“Oh no, this is great.” Amelia placed her hand on the brand-new drafting desk. The space was well-lit and roomy, plus the window looked out into the trees of the forest around the area. A shiny new computer with a large screen sat on top of a stylish table. “My old office used to face an alley behind a Chinese restaurant,” she said with a chuckle.
“I’m really happy you decided to take the job as my designer,” Erin said.
“I’m happy you decided to open your firm here.” Amelia counted herself lucky she got this opportunity so quickly. Although she already had the number of required hours to start the licensure exams, she didn’t want to just spend all her time studying, which is what she would have done if she wanted to move back home since there was nowhere in Blackstone she could do her training. At least, not until Erin opened her firm, Erin Matthews Architecture and Interiors, or EMAI for short.
“I know Blackstone isn’t as glamorous as Denver or Messina Springs, but I could feel this place was special. My husband and our kids are tiger shifters, which is why we wanted to move here right away from Chicago,” Erin explained. “I’m starting from scratch, but I already have some clients lined up which is why I needed the help.”
“I’m glad to be here, really,” she assured Erin. “Working at Moore & Jenkins was a dream come true and I got the training I needed. But I just wasn’t growing there.” And that was true. At a big architectural firm, she was really nothing more than a cog in a wheel. Working under Erin meant she would be able to do more than just draft and render. Plus, Amelia already had interior design skills learnt from her mother, so she would be doing those for their clients as well.
“Awesome.” Erin clapped her hands together. “I’m going to go and get some coffee from the cafe across the street. Do you want anything?”
“Why don’t you let me get it?” Amelia offered. “Please. Let me kiss up to the boss. It’s my first day, after all.”
Erin laughed. “All right, I won’t say no to free coffee. Just black, please.”
“No prob.” Amelia gave Erin a two-fingered salute, and then headed out the door.
The office was located on the top floor in one of the commercial buildings in South Blackstone, a new development in town. The buildings were only half filled for now, but according to Matthew Lennox, CEO of Lennox Corp., they expected to be at 90 percent occupancy by end of the year. EMAI’s office building was located on Twelfth Street and First Avenue, and they shared the floor with two other businesses—a law firm and a marketing company.
Amelia pressed the call button for the elevator. She watched as the numbers on the digital display began to rise, then the loud ding indicated that the car had arrived. As the doors opened, she stepped forward, but didn’t expect anyone to be on the other side.
“Sorry!” she said as she bumped into someone. The hairs on her arms rose, as she scented something she recognized—fur, with the clean, crisp scent of fresh mountain air. A pair of hands steadied her as she staggered back and she found herself staring up into the light blue eyes of Mason Grimes.
“Amelia,” he said in that achingly familiar rough voice of his.
For a brief moment, Amelia felt a spark of life in her. And then she felt something else she hadn’t in a long time—desire.
While all the emotion she ever felt for Mason may have disappeared, she was still a woman, and—dammit—he was still as sexy as ever. He wasn’t in his usual white T-shirt today. Mason was actually wearing a long-sleeved shirt with a collar, though his muscled shoulders and arms strained against the fabric. He was wearing a nice pair of jeans and his boots, but his beard was shorter and neatly trimmed, and his blond hair was slicked back. Ugh, it was unfair how he could look so good in absolutely anything.
“Hello, Mason,” she managed to say.
“What are you doing here?” he asked, his brows drawing together in confusion.
“Me? I work here.” She nodded toward EAMI’s door. “And you?”
“I have an appointment.” He didn’t elaborate. Of course he didn’t. Getting anything out of Mason had always been like pulling teeth, and she didn’t expect him to be any different after four years.
The growing silence was getting awkward, so she decided to break it. “Well, I guess I’ll see you around.” She sidestepped him, and though her feet were like lead, she managed to walk into the elevator. When she turned around, Mason still stood there, staring after her. The door began to close and relief started to creep in. Unfortunately, Mason was too quick and he managed to squeeze his hand in between the doors, preventing them from closing.
“Was there something you wanted?” she asked.
“Yeah, uh …” He glanced to the left, toward the door to the law firm, and then back at her. “I … I have to go, but I just wanted to say”—he took a deep breath—“for what it’s worth, I’m sorry.”
She shrugged. “I know.” Maybe he didn’t remember that night at all. That’s why he didn’t recall how he told her sorry over and over again four years ago, when he left her crying in the rain. “Was there anything else?”
His jaw hardened. “No, there’s nothing else.”
He released his grip and as soon as the doors shut, Amelia braced herself with one hand as her knees turned to jelly. Breathe. You can do this.
She pressed the button for the ground floor and as the elevator car began to descend, the tightness in her chest eased and she regained control of her legs. Still, despite all that, her first run-in with Mason had gone better than she thought it would.
Forget about him, she told herself. It’s over.
But she couldn’t help the curiosity pricking at her. What was Mason doing there? Was he looking for a job? All Kate had said was that he was moving to Blackstone and was divorced. Did he leave the SEALs? And what about his—
The ding indicating that she had arrived on the ground floor interrupted her thoughts just in time. No, she wouldn’t think about … that. The one bad thing. The reason she left Blackstone; her secret shame. That was ancient history and she didn’t really give a damn what Mason was up to now. She finally had her life together, back at home with her family and friends, and she wasn’t going to let him ruin things for her again, not when she worked damn hard to forget him and what he did to her.
