Brad’s room was bare except for a double bed and a couple of old posters of tennis players on the walls. Brad had explained that his own house was in California, and that was where he lived when he wasn’t on tour. His room at the Paxton Falls house had been emptied years ago, but it would be good enough for them to sleep in while they were in town.
The window looked out onto a back yard that led to more woods. The house was perfectly located for a family of bear shifters.
Simone went back downstairs and outside to fetch the box of food she had brought in the trunk of her car. As she stepped onto the front porch, she felt like she was being watched.
“Stop getting spooked,” she reminded herself.
But when she reached her car, she realized she was being watched. Standing on the sidewalk at the end of the driveway stood a young woman in a black dress and black lace shawl. She was pretty and had long, dark hair. Her body was motionless, hands hanging loosely by her sides, as she stared at Simone, her face expressionless.
“Can I help you?” Simone asked.
The woman’s eyes flickered from Simone to the house, but she said nothing.
“I said can I help you?” Simone repeated, stepping toward the woman. She was truly spooked now, but her adrenaline gave her courage.
“You don’t live here,” the woman said.
“No, I don’t, but I have permission to be here.”
“Oh, I see. Are you here with Cole? Or Carter?”
“How is that any of your business?” Simone didn’t want to be rude, but she was already spooked out enough without this woman standing at the end of the driveway staring at her.
“Or maybe you’re here with Brad. I hope that’s not the case. That’s not the case, is it?”
Simone put her hands on her hips and stood her ground. She’d had enough of this. “I don’t know who you are, and I certainly don’t know why you expect me to answer questions from a complete stranger. Now, will you please be on your way?”
“I’m Cora,” the woman said. “Cora Dearmont. Pleased to meet you…wait, don’t tell me your name. She put a hand to her forehead and closed her eyes for a moment. Opening them again, she looked at Simone. “It’s a feminine version of a man’s name. Michaela? No, that’s not it. Nigella? No. Simone. Yes, that’s it. Nice to meet you, Simone.”
A chill crept down Simone’s spine like an icy spider.
“How did you know that?”
Cora shrugged. She was much smaller than Simone, both in height and weight, but something about her suddenly seemed dangerous.
Simone tried to rationalize how Cora knew her name. She had used her credit card at the gas station on the edge of town. Maybe Cora knew the guy who had served her, and got the name from him? She shook the thought away. Back in London, she had told Brad not to try to rationalize something that was not rational. Cora was part of a witch family; Brad had said so himself.
Deciding to change the subject, she asked, “Why did you say that you hope I’m not here with Brad?”
Cora looked Simone up and down. “You are here with him.” She looked at the house. “He’s not here yet, but you are definitely with Brad. That much is obvious. You’ve succeeded in winning his heart where I failed.”
Simone raised an eyebrow. “Oh, is that right? Honey, Brad told me all about you. You won his heart and then you broke it.”
A sadness came into Cora’s dark eyes. “It wasn’t like that. It wasn’t like that at all. My feelings for Brad were real. I may have gone along with it at first because Marcus and my mother told me to, but as the summer wore on, I fell in love with Brad.” She paused, looked at Simone defiantly, and added, “I still love him.”
Simone pursed her lips. “I think you should leave now.”
Should I? Why? I’m standing on the sidewalk and this is a free country.”
Sighing, Simone said, “Okay, you do whatever you want to, but I have to get back to the house now.” She turned and walked back to the car, opening the trunk and taking out her cardboard box of supplies before returning to the house and closing the front door.
Setting the box down on the kitchen table, she noticed her hands were trembling. Cora had unnerved her. And just what the hell did she mean she was still in love with Brad? Her words had sounded like a challenge. Well, if that was the way she wanted to play it…
Calm down, she told herself. Cora might be in love with Brad, but that doesn’t mean anything. He isn’t in love with her.
She had to remember what Brad had told her about The Call, about their shared connection. There was no reason she should feel threatened by Cora Dearmont. No reason at all.
But that was the problem Simone had with every relationship she had ever been in; she always felt insecure. That was why she never let herself get emotionally involved, and the guys all ended up leaving because she eventually pushed them away with her coldness. Her relationships all ended in disaster.
She didn’t want that to happen to her and Brad. She had already invested herself more emotionally in this relationship than she had with anyone else. But what if it wasn’t enough? What if she couldn’t tell Brad how she felt about him? Would he eventually leave, too? Would he go back to Cora?
The pretty witch had no problem expressing her emotions, even to a stranger. She had said, “I still love him” easily. Those words didn’t come easily to Simone because she had never said them to any boyfriend or partner.
That was because she had never felt the need to say them, never been in love…wasn’t it?
When the time came, she would be able to say them to Brad.
There was no reason she was so closed off emotionally, no single event in her past that she could pinpoint and say that was the cause of her cool personality. She wished there was something she could blame, because then she could work on moving past her problem. With no obvious cause, there was no obvious solution. She was emotionally detached and that’s all there was to it. It was just her personality.
