The Finding (10 page)

Concerned, he
turned back. Was something wrong with the baby? No... She wasn’t
clutching her belly, but she was definitely troubled. His
protective instincts came to the fore and he stepped into the
room.

“Mel? What’s
wrong?”

Her hand flew
to the computer mouse and she quickly closed whatever program she’d
been working on. His senses immediately went on alert. What was she
hiding?

“Oh! Hi, Bryan.
What are you doing here?” Her face bore a fake smile, but he could
still see the little lines of worry around her eyes, hear the
strain in her voice.

“I was just
going to work on the books.” He knew she was trying to avoid his
question, but the Beta in him wasn’t allowing that. “I asked you a
question. What’s wrong?”

“Nothing...”
She pushed her hair back from her face and he noted the slight
tremor of her hands.

Bryan stepped
closer, his gaze steady and she lowered her eyes. If she wasn’t the
Alpha’s mate, he’d force a response from her. As Beta, it was his
job to protect the pack and he couldn’t do that if he didn’t know
what the problems were. But since she was the Alpha female, he took
a gentler approach.

Sitting
casually on the edge of the desk, one leg swinging freely, he
studied her for a moment sipping his coffee before speaking. “You
look upset. Are you sure you don’t want to tell me? I’m a good
listener.”

“I’m fine.” She
shrugged, still not looking at him. “It’s just something I was
researching about...ah...childbirth. It sounds painful.”

He was sure she
was lying, but didn’t want to overstep his bounds. The Alpha female
technically outranked him, but Mel had never really acted on that
fact...if she was even aware of it. He made a mental note to ask
Ryne how much she knew about werewolf hierarchy and history. Ryne
had a bad habit of neglecting to share certain bits of
information.

For a few
moments he didn’t speak—silence was a great way of forcing people
to talk—but she didn’t fall for his gambit, instead she played with
a loose thread on her shirt. He exhaled slowly and decided if
something was really wrong, she’d tell Ryne. Standing up, he let
the matter drop. “All right, I’ll let it go this time, but remember
if you ever need anything, just ask. As Beta, that’s my job.”

Mel smiled up
at him, then stood. Pressing a light kiss to his cheek, she laid
her hand on his arm. “Thanks, Bryan. I’ll keep that in mind.” She
paused and looked down at the floor before glancing up at him
again. “Um...you don’t need to tell Ryne about this, okay? He’s
already worked up enough about impending fatherhood.” She gave what
sounded like a nervous laugh and looked at him entreatingly. Her
big brown eyes framed by incredibly long lashes still had the
ability to make his heart thump a little faster and he could feel
the warmth of her hand pressed against his arm.

At one point in
time, Bryan had half fancied her for himself, but once Ryne made
his interest in Mel known, he’d backed off. As a matter of fact,
falling for the wrong woman seemed to be the story of his life, he
thought ruefully. First it was Elise, but she ended up with Kane.
Then Mel with Ryne. He cleared his throat.

“I won’t
mention it to Ryne...for now. But if I thought something was
seriously wrong—”

“I know,” she
interrupted. “You’d have to do your duty. Trust me, nothing is
seriously wrong.” Mel patted his arm again and stepped away. “I’ll
leave and let you get to work.”

He sighed as he
watched her walk out of the room and then moved to the desk and the
stack of paper work that awaited his attention.

*****

Las Vegas,
Nevada, USA...

Kellen looked
around the house one last time, pleased with his efforts.
Everything was spotless; papers put away, floors swept, furniture
dusted, pillows plumped, he’d even lit one of those scented candles
she liked so much. Dinner was staying warm in the oven and he had
dessert in the fridge. He rubbed his hands together in gleeful
expectation. Sandy was due home any minute and he couldn’t wait to
see her reaction when she walked in.

Checking the
clock, he positioned himself near the window so he could watch for
her. The bus should be letting her off about now, then a quick walk
from the corner to their place... Yep, there she was.

He frowned as
she came closer. She looked a bit out of sorts... His stomach gave
a slight nervous quiver; maybe her mood had worsened from this
morning as she contemplated his sins. Kellen took a deep breath and
exhaled slowly, flicking a glance over his shoulder at the
welcoming ambiance of the room. All the work he’d done around the
house should fix that, shouldn’t it?

