Bearly Accidental (Accidentally Paranormal Book 12) (15 page)

“Tattletale,” she accused from the side of her mouth as Nina ran her hand over the very distinct fissure marring the beauty of the marble, a frown on her face. “Wow, traitor. Why not just roll the bus back over me for good measure? What happened to sacrificing your life for mine?”

“Oh, I’m not there yet, lady. In fact, I don’t know if I’ll ever be there enough where Nina’s concerned.” Then he grinned as he made a run for the doorway.

“I’m going to kick your ass, Vitali!” Teddy yelled, running after him, only for Cormac to catch her around the waist and carry her back into the living room, laughing in her ear.

And it was just another moment she could chalk up to feeling right. For now, that would have to be enough.

* * * *

Cormac stood just outside one of the many turrets in Castle Nina, looking out over the skyline, the gloomy clouds gathering, mashing up against each other in an attempt at another snowstorm.

The forecast called for a possible twelve inches of precipitation, making their plans for a sting on Stas and his crew slow going.

How they were ever going to pull something off as daring as Wanda had suggested made his pulse pound in his ears. It put everyone at risk, but it especially put Teddy at risk.

He found he didn’t like that much. In fact, he didn’t like it at all. That bond, that connection she’d mentioned was real. He felt it, too. No, it wasn’t love, but it wasn’t just chemistry either. It was multifaceted, full of a kaleidoscope of muted colors as yet undefined, but ever-moving and in the process of creating shapes he knew would imprint on his heart.

He just didn’t know why or how. It made no sense, but it was just like Teddy said, as logical as knowing your limbs were still attached.

This nonsensical feeling had deepened today in the kitchen while she’d defiantly told him she wasn’t going to grovel for his forgiveness. He’d been pretty angry about her lie. But he’d also been angry because if she were lying, it would mean she wasn’t really his life mate.

Instinctually, he knew she was telling him the truth about why she’d lied, and as she’d talked, he’d watched her beautiful lips move, her soft cheeks fill with the color of her anger, and a fragile thread had spun, attaching itself to him.

At first, he’d meant it when he said they should put this life mate thing on the back burner—there really were more important things to worry about than how they’d work out their love lives. Yet, that had changed as she explained what her mother told her.

Now, he wanted to gather her up and test out those plump lips—see if they felt as good against his as he predicted. Tug the braid from her hair and run his fingers through the glossy curtain, mold her to his body, run his hands along every curve.

But there was Toni to think of, and that thought kept him in check. She couldn’t ever come back if this wasn’t resolved. He wanted to see her, hear her voice, know she was safe and, above all, happy. From the way the women talked, she sure sounded happy.

“Hey. What did we tell you about big windows, targets and bullets?” Marty asked him from behind, giving him a pat on the back.

He turned around to find her smiling up at him. “Sorry. Lost in thought, I guess. This house, er, castle is really something. I was admiring the view from way up here.”

“It
is
beautiful. My little girl Hollis loves coming here to play with Charlie and Grandpa Arch. They pretend they’re princesses and Arch is their knight in shining armor. It’s the cutest thing ever.”

“The tight-knit network you ladies have created is to be admired.”

“We have our kinks,” she responded, her voice distant and laced with a sprinkle of sadness.

“You mean the kink who goes by the name of Nina?”

She flapped her hands in a dismissive gesture, pasting a smile on her face. “I’m sorry. I’m being maudlin, Cormac. I was just thinking about our children, which made me think of little Charlie and how she’ll…” Her voice hitched and then she shook her head. “Forget it.”

“You were thinking about how Nina won’t be around for Charlie because she’s no longer a vampire and her little girl is still a paranormal?” He’d thought a lot about that, too. Was his life eternal? Or just extra-long? Would he outlive everyone around him?

He hadn’t found the answer in the romance novels he’d read—each author had a different take on immortality.

“A man who’s perceptive. How’d that happen?” she teased, but her eyes didn’t match her tone.

“I just forgot to put my Neanderthal shoes on today. It’ll pass,” he joked. “Though in all seriousness, I sensed your anger with her long before we formally met. Actually, I heard it.”

