Cole (The Wolves Den Book 2) Page 2

  The walls were done in a light gray that caught her attention. He had several chairs and a fireplace with a television hanging over the mantel. What was most important to her was that it was clean. After the house she came from she hated dirt.

  “I like your home.”

  “Thank you. Let’s take a seat so you can tell me what’s going on.”

  Cole placed Mia on the floor so she could explore the living room while they talked.

  Jessie stood and paced how could she tell him what was going on? What if she was imaging it?

  “I…I need some time to wrap my head around what is happening. Maybe I’m confused or delusional. Right now, I need a place to lay low, and I was hoping that you would help me.”

  You can’t trust him.

  He’s the only one you can trust.

  It was just her luck not to have voices that agreed with each other.

  “You can stay as long as you need to. “

  “Thank you.”

  “You need to lay down get some sleep.”

  She was falling asleep on her feet, and she couldn’t think straight, but Mia needed her.

  “Mia’s hungry.”

  “I’ll feed her.”

  “Cole it’s not easy taking care of a toddler.”

  “Then when you hear me screaming you can run to my rescue.”

  Cole screaming, she’d like to hear that as she sucked his dick deep into her mouth. She felt her face start to flush and knew it was over she could never hide a blush.

  “I really could use some sleep maybe an hour. Do you really think you can handle Mia?”

  “I do.” He picked her up and led Jessie back to one of the bedrooms.

  The room was done in a light pink as if it were meant to be a little girls room. There was a beautiful double bed that was calling her name, and it wasn’t on the floor. It looked so comfortable that she couldn’t help staring at it.

  “If you’re sure?”

  “Casca, tell your mother that we will be fine.”

  “Dada.” She hugged him around his neck.

  She’d have to fight that battle later, she was too tired right now. Cole would take care of Mia at the club, and she loved it. It was a sight to see her lying across his broad chest. It made Jessie ache for what she could never have.

  “Wake me if you need me.”

  He walked out with a masculine swagger that had her drooling. Why couldn’t Cole be Mia’s father?

  Lying down she closed her eyes hoping to get some badly needed sleep.

  *~*~*~*

  “What do you want to eat, Casca?”

  She looked at him, her big blue eyes so much like her mothers. A smile widened her mouth showing her little sharp teeth.

  “I think you’re a Kur’ik.” They walked into the kitchen and opened the refrigerator. “I don’t think you eat meat, especially not steak.”

  His cell phone rang making him jump. He still wasn’t used to it although Deja made them all get one. She called it their dollars in action whatever that meant.

  “Hello.”

  “Cole, have you figured out what to feed Mia?”

  “Can she have steak?”

  “Noooo.” She laughed, and he joined in with her.

  “I’m coming over I’m going to teach you about a food called Cream of Wheat, and when you pair it with applesauce, little mouths love it.”

  “What kind of meat?”

  “She doesn’t need meat.”

  “She needs it.”

  “Cole, she’s not Kur’ik.”

  “Think what you want, but she needs meat.”

  “Bacon or sausage?”

  He thought about it for a minute. “Sausage.”

  “Alright, I’ll be over in a few minutes.”

  “Deja, thank you.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  “We’re going to get you fed because those Kur’iks they can smell your hunger, but none of them would ever hurt you.”

  “Dada.” His heart expanded as it pumped faster. If he looked down, he would see the outline of it pressing against his chest. He never wanted a child, until he met Mia. All it took was one touch of Jessie’s hand and one look into Mia’s big blue eyes to make him want the family that he might one day be killed for.

  The knock at the door had him tensing, he went to find Caden and Xander standing there. He let off a soft growl warning them off without waking Jessie.

  “We won’t hurt her, either of them,” Caden spoke softly.

  “We want to see Mia.”

  She was part of them now. She was the only human child around, and Jade was the only Kur’ik child around. The two of them would be taken care of forever.

  He let them in and put Mia on the floor. They sat with her taking turns making her laugh.

  “Cole, does she smell different to you?” Caden was rubbing her stomach, and she was grabbing at his hands.

  “She smells like she’s Kur’ik.”

  “That’s impossible.”

  “That’s what Deja said, but it doesn’t stop how she smells.”

  “Did somebody say my name?”

  He turned to find her standing in the open door with Ven behind her.

  “I brought the high chair.” He moved around them and took it to the kitchen.

  Xander and Caden were on their knees chasing Mia around the room as she laughed.

  “You’re all big babies. Come on Cole you’re about to learn how to cook.”

  “I can cook.”

  “Then why is Mia hungry?”

  “Because my drink making skills are better.”

  Xander stopped to stare at him.

  “Dada, Dada,” Mia said running to him on small legs. She wrapped her arms around his leg and held on while he walked with her making her laugh louder.

  “There goes my heart.” He said to himself but if the smile on Ven’s face meant anything the male heard him.

  No one said anything although they heard her call him dad. Mia had claimed him. She was just a little thing but to be claimed by a female was an honor.

