Chapter 17
Will waited with his hand out. His lungs burned. His muscles ached. Though his shifter genes were stitching him back together in a way that would be impossible for any human, he could still tell where every blow had landed. It would be days before he’d feel completely normal again.
He watched as Tony’s bruised and bloodshot eyes studied him, looking for any sign that this was a trick. Finally, the other man reached up and grasped Will’s hand.
Will hauled Tony to his feet, holding on for a moment while the other man got his balance. “It doesn’t have to be like this, Tony.”
“Doesn’t it?” Tony argued. “Your girlfriend can’t keep fighting for you all the time, you know.”
Risking a sideways glance, Will looked at Julie.
She’d stood tall and straight in defiance of Tony when she’d thought Will was on his deathbed.
His blood had curled at the sight of her blithely putting herself in a direct path to danger, getting between him and Tony when the other man could easily kill her.
His bear had hated that because it went against every protective instinct in his body.
Still, he couldn’t help but be proud. “I don’t think there’s much point in telling her what she can and can’t do, but this is between you and me. ”
“That’s what I’m saying,” Tony snapped back. “Let’s end this here and now.”
“Okay, but not with our fists.” Will held up his hand, palms out, and then let them drop to his sides.
“You have every right to be resentful about my actions all those years ago. I know I didn’t make things any better back then, but the apologies I offered you yesterday were sincere.
I’m sorry for what I did. There are no excuses, but I’d truly like to make amends. ”
“By selling us out?” Tony barked. “You might be happy working for some larger company, but that’s not going to work for us. Malone Fishery deserves a chance to be the success it once was.”
“You’re right.” This made Tony’s dark brows lift a little.
“It was an idea, but it’s not the only one.
Instead, what if I help you refurbish the ships you have right now?
They could use some repairs, and I certainly know my way around that.
And if you’re still running the same equipment that you were back in the day, I can help you upgrade it. ”
Tony began another protest, but Dan stepped up beside him. “What kind of upgrades are we talking about?”
“Sonar, for one thing. A one-kilowatt transducer would give you a much clearer picture of your depths. There are also some great new radar systems out that will get you through the fog without a hitch. They’re so precise they can even tell you where the birds are.
” Will watched the excitement building in Dan’s eyes.
But Tony wasn’t sold yet. “We can’t afford any of that shit, thanks to you.”
Will steeled himself against the remark.
Julie had pointed out that the Malones could’ve been trying to improve themselves instead of wallowing in their self-pity, and she was right.
Will had certainly done some damage, but he could no longer carry it around on his shoulders.
Still, these guys needed a leg up. “You don’t have to.
I can buy it at cost through some connections I have. I’ll pay for it, and I’ll install it.”
Dan nudged his older brother. “We could really increase our fishing yield with stuff like that.”
“Which means a lot more money,” Aaron added. He gave Will a sullen look, but his face became hopeful as he turned to his Alpha.
He almost had them. “While we’re at it, we might as well make sure your VHF radio is up to speed for emergencies.
There are some awesome integral systems now that have everything working all on one display.
Your dad had great instincts for where the fish were, but it’s not as predictable out there as it once was. ”
“Greg was a good man,” Paul grumbled. “He and I used to talk, you know. Before things went sideways. I don’t think he’d want this old feud to continue.”
Tony, beaten and bruised but still standing tall, looked at his brother. “And what happens then? We get paid off with a few pieces of fancy equipment and then go on about our merry way? Seems like we’re selling ourselves short. We all know it takes more than just some gadgets to make this work.”
“That’s true.” Dylan stepped up between Will and his father. “A family business needs support from the community, and we’re here for that. When Will goes back to sea, the Brighams are right here in Truro to help you.”
Tony’s face twitched in pure confusion. “I don’t understand. Why would you want to do such a thing?”
“Hey, we might not be from the same clan, but we should all be on the same side. Why wouldn’t we want to see other shifters succeed?” Dylan reasoned.
