Axel nodded, although she could tell he would rather walk her right to his front door and make sure she was inside safely before coming back to the bar. But she was used to walking around alone and she certainly did not want to set a precedent whereby Axel thought she needed escorting everywhere.
She liked her freedom and planned to keep a tight hold of it.
That didn’t stop a shiver of apprehension traveling down her spine when Axel kissed her softly on the cheek and watched her walk off alone. Ever since the visit to their house from the gang, she sometimes got the sense that someone was watching her. Perhaps, if she had shifter senses, she’d be able to pinpoint their exact location and confront them. Or maybe her heightened senses would tell her she was imagining the whole thing. Since she didn’t have those senses, her imagination filled in the blanks instead.
Tonight, those blanks were filled with people hiding down alleyways and behind cars, watching her as she walked back to Paula’s house. She was certain there was no one there, except for maybe a bear or cougar. However, none of the creatures she saw in town were paying her any attention, certainly none of them were lurking.
Still, she could not shake off the feeling that she was being watched.
Scared she might be leading someone unsavory back to Paula’s, who would be living alone once Jenessa and Axel left to find Tyler, she didn’t go directly to the house. Instead, she crossed the street and walked on, keeping her pace slow but steady, even though her heart thundered in her chest and adrenaline pumped through her body making her blood race. She was ready to run if she had to.
But if the person, or persons, following her were shifters then she didn’t stand a chance of outrunning them.
As she turned a corner and walked along another street, heading back in the general direction of the bar, she risked a look over her shoulder. There was no one there, she really was imagining it.
Yet she kept going, making a full circle of the block before hurrying back to Paula’s house.
“Are you okay?” Paula was waiting for Jenessa and opened the door as soon as she set foot on the driveway.
“Yes, of course.”
“Axel called me and told me you were on your way home. I was watching from the window and saw you walk past. For a moment I thought you had forgotten which house it was.” Paula studied Jenessa’s expression carefully. “But then I saw you look over your shoulder as you reached the corner. I nearly called Axel to go and meet you, but you looked as if you had it all under control.”
“You were watching?” Jenessa asked. “Did you see anyone following me?”
Paula shook her head. “No one, not man nor beast.”
Paula’s assurance that she hadn’t been followed eased Jenessa’s fears but didn’t completely rid her of them. As she followed Paula inside the house, she carefully closed the front door, but not before taking a long look down the street.
There was no movement. There was no one there. At least no one who could be seen.
Jenessa relaxed her shoulders. She didn’t want to panic Paula for no need.
“I’m a little jittery,” Jenessa confessed.
“It’s a strange town filled with strange creatures. Plenty of people are a little shook up the first time they come to Cougar Ridge. It’s not every day you see such a collection of animals out in the street.” Paula smiled and beckoned Jenessa to follow her. “Come on, let’s go to the kitchen, I’ll make you some cocoa.”
“Thanks.” The now-familiar pang of loss hit Jenessa. When she was younger, her mom would always make them both cocoa. They would sit together in the kitchen and drink the thick, warm milky drink while talking about everything and anything.
“Sit yourself down. I have some cookies somewhere, too.” Paula rummaged through the cupboards looking for the box.
“No need. I’m okay.” Although the thought of hot cocoa and a cookie was enough to make Jenessa feel better already. “Do you want me to help you look?”
“Do you mind?” Paula asked. “Axel did the grocery shopping last week and he puts things away in strange places. At least strange to me. They probably make sense to you young people.”
“My mom used to love that we helped around the house, but you could tell there were certain things she would go back and do herself because she liked them just so. I suspect we will all get like it when we are older.”
“You mean old and set in our ways?” Paula asked good naturedly.
“A place for everything and everything in its place.” She chuckled. “My mom lived by that rule although she did let it go somewhat when we were younger. My brother and I used to get all our toys out and play with them. We were good, though, my mom never had to ask us to put them away.”
“You must miss her terribly.” Paula’s expression was filled with sympathy.
“I do. Sometimes I wake up and forget she isn’t here anymore and it’s like losing her all over again.”
“I feel the same way about Axel’s dad. Forever is meant to be a long time, yet he was taken from me far too soon.” Paula set two mugs of cocoa and the cookies down on the table. “That’s two things we share.”
“Two things?” Jenessa asked as she cupped her hands around the mug of hot cocoa.
“Yes, the loss of someone we loved dearly and the love we have for Axel.” She chuckled. “I know it might not seem like love now, but believe me, it will.”
“I do believe you. I know how it was for my parents and I’ve seen it in other mated couples. But I never expected it to happen for me.”
“Why not?” Paula asked as she blew on her cocoa.
“I guess I feel blessed to have been raised in the safety of a shifter relationship. My mom and I were on our own for a few years before she met my dad. He took me in and raised me as his own. I’ve never felt like the odd child out. So I figured that was my luck all used up. Where shifters are concerned at least.” Jenessa shrugged. “Now I’m the mate of a good man. It’s the kind of thing you need to pinch yourself over.”
“You know Axel has a past?” Paula glanced nervously at the front door as she spoke.
