Cowboy Bear's Fate (Cowboy Brother Bears Book 3) Read online

  “Wait here until she comes out,” Jon said. What did his brother think he was going to do, walk away? No chance, they had all seen first-hand how that worked out for Samuel. It had meant a whole year tramping back and forth over the surrounding hills and mountains searching for his mate, whom he had caught a brief glimpse of, and who had then disappeared out of his life.

  “And then what are you going to say?” Samuel asked slowly.

  Jon frowned, his brother was talking to him as if he was five, but he had a point. Hi, I’m your mate, let’s go make babies was not going to cut it. As an introduction that would likely leave him with a slap across the face and a don’t come near me again.

  “What would you say?” Jon could not believe he was asking his brother for advice on women, but he was stumped; his brain had turned to mush, and words were likely to come out as a babbling string of nonsense.

  “How about… Umm.” He looked into the store and then back to Jon. “Just introduce yourself, ask her if she’s on vacation, or if she lives around here, and then try to work up to would you like to come out for a drink. Or coffee. Maybe coffee would be best.”

  “And if she says no?” Jon asked.

  “Wing it.” Samuel slapped Jon on the back. “You’re up.”

  With that Samuel ran across the road to the coffee shop, and disappeared inside, but Jon had the impression his brother was watching through the window. Great, I’m today’s entertainment, Jon thought. Then the store door opened and his mate walked out, and he didn’t care who was watching, or listening: she was the only thing that existed in his world.

  “Hi,” he said nervously.

  “Hi,” she answered warily. Of course, she would be wary, he must look like some deranged fool; he felt as if his eyes were popping out of his head as he tried to imprint her image on his brain.

  “Urm.” He took off his hat and held it in two hands, trying to give them something to do, when he wanted to reach out and grab her and pull her to him. His eyes were fixed on her lips, her oh, so kissable lips. Damn, he was lost.

  “Is there something I can do for you?” she asked, still wary.

  Marry me and have my babies. His bear chuckled in his head, which didn’t help. He truly was a lost cause.

  “I was wondering … if … you were … new in town.” He’d got out a complete sentence, amazing.

  “My parents just bought a house here.”

  “Oh. Oh… good.”

  She narrowed her eyes, studying him. “Yes, I’m helping them unpack.”

  “Well, I’m Jon Williams. I live over at the Williams Homestead.”

  “Williams?” she asked, her face lighting up.

  “Yes. Jon Williams.”

  “Well, Jon Williams, I am Monica Williams.”

  He took a step back and joined her in frowning. “We have the same name.”

  “It’s a common name,” she said. “Although, my dad says his father came from around here somewhere.”

  “Father?” He felt hot, and then cold, and then sick. Were they related? No, they were fated, and fate never got it wrong. They could not have the same grandpa. And if they did, did it matter? What did that make them, second cousins? He had no idea. But he needed to find out, and soon.

  “Yes. My grandpa had a ranch around here. It’s what made my parents decide to move to the area. Jerry Williams. Do you know the name?”

  “Jerry Williams? No, can’t say that I do.” Relief flooded his veins. Wrong name, his grandpa was called Al.

  “Pity, I wanted to do some research for my family tree. I can’t find any of his relatives. Of course, he might have changed his name. He fell out with his family or something, and he moved away. He never spoke about it much. Only when he died did we find some old photos. One of them is of a ranch, we’re sure it’s around here.”

  “If you let me see it, I could help you find it.” That was better than asking her out for coffee, wasn’t it? Not if the photo was of the Hawkins Ranch.

  “That would be great,” she answered, her face lighting up, her beautiful lips curving up at the corners as she smiled, and he so wanted to lean forward and steal a kiss.

  “And how are you settling in?” Jon asked, deciding to shift the focus of the conversation. He wanted to process this information and then talk it over with his dad. Jon knew his father had searched for his uncle, Al Williams. Jon’s grandpa had indeed fallen out with his brother, who had gambled away the Hawkins Ranch, and then left, never to be seen again. As he lay on his deathbed, Jon’s grandpa had asked to be reunited with his brother. It never happened.

