Angel: Rochon Bears (12 page)

T
he drive
back to the base camp had him debating turning around and trying to track down Becks’ house. It was late, and he’d killed a lot of time with Eddie and Tanner. It was definitely too late to be knocking on someone’s door that might not be happy to see you. He’d love to ask Cage about what he should do, but it was late, and Cage would already be at home.

He would tell him the same thing that Eddie had. So the time it would take to talk to his Alpha was time wasted.

“You are going home alone tonight; deal with it.” And now he was talking to himself.

Pulling up to the camp, he jumped out of the truck and tossed the keys into a drop box in the office door. His truck was parked in the lot. He got in and let the poor thing warm up a bit before leaving. Deciding he needed to have a serious conversation with someone that had a non-mated perspective, he texted his bros.

While he waited for a reply, his hand involuntarily went to the chain around his neck. He usually kept it hidden because they had gotten a lot of shit when they started wearing them.

Rainier and Finley had been his best friends for so long he couldn’t remember a time he didn’t know them. They were more than cousins; they were friends and as close as brothers. Rain was fourteen months older than Finley. They looked so much alike people often mistook them for twins.

When Angel and Rain graduated high school, they had to leave Fin behind. Finley was one year behind them and was melancholy about being left on his own. He knew that with his best friends moving on, there was a chance they would find new friends. Rain was headed off to college, and Angel basically had no plans, but Fin wouldn’t see him every day like he was used to.

Finley, being the sensitive and a bit flighty one in their trio, had matching bear necklaces made for each of them. Angel gave him a rash about it but was secretly happy that it wasn’t a charm bracelet.

In a clan of bears, a gentle soul like Finley was a bit of an oddity. He was loved especially because he was the balance to his tougher brother Rain. People would say they are another set of matched souls, keeping the balance. So when Fin presented them with the necklaces engraved on the back, they gave him crap about it for all of fifteen seconds until they realized it hadn’t been a gag gift.

Nope, Finley wanted to make sure neither of them moved on without him. He’d engraved the back with three capital B’s.

“It stands for Best Bear Buds, so you don’t get new friends while I’m still in high school. You have to wait for me.”

Angel had to bite his tongue because Rain was giving him a hard look. Rain always stood up for Fin and was already worried his brother wasn’t going to have a great senior year.

“Thanks, man, if anyone asks I’m going to say mine stands for Big Beautiful Babes, you’ll know the truth, though,” Angel told him.

“I can handle that,” Finley said, smiling at his friends.

Rain wrapped his arm around his brother’s shoulders then put him in a friendly headlock. “Well, I’m gonna say it stands for Bears Before Bros. No matter who I meet at school, my bears come first.”

That night had touched Angel, not because of the questionable jewelry, but that he wasn’t going to be seeing his friends as often. Sure there were phone calls and texts and holidays home. But they were going their separate ways.

Tonight, he wished his boys were here so he could shoot the shit with them. Share a few beers, talk girls.

What would they think about the fact he’d found his mate? Would they be jealous? Or just grateful it wasn’t them yet that had to deal with this so young?

Angel’s phone vibrated and he saw a response from Rain.

What’s up?

Can you talk?

Yeah give me a minute then I’ll call.

Angel turned off the engine on the truck so he could talk to his friend without running out of gas.

The phone rang with the chicken clucking noise he had loaded for Rain. Turned out Rain didn’t like heights, and once he had chickened out of jumping off a high rock into the river like the rest of the kids. He never lived it down.

“Hey, man. Thanks for calling so quick.”

“Well it’s a Thursday night, and you don’t usually ask for late night chats. Means there is a reason you wanted to talk. I’m surprised you didn’t try Fin first. You know he loves long talks and romantic strolls on the beach.”

Rain was right. Fin would love this shit.

“Well, you responded first, so you’re the lucky one.”

“Goody me. How’s it hangin’?”

“A little to the left, but that’s usual. So—I have some news.”

“Finally lost your virginity? Congratulations, man, I knew this day would come.”

“Hahhah, dickhead. I did get some last night, though.”

“Wow, what’s it been, two years?”

Angel hadn’t met anyone he wanted to hook up with in a number of years. Not from lack of opportunity, but his bear always told him that it was a waste of time. Sure, he had messed around as a teenager, but it didn’t seem to be worth the effort recently.

“No. Only like eighteen months,” Angel said annoyed. His dry spell had been unintentional he’d thought. Now he knew his bear was preparing him for finding his mate. His bear must have known that their time was growing shorter, and there was no need to keep looking.

“Well then, good for you. Who was she?”

Angel felt nervous saying the words to his best friend. “She was my mate.”

There was silence on the other end of the line. It dragged on longer than Angel expected.

“You still there?”

“Uh yeah, man. Sorry, I just don’t know what the hell to say. Are you sure?” Rain’s tone indicated he wasn’t sure if Angel knew what he was talking about.

“You know how all the mated guys say when you know you know? They weren’t lying. There is no easier truth in the world than when you see her.”

“So you met her, and you guys got together the same night? Wow, is she a shifter too?”

“No, human. I didn’t know she was my mate until I saw her earlier today.”

