“The behavior Loki exhibits, would you say he leans more toward wolf or dog?”
“Dog.”
“Is there any way to prove he isn’t dangerous?”
Sawyer chuckled. “A Chihuahua can technically be considered dangerous if they aren’t raised right. Their bite might not hurt as bad, but they can still cause damage, especially to a small child. In Loki’s case, he’s attacked someone only under circumstances that any family dog would – that they’d be expected to, actually. He was protecting the members of his pack like many domesticated dogs do. Human, dog, bear – doesn’t matter. Loki went after people who were harming his family.”
“Wolves have a high prey drive, don’t they?” Maddox asked. “They’ll pursue things that are smaller or weaker than them and kill them, correct?”
“Correct.”
To me, Maddox asked, “Dallas, do you trust Loki? Do you trust him with this boy’s life?”
I nodded without hesitation, even as I began to guess what Maddox had planned.
To Isaac he said, “Do you trust me not to let anything happen to your brother?”
The tension in the room grew to astronomical proportions at the question. I could see Isaac hesitating and I knew it was a lot to ask. He’d known us less than twenty-four hours and for whatever reason, he and my brother had gotten off to a rocky start. Isaac finally nodded.
Maddox knelt down and let his fingers settle in Loki’s fur as he spoke to Newt. “Newt, can you do me a favor and run as fast as you can to your brother? Loki’s going to go with you, okay, so don’t be scared.”
“I’m not scared,” the little boy declared. “Loki likes me.”
With that, he got up to run to Isaac. Loki jumped to his feet and darted after Newt, easily overtaking him. There was a collective gasp and someone let out a cry of distress, but everyone fell silent when Newt made it to his brother untouched.
“Come on back, Newt,” Maddox called
Loki again ran next to Newt. It wasn’t until the pair reached my brother that he pressed his big body up against Newt’s expectantly. The little boy patted Loki several times.
Maddox looked over his shoulder at Jeb. “I’d like to ask that my brother be allowed to take his pet home tonight while Deputy Miller works to have the false complaint removed.”
“Agreed,” Jeb said as he glanced at the other committee members who were all nodding. “Deputy Miller, I trust you’ll go through the appropriate channels to discuss your concerns about Sheriff Tulley’s conduct?”
“Yes, sir, I will,” he said.
“Good luck with that,” the sheriff barked. “I’ve been protecting this community for years.”
“You’ve also been lying to them for years,” the deputy retorted. “Like after a certain accident where you forced me to tell everyone I’d forgotten to ask the hospital staff to run blood alcohol tests on Dallas Kent.”
The sheriff paled, but the deputy ignored him, then turned his attention to me. “I’m sorry, Dallas. The sheriff told me your father said you were driving that car and that you’d been drinking. But I knew he was lying because I saw the results of the blood alcohol tests myself. I’d just started in the job and didn’t want to lose it, so I never said anything.”
“What is he talking about?” Doc Cleary asked as he rose to his feet.
Maddox was the one to answer. “Our father asked the sheriff to cover up the fact that our mother was the one who’d been driving that night and that both she and our father were drunk. When he realized our father had lied to him, instead of telling the truth about what really happened that night, Sheriff Tulley covered up his role in the lie by getting rid of the evidence that proved Dallas hadn’t been drinking. What really happened the night of the accident was that Dallas tried to stop our parents, but couldn’t. He also hadn’t had a single drop of alcohol that night. After the car rolled down the ravine, he managed to pull our mother from the car before he lost consciousness. When he woke up, he found out what my father had done, but he never said anything.”
Maddox’s eyes shifted to me. “Because he wanted to protect our mother, despite the fact that she was gone. That’s what he does,” he said softly.
“He protects those he loves.”
Chapter Twenty-One
Nolan
Dallas’s fingers squeezed mine at his brother’s words. I was barely holding it together as every single word spoken finally revealed the truth to the world about what an amazing man I’d fallen in love with and who somehow had come to love me back.
