Chapter Four

The night had settled in around them. Each passing day meant the sun set earlier and earlier. Reid and Addison had rigged some of the work-site lights to illuminate their usual haunt, the little beach.

Morgan stood to the side with a beer bottle near his lips, eyes on Callie as she reacquainted herself with the others and met the new mates. Her eyes found his every time Emmy or Addison spoke. He knew the Den’s rules were going through her mind, but he had no answers for her.

He stood by his family and their decisions. Hell, Addison had been dying. While her transition had been a bit rough, he knew they were all better for it. Even Addison.

Callie had been so thoroughly brainwashed by the Den. He wished he’d never left her alone there. If only he could have made her listen, could have gotten an answer from her that night, then maybe things could have been different. As it was, it was like looking at a whole new person. Callie was no longer the daring and powerful shifter he once knew.

Instead, they’d made her into a caregiver, as if that were her only purpose in life. What frustrated him more was that she’d accepted the role. Was the woman he knew still in there somewhere?

Morgan threw back the rest of his beer before chucking the bottle into a nearby trashcan. He moved to claim a seat between Callie and Aimee, the otter shifter Callie had brought with her. His old flame looked at him as if she could shoot daggers with her eyes. Aimee was a bit more amicable and moved over to make room for him.

“So, how did an otter find herself in the bear den?”

Aimee laughed and leaned in to begin her story. “Callie dragged me out of the river and brought me home like a lost puppy. I liked it so much that I decided to stay. I had hopes of opening a restaurant in town, but there’s never an empty storefront and the town council won’t let me break ground for a new building.”

“That is a very abbreviated version of your life,” Morgan said with a laugh.

Aimee winked at him. The otter shifter was far friendlier than her friend. Once more, Morgan wanted to ask Callie what happened. He knew now wasn’t the time. He couldn’t dredge up old feelings in the middle of a party, but he also didn’t know if he’d ever have another chance.

When he opened his mouth, something else came out. “We should go on a double date while you’re here.”

Immediately, Callie stiffened. Her eyes narrowed and the daggers in her eyes sharpened. He could almost feel them piercing his skin over and over again. Aimee’s gaze flicked from Callie to Morgan and back, a conversation passing between them.

“That could be fun,” Callie said, though the way she held herself said something else entirely. Her smile was so thin, Morgan could almost see through it. “You and Aimee could go. I could take Dominic.”

That was not what Morgan had in mind. Yet, he would take it. This was the closest he could get to Callie. Perhaps, on the date, he would find the time to demand answers from her. He knew nothing would ever replace her as his mate, but maybe he could rest easier if he knew why she’d turned him away.

Over the past nine years, his mind had replayed the situation and tried to find the reasons behind it. He didn’t think anyone could fall out of love so quickly, but it was the only thing that made any sense. He might have been an unruly teen, but he had not been mean to her. If anything, he’d treated her like the treasure she was.

His mate.

The beast inside him squirmed. It wanted to be closer to Callie. It wanted to hold her and feel her skin on his. No matter what he told the beast, it ignored him. He was about to get up when Aimee set a hand on his arm. He paused.

“Tell me a bit about yourself if we’re going to go on a date together. A girl should know what she’s getting into.”

***

A fire burst to life inside Callie’s chest when the world narrowed down to Aimee’s hand on Morgan’s arm. It was all she could do to keep breathing and remain still. The bear inside her wanted to rip her friend’s hand off.

She sucked in a sharp breath and tried to regain control of herself. The beast refused to be quieted. It roared in her ears and pulled Callie’s gaze back to the small hand on Morgan’s bronzed arm. It might have been Callie’s imagination, but she thought she could feel her teeth getting sharper, the jealousy she suddenly felt becoming palpable.

“Are you alright?” Morgan’s concerned voice cut through her muddy thoughts.

She snapped back to the present to find Morgan and Aimee watching her. His eyes crinkled at the corners, brow furrowed. She noticed that as he turned toward her, he shrugged off Aimee’s touch.

Suddenly, she could breathe again.

