by Dena Christy
“Grace.” As soon as Logan said the name of the woman Mason had been in love with years ago, the blood drained from his friend’s face. “She’s the most logical choice. She’s the right age and she carries the blood of an alpha in her veins from her father.”
“And you’re going to go through with it? You’re going to bind yourself to her? You’re going to fuck her?”
Logan was sure that’s what stuck in Mason’s craw the most. The fact that he would have to stand by while his best friend, his alpha, mated and had children with Grace.
This needed to stop, now. He needed Mason on his side, not fighting with him.
Logan stood up. Everything about his height and his bearing demanded respect. For Mason’s sake he hoped he heeded it. “That’s enough, Mason.”
There was an unmistakable command in his voice, but as soon as Mason took a step toward him, Logan knew it made no difference.
“Is it? Is it enough? You’re going to give up your chance to have your true mate for that treacherous bitch?” There was a snarl on Mason’s face as he came toward him, and Logan’s response was instantaneous.
He came around the desk in quick, efficient movements and grabbed a fistful of Mason’s shirt. He jerked him forward so that they were nose to nose.
“You listen to me. Go for a run, go beat the shit out of the heavy bag down at the gym. Do whatever the hell else you need to do to get the poison out of your system. This mating is happening, and while I wish things were different, they aren’t. Our pack is at stake, and that is more important than how I feel and how you feel. She will be my mate, and you will respect that. You will respect her. If you don’t, your going to have a problem with me. Am I clear?” Logan did his best to stay calm, but he couldn’t let the poison festering inside his best friend spill out and ruin everything. This was bigger than what they both wanted, and the sooner Mason got on board with it, the better.
“Crystal clear, alpha.” Mason’s eyes shifted away in a sign of respect, and Logan let him go. His best friend straightened his shirt as he moved back. “Is that all?”
Logan had wanted to find out what had been happening while he was away, but he decided it could wait. While he had no doubt that Mason knew what was expected of him, it was going to take time for him to come around. He needed to come to terms with the fact that woman he’d thought was his, before it had all gone to shit, was going to be his alpha’s mate.
“Go on.”
Mason didn’t need telling twice, and he walked toward the office door as if his ass was on fire. He yanked it open and Alex stood on the other side with his hand poised to knock. Mason slipped by him and Alex stepped in. Whatever he wanted, Logan hoped it could wait. He needed a run and a chance to clear his head. The last thing he wanted to do was deal with more problems right now.
“Alpha, there is a woman here who wants to talk to you.”
“Who is it?” He hadn’t been in town for longer than a half hour and someone was looking for him already?
“I don’t know. I’ve never seen her before.”
Great, a stranger wanted to see him. He wasn’t in the mood to deal with anyone right now.
“Get her name and number and tell her I’ll get back to her later.” Logan expected Alex to turn on his heel and do what he said, but the young wolf just stood there. “What’s the problem?”
“With all due respect, you need to come see her now.”
2
Faith took a sip of her diet soda as her son wolfed down his burger and fries. At least his sullen mood hadn’t dampened his appetite. She couldn’t eat at all, since the anxiety inside her was getting worse and made her reject the notion of having food right now.
“I don’t know why we had to come here. It’s my summer vacation and I don’t want to spend it here in the middle of the woods. Where’s the mall? Where’s the skate park?” Connor had done nothing but complain since she’d bundled him in the car early yesterday morning, and hadn’t let up since then. The only peace he’d given her was when he was asleep.
She could see his point. Cold Bay was a nature lover’s paradise with tall pine trees, clean air and a quieter pace than what she was used to. She didn’t think such things as traffic jams existed here. If she was here for any other reason than to beg for Logan’s help, she might have appreciated the surroundings.
“You’ll live without a mall or a skate park for the summer. I’m sure there are other fun things to do here.”
“Yeah, if I was a bird or a fish.” In the past couple of months Connor had developed a tone and she couldn’t say she liked it much. She pinched the bridge of her nose, trying to forestall the headache that was building behind her eyes.
“Let’s just make the best of it. You know why we need to be here. We need help, and the best place to find it is here.”
He looked at her and anxiety lurked in his eyes, under the bravado and bluster of a twelve year old. It was a mirror of how she felt and a part of her wanted to whisk him away from here, to pretend they’d never come if it would take that look away. But she knew that she couldn’t do it. Her son’s future was too important to spare his feelings now. She only hoped that the man they were here to see didn’t reject him outright the way he’d rejected her thirteen years ago.
“What if he doesn’t like me?”
She was certain that was the source of all the trouble he’d given her since they’d left home. She was not one to hide things from him, and she’d told him the truth. She told him that they needed to see his father, to see if there was some reason for the angry and aggressive feelings churning inside him. Connor wasn't a stupid boy, and had to know there must be a reason his father had never been around.
“I’m sure that won’t happen.” And she was almost certain that it wouldn’t. It was one thing not to want to continue on with a woman you’d had a one night stand with. Maybe Logan thought it was a trick to get him back when she'd told his father she was pregnant. Maybe that was why he never called her. Any doubts he had would evaporate when he saw her son. All he needed to do was look at Connor to know that he was his and that she hadn't been trying to trick him all those years ago. Surely he was a decent man, and wouldn’t turn his son away when he needed his help.
