Six Months (35 page)

The Shifter collapsed to the floor with a nasty lump on his head and lost consciousness.

“I’m not defending him, but this is
his
blood on me, not mine. He just felt me up.”

Reno’s eyes sliced through the room like a sword. The skin on his neck and face turned red, and I suddenly remembered telling him about that incident I’d gone through as a kid. Instead of coming over and seeing if I was okay, he kicked the Shifter.

Over and over.

“He’s down,” Denver shouted, pulling Reno back by the arms. “Let me clean up this shit before the manager finds out and I get my ass fired.”

Reno didn’t hear him. He shoved Denver across the room and delivered another punishing kick, this time to the man’s groin.

This was too much violence for me to take and I got up and staggered toward the door, still intoxicated and dizzy.

“You okay?” Denver asked, taking my arm and swiping back my hair. I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror. My eyeliner was streaked and I had lipstick smeared across my face where I’d wiped the blood.

I rushed to the sink and wet a paper towel. “He’s going to flip out if he sees me like this,” I said, frantically wiping my face clean.

“See you like what?” I heard Maddox say from the doorway.

Denver held Reno in a viselike grip, struggling to pull him away from the unconscious Shifter.

“Let’s go home, Maddox.” I rushed toward the door with my head down.

Maddox stuck his arm out and blocked my exit. “Look at me.”

“I want to leave.”

“Look. At. Me.”

I lifted my head and his face relaxed. Maddox had a different look when he got pissed that was opposite from most men. He did this thing where he sucked on his front tooth, or sometimes he’d squint and rub his eye.

“Is this how you take care of your women?” Reno shouted.

Accused.

Provoked.

Holy smokes, this was going to get ugly
.

“Please, Maddox. I want you to take me home. I’m not hurt—this isn’t my blood.” I glanced down at the spatters on my shirt.

Maddox scratched his chin and looked at the pulp of a man lying on the floor. Then he flicked his eyes back to Reno and then to me.

“If I didn’t know better, I’d say you two know each other.” He hooked his finger beneath my collar and tugged me forward just a little bit. “You know him?”

I shook my head. Smart thing to do. Maddox was possessive and I’d rather he remain in the dark about my history with Reno.

“The bartender heard a ruckus and they both came in to help me out.”

His nostrils flared. “Just remember who you belong to,” he said in low words. “I treat you good.”

“You treat me so good that you left me drunk in a bar full of horny men. I feel special.”

He sighed hard and let go of the collar. “That’s just the alcohol talking, so I’ll let your sassy talk slide.”

Reno had started to say something when Denver interrupted, “You’re an asshole for the way you treat your pet. You didn’t even bother keeping an eye on where she went? This is a Shifter bar; you know assholes in here are fascinated with them. Word gets out on that kind of thing and men lose respect for a Shifter who can’t keep his own safe. I think it’s time for you to get out before I call the manager and explain what happened. Jake doesn’t like drama.”

Maddox pointed his finger. “Boy, you—”

“Don’t,” I pleaded, gripping his wrist. “Please,” I whispered. “Take me home.”

Maddox’s eyes softened and he tapped my nose with his finger before wrapping his arm around me.

I wanted to glance over my shoulder and get one last look at Reno. I’d never thought I would run into him again, and this was the worst way it could have possibly happened.

Seeing his explosive reaction made me realize he still cared about me. Or
did
. Reno would never respect me after this incident, not that I expected we’d get back together. But this solidified it.

Permanently.

Two weeks before Christmas, my life had returned to normal after the brawl at Howlers.
I hadn’t heard from Reno, and Maddox didn’t bring it up. He’d brought me home, cleaned me up, and sent me to bed. He’d also apologized for having left me alone in a Breed bar, which wasn’t always a safe place for a human to be in alone. Shifters were aggressive, but the vast majority of them would never put their hands on a woman. He said it wasn’t my fault—that no woman could do anything that deserved that kind of treatment.

I still slept in the front bedroom and nothing had changed in regards to our relationship. I kept him company and he put a roof over my head.

It wasn’t all bad. We laughed at old sitcoms and Maddox enjoyed reading me articles from the paper, making comments about human politics. Sometimes he’d tell stories about his younger days, and I began to see a gentler side of him. Deep down, Maddox was a gem, and I truly enjoyed his company.

One evening after sunset, Maddox led me into the kitchen and sat me down. The lights were off and only a pine-scented candle illuminated the room from the center of the table. Sometimes he liked to eat by candlelight. He often showed off his culinary skills by cooking stew, even though I didn’t care for the gamey meat he often used in it.

“What’s for dinner?”

He removed an object from the kitchen drawer and circled around behind me. “We’re skipping the meal unless you change your mind. Although, I’m hoping you change your mind. Do me a favor and close your eyes.”

