by Sierra Brave
The slick-haired bastard raised a thin, light brown eyebrow as he frowned. “I was looking for the spare key we used to keep hidden over here. Someone changed the outside garage door code.”
“You won’t find any spare keys. I found the one you’re searching for early this morning and the one hidden in the barn right after I changed that damn code. Who all had it anyway?”
“Most of the servants knew the code. Perhaps Ms. Hammond came back to get her revenge.” Fury flew through Mal, but as he clenched his fist, he noticed the corners of Jason Wormer’s lips turning upward and realized he was being baited.
“Yeah, you sure managed to do a number on my Mama Carol. I’d like to see all the paperwork you have pertaining to her dismissal, and I want to know what happened to her pension money.”
Wormer shrugged. “Most everything is in your father’s study…if you can tolerate entering.” His nasty smirk stretched to his eyes. “I actually had some insurance papers I was coming by to drop off.”
“And you thought you’d bust right on in on Suki without so much as ringing the doorbell?”
“Suki?” He scrunched up his nose on one side as if he was above uttering her name. “I assume you are referring to Ms. Marks. Has she not moved out yet?”
Mal declined to answer. He glared at Wormer, his stare boring through the man’s thick glasses into his cold, icy blue eyes.
“Well, no matter.” He reached into his lapel pocket and pulled out an envelope. “I’ll leave this with you and wash my hands of the last of dear Doc Patterson’s affairs.”
Mal took the unsealed, white letter holder. “Thanks.”
“Finally, you said it. After all, I’ve been taking care of all of your poor, sickly father’s business, personal and professional, while you were off doing what?” He looked Mal up and down. “Lifting weights? Such a shame—You have good breeding. A fine equine shifter like you could have made an excellent doctor if you weren’t so selfish.”
Gritting his teeth, it took all of Mal’s self-control not to deck him. “Sorry to disappoint you.”
He shook his head. “Quite so. I’ll be on my way.”
Anger pricked at every hair on Mal’s body as he watched Wormer get into his blue BMW and drive off. Once he could no longer see the man’s vehicle from the house, he pulled his phone out of his back pocket and texted Suki so she’d know he’d left a list of the new security system codes and entry codes written on a sheet of paper he’d placed under a large bottle of olive oil on the kitchen counter.
“Fucking prick,” he mumbled to himself as he unlocked his Prius. No sooner than he was behind the wheel, his phone rung. Thinking it might be Suki, he answered.
“What up, brotha?” Dash’s voice hung in Mal’s ear.
“Suki made me promise to have a check-up, so I’m headed to the doctor’s office.”
“Aw, ain’t that sweet. Did she say you had to have it right now?”
“Sort of.”
“Okay, but you’re still a witness so at some point I’m going to have some voice samples for you to listen to and some pictures for you to look through.”
“I heard one of them, but I’m not sure if I’ll remember what he sounded like, and as for photos, he wore a mask.”
“Just because you didn’t see faces that night doesn’t mean you might not have had any persons of interest in your rearview. I’ll show you a bunch of pictures. Some will be random, but if you happen to recognize someone we’re looking at, it might open up a lead. I’ll need to have Suki do the same soon.”
“A’ight.” After he ended his call with Dash, Mal set his phone in his car’s cup holder and headed down the road. He was halfway to the clinic when Derrick’s ringtone played. “Fuck.” He hit the speaker button. “Yeah.”
“What’s up, fool?’
“Driving. What do you need, jackass?”
“When are you coming home?” Mal’s business partner was practically whining.
He smirked. “Can’t handle life without me?”
“I’m busting my ass taking all your training appointments.”
“Boo hoo, my father died and you had to do a little bit of work. Suck it up, buttercup.”
“Rude…I still have to do my own work. That weird-ass motherfucker that’s always on your jock is trying to bulk up or something. He was here again yesterday morning giving me the creeps.”
“Dude, what the fuck are you even saying?”
“You know, that dude always asking questions about you, but yet, he doesn’t want to switch over to having you as his trainer.”
Mal rolled his eyes. “So, he’s a fanboy. Who cares? Did you manage to get payroll out without me?”
“Wayne got that hoochie he’s been fucking on the regular to help him. She’s an office manager or something.”
Mal sighed as he flipped on his turn signal. “It’s QuickBooks, not rocket science.”
“So…you’re not coming back today?”
“I can’t.”
“How come?”
“Complicated. I’m a witness to a crime, and I might have inherited some stuff and there’s this girl.
“Oooohhh, you done found another girl with a big ole butt.”
“Dude, shut the fuck up.” He pressed the button to disconnect without saying goodbye as he pulled into the parking lot of his father’s former medical clinic. Fucking smartass.
Mal stared at the entrance to the clinic before counting the cars around him. He closed his eyes and sighed, picturing the long line of people he’d be waiting behind for a work-in to be seen for an appointment he neither wanted nor needed. Son of a bitch…if I hadn’t promised…He considered hauling ass, but the scenario of what he’d say when Suki asked how things went at the clinic stopped him.
Reluctantly, he schlepped through the front door and stood in front of the window between him and the front desk receptionist. She slid open the glass. “Sign-in and we’ll be with you soon.”
