Page 33 of Bear Haven
And there was that evil gleam they were all used to seeing in his eyes. He cared for his son. That was as obvious as it was that he still wanted all of them dead.
“One less if I rip you apart.”
“Okay. Stop. This isn’t helping anything. My house is burning down. My. House.” Bex was close to losing the battle raging within. The longer she stood near the Mayor, the longer her house burned, the weaker her resolve to keep calm. “Thank you for the warning. You’ve seen Beck. It’s time for you to get out of here. If you want to stay alive through the night, you need to go.”
“She’s right, Father.”
They stared at each other. Father and son. Bex knew the Mayor was worried, but she couldn’t read what Beck was thinking.
The Mayor backed away, turning in the direction he’d come from earlier.
“Are you sure that was smart? Letting him go?”
“What else could we do?
“Have him arrested for setting the house on fire?”
“Shit, I don’t know, but just letting him walk away seems wrong.”
“He warned us. He killed his own brother. I don’t think he’ll be the direct problem anymore. But he’s right. They’ll regroup and come after all of you again. They’ll hunt him down, as well. He’s their enemy now, too.”
“I’m sorry, Beck.”
He looked at her quizzically. “Why?’
“You had to choose.”
“I chose you. He chose me. It’s what a parent does. You don’t have to be sorry for anything.”
“I don’t understand,” Bex said.
“I do,” Martin said. “Doesn’t make anything the man has done all these years right, but I get it. It’s the same feeling that led us to take Gus in.”
“Pain in the ass that he was,” Michael muttered.
“It’s the unconditional love for an innocent child. Gus did nothing to deserve what happened to his parents. And you did nothing to deserve the hate that Beck’s father throws at you.”
“All I ever wanted was Jolene and our child. You. My father took both of you from me for so many years. This is my chance and I choose you. I don’t have much to offer. I am not a whole man. I am not able to work and can barely drive. I need care and help. But I do have money and in some small circles, my last name still has some sway. And love. I love you, Rebecca. I never blamed you. I never blamed your mother. I chose you now because that choice was taken from me all those years ago by the bear shifter and then by my father. I would have hosen you. Always.”
Tears streamed down her face at the sincerity in Beck’s words. She’d never had anyone other than her mother in her life. Now she had a father. She had grandparents and cousins and aunts and uncles and friends and Gus.
She had —
Another loud crack, a rip, and a crash tore through her soul. Behind her, the fire raged on. She couldn’t look. She couldn’t watch.
Gasped and shocked speculation from her neighbors reached her ears. She wanted to shut it all out, but she couldn’t.
The heat and anger made her sweat. The loss and feeling of utter helplessness made tears fall from her eyes, leaving streaks down her cheeks.
Before she realized it, Beck had taken her hand pulled her close. Despite the moisture clinging to her skin, she welcomed the hug, the shoulder to cry on.
“How do we want to do this?” Gus asked after a few moments.
“I’m not leaving,” Bex stated, wiping the wetness away. She pulled out of Beck’s embrace and turned to face her lover and their family and friends.
“Bex…”
She loved him for the concern she saw in his eyes. “I’m staying. I need to. I need to see it in the morning. I need to see…” She swallowed past the lump in her throat. “Everything I have left of my mother is in there.”
