Tessa, Vampire/Werewolf Romance, (Standalone) (Shadow Creek Shifters Book 3) (2 page)

Tessa tentatively knocked on Katlyn’s door as darkness cloaked her. Brendan opened it and led the way inside, where Chase was walking Nolan who was causing quite the fuss.

“May I?” Tessa asked as she held out her arms to take the baby.

Chase relinquished his hold on his son and Tessa felt a surge of joy gather in her heart. There was no greater feeling in the world than holding an infant. She gazed down at the red-faced and crying baby, putting him to her shoulder and cooing to him gently.

Katlyn smiled from the rocking chair where she was nursing Elric, who suckled with a loud slurping sound.

“Did you have fun last night?” Katlyn asked with a sly smile.

Tessa was immediately on guard. “I’m not sure what you mean.”

“Perhaps we should leave you ladies for some girl talk,” Chase volunteered.

“Go ahead, guys I know you both need a break,” Katlyn said.

The men were out the door like wildcats—not much of a stretch since they
were
mountain lion shifters.

Katlyn patted the chair next to her. “Have a seat. I didn’t mean to pry, I was just wondering how it’s going with Raphael and Seth. I know Angus has been giving you rides into town.”

“There’s nothing going on like you might think. I’m in no rush to get involved with them the way you’re suggesting. Not yet, anyway. I’m trying to sort out this vampire thing, which I won’t be able to do unless people quit trying to be such enablers.”

“Meaning?”

“Oh, you know. Dead animals put at my doorstep every night. Even tonight, Raphael killed a rabbit for me. I’m capable of doing that myself if I have a mind to.”

“We’re just trying to help.”

“Well, don’t. I’m not incapable of fending for myself. I even wonder if I’d fare better if I left Shadow Creek.”

Katlyn almost looked hurt at the remark.

“It’s not you, Katlyn. I just feel so strange now, and I really need to be alone for a while. Surely you could understand that.”

“Yes, but I’m really wondering where this is coming from. I suppose it never occurred to me that you’d rather leave than stay here, but I’ll support you any way I can. Please, just give it more thought before you make that move, okay?” Katlyn moved Elric from her breast and applied a damp cloth to clean herself. “Where would you go? Not far, I hope?”

The last thing she wanted was to hurt her friend, but how could she explain how she felt? “I’m not sure. I just need some space to think things through, but I’ll give it more thought if that will make you happy.”

“Look, this isn’t about making
me
happy. You have to live for yourself and figure out what you really want. Like Seth and Raphael. You seem to be hitting it off with them.”

“I’m not ready to make any decisions right now. It wouldn’t be fair to lead either of them on when I haven’t figured things out yet.”

“I never expected you to, but if you’d like a little more space, I’m sure there must be a cabin on the ranch, which is farther from the main house and us.”

Tessa nodded with a slight smile, laying Nolan down in his crib as he had fallen asleep. “I should get going. I’ll let you know what I decide.”

When the door closed, Tessa waved at Angus who sauntered over. “Evening, Tessa. Nice night for a snack. You want me to find you something to eat?”

“No, there’s too much of that going around. I can find my own food.”

“I don’t expect you like that blood in your fridge all that much.”

“You got that right. Although, Paige has warned me already that the more I feed off living animals, the more of a temptation it might be to hunt a human. I know I can’t do that without turning them, and I’d never do that to anyone.”

“Not on purpose, anyway. Let’s just hope you’re never put in the position to feed like that again.”

“I was forced to kill once, but that was not about feeding, although I
did
drink. It was about protecting myself.”

“I get it. I know all about doing what you have to if faced with danger. I’ve had to do that, too. Before I came to Shadow Creek.”

Tessa looked up at the llama shifter and smiled. He was the kindest and yet most misunderstood shifter. While he considered himself dumb or slow, he was neither. Anyone would say of him that he was the most loyal ranch hand at Shadow Creek, and protecting the cattle wasn’t the extent of his duties. He was also a friend to them all. She hoped that one day he’d be able to meet a woman who was worthy of his love.

“Can I get a ride into town?”

“If you’d like, but are you sure you want to go into town again tonight?”

“Don’t worry about me, Angus. There’s not much else to do at Shadow Creek, and it gets boring staying in my cabin all the time.”

“Okay, but be careful and call me when you want to come home. I don’t like the idea of you speaking with Raphael and Seth, either. It’s just strange.”

“Why is that?” Tessa wanted to know.

“I can’t imagine Raphael ever tying himself down to a woman, and I also can’t see him as the sharing type.”

Tessa hugged her arms as a cool breeze carried over to them. “You’re so sweet, Angus. Just like a big brother I never had.”

“What was your family like?”

“Not like anyone around here. They weren’t all that nurturing, that’s for sure. I’m sure they loved me in their own way. If only they had expressed it like other families do.”

They hopped in the truck and Angus drove into town. Two ATVs were parked alongside the saloon and she wondered if Raphael and Seth were inside.

Angus led the way inside and sat at the bar since all of the tables were full. The bartender strode over and smiled. “Hello there, Tessa. It’s nice to see your pretty face in here again.”

Tessa didn’t know if he was trying to flirt with her or just making small talk—she guessed the latter. “Thanks, Frank, I think.”

“What can I get you two?”

“Pitcher of beer sounds good,” Angus said.

There was a loud boom as two men staggered inside. Tessa narrowed her eyes at the men. The scrawny one was Jason Traxler, who immediately stumbled his way toward her.

“H-Hello. Look – it’s one of those Shadow Creek bitches,” he sneered.

“Why don’t you come over and sit on my lap, honey?” the other drunk, Earl Sharp, taunted. He was still standing, but barely. He was the only man in Creeksboro who seemed to stomach Jason as a friend. He was a much larger man and word had it he was just paroled.

