Wolf’s Mate: Paranormal Menage Protector Romance

by Lilly Wilder

  “Coming right up,” he lifts his index finger in the air, like a superhero wannabe, then turns over to the bottles of water and pours some into a glass for me.

  But, before he can set it down nicely on the table, he trips over something on the small carpet, and the glass, along with all the water inside, end up on my sweatshirt. I jump, squawking at the cold sensation that washes over me in an instant, jumping up from my seat.

  “Oh, crap…” he manages to muster. “I’m so sorry…”

  “It’s fine - “ I start, but before I can say anything else, I feel his hands pressing the kitchen towel onto my breasts, which are tightly pressed against the thin fabric of the sweatshirt. It is only now that I realize I’m not wearing a bra, which isn’t advisable if you’re going to be entering a wet t-shirt contest.

  Mortified as well as amused, thinking what my girlfriends would say if they saw me like this, with a guy dabbing my wet chest with a kitchen towel, I can’t even move. It takes him a moment longer to realize what he’s doing, and he immediately stops.

  “Oh, I just made it even weirder, didn’t I?”

  He looks at my breasts, then realizes he’s not looking where he’s supposed to be looking, so he quickly lifts his glance up to the level of my eyes. At this point, neither of us can resist laughing, so we both start cracking up. I’ve totally forgotten all about my nipples poking through my sweatshirts, and I just laugh jovially, heartfelt and without restraint.

  At some point, I finally remember to cross my hands in front of my chest, and nod, not really knowing what else to do.

  “I guess I’ll just go and change,” I say, blushing more than ever, but somehow, not caring.

  “Again, I’m so sorry,” he repeats, making sure to keep his eyes firmly upon mine, not straying for a single moment. “It wasn’t intentional…”

  “Relax, it’s fine,” I smile, still nodding, feeling like a bobble head, but unable to stop the motion. “I’ll just…” I point at the hallway. “I’ll be right back…”

  I run into my room to hide, feeling like this house’s been struck by the latest Ice Age, and my nipples had a lot to say about it. Now, I could start overthinking this, and being embarrassed, but seeing I need to spend a whole month here, with Anderson under the same roof, maybe overthinking wasn’t the right way to go.

  “Just… let it go,” I whisper to myself, my eyes closed.

  As I exhale deeply, I change into another sweatshirt, making sure to put on a bra underneath, this time. We all know lightning rarely strikes twice in the same place, but you can never be sure. I return to the kitchen shortly, and see Anderson has cleaned up the table and all the dishes are already done.

  “Wow,” I smile. “It’s like having a maid.”

  He chuckles. “You didn’t think you’d be doing any cleaning while here, did you?”

  “Well, why not?” I sit down opposite him, grateful that we’ve already moved past the awkward episode and we can chat nicely again. “You guys are supposed to keep me safe, but I don’t remember anyone mentioning you guys cleaning up after me.”

  “Well, ask Fynn and you might get a different answer,” he shrugs, with a wink, “but, I think it’s nice to do these little things. I mean, it’s just a few dishes. I don’t mind washing them, instead of leaving them in the sink to dry up and then, it’s Hell washing up.”

  “Spoken like a true housewife,” I can’t help but giggle.

  “Keep talking like that, and you’ll be doing your own dishes,” he jokingly threatens me with his index finger.

  “Alright, alright,” I surrender, in good humor.

  “So, have you managed to find anything good on your bookshelf?”

  “I haven’t even checked, sorry.”

  “No need to apologize,” he smiles.

  “I’ll take a look as soon as I - “

  The sound of approaching footsteps makes us both look in the direction of the front door, where Fynn immediately appears.

  “Everything good?” Anderson asks.

  “Yes,” Fynn nods, giving me a skimming look, then placing his empty plate on the table before us. “Your turn to watch.”

  “Alright then.”

  With those words, Anderson stands up. “If you try to make a coffee later on, see if the old girl will make one for me, too,” he tells me.

  “Sure,” I nod, with a smile.

