“I see you were the owner of a hotel,” she sneered. Her glasses slid down her nose and rested on an upturn tip.
“It was more of a resort. Perhaps you’ve heard of it, the Libre Volare outside of town.”
Her heaving bosom spilled from her blouse when she rocked forward. “I don’t get much of a vacation. My job demands a lot of my time. I’m stuck here day in and day out.”
Her body odor soured Caleb’s stomach. “I imagine an important job as yours is very demanding.”
She sprayed the air with a wet phlegmy cough. “Are you making fun of me? I tell you, this hospital wouldn’t run if it wasn’t for me and my team. I take this seriously and I don’t appreciate people working under me who aren’t as serious as I am.”
Caleb knew this was serious, but the idea of being under her was too much of a visual he didn’t need in his life. He yawned to cover his laugh.
“Am I boring you? Big fancy business man like you. I bet you think you deserve this job.”
This woman’s tone made his falcon screech and pace. He inhaled. “I have never been afraid of hard work. From what you’ve said and implied, you need good help. That’s what I will offer.”
“Fine.” She coughed again. “I fired someone this morning. You can fill his place. Can you start now?”
Caleb nodded.
“There’s a uniform in the closet over there. There are papers for you to fill out and a training you need, but I don’t have time for that. Don’t see why anyone needs training to work a mop and broom.” Her phone rang. “You can come in on your own time to take care of that stuff. Go change and find Randy. He’ll show you what you need to clean today.”
After changing and talking to Randy, Caleb cleaned the restrooms on the first three floors. The work reminded him of his first assignment in the Air Force. He and Eli met on the first day and Eli made it his mission to meet every woman in a thirty-mile radius. That wasn’t a bad goal, but the commander’s daughter thought he was a more serious boyfriend. For the next six months there was nothing Eli could do without someone getting mad at him, and Caleb was guilty by association.
“What the hell are you doing?”
It surprised Caleb to see Cameron headed his way. “I could ask you the same thing. How did you find me?”
“I ran into Evan downtown while looking for you. He mentioned you might be here trying to find a job.”
“Well, I’m here. What do you want.” Caleb emptied a trashcan into his bin. A sudden thought had his stomach pushing out all his air. He used his cart to steady himself. “Wait. Wednesday. Is she okay? Is it the babies?”
Connor ran up to them. “What are you doing here and in a janitor’s uniform?”
Caleb ignored this and grabbed Cameron’s arm. “Tell me is Wednesday okay.” Anger filled his chest. What did Cameron know?
Cameron twisted his arm free. “Nah, she’s not okay. I think she’s having the babies. We were at Maria’s funeral—”
Caleb used an open hand to smack his head. Shit. “That was today. I forgot. I’m an idiot.”
“Well, you’ll be a bigger idiot if you don’t come with us. Wednesday is having those babies.” Connor pushed the janitor’s cart up against the wall.
“What are you doing?” Caleb asked.
“You aren’t a janitor. This is shit. I’m pushing this out of the way, so no one hits it and I’m getting your ass out of here and to your mate.”
“I can’t just leave my job. I’ve only been working for an hour.”
Cameron put his hands in his pockets. “This isn’t a job, at least it’s not a job for you. Now pull your head out of your ass.”
Caleb’s falcon screamed. Did he just put cleaning toilets ahead of his mate? His babies. What the hell was happening to him? He nodded and followed his brothers to Cameron’s car. He’d figure out what to do later.
Cameron did not drive fast enough. Caleb bounced his leg and clenched his fist. If he missed the birth of the babies, Wednesday would never forgive him. Hell, he’d never forgive himself.
“God, can’t you drive faster,” he hissed.
“Chill your shit. I’m getting you there in one piece.”
Connor sat forward from the backseat. “Tatum just sent me a text. They aren’t here yet but will be soon. We need to get there, Cam.”
Cameron snapped, “You want to drive?” They continued to argue.
