Chapter 21
Chapter twenty-one
Cam
Seeing big strong bikers clad in leather coming to the rescue of a child in need had a mix of emotions running through me.
For one, I found it adorable. King swooping in to pick the boy up, Channing covering him in her jacket, and then Rowen getting down to the boy’s level to calm him down had me swooning.
Watching a man I liked being sweet to a kid had never made me wonder if my proverbial ovaries were exploding.
I could suddenly imagine him with a redheaded child on his shoulders, teaching them how to drive a boat.
The idea was so vivid, I started analyzing why I wanted to be the other parent in the picture.
The truth was, I’d never considered if I wanted children.
My own parents were distant, and not just geographically.
They weren’t the type to beg me for grandchildren, and I’d been too focused on my career to consider it.
Plus, I had never been in a serious relationship before.
No one had ever made me see a future with them.
This was Rowen, though.
Somehow, he’d wormed his way into my heart where no one had been before. I liked everything about the shy man, from his dry humor to his kind smile behind that sexy beard. Rowen was also kind, considerate, and loyal.
How could I not be falling for him?
Rowen and I rejoined the others by the tree, where Connor was tearing into a small rectangular present. I hoped it was good, after all the boy had been through. The box inside was red with a familiar logo of a handheld video gaming console I owned as well.
The gaming console I’d donated and marked for any gender. What were the odds?
There was some type of kismet that the little boy we’d saved got the last present, and it wasn’t a cheap one. I met Val’s eyes beside Sarai, who was gushing about how generous the gift was, and she winked.
The social worker had received my donation pre-wrapped, but maybe she knew exactly what it was? That seemed unlikely.
“What is it?” Rowen asked, noticing how stiffly I’d been standing as I wondered what the chances were. “Everything okay?”
“Yes,” I nodded, turning in Rowen’s arms to grin up at him. “Just feeling proud of my new community.”
Rowen’s cheeks reddened, though from his smile I thought it was more in humble pride than embarrassment. “Blue Lake is a pretty cool place. We all try to do our part to keep everyone safe.”
“The Pack seems to be a big part of that support,” I pointed out, tucking my gloved hands under Rowen’s shirt where his heat seeped through the fabric. “Not just me, but a random child.”
“Pack protects our own,” Rowen nodded, then frowned. “And we’d be as bad as the McTaryns if we didn’t help a child in need.”
“I didn’t have a community in the city. I needed it, but I worked too much,” I admitted. Casual friends there had strong bonds, some from the kink community, others through mutual hobbies. I’d never made time for any of that.
“We stand up for everyone in Blue Lake. You’re part of Blue Lake now.”
Biting my lip, I considered my next words carefully, needing to know the answer. “I hope I’m not only important to you as a citizen of this small town?”
“No,” Rowen shook his head emphatically and squeezed me tighter so we were lined up from chest to toe. “You’re important to me because…Because you’re you.”
Rowen didn’t elaborate, so I stepped back and offered my hand, which he took. “How about we head out and you tell me more about the pack?”
“I can do that.”
We said our goodbyes and hopped onto Rowen’s bike after he made sure my helmet was secure. If he thought I didn’t know the helmet and matching gloves were presents right along with the motorcycle jacket, he had a lot to learn about how perceptive I was.
Rowen stopped at the marina where we’d started our drama-filled evening, “Your place?”
“Sure.”
Walking hand-in-hand down the pier, I let Rowen into my place before telling him to sit while I made tea. I had a caffeine addiction, but I felt like cranberry tea was more suited to the conversation than coffee. Plus, I didn’t have a fancy coffee machine like at Perk.
“Ready to hear more?” Rowen asked as I heated the water in a kettle and found some sugar.
“Let’s hear it,” I agreed, glad for my small living space being open. “Are King and the rest of the pack wolf shifters?”
Rowen blinked as if in surprise then smirked, “Figured that on your own? I’ll give you credit, most never have a clue.”
“You said most of the shifters in Blue Lake were wolves, the Kings and the whole pack is full of supernaturally hot people, and they’re all so strong.” Pouring the hot water into two mugs with fish on them, I added a spoonful of sugar to each and carried them over. “I made an educated guess.”
“Still, I’m impressed,” Rowen told me, taking his mug and sipping it immediately, as if it wasn’t boiling hot.
Settling on the loveseat beside Rowen, I set my tea on the window sill to let it cool. “And then there’s the imperviousness to heat or cold. Maybe Connor was right and you are all superheroes.”
“We’re not invulnerable. I can feel the heat and cold, just like they can, we just heal faster.”
Nodding at this new information, I asked my next question. “And the McTaryns are…bears?”
“Correct. Assholes, the whole lot of them across the lake. Though I think that’s more about them, and not their species.”
“So who are the coyotes?”
“They’re from the reservation outside of Northlake. Val has a lot of cousins who shift, though she doesn’t herself.”
“Oh. Wow.” I processed the new information, wanting to read up on Native American coyote myths to see if any had hints of the shifters in them. “Is that why she knew to put you with Clark? She knew he was a shifter and could tell you were as well?”
“She could tell before I even knew,” Rowen smiled to himself and took another sip of tea, prompting me to try mine.
This man had me wanting to follow everything he said or did. The thought of Rowen dominating me in bed had my mind switching gears. Taking another gulp of the fruity tea, I set my cup down and took Rowen’s from his hands.
Rowen raised a brow but didn’t protest when I straddled his lap. “I think that’s enough shifter talk for now.”
“Oh, my curious m–Cam doesn’t need to know more?”
The ‘m’ before my name was confusing, but I assumed he stopped himself from using a pet name or ‘man’ for me. Little did he know I’d welcome anything he wanted to call me, and understood that some terms were confusing in how to replace them for non-binary people.
“You can tell me more another time,” I insisted, starting to unbutton his shirt. “Right now I want you to finish what you started at the mistletoe.”
Judging by the deep rumble in his throat as Rowen gripped my hips and let me feel his erection, he was eager to go along with my plan.