Travis's Gift Read online

  Contents

  Cover Credit

  Title Page

  Copyright

  Dedication

  About This Book

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Epilogue

  From The Author

  About The Author

  Cover Credit

  Christopher Coyle

  darkandstormyknight.com

  Thank you for adorning my words so beautifully.

  Sandra R Neeley

  P. O. Box 127

  Franklinton, LA 70438

  [email protected]

  75,925 words.

  Travis’s Gift

  Riley’s Pride

  Book 3

  by Sandra R Neeley

  Copyright © 2020 SANDRA R NEELEY

  All rights reserved.

  Thank you for purchasing and/or downloading this book. It is the copyrighted property of the author, and may not be reproduced, copied and/or distributed for commercial or non-commercial purposes without express written permission from the author.

  Your support and respect for the property of this author is appreciated. This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or places, events or locales, is purely coincidental. The characters are creations of the author’s imagination and are used fictitiously. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademarked ownership of all trademarks and word marks mentioned in this book.

  For everyone struggling against their own personal battles.

  About This Book

  A mate, children, love. These are the things that are important to most shifters, even Tiger shifters, who are more solitary than most. They certainly once meant everything to Travis Vitrano. But service to his country changed him. It made him bitter, angry, and sullen. It also sent him back home with only one leg. Travis could barely tolerate himself, much less subject those he loved to the person he’d become — so he pushed them away. It’s best for them to not have to take care of him. They should not have to be saddled with his disability. Now, thanks to his own actions he finds himself alone, looking around at his friends finding love and starting families. He’s also watching the only woman he’s ever loved — his mate, his one — form a bond with another male. He’s reached out to her only to push her away so many times that she no longer even considers him a friend. But he’s finally healed enough to have something to offer her. Dare he try again?

  Libby has been hurt by Travis’s rejections so many times she’s completely shut herself off from him. As kids, they formed a bond born of friendship, evolving into love. Once old enough, Travis recognized her as his mate. They spoke of forever and planned for their future upon his return from active duty overseas. Only, the male that returned is not the male she expected. He’s angry and resentful. He refused to allow her near him, much less speak to her in any capacity about their shattered plans. At his insistence, she stays away from him and builds another life — one that doesn’t include him. She’s joined a local Pride. She’s got new friends. A new outlook, and she’s finally finding her happy again. But now that she’s finally forged her own place in the world, Travis is suddenly in front of her, demanding that she see him — begging for another chance. The only problem is, she simply doesn’t have it in her to believe in him again. One more rejection from him just might crush what’s left of her spirit.

  Travis and Libby have struggled for years to recover from his life-changing injury and the self-doubt that plagues him. He’s finally struggled through the pain enough to be able to see the world around himself and all that he’s lost. She’s finally given up the battle to make him see and remember what they once were to each other. Having your heart repeatedly torn out and trampled on by the person you trust most in the world is reason enough to give up the fight. It’s time to move on for both of them. But in which direction will that moving on take them? Surely it’s too late and they’re too far gone to even consider a reconciliation. But, it is Christmas time — miracles are known to happen at Christmas time.

  Warning: Intended for mature audiences. This book contains intimate love scenes that may be disturbing for some readers. If you are offended by these subjects, please do not buy this book.

  Chapter 1

  Travis threw back the covers irritatedly and huffed a breath of frustration as he slammed his arms down at his sides. He pressed his eyes closed and shook his head in disbelief at another completely sleepless night. His body was drenched from hot flashes, courtesy of the chronic pain that wracked his body. He tried to force himself to relax, his hands gripped in the sheets he lay upon, as he waited for the ceiling fan he used even in early December to dry the perspiration from his body.

  He could hear the soft hum of Scotty’s television on the other side of the house. He’d tried sleeping with the television on. He’d even put it on the Disney Channel, thinking how brutal could a Disney show get? It’d be easy to sleep through. But he’d been shocked into wakefulness anyway after only a few precious minutes of sleep. Seems one of the Disney channel actresses had a voice very much like a certain someone that was never, ever far from his thoughts. Hearing that voice had jerked him awake, and made him hurt all over again when he realized she wasn’t here, and he had no one to blame but himself.

  “No more fucking Disney Channel at night,” he mumbled, sitting up and turning to place his foot on the floor. Travis looked down at the stump of his leg, which now consisted of from just below the knee joint and up. It never stopped throbbing. And there were times he could swear the limb was still there. The feelings of the skin burning, of the bones shattering, were as real as when the injury occurred. He reached for the prosthetic he wore each and every day, and began the process of attaching it securely to his leg. “May as well get something done,” he mumbled to himself as he rose from the bed to pull his pants on.

