Cinderella's Guardian (25 page)

"I love you, Tina."

"And I you."

Tina felt lighter as Conner pulled back from her to hop out. She could go to the university, teach others at the gym then come home to her man. There was a good chance her life might have a 'happily ever after' included in it after all.

Conner opened her door and scooped her up in his arms. "I do believe I owe you a shower, my love."

"Yes, I do vaguely recall you mentioning it earlier."

Not bothering with her chair, Conner took her inside the house. The whole way she focused her attention on the sweet spot at the junction of his neck and shoulder, before nibbling her way up his throat. With a groan, he all but ran through the house to the bathroom with her giggling the entire way.

Life really was good.

~ * ~

Conner pushed open the front door and called out. His dad answered from the direction of his office so Conner headed that way, snagging a coffee on his way through the kitchen.

"Hey Dad- oh hi Dom, didn't know you were here too."

"Hi Conner, yeah, just catching up on Leap stuff with Dad."

"Hi son, what brings you over today? Tina let you off your leash?"

Dom roared a laugh. "Or you let her out of bed finally?"

Conner felt the blush stain his cheeks and he glared hard at his brother. "Piss off, Dom. I'm newly mated and have been off rotation at the station. You're no different with Adele." He moved his focus back to his dad as he cleared his throat. "Tina's gone dress shopping with Gloria. To be honest, I'm a little nervous about the whole thing. I thought if I was here you two can stop me from stalking them the entire time."

His dad shook his head as he chuckled. "Oh to be newly mated. Tina will be fine I'm sure. After everything her mother has done to her over the years, I think you should be more worried about what Tina will do to Gloria rather than the other way around."

"Nah, Gloria's safe. Remi's following them."

All three of them chuckled at Conner's statement.

"It seems Remi has become quite smitten with Gloria. So far, Gloria seems to be living up to her claims of wanting to be a better person. I hope it works out. Remi could certainly use some happiness in the romance department."

"You got that right Dad. Remi loves spending time with us, getting to know his daughter. But he needs more in his life. Hopefully Gloria can step up."

"Yeah hopefully. What were you two talking about before I came in? I need distracting, remember."

"We were beginning to make plans for a Search. We need to locate more lost ones. Including our comet shifters. They turned fifteen eleven years ago. That's a long time to be left out in the world alone."

"Kit and Jessie aren't ours?" Conner had always assumed Kit was Aussie.

"No, Conner. Kit's parents migrated from South America when she was small. Not sure what country. Jessie is the reason we're pushing up the search. He is a classic example of what can happen if a shifter isn't with other shifters. No one has ever educated him on any part of being a shifter. Kit's going to have her hands full for a long time. I'm just grateful that as a rally driver he travels all over and ended up here in Tassie."

"So who are you thinking of sending?"

"Xander will definitely head off. He'll lead the search. I was hoping the twins would join him. The three of them should be able to get the job done. I don't want to send out a massive group of men. That would just draw more attention than we want."

Conner totally agreed with his Dad on that one.

"Where are they focusing on?"

Dominic stepped forward, pointing to a map of the whole of Australia that was spread out on the desk. "That's what we were discussing when you came in, little brother. The logical place to start is Victoria, head up through New South Wales onto Queensland before heading west through Northern Territory to Western Australia. Then down the coast and over east again to South Australia. Then back to Victoria to come home on the ferry. They will hook up with Leaps as they go, to take on the care and training of any shifters they find."

"Just thinking out loud, but since they're touring all the Leaps anyway. Why don't we get the boys to take photos of all the unmated females? Make it easier for at least some of our males to find their mates."

"Not a bad idea, Conner. The women would have to give their permission of course. And we can't let it turn into a dating service. Maybe if just the alphas of the Leaps have access…"

"We're going to need to send out a letter or email to each Leap explaining about the Search. We might as well include this idea in with it. See what the reaction is from the Leaps."

Conner grinned as his father and brother continued to discuss his idea. The alpha and future alpha of the Australian Continental Leap had listened to and liked his idea. Even though they were his family, they didn't have to take notice of him. It was a great feeling. He also realized how childish he'd been to be jealous of his brother. Sure, he would never be the alpha like Dominic was destined to be, but he had his place in the Leap too. His brother and father would always hear him out if he had suggestions, and they always respected him and his opinion—as they did every member of the Leap. He guessed he could thank the fact he was now mated. It had mellowed him out enough that he could sit back and see what was right in front of him. Something he was beyond grateful of. His life felt complete. Well, nearly complete. When he and Tina had kids—then his life would be whole.

~ * ~

Tina wiped her palms down her thighs. She was so nervous, and the butterflies were not helping her stomach one bit. So far her mother had done all the right things but this was the test, a whole day with her shopping for wedding things. Would Gloria be able to accept that Tina wanted a simple gown? The wedding was going to be low key, elegant and private with just family and close friends. Tina most definitely didn't want to resemble a cream puff on her trip down the aisle. She chuckled quietly.

Conner won't know whether to eat me or marry me.

"Good morning, Tina, such a beautiful day. Early summer in Tasmania is always a lovely time of year."

"Yeah, it is a nice day. I'm glad you could make it."

Tina was sure her nerves showed through in her tone but her mother had sounded equally nervous so maybe she didn't notice Tina's.

"Of course I made it! This is your wedding dress we're buying. This is a vital mother-daughter shopping experience. And I was also hoping we could maybe chat a little over the day."

"Of course we will, Mother. How about you sit down and we start with a coffee before we hit the shops."

"You know,
Mother
sounds so formal. I want our relationship to be more intimate than what it was before. Would you be comfortable calling me Mum?"

