by Reina Torres
Grumbling, Locke lifted his chin toward the front of the building. “Are you expecting someone this early?”
It wasn’t all that early, but Katherine wasn’t going to argue with him about anything at that moment. “I don’t know. I know the ladies were coming by for breakfast.”
“Oh, great.” Locke didn’t set her down on the bed beside him. No. He turned on the bed and dropped his legs to the side while he wrapped an arm around her middle. “I bet it’s Georgia. The woman is up before the sun every day. She’s going to love you.”
As he got up on his feet, he carried her along with him, walking her into the bathroom to set her down on a braided rag rug. “That,” he pointed out with a smile, “was made by Wren. You’ll figure her out pretty quickly. I think she’s a lot like you.”
“Oh yeah?”
He nodded and pressed a kiss to her forehead. “I’m going to start the water, so it gets hot for a shower and while you’re getting ready, I’m going to go out and keep the women at bay.”
“At bay?” She paused her words to squeeze a little curl of paste onto her toothbrush. “I bet you love it when they coo and fawn over you.”
He thought about it for a moment and nodded. “Got me there. They’re all the same, every single one, a handful.”
After starting the shower and warming up the water, Locke pressed a kiss on her cheek before heading out of the bathroom. Alone, she looked at herself in the mirror and was surprised when she didn’t cringe in reflex. Looking back at her was a woman with a soft smile on her lips and healthy color in her cheeks.
She looked happy.
She felt happy.
Katherine was already looking forward to the rest of the day. Moving to Mystic was already the best decision of her life. She couldn’t wait to see how much better it could get.
Celeste Winter was the last to arrive, but Locke knew that Katherine worried about her opinion the most. She’d confided as much to him after he’d seen her craning her neck to watch the door several times.
He’d managed to keep his mouth shut to a certain extent. He knew that telling Katherine to relax would go over just as well as it did when Xavier had told True the same thing a few weeks ago. It had taken a few hours of groveling before he’d been able to sleep beside her that night.
When he’d heard the sound of Aaron’s truck pulling up to the curb outside of the store front, he’d gotten up from his chair and crossed to the group of women and worked Katherine loose enough from the frenetic knot of activity to cross to the front door and open it in time to greet the Winters.
Katherine had been somewhat prepared for the meeting after talking to True, but there really wasn’t a way to prepare anyone for the Winter family.
Straight from the cab of the truck, Aaron set about removing his two cubs from their seats. Handing one to Celeste who caught sight of him over the child’s head. “Locke, there you are.”
Celeste reached out a hand to him and he moved to her side. Celeste owned a good part of his heart because of the joy she brought to Aaron. The life she’d brought to Mystic with her presence. And the way she’d helped Aaron to make a go of the Mystic Mountain Resort.
The resort that brought True to Xavier.
And with True… came Katherine.
He leaned in and kissed her cheek. “Celeste. How is our Mama Bear?”
“Bear! Rawr!” The little boy in her arms shouted. “Mama!”
Celeste laughed at his antics. “Some days I am wonderful. And some days I’m reminded of exactly how old I am.”
“Don’t listen to her, Locke. She’s perfect.”
Celeste rolled her eyes. “He says that because he knows I think he’s perfect.”
Little Laine, safely in Aaron’s arms, reached up and tugged on her father’s beard. “Papa! Perfect!”
“Daddy’s girl?” Locke laughed as Celeste sighed. “They both love their father. I’m just the one who tries to get them to eat without wearing it. And the one that wrestles them to bed.”
Aaron stepped up beside his mate and planted a kiss on her lips.
Locke was nearly ready to look away when the two children laughed and made messy grabs for their parents’ faces. That was until little Laine heard Locke laughing at the situation. Turning her head of thick dark hair that looked so much like her mother’s, she opened her eyes wide and declared, “Kitty!”
Locke heard Celeste gasp in shock. “Lainey!”
But her daughter wasn’t to be shushed. “Kitty Cat, hugs!”
How could he say no?
Reaching out to the little cub, he had to grab her out of thin air as she leapt from her father’s arms without a thought.
“Careful, little cub. You’re a bear not a bird.”
The little girl giggled and wrapped her arms around his neck for a hug. “Kitty Cat!”
“Locke?”
The feeling that lanced through him at the sound of Katherine’s voice was joy.
Turning toward the door with little Laine in his arms he saw her beautiful face turn from shock to a soft joy.
“This is Laine.”
Maybe it was his imagination, but he thought he saw a tear gathering in the corner of her eye.
“Laine, is it?”
“Lainey!” Shouted the little girl in his arms, who immediately decided to abandon him for greener pastures. She reached out to Katherine. “Hugs!”
To keep Laine from scaring them all with another Herculean jump, Locke closed the distance between them in a rush. A rush that had Katherine gasping in shock and pressed full against the wall at the front of her shop.
Locke saw the question in her eye and grinned at their sparkle. “Sorry. Laine is a bear cub through and through, but she sometimes likes to jump like a koala.”
Laine tugged on Katherine’s arm. “Hugs!”