I ignored the whispers of the crowd behind me and turned to look at Dallas. I could see he was fighting back tears. I pushed into his arms as the voices around us grew louder and louder. I tuned out Sheriff Tulley’s voice as he began yelling at his deputy, then the council members. The room got louder and louder until poor Newt was forced to cover his ears with his hands.
“It’s over, baby,” I whispered in Dallas’s ear.
He nodded against me, then, not caring who was watching, kissed me softly. We became lost in our own little world until the sound of the gavel pulled us back to reality. Jeb hammered the block of wood in front of him repeatedly as he called out to the room to settle down. People were still talking above him, though, so he kept at it.
That was when I finally noticed Maddox.
He was practically dripping sweat and he’d shut his eyes. His hands were clenched at his sides and his body jumped every time the gavel hit the wooden block. No one else seemed to notice the behavior, but when Dallas tensed next to me, I realized he’d seen it too. He was pushing past me when Isaac suddenly appeared in front of Maddox, stepping over Loki and Newt in the process. His hands went up to grab Maddox’s face and I could hear him calling the man’s name. Maddox opened his eyes, but he seemed to struggle to focus them on Isaac.
“Dallas,” I said, but before either of us could move forward, people began appearing in front of us, blocking our view. I was dimly aware of several of them telling Dallas they were sorry, but my focus was on Isaac and Maddox. The younger man had managed to get ahold of one of Maddox’s clenched fists and began pulling him from the room. Loki and Newt quickly followed.
Before Dallas and I could turn to go after them, Jeb shouted again for the room to come to order. Once he added in the threat that he’d clear the room if people didn’t comply, everyone shut up, and those that had gotten up scrambled to get back to their seats. Jeb spoke only long enough to announce that the town council’s business with Dallas was concluded and no further action would be taken against him or the center. He spouted a blanket apology to Dallas, but like me, I suspected Dallas wasn’t really listening, because his eyes were on the door Isaac had led his brother through.
“Dallas.”
Dallas and I both turned at Doc Cleary’s voice. “Is there anything you want to say, son?”
I knew what Doc Cleary was offering with the question. A chance for Dallas to have his “I told you so” moment. He had free rein to call every single person out in that room for what they’d done to him. He took out his phone and typed something, then handed it to me. I steeled myself for whatever it was he wanted me to say to the now-silent room, but when I saw his words, I smiled.
“I have lots of amazing animals that need to find their forever homes…plus one crabby zebra. Any takers?”
The crowd erupted into laughter. As Dallas threaded his fingers through mine and led me from the room, my eyes connected with my mother’s and she sent me a smile and a nod. Warmth spread through me at the expression on her face – one I could only classify as pride.
I held up my hand to my ear to mimic a phone and she smiled wide and nodded.
And in that moment I knew what it was that had made that spark of warmth flare to life inside of me.
My mother was finally starting to hear me.
We never found Maddox that night - only Isaac, Newt, and Loki where they’d been waiting by Dallas’s truck for us. Isaac hadn’t said much other than to
explain that Maddox had left on foot shortly after Isaac had gotten him outside. Sawyer had joined us outside and had mentioned that Maddox had gotten a ride to the meeting with the deputy. Dallas and I hadn’t realized it, but Maddox had become friends with Deputy Miller years earlier just before Maddox had left for West Point. When he’d gone to the deputy to ask for his help in getting Loki so he could prove to the community the wolf hybrid wasn’t dangerous, the deputy had come clean about the accident and his role in it.
We’d hoped to find Maddox back at the center, but he hadn’t been there, either. We’d managed to convince Isaac to spend another night with us, though we hadn’t yet told him about his car.
“How are you feeling?” I asked Dallas as I closed the bedroom door behind me. I’d already locked up for the night. Loki had decided to sleep with Newt and Isaac, which hadn’t surprised me since the little boy and the big animal were practically attached at the hip at this point.
