Healing the Bear (2 page)

Christopher
licked his lips and nodded.

“A
great combo if I might say so. There will also be the finger foods and an open
bar when the band begins playing the music,” said Melanie.

“Everything
sounds perfect,” said Lilly.

“Oh,
it will be so just concentrate on enjoying your big day.”

They
squeezed hands again. “We will,” said Christopher. “And we know you’re busy so
we won’t keep you any longer.”

“Let
me walk you out and if there’s anything else you need or if you have any
questions you know I’m only a call away.”

She
opened the door.

“See
you Saturday,” said Lilly.

Melanie
nodded and watched them walk away hand in hand, Lilly’s head resting on his
shoulder as they walked down the path to the parking lot. They reminded her of
her past life. One she had to forget for so many reasons. She closed the door
and rested her back against it, suddenly feeling the tears coming on again.

They’d
put her in the wrong line of work because she saw couples like Lilly and
Christopher almost every week and it made her long for her former life and
everything that damn man had made her lose.

She
closed her eyes, seeing Mike’s face so clear that she reached out to touch it.
She ran her hands down the side of his cheek like she’d always done when they
first greeted one another when he got home from work. The stubble she was
feeling was real. She was sure of it because its roughness scraped her
fingertips. And his hair, the thick curly hair that sometimes stuck up and
refused to go back down when he got up first thing every morning.
 
She put her nose in the air. There was a hint
of his aftershave hanging around the kitchen. Now she could even feel his arms
around her, holding her like he did before he left for work each morning…like
that terrible morning. She lifted her face up, allowing him to kiss her one
more time. She touched her lips. She felt something on them. Maybe Mike had
found a way to come back to her, to see her again and keep her safe forever.

Melanie
sniffed the air again, this time it wasn’t aftershave she detected, but burning
cupcakes.

Chapter Two

Dane
glanced at the map that had been tucked inside the wedding invitation.
 
He’d set it on the passenger seat, convinced
he wouldn’t need it, but here he was lost. Lucinda would have made him pull
into a gas station and ask for directions, but shifter guys and humans were a
lot alike in regards to not lowering their dignity in asking the way.
Even if they were in what looked like the middle of nowhere.

The
Lodge had to be around here somewhere because he’d taken Highway 93 and then
turned left onto the county road by the farmhouse just as the instructions had
told him to. Dane set them on his lap, peering out of the window ahead.
Woods and farmland but no sign of anything else.
He’d left
thirty minutes early, hearing Lucinda’s voice telling him to do it just in case
the wedding venue was hard to find.

She
was still with him and always would be. He wiped away a tear with the back of
his hand.

“So
how come you can’t help me find this place?” he said.

“Find
a gas station and ask directions. Drop your pride you silly grizzly bear.”

His
sadness turned into a smile for a second at hearing her voice and instructions
echo in his head.

He
glanced down, realizing his tear had dropped onto the map and smudged the ink.
Damn, was that turn right or left. He leaned back in his seat. Maybe this was
an omen that he shouldn’t go to the wedding. He lifted the envelope up and saw
Dane Reynolds and Guest written on it.
 
He guessed Christopher’s bride was just being polite. Maybe she didn’t
know he’d lost his mate and there would be no guest he’d ever want to take
along to social functions. Lucinda had been his one and only.

A
car swishing by his set up a tornado of dust, but he was quick enough to spot
the driver and passenger.
 
Lucas and his
twin brother Jared, brown bear shifters who were obviously on their way to the
wedding. Maybe Lucinda had sent them as his direction to the Lodge without him
having to lower his pride.

Putting
the car back into gear, he sped away and put his foot down hard on the accelerator,
hoping to catch them so they could lead the way. He didn’t see their car again,
but when he got a mile down the road, he noticed white balloons and streamers
attached to double iron gates and guessed he’d been closer to finding the venue
than he’d thought.

“Yeah,
I’m not such a silly grizzly after all,” he said. He indicated left and turned
up a gravel driveway seeing chairs and an arbor with flowers set out on the
right. Had he remembered to put the gift in the car?

Damn,
another thing Lucinda would have never left the house without. He’d also been
lost on what to buy the happy couple. He’d wandered around and around until
finally he’d opted for an electric tea kettle, knowing all bears loved tea and
honey. He just hoped Christopher’s bride did too. He glanced over his shoulder
seeing said gift, wrapped, not very well, but at least he’d remembered it.

A
young man in a dark suit and running shoes waved to him. He slowed the car and
pressed the button to lower the window.

“Good
afternoon, sir. Are you here for the Banks and Renner wedding?”

“Yes,
I am.”

 
“I can park your car for you and then you can
walk across the pathway over there. Go through those set of bushes and you’ll
find the area where the ceremony’s going to take place.”

“That’s
great,” said Dane, turning off the ignition, reaching over for the gift, and
then getting out of the car where he handed the keys over to the boy whose
overwhelming aftershave made him sneeze.

“If
you follow the path, someone will show you to your seat,” said the man.

Dane
nodded and put the gift under his arm. He set across the path, seeing only
couples and no single people making their way with him.
 
He followed them through a set of hedges,
noticing flowers and ribbons everywhere. He usually didn’t pay much attention
to frilly fancy stuff but had to admit everywhere looked beautiful. He only
wished he and Lucinda had been well off enough to have all the fancy trimmings
when they’d tied the knot, but they’d been young and broke.

“Dane, how great to see you again.”

It
was Mick, one of the wolf shifters, who threw his arms around him. “Aidan said
you were back in the area.”

