by Terry Spear
Candice glanced at the moose that were eyeing her right back. Owen practically hauled her up the steps to the deck, and that took some muscle, as wet as she was. She must have weighed an extra fifty pounds. She didn’t want to leave a trail of water in the house, but he didn’t seem to care. He just continued hauling her inside, then shut the door. Before she could react, he was pulling off her gloves and hat, unfastening her jacket, and then moving her to the fire.
“Your pants and boots are wet,” she said, wanting him to take care of himself too.
“You first. It’ll only take a moment for me to pull off my boots and drop my pants.”
Shivering, she smiled at him while fumbling to pull off her sweater. Her hands were already numb from the cold, though the fire was helping some. She wished the heat could wrap around her and not just warm her front. He quickly pulled off her sweater and began unbuttoning her shirt.
Once he’d removed that, he took hold of her belt. “Here, let me help you out of your pants, and then I’ll grab some towels and blankets for you.”
She thought of taking a hot shower, but she liked that he was babying her. She hadn’t had anyone do that to her since she was a child.
He’d stripped her of everything and wrapped her in the blue throw on the sofa. He pulled her into a hug, held her tight for a moment, then kissed her forehead. “Curl up on the couch, and I’ll be right back.”
He was back before she knew it, with towels for her hair and body, warm blankets, and a heating pad. She laughed. “Now I know only to fall into frigid water when you’re around.”
“Hopefully, I won’t put you in a situation where you’re liable to fall into the water again.”
“It wasn’t your fault. I was worried about the moose and wasn’t paying close enough attention to where I was stepping.”
“Do you want me to bring you your warm pajamas?”
“Sure.” She was dry and bundled up in the blanket on the couch, her hair wrapped in a towel, and was feeling perfectly comfortable. “It’s in the middle drawer of the bachelor chest. Thanks.”
As soon as he brought her the pajamas, he said, “Hot cocoa?”
She laughed. “Sure, that would be nice. Thanks. But you need to take off your wet pants first.”
“If anyone else suggested that, I wouldn’t think anything of it.” He gave her a sexy smile.
Smiling, she shook her head.
“Need the heating pad?”
“No, I’m good, thanks.” She really wanted him to change into something dry.
“All right. Be back with the cocoa in a few.”
Reluctantly, Candice unwrapped herself from the blanket and pulled the towel off her hair to slip into her flannel pajamas. She put the damp towel on the glass top of the coffee table, dressed, then wrapped a dry towel around her hair. But her feet were cold. She headed to the guest room, not wanting Owen to think he had to go fetch her warm socks and booties too.
* * *
Owen had always loved boating and seeing the sunset on a crisp, cold night. Being with Candice would have made it perfect—if she hadn’t fallen into the lake. He’d seen it happening but had been powerless to stop her fall. He knew he shouldn’t blame himself—it was just an accident and could have happened to anyone—but he couldn’t help it. He kept thinking about what he should have done differently to prevent it from occurring.
He was glad the moose didn’t bother them when he was struggling to rush her to the house. In fact, he’d even forgotten about them for a moment.
Once he and Candice were inside, all he had wanted to do was pull off her wet clothes, dry her, and wrap her in blankets by the fire. It was impossible to forget the way she looked as he pulled off her clothes—her curly red hair and creamy skin, the freckles on her cheeks, her red curly hair at the apex of her thighs. She was just beautiful. But he’d tried to keep his mind on taking care of her.
When he had changed and was wearing a pair of slippers, thinking he needed to bring her socks and her slipper boots, he found her curled up on the couch, her laptop on her lap, and typing away. “I thought I’d work on proofing.”
“Great idea. I’ll just grab some socks for you and—”
“I got them, booties too.” She stuck a foot out from underneath the blanket.
He smiled. “Okay. I’ll join you in a minute.” After a few minutes, he brought over the cocoa, then sat near her on the sofa, pulled out his notebook, and began to write his story.
“Thanks for the cocoa,” she said, finally looking up.
“My pleasure.”
She eyed his notebook. “Working on your story?”
“You bet. I always finish what I start. Always. Well, maybe not my writing, though I aim to this time. But everything else?”
She smiled at him.
“Always.” He wondered if she got his meaning. He had every intention of wooing the wolf until she could do nothing but agree to be his.
* * *
Three days later, Candice had sent in her finished book and started working on her next one, while taking breaks running as a wolf with him and sometimes with several of the other pack members. They’d pulled the dock and the dock bubbler out of the water for the winter and hadn’t seen any more signs of the moose. Though she’d told him enough times how much she’d love seeing them, despite what had happened to her. She wished she’d had her camera with her… Well, if she hadn’t fallen in the water. That would have been the end of her camera too.
She couldn’t help but want to sail across the lake with Owen. And add that to her stories. She was really enjoying the time she spent with him and the pack. She was already thinking about spending spring and summer here, and all the fun she could have.
Candice had even finished Christmas shopping for everyone. And baked more cookies with Owen, who had taken up the challenge and found a recipe for Fudge Crinkles. She decided that should be a Christmas cookie tradition from now on, as much as everyone loved them. She was beginning to think of this as her home now. That she wasn’t returning to South Dakota for good.
