Chapter 24 #2
Unable to tolerate seeing the very spot where Marianne went over, I closed my eyes.
“Shifters are born with the ability to shift by instinct, but that doesn’t mean we know how to do so in a manner that’s either easy or without certain complications.
The fear of the agony, the worry that we won’t return to our human forms are very real terrors.
We need a mentor, usually our parents, but in this case, she needed me.
And I wasn’t there. I made shifting sound easy and for me, the transition while painful was exhilarating.
The other thing is that when you first shift, you’re unsteady on your paws and uncertain of your abilities. ”
Feeling the touch of her hand on my arm brought a shudder. Desire and sadness welled deep in my psyche, but I had to finish this. She had to know she was right.
“There are so many misnomers about shifters even today. People believe the bullshit about us living forever or that the only way we can die is by a silver bullet or when our heads are cut off. That’s completely false.
Yes, we do live longer lives, but human diseases are taking a huge toll on our population.
As you know, we’re supposed to heal at a much faster rate than humans as well.
That doesn’t always apply when we’re young. ”
“Ford,” Georgia breathed, the soft inflection of her voice providing more sense of courage than I’d had in one hell of a long time.
“Marianne shifted. For me. For a little while, we both felt glorious in running free. We were just playing and being wolves, but I chased her. Because of the storm, she became disoriented. I sensed she was in distress and tried to reach her, but she was terrified someone else was chasing her and wasn’t paying any attention to where she was going.
She fell off the edge onto the rocks below right here.
Because of the storm, the river was raging and the water carried her downstream.
I could feel something had occurred, but even I had a moment of being completely turned around. ”
With a clipped sigh, my mate slipped her arm around my waist, pressing her face against my shoulder blade.
“I tried to save her, Georgia. I swear to God, I did. When I finally found her, she’d shifted back likely because of her injuries.
There was nothing the doctors could do. I lost her because I was too stupid to realize she needed me to be her mentor, her friend.
I was too fucking selfish. You were right, Georgia.
About a lot of things. As much as I love hockey, I blamed the sport for her death, but the truth is, I have no one to blame but myself.
I’m the reason Marianne died. I’m the monster you pegged me to be. ”
She squeezed me as if I was going to walk away.
“I’m sorry I reacted the way I did with Abbott Young.
I was afraid Hoffman had returned or that some guy had managed to catch your attention.
What you did to help me, what you said to Mr. Young to get him to fly to Seattle and convince him to sign me as a client was…
amazing. And I fucked it up like I do everything else.
I get why you don’t want to be a part of my life any longer.
I really do. Trust me in that everyone blames me for what happened.
I blame myself. Marianne would be alive today if I hadn’t allowed my ego to get in the way. Just like I did with you.”
I did pull away from her, taking a few steps. Sure, maybe I could still feel sorry for myself even after all these years.
“Ford. Don’t do that. Don’t try and walk away from me.”
The usual edge was in her voice. A little schoolteacher with a touch of a woman who’d made an amazing mother one day. Her tone always held concern. “I just wanted you to know, Georgia. I know I fucked up the contract and I needed the chance to say I realize that was all my fault. Every bit of it.”
“Damn it. You are the most hardheaded man in the entire world. Do not take another step. Do you hear me?”
I defied her on purpose, turning around to face her, unable to keep a grin off my face. She all but leapt toward me, now only a couple of inches away. Hands on her hips. Chin in the air. All piss and vinegar.
“Now you listen to me. I am so terribly sorry about what happened to Marianne. It’s tragic.
But it was an accident. You tried to save her.
You didn’t want any harm to come to her.
Hockey isn’t to blame either. You were an excited kid moving toward your dream and my guess is that Marianne was thrilled to be a part of your happiness.
That was a long time ago.” She stopped long enough to catch her breath.
“You were fighting her brother that day, right? He was the reason your ribs were broken.”
