Page 40 of Bear Haven
Chapter Ten
Two days later, they were seated around a picnic table outsideThe Sweet Spotin Deal’s Gap. It was a familiar and bittersweet scene.
The insurance adjuster had been to the house, whistled with nearly each step, clucked his tongue in a disapproving fashion, and declared the scene of the fire a disaster and a tragedy and that he’d be in touch with Bex when the final police and fire reports came in.
She’d been to the local bank where she’d taken a little cash out and informed them that she’d be transferring her money out when she got settled again. They were sorry to see her go. She told them that she was, too.
There’d been nothing more to do in Dandridge. “What are we going to do now?”
“We’ll keep riding, keep trying. We can’t allow this place to be found out. It’s home to too many shifters and we can’t let them be found by the wrong people.”
“Where are we going to live? You don’t have a place and I don’t think your parents want us shacking up with them.”
“For a little while, we can.”
“Gus, there’s too many of us.”
“How do you figure?”
“Well, there’s you and me, Beck, Maxine and Marcel, and Michael.”
“Um. Nope. I have my own place. I’m not living with the ‘rents again. Once was enough.”
“Okay, fine. But that still leaves five of us.”
“Marcel and I can find a place nearby. I want to keep an eye on Beck, if he’ll let me, but we can manage on our own.”
“They can stay with me.”
“They can?”
“Shut up, Gus. You know what I mean.”
“Yep. Sure do.”
“Gus…” Michael warned in both tone of voice and narrowed eyes. Gus did little more than laugh around the donut he’d placed between his lips. “Wolf? Why don’t you have a seat? You’re going to wear a hole in the dirt with all that pacing.”
“I can’t.”
“Why not?”
“Nervous energy, I guess. You know, I’ve been thinking that I should probably apologize, but I’m not going to.”
Gus met Luke’s gaze. “There’s no need for you to apologize.”
Michael scoffed. “There isn’t? What about all the hell he rained down on us? If it hadn’t been for him, we wouldn’t have gone digging for answers.”
“Exactly.”
“Are you two ever going to be friends?”
“Nope.”
“Look, I just brought shit to the front of the class for everyone to see.”
“What you did was put us all in danger.”
“In case you don’t know it, we’re in danger all the time. Every day. That’s what fucking happens when you’re different. Some of us don’t live in a protective little bubble.”
