by Lisa Oliver
So, it was a lot later than Cam intended when he wandered back to Fergus’s. Seeing Officer Mortimer already there stoked every jealous fire in his belly, but keen ears then stoked a fire of a different sort. Suddenly, the pieces fell into place. Austin didn’t have to send a man to Arrowtown. He already had one in residence - knocking on Fergus’s door before he’d had a chance to put on something more than his unicorn pants.
Cam already had Mal on speed dial before Fergus suggested it. Mal’s growl and Rocky’s roar told him what he already knew. Mortimer was not on official business. But using his position, trying to get Fergus to come along – fuck, it burned Cam to the core that his mate might have disappeared without a trace, and no one would have been any the wiser except him.
And now he was here, in front of the forever promised to him by the Fates, with the knowledge Fergus’s abduction would have been his fault sitting heavy in his guts. “I would love nothing more than to share your company, sit with you, eat with you and tell you anything you’d like to know. But I’m afraid our personal talk might have to wait,” he said as a cruiser pulled up and an angry Rocky jumped out before the car had even stopped. Mal followed along, a little slower because he was driving, but they were both on the porch in seconds. “I need to explain a few things to Rocky and Mal as well. Mortimer was here under false pretenses, and unfortunately, it was partly my fault.”
“I hope you’ve got coffee,” Mal said crossly. “Rocky does not function well without at least three cups of the strong stuff and I could do with one myself.”
“Well, isn’t this a day for unusual occurrences,” Fergus said brightly, swirling around and strutting into his house. Cam eyed Mal and Rocky. None of them were sure if they should follow. It wasn’t until Fergus yelled, “I’ve got the coffee on,” that the three men made their way through the house.
Fergus had made himself a comfortable home. While it was clear he hadn’t been living there long, as shown by the bare walls and lack of pictures around, the furniture was comfortable, the place was sparkling clean, and the daisies sitting in a small jar on the kitchen counter reflected the warmth of the owner’s personality. Cam felt immediately comfortable. It helped that Fergus’s scent was the only one he could smell as they walked through.
“Fergus,” Rocky groaned when he saw the plate of eclairs and muffins sitting on the white kitchen table cloth. “I swear, you know exactly the way to a man’s heart. I could love you forever for just one of these eclairs.”
“I think Cam might have something to say about that,” Mal said tartly, but his smile for Fergus was warm. “I’m sorry to intrude on your day off. I don’t know what Mortimer was up to this morning, but he’s clearly not loyal to Arrowtown.”
“I was surprised to see him too,” Fergus said. Cam found himself ushered into a chair, and a cup of coffee was placed in front of him. His fingers itched, longing to pull off his shirt and cover Fergus with it. Bare chests and delicious eclairs were enough to tip a man like Rocky over the edge, declaring intentions Cam had no intention of letting him make.
Fergus got plates for Rocky and Mal, and Cam looked up as Fergus hovered, holding a third one. “Sensational Sarah said you don’t like sweet things. Can you wait while I put some sausage rolls on or something? Maybe some small meat pies?”
“I was extremely rude to your Sensational Sarah and said things I shouldn’t have done. I will apologize.” Cam almost snatched the plate from Fergus’s hand. “I adore sweet things and have been craving your baking since I smelled them.”
Fergus just shrugged, but Cam noticed he took the chair closest to Cam, cradling a cup of sweet tea in his hand. “Okay, so does someone want to tell me what this is all about? Rocky, Mal, I promise you, I’ve done nothing wrong. I eat, sleep, and work and that’s all I’ve done since I arrived here. No one but my momma knows I am living here, and she would never tell a living soul. I don’t understand why Mortimer was lurking by my house last night, or why he tried to arrest me this morning.”
“It would seem our good friend Cam knows more about the why of what Mortimer was doing,” Mal said quietly. “But you have my word, there are no warrants out for your arrest for anything. I’m only sorry, damn no, that is too soft a word. I am fucking angry that someone would abuse their uniform after all the work Rocky, and I do to make sure the Sheriff’s office is above reproach. It ticks me off big time, what Mortimer’s done.”
