Bruins Peak Bears- Complete Series, page 127
part #1 of Bruins Peak Bears Series
Ash whipped around. “Why do you mention her?”
“Are you two on the rocks or something? She doesn’t know whether she’s coming or going with you.”
Ash looked down at the floor. “She’s going. She went and told everyone on the Peak we were mated when we weren’t. She wouldn’t believe I wasn’t interested in her.”
Haven stared at him with her mouth open. “Really?”
Ash held his hands open to Haven. “I swear to you, Haven, I never meant to hurt her feelings. I kissed her once, but that’s as far as it goes. We could never be mates.”
“If that’s true,” Haven asked, “why did you say you planned to move in with her when you got home.”
He shrugged. “That was before. Things changed, but she wouldn’t see the writing on the wall.”
Haven shut her mouth with a click. “I believe you, Ash. I’m just not sure how to break it to her. She thinks you two are life mates. She’ll be heartbroken.”
He shook his head and turned away. “I’m sorry about that, but there’s nothing I can do. I don’t love her enough to mate with her, and I wouldn’t be doing her any favors if I pretended I did.”
“I appreciate your honesty,” Haven replied. “I just don’t know how to break the news to her. I wish I’d never promised to bring you two together.”
He nodded and headed for the door. “I better go. It’s getting late, and I’ve already spent too much time saying good-bye to everybody.”
Haven followed him outside. Ash and Foicks hugged each other, and Foicks clapped Ash on the back. “You’re gonna be great out there.”
Ash grabbed his brother by the shoulders. “I meant what I said. I’ll represent all Bruin kind to the NightShade, not just the people who agree with me. I’ll tell them you want to make war.”
Foicks held up his hand. “Don’t say any more. I trust you to do the right thing. Just take care of yourself, and make sure you come back in one piece.”
“I will.”
Ash hefted his backpack onto his back. He turned to walk away when a couple came out of the trees on a straight line for the bungalow. Haven caught her breath when she recognized her sister. She walked with her arm looped through Bass Cunningham’s elbow.
The pair strolled right up to the bungalow. Sky dislodged herself from Bass to clasp Ash’s hand. “Have a good trip, Ash. Take care.”
Haven gasped. “Sky?”
Sky flashed her sister a satisfied grin and squeezed Bass’s arm again. “What’s wrong, Haven? You’re not the only one who can find a man to mate with.”
“But Ash…” Haven broke off.
Sky compressed her lips and cast a disdainful look toward Ash. “He was never the man for me. I know that, now that I’ve got Bass.” She beamed up into Bass’s face. “Isn’t he delicious? He’s ten times the man Ash could ever be.”
Bass pressed her hands and smiled. Ash frowned at them, but when Sky waved and the couple strolled away into the trees, his expression cleared. “Thank goodness! I dodged that bullet.”
Haven’s heart sank. “I guess it’s a good thing she hasn’t got her heart set on you anymore. She’s moved on.”
Once Sky left, the jolly air returned to Ash’s departure. He turned his golden face on his friends and family and waved good-bye.
The Dunlap tribe and all Ash’s well-wishers waved good-bye. People wiped away tears, and everyone watched him out of sight.
In no time flat, everyone dispersed in all directions. The quiet complacency returned to Bruins’ Peak. The heavy tension of conflict and animosity vaporized in the glowing spring air. The Peak throbbed with life sprouting out of the ground.
Haven gazed into the distance where Ash rounded the last corner on his way to town. What would he find on Renegade Ridge? Would the NightShade be warlike or peaceful? What did they look like? How similar were they to the Bruins?
No one would know until Ash returned. That could take a while. In the meantime, people had lives to rebuild. Relationships torn apart by conflict came back together. Tribes and families mended broken hearts and rebuilt the cooperation to make Bruin kind great again.
Haven’s father crossed her view and took his place in front of her. “We’re going home, honey. You’ll be all right here, won’t you?”
Haven hugged him. “I’ll be fine. If I need anything at all, you and Mom will be the first to know.”
