Touchdown Daddy (22 page)

He phoned Mary again and left another message, hoping that they would get somewhere with a signal soon. David would be able to get a new vehicle and take Mary into hiding.

But in the chance that they would not get the message in time, Andre had to get to them. Not in his car–it was too likely that Easton would be tracking him. Well. It was nighttime. He'd have at least until dawn before somebody noticed theirs had been stolen.

Why did I tell Andre to come?

Mary floated in the cool lake water, her eyes closed while the water lapped around her face and the sun warmed her cheeks and nose. The night had been restless. Andre had dominated her dreams. She could still feel the touch of his hand on her skin, the deep tug from within her, building heat in her core. The dreams had woken her shaking with desire. She had reached for him, and when she found that he wasn't lying beside her, her heart almost broke.

So she had gone to the lake just before dawn and had swum in the frigid waters as the sky turned from black to gray.

This isn't right.

Mary left the water, returning to the blue tent that was pitched among a few stunted bushes. Due to the heat and dryness of the summer, there was a fire ban. But David stood near the propane camping stove, cooking hotdogs for breakfast.

He was such a kind man. He deserved more than what she had been giving him. He deserved to know the truth, whatever that truth might be. "David."

He glanced up and smiled.

Some sort of bird let out a trilling call from a nearby tree. It was a small red and black thing. If it wasn't for the accident, would she know what sort of bird it was? David told her that they often went camping. It seemed like the sort of thing that she should know, what kind of bird was native to the area. Or maybe it wasn't even a native species.

Mary turned her attention back to her husband. She sucked her lip between her teeth, hesitating. "The day before yesterday, I met somebody in a coffee shop that I thought I knew."

Was it just her imagination, or did the smile on David's face suddenly look forced? "That's a good thing, then. It means your memories—"

"David."

He fell silent. She could see in his eyes that he was expecting what she was about to say. She wrapped her arms around herself, shivering in her wet bathing suit. Her towel lay nearby, but she didn't reach for it.

"I think I love him." She forced the words out, not looking at David. "I think I was cheating on you before the accident. The baby… I don't think it's yours."

The wind rustled the trees and the black and red bird sang again. Mary couldn't bring herself to look at David. The sound and smell of sizzling hotdogs filled the space between them. What a bizarre thing to focus on, but Mary didn't want to think about what David would be feeling. Instead, she wondered if he was going to let the hotdogs burn.

"Mary." His hand rested on her arm. "Mary, I'm so sorry."

Her head jerked up. "You're sorry? What are you sorry about? I'm the one who…"

David shook his head. "No. You didn't cheat on me, Mary."

"How could you know? The way I feel around him." She pushed her wet auburn hair from her face. "It's so strong. Like I'm orbiting around him, somehow. I know that sounds lame, but nothing these past two months has felt right. And then I saw him and I just knew him. Even though I didn't recognize him, I knew him and it felt
right
."

David closed his eyes. He was silent for a long moment, and Mary reached for him, wanting to comfort him. He stepped back out of her embrace.

"And now you feel guilty about something you have no need to feel guilty about. Mary, you didn't cheat on me because… we're not actually married."

A rush of relief lifted Mary's heart before she fully understood what he was saying. When the realization hit her, she stepped back, eyes widening. "What are you saying?"

"It's a long story. It's actually why I wanted to come out here, to tell you. You and I aren't married. We never were. You're pregnant with Andre's child."

"You know his name. How do you know his name?" Mary's heart started beating faster and she felt a coldness creeping into her body that had nothing to do with her wet skin and the blowing wind. "David?"

"I don't know what to say."

"How about the truth?"

"The truth." He turned off the propane stove. "The truth is that it wasn't an accident that took your memories. It was deliberate. I was placed with you while you adjusted to your new life, and then I was going to go back to where we both came from. I was going to stay a month or two, three tops, just to make sure you could support yourself. Then I was going to tell you that I couldn't handle it anymore and leave."