  “I’m not settling in,” his mate said, shifting her focus away from him.

  “You don’t like it here?” Jon asked, wondering why she was avoiding his eyes.

  “Oh, I like it. I like it a lot. But my parents are moving in, with my brother, and I’m going back home.”

  “Family problems?” he asked, knowing that if there was a problem he could help her with, it was his duty to do so. That was the thing about true mates. They were loyal and true, putting their woman, or man, first. He cocked his head and looked at her, realizing she could not possibly be a relation of Al Williams. First, it was unlikely because she was a woman. A wonderful, curvy, voluptuous woman, but a woman all the same, when the Williams family always bred boys. Second, she wasn’t a shifter. There was no recognition in her face that she had found her mate.

  He cleared his throat, shifting his focus back to her face to meet her raised eyebrows. He’d been openly assessing her body, and she looked a little pissed.

  “No family problems.” He didn’t quite believe her, but then she added, “I have to go. We are in need of coffee, and coffee needs milk.”

  She held up a carton of milk, as if to ward him off, then she stepped around him and walked off down the street to a small red car that looked out of place in Black Bear Ford. Jon stood and watched her go, and then remembered Samuel’s advice, and jogged after her, boots sounding hollow on the ground.

  “Coffee?”

  She turned to look at him, her car door open. “That’s right, coffee.”

  “No, I mean, would you like to go out for coffee? You could bring the photo, and I’ll help you search for your grandpa’s ranch.”

  “I’d like too. But, like I said, I’m helping my parents unpack. Maybe another time.”

  “No!” That came out louder than he expected. He looked apologetic and then lowered his voice. “I mean, you need a break, right? All work and no play.”

  Monica looked past him into the distance and then swung her focus back to Jon. “OK. I’d like that.”

  “Shall I pick you up? I could meet your parents.”

  “Meet my parents?” She gave him a crooked smile, telling him she was not sure what to make of this man who had thrust himself on her, and was trying to weasel his way into her family.

  “Not in that way,” he said, trying to recover himself. “I thought, if they were new here, it would be good for them to get to know people.”

  “Oh, they’ll get to know people, they are taking over the hardware store,” Monica said, nodding toward the boarded-up store across the street.

  Jon whirled around. “They are? OK, that is good to know. Right now, if we need anything we have to drive over to Bear Bluff.” He shut his mouth, knowing it was about to run away with him. Talking about hammers, saws, and nails was not the way to impress a woman.

  “Good, it’ll be a success, then.” There was an edge to her voice, and he turned back to her, letting his senses roam as he tried to pick up her mood. “Listen, good talking to you. I have to go.”

  “I’ll come pick you up tomorrow. Around ten?” He was not going to take no for an answer.

  “In the morning?”

  “Yeah. Is that OK?” He needed to be more forceful, but he didn’t want to pressure her. He didn’t want to frighten her away.

  She pressed her lips together, and then nodded. “Yes. Thanks. I’d like to fill in the blanks in ou
r family tree, before I leave the day after tomorrow.”

  With that, she got in her car and drove off. Her last words lingered in his brain. She was leaving Black Bear Ford. Unless he could persuade her to stay, she would be leaving in two days. That was quite a deadline. And if he couldn’t persuade her? He would have to leave the Homestead and follow her wherever she went.

  “Not happening.” He shook his head.

  “What’s not happening?” Samuel asked, coming up behind him and staring after the Jon’s mate too. “You haven’t let her go?”

  “No. I’m picking her up at ten tomorrow.”

  “So she lives around here?”

  “Her parents do.”

  “Where?”

  “Ah, crap. I never asked.”

  “Want some tips on how to search the mountains?” Samuel asked with a laugh.

  “No. I want you to go get the truck and then we can follow her.”

  “Welcome to the world of let’s stalk our mates,” Samuel said, and ran across the road to the truck. He turned it around and stopped briefly for Jon to get in, and then he throttled it hard, the tires screeching as they set off in pursuit of Jon’s mate.