Leda came forward. “I put a cheesecake in the fridge for you. Just do me a favor and don’t have it for dinner.”
Haven laughed. “Okay, Mom. I won’t.”
She hugged her mother and Easton. The family got in the Suburban and drove away with arms waving from the windows.
Two hands materialized on Haven’s shoulders, and Foicks murmured into her hair, “They’ll be all right.”
She closed her eyes and smiled. “I know they will be. It’s us I’m worried about.”
“Us?”
“Us—Bruins, I mean.”
“Are you worried about us?”
She leaned back against his chest. “No. That’s the last thing I’m worried about.”
He separated from her and took her hand. “Come inside.”
She turned around to find Foicks showing a smile she already recognized. She narrowed her eyes. “You’re hiding something. What have you got up your sleeve?”
He tugged her arm. “Come inside and find out.”
She let him lead her to his room. He threw the door open and swept his arm aside. “Ta-da!”
She stared at the room. The messy bed, the dresser crowded with random bits of wire and hand tools, the exposed laundry basket in the corner—all gone. In their place, a big canopy bed with gossamer curtains occupied the center of the room. A grand wardrobe covered one wall, and a vanity mirror sat opposite the window.
Even the dingy old carpet was gone. Hardwood boards polished to a shine gleamed underfoot, and airy white curtains hung around the windows. Cheery wallpaper flecked with colored triangles covered the shabby old painted walls.
Haven stared at the place. Foicks grinned when she looked up at him with her mouth open. “It’s the most I could do before you moved in. I wanted to surprise you, but we’ll get to work on the rest of the place, now that you’re moved in.”
She opened her mouth and closed it again.
“Do you like it?”
She answered by throwing her arms around his neck and covering his mouth and face with kisses.
He pushed her off. “Hey! Not so rough! There’s one more thing I have to do before we can call this place home.”
“What’s that?”
He swept her up into his arms and carried her across the threshold into that room. He tossed her onto the bed, and Haven screamed. Foicks jumped on to the bed next to her and bounced the box springs on hands and knees.
Haven shrieked with laughter, and he pounced on top of her. They kissed until they settled down in one another’s arms. Haven sighed. “This is the best homecoming I could ask for.”
He rolled over on his back and bent his arm under his head. “I’m glad you like it. Dinner is at six, and you’re cooking.”
She smacked him in the stomach and made him groan. “Is that what you want a wife for—to cook and clean?”
He coughed and cradled his arms across his midsection. “Of course not. I want a wife to keep the bed warm. Don’t you know that? Besides, you don’t want to eat my cooking. You would get sick of macaroni after a few days. I know I am.”
Haven rested her head on his shoulder. “The room is really lovely. Thank you for going to so much trouble.”
“Harmony helped me. I don’t know the first thing about this stuff. Hopefully you can make the rest of this place the way you want it.”
“I can’t wait to get started.”
He grabbed her and kissed her again. “At least wait until we’ve christened this bed.”
She shifted up on top of him. “Don’t you worry. This bed is going to get lots of use.”
He closed his eyes. “Yeah, when we’re asleep.”
She didn’t rise to the joke. His eyes popped open when she stared at him in silence. “Just for a second, tell me seriously. Do you regret your decision to stay home with me?”
He petted her hair off her cheeks. “Not for a second. I only wonder sometimes what the NightShade are like. I wish I could see them for myself, but some things are worth giving up. I’m sure I’ll find out in time, anyway.”
She kissed him long and deep. “You’re the greatest.”
“Not as great as you. I only wish every man could experience what it feels like to be as happy as I am now. I’m the luckiest guy in the world.”
She rolled in his arms, and his bear presence filled her with that peace and contentment she searched and prayed for so long. The rest of the world could take care of itself as long as these two hearts took care of each other. That was the most important thing in the world right now, and that thing upon which all other goodness would build. The whole world sat on a firm foundation as long as it was on that.
The End.
