by Milly Taiden
To the left were private cabins “for the whole family to enjoy on the lake.” Passing by the entrance, it seemed the lake had engulfed two of the four cabins. One structure had been lifted from its foundation and moved several feet. He could only imagine what the other locations looked like.
Recognizing the house, Aitan slowed and pulled into the driveway. Her car sat next to the door to the kitchen. Hopefully that meant she was home. He knocked on the front door and stepped back, away from the entrance. Not hearing anyone moving in the home, he was about to knock again when he heard a high-pitched voice inside. “I’m coming. I’m old and damn slow so wait your horses.”
He smiled and returned to his spot. When the door opened, Granma’s eyes lit with happiness. “Good thing you’re not a salesman or roof repair man. I woulda shot you.” She pushed open the screen door. “Come in, my boy. Good to see you again. I figured you’d be dropping by today.”
He stepped through the doorway and followed the older woman into the kitchen. “How did you know I’d show up?” he asked.
Granma laughed. “Neither of you stayed long after your walk, so I figured something embarrassing happened and you both wanted to get away as soon as possible.”
He thought back to last night and the shame and guilt hit him at what he pushed her to do. They’d had sex, damn intimate and fucking intense. His mouth drooled for another taste of her juices and heat. No other woman had affected him so much. Usually it was the simple sexual act to quench the physical demands of his body, then he was gone.
But not with Robyn. His boxers and hotel sheets were wet with several cum spots from his dreams last night about fucking her every way he knew. And now, he was getting hard thinking about that. Ugh, not around her grandmother.
“Yeah,” he responded to her statement of embarrassment, “we are in the get to know each other stage certainly.”
She patted a stool at the island bar top for him to sit as she pulled a pitcher of tea from the refrigerator. After filling a couple glasses, she handed him one.
“I suppose she didn’t tell you about her growin’ up, did she?” Granma asked. He shook his head. “And I suppose you’re here to get the story to see who she really is?” He nodded. “I suppose then you ought to tell me who you really are before I get to that.”
Aitan sat back, a little shocked. “I, uh...”
“I’ll get to the point,” Granma crossed her arms in front of her chest. “Are you going to arrest my granddaughter?”
“Arrest her?” he said. “I’m not a police officer, but why would I arrest her?” He’d really like to know what the woman knew. Obviously there was something to arrest Robyn over. Was his mate the thief like he originally thought? The idea cut his heart. If she were, what was he going to do? Turn her in?
Granma tossed a hand into the air. “You never know about these kids anymore. Always protesting or doing something illegal just to prove a point. Kind of like the good old days when the war was on the tongue of every student at Berkley, as well as a doobie.” She chuckled. He wasn’t sure what a doobie was, but he could guess.
She pulled out a stool and sat, setting her glass of tea on the granite. “Here’s the push, son. My Robbie is a survivor. And whatever she does, she does for a reason. And not for herself.”
“Okay,” he replied, trying to puzzle out the meaning behind her words.
Granma scowled. “You’re not getting it.” She scooted around in the chair then sipped her tea. “I shouldn’t be sayin’ all this since it’s her story, but she won’t be telling you. I guarantee that. She likes you.”
His insides jumped for joy, but he played it cool. “Why would you say that?”
Granma smacked his arm. “No need to play dumb with me. I know what you are and what you can do.”
Shocked to the core, he managed to say, “I don’t know—"
She raised a finger in warning. “We have a whole pack of your kind not far from here. Nice folks. Got hit hard by the flood not long back. Some bad stuff.”
Aitan considered the situation. He smelled no deceit or ill intent from her, so he’d play along. “How did you recognize me as a shifter?” This he needed to know so he wouldn’t be obvious in the future.
“Few people in New York would stop to help a little old lady—so I knew you weren’t from the city at least. Then sticking your arm out like that and flipping that guy over and you barely moving. No one could’ve done that. Well, no human.”
Ah, she was talking about the purse robbery yesterday. He hadn’t put much thought to it. Just did what came naturally to help. It was a bit strange for a human to do what he did. Normally, a person would’ve jumped the guy. He’d remember that next time.
“Then, of course,” she continued, “men your size are few and far between. Then there was the glow in your eyes when you looked at my granddaughter.” She chuckled. “That was the dinger.”
18
“Why do you say my size and the glow are shifter traits?” Aitan asked. Humans weren’t supposed to know about his species, though he knew many did nowadays.
“As I said, there’s a pack not far from here. Those wolves are better for mankind than a lot of humans I know. I guessed you might belong to them until I heard your accent. When I saw you weren’t wearing a wedding band, I invited you here hoping you’d like my Robbie. She’s been alone for so long. She needs someone who’s as strong as she is. A shifter would be perfect for her. She’s a nice girl.”
“I do like her,” he said, “but I’m sure she doesn’t want to see me again.”
“I doubt that. The way she looked at you last night was not the look of a woman wanting a man to leave her alone.” She shook her head. “No, siree. Just the opposite.” She patted his hand. “Now listen to what I say and it will help you understand my girl.
“My son married a pretty young lady he met at a bar. I did not meet her before the wedding. I didn’t know why until much later. Before nine months had passed, they had a little girl and she was such a beautiful doll.
