Chapter 21

"So she'safraid of men, huh? Surprised she's offerin' to take the job," Frank murmured, his eyes drifting to where Talia and Leo were cuddling in the booth.

I was surprised too. I brought Talia here just to get her used to the idea of being around strangers. She was finally getting comfortable around the crew and I thought little trips to town would be helpful. Her progress had stalled lately, and I wanted her to keep getting better. I didn't think she'd volunteer for a job. I almost wanted to ask her if she was pushing too hard, but I didn't want to undermine her confidence. I'd need to figure out how to ask her about it without ruining her progress.

"Me too," I finally admitted. "But she's stronger than she looks. Stronger than she thinks too. If she says she can help, she can. But she can't help with customers yet. Men especially. And until she knows you, she'll be jumpy and scared. She still flinches when Aiden comes into the room and she lives on his property."

Frank snorted. "Hell, I'd flinch too if that man hung around too often. Have you stood near ‘im? I get an uneasy feelin' every time he's around. If he wasn't workin' so hard to get that resort up and runnin' to help the town, I'd think he was some kind of criminal."

"He's not a bad person," I countered. Aiden was a dragon, and his dominance was intense, even around humans, but that didn't make him bad. I'd gotten to know him since I came out here. He was a dedicated mate, and patient with Talia. He didn"t take offense to her flinches and kept his voice low and calm whenever she was in the same room as him. Same went for Leo. Whenever the little cub growled at him, he barely blinked and did his best to fix whatever behavior was bothering Leo.

Frank waved off my argument. "Didn't I just say he wasn't? Back to the subject. You think she's ready to return to the world? You said you were helpin' her get back on her feet."

Rubbing my neck, I frowned in Talia's direction. With the way she'd been struggling the last week, I didn't think so, but I guess I was wrong. "I think if she's speakin' up, she's ready to try. Can't guarantee she'll stick with it if she gets too scared. No harm in lettin' her try, though, right?"

Frank bobbed his head in agreement. "Yeah, no harm. It's not like I got anyone else vyin' for the job. If she takes it, she'll be my savin' grace. If she's any good, that is."

"She is."

That part I knew for sure. Talia had baked a few times in the last few weeks. She did it a lot when she was stressed or worried. She said it helped her keep her mind off things for a bit. Her cookies were amazing. She made an entire batch just for me, and I didn't even make it to my hotel that night before they were gone. Baking was her happy place. She even had a conversation with Christian without me being in the room because she was baking and it made her happy. I was real proud of her that day.

"Alright, well once y"all are done eatin', I'll show her the kitchen. We'll let her get a feel of the place and if she feels she can handle it, she can bake me somethin' to show her skill."

He went back to his spot behind the counter, his footsteps shuffled and uncomfortable. I hoped this worked out, not only for Talia, but for Frank, too. He didn"t look good.

Talia and Leo were talking low when I got back. I slid into the booth beside them, popping the last of my donut into my mouth.

"Frank says once you're done, he can show you the kitchen. He wants you to bake ‘im somethin' to show what you know. No pressure, though. If you get back there and it's too much, we can back out. He'll understand."

Talia chewed on her lip, frowning hard at the table top. When I lifted her chin with her knuckle and raised an eyebrow, she grimaced.

"I don't… I don't know if I can do it… My lioness. She hasn't let me know how she feels in a long time, but…"

"She talkin' to ya today?" I asked hopefully. Talia didn't talk much about her lioness. She didn't shift much either, even with me cajoling her. Some people didn't need to do it as often as others, but it got uncomfortable if you stayed in one form too long. I was gonna ask her to go for a shift when we got back because it'd been almost a week.

Talia nodded slowly. "She started nudging me when the owner said he needed help. And…" She looked at Leo with a shaky smile. "She talked to Leo today, too."

When I looked down at the little cub, he looked proud as a rooster, nodding his head vigorously. "She did. I heard her. I haven't heard her since before I can remember. She's really quiet normally."

