Beck (Winter - Shifter Seasons Book 2)

by Harmony Raines

  “I’m thinking about it.” Kassia glanced over her shoulder as Dahlia erupted into laughter. There was someone at the window making faces at her. It was the sheriff, he looked up and waved at Carol and Kassia before he crossed his eyes and wobbled his head at Dahlia.

  “It’s a crazy town,” Carol said. “But if you move here, you won’t regret it.”

  “No, I don’t think I would.” Kassia was certain she’d regret not moving here. But she needed more time before she made any life-changing decisions.

  Even though fate had thrust a life-changing decision on her all on its own.

  Chapter Eleven – Beck

  “Marvin,” Martha guessed as Beck entered the kitchen and headed for the coffee pot.

  “Do I look like a Marvin?” Hex answered in mock horror.

  “You say that about most of the names I guess.” Martha slapped Hex on the butt with the dishtowel as Mac chuckled to himself.

  “And I don’t see why you are laughing,” Martha told Mac. “If I can’t get it out of Hex, then I’ll find some way of leveraging the information out of you.”

  “Oh, I am sworn to secrecy and I can’t break a promise.” Mac held up his hands in mock surrender. “And you wouldn’t want me to. You know my word is important to me.”

  “Don’t give me that,” Martha rolled her eyes and then switched her attention to Beck. “Ah, Beck.”

  “Oh, no. This has nothing to do with me.” He hid a smile as Martha sidled over to him.

  “You know I helped make Kassia stick around yesterday. Without me, you might be sitting at the table crying into your coffee this morning.” Martha batted her eyelids at him, and his shoulders heaved as he laughed.

  Coming home was such a good idea, his bear chuckled. They loved Martha already. She’d brightened the mood at the sawmill and brought laughter back into their lives.

  “You’re good. No wonder you were successful.” Beck pretended to zip his mouth shut. “But my lips are sealed.”

  “Kelvin?” Martha danced across the kitchen and stuck her head in front of Hex, with her face tilted up to catch any change in expression.

  “I would tell you if you guessed right,” Hex dropped his head and stole a kiss. “I promised.”

  “Argh. This is so frustrating.” Martha stood up straight and grabbed a coffee mug off the drainer and dried it thoroughly. “Hamish.”

  “I would not name my son Hamish,” Beck’s mom said as she came in from outside. “It’s a Scottish name and we are not Scottish.”

  “You called Mac, Mac,” Hex pointed out.

  “Oh, is that short for something?” Martha asked. “Like Macbeth.”

  “MacDougal.” Hex’s eyes danced as he joined in the guessing game and Beck’s heart lightened. He couldn’t remember when his family had been so happy. Hex meeting his mate and finally getting rid of his recurring dream about her dying had healed the family. Finally, the ghost of their father dying from a fall that their mom had foreseen seemed to have been laid to rest.

  “Timothy.” Martha pointed at Hex. “Don’t think you can distract me by getting me to guess Mac’s name.”

  “There is no name to guess.” Mac got up with his hands in the air. “I am just plain old Mac.”

  “Old MacDonald had a farm,” Hex sang in a rousing voice.

  “You didn’t answer.” Martha rounded on her mate and studied him closely. “Is it Timothy?”

  “Do I look like a Timothy?” Hex asked as he went back to washing the dishes.

  “This reminds me of when you three were young and you used to squabble about silly things,” Sue said as she sat down at the kitchen table.

  “We’re not squabbling,” Hex said.

  “I know.” Sue looked up. “It wasn’t a criticism. I like the sound of you all laughing. It brings back happy memories.”

  Mac went to his mom and kissed her on the cheek. “I’ll leave you to listen to Martha’s guesses.”

  “What’s wrong with my guesses?” Martha asked hotly.

  “Nothing,” Mac replied quickly as she set a stern eye on him. “Oh, you’re good. But intimidation doesn’t work on me.”

  “Really?” She watched Mac as he headed for the back door. “Because I have not even started yet.”

  “I’ll be in my office if anyone needs me.” Mac winked at Martha. “Tears don’t work either.”