Will’s chest filled with warmth as he witnessed his family backing him up like this. They could’ve left him to his own devices, but they wouldn’t. They didn’t do that to anyone. He held his hand out to Tony again, but this time, it wasn’t to pull him up. “What do you say, Malone?”
Tony shook his head and sighed as he grabbed Will’s hand. “I guess we’d better find a hatchet to bury, Brigham.”
Barbara grinned and clapped her hands. “I think this sounds like a wonderful opportunity to celebrate. It’s a little chilly, but it’s never too cold for a bonfire, right?”
Dex pulled a camping lighter from his pocket. “I’ve got the fire if we can pile up the fuel.”
The Brighams and Malones began to build the bonfire together.
It was a moment for celebration, all right, but Will knew he couldn’t kick back and relax yet.
There was still plenty of work for him to do.
He looked around at the wild chaos there on the Brigham beach.
Those still in their bear forms were shifting back.
Several of them compared wounds or bragged about scars.
He witnessed a few more handshakes between the clans as they made up for the battle that’d just happened and laid the groundwork for an alliance.
Carol had emerged from the house onto the back porch, now that it was safe, and she was already chatting with Barbara about what food could be brought out for the impromptu party.
And there, not far from the crowd, was Julie. Stacey had her arm around her and was talking to her quietly, but she went off to help her mother as Will approached.
“Are you okay?” He knew she wasn’t. Her entire body was shaking. Will knew it probably had nothing to do with the cold, but he put his hand on her lower back and guided her toward the house.
She paused as Carol rushed out with several packages of hot dogs and slipped in the back door. “Not really. I thought you died.”
“I might have if it hadn’t been for you.
” Most of the Brighams were still outside or rushing in and out of the kitchen and garage.
That left the living room empty, and he brought Julie to the couch closest to the fireplace.
A few logs still glowed, abandoned when the Malones had shown up.
He poked the fire to life and added some fuel.
“I think you might have some bear in you after all, considering you were willing to run out amongst a bunch of violent animals like that.”
“It probably wasn’t very smart of me, but I couldn’t help myself.
” She still shivered a bit and swept her windblown hair out of her face.
“I just hated the thought of everything between us ending the way it did, if I was never going to see you again. It’s not like I could change anything.
I don’t know. It was just this crazy notion that took over me. ”
“Sounds a lot like a shifter, actually.” He bent down and unlaced her boots, pulling them off and angling her stockinged feet toward the fire.
“I’m sorry,” Julie said thickly. “You told me you weren’t interested in a relationship. I was getting ready to leave Truro and be out of your way, but then I ran out there and inserted myself right back into your life. I feel like a real idiot.”
Pain stabbed through Will’s heart. Dylan had been right all along. Trying to send Julie away was a foolish plan. “Thank you for standing up for me like that. I don’t think many people would be brave enough to get in the way of someone like Tony Malone, and I definitely didn’t deserve it.”
Her lips tightened, and she didn’t argue with him.
Will rose from the hearth and seated himself on a nearby ottoman where he could look at her easily. “I was trying to get you to leave, Julie. Tony was going to come after you to get revenge on me.”
“Ah, shit.” She sank further down into the couch cushions and put a hand over her stomach. “He really meant it when he said I was next!”
“At the moment, yes,” Will admitted. As he’d lain there on the beach and listened to her verbally eviscerate Tony, he’d been unable to do anything about it. That itself had nearly killed him, but it was the urge to keep her safe that’d finally brought him to his feet. “I should’ve just told you.”
She huffed out a breath and tented her hand over her brows. “Maybe it’s better that you didn’t. My poor brain is in information overload. I’ve learned way too much over the past week or so.”
“I know it’s been hard on you.” It’d been hard on him, too, even though he was tackling it all from a different angle.
“Yeah. I’m just glad that I’ll be going home soon. I need a vacation from this vacation.” Julie’s hand swiped down her face and landed with a thump on the arm of the couch.
“You’re leaving?”
“Not today,” she replied quietly. “I’m so tired I don’t even know if I can get myself up the stairs, much less all the way back to Boston. But I have to go home at some point, and right now, I think a little boring normalcy is just what I need.”