“Where’s Dad?” Cal asked when he came back with the silverware and a place mat.
“He’s just gone to check on his shed. He’s worried the roof is going to leak. Oh, here he is.” Tansy knew her husband was approaching before Teagan heard a door open and footsteps approaching. “Joe. Come here. Cal has some news.”
“Does he?” Joe asked, poking his head around the door.
“I’ve met my mate, Dad,” Cal said simply.
“Have you?” Joe came into the room. “Excuse my dirty hands.”
“Of course,” Teagan said. “I’m used to it.” They hugged quickly, before Tansy clucked at Joe and he obediently went to wash his hands.
Tansy gave Teagan a quick wink. “Knows his place.”
“Dad’s been henpecked for the last thirty years,” Jax said.
“Don’t worry, the boys all know their place too,” Tansy stated, throwing a dish towel at Jax. “I’ll go and start bringing everything through. We hung on for you, Cal. I hope dinner’s not too dried up.”
“I’ll help,” Ronni offered, and got up from the table to join her mom in the kitchen.
“Can I help?” Teagan offered.
“No, you stay there. You’re our guest,” Davy said and got up to join his mom and sister.
“OK,” Teagan said, but secretly, she did not want to be seen as a guest, she wanted to be a part of this family. And one day she would call Tansy, Mom, and Joe, Dad.
One day soon.
Chapter Six – Cal
Teagan fit in well with his crazy family. She looked as if she were enjoying herself as Jax flirted with her outrageously, but Cal knew it was his brother’s way. He also knew Teagan was his and would never look at another man now that they were together. Still, he might have to speak to Jax about it.
“You didn’t tell us why you were late,” Ronni said, eyeing Cal with sympathy. They all knew exactly what Jax was like, and this was Ronni’s way of bringing the conversation back to more central ground.
“I was just telling Teagan about my bike,” Jax said.
“Which is why I’m changing the subject. Some women might find your motorcycle death trap exciting. But some of us find it as boring as hell,” Ronni told him squarely.
“And you are basing this off what experience?” Jax asked testily.
“I’m a woman,” Ronni said.
“Yes, a woman who likes cats and doesn’t date. I don’t think you are qualified to know how interested Teagan is in my bike,” Jax stated hotly.
“I’m more interested in where you ride it,” Teagan said, trying to keep the peace. She would fit in well around here.
“I can show you, unless Cal doesn’t trust me.” Jax goaded Cal at every opportunity.
“Oh,” Teagan said, her eyes widening. “That is what this is about.”
“No,” Jax tried to deny it.
“And there was I thinking you really liked me,” Teagan said, putting a pout on her lips, while tears misted her eyes. She blinked quickly and looked away.
“Hey, Teagan, I meant what I said about taking you for a ride,” Jax apologized, but Teagan only sniffed and dabbed her eyes.
Cal gripped the edge of the table, but Fleur put her hand on his, squeezing it, and pushing down to hold him still. The rest of the family were watching him, Jax, and Teagan. His mom particularly looked as if she might get out her best carving knives and take a piece or two off Jax’s hide.
“I thought we were friends. And you were just trying to wind Cal up.” Teagan’s voice hitched, and Jax shuffled uncomfortably in his seat.
“Teagan. I’m sorry.” Jax sounded guilty, and exasperated when Teagan’s shoulders began to shake. “I never meant any harm.”
“And no harm done,” Teagan said brightly, turning to face Jax, a wide grin on her face.
“You played me?” Jax asked, shock in his voice, which changed to awe when he added, “I thought I’d upset you.”
“You didn’t. And Cal might not trust you, but he trusts me.” Teagan blushed when she saw the others watching the exchange.
“My, you are going to fit right in with this family,” Davy said enthusiastically. “Not many people get one over on Jax.”
“And don’t we all know it,” Fleur agreed.
“So this is what happens when we have a new member of the family?” Jax asked. “The youngest gets ditched.”
“We’d ditch you even if you weren’t the youngest,” Ronni said, a gleam of mischief in her eyes.
