Teal laughed, knowing he’d be a distraction while she painted, but she didn’t care. She felt the warmth of his strong body wrapped around her and smiled to herself. Maybe she wouldn’t get much done besides kissing him in that beautiful meadow. She didn’t think she’d mind that at all.
Shouts and cries of surprise echoed through the clearing next to the gorilla exhibit, along with the loud pounding of heavy footsteps. Stetson released her and ushered her and Izzy behind him, standing between them and whatever was going on.
“Wolves!” several people cried out.
Teal peeked around Stetson and could see a group of men dressed up in what did appear to be wolf costumes: furry coats and hoods, with masks covering their faces. Long, silver claws poked out of where their hands should be. Was this some show the zoo put on? It didn’t seem like a show, as their movements were almost threatening. They waved their clawed hands and howled and kind of danced around some of the patrons. People scuttled back out of their way. Maybe the strange behavior was meant to impress everyone, but it left Teal with an unsettled feeling in her gut.
Izzy whimpered, and Teal bent down and picked the six-year-old up, holding her close. “It’s okay, sweetie. It’s just an act. They’re just pretending to be wolves ’cause we’re at the zoo, see?”
As Teal watched them, she realized she recognized the costumes. They were from the wolves in the stage production of Beauty and the Beast. She’d seen these very costumes used at the Buell Theater when she was in college.
Stetson had half turned and pulled them both close with one arm. He was glaring at the wolf men as if they were personally attacking him. “I don’t like this,” he murmured.
Teal was glad that her own feelings were validated. What if it wasn’t an act with the zoo? Her mind buzzed with thoughts of psychos donning wolf costumes to hurt and terrify patrons. She tried to push the dramatic thoughts away, but there were a lot of crazy people in this world and so many random attacks on innocents. What if these men had nefarious intent and nobody was doing anything because they assumed it was an act?
Suddenly, the men were howling louder and circling around someone. Teal heard a yell of outrage, and sheer horror rushed through her. She was pretty certain that was Austin’s voice. “Get away from me!” the boy hollered.
“Austin!” Stetson released her and started toward the group of men circling his nephew. He stopped and turned back to her, indecision clouding his face.
Will sprinted toward them, clutching ice cream sandwiches. “Uncle Stetson! Austin!” He pointed, and Teal’s stomach dropped.
One man had lifted Austin high into the air as the other wolf men circled and howled. Blood dripped from cuts on Austin’s arms. They’d cut him with their claws. The boy wasn’t crying, but he was yelling in outrage and anger and probably terror.
Stetson pushed Will toward Teal and Izzy. “Go to the women’s bathroom. Lock yourselves in a stall and call 911.” With that, he let out a roar and rushed at the circle of men terrorizing his nephew.
Teal didn’t want to leave them, and Will didn’t appear to either. People were screaming and huddling or running away from the circle of wolves as Stetson plowed into them, knocking two down and throwing a few punches. The wolves howled and turned as a pack to face Stetson as he leapt back to his feet. Where was security? How could Teal just leave them? Yet she knew they needed to get the police coming, if they weren’t already.
Suddenly two wolves looked around at her, howled, and rushed her direction. “Run!” she screamed. She clutched Izzy close as she ran for the women’s bathroom like Stetson had instructed her. She could hear a battle going on behind her; hopefully, Stetson was as good of a fighter with multiple men as he’d proven to be with Ike. As she ducked into the handicapped bathroom stall with Will and Izzy, her heart was thundering and her palms were slick. She locked the door and yanked out her phone, praying that help wasn’t too far away.
“Where are you, pretty girl?” a leering voice called from just outside the stall door.
Teal’s heart raced and she could hardly grip her phone. She tried to dial 911 but hit 921 instead, her fingers were trembling so badly.
The stall door banged violently open and a large man stood there with a pile of fur at his feet, glowering at her. He was sweating profusely and red-faced. Ike.
Her heart thumped uncontrollably. Izzy cried out and buried her face in Teal’s neck.