There was another long pause.

“You slept with her but didn’t know she was your mate? How does that work?”

“Dark bars, lots of beer, followed up with a dark motel room. I would have thought it wasn’t possible either, but I’ll be damned if I didn’t experience it today.”

“Only you would have sex with a woman and never look her in the eye.”

Angel really couldn’t deny that. Even Rain knew that he kept human women at a distance for a reason. His momma always said he was a magnet for trouble. It seemed he was also a magnet for impossible situations.

“I was drunk, and so was she. I looked at her, just not above the neck.” Even saying it out loud sounded as bad as it was.

“Wow, sorry. I’m just trying to process this. I mean it’s amazing! You found your mate. Your bear must be thrilled. How is he doing? Have you told her about you?”

“Well, my bear wanted to see her again, but I didn’t know how to find her. I accidently ran into her for work. I didn’t run into her actually. I smelled her and waited for her to get off work.”

“You smelled her?”

“Yeah, it was like coconuts and girl. It is crazy and drives my bear nuts. She wasn’t too thrilled to see me. Then she got mad and said she had to go. I froze, man. I kissed her, and I’m surprised she didn’t slap me. Then she drove off with me standing in the parking lot.”

“And no one there to take a picture, damn,” Rain said with a laugh.

“Shit, it was not my finest moment. My animal wanted me to throw her over my shoulder and run off into the woods with her. She’s older than me. She has her own home and a career. What the hell can I offer her?”

Rain sighed into the phone. “Well, as I understand it, unlimited love and devotion? That’s what my brother goes on and on about. What that man wouldn’t do for his mate. She’s got him wrapped around that pint size finger of hers. And those babies? I mean, don’t get me wrong, my niece and nephew are probably the cutest kids I’ve ever seen, and I don’t even like kids. But Cash would move to Belize and live in a hut if his mate asked him to. He’s happy, beyond happy. That’s going to be you, Angel. How great is that?”

Angel liked that idea. Becca with him, setting up house, having kids together. He’d never even put any thought into children. But now they seemed like a real thing that could happen for him. And it could be something in his near future. If he could get Becca to talk to him.

“I don’t even think she likes me. Eddie says I need to show her I’m the one for her. I have no idea how to even start that process. I had to look her up online to figure out her last name, and I think I know where she lives by the picture she posted of her house on Facebook.”

“That sounds so fucking dodgy. It’s a good thing we can blame our stalker behavior on our inner beasts. Poor humans have no one to blame but themselves. I wouldn’t show up at her house if she’s skittish. Maybe stop back in at her work. It’s a public place; no reason for her to worry you are going to kidnap her, no matter how great your bear thinks that plan is. Then ask her out. Take her to the diner. Offer to meet her there so she can be in charge of driving herself. Keep arranging for her to be in control. That will let her worry less about whether you’re nuts and more on if you’re a good guy.”

His friend was making good points. Keeping her in control of their courtship would free up her attention to other things. Of course, that meant he had to show her he wasn’t nuts and that he was worth a second and third date, followed by forever.

“This is good. Helpful, thanks.”

“Hey, you have it in you to be a great mate. How fucking lucky are you that you get to spend all of your life with your mate? No long decades searching and hoping to meet her. You hit the jackpot. Stop worrying, and trust that the fates picked her for you for a reason. Your faith is going to be the guide. I know you will do what’s right for her. She’s your mate. You’re a lucky son of a bitch. Just keep reminding yourself of that.”

He really was. Luckier than a lot of those in his clan that were much older than him and still hadn’t found their mates. He’d known his mate for all of a day and couldn’t imagine being without her. Maybe it was one of those situations that you don’t know what you’re missing until you have it in front of you.

“I think I should just head home and wait until tomorrow. Maybe stop by her work and see if she wants to go to lunch with me. Should I pack a picnic?”

“Did you just say picnic? What are you, a girl? No, don’t attempt to cook and please don’t go out and buy a little basket. You’ll never live that down. Just take her to someplace casual, if she says yes that is.”

“Right, I don’t think Spaghetti-o’s travel well.” Angel was a fast-food, convenience store, momma’s cooking kind of eater. He didn’t cook, unless you counted pouring a bowl of cereal as cooking.

“No, they don’t. Shower and put on something clean because you are undoubtedly wearing yesterday’s clothes, and think before you speak.”

“I should write this shit down,” Angel groaned.

“Good luck, buddy.”

“Thanks, bye.”

Hitting end on his phone, Angel let his head fall back against the seat. Keep it simple, clean up, invite her out.
Don’t scare her away
. Seemed like a small list, but everything was riding on it.

A
ngel catnapped
after laying awake for most of the night. When he’d returned to his place, he started cleaning up as if Becca would stop by at any moment. He had dirty clothes all over the floor, pizza boxes stacked in a tower in the corner, and enough gaming equipment to open his own shop laying out.

Picking up the massive amount of clothing made him aware that the clean clothes part of his plan could be in question unless he did something about it. Grabbing his hamper, he crammed as much as he could into it and practically ran down the steps on the outside of his parents’ garage. The back door of the house was always open and lucky for him was also the mudroom and laundry room.

