Suddenly, she snapped back to awareness. Liam slowly removed his teeth from her neck and licked the bite wound clean. She could feel it healing up from his saliva as he slid himself from inside her and threw the condom away in the trash can.
They held each other in the afterglow of their mating. But she could still feel him so close. It was as if they were bonded by some deep, mysterious connection. She felt his love, so deep, pure, and strong, right beside her, inside her. How could she ever have doubted it?
Chapter 13
The next morning Liam drove his BMW through town with Layla by his side. They were singing along to the radio, on their way to go shopping for the last-minute things they needed before the holiday began. As he was about to park along the street, he noticed a black Escalade pulling in front of him in the road. The license plate read BSTFTR. Liam would recognize that car anywhere. He pulled out of the parking place and followed the Escalade.
“Where are you going?” Layla asked. “That parking spot was perfect.”
“That's Martin Green's car.”
“So?”
“I want to see who’s driving it.”
“Why?” Layla asked.
“I’ve been talking to people, trying to solve this murder. There have been a lot of suspicious people. At first, I thought maybe it was one of the vendors from the market. No one liked Martin very much. Then I thought maybe it was his ex-wife, she seemed like a greedy woman, capable of anything. But then I found out that he was in a lot of debt.”
“How did you find that out?” Layla asked.
“His ex-wife told me. Then, I went to the pawnshop the other day, and I saw a pinky ring that looked just like the one that Martin used to wear.”
“Why were you in the pawnshop?”
“No reason...” he lied. “But the pawnbroker told me that a loan shark name Vinnie the Snake had pawned the ring just a few days ago.”
“Do you think that the loan shark killed him?” Layla asked.
“I don't know, but I'm going to find out.”
Liam followed the Escalade across town and pulled into a residential street where the houses were fairly far apart. He drove past a driveway as the Escalade pulled in. The mailbox read Green.
“That's Martin's house,” Liam said.
“What are we going to do?”
“We’re going to park the car, and I’ll walk through that wooded area to see what is going on. You stay in the car and keep a lookout. Call the police. I'm going in.”
“Liam,” she said. “Do you think that's a good idea?”
“Somebody was murdered at my Holiday Market and they almost ruined the holidays for everyone in Fate Valley. I'm not going to let that stand.”
She exhaled a deep sigh and touched his forearm gently.
“Okay, Liam. You do your thing, and I'll stay here. I trust you know what you're doing.”
He leaned in and kissed her on the cheek. “Don't worry, babe, I was in the military. Remember?”
Liam slid out of the car and tossed off his clothes, leaving them in the front seat of his BMW. He gave Layla a wink, shifted into grizzly bear form, and slowly plodded through the winter forest toward Martin's house. The cool winter air bit his hide as his breath blew out in puffs before him. The smell of fallen leaves and frozen soil filled his lungs, as he carefully stepped over the broken branches that littered the forest floor.
Standing at the edge of a thick grove of trees, deep in the shadows behind a thicket of brambles, he sniffed the air. He could smell the people in the driveway were human. Something familiar hit him. He’d smelled this scent before.
A big moving van sat parked in the driveway out front. Men dressed in tracksuits were taking everything that Martin owned out of the house and packing it in the van. A couple of guys carried a big screen TV while another one carried a crystal chandelier.
“I took care of him,” said one of the men into the phone. The speaker wore a suit rather than a tracksuit like the others. He looked vaguely familiar. “Shot him right in the head with a silencer and shoved him in a closet. No one saw a thing. Now we’re taking his stuff to pay off his debt.”
Liam remembered where he’d smelled the man’s scent before. He was the man who’d made Martin uncomfortable on the first day of the Market. Something lurched inside of Liam at the man's blatant admission. Martin might have been an over the top salesman that nobody liked, but he didn't deserve to die.
Liam roared and charged, bursting through the thicket. Vinnie dropped his phone on the ground and shrieked as Liam jumped on him. He screamed bloody murder as Liam held him down with his paw, grunting and bearing his teeth.
The other men ran to the front of the moving van to get inside, but Liam swiped his claws, popping the tire and making it impossible to drive away. They ran off into the woods in the opposite direction of where he had come. Liam turned his attention back to the man in the suit. He didn’t enjoy violence, but something in the loan shark’s horrified expression made him laugh a little bit inside. He’d never ruin another holiday, ever again.
The sound of sirens pierced through the cold winter air as Vinnie the Snake screamed and cried for mercy. Liam huffed and puffed, holding the guilty man to the frozen ground. The police arrived immediately, spilled out of their cars, and pointed their guns at Liam.
“Lower your weapons, men,” said Sheriff Bear, climbing out of his cruiser. “He’s one of our own.”
The police lowered their weapons and moved in to make the arrest. One of them threw a blanket over Liam's shoulders.
“I heard him admit he killed Martin Green,” Liam said after his shift.
“Are you willing to make a statement?” Sheriff Bear asked.
“Of course.”
“Sheriff,” one of the officers said. “Take a look at this.” He lifted the gun out of the man’s holster and showed it to the Sheriff. “Same caliber as the murder weapon.”
