Bear's Gold (Erotic Shifter Fairy Tales) (8 page)

“Oh, thank you.” She crossed the
concrete floor and gave the old burly man a tight hug.

“Don’t get all excited yet. I can’t
make any promises.”

“I understand. I don’t need it like
new, just drivable.” She stepped away and smiled.

“If I need to contact you, where can
I reach you?”

“My house.”Theo’s voice was clear
and firm.

Riley glanced at the man who’d showed
her unrestrained passion as she’d never experienced. The hair on her body
seemed to stand up and the heat she’d been feeling around him last night was
simmering once again. She swallowed. “Maybe I can find someone in town that is
renting a room.”

“Doubtful.” Jack tossed that out.
“We don’t get many outsiders in Den and we prefer to keep it that way. So we
don’t make provisions for them.”

Nervous, she licked her lips and
couldn’t help but see how Theo’s eyes darkened and even showed a tinge of gold
as they tracked her movement. A bead of sweat began to roll down between her
breasts.

“Um, I’m not sure if—”

“It will be fine.”

Did he just growl?
Riley’s breath seized in her
throat.

Theo blinked and looked away as he
shoved his hands deep into his back pockets. “Jack. Radio me when it’s done. We
have a few things to see about in town.”

When the beast of a man stormed away
with his two boys racing behind him to the truck. Riley sighed. She knew there
wasn’t much choice for her in this situation. Glancing at Jack who seemed to be
shifting his gaze between Theo's stiff back and her, she gave the older man a
weak grin.

“I need to get at least one suitcase
from the trunk.”

“No, problem.” Jack walked to the
rear of the car with her.

Once she used her key to open the
trunk, Jack asked, “Which bag?”

“The smaller one.” Her back seat and
trunk were all filled with suitcases and boxes of her important things. Mostly
just her clothes, family pictures, important documents, and a few knickknacks
from her travels and that was it. The substance of her twenty-seven years of
life fit into the trunk of a car.

Jack reached in and pulled out the
bag she indicated. Moving to the truck, he handed it to Theo who took it out of
his hand and went to the bed of the pick-up.

Opening the front side door, she
took out the spare key from her glove compartment. It was the key Fred
originally had when they were dating that she had slipped from his keychain one
night while he was drunk and passed out before the TV.

“Thanks again, Jack.” Riley
approached the mechanic and handed him the spare.

“You’re welcome. I’ll do my best. I
can’t make promises on time though.”

“I understand.” Riley moved to the
truck, where Theo was holding the door open for her to get in on the passenger
side. The boys were already in the cab chattering away.

“I’ll park in town by the sheriff’s
office.” Theo slid behind the wheel and started up the engine of the big truck.

There wasn’t much for her to say.
Here she was stuck in this town for the next, God only knew, how many days with
the sexy, virile man beside her. Thank goodness for his two sons that could act
as a buffer and make it easier for her to keep her hormones in check.

What about last night?
her mind taunted.

Last night had been different, she
hadn’t met the boys. Now, she had and she could keep everything in perspective.

A few moments later, after driving
down a road with a variety of stores and businesses, they pulled into a parking
lot behind a brown brick building. They all got out and walked along the side
street until they got to the front and on the main street. She looked up to the
sign and read PAW TRACKS STREET.

“This is the main road through the
center of town. I’ll take you around after we finish.” Theo moved them to the
front door that had 'Den County Sherriff’s Office' stenciled on the glass.

“I don’t want to hold you up if you
need to get to work or the boys to daycare. I can wander around and you can
meet me somewhere later.” She passed by him as he held the door open, making
sure no part of her body touched his.

 “No work this week, because of the
festival. Most places will be closed tomorrow with only those things pertinent
to the family activities still open.” Theo stepped into the large area, the gap
between them becoming smaller. “Besides, you’re under my protection until you
can get out of town.”

She could smell the robust woodsy
scent that always surrounded him. It was making her warmer and her mouth
parched. She swallowed and lifted her chin to meet his dark gaze, instead of
stepping back like she wanted to, but she didn’t want Theo to know she was
uncomfortable. “I don’t need anyone to protect me. I’m a grown woman. I can do
that all by myself.”

He only tilted his head, but to her
it seemed as if he’d moved closer to her somehow. “You’re all woman. That’s
right.” He paused as if allowing her to remember how much of a woman he’d made
her feel the night before. Those golden flecks were back in his coal black eyes
when he said, “But I also recall how petrified you were when you thought
something was after you when you arrived at my house.”

The fact that he’d nailed her
insecurity with his words was like someone dropping an ice cube down her
blouse; she reared back and stepped away from him. “I was slightly shaken up.
That’s all.”

Turning, she wanted to wipe the half
cocked smile off his mouth. The infuriating man was going to drive her crazy if
she had to be around him for twenty four hours, let alone anything longer.
Marching over to the woman sitting behind a receptionist desk who was giving
the boys a lollipop and chatting with them, Riley introduced herself.

“Well, welcome to Den County, Riley.
I’m Natasha Bearinger. You’ve come at an exciting time.” The dark-skinned black
woman with hair just as dark smiled and was practical dancing in her seat.

The woman was dressed in a suit
instead of a uniform as Riley would have expected.

 “So I’ve heard.” Riley looked
around the front area, which looked more like that of a medical office with the
only other furniture two short couches facing each other with a coffee table in
the center. There was only one other door in the room, closed. It had 'Sheriff;
on it.

“She won’t be here that long,
Natasha,” Theo told the receptionist.

Facing the other woman, Riley said,
“Speaking of that. You all wouldn’t happen to have a cell with a comfortable
bed and three square meals, would you?”