  Fynn doesn’t say anything else. He just heads to their room, closing the door behind him. With both of them gone in their opposite directions, I am left alone. I’d love to talk to my friends, just to see how they’re doing, only to hear their voices, but I know that’s impossible. So, I head back to my room, to check that bookshelf, even though I myself have already started feeling like I’m in a novel of my very own, and the end was still very much a mystery to every character involved.

  CHAPTER 9

  Anderson

  I exit into the fresh air, exhaling loudly. I remember the little tap which draws water from a nearby well, and I head over there. The splash of cool water on my face feels restoring. I’m not sleepy or tired. It’s the opposite, actually. I’m too spirited, I guess is the word. Way too spirited than I should be, under these unwelcoming circumstances, but it is, what it is.

  Bouncy. Peppy. Zesty. I think of all those terms my mom used to refer to when she’d be talking about boys and their strayed thinking when it came to girls. I guess that’s exactly how I feel now. The sight of Maddie’s nipples piercing through the light fabric of her sweatshirt still returns to me. Actually, I can’t say that it returns, because it never left me. So, it’s stayed with me since I first laid eyes on them. And, the image is still as fresh in my mind as half an hour ago.

  I splash some more cool, deep water on my face and for a moment, I feel refreshed. But, the image returns again, with a vengeance. I feel a stirring in my pants, something that has no place happening here or now. I can’t think that way about her. Maybe Fynn is right. I’m way too friendly sometimes, and occasionally, it came back to bite me in the ass. I don’t want that to happen now. I can’t lose focus of what’s important here, and that’s Maddie’s safety. I can’t go around with a freakin’ boner, wondering how it would feel to fuck her brains out. Fynn would kill me. Hugo would hang me by the balls. I know all that, and more. And, yet, her sweet face won’t leave me, even when she’s not around.

  I sigh heavily, knowing that I need to work on this every single waking moment of my time here. That only adds more strain to the situation. But, it is what it is. I need to make it work somehow, and just keep my distance from her. That’s the only way.

  At that moment, I feel my work phone vibrating. It’s a burner, specially bought for the purposes of coming here, and it’ll only be used for a few days. Then, either Fynn or I will go and get another one, for the next few days. We can’t risk being tracked this way.

  “Hello?” I pick up, already guessing who will be on the other end of the line.

  “Anderson?”

  “Yes, Chief Garth?”

  “Have you settled in?”

  “Everything according to plan so far, Sir.”

  “I’m glad to hear that,” he pauses a little, which worries me. He usually speaks in one elongated sentence which more resembles a monologue than a dialogue, and all you are left with is to simply agree. “Listen, I will need you to come down to the station tomorrow.”

  “Tomorrow?” I repeat, stunned. “But, you know that means leaving Fynn alone with the girl?”

  “I am fully aware of that fact, Anderson, and believe me, I wouldn’t ask you if it wasn’t a matter of great urgency. But, it is. We need you down here for a few hours.”

  “Well, if it’s an urgent matter…”

  I lift my gaze up to the sky. The clouds are grey, promising the arrival of rain. So, it won’t be the usual quick ride. I’ll have to drive slower.

  “It concerns one of your previous cases, the Higgins drowning.”

/>   He knows he doesn’t need to say anything more. It was the case that Fynn and I couldn’t crack for years. A young girl drowned, and everything kept pointing out to an accident. But, something just didn’t sit right. The girl was a good swimmer, plus she knew those waters. She had lived close to the lake since she was born, and knew not to go in from the side where she was found. After much digging and poking around, after stepping on many corns, we discovered that her ex-boyfriend dragged her into the water by the hair and kept pushing her under the surface, until she was finally gone. Those bruises on her body fit perfectly with that story. Everyone always assumed that they were made post mortem, as her body lay there in the shallows, subject to the weather and rough rocks. Long story short, we couldn’t help the girl, but at least we had him. And, having him in the interrogation room was one of the rare times I almost lost it. The whole thing is still a blur to me, but I remember my hands around his neck and others me pulling off of him. It was tough, but they erased it from the official record. After all, who’s gonna believe a guy who murdered his ex in cold blood?

