Shifting Positions (3 page)

Ruth’s eyes narrowed in a rare display of temper “What happened between your father and me was no different than a divorce between two full-blooded humans. He also didn’t leave me high and dry, Tess, and you know it. He paid child support and alimony and helped out whenever needed. You and Kaylie saw him two weeks every year in the summer and he always remembered birthdays and Christmas.” She pointed a finger at her daughter.. “It was different with your father and me. You can do the math, Tess. I was pregnant before we got married. He didn’t have to tie himself to me. That’s not their way, but he did the honorable thing and we made the most of what we had.” She clenched her hands into fists and laid them over her heart.

“You take what you’re given and run with it. If I had turned my back on the chance with your father, than, yes, I would have you, but I wouldn’t have Kaylie. And as much as you two nitter at each other, I would never wish that.”

Feeling like a petulant child - no one laid guilt with so much subtle panache as her mother - Tess kicked a leg of the dresser. “Yeah, well I don’t want to be taken care of. I can do that myself and have done so for a long time now.”

“But you’re not happy.” It wasn’t a question.

“I…” Tess dragged her hands through her dark blonde hair. “I don’t know what I am.”

“He could make you happy if you gave it a chance.”

There was that word again. Chance. And dating a shifter was a chance she was not going to take. The repercussions went against everything she’d fought for. She placed her hands on her hips and faced her mom. “He’d have me popping out kids left and right. How is that supposed to make me happy?”

“Then I guess it’s the wrong time to tell you that wolves are fabulous lovers,” Ruth said unrepentantly and with a sly twitch to her lips.

“Mom!”

Her mother let out a bubble of laughter. . “Oh Tess, honey. Marriage, even to a wolf, is more than having babies. And babies are a blessing, not something to fear or regret. Besides.” Ruth dropped her eyes, hiding the sparkling mischief in them as she ran a hand slowly over the bed cover in a feeble manner. “I would like to hold my grandchild before I die.” Tess pointed a finger at the wily woman. “Don’t start. It won’t work.” Once again using silence as a weapon, Ruth kept her face averted even as Tess came up to the bed and crouched down beside her. “Mom?”

“I’m not getting any younger you know.”

Tess picked up her mom’s hand, noting the dark spots and the ravages of arthritis. Her heart stuttered in her chest. Her mom had aged behind her back. The reality hit hard and fast.

“Are you worried about the surgery?”

Ruth shrugged. “The doctors will be going into my femoral artery, through my body and into my brain. What’s not to worry about?”

Tears prickled Tess’s eyes. She wrapped her arms around her mom and hugged her close, pressing her check to the older woman’s hair. “It will be all right. I love you.”

“I love you too,” Ruth said, hugging her daughter back.

Wednesday morning broke much too soon and much too cold. After a quick shower and brief check to make sure her mom was up and ready to go, Tess stumbled outside to warm up her truck.

As the sun had yet to climb over the mountain peaks, and still half-asleep despite the two cups of coffee she’d downed, it took Tess a few moments to realize a large SUV sat idling behind her own vehicle. She felt her body go on full alert as Caleb strode toward her, decked in leg-hugging jeans and a dark brown long-sleeve pullover that molded over the muscles of his chest and arms. She frowned as her hormones succumbed to all that masculine potency striding her way. This would not do. Didn’t she have a serious talk with herself last night? And the day before? And the day before that? “What are you doing here?”

Caleb only raised a brow at the accusatory tone. “I’m your chauffer for the day. My truck is already warm and from the look of you, you aren’t awake enough for the hour drive to the hospital.”

When she only glared at him he added, “Just doing my duty to keep the roads safe, ma’am. What would people say if I, the town sheriff, allowed an inebriated woman to drive?” She remained immobile as he deftly plucked the two bags from her shoulders and stowed them in the rear of his Tahoe. “It’s not an hour away,” she grouched, “and I’m not inebriated.”

“Reflexes and comprehension are just as slow when you’re tired as when you’ve had a few drinks.” He touched a surprisingly warm finger to her cold cheek and lowered his voice. “I want to do this. And I’m not the only one.”

He looked over his shoulder and bewildered, Tess stepped aside his large frame to squint at an approaching vehicle. Recognizing the old orange truck as belonging to Jackie Reynolds, her mom’s best friend, she relaxed. Behind them came another pair of headlights, though the morning light was still too dim for Tess to make out who was in the second vehicle.