“I don’t intend to take anyone’s place,” Teagan stated, not wanting to cause a rift in this amazing family.
“We insist,” Davy said. “Jax has been a thorn in my side ever since we had to share a room for the first sixteen years of my life.”
“Someone had to keep you company so you weren’t afraid of the dark,” Jax countered.
“Oh, all the secrets are coming out now!” Cal exclaimed.
“Teagan, do you want to come give me a hand in the kitchen, while my children play?” Tansy asked, her face full of love. “I always find when they are like this that it is better to let them get on with it.”
“Sure,” Teagan said, and began gathering the plates.
“Ah, don’t mind us, Teagan,” Jax said. “This is nothing but a bit of banter.” Jax start to get up. “I’ll help with that.”
“Come on, then, Jax, you might as well make yourself useful before your brothers and sisters disown you,” Tansy said.
“You know we never would,” Ronni said, rubbing his hair as if he were a schoolboy.
“Damn it, Ronni, you know I hate it when you do that.”
“Which is why I do it,” Ronni replied, her face perfectly straight, but her eyes danced.
“I’ll help too,” Cal said, getting up and helping to clear the table of the leftovers.
“We’ll all lend a hand,” Fleur said, volunteering them all.
“Then we can go for a run,” Davy said, looking out of the window. “Rain has stopped at last.”
“Are you going to come with us?” Fleur asked Teagan.
“I can’t this evening,” Teagan replied. “I’m so behind on my work.”
“Does that work involve honey?” Jax asked, coming closer and sniffing her.
“Jax, manners,” Tansy said curtly.
“It does. For now. I’m looking after the house and the brewery for Carter and Caroline. They are due back in a couple of days.” Teagan ran the hot faucet.
“Carter Eden?” Fleur asked.
“The one and only,” Teagan replied. “He’s overseas promoting his latest movie.”
“I love his movies,” Fleur said dreamily.
“I love his beer.” Jax grinned.
“The guy is perfect,” Ronni chimed in. “What I wouldn’t give to have him as my mate. Money, looks, personality.” She sighed. “Who wouldn’t want him?”
“Me,” Teagan said. “I mean, he’s a great guy. But he’s just a guy.”
“Well said.” Jax nodded his respect. “Whereas I don’t need all that extra stuff. Women find me irresistible as I am.”
“Or so you think,” Davy said. “Jax had better hope his mate is a shifter, or he will end up lonely, because who is going to want to live with him and his massive ego, unless she has no choice.”
“Oh, really?” Jax asked. He put the plates down on the counter. “Are you ready to stand by those words?”
“I am,” Davy, who couldn’t be more than eighteen, said.
“Then let’s…” Jax began but was cut off by his mom.
“If there is any roughhousing to be done, you do it outside.” She pointed to the door and both men went outside.
Tansy pulled the door closed behind them. “This rain has made them stir-crazy.”
“There they go,” Fleur was looking out of the window, and Teagan went and joined her, just in time to see two big grizzly bears racing across the grass and disappearing into the trees that hemmed the back yard.
“Boys.” Tans
y began to make a fresh pot of coffee, while Cal and Teagan washed up. “I hope you are blessed with one of each, or two girls. Because I am warning you, boys are a handful.”
“Except for me,” Cal said.
“Oh, you have given me some heart attacks, I can tell you,” Tansy said, leaning back against the counter.
“The tales we could tell,” Joe agreed, coming to join them. He stood next to Tansy, his arm around her waist, and Tansy dropped her head to rest on his shoulder. It was a subtle movement but spoke volumes of the love these two people had for each other.
They had raised five children, and still loved each other. Cal glanced across to Teagan; he didn’t know what their futures held, but he sure hoped that when they had been together as many years, and lived through whatever life threw at them, that they would still look at each other like that, still be the one the other turned to when things got rough.
Teagan met his eyes and then looked away, her shoulders slumped, her hair across her face. Was she thinking of her own parents?
“Are you OK?” he asked, his voice soft and low.
