Chapter Fourteen – Matthew

Matthew sensed Sian returning with some relief. His fear for her had grown until he wanted to yank the front door off its hinges and run out into the street with his nose to the ground, following her scent until he found her.

“We saved you a couple of slices,” Ella said as Sian opened the front door. She looked pale, maybe it was just the cold air outside that had robbed her of the color in her cheeks, but Matthew suspected it was more than that.

His fists clenched, and he had to force himself to relax. She was here, she was safe, and his job was to try to reunite the family and smooth over their differences. Or at least get them to a point where they spoke to each other civilly.

You have no idea what you are taking on, his bear said in his head.

You mean what we are taking on, Matthew corrected him. We are in this together, remember.

Oh no, this one is on you, since Peter will never know about me.

His bear had a point, but he was forgetting that they were a team, and this was concerning their mate and her family. Which meant they were both responsible for healing the rift between Sian, Ella, Rachel and the man who had tried to embarrass Sian at the auction. He flexed his hands once more. Whenever he thought of Peter and that moment in the auction, he was overwhelmed with a need to bite the man’s head off.

This might prove to be one of the hardest tasks he’d ever taken on.

“You look like you’re freezing,” Rachel said and hugged her mom. “Come and warm up. I’ll get you a coffee.”

Rachel escorted her mom into the living room and sat her down in front of the dying embers of the fire. “Thanks, love.” Sian held her hands out to warm them.

“Here. Let me.” Matthew crouched down next to her and wrapped his large hands around his mate’s and rubbed them together.

“My, what big, warm hands you have.” Sian’s eyes met his and they danced with humor, setting him at ease.

“All the better to warm you with.” He grinned wolfishly.

“Thanks for everything.” The smile dropped from her eyes to be replaced with an unfathomable deep longing.

“It’s the least I can do.” He looked down at her hands. “Did everything go okay with the person you went to meet?”

She nodded. “It was Peter.”

He nodded and caught her eyes once more. “I know.”

“Is that it, your super senses will always see through me?” she asked.

“No, I’m just good at reading people and you were a little agitated when you went out.” He reached up and stroked her cheek, and color flared across her skin. “Did you resolve your differences?”

She gave a short laugh. “No. I don’t think we ever will unless we go back to court.”

“Court?” Matthew asked. “Is he fighting the divorce?”

“No, he’s fighting the amount of money he wants to hand over. Since I was the one who left the house, he thinks he is entitled to more of it.” She looked tired as she stared into the fire. “He sees things differently than other people. I don’t know if he has something wrong with him.” She frowned. “Wrong isn’t the right word. But his social compass is a little skewed.”

“Was he always the same?”

“Yes. I just didn’t see it before. He’s brilliant at what he does. Unfortunately, I got swept along by his brilliance, it blinded me. We made great plans as to how our lives were going to be. Then I got pregnant and that shattered his dreams.” She ran a hand through her hair and sat up straight as Rachel approached. “Thanks, Rachel. How is the packing going?”

“We are done and waiting for you.” Rachel nodded at Matthew. “Matthew helped carry everything out to the truck.”

“It’s all in the truck already?” Sian asked, peering into the hallway. “I didn’t even notice.”

“You were a little preoccupied when you came in,” Rachel said pointedly.

“I was.” Sian sighed. “I’m tired, the lead-up to the auction was hard work and now I’m feeling the comedown. I think I could sleep for a week.”

“You could have a day off.” Rachel placed her hands on her mom’s shoulders. “You need a break.”

“I have so much to do,” Sian said wearily. “I need to find a way of getting the grooming parlor set up.”

“I thought you were waiting for the money to come through,” Ella said as she entered the room with another bag. “This is all my school stuff.”

“I don’t know when the money from your dad is ever going to materialize. Not unless I take him back to court.” Sian drank her coffee and then got up. “But let’s not talk about all that now. I might feel better once we are in a house with heating.”

Matthew got up, too, noting that Sian still wore the coat he’d bought for her. “Come on. Let’s get you settled. When I left, the house was warm and cozy.”

“Oh, I like the sound of that.” Ella shivered.

“Okay, this is the final time I’m going to ask...”

“I am sure,” he told her firmly.

“Okay then.” Sian took her coffee cup into the kitchen and he followed behind. “Help yourself to whatever you need.”

“Same goes for you in my house, although my kitchen is not as well stocked as yours.” He looked around the kitchen, which was homey, filled with the clutter of a busy family. “And I don’t have any Christmas decorations up.”

“That does surprise me.” Sian dried her cup and put it away. “What do you normally do at Christmas?”

“I usually spend it on my own with a good book and a very good bottle of whiskey.” The book was to numb his brain, the whiskey was to numb his loneliness.

“You should spend Christmas with us this year,” Ella said as she stood in the doorway. “Don’t you think so, Mom?”

“If Matthew wants to spend Christmas with us?” Sian didn’t sound as certain as her daughter.

“I wouldn’t want to impose.” He was unsure how he was supposed to respond. But the thought of spending Christmas with Sian and her daughters appealed to him. He’d never spent Christmas day with anyone he liked, let alone loved.