Cold but curiously at ease, she wrapped her arms around her middle for warmth and rocked back on her heels, right into a hard chest. Instantly she stiffened. Strong arms crossed over hers and pulled her gently back, enveloping her in Caleb’s enticing scent and sultry heat.

All too aware of the cozy picture they made, Tess attempted pull away. Caleb only tightened his hold. “Let go. People will think there’s something between us.”

“There
is
something between us.” His voice brushed over her like hot fudge, warm, thick and enticing. Lips nipped at her ear and his erection nudged her ass, turning her tummy to jelly.

A slow burn sparked through her and she clenched her thighs in reaction. “But right now I’m only keeping you warm. What were you thinking, coming out here without a coat?” Momentarily lured by the heat and rich male musk of desire, she snuggled in and closed her eyes, giving rein to his seductive touch and her own arousal. The urge to turn and curl in his arms grew exponentially. To give up all control and place her life in the hands of this gorgeous shifter whose arms wrapped her in a cocoon of warmth.

But she didn’t trust easily and her control was slipping to dangerously low levels. Then his thumbs slid under her sweater to idly caress bare flesh, and she inhaled deep, struggling to maintain that control.

Maybe non-existence levels was more apt.

Between worrying for her mom and this outrageous physical response to Caleb, the ability to mask her natural responses deteriorated with every passing day.

Knowing her camouflage of cool indifference was in danger of splintering wide open, she straightened. “I was thinking I was only going to start the truck, not entertain for an impromptu party.”

She felt his lips curve down in displeasure. “It’s not a party,” he drawled, his large hands gripping her hips and giving her a small shake. “It’s support. For your mom.” He placed a kiss on her temple with a tenderness that belied his irritation and made her knees wobble. “And for you.”

Tess frowned, not comprehending. She could take care of herself and her mom. What was the deal with people? She was just driving her mother to a hospital for God’s sake. Where her mom was having something akin to brain surgery. And where Tess would wait alone for hours. By herself. Alone with nothing but her terrified thoughts and endless worry.

The dots clicked together and she sagged into Caleb’s strong arms. God, she was an idiot, not to mention a world-class bitch. Maybe the years away had beaten it out of her, the compassion, the caring of a close-knit community. She’d thought it quaint remembrance at first and later figured she recalled Woodcliff through a child’s rosy outlook. At any rate, right now, standing in the dusky shadows created by the early hour while the cold air threatened to turn her face and hands blue, she realized it was neither. It simply was. The bonds of a small town that created deep affection between honest, hard-working people who looked out for one another, regardless of the day, night or distance.

Blinking back the confusing mix of tears that filled her eyes, she drew in a trembling breath. Caleb’s warm strength surrounded her, providing the support she craved, though she would have bitten of her tongue before she told him that.

By the time the Reynolds’ truck came to a halt in front of them, Tess managed to regain control over the unplanned near weep fest. The passenger window rolled down and Jackie stuck her head out, seemingly unaware of the soft, fat snowflakes that drifted gently from overhead.

With sixty-seven years behind her belt, Jackie Reynolds enjoyed life with an easy grace, confidence and a love to gossip. Her wild red hair offset intelligent bright blue eyes; eyes that didn’t miss Tess’s uncoated figure or Caleb’s possessive stance. The hold shouted to Jackie that the good sheriff wasn’t just keeping Tess warm, he was staking a claim. Nearly giddy at the idea of a budding romance for the daughter of her best friend, Jackie’s pixie face glowed behind the worry that pinched her features. “Oh good, you haven’t left yet. I was so afraid we’d miss you.”

“Perfect timing,” Caleb said, his chest rumbled at Tess’s back, the sensation somehow both soothing and arousing at the same time. “Tess was just getting her mom. And a coat, unless you want me to keep you warm.” The last was whispered in a low, husky tone for her ears only.

Tess’s eyes fluttered, concerns of being caught in his embrace drying up as more burning matters, such as the small hip move Caleb had just done which ground the hard ridge of his erection into her ass, reared up. Need spiked through her body, molten and aching, arousing her so much she could barely stand still. The damn wolf was making her stupid. Or was that her hormones? Or his pheromones? Either way she knew she was on the fast track to Frustration City, with no way to apply the brakes.