“I do.”
“Good, I don’t want you to be blindsided by his checkered history. He has done things he regrets but that is all in the past.”
“Which is why I feel bad asking him to go anywhere near those gangs again.”
“The difference is that this time he has you by his side. He’ll do the right thing for you and because of you. He wants to build a life with you. A good, safe life.”
“And here I am forcing him into going back to the life he left. I do feel guilty.”
“Don’t,” Paula replied fiercely. “You are just what he needs. He’s stayed here with me because it’s his duty when what he really needs is a family of his own. He’d make a great dad. If children are what you want.” She smiled, looking guilty. “Don’t think there is any pressure, all I want is for the two of you to be happy.”
“I think we can do that.” Color rose in Jenessa’s cheeks. “And I do want children. If I’m not too old.”
“Ah, I have a good feeling about it.” Paula reached out and covered Jenessa’s hand with her frail, bony hand.
Axel’s mom might not be her mom, but Jenessa was certain her relationship with Paula would bloom into something special, just as her relationship with Axel would. In time.
If they had time.
Chapter Nine – Axel
“Hey, can I join in, or is this for ladies only?” Axel headed for the kitchen. He could hear his mom and mate talking quietly and didn’t want to interrupt their bonding. It was important to him that the two women in his life got along.
“Come on in, I’ll make you some cocoa.” Paula got up from the table and walked to the counter on stiff legs, her hand on her lower back.
Axel rushed forward just as Jenessa also rose from her seat. “I’ll do it, Mom.”
“You both sit down, and I’ll make some more cocoa,” Jenessa insisted. “It’s the least
I can do after you’ve welcomed me into your home.”
“I can manage.” But Paula already had her hand outstretched, reaching for the back of the chair into which she slowly slid. “I forget I’m not as young as I used to be.”
“None of us are.” Axel hovered close to Jenessa, absorbing the nearness of her as she made the cocoa.
“No more for me, thanks.” Paula looked longingly at the hallway and the stairs leading from it.
“Come on, I’ll help you to bed.” Axel put his hand under his mom’s elbow and helped her stand. A wave of concern covered him. How would Paula manage alone while he went to find Tyler?
“I can manage.” Paula accepted the help all the same.
“I know you can, but I like to help.” Axel kept his hand under her elbow as she worked her legs into life.
There are people in Cougar Ridge who will help care for her when we are gone. Perhaps it will only take a couple of days to find Tyler. His cougar had the same concerns over leaving their mom, but they both knew it was something they had to do. They had to help find Tyler.
Yet it didn’t sit well with Axel. Not well at all.
“I like her.” Paula half-turned to look at Axel as she reached the bottom of the stairs. “I like her a lot.”
“So do I.” Axel smiled and cast a glance back over his shoulder to where Jenessa was setting two mugs of steaming cocoa on the table. He could smell the bitter chocolate and his mouth watered.
“She needs to put her family back together.” Paula made an effort to put her left foot on the stairs and then pull herself up. With Axel’s help, she was soon halfway up the stairs.
“And I need to make sure you are going to be okay while I’m gone.” Axel’s concern grew as Paula reached the top of the stairs and hesitated as she caught her breath. “I’ll be just fine.” She took a couple of steps forward and then turned to face Axel. “You need to focus on your mate. She is the next chapter of your life and the one you belong with. Promise me she will be your priority from now on.”
“I promise.” Axel averted his eyes and his mom tutted at him.
“I know that look, Axel. You always were a stubborn child.” She pressed her lips together and studied him closely. “The alternative is that I come with you.”
“Oh, no. Keeping an eye on one woman is enough for me. You need to stay here where you are safe.” Axel was not going to enter a debate about this.
She grinned, looking younger than her seventy years. “I could insist. You know you hate to say no to your poor old mom. After everything I’ve ever done for you.”
Axel rolled his eyes as his mother. “Nice try, but the answer would still be no.” Axel shook his head. “Please, Mom. I want to know you are safely out of the way. I want to know you are safe in Cougar Ridge. Will you promise me you will do as you are told?”
“It’s not fair to make me promise.” Paula sighed as she relented. “Don’t worry, I know I will slow you down more than help.”
“I’m not going to argue with you, but I also refuse to agree with you.” He kissed her cheek as she turned away. “Goodnight, Mom.”
Paula patted his shoulder. “Night, Axel. Go back to your mate, I can manage from here.”
Axel watched as Paula made her way to the bedroom, her gait a little easier now that she’d gotten moving around. As he went back downstairs, he mentally began drawing up a list of people who would check in on Paula.
But no one will be here to see her to bed. His cougar was once more torn in two. Despite his insistence that they help his mate, he hated the idea of leaving the woman who had always been there for them no matter what.
We’ll figure it out, Axel answered as he reached the kitchen and pulled out a chair.
“I’m not sure I make it the same way your mom does.” Jenessa indicated the hot cocoa.
“I’m not sure I should be drinking it in front of my mate.” Axel grinned as he picked up the mug and took a sip. “Mmmm, it tastes so good and reminds me of when I was a child. Not exactly the look I was going for.”