“I visited occasionally, not wanting to be a nuisance to the honeymooners, as such. But from phone conversations with my son, I knew the marriage had troubles from the beginning. I learned that his wife, Robyn’s mother, was addicted to street drugs.
“My son thought he could get her clean with love and encouragement, but he was wrong. After several years, they divorced and he got custody of little Robbie with his ex having visitation rights.
“On one of those visitations, when Robbie was eight years old, the mother took her and disappeared. The police looked for months, checked out every lead they got, but still my little doll was missing. Many years had passed before I accepted the fact that Robbie was gone forever.”
A hundred questions floated in Aitan’s head. Where had she been? How was she found? What happened to the mother? How had she survived?
Granma held up a finger and took a drink of tea, then continued.
“Ten years later, we received a phone call from Holy Pereth Academy—”
Aitan recalled the place Robyn had taken the two children was Holy Pereth. He remembered her and an older lady talking.
Granma went on. “Sister Helen—what a fabulous soul—asked if I knew a child named Robyn. Of course, I became very angry thinking someone was playing a cruel joke. But it had been a decade later. Who even remembered my Robbie except us?” She sniffled. “Oh, look at me. Crying again.”
Aitan handed her a handkerchief from his pocket. She looked surprised and thanked him. He felt himself blush. “Must be a European thing. I always carry one with me.” He watched as she dabbed at her eyes and waited for her to continue with the story.
Granma cleared her throat. “Anyway, we discovered that our Robyn had been living at the academy for years and was ready to graduate. That being the case, she had decided to research to see if she could find out who her parents were and if she had family. That’s when Sister Helen called.
“When we met Robyn, she was a su
llen, harsh young lady. She didn’t trust anyone except the sister and had few friends. But when my son decided to give her a job at his security firm, she changed completely. She was friendly, outgoing, and enjoyable to be around. When my son died from a heart attack, Robbie took over the company and it’s done fantastic.
“But there are times I sense that little girl still inside her. She’s scared and frightened and uses her ‘new’ personality to hide from others. Everyone at the office loves her, but no one knows her. She shows them what she wants them to see—which is a happy, well-adjusted, independent woman. But I know better.”
Aitan asked, “What happened to her mother?”
“We’re not sure. I assume she died. We’ve never pushed Robbie to tell us what she remembers. I pray she remembers little. It must’ve been horrible.”
“At least the mother left her at the school,” he commented.
“No, she didn’t. Sister Helen said a woman brought her there and paid for her to stay until she graduated. Can you believe that? There are good people on this earth.”
“Did the woman say anything about where she found Robyn?” he asked.
“Sister said the woman found her in an alley, dirty, clothes torn, and hungry. When she asked the girl where her parents were, Robyn said she didn’t know. She said the police took her mother when she wouldn’t wake up. I take that to mean she was dead. She probably overdosed or was mugged and killed. They were fifty miles from home.”
Aitan couldn’t imagine what it was like for Robyn to hang onto her dead mother’s body. He wondered how long the corpse remained after death. He didn’t want to know. All he felt was the need to hold her, comfort her, tell her he’d take care of her.
“Sister said the woman told her to take care of the little girl and make her strong. One day the child was going to make an important wolf very happy. Sister didn’t know what she meant, but animals weren’t permitted at the school, especially a wild animal.”
“Important wolf?” Aitan repeated.
“Indeed,” Granma said. “Which bring us back to the question of who you are.” Her brow lifted.
Aitan took a deep breath and told Granma everything except his idea that her Robbie was the thief. Granma smiled and clasped her hands together.
“I knew you were someone special the moment I laid eyes on you. You have this air about you. You’re magnetic.”
“Too bad your granddaughter isn’t made of steel,” he replied.
Granma grinned. “Oh, but she is, young man. She is.”
19
Robyn flipped down the car’s vanity mirror on the back of the visor to check her makeup. After spending all afternoon in the gallery preparing and safely receiving the shipment, she was more than excited to get this over with.
Sam had been a wonderful source of information concerning all the new security features of the gallery, including where the cameras were, but more importantly, where they were not. They definitely went high tech. He’d mentioned that the high-dollar thefts of the last three years enticed them to spend the money. Yeah, that would be her fault.
She smiled as she got out of her car in the gallery’s small parking lot. She adjusted her dress—the one Sam loved—so it draped smoothly down to her matching ruby shoes. Stepping away from the car, a sense of dread washed through her. Eyes were on her, and not friendly ones.
Quickly clopping her heels along the sidewalk, she turned the corner to the entrance. She breathed out in relief. She was being silly. This last job was making her nervous and paranoid. Nobody was watching her, and nobody was going to catch her. The plan was tight.
When Robyn stepped inside, the party had already begun. She didn’t want to arrive until it was dark out, so she wouldn’t have to stand around and socialize that much. Only an appearance was needed, both entering and leaving.
The lobby was filled with rich patrons and well-known art aficionados. Basically, people with enough money to make a difference in the world, but instead, they choose to purchase things to make their walls look nice. Not that anything was wrong with that. To each his own. But she would put that money to another use if she had it.