The falcon inside Caleb’s head cawed and flapped his wings. He needed to take control of the situation. The energy level increasing until Caleb thought he would shift in the car.
In what felt like an eternity, Cameron pulled up next to Hank’s house and Caleb rushed inside before his brother stopped.
“Wednesday?” He burst through the front door.
“We’re up here,” Tatum stood at the head of the stairs.
Caleb heard a noise from his mate that was neither a scream nor a growl, but a combination of something he’d never heard before. His falcon stretched his power and talons broke through the skin. His mate was in danger and they needed to protect her.
He ran past Tatum and postured for a fight when he entered the bedroom.
Hank’s wolf came to attention and challenged the bird inside Caleb. The two men growled at each other, defensive instinct taking the lead.
Sybil stood between the two. “Hey both of you back down. Caleb, Wednesday is okay. We aren’t hurting her. See for yourself.”
Caleb didn’t want to turn away from the old wolf in front of him.
“Hank,” Sybil said. “You know better. Back it down.”
Hank shrank back, turning to show Caleb where Wednesday sat resting on all fours.
Caleb’s bravado melted when he saw his mate. Her eyes were swollen and red-rimmed. Matted hair framed her tired face. Her face screwed into a painful grimace. Her arms shook as she struggled to stay upright. Sweat and desperation filled his nose. The copper smell of blood burned as he raced to her.
She collapsed into his arms as he climbed onto the bed. “I wasn’t sure if you’d make it in time.”
He kissed her and parted the hair hiding her face. They moved back allowing her to rest against the headboard. Caleb cupped her face with both hands. “I am so sorry. Please forgive me for not being here when you needed me the most.”
She smiled then her face widened, and she made the noise he heard earlier.
Frantic for answers he asked, “What’s wrong? Why is she in so much pain? Is something wrong? Why aren’t you helping her?”
Tatum stepped up next to him. “Childbirth is hard work. We’re doing what needs to be done, but she’s doing an excellent job.”
He jerked his face between Tatum and Wednesday. “You call this excellent? This is horrible.”
“It is what it is. She needs you more than she needs us right now.”
Wednesday exhaled and rested against him. “What do I do?” he asked Tatum. She nodded to his mate. “What do you need me to do?” he asked Wednesday.
Another contraction took control of her body. He felt it seize her muscles and clamp on tight.
“This is it! They’re here.”
Tatum told Caleb to help her stand. “You need to hold under her arms. Give her support to push. Wednesday, do you feel like crouching or do you want to stand?”
Wednesday didn’t answer but lowered herself to the floor. Caleb followed and held her the way Tatum instructed.
“Talk to her,” Tatum said.
For the first time since he entered the house, he saw her and not just what was happening. This was his mate. The woman who held his hand and encouraged him to follow his dreams. She loved him in a million different ways. For the last eight months, she nurtured his offspring in a way that only a mom could do. Now, she faced this incomprehensible battle while he only provided back-up support. He was never prouder to call her mate. “You’re doing great, Wednesday. Keep breathing. You got it. That’s it.”
With two pushes and a gush of fluid, the first baby push
ed her way into this world.
Caleb wanted to see his daughter, but Hank and Sybil took her. Wednesday crashed against him.
“Don’t give up on me, Wednesday,” Tatum said.
Before his mate could catch her breath, another contraction seized her and after two more pushes, their second daughter made her way into the world.
The weight and awe of the moment overtook him. Wednesday sank against him causing him to lose his balance. They sat on a sheet crying together. His daughters’ cries were the most wonderful noise he’d ever heard and for a moment, nothing else mattered.
Wednesday
After two weeks of living with Hank and Sybil, Caleb and Wednesday found a small rental house. Wednesday appreciated the extra hands Hank and Sybil gave her with taking care of the babies. Guilt nestled in her heart when she asked Caleb to help. Caleb worked from sunrise until long after sunset and when he came home he was grumpy and tired. She was not looking forward to getting up in the middle of the night, alone, to feed the babies.
