She sighed and nodded. “Yes, and I haven’t figured it out. Wait! Two!” she squeaked and a slow smile formed. “Do you know what I write? Well, what I used to write.” Jess frowned and looked towards the window.
“You will write. That is what you love to do. That money will be yours, but Jess, you will allow us to take care of you. It’s what we need to do. Look at me,” Maverick said.
Slowly, Jess looked up at him. “I promise, no, we promise, your children will be treated as ours and you will want for nothing. Give us this chance.”
“Us,” she looked over at Bran, who leaned over, inches from her.
“Yes, us,” Bran growled and placed a kiss on her lips.
* * *
Jess sat on Maverick’s lap. The four of them were on their way to the airport. Her suitcases were now in Maverick’s suite, he had informed her as soon as they made sure that her mother was well. They would go back to Vegas so she could finish the convention. And they would even bring her kids with them. He assured her that there was plenty of room for them and plenty of things for them to do.
“Maverick, you and Bran have to promise me something.” She turned and looked up at him, then at Bran.
“We’ll see. Now what are you worried about?” Bran asked.
“You can’t kill my husband, no matter what the dickhead says. He is my kid’s father. In some ways, he’s a lot like my daughter. That’s why it was so hard to step away from him. It was like living with another child, but I can’ t take care of him anymore. I just can’t.”
“We won’t kill your husband, but I’m not promising I won’t hit the ass,” Bran grumbled and started to work on his tablet again.
“There is another boy that I take care of. I hate to leave him alone. His parents are there, but they think more of themselves then their son. I’ve paid for his school clothes, always made sure I had enough food to feed him because they never did and I pay for his phone. Damn, this is going to be hard.” She frowned and tried to scoot off Maverick’s lap, but he held on tight.
“Hold still. Why is this going to be hard?” Maverick asked.
Jess sighed. “It’s hard to explain. I’ve always kept my house open for my kid’s friends. My children bring home the kids that need the help the most. I’ve told a number of them that if their parents every kick them out, they could come to me. A lot of my son’s friends ¬ their parents ¬ well they are worthless assholes, druggies or just out for themselves. Then there are my daughter’s friends who have been bullied, or learning disabled. With them, you have to guide them with gentle hands. They tell the truth no matter what. It’s like they don’t know how to sugar coat things and people get offended with that.”
Maverick slid his fingers through her hair and tugged her head back. “You, my Little Fawn, are an amazing lady. Your heart is too big and I have a feeling you are just like your daughter. But do not worry, we’ll figure something out.”
“Maverick, what about my Mom? She needs help to…” Jess tried to pull away from him but he held on to her. “Mom was going to move in with us in October. She can’t afford to live by herself anymore. It’s another reason I wanted to really get my books moving. I wanted to pay for her rent so she didn’t feel so confined. She loves living in her little place. Now I don’t know what to do.” She shook her head. “This isn’t going to work. It’s too much to ask of you and Bran. Let me up.”
“Stop,” Maverick growled. “We knew this was going to be difficult, but we can get through this. Just quit pulling away.”
“I’ll try, but you might not like what you find out.” Jess said.
“It goes both ways, Jess. There are bound to be things about us that will set you off. Not to mention our families,” Maverick said, as he released her hair, hugging her. “Wait till you meet our parents and yes, both sets of our parents are alive. They live in Vegas. Bran and I grew up together. We’ve always been best friends and knew that if one of us found our mate, the other one would be his partner.”
She groaned. “Damn, I never thought of that. Nope, don’t think this is going to work. I already have the in-laws from hell, especially his brother.” She shook just thinking of Ran.
“Do we need to worry about this man?” Maverick leaned back and stared down at her.
“I have no clue. His brother is a nut job. One minute he can be nice, the next he wants you and is touching you, or he could call you every name in the book. Just watch your back when they get together.”
“Not to worry, he won’t touch you again,” Maverick growled.