Stepping away
from the window, he positioned himself just inside the door. His
palms suddenly felt damp and he rubbed them against the legs of his
jeans. He hated it when they argued or when she was mad at him; not
that she ever really yelled, but the hurt in her eyes was hard to
handle. Hopefully he could cajole her into a better mood...

The door swung
open and Sandy entered, head down as she bent and set her purse on
the floor, then turned slightly to slide the deadbolt into
place.

“Hi.” Kellen
spoke softly as he slipped up behind her and snaked his arms around
her waist to give her a hug.

“Oh!” Sandy
gave a start, then looked at him over her shoulder, her eyes filled
with suspicion. “What’s this all about?”

“Nothing. I
just wanted to give my girly a friendly greeting at the door.”

She gave him a
funny look and then twisted to break free of his grasp. He took her
by the shoulders and turned her so she was looking into the room.
“What do you think?” Kellen couldn’t keep the pride out of his
voice.

“Um... It looks
nice.” She shoved her hands in her pockets, sounding less impressed
than he’d hoped. “You cleaned, right?”

“Yep. Made
dinner
and
dessert. He ducked his head a bit so he could see
her expression better. For a minute she just looked at him and he
felt the smile slipping from his face. Had he forgotten something?
His mind raced. Cleaning, dinner, dessert... Ah-ha! He knew what
the problem was! “I...uh...cleaned the bathroom, too. Even the
toilet.”

For a heartbeat
there was silence then Sandy gave a snort of laughter, closing her
eyes, and shaking her head. Opening them again, she looked at him
and he was relieved to see the familiar fondness in her eyes. “Oh,
Kellen. That was sweet of you. I’ve never gotten the hang of
actually
liking
cleaning the bathroom.”

He flicked a
finger over the end of her nose. “No one does and, since apparently
you never had to do that sort of stuff growing up, I understand why
it grosses you out.”

She raised her
brows, a teasing note creeping into her voice. “Then why do you
usually leave it for me?”

Pleased that
she was getting into the spirit of the evening, he adopted a
superior tone. “Practise, my dear. Practise. I’m way ahead of you
in experience when it comes to cleaning, so that’s why I usually
leave it for you. I want you to get caught up to me.”

“Kellen, I
think after almost three years of cleaning up after you, my
experience is on a par with yours.”

“Well,
technically the first year we were together doesn’t count, since I
had to show you how to do most of the stuff.”

Sandy rolled
her eyes at him and stepped further into the room. “Mmm... What’s
that I smell?”

“Chicken
stir-fry. It’s in the oven keeping warm. You go change and I’ll put
the food on the table.”

“All right.”
She hesitated and then leaned up to kiss him on the cheek. “Thanks
for the surprise.”

He shrugged.
“It’s the least I could do after messing up last night.”

“Yeah...” Sandy
grew silent for a moment, almost pensive, but then smiled again,
though it wasn’t as bright as before. “We’ll talk about it later.
Right now, I’m starving. I’ll change my clothes and be right
out.”

Kellen watched
as she walked down the hall towards the bedrooms. He shoved his
hands in his pockets and rocked back and forth on his heels. All in
all that had gone well, he thought. For a few minutes they’d even
been joking back and forth like they used to do. God, but he missed
that. They used to have so much fun. Now...well... He lowered his
eyes to the floor and sighed. Like Sandy said, they could always
talk about it later. Right now things were good between them again
and he didn’t want to spoil the mood.

*****

Sandy stood in
front of her bedroom mirror, combing her hair before pulling it
back into a ponytail. She could hear Kellen working in the kitchen.
It was obvious what he was up to; trying to ease back into her good
graces after totally screwing up last night. She should be angry
with him, especially after what Mr. Bartlett had told her.

But then, he’d
called her ‘girly’—a silly word he’d used when they first met. It
was his term of endearment for her and it always found a soft spot
in her heart. And he’d even cleaned the toilet! She gave an amused
sigh and shook her head, thinking of how much fun it had been to
joke with him a few minutes ago. They didn’t do that often enough
anymore. Perhaps now wasn’t the time to mention what she’d learned
at work. The matter could wait an hour until dinner was over.
Ruining the mood right now wouldn’t serve any purpose other than to
waste a perfectly good meal.

