Chapter Two – Charlie
“She’s your mate, you should go to her,” Lilly said as they walked across the parking lot to his truck.
“I can’t,” Charlie took the keys from his pocket and opened his truck. It was cold and he needed to get Lilly and her daughter, Sally, home.
“Of course you can.” Lilly opened the truck door and helped Sally inside. “We can wait here.”
Charlie looked back over his shoulder toward the hotel. “It’s not that simple.”
“Hey.” Lilly put her hand on his cheek, her bright blue eyes shining with tears. “It is that simple if you make it that simple.”
Charlie shook his head. “She’s married.”
“Oh,” Lilly let out a long, drawn-out breath. “You’re sure?”
“I heard Vanessa call her Mrs. Granger.” Charlie gave a short humorless laugh. “Shifter hearing, a blessing and a curse. Sometimes you hear things you wish you hadn’t.”
“That’s about as complicated as it gets.” She glanced at her daughter, pain and remorse in her eyes. “I’m sorry.”
“Let’s get you home.” Charlie helped Lilly into the truck and shut the door. Before he went around to the driver’s side, he took one last lingering look at the hotel. He could sense her there. If he focused really hard, he’d be able to pinpoint her exact location. But why torture himself over something he couldn’t have?
Walking around to the driver’s side, he lifted his head and smiled at the two people in his truck. Sally waved and he automatically waved back. She was a good kid, and he loved her so much. Just as he loved Lilly. It was just a pity his best friend from high school wasn’t his mate.
Life is rarely that simple, his lion told him.
So very true. Charlie opened the truck door and swung himself up into the seat. He needed time to get his head around what just happened. Time to plan his next move. Or perhaps he should walk away and leave his mate to her life.
Her married life.
Was fate really that cruel? He’d always worked hard and done the right thing. So why did he deserve to finally find his mate only for her to belong to someone else?
“So how did it go?” Charlie asked Lilly as he started the engine and put the heater on full blast.
“Good. I think I got the job.” Lilly blushed as Charlie grinned and Sally hugged her mom.
“Of course you did. I’m so proud of you, Lilly.” Charlie shook his head. “I’m sorry I was so wrapped up in myself.”
“Are you kidding? Finding your mate is huge. I know that.” She reached out and placed her hand on his as it rested on the steering wheel. “I can’t thank you enough for everything you’ve done for us.”
“Hey, what are friends for?” He started the engine, but it took a moment before he summoned the strength to drive away from the hotel, away from his mate.
“You’ve gone over and above what friends are expected to do for each other,” Lilly told him firmly. She stroked Sally’s head and then hugged her close. “We will always be grateful. I just wish there was something I could do to pay you back.”
“Be happy. Both of you. That’s all that matters to me, honestly.” He drove slowly onto the mountain road, aware of how treacherous driving in icy conditions could be. But his truck was kitted out for winter. He’d lived in these mountains his whole life and knew them like the back of his hand.
Or the back of my paw, his lion interjected.
Or the back of your paw, Charlie agreed as he drove toward home.
“We are happy,” Lilly said quietly. “This job just means we can finally stand on our own two feet.”
“Four feet,” Sally reminded her mom and lifted her feet off the floor.
“Four feet.” Lilly laughed and hugged Sally. “I start at the school after the holidays. I’m teaching second grade. I can’t believe how lucky I am that a job came up so fast. And in Bear Creek.”
“Fate,” Charlie told her. If fate was going to be good to one of them, he was glad it was Lilly. She deserved a break. She deserved to make a good, safe life for her and Sally.
“Well, fate needs to turn its attention to you.” Lilly glanced sideways at him, her expression troubled. “Don’t just walk away from this, Charlie.”
“You know how I feel about marriage,” he replied. “I am not willing to come between a husband and wife.” He closed his eyes briefly. “You know I didn’t mean anything by that.”
Lilly shrugged. “I know, and it’s okay.”
