Authors: Maddy Barone
“This is between me and Sara.”
Bob Nelson grunted. “Sara is my niece, and I love her. When she first came to me, she spent hours every day crying over you. Can’t say I particularly liked you then. Can’t say I’ve changed my mind about you yet. I’ve met Sky and Sand, and from what I can tell from them, you Wolfe boys pride yourselves on taking good care of your ladies. Ain’t seen that from you.” He turned his head and spat on the ground. “I’m not fast or strong, but if you hurt Sara again I’ll find a way to make you pay.”
Stone nodded. It was only what any man would do for a female relative. “That’s fair.”
Mr. Nelson jerked his head to the house. “Well, let’s go in. Sara’s been cooking all afternoon.”
Supper was beef stew with crusty bread still warm from the oven to sop up the gravy. Stone remembered Sara’s bread as being some of the best he’d ever tasted, and this bread was certainly hers. He slathered a slice with butter and took small bites to enjoy it.
Conversation during supper was casual. Mr. Nelson spoke of looking forward to retirement from Omaha’s sanitation department. He planned to move west to join his daughter and son-in-law and their children in Kearney. Stone assured him he would be welcome to live at the den, but Nelson insisted on living in Kearney so he wouldn’t crowd Amanda and Sand.
Sara talked about the sweet baby boy she had helped deliver the day before. Stone glanced at her, a little amazed at the idea of a seventeen-year-old girl being a midwife. He knew from her letters that she was training to be a nurse, but he couldn’t imagine her delivering a baby. There was a lot he didn’t know about his mate. It was time for them to talk, but the house was small, and even human ears would overhear what he intended to be a private conversation.
Mr. Nelson was only a human, so he couldn’t read minds, could he? He gave Stone a grim smile and told him to take Sara for a walk. He would wash the dishes. Sara made a token effort to argue, but she quickly gave in. Stone pushed back from the table. “That was a good supper. Thanks, Sara.”
She went to the closet near the front door and took out a plaid wool coat. It wasn’t cold enough to need a coat. Was it? Sara had lost a little weight in the past two years, but she was still soft and round. She had enough fat on her to keep her from being cold. Or maybe not. Some humans felt the cold more than others. Stone shifted uneasily at the thought of his mate being cold.
“There’s a park about four blocks away. We could go there,” she suggested, glancing quickly toward the kitchen where her uncle stacked the dishes.
Seemed like there were lots of parks in Omaha. “Will you be cold?” he asked.
“No.” She smoothed a hand down the front of her coat. “It’s not too cold for a walk, especially with my new coat.”
“All right,” he said. There were things he wanted to say to her, things they needed to decide. “Mr. Nelson,” he said, raising his voice. “Me and Sara are going to take that walk. We shouldn’t be long.”
He followed his mate down the three cement steps and down the walk to the sidewalk. His wolf needed to touch her so he took her hand and curled it around his elbow. They walked in silence for several minutes. The sun was down and there were no street lights here, but his wolf’s sight could see her clearly. Her face was pensive, her brows drawn down over her eyes. He wondered what she was thinking. Maybe she, like he, was thinking about the time she kissed Mordecai Dirk. He gave his head a subtle shake. Maybe he shouldn’t be thinking about that. Inhaling her scent on the cool late summer air soothed the wolf. He didn’t want any conflict between them. But Stone was in charge, and he knew they needed to talk about it so they could put it behind them.
“Sara,” he said at the same moment she said his name. They both closed their mouths and waited for the other to speak. After long, uncomfortable moment Stone said, “Sara, we need to talk. About what happened in Kansas.”
“I know,” she said in a low voice. “Writing letters isn’t the same as speaking face-to-face. I’ve had a lot of time to think about what happened two years ago.” She raised her eyes to meet his. “I’m ashamed of myself. Even when I was kissing Mord, I knew it was wrong.”
Stone felt his wolf’s pain welling up in his throat in the form of a whine. He shoved it back. “It hurt,” he growled. “I have never been closer to killing anyone in my life. Not you,” he said quickly when she flinched. “Him. If he hadn’t been Mel’s brother, I would have killed him. Then how would you have felt?”
“Even more awful,” she said. “It wasn’t even all his fault. I started the kiss.”
“But he didn’t stop it,” he replied sharply.
“No,” she admitted.
