Feeling like a kid going on his first date, he jumped in the shower then shaved several days’ worth of scruff off. Looking in the mirror above the sink, he realized that his hair had gotten long over the last few months, but there was nothing he could do about it, so he slicked it back and hoped it would stay.
He found the suit he was looking for in the closet and slipped it on, pleased that it still fit. Looking in the mirror, he decided that he’d done the best he could on such short notice, slipped on his shoes, and headed out the front door. As he drove to the country club where the formal was always held, he realized that he was nervous, that for the first time in his life he was fighting for a woman. For a split second, his confidence dissolved, and he wondered if at the end of the night he’d have lost all chance with Annabelle, a thought brought a feeling of panic with it.
But then he remembered the way she’d looked at him that first day at the barn, the way she’d responded to his kisses, how right it felt to hold her in his arms, and he knew that the connection between them was real. His confidence returned as deep inside the knowledge blossomed that before the night was out, Annabelle would be his; all he had to do was show her how right they were together.
There was a lot of whispering when he walked into the country club, but they couldn’t refuse to sell him a single ticket, and before long everyone had forgotten that he was there alone. Camped out in one corner of the room, he watched Annabelle and Jeremy, not sure how to break up their date but determined to do so. It wasn’t long before he noticed that Annabelle didn’t seem very happy, that each time Jeremy put his arm around her shoulders, she pulled away.
He was feeling smug, almost enjoying the spectacle before him when a voice startled him. “I didn’t expect to see you here tonight,” his sister said, sliding up next to him.
Justin shot her a dirty look; he’d forgotten that his sister was here. “I had to see someone in town, and I figured I might as well come check it out,” he said, trying to sound slightly bored.
“Oh, I see. So, tell me then, what do you think of the food?” Penny asked, completely aware that her brother hadn’t moved from the spot he was in since he walked into the door.
Justin waved her question away. “You know I never eat at these things,” he said, a scowl appearing on his face as he stared at Annabelle.
“Uh huh,” Penny said, then fell silent for a little while. “Do you really think you can fool me?” she finally asked when it was obvious her brother had forgotten she was there.
Justin looked at her, he knew that tone of voice all too well, and decided the safest thing to do was play dumb; hopefully she’d get bored and move on. “What are you talking about?”
“Don’t play dumb with me, Justin; I’m your twin, I know things,” she said, then she looked over to where Annabelle and Jeremy stood surrounded by men who were laughing and talking and ignoring Annabelle. “I’ve met her you know.”
Justin hadn’t expected that “What? When?”
“Chloe and I ran into her at the post office right after the new year she was picking up a package. We had lunch; there’s something different about her, but I like her,” Penny said, shocking Justin into silence.
“She’s Chloe’s teacher,” he finally said, feeling stupid but unable to think of anything else to say.
“You can stop pretending that you don’t like her; even Chloe could see that,” Penny said, laughing when Justin’s head whipped around to stare at her.
“Chloe’s just a kid.”
“Yeah, a very perceptive kid. She told me that your eyes go all funny when you look at Annabelle and that you act silly when she’s around,” Penny said, triumphantly, then added, “And from what I can see, she’s right. Why don’t you just go over there instead of stalking her?”
Justin opened his mouth to give a smart reply, but his eyes met Penny’s, and the truth came out instead. “I’m scared.”
Penny’s heart went out to her brother; he’d been hurt so badly when he’d lost Beth. She reached out and put her hand on his arm. “Justin, there’s nothing to be scared of; what happened to Beth had nothing to do with the fact that we’re shifters. She died giving birth to Chloe, not because we’re monsters: it just happened. It’s time for you to stop blaming yourself and get on with your life. Beth would want that.”
“I wish I could believe that, I really do,” he said, looking back over at Annabelle and Jeremy.
Chapter 11
***Annabelle***
The night was going nothing like she thought it would; Jeremy had turned out to be a bad choice for her first date. It seemed that all he wanted to do was stand by the wall and show off the fact that she was here with him. Which wouldn’t have been so bad if he’d been the least bit entertaining, but he’d spent the entire night talking with his friends as if she wasn’t even there.
Several times she’d had to step away from him when he’d put his arm around her, the smell of his cologne so strong she could barely breathe, the feeling of possession coming off him enough to make her stomach sick. After only a little while, it became clear to her that she’d made a mistake accepting his invitation, that he was nothing like the man she’d met at the coffee shop.
“I’d love to dance,” she finally said, when she’d heard enough talk about football.
“Oh, I don’t dance,” Jeremy said as if she’d suggested they do something dirty.
Annabelle tried to suppress her anger but couldn’t completely hold her tongue. “So, we came to a dance, but we’re not going to dance?” she asked, sweetly.
“Oh, I didn’t think you’d mind; there’s lots of people to talk to and all that food,” Jeremy said dismissively.