Book 11: June
Sarah J. Stone
Chapter 1
June Stark turned her face toward the sky and shut her eyes. “It’s good to feel the sun again.” The bright summer heat played across her eyelids and warmed her chocolate-brown arms. “It’s been too long.”
Her little sister Hazel gazed across the valley where Renegade Ridge met the rest of the mountain range. A door slammed behind them. June glanced back to see her brother Arryn go into their father’s cabin. When he didn’t reemerge, she went back to soaking up the sunshine.
“Do you think the Midnight will ever come back here?” Hazel asked.
June didn’t open her eyes. “I don’t know, honey. I hope not. Tell me again how it happened.”
Hazel smacked her lips. “Do I have to? I’ve already told the story about a million times. You already know the details.”
“I know,” June replied. “It’s just so exciting. Tell me how you first met Azer Mackenzie.”
“Well, I didn’t know that’s who it was at the time,” Hazel replied. “I was in the ring, and the dogs and the men were coming after me. I thought for sure I was a gonner. Thousands of people were packed into the stands above my head, and their yelling would wake the dead. Then all of a sudden, this huge brown bear jumps down right in front of me. He raged and roared all over the place. He killed one dog with a sweep of his paw. He chomped the other one in half and sent it running for the door. He killed some of the men, but the others got away.”
June sighed. “Wow. That is so exciting and wonderful. It’s like something out of a fairy tale. I would love to meet someone like that.”
Hazel hung her head. “I don’t think I’ll ever see Azer Mackenzie again. He’s too good for this world.”
June let her eyes drift open. “It is hard to believe anybody could stand up to the Midnight like that.”
Hazel stole a peek at her sister under the small braids hanging all over her head. “Do you think Daddy will fight the Midnight the way Azer said?”
“Shh!” June hissed under her breath. “Not so loud. Don’t let Arryn hear you talking about that.”
“Why shouldn’t I talk about it?” Hazel asked. “Everyone on the Ridge has talked of nothing else since I got back. Azer said the Bruins want to fight the panthers, but our Elders won’t make up their minds. Why don’t they make a decision so we know what to do when the Midnight come back?”
“If they come back,” June corrected. “We don’t know if the Midnight will ever come back. Maybe Azer scared them away for good.”
Hazel made a face. “You know that won’t happen. Nothing could scare them away. They’ll come back, and they’ll stop at nothing to catch another NightShade for their bear-baiting ring.”
June shook her head, but before she could answer, Arryn came back outside. He scowled at the two sisters lounging in the sunshine. “You two should get inside. It’s not safe for you out here. You know that.”
June rolled her eyes to heaven. “Come on, Arryn. It’s perfectly safe. We need some fresh air sometime. You can’t keep us locked up twenty-four hours a day.”
“Do you want to get caught by the Midnight the way Hazel did?” he asked.
June looked around. “Do you see any Midnight around here? I don’t.” She laughed out loud at her own joke, and Hazel giggled.
Arryn set his jaw. “They could sneak up on you at any second. You could be relaxing out here one minute and be gone the next. That’s exactly what happened to Hazel, and we would never see you again. Now, get inside before I tell Daddy you’re out here.”
“Go ahead and tell him,” June snapped. “I’ve been shut up in that house for weeks. I need sun and air to grow.”
Hazel snickered. “Like a plant.”
June shot her a grin. “Exactly.”
Arryn barked loud and short, “Hazel!”
Hazel pulled her head down between her shoulders. “All right. I’m going.”
The little girl got to her feet and slunk into the cabin. June didn’t turn around. She kept her face toward into the sun. She wouldn’t let her tyrant brother spoil her enjoyment. He might be able to order Hazel around, but not her.
Arryn’s voice came again from behind her. “I’m waiting, June.”
“And you’ll be waiting a lot longer, Arryn,” she replied. “I won’t spend my life indoors, no matter what you say. The Midnight haven’t caught any one on Renegade Ridge in months. We don’t even know if they’re still bear-baiting.”