In a matter of an hour, Jess was staring out window of the private jet. She was so out of her league with these two men that Jess didn’t know what the hell to do. Just the thought of showing up with both of them at her side was making her nervous.
Her mother was in the hospital and her daughter Rose was with her. Her son had walked up to the hospital to wait. Both of them knew she was flying in, but would they accept the change in their lives?
With the cool glass window against her forehead, Jess closed her eyes. So much was going through her head that it was just too much. Maverick’s strong arms lifted her and wrapped her up in his warmth. “Shh, Little Fawn, we’re here. You are not alone anymore,” Maverick said, rubbing her back, while Bran sat next to them, lifting her legs up into his lap.
“We are not going to allow anything to happen to your family,” Bran told her. They sat there just holding her for a good hour, before she got up and stretched.
“I have to change,” she headed towards the bathroom.
“Don’t shut us out, Little Fawn,” Maverick said behind her.
She looked over her shoulder before entering the bathroom. “I’ll try, but be warned, you might not like what you see when we get there.” Jess stepped into the massive bathroom and snorted. “Yep, so out of my league.”
“No we’re not and that is five. I warned you Jess,” Maverick said, coming into the bathroom. “Lean over the counter now.”
“What?” she said, but he didn’t repeat himself, waiting.
“Fine.” Jess grabbed onto the counter, bending, but what she didn’t expect was for him to take her pants and underwear off to spank her. “Maverick?”
“Not a word.” Five hard, painful smacks hit her butt cheeks. Tears ran down her face and she refused to turn around, but Maverick wasn’t about to allow her that. He turned her around and pulled her into his arms, hugging her. “You are part of us and we are not better than you because we have a few comforts. Plus, these comforts are now yours too.” Maverick squeezed her sore butt and placed a kiss on the top of her head. “Get dressed. We land in 25 minutes,” he told her and headed towards the bathroom door.
“And there will be more of that if you continue with that train of thought.” Maverick glanced back at her. “You are ingrained in my heart now, Little Fawn. There is no separation for us.” With that he moved out of the bathroom and shut the door behind him.
* * *
They had rented a SUV at the airport to get them around. He wanted to be back in Vegas by tomorrow, but it would all depend on how her mother was.
Maverick stood beside Jess as they walked down the hospital corridor to her mother’s room.
Jess stopped and tensed up when they turned around the corner. “Linda, please tell me you didn’t go in there and upset her.”
“No. Who are they?” the woman asked as she looked at Jess and her two men and stepped forward.
“Actually it’s none of your business, but this is Maverick and Bran. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ll check in with mom.” Jess’ body language was stiff and Maverick could tell that seeing her sister wasn’t an easy thing as she attempted to move past her sister when Linda reached out.
“I’m sorry this happened,” Linda said.
“I’m not. I’ve been telling him to find someone else, I just wish it had been someone besides you. I don’t know how long you two have been at it, but he’s yours now. I’m filling for divorce as soon
as I can. Have a good life, Linda.” Jess pushed open the hospital door and the woman in the bed smiled up at her.
“Well it’s good to see you up and awake. Are you okay?” Jess asked moving to the bed and placing a kiss on her mom’s cheek.
“I’m fine, just had a bad reaction to something. Who are the gentlemen behind you?” her mom asked.
“A lot of things are going to change and I don’t know where to begin so I’ll let them tell you. Mom, Rose, Hunter, I’d like to introduce you to Maverick Westal and Bran Goodman. The gentlemen behind Maverick is his son Jake.”
“How did you get here so quickly and what kind of changes?” her son asked, staying across the room. He was tall and standoffish already.
“Maverick.” She smiled up at him and he grumbled.
“Of course, but your sister is listening at the door. Do you want her to hear everything?” he asked
Jess glanced toward the door. “Do others know about you?” she asked. “Because I wouldn’t trust her to keep her mouth shut. If they do, then go for it. Let her flip out.” Jess smiled when her sister pushed open the door. “Don’t even start. You have no say in anything here.” Jess snapped at her sister.