“Hand the girl off to the boy and I won’t hurt them,” Ike said.
Teal readily obeyed. Protecting the children was her first priority. Will took his sister, and Teal stood in front of them. “What do you want?”
Ike chuckled darkly. “You … to help me settle some scores.”
Chapter Nine
Stetson plowed into the men circling the guy who was holding Austin up in the air, anger rushing through him. He knocked two to the ground, threw a few well-placed punches, and then jumped up, determined to get Austin free and thump each of these stupid fake wolves. What were they playing at? How dare they hurt a young boy? How dare they hurt his nephew?
The wolves as a group turned to face Stetson. “Let him go,” he growled at the men hiding behind wolf masks.
“Uncle Stetson!” Austin screamed.
“Gladly,” the man holding Austin said; then he threw Austin at Stetson.
The force of Austin’s body flying through the air knocked him down. Stetson hit the hard concrete and grunted as Austin lay on top of him. Furry, hot, and stinky wolf furs were suddenly dumped on top of him as well. Stetson roared in frustration and pushed at the furs. It took a minute to get them all off before he and Austin could scramble to their feet.
“You all right?” he asked Austin.
“Yeah.” Austin jutted out his chin. He had some blood dripping from cuts on his arms, and his face was red, but he looked okay. “Jerks came at me eight to one. I coulda thumped them in a fair fight.”
Stetson laughed shakily. He looked around the small clearing. People were peering at him and Austin, and a couple of security guards were carefully approaching them. Where were the wolf men? Where were Teal, Will, and Izzy?
The pudgier security guard had a pistol aimed at them, but he was shaking. “Put your hands up.”
“What are you doing, you idiot?” Austin demanded. “The wolf guys tried to kill me, and then my uncle—” He pointed at Stetson. “—saved me from them. Then they dumped their reeky furs on us and ran.”
The guy looked around. “Where’d they go?”
“How are we supposed to know? We were buried under their stupid furs.”
“Uncle Stetson!” Will ran up to him, Izzy clinging to his neck. “A big, bad dude took Teal.” He pointed back toward the bathroom.
Stetson’s stomach dropped. One of the wolf men? Why had they gone after Austin and now after Teal? “Watch my niece and nephews,” he commanded the security guards. He took off at a run toward the bathroom, his eyes searching for Teal and a big guy. He prayed as he ran, Please, please let me find her.
Ike clung to Teal’s arm as he rushed her toward a shady path. People along the way were staring at them strangely, but no one moved to stop them.
“Help me!” Teal called to a couple of men walking with their wives and families. “Please!”
Ike’s hand dug into Teal’s arm. He laughed easily as the men turned toward them. “My girlfriend is a drama queen, and we had a silly fight.” He clapped a hand over her mouth and dragged her away from them. Teal jabbed her elbow into his gut, then tried to claw his face. He backhanded her and then lifted her off her feet. She screamed.
“Dude, you’d better ease up.” The two men approached them.
“Back off or I’ll kill her,” Ike said in an icy voice. He kept one arm tight around her chest and pulled out a knife with his other hand.
Teal’s stomach clenched in horror.
“Teal!” The yell came from behind them.
Ike whipped Teal around, letting her see that Stetson was
running in their direction. He looked big and strong and royally ticked off. No one had ever looked so good to her.
Teal wanted to whimper in relief, but she wasn’t going to let Ike spear her or Stetson. She grabbed on to his knife hand and dug her fingernails into the back of his hand and his forearm. Ike howled in surprise and released the knife. It clattered to the ground. He released her and bent to pick up the knife just as Stetson slammed into him. They went down in a heap, rolling around and exchanging hits.
One of the men who’d tried to help her stepped forward, but Stetson yelled at him. “I’ve got him! Call the police!”
Teal kicked the knife out of the way, not willing to risk letting Ike get it.
Stetson hit Ike repeatedly and then jumped to his feet, yanking him up, spinning him around and putting him in a headlock.
Ike howled in frustration. “I’m going to beat you. Someday, I’m going to beat you.”
