Mount Roxby Box Set

by Aimie Jennison

  Knocking on the door pulls me out of my memories. “One sec,” I call out as I grab my empty glass off the bedside cupboard, not wanting to have to come back up for it later—waddling up and down the stairs takes energy I don’t seem to have these days.

  Pulling the door open, the peppermint aroma of a steaming tea hits me as a cup is thrust in my face.

  “Tea?” Trudy asks, seemingly full of energy if her dancing feet are anything to go by.

  I sidestep her and place my hands around hers on the cup, aiming to calm her movements before the hot liquid can burn either of us. “Sure, thanks. Let me take that before you spill it.” I glance at my watch to double-check the time. “How many coffees have you had this morning, Trudy?” Seven o’clock is way too early for her to be this jittery from coffee. Knowing she used to have a problem with drugs and alcohol causes worry to surge through me as I wonder if she’s fallen off the wagon, again. I can’t imagine what would have caused her to do such a thing. As far as I know, she wasn’t close to Wes.

  She waves me to lead the way downstairs, and I do just that, hoping once I have my back turned, she’ll feel more comfortable to talk. I’ve barely taken three steps when words tumble out of her mouth.

  “I’ve had a couple. I couldn’t sleep last night.” She pauses, taking a deep breath. “I had hoped that you’d maybe be in the same boat. Actually no… I didn’t want you not to be sleeping, but I really wanted to catch you down there like we often do during the night.”

  I stop at the bottom of the stairs and turn to face her. “Trudy, you’re worrying me. Are you okay?” I peer at her, taking in her clean blouse and jeans. She doesn’t look like she’s been on a bender. Leaning forward slightly, I breathe in, aiming to get a discreet whiff of her breath.

  “I haven’t been drinking if that’s what you’re sniffing for,” she says, making it perfectly clear I wasn’t as discreet as I’d been aiming. “I didn’t mean to worry you.” She pats at her blonde bob. “Shall we go sit on the deck? You can drink your tea and I’ll explain what’s gotten me so excited.”

  I look at her full of surprise; my eyebrows must almost be in my hairline. “This is you excited?” She laughs and gives me a sheepish nod. “Okay, but I’ll have to sit at the garden table because I won’t get out of the lounger if I try to sit on that.” I head through the French doors and pull a chair out at the table sitting on the edge of the grass.

  As I wait for Trudy to be seated and tell me what’s going on in that crazy head of hers, I glance around the yard, taking in the tables and chairs that had all been part of a wedding only a couple of days ago. All that happiness has been wiped away with death. Theo and Bel should be having a honeymoon, not planning the burial of a friend. A family member, that’s what he was. Wes was as good as Theo’s brother. I could see that, even before I knew about the pack connection.

  “The wedding feels like weeks ago, but the flowers aren’t even wilted.” Trudy sighs, and I watch her finger the centrepiece between us. She shakes her head as if to clear it of whatever thoughts are present before grabbing my hand on the table and giving it a squeeze. “That’s not what I wanted to talk about.”

  I wipe at a tear with my spare hand, my hormones clearly getting the better of me.

  “I had a long chat with Cain last night. I want you to know you aren’t the only human around here. I’ve always been an outsider of sorts.” I frown, unsure where she’s going with this, but I allow her to finish without interrupting with questions. “Don’t get me wrong, you’d never be an outsider. Not if you mated with Cain.”

  I cough. “Trudy! I… we… I think you have the wrong end of the stick. Cain and I aren’t—”

  She cuts me off with a wave of her hand. “Oh, I know exactly what’s happening, but don’t worry about that for now. What I’m trying to say is, I’m here if you need to talk to someone without the pack bonds and stuff, if they get pushy.” She looks at me with raised eyebrows. “Because werewolves can be pushy bastards.”

  “Mum!” Cain’s voice coming from the trees at the other side of the yard has me jumping in my seat. “I told you to leave her alone. Jesus, are you trying to scare her off?”

  “I’ll have you know I’m offering her support.” The indignation in her voice makes me laugh.

  Closing my eyes, I soak in the warmth of the sun as I listen to them bickering.

