by Sadie Sears
“Do you think we should call Glenda?” Sophie held a squirming Shae close and looked at me for advice.
“Mom, I’m fine. She probably got scared from Cam being there and couldn’t do the whole spell. I really just want to go hiking.” She managed to wiggle free and hopped into the Jeep beside Vince, who was on high alert and ready to jump to our aid at any moment. “I don’t want our plans to be ruined because of a stupid witch.” Shae buckled her seatbelt and looked at us expectantly.
Sophie looked at me, but all I could do was shrug. I wanted to go hunt Mary down and burn her to a crisp, but that wouldn’t have been the wisest move. For one thing, I wasn’t sure I could’ve taken her.
“She seems fine,” Sophie reasoned. “We’ll keep a close eye on her.”
She was the mom, so I didn’t argue, even though it went against my instincts not to react in some way. Just to be safe, I shot off a quick text to my brothers. A little extra protection wouldn’t hurt at all.
Vince headed northwest into the hills and toward the mountains and forests. We passed Sophie and Shae’s house on the way. Shae sighed, a deep, melancholy sound. “I miss home.” I couldn’t help but pick up her mood, as hard as I tried not to. With the wind whipping her long, curly hair everywhere, she watched her home pass by, and grief washed over her and me. I wanted to curl her in my arms and promise she’d never have to feel that way again. But of course, that was ridiculous. I couldn’t stop that.
She turned in the seat and gave me a tentative smile. “Though I do love your home.”
I reached forward and gave her shoulder a short squeeze. It was the best I could do under the circumstances. The wind was too loud for me to formulate a good reply.
Sophie’s face told me she missed her home as well. I leaned close to her and spoke in her ear. “How long have you lived there?”
“Riley and I bought it together,” she replied.
So, it was full of memories of her dead husband. I wasn’t sure what we’d do. Eventually, I wanted to move in with Sophie. Marry her. I loved my house as well, and it was plenty big for whatever the future might hold.
And I had to admit, living in a home with the ghost of her former lover wasn’t top on my to-do list, however much I didn’t begrudge her having that relationship before me. I couldn’t begrudge Sophie anything that made her happy, as Riley obviously had. But I did hope that as things progressed, Shae fell more and more in love with my home.
11
Sophie
We pulled into the trailhead to find Theo standing at the edge of the path. He waved and grinned. Though he looked old enough to be Shae’s grandfather, I knew that meant he was many times older than that. His gray hair was cropped close to his face, and he had laugh lines that told me he smiled a lot. He wore a backpack and rumpled clothes, indicating he’d flown straight here. I’d thought I saw Cam send a text after we left Snowshoe, but I’d been looking away and had only caught the tail end of it.
Oh, well. A bit of extra ether dragon protection wouldn’t hurt. Though I highly doubted Mary would attack. Not after what had happened in town.
As I followed Shae and climbed through the front then out of the passenger side of the Jeep, I shook off my melancholy. Passing the house that I couldn’t even go inside had bothered me more than I cared to admit. I missed Riley at moments like this. He couldn’t have really helped in this situation, but he would’ve wanted to be here to help protect Shae and me. He would’ve had a joke and a story to take Shae’s mind off things.
“Ready?” Theo called.
I nodded and waited for Cam to pack his bag with the snacks. “I can carry some,” I offered.
He scoffed. “Dragon, remember?” He flexed his lean muscles, reminding me of how they felt wrapped around my body.
Laughing, I shook my head and turned toward the trail. Theo and Vincent led the way, then Shae and me, with Cam right behind us. It was clearly a protection detail, but I didn’t mind.
The trail was clear, but I’d hiked it before. The higher we went, the harder the trail became, both because of obstacles in the path and because of the increasing incline.
When we’d been walking for a while, I slowed down and nodded for Cam to go around me. Shae instinctively stuck close to my side, as I’d suspected she would. I squeezed Cam’s hand as he passed, on the opposite side of Shae where she wouldn’t see. I was relieved he understood I’d wanted him to walk ahead so I could talk to my daughter.
