Kadenburg Revealed (The Kadenburg Shifters Series, Book 4) (30 page)

“It was wonderful,” Presley nodded. “I just wish Uncle Arnold would’ve been in better spirits.  He seems so down and I don’t know how to help him.”

“Oh, honey.  I’m not sure we have the help he needs,” Mrs. Bamey joked lightly.  “He’ll be all right, Presley.  He’s just dealing with a lot right now, but as soon as he figures it out he’ll be okay.”

“Do you really think Sammy will die?” Presley questioned.  It was a question that had weighed heavily on her mind since discovering she had a cousin.  She didn’t have much family left in Kadenburg as it was.  It saddened her to think Sammy would leave them just as they got her back.

“If we can find a way to prevent that, we will.” Mrs. Bamey promised.

“We have to head home soon,” Dimitri said as he entered the kitchen and plopped down across from Presley.  “That was one heck of a shindig, Mrs. Bamey.  Thanks for letting us come.”

“Oh, stop,” Mrs. Bamey huffed and glared at him playfully.  “You were at the top of my invite list this year, Dimitri.  You better not make any plans for future Christmases because I fully expect you to be here, with us.”

“Understood,” he smiled.  There was that dimple again.  His hazel hues met Presley’s and she returned his smile.  He made her feel happy in spite of the gloom surrounding them.  That had to be a sign, right?  “Oh hey, Presley....you never did open my gift.”

“That’s because I wanted us to open our gifts together,” Presley explained as she got up from the table and hurried into the living room.  She returned with a small box in hand and held it out to him.  “This is for you.”

“You really didn’t have to get me anything,” Dimitri argued as he held his hand out.  “But thank you for thinking of me.”

“I’ll just give you two a minute.” Mrs. Bamey said as she patted Presley’s shoulder and hurried back into the living room.

So here she was.  She was alone with her potential brother and they were exchanging gifts.  She knew exactly what was in the box she handed to him, but it felt right.  He felt right.

“So how do you want to do this?” He glanced at her.  “Count down?”

“Count down,” Presley laughed.  “Three....two.....”

“One.” Dimitri tore the paper away from the small box and laughed as he eyed her occasionally. She was working on getting hers open, but he’d taped that sucker down. 

Presley had no idea what to expect when she pulled off the box top and peered inside, but she really wasn’t expecting to find something so beautiful.  Her hand flew to her mouth and her eyes grew wide as she stared at the gorgeous piece of jewelry inside.

“Do you like it?” Dimitri asked, watching her.  “It was sort of last minute, but I figured my sister deserved something nice.  They didn’t have much to choose from either.....”

“It’s perfect.” Presley whispered as she plucked the golden bracelet from within.  The single heart shaped charm dangled in the air and once again she found herself on the verge of tears.  He’d made an extra trip just to get it for her?  Because he wanted to get his sister something nice?

“I’m sorry if you don’t like gold,” he added quickly.  “I can’t exactly pick up silver and I wanted to make sure it was something pretty.  I noticed you had a chain around your neck already or I would’ve gotten you a necklace....I hope it’s okay.”

“Dimitri, it’s fine,” Presley insisted as her eyes met his.  “It’s beautiful and perfect.  Thank you so much.”

He smiled and his entire face lit up with a happiness Presley hadn’t seen before.  She’d never seen him look so content.  Did she cause that?

“So what did you get me?” He asked as he refocused his attention on the rectangle-shaped box in his hands.  He lifted an eyebrow as he removed the top and then both eyebrows shot high on his forehead.  “Holy shit, Presley.  That looks really expensive.”

She could feel her face heating up as he pulled out the pocket watch and handled it with such care.  His large hand didn’t dare close around the finely crafted time piece as he shook his head slowly.

“Do you like it?” She asked a little nervously.

“Like it?  Presley, this is gorgeous.  I’ve never seen anything like it before in my life,” Dimitri popped it open to examine the inside and as his eyes moved over the words she’d had engraved her heart stopped altogether.  “Oh, Presley....”

What if he didn’t like it?  What if he changed his mind?  What if he decided he’d made a mistake and he was not the one Urseth had spoken of?

He must be the one.
  Presley thought as her eyes moved back and forth between Dimitri’s face and the pocket watch. 
He was dreaming of my father, wasn’t he?  Our father....that’s why he was asking about somebody named Pierce.  We share the same dad just as I saw in my dream.  He’s the baby that deserved a strong name.