“Gracious, no. Who would need that?”
Natasha’s light brown eyes were wide and her mouth gaped in shock.

That gave Riley pause. Why would a
woman that worked in a sheriff’s office be shocked by a cell? “Um, me. I seem
to be in need of a place to stay since you all don’t have any hotels around
here.”

 Natasha shifted her gaze to Theo’s
as if looking for some type of explanation.

“We don’t have cells in Den County,
Riley, and you’re already staying with me.” Theo’s voice was firm, not leaving
space for any argument.

Deciding to save the battle for
another time, she turned back to the woman. Unlike most receptionists’ desk,
there was nothing but an open file folder on the woman’s desk and behind her on
a smaller desk was a silver CB radio. The radio made an occasional low
crackling sound in between the murmuring of voices. Discussion that Riley could
not clearly hear from where she stood.

“I was told you all have a phone
here.”

“We do. It is in the Sherriff’s
office. He’s out right now, but I’m sure he wouldn’t have a problem with you
using it.” Pushing her chair back, Natasha crossed the floor and directed Riley
to follow her.

Entering the large office after the
other woman, Riley took in what she saw. It was like a mini court room. On one
side was a tall judge's bench, a witness seat adjacent to it, two small desks,
with chairs behind them and one long bench seat along the far wall.  The other
side of the room where Natasha was now standing, had a standard oak desk with
papers and other material on top of it with another radio, this one playing a
little louder. Riley actually could make out a conversation of a woman checking
on an order of dresses for her daughter who would be having ‘first outing’ at
the festival on Friday. The woman chattered on about how time flew and how it
seemed as if the girl had just been born yesterday, but it was actually twenty-two
years ago.

“Here’s the phone. Feel free to call
where you need to.” Natasha pointed at a black phone in the corner behind the
desk on an end table.

“Thank you. I shouldn’t be long.”
Riley stood next to the phone and waited for the other woman to leave.

Smiling, Natasha turned the radio down.
“It’s Sheriff’s job to stay abreast on what goes on in the county.”

Few moments later, Natasha pulled
the door closed behind her and left Riley with privacy.

Reaching for the phone, Riley
brushed off the dust that had gathered on the receiver from lack of use. She
then dialed the only person who knew that she was out traveling the road, her
brother. “Danny.”

“Hey, Riley…I thought you’d be here
today.” Danny paused for a moment. “Where are you calling from? I don’t have
this number in my cell.”

It felt so good to hear a familiar
voice. Her brother had always been her anchor in life; she almost wanted to
weep. Taking a breath, she pulled herself together, because she didn’t want her
brother to worry. Besides she wasn’t actually in any danger. Well, as long as
she didn’t consider danger of her own hormones running wild again.

“Actually, I should have gotten in
last night. I had decided to drive straight through. I’m in a little town about
three hours or so from our hometown.”

“What are you doing there?” 

Riley could hear the machines in the
distance from the factory where her brother and a lot of men in Sans Town
worked.

“I had an accident—”

“What? Are you hurt?”

Riley rushed on. “No, no, nothing
like that. Just my car needs some repair work.”

“Oh, okay.” The relief in her
brother’s voice could be heard through the phone. You still planning to move
home?”

“Yeah. It will just take me a few
more days than I hoped.” She twirled the cord around her finger as she leaned
her back against the wall.

“How bad was your car banged up?”

“Tire, light, radiator…front end,
not much.”

 “That sounds like much, Riley. A
front end. You sure you're okay?”

She exhaled. “Yes. I’m good. No
worries. You should see the tree.” She tried to make light of it.

“You want me to come and pick you
up? We could go back in a few days to get your car.”

She tapped her foot on the floor and
stared across the office to the door leading to the sexy, but determined male
in the front room and his two adorable boys. Leaving with her brother would solve
one of her problems, keeping her distance from Theo. However, it would also
inconvenience her brother. He’d have to take off from work to come get her
during the day. Not to mention their parents would probably get wind that she
was coming home, by way of her brother’s wife, Molly. Molly and Riley’s mom
were very much alike and very close. Same reason Riley hadn’t called her older
sister, Stevie.

“No. I’ll be fine here for a couple
more days. The people are nice.”

“Well, keep me posted. I don’t mind
coming to get you. I have plenty of vacation days I can use.” Danny assured
her.

“I will. Look, my cell can’t catch a
signal very well around all these trees, so I’ll call you each day.”

“Make sure you do. I’d hate to have
to come and track you down, just to find you picked up a job and decided to
stay.”

Riley let out a little laugh, but
her brother’s words stung. It was how her family viewed her. The flighty child.
One that was always prone to pick up roots and start a life somewhere else in a
blink of an eye. It was true that she traveled a lot after college and rarely
stayed at one center longer than a year, but she didn’t think she was that bad.
She just wanted to find a place that felt like
home
to her. Sans Town
never felt that way to her.

“Got it. Look, I’m on someone else’s
phone, and I don’t want to hold up the line.” Like that was an issue.

“Okay. I love you, squirt.”

“You too, my big brother.”

Hanging up, Riley pressed her head
back against the wall. She pondered the same question that had weighed on her
mind for the last two weeks since she’d decided to move back home.
Was this
really what you wanted to do?

However, she always arrived at the
same conclusion; she had no other choice. If she returned to Oregon, she would
have to continue to live her life looking over her shoulder for Fred. Without a
job anywhere else, she was at a loss. There was only so much money in her
savings account since her dastardly ex had been ciphering from it behind her
back. So, just finding another place to live until she found work, her usual
M.O., was not an option this time.