Connor looked like he wanted to argue, but the man behind the bar came over to them. He clamped his mouth shut and concentrated on his food.
Faith could understand why the man would want to come over and chat with them since they were the only customers in the place. He could only wipe down the spotless bar so many times.
“How’s the food?” The man gave her an easy smile, but his eyes kept darting to Connor. There was what Faith could only describe as speculation in them.
“Good.” Connor spoke in a monotone as he stared down at his food. The bartender’s brow furrowed for a moment and then he turned to Faith and his face cleared.
“Are you two just passing through? We don’t get many tourists here, so there isn’t a whole lot of touristy things to do unless you like to camp, hike or fish.”
“We’re here looking for someone. A man named Logan Sawyer. The owner of the motel we’re staying at told us he owns this place?”
The bartender’s eyes narrowed for a moment and darted to Connor again. He stood a little straighter, and his expression became guarded.
“He’s in the office in the back. Is he expecting you?”
The man was fishing, but Faith had no intention of spilling her life story to a stranger. What was going on was between her, her son and his father. If Logan wanted this man to know his business, he could tell him himself.
“He’s not. Could you ask him if he would have a few moments to speak with me?” That’s all she said but it appeared to be enough. If this guy knew Logan and was as intelligent as he appeared to be, then he must know that Connor was Logan’s son. He didn’t even ask her for her name before he turned away and walked toward the door that said “staff” on the right side of the bar.
Connor s
hoved his plate away, and she could see by the look on his face that his nerves had gotten the better of him. Hopefully he would be able to keep his food down since he looked a little sick.
“Honey, do you trust me?” She reached out and took his hand in hers. He squeezed it as he looked up at her.
“Yeah.” His voice was a low whisper, and his skin was pale.
“Then trust me when I say that we’ll get through this. No matter what happens, we’ll get through it together.” She forced a smile she was far from feeling on her face. Connor was the most important person in her life and she would do whatever it took to shield him from hurt.
“I’m sorry, Mom.”
“Don’t be sorry. Whatever is going on inside you, we'll deal with it. Logan will know and we can figure this out.”
She refrained from referring to the man they were waiting to see as his father. One lucky sperm didn’t make this man her son’s father, at least not in anything but the strictest biological sense. She was the only parent her son had, and she would protect him with the fierceness of a mother bear if she had to.
She was the one who rocked him in the night when he burned up with the fever of an ear infection. She’d patched up the scraped knees when he'd learned to ride a bike. She’d been both mother and father to him. If there was any other way to solve her son’s current problem she would have taken it. Unfortunately she couldn’t. Now she had to expose her son to a stranger and if Logan rejected him, she thought that she might hurt him.
She blew out a breath as Connor turned his head toward the window. The waiting was killing her. She wanted this done and over with. They had to know one way or another if he was going to help them. She drummed her fingers on the table as she waited for the bartender to come back and tell her if Logan would see her.
The hair prickled on the back of her neck, and she got the distinct feeling that someone was watching her. She looked up and the bottom of her stomach dropped. Logan, the man she hadn’t seen for thirteen years, was standing outside his office door, staring at her.
It was a good thing she was sitting down because seeing him now would have turned her knees to water if she'd been standing. He’d been gorgeous at twenty, but there had been a certain prettiness to his features that had softened him. It had given her the courage to talk to him when she’d met him at that party.
There was no softness in him now, and no traces of the pretty boy she remembered. His face had matured into the rugged handsomeness of a man in his prime. His body had filled out as well. It was much broader than she remembered and she swallowed hard as he stepped away from his office and walked toward her.
His body moved with the easy grace of a male animal, and her eyes roved over the biceps bulging under the sleeve hems of his black T-shirt. He was like the devil in a pair of faded jeans and sin oozed out of his pores. Why hadn’t she remembered the way her heart hammered when she looked at him? Even after everything she’d been through he still had the power to make her forget everything but him. As he got closer, she could see the laugh lines fanning out from his eyes and the scruff of several days growth of beard darkening his jaw.
His eyes focused on her, and they were so familiar. They were the same eyes she saw every day when she looked at her son, and she now knew exactly what Connor would look like when he grew up to be a man.
“Connor.” Her voice was a soft murmur that drew his attention away from the window.
Logan stood beside their table, and she noticed the moment that he realized she wasn’t here alone. His eyes moved to Connor and the blood drained from his face. She wanted to reach out to him, to try in some way to mitigate the shock she saw molding his face.
She curled her hands in her lap and hardened her heart. If he had been here when she’d come looking for him thirteen years ago. If he’d called her at the number she’d left for him, then his son wouldn’t be a stranger to him now. He’d made a decision not to give her the time of day after spending a night taking her virginity and introducing her to passion. Now that choice was coming back to bite him in the ass. She couldn’t let herself feel sorry for him.