It had to be true.  Presley prayed that it was true as she waited with baited breath for Dimitri to speak again.

“Thank you,” Dimitri said as he leaned forward and wrapped his arms around her suddenly.  Presley was taken aback, yet at the same time she’d never felt anything so wonderful before.  She circled her arms around his muscular torso and returned the embrace as a small laugh escaped her lips.  “This is the best Christmas I’ve ever had,” he paused. “Sister.”

Sister.
  The tears flooded down her cheeks again as she pulled back to peer at him.  His soft gaze was tender and loving as he lifted his hand to wipe away the salty droplets streaming down her face. 

“Don’t cry,” he said softly.  “I didn’t mean to make you cry.”

“They are tears of joy,” Presley reassured him with a sniffle.  “I kept hoping everything would start making sense and I was eagerly awaiting the arrival of my brother.  It turns out he was in front of me this whole time.  I’m grateful that it’s you, Dimitri.  I’m sorry that we couldn’t have found out sooner.  Maybe things would have turned out differently for you and Liam if you’d been with me and Uncle Arnold instead of those.....monsters.”

“Hey now,” Dimitri pulled her against his chest again and sighed.  “We can’t think about that, Presley.  It’s Christmas.  Liam wouldn’t want you to worry about that tonight, would he?”  No, he wouldn’t.  “And you said it yourself that everything had to play out in a particular way.  I’m a firm believer in things happening for a reason.  No matter how much it hurts, we have to trust that things are going to get better.  I do miss Liam.....”

“I miss him too,” Presley sniffled again.  “He was always so nice to me.”

“It’s just like Mrs. Bamey said, he was not forgotten tonight.  We all carry a small piece of him with us now and he’ll always be in our hearts.  He was only doing what he felt was right and if you’ve been dreaming about him...” He pulled back again to gaze into her eyes.  “Then I trust everything he’s telling you.  That baby in there is my nephew and you’re damned right I’m going to protect him just as much as I’m going to protect you.  You’re a part of my pack, Presley and I’d die for you.”

“Please don’t say that,” she sobbed.  She buried her face against his chest again.  “Enough people have already died over this.  My dad...I mean, our dad...”

“Shhh.  It’s okay,” Dimitri’s hand moved up and down her back in a comforting manner as he rocked her back and forth gently.  “Everything’s going to be okay from here on out.  Do you hear me?”

“I hear you.” She whispered.

And she believed him.

R
utley was waiting outside with Kia and Amber while Dimitri exchanged presents with Presley.  He understood it was something that needed to happen in private and he would respect that.  It made him happy to experience Dimitri’s happiness as a light snow blanketed Kadenburg once again.

He was leaned against Liam’s old car with his arms crossed over his chest, listening intently to Kia and Amber’s conversation.  At least Amber had the decency to apologize for attacking the girl.

I can’t believe we mated to her and I didn’t even know it.
  He thought with a small frown. 
How the hell did I not know it?

‘Because he was trying to protect you.  He seems like the kind of man who would shield someone from something that could hurt them.’
Kia’s voice replied in his mind.

Rutley lifted his eyes to meet her gaze and the warmth her light brown hues inflicted upon his skin made him shiver.  He could hear the fast paced heartbeat coming from her stomach and his inner wolf howled.

She is pregnant with our pup!
His wolf cried.

We cannot be sure it is ours.
  Rutley argued lightly as he tilted his head to the side. 
Dimitri and I shared her that night, ya know.  Don’t count your chickens before they hatch.

It was a complicated situation to say the least.  One of them was the father of Kia’s baby, but which one?  Rutley couldn’t help but worry that it would create a rift between him and his alpha, and they’d only just begun to get close again after everything that had happened.

It’s not fair.

‘I’m so sorry.´
Kia whispered sadly.

‘I’m pretty sure you don’t have anything to be sorry for, Kia.  We made that bed together and we’ll sleep in it.  You’re our mate so I’m guessing that means forgiveness comes pretty easy for us, huh?’

‘I’m not sure,’
she replied as she crinkled her nose. 
‘I’ve not had a mate before, let alone two.’

“C’mon, Dimitri.  We’ve still got another gift to give out, remember?” Lorcan said as he pushed the front door open and jogged down the steps.  He leapt off the bottom one and whirled around to watch Dimitri as he exited the house.  Rutley studied them in mild curiosity as they headed his way.  What gifts were left to open?  Dimitri’s hazel hues were glued to Rutley and the grin his alpha gave him caused his entire brain to go stupid. 

