Chapter 16

​He locked the gate and then jumped back into the cab. “It’s about a half-hour now.” He closed the door, “I made the road into my place really hard to find and navigate.” He looked at her, trying to gauge how she felt about the truck. “Sorry about the ride, she’s not pretty, but she drives through all seasons without a problem.”

She grinned at him, “it reminds me of a truck Walker had, my father hated it, but he was determined to keep it and fix it up.” She frowned, “then his responsibilities to the clan overcame his dreams.”

“Walker is which brother?”

“The youngest brother, so no need to be trained to lead.” She said as she looked out the window.

“He’s the one you messaged.”

“Yes, he and I are close,” she looked over at him, “closer than my parents realize. He’s my secret weapon with my dad.”

“How’s that?” She looked so proud when she spoke of her family. She might hate the restrictions of it, but there was love there.

She shrugged, “he’s on my side, but they don’t know that.” She grinned, “he arranged self-defense lessons for me, while my mother was more focused on prepping me to be a pretty showpiece for the Alpha family.”

He looked her up and down, then turned back to the uneven trail leading them in the roundabout way to his property. “No training required there,” he glanced at her, “the pretty part.”

Her smile was slow, her cheeks flushed enough he could see them in the low light. “Thank you but prim and proper is just not in my genetic makeup, that’s what Walker says.” She smirked, “he says I was meant to kicks and look beautiful while doing it.”

Deacon liked this brother; a lot more than he ever did Nox. “He’s right.”

“What is your family like Deacon?”

He wished now that he had a toothpick already in his mouth, getting one would look like he was stalling, but he needed to clinch one in his teeth. “I, uh,” great start, “I don’t think I have any.” That sounded flippant, but it was the truth.

“Oh?”

He chanced a glance at her and was surprised to see such compassion it made him feel like he was in the spotlight. He turned back to watch the rough trail. “Yeah, my mother was from South America.” He couldn’t look at her. It was best that she knew now, it cemented what he already felt was going to be the final reason why they, as mates were never going to happen. “She came over with some clan members,” he shrugged, “but she died when I was a baby, so her friend raised me.” He focused, trying to keep his eyes on the road. “My dad, I sort of remember him, not clearly, he, uh died when I was five, I think.” He nodded.

“I’m so sorry, that you lost them.” She said quietly. “Was your dad from South America too?”

Deacon shook his head. “No, he was from here.”

“Have you never tried to find out if you have family out there?” She was genuinely interested. That was a first, the few in his life he’d told had no interest in details, beyond the fact that he had no clan to claim as his own.

“No. I mean, I may have thought about it once,” he did look at her, and it meant a lot that she didn’t have a judgmental look on her face, “I’m sure Calum knows, but I’ve never asked, and he won’t share unless I do.” He jerked his head back just in time to follow the turn on his trail of deterring obstacles.

“Calum would know?”

He nodded and gripped the steering wheel tighter as the path angled toward the hill. “Yeah, before I could work for the Alliance and be part of the team, he would have had to make sure I didn’t come from a long line of anarchists I’d imagine.”

“That makes sense.” She was quiet for a moment, “my brother, Walker could probably find out if you wanted. He works in the clan offices and has access to a lot.” She waved her hand around, “I’m not trying to be intrusive, just if you know your father’s last name, you could find out. Who knows you might have family somewhere?”

“It’s Parrish. My last name was my father’s.” He wanted to look at her, but unless he stopped the truck, not keeping his eyes on the trail ahead could find them crash into a large tree. “I don’t know if I want to. I mean, what would I say, ‘hey, I’m your long-lost whatever relation, my father left your clan a long time ago.”

“Your father had a clan?” Her tone was quiet, “I thought he was just a—”

“Rogue, like I am?” He finished for her, “no, from what my mother’s friend told me he left the clan for my mother, so I’m pretty sure that would make him an outcast, and the welcome I’d receive would be,” he chanced a quick look at her, “not very welcoming.”

“What type of clan was he from? Some of them are pretty open-minded now.”

Deacon hoped if he answered, then she wouldn’t start asking about his mother or what he was. “Fox.” He said as he turned the last corner in his hideaway trail.

“Oh.” Her tone had changed completely. “Yeah, the fox clans here aren’t very liberal at all.” She touched his arm, “I’m sorry for grilling you for information.”

Deacon looked down at her hand, it was warm against his skin. “It’s okay, it’s just how it is, right?”

She pulled her hand back. “I suppose it is.” She leaned forward, placing both hands on the dash. “Oh, Deacon, this is spot is so amazing.” She turned and grinned at him, “that,” she pointed, “is your house?”

He nodded, not wanting her to be disappointed in it.

“I barely saw it until we were this close.” She chuckled, “It blends in with the trees around it.” She undid her seat belt like an excited child would be unable to wait.

“I like being able to see, without being seen.” He said, not even sure what was going on by her reaction.

“I get it now.” She opened the door as he stopped, “disappearing and surviving.” She nodded and hopped out of the truck.

Deacon put it in park and got out quickly, he scented the area for anything that didn’t belong, there was nothing and no one nearby. “We’ll just leave most of the supplies in the truck so we’re ready to go if Illias gets in touch with us.”