Her hand flew to her cheek, making her bracelets jingle in the hollow hallway. “Ah, you mean all that yelling out in the woods? You’re right. I
am
angry, but I don’t know why. It’s not even about how sluggish she is or that she’s missing important things when we’re involved in a case because she’s so wrapped up in her food and her whatever, it’s… If Nina doesn’t want to be a vampire anymore, good for her. Why should I give a damn?”

“But?”

Marty plucked at her lower lip. “But she’s treating it like it’s some vacation. Like she was just exonerated after a life sentence in jail. Was it really so bad being a vampire? Is it really so bad for you, Cormac? I mean, it’s been a long time since I was turned. I hardly remember what my life was like before I was a were.”

How did you forget thinking you were crazy? The transition from human to animal? The pain of your bones distorting and crunching until you learned how to control the shift? Feeling like you were the only person in the world who’d had something as fantastically nutty happen to you?

Feeling like a total freak? Not so easily forgotten. But he’d come to a place of acceptance around year one and a half. He’d simply added it to his list of things he had no choice but to accept and make peace with.

Rocking back on his heels, Cormac was honest. “It was an adjustment I don’t think I’ll forget anytime soon.”

Patting him on the arm, Marty chuckled. “And you did it alone. I’m sorry for that, Cormac. I can’t imagine not having someone to help you go through such an enormous change. But you wait and see, my friend. By this time next year, you won’t remember what your life was like without Teddy and us in it. You won’t remember what it was like to be human. I promise.”

He wasn’t sure if she was reassuring herself or him, but her words gave him hope.

These women were confident they could handle Stas and crew. He wanted to believe them. He wanted to believe Marty, that there would actually
be
a next year.

And okay, fine. He wanted to believe there’d be a Teddy still in his life next year, too.

So there.

T
eddy surveyed the landscape of the kitchen table, where they’d all gathered to play Monopoly to keep their minds occupied, with a grin on her face. Lenny snuggled in her lap, contentedly purring as she slipped him bits of the salmon she and Carl had made together for lunch.

After an amazing dinner of roast leg of lamb infused with garlic and rosemary and slathered in mint jelly, small new potatoes that melted in her mouth and a Brussels sprouts casserole dripping in cheese, Wanda brought out the board games.

As the snow fell and the fire crackled, Archibald had poured them steaming cups of the homemade white chocolate cocoa he’d whipped up, topped with dollops of fresh whipped cream, and then set out plates of chocolate chip cookies fresh from the oven, and they settled in.

“I win! Park Place is
mine
, bitches!” Archibald yelped as he landed on the esteemed square, slamming his boot down with an age-spotted hand. Then he covered his mouth with his gobs money, his round, cheerful face red with embarrassment. “My apologies! Do you see what you inspire in me, Mistress Nina? You’ve turned me into a monster whose only goal is to beat his competition into a bloody stump! It’s unforgiveable, evil woman!”

Nina slapped him on the back, her cackling laughter filling the room. “Aw, c’mon, Arch. It’s good for your heart to get your gloat on.”

He gasped and shook his wad of money at her with an admonishing look. “It is most assuredly not a sign of good sportsmanship to behave in such a manner, Nina Statleon. That you encourage such is despicable!”

“You know you wanna make it rain, Arch. Go on,” she taunted him, pointing to the play money.

He cleared his throat, brushing a hand over his ascot as though Nina had suggested he strip naked and hula hoop. “I most certainly do not wish to make it, as you say,
rain.
”

“Do toooo!” And then Nina began to chant, “Make it rain! Make it rain!”

Soon, they were all pounding their fists on the table and encouraging the manservant.

Archibald suddenly grinned, saucy and devilish, hopping up from the table and pushing his chair away. “Fine then, you heathens. I do admit to hoping against eternal hope there would come a time when I could bellow, ‘In your face.’ On that admission, in your face, homie!” he shouted, fanning the money on his palm and shooting it at Nina with deft fingers, making it flutter to the floor as he did a little dance.

Teddy laughed so hard, she almost cried, her body leaning into Cormac, who howled with laughter, too. That was the moment she realized how long it had been since she’d just hung out with people for the sake of hanging out. Enjoyed someone else’s company other than the animals at Sanctuary. Accepted an invitation to have a beer with her coworkers.