Tina grinned a true smile. She'd always hated the whole 'mother' thing, made her feel like she was back in the 1800s."I'd like a closer relationship too. Mum."

"Okay, let's have that coffee. How do you have yours these days, Tina?"

"Same as always, black with one sugar. Thanks, Mum."

Gloria headed in to order their drinks and Tina smiled as she watched. Her thoughts had scattered with the 'call me mum' comment.

Minutes later they both sat sipping at their coffees.

"So, Tina, do you have any ideas about what you want for your wedding dress?"

"I have a few ideas. Even though it's the middle of summer I want a long dress, I don't want anyone seeing my scars. I want it simple, nothing over the top with frills and lace. I don't want a train either. That will get caught up in my crutches."

Her mum grinned broadly at her. She'd told her about her plan of walking down the aisle as a surprise.

"I can't wait to see Conner's face when you walk to him. So, have you looked at pictures? Do you want straps?"

"I've had a bit of a look, but I haven't been feeling that well this last week so haven't bought magazines like I wanted too."

"Oh, honey, why didn't you call me? I'd have brought some around to you."

She gave her mum a sheepish smile. "Guess I just didn't think of that."

Tina started fidgeting under her mother's sudden intense scrutiny, "what? Have I got food stuck between my teeth or something?"

"Your teeth are fine, but you are looking. Well, to be honest, glowy. How sick have you been feeling?"

"Oh you know. The usual, I'm really tired—but I've been pushing hard at rehab—so it takes me a while to get going in the morning. I'm off my favorite foods…"

Tina let the words hang in the air as realization dawned. "Oh my-Bloody hell. I'm pregnant aren't I?"

Her mum's smile was a true smile, her eyes glittering in the sunlight. "Well, it would be wise to take a test but I'm guessing that's what has you feeling ill."

"Well, I guess a trip to the Pharmacy is added to our places to go today."

"I think that would be a good idea. Tina, I have to ask you this and please don't take me the wrong way. As your mother I need to make sure. Are you happy? I mean this has all happened very fast."

Tina felt a warmth spread through her, at both her mother caring enough to ask and her complete happiness. "Mum, I have never been so happy. Conner is like my missing puzzle piece, a piece I didn't realize I was missing. And to be having his baby? It's my dream come true."

"I am truly happy for you, Tina. You know that right?"

"Yeah, I know you are. And it means the world to me that you're here and supporting me."

"Okay, well, let's get to that first bridal shop. And you know, if the one here in Rosebery doesn't have what you want, we can drive into Launceston or even down to Hobart."

"I'm sure I'll find one here in town. I'm just hoping I can find one that fits and doesn't need altering."

Half an hour later, Tina was standing in front of a bank of mirrors in the most gorgeous dress she had ever seen. An ankle length gown made of soft white chiffon. The shop assistant had described it as 'a sleeveless asymmetrical neckline, ruched bodice, sheath pick-up skirt which was pinched with a beaded detail.' The gown flowed over her shoulder, hugging her small breasts and made her feel beautiful. The simple jeweled design on her left hip was stunning with its silvery diamantes and silver thread. There were several thin layers to the skirt so even with the top couple of layers being pinched up at the waist, her legs were completely covered to her ankles. To make it even better it was the perfect size. As an added bonus, because it was apparently part of last year's collection and it didn't need adjusting, the shop was happy to discount it. Nine hundred dollars seemed like a lot to spend on one dress but her mother had said it was very cheap for a wedding dress and not to worry, as she'd cover it. Tina liked the new leaf her mother had turned over. This day had been more relaxing and easier than any other day they'd ever spent together.

Before Tina had come back down to earth from finding the perfect dress, her mother, no, her
mum
, had her in a shoe shop. Within an hour they had found the most superb white strappy sandals. They had a cute little kitten heel that she would need to test out while she had her crutches but she was pretty sure she'd be able to manage. The strap over her toes had an elegant pattern of diamantes, which would match up brilliantly with her dress.

"Well, that was all rather easy. Are you ready for some lunch?"

"Sure am. It might not have taken all that long, but it's made me hungry."

"Yes, that reminds me. We need to drop into a Pharmacy on our way too."

Tina grinned like a fool the whole way down the street. Her mum truly had changed it would seem. She hadn't complained once about any of the wedding plans and had seemed genuinely excited about her choice of dress. Intense emotions threatened to have her heart burst from her chest as they entered the Pharmacy. She knew she was pregnant and was certain the test would confirm it. She was going to have Conner's baby. If she wasn't stuck in her chair, she'd be jumping up and down and squealing. Well, only if it didn't make her feel ill…

~ * ~

Conner arrived home after Tina. He'd been sure he would be home earlier than this, but he'd become engrossed with the discussions about the Search, and before he knew it the day had gone. It was now past dinnertime as he entered the house searching for Tina.

"Sweetheart? Sorry I'm late. Are you still up?"

With the long summer days, the house was bathed in the low evening light so the fact no lights were on, didn't mean Tina wasn't up and around the place somewhere.

The kitchen was empty, as was the bathroom. He crept down to their bedroom, not wanting to wake her if she was asleep. She had been feeling really tired lately. He'd tried not to worry, did his best to believe her when she said she was just pushing herself at rehab and was feeling stressed over her future career options.

One step into their bedroom and he stopped short.

"Oh, baby doll. You are gorgeous, and so damn sexy."

His precious mate sat on their bed, her head propped up on pillows as she read. She laid her book on the bedside cupboard. As she reached over, her dark pink nipple crept just past the edge of the sexy little scrap of lace she was wearing. He knew she hated that her breasts were small, but he loved them. They were high and firm and just right for him to suckle on. The fact she didn't wear a bra most of the time had him permanently aroused just thinking about it.