Chapter Ten
Renee opened her eyes, feeling like she’d been hit by a truck. Daylight filtered through the drawn curtains. The memories came back slowly, filling her with mixed emotions.
“Hey, there you are,” Jack said, coming into her line of vision. Just seeing him, knowing he was there even after all he’d seen the night before, made her feel better. His smile was soft, worry clear around the edges. “How are you feeling?”
She didn’t say anything, just held her arms open. He softened and got into the bed with her, holding her close. His scent comforted her, the way he felt, hard and strong, made her feel safe.
Words weren’t where she thought they’d be. Instead, she took his hand and guided it to her pussy. She needed him, needed that connection, to lose herself in pleasure and know she was still in his heart the way he was in hers.
He groaned, moving his hand to her belly. “Oh, sweetheart, you’ve been through so much. Why don’t you rest? We have time for this. Lots and lots of time.”
“You don’t want me?” Her voice sounded rusty and rarely used. She wouldn’t blame him if he wanted to be free of her. The things she remembered from the night before made her want to weep. But she found herself unable. That well was dry.
The blue of his eyes deepened as he moved even closer. “How can you think that? I want you so much my hands shake sometimes. Last night we nearly lost you. I can’t think about it too long or it makes me want to kill someone. You’re healing. It can wait. I’ll be right here when you’re ready.”
She turned to her side, curling into a ball. Right at that very moment, part of her wished the whole last week just hadn’t happened. Everything inside felt jumbled, out of order, and she couldn’t quite grasp the context enough to put everything back.
“You’re running again. I understand why. But don’t. Don’t run from me. There’s no reason to.” He rolled to curl around her, but she turned to him, burying her face in his neck, breathing him, needing him so much her head hurt with it.
He made a sound, trapping it deep in his chest, a sort of growl laded with so much emotion it tore into her gut. She gave over to that, to the feeling of being with him, of needing him. The rest would come later.
For then...
She got to her knees above him. His eyes locked with hers. His hands on her were gentle, but he didn’t stop her from pushing his shirt over his head. Such a beautiful body. Tawny skin, wide shoulders, slim waist.
Kissing over his collarbone, she scooted down and licked over his nipples as she pushed his sweats down, exposing more of that honey-dipped skin and a bare, hard cock.
Straddling his lap, she pulled her long T-shirt off before tossing the panties to the side. He slid his palms up her sides, caressing the underside of her breasts with his thumbs when he got there.
“Are you sure?” he asked.
No need for foreplay between them. She rose on her knees, angling him and sinking on his cock, not slow, not gentle. He arched as he freed that sound. The growl trickled from his mouth and wrapped around her. This is what she needed, it was what she’d needed before they got into that stupid fight the night before.
Each time she rose and then fell, she fell back into herself a bit more, took back control of herself, of her future. She claimed herself again, to rise and fall on her own mistakes and flaws. The bastard who’d gotten into her head the night before would never do so again.
“So beautiful. Strong.” Jack arched into her, his hands all over her body, everywhere he could reach. His fingertip danced over her clit as she rolled her hips, undulating, grinding herself into him to get him as deep as she could.
She traced the outline of the mark Galen had made on Jack’s side and he shuddered beneath her. What a gorgeous man he was. And his eyes held only her, even as her lids dropped as orgasm approached.
Bracing her weight by holding on to his biceps, she leaned her upper body forward so she could press back against him. Waves of sensation moved through her each time, wider and wider until she was pulled beneath willingly.
With a ragged moan of her name, he thrust up as she thrust back, coming deep inside her body.
He held her as she slumped forward onto his chest, his hands sliding over her back as she caught her breath.
“I’m sure,” she managed to say, prompting him to laughter.
“Damn if I don’t love you more every single second. I thought I was going to lose you last night.” His hands never left her, as if he couldn’t bear not touching her. And that was all right with her.
She pulled free and slipped into the space next to him. “I’m sorry about all that.”
“Sorry for what?” He made slow circles up her spine.
“All the drama. You must regret this whole thing. I’m sure Grace and the other women you know aren’t in need of saving all the time.”