“He said he was working for someone bigger than the Sheriff’s office.” Cam physically jolted when he felt Fergus look at him directly. “And you seemed to know who that person was. Mortimer had definitely heard about you.”
This was the moment Cam had been dreading. Ever since he’d left the military, he’d focused solely on making sure he was known only as a slightly grumpy bar owner who provided a safe place for his customers. “I do know who Mortimer is working for, or at least I guessed when I heard what he was saying this morning. There’s a lot I can’t say because of the Official Secrets Act, but I can tell you that a lot of military shifters were often lent out to other agencies for highly classified missions. I was one of them.”
Cam inhaled and then let the breath out slowly. “Unfortunately, there are some organizations that don’t believe you can ever quit, and while I haven’t gone out on a mission since I arrived in Arrowtown, and I am honorably discharged from the military, that doesn’t stop some people from getting in touch with me infrequently, trying to tempt me to go back.”
“This Austin you mentioned is one of those people, I guess?” Fergus asked.
Nodding, Cam explained, “He got in touch just this last week. Offered me an obscene amount of money for what he called a private job. But then…” Cam turned to Fergus and swallowed hard. “Austin wouldn’t have even known of your existence if it hadn’t been for my running searches on your background information. Austin must have set up alerts for anything I was doing, and I was searching your name, so he thought he’d talk to you. I am truly sorry.”
“You were searching for information about me?” The curiosity on Fergus’s face was genuine. He didn’t seem angry – just confused.
“I couldn’t stop thinking about you after hearing your voice,” Cam confessed, wishing he didn’t have Rocky and Mal for an audience. “I don’t think about anyone. I have friends, lots of friends in town, but no one intimately close. I guess, I don’t know. I got angry because I couldn’t stop wondering what you were like, and yet…”
“You’ve seen so much darkness in your life,” Fergus interrupted him calmly. “It’s only natural to be cynical about me too. Anyone can take on the moniker ‘fabulous’, but very few can truly own it.”
Cam didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. Fortunately, Mal spoke up, meaning he didn’t have to do either. “I’m not happy that a government man was on our payroll. I’m equally not happy that this same man tried to use his position to lure an innocent like Fergus to goodness knows where for goodness knows what.”
“You did a standard background check on him, I assume?” Cam asked.
“He was recommended to us by the shifter council,” Mal said. “Honestly, Rocky, did you need to eat all the eclairs? I wanted one of those.”
“They are soooo good,” Rocky moaned around his mouthful. He choked, coughed, and then swallowed noisily. “Seriously, we need to put in a standing order for our place. I mean, Brutus is good, don’t get me wrong. What he does with a chicken wing defies description. But he rarely does sweet stuff. Are you saying we didn’t check this guy out?”
Cam had to give his friend credit. Rocky came across as a bumbling fool a lot of the time, but he didn’t miss much. “You’d have assumed that the council had already done all the checks you needed. There’s a good chance Austin, who’s a shifter too, has minions of his own in every shifter town. He couldn’t get a leg in here when the Quincy’s were in charge, but if you sent a notice out looking for new deputies, I’d have said Austin saw an opportunity and took it.”
“So,
Mortimer’s being here was a coincidence.” Mal snatched the last éclair from Rocky’s plate. “Austin’s desire to chat to our new friend Fergus was because you Cam, have a suspicious nature.”
“Yes.” And no, that didn’t make Cam feel any better especially when Fergus didn’t seem to be upset at all. He just got up, grabbed the empty plate off the table and went over to a cupboard and pulled out a tin. Cam sniffed and his stomach rumbled. Honey muffins. He eyed Rocky who was watching Fergus’s movements, his eyes gleaming.
“Is Austin the pushy type?” Fergus asked, bringing back the plate and offering it to Cam first. Cam couldn’t help it. He smirked at Rocky as he grabbed three fresh muffins and put them on his plate.
“Austin doesn’t understand the meaning of the word no,” Cam continued after Fergus had sat down. “I’d like to think the message I gave Mortimer when I ordered him out of town would be enough, but I can’t be sure.”