  “You were calling us pushy bastards, Mum.” Cain’s voice sounds much closer than it had been a moment ago. The sound of a chair knocking the table alerts me to the fact he must be joining us.

  Opening my eyes, I take a sip of the rapidly cooling peppermint tea whilst watching Cain over the top of the mug. He’s giving his mother a stern look. I can tell he’s only joking by the slight lift at the corner of his mouth. He has a slight shadow over his jaw, making me aware that he probably hasn’t shaved this morning. I lift my hand, wanting to run my fingers over the scrub only to catch myself, tucking my own hair behind my ear in hopes of disguising my hand’s initial intentions.

  “You can be pushy,” Trudy argues gently. “And you were born out of wedlock, so technically….” She grins, clearly thinking he won’t argue with her reasoning.

  “Well played, Mum.” He laughs. The sound caresses my skin as I watch him pull her into a one-armed hug.

  I’m surprised by her words. I knew she hadn’t always been with Marcus, Cain’s dad, because when I first started dating Theo, Marcus was with another woman, Margie. I had no idea they hadn’t actually been married beforehand. Margie hated Cain and Theo and made it perfectly clear whenever she had the chance. Come to think of it, she hated me too. Thinking back on it now, I wonder if it was because I wasn’t a werewolf.

  “So, what do you ladies have planned for today?” He releases Trudy and flicks his eyes between the two of us. I look to Trudy.

  She shrugs. “Nothing yet.”

  Both their eyes fall to me. “I was planning on visiting Alyssa again.”

  Cain glances at his watch. “If you give me twenty minutes, I can drop you off on my way to work and then I’ll pick you up again when I finish around lunch.”

  “You’re working?” I ask, my voice high with surprise.

  “My brother owns a gym, which conveniently has a vacancy since Paddy left town,” Cain says, before throwing me a wink. “You didn’t think I was planning to be a slacker, did you?” Pushing his chair back, he stands.

  “No, it’s just… it was only yesterday you decided to stay in town.” My heart beats erratically in my chest at the thought of him staying. We caused such a mess all those years ago, and here we are back in the same town. Hell, we’re in the same house. “It was quick,” I add.

  “I, for one, am glad you’re staying,” Trudy exclaims with a gentle squeeze of his arm.

  “Thanks, Mum.” He leans and gives her a kiss on the cheek. “Now, I really do have to get ready for work. I’ll meet you by the car in twenty?” He looks at me, his eyebrow raised in question.

  I nod and watch as he runs into the house. His sweats and T-shirt cling to his muscles. Muscles that will have water running over them any second now. I lick my lips and shake my thoughts of him naked in the shower out of my head, before turning my attention back to Trudy, who is sporting the biggest, knowing grin. “Oh, shut up. It’s the hormones,” I admit guiltily.

  Trudy purses her lips and a frown creases her brow. “Have you seen him in his other form?”

  “Wolf?” I ask stupidly, as if there’s another form of his.

  She nods.

  “No.” I shake my head. “I didn’t think they’d be allowed to change in front of us. I remember he said their existence is a big secret and it’s dangerous for us to even know about it.”

  She reaches across the table and squeezes my hand. “You’ll see them soon enough. It’s magnificent.” Without any more explanation, she heads off towards the house, leaving me wondering why they’d risk showing me if it’s so dangerous.

  Glancing at my own watch, I figur
e I have enough time to have a quick bathroom break before heading to the car.

  * * *

  I knock on the door before me as I listen to the car idling at the kerb. Cain’s waiting to see that I get in safely. It’s not like I’m a grown woman or anything.

  Jared opens the door, looking somewhat bedraggled in a T-shirt and loose-fitting shorts. His hair’s sticking out in all directions having seemingly just woken up. “Se—” He clears his throat before trying again. “Selena, I wasn’t expecting you until Monday.”

  I grimace. I should have called. “I—”

  “I’m being rude, forgive me.” He rubs a hand over his face. “I just stumbled out of bed. Come in.” He waves me in, and I have a quick glance out the door before he closes it, catching sight of Cain pulling onto the road. I step into the lounge and Jared follows. “Alyssa’s still asleep. Do you want a coffee? Actually, I’m not sure if we have decaf.”