“What is your deal?” Stetson asked, pulling in quick breaths.
“You don’t even remember?” Ike tried to break free, but Stetson didn’t let him, putting even more pressure on his neck. “State championship game. Eagle Valley High.” There was a huge crowd growing around them and sirens in the distance, but Ike kept talking. “We were supposed to win state. I was the running back and with my size I could plow over anybody, but not you. You shut me down, and then you went on to play college and I got nothing.”
Stetson released the man’s neck and whipped him around to face him. “Are you serious? All of this—wanting to fight me, wanting to beat me, pulling off this crazy wolf stunt …” He gestured around. “You’re going to go to jail because of a stupid high school football game?”
“It wasn’t stupid!” Ike roared. He plowed into Stetson and knocked him down.
Stetson slammed his fists into Ike’s abdomen and threw him off of him. The two men who’d originally tried to help her grabbed Ike, yanked him to his feet, and pinned him between them. Finally, the police rushed onto the scene.
Stetson stood and wiped at some blood on his mouth. He started in Teal’s direction, but a man stopped him. “You’re Stetson Strong. I thought so.”
Stetson shook his hand and talked briefly with him as the man gushed about stats and his NFL prospects. Teal stared at him, trying to comprehend. NFL?
“Excuse me,” Stetson said, “I need to find my niece and nephews.”
“Oh, of course. Nice to meet you.”
Teal let Stetson take her hand, but she felt uncomfortable and confused as they made their way back to the clearing and found the security guards still with Austin, Will, and Izzy. Then the police started asking questions and explaining that they’d have to take them to the station.
Stetson was a football player? NFL prospects? He hadn’t said one word about it to her. The terror over the attacks was receding, allowing disappointment and frustration to creep in. She’d been falling hard and fast for Stetson Strong, but she didn’t even know who he was. Just yesterday she’d forgiven him for hiding that he’d been fighting before he’d fallen down that ravine, and then she’d asked him to tell her the truth. Yet he hadn’t thought to share with her that he was a star football player who was possibly playing in the NFL?
Her insides felt cold and hard. She was grateful that he’d saved her and she still thought he was a heroic man, but what would she do if honesty didn’t mean to him what it meant to her? How could she reconcile these two men—the one she’d been falling for and been so impressed with, and the one who would hide things from her?
Chapter Ten
The next couple of hours were spent at the police station, talking far too much and waiting even more. Austin was okay—he just some scratches on his arms, and he was mad that he hadn’t gotten the chance to show the wolf guys who was boss—but Stetson noticed when Gavin and Kari showed up, Austin let them hold him for a long time.
Izzy fell asleep in Stetson’s arms, and Will stayed close to his side until Jed and Cassie arrived seconds behind Gavin and Kari; then they went willingly into their parents’ arms. He was glad to see they were talking rapidly, not closing down, which was sometimes typical of Will. Mama came with Jed and Cassie and took her turn hugging each of her grandbabies. She’d always been extra close to Austin, as he’d been raised as her son until a year and a half ago, when Gavin revealed to everyone else that he was really Austin’s dad.
Stetson had repeatedly thanked Will for watching out for Teal and Izzy. The boy at first blamed himself for letting Ike take Teal, but Teal and Stetson reassured him that protecting his little sister was his priority.
The police finally finished their questioning. Ike and several of the other men had been apprehended, but plenty of the men had gotten away. Hopefully, when they analyzed the wolf costumes for DNA, they’d find some of the men, if they had records. The costumes had been stolen from the theater early this morning. When the man had thrown Austin at Stetson, they’d shed the costumes quickly and dumped them on them as Ike went after Teal. Then the zoo security cameras showed the rest of the group donning baseball caps and fading into the zoo crowds.
Stetson wanted to get Teal alone and talk to her. He’d seen her face when the man had asked him about the NFL. She probably thought he was a jerk who’d lied to her. He shouldn’t have hidden that part of his life, but he’d wanted to get to know her better before she realized that he’d failed and had no future.
