Chapter Twenty-Seven – Alison
“This cookie is so pretty,” Alison told her daughter as she examined the pink frosting smothered in multicolored sprinkles Tessa had decorated especially for her. “It looks too good to eat.”
Tessa beamed with pride. “I made it for you to eat. So eat it.”
“Okay, okay,” Alison laughed, taking a small bite of the cookie. The sweetness burst across her tongue, almost too much so, but the joy in her daughter’s eyes made it the most delicious thing she’d ever tasted. “Mmm, absolutely perfect.”
“Now you, Jay,” Tessa urged as she clasped her hands together.
Jay took a bite of his cookie, which was also pink and decorated with sprinkles. Although Tessa had attempted to make the sprinkles into a rainbow. She sure had an artistic flare. “That tastes so good.”
“And here’s a cup of coffee to wash them down.” Mary set three cups of coffee down on the table. Waylan had gone back to work on the ranch while Klein had driven to town to ask some discreet questions concerning Lomas and his possible return.
“Are we going to go back to the cabin?” Tessa asked as she picked up a cookie and took a bite.
Alison forced a small smile. “We might need to put that off until tomorrow, sweetheart.”
“Why?” Tessa asked through a mouthful of cookie.
“I need to head out for a little while,” Alison began.
Tessa’s gaze flicked between Alison and Jay. “Where are you going?”
“Mommy and Jay have an errand to run,” Mary explained.
Alison rested a hand lightly on Tessa’s shoulder. “Mary’s going to look after you.”
“I was thinking I might call Lewis and Tilly to come over. If you’d like,” Mary offered.
“Lewis and Tilly?” Tessa immediately brightened, any disappointment forgotten. “Yes, please!”
Mary nodded. “Why don’t you decorate some cookies for Lewis and Tilly?”
“Okay!” Tessa said, returning her focus to the sprinkles. “Bye, Mommy! Bye, Jay!”
“Bye.” Alison shook her head as she left the kitchen with Jay.
“She does miss you,” Jay told her.
“I know,” Alison said, half-turning to look at him. “But she could be a little less excited about me leaving.” Then she cracked a smile. “I’m joking. I’m so proud of her. She takes everything in her stride.”
“That’s what kids do,” Jay said as they stepped onto the porch. “They adapt. Sometimes better than adults.
“You’re right,” Alison agreed. “I think Tessa’s handled the move better than I have.” She paused at the edge of the porch, gazing out at the sprawling ranch land that stretched toward the distant mountains. “But I’m getting there.”
“Don’t be too hard on yourself,” Jay told her as he led the way toward her car. “Moving to a new town, starting over—it’s not easy, especially with everything else you’ve been through.”
Everything else she’d been through. Alison wrapped her arms around herself as a cool breeze swept across the ranch. Sometimes her past life, her marriage, all seemed like it happened to someone else. Or another lifetime.
Being around Jay made her feel like the person she always wanted to be. Strong, capable, worthy.
“Ready to go?” Jay asked, opening the driver’s door for her with a small smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes.
Alison nodded, sliding into the seat. “Are you going to tell me where we are going?”
“Over to my brother Dougray’s place.” Jay leaned closer and pressed his lips to her cheek. “I’ve been wanting to do that since you got here.”
“Only a kiss on the cheek?” she asked as she slid her arms around his neck and pulled him close.
“Well…” He cupped her face in his hand and inched closer. “Maybe more like this.”
His breath was warm on her skin as he pressed his lips against hers. The kiss was gentle at first, tentative, but deepened as she leaned into him. Her stomach erupted with beautiful butterflies as he slid his tongue along her lower lip. Alison surrendered to the kiss, wanting more, much more. But then an image of Lomas flashed inside her head, and she abruptly broke the kiss.
“Alison?” Jay asked warily.
“We should go.” She reached for her seatbelt and clipped it into place.
Jay closed the driver’s door then went around to the passenger side and got in, his large frame making the car seem suddenly smaller.
“Comfortable?” she asked with a raised eyebrow.
“Now I know why my brothers all drive trucks,” he replied as he stretched the seatbelt across his broad chest. The belt clicked into place, and he shifted uncomfortably in the seat.
Alison started the engine, trying to focus on driving rather than the lingering warmth of his kiss. “So, Dougray’s place, is it far?”
“About fifteen minutes from here,” Jay said. “You need to head back down the mountain a ways and then turn off to the left.”