  Chapter Three – Monica

  Monica drove out of town, thoughts of her date with her cowboy filling her head. She was supposed to be helping unpack, but she figured by tomorrow morning, they would have most of the house organized, and she could do with a couple of hours off.

  What were the chances of her finding a man with the same surname as hers? In such a small community, the odds were that two men with the same surname would be related. Did that mean her grandpa was related to Samuel’s grandpa?

  “Oh, fuck,” she said. Swear words rarely came out of her mouth, but they seemed appropriate considered the thought that just slammed into her brain. “Is Samuel a shifter too?

  What was it her dad had told her? Sometimes the gene isn’t passed on. That was it. However, when she conjured up an image of her cowboy, big, broad, and strong, he had that primal quality she had always recognized in her dad. It was in the way he looked at her mom, the way he defended the family, not with words, but he would always put himself between them and any threat.

  Monica’s strongest memory of her father’s protective nature was when she was five years old, waiting for her turn for an ice cream on their quiet suburban street. Their neighbor, Mrs. Appleby, was backing out of her drive, and put her foot on the accelerator instead of the brake. Monica had never seen a man move so fast… Her memory flashed before her, he was fast, superhuman fast. Shifter fast…

  Her whole life he had been there, watching over her, protecting her.

  Monica’s eyes prickled, tears were trying to force their way out. Ever since her dad had told her about bear shifters, ever since he had told her what he was, and what Ethan was, she had looked at him differently. As if he was some kind of monster.

  That was her lesson in all of this. Not everything that was unexplained, or unexplainable, was evil. Not all monsters were bad.

  Monica realized she had been treating her father differently since he had told her his secret. The man who had raised her, had always been there for her, deserved better. No wonder her mom had encouraged her to not to move to Black Bear Ford with them. Had he picked up on the change in her, and didn’t like it? She must make him feel like a freak.

  For a woman educated in the mysteries of the past, where leaps of faith had to be made in a bid to piece together relevant bits of information scattered across world, and through time, Monica had failed to grasp the wonder of shifters. She should have been more understanding; her dad was still the same man. He had been a shifter all his life, he hadn’t been bitten, like in the movies where someone gets bitten by a werewolf and goes through the same change on a full moon.

  He was the same man; he was her dad.

  The drive to Black Bear Ford cleared her head. The tension she’d felt had gone, and she knew she could handle the situation better now. Her goal was to make sure her dad and Ethan, and her mom, knew she accepted them for what they were. When she returned home in a couple of days, she wanted to leave with the air clear, and with her family in no doubt as to how much she loved them and would miss them.

  With the window rolled down, Monica enjoyed the cool breeze that ruffled her hair. The little car climbed the hill easily, and she stopped at the intersection, signaling to turn right. The road was clear, and she eased the car forward, joining the road that led to her parents’ house.

  As she turned, she looked in her rearview mirror; there was a blue truck coming up behind her at a speed. She squinted. Hadn’t that truck been parked across the street from the store? She’d seen it when she looked across to the hardware store.

  Coincidence, she told herself. The truck probably belonged to a rancher, who lived locally and knew the roads well. Monica put her foot down on the throttle and sped up. Her mom would be waiting for the milk, and she had been longer than she’d planned after running into Jon.

  A quick glance in the rearview mirror showed the truck turning to follow behind her. Despite her increase in speed, it was still gaining on her. All kinds of horror movie scenes invaded her head. Lone woman on a country road… She laughed it off; they were in broad daylight and only a couple of miles away from the house.

  But the truck got closer, and when she looked once more, she could see the occupants. And yes, they were the two guys from outside the store. Jon and his friend were following her.

  “Shit.” OK, it still meant nothing. But what should she do? Pull over, and let them pass? What if they didn’t pass? “Just get yourself home.”

  She kept her speed steady and her eyes on the road, thankful when she saw the chimney of the house above the hedge. Nearly there. She signaled to turn, and felt a rush of relief to see her dad standing in front of the house, waiting for her.

