“Right, and…?”
“I just got off the phone with Kenneth Ashton.”
Even the mention of Kenneth’s name made Rafe’s blood boil in anger.
“He says he wants a million dollars to keep quiet about Toby’s real father.”
“He can’t grab Aidan, so now he has another get-rich scheme. Bastard.” But Rafe really hadn’t expected this turn of events. “Toby’s father is dead. So what’s Ashton going to do about it?”
“Go to the parents. If they ask for a paternity test, they may ask for grandparent rights.”
“Did you check into our laws?” They’d had no reason to learn anything about grandparent visitation rights before this, so Rafe didn’t know what the laws were.
“Yeah, right after I got off the phone with him. I checked and it said they had to have a preexisting relationship with the grandchild.”
Rafe heaved a sigh of relief.
“The problem is that if they do this, it will confuse Toby about who his real father is. And it will cause problems for you and Jade. Even if there was no truth to it, some people would decide the grandparents were truly his grandparents, and if you were a decent kind of guy, you’d let them see him since his real father is dead.”
“Damn Kenneth. Hell, the only way we’re going to deal with this is to get someone to falsify the record on the samples.”
“For court-ordered paternity testing, they’ll often have two separate labs handle it to ensure there’s no tampering going on.”
“Do it. We have the resources and the money to make it happen. As for Kenneth, I’ll deal with him. But I also want you to check into the grandparents’ background. Are they squeaky clean? If not, I want to know it. I won’t use any dirt against them unless it comes to that—and only if the paternity testing doesn’t work in our favor. But if they wish to pursue a claim to see him, I want to prove they’re unfit grandparents.”
“Too bad a bite from you to turn Toby wouldn’t have done the trick.”
“Yeah, wouldn’t have worked. In that case, the connection to me would only show up in his wolf DNA, and they’d wonder why they had a sample of wolf DNA instead of human.”
“Okay, I’ll get right on this. We’re all a go on the marriage.”
“Sounds good. But one other thing.” After Rafe finished speaking with Sebastian about how he planned to pay Grayton a visit, he said good morning to Aidan and Toby.
“Are you coming in?” Toby asked as if he didn’t have enough playmates.
“Not right now. I have some business to take care of. But I wanted to ask if a wolf bit you before we took you from Lizzie’s car.”
Toby scrunched up his face in thought, then shook his head.
“You’re not in trouble, Toby,” Rafe said, realizing the boy might think he had done something wrong and had provoked the wolf into biting him. He had to have been bitten. There was no other way he could shift otherwise.
“Pammie.” Toby squared his shoulders. “She wasn’t playing with the toys, and Lizzie said she had to share.”
“So they let you see her as a wolf?”
He shrugged.
“Did anyone know about it?”
Toby shook his head.
“You didn’t tell anyone?”
He shook his head again.
“Why not, Toby?”
He looked at Aidan as if he’d help him out of this dilemma.
“He’s not upset with you, Toby,” Aidan said. “He just wants to learn who bit you and why. Did anyone ever turn into a wolf around you?”
“No. I didn’t know it was her at first. I’d never seen her as a wolf. But then she turned into herself and her mommy was calling her and Pammie said if I told on her, she’d bite me even harder. She was mean to me. Always took the toys away from me. Even when she wasn’t playing with them.”
“You said you had never seen real wolves before,” Rafe reminded him.
Toby looked down at the water.
“Toby?”
He let out his breath and raised his arms outward and his hands up as if saying, “What could I do about it?” Then he said, “She told me if I told on her…about shifting into a wolf, she’d kill me.”
Angry with the mother over it, Rafe nodded. “It’s okay, Toby. Thanks for telling me. You’re not in any trouble. If they told you that you were allowed to play with the toys, she didn’t have any right getting mean with you. And it’s okay that you saw that she shifted. You’re one of us and can do it too. Now about last night—”
Toby’s gaze shot to Aidan.