He tipped her chin, capturing her gaze. A grin made him look even sexier. “You and I need to revisit the whole Grace conversation later. Grace is married to one of my best friends. I don’t want her, I want you. As for regret? Don’t ever say that. I started that fight by being stubborn and stupid. What you did to fight for yourself, I’ve never seen anyone braver. You came back. You didn’t let him win. And now I’m going to spend the rest of our lives proving to you how much I love you.”
She blinked back tears and then sat up. “Holy crapdoodle! Did I hallucinate an aunt and a sister?”
“You didn’t. They went back to their hotel after we got you to sleep. We invited them to stay here but they didn’t want to impose even though we both assured them you’d want them here. Your aunt didn’t tell us a lot, she said she wanted to tell it to you first. But she says she’s been looking for you since before your mother died.”
She swallowed the lump in her throat. “You know, I distinctly do not remember getting any fortune cookie saying my entire life would change totally this week. If there was a memo, I so did not get it. Where’s Galen?”
“He went to get some food. I volunteered to stay here with you while he was gone. Not like it’s a chore to watch you sleep. However, just for future reference, this sort of wake up is better than the one where you slapped my hands when I tried to touch your nipples.”
She sent him a mock frown. “I’d been awake a little while. I needed you. I felt, well I didn’t feel anything. I felt a lot of stuff, but nothing I could hold on to. I needed you to touch me, to fill me, to help me come back to myself. But don’t get used to it, I don’t think this will make me a morning person.”
“Do you think it might make you a non-Bee Gees person?”
She rolled her eyes. “I need to shower. I also need food and some coffee.”
“Go on and grab a shower. I need to talk to the people who’re supposed to help me move today. Cancel and reschedule.”
She got out of bed, feeling distinctly bruised and battered. “Ugh, I hurt in places I didn’t know I could hurt. By the by, you’re not going to do that. Why would you? Unless you don’t want to move in.”
He got up, moving to her, and she got caught in the spell of how he looked just then—muscular, sexed up and totally naked.
“You have no tan lines,” she said, gobbling up the sight of him. Maybe she’d need some assistance with back scrubbing. She looked at him through her lashes. She was sore, but she wasn’t dead and hoooo boy did he look pretty all naked and golden there in her bedroom. It would be downright un-American not to take advantage of such an opportunity.
The door opened and closed, followed by the sound of Galen’s footfalls into the kitchen.
“Of course I want to move in. But you need rest and quiet. Stop looking at me like that, you’re playing with fire.”
She laughed, kissing his chest and stepping back. “Okay, fine. I’ll stop objectifying you. For now. I’m going to shower and get dressed. When will the moving peeps arrive?”
Galen opened the door carefully and then when he saw she was awake, moved to her quickly, pulling her tight to his body. “Babe, you scared the life out of me. Never do that again, got me?”
She hugged him back. “I’ll keep that in mind.”
“You’re naked and soft and warm.” He looked her over, his eyes changing, deepening in color and intensity. “And you smell like sex.” He breathed in deep and she shivered.
“I am. You should take advantage of that.”
He laughed. “Tempting, but we will shortly be invaded. Take your shower. I brought back a huge amount of food and coffee is making. Your aunt and sister are coming over in a few and, Jack, I saw someone in a truck looking for a place to park. Dude looked wolfy.”
Renee shrugged. “Guess that solves the issue of whether to call them or not. Okay, I’m going to shower. Be out shortly.”
The shower was just what she needed. Time alone to rinse the night before from her skin. She felt violated, dirty and wrong inside and though it had improved some, the sense of invasion hung about her brain.
On top of that insanity, she suddenly had relatives to contend with. An aunt? A sister? How could she have a sister? Why hadn’t her father told her? Why hadn’t her mother told her? Why now after all this time? Who were they and what did they want?
She pushed back, trying to remember her life before Boston. What had her life been? She couldn’t remember a single teacher, neighbor or friend. She’d been seven when her mother died, those were memories she should have been able to recall.
Trying to push too hard made her nauseated so she gave up for the time being. She needed to hold it together and get some answers.