“Yeah.” Teagan sniffed. “I don’t usually live by what-might-have-beens, but seeing you all like this...” She turned to him and reached for a plate off the drainer, before drying it carefully with the dish towel.
“I hope we haven’t overwhelmed you?” Tansy asked, placing a cup of coffee down next to Teagan.
“No, Mom, Teagan is fine.” He gave his mom a look that told her not to ask any more. She took the hint.
“I know we take a lot of getting used to. But we only get together once a week these days,” Ronni said, and then stalled as her mom shook her head slightly.
“Please, don’t stop talking on my account,” Teagan said bravely. “I’m a little overwhelmed, it’s true. But not because of you, because of me.”
Cal put a soapy hand around her, careful not to get her wet. “Teagan doesn’t know her real parents.”
“Oh, now it all makes sense,” Tansy said, and Teagan got involved in not one, but two bear hugs as Ronni joined in.
“That is tough.” Fleur joined in, putting her arms around her mom too, and saying, “I don’t know what I would do without you guys.”
“Yeah, even those two hair-brained brothers of mine,” Ronni conceded.
Teagan melted into the hugs, closing her eyes, as if she was absorbing every single message of love that was coming her way. Then she stood up straight, and sniffed loudly. “I had good foster parents. They just weren’t my parents. And I was an only foster child, but they were there for me. And Fiona checked up on me often.”
“Fiona? Social worker Fiona?” his mom asked.
“One and the same. No matter what anyone thinks about her, she has a heart as big as the ocean.” Teagan nodded, her eyes unfocused as if remembering a far distant memory. “But my mom, she never had what you and Joe have. She is a shifter, my dad wasn’t, and he didn’t hang around.”
“Oh, that is heartbreaking,” Tansy said, and slipped into her husband’s arms. “I can’t imagine…”
“And neither can I. Not now,” Teagan agreed. “I always tried not to judge her. Not to judge either of them. And seeing what she lost, I understand it more now.”
“Teagan, I am proud to have you as a member of this family,” Tansy said. “You have us now. Brothers and sisters, and when you are ready, a mom and a dad, not to replace yours, but for whatever you need.”
“Tansy is right, Teagan. You are a daughter to us.” Joe hugged Tansy tight. “And you two kids hang on to each other. And don’t let go. Not for one second. The love you share is the most important thing.”
“We won’t, Dad.” Cal said, going to Teagan and reclaiming his mate. “Here, drink your coffee.”
“Thanks.” Teagan held the cup between her hands and nursed it as she drank.
“Then I should get you home. You have had quite a day.”
“Oh, we never did hear how you two met,” Fleur said.
“Cal saved my life.”
“Oh my!” Tansy exclaimed. “What happened?”
Teagan relayed the story, while Cal finished the dishes. He was aware of her presence, aware of her moods, and he was thankful when her mood shifted back to happy and carefree. Like a butterfly, she was made of color and movement; his eyes hated to leave her, they wanted to watch her every movement and listen to her every word.
But most of all, he wanted her to be happy. His goal in life, from this day forward, was to make her happy.
Chapter Seven – Teagan
“Are you sure you want to find your parents?” Fiona asked.
Teagan sipped her coffee, and thought for a moment. She had been going back and forth over her decision to get in touch with her real mom, the woman who had given her up when she was a child, for the last few months. After meeting Cal and his family last night, she had finally reached a decision, and she wanted Fiona’s help.
“Yes. If I can talk to my mom, I might be able to… I’d like to at least talk to her. And maybe she can tell me the name of my father.”
“The man who ran out on your mom before you were born? The man who left your mom heartbroken?”
“The man who made my mom turn to drink,” Teagan said frankly.
“That’s the one. I simply wanted to be sure.” Fiona drank her coffee, walking over to the window to look out at the mountain that towered over Bear Creek, like a watchful sentinel. “You’re happy here, Teagan. From what you say, you have a wonderful man as your mate. Why rock the boat?”
“Because I want to know who I am,” Teagan replied. “Whose blood pumps through my veins.”
