The Maverick Pride Tales - Chapter 88: Chapter 88
You are reading The Maverick Pride Tales, Chapter 88: Chapter 88. Read more chapters of The Maverick Pride Tales.
It made what she was about to do even harder. She closed her eyes on the wave of sadness that threatened to overwhelm her.
Damn. She knew the moment he felt her pain and shivered at the speed with which his concern hit her in return.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, and his anxious brown eyes met hers.
“Nothing, uh, I was just—”
She shrugged, wondering if this was a bad idea.
“We’re a mated couple now, mon petit chaton. Remember, you can tell me anything,” he said and touched her cheek with one long finger.
The result was a series of chills that ran down her back. Her she-Tiger wanted her to press herself fully against him and to never leave his side. After an entire day and night of lovemaking, she would have thought she’d had enough, but no.
Kylie could never have enough of Michael. He was the best damn man she’d ever seen. For the second time in the last two days, he’d rendered her speechless with words. The most incredible thing was how easily and readily she believed him.
Yes, they were mated now, and she knew she truly could tell him anything.
Almost anything.
Her heart hurt at the thought of what she had to do. But after hearing the message Uncle Uzzi had called and left on his answering machine, what choice did she have?
Oh Michael, she thought to herself. I want to tell you.
But how could she tell him she was leaving him for his own good and for the good of the Pride?
“Kylie?”
He whispered her name, more question than statement, and moved a step closer. The joviality left his voice, and, in that moment, they were more than man and woman or Tiger and she-Tiger, they were a mated pair—fated by the universe and destined for one another.
Desire pulsed between them, a living, breathing thing that demanded the right to grow, to be allowed to thrive, and damn, but Kylie wanted it to have the chance.
She wanted him—oh how she wanted him. But she couldn’t be selfish that way.
“Michael—”
She gripped his shirt in her hands, wrinkling the soft material, and noted the subtle change in his masculine fragrance. It was a heady combination of his male musk and spearmint leaves, the kind she used to pick outside in the abandoned gardens near the holler. Her father used to tuck the leaves behind her ear when she was a child running barefoot through the woods.
That was a happier time. Before her mother had come into her life and changed the course of things with her cruelty. Before Waylon and his streak of uncouth Tigers had destroyed the Sharp Claw Pride with their greed.
No.
She couldn’t allow them to come to Maverick Point and wreak their havoc on this place she’d grown to call home. She could not put the people she loved in danger. Kylie would risk no one being hurt.
No. Especially not him.
“Dr. Mikey!” a child’s voice called from the examination room, causing the couple to split apart, and giggle as if they were a couple of teenagers caught making out.
She realized two people were inside the examination room. The small boy and his mother—his Tiger Shifter mother.
“Yes, Paulie. I’m coming,” Michael smiled and turned to greet his small patient.
Kylie smiled at the happy cub’s voice and turned to say hello to him as well. Paulie was about five-years old with dimples and chubby cheeks. He had dark hair and eyes, and had obviously just lost a tooth. His little pink tongue kept poking through the hole even as he called for his doctor.
“Sorry, doc, I have to get to work, if we can get on with his shot?” Pamela Brown stuck her head out of the doorway.
The thin woman’s eyes were smiling when they’d landed on her son, but they widened in fear when she saw Kylie.
After what she’d done, Kylie wasn’t exactly the female’s biggest fan. She had to admit, seeing the woman so close to her mate had her inner she-Tiger snarling and snapping her jaws.
Oh my! I’m jealous, she thought with wonder.
“Of course, give me one second with my mate, please, Pamela,” Michael replied, but his eyes never left Kylie.
Pamela was watching her, too. She looked scared and nervous, swallowing audibly before she remembered herself. Instinctively, the too thin female stepped out of the room, her hand on her son’s shoulder as she tucked him quickly behind her.
“Paulie, come here,” she said in a scared voice that made Kylie’s heart squeeze.
“Mama, Doc Mikey’s got a mate!” the boy exclaimed cheerfully.
