coffee on. While he worked he went over the details surrounding Storm’s abandonment, his eye constantly straying to the kitchen window. Was the person who abandoned Storm really out there? And if so, was it her mommy?
Kit brought co
ffee and a fresh bottle of formula to Suzie and set them down. “I need to go back out to the car.”
Suzie frowned. “Is everything OK?”
“Sure, I just want to check that there is nothing in the car that might freeze.” He smiled, and said, “The bottle is a little warm. If Storm wakes up, check the temperature before you give it to her. And if she doesn’t wake up before I come back in, I’ll put it in the fridge with the other two I made up.”
“OK, Mommy,” Suzie said returning his smile. “It’s good that at least one of us knows what they are doing.”
“You’ll soon learn.” He headed for the door. “Haven’t you got any nieces or nephews?”
“Nope, it’s just me and my mom. And although I’ve been working for Social Services for ten years, I have never had the pleasure of taking a baby home.” She shrugged. “Technically, I know how to look after a baby, I just don’t have the necessary practical experience.”
“On the job training,” Kit said. He walked back toward her, standing behind the sofa and looking down on Suzie and Storm. “You two will do great, and you will be surprised at how quickly you pick it up. You’ll be a natural.”
Suzie looked up at him, her face earnest when she said, “It doesn’t feel very natural.” She frowned. “In fact, I have a new appreciation of mothers.” Gazing down at Storm, she continued, “It’s not as if they can tell you what they want. I keep thinking she should wake up and cry.”
“Don’t worry, before you know it, you’ll be wishing she would go back to sleep.” He leaned down and smoothed Storm’s face. “Although something tells me this little one is going to be a really calm baby.”
“So we gave her the wrong name,” Suzie said.
“I don’t think so,” Kit replied. “I think it suits her perfectly. She’s the calm before the storm.”
Suzie raised her eyebrow at him. “That’s pretty poetic, Dr. Malvern.”
He winked, and pulled back, knowing if he didn’t leave now he would stay and talk with Suzie for hours. However, he had to check there wasn’t a shifter out in the freezing cold, a desperate shifter who had followed them from the hospital to find baby Storm. “I am a man of mystery.”
He slipped out of the room before Suzie had a chance to answer. Putting on his coat and boots, he went outside. His plan was to go to the car and pretend he was looking for something. He hoped the illusion might fool whoever was out there, and they might show themselves.
If he couldn’t hear or see anyone, he would move to plan B, which was to slip inside the small barn next to the house and then shift into his bear. Since his bear senses were so much more acute, and his bear fur was so much thicker, he would then go outside and scout the area. His bear could look for tracks, or pick up scents that would evade his human side.
Opening the front door, he was relieved to see the snow was falling a little less. If there were tracks out there, they would not be instantly covered by the snow, and any scent might linger long enough for his bear to pick it up.
All ifs. But it was all he had. He hesitated, the bond between him and Suzie making it difficult to pull away. It would be easy to convince himself he had been imagining the whole thing and stay with her in the warmth of the house. But if someone was out there and needed his help, it was his duty to help them.
And there was only one way to find out.
Kit went outside to his SUV, and opened the driver’s door. He stood with his head inside the vehicle, but his senses focused on the snowy world outside. He couldn’t hear a thing; all sound seemed to be muted by the thick layer of snow. Pulling his head back from inside the SUV, he stood still and looked around. The night was darker now, although the moon was trying to break through the clouds, its weak light reflecting off the snow.
He waited for a few minutes, his bear trying to break out. His other side had a primal need to ensure the safe return of the baby to its mother. That was the way of things. The natural order. A child belonged with its mother. Although over their years of fostering, his bear had come to accept that was not always the case.
Closing the car door securely, Kit walked to the barn, his eyes trained on the ground, looking for tracks, while he used his hearing to scan a wider area. Just before he reached the barn, he stopped dead.
Tracks.
Slowing down, he looked closely at the footprints, before pulling his phone from his pocket and taking a picture of them. Then he scrolled through, comparing the photos from outside the hospital with these new tracks. They were the same.
At least, to his untrained eye they were the same.
He followed the tracks some more, turning to follow the wall of the barn. As he did so, there was a startled screech and a blur of fur as something took off into the trees.
Kit shifted and followed at full speed, but he couldn’t keep up with the feline figure that lengthened its stride to escape him.
Kit stopped. He didn’t want to frighten the cat away completely. So he turned back and made his way toward his house. There were other ways to catch a kitty.