  “I’m assuming you haven’t really had a chance to do any shopping. That’s kind of why I came today.” I frown, hoping he doesn’t think I’m butting into their business. “I figured since Alyssa was okay with me yesterday, you might like to pop out and grab what you want. Or if you don’t fancy leaving, I can go pick some stuff up for you. Although I’d probably have to borrow your car.” Sure I’m babbling, I press my lips together to stop myself from going on.

  Jared strokes a hand down my arm, like I’ve seen the werewolves do a thousand times. “Hey, it’s okay. It’s really nice that you thought of doing that for me. I’d actually like to quickly pop to the shop for a few bits.” He turns his head to the side as though he’s listening to something before focusing back on me. “Come into the kitchen with me. We can get a list together while we wait for Alyssa to wake up. I don’t want to leave without telling her first.”

  I smile. “Sure. That sounds like a good plan.”

  Twelve

  DIE TRYING

  Selena

  As I make my way to the kitchen for my afternoon peppermint tea, there’s a knock on the front door just as I’m passing. Reaching out, I open it and turn to let them in without much thought. It’s a pack house after all; there are people coming and going all the time.

  The face of the person standing at the door registers with my brain and my heart starts to race. “Stu,” I whisper. I never thought I’d see him again, not after he all but booted me out the door when I told him I was pregnant. My hands drop to my stomach in a protective gesture, and his eyes follow their movement. I fell into Stu’s lap—quite literally—within hours of leaving Mount Roxby. I’d stopped off in a tavern in the next town over and drank myself into a stupor, before falling over my feet and landing in his lap. Stu took me home with him. Even though over time, I felt he was keeping secrets from me just like Theo had, I ignored the little supernatural warning signs that should have had me running a mile, and I settled into life with Stu. It was amazing. He was a caring boyfriend, and I thought I could see us lasting the long haul. Until I told him I was pregnant. That’s when he became a whole other person. Violent. Terrifyingly violent. I ran to Theo hoping for a second chance, but I also ran to Theo because I knew he’d protect me and my child. No matter what had happened between us in the past, he’d never put a child in danger.

  “You haven’t popped it out yet then.” His stating of the obvious makes me glare at him, belatedly remembering how much he hated me glaring at him. He steps forward menacingly and pulls me out the door with a harsh grip on my arm that causes pain to radiate along the limb. “If you want to live long enough to have that baby, you better wipe that look off your face.”

  Falling back into old habits, I cower before him, dropping my eyes to the floor and slouching my shoulders. “I’m sorry.”

  “You better let go of her and leave.” Cain’s demanding voice behind me has me relaxing instantly. Stu can’t do anything to harm me or my baby, not while Cain’s here. “Right. The. Fuck. Now!” The growl behind Cain’s words has the hairs on the back of my neck standing on end. Cain steps up beside me, and I glance at him gratefully as he brushes a reassuring hand over my back.

  Stu releases my hand as he locks eyes with Cain. “I’ll be going as soon as I’ve collected what belongs to me.” The set of Stu’s shoulders and his feet planted firmly where he stands shows how determined he is as he points to my stomach.

  “I think you might be mistaken, mate, because she’s mine!” The growl in that one word makes the hairs rise on the back of my neck.

  “That baby she’s carrying is mine. So, I’m taking her with me.” Stu takes a step towards me, making his intentions perfectly clear.

  Cain gently ushers me behind him. “You’re not taking my mate anywhere, but you are more than welcome to die trying.” Hearing Cain call me his mate has my heart skipping a beat. I rub a hand over my belly wondering if he really meant it and, if he did, has he considered that another man’s baby comes with me?

  “Mate? If I’d have known you knew about us, we could have had some real fun in the bedroom.” He winks at me over Cain’s shoulder, making bile rise in my throat at his insinuation.

  Cain lets out a furious growl and charges forward.

  Suddenly overwhelmed with the need to protect Cain from getting hurt because of me, I jump forward, grabbing his arm. “Please,” I plead. He turns his head to look at me. His eyes are glowing an ice-blue, reminding me of the wolf’s eyes he once showed me.