Ginger sat on the couch snuggling Baby Iris. “I swear, Wednesday, I don’t know how you tell these beauties apart. They have to be the most gorgeous babies in the world.”
All the girls came over for a belated Baby Shower. Wednesday wanted to believe they came over for her, but she knew Sybil’s cinnamon rolls were too hard to resist. She and Eliza made a fantastic brunch spread for everyone.
“Well, Maisie seems more patient than Iris.” Wednesday nodded to the baby in the swing who was wide awake and mesmerized by the fish mobile.
“That makes sense.” Kitty bent to make funny faces at the baby. “Iris is named after one of the most stubborn women in our family.”
Since the births, Wednesday and Kitty had worked hard to find a level of respect and understanding. Both women held on to their pain, but they both knew it would diminish.
“Mom, you know she can’t see you.”
“But she knows it’s me. Blood calls to blood, darling. So, tell me how this shifter thing works. Is she going to shift one day and just fly away?”
The other ladies smothered their giggles.
“I told you mom, since I wasn’t born a shifter, it’s possible they won’t shift.”
Sky sat on the couch. “We’ll know more when they get closer to puberty.”
“Speaking of puberty,” Tatum started, “has Wyatt shown signs of shifting?”
Sky shrugged. “He tells me he sees his falcon and Cameron senses something there, but I don’t know. I think I’m just too close to the situation to be objective. I have mixed feelings about the whole thing.”
“Really?” Kitty asked. “I think it would be awesome to be like you ladies.”
Sky put her plate on the coffee table. “I was born a shifter, so I know nothing different. Sometimes it wasn’t that great. Not everyone understands, and I’ve had more than one friend run away scared and screaming about me attacking them. I’ve lost count of how many times someone called me a demon or spawn of Satan.”
Eliza said, “I suppose that was one good thing about my family. We could only be with bear shifters.”
Ginger nodded. “Remember that time, sis, you brought that boy home. I thought dad would die right in front of us.”
Eliza sat next to her sister. “Speaking of boys. I noticed you extended your visit and I think a certain Scotsman is to blame.”
Ginger stuck out her tongue. “Just be glad I have a baby in my arms.”
“Ooo, are things getting serious with you and Eli?” Wednesday asked.
Ginger’s cheeks reddened. “I think so. He’s hard to figure out. He has this alpha male thing that drives me crazy, but I wish I could turn it off when he gets on my nerves.”
Sybil set a platter of mini quiches on the table. “Oh, honey, it doesn’t work that way. These men can’t just turn it off and on whenever they want. When there’s a woman they want, that is the only thing on their mind and they will plow through anything to get to her.”
“Human men are like that, too,” Kitty added. “That’s not just a shifter thing.”
“When Hank and I met, he followed me everywhere. It drove me crazy. Then after we mated, I got a job outside of the house just so I could be my own person sometimes.”
Wednesday picked up a fussy Iris, found a comfortable seat, and nursed her. “What does it mean when they don’t want to be with you anymore?” She stared at her baby, unable to look at the other women.
Tatum knelt beside her and squeezed Wednesday’s knee. “Caleb still wants to be with you. What are you talking about?”
Wednesday lifted her head, a single tear in the corner of her eye. “I don’t think so. He’s gone all the time and when he’s here, he barely plays with the babies. They cry and he leaves the room. I don’t get it.”
Sybil rested on the arm of the chair where Wednesday sat. She hugged the younger woman. “Men don’t always know what to do with babies. They need their mother for a lot when they’re this small. Men know someone they love is in need, but they don’t know how to deal with it, so they don’t. They don’t like to be around something they can’t fix.”
Wednesday rested her head against her friend. “I hope that’s all it is.”
“Cameron told us the other night he didn’t want to be around Caleb right now,” Eliza said.
“Is that supposed to make me feel better?” Wednesday snapped. After saying it, she shrank back and apologized. “I don’t mean to snap. I’m so tired.”
“When was the last time you slept more than a couple of hours?” her mom asked.
