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Your words or his mommy s?
His mommy s. Chloe followed him to the exam room, glancing around anxiously.
Your mother?
Gone, I hope. He wasn t certain if forgiving her would even be worth it at this point.
She d been a good mother once, but his father s philandering had soured her. I m sorry.
We ll need to warn Gabe about her threats.
Mm-hm. She opened the door into the exam room with a cheery smile. I brought Dr.
Woods, Mrs. Manly. Chloe winced. I mean, Mrs. Stanley.
Mrs. Stanley shot Jim an uncertain look. Hello, Dr. Woods.
He smiled reassuringly at Mrs. Stanley. Okay, Chloe, show me what you saw.
Chloe snapped on fresh gloves and showed him the wound, her hands shaking. Her left
hand lay across the dog s back, holding Van Gogh steady. The big retriever merely
panted, its eyes curious as Chloe probed the wound with her shaking right hand.
It seems shallow enough. A few stitches and it should be fine. It was a clean cut, not
a bite wound. How did he get this cut, Mrs. Stanley?
Long story short, my boys were playing ninjas with my kitchen knives and the dog got
excited.
Jim looked up at her. Are they all right?
She smiled sweetly. Eventually they ll be able to sit down again, but otherwise they re
fine. She sighed wearily. I swear, it s like trying to raise wolf pups.
Jim coughed. I can imagine.
Foam swords? Chloe s words were carefully measured as she put together the suture
kit Jim needed.
What? Mrs. Stanley looked at Chloe in confusion.
Buy them foam swords. Chloe began cleaning Van Gogh s wound in preparation for
the stitches. They can t hurt each other, or Van Gogh, with those.
Mrs. Stanley s brows rose. Not a bad idea. If they re going to ninja each other, at least
they won t get too damaged that way. She shook her head as Jim started stitching up
her dog. I m just glad no one was badly injured.
Who s watching them now? Jim began carefully closing the cut, enjoying the way
Chloe quietly crooned to Van Gogh the whole time.
Their father. And man, is he good with guilt. By the time I had Van Gogh loaded in the
car they were in tears and begging us to make sure Van Gogh lived. She shook her head
again. You think you ve made your home safe, put things where the kids can t get to
them, but it s amazing how resourceful they can be when they really want something.
What did they do?
They pushed chairs over to the cabinet where I d hidden the knives, grabbed what
they wanted, and before I could stop them they d already hurt Van Gogh. She
shuddered. I m just glad it wasn t worse than it was.
You ll need to make sure the knives are locked away. Jim finished up, cleaning up the
suture tray before taking off his gloves.
And the cheese graters. When Jim looked at her, Mrs. Stanley rolled her eyes.
Please don t ask. That was not a fun emergency room trip.
What gave them the idea to be ninjas? Jim patted Van Gogh on the head and helped
him get down on the floor. The dog would be fine. It was his mommy who was having a
meltdown.
Something about teenage turtles who just happen to be ninjas. Mrs. Stanley took
hold of Van Gogh s leash and snapped it onto the dog s collar. Thanks, Dr. Woods. Thank
you, Chloe.
You re welcome. Chloe smiled at Mrs. Stanley. And good luck with your mutant turtle
wannabes.
Ugh. Thanks. I ll need it. She shook both Jim and Chloe s hands and left the exam
room.
Wow. Chloe started cleaning the exam table. Think she ll be all right?
Yeah. Her kids are a handful, but they re bright. She ll figure it out. He kissed the
back of her head. Just like ours will be.
Scary thought.
But true. Jim held open the exam room door for her. How s your leg?
Weak, but it doesn t hurt. She kissed his chin. Thank you for the cane, by the way.
You re welcome, little vixen. He would do just about anything to make her life easier.
Now get back to work, Doc.
Yes, ma am. He watched her limp away, smiling like a big old sap. Between Chloe
and Spencer, he had all the family he needed.
Chapter Eighteen
So. Barney leaned back, tilting the dining room chair onto two legs. How it held the
huge Grizzly Chloe would never know. His cowboy hat shadowed his eyes, and the
corners of his mouth were turned down in a barely visible scowl. Who the fuck is the
other white shifter?
They d finally managed to arrange a time when all of the Hunters were free to discuss
Chloe s dream walk. Chloe had gotten some chili and biscuits started, and they were just
waiting for everything to finish cooking. In the meantime, they had already begun talking
about the dream she d had with Fox and Lion. Spencer had given up his makeshift
bedroom for this meeting, keeping George occupied while Chloe and Jim moved the
furniture around. They d put Spencer s bedroom back together after everyone left for the
evening.
Barney, surprisingly, seemed a bit grumpy, but she wasn t sure she had the balls to ask
him what had crawled up his ass and died. Instead, she continued to quietly set the
table, allowing the two Hunters to mull over what she d seen and heard in the spirit
world. They were still waiting for Gabe to arrive. He d had to answer an emergency call
just before his shift ended, so he was running a little bit late. Chloe was setting a place
for Sarah as well, hoping Gabe s mate would come.
The men really needed to mend their fences with each other. Gabe and Jim were
trying, but both of them were stubborn as hell. Her sessions with Sarah after her beating
had helped her mend fences with the Omega, but there was still an underlying tension
between them whenever Gabe or Jim was mentioned that Chloe wanted resolved. Gabe
was a good friend of hers, who d stood by her when she d needed someone who wasn t a
relative.
Spencer started doing wheelies, much to Chloe s amusement. I dunno, but it ain t
me.
Barney turned and stared at Spencer, the scowl lightening slightly.
What? Spencer, up on two wheels, started rolling backward, almost knocking Ryan
over. Sorry, dude.
Ryan shook his head and sat at the dining room table, a beer in hand. He took a swig
and set the bottle on the table. More importantly, what does Julian s presence have to
do with all of it? If anything happens to him, Cyn will be upset. Then Glory will be upset.
He grinned, his teeth turning into fangs. Then I get pissy.
Down, tiger. Barney edged his hat back. Papa Bear has this one covered.
Ryan s brows shot up. Oh? Do tell.
I The doorbell interrupted Barney. That must be Gabe.
I ll get it. Jim headed for the front door, and Chloe, smelling that the biscuits were
just about done, headed into the kitchen. She pulled the biscuits out of the oven and
began putting everything together, the hot biscuits smelling like heaven next to the
spiciness of the chili.
She ladled the chili into a serving bowl and carefully picked it up, aware her left hand
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