Annabelle opened her mouth to tell him what she thought of that but suddenly Justin was standing in front of them, and she shut it as a wave of desire rushed through her. She’d never seen Justin in a suit, and he looked even better than she’d imagined he would. He’d slicked his hair back, but she could still tell that it was longer than he usually wore it and his green eyes were flashing with an energy she couldn’t quite name. Opening her senses up, she was surprised to find that Justin was jealous, and she couldn’t help but smile with satisfaction.
“Would you like to dance?” he asked, his eyes locked on hers.
“She’s here with me,” Jeremy said, putting his arm around her possessively.
Annabelle shrugged him off, “I’d love to,” she said, then stepped up and took Justin’s outstretched hand.
Jeremy stepped up and grabbed her arm, stopping her from walking away. She looked down at his hand then up at him. “I’d appreciate it if you removed your hand from my arm,” she said, very slowly.
But Jeremy wasn’t going to back down, wasn’t going to be embarrassed in front of his friends. “Do I have to remind you that you came with me, that I bought your ticket?” he asked through clenched teeth.
Annabelle jerked her arm away, noticing that Jeremy had left red marks, then she opened her little evening purse and took out a crisp one-hundred-dollar bill. “I think this should cover the cost of my ticket,” she said handing it to him, then turned, grabbed Justin’s hand, and walked away.
When they got to the far side of the dance floor, Justin pulled back. “I thought you wanted to dance?” he asked, then noticed the red marks on her arm.
His eyes took on a strange glow that Annabelle didn’t like. “I’m fine. Let’s just get out of here; I’ve already made too much of a scene,” she said, pulling on his hand again.
As she led Justin out of the room, she could feel everyone’s eyes on her, but she didn’t care; no one was going to treat her the way Jeremy just had. Let people talk if they wanted, but she was no one’s possession. When they stepped out of the building and the cold wind hit her, Annabelle shivered; she’d forgotten how cold it was that night.
“Let’s go sit in my truck,” Justin said, taking off his coat and wrapping it around her shoulders.
Annabelle snuggled into the coat
, inhaling the crisp, clean scent of Justin, a mixture of the woods and something else she couldn’t name. Her body flared with desire and she wished that it was his arms around her instead of the coat, then pushed the thought away. Just because he’d come to her rescue tonight didn’t mean that he’d changed his mind about them; he’d just done what any decent human being would have done.
When they got to his truck, he helped her in then got in and started it up. “It’ll warm up pretty quick,” he said, then searched his mind for something to say, for some way to tell her what he was feeling.
But Annabelle spoke before he did. “I’m sorry you had to be a part of that. I really made a scene; everyone’s going to be talking about it for days,” she said, then sighed. “That’s been the hardest thing about moving to Fairplay; everyone knows everyone’s business. In New York, people would have talked about it, but they would have been strangers that I would have never known.”
“I guess you must miss it,” Justin said, suddenly afraid that he’d done more damage than good, that she was going to pack up and move back to the city.
“Sometimes, but I still love Fairplay,” she said, looking over at him wondering if she could trust him. “I know this is going to sound crazy, but that first day my sister and I were in town, I got the feeling that this is where I belong. It was such a strong feeling, and it hasn’t changed.”
Justin’s heart soared at her words. “I think I understand what you mean,” he said, not adding that he felt that way but about her. “Would you like me to take you home?”
Annabelle was disappointed but tried to hide it. “I guess. I sure won’t be going back in there.”
“Well, look at it this way: now everyone knows that you can’t be pushed around,” Justin said, then added, “I, for one, like a woman who can take care of herself.”
Annabelle’s heart began to beat faster in her chest. “I wish there were more men around like you,” she said, her eyes meeting his.
“Why? You only need one,” he said, letting his eyes linger on hers for several long moments before he put the truck in gear and headed for her house.
***Justin***
When they got to Annabelle’s house, he pulled up and stopped the truck, then got out and lifted her down. “Thank you for saving me tonight,” she said when he set her down on her feet, her voice a bit shaky.
“You didn’t need saving, just a little help,” he said as they walked to her front door.
When they got up onto the porch, Annabelle got the key out of her bag and put it in the lock but didn’t turn it. Instead, she straightened up, turned to him, and asked, “Where have you been all this time and why did you just show up at my door? You disappeared for months; I didn’t know what to think.”
Justin had known that she was going to ask those questions, that she’d want to know why he’d disappeared from town for so long, then just shown up at her door. “How about a cup of coffee and I’ll explain it all to you,” he suggested, thinking that if he was careful, things with Annabelle might just be okay.
He was surprised and delighted when he stepped through the big double door into what once had been the sanctuary of the church. It was filled with plants, giving the room a warm and comfortable feeling, and the stars shone through the enormous skylights cut into the sloped ceiling, casting gentle light into the room. He took a deep breath, inhaling the scent of green growing things and realized that if he shut his eyes, he could almost believe that he was outside.
When Annabelle turned on the soft lighting she’d installed along the walls, he could have sworn that the plants reached out to her, responded to her presence in the room. “Chloe told me that your house was full of plants, but I didn’t quite imagine this,” he said, walking around the room.