“Yes, so he does,” she smiled at her son. “Let’s leave them alone a moment, and wait in the room—”
“Did you say I gots to get a shot?” his lower lip trembled, and Pamela knelt in front of him, hands on his cheeks.
“Yes, I did, but I promise I will be there with you and hold your hand.”
“Don’t want it,” he shook his head as big tears formed. “Mama, I don’t wanna get shot!”
“Hey, Paulie, you don’t have to worry. It’s not that kind of shot,” Michael’s voice dripped with sympathy even as the boy tried to pull away from his mother.
“Hi there,” Kylie said, stepping towards the boy and crouching down to his level. “I’m Kylie. Did you say your name is Paulie?”
Kylie began looking up at his mother, and Pamela looked away, but she remained in front of him, protecting the small boy.
Good mom, Kylie thought, impressed by the she-Tiger’s maternal instincts.
At first, she was annoyed the woman thought Kylie would ever hurt a cub, but then the truth hit her. This was Pamela’s son, and she was behaving as any mother would. Any mother, except hers, of course.
Paulie Brown was an innocent and a sweet cub. His mother might have done some bad things in her life, but mostly she’d had bad things done to her. She was a victim, and Kylie knew that now. Even if she didn’t, the boy had nothing to do with any of the woman’s past.
It was truly mind boggling. Pamela had a son. Why had she never seen him? And who was the daddy?
Not my business, she thought.
And it was true, it didn’t matter. Paulie was an innocent and he should be loved and protected by all members of the Pride. Including her, she realized, and smiled at him.
“Pamela?” Michael spoke, breaking the awkward silence. “Allow me to formally introduce you to my mate, Kylie McNaughton.”
Michael then knelt down to speak to the boy, using his best doctor’s voice. Kylie was impressed.
“Paulie, the last time you were here, we spoke about what was going to happen on your next visit. Do you remember?”
“Yes, I member,” the child replied. “But I changed my mind. I don’t want no shots!”
The boy pulled away from his mother’s hand and ran across the room, away from the adults. Pamela moved to chase him, and so did Michael, but Kylie stilled them both with a shake of her head. She pressed her forefinger to her lips and walked across the room. She crouched down in front of where he was hiding behind the curtains.
“So, the reason why I asked about your name was because I heard of a famous Paulie, and I was wondering if you were related,” she said, aware of the other two adults listening in keenly.
“A famous Paulie?” the little boy replied, his voice muffled by the thick fabric curtain.
“That’s right. This famous Paulie was really big. Taller and wider than any other man in the land. Why, they say he could cut down a full grown pine tree with one swing of his ax!”
“No way!” Paulie said and hiccupped.
“Way,” Kylie told him. “He was so strong he could cut down more trees in a day than ten men—”
“But cutting trees is bad, isn’t it?”
“Well, at the time it was the only job around. Like your pal Mikey is a doctor, this Paulie was a lumberjack. And guess what?”
“What?”
“Well, he was so big and strong, there wasn’t a horse big enough to carry him! So, he rode a blue oxen named Babe.”
“Wow! Can I meet him?”
“I’m afraid not. This happened a long time ago, back when logging was a huge industry,” she said.
“What’s logging?” Paulie asked, peeking out from behind the curtain.
“It’s when folks cut down trees for useful things like building railroads and houses. Nowadays we have to be really careful to take care of our planet though,” she told the boy in a calm, quiet-like voice.
Kylie was still crouched down, but she did not have long to wait. The small cub crept out from behind the curtain, his head cocked to the side.
“You mean like Earfth Day?” he said, and she nodded and smiled at his mispronunciation.
“That’s right?”
“So, who’s this famous Paulie? He got a last name?”
“He sure does. Haven ‘t you ever heard of Paul Bunyan?” Kylie asked and walked him back to the examination room, she signaled with her hand behind her back for the other adults to follow.
“Come on, Mama! You too, Doc Mikey. Your mate’s gonna tell us more about a famous Paulie,” the cub said and waved them over.
Kylie began telling the story of the larger than life American folk hero while Michael measured and weighed and readied the young cub’s booster shot. Paulie was so engrossed in her story, he hardly did more than wince when Michael gave him the dreaded needle.