“It’s okay, Toby. You can tell your dad.” Aidan looked amused to be calling Rafe that.
Toby took Rafe’s hand, and Rafe lifted him up in his arms, carried him to one of the chaise longues, and sat the boy on his lap while they discussed what it meant to be wolves. “Okay, tell me what you saw.”
“Mommy bit the man. He knocked out Uncle Aidan and he had a gun and he was aiming at me. I was biting his ankle ’cuz he hurt Uncle Aidan.”
“And you did right. You woke up the whole house, and that meant we could come running and take care of the bad men.”
Toby nodded.
“How do you feel about Mommy biting the bad man?”
“She pertected me.”
“Protected you, yes. That’s what the adult wolves do. Protect their wolf cubs. And we protect others in the wolf pack. Uncle Aidan. And the others.”
“Uncle Sebastian and Uncle Edward,” Toby said, folding his arms. “Are you going to swim now?”
“I’ll come in and play with you after I make some calls.”
“Yes!” Then Toby climbed off his lap and went back to playing with Aidan.
“But I have to go on a trip after that.”
“Can I go?”
Rafe smiled. “Not this time, Toby. Someone needs to take care of your mommy and Uncle Aidan.”
Aidan raised his brow in question.
“Talk to you before I go,” Rafe told his brother.
* * *
When Rafe told her the wedding was a go and she needed to pick out a gown, Jade was all set to buy it. She couldn’t believe all the money Rafe was willing to spend on her.
“I want to go with you,” Rafe said, looking down at her with a worried but loving expression.
“It’s bad luck if you see me wearing the wedding gown before the wedding.”
He smiled. “So you’re really taking this to heart.”
“Sure am. First time for everything.” Even though their kind didn’t need to have a traditional wedding to prove they were mated for life, for Toby’s sake and because they were going to be in the limelight so much, she had to do it. So if she was going to be a traditional human and do this, she didn’t want Rafe to see the wedding gown before she walked down the aisle.
“Okay, but I want George and Edward to go as your bodyguards. I have other men watching out for you. And Sebastian and Derek volunteered to help you decide. Even though I want to be the one to do so,” Rafe said.
Jade laughed. “I’m sure you’ll love whatever we pick out.” And if the guys liked something she didn’t, it was going to be her choice, not theirs.
“Aidan will stay at the house with Toby. I don’t want both of you out shopping together without me being there in the event your brother learns you’re out. I’ll have several men staying at the house with Aidan and Toby to protect them.”
“All right.” Then she gave Rafe a hug and kiss, and also one to Toby, who looked torn between going and staying.
“Uncle Aidan and you are going to have lots more fun than Mommy is,” Rafe said.
“I need a new tux,” Toby said.
Jade wondered where he had gotten that notion. “You just got a new one.”
Toby looked at Rafe.
He tousled Toby’s hair. “He’s right. He needs a new one because this is for a different function and not a charity ball. He can wear them to the next socials we have. Right, Toby?”
Toby nod
ded.
“Right, if he doesn’t outgrow them in the meantime.” Jade loved that Rafe wanted to please her son, but there had to be limits. He didn’t know how fast Toby was growing from week to week.
“I’ll take him when I get back,” Rafe said.
“I could.”
“Nah, this is a guy thing. Right, Toby?”
Toby grinned.
“All right, but we’re going to have to talk about this…spending issue later.”
Rafe just smiled.
She’d never spoiled Toby like this, and she didn’t want to start now. He’d have to learn that when he was grown up, he’d have to support himself, and he most likely wouldn’t have this kind of money to start with.
When she and her escort arrived at a wedding boutique, she should have felt strange shopping for wedding gowns with four men in tow, but since she’d never thought she’d have a wedding in the first place, she supposed having men along wasn’t much different than having women along. Except they weren’t her closest and dearest friends, but there to protect her. A dark cloud prevailed over the event as she worried about Rafe and tried to push her concern out of her mind.