Several other officers had run off after the men in tracksuits, dragging them back in handcuffs a few minutes later.
“Good work, men,” Sheriff Bear said. “You too, Liam. You should be commended.”
“Thank you, sir. All in a day’s work protecting Christmas for the people of Fate Valley.”
Sheriff Bear patted Liam on the back before climbing into his cruiser. When the cops pulled away, Layla drove Liam’s BMW up the driveway and parked right in front of him. She scrambled out, looking stunned.
“Are you okay?” she said, cupping his face in her hands.
“I’m fine, babe. You did a good job calling the police. They showed up right on time.”
“We make an amazing team,” she said.
The police drove down the road with the suspects, and Liam slid his clothes back on while Layla waited in the warmth of the car. Her admiration beamed from her eyes and filled his heart with pride. Before getting back in the car, Liam gave Martin’s ex-wife a call.
“You might want to come and get Martin's things from his house.”
“Why? What’s going on?” she asked.
“Some men were looting his place, but I stopped them. Everything is packed up in a moving van, but you’ll need to change the tire. You should come get it now. It might help you and your daughter.”
“I can't tell you how grateful I am. I already sold my boat back to the dealership to cut down on my expenses, but any little bit will still help. How can I repay you?”
“Don't mention it, ma'am.”
“Are you sure you don't want to come to the Fate Valley Wives’ luncheon with me?” she asked.
“I'm going to be busy with my mate that day. But I'm sure that we can celebrate the holiday next year at the Market.”
“Oh, you found your mate, congratulations,” she said.
“I bet there’s someone out there for you too, ma'am,” he said.
“I sure hope you're right. Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year,” she said.
He rubbed the pocket where he’d had the ring box
tucked away since he’d bought it. Liam knew that he and Layla would indeed have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
Chapter 14
On Christmas Eve, Liam gathered his friends around the Christmas tree for Christmas caroling, with spiked eggnog in each hand. Holiday cheer abounded as they sang Deck the Halls and Jingle Bells, and all their favorite carols. He had invited Sunshine and Harrison, Grayson, Alexander, and the new guy Thorian, who they called Celebration Bear.
After caroling, Sunshine and Layla got lost in talking about the future. Liam was glad that Layla and Sunshine had become such good friends. Sunshine made sure Layla would be attending her and Harrison’s wedding in a few days. Liam was already serving as Liam’s best man. Liam had known Harrison a long time and was relieved when he had found the arsonist who had set fire to Fate Rock Chapel. The chapel was one of the most popular wedding places in the valley, and he himself envisioned getting married there someday.
The guests gathered in Liam’s big dining room for a massive Christmas Eve feast with ham, mashed potatoes, corn on the cob, green beans, crispy biscuits, sweet potato pie with marshmallows roasted to perfection, chestnuts, cranberry sauce, and Grayson’s special ginger cake for dessert.
The guests retired to their rooms after dinner. They would wake up Christmas morning and open presents. But Liam had one special gift he intended to give his beloved tonight.
They went to his bedroom and changed into their Christmas pajamas, a matching set of red flannel PJs and blue robes. They wore fluffy slippers and walked out onto the balcony, drinking his favorite cinnamon tea. The snow fell softly on the lake and the moon hung half full over the water. He reached into his pocket, his hands trembling and not from the cold. He looked into Layla’s eyes, twinkling from the Christmas lights and the moon above. Her dark mahogany skin glowed, and her lips parted in a contented smile.
“I love your friends,” she said. “I can honestly say that they're all my friends now, too.”
“I've never been so happy to hear anything in my life,” he said.
“There are so many presents to open tomorrow morning,” she said. “You really know how to throw a Christmas party.”
“There's one present I want to give you before Christmas day,” he said, sinking to his knee on the wooden slats of the patio.
He pulled the box out of his pocket and gazed up into her eyes. Her eyes widened the second she saw the box. He opened it as tears began to flow. She covered her mouth as she sobbed at the sight of the ring. Liam took Layla’s hand, caressing the soft skin with the pad of his thumb.
“Layla Watson,” he said. “Will you make me the happiest man in the world and be my wife?”
“Oh yes, Liam. Yes, yes, yes, a thousand times yes, my beloved mate.”
After he slid the ring on her finger, she pulled him up to his feet, threw her arms around his neck, and kissed him hard on the mouth. Wrapping his arms around her waist, he held her gorgeous, curvy body to his.
“I can't believe how lucky I am to have you,” she said.
“It isn't luck, my dear. It's fate.”
“This is the happiest Christmas I've ever had.”
“It is for me too.
“I wish that my grandmother could see me now,” she said, her tears dripping onto his flannel pajamas. “She would be so proud of me. I finally understand who I am and what I deserve.”
“You deserve everything, and I want to give it to you, my sweet Layla.”
Liam gathered Layla in his arms, kissing her softly as the snow flurried over the dark lake waters. The smell of cinnamon and sugar wafted through the air, and the sound of sleigh bells jingled somewhere in the distance. Liam knew, deep in his heart, that he and Layla both got what they wanted most for Christmas. Each other.
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