Page 4 of Secrets on the Mountain

Whatever he was thinking when he kissed me earlier has long since left his mind, reminding me not to get any ridiculous ideas in my own head about second chances and happy endings.

Which was easy before I felt his lips on mine again, before he went and reminded me what it feels like to have those massive arms wrapped so tenderly around me, and feel his chest so warm and solid against me.

"I need some paperwork signed," I answer cautiously, not wanting to have the full conversation in front of Donner.

Cane's eyes drop down with a hard scowl, but as soon as Donner looks back at him, those dark eyes soften. But just for a moment before he's wearing his scowl just for me again.

"Is that it?"

"That's it," I promise, relief flooding my stiffened muscles.

"Do you have this paperwork with you?" He eyes the messenger bag style tote under my arm expectantly.

Slipping the strap off my shoulder, I open the bag and pull out the over-sized envelope with his name on it.

He takes it from me, careful not to make contact as the envelope passes from my hand to his.

"Just a minute," I assure Donner when I get a tug on my hand, "we're almost done."

An impatient huff sounds to my right.

"What the fuck is this, June?"

"Cane!" I pick Donner up and position him over my hip. Like that'll protect him from the profanity-- or whatever else is about to spew out of Cane's mouth that I can't control. At least it does the job of reminding Cane that there's a curious pair of four-year-old ears present.

Cane gives Donner an apologetic look. Don sinks his little head onto my shoulder.

He's a good kid. He likes to observe things quietly, but he'll be all questions on the drive back down the mountain. I haven't told him much of why we're here today or who these people are, and with luck, Cane will put his name on every one of the lines where there's a little blue flag sticking out of the stack of papers and I won't have to explain anything to Donner until he's much older.

Of course, that's not what happens.

* * *

Hurricane

"You're out of your goddamn mind. There's not a chance in hell I'm signing this."

Running the camp means I'm around kids plenty enough to have learned how to hold my damn tongue but the swears won't stop coming out of me.

The boy-- Donner...

Shit. My son's name is Donner.

As if it wasn't plain as day from looking at the kid, the papers Junie handed me spell it out in printed legalese across sixteen sheets of paper that are marked with no less than six places where she expects me to sign away my parental rights to a son I didn't know I had.

"Fucking hell, June!"

She lets the boy scramble into the back seat of the little rental car and I stand rooted to the fucking ground while I watch her hand him a bag of snacks from the front seat and give him smiles and nods and then a kiss before she heads back to me.

"Could you keep your voice down? I don't want to have to explain why you're so upset."

It's like there are too many words trying to get out of my mouth at the same time. All I can do is spit and huff and curse some more.

"You don't want to explain why his father was mad about not knowing he existed?" I pull at my hair and pace the breezeway between the administration building and the first aid station.

"I don't want to explain why the perfect stranger that mommy had to come visit was mad at knowing he existed."

June hisses between her teeth, low enough that she won't be overheard and lethal enough to mistake her for a diamondback.

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