All of the men were eager to tell her which wedding gown they thought Rafe would like best. Not which looked the best on her. In truth, they were really telling her what they liked best, not what Rafe would prefer.
“I like that one,” Sebastian said.
The two bodyguards, Edward and Hugh, nodded.
Derek was still eyeing the cut of another gown on its hanger.
The store clerk’s mouth was pursed as she stood by, waiting for someone to decide on the right gown. She probably wasn’t used to so many men in her shop at once.
Jade wanted to check the prices on the gowns, because it was something she would wear only once, and it wasn’t going to be a royal wedding with millions of people watching, just a select few wolves. But Sebastian was in charge of paying this time, so she gave up on trying to save Rafe money.
The guys all seemed to be in mutual agreement that they liked the gowns that were low cut on the bodice and back and clung to her curves, not a flouncy wedding gown with a full slip underneath to make her look like she was a fairy-tale princess. She really needed to pick what she wanted, but she suspected if the guys liked the clinging gowns best, probably Rafe would too. And that’s who she really was wearing it for.
It was either the pearl-beaded lace mermaid gown with the gored skirt, which clung to her body all the way to her knees, or a beaded, lace-appliqué column-style gown.
They finally decided on the mermaid gown. She loved it and hoped Rafe would too. Best of all, it fit all her curves just right so no adjustments had to be made.
When they were leaving the store, Mr. Marks approached her, ignoring all her bodyguards. When Aidan went to intercept him, Jade said, “It’s all right.” At least she hoped it would be. She really believed that if she was nice to him, which he seemed to appreciate, he would print stories that didn’t put her and her son in a bad light.
“I see you’re getting ready to be married to Mr. Denali again,” Marks said skeptically, as though he didn’t believe they were already married. “A renewal of vows, a more public way of sharing your commitment—I love the touch. It makes me think back on how you were rescued on the beach. You know, in the rip current. How he kissed you like he really knew you. So I was thinking, if I went along with the story he’s telling, about being married before and not knowing about his son, that you were afraid to approach him in a more direct way…”
Everyone with her appeared uncomfortable with what Marks was saying, but Jade knew if she was going to be in the limelight, she had to deal with this in her own way.
“That made me think you were afraid of Mr. Denali’s response,” Marks went on. “And that’s why you didn’t have your son with you at the time. Then when things began to heat up between you like in the old days, he moved you right into his place, you picked up your son, and there you all were—one big, happy family. Now, I know Mr. Denali has the money to make things happen. I like you, and the kid is cute. The two of you deserve the best, so that’s the spin I’m putting on it. But I want to warn you—I did look into you dating anyone else before you met up with Mr. Denali. Some guy named Stewart Roth was seeing you pretty hot and heavy. I made a lot of inquiries. In any event, I might have stirred up some real trouble for you. Which is really why I’m here.”
Her heart raced at the mention of Stewart’s name. She was afraid her and Rafe’s fabricated fairy-tale story would crumble before her eyes.
“Anyway, I truly am sorry that I talked with the man.”
“Stewart?” Jade asked, feeling unsteady and light-headed. She felt the blood drain from her face.
Sebastian moved in to support her if she passed out. “Yeah, Stewart Roth. I’m afraid he might be getting in touch with you, trying to cash in on your dream. I really am sorry. I just wanted to warn you.”
She couldn’t believe Stewart could be alive when her brother said he had killed him. And she knew Kenneth wouldn’t have lied about that. She was glad Stewart was alive, but then she felt her stomach drop even more. Had Kenneth mistakenly killed Stewart’s younger brother? They were only a year apart, and if they weren’t together, they looked like each other. Even together, they appeared to be twins.
That meant Stewart still might be able to lay claim to her son. They couldn’t allow him to. Not now that her son was a lupus garou.
What a nightmare.