And he did love his mate. It was as natural as shifting. She belonged in his life and they belonged together.

“Impose?” Rachel asked, and Sian’s expression grew troubled. Was this her reason for uncertainty? Rachel was a strong-willed, opinionated young woman and Sian didn’t want to hurt her feelings. He realized then that this would be the first Christmas without their father. Of course, they might have made plans for the three of them alone.

“It wouldn’t be an imposition,” Sian said hurriedly. “But we haven’t decided what we’re doing on Christmas day. Right now we don’t even know where we will be living.”

“Well, wherever we are, Matthew should spend Christmas with us,” Rachel said firmly. “It’s the least we can do.”

Sian’s face broke out into a smile so warm and happy she could have heated the house from floor to rafters. “That’s settled then.”

“Okay.” He smiled. “I have no idea what to bring.”

“Nothing.” Sian linked her arm with his and the thrill of excitement from having her so close coursed through him. “Except yourself.”

“I can do that.” His voice cracked with emotion. To quickly cover himself, he asked, “What else needs to go in the truck?”

Ten minutes later the truck was packed, and he was driving back to his house with Sian and her daughters following behind. He couldn’t stop himself from looking in the rearview mirror every couple of minutes to check that they were okay. So this is what it felt like to be part of a family?

For once he was looking forward to Christmas. And buying gifts. That part of Christmas had always seemed so pointless to Matthew. He’d watched his secretary stress herself out over choosing the perfect gifts for everyone and never understood why it was so important. But now he got it.

His brow creased. He would have to buy gifts for Sian and her daughters. Which might be tricky since he had no idea what they liked. He could ask Sian, however, she would likely tell him it was okay and he didn’t have to go to that much trouble.

But he wanted to go to a lot of trouble, he wanted to give the perfect gift. Maybe he should just adopt a houseful of animals, they would be happy then.

Matthew turned off the road and drove up the driveway leading to his house. As the headlights illuminated the old worn timbers, he experienced a strange and new sensation. He was coming home. This old house, even with its leaking roof and the rotted porch, was his and he liked the place.

This acknowledgment somehow made his offer of its use to Sian even more special.

“This is it?” Rachel asked as they got out of the car and walked toward the truck. The big bright headlights shone on the house, casting it in a strange and eerie light.

“It is.” He turned to look at the house. “Don’t you like it?”

Rachel considered it for a moment. “It’s quaint.”

“Quaint?” Matthew asked. Quaint was not exactly his style.

“Yes, you know, homey.” She turned to link arms with her mom. “What do you think?”

“I like it. Come and see the inside,” Sian encouraged.

“You’ve already seen the inside?” Ella teased.

“Yes, I came over this afternoon to talk to Matthew and make sure he was serious about his offer.” She shrugged. “You know how people make offers on the spur of the moment and then regret it? Well, I wanted to make sure Matthew hadn’t changed his mind.”

“So let’s see it,” Rachel tugged her toward the house. As they walked, she reached out and linked arms with Matthew, too. “Thank you. When I called it quaint, it was a compliment.”

“I just want you all to be happy and warm here.” Matthew angled his body, so they could all mount the porch together, and then took out his key and unlocked the door. Ella trailed behind them, looking up at the stars.

“It’s so dark here I can pick out all the constellations,” Ella said in awe.

“Ella loves space. She wants to be an astronaut when she grows up,” Rachel told Matthew, giving him an instant idea of what to get Ella for Christmas.

One down, two to go, his bear said.

Feeling pleased with himself, Matthew pushed the door open and led them inside. Instantly, they were in love with the house.

“It’s lovely. Look at the big windows.” Ella ran to the window and looked out, staring up at the sky.

“Look at the big fireplace,” Rachel said, going to the fire and putting her hands out to warm.

“Settled in already,” Sian commented, smiling up at him.

“Shall we get everything in and really get you settled in?” Matthew asked. “Then I can show you to your rooms. Unless you want the grand tour first?”

Ella whirled around. “Which is my room? Do I get first choice?”

“Sure,” Rachel said. “I don’t mind which room I have.”

“All the rooms are a good size,” Matthew said, heading for the stairs.

“Pity, I was looking forward to you both having a calm discussion as to who got what room,” Sian joked. She looked happy and relaxed.

Which made him happy and relaxed.

A new experience, his bear commented.

I’ve been happy and relaxed before, Matthew replied.

Yes, usually after you’ve won a deal. Never because of another person.

“Come on, let’s get this over with,” Ella said and grabbed hold of Matthew’s arm, tugging him forward. “Show me the best room.”

“They’re all good rooms,” he said again, hoping to circumvent any arguments. He didn’t want anything to spoil this perfect night. If only he could stay and share a room with his mate. But this was their night, and he’d have to work hard to get them to accept him into their lives fully.

Idiot, his bear told him. They’ve invited you for Christmas, it doesn’t get more accepting than that.

Sometimes it amazed him how much sense his bear had about humans and their actions. He understood their moods and motivations better than Matthew.

That’s why we make a great team, his bear replied.

And he was right. Just as Matthew, Sian, and the girls would make a great team.