Four years ago …
Amelia tried not to fidget as she sat by herself at a table in the dining room of Giorgio’s Italian Restaurant. She glanced at her watch for what seemed like the hundredth time. She thought maybe time was passing too quickly, but no. Mason was over an hour late now. The waiter had stopped checking in on her and instead, left her alone with the glass of red wine she’d been nursing since she sat down.
Was Mason always late? She didn’t know. They usually met at his motel room and by the time she knocked on the door, he was there, waiting for her. It was like they couldn’t get enough of each other and the moment they were alone they were ripping each other’s clothes off.
But something had changed a few days ago. She couldn’t quite pinpoint when, but deep in her heart she knew what it was. The mating bond.
She had heard her parents and Uncle Hank and Aunt Riva talk about it, but it seemed like such an intimate thing that neither couple offered details. All they told their children was “you’ll know it when it happens.” It was different for each couple, apparently. She huffed unhappily. It would have been nice to know for sure right now.
Surely, it must have happened. The bond had formed. She couldn’t describe it, but it was like she felt what he felt and knew his moods. Each time she was away from him was agony and when they were together, she’d never felt more content.
Her bear was different as well. Happier around him. Though neither one of them said it aloud, he must have felt it too. In fact, he was the one who asked her out tonight, telling her he had something important to tell her.
Excitement had filled her. Mason was leaving in two days and he was going to tell her something important and wanted to have dinner at
the most romantic restaurant in town. She hadn’t heard him say ‘I love you’ yet, nor did he call her mate. The latter actually made her more annoyed; she had always thought it was cute when Dad called Mom “mate” playfully, though she could see the love in his eyes. Until she’d met Mason, she hadn’t known how much she’d longed for someone to call her mate.
The crack of thunder jerked her out of her reverie. It had started to pour the moment she got in and she thought that might have caused Mason’s delay. It wasn’t fun to ride in the rain, but surely he would have tried to call her if he couldn’t ride or was going to be late.
The soft beep from her phone on the table indicated that her battery was about to die. Ugh, should have replaced that thing long ago. But, practical person that she was, she decided to hold off on buying a new one until after graduation. She brought an external battery but had left it in her car.
She signaled the waiter to come over and explained that she was just going to grab her battery, but would leave her phone here. When the waiter nodded, she stood up and headed toward the door.
The wind howled as she exited the restaurant. She was getting ready to make a run for her car when she felt the familiar feeling wash over her.
“Amelia.”
She turned to her left. Mason was standing just outside the awning, the rain pelting him. Immediately, she launched herself at him. He was soaking wet, and she would be too, but she didn’t care. She was just so glad to see him.
“Mason, I’ve been so worried!” She rubbed her nose on his wet shirt, trying to scent him despite the rain. “Where have you been?” He remained silent, and finally she noticed how stiff his body was. And that he didn’t return her hug. “Mason?”
He gently pried her away from him. “Amelia, I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay, you’re here now,” she said, looking up at him, searching his face. His expression was stony and his eyes were hard, like glacial ice. “So you’re a little late. It happens to everyone and—”
“That’s not it.” He turned away from her, and then cursed, his hands curling into fists at his side. A raw burst of power from his bear emanated from him. Anger. Rage.
Amelia staggered back. She had never seen him like this, nor had she ever felt his animal so … agitated. He said that there was something wrong with his polar bear, but didn’t elaborate on it. She could guess his childhood had been rough and that sometimes caused problems between shifters and their animal side. But she was never afraid of Mason’s polar bear. In fact, her own animal adored his, ever since that first night.
“Tell me what’s wrong,” she whispered. “Please.”
Mason looked up at the sky and cursed again, then slowly turned to her. His expression was inscrutable. “I have to go.”
“Go? But you’re not supposed to report back to base for another two days.”
“No. I mean, it’s something else.” He took a deep breath. “I don’t know how to say this, so I’ll come right out and tell you. A couple months ago … there was this girl.”
Amelia reined in her jealousy. “What do you mean ‘girl’?”
“I swear to you, it was way before we met. My team and I were back on a 3-day break after a tough mission … we went to this bar just off base and there was this girl … I was drunk and so was she, and I went home with her.”
Bile began to rise in her throat, but Amelia pushed it down. “So what? Like you said, that was months ago. I wasn’t a virgin or anything when we met.”
“It’s not—” He shook his head. “I left right away. Didn’t leave my number or anything, but she managed to track me down through my CO. Called me an hour ago, right before I came here.” He let out a strangled cry. “She … she said she’s pregnant.”
Amelia was pretty sure she heard the word pregnant and understood what he was saying, but the ringing in her ears made everything in her brain go haywire. A knot began to form in her chest, and her bear roared with anger. It clawed at her, wanting to get at Mason. She leashed it back, and she felt a strange tug in her gut. “I don’t understand … what are you going to do?”