  Travis walked into the kitchen and started his first pot of coffee. When he opened his cabinet to get a coffee cup, he grabbed the first one he saw. But, as he closed the cabinet door, his eyes fell on another sitting closer to the back of the shelf. He opened the cabinet again and slowly reached for the brightly colored mug. He set the first one back on the shelf and smiled as he looked down at the mug he now held. It was in the shape of portly Santa Claus, with a black beard and red eyes, though his red outfit was true to tradition. Emblazoned across his belt was the name ‘Satan Clause’ instead of Santa Claus.

  Travis held the mug in two hands and brought it closer to his face. He sniffed the mug, knowing full well that there was no scent of the woman that had given it to him, but he tried anyway. Travis closed his eyes and was back in the living room of his home, on that first Christmas he was back from overseas. He could hear them laughing outside as they got out of the car. He could hear the click of the doorknob as Libby opened the door, and he could see the joy on her face as she stepped through the door, her arms loaded with packages, yet still looking over her shoulder to be sure that Scotty was right behind her.

  “We’re back!” she singsonged.

 
“Weren’t gone long,” Travis grumbled.

  “We’ve been gone about seven hours! That’s a long time to go Christmas shopping!” Libby answered.

  “Told you before you left it wasn't necessary,” Travis answered. He noticed her smile falter briefly, and though somewhere deep inside it tugged at his guilt, it wasn’t enough to make him back off.

  “It is necessary. We’ve waited a long time for you to be home with us at Christmas,” Libby said. “Once the tree is up and all the gifts are under it, you’ll feel more like yourself.”

  Travis had turned to leave the living room, but when she spoke of a tree and feeling more like himself, he reached out and grabbed the recliner next to him to steady himself as he spun to answer her with a snarl. “What is going to make you understand? I will never be whoever it is you thought I was! I don’t want a goddamn tree, I don’t want to celebrate Christmas. I just want to be fucking left alone. You have no place here. Go!”

  Libby had looked at him silently for long minutes, and he’d have sworn he could both hear and see her heart breaking. Slowly she’d nodded and stepped over to the couch to place the packages she held onto its cushions. “I understand,” she said quietly. She’d turned to walk out of the door and stopped beside Scotty who stood glaring at Travis with an angry expression. “Now, don’t open your gifts until Christmas, okay? Just because Travis doesn’t want to celebrate, doesn’t mean you can’t. Most of those are for you. Merry Christmas, Scotty.” Libby had hugged Scotty and kissed his cheek before walking out of their house and quietly closing the door behind herself.

  Scotty had turned on him then. “What the hell is wrong with you? Libby didn’t deserve that!”

  “It’s none of your business,” Travis answered, the Tiger that lived deep inside him going back and forth between threatening him and clawing at his insides to go after Libby and make things right.

  “It is my business! She took care of me the whole time you were gone. The whole time! And she never once made me feel like I wasn’t welcome. She missed you as much as I did. She loves you. We both waited for you to come home! We prayed every single day and planned for when you’d get here. And for what? So that when you did finally get home you could treat us all like crap?!”

  Travis stood there, so lost in his own misery that he had no idea if the man he used to be even existed anymore. “I am not the male she loved. I am not the male you remember. I never will be again. Better for you both to figure that out now,” he said without any emotion at all.

  “You’re right. The Travis I looked up to all my life was a good male. You? You’re nothing,” Scotty said, snatching up the packages that Libby had left on the sofa and stalking toward his room.

  Travis allowed his body to sink down into the recliner he’d been holding onto for support. He took a deep breath and sat there, looking around the lonely living room. His eyes fell on a small box that had tumbled off the sofa and onto the floor. Struggling to get to his feet, he finally walked over to the sofa and managed to pick up the box without falling on his face. He read the tag, handwritten in Libby’s loopy script. ‘For my favorite grumpy Santa.’

  Travis opened the box and lifted out a Santa mug. Only Santa was Satan, dressed as Santa. One corner of his mouth lifted up, threatening to break into a smile. But then his face reflected the pain he felt at remembering how they’d gone out of their way to find the most inappropriate holiday gifts for each other when they were kids. He still had the Frankenstein Nutcracker she’d given him somewhere around here. Slowly, so to be sure that he didn’t lose his balance, he made his way to the kitchen and reverently placed the Satan Clause mug in the cabinet with the rest of the coffee mugs. Then he made his way to his bedroom and after flopping down on his bed, allowed himself to fall into the vat of self pity he’d lived in since returning home without his leg — since returning home less than a whole male.