She went to the living room and peered out of the window at the place on the sidewalk where Cora had stood. The witch was gone.
But how long would it be before she returned?
Telling herself she had to forget about it or she would go crazy, Simone went back to the kitchen to fix herself a cup of coffee. The sooner Brad got here, the better. She didn’t like being here on her own.
Her phone buzzed in her pocket, making her jump. Trying to calm herself down, she answered it. It was Brad. He sounded sad or worried—she couldn’t tell which.
“Hey, are you okay?” he asked.
“Yes, I’m fine. I’m at the house.”
“Great. Well, it looks like I’ll be there tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow? Really?” Her heart lifted. She only had to spend one night alone here before she was with Brad again.
“Yeah, I’m at the airport now” he said. “The sponsors pulled out of that deal and cancelled our meeting, so there’s no point in staying in London any longer.”
“Oh, Brad, I’m sorry.”
“It happens. I guess I should have expected it after my poor performance on Center Court. Anyway, I told Victor and Tony that I was visiting my family home for a couple of days, so expect me tomorrow.”
“That’s great. I’m looking forward to it.”
“Me too.” He hesitated and then added, “Are you sure you’re okay?”
“I told you, I’m fine. Why?”
“I was in the airport lounge and I suddenly got this feeling that I had to call you. I thought something was wrong.”
“No, nothing’s wrong.” I saw your first love, and she told me she still loves you, but nothing is wrong. There was no need to tell him about her encounter with Cora until he was here.
“All right, I’ll see you tomorrow night. I have to go, they’re calling my flight.”
“Okay, see you tomorrow.” She ended the call, her emotions mixed. She was glad that Brad would be here tomorrow, but she also felt a creeping sense of dre
ad.
12
Brad drove his rental Jeep past the sign that said he was entering Paxton Falls, the headlights picking out the road ahead. He was tired but couldn’t wait to see Simone again. She had been right about him having to come to Paxton Falls because she was here. After she’d left London, Brad had been so anxious to be with her again that he couldn’t stop pacing back and forth in his hotel room, full of unspent energy.
He hadn’t been able to get here quick enough.
Now that he was so close to his mate, he increased the speed of the Jeep. It was only a couple of miles to town and then he would be able to hold Simone in his arms again.
He pressed on the gas pedal a little harder with his boot, but the Jeep refused to go any faster. In fact, he was sure it was slowing down. He checked the illuminated speedometer. He was losing power.
The headlights dimmed, then died, along with every light on the instrument panel. Brad cursed. The Jeep was fairly new, so he didn’t expect it to have any problems with the battery or alternator.
The engine cut out. Brad steered the dying vehicle over to the side of the road, took the key from the ignition, and got out. He didn’t want to waste time inspecting the engine for a fault, so he locked up the Jeep and began walking along the road toward Paxton Falls. It was only two miles, so it shouldn’t take him long to get there on foot. He would call a tow truck in the morning to bring the Jeep to the house, and then he would call the rental-car company and bawl them out.
The night was clear, the stars shining next to an almost full moon. Brad’s senses had sharpened since releasing his inner bear, and he could smell oak, elm, and hemlock in the woods as he walked past. He paused and sniffed the air. There was another smell. It was familiar but from a long time ago. He struggled to place it and then, when he did, he turned to the dark shadows beneath the trees. “Cora.”
She emerged from the darkness, her face expressionless, her dark eyes studying him intently. “Brad, it’s been a long time.”
He pointed at the Jeep. “Are you responsible for that?”
A slight smile flickered across her lips. “I wanted to speak with you before you go to that woman. Why are you back in Paxton Falls, Brad?”
“I used to live here, remember?”
“Yes, but after…what happened, I thought I’d never see you again.”
“Believe me, coming back here wasn’t my idea. Now, remove whatever spell you put on my Jeep and let me be on my way.”
“It’s good to see you,” she said, stepping closer to him.
“I can’t say the same about you. Like I said, if it was up to me, I’d never have come back here again.”
“Then why did you return?”
“I need to see Marcus.”
Her dark eyes went wide. “No, that isn’t a good idea. Not a good idea at all.”
“It’s something I have to do.” He walked back toward the Jeep. “Remove the spell.”
“No, you don’t understand. Marcus has changed since you last saw him. His involvement with my mother and the other witches has corrupted him.”
“Really? He was a pretty shitty guy the last time I saw him. And speaking of magic, I don’t remember you being into it much. You were more into lying and deception. You’re not afraid it’s going to corrupt you, too? More than you already are, I mean.”
“Magic is in my blood,” she said. “But it isn’t in Marcus’s. He’s been exposed to it for too long, and it’s made him crazy. He spends much of his time prowling the forest in wolf form. He was always an envious man, but exposure to magic has amplified that, and now he is full of hatred. If he knows you are here, he will kill you.”
She put her hands on his arm. “Please, Brad, you must leave. What happened between us may have been initiated by Marcus’s jealousy, but I really did love you. I still do.”
He shook her off. “Don’t talk to me about love. I loved you once. But now I don’t feel anything toward you, neither love nor hate. You’re part of my past that I need to move away from.”