  “Can I hold her?” Deja had claimed Ven as her son, and now he walked with his shoulders broader. He was proud to be known as hers.

  “Yes.”

  Ven bent down and picked her up as she tried to say his name.

  “I need a pot and do you have measuring cups?”

  “Do I have what?”

  “Don’t worry I brought some, but you and Jessie will need to go shopping.”

  “What if she doesn’t want to stay?”

  “Then you’ll have to let her go.”

  “I know.”

  “So, that’s it? You don’t fight for her or give her a chance to see how great you are. You’ll just let Jessie and Mia go?”

  Be nice to him; he’s not as old as Enzo.

  She glared at the alien that lived inside of her, the alien that she could morph into and then relented. Cole wasn’t as old as Enzo and the life they lived before they came here still held them in its icy grip.

  “Women, at least human women like to be wooed. We like to know that the male will be there for us, have our backs when things get rough. Give Jessie a chance her life has been hard, but so has yours.”

  She handed him the spoon so he could stir the food.

  “Am I cooking for Mia?”

  “You are.”

  “Is this what the males on this planet do for their children?”

  “Some of them.”

  He puffed his chest out and straightened his shoulders. “I wonder how Jessie will feel about this.”

  He flipped the sausage, and she showed him how to take the food off and put in it a bowl. “It’s time to eat, Casca.”

  “Dada.” She stood with her arms reaching for him as he bent down and picked her up.

  “Casca?” Deja asked Ven.

  “Flower.”

  “Cole we’re going to go. I think Mia should probably take a nap with her mom when she’s done eating. Do you ne
ed help feeding her?”

  “I can do it.”

  They all left him alone with a little bundle who only seemed to know how to say Mama and Dada.

  “You have to eat. It’s dangerous to be hungry in our compound.” He placed her in her highchair.

  He sat in front of her and began feeding her small bites of food.

  “We need a smaller spoon for you; this one is too big for your mouth.”

  She ate several bites before she stopped eating. He put the spoon to her mouth, but she refused to open shaking her head. Her eyes were big with fear.

  “You’re still hungry Casca. Why won’t you eat?”

  He tried again, but she refused. Little tears began to run down her face.

  “I hurt you. How did I hurt you?” His heart beat faster. What had he done wrong? How did he fix it?

  Her arms went up in the air, he picked her up and started walking. He watched Deja do that one day when they were in the club. Her head was on his shoulder, he could feel the wetness of her tears.

  “Give her a bottle.”

  He spun around to see Jessie standing in the doorway.

  “I didn’t mean to hurt her. I was feeding her and then she wouldn’t eat. Tell me what I did and I won’t repeat it.”

  “You did everything right.” She went to rinse out the bottle that she was holding in her hand. “At home, she’s not allowed to eat, and she’s smart enough to know it.”

  She opened the fridge and pulled out the milk to fill the bottle. “I have a small fridge in my room, the kind college kids use in their dorms. I keep milk in there for her. It’s not the same as food at this age, but it helps her not to be hungry.”

  She handed him the bottle.

  “You should take her.”

  “You’re doing a great job, Cole.” She reached over and kissed Mia stroking her hair and wiping the tears from her cheeks.

  They walked into the living room. She sat on the couch and turned to watch Cole as he held Mia.

  “I should have run away when I was eighteen, but I was weak.”

  “What made you weak?”

  “My mom, she would always tell me how the doctors said she would die soon. Then she’d say if I loved her I would be a good daughter and take care of her. Before I knew it my dream of going to college was flushed down the drain as I tried to take care of her.”

  “That’s not being weak.”

  “She used me, Cole. I didn’t know it then, but I know now.”

  Her arms circled her middle trying to keep the pain in. “Have you ever woken up to realize that everything you thought you knew was a lie? You were being used, and there was nothing you could do about it. I was caught up in this life that I couldn’t see a way out of. That’s me pathetic.”

  “Why are you here, Jessie?”

  “Because I will die fighting before I just hand over Mia to anyone. I’m not brave, don’t get me wrong Cole, but I won’t just lay down while someone tries to hurt my family.”

  “That’s not pathetic.”

  “I hope your right.”

  Chapter Three

  “You need a car seat.”

  He looked at the car and then looked at her.

  “What’s a car seat?”

  “It’s made to put children in to keep them safe in case of a crash.”

  “I won’t crash.”

  She smiled, his arrogance was showing, but it was surrounded by a confidence that he would do anything to keep them safe. It was sweet. It was hot, the kind that made butterflies spread their wings in her stomach.

  “It’s not you I’m worried about. It’s all the other people on the road. Then there’s the fact that the law says you have to have one.”

  “Call Deja maybe she will watch her for us.”

  She took out her cell phone and looked at it. Was it chipped? Could her mother find her with it? She put it on the ground and began to stomp on it. Picking up the pieces she went back to his house and dumped it into the sink turning on the water.

  “What are you doing?”

  “People can find you by tracking your cell phone. I remember you told me once that no one was able to hack the protection you had surrounding your land, but what about when I leave it.”