Once the police released them, his family walked out into the warm summer evening, stopping on the sidewalk outside the police station. Gavin had an arm around Kari and Austin, but he released them, moved close to Stetson, and wrapped his arms around him. Stetson startled in surprise. Gavin wasn’t a touchy-feely kind of guy.
Gavin said in a gruff voice, “Thank you, bro. Thank you for protecting them.”
Stetson hugged his brother back, but he was embarrassed by the praise. “They wouldn’t have even been in danger if I hadn’t fought Ike that first time,” he said quietly.
Gavin pulled back and shook his head. “It’s not your fault that Ike and his friends were psychos who still blamed you for whipping them at a football game back in high school. We all make mistakes bro, and I’m proud of you.”
He stepped back, and Mama, Kari, Austin, Jed, Cassie, Will, and Izzy each took turns hugging and thanking Stetson. It was embarrassing, but it felt really good as well. Teal simply watched them all. Stetson wished she would move in for a hug as well, confirm that they all made mistakes and she’d forgive him for his, but she looked conflicted. As if she was grateful he’d saved her but not sure she could trust him. Dang.
Finally, Stetson said to Teal, “Do you want me to run you home?” Jed had been able to get the Land Rover to the police station from the zoo. Since he was a police officer in Park City, they’d been more respectful and helpful to their group.
“Yes, please,” she said quietly.
“Are you coming back to see us?” Austin piped up.
Teal smiled at the boy but shrugged. “Maybe someday. I’ve got a lot of work to do now.”
“That sucks,” Austin said loudly.
“Austin,” Kari cautioned.
He wrinkled his nose and amended. “That stinks.”
Everyone laughed.
Teal raised a hand to everyone. With a pang, Stetson noticed that the entire experience had made her pull away from him and his family, not bring her closer. What could he do to remedy the rift? How could he talk her into dating him? He’d known right up front that she was too good for him. Why did it surprise him now that she’d figured it out?
Mama caught his gaze. Stetson didn’t know what to say or think.
“Bye,” Teal said. She started to turn toward the Land Rover.
Izzy cried out, struggled out of her dad’s arms, and ran at Teal’s legs. “Don’t leave,” Izzy begged, holding up her arms.
Stetson’s gut tightened. His beautiful niece was echoing what he was feeling.
Teal bent down and lifted her into her ar
ms, hugging her close. “I’ve got to go, beautiful girl. It’s okay, it’s okay,” she soothed.
She didn’t claim she wouldn’t leave Izzy or that she’d come back. The message was as glaring as Vegas lights: Teal was done with him and his family. It hurt worse than knowing that the Titans didn’t want him.
Izzy released her and toddled back to her mom.
“Goodbye,” Teal said quietly to everyone.
The entire group was somber as they murmured goodbyes or waved. They’d probably all had high hopes that Teal would want Stetson. He didn’t blame them, as he felt the same.
He walked with her to the Land Rover and got her door. The drive back to her parents’ house was tight, quiet, and uncomfortable. What was he supposed to say?
They were almost there when he realized that he’d heard nothing about her parents. “Your mom and dad must be worried. I’m sorry.”
She shook her head and folded her arms tightly across her chest. “They won’t be worried. I called them from the police station. They were glad I was okay, and they explained that they had an important banquet to get ready for tonight.” Her voice sounded void of emotion.
Stetson pulled up to the gate, and she told him the code. He pulled through and into the drive. As he stopped the car, he said, “I’m sorry.”
She turned to him and lifted an eyebrow. “About?”
“That your parents … are too busy,” he finished lamely. He was sorry about a lot more than that but wasn’t sure how to get into it.
She waved a hand. “They’ve always been like that. It doesn’t bother me.”
Stetson watched her skeptically. It would bother him. His mama had driven an hour and a half to be with him and her grandchildren. Teal’s parents lived ten minutes away, but preparing for a banquet was more important to them than their daughter? Sad.
“I thought you’d be sorry for lying to me again,” she said quietly.
The Strong Family Romance Collection Page 97