“Are you sure this Austin fellow didn’t see you as his plant in this town, seeing as he ignored your resignation from the service, and keeps pestering you to work for him?” Rocky asked, his tone suggesting he didn’t appreciate not getting first pick of the muffins.
“Austin didn’t know I was here.” Cam bit the inside of his gum to stop from moaning out loud. He’d hit the jackpot of mates if everything Fergus created tasted as mouthwateringly delicious as his muffins.
“Well, he does now.” Mal looked at Rocky who was stuffing two muffins in his mouth at the same time, while Fergus seemed to be enjoying the show. “We’d better go, before Rocky here eats poor Fergus out of house and home. Fergus, if you see anything suspicious, or you’re worried about anything at all, I’ll give you my number…”
“I’ll be with him,” Cam said quickly. “Fergus is my mate. At least now I understand why I was so fascinated by a man I hadn’t met yet.”
“Yes, well,” Mal smirked. “I’d say congratulations, but your cynical nature has brought Fergus to the attention of some shadow government agency that wants to use your skills for evil and could use Fergus as leverage for that. Not to mention, you’ve got a lot of explaining to do to Fergus before any claiming goes on. Don’t go too easy on him, Fergus. Make him work for it.”
Cam had never been so happy to see the back of his friends when they left. He was nervous enough about the mating side of things, and combined with his anxiety over Austin, he thought he did well to keep his growls to himself when Fergus walked with Rocky and Mal to the front door.
Chapter Seven
Maybe I should have gone to the shop after all. Fergus leaned on his closed front door, taking a moment for himself. No. You’re being uncharitable. Cam’s actions were simply… they were… Actually, Fergus was flummoxed by Cam’s actions. The man had been searching for information on him. Calling government agencies about him. Fergus had never heard about anyone being so cynical before. Especially, when at that point, he and Cam hadn’t even met.
Hadn’t Cam ever heard about the art of conversation? Meeting someone, talking to them, instead of investigating them? Fergus sighed. It must be so hard living with all that cynicism all the time. But for all his worries, Fergus’s heart went out to a man who’d spent so much of his life seeing the worst type of people life could offer to the point he couldn’t recognize a decent person when they were standing right in front of him. At last I know why the Fates thought he was a good match for me.
And because Fergus was Cam’s perfect match, and he did believe in the art of conversation, he was going to have to talk to the man. Something he wasn’t about to do while leaning on a door. Straightening his back, Fergus fixed on a smile and sauntered back into the kitchen. Cam was stuffing the last of his honey muffins into his mouth and that made Fergus smile wider.
“These are really good,” Cam covered his mouth when he coughed. “I didn’t have breakfast…”
“And you spent the night stalking my house.” Fergus went over to his stove top, pulling a pan off the hook above it. “I had oatmeal for breakfast, but I’m happy to whip you up some bacon and eggs, while you talk to me.” Without waiting for Cam’s reply, he got the items he needed and turned on the stove. Within seconds the smell of cooking bacon filled the air.
“Talking is not one of my strong points.”
Fergus stayed focused on the pan. He knew sometimes it was easier to talk to someone when they weren’t being stared at.
“I find it difficult to let people get close to me – beyond friends, I mean.”
“I imagine, if you’ve seen a lot of bad things in your life, trusting people would be hard to do.” Fergus pushed the bacon to one side with his spatula and cracked four eggs into the pan. “I’ve never heard a bad word said about you in this town though. Not that I’ve been here very long. From all accounts, you really care about the people here, you’re considered a great catch and half the single population drool over you, from a respectful distance of course.”
“I never encourage that sort of thing, the drooling I mean.”
Fergus was pleased Cam didn’t discount how popular he was. False modesty was never a good look and claiming he didn’t notice how attractive he was to others would indicate Cam lived with blinders on.
“I never wanted the bad stuff I’ve been through to touch the innocent lives of people who live here.”