When he got several feet ahead, I let my hand brush against hers. “Sweetie, there’s something pretty special happening here. Do you see it?” Cam’s head twitched. His sensitive hearing no doubt picked up my words. Maybe I’d picked the wrong time to talk about this. A talk a few feet behind the object of our discussion wasn’t the ideal time or place for this.
Well, in for a penny.
Shae rolled her eyes and kept moving forward. “Mom,” she said urgently. “It’s fine.” The wind tickled my cheeks. I watched her move and the same breeze lifted her curls and whipped them around her head.
I touched her hand again. “I know, this is bad timing, but I just wanted to make sure you’re okay.”
She stopped short, watching as the guys kept walking. Cam turned his head as if to look through the woods, but I knew he was really keeping an eye on us through his peripheral vision. Several feet up the trail, Cam stopped the guys and they waited for us, intently not looking our way. I could just see them through the trees and brush.
“Shady-bear—”
“I’m fine, Mom. Cam is cooler than I expected him to be. It’s still weird, and seeing you flirting in your sad grown-up ways when you think I don’t notice is super awkward, but I’m dealing.” She curled her upper lip, showing what she thought of our flirting, which I’d thought we’d hidden from her. We weren’t as smooth as I’d thought.
“Nobody will ever replace your father. Not in my heart or yours. Me finding someone to care about doesn’t mean I don’t love your dad still. My heart is growing, not being taken over.”
Shae sighed. “I get it. Really. I do just want you to be happy, Mom.” My heart swelled a few sizes bigger. She’d been having trouble dealing, but ultimately, she just wanted happiness for me. That was all I wanted for her, too.
Yanking her into my arms, I hugged her tight. “I want the same for you, Shady-bear. So if at any point you’re not, promise you’ll tell me so we can make sure you are.”
Her voice came out all muffled. Understandable since I had her crushed into my chest. “I’ll tell you; I promise. Now, I can’t breathe!”
I released her with a laugh, and she shot me an exasperated look before sprinting up the trail. I caught up in time to see her dart around the guys and keep going. Theo and Vince rushed after her and laughter floated down the path behind them. I followed at a moderate pace and walked with Cam.
He smacked a low-hanging branch out of the way, causing a few golden leaves to fall behind us. “Vince is the only one who can keep up with her chatter,” Cam said with a big grin. He’d heard the whole thing, obviously. As we picked up the pace to catch up, the grin stayed prominent on his lips.
Hell, I had a hard time wiping the grin off my face, too. I hadn’t expected Shae to essentially give her permission for us to carry on. Not that easily, at least.
“Theo doesn’t seem to mind. Dragons are naturally family men,” Cam said. “It would be unusual if they didn’t want her company.”
That was nice to hear. Even though I knew dragons were naturally protective, I liked hearing it affirmed.
After our talk, I felt good slipping my hand into Cam’s for the remainder of our hike up the mountain. Cam squeezed my fingers frequently or pulled my hair away from my neck. Several times, he put one arm around me, and we walked in awkward unison for a few feet before having to admit defeat. It was too hard to hike like that. But it made us laugh and feel closer.
When we had to cross a stream, Cam stopped and held out his hand, reaching across the water to he
lp me hop over.
I’d done this hike many times, both before Riley died and after. I’d never needed help across the tiny stream. But I graciously accepted Cam’s offered hand, as I had Riley’s once upon a time. It was so nice to have that again, someone who cared if I crossed the stream with ease or not. I let my mind drift into the larger implications, but luckily Shae interrupted me when I started waxing poetic internally, thinking about the stream of life. Geez. Since when was I such a sap?
“I’m hungry!” Shae yelled from around the bend. “And here’s a good spot!”
We reached the three of them to find they’d stopped at a clearing just off the path that had a couple of fallen logs. Perfect for eating and resting a minute.
Cam handed out sandwiches. “Pimento cheese?”
“Me!” Vince said.
“Ham and provolone?”