  Her protector. She felt a surge of love for him.

  “Hey, we thought you got lost,” he said.

  “No. I got the milk.” She parked the car and got out, going over to stand by him as the sound of the truck’s engine got louder. She expected to see it go straight past the house, but it didn’t, it slowed, and then she saw it, bumping down the dirt road toward the house. Her heart beat rapidly, as the truck slowed to a stop. What did they want?

  Were they bear shifters who had come to cause trouble? She had no idea if most shifters were like Ethan, rowdy and unpredictable. Or like her father, calm and protective.

  “We have visitors,” her dad said.

  “They followed me from town,” Monica said, standing by her dad’s side.

  “Followed you?” he turned to study her face. “Are you OK?”

  “Yes. One of them, Jon, he asked me out for coffee, he seemed real nice. A little intense, but all right,” she said.

  “Intense?” Her dad looked at her harder, and then he turned toward the truck. The doors were opening and the two cowboys were getting out, looking around, and then smiling. “Intense in what way?”

  “I don’t know. He hung around outside the store, waiting for me. I thought he was being friendly.”

  “Howdy,” Jon said, sauntering up. His eyes fixed on her dad, and then as if he couldn’t help it, they slid away to fix on Monica.

  She shuddered, not with revulsion, which was what she should feel toward a man who had followed her home. “What do you want?” she asked, making her voice firm, with a hint of hostility.

  He got the hostility and almost recoiled. “You never told me where you lived. I didn’t want you to think I stood you up…”

  She frowned and opened her mouth to speak, feeling stupid she had overreacted. “Sorry. I... I didn’t think.”

  “That’s OK.” The other cowboy came up to them, his hand outstretched. “I’m Samuel, and this is my brother Jon.” He flicked a thumb toward Jon and then stopped in front of her dad, his eyes flicking from Monica and then back to her dad.

  “Hi there.” Her dad thrust his hand into Samu
el’s. “Good to meet you. I’m Ken, and my wife is Nancy. You’ve met Monica, my daughter, and I have a son, Ethan, who is running wild somewhere around here.”

  “Hi, Monica, I didn’t have the pleasure of saying hello in town.” Samuel looked at her closely, no, stared at her, making her feel self-conscious.

  “Hi,” she said, ducking her head avoiding his gaze, and took a step back so that her dad was in front of her. These cowboys might be polite, but there was something about the way they looked at her, especially Jon. Possessive, as if he would tear the flesh off any man who came close.

  Monica stepped away from her dad. If there was going to be trouble, she would not let her dad stand alone.

  “So, you asked Monica out for coffee?” her dad said good-naturedly. Was he oblivious to the undercurrent of tension, or was he choosing to ignore it, and not make the situation worse?

  “I did,” Jon said, dragging his eyes back to her dad. “Monica told me we share the same surname.”

  “We do?” her dad asked, shock in his voice. She turned to look at him, wondering why it mattered.

  “Yes, Williams. Monica said your grandpa came from around here.”

  “So he said. But he never talked about it much. And Monica could never trace him back here. We thought he must have just been passing through, maybe stayed a couple of months hereabouts.”

  “The mountain does draw certain people to it,” Jon said cryptically.

  “It does.” Her dad nodded, an awkwardness about him. “Well, you know where we are now. It’s good to meet you, but I’m afraid we have boxes to unpack.”

  “Sure, sorry to have held you up.” Jon nodded. “So I’ll pick you up at ten tomorrow, Monica. Bring the photograph.”

  “OK,” she said, wondering if it would be better to break it off. She was more certain than ever that these two men were shifters of some kind too.

  “I’ll maybe see you tomorrow, too, Monica, if Jon can bear to share you with us. My mom and dad would love to meet you.” Jon’s foot moved lightning fast, and he stamped on Samuel’s foot, hard. “Ouch.”

  Jon glared at him and then turned back to Ken and Monica. “I hope you are all happy here. I look forward to the reopening of the hardware store.”