Swallowing hard, I forced myself to smile. This was a good thing. It meant Talia was getting better. If her lioness was letting out a little dominance, giving Talia the confidence to try new things, then it wouldn't be long until Talia didn't need me anymore. Even as a submissive, Mama's bear making noises was a huge step towards feeling normal for her. A few weeks wasn't long, but with the crew supporting her, Talia would be okay. Which meant I needed to start making plans to head home. I thought me stepping back was making things worse, but I guess she just needed a little more time. Without me around, she would get better faster.

"Good. That's good. Let's finish up your breakfast. I'm still hungry, and I want some of Talia's baking."

Frank wasreal considerate of Talia. He kept himself on the other side of me to make her more comfortable, and once she knew where everything was, he gave her space to work. The kitchen was hot and a little uncomfortable, but Talia and Leo didn't seem to mind. Talia said they lived in the desert most of their lives, so the heat didn't really bother them. I sat on a stool near the open back door so I could have the breeze on me and still watch over them. Eventually, Leo came to sit next to me, kicking his legs on his stool.

"How's school goin'?"

He made a face, wrinkling his little noise. "Fine, I guess."

"You wanna talk about why you were so tired this mornin'? You were more grouchy than normal."

He'd been grouchy and tired almost every day, but today seemed worse. He didn't look like he wanted to talk about it, and I wasn't going to push. Leo wasn't like Talia. She needed a push sometimes to give her confidence. He wouldn't respond the same to that. He'd get mad and push me away. He needed a different kind of patience.

We watched Talia work for a while without saying anything. Leo was frowning something fierce, but the longer she was back here doing her thing without being bothered, the more relaxed she got. It helped relax Leo and eventually he started talking, his voice quiet enough that he wouldn't be heard over the sounds of the kitchen.

"I can't sleep… Every time I try, I get nightmares of Mom leaving. I keep waking up to check that she's still there…"

I masked a grimace. Poor little cub. No wonder he looked so tired. And he probably didn't want to say anything to Talia because it'd just make her feel bad. She felt awful enough as it was. She hadn't meant to leave him behind. She panicked and her lioness reacted. She wasn't trying to leave him and if she hadn't been in danger and needed my help, she probably would've come back on her own once she calmed down some. Leo pretended he wasn't affected by it when he was around her, but he was obviously hiding a lot.

"You know she wasn't tryin' to leave you, right? She got scared. Her lioness didn"t like it. It didn't have nothin' to do with you."

He scowled down at his hands, clenching them into little fists. "I know. It was Aunt Kiara's fault. She made Mom panic, and she still hasn't come back. I hear Mom crying sometimes. What if she never comes back? What if Mom gets sad and runs again? Aunt Kiara was the one who brought us out here. She made us leave the pride. And now she's just gone and–" A snarl rattled his throat loud enough to surprise Talia. She spun around, her eyes wide. I shook my head to reassure her.

"He's alright. Just talkin'. Keep goin'. That smells real good."

She looked uncertain, but Leo didn't correct me or say anything to her, so she went back to her baking, though a little more tense than before. She was watching us, and Leo wouldn't speak again until she turned away.

"Do you know why your aunt left? I didn't ask."

Leo shook his head. "When I asked Mom, she wouldn't answer me. She just said it was something she never meant for Aunt Kiara to find out. Whatever it was, it had to be bad. Aunt Kiara is snarly and mean. She doesn't get scared."

The few times I'd met Kiara, she was a little snappy, but I didn't think she was mean. Some animals were just more growly than others. She cared about her sister and wanted her to get better. That wasn't what mean people did. I didn"t argue with Leo, though. She could've been different with him. Pa was always nicer when certain people came around.

"Well… We can't do nothin' about Kiara. She's calling more now, at least. Maybe she'll come back soon. But we can figure out how to help you. Cubs need their sleep. You'll grow bigger if you get enough rest. Besides, schoolin' will be easier if you're awake."

Leo made another face. He did that any time I brought up school. He didn"t like it there. I didn't think it had to do with his lessons. He didn't struggle like I used to. I think it had to do with Kai. Those two were always glaring at each other. Whatever was going on between them made school real tense.

"What happened with you and Kai?"