  “We will pick you up a new phone when we go out.”

  He pulled out his phone to call Deja. “Hi, this is Cole. I was wondering if you would watch Mia until we come back. I don’t have a car seat. You would. He is. I hear him now, thanks.”

  “What?”

  “She said yes, and that Ven was already on his way over.”

  “Hi, I let myself in.” He walked into the kitchen. “Why did you kill your phone?”

  “My mother could trace it.”

  “Here,” he pulled a phone out of his back pocket.

  “I can’t take your phone.”

  “Why? I have three. Mom said I went a little overboard on technology.”

  “What did Enzo say.”

  He widened his stance and straightened his shoulders. “Ven!” he whispered/screamed.

  “Mom gave him a hug and told him to leave me alone. She said I had some catching up to do. She introduced me to video games you hook up to your television, and you can play online with other people. I’m making friends.”

  “Enzo was telling me about it. You’ll have to show me the game.”

  “Dad loves playing it although he acts like he doesn’t. I have to go to school as soon as they figure out how to get a…” He turned to look at Jessie and shut up.

  “Don’t worry Ven I won’t tell anyone your secrets, I have too many of my own.”

  Cole handed him Mia. “Tell Deja we said thanks.”

  “I will.” They watched him walk out while Mia waved goodbye.

  “You know she won’t even let my mother touch her without crying. We come here, and she let’s all of you pick her up and your all seven feet tall and as big as houses.”

  He walked over and wrapped his arms around her.

  “It’s okay. Ven didn’t mean to make you feel like you couldn’t be trusted. All of us have lived in a bad situation, and Ven grew up in one of the worse ones. He spent his whole life hiding although it’s different for him now he still remembers. Deja came along, and she didn’t care what he was. To her, he’s her son, and that’s all she can see.” He stroked her hair enjoying the softness of it. How would he ever give her up if she decided to leave?

  “I understand. I know what it feels like to be overlooked and to be happy that no one is looking at you.”

  “Your life hasn’t been easy.”

  He felt her shoulders as she shrugged against him.

  “What if we leave and they are there waiting for me?”

  “Then they have to go through me.”

  “Did you use to serve in the military?”

  “How did you know?”

  “Your fast. I would watch you while you were making drinks or catching something that had the nerve to fall.”

  He laughed leading her to the car. “That’s what I think when a glass tries to fall. The nerve of you.” She laughed as she slid into the passenger seat.

  Her hand gripped the door the other clutched his thick thigh as they made their way to Second Avenue.

  “I don’t see anyone.”

  “They haven’t given up they’re just regrouping.”

  She watched as people walked up and down the street going on with their day.

  “Why couldn’t I be one of these people?”

  “Maybe your life wouldn’t be exciting, and you wouldn’t have met me.”

  She turned to look at him. She wasn’t sure she wanted an exciting life, but she didn’t regret meeting him.

  “Cole, am I too young for you?” She concentrated on the women moving up and down the street as she imagined their lives to be perfect. She was a single mother. Who wanted to be burden with that? Just because she was attracted to him didn’t mean he found her appealing. Fear her age-old friend, the one who seemed t
o rule her life at times was whispering cruel words to her.

  “How old are you?”

  “Twenty-five.”

  “If Deja isn’t too young for Enzo you’re not too young for me.”

  She nodded, the answer didn’t make sense, but sometimes Cole didn’t say things the way that made sense. She slid a little closer to him and settled in to enjoy the ride as fear resided allowing her to breathe normally.

  “Why are we here?”

  “Deja said Mia needs girl things if she was going to stay. She suggested I come here.”

  “She doesn’t need anything.”

  “Mia can sleep in the normal bed?”

  It was too big for her. She got scared during the night and would fall off the bed. Her hand went through her hair tugging the strands.

  “Cole…”

  “Jessie let me help. I’m not asking you to make a commitment, and I know you might leave. Just let me help while I can until you make up your mind.”

  “Thank you.” She’d been fighting alone for so long to have someone who could see a little bit into the darkness that surrounded her made her feel like there was a chance.

  “Mia sleeps in a crib I found in a second-hand store. She’s big enough for a little girl bed. Something like the one in the back room of The Wolves Den.”

  He walked over to her and helped her out the car and took her hand as they made their way into the store. They waved at a sales person standing on the floor.

  “Can I help you?”

  “We're looking for a bed.”

  “How old is the child?”

  “She’s sixteen months.”

  “We have a great selection of toddler beds.”

  They followed her to the beds as they looked around.

  “I always wanted to come in here. I never did even after I got a job at the club.”

  She walked towards the beds looking at each one of them. “Is there one you like?”

  “I don’t know anything about beds.”

  “Yet you brought me to this store. Which do you like?” She walked over and hugged his arm leaning against him.

  He walked her over to the one he liked. “This one. There are railings on three and a half sides.”

  “This is a daybed, and it’s perfect. I like this one the color is espresso. Look it even has a drawer in the bottom.”