Damn. She knew the moment he felt her pain and shivered at the speed with which his concern hit her in return.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, and his anxious brown eyes met hers.
“Nothing, uh, I was just—”
She shrugged, wondering if this was a bad idea.
“We’re a mated couple now, mon petit chaton. Remember, you can tell me anything,” he said and touched her cheek with one long finger.
The result was a series of chills that ran down her back. Her she-Tiger wanted her to press herself fully against him and to never leave his side. After an entire day and night of lovemaking, she would have thought she’d had enough, but no.
Kylie could never have enough of Michael. He was the best damn man she’d ever seen. For the second time in the last two days, he’d rendered her speechless with words. The most incredible thing was how easily and readily she believed him.
Yes, they were mated now, and she knew she truly could tell him anything.
Almost anything.
Her heart hurt at the thought of what she had to do. But after hearing the message Uncle Uzzi had called and left on his answering machine, what choice did she have?
Oh Michael, she thought to herself. I want to tell you.
But how could she tell him she was leaving him for his own good and for the good of the Pride?
“Kylie?”
He whispered her name, more question than statement, and moved a step closer. The joviality left his voice, and, in that moment, they were more than man and woman or Tiger and she-Tiger, they were a mated pair—fated by the universe and destined for one another.
Desire pulsed between them, a living, breathing thing that demanded the right to grow, to be allowed to thrive, and damn, but Kylie wanted it to have the chance.
She wanted him—oh how she wanted him. But she couldn’t be selfish that way.
“Michael—”
She gripped his shirt in her hands, wrinkling the soft material, and noted the subtle change in his masculine fragrance. It was a heady combination of his male musk and spearmint leaves, the kind she used to pick outside in the abandoned gardens near the holler. Her father used to tuck the leaves behind her ear when she was a child running barefoot through the woods.
That was a happier time. Before her mother had come into her life and changed the course of things with her cruelty. Before Waylon and his streak of uncouth Tigers had destroyed the Sharp Claw Pride with their greed.
No.
She couldn’t allow them to come to Maverick Point and wreak their havoc on this place she’d grown to call home. She could not put the people she loved in danger. Kylie would risk no one being hurt.
No. Especially not him.
“Dr. Mikey!” a child’s voice called from the examination room, causing the couple to split apart, and giggle as if they were a couple of teenagers caught making out.
She realized two people were inside the examination room. The small boy and his mother—his Tiger Shifter mother.
“Yes, Paulie. I’m coming,” Michael smiled and turned to greet his small patient.
Kylie smiled at the happy cub’s voice and turned to say hello to him as well. Paulie was about five-years old with dimples and chubby cheeks. He had dark hair and eyes, and had obviously just lost a tooth. His little pink tongue kept poking through the hole even as he called for his doctor.
“Sorry, doc, I have to get to work, if we can get on with his shot?” Pamela Brown stuck her head out of the doorway.
The thin woman’s eyes were smiling when they’d landed on her son, but they widened in fear when she saw Kylie.
After what she’d done, Kylie wasn’t exactly the female’s biggest fan. She had to admit, seeing the woman so close to her mate had her inner she-Tiger snarling and snapping her jaws.
Oh my! I’m jealous, she thought with wonder.
“Of course, give me one second with my mate, please, Pamela,” Michael replied, but his eyes never left Kylie.
Pamela was watching her, too. She looked scared and nervous, swallowing audibly before she remembered herself. Instinctively, the too thin female stepped out of the room, her hand on her son’s shoulder as she tucked him quickly behind her.
“Paulie, come here,” she said in a scared voice that made Kylie’s heart squeeze.
“Mama, Doc Mikey’s got a mate!” the boy exclaimed cheerfully.
“Yes, so he does,” she smiled at her son. “Let’s leave them alone a moment, and wait in the room—”
“Did you say I gots to get a shot?” his lower lip trembled, and Pamela knelt in front of him, hands on his cheeks.
“Yes, I did, but I promise I will be there with you and hold your hand.”