Dane
wasn’t sure what Aiden had told the others about his sudden departure from the
area, so he’d play it cool for now.

“Yeah, very happy to be back with
everyone.”

“And
can you believe it, Christopher settling down.
And with a
human no less.”

Christopher
was a wild one, but then so were most of the younger bears.

“I
haven’t met his fiancée, so what’s she like?” asked Dane.

“Beautiful young woman.
She’s divorced
with a little girl.”

Wow.
Not Christopher’s type at all. “Is she rich? I mean this all looks like it cost
a fortune?”

“Just the opposite.
Her former
husband beat her and he’s now in jail for trying to kill her. Lilly runs her
own cleaning company if you ever need help around the house. I think
Christopher’s picking up the tab for most of this. Did you hear he’s designing
for video games now?”

Her
husband beat her.
Bastard.
He’d like to get his hands
on the guy. “No, I didn’t know about the video games. And Trent and Aiden
married humans too.”

“Most
of us didn’t like it or understand it at first, but I suppose it might be
better in the long run if we did start mixing with them.”

Dane
wasn’t sure about that but maybe that was because a human had taken is wife
from him.

“Speaking
of which, there’s Aiden’s wife, Charlotte.”

Mick
pointed to a woman in her early thirties wearing a pink calf length dress with
a matching short jacket. “She’s a doctor and did you know that Liam Foster is
training to be a doctor now? Aiden thought we needed some shifters in that
field, and Liam was the first to volunteer.”

Dane
smiled. Liam was also a grizzly so he was proud to think one would have Dr.
before his name pretty soon. He had been one of the first shifters to be born
here on Earth. A little bit like Christopher but wilder and always getting into
fights. Dane was happy to hear he was finally maturing.

“You
want me to introduce you to Charlotte?” asked Mick.

“Sure.”

Mick
led Dane over to the young woman who’d just finished talking to two of the
cougar-shifters.

“Charlotte,
you have a minute?” called Mick.

She
put her purse on a chair and looked their way.
“Hi, Mick.
Sure I do,” she said, walking toward them.

“Dane
Reynolds, I’d like you to meet Charlotte Renner. You might have heard Aiden and
Christopher talk about this guy.”

“I
certainly have.
Pleased to meet you.”
She stuck out
her hand and Dane had to switch the gift to another arm so he could shake it.

“Is
there somewhere to put the gifts?” asked Dane.

“Sure
is, but it’s inside the marquee so maybe you’d like to hang onto it until after
the ceremony.” She looked at her watch. “
Which begins in
about ten minutes if you want to take your seats.
”

“Yep,
I bet my wife’s wondering where I got to. Talk to you later, Charlotte, and you
too, Dane.”

Dane
nodded. “Where’s Aiden?” he asked.

“He
and Christopher should be here any minute. You’ve probably guessed Aiden’s
Christopher’s best man.”

They’d
always been close. Something that Dane never experienced, being an only child.

“I
have to get to my seat, but I’m sure we’ll see you again at the reception,”
said Charlotte.

Dane
nodded, turned, and saw the seats filling up. A few fellow bear shifters waved
to him. He waved back. He glanced around hoping to find the ideal spot where a
man sitting all by himself wouldn’t be so noticeable.
Second
to back row on the end.
 
He took
the program off the chair and sat, accidently knocking a few of the petals off
the roses that hung on the end of each row. He put them in his hand.

Lucinda
had loved flowers, especially roses. He’d sometimes pick them and before they
were completely dead, he would sprinkle them in water when she was bathing. He
rubbed his fingers across them, allowing them to release their scent. He bit
his lip, fighting back the tears because it reminded him so much of her. He put
them in his pocket, not wanting to torture himself, but thinking it would be
like having a piece of his wife with him here today. She wouldn’t let him feel
alone and sad.

He
looked up, catching sight of Christopher and Aiden arriving from the side of
the property, both dressed in dark suits, white shirts, and blue ties. He
hadn’t realized until now how much alike they were. Both had the same color
hair and were about the same height. Even from this distance, there was no
mistaking they resembled their late father.

Christopher
turned around and waved to everyone. Dane had to admit he looked the happiest
he’d ever seen him. A man who was obviously going to officiate the wedding joined
them and stood in front of them as violins and cello music rang through the
air. A trio of musicians was now seated to the left.

Laughter
and clapping from everyone made Dane turned around to see what they was looking
at. It was a dog, a Pomeranian, walking down the aisle wearing a bowtie. He
stopped and sniffed at a few chairs.

“Barney
no,” Christopher said. He whistled to him. The dog looked up and then ran
toward Christopher, who picked him up and kissed the top of his head before
putting him down next to Aiden.

“My
second best man,” Christopher shouted.

The
next reaction from the guests were oohs and
aahs
as a
little girl wearing a pink dress and tiny pink flowers in her hair began
heading down the aisle. She had to be the bride’s daughter. She passed by him
and threw some rose petals by his feet.
 
She was adorable. Lucinda had said she hoped their baby was a girl so
she could dress her up in pretty things. He never got to know if her wish would
have come true. He swallowed the lump that suddenly formed in his throat. The
trio began playing the Wedding March and everyone stood as Dane turned and saw
the bride heading down the aisle.

The
little girl resembled her mother, so much it was as if she’d been cloned. She
beamed and smiled at everyone as she headed toward Christopher who he could see
was actually crying. Maybe he shouldn’t hold back his tears either. Of course
his were for a different reason.
Sadness and not happiness.
There was a huge difference. One type made your heart light, the other heavy
and weak.