I nervously shut my eyes, feeling his hand brush my hair away from the back of my neck.

“You should dye it the way it was. I liked it that way,” he murmured.

Something cold and hard touched the nape of my neck and I swallowed thickly.

“Hold still.”

Snip
.

My collar fell free and landed on my lap.

I clutched it in my hand and looked up. “What’s going on?”

He tugged at his beard and patted my head. “You’re a doll, but this isn’t going to work out. You’re too young for an old dog like me, and I got needs you’re clearly not going to be filling anytime soon.”

“Can we talk about the payment plan? I need time to find a job, Maddox. And a place to live. We have a contract and you can’t let me go.” I started to panic. “I’ve already cleared two thousand off my debt from the odd jobs you’ve given me—but I still can’t afford the rest.”

Maddox strolled around the chair and sat to my right. He laced his fingers together and blew out a short puff of breath, causing the candle to flicker. “We’re square.”

“Um, no we’re not.”

“April, there’s no way in hell you’ll ever be able to pay what you owe. My interest rates are too damn high for a human like you. It would take too long, and after spending time with you, I’d rather cut my ties. It’s just not going to feel right seeing you on any kind of level.”

“So that’s it? All this time I thought everything was fine.” Suddenly for some reason, I felt insulted. “Just because I won’t sleep with you? Are you really that shallow?”

“Are you really that naïve? How many Shifters do you think keep pets that don’t service them in the bedroom?”

“I’m not a service. I’m a person.”

“Yeah,” he murmured, resting his chin in his hand and staring at the candle. “This was just a business transaction, honey. I made a promise that it wouldn’t go that route, but it’s not easy. When you wear those little black shorts around the house before bed…
hell
. Sex with other women means I have to rent out a hotel room, and that’s not my scene. How do you expect me to sleep in my bed knowing you’re just a few doors down the hall? I toss at night, April. It’s hard on a man. You’re too damn ripe for the pickin’ and I can’t go on playing house anymore. I thought companionship was all I needed, but I was wrong. I need the whole package.”

“So you’re just going to throw me out on the street?”

“As far as I’m concerned, you don’t owe me a dime. You’re free.”

I let the words resonate.
Free
. Not just from Maddox, but from all the strings that held me to my past. The ones that had twisted my life into knots and kept me bound.

He cleared his throat. “You still want dinner? I can heat up a pan of lasagna or you can go pack your bags. You can have anything in your room, even though you haven’t let me buy you a damn thing.”

A tear rolled down my cheek. I’d hoped for this moment but never imagined how strangely fond I’d grown of Maddox. He played it off as if it were about the sex, but I knew him better than that. Somehow, I had crept inside his heart and he’d begun to care. I got up from my seat and stood behind him, slipping my arms around his neck.

“Thank you,” I whispered against his wavy hair. “No matter what anyone says, Maddox, you have a heart of gold.”

“Stay out of trouble, little girl. If any man puts his hands on you, then you come see me and I’ll take care of it. Stay away from lenders, you hear?”

I nodded against his shoulder.

“Go on,” he said in a soft voice, reaching around and patting my back. “Before I change my mind.”

And just like that, I was free.

***

After the incident at Howlers, Reno spent two weeks running a background check on Maddox, hoping to find something that would get him in trouble with the authorities. Only then would April be free, whether she wanted it or not. Why the hell would she become another man’s pet? The thought twisted into a painful knot in Reno’s mind as he thought about the two of them having sex.

Reno had come close to shooting Maddox’s animal, but Denver had come out and dragged him back inside the bar, leaving Maddox to shift back and get dressed. Reno had gone into the men’s room to cool off when he heard a ruckus coming from the adjacent bathroom. When he saw April on the floor, something dark had not only splintered
his
heart, but his animal’s heart as well. Reno’s wolf had thrashed at his skin to come out, and he’d fought hard to keep him tethered. Murder would not only lead to his arrest by the higher authority, but it would shame his pack if it couldn’t be justified. The odds were against him since Breed establishments were neutral ground with strict rules.

And murder was exactly what would have happened. Instead, he’d unleashed violence.

During the weeks that followed, Reno’s investigation on Maddox came up clean. He ran a legit business and dealt with the right people. Loan sharks weren’t illegal, but sometimes they did illegal things. Maddox’s record was so clean it squeaked. Unfortunately, without any evidence, he couldn’t do anything about the questionable loan made to Charles Langston. Maddox had meticulously covered his tracks, and there were laws against slander that kept Reno’s hands tied.

Maybe April didn’t want anything to do with the likes of Reno, but after that night, he knew with absolute certainty it had
nothing
to do with him being a Shifter.

Eventually, he could no longer sleep without knowing what their arrangement was all about. So Reno had called up Maddox to confront him and find out the truth. And the truth is exactly what he got.

