7. Adeline

SEVEN

With a sigh, Adeline bit her lower lip. Though there wasn"t much time left before they"d arrive at their destination, the girls had grown quiet in the back seat. She worried that the attempted purse-snatching had been traumatic.

She attempted to draw the girls out, but neither said much. Her eyes darted to Griffin, looking for help.

He only shrugged a broad shoulder in response, having no idea what to say or do to comfort the children. Kids obviously weren't exactly his area of expertise when it came to this sort of thing.

Wondering if perhaps the scoundrel that stole her purse was related to the Tobias situation, Adeline shivered as she quietly voiced her concern to Griffin.

"No," came the immediate response.

"What do you mean?" Deanne asked.

Adeline's eyes widened. How the hell did she hear that? Was this the advanced shifter hearing Griffin had mentioned?

"Was that mean guy related to what?" Deanne wanted to know. Her body leaned toward the adults in eager anticipation, desperately wanting an answer for the traumatic event of the day.

Adeline racked her brain before coming up with a sanitized response. "Related to the fact that we're in such a big city now, and unfortunately, this sort of thing happens. Not to say that it doesn't in little towns like where we're from, but because there's so many more people here, it's more likely to happen."

She looked up in the mirror to see if Deanne was buying it. "Much to everyone's dismay, we happened to be the unlucky victims today. But we were super lucky that Griffin was with us and got my purse back, so we didn't have to file a police report and wait for them to get it."

Deanne frowned. "Is that what normally happens? You have to go to the police station if someone takes your purse?"

Griffin nodded. "Yes, and it's kind of a pain because you have to fill out lots of paperwork."

"Oh. So you fill out the papers, and then you get your purse back?"

Griffin laughed. "That's exactly it."

Deanne nodded, completely satisfied with the answer. "That makes sense."

"That was fun," Jodi said. "Can we come back tomorrow?"

Griffin's laughter could be heard through the truck. After a moment, he settled and changed the subject.

"See that big brick building on the left? That's the University of Vermont. It's the college I went to."

"You went to school?" Jodi asked.

"I did, but not for very long. I ended up joining the military instead."

"What's the military?"

Adeline answered since Griffin seemed to be withdrawing into himself once again. Now that they were out of danger and back in the truck, his demeanor changed. He was stiffer than before … if that was possible.

Despite trying to occupy the girls' attention by pointing out landmarks, it was obvious to Adeline that something weighed on him. It was probably the incident that took place on their outing.

"The military," she said, "that's where people go who want to protect our country. They have guns, and they wear uniforms, and sometimes they go to war."

As if he wanted to change the conversation again, Griffin pointed out his favorite pizza shop.

"That's Folino's. Best pizza around. We'll have to order from there one of these nights."

Adeline took the hint and fell silent. It gave her pause, and she wondered if maybe his time in the service of his country was far from peaceful. Perhaps he saw the front line.

She hoped not. He wasn't exactly the friendliest man she'd ever met, but she could tell he was one of the good ones. Something worried him and she was curious as to what it was.

"And over there," he continued, "that's the World's Tallest Filing Cabinet."

"Wait, what?" Adeline craned her neck to look up at what was, quite literally, the tallest filing cabinet she had ever seen. "Why?"

He shrugged. "Consider it a quirky roadside attraction that's over forty feet tall."

Both girls thought it was absolutely grand, and they oohed and aahed as Griffin drove slowly past. He continued to point out other buildings and interesting sites. None captured anyone's attention quite like the filing cabinet, but nonetheless, it passed the time.

Jodi fell back asleep, exhausted from the day's events, but Deanne looked around eagerly. Adeline wondered how much of her excitement was due to being in a new place and how much was due to being in the presence of another shifter like her.

Adeline couldn't match Deanne"s enthusiasm. Instead, she grew increasingly more unsettled the closer they got to his home. Adeline found his distant and introverted behavior off-putting.

She tried reasoning with herself on the drive, thinking perhaps he was just as uneasy about having them stay with him as she was about staying with him. The silence in the vehicle reached an uncomfortable pitch, and she almost wept with relief when they pulled into his long, narrow driveway.

With a gasp, she stared in awe at the massive two-story house standing in front of her. Green siding and white-trimmed windows were surrounded by two wraparound porches, one on the first story and one on the second.

Even at the angle they parked, Adeline could see a hot tub on the second deck. Trees surrounded the property in a thick protective brush that bordered the acreage in every direction other than the one they came in.

The front lawn was neatly mowed in perfectly straight rows. The only blemish in the flawlessly rich green of the grass was the stone walkway leading up to the front door.

"This is beautiful," Adeline breathed.

More than just the outward appearance of the home, however, had her beginning to relax. Her time with Griffin had been a lot more pleasant than she first expected. Even though she had kind of dreaded being sent off with a man who was a complete stranger, she no longer felt apprehension.

Before he had gotten so detached after her near purse-napping earlier, he had actually seemed rather charming. She still wasn't quite sure what was responsible for the change, but she wanted to believe that the real him was the sweet, strong man who had already begun to grow on her.

"It's home," Griffin remarked coolly, clearly still not back to his old, enjoyable self.