“I like the look. You love your mom and care for her.” Jenessa sipped her cocoa thoughtfully. “How is she going to manage without you here?”
“If this is another conversation about me not going and you finding Tyler alone or with someone else, then let’s stop there.” Axel was lighthearted but deadly serious.
“I think we have covered all that and I know how you feel.” She sipped her cocoa thoughtfully. “I do, however, have another solution.”
“You do?” Axel asked warily.
“I do. It involves my dad and your mom.” She studied Axel’s face, waiting for his reaction.
“I’m listening.”
“They are both on their own, right?” Jenessa began.
“They are.” Axel had a good idea where this was going but he was willing to listen while Jenessa explained her idea.
Because it gives us time to think it over? his cougar asked.
Exactly.
“They both need someone to be there for them. My dad is fit and can help your mom with her mobility needs and she can help him remember to take his pills and feed him because if I’m not there or if there is nothing in the freezer for him to warm up and eat, he just doesn’t bother.” Her forehead creased as she spoke about her dad although her eyes reflected nothing but pure love for the man.
“So we put the two together and we kind of get a whole.” Axel couldn’t argue with the logic. “I like it.”
“You do?” Jenessa sounded surprised.
“Yes, and if your dad comes here, he should be safer than if you left him home alone.” Axel’s eyes narrowed as Jenessa glanced nervously toward the front door. “What?”
“Nothing. At least it’s probably nothing.” She chewed the inside of her cheek.
“If there’s something you need to tell me then tell me.” His tone was firmer than he expected but he was not about to mess around with his mom’s safety.
“When I was walking back from the bar, I had the feeling someone was following me. I didn’t come here directly, I kept going before I doubled back. There was no one there but I still couldn’t shake the feeling.” Her eyes once again drifted toward the door. She was worried.
“Then let’s go take a look.” Axel drained his mug of cocoa and got up from the table.
“Okay.” Jenessa didn’t argue as she finished her drink and then got up, too.
Axel went to the bottom of the stairs and called up to his mom. “We’re just going out for a walk, we won’t be long.”
“Okay, take care,” Paula called back.
“We will.” He inclined his head toward the kitchen. “This way.”
“We’re going out the back?” Jenessa followed him out through the kitchen and into Paula’s well-tended back yard.
“Yes, we go out through the back gate and head out into the road. My shifter senses should tell me if anyone is lurking in the shadows.”
“A clandestine mission. I haven’t been on one of those since I was a kid. Tyler and I used to climb out of his bedroom window and go play in the park. It was a short way from the house, and we were safe. Especially, since, as we learned later, my dad used to watch us from the window. I didn’t realize at that age just how strong a shifter’s senses were.” She laughed softly at the memory.
“It was good that your dad let you play and didn’t get all snarly about it.” Axel opened the back gate and they slipped out into the dark alleyway beyond.
“He liked that we felt safe enough to play outside in the dark. My dad has a strong idea that children do need some freedom. Although, when Tyler decided to stray farther from the park on his own, my dad soon rounded him up and made it clear there was a limit to that freedom while he was a kid.” She shook her head as they walked along the alleyway. “He pushed boundaries even as a kid.”
“Most kids do. But your dad pushed back and that is a good thing.” Axel pushed his senses out, trying to locate anyone who might be hanging around
the house.
I can sense a few people. Aside from the people inside their homes, of course, his cougar said.
I can sense a couple down the street who seem to be saying goodnight with their lips in a nonverbal way. Axel focused his attention as his longing to kiss Jenessa pushed all other senses out of his head.
There. His cougar was suddenly alert.
Axel half-closed his eyes as he tried to figure out what his feline side had sensed.
There is someone across the road from the front of the house. They aren’t moving anywhere. His cougar hissed and swiped his paw in the air. We need to go and see who it is.
“I think we might have got something,” Axel told Jenessa. “It would be easier for me to figure out whether they are an innocent party or not if I shift and go alone.”
“Or you could use me as bait.” She put her hand up to block his denial. “It’s the smart thing to do. If I walk along the street and they follow, then we’re pretty damn sure that they are here because of me. The alternative is for you to shift and scare him away. Which gives us no real information.”
“I wasn’t thinking of scaring him away,” Axel confessed. “I was thinking I would tear his skin off one strip at a time with my claws.”
“And if this person is innocent of nothing more than loitering on the street waiting for a friend, or a lover?” Jenessa lowered her gaze at him. “What then?”
“Well, they should know better than to stand across the street from my house.” Axel threw his hands up in defeat. “Do it your way.”
She kissed him on the cheek. “I need directions since I don’t possess your special powers.” She put her hands toward her temples and then waved her fingers.
“Go down to the end of the alley and take a left. Keep walking along the street toward the house and then keep on going. I’ll shift and follow some distance behind.” He still didn’t like the idea, but his cougar did.
Does this mean I am about to meet my mate in person?
I guess it does. Just make sure she doesn’t get into any danger.
I will, his cougar promised solemnly as he rumbled into a deep purr.
Axel Summer Shifters Season 2 Page 6