Holy hell
, that woman had given up her freedom to get out of debt. That amount of money was a drop in the bucket for Reno, who had been stashing his income away for years. But for a young girl like April, it must have seemed like quicksand. He didn’t want her to lose sight of her dreams, becoming a woman he’d no longer recognize.

So Reno cleared her debt. Every penny.

At first, Maddox wouldn’t accept his money but wouldn’t give a reason. Reno didn’t relent. He called him two days later, and after a heated discussion, Maddox said he’d do it for double the amount. Maybe he’d been testing him, but Reno had never flunked a test in his life.

He’d paid the full amount, but he had conditions of his own. The first being Maddox wouldn’t tell her about their arrangement. She could never find out about Reno’s involvement under any circumstance. April would then feel like she owed Reno, and he wanted to give her something she’d never had: financial freedom. A person deserved a clean slate in life at least once, and she had more than paid her dues. The second condition was that Maddox had to cut her loose immediately and tell her it was for personal reasons.

Maddox thought Reno was a crazy sonofabitch, as he put it, but he’d agreed. All men have a price. Reno had received the call the other day to confirm it was done, but Maddox had no clue where she’d gone.

Reno tapped into a few resources to track her location; he wouldn’t sleep easy until he knew she was in a good place. He found her sister’s number and called under the guise that he was a friend who owed her some cash. Rose said she hadn’t heard from April in a month and feigned concern. She also told Reno if he happened to run into April, to let her know she was canceling her Christmas trip and going to Vegas instead. Rose didn’t seem worried about April’s whereabouts, but she was young and a little full of herself.

Jericho spun a silver lighter in a circle on the bar in their game room. “You gonna play with yourself all day or help Ivy put up the tree? I don’t see why they couldn’t get one of those shiny plastic ones at the store,” Jericho grumbled. “That thing they hauled in is so fresh I thought I saw a squirrel’s nest in it.”

“Why don’t
you
put it up?” Reno muttered from the beanbag chair that was too damn small to fit his frame.

“Because I have a gig tonight and I’m not breaking my neck over a commercial holiday that bleeds your wallet dry.”

Reno still had his hands locked behind his head as he stared up at the ceiling. “I seem to recall a different Jericho who once got up in the middle of the night and stole all the neighbor’s lights and put them on Dad’s house.”

Jericho chuckled with a look of nostalgia. “I think Dad was more pissed I was on the roof than the fact I stole the lights.”

“You were eight.”

“Yeah, well.” He took a long drag of his smoke and looked reflectively at the cigarette. “Time changes people. We’re only putting it up because of Maizy.”

“She’s a kid. Let her enjoy it while she can. That’s what pack life is all about, Jericho. Family. Kids. We have to do right by them.”

“Mr. Reno!” Maizy yelled out. She stomped into the room, out of breath and grinning excitedly. “Miss Ivy wants me to tell you that she’s… that she wants you to help put up the Christmas tree. Mommy has our decorations in a box and are you coming?”

Reno swung his legs around and sat up, looking at Jericho. “Where the hell is Austin? I’m not up for this.”

Maizy flew out of the room. “He’s coming!” she yelled.

“Christ,” Reno muttered. The twins had volunteered to cut down the tree and Denver had hauled it to the house in his truck, leaving Reno with the final honors of getting sap all over his hands to stand it up.

When Reno ambled downstairs, he couldn’t help but smile at Maizy. She was wearing a red dress and sitting in the middle of the room, surrounded by a string of white lights and tapping her wand on the floor. The women had moved the furniture, cleaned, and decorated the house.

“Great timing,” Ivy said, out of breath.

She didn’t have on her usual skirt or dress today, but a pair of baggy overalls and a beige sweater. Ivy still wore a braid—it was her trademark. None of the men in the house had ever seen her hair loose, but they never asked why. Women were a mystery unto themselves.

Reno pulled out his pocketknife and began to cut away the rope.

“I broke off some of the lower branches, but I don’t know how to get it up on the stand,” she said.

“Jericho, give me a hand,” Reno barked out, lifting the tree by the top. “I need someone to hold the other end. Grab the trunk and ease it into the middle. Once it’s straight, you need to screw it in until it’s tight.”

Jericho chuckled and swiped his tongue across his bottom lip. “Hmm, that sounds
all too
familiar.”

“Where’s Austin?” Reno repeated, feeling an itch on his neck where a bristly needle was rubbing.

Ivy held the base of the stand and looked up. “He went with Lexi and Lynn to pick up some ornaments for the tree. Lynn said the ones she had reminded her of… well, you know,” she said, eyes darting toward Maizy.

Yeah, the bastard of a man who’d fathered that child and left her. What a pathetic excuse for a human.