Dallas was in the midst of changing into his sleep pants, giving me a scrumptious view of his backside. In the week between my father’s funeral and Dallas’s surgery, I’d gotten to feel just how perfect Dallas’s ass was because we’d changed things up when we’d made love one night. Since I’d never topped and Dallas had never bottomed, it had been awkward and nerve-racking at first, but once I’d been buried deep inside his body, none of that had mattered.
It had been perfect.
And while I would always likely crave to be filled just a little bit more, I knew it was something we’d definitely do again.
Dallas nodded, then pointed to his throat and gave me a thumbs up. I knew he probably wasn’t feeling a hundred percent yet, but the fact that he hadn’t taken a pain pill and still seemed relatively comfortable was a good sign.
I went to him and wrapped my arms around him. His strong arms surrounded me, making me feel safe and wanted. But it was the little kisses he pressed against my temple, my cheek, my jaw, that had me feeling so grateful for the twist of fate that had brought us back together.
Dallas kissed me, but before he deepened the kiss, I pulled back and said, “We need to talk about something.”
His eyes immediately filled with concern, but he managed a nod. I knew exactly what he was worried about, but I couldn’t blame him. I’d suspected as soon as my name had been cleared in the theft of the Stradivarius what would go through his head. There just hadn’t been time to deal with it.
I took his hand and led him to the bed. I had him sit on the edge of the bed, but instead of sitting next to him, I crawled onto his lap so I was straddling him. I twined my arms around his neck. He motioned toward his phone on the nightstand.
“You don’t need it yet,” I said. “Because you’re going to listen while I talk, because I want you to really hear me, okay?”
He sighed and nodded.
“I’m not leaving you.”
I didn’t expect the words to miraculously ease his worry because I knew that wasn’t the crux of the argument.
“Look at the words on the wall behind me, Dallas. Really look at them.”
His eyes shifted to where we’d written on the wall several weeks earlier when we’d told each other that we loved each other for the first time. Dallas had painted over his words, but he’d left mine.
“Always and forever doesn’t mean until a good job offer comes along or you get your voice back and then lose it again or the shit from our pasts tries to rear its ugly head. It means nothing will ever change how I feel about you. Even if you told me you didn’t want me anymore, it wouldn’t change how much I love you. So, unless you tell me to go-”
He didn’t even let me finish my sentence before he was shaking his head. He kissed me hard, then shook his head some more.
“Nvr,” he suddenly whispered, his voice so low I barely heard it.
But it was there.
And it was fucking beautiful.
“Ov you Non.”
I let out a watery cry and covered my mouth with my hand. I dropped my head to his shoulder and cried. He kept repeating that he loved me in the same broken whisper until I gently covered his mouth with my hand. “Stop, the doctor said you weren’t supposed to try talking for two more weeks.” I brushed my mouth over his. “Thank you. That was so beautiful, Dallas.”
He kissed me again, then motioned to his phone. I started to get up so I could get it for him, but instead of letting me go, he wrapped his arm around me and lifted me so he could grab it himself. I chuckled when he settled me back on his lap.
Don’t want you to give up your music, Nolan.
“I won’t. I was so focused on music getting me out of this town that I forgot why I fell in love with it in the first place. But playing it for you, for Gentry, it just…it’s better than any performance I’ve ever given and worth more than any paycheck I’ve ever earned.”
Dallas began typing again and I quickly covered his phone with my hand. “But I did want to talk to you about something.”
He lowered the phone and nodded. “The orchestra in London travels all over Europe every spring doing performances. This year they want to do something new. They want to showcase a couple of performers who would do solo performances in each city. They’ve asked me to be one of the performers.”
I expected him to tense up, but he smiled broadly and quickly nodded.
“Wait,” I said with a laugh. “I’m not finished.”
His chest rumbled and there was the tiniest bit of sound to accompany his laugh.
“I was wondering if you might consider coming with me.”
He did tense a little then, and I knew why, so I quickly said, “I know it would be hard for you to leave the center, but I have some thoughts on that.”
