Cherry
I hurried off to the cash register to serve the next customer. It was Saturday, so I was doing overtime in my store. It had taken me the last year to find and train Nina and Kendra, my two sales assistants, to my satisfaction. But Kendra was expecting her first baby now and had asked for the weekends off. I was in the process of interviewing for a new sales assistant for the weekends and to cover Kendra’s maternity leave, but until I found someone suitable, I had to cover it.
By five o’clock, I’d left Nina to lock up and returned home. With fantasies of stripping out of the tight black dress and heels I wore, ideas about dinner zipped through me. Deciding I was too tired to cook, I pictured the excitement on Fern’s face when I told her we’d order in. As I traipsed up the stairs to my second-floor apartment, a grassy, woody scent filled my nostrils. The aroma tugged at something deep inside me, conjuring up long- buried memories: lush farmlands with hedgerows. I stopped dead on the stairs as my thoughts whipped up the image of a tall man with a strong jaw and dark eyes. Dylan. My heart raced as if my wolf were careening over the grasslands I imagined.
I’d know that scent anywhere. It belonged to the Starsmoon Pack. My old pack. As I took the stairs two at a time, panic whipped through me. Someone from the pack was in my building. Although I’d kept in touch with a few friends from Starsmoon by email and the occasional phone call, no one had ever visited, nor had I gone there. And although my design business had a big social media presence, I’d been careful to keep details about my personal life out of the media. I didn’t want anyone to know that I had a daughter.
Terror pulsed through me as I pictured my apartment empty. As Dylan’s daughter, Fern was part of the bloodline of the Alphas of Starsmoon. I worried that if the pack found out about her existence, they’d want her to return to Lord Hills to be raised as part of the pack. With dread fueling my every step, I arrived at my door, breathless and wondering what or who I’d find in my apartment.
Anxiety gripped me. Had my Alpha and Luna come to claim their grandchild? How could I say no to the Starsmoon Alpha? I may have left the pack, but I was still governed by pack rules. If they wanted Fern to go back to Starsmoon, I’d have no choice but to obey their decision. Terror and anger warred within me as I imagined being forced to abandon my life here: my business, my apartment, Fern’s school with all her friends, and Carl. I didn’t want to be wrenched back to the life I’d left and forced to abandon the life I’d chosen.
My stomach cramped as I imagined Dylan looming on the other side of the door.
With a deep breath, I let myself in. The sight of Fern, ahead in the living room, talking to a tall, lean man made me dizzy. My eyes tracked up the man’s frame to his face… Bert. Dylan’s Beta and my old friend stood in the center of my living room as if it was the most natural place for him to be in the world.
Astounded by the sight of my friend, I stood in the main doorway, gaping. He looked so achingly familiar. The same blond hair and easy-going smile defined him as he listened to Fern with a look of interest.
Alarm got the better of me again as I worried about what Fern was telling him. What had he asked her?
Either catching my scent or hearing my breath or racing heart, Bert was the first to turn toward me. “And here’s your mom. Cherry!”
In a blur, Fern darted toward me, bestowing me a hug while chattering wildly about our visitor, Bert. She flapped her arms in his direction as if the story about his arrival demanded a dramatic retelling.
It was then I noticed Lara, our nanny, standing in the kitchen doorway as if in a trance. Her dilated pupils told me that she kind of was. As a werewolf, and especially as a Beta, Bert could be dominant in his demands, especially over humans. He must have used his shifter authority to persuade Lara to let him in. No wonder Fern was overawed by him. Bert had managed to charm his way in, despite being completely unknown to either Lara or Fern. I knew otherwise. Lara, a completely trustworthy young woman, would never have let a stranger in.
As I took in our nanny’s trance, I eyeballed Bert with a glare. He only shrugged, a rogue smile creeping across his face.
“Lara,” I called gently until our nanny snapped out of it. “Can you take Fern to play in her room? I need to chat with my friend in private.”