Chapter 14
Piper
The search was a bust. We were out there for several hours and didn’t find any traces of Barrett or his men on Clan property. Disappointed, yet strangely relieved, we retrieved Alanna from Mia and Draven and returned to the Lodge.
Weeks went by, and the Clan started to feel more and more like home to me.
Alanna was already settled in. She loved the bears and their mates.
It amazed me how much life in the Clan grew to revolve around her, and with so many people coming in and out of the Lodge, I had more than enough help caring for her.
I wasn’t alone anymore, and that fact was driven home many times, in many ways, as the weeks went by.
I started to relax more, hoping against hope that Barrett had just given up and had gone to ground somewhere.
I didn’t think it was likely, but maybe the consequences had become too real to him?
I mean, King Asharien still had people hunting night and day for him.
So did the Prime. And we still had the enforcers who’d been sent to bulk up the protection here at the Lodge too.
As King Asharien sent more protection, the bodies occupying the Lodge had at least doubled.
With so many of the bears working from home, it made for some very crowded days and nights, but we all managed without wanting to maim anyone.
Well, Taco and Drew got tossed in the pool one evening, but that was kind of normal around here.
I got to this quiet place within me where I stopped looking for reasons to leave after all of this was over, and I started looking for reasons to stay.
I was tired of fighting.
I was tired of running.
And I was tired of counting all the ways things could go wrong, or all the ways Alanna and I could be hurt, and instead I took a good, hard look at all we would be gaining.
We had a Clan. We had people who cared about us, who’d befriended me, and let us into their lives. They didn’t have to do that, and yet they had. All of them.
Friendship had always come hard for me. I’d never known why, but with the Clan, it wasn’t difficult at all. It was easy. They accepted me exactly as I was. I didn’t have to put on a show, or wear a mask, or be anything other than myself.
Being allowed to be myself… it changed everything.
And Riggs…
He loved me. He didn’t even have to say it. I just knew. And I was not an easy person to love. But he never made me feel that way. He always made me feel like he was the lucky one.
Movie nights had become a Clan thing once a week, in addition to dinners once a week.
Some weeks we went to movie night at Emrie and Roarke’s home in the city, and some nights we had it here at the Lodge, but it was always funny, and it was never quiet.
It was also hilarious when Emrie, with her progressively pregnant belly, chose the movie, because she always chose the cheesiest romcoms, and the guys in the Clan dutifully sat through them.
Taco threw popcorn at the screen, of course, and the rest groaned at how improbable the storyline was and slammed the perfection of the characters, but that was all part of the fun.
In fact, the romcom nights became my favorite nights.
Not because of the movie—I preferred action—but because of how uncomfortable and vocal the guys were about it.
I knew Emrie secretly enjoyed that aspect as well, because I caught her smirking a time or two.
Tonight, we were doing a Clan game night, playing Mario Kart.
Roarke and Emrie were here as well, and we were all packed into the games room.
Everyone had just pulled up a chair, beanbag, or bit of floor space, but I was one of the lucky ones who’d gotten here early enough to have my own recliner.
And of course Emrie got the other one. Her husband was on the floor at her feet, leaning against her legs.
There were too many of us to play at the same time, so we had to do it in groups of four. Right now Roarke was facing off against Matteo, Riggs, and me.
“Matteo, if you send one more red shell after me, you’re not going to like what happens,” Riggs threatened darkly.
I smirked, because I’d sent the shell at him.
“It wasn’t me, Alpha!” Matteo protested.
“Roarke?”
Roarke scoffed. “I don’t need a red shell to beat you.”
He probably didn’t. He’d won almost all of his matches.
“It’s because you’re using Donkey Kong,” Emrie said. “His kart always goes faster.”
“Is that true?” I shot off a ramp and somehow ended up going the wrong way.
The little cloud eventually had to come straighten me out, and I zoomed back onto the track.
I was getting lapped, and it was ticking me off.
I guess I should have spent less time working and more time playing in my life, then I wouldn’t be this lousy.
“You’re going the wrong way again,” Roarke gently said.
I shot him a glare. “I don’t know how you guys keep everything straight. It’s moving so fast!”
“Practice,” Mathan said, crunching on a Dorito. “You’re brand new. All of us were terrible when we first started.”
“You got the star, you got the star,” Emrie squealed. “Go, go, go!”
I gunned it, trying to find as many of my opponents as possible so I could bump them off course. I zoomed around a corner and saw Riggs up ahead of me. It didn’t matter, really, because he was on lap four and I was on lap three, but I bumped him anyway, making him go off a bridge.
“It’s like that, huh?”
I laughed and tried to get as far away from him as I could on my star power. Then, a few seconds later, I got another star, and Emrie was cheering me on while Taco was doing some kind of funky star dance behind me.
I lost, but I lost while cracking up, which, in my opinion, is the best way to lose.
Next, Taco, Emrie, Alistair, and Akeno went, and I swear, I didn’t know if it was because Akeno was always going a mile a minute or what, but he smoked them. Emrie threw popcorn at him, and he grinned, picking it off his shirt and eating it.