She frowned as he got out of the truck and opened the tailgate. Deanne stared around in utter amazement, making circles outside the car so she could see as much as possible.

Carefully, so as to not wake her up, Adeline released Jodi from the confines of her car seat and carried her into the house. She followed Griffin through the front door, treading lightly on the gleaming oak floors until they came to a bedroom.

"The girls can sleep in here," Griffin said quietly. "Or if you'd rather they have separate rooms, Deanne can sleep in the room down the hall."

Adeline laid Jodi on one of the two twin beds in the room and covered her with a light blanket before leaving the room. She closed the door quietly behind her.

"How many bedrooms do you have here?" she asked.

"Eight. The room at the end of the hall is mine. Other than that, take your pick. I'll get the rest of your bags."

He left her abruptly, and she walked toward the living room, where she found Deanne perched on one of the black leather couches. The television was on, and she seemed perfectly content to sit and relax after her long, activity-filled day.

"Do you need anything?" Adeline asked.

Deanne shook her head. Her blonde hair swayed gently over her shoulder. "No, but this place is so cool. Don't you think so?"

"It's very nice," Adeline replied with a forced smile.

With Jodi napping and Deanne preoccupied, Adeline explored the rest of the house in her venture to find Griffin. All their luggage was neatly placed outside a closed door. Taking a calculated risk, she knocked.

"What?" came the gruff response.

She opened the door and poked her head in. He sat behind a big cherry desk. A closed laptop was pushed to the side. Behind him was the biggest window she had ever seen. It looked out over the trees, giving the entire office an earthy feel.

"What do you need?" he asked coldly.

Taken aback by his hostility, Adeline gripped the doorknob a little tighter.

"I just wanted to thank you for taking us out earlier. The girls had a really good time, and I think …"

"Well, we won't be doing it again," he growled, cutting her off. Before she could say anything else, he trudged on. "That was a terrible idea. We're not here to sightsee. We're here so Tobias Bower doesn't tear you apart."

She gasped at the candid remark, but he didn't seem to care.

"I don't care what you tell the kids," he continued. "I won't be convinced to take you three out again. It's too risky."

She stared at him in disbelief for a moment. "Why? Because that asshole grabbed my purse? That could have happened to anyone."

"No, Adeline. Because while I went after that asshole that grabbed your purse, someone could have grabbed you and the girls. And that thought never even occurred to me until I had my hands around that guy's throat."

He rose to his full height, both hands on the desk, and leaned toward her. His face contorted in anger. "That is the fucking problem. Being out like that is a damn distraction. You guys are going to stay here until this entire thing blows over."

Having no idea what to say, Adeline simply nodded and closed the door. Then she stood outside the door for a moment, fighting back tears. She pulled her phone from her back pocket, debating whether to call Gerri and ask for a new bodyguard. This one was deranged and unreasonable.

The incident downtown wasn't even related to Tobias, but it sent Griffin into overdrive. She didn't understand. She scrolled through her phone until she found Gerri's name, but the sound of a car door slamming stopped her.

Suddenly terrified, she ran to the nearest window, thinking it might be Tobias. Had he finally found her?

A gray mini-van was parked beside Griffin's black truck. A young woman got out of the driver's seat before helping two girls, similar in age to Jodi and Deanne, step down from the van.

A moment later, the cheerful sound of a woman's voice rang throughout the house. "Griffin!"

Adeline turned just as the woman walked into the room.

"Oh! You must be Adeline. I'm Mari, Griffin's sister. Gerri told me you'd be here. I figured I'd bring my girls over so yours would have someone to play with. My brother isn't exactly a social butterfly."

Too stunned to say anything, Adeline studied the woman for a moment, verifying the authenticity of her statement. She was blonde, like her brother, and they had the same piercing blue eyes.

"You good?" Mari asked worriedly.

"Oh, jeez. Yeah, sorry. What a day," Adeline replied with a nervous laugh. "It's nice to meet you."

Mari smiled. "It's nice to meet you, too. I hope my brother is treating you well. I know he can be a handful."

A second later, two young girls came running into the room. "Oh! These are my kids. This is Lourdes, she's nine, and Iyana, she's five."

Two blonde kids stared back at her. The youngest hid behind her mother's legs, and Adeline couldn't help but smile at them.

"Hi, girls. You're the same exact age as my daughters. My oldest is in the living room watching television if you'd like to join her."

"Go ahead," Mari encouraged.

The girls ran off, and the two women followed them. Sometime in the last fifteen minutes, Jodi had woken up and was cuddled up next to her sister.

At the sight of the newcomers, Deanne looked at her mother for an explanation. After a quick introduction, all four kids immediately took to one another and began chatting and playing.

"I just knew they'd all hit it off," Mari exclaimed. "If you'll excuse me for just a minute, I'm going to go talk to my brother."

Adeline flashed her a smile and nodded. She liked this woman immediately and was grateful for her presence. If the newcomer and Griffin were siblings, it stood to reason that she was also a shifter, meaning so were her children.

It would be good for Jodi and Deanne to have shifter friends. As Mari walked off, Adeline watched the four shifter children interact as if they'd known each other for a lifetime.