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  But by the looks of things, he had nothing to worry about.

  As if Zoe and Ashton sensed his presence, they both turned around at the same time. Zoe’s lips turned up into a slow, sexy smile while Ashton flashed him a toothy grin. “Dad! Look what we’re doing. We’re making breakfast.”

  “I love breakfast.” Gabe crossed the floor and ruffled Ashton’s hair. “It’s one of my three favorite meals. And it smells fantastic.”

  He moved over to Zoe, wrapped his arm around her waist, and kissed her chastely on the cheek. It felt as natural as if he’d been doing it his whole life. And he would be doing it for the rest of his life, too.

  Not like Marie.

  The thought crashed into him so unexpectedly, he took a step back.

  “Is everything okay?” The smile fell off Zoe’s face, replaced by a look of intense concern as she looked at him.

  Gabe tried to force the thought out of his head, but yet it lingered. He’d thought the same thing with Marie. That they’d have forever.

  But that was different. That was the curse.

  It wasn’t his fault; Gabe knew it. He really did. It had taken him some time, but he’d come to grips with the accident and the curse and the guilt that had left him devastated for months. Maryann had been a huge help for him while he’d worked through all those feelings, including the thought that his son might face the same fate as his mother. If the curse was real, Gabe couldn’t bear to think about what would happen to Ashton one day. But he refused to believe it was real. It was the only way he could get through each day.

  But he was in a better place now. He needed to remember that. With Zoe, it was different. Everything was different.

  “I’m fine,” he said after a minute. “More than fine, actually.” The smile spread across his face and this time there was no dragging it off. “Really.” He pulled her in and kissed her properly.

  “Eww.” Ashton laughed and jumped off his chair. “You can’t kiss at breakfast.”

  “How about dinner, then?”

  Ashton stopped gathering up the placemats and turned to stare at Zoe. “You’ll be here for dinner, right?”

  Gabe looked between them and waited.

  Zoe crossed the floor and knelt in front of his son. “Do you want me to be here?”

  He didn’t hesitate. “Yes.”

  “Then I’ll be here.” Zoe wrapped her arms around Ashton and squeezed. “You’re a very sweet little boy,” she said. “Did you know that?”

  Ashton nodded confidently and Gabe laughed. “My grandma tells me that all the time.” He turned to grab the placemats and took them to the table. “She says I’m just like my mom was at my age. Did you know my mom?”

  Just the way he always did when Ashton spoke about his mother, Gabe tensed a little. Because he was only two years old when she died, Ashton barely remembered his mother, which Gabe thought was both a blessing and terribly sad.

  Zoe shook her head and helped him at the table. “I’m afraid I didn’t know her, but your dad tells me she was a wonderful woman, and I believe that because you are an incredible kid.”

  Ashton nodded confidently before he turned to Zoe. “Are you going to be my mom?”

  Zoe’s mouth opened and shut and she looked at Gabe for help. As much as he was enjoying listening to their exchange, it was time for him to get involved. He couldn’t even imagine how confusing the situation was for Ashton. Hell, it was confusing for him how fast he’d fallen for this woman. How did you explain that to a six-year-old?

  He had to try though, so Gabe grabbed the plates from the counter and joined them at the table. “I know this is kind of crazy,” he started. “Ash, you must be a little bit confused about why Zoe is here and that’s my fault. I should have—”

  “I’m not confused.” Ashton sat up straight, looking much older than his young age. “When I met Zoe yesterday, I knew.”

  “You knew what?”

  He shrugged. “That she was…” Ashton looked between the adults briefly before focusing on Gabe again. “That she was ours.”

  Chapter Twelve

  The days rolled easily one into another and without any effort at all, the three of them settled into a happy family rhythm. Ashton’s innocent words were exactly true: Zoe was theirs. And they were hers. Not since she was a small child had she felt so accepted and welcome in a family. She truly was home and it felt good.