  Travis’s head shot up and he looked around the kitchen as the coffee pot signaled its completion of the pot he’d put on. He’d been so lost in the memory that he’d forgotten for a moment, exactly where and when he actually was. Examining the mug in his hand once more, he reached for the coffee pot, poured himself a cup, and lifted it into the air slightly. “Merry Christmas, Libby. May this one heal your heart.” Quietly he made his way out to the front porch and chose a rocking chair to rest in while he sipped his coffee and watched the moonglow on the fresh snowfall in the quiet predawn hours.

  ~~~

  Libby stretched her arms above her head and slowly moved her body this way and that, trying to get the blood flowing and wake herself up. She got out of bed and slipped her feet in her old, ratty slippers so she didn’t have to walk on the cold floor. After a quick trip to the bathroom, she wandered bleary eyed into the kitchen to start the day’s first pot of coffee, before returning to the bathroom for a quick shower.

  As she walked through the living room on the way to her bathroom, she paused for a minute and flipped on the television. She dropped the remote to the coffee table, not really caring what was on the television, as long as something was. Her house was large for one person, three bedrooms and two baths. Her parents had given it to her when they moved to Florida several years back, and she loved her house. But, it was lonely. Which was why she usually stayed with Lucas at his place. She told herself it was due to convenience because she opened the diner most days and he lived right across the street, but it wasn’t for convenience. It was for companionship. And she’d still be staying there, except that recently she’d noticed two things.

  First, Lucas had formed an attachment to her, which was not totally unwelcome. She liked Lucas, trusted him even. They were friends, and it was nice to feel noticed and appreciated. And it didn’t hurt that Lucas was a hot as hell Kodiak Bear shifter. It would have been fine, save for the second thing; lately Travis had begun to act like the Travis she’d loved so long ago. He’d been considerate and attentive. He’d even smiled at her and attempted to make a joke or two. Then that night at Riley’s when Riley and Maia’s family had been in for Maia’s baby shower and the girls had all had a sleepover, Travis had tucked her in. She’d let him believe she was sleeping, and he’d kissed her and whispered that he loved her. And she simply couldn’t ignore that, no matter how hard she tried. Travis had hurt her so many times that she’d lost count. The final straw had come when she’d been determined to celebrate Christmas with him and Scotty like they always had before he’d joined the military and been sent overseas. She’d been sure that experiencing all that happiness together again would remind him of what they meant to each other. But she’d been wrong. He’d shattered a part of her that day, a part she’d thought she’d never be able to get back. But now it seemed like fate may have a few tricks left up her sleeve.

  Libby thought about it as she turned on the water and stepped under the steamy, hot spray. As much as she wanted to ignore Travis, she couldn’t — at least not entirely. And even if Travis was still being an asshole — which he wasn’t, it wasn’t fair to let Lucas become attached to her. He deserved a mate to love and adore him, and the part of her that Travis had shattered wasn’t available for anyone anymore, not even herself. She couldn’t give her whole self to Lucas or anyone else. Realizing that was the real reason, she’d begun spending more time at her own place lately. She didn’t want to hurt Lucas, he was one of her best friends. Add to that Travis’s recent behavior, and her emotions were all off kilter. Huffing out a tiny human growl of frustration, she reached out and shut off the water.

  She dried off, wrapped her hair in a towel, then put on her soft, thick terrycloth bathrobe, stuck her feet back in her old slippers, and returned to the kitchen for her first cup of coffee. She needed to wake up and get moving. She had no doubt this day would seem as though it never ended. Today was the first day they were offering their Christmas donuts, cakes and candies at the diner. Even their pancakes and waffles would come in red or green until the day after Christmas, and their customers had been excited for t
he holiday changes in cuisine.

  She sat down on her sofa to flip channels while she sipped her coffee. Suddenly her nose itched, and she reached up to rub it furiously. Somewhere in the back of her mind she remembered her mother telling her that your nose itched when someone was thinking of you. She had no doubt it was Richie. “Yeah, yeah, I’m coming. You just worry about you,” she mumbled, guzzling a bit more coffee. Little did she know, a few miles away from her, on a tree farm right out of the city limits, a Tiger shifter raised his face to the dawn breaking over his home and spread his arms wide.

  “See me, Libby!” Travis said to the quiet dawn sky around him. He raised his voice so even the few stars still twinkling in the barely lit sky around him could hear. “See me, and remember! I will not stop until you love me again.”

  Chapter 2

  Libby pulled her jeep around to the far side of the diner so it would be out of the way of any customers and leave the more convenient spaces for them. She reached for her purse and got her keys in hand before getting out and slamming the driver’s side door behind her, as she quickly made for the front door.

  She unlocked the door, then stepped inside the darkened diner, pausing to disarm the alarm and flip on the lights. Libby locked the front door again, then walked around the diner, flipping on all the lights, and raising the temperature of the central heat a bit so that it would kick on. They turned it down each evening before they locked up and headed home, and turned it up again each morning. Once they started cooking and the heat from the oven and the grill began to permeate the place, they could turn it down a bit again.