“Officials know about us, and a few humans. We are shifters, leopards to be exact, but there are other kinds of shifters in our city. Anyway, your daughter was caught in the middle of something and in order for her to survive, I had no choice. She is now like us. Well, she will be like us as soon as her body finishes the change. She is also our mate.”
“Why weren’t we called?” Her mother said. “If my daughter is sick or hurt, I expect to be notified. Is that understood?” her mom gave Maverick a look that almost made him step back. Jess laughed next to him.
Maverick reached around and pinched her ass. “Behave,” he told her.
“So you’ve been fooling around too? So it wasn’t just Dad?” Hunter asked.
Maverick’s turned his gaze on the boy. “Do not even take that attitude with your mother. You will respect her, do you understand me? Your father might not have been in your life, but rest-assured we will be from here on. Also, do not even think you will be smoking that crap around us. If you want to kill your brain cells, you will do it when you are old enough to be out on your own.”
Maverick turned his gaze on her sister. “As for you, we’ll see how you handle this news, before we trust you with anything else.”
Bran looked down at her daughter and winked at her. “We know everything is going to change, but we’re going to be there for you and your brother. As a matter of fact, we were hoping you two would come back with us for the rest of your Mom’s convention. It would give us time to get to know you. Plus, we would like you to get used to our home since we’ll be staying there on weekends, holidays and in the summer time. Hunter, your mom told us she promised you to that you would graduate here and we’ll keep a home here too so you can finish school.”
“We’re going to Vegas?” Hunter asked. “I have work.” He frowned. “But I could ask them for the week off. Do you think Dylan can come with us?” he asked, actually moving away from the wall.
“Actually, if it’s okay with your Mom, you could work with us since we will be going back and forth. It would pay more, and whatever you put in the bank, I’ll add the same amount. As long as the money is saved for school or a car.” Maverick told the boy, seeing his eyes light up. Yes, her son needed a strong hand, someone to work with him.
“Also, Dylan’s parents must speak with us before we agree, and our rules go for him too.” Maverick informed Hunter. Turning to Jess, he asked, “Is this the boy you were talking about?”
“Yep, he’s part of the family,” Jess said, hugging her daughter, but she looked towards the door behind them when the hospital door opened.
Maverick knew it was her husband as soon Jess stiffened, and stepped in front of her daughter. “Remember what I said,” Jess said, looking at Maverick and then Bran, before turning her attention to him. “Why aren’t you at work? Here to see my sister?”
“I didn’t know you were here? Who are they?” David nodded to Maverick and Bran.
Bran stepped in front of her. “Stay,” he told her.
Maverick stepped forward. “This is what is going to happen. Jess is filing for divorce. You have a month to find a place. The house is her mother’s and she needs it to live. Of course the children will be with Jess. You are free,” Maverick informed David.
The man stood there for a second, then looked around him. “I would like to speak with my wife alone. Jess.” David said and spun around, heading out to the hall.
“Move out of the way. This needs to be done.” Jess pushed through both men.
“If he touches you, our promise is null and void,” Maverick said before she stepped out into the hall.
“So what does it mean to be mated?” her mom asked behind them.
Maverick glanced at Bran, who shook his head. “Nope, this is you.”
He turned and smiled at Jess’ mom. “It’s actually more than a human wedding. The animal inside us recognizes the other as its life partner. There are no divorces. We can do nothing other than to make your daughter happy. Sure, there will be problems, but we won’t give up on her.” Maverick looked towards the door. “It’s time for her to be pampered. I want to let her write and not have to worry about bills, and what have you.”
“So it’s the two of you?” her mother laughed. “Have you read my daughter’s stories?”
“No, but I plan on reading each one,” Maverick said and moved to the door. He could hear that Jess was nervous and scared. “Excuse me for a minute.” He stood at the door and listened to Jess.