She couldn’t believe how much at home she felt with Owen and the pack already. She knew she couldn’t go back to the way she’d lived before. Not now. Not when she had found others who were just like her. She loved everyone.
They didn’t treat her as though they knew she was leaving. They acted as though she was staying here forever. That eventually she would be Owen’s mate. She had to admit that the longer she got to know him, the more the idea had real appeal. He was working on his own book, not in a way that said he was doing it just to be on her good side, but because he really wanted to. Some nights while she continued to work on her book, he carved ornaments he planned to give to each of the pack members, though if he was carving one for her, he wasn’t sharing. Every time he worked on another, she asked who it was for, and it was always someone different.
“They’re so beautiful, Owen. What made you start carving wood?”
“My dad, and my grandfather before that. It was just something passed down from generation to generation. Somewhere I have a photo of four generations of carvers. I was ten when I started. Mom was having fits, but my dad said he was five when he began, and I was nearly an old man when I took it up.”
Candice laughed. She wished she had the talent to create something as beautiful for everyone. Instead, she was working on a children’s book about an Arctic wolf pup who made a friend and renewed their friendship years later at Christmastime. And how he brought his sister and brother to meet her too. She couldn’t draw anything, but she had fun Photoshopping a bunch of pictures and creating a chapter book for the kids. Of course, then she realized she’d have to make one for each of the pups. When she wasn’t writing and having fun with everything else, she was creating the kids’ books. A printer in town said he would print them for her in time for Christmas.
They’d had another lovely canoe trip tonight, watched the sunset, and then returned for a nightcap. They’d found a delicious recipe for hot cocoa with peppermint schnapps and a candy cane crushed on top of it. A hot drink after the cold boat trip and time to unwind.
“These are going to be addictive,” Candice said, licking her lips. When she saw a chip of candy cane and whipped cream on his lip, she pulled Owen in close to take care of it.
That led to kissing and hugging and rousing their pheromones, which made her want more. She’d never been driven to have sex with a guy, not like she was when she kissed and hugged Owen. But still, she was cautious because of the finality of it. Was this really what she wanted for the rest of her life? Was he someone she couldn’t live without?
When she was kissing him, that was a big yes.
He pulled his mouth away from hers and held her close as if he was trying to get his raging need for her under control. She was glad he wasn’t pressuring her about wanting more, though he constantly did everything he could to make her feel at home here. He didn’t treat her as though she was just another fixture, but someone truly special.
She found it was getting harder to say good night to each other, and she really thought they might be taking this further sooner rather than later. Though she thought the other guys were cute and fun and likeable, Owen made her heartbeat quicken whenever he was near. When he was at work on a case, she missed his presence.
“Remember, I’ve got to leave first thing in the morning. I’ll probably be away for a couple of days, trying to track down a missing husband in another state. Are you sure you’re going to be all right?”
“Absolutely. I’ve got work to do on my new book, and I won’t have any distractions then.”
He smiled. “I’m a distraction now, am I?”
“A welcome distraction.” She sighed. “Okay, you get some sleep, and I’ll see you off in the morning.” She thought it was a way to firm up how she was feeling about him. If she didn’t miss him, wouldn’t that be an indication?
When she retired to bed that night, she still worked on her story. She wondered what he did late at night. Carved an ornament for her? Would she find wood shavings in his bed?
* * *
The next morning, Owen had to leave early, and this was the first time he’d be away from Candice overnight. He hated leaving her. Not because he felt she couldn’t manage on her own. She had for two years. But simply because he didn’t want to leave her. He kissed her and reminded her to call Faith if she had any trouble, since all the guys were out on jobs.
“I’ll be fine, Owen. Quit worrying. You’ll be home before you know it.”
“I’ll miss you,” he said quite honestly.
She smiled. “I’ll miss you too. You’re a great cook. You rescue me from cold lakes, and you make a great cup of hot chocolate.”
He hoped she missed him enough to know she needed him in her life permanently. As far as he was concerned, after they took care of this business with the will, he wanted to convince her she couldn’t live without him. Or at least the pack. But mostly him.
He hugged her soundly one last time, gave her a parting kiss that promised much more, and left. He swore he had never felt so disconcerted in his life. He listened to another of her books while he was on the road, which made him miss her even more. He kept picturing her in the scenario, now that he knew she used so many of her life experiences in the books. He could envision how much she had longed to have her life back, then resolved to make the most of it by finding a wolf mate to love—at least in her fantasy books.
And he was that wolf mate, as far as he was concerned. As he was crossing the state line, he figured she was working on her book. Despite the early-morning hour, he knew she wouldn’t have gone back to sleep. She’d work on the book until he returned.
He thought about calling her, just to take his mind off the drive, to reassure himself she was missing him like he already missed her, but he fought the urge. She needed some space, and he needed the time to think about his case. Which is why he listened to her book and thought again about her in those scenes with him as her Arctic wolf lover—and smiled.