Mary stared at him. Even though she felt no love when she looked at him, he had still been the only thing she knew for the past two months! "How could you do that to me? I… You were going to just let me think that you left me and our baby?"

"I didn't know you were pregnant. Besides, I thought that Andre would find you eventually. Your brother—"

"Brother? You told me all my family was dead!" She wanted to attack him or run away or break down crying. All the confusion of the past two months. Had somebody done that to her on purpose? And David had been a part of it!

Andre is coming. I told him where to find us. He'll come and take me away and tell me the truth.

"I know you're angry, but—"

A thunderous growl made Mary's head turn. Her whole body went cold and a gasp pushed itself out of her lungs as adrenaline pumped into her blood. A huge bear stalked through the trees. She had never seen anything so big. It was all muscle with gleaming white fur. A huge, angular head swung towards her and black lips pulled back over sharp teeth.

What was a polar bear doing this far south?

It started for her and she stood stupidly, frozen to the spot. Her jaw opened to scream when suddenly a wolf leaped from her peripheral vision. The bear turned, swatting at it, but it easily dodged the blow and jumped onto the bear's back, snarling as it tore at the fur on the bear's neck. Cloth clung to the wolf–strips of David's clothes.

Mary finally found her legs and she ran. The car. The keys were on the dashboard. If she made it there she could get away.

She heard the bear pursuing and just as she shut the door behind her, the bear slammed into the car. The whole thing rocked, tilting up on two wheels and crashing back down. Mary scrambled for the keys. They had fallen under her seat, just out of reach. The wolf jumped onto the car hood and then onto the bear. It rose on its hind legs, swiping at the wolf, and then threw its weight against the car again. Metal screeched and spider web cracks splintered over the windshield.

Mary leaned on the horn. The blaring noise made the polar bear jerk back, but it came for her again, mouth open wide as it tore at the car door. The wolf pounced on it, and the bear flipped it away as though it was nothing more than a nuisance.

Something huge and brown suddenly barreled into the polar bear, knocking it off its feet. A grizzly. Mary's jaw dropped as the polar bear regained its feet and went after the grizzly. The noise was like two titans clashing. The roars and growls of the two bears seemed to shake the whole world. Muscles bulged, fur went flying and blood splattered everywhere.

The passenger door opened and Mary screamed. David slid into the car, naked and bleeding.

"Drive!" he shouted.

Mary scrambled for the keys and was finally able to grab them. Her hands shook as she started the car. The polar bear turned at the noise. The grizzly dodged in, its mouth closing around the other bear's neck. Mary threw the car into reverse and began pulling away.

The polar bear roared. It shoved the grizzly off, slamming it into a tree. The tree cracked and fell, and then came crashing down on the grizzly.

Mary stopped the car, heart in her throat.

"What are you doing?"

She ignored David, changing gears. Her foot stomped hard on the gas and the car shot forward. The polar bear was over the grizzly, its back towards them. Mary's hands were suddenly steady, the buzz of acceleration filling her mind, crowding out all other thoughts.

They hit the bear with a sickening crunch.

***

Andre stumbled to his feet, spasms of pain shooting down his spine to his paws. Easton sprawled on the ground, front paws digging into the earth. His back legs lay useless. Blood gushed from his body, staining his white fur and turning the earth muddy.

He deserves this pain
. Andre pinned the larger bear to the ground and closed his mouth around Easton's throat, biting down until he tasted blood. When his enemy was no longer breathing, he left the body.

Mary was just exiting the car. Blood trickled down her forehead, but she otherwise looked unharmed.

Andre repressed his Bear, rushing to her side. "Mary!"

"Don't touch me!"

Andre skidded to a stop. His heart died within him at the look of utter terror in Mary's eyes.

Mary sat next to the tent, a hunting knife held loosely in her hands. Her eyes darted between David and Andre, and she visibly shook. David wore some extra clothes he'd packed, but Andre had nothing but a blanket to wrap around his waist towel-style.