Laughing, Katherine reached out and instead of just wrapping her arms around the little girl, she wrapped her arms around both of them and squeezed. “Hugs.”
And then it was hugs for everyone else. Celeste and Aaron were introduced, and little Aiden took his turn hugging Katherine tight.
The shop became a rush of activity as shelves were cleaned and moved around the floor with Aaron and Locke doing a lot of hefting back and forth. Locke knew that Aaron loved to show off for his mate. The children had more than their share of laughter and love. And Locke was more than happy to remove his shirt and wipe his face with it when Katherine made the suggestion.
He certainly liked the rush of color in her cheeks and the bright look in her eyes.
Locke felt a sharp poke in his side and turned to look at the sweet face of his good friend. Georgia Huang. “Georgia, careful with your claws, but not so fast that it won’t scar.”
He saw the flare of fire in her eyes and she curled her fingers in the air between them.
“If I wanted to scar you, Locke. I’d use fire instead of claw. You know that.”
The two laughed and she set her hand on his shoulder.
“You look happy.”
Locke looked over at Katherine who had one child in each arm as she sat on the floor giggling with True and Celeste. When he looked back at Georgia, he saw the fire in her eyes again, but this time it wasn’t a warning, it was the flames of happiness. He’d seen them burn brightly over the years.
“She’s the one, Georgia. She’s my mate.”
“I know.” She nodded her head. “I’ve always known.”
The surety of her voice gave him no reason to doubt her words. Then again, he couldn’t imagine her joking about such a thing. That didn’t stop him from being curious. “How did you know?”
He felt the extraordinary static in the air surrounding him, both of them, as she began to speak.
“The things I have seen, Locke. The things Harry and I have seen in our times,” she sighed and the world around them rippled with energy. “It sometimes seems as if time has been moving backwards as much as forwards. We have seen the wonders of the world, Locke. W
e have been all over the world, but this…” He followed her gesture and took in the room as a whole with its close-knit chaos. “This is the best wonder of them all.”
Locke agreed with her. “Katherine…” He said her name again just to taste it on his lips, roll it across his tongue. “Katherine fits right in.”
Georgia touched her snowy head to his shoulder. “Yes, she does. She’ll fit in well here. And you-”
He looked down at Georgia. “Me?”
Her shoulders shook with laughter. “If you’re good to her, I guess we’ll keep you too.”
Locke rolled his eyes and dropped an arm around Georgia’s shoulders. “Good to know,” he chuckled. “Very good to know.”
Six
For over a week Locke balanced his life between his work at the resort and his time with Katherine. Days away from opening her store, Locke surprised her with a picnic in the grass beside the pond.
Her belly full and her body exhausted, Katherine fell back on the blanket and looked up into the night sky.
The stars sparkled brightly against the dark blanket of night and called to mind her childish dreams from years ago.
A soft hum of sound reached her ears as Locke lay down beside her. “You look happy.”
She giggled, her eyes remaining on the sky above their heads. “I am happy.”
Her words were genuine. The feeling that rushed up through her body only added to the truth of her sentiment. Happy was only the start of her feelings. “Things are coming together in the shop. I haven’t really moved as fast as I could, but I like the pace we’re setting.”
“Do you need any help moving things around? Building anything?”
She heard his concern in the softer tone of his voice. She felt his eyes on her as he turned on his side.
“No. I think we have everything we need.” Katherine turned on her side and met his dark gaze in the shadows. “The table you built for me in the back of the shop is just perfect. I have so much room to layout my fabrics and cut patterns. The sewing table you added onto it means I don’t have to move the machine when I need to cut. I’ve never had so much room to work before.”
She reached out a hand to touch her fingertips against his chest.
“You’re so good to me.”
He laid his hand over hers, trapping it in place. “I want to be. I need to be.”
She saw him grin in the near darkness and even though his eyes were almost all in the shadows, Katherine imagined that they bore a same measure of the hunger she’d seen in them the night before.
“You’re a good man, Locke. Patient.” She felt her cheeks pink in the darkness. “Maybe too much.”
He picked her hand up from his chest and brought it to his mouth. Instead of a single kiss on the back of her hand, he brushed his lips against her fingertips, earning a soft gasp from her mouth. “You let me touch you,” he spoke softly but his words were clear, impassioned, “and hold you close.”
She heard the words, but also held them against what she knew of True’s relationship with Xavier. “Is that enough for you?”
“I have no complaints.”
As she watched, his eyes darkened and the soul looking out at her wasn’t his.
The corners of her mouth curled up in a wry smile. “I think your lion might have a few complaints.”
A moment of silence passed between them before he spoke, and Katherine found herself holding her breath.
“I would tell you that his only complaint is when he thinks we don’t do enough for you. Provide for your care. Your health. Your happiness.”
She narrowed her eyes at those comments. “Pretty words?”
He shook his head, but his gaze never left hers. “See?” Locke sat up on the blanket and continued to speak. “Touch me.”