Tessa knew Jason all too well. He was as low as it got, and calling him a man tasted bitter on her tongue. He had a history of abusing women, including Carrie, who was the mother of Melody, Seth’s daughter. Why any hawk shifter would put up with that was beyond Tessa. If she were Carrie, that man’s eyes would be missing by the pointy edge of a beak.

She turned back around, ignoring the men. They continued to hurl insults their way until Tessa heard a loud and booming voice say, “Knock it off, you two, or I’ll lock you in the drunk tank.”

“Lock us up, you old fool. You’re not the law around here, Cl-Clayton,” Jason responded.

“Nope, you’re right about that one,” Clayton agreed.

“But I am,” the sheriff said as he stood up, dressed casually, obviously out for the night. “You two had best head home and you’ll need a head start since you’re both too drunk to drive tonight.”

“But I want a couple shots, first,” Jason whined.

“I’ll give you a few shots,” Angus offered, turning.

“Calm down, boy,” Tessa said with a grin, patting Angus’s arm.

“Bitch, you better not be talking to me,” Jason threatened.

Tessa was off the stool in seconds, taking hold of Jason’s neck. “Now that’s no way to talk to a lady.” She gave him a shove and he slid all the way to the door.

He crawled to his feet. “What the hell are you? Another shifter?”

“I-I’ve never seen a shifter do that before,” Earl said. “We should head home before this gets out of hand.”

Tessa laughed. “It already has, you loser. You’re a waste of oxygen.”

“Did you hear that, Sheriff? She’s threatening me. Do something.”

“I didn’t hear her threaten anyone. You shouldn’t have insulted the lady.”

Angus started laughing in his bear-like tone, which echoed in the room.

“Stop laughing at me, Angus, before I come over there and smack that smile off your ugly mug,” Earl spat.

Angus was off his barstool in a flash. “I’d like to see you try.”

Earl raced for the door while Jason ran at Angus like a bull, but Angus stopped him with a palm on the top of his head. He laughed all the harder as he ushered Jason to the door, kicking him out with a mighty shove by way of the sole of his boot. Applause erupted and Angus was slapped on the back in congratulation for showing up Jason.

“You could have intervened,” Tessa told the sheriff. “That could have gotten out of hand.”

“If I did that every time that man ran his mouth, he’d have a permanent place in a jail cell. He’s harmless for the most part.”

“Except if he’s knocking around women, you mean.”

“I’ve heard that, but nobody has filed charges against him or even called me. I can’t help if nobody calls me and reports him for abusing them,” he explained.

“That might just be because they’re too afraid to.”

“I’m Sheriff Barnes. I don’t think I met you when I went out to Shadow Creek to introduce myself yesterday morning.”

Tessa laughed. “I don’t do mornings. I’m more of a night owl.”

“You got that one right,” Angus whispered in her ear.

She turned and gave Angus a look before turning back to the sheriff. “I’m Tessa Clark.”

The sheriff nodded. “Would you care to sit with me and Clayton?”

Tessa noticed Raphael and Seth out of the corner of her eye and wanted to refuse, but since neither of them had said anything to her since they arrived, she didn’t want it to look like she was expecting to sit with them. If they were truly interested in her, they’d have to act like it.

Angus carried their drinks as they sat opposite the sheriff and Clayton.

Once they were seated, Clayton asked, “How is Paige doing these days?”

“Why don’t you come out to Shadow Creek and ask her yourself?” Tessa responded with a bit of snark.

“I would if I wasn’t so busy. There’s been a run of missing livestock that I’m investigating.”

“Really? I hadn’t heard that.”

“It’s not something we need in this area, as you can understand.” Clayton smiled before adding, “If you know anything about it, let me know.”

“Why would I know anything about it? This is the first I’ve heard.” Tessa fumed inside. She knew exactly what he meant. He thought
she
was behind it since he was the only human in town who knew Paige and Tessa were vampires.

“What he’s trying to say is we take such losses seriously,” Sheriff Barnes said. “I know this area has plenty of shifters living close by, which is why we just can’t afford for livestock to be killed. Otherwise, we might have government people heading here to investigate.”

“Killed? I thought you said they were just missing.”

“I did, but I was just speculating is all. Missing livestock often winds up being quite dead.”

Tessa stood up at that point. “Good to know.”

She headed out the door with Raphael shouting for her to stop. He caught her outside before she had gotten far. “What happened over at the sheriff’s table?”

“That Clayton had the nerve to tell me about some missing livestock, like I’m the one responsible.”

“I heard about that. Is it possible that you’re taking this too seriously? That he was simply sharing information and that was all?”

Tessa smiled. “I suppose. It’s just that I’m not harebrained. I know I can’t risk an investigation from outsiders. Sure, Creeksboro might be tolerant of shifters, but what would happen if it’s known that vampires also live here?”

“Tolerant is a strong word. There are plenty of folks in town worried about shifters, but since the government has given us rights, there are still people who rather we would be gone.”

“I can’t even imagine what might happen if they find out Paige and I are vampires.”

“You can’t keep a secret like being a vampire under wraps forever. Especially if you pull another stunt like you just did in there. It doesn’t take a genius to know a woman doesn’t have that kind of strength.”

That really made her mad. “Women are not dainty little things in need of protection from men, or even shifters. We’re quite capable of fending for ourselves if need be. Look at Katlyn. She gave birth to two babies. If that isn’t strength, I don’t know what is.”

Raphael nodded in response. “I’m certainly not going to argue with you there, but you’re used to living in civilization. Where I came from, it’s quite another story. Women are in need of protection for many reasons. Some male shifters have been known to be territorial when it comes to their mates. And there are dangers lurking in the shadow that you wouldn’t even want to know about.”