“I designed the planters for this space,” Annabelle said, stroking a long green leaf. “I love plants; they have so much to offer us and people sometimes forget that,” she said a bit dreamily, then caught herself and added, “I’ll go make us some coffee; feel free to look around.”
Justin walked around the room thinking that he could lose himself in this room; besides the plants, there were comfortable looking couches and chairs grouped around a brick fireplace that he was sure had been part of the original building. He would have loved to see the rest of the house but knew that Annabelle deserved an explanation before he would be granted that kind of access to her life.
When she came back into the room with a tray in her hands, he saw that she’d taken her hair down to let it fall in dark waves down her back. It looked glossy and soft in the gentle light, and all he could think of was running his hands through it. Standing in her bare feet, she reminded him of a girl playing dress up, except for the way the dress hugged her ample curves and exposed a tantalizing expanse of her breasts.
A powerful wave of desire washed over him, and it took all his control not to cross the room, throw the tray aside, and kiss her. But instead, he crossed the room and took the tray from her. “Let’s sit over here,” he said, leading her to a small couch facing the fireplace.
Annabelle poured them both a cup of coffee, embarrassed to see that her hands were shaking, but all her senses told her that tonight would change her life forever. Without even taking a sip, she set her cup back on the table and looked at Justin, hoping that what he was about to tell her was going to make her happy.
Justin had rehearsed his explanation so many times that it sounded false when he finally said it. “I really didn’t mean to disappear, but we’ve had some problems on the ranch, and I had to take care of them. Some men have been trying to run us off our land,” he said, hoping that she’d be satisfied with that much of the truth.
“But aren’t there laws to protect you from that?” she asked, a bit confused.
“Not when they use scare tactics to get us to leave; it’s a pretty common trick from the old days. Harass the landowners, kill a few animals, start a few fires, stuff like that and they’ll sell out and move away, letting them swoop in and buy the land cheap,” Justin said, his anger still hard to control when he thought of what the shifter pack was trying to do.
“So, you chased them off?” Annabelle asked, shocked that things like that could still be happening today.
“I’m afraid it’s not that easy; they’ve stopped for the winter, and although I know who they are and where they’re spending the winter, I have no proof that it’s them. I got lucky and found them in Breckenridge. For now, I think we’re safe. I don’t think they’ll do anything in the deep of winter, but they’ll be back next spring,” he said, leaving out some of the most important parts, but unable to be totally honest with her.
Annabelle was silent for a moment, then looked into his eyes. “I guess I understand, but you still haven’t told me why you showed up here today,” she said, no longer willing to play games with Justin, she needed to know one way or the other what was going to happen between them.
Justin took her hands in his and looked into her eyes. “I made a mistake on Halloween. I thought that I needed to be completely over Beth to move on with my life, but that was a mistake. I understand now that she’ll always have a place in my heart but that there’s plenty of space for someone else. I didn’t want to come to you unless I was whole, but you were all I could think about all this time, and I finally figured out that you were what would finally heal me,” he said, his eyes glowing in the dim light of the room, desire and tenderness rushing through him.
Annabelle sucked in a deep breath, his words searing into her heart with a heat that spread through her body and left her tingling all over. Unbidden her powers flared to life, and she sensed both the honesty of his words and the incredible passion he was feeling. She reached up and gently stroked his cheek, her fingers soft on his face, her eyes broadcasting her feelings, and he knew that she wasn’t going to refuse him.
Chapter 12
***Annabelle***
Annabelle felt the moment when her resistance faded, just as Justin did; all
thoughts of the future evaporated, pushed aside by the desire for Justin that raced through her blood. When his mouth came down on hers, she didn’t even question it, simply melted into his arms, relieved to finally feel them wrapped around her. Months of pent-up passion exploded between them and suddenly all either could think about was the feeling of their bodies pressed together.
Justin’s kiss was just as wonderful as before, his tongue tasting and teasing, his teeth nipping at her lips until she was lost, her world shifting until only Justin and the way he was making her feel existed. He kissed her until she was breathless, then buried his face in her neck and took several deep breaths, loving the way she smelled.
“You smell so good,” he said, then added honestly, “it was the first thing I noticed about you.”
Annabelle was lost in a storm of sensation, her blood pumping, her insides tingling, or she might have noticed his little slip, but all she could think about was Justin’s hands as they slid over the bare flesh of her arms. “Mmm, I noticed your green eyes first,” she managed to say, then sucked in a deep breath when his hand skimmed across her breast.
Pleased with Annabelle’s response, he pulled her into his lap and kissed her again, then cupped one of her breasts in his hand. Annabelle had never felt such pleasure, didn’t think that it was possible to feel this good simply from a touch, and arched her back. Justin explored her breasts, massaging and squeezing, making her gasp when he found an erect nipple and gently squeezed.
When his hand left her breast and traveled down across her stomach, she held her breath, anticipating what was to come. It seemed to take forever for his hand to slide between her legs, but he only stroked the inside of her leg, driving her crazy with need. But then she felt his finger through the silk of her panties, and her body responded, the slick wetness soaking them.
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