Shae raised her hand timidly. “If nobody else wants it.”
Cam shot me a grin before handing the wax paper-covered sandwich to her. “All yours.”
He kept pulling out sandwiches. I wasn’t terribly picky, so I let Theo grab the meatball sub.
“What do you prefer?” I asked Cam. He’d bought extra, so there were still four to choose from.
“I like them all, so pick your poison.”
I didn’t mean to flutter my eyelashes at him as I reached for the Reuben, but by Shae’s reaction, that was exactly what I did.
“Grody,” she muttered under her breath.
Theo nearly choked on his bite, and Vince burst into loud, raucous laughter. “You’re gonna have to learn to ignore it,” he said. “Hand me some chips, pipsqueak.”
They argued for a while about whether or not she was a pipsqueak, taking the heat off of me and Cam, thankfully. I kept my eyelashes still after that.
Shae finished first, as usual. “I hear a waterfall. I want to go look.” She wadded up her trash and tucked it into the bag Cam had designated for our sandwich and chip wrappers.
“Stay close,” I warned. “Within earshot.”
She nodded and waved me off before disappearing down a trail. If we hadn’t been hiking with three dragons, I wouldn’t have let her go. “You guys can hear other animals, right?”
Theo nodded. “Oh, yeah. Predators clear the area when dragons are nearby, even in our human forms. They don’t want anything to do with us.”
I sighed and tried to relax, hard as it was, trying my best to feel good about letting Shae go a few feet away with them there. We chatted about the hike, debating how far to go. I realized I hadn't heard her for a few minutes. “Shae?” I called.
She didn’t answer, so I hopped up. “I’ll just go check.” I wasn’t worried, not yet. She was still young, after all. She was easily distracted and had probably wandered further than she’d meant to.
Cam rose to go with me, but I waved him off. “It’s okay. I’m sure she just went a bit too far.” I looked around and made sure she wasn’t peeking at us before bending over and pressing a kiss to his cheek. “Be right back.” He sat down but looked uncertain. I shot him a smile. “Really, it’s okay.”
When I stepped over the log Shae had sat on to eat, I realized there was a thin deer-made trail that she’d followed. As I walked down it, I knew she’d gone farther than she’d intended with such an easy trail to follow.
When I was about out of earshot for a human, I spotted her. “Shae,” I called. It occurred to me that everything was quiet. Too quiet. There were no sounds other than the rushing water.
She waved her hand at me without turning. “Mom,” she called in a hushed voice over her shoulder. “Do you see him?” How had she known it was me behind her? She did things like this every once in a while that made me think she had some of my gifts.
I looked around but didn’t see anyone. “Who?”
She pointed at a clearing across the small creek she had heard back where we’d eaten. “Dad!”
She sank to her knees, clutching her hands at her chest. “He looks angry,” she whispered.
Oh, no. What was going on? I couldn’t discount the possibility that she’d seen something, because I was guided by spirits. Shae could’ve had a gift manifesting itself. But surely, I would’ve seen him too. I couldn’t even feel the slightest blip from the other side, much less see anything. “Honey, I don’t see or sense anything.”
She glanced at me, then back to the clearing. “Oh.” Her shoulders slumped. “He’s gone.”
Without warning, she burst into tears. Loud wracking sobs overwhelmed my sweet girl and she cried broken-heartedly. I rushed forward and gathered her into my arms. “Oh, honey,” I crooned. As I rocked and held her, I looked around and called on all my senses, including the one that let me talk to Riley, to see if I could sense anything at all, but there was nothing there.
In fact, rather than feeling the normal peaceful, loving presence I’d felt from Riley in the past, I was a little creeped out. The woods were ominous, not caring. Something was wrong here. Very wrong.
“Dad’s angry at me for getting close to the dragon shifters, Mom, I just know he is. We can’t stay with them anymore!” She pulled back and looked up at me with tear-stained, puffy eyes. “We need to go back to our house. Today. Now!”