He pulled open the machine and found it empty. Grabbing a handful of clothes, he started stuffing them in. There was no rhyme or reason to what he was adding; he figured it would all get clean anyway.

The door to the house opened, and his mother stood in the doorway wearing a robe and carrying a baseball bat.

“Angel Rochon, what the hell are you doing? Do you have any idea what time it is?”

His mom was short and compact but the meanest bear he’d ever met. He was pretty sure she was the reason they coined the phrase
momma bear
.

“Sorry, I need clean clothes,” he explained grabbing the bottle of soap off the shelf.

Dropping the bat, she took the soap from him. “I could have bashed your head in. I thought you were an intruder.”

“If you thought I was a robber, why didn’t dad come down?”

“He said it was probably just a wild animal breaking in, and if it was, I could handle it. Lazy s.o.b. didn’t want to get up,” she said this with no malice in her voice.

“I didn’t mean to wake you. Just wanted to get a load started before tomorrow.”

“Well, you can’t just cram it all in there. You have all your colors mixed up. Separate it out, or you’re going to end up with pink underwear,” she warned.

“Show me?”

His mom paused and looked at him strangely. “You want me to show you how to do laundry?”

“Well, you can’t keep sneaking in and doing it for me. What about when I move out? I’ll end up naked and shaming the family.”

His mother gave a snort. “That would cause a riot. All those girls in town that have been trying to snag you. You’d be showing them the goods for free. They’d never stop then.”

Angel had no intention of telling his mom about Becca. It wasn’t a done deal yet, and he had too far to go before he could introduce her to them. Right now they would tell her all the shitty things he used to do and what a screw up he’d been. Angel needed to win her over, so those stories were just funny anecdotes instead of giant warning signs.

“Well, let’s do a dark load since most of your clothes are either jeans or black t-shirts.” His mom started pulling out what he’d already put in the machine and showed him how to keep his whites together and gave him a long-winded speech about putting his underwear in the bleach load because as she said, “Boys are gross.”

He couldn’t deny that, so he just nodded and paid attention.

“Now this will take a while to wash. It needs to be switched over to the dryer, or it will get skunky. I’ll be up around four because for some reason as you get older your body thinks four or five hours of sleep is plenty but then expects you to take a nap during the day.”

“Tough life, Mom,” Angel said grinning at her.

“Oh shut up, you. Your next loads are on you, though. I’ll leave them in here, but I expect them gone in a reasonable amount of time. Your father will end up tripping on them and whining that he can’t walk. He’s such a baby.”

“I thought he was a son of a bitch?”

“That too. Goodnight, honey,” his mom said, giving him a kiss on the cheek.

“Thanks,” he said then went back to his room. He loaded up the rest of the empty boxes and took them all out to the trash can. He found he had a set of clean sheets and put them on his bed. He’d need to vacuum tomorrow, but that would require another trip into the house. He was twenty-one and didn’t own his own vacuum. All of a sudden, that seemed kind of pitiful. But things were changing. His focus was now on providing a solid home for his mate.

That meant a conversation with his Alpha in the morning. He needed Cage to know that tomorrow was a new day, and he was a new man. All those annoying tasks that his cousins had asked him to perform took on a new meaning. They were for the greater good of not only the company but the family. Everyone’s livelihood depended on the success of the family companies. All those mates and cubs were part of the bigger picture.

Running errands and checking on permits wasn’t just a job to keep him busy anymore. It was how he earned his money to support his mate. Sure, she had her own job and didn’t need him financially, but together they would build their life together. If his mate got pregnant, he’d want her to be able to take a leave knowing he could support her, or if she wanted to quit, that he’d provide that for her too.

Sitting on the edge of his bed, he looked around the dark, shabby room. He’d spent the last three and half years living in here like he was still in high school. That time seemed so wasted now that he’d had a kick in the face by the fates. His music had been all he could think about and how to do something with it.

Now, it meant something different to him. He still loved his music, but it wasn’t the same. He knew without much effort he could sit around and pen lyrics about his mate’s hair, her eyes, those ruby red lips.

“Jesus, who the hell am I?” The room didn’t answer him. He couldn’t even be so annoyed at the change in his personality. He was happy. A question he hadn’t even known he needed the answer to was shown to him like a gift. Sure, his bear was anxious being away from her. Worrying about her, hoping she was all right without him. The other side of him knew that he could find her if he needed to. Show up at her door, catch a breath of that delectable scent. Like a junkie, that tiny taste would hold off his animal long enough to plan their next encounter with her.

Lying back on his bed, Angel stared at the ceiling and replayed every moment he could of the night before. Now that he knew who she was, the encounter went from hot to nuclear. One thing he knew for sure was it had been too short. They’d only had sex a few times; she only had four or five orgasms. That wasn’t nearly enough for his mate. She deserved every second of his time and every ounce of his effort.

Angel closed his eyes and tried to recall how she looked laying beneath him. His memory was fuzzy, but he could still see her. Soft and curvy, she was perfect, and she was his. That body was going to be his for the rest of his life, if only he could win her over.