“I don’t even remember. I’m trying hard to get them on the same schedule, but it’s not working.”
“Have you been able to fly?” Tatum asked.
Wednesday saw her falcon, defeated, hiding in the recesses of her mind. “I’m too tired to produce the energy.”
Sybil squeezed her shoulders again. “It might surprise you how much energy your animal can give you. That’s a perk of being a shifter.”
“I suppose you’re right. We are too disconnected. I don’t know what to do.”
The baby in Ginger’s arms shifted. She smiled down and said, “Dreaming a great dream I hope, little one.” Then she turned to her friend. “I think that’s one of the differences between those who are mated to a shifter and those born a shifter. You have no idea the power inside you. It’s a symbiotic connection, not a parasitic one. You need your bird and she needs you.”
Sybil moved to the table. She took a plate and filled it with food. “I know there have been a million times in my life when I needed the strength my wolf gave me.” She brought a chair with her when she returned to the room. “To tell you the truth, I think that’s why women shifters are just a tad stronger than their male counterparts.”
A couple of the ladies agreed.
“How so?” Wednesday asked.
“Our nature is based on connections. We nurture that bond. Men don’t,” Sybil said.
Eliza went to the table for more food. “Why don’t you finish with that little princess and then go for a hike and see what happens.”
“I can’t,” Wednesday protested. Guilt over neglecting her responsibilities raced through her mind but being alone appealed to her. But what if they needed her?
Kitty said, “I don’t know what you need to do, and one of these times, I’d love to see it, but I think between all of us, your babies would be fine for an hour or so.”
“Really?” Hope shot through Wednesday’s heart.
“Of course,” a chorus of agreement sang.
Iris had fallen asleep and stopped nursing. Wednesday’s falcon stepped from the shadows and took over their actions.
Wednesday stepped out the back door and stood on Sybil’s deck. The fresh spring air filled her lungs and blew out the stress covering her mind. A baby cry broke her meditation. Her breasts filled, and the letdown pushed out a small amount of milk.
Frustrated she gave up and walked to the backdoor. The picture in
side made her smile. Sybil handed her mother a bottle and Kitty fed the baby she cradled in her arms. Eliza and Sky snuggled with the other baby, cooing and making funny faces. Her babies were okay. This family meant everything to her, but she needed to connect to her soul and the nature of her animal.
She took off her clothes, closed her eyes, and centered her breathing. In her mind, the falcon stepped up and bowed its head. Wednesday bowed in return, a mutual level of respect and love. In a large pulse of joy, she raised her arms, shifted into a falcon, and pushed off the deck.
Wednesday withdrew and the falcon soared higher. The midmorning combination of leftover cool air from night and emerging warm afternoon air trailed over her wings and tickled her senses. The spring thaw was almost finished, and the river crashed along the rocky bottom. Animal families scurried to complete their morning chores. A coyote stretched and laid in the sun. New growth sprang from the cracks in the rocks.
The falcon flew to the edge of the canyon where the scenery painted a much different picture. Scorched earth littered with ash led the way to the Libre Volare. They had removed the final pieces of the resort. The lonely foundation remained as a marker of destruction and death. Heavy vehicles and turmoil destroyed the landscape and nearby vegetation. A rat scampered across the edge.
Wednesday landed and rested on Cameron’s gazebo. Beside Cameron’s and Connor’s cabins, this was the only structure left standing after the fire.
The graveyard before her broke her heart. They needed to say goodbye. Now, nothing felt certain for the future. Her life was in chaos and the one she needed next to her, didn’t want anything to do with her.
Minutes later, Wednesday flew back to Sybil’s house. The falcon bowed and expressed gratitude. They connected on a deeper personal level than they had before. The falcon promised her she was not alone. In a surge of energy, Wednesday shifted, dressed, and joined her family.
Both babies slept as the women talked and enjoyed their time.
Eliza saw her come in, first. “So, were we right?”
Shelter For My Mate: Sassy Ever After (Sanctuary for My Mate Book 3) Page 9
