Chapter 14
Chapter Fourteen
Orion
“What did you find out?” I ask Pryce after breakfast. Cora is strapped in her booster seat at the island where I’ve given her a coloring book and pencils.
I wanted to stab Jones in the chest with a dull butter knife when Cora’s face lit up.
The poor woman hasn’t had anything entertaining or fun for years.
When my phone buzzed in my pocket, I stepped across the room to take the call. The cabin isn’t that large, so I can’t really hide my side of the conversation, but I can keep my voice low while I get the scoop from Pryce.
“It’s as you suspected. That fucker doesn’t own the house. He wasn’t on the deed, nor did Cora’s mother have a will.”
“Could he possibly contest that? I mean, he could say that he was owed the room and board for staying to take care of Cora.”
“Ah, but I didn’t say there wasn’t a will at all.
I said that Cora’s mother didn’t have one.
The homestead belonged to her grandmother before her.
The woman left the house to Cora’s mother in her will, and, more importantly, Cora’s grandmother stipulated that the property would go to Cora in the event that her mother passed. ”
My breath hitches. I glance at my girl. She’s no longer coloring. In fact, she’s staring at me. I’m sure she heard my mumbled words. I’m livid. That son of a bitch came here yesterday to see about selling off a part of his homestead when the truth is he didn’t own it in the first place.
“What do you want to do next?” Pryce asks after a long pause on my part.
“Let me think about it.”
“I know you don’t want to contact the sheriff,” he jokes.
“Fuck no.” We won’t get the authorities involved in the untimely demise of Vincent Jones. I just need some time to figure out how to proceed.
“Let me know when you have a plan. We’re all ready to help.”
“Thank you.” I end the call and pocket the phone.
Cora is still staring at me, eyes wide, spine rigid.
I go to her and sit on the stool next to hers before turning her entire chair to face me. “That house does not belong to Vincent. It never did. It belongs to you, and he knows that. The person who should have been evicted after your mother died was Vincent Jones.”
She gasps.
“Granted, the state would have needed to assign you a guardian until you turned eighteen, but that only would have involved Jones if you’d agreed to it. Obviously, under the circumstances, you never would have.”
“That rat bastard!” she shouts.
I couldn’t agree more, so I don’t reprimand her for her language.
She seethes. “All this time he acted like he was doing me a favor, telling me he could put me out on the streets at any time if I chose not to obey his every demand. He terrorized me and beat me. Fuck him!” she screams.
I unfasten her restraints and lift her into my arms. “Straddle me, Little doll.”
When she does, I pull her close, chest to chest, and rub her back. “I’m so sorry, sweetness.”
“I want to kill him,” she growls.
I hug her tighter. “That won’t be necessary, Little doll.”
She leans back, frowning. “Why not?”
“Because I’m going to take care of it, Cora.” I won’t lie to her. That man is dead. But I’ll be the one to end him, not my Little girl.
Her eyes widen. “You’re going to, uh…?”
“Yes, sweetness. He can’t be allowed to stay alive. Every day that he’s still breathing is another day I have to worry that he might come here and do something to harm you. I won’t have it. He’s unhinged, Cora.”
There’s a knock at the door, and I rise from the stool, still holding my girl, to head for the front of the cabin.
“What if it’s Vincent?” Cora hisses.
“It’s not, Little doll. He wouldn’t be able to get this close to us without one of my brothers seeing him.” When I look out the peephole, I find Quinn standing on the porch.
After ensuring that Cora’s dress is tucked under her bottom and that she’s pressed firmly against me to conceal her nipples, I open the door and take one step outside.
Quinn nods. “Morning.” He glances toward Cora. “Nice to meet you, Little one. I’m Quinn. We’re all excited to have you join our pride.”
Cora flinches. “Thank you.”
He smiles warmly and turns his attention to me. “I just wanted to let you two know that I’m going to install a surveillance camera with motion sensors on the front of your cabin. Just a precaution.”
“Excellent idea,” I respond. “I guess you’ve spoken to Pryce.”
“Yes. It won’t take long. I’m going to do the same to all of our cabins. We’ll sleep better at night, especially after we’ve all found a mate.”
“Agreed.” My chest feels lighter with the knowledge that motion sensors will alert us to any movement outside.