  Knowing I need to get Stu to leave, I turn my attention to him and I speak up. “You kicked me out the minute you found out I was pregnant. Why do you want it now?” I can feel Cain’s skin beneath my fingers rippling, and I slide my hand down, taking his hand in mine, hoping to calm him. I’ve lived with wolves long enough to know touch like this is something that calms them.

  “Honestly, I’d rather kill you both right now, but my alpha feels differently.” Cain’s hand tightens painfully on mine, causing me to grit my teeth.

  “I’ll tell you what.” Cain words seem forced, as though it’s taking all his energy to fight something else. “Go tell your alpha if he really wants my mate’s child, he can come back when it hits puberty.” He loosens his hold on my hand, and I quickly cradle it in my other hand, massaging it and hoping to get the blood flowing again. Stu grins seemingly satisfied. “Don’t get me wrong, he won’t be leaving with the child, but I’ll be more than happy to end his life for him when he does come knocking.”

  Stu stares at Cain, indecision written in the crease of his brow. “Fucking rock and hard place, every fucking time,” he mutters to himself.

  “Now, if you don’t want me to show you what being between a rock and a hard place really feels like, you might wanna get off my property… NOW!”

  Turning without a word, Stu hightails it down the drive. The speed he moves tells anyone watching that he’s something other than human. I’ve never seen anyone move so fast

  “Fucking arrogant fox, moving like that. Humans could be around for all he knows.” Cain stares at the drive as if he can see through the trees Stu ran into.

  “He’s a fox?” My voice rises in surprise. Cain spins to face me and nods in answer. “I had no idea there were more than just werewolves.”

  “Any animal could be a were-animal or shifter as some prefer to be called. In fact…” He glances around as though looking for something, before training his eyes back on me. “Jared isn’t a wolf. He’s a lion.”

  My eyebrows almost pop out of my head with surprise, or so it feels anyway. “A lion? Like a big, roaring, golden-maned, lion?”

  He nods and grins. “I haven’t seen him in his lion form, so I can’t say whether he’s big or not. But considering he’s meant to be his pride’s next alpha, I’d assume he’s pretty big.”

  “Oh wow, I’d love to see it. His lion. I bet he’s so majestic.” I wave my hands in excitement at the thought and hiss as pain soars through the one Cain had squeezed the life out of.

  Cain’s eyes drop to the offending appendage and his smile
is wiped from his face. I pull the hand behind my back, trying to hide it from his view. “Selena, let me see it.”

  Not wanting him to see the bruise I’d caught sight of a second ago, I try to placate him. “It’s nothing, just a little bruise.”

  “Please, Selena.” The pleading and his solemn eyes have me moving my hand out from behind my back and placing it into his outstretched palm. I avert my eyes from his face, not quick enough to miss the anguish in his pained stare. “That was me, wasn’t it?” His grim look tells me he already knows the answer. “I’m sorry… I…. Fuck! There’s no excuse for something like this. I know you’re human. How could I have done this?”

  Taking my hand out of his, I fight not to show the discomfort the movement causes as I cup his face. “Cain. Listen to me. It wasn’t your fault.” He opens his mouth to argue, but I rush to keep talking, not giving him the chance to jump in. “I knew your wolf was close to the surface. I saw him in your eyes and felt your skin rippling under my fingers. I put my hand in yours anyway. It was my fault. Not yours.”

  He turns his face to kiss the bruised hand. “You need an X-ray.”

  I sigh as I give him a short, sharp nod. I’d come to the same conclusion the second it happened.

  He pulls his phone out of his pocket as I drop my hands from his face and cradle them over my stomach. “Zainab,” he says, holding the phone out in front of him, having put it on speaker. “I need your expertise.”

  “Okay,” Zainab’s voice answers warily through the speakers.

  “Is there still an X-ray machine in the big shed?”

  “Yes. Why? What have you done?” Her voice sounds anxious, no doubt at the thought of someone hurt.

  “Selena has hurt her hand. It’s bruised up pretty quickly, so it looks like there could be a fracture or two.” He grimaces with the words, and I offer him a reassuring smile, trying to show him I’m okay.