Silently cursing the science of chemistry, shifters and all men in general, she abruptly broke from Caleb’s hold and raced inside to gather her mom, a deep chuckle of smug male amusement following in her wake.

Twenty minutes later, Tess and her mother were ensconced in Caleb’s truck, with a convey behind them, traveling down the highway to the hospital.

The damn truck smelled like Caleb. It was making her edgy and she found herself thinking more about him, especially all that strength she’d felt under his clothes, rather than her mother’s upcoming surgery. Irritated at the carnal images, Tess looked over her shoulder at the long line of headlights for the millionth time and Caleb laughed. “Would you relax,
m`lupa
? This is normal.”

“Nothing about this is normal to me.” She scowled at his reflection in the rearview mirror. “What did you call me?”

He grinned. “
M`lupa
. It’s a term of affection roughly translated to ‘my she-wolf’.” Ruth twisted in her seat to glance back at Tess, the twinkle in her eyes unmistakable.

Tess sneered. “I am not your she-wolf, your mate or your anything. Do not call me that.” Caleb shrugged. “Yes, you are. Science doesn’t lie.”

Tess cursed him under her breath in difference to her mom’s presence, though Ruth looked as if she was enjoying herself. Now was not the time, but Tess would definitely give Caleb a piece of her mind on the way back home. On second thought, she would hitch a ride with Jackie and not deal with the arrogant shifter at all. Maybe ignoring him would make him go away, and just maybe this compelling need to be near him would disappear.

Right. And maybe the moon is made of cheese.

Tangled up in emotional and physical overload, Tess set about ignoring both Caleb and her mom as they chatted about all sorts of things and instead, concentrated on the passing scenery.

After awhile she forgot about the trail of vehicles and in fact nodded off in the warm interior of the truck. When Caleb pulled to a halt, she jerked upright, blinking as she tried to orient herself. Before she could gather her wits, Caleb had rounded the hood and was helping her mom onto the ground at the hospital entrance. At the sight, a little fissure of pleasure cracked through Tess’s protective walls and wrapped around her soul. Grumbling, she alighted and met her two traveling companions.

“I’ll go park while you take your mom in.”

Her first thought was to say something snarky, but her heart really wasn’t in it. “Thanks, Caleb.”

He just looked at her quizzically for a moment. Then he laid a gentle finger on her cheek and said, “I’ll find you.”

With her body thrumming from his simple touch, Tess trotted through the automatic door after her mom and stood by her side at the admittance desk. Within moments the doors slid open again and Tess watched in silent fascination as the foyer began to swell with people from Woodcliff.

At the receptionist’s obvious shock, Tess said, “They’re with us.” The woman blinked back sudden tears and laid both hands on her chest. “Oh. That just makes my heart happy to see. But I’d better show you the waiting room.” With a map in hand and a huge round of hugs and well wishes from everyone, Tess waved her mom off with tremulous smile. When her free hand was grasped by a very warm and large male hand, she glanced up in surprise.

“Where to,” Caleb asked reaching for the map.

Tess held the piece of paper away. “I’ve got it.”

Jackie came up and snatched the map out of Tess’s hand. “No, I’ve got it. The way you young people argue, your mom will be out of surgery before we even get to the waiting room and I for one have got to find a restroom.”

Rolling her eyes, Tess and at least twenty others followed Jackie and prepared to wait.

While Tess had had misgivings about so many people surrounding her at a stressful time, she was more than grateful for their presence four hours later when the doctor came out. Dr.

Willik’s eyes were concerned, her mouth pinched and, suddenly terrified, Tess unconsciously grabbed Caleb’s arm and squeezed.

“First of all,” Dr. Willik began as she crouched down in front of Tess, keeping her voice low, “I want to let you know that the surgery was a success and the aneurism has been filled.”

“But?”

“But, while on the operating table, Ruth had a stroke.” At Tess’s quickly indrawn breath, the doctor added, “we were able to administer the proper counteractive procedures right away, but we won’t know the effects of the stroke until your mom wakes up.” Tess gulped, unaware of Caleb’s supporting arm around her shoulder, and stared into the doctor’s tired eyes. “What does that mean?”