“I don’t have an appointment.”
Her lips tightened and her right eye twitched. “I see.” She glanced around at the busy waiting room.
“The doc came out to the house last night and told me to come by, but honestly, I really…” He released a heavy breath as the thin-nosed, middle-aged woman looked at him with annoyance.
“I could schedule you an appointment for another day.” The corners of her lips turned upward. “Have you been seen here before?”
He rubbed the back of his neck. “Yeah but it’s been a while.”
Her lips tightened again. “If it’s been more than a few years, your records might have been archived.”
“Pfft, somehow I doubt it.” He shifted his weight from one leg to another as he glanced around. Suki was sorely needed there, and how Doctor Jenkins had handled the load on his own thus far was beyond him.
When his gaze returned to the receptionist, she lowered her head while gathering some forms. “Do you have insurance?” She looked at the paperwork, not making eye contact.
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Let me check and see if you are still in our system. What’s your name?”
“Malcolm Patterson.”
She began clicking her fingertips against the keyboard but stopped suddenly. “Geez, I thought you looked familiar. Patterson. As in Doctor Patterson?”
“I guess you could say so.”
Her lips parted slightly. “As in half-owner of the practice?”
Mal was in no mood to discuss his father’s crazy will so he shrugged. “I think Suki would be better suited to the task.”
She smiled. “We miss that girl something awful here. If you see her, tell her to hurry back to work!”
He chuckled. “I wouldn’t be here if she weren’t forcing me.”
The receptionist raised an eyebrow and smirked. “I see. Come on back. I’ll find you a room and have the doctor check in on you as soon as he can.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Gladys.”
“
Thank you, Gladys.”
After a short wait, a technician shuffled Mal down the hall for an MRI and a CT scan before returning him to the tiny waiting room where he’d been left. Although there was an examining table, judging by the size and the stacks of unopened boxes, he assumed the area had function more like a storeroom lately.
He checked his phone to pass the time. He had a message from Derrick, bitching about having been hung up on, and one from Dash, letting him know he’d left the door to his place unlocked so Mal could get in and retrieve clean clothes. He hadn’t packed a lot, but most of his stuff was still at his buddy’s house. He pulled up Suki’s contact info and considered sending a message, even typing a few variations, each one seeming more lame or needy than the last. In the end, he closed the app without contacting her.
A knock on the door drew his attention before Doctor Jenkins entered. “Hello, son.”
“Hey.”
“So, your films look good, and I mean all of them. No broken bones in your back, no slipped disks. Just like your dad, you are one tough guy.”
Mal grimaced. The last thing he wanted to be was anything like his old man. “Okay.”
“I had the CT scan done to compare to your old one. The skull fractures have completely healed, and I don’t see any residual issues.”
Mal laughed, snorting through his nose. “I guess that’s great even though I didn’t know I had a head injury until last night. Will I be getting any smarts back?”
The doctor sat down on a nearby stool. “Have you had any headaches?”
“Occasionally, if I don’t drink enough water, but nothing regular, nothing severe.”
“It’s possible you have already recovered your intelligence. You completed college. Yes?”
“Several years back.”
“Were you able to keep up with your peers?”
Mal nodded. “It’s not like I went to Harvard though. I remember everything coming easily to me when I was younger. I can’t say the work was exceptionally difficult, but I had to stretch to reach for the more challenging courses. You know?”
“It’s possible your IQ has already rebounded. Your father was a brilliant man and had more fight in him than most.”
Shaking his head, Mal frowned. “I’m not like him.”
“He was a lot different before your mother died. He believed he’d found his fated mate in her, and when she died, part of him did too.”
“Whatever.”
“Shifter physiology is much more malleable than that of humans so a complete recovery is possible, particularly if you are starting to recover memories. You’d have to compare previous IQ test scores to current ones to see if your brain damage completely healed, but unless you intend to go back to school, I don’t see a reason to go to such lengths.”
“Thank you for seeing me.”
“Of course.”
“Do you think I could get a copy of my medical records?”
“I’ll arrange for them to be emailed to you.”
After leaving the doctor’s office and returning to his car, Mal checked his phone to see if Suki had texted. He frowned, seeing only a message from Dash and several from Derrick—all memes to express his disappointment in having been hung up on earlier. As his cell buzzed in his hand, Mal caught sight of Derrick’s revenge—a close-up pic of his nuts. He rolled his eyes but called his crazy friend back.
How’d you like my nads?”
“Shut up. I hope you aren’t in the men’s locker room at the gym snapping your junk.”
He guffawed. “I’m in a stall. No one can see me.”
“Still…super professional.”
“We’re arranging a day off so we can go up there.”
“We? As in you and Wayne at the same time?”
“Yes, the night manager isn’t opposed to a double shift, and Casey can fill in on the training appointments we aren’t able to reschedule.”
Mal rested his head against the steering wheel and sighed. He had enough shit going haywire to cause a forest fire around him, and he sure as hell didn’t need to have to babysit those two. “Don’t.”
“We need to pay our respects and find out what the hell is going on. Neither of us understands what’s keeping you.”