“What happened wasn’t your fault.” He glanced down at Sally.
“I’ve made my peace with what happened,” Lilly confided in him as her daughter rested her head on her mom’s chest. “And I wouldn’t have it any other way. Maybe that’s selfish of me, but I love my daughter.”
“And now all your hard work has paid off and you have a shiny new job.” He indicated to turn off the road and headed up the gravel driveway to his house. The wheels slipped once but soon gained traction and carried them forward to the cabin he’d built himself ten years ago.
Another lifetime, his lion said.
It sometimes feels that way, he agreed. When he built the cabin, he’d always dreamed of sharing it with his mate and a couple of lion cubs. Instead, he’d opened his house and his heart to his best friend and her daughter. How could he not?
Lilly had arrived on his doorstep, in tears, nearly eight years ago. After he’d calmed her down, he’d managed to get her to talk. She was pregnant and her parents had kicked her out. She had nowhere to go.
Yes, you do, he told her, and she’d moved in that day. He’d gone to all her birthing classes with her, held her hand as she gave birth to a beautiful baby girl, and brought mother and baby home like any proud father. Yet his relationship with Lilly had always remained platonic. She wasn’t his mate and neither of them wanted to risk their relationship on something that would never last. But that didn’t mean they weren’t family.
“You know, I never thanked you,” Lilly said as she held the truck door open and he scooped Sally up in his arms and carried her to the cabin.
“What for?” Charlie asked.
“Everything. But particularly for supporting me both financially and emotionally through my teacher training. I couldn’t have done it if you were not by my side cheering me on and telling me I could do it.” She stood on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek. “Penny Granger is the luckiest woman alive to have you as her mate.”
“Her husband might not see it that way.” He mounted the steps of the wooden porch and Lilly opened the front door. As they walked inside, a wave of love for mother and child swept over him. “But thanks. This relationship works both ways, you know that?”
Lilly blushed again. “I don’t do much other than eat your food and tell you my problems.”
“Don’t do that, Lilly. You’ve achieved more than most people ever will. Be proud, embrace your future with confidence.”
She sighed and stroked her daughter’s cheek as Charlie paused at the bottom of the stairs. “I will. If you make me a promise in return.”
“I’m not sure I’m going to like this.” Charlie hated making promises in case he couldn’t keep them.
“I want you to go and find Penny Granger tomorrow and find out for certain if she’s married.” Lilly held up her hand to stop his protest. “You don’t know if she is currently married. She might be divorced, or even widowed. So you get yourself back to the hotel and find out for sure.”
Charlie cracked a smile. “I can see why you are going to make the best teacher.” He leaned forward and kissed her cheek. “Now, let’s get this little girl to bed.”
He turned away from Lilly and climbed the stairs, careful not to wake the sleeping child. Pushing open her bedroom door, decorated pink with unicorn drapes, he set her down on her matching quilt and stepped back.
“I’ll take it from here,” Lilly said. “I’d love a hot chocolate to celebrate my new job.”
Charlie backed toward the door. “One h
ot chocolate coming up.” He left the room, not needing to ask if Lilly wanted marshmallows and sprinkles. After nearly eight years of living with each other, they both knew the other better than they knew themselves.
As he reached the kitchen, he realized even if Penny wasn’t married, this was not going to be easy. How would Penny feel about another woman living under his roof, with a child? A child many people in Bear Creek and Bear Bluff thought was his.
He made the hot chocolate and poured himself a coffee. How had his life become so complicated?
Because you are as soft as marshmallows, his lion told him bluntly.
Charlie gave a short laugh. You are as besotted with Lilly and Sally as I am.
In a completely non-weird way, his lion replied.
Charlie thought on that for a moment. They saw Lilly and Sally as theirs to protect, part of his pride. Part of his family. Lilly was like a sister to him, and Sally like a niece. He couldn’t turn them away just because he’d found his mate.