She looked at him closely, frowning. “You’ve experienced The Call, haven’t you? That woman in your house, she’s your mate.”
He nodded. “Yes, she is. And I’m not going to let anything or anyone come between us.”
She cast her eyes to the ground. “I see. Then be on your way.” Turning, she strode back into the darkness beneath the trees.
Brad opened the door of the Jeep and got in. It started immediately, the headlights shining along the road where he had just stood with Cora.
He pressed the gas pedal and started toward town, anxious to see Simone.
When he pulled into the driveway of his old house, Simone came out to greet him, running into his arms and kissing him hard. “I’ve missed you so much.”
“Me too,” he said, enjoying the feeling of having her in his arms again. Her soft curves pressed against his body, exciting him.
“I don’t like it here, Brad. But I’m much happier now that you’re here.”
“We don’t have to stay in town for long. I’m not exactly pleased to be here myself. You forced me to come, remember?”
She grinned. “Come inside. I bet you’re hungry.”
“Hungry for something,” he said. His urge to make love to her was so powerful that he could barely think of anything else.
“You need to eat first,” she said, taking him by the hand and leading him inside. A mouth-watering smell of roast beef hit Brad as soon as he got into the hallway. His stomach growled.
Simone led him into the dining room where she had set out dishes and cutlery. A candle flickered at the center of the table, next to a bottle of red wine.
“Take a seat,” she said. “After figuring out how the oven works, I made us roast beef and vegetables.”
“Sounds delicious,” Brad said. As Simone went into the kitchen to fetch the food, he opened the wine and poured two glasses.
* * *
An hour later, they were in the living room, on the rug in front of a blazing fire in the fireplace. Simone was on her knees and Brad was behind her, his hands on her soft ass as he drove his cock into her tight, wet pussy. The sensation of being inside her body almost sent him over the edge, but he gritted his teeth and held back. He wanted to enjoy his mate, give her pleasure, and make their love-making last.
Every second he was joined with her was a precious moment. Their closeness was a physical reminder of the emotional bond they shared. More than two people having sex, when Brad and Simone made love, they were two mates expressing their connection.
Simone pushed back against him each time he thrust forward inside her, pulling him deeper into herself, squeezing him with her pussy. She fit around him so perfectly, so snugly.
As he felt the familiar tingling in his balls that told him he was about to come, he felt Simone clench around him, moaning loudly as her own orgasm racked her body.
He dug his fingers into the soft flesh of her hips and began to fuck her wildly, uncontrollably, knowing that he was about to lose control completely. Being inside Simone felt so good. So fucking good.
He roared as he came, slamming his hips forward and burying his cock as deeply as he could as he erupted. Being inside Simone’s sweet pussy while he came was the most amazing feeling in the world. It felt so right. So perfect.
A few minutes later, they were lying naked, side by side, in the warm glow from the fire. “That was incredible,” Brad said.
“Yes, it was.” Simone pressed herself against him and looked into his eyes. “Thank you for coming here. I know you really didn’t want to.”
He slid an arm around her back. “If you think that this is the best thing for me to do, then I trust you. I’ll do it. But it might not be quite as simple as going to meet with Marcus and talking with him.”
A worried look crossed her pretty face. “No? Why not?”
He told her about his encounter with Cora, and how she had said that Marcus had gone crazy.
“She came t
o the house, too,” Simone said. “She told me she was still in love with you.”
“She told me the same thing.”
Simone pulled away from him slightly, her worried expression deepening.
“Hey,” Brad said, hating to see her look concerned. “Don’t look so worried. I told her I have no feelings toward her at all. And it’s true. You know you’re my mate. Nothing is stronger than the bond I have with you.”
She nodded but still looked concerned.
“What is it?” he asked.
“It’s just that I’m not so good at expressing my feelings. It’s the way I am. I don’t want you to think that I don’t…care for you, it’s just that I’m terrible at saying those things.”
“It’s not a problem, Simone.”
“It is. It’s my problem. And when Cora came here, saying that she loved you, it made me realize that I’ve never said it. I’ve never said those words to anyone except my parents and my best friend. Never to a man. I’m afraid that you’ll think I don’t love you.”
He laughed gently. “There, you said it.”
She shook her head. “No, I didn’t.”
“You kind of did. In a convoluted way.”
She slapped his chest playfully. “No, that doesn’t count.”
“It counts to me.”
She snuggled against him. “So what are you going to do about Marcus?”
“I have to meet him, I guess. Cora said that Marcus will try to kill me.”
“We should leave,” Simone said. “This is too dangerous.”
“No, we’re here now. I’m going to see this through. I can’t live the rest of my life unable to achieve my potential all because of something stupid that happened years ago. It has to end.”
“I’m worried about you. You said that Marcus is a crazy wolf. What if he attacks you?”
He stroked her shoulder. “Then we’ll see who is stronger…a crazy wolf, or a pissed-off bear.”
McClintock Bears Box Set Page 17