“Do you really believe you have anything to say about what I do? It does not matter what I do. Our marriage has been over for years and I’ve been telling you to find someone else, so now you have. You move on and I’ll move on. Hell, you can even have the car. I hope you’ll finally be happy. Oh, I’m taking the kids back with me to Vegas. Also Mom is going to stay at the house while we are there so she can take care of the cats. Find a place to live.” He heard her step back, but another voice made her stop. Maverick could feel the fear coming off of her.
He opened the door as the other man said. “Your free now. How about…” he stopped looking up at him.
“She’s not free and never will be.” Maverick growled. The man was not sane. Even from the tone in his voice, Maverick knew this one could be dangerous. “We will be going to the house now so the kids can pack some bags. But I was thinking, why don’t we bring your mother with us? She can see the other home we’ll be staying at and get some rest.”
Maverick looked down at Jess. “I also want to see what needs to be done with this house. Bran is looking for a place for us around here too. Why don’t you go see if your Mom will go with us.” he pushed her inside the room.
“Maverick?” Jess questioned him, but he was already closing the door to the room, turning his attention on the two men.
“I will only repeat this once. You even think of giving Jess any trouble I will make your life a living hell. Now, I suggest you make yourself scarce while we get the children packed up.” He looked at her sister. “Watch yourself around that one over there. I know it would hurt your sister if you were to get hurt.” Maverick headed back into the room
“You’ll take good care of my sister?” Linda asked.
“She’ll never want for anything and her children will have a home,” he said before stepping into the room.
** *
“So when do you get out of here?” Jess asked her Mom. “Maverick would like you to come back to Vegas with us. We could all make it a mini-vacation.”
“Anytime, but tell me, are you okay? I mean they are very…”
Her Mom glanced at Bran, who was sitting on the other bed working on his tablet, but he looked up at her and smiled. “We’re both very dominant men and Maverick is the alpha of our pack. I can tell you this, your daughter will have ev
erything she wants and your grandchildren will be taken care of.” Bran glanced over at the corner.
Rose was talking with Jake, and the way he was hovering over her made Jess a little nervous. She looked at Bran. “What’s going on?”
“It seems Maverick isn’t the only one who has found his mate,” Bran whispered into her ear as he wrapped his arm around her. “So your mother will be coming back with us. I have contacted my sister. She’s going to open up the house so everything will be ready for us. The penthouse at the hotel does not have enough rooms, but since you’ll be at the convention, I’ll also have my suite being cleaned so your mother and children can stay there.”
“Jess, I can’t afford to go to Vegas. The plane ticket alone would be too much,” her Mom said.
“Well then it’s good that we have a private jet, yes?” Maverick said, coming into the room.
“A private jet? Really?” her son asked, moving closer and she couldn’t help but laugh.
“Now you think that’s neat? Not the fact they can shift to a cat?” Jess frowned. “You don’t mind small cats, do you?” she asked Bran and Maverick.
“You have pets?” Maverick asked.
“Yep, two cats. Smokey and Missy. What are we going to do with them?” she asked.
“Sweetie, we’re cats. We’ll bring them with us. You have a cat carrier, right?” he asked and she shook her head.
“Nope, got lost on our move to the house. Plus, I don’t think Smokey will go. He’s scared of men and loud noises,” she said as the door opened and a nurse came into the room.
“So, who’s taking you home?” the nurse asked.
“We are. Is she going to be okay to travel?” Jess asked.
“I don’t see why not. We just want someone to keep an eye on her tonight to make sure she doesn’t have another reaction. She has a prescription for eppy pens. Make sure she keeps one with her all the time.” The nurse asked her mother to sign the release papers. “You can get dressed and we’ll be back with the wheelchair.”
“I’m going to head home. Dylan is talking to his folks now. Do you know when we’ll be back?” Hunter asked.
Left My Heart in Sin City Page 6