You are getting too far ahead of yourself, his lion told him. Penny isn’t ours yet. She might be someone else’s. And we might have to live with that for the rest of our lives.
As he carried the hot drinks into the sitting room and waited for Lilly to join him, he searched deep inside himself, trying to figure out what he would do if she were spoken for, if she were already committed to another man. He’d seen the devastation left behind when marriages were destroyed. That wasn’t something he could be part of.
Yet the thought of letting Penny walk out of his life forever was too much to bear.
“Are you okay?” Lilly asked as she entered the sitting room and sat down in her favorite chair, her legs pulled underneath her.
“I’m just trying to get my head around...earlier.” He drank his coffee and watched the fire as it danced in the grate, just like his heart danced every time he thought of Penny.
“And how we’re in the way?” Lilly’s voice trembled before she took a sip of her hot chocolate and continued. “It’s time I found a place of my own, I have some cash saved up...”
“Lilly, this is your home. It’s Sally’s home,” Charlie insisted.
“No, it’s your home. You built this house for your mate and your family. I’m just immensely grateful to you.” She got up from her seat, placed her cup on the side table and moved to sit on the sofa beside him. “But this is the most important thing in your life. I understand that. I always have.”
“You make it sound as if you were always on borrowed time.” He took hold of her hand and raised it to his lips. “Thank you for the offer.”
“I guess you could always say fate stepped in. Waited until I’d finished teacher training.” She cupped his face with her hand. “I can’t tell you how incredibly grateful I am for all you’ve done. But it’s time you thought of yourself and your own happiness.”
He chuckled and hugged her close. “I will always be there for you, Lilly. And I can’t tell you how much I hope you find the perfect man. For you and for Sally.”
“He has a hard act to follow.” She patted his chest. “But if I do ever find Mr. Right, you’ll walk me down the aisle, right?”
“Now, that I can promise,” Charlie told her. “I sure am going to miss your singing in the kitchen.”
“I thought you always told me I sang out of tune,” she told him as she got up from the sofa.
“That’s the part I’m going to miss.” He grinned as her eyes widened in mock shock.
“How to mess with a woman’s self-confidence.” Lilly put her hands on her hips.
“I’m going to miss the pancakes you make while you sing out of tune.” Yeah, just like brother and sister, Charlie thought. They teased each other mercilessly all through high school, it was the foundation of their relationship.
“And I’m going to miss your handsome grumpy face in the morning.” She pouted and made a hideous face.
“I do not look like that,” Charlie insisted.
“You do,” Lilly fired back. “You just don’t get to see it under that unruly mane of hair.”
“Now you’re telling me I need a haircut?” Charlie arched an eyebrow, but Lilly’s shoulders sagged forward.
“No.” She shook her head and surveyed him critically. “Don’t change a thing. And if your Penny tries to change you, she’ll have me to deal with.”
“She isn’t my Penny,” Charlie reminded Lilly.
“She should be. She will be. But you have to get your ass over to the hotel and find out what is going on in her life.” Lilly put her hands on his shoulders. “You deserve happiness.”
“So do you, Lilly. Don’t ever forget it.” He went to the kitchen, washing up the cups and the other dishes left over from dinner.
“I’ll try not to.” Lilly picked up the dish towel.
“Leave them, you go to bed.” Charlie glanced over his shoulder at Lilly. “You look tired out.”
She ran a hand over her face. “I’ll admit I didn’t sleep for the last three or four nights, I was so worried about the interview.”
“But you did it. I’m so very proud of you.” He washed the last of the utensils and set them to drain.
“Goodnight.” Lilly kissed his cheek. “And may all our dreams come true.”
With that, Lilly left the kitchen. Charlie finished the dishes and put them away. As he closed the last cupboard, he took a moment to picture how life would change now that he’d found his mate. If she was free and accepted him, it would be amazing. But if she were married and denied him, his life would be over. Emotionally, at least. His heart would shrivel up and wither away.