“You’re far too astute for your own good, but the reason included you. He didn’t think I deserved another chance at happiness. And maybe I don’t.”
Every time she placed her fingers across my lips, filthy thoughts rushed into my mind. She leaned into me, her other hand placed against my chest. Did she really think I wasn’t going to notice or that my body wouldn’t react?
“Now I call bullshit. You deserve to have everything you’ve worked so hard to achieve. Even if you do everything in your power to fuck it up.” Every time she huffed, her nose wrinkled. “Fortunately for you, Abbott was appreciative that you were and are so protective of me.”
“Hmmm… Does that mean he didn’t toss the contract out the door?” Okay, so I was a very bad boy to care about my hockey career.
She rolled her eyes. “I convinced him to give you a second chance. As long as you don’t put your foot into your mouth again.
And who knows. I think your face might appear on a damn cereal box.
If you play your cards right. Plus…” Seeing her face shimmering in the soft light of the afternoon pushed my cock into a full state of arousal.
Plus, she was perhaps the most mischievous person in the world.
“A cereal box?”
“Yes,” she huffed. “That was what you wanted. Right?”
“Actually, not really. However, I’ll take it. Plus what?”
“You are a brat.” When she tried to pull away this time, I yanked her against me, cupping her jaw and refusing to let her go.
“Me? Not a chance. You are. Now, tell me,” I ordered, yet my voice was only a husky grunt.
“Well, you did blow him away on the ice.”
“Oh, really?”
“Yep.” There went the p popping again.
“Hmmm… I guess that means I should get my butt in gear then so I can play hockey.”
As she crawled her fingers along my chest, her perfume left me breathless. “If you don’t, I guess I’ll need to punish you.”
“Sorry, lady. That’s my line.”
“As my mate?” she mewled.
“As your master.”
As soon as her upper lip began to curl, I captured her mouth.
There was something so powerful about tasting her as well as having her in my arms. In telling her what had occurred, not only did I feel a sense of relief, but also a moment where I had a much better understanding of why it was so important to live life to its fullest.
I would be eager to do so as long as I had Georgia by my side.
The moment she pushed me away, she licked her bottom lip from where I’d bitten it.
“There’s one more tiny thing,” she mused and took a much larger step away.
“Uh-oh. Let’s have it.”
“Would you be upset if I told you Abbott is also interested in signing your brothers?”
She wrinkled her nose again as if I was about to get pissed. “As long as I have my Wheaties box, then no.”
A family who played hockey together, stayed together.
However, that didn’t mean there wouldn’t be a war.
And I was happy and eager to face whatever fate would bring my way.
All because of one person.
Her.
* * *
Georgia
Chicago Tribune: As the NHL Prepares for the Upcoming Season, Who Will Make the Cut?
Seattle Sentinel: The Kendrick Brothers are Set to Duke it Out on the Ice
“This is so exciting,” Roxanne squealed from beside me.
Exciting? Maybe, but I’d also call it nerve-racking as hell. I rocked in the seat, studying every shot taken. Every player on the ice was damn good. I had no idea how the powers that be would choose the perfect team for the new franchise, but I wouldn’t want to be them.
“They better pick the Kendrick boys,” I gritted out.
“They will.”
With Abbott’s help, Beck had also been offered a place in the training camp. Even Cole was on the ice, hoping to show off for the future. Now it had all come down to a couple of days of intense scrutiny.
Neither my stomach nor my mind was going to be able to take much more. When the players took a break, I finally sat back, gasping for air.
Roxanne continued to chuckle, even squeezing my arm. “Everything is going to be fine. All your hard work will pay off.”
“Ford is doing all the heavy lifting.”
“Maybe, but look at him. He’s enjoying himself. All because of you.”
When I lifted my head, I could see Ford’s face studying me from the ice. Even more profound was being able to feel his eyes on me. Always watching. The man was insatiable and with a few quick glances, I was once again hot all over.
In the weeks since he’d finally divulged his secret, we’d gotten even closer.