“No.” Kade snarled. “Jon damned me to this fate when he beheaded our father and tore our family apart.”
Rafe curled his fingers. It didn’t matter if a century had passed. The bite of betrayal was still sharp. One horrible night changed their family forever. Rafe still blamed himself for it too.
Kade laid a hand on his shoulder. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to remind you of that night.”
Rafe jerked away from him and pressed his palms to his eyes. “It’s not your fault. I mentioned to Jasmine about losing Nina to Jon. The memory is fresh.”
“It’s not your fault. We didn’t know—”
“I found her discarded shirt near our garage then stumbled upon Jon smelling of sex.” Rafe growled and slammed his clawed hands into the ground before he lashed out at Kade. “And I let him go. Believed his lies.”
“Jon was over four hundred when he kidnapped Nina. His body and mind will be aging by now. He’ll start making mistakes, and we’ll catch him.”
Considering they had no clues and over a century had passed since Nina disappeared, he wasn’t sure he believed Kade. Rafe nodded anyway.
“Tomorrow, I’ll go to the fire chief and see what I can find out.” Kade focused on him. “If the fire was indeed an accident, we can spend a couple of days monitoring the interaction of the cubs with their human guardians before I make a decision as to Josh and Jasmine’s fate.”
“And if the fire wasn’t an accident?”
Kade flexed his hand. “Then the coward who killed a human in order to get Megan will die.”
Rafe nodded. Kade’s decision was one Rafe approved of and one he’d happily carry out.
Silence descended while they watched over Jasmine’s house. One by one the rooms darkened until only the corner bedroom light remained on. Jasmine came into view and reached for the hem of her top.
Rafe leaned forward. “Turn around Kade.”
Kade shook his head but did as he was told. “I suppose that’s the sweet Jasmine’s scent I smell all over you.”
Jasmine dropped the top. He got a glimpse of her full breasts before she bent to pick up a shirt. The loose tee covered her, and the lights went out.
“Yeah, it is.”
“Are you sharing?”
Rafe settled against a tree to keep watch over Jasmine. “Nope. No threesomes this time. I think I’ll keep this one for myself.”
Chapter 8
Jazz woke to the sound of her boys talking outside her bedroom door. She peered at the clock on her nightstand. Noon. She squeezed her eyes shut. Opened them. Her boys were still arguing, and it was still five hours past when she normally woke.
Great. She jumped from the bed, tugged on shorts, and ran into the hall.
Both Seth and Levi turned in unison. They wore their sleep clothes, and their hair stood on end.
“Mom, you’re awake,” they said together.
“Yeah, I’m awake.” She cleared her throat. “Did you just wake up too?”
They nodded.
She ruffled their hair. “All right. Looks like we’re all getting a late start. Let’s go get breakfast.”
After setting them up with bowls of their favorite cereal, she grabbed the phone. Four missed calls, all from Josh. With shaky fingers, she dialed. Got his voicemail.
She left the boys to finish their breakfast and slipped into the living room to dial Josh’s parents’ house. His mom answered with a whispered greeting. Jazz gripped the phone tighter.
“Is everything okay?” Jazz asked.
“Yes. Megan’s sleeping. We don’t want to wake her and have her get upset again. She’s been having fits all morning.”
“What’s wrong? Do you need help with her?”
“Hold on.” The sounds of breathing filled the line, then Josh’s mother sighed. The honking of a car suggested where Josh’s mom had gone—outside. “Josh left, and Megan’s feeling clingy. It’s normal. She’s afraid if she can’t see Josh, she’ll lose him too. So we don’t want her to know he’s not here.”
Jazz could understand the little girl’s fear. Megan had lost her adoptive mother in a hit and run, then Tony in a fire. No wonder Megan was worried about Josh.
“Where did Josh go?”
“Back to the bar to show Susan some stuff. He plans on leaving her in charge of everything while he helps Megan adjust.”
Jazz squeezed the bridge of her nose. “I still can’t believe Tony’s gone. I saw him yesterday morning.” He’d been thrilled with the plate of cookies she’d brought and promised to save some for Megan. “Thank goodness Megan was sleeping over at Josh’s place.”
“I know. I told Tony not to buy that house. There’s a fixer-upper and there’s a death trap. He let Cindy influence him, though. She told him the place was a steal.”
“Was that the cause? Poor wiring?”
“I don’t know. The fire chief is bringing in some expert.”
She glanced toward the kitchen door. It remained closed. She lowered her voice anyway. “Do they suspect foul play?”
“Who would hurt Tony? Everybody loved him.”
“You’re right. Everyone did, but I was just wondering if that was the reason the fire chief was bringing in an expert.”
“Insurance claim, I guess. He’s young. Hasn’t seen many fires.”
“Let me know if you find out anything or need help.”
“I will. You’re like the daughter I never had.”
Jazz grinned. “That’s only because I spent so much time at your place growing up.”
“I had hoped something might happen between you and Tony, but I’m not really surprised it didn’t. Tony wouldn’t have wanted to steal you from Josh.”
“Josh and I haven’t been together in years. We’re only friends now.”
“If you say so.”
“I do. Look, I’ve got to go. Talk soon.”
“Okay, Jazz, and thank you for caring about my boys.” She hung up.
Guilt squeezed Jazz’s chest. She hadn’t meant to lead either Josh or Tony on. How shitty did it make her look, especially when she was just starting to get involved with Rafe?
If he was still interested. He might not bother contacting her again.