She sighed, taking one last look in the mirror. She looked okay for someone who might have died the night before. At least Jack’s friends wouldn’t think she was a junkie or something.
The weather had turned cold, fall finally taking a solid grip, so she pulled on a sweater and jeans. The loft was always cold anyway, for Galen’s and now she supposed Jack’s comfort. But she drew the line at the point where she saw her breath.
When she emerged from the bedroom, the house was full of people she didn’t know. Normally this would not be such a big deal, but wow, right then it made her want to run away.
Galen looked toward the bedroom door and stalked over, with eyes only for her. He wrapped his arms around her, burying his face in her hair. “Sorry, I had a moment when you came through the door... I remembered your face, the feeling of loneliness.”
She hugged him right back. Needing that contact. “I wouldn’t have made it back without you. But I’m back. I’m fine and he won’t catch me unaware again.”
“I’m going to kill him.”
Renee didn’t know how to reply to that.
“Querida, are you sure you want to do this today? Why not go back to bed? When Rosemary and Kendra arrive, I’ll send them in.”
She tipped her head back to look at him. They locked gazes, neither speaking but both understanding. “I’m fine. Really. Can I ask you a question?”
He smiled. “Always. Your tits look awesome, as does your ass.”
She laughed, kissing him again for the simple pleasure of the moment. “Good to know. But the question is about Rosemary and Kendra. What do you think? Are they here for me or for money or what?”
“I didn’t smell any lies on them. We’re checking into their background, just to be sure. They seem to be the real deal. But I think we should be cautious until we know more. I know you’re excited about having a sister, but I’ll be damned if anyone else hurts you on my watch.”
“I trust your nose and we’ll wait and see. Who are all these people?” She looked around his body at all the faces.
“Jack’s people. He ran downstairs for a moment, he’ll be right back.”
“Good thing I got out of bed then.” She laughed, letting his presence comfort her.
He took her hand, kissing her fingertips. “I love it when you do that.”
“Do what? Get all tingly ’cause you’re putting the moves on me?”
He laughed, taking the tingles to a whole new level. “Well that too. I mean using the link, letting it help you. You used to hesitate.”
“I know. I’m working on it. I believe in it, I trust it. But sometimes it’s hard. I’m sorry if that hurts you.”
“It’s your way.” He shrugged. “And before last night I understood and respected it. Now I understand a lot more.”
“I can’t talk about that right now.” She scrubbed her hands down the front of her jeans, feeling dirty again.
“Whenever you’re ready, I’ll be here. Or if you want to talk to someone else, that’s fine too. We’ll get you whatever you need.” He kissed the top of her head. “You sure you don’t want to go back and lie down?”
“These people are important to Jack, so they’re important to me too.” Wow, wolves were a lot louder than cats. So much laughter and talking and they were all huge.
“Get something to eat. I put a plate for you in the oven.” Galen took her hand and led her into the kitchen. She poured herself some coffee and looked around at her living room.
Galen put the plate on the counter and she smiled gratefully. “You went to the Mercado?” Her favorites heaped on the plate. Beans, fresh tortillas and eggs scrambled with chorizo and potatoes.
“Of course I did. Now eat.”
Jack walked through the door, holding some boxes. He grinned at a group of men, tossing them the boxes. “Let’s get this show on the road.” She liked the way they responded to him, liked knowing he had people who loved him in his life.
He turned. “Hey, there you are.”
She smiled and waved.
“Everyone, this is Renee.” He moved to her side, hugging her. “Good to see you eating, sweetheart,” he murmured briefly. “Grace and Cade couldn’t be here this morning. They send their apologies and say they’ll see us tomorrow night.” He introduced her to the others, who all treated her with genuine friendliness.
Still, she was relieved when they all began to leave to get the move done.
“I’ll see you both in a little while.” She tiptoed up and kissed Jack and turned to Galen who shook his head at her. “What?”
Jack sighed. “He’s not going anywhere. You think we’d leave you alone? After what happened last night?”
“Fine. Then I’ll come too. I can help.”
Galen shook his head. “Babe, he’s got a dozen giant werewolves to help him with that. Your aunt and sister should be here shortly anyway.”