“Dude, please let me handle things on my own.”
“Nah, I’ve heard of this stuff before…people leaving a perfectly good set-up to go back home or to some far-off vacation, and someone gets ahold of them and fucks with their head until the out-of-town friend rushes in for the rescue.”
“I’m going to call the cable company and cancel your pay channels if you don’t stop watching and then believing every horror movie. Don’t come. Stay at work. No more gross pictures and I’ll be back once I figure out all my shit.”
“Tomorrow then?”
“Hell no! Give me a week.”
“Nope, we’re seeing you tomorrow either here or there. Text me the address where you are staying.”
“I will not!”
“We’ll find you.” Before Mal could reply to his friend’s ominous comment, Derrick repaid him, ending the call without notice.
“Son-of-a-whore!”
Chapter Eleven
After her online class, Suki stood up from her perch in front of her computer and stretched with her arms above her head. Since the Skype meeting with her mentor from the association was scheduled for several hours later, she took a hot shower, washing away all the evidence she had finally slept with the man of her dreams. Her chest ached as she considered all that had transpired between them—the interaction had run so hot and cold. One minute he was entranced, and the next he couldn’t stand her.
Her feelings needed some introspection as well. Is he even the same person I fell for after his head injury? He was sort of a dick to me…more than once…and I still slept with him. She balled up her fist and tapped it against her head, disgusted by her lack of impulse control. But then again…he made me breakfast in bed and said I was beautiful. She tapped a finger against her front tooth as she walked over to her dresser to pick out some fresh clothes.
Staring at her underwear, she debated her choice between the absolutely no-sex granny panties and the gorgeous, matching bra and panty set she’d been saving for her first time. Hmm…things did not go the way I had them planned out in my head. We were supposed to do it in a nice hotel room on our third date which should have included a meal in a fine-dining restaurant. We were going to have champagne and chocolate-dipped strawberries. What an idiot I am.
She touched the waistband of the large panties she usually only wore if she was bloated while she dwelled on the fantasy. Champagne…my cousin was right when he said I really didn’t even know Mal. I hadn’t even known about his allergy. Still, I felt the pull between us so strongly. Shifters don’t randomly go into heat…
She turned her head and stared at the bed where they’d connected. If she breathed deeply, she could still smell a tinge of his pheromones in the room, a musky but sweet mixture like a blend of ambrette seed oil, oak, and vanilla. As the scent caught in her nose, the juncture between her thighs throbbed. While snatching the matching undergarment set out of her drawer, she swore, “Damn it all.”
She chose a pair of tight jeans, a green, long-sleeved twist-knot tunic, and her regular slip-on boots. After a peek in the full-length mirror, she decided she was neither too dressed-up nor so thrown together she didn’t still look cute. She pulled off the same maneuver with her hair and make-up before cleaning up her room. If Mal comes back, I’m not going to look like I got all dolled up for him.
She had taken the breakfast tray back to the kitchen, thrown any clothes tossed on the floor in the hamper, and changed her sheets when she heard someone enter the house. A sudden streak of fear shot down her spine and she dropped down on her hands and knees beside her bed. Peering underneath, she found the golf club she tucked underneath after she’d found the doctor’s set. He wasn’t using them, and a Marks always knew to prepare for the worse.
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br /> She grabbed the piece of sports equipment and hid behind her door. A familiar creaking alerted her that someone was on the third step from the top of the staircase. She braced herself and gathered her courage, holding her weapon at the best angle for her to bound out and smash in an intruder’s skull. As a shadow darkened her doorway, she held her breath, gripping the handle with both hands until she heard Mal calling her name.
After letting out the breath she was holding, she stepped out from behind her door as he was entering. His scent rushed over her, setting her head spinning, and all she could think to utter was, “Hi.”
“Hey, babe.” His gaze darted away from her face to whip up and down her body. “You look nice. Heading out to play a few rounds?”
She shook her head. “If you’re going to be staying here, maybe you should call or text to let me know when you are coming back.” She bit down on her bottom lip, hoping she hadn’t come off too haughty. After all, by all rights, she was in his house. The will had only given her permission to use the place for a while.
He took the club from her and leaned the makeshift weapon against the wall. “Smart thinking. I figured with me changing the security codes, you’d know it was me.”
‘Oh, I’d already forgotten.” She looked away, her heart booming.
“How was class?”
“Good; I only have two left before I’ll be eligible for certification.”
He brushed a piece of hair behind her ear. “Such a smart woman.”
Heat bloomed over Suki’s cheeks and her heart swelled until she felt as if the organ would no longer fit inside of her. She quivered, her breasts heaving. “Did you see Doctor Jenkins?”
“Yep, clean bill of health; Perfect CAT scan and excellent blood tests.” He lifted his shirt, exposing his amazing abdominal muscles. He pointed to a small freckle beside his navel. “They didn’t think this was cancerous. What’s your expert opinion?”
Without thinking she reached over and ran her fingers over the firm set of muscles. She glanced upward and noticed his smirk. Snatching her hand away, she turned her head away to hide her embarrassment. “I think you like attention.”