Her concern could only be for her son. He was going to be her focus. She didn’t care how hot Logan was now, didn’t care that looking at him had stirred up all the old feelings she’d thought she buried a long time ago. She was here for Connor. She wanted Logan’s help and that was all she needed him for.
Logan stepped out of his office and looked in the direction that Alex pointed.
“She’s right there.”
It wasn’t necessary for him to point her out, since the bar was empty except for her. He stood stock still as he looked at the bent head covered with strands of hair burnished a deep red. Even without looking at her face, he knew it was her. He’d never met another woman with hair like that, and seeing her again took him back to that night thirteen years ago.
They’d met at a party and that hair was like a red cape waved in front of a bull. He couldn’t tear his eyes away from it or her. He’d just left Cold Bay to sew his oats like most young wolves his age. The hunter in him had roused when he’d seen her from across the room. She’d been talking to some other guy and it had taken all his will power not to yank her away from him.
He’d waited until she was alone, and asked her if the guy was her boyfriend. She said no, that she didn’t have one. He asked her if she wanted one and she’d responded by telling him that she was there to have fun. He’d stuck by her side for most of the night, and she’d taken him back to the apartment she shared with two other girls.
They’d spent the night together and he didn’t know what had shocked him more. The fact that she was a virgin or the fact that it had been the most intense experience of his life. Sleeping with her hadn’t quieted the possessiveness that she brought out in him, and it had scared the shit out of him. The point of the night had been to have a good time with no strings. He’d bailed on her in the middle of the night because she made him long for strings and he’d been too young to handle it.
Now she was here, sitting in his bar and she couldn’t have shown up at a worse time. He had a pack to save and the last thing he needed was drama from his past stirring things up. She chose that moment to look up at him, and her eyes flared when she saw him. She wasn’t the same girl she’d been that night, she’d matured into a beautiful woman. From what he could see of her body she’d lost the coltish lankiness of an eighteen year old.She had filled out with curves in all the right places.
He gave himself a shake and walked over to her. Better get this over with and move her along. He had no idea what she wanted now. Thirteen years was a long time to wait for another hook up, no matter how memorable it had been.
He heard her murmur a name to whoever sat across from her in the booth she occupied.
For the first time since he’d seen her from across the room he realized she wasn’t alone. As he came up to the table he tore his eyes away from her and looked at who was sitting across from her.
A young boy of about twelve years old, with a shock of black hair falling onto his forehead, looked up at him. Logan’s gut clenched like he’d been sucker punched. The boy’s eyes were so familiar, they were the same shape and color as the ones that he saw every morning when he looked in the mirror. The boy was the right age, and based on the fact that he was with this woman, Logan was certain that he was looking into the eyes of his son.
The only thing that kept his emotions in check, kept him from exploding in reaction to the bombshell sitting in front of him was the look of trepidation in the boy’s eyes. He turned his eyes toward Faith, the boy’s mother, and she cleared her throat.
“Hello Logan. I’d like you to meet my son, Connor.” She looked at the boy, and Logan could see the deep love she had for him shining in her eyes. “Connor sweetie, this is Logan, your father.”
She raised her eyes up to him as if daring him to deny what he could clearly see. He had no intention of denying it. He remembered the night he’d spent
with her, how he’d tried to protect her but it must have failed. There was no doubt in his mind that the boy sitting across from her was his son. What he wanted to know was why the hell had it taken her so long to inform him of the fact.
“Hello Connor.” He reached out his hand and after a second’s hesitation the boy reached out and took it. He did his best to keep his hold gentle as he touched his son for the first time. He wanted to tell him that there was no reason for him to be afraid when he looked at him. He held himself back. This was all too new for them, and until he knew why they were here and what they needed from him, he would proceed with caution. “Do you like pinball?”
Connor looked surprised by the question. “I’ve never played it, but I do like video games.”
Logan dug into his pocket and pulled out all his change. He sorted out his quarters, set them on the table and put the rest of his change back in his pocket. “We have a pinball machine in the back near the pool tables. I’ll get Alex to show you where it is and keep you company. I just want to talk to your mom for a few minutes.”
Connor looked at his mother for approval and once she nodded he scooped the quarters up off the table and stood up. Logan looked over to Alex and inclined his head toward Connor. The bartender sprang forward and took Connor by the arm.
“Come this way, buddy. I’ll hang out with you while Logan talks to your mom.”
Logan waited until Connor was out of sight and he reached out to take Faith by the arm. Despite the anger churning inside him over the way she’d blindsided him, he kept his hand gentle as he pulled her out of the booth.
“Come back to my office with me where we can have some semblance of privacy. I think a chat is long over due, don’t you?”
Her face was pale as she looked up at him. There was a healthy amount of caution in her eyes as she turned to walk in the direction of his office. She was right to look that way. She’d kept his son from him and she had a lot to answer for. He didn’t know what she was playing at. If she thought she was going to come into his life and spring this on him only to leave again, she was in for a rude awakening. He may not have been there for his son for the past twelve years, but he would be damned if she was going to keep him away now.