  But almost a week after the fall festival, despite how happy she was, Zoe had a niggling feeling of worry that had started to worm its way into all of her thoughts. As perfect as everything was with the three of them, she couldn’t shake the feeling that it wouldn’t last. That what was happening was only temporary and soon enough she’d be alone again.

  Only this time for good.

  The night before, Zoe had woken up with a start because her dreams had become a little too real. The room was dark. The alarm clock on the dresser said it was half past three. The sheets were twisted around her, and she was soaked in sweat. She’d taken a few deep breaths and let her breathing return to normal before she allowed herself to remember what she’d been dreaming about.

  There’d been an accident. All three of them had been driving somewhere and then out of nowhere, a deer had run across the road, causing the truck to spin on the highway. And then the crash, the noise, and the screaming and…then she’d woken up.

  It wasn’t the first time she’d dreamed about an accident. That was the really alarming part. Every night that week, she’d had some sort of dream that involved an accident. They were always different. But also eerily similar. There was an intense feeling of loss, sadness, and death, but each time before she could see who was injured, she woke up.

  What did it mean?

  The night before, the dream had been even more real. More intense. She must have screamed out before she woke up because when her eyes snapped open, Gabe was there, rubbing her back and talking to her. He’d asked, but she refused to tell him about the dream. It was silly, she’d insisted; just a dream. Gabe had fallen back asleep, his arm around her holding her close. But even with his warm presence, it had taken Zoe another twenty minutes to fall back asleep. Thankfully, she didn’t dream again.

  Even after she showered and dressed for the day, with Gabe and Ashton already gone for school and work, Zoe couldn’t shake the lingering effect of the night before. Somehow she needed to get to the bottom of whatever it was that was causing the nightmares. Maybe coffee with the ladies would help?

  She’d really been looking forward to seeing Chloe and the others, and although she might not want to tell them about the nightmares, some girl time was probably exactly what she needed to clear her head and get rid of the bad dreams once and for all.

  They’d arranged to meet up at Mountain Mama’s for coffee and by the time Zoe walked in to the little cafe, half of the tiny tables were already taken up with laughing women. Zoe’s face split into a warm smile as she was enveloped in hugs and greetings from these women she was very quickly coming to feel as family.

  Was it really possible that she could be happy here like this?

  Everything had happened so quickly and her feelings of wanting to run away from a life she thought she’d never be able to have had changed so completely, that mostly Zoe couldn’t believe it was even happening to her. Everything she’d always wanted, was hers. Everything was perfect.

  Except it’s not.

  Her smile dipped a little as that insistent and very annoying internal voice piped up.

  “Zoe!” Chloe hugged her tight. “You look positively radiant.” She turned to face the others. “Doesn’t she look radiant?”

  “Glowing.”

  “Almost as if—”

  “Are you pregnant?”

  The women all talked at once, and Zoe forced herself to keep the smile on her face because there it was, within a matter of seconds—the sharp reminder why everything was in fact not perfect after all.

  “No.” Zoe sat and hoped that would be t
he end of it.

  “Well, soon then.” Ella, who was pregnant with her and Kade’s first cub, winked at her. “New love, am I right?”

  Zoe shrugged, but Harper picked up the thread of the conversation. “I know it didn’t take us long.” She laughed and wiggled her nose against baby Lily’s. “Axel and I couldn’t keep our hands off each other.”

  “Us either.” Kira rested her hands on her huge belly. She was only in her second trimester, but judging by the size of her, her twins were growing at an incredible rate. “I think it’s the same for all of us, am I right?” She looked around and the women all laughed.

  It was true. From what Zoe knew, they’d all gotten pregnant fairly quickly after mating with their partners. All but Chloe and Luke so far. She glanced at her sister, who smiled and mouthed the words, “Are you okay?” Chloe was sensitive to her situation, and Zoe knew she wouldn’t tell the others if she didn’t want her to.

  “You’ll be next, Nina.” Bree pointed at Nina, who blushed.

  “I never thought I even wanted children,” Nina said. “What about you, Zoe?”

