Beaufort Creek Shifters (10 book series)
Daddy’s Innocent Mate Chapter 14

Francine

Never in a million years did I think I would take so easily to being a stepmother. Being with Elias had opened my eyes to things I hadn't ever considered-like baking just because I wanted him to have something sweet at the end of the day. Though most of my time was spent planning my classroom's next activities, I found it endearing to balance house chores, Archie time, and Elias time with my job.

Even as I strolled through the community market with a basket hanging from my arm and a macaroni necklace around my neck that Archie had made, I discovered myself thinking of them often. Every booth prompted my wonder. Would Archie like that jacket? Would Elias enjoy having Extreme Sports Volume 3 on DVD since he couldn't skydive anymore?

The Bravecrests were incredibly welcoming to me without having to know me at all. I paused at one booth to speak to a neighbor, Delia, noting that her porch held dozens of plants in full bloom. Seeing as it was late in the season for the herbs she had chosen, I had to guess that someone of the witchy sort had probably given her a boost.

After her house came Mason's. His porch was crowded with the usual discounted cloth he managed to find in hidden bins all over town-and sometimes, from out of town. Vintage blouses hung from a silver rack. I poured through them eagerly, grabbing a couple of them and trading him some of the pickled beets I had started making every week.

I'm glad Troy suggested the weekend market, I thought with a grin as I wandered off to the other side of the road. It should keep Laurencia out of trouble with that supernatural market. Things have gotten bad there.

Since the war ended, our enemies were few and far between. Many of us still lived on edge, haunted by the sound of a siren in the middle of the night and the horrendous roar of medically altered creatures festering on the horizon. It made me wonder if Elias had sought the adrenaline rush of dangerous activities to make up for the fact that his system was in overdrive.

I would have probably done the same thing. I couldn't even imagine the horror of being kidnapped and experimented on by a mad doctor. Though neither of us had spoken of it, I knew his night terrors. I knew the things he had witnessed, since Troy had explained it to me when he came to speak to me about the mate bond.

It grows over time, he had told me. It won't be without hiccups. Just remember that he used to have needles sticking out of his arms once, Francine.

What I pictured in my head made me shudder. Heat crept over my shoulders, replacing the icy feeling with the warmth of the market around me. Blake had mentioned that the bond would provide resilience and protection. But that made me question why he would ever continue the announced pairings if we weren't at war anymore.

Did we need to be bound to be protected? Where did the protection begin? My thoughts needed answers, and the more I tried to think of the answers, the more questions arose. It made me feel strange to think that perhaps Elias's near drowning would have been an absolute death without that bite on his neck.

Then again, would I have missed him if I didn't know he was mine to keep?

The oddity of being paired mixed with my own fond feelings didn't help. Troy had matched us. That should have been enough of a sign. But I couldn't help thinking of alternatives. Without Elias in my life, I would have simply continued to be a schoolteacher. My life wouldn't be in danger, so to speak. I just wasn't in the sort of occupation that required protection.

Yolanda waved me over to her booth. I beamed at the short and stout woman with midnight hair and slate-brown skin. She held up the squash she had grown in her backyard. "On the house."

I chuckled lightly. "You're too kind."

"He probably still likes squash, the booger."

"Did you know him well before you came here?"

She winked, her eye disappearing into a swirl of wrinkles. "He's the worst of the Alberts. You'll need all the help you can get. Geraldine needed the same when they first got together." Geraldine was his ex-girlfriend-and Archie's mother. We hadn't spoken much about her either.

I accepted the squash and tucked it into the basket with the vintage blouses. "Can you tell me about her?"

"Has he talked about Geraldine?" Her hazy eyes softened with grief. "Poor boy, probably hasn't gotten over her death still. She died right next to my house. May the gods welcome her into the great beyond." She bowed her head. "They were trying so hard to get back together."

My heart snapped. "They were...doing what?"

"Archie just wasn't the same after they split. Before the big raid, they were trying to patch things up and make him happy again. So, I'll tell you what I told her then: good luck with him."

