by Anya Bast
Tranquility
By Anya Bast
SMASHWORDS EDITION
PUBLISHED BY:
Anya Bast on Smashwords
Fury © 2008 Anya Bast
All rights reserved.
Unedited – Please excuse any typos.
Cover Art by Croco Designs.
This story is a work of fiction. While reference might be made to actual historical event or existing locations, the names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental
*~*
A Note from the Author:
Hello, fair readers, I am New York Times bestselling author, Anya Bast. This is a free story I’ve offered on my web site for some time and am now making available in a wider format. If you have found this short story after reading my Elemental Witches or Dark Magick series, you may find this story more erotic. If you’re not eighteen, please return when you are.
I hope you enjoy the Wolven.
www.anyabast.com
-----------------------
Tranquility
Roane looked out the window of his second story apartment. Below him spread the Main Street of Tranquility Minnesota. Like Fury, it was another small town made up of wolf shifters. Non-shifters might move in—there was no way to stop them—but they didn't stay long. Anyone with a shred of sensitivity could sense on some level that this wasn't a place for normal folk. Anywhere a pack congregated became an area like that. It gave shivers of fear to humans. Made them feel they were trapped in some corner with a bunch of predators closing in on them.
He'd left Fury to make room for his brother, Merrick, and Merrick's new mate Nikki. Fury's elders had named Nikki queen. That meant the pack male who mated with her would be Fury's leader. Since Merrick was also a natural alpha, that meant trouble—competition for Nikki. Roane had known that Merrick and Nikki already had the chemistry, so he'd stepped aside.
So here he was in Tranquility, making all the locals nervous as hell.
He couldn't help who he was. He couldn't help that others sensed who he was. The current pack leader, Marcus, was unhappy Roane had taken up residence here. It was only a question of time before trouble started.
Truth was, he just wanted to be left alone, to live among his kind but not be bothered. Maybe that was impossible, but he had only two other options. He could go live among humans and be forever cut off from his kind, or he could go deep into the woods and live utterly alone.
Neither were attractive options.
He'd hoped to find tranquility in Tranquility, but judging by the look in Marcus' eyes he'd doubted he'd find it.
A blue car pulled up in front of the bar below his apartment. The door opened and long-legged brown haired woman got out. Roane straightened and watched her intently. She glanced up at the window, scowling, and then walked across the street to the bank. He watched her hips with every step and her long hair sway in the slight breeze.
And then there was Scarlet.
Scarlet was Marcus' sister, damn it all to hell. Roane hadn't seen a woman who intrigued him as much as Scarlet in a long, long time.
"Fuck," Roane cursed under his breath as he took a step back from the window. The woman had the capability to set every nerve in his body on high alert with just a glimpse of her.
It was about twenty minutes later when Roane heard someone knock on his door. Scarlet stood on other side when he opened it, her clear blue eyes snapping with undisguised animosity.
"You want to come in, Scarlet?" he asked with a grin. "You looked like you have something you want to say to me."
She eased past him, teasing Roane's nose with her rose scented perfume, then turned. "Why did you come here?" she asked.
Roane closed the door and turned toward her, taking his time answering. "I came here to live," he said evenly. "I didn't come here with any agenda other than that. I wish your brother and his muscle would believe me."
"I don't believe you either."
"Why?"
"You're a born leader, Roane. You're an alpha male. You had to know that wherever you landed, you'd stir things up." She sighed. "Look, if you really believe you only came here to live, you're telling yourself a lie. Eventually your true colors are going to show, whether you want them to or not. It's inevitable. It's simply in your nature."
"Look, Scarlet—"
She held up a hand. "I'm as protective of my brother as he is of me. I won't have you challenging him." Fear flickered in her eyes and Roane wondered for a moment if she was worried he might be able to kill Marcus in a challenge.
"I have no plans to do that."
Scarlet stood staring at him with her pretty lips pursed. He wanted to know what that silky hair felt like against his skin. He wanted to know how she would feel pinned beneath his body while he slid his cock in and out of her eager little—
"Roane?"
He snapped out of his fantasy.
"Keep it that way," Scarlet growled as she pushed past him.
Roane watched the door close behind her and knew he was in very deep shit. He truly didn't have any intention of challenging Marcus, but not trying to seduce Marcus' sister was going to be next to impossible.
Scarlet walked into the house, still all wound up from confronting Roane. The man disturbed her. Just being in the same room with him set her on edge in more ways than she felt comfortable identifying.
From the moment the wolf had entered their territory, he'd start ruffling feathers. He ruffled more than just Scarlet's feathers. They had an electric attraction between them, chemistry. She wanted him out of Tranquility for her brother's sake, but her thoughts, more often than not, were carnal when turned in Roane's direction.
She slammed her purse down on the kitchen counter in frustration, right as her roommate Amy walked in.
"Hope you didn't have anything breakable in there," Amy said as she eased past her to get to the refrigerator.
"I just went to see Roane," she huffed.