  Martha stamped her foot and wrung the dishcloth in her hands. “This is so frustrating.”

  Hex grabbed the dishtowel from his mate and dried his hands before he wrapped his arms around her shoulders. “A little patience. You’ll soon find out.”

  “On our wedding day. At the altar. What kind of crazy is that?” she asked before begrudgingly putting her arms around his waist. As she laid her head on his chest she said, “So is it Timothy?”

  “Nope,” Hex replied as he let go of his mate and returned to the sink to finish off the dishes.

  “I’m going to give up,” Martha told him.

  “Really?” Hex asked in surprise.

  “No.” She groaned and shook her head. “I’m going into town to buy a baby name book and then I’ll read them out to you until I get the right one.”

  “I didn’t pick his name from one of those books.” Sue looked up as she sipped her tea and watched her children with love in her eyes.

  “That doesn’t mean it’s not in a baby name book.” Martha hesitated. “Unless you named him something like Sky. Or Rain. Or Rock.”

  Beck chuckled to himself as he drained his coffee cup and got up from the table. “I’m going to work.”

  “I’m coming with you.” Hex put the last of the washing up on the drainer, kissed Martha’s lips and headed for the door. As he passed their mom, he leaned down, kissed her cheek and whispered, “Whatever Martha promises you, don’t tell her.”

  “And I thought shifters would do anything for their mates,” Martha called after Hex as he left the room.

  “Love you.” Hex lifted his hand and waved as he closed the door behind them.

  “She’s right, you shouldn’t keep secrets.” Beck kept his expression serious as they crossed the yard to Mac’s office.

  “If Martha really wanted to know, and if she hated guessing, I’d tell her,” Hex confessed. “But it’s a game.”

  “So life is that good with your mate you have to invent guessing games to keep yourself entertained,” Beck teased as they entered the building which housed the equipment used for processing the timber. The door to Mac’s office stood open and Joey was leaning against the wall while Mac talked on the phone.

  “Morning,” Joey said lightly. “This thaw is finally setting in.”

  “It does feel warmer today,” Beck agreed as they waited for Mac to end his call. “I might go for a run over the mountains later.”

  “If you have the energy after a hard day’s work,” Joey teased. “You don’t want to be too tired for a date with your mate.”

  “I have enough energy and stamina for both,” Beck insisted. “Of course, if you have trouble in that department, I’ll try to pick up your slack.”

  Hex chuckled. “If either of you wants to pick up my slack, you’re welcome.”

  “Life with your mate tiring?” Joey asked.

  “It is when you’re trying to plan a wedding.” He pressed his lips together. “I just want to marry Martha, but there are so many preparations involved.”

  “It’ll be worth it, though, once you are married.” Joey had a faraway look in his eye. “I don’t think I’m ever going to find out what that’s like.”

  “How are you and Polly getting along?” Hex quickly covered his concern for their friend.

  “Good.” Joey pushed himself off the wall and stood up straight. “Really good.” Sadness crept into his eyes. “I just worry what’s going to happen if she meets her mate. Or if I meet my mate.”

  “Do you regret being in a relationship with her?” Beck asked.

  “We’re not in a relationship…” Joey’s voic
e trailed off. “We’re deluding ourselves.”

  “You are. But for the right reasons.” Mac stood up, his telephone conversation over. “We all delude ourselves sometimes.”

  “Is that the voice of experience?” Beck had never thought of Mac as anything but straight up and honest even with himself. The thought of his brother not being completely in control of his own fate, his own destiny was a wakeup call.

  That’s because you have always seen the Mac you want to see, not the Mac he really is. Beck’s bear might have a point. Growing up he’d always thought Mac was put on a pedestal, that everyone looked up to him, rightly or wrongly. Beck had lived in his brother’s shadow all through school and then through their adult lives Not until there was some distance between the brothers had Beck learned how dangerous that pedestal was.

  How easy it was to lose the essence of yourself if you bought into what others thought of you instead of being true to yourself

  “Yes.” Mac shrugged. “I’m not afraid to admit it. No one is infallible and that includes me.”