Good luck with him. That should have been the thing circulating my mind. But instead, it was what she said before that, the thing about Elias trying to be with Geraldine right before the raid.

Elias had failed to mention that. Was that why he kept that portrait over the television? As a reminder of what he had lost?

Dear gods, was I just competing with a dead woman?

There wasn't much time to think with Archie racing toward me. I put on a smile, thanked Yolanda for the squash, and greeted the child with a warm embrace. At least with Archie I never had to wonder about his motives. He was a child with a sunny disposition and a heart of gold.

Elias wandered up after Archie. His cheeks were red, and his shoulders were bowed inward like he was trying to recover from running. The past three weeks had been difficult with his lungs recovering, but he was doing better than he had the first week he'd been home. He's been lying to me.

The thought sliced through my heart and made me sick to my stomach. As Elias leaned toward me for a kiss, I tried not to hesitate. I knew he could pick up on my energy just like I could pick up on his mood shifts. We were getting good at telling when the other was upset from across the house. His heartbeat told me more than his face did. It was getting to be Twilight Zone creepy. But most of the time, it just felt like a comfort.

Except for right now-I didn't want him to know what I was feeling. I wasn't even sure what I was feeling or why my knees were wobbling like the ground was about to get yanked out from under my feet. Elias caught my waist and tucked me into his side. "You've been out here too long, little Fran," he whispered. "Let's get you home."

Hesitance guarded his tone. Was he feeling something too? Maybe he'd overheard Yolanda and gotten upset about her slipping that little piece of information to me. Was it even true? I had to guess there was some way to find out without breaching the topic directly. But I didn't want to go on guessing or become a detective in my own home.

It's not even my home, I thought glumly as I let Elias help me. It's his house. He built it himself. I'm just a guest there.

Suddenly, the whole world seemed to spin. Vertigo hit me like tangerines falling off a high shelf. One after the other, those horrible realizations pelted me in the head, making me question everything. The bite on my neck burned. Did that mean it was a fake bite? That didn't make sense, because Elias had survived his brush with death.

Cold air hit me in the face when we walked inside the house. Archie collected the basket from me, yammering about the squash and the apples, talking about pie and such. I leaned against the table while Elias grabbed a water bottle from the fridge. When he handed it to me, I stared at it like it was filled with muck.

"Little Fran?"

My attention snapped to him. "Don't call me that."

He squinted at me. "What's gotten into you?"

"I could ask you the same thing."

I took a sip of water, thankful for the intervention. Cool water would help with the nausea. At least for a little while.

Elias frowned. "I don't know what you're talking about."

I cut my eyes across the room to the portrait. "I'm sure you do."

"No, I don't. I can't read your mind, Francine."

"Sometimes, I wish you could."

He huffed indignantly. "Seriously, you just flip like a dime. How am I supposed to know what you're feeling or not feeling?" "If you were really my mate, you would know."

"I can't predict everything, Fran."

I shook my head. "I'm not asking you to predict everything. But I am asking you to tell me everything you're feeling."

"Oh, so I'm just supposed to know that's what you want?"

"That's what partners are supposed to do, Elias."

Archie growled from the kitchen. Part of his face had shifted, his nose turning into a short snout and his teeth popping out. "Would you two stop yelling at each other?"

He stomped away while his shirt tore and exposed the bristling hair of his upper back.

Elias palmed his forehead, and I crossed my arms over my chest while shrinking into myself. Hurting Archie was not on my list of things to do. While Elias and I had kept most of our bickering away from listening ears, we hadn't even bothered to try today. Were we that selfish?

Well, I knew he was that selfish, but I had to be mindful of my actions first. I never wanted to hurt Archie's feelings or let him see our argumentative sides. But now that he had, it made me question everything. It made me question my bond with Elias and the bite on my neck.

Because if we weren't true mates-if these bites weren't real-then I was about to spend forever with the wrong person.