“My wolf is a simple creature. He’s not an alpha and he doesn’t like trouble, but at that moment he was crazy. I had to leave. Maybe I should have stayed to talk to you, but right then, I had to get away so I didn’t kill anyone.”
He glanced at her and her face was turned down again so he couldn’t see her expression clearly, but she was biting her lip.
“I know,” she whispered. “I was so stupid. I was angry at you because I was left behind. That’s not an excuse, at least not a good one. I don’t know why I was so stupid.” Her voice wobbled with tears. “I’ve regretted it every day since then. I’ve tried to be better. I know that doesn’t make up for what I did, but I’m trying.” She pressed her lips together tight, and gave him a quick, tear-bright glance. “Please, Stone, give me another chance.”
Part of him wanted to squeeze her tight and kiss her and tell her everything was okay. But that would be a lie. “I don’t know, Sara.”
Her hand fastened like a vise over his elbow. “Why not? I’m the one your wolf chose to be your mate. And we’ve been married by a priest. There’s no divorce. We can be happy together. I know we can.”
He gazed at the moonlight gleaming on her hair. He wanted to believe her. “Here’s what I think. Your birthday isn’t for two more weeks. Let’s spend those weeks getting to know each other better. Then at the end of that time we’ll know whether or not we should stay married.”
She stopped walking and looked up at him. “And what happens if you decide you don’t want me? I’ll have to go to work in one of those houses. Uncle Bob can’t afford the single status tax, and we can’t afford to pay the dowry the Sisters of Mercy require to accept me as a nun.”
His wolf was absolutely sure he didn’t like the idea of her being with any man. “Let’s take it one day at a time. Come on, let’s go back to your house. The tip of your nose is going pink. You must be getting cold.”
She snorted. “That’s not cold, that’s me getting pissed off.” She dropped his arm. “Are you still trying to punish me for being stupid?”
“No.”
“It feels like it,” she shot back. “You sent me to Omaha like I was a naughty kid who needed a time out.”
He swallowed. Carla sometimes made Colby stand alone in a corner so he could think about what he had done wrong. She called it a time out. “That’s not what I wanted.” He cleared his throat to ease the dryness. “We both needed some time apart to think.”
“Did you finish your thinking yet?”
He wished he could scent what she was feeling. She sounded sarcastic, but what if Mel was right? She’d told him Sara used sarcasm to hide pain. “Not yet,” he said quietly.
She snorted and turned away from him. “Fine. Let’s go back.”
He missed the heat of her hand on his arm, but he didn’t replace it. He would never make her do anything. It didn’t take long to return to her house. He walked up the front steps with her and waited until she opened the door. “Sara, I’m not rejecting you. I just want us to take the time to be sure we can be happy together.” His shoulders relaxed when her face softened. “Not just me, but you too. I want you to be happy, and if you won’t be happy with me, then I want to set you free.”
She tilted her face up at him, her jaw set in that stubborn line he remembered. “That’s really nice, Stone, but you don’t seem to understand. I’m ready to love you. I’ll do anything for you and I’m not giving up. You better just make up your mind to take me home with you to your teepee or whatever you live in.
Because you’re mine
.” She gave one sharp nod, eyes challenging him, before she twisted the knob on the door and opened it. Before she stepped in, she glanced back at him. “I’ll say good night.” The fiercely passionate note in her voice had died to cool politeness. “I work tomorrow at the hospital until 4 o’clock. Will you come for supper again tomorrow?”
The light from the living room lamps cast a dim golden glow over her cheeks. The beauty of the smooth skin struck his heart. He wanted to brush his fingers over it. “I’ll be here. Good night.”
He forced himself to stand still under her gaze, not smiling and not frowning. For a long moment she didn’t move and he wondered if she was waiting for a kiss. There was nothing he wanted more, but he made himself step back. He waited until she went inside and closed the door. Then, his heart aching with every beat, he walked back to Sky’s house.
Chapter 13
For the first time since coming to Omaha, Rose woke up in time for breakfast. She selected clothes for the day and headed for the shower. The bathroom was still steamy from Sky’s shower. It was a reminder that she had a husband. She barely saw him, but the steam-fogged mirror was proof he existed. She showered as she always did: quickly and economically. She was used to hot water lasting only so long. She dressed and almost tripped over something sitting on the floor beside the bathroom door. Sky must have left the oil lamp and box of matches. She smiled as she picked them up and lit the wick to light her way down the narrow, dark stairs. She blew the lamp out and set it down on the last step and went through the mudroom to the kitchen where Kim shoved a plate of pancakes at her.