Giana just nodded as she looked all around. “It is so peaceful here.”

~

Gia lay there in the dark, she should have been exhausted and fallen to sleep immediately, especially after the hot shower. She was still amazed by the set-up Deacon had here. He’d started the generator—that he had put in some type of enclosure, and once the door shut, she couldn’t hear more than a low hum of it working. He’d turned on the pump filled the tank and heated it for her, she had no idea how the water flowed from that tank to the large shower head, but it felt like she was standing in a waterfall when it did. The water was the purest she’d ever smelled, with no chlorine or chemical undertones to it at all. While she’d been in there, he’d lit the stove and warmed up the small space, so it was cozy. He wasn’t there when she got out.

She’d found her backpack sitting on the bed and hoped it meant to use the only bed because she was now burrowed under the blankets that smelled of him. Across the room on the small couch, he’d put a sleeping bag, she stared at it in the dark, would he even fit on that? Should she get up and sleep there? If sleep ever found her. It was so silent; she wasn’t sure she would be able to.

Her mind kept churning the last few days over and over. Not the first operation, she tried to forget that one. Death wasn’t something she ever wanted on her mind. The second one, however, had changed things on so many levels, she still couldn’t process all of it. She, the sheltered daughter of an Alpha had been involved in freeing enslaved shifters from the curse of their entire community. She wondered how Terah was and if it would be wrong to make inquiries about her? About the others as well, including the men that have been forced to do the bidding of the maniacal one-form captor.

Flipping to her other side, she stared at the small window, wondering briefly what time it was, the light of dawn wasn’t too far off now. Of course, she should be freaking out that the rescue had ended on such a tense note, one with them all having to run and hide, but that didn’t bother her. For the few short moments, maybe, but Deacon was so calm through it all that she fed on his emotion and was able to stay calm.

Her heart kicked up a notch every time she thought of him or anything to do with him. In that glorious moment of triumph, she’d felt by doing something to contribute to her world, finally, she’d also found her mate. She should be ecstatic, overflowing with joy, as most would be, but she couldn’t quite dig deep enough to find that. Growing up, she’d never been one of those gooey-eyed girls that talked about their future mate and how wonderful it would be. No, the last thing she ever wanted then was another male in her life controlling her. She smirked to herself in the low light or trying to control her. A part of her brain, when his scent had drifted to her told her to run, fast and hard, but she wasn’t the type to ever run from new emotions, not even if it was for her own good.

Was she happy she’d found her one and only? Honestly, she wasn’t sure. His scent on the pillow wasn’t helping her seek clarity on the matter right now, yet it made her feel calm. It was all so confusing. He’d intrigued her before she knew and now, intrigue didn’t cover it. He was a huge, many-pieced, large, muscular puzzle. When he’d told her of his parents, she’d wept on the inside. He was so strong, so steady. She knew she would be a fragmented version of herself if her existence was the mystery he was. Her family may annoy her to no end but having them was a part of her strength. She smiled, okay, maybe more the driving force behind her determination, but still, she had them.

Flipping onto her back, she looked at the ceiling, she could ask Walker to look into the family name Parrish, if anyone could find the line, it would be him. She bit her lip; that would be intrusive and wrong without his knowledge. He was friends with Calum, if he truly wanted to know he could in a heartbeat, she imagined.

Did he even know they were mates? That popped into her head without warning. He didn’t act like he knew. All she’d wanted to do since she found out was look at him and take his scent into herself. Of course, she’d had to ask to go for a run on the trip when all she’d wanted to do was lean over and sniff him like a drug. It was ridiculous, the emotions and urges that went with this mating discovery. He never looked like he wanted to move a little closer or... her eyes popped open; he was always stepping back from her. She turned her head and looked over at the stove, the small window sent flickers of flames throughout the room. Right from that first moment, she’d dragged her fox out of that hole, he’d stepped back. At the first safe house too, and any time since. He had to know.

Blowing out a breath, she tried hard to make her body relax. She was going to give herself a migraine at this rate. Okay, so he knew and hadn’t said anything or acted on it. Why? He’d complimented her many times; even thought she was pretty. He’d told her more than once she’d done the right things and stood up for her against Nox. She groaned inside her head, yeah that had to be it right there. Nox. Her charming, overbearing jerk of a brother. Deacon had to work with him and knew there were three more brothers back home. She closed her eyes, she’d run the other way too if she was him.

Rolling over once more, she moved around trying to find a position that would help her relax. She heard the outer door to his huge porch open and slowed her breathing. Faking sleep was something she excelled at, or she’d have been caught a thousand times by her parents growing up. She waited for the door to the cabin to open. Did she dare roll over and look out the window by his small table to see what he was doing? She didn’t want to come across as a nag to him. Maybe he just needed some quiet time in his own space, she didn’t know how long it had been since he was home and could imagine after a long time away just sitting and doing nothing in the safety of your home was something everyone did upon returning. She closed her eyes and worked to regulate her breathing. Someday, she’d have a home that wasn’t filled with too many relatives. A place like this, cozy, safe, and quiet.