* * *
Candice walked to Faith’s home to have lunch with her. She felt good about finally having a female friend who understood what she was going through.
The kids had already eaten and were in one of their rooms playing a game when Faith and Candice took seats at the dining room table to eat chicken pot pies.
“Owen told me how David and he were turned. How he accidentally bit Gavin, and how that came about. How Cameron was bitten, but Owen only said Cameron accidentally turned you.”
Faith smiled. “I wasn’t happy with him over that. He knew he was a wolf shifter, and he’d been wounded in a fight with a wolf while trying to protect me. I came into his tent to tend to his wounds, thinking he was human at that point. In the dark tent, I reached out to wake him, and I touched fur and nearly had a heart attack. He growled and bit me. I accidentally knocked the tent pole down, and it collapsed on top of us. I tried to scramble out of the tent, afraid he was going to attack. I finally found an opening in the tent, and there he was, his fluorescent amber eyes glowing in the dark tent as he stopped me from leaving. I didn’t know if I’d be just like him, but I suspected so.
“Anyway, we really had the hots for each other before that, loved each other during all the trials we were going through, and then had to deal with the wolf business too. But not just us…Cameron’s partners too. We were one big Arctic wolf pack family. We fumbled around in the dark trying to learn how to cope, and we’ve finally managed to get our lives back on track.”
Candice thought being bitten by an adult male wolf might have been scarier than how she was turned. But the fact that they already loved each other would have made a difference.
“I can’t tell you enough how sorry I am that our son bit you and turned you, but I have to say I’m glad you’re here with us, that you and Owen are so good for each other, and”—Faith wiped away trails of tears—“I finally have a female friend to talk to. The guys have been wonderful, don’t get me wrong. But they have one another when they’re dealing with male issues. I haven’t had anybody to commiserate with, both with having the children and raising them. And just…” She shrugged. “Girl talk.”
Glad to be there for another woman in the same boat as herself, Candice reached across the table and squeezed Faith’s hand, feeling just as emotional about finally having a girlfriend that she could talk to. “I would have been scared to pieces if I’d experienced that with a full-grown wolf. Corey was so cute, and with him being a pup, I knew he hadn’t bitten me on purpose. My concern was that he might have rabies. That he could turn me into a werewolf?” She shook her head. “I’m glad I’m here, that we can be friends, and that I’m no longer alone.”
“If you ever have any questions or just need to talk to me about anything, I’m here for you. It’s like being an alien in a human world. We just learn as we go along.”
“Thank you. And the same goes for me, if you ever need to talk,” Candice said.
* * *
By two in the afternoon, Owen had to call Candice. She’d said she was going to have lunch with Faith at eleven, so he figured she’d be home by now. “Hey, it’s me,” he said as if they were already a couple.
“Hey, you. Miss me?”
“Hell, if I didn’t have your book to listen to, yeah. I’ve been lost in the story, missed two of my exits, and keep thinking of you in those scenes. With me. You know, we can do all that for real.”
She laughed.
“No, I’m serious.”
“I know you are. I miss you. I thought about making some more Fudge Crinkles.”
“Not without me, you don’t. That’s our special dessert.”
“Which is why I’ve been craving them so badly.”
&
nbsp; Which he wanted to believe meant she was really craving being with him. “We’ll make a batch when I arrive home.”
“How are the roads?”
“Good. I’m almost to the hotel, and I’ll start searching the town to see if I can locate the perp. He’s supposed to have a job here. I need to find his home address. How’s your writing coming along?”
“Great. I came up with this new scene. Heroine tries to leave canoe and tips the boat, knocking them both in the water. Moose charges them, and for a few minutes, they’re under the dock while they wait the moose out.”
“They’d grow awfully cold.”
“They’re shivering and hugging each other. As soon as they feel it’s safe, they make a slow dash and reach the house. Inside, they begin stripping off their wet clothes, and the next thing you know, they’re taking a hot shower, kissing, and declaring their love for each other, and then they’re mated.”
“Wait, I missed the mating part.”
“You’ll have to read the book.”
He laughed. “Okay, so that means I did it all wrong.”
“Did what wrong?”
He sighed dramatically. “I was supposed to fall into the water and hide with you underneath the dock.”
“No, you did everything just right. This is fantasy.”
“I could use a little more fantasy in my life.”
She laughed. “I have to admit my stay here has really jump-started my writing.”
“I will do anything you need to help you write the rest of your books. Oh, here’s the hotel. I’ll call you back in a little bit.”
“Okay, bye, Owen. Be careful. Talk soon.”
“Same here,” Owen said and ended the call. He fully intended to be back before the other guys.
But after two days of trying to track the guy down, Owen worried that, at this rate, one of the other men in his pack would have to take Candice to Houston when the time was right.
It was as if someone had tipped off Kendall Malt and he’d gone into hiding. His workplace said he’d quit his job at the fish-packing plant without a really good reason, and Owen wasn’t able to determine where he lived. Until he discovered Kendall had a girlfriend who worked in receiving at the plant.