I had real, true feelings for him and had admitted as much but had never told him the words outright.
Love.It was such a complicated word. So full of mixed emotions. I’d loved my adopted father, who had apparently used me to keep government money rolling into pockets.
Meeting my biological mother had caused a huge stir of emotions in me, and I was only now able to start picking those feelings apart and figuring out what they were.
“I can’t…I’ve learned too much about my past lately, Roan. I care about you, but saying more? I just can’t.”
Roan pulled me into a hug. I inhaled his musky scent. Somehow Roan always managed to smell like the forest and baking all at once. It was so comforting.
He kissed the top of my head. I expected him to say something about his feelings, but instead he said, “So. Are we going hunting for a banshee tonight?”
I curled my fingers into his shirt and tipped my head back. Our eyes met. “Yes, sir, we sure are.”
SEVEN
“Oh, and my mom’s coming.”
Roan’s eyes nearly popped from his head. “Your mom? Wow.” He shot me a smug smile. “Look at you, Blissful, making strides toward being friendly with the woman who raised you.”
My eyes narrowed. “If I didn’t like you so much, I’d say you were accusing me of being a coldhearted person.”
Roan raised his hands in defeat. “Never. I’m just happy you’re spending time with her. She is your mother, after all. I don’t have one of those.”
My heart sank. I wrapped a hand around his arm and hugged him. “I know. I’ve been petty not talking to her. I know that. But now I’m over it and working to fix things.”
He smiled down at me. “You know what, killer? You never cease to amaze me.”
I poked his ribs. “Thanks. Come on. Let’s go pick her up.”
Roan and I picked up Tart and headed over to the forest, where we would meet Alice and Ruth in the parking lot. If I’d had any sense the night before, I would’ve told Ruth to tell me how to get to the forest with a real vehicle. I should’ve known she was pulling my leg that only ATVs could reach the covered bridge.
Part of me thought Ruth just liked having me ride in the back of the ATV.
“Tart, this is my, um, boyfriend, Roan Storm.” My throat nearly seized when I saidboyfriend, but I pushed through the pain.
“Nice to meet you, Roan.”
Something sparked in Tart’s eyes. I couldn’t place the emotion, but I hoped it wasn’t the excitement of an expectant grandmother. Oh, goodness no. Roan and I were nowhere near that territory.
“Roan lives in town,” I explained. “His family has owned Haunted Hollow’s bed-and-breakfast for years, and he runs it now.”
“The bed-and-breakfast?” she asked quietly.
“Yes. Do you know it?”
Her lips tightened, and Tart nodded slightly. When she spoke, her words came slowly, as if she were trying to make sure they were the right ones.
“I do know it.”
The lines around her eyes wrinkled, and Tart’s gaze move to the window. We spent the rest of the ride in silence. I shot secret glances to Roan, who in return narrowed his brows in question.
Even if he had asked me out loud what was wrong, I had no idea what had crawled up my mother’s rear end and died. Apparently something about the bed-and-breakfast had disturbed her.
There was no point in focusing on it because we arrived in the parking area a few minutes later.
Ruth and Alice were already there, dressed in camouflage. Ruth took one look at me and shook her head.
“We won’t have any luck finding her now,” she said. “You know you have to wear camouflage out here.”