“Here,” the cook said gruffly. “Take these into the dining room for me.”
Rose accepted the plate with a smile and said, “Good morning, Kim.”
When she entered the dining room she saw Sky at the buffet filling his plate with sausages and eggs. She placed the heaping plate of pancakes on the buffet. He surprised her by sliding an arm around her waist and giving her another one of his morning pecks. She wondered what he would do if she opened her mouth under his and instigated a real kiss, but after his brush off yesterday, she wasn’t about to try that again.
“Good morning, love,” he said in a casually affectionate tone.
“Good morning, Sky,” she returned in a similar tone.
She surveyed the breakfast offerings spread over the buffet and chose a couple of pancakes, a scoop of scrambled eggs, and a slice of ham. She carried her plate to the table and stopped, blinking at Snow, who was in the chair at the foot of the table, a smug smile on his face. She stared at him until he stabbed a finger at an open seat halfway up the table. Ms. Mary smiled at her blandly. It dawned on her that the men from the Pack were trying to maneuver her closer to Sky, although they were still three seats too far apart. After a long glance at Zoe who lounged in her usual chair close to the head of the table, she went to the open chair and sat down. “Good morning, everyone.”
A chorus of good mornings sounded from around the table, some mumbled, some bright and cheery. Rose frowned as she watched Sky seat himself at the head of the table. That girl—not the redhead, the other one, Tanya?—leaned close to Sky and unfolded his napkin for him and put it in his lap. Rose stabbed her fork into her eggs, wishing it was Tanya’s eye. Seriously, Sky should tell her to back off. The woman had no business putting her hand on his forearm and fluttering her lashes at him.
I am not a violent person
, she told herself. But when Zoe leaned in on his other side to smooth his tie, Rose almost exploded.
With an effort, she turned to Paint, who sat on her left. “How are you this morning?”
“I’m good,” he replied. He watched the eggs on his plate as he pushed them around with his fork. “You haven’t seen Katelyn today, have you?”
Rose took a bite of ham and shook her head. “No, I just got up. Maybe she’s in the kitchen.”
“She was, but I didn’t see her in there a few minutes ago.” He adjusted his eye patch with a frown, pulling his one visible brow down. His voice was low when he spoke again. “I worry about her.”
“I’ve noticed. Have you talked to her?” She glanced around and lowered her voice. “About your wo—I mean, that you are interested in her?”
Paint scooped up a forkful of egg and ate it with the air of a man in misery. “No, she doesn’t like me. But I’m worried about her. If she’s not in the kitchen, where is she?”
Rose set her fork down. “I’ll go check on her.”
Before she could stand, Ms. Mary spoke. “You just sit down and finish your breakfast,” she said. “I’ll go see if I can find her. It’s not like Katelyn to be missing from the kitchen at this hour.”
Rose noticed with satisfaction that Sky had finally detached his arm from Tanya’s grasp. He had a soothing smile on his face while he patted the girl’s wrist. Rose had an urge to slap his hand away. And while she was in the neighborhood she would slap Tanya’s face.
Paint made a small sound. It might have been amusement, but when Rose turned on him his face was bland. She ground her teeth together and applied herself to her breakfast. Paint’s knee nudged hers under the table. “Come on,” he said. “Yesterday you said you weren’t jealous of that woman. Changed your mind?”
“Of course not. I just don’t think she needs to touch my ma—husband. And my husband shouldn’t be letting her.”
“Well, he’s not letting her touch him. See?”
Rose snorted. Before she could say anything more, Ms. Mary came into the dining room with a small frown on her fragile, wrinkled face. Paint was immediately on his feet staring at the old lady.
“She’s all right,” Ms. Mary said calmingly. “She’s helping with the laundry this morning. That’s why she wasn’t in the kitchen helping with breakfast. Nothing to worry about, so just go about your business.”
Paint eased back into his chair, his face so blank Rose knew he was hiding some strong emotion. “I scared her,” he murmured. “Again.”
Rose touched his arm. “What do you mean?”