  She almost choked on the water she’d just taken a sip of. So much for a subject change. She took a moment to compose herself before smiling as widely as she could.

  “I have Ashton.”

  Bree beamed at her and pressed her hand to her upper arm. Zoe knew that Bree and Gabe were close friends, which just made the gesture that much sweeter.

  “And Ashton loves you,” Bree said. “He was so cute yesterday,” she continued. “When I picked him up from school, he couldn’t stop talking about you and how much he likes having you there.” Just listening to Bree talk about Ashton made Zoe happy. “And I’m sure he’ll be thrilled to have a baby brother or sister, one day, too. I know Gabe would love another child as well.”

  Hot tears pricked at the back of Zoe’s eyes and she tried not to let her smile dip. “Maybe one day,” was all she said.

  Thankfully the conversation shifted away from children to other topics and soon Zoe found herself laughing and relaxing and not thinking about the huge secret she still hadn’t discussed with Gabe.

  “Knock-knock.” Gabe cracked open the front door and peeked his head inside. “Maryann? Are you home?”

  It was a visit he’d been meaning to make all week, but on some level had been putting off. Sure, he’d seen his mother-in-law a handful of times throughout the week because despite the fact that Ashton loved Zoe and the two of them had taken to each other so easily, Gabe was cognizant that he shouldn’t change too many things at once for Ashton. And he needed to make it clear to his son that just because Zoe was in their life now—and she most certainly was—it didn’t mean that Maryann wouldn’t still have a solid presence.

  He also needed Maryann to know that.

  “I’m out here,” she called out.

  Gabe followed her voice through the house and out to the back deck, where he found his mother-in-law stacking chairs.

  “What are you doing?” He grabbed a patio chair and popped it on the top of the stack.

  “Can’t you feel it?” She held her head up to the air. “The chill is in the air. It’ll snow soon.”

  Gabe shook his head. “It’s too early.” He knew better than to argue with his mother-in-law, especially when it came to things like the weather. She’d been living in the valley for a few years longer than he had, having moved right after Marie’s death. “Too many sad memories on the coast,” she’d said to him before packing up and leaving. “You’re always welcome to join me.”

  He had and it was the best decision Gabe had made. Well, one of the best. Which was why it was so important that she understood that now that he had a new mate it didn’t lessen his feelings for her or her role in his life. Not at all.

  “Well, I’ll trust you on this one.” Gabe lifted another chair onto the stack. “But I sure hope you’re wrong and we get a little bit more of this nice fall.” Finished with the chairs, he moved to the patio table and started to pull the umbrella from its stand so he could secure it inside the garage. “Maybe if we’re lucky, the nice clear days will hold out until after Halloween.” He chatted as he worked, and it took him a few moments to realize that Maryann wasn’t joining in. He turned to see the older woman leaning against the side of the house, staring at him. “What’s up?”

  “I was going to ask you the same thing,” she said with a wry smile. “Because I know you didn’t come here just to talk about the weather and help me in the yard.”

  He chuckled. “Can’t a man come by to say hi to his mother-in-law and help out with the yard jobs?”

  “By all means.” She crossed her arms. “You know you’re always welcome here,” Maryann continued. “But you also know you can talk to me about anything. Like that new mate of yours.”

  She added the second part so casually, Gabe was taken off guard and almost tripped over the bottom step of the deck. “What?”

  “You heard me.” Her smile was soft. “Come on inside and I’ll make us a cup of tea so you can tell me everything you came here to tell me.” She turned, but before she moved to go inside, she looked back at Gabe. “And just know, Gabe, I’m excited to hear all of it. It’s about time you got yourself a new mate.”

  He didn’t know what to say as he followed her inside. He hadn’t known what to expect when he told Maryann about Zoe, but the one thing he did expect was that he’d be the one doing the telling. Now, it seemed that she would already know about it all. Then again, it was a small town and he shouldn’t be surprised. But still.