“I hate being managed.”
“I know. We’ll be back in a bit.” Jack kissed her quickly and headed out, ignoring the wrath of her frown.
“We’re protecting you. Get that look off your face.” Galen took her plate to the table and pulled the chair out for good measure. “Sit your pretty behind down and finish eating.”
She would have glowered but, but, but chorizo. How could a woman resist handmade tortillas and chorizo in eggs? She was only human after all. She even liked that he pulled her chair out, not that he’d be able to get around her all the time by being all cute and stuff.
“Why didn’t you ever tell me about what Susan did to you? Does your father know?” Galen sat as close to her as he could and still allow her to eat. She knew he needed the contact, she did too.
“Everyone has a bad childhood, Galen.”
“Bullshit. I didn’t. It’s more than that and you know it. She abused you, mentally and physically. Does your father know?” The wash of his anger rolled over her, strangely comforting.
“He was gone a lot when I was growing up. She didn’t have to marry a man with a kid. It was a huge job for her when she took me on. I wasn’t easy to deal with. She didn’t know how to process the magic stuff. She was trying to help in her own way.” Mechanically, she kept eating, but it fell to her stomach like a rock.
“Why are you making excuses for her? She hurt you! It makes me want to rip her throat out. How can you be so calm?”
She stood, knocking her chair to the floor. “It’s either that or let it hurt me more! Do you think I wanted that? I tried. I tried so hard to be what she wanted. Nothing I did was enough. I can either move on, or I can obsess about something I can’t change. To what end?”
He stood, hugging her. “I’m sorry. I can still hear your sobs. Every time I close my eyes I see that closet. It tears me apart to know you endured that. To know I’ve had dinner with those people after all they did to you.”
“This is why I didn’t tell you. I don’t want to burden you with this stuff. It’s over. Past. You’re my now, my future, my everything.”
“And yet, you were in that closet last night, hiding. Do I scare you like that? Does Jack?”
She cupped his cheeks. “No. It was just, I don’t know. I was upset. It was stupid. I just...old habit I guess.”
The doorbell rang. “That’ll be your aunt and sister. I’m staying in the room. We don’t know these people, Renee.”
No shit. She nodded, agreeing.
“Max is running a background check today. Until we know more, I think we should keep our guard up.”
“Galen?” she called out as he neared the hallway.
He turned.
“I love you. You make me feel safe. Last night had nothing to do with you at all.” She wanted to say it though she hoped he knew it anyway.
The smile he gave her smoothed away his frown lines and made her all warm again. “I love you too. And we’re going to get naked and sweaty this afternoon when everyone is gone.”
“I’m going to hold you to that.”
Renee blinked, feeling caught between memory and the present, when her aunt came through the door. “You look just like her.” Wonder warred with nervousness.
Her aunt laughed, rushing forward with open arms. Galen sprang into action, ready to knock the woman away if she proved to be a threat. It was sweet really, but unnecessary. This woman was part of her. Even if she hadn’t shared any resemblance with Renee’s mother, she’d have known they were connected. She didn’t know how or why, but she knew it just the same.
“I can’t believe we finally found you. I’m Rosemary, your mom’s older sister.” She took the hand of the woman standing behind her, pulling her forward. “This is your older sister, Kendra.”
Renee didn’t know what to do. She couldn’t stop staring. Tears burned her throat, anger churned in her gut, confusion ruling everywhere else.
“Look at you. It’s been decades since I’ve seen you, and even then it was when you were a baby and a toddler. And yet, I’ve known you all your life.” Kendra hugged Renee, who gave over to tears. She wanted it to be true so much she didn’t trust her feelings. The chaos of the last week had knocked her off balance in a way she hadn’t experienced in a very long time.
In the background, Galen’s phone rang, “Imperial March” from Star Wars. His brother’s ringtone.
“Please, come and sit down. Would you like some coffee? A smoothie? I got some blueberries at the farmer’s market a few days ago.” She moved from foot to foot.