Andre didn't know what to say. This moment had played through his mind for so long that all the words were jumbled up in his brain, and there was no clear place to start. He had hoped that he would find something to say while they buried Easton's body, but somehow the silence during that task made it even harder to start now.

"We're Wolves," David said eventually. "You and I, Mary."

"You mean like Werewolves? Is that why I'm always staring at the moon?" her voice was higher pitched than normal and Andre wanted to take her into his arms and soothe her. But he made himself sit still.

"Not Werewolves," David said. "At least, not the Hollywood version. Our transformations are voluntary for the most part. We do have to embrace our Wolf on the night of the full moon, but we aren't mad vicious creatures."

Mary stared at him hard. "Is that why you had to work out of town every month?"

David nodded.

"Why didn't I change?"

Andre found his voice. "It's because the community you grew up in did something to you to stop you from being able to embrace your Wolf, and it erased your memories."

Mary's gaze locked with him and she stopped shaking. She drew in a deep breath and nodded for him to continue.

He told her everything, starting from when they first met on the road when she was running away from her home to try to get a life of her own. He stumbled over parts. Like the consuming rage he felt after her father destroyed his farm which led him to nearly kill her sister, how she had killed her own father when he attacked them and how she was manipulated to returning to her community so Easton could attack. But he left nothing out.

By the time he was finished, night had fallen. The three of them held flashlights while silver stars pierced the navy fabric of the sky.

"I feel like I should think you're crazy," Mary said after he was done. "Werewolves and Bear Shifters and… and soulmates. It's impossible, isn't it?"

"I never believed in soulmates before I met you." Andre found himself looking at the sky, afraid to see Mary's disbelief. "But you believed in them so strongly and when I held you in my arms, I could feel my soul binding itself to yours. You are all I want, Mary. I'll do anything for you, even if it means leaving and never returning."

David got to his feet. "I think I should let you two discuss this in private."

He strode off, and Andre finally found the strength to look at Mary. In the flashlight's glow, her skin was almost translucent. When she shivered again, he realized it wasn't fear, but the cold that made her shake. It was still fairly warm, but she always got cold easily. The hunting knife was on the ground instead of in her hand. A wind blew strands of auburn hair into her eyes.

"You're cold," he whispered. "You should get your sleeping bag."

Mary stayed where she was. "Everything you told me. It sounds… I should be thinking that you must have drugged me somehow. That you and David are in cahoots to drive me crazy and claim insurance or something. It would be saner than believing anything that you just told me. I mean, how could one couple be so damn
unlucky
?"

Andre laughed despite himself. He nodded. "I know. It sounds impossible."

"But it sounds true. It's like, my heart," Mary touched her chest, "is telling me everything you say is true. It makes sense, somehow. But I just… This morning I thought I was cheating on my husband before a dreadful accident stole all my memories, and now I'm a Wolf without a Wolf, in love with a Grizzly Bear. I don't know how to believe you."

What could he say to convince her? "You could see your brothers and sisters if you want. I think they would be happy to see you alive."

"If they really treated me the way you say, I don't know why I should want to see them." Mary's brow furrowed. "Why should I go back to them? Why should I even care? You said they treated me like a servant. I'm not going to start taking care of people I don't even know."

"You don't have to. But maybe being around other Wolves will trigger something and you'll remember."

Mary sighed. "Are there more Bears coming after us tonight?"

"I don't know. We'll have to push your car into the lake, hopefully hide what happened here. But I can take you wherever you want to go." Andre frowned.

He'd have to find a new vehicle–the car he'd stolen would be reported by now and the last place they wanted to be in was jail.

"I don't know where I want to go.  I'm going to bed. When David returns, tell him he's not allowed in the tent."

She stared at him hard for a moment, then crawled into the tent. Andre let out a slow breath as she zipped it up. Well, that could have gone worse. He had to hope that the morning would be better, but at least she had left the knife outside and she had stopped staring at him in horror.