It will be especially necessary at night.
I’m certain at least one of my brothers watched my cabin last night so I could spend the time devoted to my mate, but they can’t keep that up every night, especially not after all of them have bonded with their own Little girls.
“I’ll have this hooked up in no time. Go on back inside so Cora doesn’t catch a cold.”
“Thank you.” I nod toward Quinn and turn to shut myself in with my mate once more.
“Don’t you have to go to work?” she asks me.
“Nope. My pride brothers will cover for me for a few days so I can spend all my time with you.”
“What will I do when you return to work?”
I sigh. “I’m not sure yet, Little doll. Brea goes to the logging site with Navin.
She works in the office doing paperwork and managing appointments.
She’s a godsend, but I’m not sure how many of our mates we can sequester in that tiny trailer while the rest of us run the logging business.
We’ll need to have a pride meeting to discuss our options.
I understand why Navin brings Brea with him.
That way he doesn’t have to worry about her home alone all day.
There’s no way in hell I could leave you here while I left for ten hours.
I’d end up cutting my arm off from not paying close attention to the saw. ”
Cora gasps. “Daddy. Don’t say things like that. I’ll be fine here. I can take care of the cabin and cook for you.”
I frown. “Never, Little doll. I take care of you. Not the other way around.”
She looks down, drawing lines on my chest absently with her fingers.
“Cora…” I don’t like her demeanor or the scent in the cabin. Fear? No. Embarrassment. What is she embarrassed about?
She lifts her gaze. “I couldn’t help you in the trailer if I wanted to. I don’t even have a high school diploma.”
I grind my teeth together, livid all over again with that fucker and what he did to my girl. When I’m able to rein in my temper, I say, “Is that something you’d like, Little doll?”
She shrugs. “Doesn’t matter. It’s too late.”
“It’s never too late. You could take online courses and finish high school.”
Her body jerks at the suggestion. “Really?”
“Of course. Say the word, and I’ll set you up with my computer. I bet you’d be able to pass your exams in no time at all.”
She beams. Tears come to her eyes and roll down her cheeks. She throws her arms around my neck. “I love you.”
I hold her so tightly I worry I’m hurting her. Keeping one hand under her bottom, I slide the other up between her shoulder blades. “I love you, too, Cora. More than anything in the world. You make me so very happy.”
She giggles as she looks at me. “We’ve only known each other one day.”
I shrug. “Yeah, but it was an eventful day, and that’s just how things are with lion shifters. We meet the right person, and we just know. There’s never any doubt. I’ve known I’m in love with you from the moment I set eyes on you, Little doll.”
She’s smiling so broadly her cheeks are going to be sore. “I want to get my degree, Daddy.”
“Okay, but first you need to take a bottle. You didn’t eat enough for breakfast, Little doll. Don’t think Daddy didn’t notice.”
She wraps her arms around my neck again and squeezes. Her lips come to my ear, and she whispers, “Wanna know a secret?”
I chuckle. “Sure.”
“I’m too upset to eat, and I like it better when you feed me.”
My face spreads in a smile that rivals the expression she was just wearing.
“I like it better when I feed you, too, Little doll. It allows me to hold you, nurture you, and bond with you. Let’s get some formula in you, then you can take a nap.
While you rest, I’ll look into how to get you started on your GED. ”
“A nap?” she whines.
I smirk. “Yes, naughty girl. You’re exhausted. You haven’t slept well in years. You’re in a safe place now. You never have to worry about what will happen when you wake up. I’ll always be here to take care of you. Don’t argue with Daddy. When I say it’s time to nap, I mean it.”
She sighs dramatically. “Yes, Daddy.”
Spinning her so she’s propped on one of my hips, I head for the refrigerator to take out a premade bottle. After heating it, I screw the nipple on and turn toward the couch.
We’ve come so far in such a short time. Already my girl is not just accepting her bottles but has indicated she enjoys them. I can’t argue with that. There’s very little in this world that’s more satisfying than feeding my girl.
When I sit, Cora settles on my thighs and leans back in the crook of my arm. She doesn’t balk a single moment as I bring the nipple to her lips.
Fuck, she’s sweet. She’s here. She’s mine.