“You remember the way?” Alison asked, hope edging her voice.
“Not exactly,” Jay said. “I ran over there a couple of nights ago. I wanted to see where I was found.”
“Oh.” Alison stared straight ahead. She didn’t want to think about Jay’s fall. It could have been so much worse.
“One thing about the Thornberg boys,” Jay began, “is that we’re tough. And we bounce.”
“Don’t tell me that out of all the things you could remember, that’s it,” she said with a sideways glance.
Jay chuckled, and the sound lifted her mood. “No, I just made it up. But it sounded good, right?” Jay added with a sly grin that made Alison’s heart skip a beat.
“Too good,” she said, returning her focus to the winding road ahead. The dense pines lining the route cast dappled shadows across the road. “So, what do you hope to find at Dougray’s place?”
Jay’s expression turned serious. “Dougray’s foster son, Finlay, and Klein’s mate’s daughter, Mila, found me.”
“What a complex web your family is,” Alison said.
“Yeah, apparently all my brothers have children in their lives now.” He reached across and rested his hand on her thigh. “To a shifter, a child doesn’t have to be their flesh and blood to be family,” Jay said, his voice low and earnest. “It’s about connection. You are connected to me. And Tessa is connected to you. It’s all about the bond we share.”
Alison smiled to herself as she thought of Tessa and how quickly the Thornbergs had welcomed them both. “That’s a beautiful way to look at family.”
“Family is the most important thing in the world to a shifter,” Jay replied.
“Now, that is worth remembering,” she said.
“It is,” Jay agreed.
“There,” Jay pointed to a narrow road branching off to the left. “That’s the turn.”
Alison steered onto the narrow road. “Do you recognize anything?” She hoped Jay hadn’t taken a wrong turn as they drove deeper into the mountains.
“Nope, it’s definitely in this direction,” he replied, which instilled little confidence. But she trusted him.
Then the tall pines gave way to a clearing where a modest cabin sat nestled against the backdrop of the mountains. Behind it was what looked like a new, bigger extension, and to the side was a more modern building.
“This is Dougray’s place?” Alison asked, pulling up to park beside a weathered pickup truck with mud-splattered sides.
“I guess we’ll soon find out,” Jay said as he cracked the door open and unfolded himself out of the car. He stretched, placing his hand on the small of his back. “Oh, there he is.”
“Hello there,” Dougray said as he appeared from the extension at the back of the cabin. “I wasn’t expecting you. Is everything all right?”
“Fine,” Jay answered. “I was just wondering if Finlay was here.”
“He is,” Dougray said, eyeing them both warily. “Wait here, I’ll go get him.”
“What was all that about?” Alison whispered.
“Finlay was injured when Dougray and Tammy found him. He’d been on the run for a while,” Jay explained.
“On the run?” Alison asked.
“He didn’t know he was a shifter,” Jay explained.
“Oh my goodness, and he shifted?” Her eyes were wide with shock. “That must have been traumatic.”
“Yeah, especially since he is a lion shifter,” Jay added as the door opened and Dougray reappeared with a teenage boy and a teenage girl, who was holding a puppy in her arms.
“This is Finlay,” Dougray began. “And this is Mila.”
“And this is Scruffy,” Mila said, dropping a kiss on the puppy’s head.
“I’m Alison,” Alison said.
“And I am Jay.” Jay raised his hand and then let it drop to his side.
“Hi, Jay,” Mila said, while Finlay stayed quiet.
“I wanted to thank you both for what you did for me,” Jay said. “If you hadn’t heard me. If you hadn’t raised the alarm…”
“We just did what anyone would do,” Finlay mumbled, his eyes downcast. The teenager shifted his weight, clearly uncomfortable with the attention.
“Not everyone would have been so brave,” Jay insisted. “I owe you both.”
“You’re welcome,” Mila said.
“Can you tell me anything more about that night?” Jay asked.
“They told Sheriff Brad all they know.” Dougray rested his hand on Finlay’s shoulder, a protective look in his eyes. “Finlay here heard you calling out. When they found you, he went for help while Mila stayed with you until the rescue team arrived.”
“You didn’t sense anyone else?” Jay asked, looking from Finlay to Mila and back again.
Mila glanced at Finlay. “I don’t think so.”
“What’s this about, Jay?” Dougray asked.
“It’s complicated,” Jay replied.
Alison could feel the tension between the brothers. “Jay remembered Lomas.”