  “Do you think I should break it off with Polly now before things get out of hand?” Joey asked.

  “Yes,” Beck answered. “You’re two shifters playing a dangerous game. Someone could get hurt.”

  The other three men in Mac’s office stared at him.

  “Is that the voice of experience talking?” Mac asked his brother.

  “Maybe it is.” Beck shuffled his feet and longed to turn away from the others, shift and run into the mountains. He still wasn’t ready to talk about his time away.

  “We should get to work,” Hex broke the tense atmosphere as his two older brothers stared at each other. “I have a cake tasting to attend this afternoon.”

  “Cake tasting. Sign me up.” Joey licked his lips. “So there is more to this wedding planning than choosing dresses and flowers.”

  “So much more.” Hex turned his attention to Mac. “Where do you need us?”

  “I need someone to go to Bear Creek.” Mac shuffled the papers on his desk and pulled out a piece of paper with an address on it. “There’s a tree down by the museum.”

  “Beck and I can do that,” Hex offered, taking the address from his brother. “If that’s okay with you?”

  “Yes. You two go. Joey, I need a hand around the yard this morning. We need to start clearing some of the timber.” Mac came around his desk and the four men left the office. “I’ve sent Duane to do some work down by the creek so he can be close to Amy. I want everyone else to begin the cleanup around the yard. As the snow melts, it’s going to get wet, we need as much timber inside and drying ready for processing as possible. The snow has put work behind, and I have bills to pay and a payroll bill that makes my eyes water.”

  “Let’s get going then.” Hex and Beck headed for the storeroom where they grabbed the equipment they needed and loaded the truck.

  “I never thought about how much pressure Mac’s under,” Beck confessed when they were in the truck and heading toward Bear Creek.

  “He makes it look easy, doesn’t he?” Hex glanced sideways at his brother as he drove. “Does this mean you and Mac are reaching an understanding?”

  Beck leaned back in his seat and rested his arm on the door. “I’ve grown up.”

  “Matured, I think is the word you are looking for,” Hex told him.

  “Matured.” Beck nodded. “I spent so long thinking I was living in Mac’s shadow. I should have taken some time away years ago.”

  “Yeah, we all thought you were having a midlife crisis,” Hex admitted. “When you suddenly said you were leaving.”

  “In a way I was.” Beck half-turned to look at his brother. “Didn’t you ever feel that way?”

  “That depends on what way you felt.” Hex rubbed his hand over his face. “You and Mac are very similar. You both keep your emotions hidden. That would be my one piece of advice to you, Beck. When you’re with Kassia, don’t. Open yourself up to her. Open yourself up to love.”

  “You might be the youngest Winter brother, but you are the wisest.” They were close to town and Beck pushed his senses out, trying to locate his mate.

  “So how did you feel? What pushed you to make the decision to leave?” Hex hesitated. “And I’d also like to know what made you come back. Something happened, didn’t it?”

  “It did.” Beck couldn’t hide from his mistakes forever and Hex had always been the easiest person to talk to. He never judged, he just listened.

  “Something bad?” Hex steered the truck into the museum parking lot.

  “Something bad,” Beck confirmed. “Something very bad.” Perhaps he wasn’t ready to talk about it. Not yet. Maybe not ever. “Why don’t I go and grab us some coffee?”

  “You don’t have to run away,” Hex told him. “If you don’t want to talk about it, that’s fine.”

  “Thanks, Hex.” Beck rested his hand on the door handle “Just when I think I’m ready, I find that I’m not.”

  “You go get the coffee and I’ll go and let the museum know we’re here.” Hex got out of the truck and strode toward the old building that housed the museum.

  Beck stared after him for a moment or two, trying to compose his thoughts. He needed to talk to someone. He couldn’t hide what happened, it had changed him. It would forever leave an indelible mark on his conscience, perhaps, even on his soul. However, his mate should be the first person he spoke to about his experiences. She was his mate, the person in all the world he shared an intimate connection with.