“Sandy? Are you
almost ready? Food’s on the table!” Kellen’s voice drifted down the
hall.

“Just a minute!
Don’t start without me!” She called back while setting down the
comb and hurriedly pulled on a clean top and sweat pants before
making her way to the kitchen.

Kellen really
was a nice guy. Generous to a fault, funny, always looking for the
positive. He was even willing to admit when he made a
mistake...eventually. Sometimes his conscience was a bit slow, but
he usually came around, just like tonight; making amends by
cleaning and cooking.

Yep, they’d
have a nice normal evening together and then they’d talk

By the time
dinner was over, a faint hope stirred in her again. Everything was
going so well. The creature inside her had been silent for a
change; the restlessness blessedly absent. Perhaps, this was all
that was needed; for her and Kellen to spend more time together
like a real couple. She hummed happily to herself as she carried
two cups of coffee into the living room and set them on the table
in front of the sofa. Kellen was sprawled out and taking up most of
the seating area. “Dinner was delicious.”

“But of course.
I am a chef extraordinaire.” Kellen grinned at her while
flourishing his hand. He shifted slightly as she prodded him with
her foot, giving a mock groan of annoyance. Once there was room,
she sat beside him. As was his habit, he draped his arm casually
across the back of the sofa and began to absentmindedly stroke her
pony tail, tugging at the strands, and sliding them through his
fingers. It was a comforting gesture that lulled her into a half
trance-like state.

“I’ve put one
of your chick-flicks in for you, girly.” He commented as he worked
the remote with his other hand.

She smiled at
the term ‘girly.’ It wrapped around her like a soft blanket and
made her feel warm and comfortable. “Good. And remember, no rude
comments allowed.” Cassie cast a fierce look of warning his way
before picking up her coffee.

“I promise to
behave.” He followed the statement up with a Scouts’ honour sign.
Cassie narrowed her eyes, knowing full well he’d never been a
Scout—it was one of the few tidbits of information she knew
concerning his past. Kellen wasn’t one to share much about his
background and that suited her fine. She wasn’t keen on sharing her
past either. There had been some type of falling out with his
family, she knew that much and she’d told him her mother was dead
and her uncle murdered. It was enough. The past was just that, the
past.

For awhile they
watched the movie in companionable silence. Cassie relaxed thinking
how nice it was to spend time together again, like a real
pack...er...family.

“Here comes the
mushy stuff.” Kellen whispered teasingly in her ear and she hit him
lightly across the stomach. He clenched his belly as if in pain and
doubled over only stopping when she rolled her eyes at him.

“Remember, you
promised to behave.”

He sobered and
sat back to watch again, his arms crossed casually behind his
head.

On the screen,
the female lead was studying her secret love interest, enumerating
all his good qualities to a friend. Cassie glanced at Kellen out of
the corner of her eye, trying to see him as the actress on the
screen might. Kellen
was
good looking, no doubt about that.
His brown hair was stylishly long and fell appealing over his brow.
Laughter sparkled in his blue eyes and often curved his mouth into
a mischievous grin. Good shoulders, a few muscles, trim
waist...

Biting her lip,
she sighed and Kellen murmured softly, pulling her closer so his
chin rested on top of her head. She inhaled his familiar scent,
felt the warmth of his body creeping into hers, and waited
expectantly for some sign, some stirring of excitement within
her...

Of course, it
didn’t happen. Nothing ever happened. The only thing to occur was a
low rumble of discontent from the beast inside her.
No. He isn’t
for us.

Cassie curled
her fingers into fists, frustrated at the trap she found herself
in. The beast inside was anxious and needy, pushing her to find
something or someone, but it wouldn’t consider the human she was
living with. She’d learned that lesson two years ago...

The first time
she and Kellen had been...intimate...was about a year after they
first met. In all the months they’d been together, Kellen had never
pressured her for sex. That he was interested, there was no doubt,
but he’d never pushed her.