Marks tipped his hat to her and smiled. “Sometimes the underdog needs to win. And that guy isn’t worthy of you. I’ll get the story right.” Then he walked off, and she watched him go, unable to move.
Sebastian took hold of her arm and walked her to the car while the others hurried to get her door or start the car.
As soon as they were in the vehicle, Sebastian asked, “Are you going to be all right?”
“No. Kenneth said he killed Toby’s father. That means he probably killed Stewart’s brother by accident. If Stewart thinks he can get some money out of this deal by claiming he wants part custody, or he wants Rafe to buy him off—”
“We’ll take care of it,” Edward said.
“I don’t want him killed.”
“It would be too suspicious if the guy tries to come here to claim kinship and then suddenly dies. Rafe has paid for all the legal certification to prove Toby’s his son, you were both married before that, and you’re still legally married,” Sebastian said. “Do you want me to call Rafe with the news, or do you want to tell him?”
“I will. Thanks, Sebastian.”
“I’ll get ahold of one of our PIs and have him verify the story. He’ll look into Stewart Roth’s life with a fine-toothed comb. If the guy is in the least bit shady, we’ll have something to use against him if he decides to play hardball.”
“I was kind of a wild card back then,” Jade admitted. “He was rather a bad boy.”
“Then you met Rafe,” Sebastian said, smiling.
“How was this Stewart character a bad guy?” Edward asked.
“Ran with a rough crowd. Raced cars where he shouldn’t have been. I don’t know that he ever did anything else illegal, but I guess I just liked his wildness.”
“Because you were looking for a wolf,” Sebastian suggested.
“I guess. Then I learned I was pregnant with Toby, and that changed my life. I was already working hard on trying to support myself with my apparel designs, but I really became better at marketing them when I knew I had to support my child.”
“Rafe wants me to meet with you after the wedding so you can tell me everything you need to set up your design studio,” Sebastian said. “We can go shopping for all the essentials, and you can hire whoever you need to make your business more viable. You can hire your own personal assistant if you’d like, but in the meantime, I’ll help you with getting set up and dealing with the day-to-day business. Like scheduling Toby for photo shoots for the ads for the speci
alty shops.”
“I’d love to hire a couple of seamstresses to make up the designs.”
“You’ve got it. I’ll contact a couple of wolf packs and see if any of them have seamstresses in the bunch. We’ll take care of relocation expenses. But Rafe didn’t want me to bother you with this until after the wedding, so you wouldn’t be stressed about your business too.”
“Thanks for being my wedding coordinator too, Sebastian. I couldn’t have done it without you.”
He smiled. “I never know what job I’ll get next. It makes it interesting and fun. Though I’m still down about not getting to go to the toy store. I would have picked up a bunch of puzzles for Toby.”
She laughed.
After they returned home, Toby ran to give her a hug. “Mommy, Daddy left on his trip. But he said if we were really good, he’d bring us something special.”
She drew Toby into a hug and tried not to cry. What if Rafe never came home?
* * *
Rafe had flown to Amarillo as soon as he’d learned where Todd Grayton lived and worked. Rafe had men at both locations, waiting for his arrival. They were his own team of hotshot fighters, every one of them eager to take care of the bastard if Rafe believed this man had anything to do with Kenneth’s attempts at grabbing Aidan. Some might believe Rafe’s men were nothing more than mercenaries, every man for himself if things went south. But these men were the good guys—they’d fought in several wars like Rafe and were well decorated and dedicated to protecting a wolf who might be able to stop their kind from premature extermination. Not to mention, they were all good friends of Rafe’s. Sure he paid them well, but they had to earn a living too, and he didn’t begrudge them the high wages they earned on any mission he took them on. He knew if he needed their help, they’d have offered it in a heartbeat, without any thought of payment.
They were smart wolves and could think fast on their feet—no need to have a leader to tell them what to do. Even though in a case like this, they waited to see what Rafe wanted of them. But if they got into a mess on their own, they were perfectly capable of handling it.