“My CO’s furious at me. He’d been there that night. Everyone saw us and … turns out she’s an admiral’s niece.” He ran his hands down his face. “Fuck, I don’t want this. I can’t … this is fucking insane.”
She felt the numbness creeping in slowly, from the tips of her toes, inching up her legs, over her body until she felt like she was encased in ice. Hot tears began to flow down her cheeks. “I don’t understand. Why … how could it be?”
Surely they could work it out. Something similar had happened to her mom and dad. Ben wasn’t her mom’s biological kid, and he had arrived in their lives while her parents were still dating. Of course, Ben’s mom had passed away, which is why he ended up in Blackstone.
“I need to go and fix this.” The words were like a door slamming in her face.
This wasn’t fair. She had finally found her mate, and now … “Mason, please!” She threw herself at him. “Please! Maybe … there’s been a mix-up. I mean, you could figure it out and I can wait—”
“I’m sorry, Amelia.” He might have been crying too, but she couldn’t tell because of the rain. “This wasn’t how it was supposed to be. I was taking you out tonight because I wanted to ask you to be my girlfriend and try to make this long-distance thing work.”
But I am yours, she pleaded silently. And you’re mine. “Things shouldn’t be like this. We can’t—” A sob broke from her throat.
He shook his head. “Please, don’t make this any harder. This is a kid we’re talking about. My kid. And no kid of mine is going to grow up the way I did.”
There was a steely determination in his eyes, and despite the hurt she was feeling now, Amelia knew he was right. She wanted to rage—at life, at fate, at Mason—but she couldn’t. This was a human being they were talking about, and he helped bring this person into the world.
He took a deep breath. “I’m heading out now. Back to base. Sort things out with my CO. Maybe they’ll let me keep my team.”
Ah yes, there was that, too. Mason loved being a SEAL and she knew it would crush him if he was discharged. “Go then.”
“Amelia—”
“Just go.” She didn’t recognize her own voice. “Now.” Before I throw myself at you and beg you to not leave me.
Mason gave her one last glance, but she refused to look him in the eye. Instead, she looked straight ahead, letting the rain blind her. He began to walk away. Away from her, until he disappeared from her blurred vision.
Amelia wasn’t sure how long she stood in the rain. Someone had come out of the restaurant and asked her if she was okay, but she didn’t answer.
She thought her life falling apart and her heart being torn to pieces would have been more loud or violent. That there would be more screaming or raging. But no. There was only silence.
Chapter Four
Present day
Mason couldn’t move. He couldn’t breathe. He couldn’t think. He stared at the cold metal doors, unable to do anything else.
Mine!
The words roared in his head. He hadn’t heard it in years.
He thought seeing Amelia from afar had been difficult. Being near her had been worse. They said that the opposite of love wasn’t hate, it was indifference, and he understood that saying now. Having her act like nothing was wrong when his insides were churning and his bear was tearing him up was devastating.
The day he left, he could hardly look her in the eye. Her face had haunted his dreams for the last four years. Leaving her that day was the worst mistake of his life. At least, now he knew that. But hindsight was always fucking twenty-twenty. He didn’t even want to think what his life would have been like if he’d stayed and told his CO, Admiral Peters, and that bitch to go pound sand.
It was all done. Frankly, he should have been relieved. And today, Amelia was fine and he couldn’t begrudge her that. And like Amelia, Mason told himself he should move o
n too.
His bear disagreed. Loudly. Like it was telling him that Amelia was not fine. But he shut it up. There are other more important things, he reminded it.
With every ounce of his will, he forced himself to turn away and walked toward the law office of James D. Moynahan. His appointment was for 10:00 a.m., and he was already running late.
“Good morning,” the receptionist greeted as he entered through the glass door. “Mr. Grimes?”
“Yeah,” he said with a nod. “Sorry, I’m late. I … was delayed outside.” Because of Amelia. His mind was still on her now. Normally he trusted his bear’s instinct. And it was telling him something was wrong with her. Why should he ignore it now?
“Let me check in with Mr. Moynahan. Please have a seat.”
Mason sat down on the plush leather couch in the waiting room. As the receptionist picked up her phone, he found himself zoning out again, his mind going to Amelia. There was something there that was just … not right. She looked the same, but his instinct told him she wasn’t the same. Hell, she didn’t even smell the same.
“Mr. Grimes? He’s ready for you.” The receptionist pointed to the door on the left.
He put it out of his head for the time being. All those years, dealing with Jenna at home and his dangerous missions, he had learned to compartmentalize well. Right now, there really were more pressing matters that needed his full attention.
“Thanks,” he said, and walked toward where she directed him and opened the door.
James D. Moynahan was sitting at his desk, staring at his computer. But as soon as he walked through the door, the attorney turned his head. “You must be Mr. Grimes. Nice to meet you.” He reached over to offer his hand.
“Same here.” He gripped the other man’s hand. Shifter, of course.
According to Tim, Moynahan was a fox shifter and one of the best attorneys in town. “Those foxes are smart and wily,” Tim had said. “But Moynahan’s honest and won’t do you wrong.”
The Blackstone She-Bear: Blackstone Mountain Book 7 Page 4