Katherine heard his plea and somewhere in the back of her thoughts she might have understood what he was saying. Or rather, what he meant.
Instead, her mind latched onto the sensual suggestion of his words.
It didn’t help that their touches turned into needy dreams and flares of hunger when she should be working.
When she sat up on the blanket, it was Locke’s gentle, reassuring touch that steadied her.
His fingers dipped into the wide neckline of her blouse and traced the subtle sweep of her collar bone. “Would you believe me about the complaints if you heard it from the source?”
He was up on his feet before she put two and two together. She wanted to blame it on something other than the way her brain seemed to slow down when Locke was anywhere near her.
Katherine watched as he reached his hands up and pulled his shirt over his head and dropped it on the blanket beside her. When he reached for the button at the waistband of his jeans, she didn’t look away. She watched in rapt silence as he pushed his jeans down his hips and let them fall to the grass at his feet.
She almost jokingly asked him to slow down a little, but she couldn’t manage to summon the words to say it. Locke’s naked body was an invitation to pure hedonism, and she wanted to answer the call.
He helped Katherine to her feet, and she struggled to keep some kind of distance between them. If she found herself pressed up against the hard, muscled planes of his body, she wasn’t at all prepared to fight off the need that grew more powerful every time she saw him.
“You’re beautiful, Katherine.”
His lips pressed tightly together when she shrugged away from the compliment.
The look in his eyes wasn’t anger or disappointment. No, Locke looked as if he ached for her.
“Before I take you, Kitten, I need to know you believe me. If I could find the person who made you doubt your own worth, I would gladly rip them apart.”
Swallowing hard, Katherine gained strength from his words and the care he gave to protecting her feelings. “It wasn’t just one person,” it hurt to admit it, “and while some of their comments were outright cruel and vicious, I think the ones that hid behind smiles and yet still planted the ideas in my head that I wasn’t enough, or at times, too much to be accepted where the ones who cut me deeper.
“Planting their views inside my head, poisoning my heart, against… against myself. That likely did the most damage.”
He placed his hands on her cheeks and leaned in to brush a kiss on her lips.
She tried to lean in and deepen the kiss, but he set her back, putting a few feet between them before he shifted.
It was a magnificent sight. She still had no real idea if the change started at one extreme and rolled through the other, or if everything happened at once.
Either way, it took her breath from her lungs.
In one moment, he’d transformed from man to lion as if the two simply could not exist in the same place as the other.
The beast shook itself and fixed its gaze on her. She’d seen him before, watched the lion shift right before her, but this was different. It moved ever closer until he stood eye to eye with her. The beast was massive and would have no trouble tearing her apart, but when it was close enough for her to touch, it stopped and sat down on its haunches and waited.
Locke hadn’t told her exactly what he had planned, but once she got over the pure animalistic grace of the beast before her, she understood.
Slowly, she lifted her hands, keeping them in full view of the lion’s sharpened vision and other senses. When the beast nodded, she moved closer still and touched her hands to his massive jaw.
The rush of his preternatural energy flooded through her body, filling every available space inside of her like water in a jar of sand.
A part of her understood that under all of that muscle, deep inside of the lion’s soul was Locke. Another part of her, one more apprehensive and fearful than the other, took note of the size of his paws near her feet and the wide span of the lion’s jaw.
One bite.
One snap, and her life would be over.
But the longer she stood there, moving her hands over the head of the lion, feeling its bre
ath on her face, the easier it became to push the fear away.
How amazing was it that she could be this close to what her rational mind told her was a wild animal and yet she didn’t feel the need to rush off screaming?
Either she was becoming more accustomed to the reality of the world she lived in, or she was losing her mind.
Slow and easy, she drew in breath after breath, enjoying the tickle of the lion’s whiskers against her skin. They leaned forward until her forehead touched his. Her fingers moved through the lion’s mane until she had a firm grip on him.
“We probably should have talked about this before you shifted,” she spoke aloud to the lion as if she was speaking directly to Locke and expecting an answer. “Then I would have known what your plan was. Right now, I’m flying a little blind. I mean I get the idea, but it might have been easier to try this when you were still Locke and maybe you could have been a kind of middleman.”
Her shoulders sank. I’ve never tried this with an animal before.
I’m hardly just an animal.
She paused, hesitating. The voice in her head was different from Locke’s. Heavier.
Is that what you think he sounds like?
Katherine felt an odd twinge in the energy she was sharing with the massive lion.
Massive, hmm?
Shut up, cat.
Locke?
Katherine felt a rush of heat through their connection.
Yes, Kitten.
Ask.
Katherine lifted her forehead away from the lion and met its steady gaze. She didn’t move her hands, intent on keeping the connection.
It should have been easy to ask the question. It came down to three words. Nothing really in the big scheme of things, but Katherine had always been felled by the little things. The shallow cuts through her psyche.
Just when she thought of stepping away and tucking her question into a deep, dark box in her mind, she heard the warm tones of Locke inside of her head, encouraging her, coaxing her when she could have just walked away.
Katherine struggled with her thoughts and had to make a decision of her own.