“Honey, your father wouldn’t begrudge you making friends with the dragons, and, Shady-bear, I don’t think he’d be upset that I found someone to possibly share my life with. I think he’d be happy for us.” If not happy, I couldn’t imagine him ever being angry at me for being happy.
She shook her head rapidly and clutched at my hands. “No, Mom, he’s not jealous. He’s trying to warn us that the dragons are dangerous. I know he is.”
I’d never been so torn. Some of it had to be coming from Shae not being ready for me to be with Cam, but Shae wasn’t one to make up seeing Riley. If she said she saw him, then she saw him. Or she saw something that looked like him. Damn it. The woods were still too quiet, and I had no idea what Shae had seen. Our home wasn’t safe to return to, but I also couldn’t have Shae freaked out staying at Cam’s.
Whatever we did, it was clear that she wasn’t ready for Cam to be in our lives in any major way. I had to put on the brakes.
I held her close. “Honey, we’ll go home and get some distance from the dragons.”
With my senses on high alert, I knew when Cam walked up. Turning my head to look at him, my heart sank. He looked sad but nodded. He’d heard. Damn it. Seeing his face like that tore through me. I hadn’t wanted to hurt him. Not in a million years.
When he walked back toward his friends, my heart thumped painfully in my chest. I wanted to be with him all the time, but Shae was the most important thing in my life. We just had to take things slow.
Surely, he’d understand. He’d wait for me.
Wouldn't he?
12
Cameron
Theo and Vincent were on high alert when I returned, most likely sensing the shift in my disposition. “Shae is really upset,” I explained. My head hung low, as if my tone wasn’t already broadcasting my mood. “I walked up in time to hear Sophie promise Shae she’d put some distance between us.” My heart cracked more as I said the words.
Theo stood and put his hand on my shoulder, squeezing gently. “It’ll work out, man. She’s young, she’ll come around.”
I nodded, but his words didn’t do anything to calm the ache in my chest. It was like I was standing on unstable ground in the middle of an earthquake. Everything was so uncertain, and it made my anxiety flare up. Suddenly it was difficult to get in a deep breath, which was always the first sign of a pending anxiety attack. My vision blurred and shifted, darkness creeping in at the edges, and I had to lean forward to brace myself on my knees before I pitched over.
“Hey.” Vincent put his hands on my neck and forced my head up to look me in the eye. “Things don’t have to go at a rocket speed with Sophie. If she’s your mate, it’s meant to be.”
Vince steered me toward a log, and I sat down, putting my hea
d between my knees and trying to get my breathing under control. Anxiety attacks were a pain in the ass, but I didn’t have them nearly as often as I had right after I lost my brother. I’d had them so many times, though, that I knew what I needed to get through them by now.
Theo and Vince both sat close, finding a point to maintain physical contact. Their soothing, calm presences helped to ground me. After a few minutes, my breathing started coming slightly easier and I sat up, rubbing at my sore eyes. I would be feeling the after-effects of that for a couple hours, I was sure.
Seeing that I was coming out of it, Vince scooted down just a bit, looking intently at the ground. “I don’t know if you both know this or not, but I already met my mate, several years ago now.”
I couldn’t stop my jaw from dropping. The way he mentioned it so casually told me that he’d spoken about it before, and Theo’s mild reaction suggested he knew, but I hadn’t. He wasn’t very good at hiding his irritation around me, but he hid his heartbreak well.
“It didn’t work out for us, obviously. Not back then. But eventually, I’ll meet her again.” He leaned forward. “I trust our magic and destiny. And you should too.”
I thought about going years without seeing Sophie and pain flared through my chest. I wasn’t strong enough to survive something like that. How Vince managed was beyond me, but his youth likely played a large part. I sighed and nodded sullenly.
He was right. I just needed to be patient and give them space. Pulling myself together, I shoved my anxiety back down into a small box and set it aside. If I needed to, I could deal with it later, but there was too much going on right now to have a breakdown. My dragon’s grief was palpable at the thought of pulling away from Sophie, though, and even Theo winced.