“Please, it’s okay. We’re here to see you. We’ve wanted to so long. You look better, I’m glad you got some rest,” Rosemary said, patting her arm and leading her toward the seating area.
“I’ll bring you all some juice and a carafe of coffee,” Galen called out.
“He’s not hard to look at. How long have you two been together?” Kendra asked.
“Four years. He’s the only person in my life who has always been there when I needed him. So you must understand this isn’t personal, I am beyond excited to know I have other family out in the world. A sister. Oh my God.” She took a deep breath. “I need to know, why now? Why are you here now?” She twisted her fingers together. “I’m sorry. I know it sounds rude, I guess it is rude. But my mother’s been dead twenty years now. My father told me he tried to contact her family when she died but none of them cared to have contact. He certainly never told me I had a sister.”
Galen put a tray on the table between the couches and poured her a glass of juice she’d made just yesterday. Yesterday when she thought she was overwhelmed. Before someone tried to steal her mind and before her aunt showed up out of the blue.
Rosemary frowned, bristling with anger. “I can’t speak to what your father said or did, but I can tell you what it is from my perspective. Your mother came to me thirty years ago. She had a baby, she was scared, worried for its safety. She begged me to keep her and raise her. Kendra was a week old. I tried to get your mom to stay, to call the police, to hone her magic enough to protect herself, but she was convinced the best thing to do was run. So she did.”
Renee crossed her arms across her stomach, nauseated. “Why?” She turned to Kendra. “Do we share the same father? Does he know?”
Rosemary answered, “Your mom met your dad when she was young. Away from home at school. She...she was sheltered in a way the rest of us weren’t. She was sick a lot as a kid, so my parents were overprotective.”
Despite her best efforts, Renee’s foot started to bounce, a nervous tic. “I remember her. I was seven. I remember her voice. I remember the way it felt when she brushed my hair and when she whispered to me to keep my gifts secret. I remember she didn’t come home and the police came to the door. Yesterday I remembered her death as something accidental. That’s not true, is it?” Galen pressed the juice into her grasp and she drank it, needing something to do with her hands and taking the comfort he offered. Her aunt and sister had some coffee and began to nibble on some coffee cake Renee couldn’t remember making.
“Yes. Or, no, she didn’t die from an accident. She was killed in a mall shooting. Or that’s the official report. Yes, he’s my father too and yes he knew.” Kendra’s voice was small, filled with the emotion of a girl who’d been forgotten or ignored. Empathy poured from Renee; she knew what that was too.
A chill passed over her heart. Galen put an arm around her, kissing her temple.
“You say it like you don’t believe it was what happened. Why?”
“I don’t know what happened. Just what the report says. I have my own reasons for doubting much of what I’ve been told by your father and others.” Rosemary crossed her arms over her chest, closing her body language.
Kendra reached out and squeezed Renee’s hand. “We can talk about all that later. We’re not here to make you mad at your, um, our father.”
Renee shook her head. “I don’t understand! He knew? He knew she tossed you away and came back to have me? He never said anything? Never wondered where you were? Never told me? Why would he do that? Why can’t I remember everything?”
“I don’t like your father, but I don’t know the whys and I don’t want to put you in the middle. We just want to know you.” Rosemary heaved a sigh. “We saw part of your memories last night, Renee.”
“As for Susan, okay then, so you know it wasn’t a picnic, being her stepdaughter. But I turned out just fine. She did the best she could. But my father is another story. Why would he abandon a child?”
“More than the horrible treatment by your stepmother, I saw places in your memory that were smooth as glass. Memory is like landscape, it’s rarely flat. Something or more likely, someone, did that to you. I don’t know what. I may know someone who’d have more answers though. I called and left a message. As for your mother leaving Kendra? She never told me what the story was. I asked her, many times, but she would get agitated, fearful, if I pressed too hard. The important thing was that she’d brought Kendra to me where she’d be safe. I figured he had threatened her or the baby and she ran. I didn’t know she’d gone back to him for three years. When she had you, I got an announcement in the mail. She called from time to time, came to visit once a year but was always nervous.”
“And when I was ten, she never came again. No calls, no letters.” Kendra’s lips trembled.