“Walk with me, Rut.” Dimitri stated casually as he passed by.

“Uh...okay...” Rutley followed behind the two males as he heard Amber ask Kia what was going on.  If she had the slightest idea then he wanted to be clued in.  If Dimitri and Lorcan had a surprise did that mean he needed to be worried?

Lorcan pulled open the door that led into his sanctuary; the garage.  He leaned against it and smiled broadly.  “All right, fellas.  This is where I bid you goodnight and for the love of Urseth try not to mess anything up in there, okay?  This is how I make a living.”

“Happily noted.” Dimitri nodded in understanding before bumping knuckles with the ursithrope.  Wait.  Did they seriously just do that?

“What’s going on?” Rutley asked as he followed Dimitri into the dimly lit atmosphere of Lorcan’s shop.  He knew that Lorcan was a pretty damn good mechanic, but he also knew that no one had been allowed in this part of the garage for over a month.  What the hell had he been doing?

“Well, Rutley,” Dimitri heaved a sigh and turned around to face him which stopped the younger wolf in his tracks.  “I know we sort of promised not to do anything big for each other, but I kind of lied.”

“You lied?” Rutley blinked.  “What did you do?”

There was a sparkle of mischief in those swirls of brown and green and when Dimitri stepped aside, Rutley’s jaw continued its daily tradition of dropping.

There was his car.

And it looked brand new.

“Holy shit,” Rutley whispered in surprise.  “Holy shit!  Is this for real?  Are you fucking with me?”  He immediately made his way towards his pride and joy and reached a hand out to touch the hood.  Everything looked exactly as it had on the day he bought it.  There wasn’t a scratch, a dint, or a ding to be found.  It was absolutely perfect.

“I know how much that car means to you,” Dimitri said softly after a few moments.  “And I know you don’t enjoy riding around with me all the time.  Lorcan should probably consider opening his business to the public because he seriously worked some magic on this one.”

Rutley turned around to stare at him in awe.  Dimitri had convinced Lorcan to do this for him?

“Merry Christmas, Rut.” Dimitri smiled. 

Oh my fucking god.
  Rutley couldn’t find the words he wanted to say as he stared at his alpha.  In spite of everything that was happening around them.....Dimitri had his car restored as a Christmas gift?  It sure was making that DILLAGAF shirt at their apartment sound suckier by the second.

“Hey.  I love that shirt,” Dimitri chuckled as he took a step towards him.  “It’s not the price that matters, you know.  It’s the thought that counts, or so I’m told.  I just wanted to make up for my shitty attitude and wolfy mood swings.  I know I’m not easy to deal with sometimes.”

All mood swings were forgotten as Rutley’s heart began to race.  Dimitri was considerably closer now and his natural scent was plowing into the younger wolf’s brain.  Dimitri had no idea just what his gift meant to him.

“Christ, Rut will you say something?” Dimitri asked as he tilted his head to the side.  “Your thoughts are like trying to find a good TV show on a Monday night.”

Rutley wasn’t sure if that was a compliment or an insult, but he still couldn’t get his mouth to work. 

‘Thank you.’
  He finally managed to say in his mind.

‘You’re welcome.’
Dimitri replied with a grin as he stood before him with his arms at his sides.

God.  When Dimitri grinned like that Rutley felt greatly compelled to kiss him.

Dimitri’s eyes darkened as he lifted a brow.  “Then maybe you should.”

Come again?  Rutley’s eyes snapped to his alpha’s lips as Dimitri’s tongue slowly swept over them.  His heart was doing that really weird dance of stopping and restarting while his stomach twisted into knots.  How did he get himself into these situations again?

“You heard me, Rutley,” Dimitri whispered huskily as he pinned him against the side of the car suddenly.  Rutley gasped and tilted his head back to peer into his alpha’s eyes as Dimitri’s hands fell to rest against his hips.  “Maybe you should.”

“Oh shit,” Rutley said weakly as he watched Dimitri’s face inch towards his.  “I....it was a fleeting thought, ya know...”

Who the fuck was he kidding?  How often did he think about kissing his alpha?  How long had he been struggling with his attraction to the other wolf?  The only thing standing in his way of taking Dimitri was the fact his best friend had loved him first and it wasn’t right to swoop in after his death.  Those were the cold hard facts and Rutley had to accept it.  He needed to respect Liam and stay as far away from Dimitri as possible.  He couldn’t kiss him or look at him the wrong way.  He needed to—-