  “I’m sorry you didn’t hear it from me first,” he said when they were inside, around her oak kitchen table with mugs of steaming tea in front of them. “I should have come to talk to you right away when—”

  “Stop.” She held up her hand. “You can’t possibly think that I would expect you to come running to your mother-in-law to tell her about your new love right when you’re in the thick of it all, do you?” She chuckled. “Come on, Gabe. The last thing I expected was for you to think about me when you’re with your new mate.”

  He couldn’t help but laugh along with her. “Good point.”

  Maryann slid him the sugar bowl. “So, tell me about her.”

  Her smile was so kind, and even though Gabe knew it must hurt her on some level to have the discussion with him, she genuinely wanted to know, so Gabe started talking. Of course, he left out some of the more intimate details—they might be close, but they weren’t that close—but otherwise, he told her everything he could about Zoe. When he was finished, she clasped her hands together and dipped her head.

  “Maryann?” Gabe reached out and put a hand on her arm. “I didn’t mean to hurt you or say anything that would—”

  “You didn’t.” She shook her head. “I’m just so…” She blinked hard. “I’m happy for you, Gabe. This is what it’s supposed to be like. The connection, hot and fast. Instant. You and Zoe, you’re fated.”

  “That’s what I think,” he said. “Not that I really know, but it’s just that it’s so different…” He trailed off, unwilling to diminish what he had with Marie, especially not to her mother.

  “It’s okay,” she said kindly. “I know how you feel because I know you and Marie loved each other fiercely, but you weren’t fated mates.”

  “How did you know?”

  “How did you know you and Zoe were fated?”

  He paused and thought for a minute. “I just know.”

  “Exactly. Marie’s father and I, we were fated. And as much as I love you, Gabe—and am thankful that you and Marie had each other—I’ve always known you two weren’t fated, and that’s okay. Not everyone gets to experience that kind of intense love, but it doesn’t take away from what you two shared.”

  “No,” he agreed with her. “It doesn’t. I still miss her.”

  “Of course you do. But it’s time you moved on. Past time. There’s so much life left to live. There’s no reason for you to be alone.”

  He n
odded and let Maryann’s words soak in. Neither of them spoke for a few minutes. They sat silently and sipped at their tea, each lost in their own thoughts and memories.

  It was Maryann who spoke next. “I’m happy for you, Gabe.” There were tears in her eyes as she spoke, but Gabe could see she meant what she said. “You deserve this. You and Ashton both. I can’t wait to meet her. This woman who has stolen your heart so completely. She must be pretty remarkable.”

  He exhaled slowly. “She is.” Gabe couldn’t keep the smile off his face. “She really is. I think you’re going to really like her.”

  “I think I will, too.” Maryann stood and gathered up her empty tea mug. “Ashton has sure had a lot to say about her.”

  “Really?” Gabe assumed, but didn’t really know whether he’d talked to his grandma about Zoe at all.

  “Oh yes.” She turned and smiled. “He told me that she just felt right.”

  Gabe laughed. “It’s crazy, isn’t it?” He swallowed back his question, again, not wanting to be insensitive. But he needn’t have worried, because Maryann seemed to already know what he was going to ask.

  “Crazy that Ashton likes her?” She shook her head. “Not at all. I haven’t seen it very often, Gabe, where there’s a child involved in a fated mate situation, but I think it makes perfect sense that Ashton feels drawn to Zoe as well. After all, the two of you are so close. He’s bound to pick up on some of what’s going on with you. And frankly, I think it just makes things that much better, don’t you?”

  He nodded and then, before he could overthink it, stood and gave his mother-in-law a big hug. “Thank you, Maryann. Thank you so much.”

  She laughed, but Gabe knew tears were falling from her eyes. “Just be happy, Gabe. That’s the best thing you can do for Ashton.” She sniffed before she added, “And for Marie.”

  He was going to be hurt.

  Zoe revved the engine, pushing her bike to go faster as she flew down the mountain road.

  He wanted cubs.

  She squeezed her eyes shut as she rounded the bend in the road, opening them just in time to straighten the bike and accelerate on the straightaway.