There was a wealth of connotation in that statement. Noting the eggs were cooked, Fergus found a plate and flipped the bacon and eggs onto it, before searching for a knife and fork. “Here,” he said, putting the plate in front of his mate when he’d found the cutlery. “It’s not much, but it will hold you over until lunch.”
Cam moved fast. Fergus’s hand was caught before he had a chance to move. “I can totally understand why you claim the moniker ‘Fabulous’” he said gravely, as Fergus met his eyes. “No one has ever done anything like this for me before.”
“It’ll cost you.” Fergus showed his teeth indicating his tease. “I fully expect to be adored by my mate. Accepting anything less would be an insult to my wonderful nature. Failure to provide that adoration will result in cooked goods being withheld until any issues are fully rectified to my satisfaction.”
“Ooh, I can see you’re going to be the one wearing the pants in this relationship.” Cam leaned over his plate, inhaling deeply. “Hmm. Withholding good food like this seems like harsh punishment. I’d better be on my best behavior.”
“Eat up before it gets cold.” Fergus let his fingers linger as he withdrew his hand from Cam’s grasp. While his mate ate, Fergus occupied himself with making more coffee and a cup of tea for himself. He was happy enough to watch Cam eat – fast, economical movements Fergus imagined his mate learned in the military. Cam didn’t let one morsel of food go to waste, and when he finally scraped his plate clean, before leaning back and patting his belly with a satisfied sigh, Fergus felt a warm blast of appreciation run right through him.
“We do need to talk,” Cam said ruefully. “Before any claiming takes place, you need to know what you’re getting into.”
A quick shaft of guilt pierced Fergus’s spirit. There were some things Cam was going to have to know about him too before any claim was made. Studying his mate, Fergus could see Cam was tired. “You slept outside last night, didn’t you?” He asked softly, reaching out and resting his hand on Cam’s. “You knew this Austin fella was looking for me before Mortimer showed up?”
Cam nodded. “Austin called me last night. Thanks to my efforts, he had a file on you, gleaned from his own sources I imagine. He got curious, never a good thing for a rhino to be, and decided he needed to talk to you to find out why I was so interested in what you were doing. That scared me, and I’ve not been scared of much in my life.”
“A rhino?” Fergus scratched his head. “They aren’t known for listening to others. Why would he want to talk to me?”
“He was determined I’d do this job for him and that doesn’t make sense either. Austin has dozens of covert operatives he can call in, even
for a private job. The money he offered this time was obscene, and then he threatened to take you. That’s not the way things are usually done.”
Not knowing the major players, Fergus didn’t know what was considered normal in a covert situation. “You wanted to protect me, which means your instincts are in the right place. Have you ever thought about finding out more about this Austin fellow, and why he’s being so insistent this time about you doing this specific job?”
“Investigating him comes with its own risks.” Cam sighed and Fergus longed to give the man a great big hug. “But then, in the past, I’ve always worried Austin would find out where I live. With Mortimer’s big mouth, Austin will already know that now.”
“Will we have to leave Arrowtown?” Fergus’s heart dropped at the thought. He’d put in so much work in his new bakery and he’d finally found a house he really loved.
But Cam shook his head. “I’m not letting him, or the fear of what he might do, drive us out of our home. Among Austin’s circles my name is feared, and for good reason. I’ve made a lot of friends in this town who’d support us if it becomes necessary. With luck, now that Austin knows where I am, he’ll just leave us alone.”
Yeah, and the tooth fairy dresses in black and drives a hearse in their spare time. But Fergus didn’t say that. Instead, he ran his fingers up Cam’s massive bicep, and said softly, “You need to rest. I imagine you’ve also got a bar to open in just a few hours. Come with me. I want to show you why I bought this particular house.”
To his credit, Cam didn’t demur, didn’t object, he just stood up when Fergus did, and picked up his plate, popping it into the sink before following Fergus through into his wet room. “I adore gardens, but I hate gardening,” Fergus explained as he unlocked the back door. “Apparently, the horse shifter who had this house before me, put in a lot of gardens, but the house was empty for some time before I bought it, and they got a bit out of hand. But I love it, just the way it is. See?”
