The Bear's Forbidden Wolf: A Hot Paranormal Fantasy Saga with Witches, Werewolves and Werebears (Weres and Witches of Silver Lake Book 4) (3 page)

F
rom the way
Blair’s face paled, something bad had happened. Ainsley waited until her friend hung up before asking. “What is it?”

“What’s Shamus’s last name?”

“MacLeod.”

“Wow. I just found out that your Shamus is my cousin.”

It was as if ten people with guns had come at her at once. Ainsley held up her hands, her blood curdling in her body. “Are you sure?”

He was a bear shifter, so she supposed it was possible, but what were the odds?

“My mom’s sister is Moira MacLeod.”

Crap
. “That’s his mom. Poor Shamus. Your family can’t know that he’s come here to visit a Changeling. They’ll never understand.”

Blair blew out a breath and stabbed a hand through her hair. “You’re right. This isn’t good, but you aren’t the typical Changeling.”

“That doesn’t matter. Do your parents know that I’m one? Or rather that I’m a half Changeling?” Blair promised she’d never mentioned it to her folks, understanding that they wouldn’t react favorably.

“After we went out to lunch with Mom last week, I told her. I’m guessing that means Dad knows too, but he’s never said anything to me, so he must be cool with it. They both know how close we are and trust my judgment.”

“What about your cop brother?”

Her nose scrunched up. “I may have forgotten to mention that fact to Kalan or Jackson. They’d just finished working a case in which two Changelings stabbed a Wendayan and took his magic. Fortunately, the security firm that Jackson works for was able to retrieve it, but Kalan was injured in the fight.”

Guilt swept down. Even though she had no connection to the Changelings in the US, it didn’t mean she didn’t feel bad when their malicious acts touched someone good. “I bet that pissed off everyone around here.”

“You can say that again. Once Jackson and his team stole back the magic, the Changelings tried to take a different Wendayan, but she managed to escape.”

That caught Ainsley’s attention. “She must be one powerful witch.”

“She is, especially when she mated with another Wendayan and inherited his powers too.”

“That’s cool.”

Blair stood. “My parents have asked that I come over for dinner right now. The whole family will be there, so I gotta change.”

Ainsley wanted to see Shamus, but not under these circumstances. “Can you pull Shamus aside and tell him I’m in town?”

Blair leaned over and hugged her. “I sure will.”

Her roommate stepped into the bedroom and returned five minutes later wearing a cute pair of jeans and a pink sweater. She then gathered her things. As soon as Blair headed out, a sense of doom descended. Someone would end up being hurt because they knew her, and she prayed it wasn’t Shamus.

*

“So tell us
Shamus, how did you defeat those bastard Changelings?” Jackson’s dad asked as he broke off a piece of bread from the loaf then slathered on too much butter. If he weren’t a werebear, Jackson bet his dad would have some serious health issues.

“It was a might hard, I’ll tell ye that. Owen Chancellor—he was their leader—thought he had the edge, but—”

“Owen Chancellor?” Kalan asked.

“Kalan, wasn’t that Izzy’s stalker?” Jackson asked.

His brother glanced at him. “Yes, but what are the chances there are two Scotsmen with the same name who came over here?”

Shamus smiled. “I’m betting it was the same person, and I’ll tell ye why I think that. After we defeated him and his useless Clan members, his parents gave away his title-to-be to the younger son, Alex. Since he’s mated and a tad smarter, Alex was elevated to be next in line as Alpha.”

Jackson chuckled. “I bet being stripped of his title put oil in Owen Chancellor’s blood.”

“It did. That embarrassment caused him to look for a powerful wife. I heard through the grapevine that his search lead him to America to find her.”

Jackson glanced over at Kalan, whose jaw had tightened. If his glass hadn’t been plastic, he bet his brother would have crushed it.

“But he failed,” Kalan said, his voice sounding like he’d swallowed gravel.

“Thankfully. I wouldn’t have given a hoot one way or the other, but ye see, I was always a little sweet on his sister.”

Blair knocked over her glass of water. If Jackson hadn’t been gazing in her direction, he wouldn’t have seen that she’d done it on purpose.

His sister jumped up. “I’m sorry. I’ll get something to clean it up with.”

His mom used her napkin to keep the liquid from flowing too far, but it wasn’t enough. Jackson stood. “I’ll help too.”

While Blair protested, he needed to ask her what the hell was going on and rushed into the kitchen after her. Fortunately, from the dining room, no one could see them. With the excellent shifter hearing, he’d have to whisper. “Why did you tip over the water? I know bears have the reputation of being clumsy, but you have never been like that.”

She looked over her shoulder, probably to see if their mom was coming in. “My roommate Ainsley is Ainsley Chancellor—Owen’s sister. But she’s nothing like him.” Her words spilled out. “Nor does she know he’s dead.”

Jackson didn’t hear much past the part about how his sister had roomed with a Changeling for four years. His heart was pounding too hard. “Are you crazy? You knew she was one of them, yet you told no one? And worse, you’re rooming with her now!”

“Shh. Keep your voice down. You don’t know anything about her.” She blew out a breath and looked at the ceiling, as if she were trying to figure out what to say. “I’m not going to defend myself or Ainsley. I’m sorry that you’re too pigheaded to listen. Shamus is her dear friend, and he wouldn’t have protected her since fifth grade if she had been evil. Just so you know, Owen is her stepbrother. They’re not even related.”

He pounded a fist on the stone countertop. “But she’s still a Changeling.” It didn’t matter that two Changelings had risked their lives to help Kip’s brother retrieve his magic. Those two were an anomaly.