When had she become so fond of isolation?

You know when, Teddy Bear. You know why. But this is nice, isn’t it? Cooking with Carl today. Chatting with Marty about what color best suits you. Listening to Nina and Wanda share stories about some of their OOPS adventures. Sure, there’s a dark cloud hanging over your head, but there’s a life you’ve been missing. You accused Cormac of isolating himself, but you did the same thing. You just weren’t in a cabin in the woods. You were in your bedroom at the ranch or in your office at Sanctuary or in that prison in your head. Not so different than Cormac after all.

And then there was Cormac himself, and all these new feelings he kept stirring in her. How just his lips against hers for no more than a second left her yearning for more—for something she was still so unclear about.

Her phone signaled a text, interrupting the retrospective on her pathetic, cloistered life. As she pulled it out of her pocket, Cormac rested his chin on her shoulder and watched her read the bad news from her brothers.

“Damn,” she muttered, looking up at everyone. “My brothers are snowed in and can’t get a flight out.” Shit. Shit. Shit. They needed as much manpower as necessary if they were going to manage to get to Stas.

And then another text popped up.

One that made her gulp.

Her hand squeezed the phone with a shaky grasp. The universe had a bone to pick with her, it seemed. But now just wasn’t the time to add more fuel to the fire.

“Who’s Dennis?” Cormac asked against her ear.

She set Lenny on Cormac’s lap and pushed her chair from the table. “I have to use the ladies’ room. Excuse me.”

Teddy didn’t bother to look back to see Cormac’s reaction to her abrupt departure or to see if anyone else noticed. She needed air. Crisp, clean, cold air, filling her lungs, reminding her to just breathe.

Blindly, she made her way out of the kitchen and stumbled down the long hall where a door led to a small courtyard just outside the hedge maze. She’d found it earlier today, and now she was grateful. All she needed was cool air and a moment to gather her thoughts, rein in her fear enough to keep it together.

Pushing open the door, she poked her head outside and sniffed, at least thinking enough to look for danger before she stepped into the snow and pulled the door shut behind her.

The moon was brilliant in the sky, buttery yellow in the velvet ink of night, casting a peaceful glow over the entrance to the hedge maze. A light snow continuously fell, white flakes sticking to the boxwood hedges that made up the maze, sugaring the tops of them with crystal flecks.

The covered patio made of white stone and swirly circles of some kind of crushed blue and green mosaic tile would be beautiful to sit on and while a day away under normal circumstances. Tonight, the beauty of the craftsmanship and time put into creating a masterpiece like this escaped her.

There was a black wrought iron chair she shook the snow from before she sat down and put her head between her knees, inhaling, letting the frigid air cleanse her.

Dennis was on the loose again. This could only mean one thing.

She didn’t just have the Russian mob knocking at her door—she had the man who’d almost killed her last year likely hunting her down, too. And Dennis
would
hunt her down. She knew it as sure as the day was long. He’d never let her get away with putting him in jail, even if his stay hadn’t been nearly as long as it should have been.

He would find a way to find her—wherever she went.

Yanking her phone from her pocket, she reread the text from Vadim.
Dennis is out of jail. Word in certain circles is he’s asking questions about you. You have to tell everyone about him so they can protect you. Stay where you are until we can get to you.

Her disgust crept up along her spine as she scrunched her eyes shut. Eight months for assault and battery was hardly the kind of punishment Dennis deserved for leaving her unconscious in a ravine, where she would have bled out had it not been for Vadim and Viktor finding her in time.

Teddy’s chest tightened when she remembered Dennis’s eyes just before he’d round-housed her in the face, knocking her a hundred feet to the forest below them. There was hatred in his eyes, thick, black, and rich with evil.

“Teddy?”

She gasped out loud, gripping the cold wrought iron arms on the chair before she realized it was Cormac. Her heart raced, pounding inside her chest. Damn. Noises that startled her had been one of her biggest phobias to overcome since that night in the forest.

But he gripped her shoulder with a strong, warm hand. “Sorry, didn’t mean to scare you.” He came to stand in front of her before sitting on his haunches and gripping her cold hands. “You know you shouldn’t be out here in the open. You okay?”