Amy popped the top on a small container of orange juice and said, "Oh," knowingly before drinking.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
Amy shrugged. "Just that, you know, he's Roane. Don't tell me you're blind or that your libido isn't working. Plus, I know how you feel about him entering your brother's area. Roane is an enemy, but a very fuckable one."
"He's only an enemy to me, or least he probably will be an enemy sooner or later."
Amy considered her for a moment before murmuring, "Uh, huh," then wandered away.
Scarlet looked down at the countertop and seriously considered banging her head against it. Instead, she turned and walked into her bedroom. She refused to be like every other female in this town and fall under Roane's spell. That ability to attract female Wolven only riled her brother up more, and for good reason.
"Hell," she muttered. What she needed was a nice long soak in the bathtub with a good book, a nice dinner and an early bedtime. She needed to relax a little.
Scarlet pulled out a drawer of her dresser and selected a comfy pair of soft pajamas, then grabbed her current read off the night stand. With a satisfied glance around her small, but neat, bedroom she headed into her private bathroom to draw a bath.
She and Amy had selected this house because the two bedrooms were on opposite sides of the house, complete with private bathrooms. It afforded great privacy. A spacious living room, kitchen and a third bathroom all lay in the middle of the house. This place was roommate heaven.
After she'd run the bath water — filling the tub with her favorite lavender bubble bath — she took off her clothes and sank gratefull
y into the warm water. After closing her eyes and wallowing for a few delicious moments, she reached down and picked up the romantic suspense novel she'd been reading.
But her thoughts kept drifting back to Roane. She ended up reading one paragraph five times without really comprehending it and finally tossed the book down to the bath mat.
"Hell!" she said aloud to the quiet bathroom.
She soaped her loofah and started scrubbing her skin hard enough to hurt. That damn man! She couldn't even think about him without thinking about sex, and sex was the last thing she needed to be thinking about where he was concerned.
What was it about the man got a woman's panties in such a twist? Yes, he was gorgeous, tall, and broad-shouldered with thick dark hair and blue eyes. The man had a body that made a woman dream. It was just the right amount of muscled. And his lips, there was heaven there. His mouth was full and sensual looking. Made her want to run her fingers over it, made her want those lips on her breasts, maybe trailing down her stomach to her....
She splashed the water in frustration. Just the thought of him made her body respond. Her breasts felt heavier, her clit felt plumped between her thighs. The thought of what Roane would be like in the throes of passion…his fingers fisted in her hair while he spread his big body over hers, taking her from behind in slow, deep strokes.
Before she knew it, she had her hand between her thighs while she petted her clit. Scarlet closed her eyes and imagined the feel of his body against hers, his cock filling her to capacity. She imagined the sound of his breathing in her ear and the feel of his hands on her. Her cunt throbbed at the fantasy.
But, no.
She pulled her hand away from her clit. There was no way in hell she was going to get herself off by thinking of him. How the hell would she be able to face him if she did a thing like that?
"Hell!" she yelled.
"Uh…Scarlet?" came a voice on the other side of the door. It was Amy. "You okay in there?"
"Yes, I'm fine," she answered irritably.
"Your brother's here."
"Oh, crap. I'll be there in a minute."
She got out of her bath. It was clear it wasn't relaxing her anyway. After she dressed in her fuzzy pajamas and wrapped her long hair in a towel, she met her brother.
"Marcus, what are you doing here so late?" she asked when she entered the living room. Her blond-haired, blue-eyed brother had perched himself on the armrest of their gray couch.
He stood. Amy had given him a beer, which he held loosely in one hand. "Scarlet, hey, I heard you quit your job at the law office."
"I did. The hours were too long and the pay too little. I'm looking for something else now."
"Something else secretarial?"
"I guess," she answered slowly, wondering where he was going with this.
"Considered the opening down at Morgan's?"
Scarlet frowned. Morgan's was a car repair place in downtown Tranquility. "No, I can't say I considered Morgan's."
"Scarlet, can we sit down a minute?"
Instantly wary, Scarlet sat down on the couch and Marcus sat down next to her. "What do you want, bro?"
He sighed and pushed a hand through his hair. "Roane just got a job at Morgan's. They're looking for someone to run the office and I was thinking—"
Scarlet stiffened, knowing what was coming. "Seems to me you don't think that much, Marcus," she snapped. "Or that well."
He put his hand on her arm. "Sis, please. I need someone to keep an eye on him. You're the only woman I trust not to get into bed with him, both literally and figuratively."
Scarlet groaned.
"Please? Just for a little while."
"I don't think it's a good idea," she grumbled.
Marcus turned her to face him, took her hands in his and stared into her eyes. "You're the only one I trust, Scarlet. If the pay isn't enough, I'll supplement our income."
Oh, god. She sighed and stood. "I'll think about it," she grunted, and then stomped out of the room.
This was all she needed. It was like some conspiracy to see how much her sex drive could take before it melted down.
Scarlet stood in Morgan Auto Shop's front office, invoice forgotten in her hand, and watched Roane lean over the side of a sedan to tinker with the engine. She tipped her head to the side, considering the gorgeous shape of his ass encased in his faded jeans...
"Scarlet?"