She noted a few of the local television stations had come out to get footage of the opening. Sam was talking to one of the men holding a camera and tripod off to the side.
“Would the lady like a drink?” She turned, expecting a waiter to be holding a tray of champagne glasses, but that wasn’t what she got. Instead, she was face to face with the man who said he would never see her again. Her heart leapt with happiness then drowned in anger.
“What are you doing here?” She looked him up and down. Damn, he was luscious in a tux. Her heart pounded, but she kept her disgruntled face. “Only special people are on the guest list.”
Aitan smiled and handed her a fluted glass. “I guess I am special in my own way.”
“Whatever,” she snorted. “Like being a police officer makes you a qualified art critic.”
“I do have an opinion,” he answered.
“Do people pay you to give it?” she retorted.
He laughed. “No, I haven’t been paid for it.”
“Then you have no importance here.” She saw a shadow cross his face. God, she was being bitchy. This job needed to be over so she could get back to normal. “I apologize for that remark, Mr. Hansen. I’ve had a long day and I’m ready to go home.”
“Robyn, girlfriend!” Sam hurried to her, taking baby steps through the crowd which made him look ridiculous. Upon reaching her, he gave her air kisses on both cheeks. “You look stunning. My god, if I wasn’t gay, I’d be all over you.” He glanced up and down at Aitan in his tux standing beside her. “Speaking of being all over someone, who do we have here?”
Aitan paled and she almost spit out her drink of bubbly. Holy shit, was that funny. Big macho man being hit on by another guy. Serves him right for breaking her heart. No, he didn’t break her. Nothing would break her. She was strong enough to handle whatever she faced. Especially some man who gave her the best orgasm she’d ever had. Aitan sniffed then coughed in his cup, his eyes darkening and focused on her.
“Oh, wait,” Sam buzzed like he was standing on a live wire, “Robyn, you so won’t believe this.”
“What?” she asked, laughing at his excitement.
“There’s a prince coming to this showing.” He flapped his hands and turned in a circle mumbling, “Oh my god, oh my god.”
“A prince?” Robyn replied, “From where?”
Sam placed his fingers on her forearm. “Oh, I can’t remember. Some strange country name...but a prince!” He primped his hair. “Do I look good? Do you think he’s gay? Bi would work, too.” Aitan suddenly bent over, spitting the sparkling drink from his mouth into his glass.
She frowned at him. “Was that necessary?”
“Yes,” Aitan said. “Yes, it was.” He looked away. “Please excuse me a moment.” She watched him walk away. Damn, she’d never seen a tux look so good from the back.
Sam gasped and she turned back to him. “What?” she said when seeing Sam’s smile.
“I know that look, girlfriend. You are in looove.” He dragged out the last word, making it sound like a song.
She smacked his arm. “I am not. Just admiring the view.”
Sam raised his brows and glanced in Aitan’s direction. “The view is damn good, isn’t it? Yum. You sure you don’t like him? ‘Cause I do.” Anger ripped through her. Mine whipped through her head. “No need to get jealous, girl. I’m just playing with you.”
“Jealous?” she said.
“Yeah, your face is all splotchy and your look could kill.”
20
Robyn was so not jealous of Aitan. She couldn’t care less about the man. “What does this prince look like?” she asked, changing the subject.
“I don’t know,” he answered, “but I bet he’s decked out in jewels with diamonds hanging from his balls.”
Robyn laughed, but that was TMI for her. “I have no
desire to find out if you’re wrong or right.”
Sam winked. “I’ll be sure you’re the first to know.”
She rolled her eyes and her friend laughed. She asked, “Why didn’t you mention him earlier when I was here?”
“The call requesting permission to attend didn’t come in until late. The receptionist took it. Of all times for me to not answer the phone.” The seductive smile on Sam’s face told her Aitan must’ve returned. Really, she wasn’t jealous. But he wasn’t gay, so Sam had better keep his hands to himself.
Aitan snuggled up to her side and took a deep breath. Scowling at him, she stepped to the side. What the hell was he doing? She never got an answer to how or why he was here in the first place.
“What are you two talking about?” Aitan asked. “Must be good.”
“Nothing,” she barked. Now he was being nosy. It was none of his business. Someone called Sam away, leaving her with him. She looked around for anyone she knew or even partially knew.
“So,” he said, “how’s the security here?”
Her eyes jerked up to meet his. “Why do you ask?”
His shoulder shrugged. “That’s your business, right? Security?”
Yeah, it was, but his question felt like he was talking about something else. Well, shit. Her nerves were getting worse. Now she was putting devious meanings to simple questions. “The security is well done. But I can’t vouch for any of it since they didn’t hire us to set it up.” She gave him a side smile. Let him chew on that when they discovered the theft.
He smiled back. “I heard they have a laser wall. What is that?”
“How do you know about that?” she asked. He shrugged again, not answering. What was he up to? “The wall isn’t individual lasers shooting across the room, but a solid line across the ceiling that drops a curtain of beams two feet from the wall.”
He nodded. “Sounds like a great way to protect all the paintings. No spaces for the thief to contort over or under.” He sipped. “Why two feet? Why not one or six inches?”