“Yeah, I’m fine.” It was a lie, but she couldn’t tell them what just happened. She was supposed to hate Morgan.

She lurched away from the seats and toward the water. The artificial light of the construction lamps glinted off the water as it lapped at the shore. Callie wanted to call her father and ask him to send someone else. It was becoming painfully clear that Callie wasn’t cut out for this job. There were other shifters who were better suited. They had years of experience behind them.

Callie realized that there was another form standing beside her. Emmy gave her a tight-lipped smile before turning her attention back toward the water. In the distance, she could see another shape swimming against the waves. Boomer, she guessed.

“Boomer helped explain what you’re here for,” Emmy began. Her voice was somber, a vein of steel wrapped in silk. “Think of this as a vacation. You and your friend are welcome to stay as long as you like, but there is no way that you’re getting me to leave with you.”

Callie tried to explain the risks Emmy seemed to be ignoring, but the other shifter held up a hand.

“I’m a registered nurse. If you think your presence will be helpful, you’re welcome to stay and help me deliver my own baby. If you don’t think you’re cut out for that, then don’t worry about me.”

“You can’t just deliver your own baby.”

Emmy raised her brows. The look said watch me. Callie had no doubt this woman was capable of anything she put her mind to. It brought a sigh to her lips. Callie would just have to work harder at convincing her of the benefits. The Den had been created for a reason.

“I don’t want to leave you here alone. If you need to, bring Boomer with you. He would cause a stir in town, but that could be fun to watch.”

“Are you forgetting what happens after? When you take my child? You can’t ask us to give up everything we are to stay at the Den. Our child will always be the most important thing in our lives, but there are other people we need to look out for.” Emmy pointedly looked to Orion.

The youngest male shifter of the group leaned toward Dom and tapped the bottom of his beer on the mouth of Dom’s. Suddenly, the beer erupted in foam. Dom shouted, racing to keep the foam from falling into the turkey fryer. Orion erupted into laughter. Dom glared at him.

“The Den’s rules destroy families.”

Before Callie could find a response, Dom announced that the turkey was ready. Everyone rushed to gather around him and the crisp bird, leaving Callie trapped in her own mind. Every shifter here challenged her way of thinking. She knew that wasn’t a bad thing, but it left a bad taste in her mouth.

Instead of analyzing it, she reached for a beer to wash it down. The Den was her home. If these shifters didn’t want to see all the good it did for them, then they were welcome to bury their head in the sand. She would call her father in the morning and tell him it was no use.

As she approached, she found Aimee and Morgan together again. He grinned at her friend, winking as he filled up a plate and handed it to her. Callie’s stomach tightened. The way Aimee touched him in return made bile burn the back of her throat. It felt like she was standing on the edge of a life she could have had. The thought troubled her.

Morgan wasn’t the man she wanted.

He would never be the man she wanted.

If that was the truth, then why did she feel this way?

As if he could hear her thoughts, Morgan looked up and their eyes met. He broke away from the others, a heavy plate in his hand, and headed toward her. Callie looked in every direction, but there was nowhere to run. All she could do was smile nervously as he approached.

“A smile! That’s an improvement.” He pushed the plate toward her. “This is for you. I remember you prefer dark meat.”

She did prefer dark meat, but that didn’t change anything. She sighed when she saw the heap of cranberry sauce piled next to the meat. He hadn’t forgotten her love for that, either.

“I know you hate me. I can’t say I understand why, but if that’s what you want to feel, I can’t stop you. All I can do is show you that I don’t deserve it.”

With that said, he left her standing alone on the wet sand. Her stomach felt heavy, the weight of what he’d dropped on her not settling quite right. Everything about this trip had Callie turned upside down and inside out.

The beast in her head urged her to run after him. Screw the food. No, screw him, the beast begged.

Those days were over. She wouldn’t give in to the animal inside her just to appease some itch she felt. Maybe, if the date went well, she would scratch the itch with Dom. Maybe then, her brain and her beast would leave her alone.

Yet, when she looked up again, it was Morgan whose gaze she found.