He nodded for me to continue.
“While you were checking on Gentry tonight, I asked Sawyer if there was any chance he’d be interested in helping out, since he doesn’t plan on opening up his practice until next summer. I also thought we could see if Isaac was interested in working here for a while. If not, we can hire a couple of really good people. You work too hard as it is, Dallas-”
It was his turn to cover my mouth with his hand as he typed one-handed on his phone.
Yes.
The simple word had my heart surging with joy. “That’s it?” I asked. “Just like that?”
I never left Pelican Bay because there was no place to go. But my place is with you now, Nolan. Where you go, I go - whether it’s for a few weeks or for the rest of our lives.
“Really?”
“Illy.”
“Love you so much, Dallas,” I whispered, then I kissed him. His phone hit the floor right before his hands came up to cover my back, then he was rolling me onto the bed beneath him. Within minutes, he had us both naked and he was reaching for the lube. He grabbed a condom too and held it up for me, but I shook my head. Dallas had gotten tested as part of his pre-operative bloodwork and I’d taken advantage of the walk-in clinic at the hospital to do the same. And while we hadn’t actually talked about when we’d lose the condoms, I knew it was something we were both ready for.
Dallas tossed the condom away and then he began working me over until I was writhing beneath him. He kissed me as he began pushing into me, likely to swallow my cries of pleasure since we had houseguests. He made love to me slowly, driving me to the edge over and over again before backing off. By the time he began fucking me past the point of no return, I could barely breathe. Neither could Dallas, but luckily for a whole other reason than a problem with his throat. I clung to Dallas as I came, and moments later when his release scorched my insides, he whispered his love in my ear and I didn’t admonish him for it.
Because I would never get tired of him saying the words to me, whether he did it with his voice or his body.
I’d hear him either way.
Always.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Dallas
It took me two days to figure out where Maddox had gone and I’d cursed myself for my stupidi
ty more than once that it had taken me that long to begin with.
The drive to the house by the lake was hard for me, since I hadn’t been up the winding road even once after my father had died.
There’d been no need to return to the house I’d shared with my parents and my brother because Maddox had inherited it. I’d just assumed he’d sold it, but when my family’s former neighbor, Mr. Zimmer, had stopped by the center in search of a new cat to keep his other cat company, he’d let it slip that he’d seen Maddox at the house a few times in the past couple of weeks.
In the two days since Maddox had done what he’d promised and fixed everything, I’d been inundated with visitors at the center. Most had been there merely to gawk or extend their apologies for having assumed the worst about me. Others had taken me up on my comment about having many animals in search of their forever homes. After years of solitude, I was, admittedly, not handling the sudden change well. Fortunately, Nolan had known what it would do to me and he’d often rescued me from visitors by slipping in the fact that I was still recovering from surgery and needed to rest. He’d also managed to talk Isaac into helping deal with all the people who were interested in adopting a new pet. Nolan had played it smart and framed the request so that it seemed less about us helping Isaac and more about him helping us.
Which he had been.
He’d balked at the idea of being paid to help out, especially since he and Newt were still staying in the house, but Nolan had managed to convince Isaac that he’d be earning every penny.
Much like I’d said to Nolan so long ago.
Newt, for his part, had been put to work too. His job was to help anyone who was interested in adopting a kitten, since he’d become as obsessed with them as he was with Loki. He’d named all the kittens and would tell anyone who would listen all about each kitten, from what toys they liked to play with to which ones were the best cuddlers.
Nolan and I had talked to Sawyer about whether or not he was interested in starting at the center as a paid employee now, versus waiting until the spring when Nolan and I went to Europe. He’d accepted the offer with the caveat that he had obligations as the on-call vet for the area, which I’d readily agreed to. I’d also asked him if he’d become the center’s regular vet, even after he opened up his own practice. He’d been more than happy to accept that offer as well.
Locked in Silence_Pelican Bay [Book 1] Page 24