None of this made sense, damn it.
“Finally, frantic with worry, I called the house and he, your father, answered. I’d met him a few times. He made it clear he didn’t think I was a good influence on your mother. Anyway, he hung up on me. But I knew something was wrong. Kendra’s birthday had passed with no contact.”
Renee noticed Kendra had some of the same physical tics she did. The finger twisting, the one-shoulder shrug. Odd and comforting all at once. “Each birthday she sent me a new spell. We’d work on it when she came to visit in the spring. She didn’t even call.”
“My brother, your uncle Bill, he finally called the police station in Goleta and got the news that Karen had been murdered. Bill called Andrew back, thinking perhaps your dad would talk to him, but your dad refused to let us see you or to come to the funeral. We showed up anyway, I left Kendra with my mother because we didn’t know what would happen and it was obvious your father didn’t know about her. He had us thrown out.”
Grandparents? Uncles?
“We got an attorney to work through the proper channels so that we could visit with you. And then you disappeared. He was supposed to go to a hearing and he never showed. His attorneys protected him at first, and then I think he ran from them too. We never stopped looking. Is he here? In Boston?”
“I have an uncle? Grandparents? I don’t understand. Why would he do this? Why would he keep me from you?” It felt as if they all spoke another language. Nothing they said made any fucking sense.
“I have no idea other than his dislike. There were signs, with your mother I mean, that he hurt her, controlled her. But she never said so for sure.”
Renee put her face in her hands, hunched over, reeling. What the fuck? Her father wasn’t the most affectionate man ever, but he loved her. He’d married Susan to give Renee a mother figure. He’d tried. They’d moved all the way from...where? She pressed her fingertips into her temples. Memories slipped from her grasp as she tried to keep things straight.
Galen leaned down, putting his arms around her. “Babe, you don’t have to solve all this now. We’ll take it one step at a time. Max says Rosemary Kellogg is legit. She’s lived in a far suburb of Nashville for thirty-five years. Your sister has been married and divorced. Her last name has never been Parcell. She’s a—”
Kendra interrupted. “I can tell you all this if you just ask. Your name wasn’t Parcell either. Not until you came to Boston. Your real last name is Langley. Our father’s real name is Christopher Langley. Our mother’s name was Karen, not Cindy.”
“I won’t apologize for making every effort I can to protect my wife.” Galen looked so fierce just then she found it comforting and stupidly sexy too.
Letting the details she’d been given sink in, she bit into her bottom lip. The story got worse and worse. She needed to hear the rest, but she was afraid of what would come next.
“Okay then, Kendra, what else?” she asked, knowing Galen would correct any lies or omissions.
“I’m a third-grade teacher. I was married for three years to a man who could not deal with who I am. As far as you and I go, I’ve wanted to know you my whole life. Mom used to let me hold you. We played together some when you were five and six. I used to write you these long letters, but we never knew where you were to send them. You have an entire family who’s missed you every day for the last two decades. More than that, since you were born.”
Renee scrubbed her hands through her hair, knowing she sent curls all over the place.
“I know this is a whole lot to take in at once and please believe me when I tell you we didn’t want our introduction to you to be this way. At the same time, thank the heavens we were here to help last night. Will you let me check you over for any lasting effects? The magic he used on you is dirty, we want to be sure you’re all clear of it,” Rosemary said.
Renee didn’t know why she trusted them, she just did. Maybe she missed her mother so much she lost touch with her common sense, but she had no fear of these two women. “All right.”
Galen hovered, watching every move Rosemary made. Renee had been through enough and he’d do everything in his power to make sure no one ever hurt her again. He didn’t smell lies on either woman, but his gut told him they were telling the truth anyway. What Max had uncovered said the same thing. Still, Galen had been practicing law long enough to see people flat-out lie even when they look like they’re telling the truth on every level.
However, if they made one move to hurt her in any way, he’d kill them both and no one would ever find the bodies. He’d had enough of this threat to her.
He watched Rosemary work, saw the way her magic fit with Renee’s. There was simply no doubt in his mind that these women were who they claimed to be. He hadn’t mentioned it to her yet, but Max was looking into Renee’s father and any record of their past as a family before they moved to Boston.