“Don’t want it,” he shook his head as big tears formed. “Mama, I don’t wanna get shot!”
“Hey, Paulie, you don’t have to worry. It’s not that kind of shot,” Michael’s voice dripped with sympathy even as the boy tried to pull away from his mother.
“Hi there,” Kylie said, stepping towards the boy and crouching down to his level. “I’m Kylie. Did you say your name is Paulie?”
Kylie began looking up at his mother, and Pamela looked away, but she remained in front of him, protecting the small boy.
Good mom, Kylie thought, impressed by the she-Tiger’s maternal instincts.
At first, she was annoyed the woman thought Kylie would ever hurt a cub, but then the truth hit her. This was Pamela’s son, and she was behaving as any mother would. Any mother, except hers, of course.
Paulie Brown was an innocent and a sweet cub. His mother might have done some bad things in her life, but mostly she’d had bad things done to her. She was a victim, and Kylie knew that now. Even if she didn’t, the boy had nothing to do with any of the woman’s past.
It was truly mind boggling. Pamela had a son. Why had she never seen him? And who was the daddy?
Not my business, she thought.
And it was true, it didn’t matter. Paulie was an innocent and he should be loved and protected by all members of the Pride. Including her, she realized, and smiled at him.
“Pamela?” Michael spoke, breaking the awkward silence. “Allow me to formally introduce you to my mate, Kylie McNaughton.”
Michael then knelt down to speak to the boy, using his best doctor’s voice. Kylie was impressed.
“Paulie, the last time you were here, we spoke about what was going to happen on your next visit. Do you remember?”
“Yes, I member,” the child replied. “But I changed my mind. I don’t want no shots!”
The boy pulled away from his mother’s hand and ran across the room, away from the adults. Pamela moved to chase him, and so did Michael, but Kylie stilled them both with a shake of her head. She pressed her forefinger to her lips and walked across the room. She crouched down in front of where he was hiding behind the curtains.
“So, the reason why I asked about your name was because I heard of a famous Paulie, and I was wondering if you were related,” she said, aware of the other two adults listening in keenly.
“A famous Paulie?” the little boy replied, his voice muffled by the thick fabric curtain.
“That’s right. This famous Paulie was really big. Taller and wider than any other man in the land. Why, they say he could cut down a full grown pine tree with one swing of his ax!”
“No way!” Paulie said and hiccupped.
“Way,” Kylie told him. “He was so strong he could cut down more trees in a day than ten men—”
“But cutting trees is bad, isn’t it?”
“Well, at the time it was the only job around. Like your pal Mikey is a doctor, this Paulie was a lumberjack. And guess what?”
“What?”
“Well, he was so big and strong, there wasn’t a horse big enough to carry him! So, he rode a blue oxen named Babe.”
“Wow! Can I meet him?”
“I’m afraid not. This happened a long time ago, back when logging was a huge industry,” she said.
“What’s logging?” Paulie asked, peeking out from behind the curtain.
“It’s when folks cut down trees for useful things like building railroads and houses. Nowadays we have to be really careful to take care of our planet though,” she told the boy in a calm, quiet-like voice.
Kylie was still crouched down, but she did not have long to wait. The small cub crept out from behind the curtain, his head cocked to the side.
“You mean like Earfth Day?” he said, and she nodded and smiled at his mispronunciation.
“That’s right?”
“So, who’s this famous Paulie? He got a last name?”
“He sure does. Haven ‘t you ever heard of Paul Bunyan?” Kylie asked and walked him back to the examination room, she signaled with her hand behind her back for the other adults to follow.
“Come on, Mama! You too, Doc Mikey. Your mate’s gonna tell us more about a famous Paulie,” the cub said and waved them over.
Kylie began telling the story of the larger than life American folk hero while Michael measured and weighed and readied the young cub’s booster shot. Paulie was so engrossed in her story, he hardly did more than wince when Michael gave him the dreaded needle.
End of The Maverick Pride Tales Chapter 88. Continue reading Chapter 89 or return to The Maverick Pride Tales book page.