Chapter Five – Suzie
Suzie’s eyelids were heavy; sleep was calling to her. After being out in the cold, the heat from the fire was comforting, and baby Storm’s breathing was like a lullaby to her ears.
Until a loud screech made them both jump.
As soon as the panicked noise reached them, Storm was awake and crying, drowning out any further sound. Suzie, now fully alert, tested the bottle of formula, it was just about the right temperature, and so she offered it to Storm, in a bid to quiet and calm her. But Storm didn’t want it. Instead, she turned her head, her eyes open wide, searching for something she could not see. Her wails grew steadily louder, and Suzie lifted her up, putting Storm over her shoulder, and walking around the room, talking in a soothing, singsong voice.
“Hush now. Hush, sweet baby,” Suzie crooned, but it did no good.
Afraid of what might be outside, and scared Kit might be hurt, Suzie rocked baby Storm as she made her way to the front door. Pulling it open, she held Storm close to her as she braced herself against the sudden cold.
It was like a blast of ice hitting them. Storm took a breath and quieted her cries, giving Suzie a chance to listen for any other sound. There was none. None at all.
“Where are you, Kit?” Suzie asked.
The night answered her with silence.
Suzie stood still, not knowing what to do. Did she risk going out into the night with Storm? What if there was someone out there? If Kit had been overpowered, then what chance did Suzie have, and what danger would she be putting Storm in?
But Kit might be hurt, and the cold would kill him. She had no choice.
Turning around, Suzie bent down to grab her boots, balancing Storm in one arm while she pulled them on, one at a time.
Once she had them both on, Suzie tucked Storm back inside her coat and turned to face the cold. Only there was a big grizzly bear standing on the porch, looking in.
“Oh,” Suzie said, feeling pathetic. But what exactly did a person say to a bear?
The bear walked a couple of steps forward and lifted his head, sniffing the air. Sniffing her scent. Suzie's heart hammered in her chest, but she had to believe this bear meant her no harm. If it did, she would be dead by now. Hungry bears didn’t usually wait for permission to tear a person’s throat out, did they?
“Kit?” Suzie asked, putting her hand out to the bear.
The bear stepped closer and sniffed her hand, sending thrills through her body. Suzie had never come face to face with a shifter before. It was incredible. Here was the animal side of the man who said she was his mate. As they stood there, face to face, all time stood still; the cold didn’t penetrate her bones, the fear she’d felt at hearing the screech gone.
Then something more incredible happened. The air around the bear shimmered and crackled with electricity, and the bear appeared to disappear, only to be replaced by a man. Her man.
“Kit!”
“
I thought you were running out on me,” Kit said, as he closed the space between them and guided her back inside the house.
“No, I heard a noise, it made Storm cry, and we were coming outside to see if you were OK,” Suzie told him.
“I am.” He held his hands out from his side. “All in one piece.”
“So what was the noise?” Suzie asked.
“A cat. Maybe a cougar, I couldn’t be sure, it moved so fast.”
“Was it the same cat…?” Suzie asked, her voice quiet. “The one who left Storm at the hospital?”
“The tracks look the same.” Kit took his phone out and showed her the two images. “Don’t you think?”
“Very similar, if not the same,” Suzie agreed, examining the photos. “So what do we do?”
“I thought about leaving the barn open. Putting some food out there, and a blanket. Try to lure it in.” Kit shrugged. “I’m fast, but this kitty was much faster. If we’re going to gain her—or his—trust, I can’t keep chasing after them.”
“Agreed.” Suzie nodded, but her concern was almost too much. “What if I wait out there, try and talk to whoever it is?”
“It’s freezing. As the clouds clear, the temperature will drop quickly. I don’t want you risking your life. Whoever it is, they have thick animal fur and shifter blood.” He took Storm from Suzie’s arms and offered the baby the bottle of formula. “And we need to keep this little one warm and safe too.”
“You have a way with her, I couldn’t get her to drink her milk,” Suzie said, as Storm began to suck on her bottle. “She just cried when I tried to give it to her.”
“Perhaps because she heard her mommy outside, and thought she was in distress,” Kit suggested.
“Do you really think so?” Suzie asked. “You know, that Storm would recognize her mom’s cry like that?”
“Why not? She would have heard it while she was in the womb. If her mom shifted when she was pregnant. Or maybe it was her father.” He looked up at Suzie. “I think the one thing we can be sure of is that Storm here has someone looking out for her.”
Doctor Daddy Bear (Return to Bear Creek Book 8) Page 3