  If anyone is going to understand what happened, his bear said, it will be Kassia.

  Relief filled him. He would speak to Kassia and talk it over with her. Maybe then it would get easier to talk to everyone else about it.

  A problem halved is a problem shared, his bear told him as he strode across the museum parking lot.

  I don’t think you have that right. Beck froze on the sidewalk and looked right and left, trying to decide where to get coffee from, when he sensed her.

  Kassia was close.

  The temptation to go to her was immense, but he needed to get his work done so that he could spend time with his mate later.

  Turning right, away from his mate, he jogged down the main street and then crossed the road, heading for a little bakery that sold coffee to go.

  Why is it so hard? his bear asked.

  They were consumed with the need to turn right around and run back down the street to his mate. It was unnatural to run away from her.

  We can’t leave Hex to do the work on his own. He has plans with Martha and I don’t want to be the one to upset those plans, Beck told his bear.

  Yes, she is scary. I wouldn’t like to get on the wrong side of her. Cougars have sharp claws.

  Beck laughed at his bear. Don’t tell me a big bad bear is afraid of a little kitty cat.

  Cougars are not little kitty cats and I do not want a scar on my face or any other part of my anatomy, his bear answered before he turned and walked away, trying to hide from the need to go to his mate.

  They reached the coffee shop and went inside. There was a line, and a wonderful smell of fresh pastry told Beck why there was a line. As he waited to be served, he looked down at the display of pastries and cakes. He and Hex had a hard day’s work in front of them. They deserved a treat, something to keep their energy levels up.

  As he stood up straight, the person behind him bumped into his back. “Sorry,” the woman’s voice rang out as her arms circled his waist. “I’m so clumsy.”

  Beck bristled at the touch of another woman. Which was completely irrational since the woman in question had simply bumped into him. Taking a deep, steadying breath, he turned around. “No problem.” The woman was young, early thirties, and looked up at him through heavy lashes. He was immune to her as she cast her eyes over his hard-toned body with obvious approval.

  “Oh, it’s your turn.” She pointed toward the counter and Beck turned away from her and asked for his order, including two pastries
.

  “Thanks.” Beck handed over his money and then headed out of the bakery, without making eye contact with the woman. He had no intention of giving her any encouragement. Or maybe he was reading too much into her reaction to him. He was a good deal older than her. Pushing thoughts of the encounter from his mind, he retraced his steps to the museum, while juggling the two coffees and pastries.

  “Oh, you bought food, too.” Hex was never one to turn down food. As young boys, they had often competed over who could eat the most food. In fact, they had competed over most things.

  “Here.” Beck handed over the coffees and put the cakes in the truck. “You know what’s great about having a mate?”

  “I can think of a thing or two,” Hex replied as he sipped his coffee and then set it down on the side of the truck while he took out the equipment they needed.

  “And it’s probably not any of those,” Beck replied.

  “So, what were you thinking? Since you’ve had a mate for all of about twenty-four hours.” Hex handed Beck his chainsaw.

  “I was thinking that our mates are the one thing we’ve never competed over. They are ours. We each have our own mate, and no one can take them away for us.” Beck raised an eyebrow. “Am I right?”

  “I guess.” Hex grabbed his coffee and leaned against the truck as he contemplated Beck’s words. “You’re right. We’ve always been competitive and with our mates, there’s no need. In some ways, it brings us closer together.” He half-turned to look at Beck. “When I met Martha, Mac did what he could to make sure I had all the time I needed to spend with her. Especially since Hilda was sick and Martha was so worried.”

  “He really does care, doesn’t he?” Beck didn’t need an answer.

  “I know you and Mac haven’t always seen things the same way. But he has always done what he’s needed to do. He’s made hard decisions because he thought it was the best course of action for us as a family. He never tried to hurt you. He never tried to be better than you. He just tried his best. He was scared of losing us in the same way we’d just lost Dad. He didn’t want that to happen and his way of dealing with his own loss was to work hard.” Hex drained his coffee and then put the empty cup in the back of the truck.