  I still get the goosebumps when I remember that. I guess some things stay with you and never let you go, no matter how much you’d like them to. The only thing you can do is learn to live with it and if possible, learn from it. I learned that two wrongs don’t make a right. As for Fynn, he learned his lesson some other time. More than once, actually.

  “It’s finally going to court and the DA wants to go over some things with you for the court hearing the day after tomorrow.”

  “Alright. I’ll be there tomorrow,” I tell him, squeezing the phone.

  I don’t want to leave Maddie and Fynn alone, but something tells me if I don’t speak with the DA, the guy might walk. And, I’ll be damned if that happens.

  “Good. Keep me updated.”

  “Will do, Sir.”

  And, with those words, the chief hangs up. The idea of returning to a case I consider solved doesn’t appeal to me, but I know the chief wouldn’t call me back for nothing. Fynn will have to make by for a day. I’ll try to wrap it up as quickly as I can and then, return. But, still, the thought of leaving Fynn without a backup doesn’t sit right.

  I return inside, and pass by Maddie’s closed door. I continue to our room, and open without knocking. Fynn is in bed, but he’s still dressed, staring at the window. When he sees me come inside, his whole body unwinds. It reminds me of being a boy and fearing my mom would walk in on me jerking off. Only, Fynn doesn’t have that look on his face, that embarrassment. It’s something else. Something much more sinister.

  “Is everything OK?” he asks, immediately getting up, with his feet on the floor.

  “No, no,” I shake my head. “I mean, yeah, it’s fine, don’t get up…”

  “Why aren’t you out?” His voice is stern, but not agitated.

  “The chief called.”

  “And?”

  “I need to get back to the station tomorrow.”

  “For how long?”

  “Just a day. Apparently, I have a meeting with the DA about the Higgins drowning.”

  “Oh,” he nods.

  “Will you be alright?” I ask, but I already know what he’s going to say.

  “Why wouldn’t we be?” His answer is quick, cuts at the root. I’m used to it. But, I still ask.

  “Well, not like I wanna go. But, it’s important.”

  “Of course it is. I don’t see why you feel the need to apologize for something that needs to be done.”

  After all these years, he still knows how to make me feel a little awkward, a little ridiculous, but I wouldn’t trade this son of a gun for anything.

  “Did you hear an apology come out of this mouth?” I ask, the tone turning into a joke, and we both jump on the bandwagon. “No. So, get your ass to bed, so you can be well rested tomorrow. You’ll be keeping an eye on this place all on your own.”

  “You sure you don’t want to take a nap?”

  “Already did. I’m fine now. I’ll take the next shift, and then head back. Hopefully, I won’t be missing for more than a day.”

  “I’ve been awake longer than that,” he snorts, good-humoredly.

  “Yeah, but how well can you focus, after you haven’t slept for a day?”

  “Point taken,” he chuckles. “Alright then. Get out of my sight now. How do you expect me to sleep with you constantly jabbering?”

  “I’m gone, man, gone,” I raise my hands in a gesture of surrender. “See ya before I go.”

  “Sure.”

  With those words, I close the door to our room, and walk back outside. The air is crisp, clean, as mountain air ought to be. As I take a walk off the porch and towards the unbeaten path, I feel like the earth has a pulse, which shoots through the ground, through the woods, all the way up to the mountains. I see all that lush greenery, and I can’t feel any of the discord I’m usually a victim to back in the city. I try not to dwell on it too much, as it’s too overbearing and drains energy, but sometimes, I grow tired of people’s power over me, or the power they think they have over me. Their rules and regulations are too much, but I know that if we didn’t have those, there would be total anarchy, and people like Sven would think they own the place. Can’t have that. No way.

  But, being here and now, I can enjoy the solitude of the mountains, and be the silent, almost ghost-like observer of the slow, almost impenetrable passage of time. As that great mountain in the distance looms over us, I know what the future brings. I can’t keep hiding from it. The idea is instilled in my mind, as it is in my loins, and I know we must do something about it, otherwise we shall face extinction.