Dougray’s eyes widened, and he looked genuinely surprised. “You remember that night?”
“Some,” Jay admitted.
“What night?” Finlay asked.
“It was a long time ago,” Dougray explained.
“But now I think that what happened to me when Finlay and Mila found me might be linked to that night,” Jay said.
“Linked to Lomas?” Dougray asked. “I don’t see how. He’s…” His eyes narrowed. “Unless someone was out for revenge.”
“Or unless Lomas never died,” Jay said.
“Jay…” Dougray began, his eyes filled with pity.
“I’ve seen him,” Alison butted in.
“Lomas?” Dougray asked. “You have seen Lomas?”
“He…or someone matching his description, approached Alison in the parking lot of The Grizzly Bar a couple of nights ago,” Jay explained. “I need to know if Lomas is a threat. I need to know if he was up there on the mountain when I fell.”
“Revenge?” A flicker of concern passed over Dougray’s features. “All right. Let’s hike up there. If that’s okay with you kids.”
“Sure,” Finlay and Mila agreed.
“I’ll grab some supplies,” Dougray said and went back inside the cabin.
Five minutes later, they set off on the trail that wound up through the dense forest. The path was narrow, forcing them to walk in single file. Finlay led the way, his lanky teenage frame moving with surprising grace through the woods.
“It was right up here,” Mila called from behind Finlay, Scruffy tucked securely in a small backpack she wore. The puppy’s head poked out, ears perked with curiosity at the forest scents.
“He’s a cutie,” Alison said, reaching out her hand to the puppy, who sniffed it and then gave it a lick.
“We found him in the backyard the day we moved to Bear Creek,” Mila said. “He had a sore paw, and we brought him to Tammy. That’s when my mom met Klein. And I met Finlay.”
“You’re new in town, too?” Alison asked.
“We are.” Mila nodded. “Although now it feels as if we have always lived here. I love the mountains.”
“We’re here,” Finlay said and stopped abruptly.
Ten feet ahead was a narrow crevice. It would be easy to fall into in the dark, but surely Jay’s shifter senses would have warned him it was there. So what happened to make him fall?
Alison inched closer and peered over the edge. The drop was steep enough to do serious harm. She shivered, imagining Jay lying there, hurt and confused. No wonder he’d been found in such awful shape.
Jay took a few careful steps toward the crevice, staring down. He said nothing, but Alison saw the tension in his posture, the set of his jaw. She placed a hand on his back, hoping it conveyed reassurance. “Don’t force it,” she murmured. “The memories will return in time.”
He glanced at her. “I don’t recognize it at all. I thought I might this time.”
“Maybe it’s a good thing you don’t,” Dougray said kindly. “You were in a lot of pain from what Finlay said.”
Jay kneeled down at the edge of the crevice, his fingers brushing against the rough earth. Then he closed his eyes, his body still as if he were meditating.
The others stood silent as they watched him and Alison chewed the inside of her cheek, willing Jay to remember anything. Even the smallest fragment of memory might help.
“Nothing,” Jay mumbled as he opened his eyes.
Dougray cleared his throat. “Sorry we don’t have more to tell you. If there was any other clue up here, we’d have found it.”
“It’s all right,” Alison assured him, speaking for Jay as well. “We appreciate your help.”
They lingered another minute or two, searching the area with their eyes—Alison hoped in vain that some stray object or sign would jump out at them. But the site looked the same as any other mountain ridge. Nothing indicated a struggle or a chase. At least to her untrained eye.
They filed back down the mountain, the mood was more melancholy, as if they were all lost in their own thoughts.
As they neared the bottom of the trail, Dougray asked, “So, what’s your next move?”
“We should visit Lomas’s mom,” Jay said.
Dougray shook his head. “Tread carefully there. She’s not doing well. I went by her place a couple of weeks ago to see if she needed anything, but she basically told me to leave. There’s a lot of bitterness there.”
“So she might have no idea he’s alive.” Alison’s heart ached at the thought.
“You’re right.” Jay stiffened beside her. “I need to talk to her. But…maybe I shouldn’t tell her the truth until I’m sure.”
“I agree,” Alison said, suddenly second-guessing herself. But what if she was mistaken, and it wasn’t Lomas in the parking lot? It could simply be someone who looked like him. There must be plenty of people with a scar under their left eye.
But deep down she knew it was Lomas. As sure as she knew Jay was her mate.
And he might just be the key to unlocking Jay’s past.