When David returned, Andre got to his feet. "She doesn't want you in the tent. Keep watch out here. I'm going to run patrols."

David nodded, averting his eyes as Andre shed his blanket covering and embraced his Bear. He loped off into the night, praying that the morning would bring good news.

***

They're crazy,
Mary thought.
Or I am. Either way, what am I supposed to say?

Pale gray light filtered into the tent while the smell of bacon made her stomach rumble. Her fingers danced over her belly. If she was a Wolf and her baby's father was a Bear, what would it be?

When she emerged from the tent, she found David curled under a tree in his Wolf form. She stared at him for a moment, trying to imagine what it would feel like to have four paws and a tail.

Andre was cooking breakfast. His back was to her, the blanket wrapped around his waist. Mary paused a moment, admiring the way his shoulder blades moves so smoothly under his skin. He seemed to glow golden in the early sunlight, his tanned skin looking so delicious that she wanted to taste it.

Her eyes trailed down the length of his spine and the desire to press herself against him and run her hands down his skin, remove the blanket and bring him into her was so strong that she was grateful David was there–otherwise, she might actually give into the temptation. Now was not the time to be thinking about sex!

Andre turned and she flushed, sure that her desire could be read in her eyes. If he noticed anything, he didn't mention it. "How are you this morning?"

"No more Bear attacks, so I'm good." She attempted a smile.

David lifted his head. He made a grunting sound and stood, shaking. He disappeared behind the tent and returned a minute later, human and dressed. "I'm leaving."

Mary's jaw dropped. She struggled to recompose herself. He had no reason to stay, now that she thought about it, but she had expected him to. He must have read something in her eyes because he gave her a rueful smile.

"When the Bears attacked the community, the Wolves would have gone to ghost town. It means all the family flee their separate ways and have no contact with one another for at least a month. I need to find my family and make sure they're okay. Besides, you don't need me anymore." He stepped over to Mary and took her hand in his. "I'm sorry that I lied to you. I always liked you. I thought you were kind and beautiful."

Mary nodded, her throat tight.

"I'm glad you found your soulmate again."

"David," she started, but he shook his head.

"I don't expect we'll see each other again, given the circumstances. It'll be for the best. Thank you." David's gaze flickered over to Andre before returning to her. "I know that I met my soulmate long ago, now. Seeing you with yours makes me realize that I need to embrace mine, no matter the consequences."

He offered her a tight-lipped smile and walked away into the forest, not looking back.

Mary watched him go, sad at his departure. Even now, he was the only familiar thing she had. But he was right. It was for the best that he leave.

"It's not safe for me to go back to Chicago, is it?" she asked Andre, trying to distract herself.

"No. But we can go anywhere you want." He handed her a plate of bacon and eggs. "I want to stay with you, Mary. I don't care if you never get your memories back, I want to be with you for the rest of your life. But if you tell me to go, I will go."

She could see how painful the words were for him to say. Without thinking, she found herself moving towards him. Like a magnet, his mouth drew hers. His lips were hot, familiar. Fireworks sparked under her skin as he wrapped his arms around her. She pressed herself to him, losing herself in the sensations. Her body warmed all the way through and a tightness built inside her, something pulling, an almost painful tug deep inside her was begging for him.

"No!"

Mary broke the kiss, heart pounding wildly. She backed away, shaking her head. It was too much. Too powerful. She didn't even know him! This couldn't happen. Her world could not be consumed by one man. And that pull… it was dangerous!

"No." She shook her head. "When we get back to the city, I want you to leave."

Andre stood still. Disbelief and pain were etched into his face. He blinked rapidly and turned away. "Of course," he whispered. "If that's what you want, that's what I will do."

"That's what I want." Mary's voice broke, but she straightened her shoulders. "I'm not hungry. Let's take down the camp. I want to get away from here. Now."