  The greens around me lie in invisible jagged crevices, and the brilliant white of the sky is scorched by the oncoming clouds. The fangs of the future threaten to bite us all unless we find that someone. And, fast.

  With those thoughts, I return to the porch. I remember one of the sayings my father used to repeat to us, on coming from his AA meetings. Yesterday’s history, tomorrow’s a mystery.

  CHAPTER 10

  It takes my body some time to adjust to the new sleeping arrangement, as well as the new bed. I wake up, quickly do my business in the bathroom, and then head out into the living room. There is of course, no Internet reception, but at least there is a TV, old fashioned and of questionable functionality, but I decide to give it a shot. I blow some dust from the DVD player cover, and check my choices. A few comedies, two horrors (no, thank you - I had more than enough horror in the last 2 days or so to last me a lifetime), some romance, some drama. I snort. I guess a comedy will do. I opt for Dr. Doolittle and his animal shenanigans, as I get comfortable on the bed.

  Suddenly, I hear the sound of a car turned on. I jump from the sofa and rush outside. What awaits me is Fynn seeing off Anderson in the car which was already disappearing into the distance.

  “Where’s he going?” I muster, still looking after the car, feeling like a puppy whose owners decided to move but left it behind.

  “He needs to head back,” Fynn retorts.

  “Why?”

  He gives me a look as if trying to put me in my place, like I shouldn’t even be asking such a question. Well, tough luck. I am.

  “Police business.”

  He turns around and heads back into the house. I can feel that slow but steady burn of vexation rising from deep inside of me, and I know I won’t just let this one go. I don’t have Anderson now to be the buffer between us, so I need to show him that we’re on the same side here, and there’s no point in such animosity.

  I rush in, after him, and catch him in the kitchen, getting himself a glass of water. With his back still turned away from me, facing the sink, I stand in the middle of the kitchen, trying to come up with the best start to this awkward and unpleasant situation.

  “Why do you hate me so much?”

  This definitely wasn’t what I intended to start with, but the little girl in me won over. She just wante
d to know what was it that she did, which had such an effect on this man. Did she step on his little toe somehow? Did she insult him in any way? The poor thing had no idea.

  I say this loudly enough for him to hear it, but he doesn’t turn around. He downs his glass of water, then puts it on the kitchen counter. Then, slowly, he turns to face me.

  “I don’t hate you,” he says simply. “What you seem to be forgetting is that we’re not here to have fun. We’re not here to watch movies and make popcorn. There is real danger out there.”

  “Don’t you think I know that?” I snort back angrily. “I was face to face with this guy and trust me, I felt the evil steaming off of him, like some stench, which I doubt I’d ever be able to get rid of. So, believe me when I tell you that I know the danger we’re in. Actually, the danger I’m in. Because, if for some reason we all separate, you guys will be just fine. You’ll be able to take care of yourself. But me… not so much.” I finally take a deep breath after this loud, angry monologue, feeling my chest burning on the inside. “Is it so wrong to ask for some decency when addressing me? Is that really too much to ask?”

  I realize that neither of us feels like they’re completely right, or completely wrong for that matter. We both stare at the floor in silence for a few moments, caught off guard by this moment of unexpected intimacy.

  “I’m sorry,” I finally say. “I know this is just a job for you, and we probably don’t even have anything in common to be able to chat about. I guess I just took it too personally. I’ll keep my distance from now on, and hopefully, this month will pass quickly, so we’ll all be back to our lives…”

  With those words, I turn to go, but his voice stops me.

  “Wait….” he whispers, but I hear him. The word is followed by a heavy sigh, one I myself have released on more than one occasion.

  I turn to him, more hopeful than I dare to be.

  “There is no other way but to take this kind of a job personally.”

  “What do you mean?” I ask, confused, but strangely exuberant that we’re actually talking, and not avoiding each other.