Footsteps sounded. “What’s going on in here?” Their mother grabbed a hold of each of their arms like she used to do when they were little. So what if he towered over her by a foot, she still had the ability to make him quake a bit.

“Did you know that your daughter’s roommate is a fucking Changeling?” Jackson ground out, not caring if his voice traveled or if his mom took offense at his language.

Her grip loosened. “As a matter of fact I do. Ainsley is a lovely girl. And she’s only half a Changeling. The other half is Wendayan.”

“But—”

“I’m ashamed of you, Jackson Murdoch, judging someone before meeting her.”

“You should know,” Blair said, “that Ainsley is a dear friend of Shamus’s.”

“Is that so? What a small world. By all means invite her over to dinner. There’s plenty of food.”

He could see his sister’s mind spinning, trying to come up with a reason not to. “Ah, I don’t know if that’s a good idea.”

His mother’s chin tucked under. “Why not?”

Her shoulders sagged. “Okay, I’ll call and ask her, but she might not want to come.”

“That’s fine,” their mother said. “It’s important that she understands she’s welcome in my house.” She looked straight at him. “Some family members might not be soon.”

Blair glared at him too, but he wasn’t backing down. “Don’t tell Kalan or we’ll have a war on our hands,” he said.

Their mother lowered her hands to her side, but her lips remained pinched. “I raised both of you better than that. Come back out to the table and act like adults.”

With that, she stepped out. Without another word, they gathered wads of paper towels to clean up the water spill. Jackson kept his focus away from his brother and Shamus while trying to quell his anger as he helped soak up the mess on the mahogany table. Even as they blotted the water, Shamus never stopped his story telling, seemingly oblivious to the discussion in the kitchen or what they were doing.

“Good, you’re back,” his dad said as soon as Shamus took a breath. “Shamus was describing the massive defeat against the Changelings.” His father returned his gaze to his cousin. “So did Owen take this mate home then? Not that I’m looking for a happily ever after for that scumbag.”

Jackson was sure Kalan had told their father about what had happened to his best friend’s mate’s. Dad must have forgotten.

“I’ll answer that, Dad,” Kalan said. “No, he didn’t. I told you about Izzy’s stalker. Don’t you remember?”

“Her stalker?” He glanced off to the side. “Was he the one who got tangled up in a vine?”

“That’s him, yes. After Izzy shunned him, he ran off the road at Gulver’s Gap and tumbled down the mountainside where his car burst into flames. I figured he committed suicide because he was heartbroken.”

That was a line of crap, but Jackson wasn’t about to bring that up in front of everyone.

“Blair has some good news for you, Shamus,” his mother said.

If his sister could have turned any whiter, she’d be lighter than a piece of paper. Blair pasted on a smile, though most likely Shamus could see it was fake. “Yes. I couldn’t believe it when you said Owen’s name, but my roommate is Ainsley Chancellor. She just received your letter maybe half an hour ago.”

Shamus slapped a hand on the table. “Good goddess, woman, ye need to bring her here. I came across the pond to reconnect with her. Why didn’t ye say something sooner?”

Answer that one, sis
.

“I honestly didn’t think
her
Shamus was you.”

“Well, call her for me, will ye?”

Blair pushed back her chair. “Right away.”

His sister stepped into the living room not only for some privacy but probably to regain control of her emotions. No doubt, later tonight, Dad and Kalan would blame her for tainting their house with a Changeling.

“So how long have you known Owen’s sister?” Kalan asked Shamus with a hard edge to his voice.

“Since we were young. I got to know her before I learned what horrible creatures Changeling’s were.”

Kalan leaned forward on his elbows. “Didn’t it bother you when you found out that she was one of them? I mean her brother was one sick dude. He stabbed my best friend in the gut and left him to die.”

“Is he okay?”

“Fortunately, he got help in the nick of time. He’s a werewolf, so he healed quickly.”

“I’m sorry. I, for one, know firsthand how bad Owen Chancellor is, or rather was. He always tormented Ainsley, which was partially why I needed to protect her. The bears and wolves didn’t get along well back in Scotland, and even the good werewolves made fun of her.”

Sympathy swelled, but Jackson couldn’t get past the fact that she had defective genes. “How did she escape being like the rest of them?” Jackson asked, not convinced she had.

“Her dad was a powerful Wendayan. He died when she was young, so she was basically left alone,” Shamus said. “Me Mum took a liking to her and tried to do right by her.”

That could have helped. Perhaps Jackson should reserve his judgment until he met her, but while quite a few Changelings appeared to be model citizens on the outside, many wouldn’t think twice about stabbing a person in the back.

Blair returned from the dining room, her gaze everywhere but on him or Kalan. “I got a hold of her. Ainsley is thrilled we invited her, and she can’t wait to see Shamus.”

Well, shit. From the strain around his sister’s eyes, she’d had to twist her roommate’s arm to accept the invitation, and his gut told him nothing good could come of this encounter.

*

Ainsley knew this
was a bad idea to go over to the Murdoch house, but what choice did she have? She wanted to see Shamus, but she also wanted to throw herself on the bed and grieve over the loss of his mother. Thankfully, Blair had warned her first of Moira MacLeod’s death. If Shamus had mentioned her passing during dinner, Ainsley wasn’t sure she’d have been able to keep it together.

Now she could see that by not keeping in contact with him, she’d lost the chance to see his mom again and tell her how much she’d helped Ainsley grow into the person she was today.

She swiped a tear from her cheek.

Suck it up, Ainsley
.

She was made of sterner stuff than that. Her Changeling genes helped her push aside her feelings and tuck them away for the time being. Needing to ignore the tragic loss of his mom, she refocused on what she had to do right now, which was get ready to face Blair’s family.