“Why would they quit, just like that?” Arryn argued. “They could be lurking anywhere. We’ve lost enough people to those bastards, and we only got lucky getting Hazel back the way she did. I’m not taking any chances.”
June shook her head, but she couldn’t think of any good response to that. He was right, of course. She didn’t want to get caught by the Midnight. No one did, but she had to go outside sometime. She started to go crazy shut inside day and night for months on end.
Her father came to her rescue by stepping through the door. Not as tall as Arryn, he carried his powerful frame with more solid bulk than any man June knew. His heavy features gave him the appearance of age when he was only forty-seven years old.
June jumped up. “Daddy! Tell Arryn we need to get out of the house and get some sun once in a while. Tell him he can’t order us inside all the time.”
Ezra Stark wavered between his two oldest children. “You know it’s not safe, honey. Arryn’s just trying to protect you.”
“Well, how am I supposed to live locked in the cabin all the time?” she countered. “I’ll get sick. That would be much more dangerous than Midnight who aren’t there.”
“You haven’t gotten sick yet,” Arryn argued.
“That’s because I get outside—no thanks to you,” June shot back. “You keeping me a prisoner in my own house is a much bigger threat than any Midnight.”
Ezra shrugged. “Well, I don’t know, honey. I guess I can see both sides of the issue.”
June crossed her arms over her chest. “That’s the problem with the NightShade. They see both sides of the issue. That’s why the Elders won’t make up their minds about whether we’re coming or going.”
Ezra frowned at his oldest daughter. “Don’t let me hear you saying anything against the Elders.”
“Well, it’s true,” June replied. “Them dithering puts us all in much more danger than the Midnight themselves. They should make up their minds so we can all get on with the rest of our lives.”
“I agree with you,” Ezra replied. “I’ve said for years we should fight back against the Midnight, and now we’ve got word from another shifter group they want to join with us to do the same thing. I always said we should send an emissary to talk to these Bruins. Now, I’ve got a couple dozen other NightShade agreeing with me.”
“Daddy!” June exclaimed. “That’s wonderful.”
He held up his hand. “Hold on a second, honey. Nothing’s certain yet, so keep your shorts on. None of us has heard from the Bruins yet, so we could make the first move and break the ice. I suggested you could go, Arryn, and…”
“What?” Arryn interrupted. “I’m not going anywhere.”
“You could volunteer,” Ezra suggested. “We need a younger person to talk to their Alphas. Hazel said this Azer Mackenzie was kinda youngish.”
“I can’t go traipsing off across hell and gone to talk to anybody,” Arryn countered. “Who’s going to protect the family if I’m not here?”
“I’m still here,” Ezra pointed out.
“We don’t need protection,” June added. “There are no Midnight anywhere around.”
“Have the Elders approved sending an emissary?” Arryn asked.
“No, but…”
“There you go.” Arryn chopped his hand through the air. “If they haven’t given the word, no one is going anywhere.”
“You know as well as anybody they’ll take forever to decide,” June pointed out. “They’ll add that to the list of things they can’t decide about.”
“They might decide faster if they had a willing volunteer.” Ezra leveled a loaded glance at his son.
“If I’m not willing, I wouldn’t really be a volunteer, would I?”
June elbowed her brother. “Go on, boy. Take the plunge. You’ll get out and see some of the world. That’s more than most NightShade get to do in their lifetimes.”
Arryn pursed his lips and turned away.
“Never mind,” Ezra interrupted. “Nobody has to come up with any definite decisions anytime soon.”
“Of course not,” June grumbled. “No one has to come up with any definite decisions at all—ever. We’ll just keep on with our policy of delay, delay, delay. We’ll do nothing, and nothing will ever change.”
Ezra paid her no attention. “Just think about it, will you, son? You’d be perfect for the job.”
June grinned at her brother, but he refused to look at anybody. “I’m not going and that’s final. You can get somebody else to carry your message—whatever it turns out to be,” he said.