That was the key. Why did Andrew Parcell stop any of his dead wife’s relatives from seeing Renee when they’d wanted to so badly? Why had Kendra been turned over but not Renee? After living through the memories she’d nearly drowned in the night before, he had no positive feelings for either Parcell. Langley? The sheer amount of lies piling on top of lies lay heavily on his heart. This would hurt Renee and he couldn’t protect her from that sort of heartbreak. She had to know the truth, but he knew quite plainly that the truth would harm her.
“You’re fine. He’s gone and there’s no trace of his presence. We went through the neighborhood and around your yard.” Kendra held up a drawstring bag of some sort. “We found some evidence that barter magic had been used. We cleared the spots and laid some warding around the perimeter. You really should have done that when you moved in.”
An ache sliced through their link. Loss. Confusion.
“I-I don’t know how.”
“Renee was raised to believe her magic was unnatural and wrong. No one ever taught her anything but shame.” Galen said it around his cat, who was far less patient than the man when it came to their woman.
“That’s not fair. He didn’t know what to do with me.” Renee’s hands went into action again, flying up in her defense. But it was half-hearted at best. She knew there was something very wrong going on.
He leaned over to kiss her. “It may not be fair, but it’s true. He didn’t do enough for you, Renee. We don’t know the whys just yet, but the facts are the facts.”
She sighed heavily.
“You never...” Rosemary’s sentence broke off as she shook her head. “All right then. That’s all right. You can learn. If you’ll allow it, Kendra and I would love to teach you, train you to use your gifts. It would be my honor if you’d allow it. Your mother had a gift with green things and healing. She used to make teas and jams and all sorts of things for every imaginable ailment or situation.” Rosemary smiled. “Are you perhaps a nurse or something like that?”
“I run a smoothie and coffee cart. I rent space from Susan, my stepmother.”
Galen wasn’t going to allow her to hide her light under a bushel. “And you make tea for people all the time too. You have all these custom teas and smoothies. You know when people are coming down with something.” Galen liked this. He’d always known she was a nurturing person, but hearing this made it clear to her too, hopefully.
A bunch of noise sounded from the street. “Jack and his friends have arrived I think.” Renee stood. “I need to put together a meal.”
“Can we help?” Kendra asked.
Renee nodded and the ache in Galen’s heart eased a little as he saw the way the sisters leaned their heads together as they worked and spoke in the kitchen.
“Looks like they’re getting along well,” Jack said as he finished installing the hardware to hang a large, framed photograph on the wall in the outer hall. They’d gotten everything moved in and the others had left. He and Galen had given the women some space to get to know each other better, but both of them never let her out of earshot.
Galen nodded, looking around the corner at the women and then back to where they’d been working. “We’ve been meaning to decorate this area out here and we got as far as paint and that’s about it. And yes. They came along when she needed them most.”
Jack liked how each bit of his stuff they added to the space made him feel more at home. Clothes would need to be dealt with, but Renee had taken that over as she and her relatives had efficiently handled everything.
He lowered his voice, assured Galen would hear and insuring that Renee wouldn’t. “To be honest, I think some of my friends weren’t sure if they’d like her or not. By the time the last one left I heard nothing but positive things about her. She’s recovering from last night and having her aunt and sister here are all to the good as far as I’m concerned. At least she’s here and sort of resting. If not, I have the feeling she’d want to be out and about, getting into trouble. Now, what are we going to do about the father and stepmother?”
“If we could just kill them and eat them, things would be way easier all around. Kidding. Sort of. She’ll want to hear his side of this situation. She loves him. I wasn’t surprised by the memories of Susan, but I have to admit I hadn’t really thought Andrew capable of any of this. He’s distracted and doesn’t stand up for Renee like he should, but all this other stuff puzzles me. His name isn’t Parcell. Not the one he was born with anyway. My brother can’t find any records of his existence before they moved here to Boston. He’s running checks with the new name now.”