“How do you do that?” she complained. “Do you have the courses memorized?”
He shrugged. “I play a lot with the kids.”
Emrie pouted so much that her husband kissed her, finally making her laugh. She wasn’t all that competitive anyway.
We did several more matches until Emrie got too tired, then she and Roarke left for home, and everyone else did too. Or in the officers’ cases, up to their rooms.
Matteo was doing much better now. He still wasn’t fully there yet, but he was moving a lot more easily, looked healthier, and was able to do most of his daily Clan duties without tiring too badly.
He was still taking potions Rhys made for him, but would hopefully be completely healed in a few more months.
Eventually, as everyone cleared out, it ended up just Riggs and me in the room. One of the mates had taken Alanna and put her to bed for me, and Riggs had round-the-clock enforcers who were assigned to her protection, so I tried not to worry about her.
“Your first Mario Kart night. Did you have fun?”
I settled back against the chair cushion and drew my knees in, chuckling as I remembered Taco’s star dance.
“Yeah. They’re a great group of people. And they’ve accepted Alanna and me, which says a lot about who they are and your leadership.
” My tone turned teasing. “Except when you send them to pull weeds like they’re little kids. ”
He laughed, rubbing his chin. “Taco is fun. He has a lot of great and wonderful qualities, but he tends to act first and think last. He’s mouthy too, and I’ve had to settle disagreements between him and other members of the Clan on what seems a monthly basis.
His closest friends get him, and they aren’t bothered by him, but… ”
“But you’re in charge of the whole Clan, and Taco has to learn to think before he acts,” I finished for him.
He shrugged. “Yes, in a way. I know he’s an adult, but a clan functions best when everyone gives a little, and everyone works to get along. That means some changes have to take place. Not everyone is cut out to live in a clan.”
“Taco would wither and die without one.” He was a hardcore extrovert. If he had to be a lone bear like I had been, I think he would go stark raving mad.
I pulled the Dorito bag onto my lap and started munching on them. I was starving again. “And Mathan? Is he okay? He seems… not okay sometimes.”
Riggs sighed, sitting back on the sofa. “Mathan comes from a difficult past. He and his sister both. He has a lot of scars from that time, scars that he tries not to let anyone else see.”
I nodded, offering the bag to him. He grabbed some chips and handed it back.
“And Alistair?”
If Mathan could be considered grumpy, Alistair was ten times worse. He was moody, icy, caustic, and had a massive chip on his shoulder. He was mostly respectful to me, though, and he clearly had a soft spot for Alanna, but yeah. He was not a happy bear.
Riggs munched thoughtfully for a moment. “Alistair is… Alistair. I only know a little about it because Roarke told me, not because Alistair did, but he has a destroyed mate bond. I’m not sure why.”
I winced. Ouch.
“He’s soft with Emrie, I noticed.”
He nodded. “He asked her to marry him at one point, before she and Roarke got together. He thought they’d be good together, because they’re such good friends. He has a soft spot for her, and pretty much no one else.”
“Except Alanna.”
“Except Alanna,” he repeated.
We cleaned up, putting all the snacks and drinks away, and tidied up the game room so Zin didn’t get hit with the mess all by himself in the morning, then he walked me to my room. For once, I didn’t protest his overprotectiveness.
At my door, I turned.
“Goodnight, Piper. Sleep well,” he said quietly.
As he turned to leave, I grabbed one of the sleeves of his shirt, halting him.
“Riggs?” I said softly.
He turned back to me.
“I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I’m not pushing you away anymore. I’m sorry I did. My head has just been in a weird place, and I didn’t want to jeopardize me and Alanna.” I brushed my hair away from my face. “If you’re still… okay with us, I’d like to try.”
He turned, surprise and fragile hope in his eyes. “Are you sure?”
I nodded. “Very sure. I’ve always been kind of a loner.
When I first met you, the concept of a mate was difficult for me to imagine.
” I let out a small breath. “But these last few months here with the Clan have been eye-opening. And the last few months with you have been wonderful.” I smiled faintly.
“Frustrating, but wonderful.” My smile faded. “That is, if you still want to—”
He stepped closer instead of answering.
His hand came up slowly, brushing his knuckles along my jaw as if giving me time to pull away.
I didn’t.
His lips met mine gently at first, and then the kiss deepened. My breath caught, and I rose onto my toes without thinking, my hands flattening against his chest. His arms circled my waist, steadying me as I leaned into him.
As it finally slowed, the kiss softened again, sweet and lingering.
When we pulled apart, he rested his forehead lightly against mine. “Always,” he said hoarsely. “I’ll always want you. You never have to ask, or guess. And if you do, then I’m not doing my job right.”
He gave me another gentle kiss, then wrapped me in a hug. I could feel how fast his heart was beating. Probably as fast as mine.
“Goodnight, Piper. I’ll see you in the morning.”
I nodded, squeezing his hand before it slid away. When the door closed behind me, I leaned against it, my mind and emotions reeling. After a moment or two, I smiled, shook my head, and went to get ready for bed.