As he walked back into the sitting room and switched off the Christmas lights, he wished upon the star sitting on top of the tree that they would all get their happy ever afters.
Chapter Three – Penny
It was morning. Penny turned her head to look out of the hotel window at the snow-covered peaks in the distance. Was there a local guide who would take her out there? She longed to feel the freedom of the wind on her face and no sound other than the animals that lived in the forests and mountain slopes.
But at this time of year, with most people dealing with their last-minute Christmas plans, she might be out of luck.
Only one way to find out. She swung her legs out of bed and went to the bathroom. After a quick shower, she pulled on jeans and a warm sweater, before grabbing her purse and heading downstairs. Other guests were already up and there was a sense of excitement not usually found in hotels. But then she’d never spent Christmas in a hotel before.
Usually, at this time of year, she would be helping her mom with the gathering of the Granger family at their ancestral home deep in the countryside. Her job was not so much to keep the Christmas festivities on track, but more of stopping any one of the Granger family from killing another.
She smiled as she took the stairs down to the hotel lobby. Husband and wife, son or daughter, uncles and aunts. There was always some drama. It often started small, but slowly grew from a spark to an inferno over a period of days. Penny was the diffuser.
But not this year.
The elevator opened and she stepped out. Right into the arms of one of the most handsome men she’d ever laid eyes on.
“Steady.” He placed his hands on her arms and kept her upright when she was about to face plant on the floor.
“Thanks.” Penny couldn’t help but smile at him, partly to hide her embarrassment, but also because he had a boyish charm that was infectious.
“Is breakfast here that good you have to run to get a table?” he asked with a grin.
“I have no idea, I’ve just arrived,” Penny admitted.
“Me, too. Harvey.” He thrust his hand out and she instantly shook it, noting there was not the same buzz of recognition she’d gotten when she touched Charlie yesterday. “My wife and I are here for our first Christmas together.”
“Wife.” Penny blushed a deep shade of red as she looked from right to left, but there was n
o wife to be seen.
“Felicity, she’s run back to our room to fetch her purse.” If he noticed her flaming cheeks, he didn’t let it show. “I told her it would be safe up there, but she insisted.”
Penny patted her own purse. “I think like your wife.” She stepped to the side and skirted around him. “It’s good to meet you, Harvey. Maybe we could get a drink sometime...with your wife, of course.” She put her hand to her forehead. “I’m making an idiot of myself.”
“Not at all.” He flashed her his boyish smile, setting her at ease. “Are you here alone?”
“I am, trying to escape the holidays.” Her hand suddenly felt naked without her wedding band and she shoved it in her jeans pocket.
“So are we. Our families live hundreds of miles apart and whichever one we picked to spend the holidays with would have upset the other. So we chose neither of them.” He glanced back toward the stairs, concern in his expression.
“And how did your families react?” Wow, was she really slipping into her role as family peacemaker here at The Catherine Hotel?
“Not well. We thought it was the best idea, they think it’s the worst.” He shrugged. “Maybe we should catch up with you for that drink. I’m trying to keep Felicity busy.”
“Keep her mind occupied. That’s a good idea.” Penny nodded and took a step backward, the lure of breakfast and fresh coffee almost too much. “Oh, here.” She snapped open her purse and took out one of her cards. “Call me when you want to meet.”
“Thanks.” Harvey brushed his mop of hair out of his eyes. “Lady Penelope Granger.”
Penny rolled her eyes. “My mom had them printed. I’m just plain old Penny.”
He cocked his head on one side and surveyed her. “I don’t think you are plain or old.”
Penny giggled. This guy was a professional charmer. “Anyway, call me when you and your wife are free.”
“I will.” He winked at Penny but the only reaction he pulled from her was a feeling of friendship. There was nothing romantic, nothing sensual in the feelings he evoked in her. It was like the moment when you meet a person and know they could be your best friend.
The Lion Loves a Lady Page 2