Jack put the hammer back in the toolbox. “Why doesn’t Renee remember that? She was seven when her mother died. And they said murder! Had Renee ever mentioned that? Name changing or that her mother was murdered? I’d just gotten the impression it was a car accident or something.”
“Earlier today Rosemary said she believes Renee’s memory has been altered. She’s got a friend looking into it.” Galen reached out and slid a palm up Jack’s neck, his eyes half-closed for a moment before he leaned in and kissed Jack’s lips.
Slow and sexy, Jack let himself fall into that kiss, taking Galen’s kiss into his body, letting the simmer of their attraction heat into something more urgent.
Galen broke the kiss and stepped back with a sexy, smug look. “Sorry. I couldn’t resist.”
“Don’t. Don’t resist. If we didn’t have company I’d have your pants open and your cock out.”
They touched foreheads a moment, letting that intimacy between them settle before resuming their work. Jack wasn’t just moving into their house, not just into a relationship with Renee, but with Galen too.
“I like the way you taste, Jack.” Galen winked as he held the shelf in place for Jack to screw to the wall. “Back to the memory thing a second. Here’s why I find myself having a hard time with this. Renee seems flighty on the outside, but she’s amazingly detail oriented. She remembers the tiniest of things. Just a heads-up, she will kick your ass in an argument if you change your story.” Galen laughed.
“Sometimes severe abuse can cause memory issues. If that’s the case, well, we’ll have to take care of it.” Jack locked his jaw against the rest of what he wanted to say. She didn’t need the stress of his upset, but her abuse made him want to kill. When he met Galen’s gaze again, he knew he wasn’t the only one.
Galen liked the fierce look on Jack’s face, a look they shared there on the landing. The night before they’d both been scared to death, but they’d stuck together and they’d survived it. Not the ideal or usual way to start a relationship, but they were all far from usual anyway. Jack would die to protect Renee, that was the most important thing.
Galen and Jack puttered around, fixing things, putting things away, listening to music and falling into their new lives together. Sometime after ten, Rosemary and Kendra left with hugs and promises to meet the following day.
Her energy was good, her color better and best of all, the sparkle was back in her eyes. She was happy. Galen felt it through their link and saw it in her movements. She deserved it.
He pulled her into his arms, kissing her soundly.
“You taste like Jack.” She licked her lips with a smile and then turned to Jack. “Come here and let me see if you taste like him.”
Jack’s heat met hers, and Galen held his place, putting an arm around Jack as he leaned in to kiss Renee. She arched, her nails digging into Galen’s side as she broke off with a sigh. “Mmmm. Yes, you do. You both taste so good on the other’s lips.”
He wasn’t sure what he’d thought she would say, but that nearly drove him to his knees.
Galen licked up her neck. “I think the same. Before we end up naked and fucking, finish telling us about Rosemary and your sister.”
Neither male let her go, both holding her to them and to each other too. She drew their energy in, Galen felt her draw upon it, let herself accept that link between them. He smiled against her temple as he pressed a kiss there.
“Rosemary called my father. She wants to meet with my dad. Goodness knows how that’s going to go.” She shrugged. “He’s my father, I just can’t imagine him deliberately hurting me. But none of this is logical at all. I can’t understand why he wouldn’t let them see me. Who was my mother really? Are my memories even real? Do you know what that’s like? I’ve always thought the same thing about her. She’s my mother, she died when I was young. My dad, a grieving widower, heads east to make a new life, remarries, yadda yadda. Now it turns out it’s not true. Or it is and he’s not telling me something for some reason. I just don’t know.”
“Whatever you need, we’ll make it happen.” Jack kissed her forehead. “We’ll work it out. We just want you happy and safe. As for happy, you’ve made me that way. Thank you for putting my clothes away. You know you didn’t have to. The little stuff pleases me, I can’t help it.”
Her laugh was soft, echoing through Galen where he’d pressed to her.
“I liked it. Touching your things. Loved the way your scent clung to the fabric. It felt like each thing I put away was another step you took into our life. I like you here, in our lives, in our house. Making our own family.”
“Wow, that was pretty fabulous as compliments and love words go. Thank you.” Jack kissed her and then Galen.