“Your blood pumps through your veins, that is all that matters,” Fiona informed her, and she was right. However, Teagan had a curious mind, and that mind needed facts.
“Can you help me, Fiona?” Teagan asked. “If not, I’ll do my own search.” Being a journalist was all about teasing out facts, and following the clues. She was confident she could find her mom; it would simply take longer.
“And what if your mom doesn’t want you to come knocking on the door?” Fiona asked.
“Well, I was thinking that you could go and see her, and if she truly does not want to meet me, I will respect that. But, if you don’t help me, I will have no choice but to knock on her door myself.” Teagan smiled sheepishly at Fiona, who tutted and drained her coffee cup, placing it down on Teagan’s desk.
“You always knew how to wind people around your little finger, didn’t you?” It was a rhetorical question, one Fiona did not wait for an answer to before she said, “All right. I will see what I can find out. But you have to promise me that if your mom does not want contact, then you won’t go behind my back.”
“I wouldn’t,” Teagan said defensively.
“And, if she does meet you, and she doesn’t want to talk about your father, then you have to let that lie too. He was her mate, and that is the reason she gave you up, because the loss of him was too great to bear. If she has gotten over it, it will do no one any good to drag it all out into the open again.”
Teagan nodded, but added, “On the other hand, I could track him down, and they might get along now.”
“Teagan, it sounds as if you want to play matchmaker, but let me tell you, that is not always easy, and does not always turn out the way you expect.” Fiona’s face was serious, more serious than usual.
“I promise not to go poking around in anything that might cause anyone to get hurt.” Teagan looked down at her hands. “It’s just hard, you know… Cal’s family is whole. Complete. A mom, a dad, brothers, and sisters.”
“I know.” Fiona came back toward her. “Especially when you have such an enquiring mind.”
“I want to fit all the pieces together. It never really made a difference to me before, but now… For some reason, moving to Bear Creek, meeting Cal, it’s made me wish I had deep roots.”
“You have deep roots, you don’t need a parent to quantify your life.” Fiona tur
ned around and walked toward the door. “You should be proud of yourself, Teagan. You’ve worked hard to make your life a success. This newspaper is something that will last, and endure. It is your legacy.”
Teagan folded her arms across her chest, and looked around her office. She had been working at Bear Creek News ever since Theo, a travel writer and fellow journalist, had asked her to join him. They had started with nothing, other than an empty building and a lump sum Theo had invested to give them a start. That lump sum had been spent on office furniture and equipment, then the paper had thrived on the support of the people in Bear Creek and the surrounding villages, all of whom loved the idea of reading local news. Or gossip, as Fiona described it curtly, a view that did not stop her reading Bear Creek News from cover to cover.
The success of the newspaper had left Teagan, Theo, and Nevis, their part-time photographer, very busy, in an amazingly satisfying way. The phone was constantly ringing, and Teagan loved that each call brought its own surprise. People got up to some strange things, like caterwauling— yes, that was a festival hosted over in Cougar Ridge. It was their own brand of yodeling, those cats were wild, in the strangest way. Or cheese-rolling, that was a new one on Teagan when Theo had asked her to go and report on it. She’d been sure that it was made up, like an initiation of some kind, but she soon found out it was a real thing.
“I love it here, Fiona, I love everything about Bear Creek. This is my home, my friends are all here, there is nothing that would possess me to leave, not even if I got asked to work on some high-profile national newspaper.” She looked down at her desk, shuffling paperclips around. “Perhaps you are right, and I should settle for being happy.”
Fiona huffed, and a small amount of steam came out of her nose, or maybe it was Teagan’s imagination. Fiona might be a dragon shifter, but she usually kept herself under control. “No one should ever settle.” With that, she walked to the door and pulled it open. Or wrenched it. Fiona did not always know her own strength, and certainly Teagan’s words had riled her. “I’ll find out what I can. Then I’ll speak to your mother, and from there, we can make our decision.”
Forvever Bear (Return to Bear Creek Book 4) Page 4