Scarlet jerked, startled, and turned to find Morgan, her boss, smiling at her.
"I said your name three times. I thought you slipped into a coma standing there." He glanced at her hand, and she realized she was clutching the invoice like a life preserver. She relaxed her grip. "Are you okay?" he asked.
Terrific. She was just great. Caught between her brother, Marcus, and a man her body seriously wanted—even if her mind knew it was a Bad Idea—and stuck working a job she didn't want, she was juuuust dandy.
She smiled. "I'm fine. What can I do for you?"
He handed her a sheaf of papers and grinned sheepishly. "I, uh, found those in one of my drawers. I think they're tax papers."
Morgan was a really wonderful man, but his powers of organization were sorely lacking. "I'll file them for you."
"Thanks." He started to walk away, but then turned back. "Oh, and can you give Roane a ride out to Mr. Hogan's house? He needs to take a look at Hogan's car."
Alone in the car with Roane? "Uh. We're doing house calls now?"
Morgan glanced to around, making sure there were no humans within earshot. "Hogan was injured during the last Run, Scarlet. He can't even walk right now."
"Oh." A Run was an activity the Tranquility Pack engaged in every month. By the light of the full moon, they shifted to wolf form and ran the northern woods, hunting, fighting and mating. Generally allowing their Wolven sides off the leash, so to speak. "I didn't know. Why can't Roane just drive out there himself?"
Morgan just looked at her.
Scarlet sighed heavily. This was getting ridiculous. "Okay, I'll get Roane and we'll head out."
"Thanks."
She walked over and laid the paperwork on the desk. When she glanced up through the glass that separated the garage from the office, it was to meet Roane's steady gaze. She shivered. He jerked his head toward her black SUV parked just outside the open garage doors.
She nodded, got her light fall coat off the rack near the door and walked outside. After Roane finished washing his hands, he grabbed a large tool kit, popped it into the back of her car and climbed into the passenger side. Scarlet got in and turned the ignition.
"Marcus thinks I need a babysitter, huh?" Roane said.
"Guess so," she muttered as she backed out of the parking space. She didn't have the will to deny it. Roane wasn't stupid. He could figure out easily enough why she'd taken the job at Morgan's.
"Your brother is pretty insecure, but I don't mind so long my keeper looks like you."
Scarlet set her jaw and didn't reply. Silence descended on the car as they traveled out of Tranquility and into the country. Roane wasn't exactly the talkative type and Scarlet really didn't have anything to say.
The scent of him filled her sensitive nostrils. He smelled of oil and automobile and, underneath that, of man. She couldn't say why the combination aroused her. By all rights it shouldn't have, but then everything about Roane turned her crank. Maybe it was some strange chemistry thing.
"Ever wonder why your brother trusts you alone with me?" Roane asked quietly when they were nearing the Hogan place. "You know, because I'm supposedly so dangerous and all."
Scarlet pulled down the gravel driveway and parked. Before she opened her door, she looked at him. "Yeah, well, just between you and me, I don't think you're so dangerous. Anyway, I can take care of myself."
Roane was out of the car in a flash and stalking toward her. The sight of him advancing on her raised every hair on her body. She retreated until she was pressed up against the car, caged by his arms on either side of her. Skitters of arous
al and alarm ran through her. Scarlet wanted to mask the sudden rush of sexual excitement she felt by having him so close, his mouth near hers, his body nearly touching her, but she couldn't.
"I'm only dangerous to Marcus if he pushes me too far," he growled. "But I am very dangerous to you, Scarlet." Roane dropped his head and inhaled somewhere near her throat. "It's your pheromones, or something. They make me crazy."
"Get off me, Roane," she said shakily. She could feel her body heating and she knew he could scent it on her. Wolven couldn't hide it when they were sexually excited.
He caught her gaze and smiled slowly, predatorily. Scarlet's heart began to beat faster. "Marcus was stupid to put his beloved sister in my way. First because, in his view, I'm dangerous and unpredictable, a threat to his power." He paused and his eyes darkened. "Second, because I want you."
She couldn't say anything in response. He must know she wanted him back. Didn't mean she would succumb to temptation, though.
He leaned in and held his mouth a breath's space from hers. Roane didn't kiss her, he just let her feel the warmth of him, scent of his breath and feel it against her lips. He slid his hand to her waist, making her jump a little at the contact.
Roane stared into her eyes in a silent Wolven challenge. Scarlet averted her eyes and let her head fall to the side in response. Roane dipped his head and ran his full lips slowly down the arch of her throat, to the place where it met her shoulder. There, he softly laid a kiss. Goosebumps erupted all over her body as he lingered there. Her body reacted to him, priming itself for him.
He let his hand slide under the hem of her shirt and he rested his bare palm against the small of her back. The action was intimate and suggestive. It made her shiver in his arms. Never in a million years would she have expected this kind of gentle sensuality from a man like Roane.
A deep groan rumbled up from his throat. It vibrated through her, making her close her eyes. She was putty in his hands, helpless. If they'd been somewhere more private she knew she'd be in big trouble. That not succumbing to temptation thing might be just a dream.