“You have a fresh start here,” Rafe said.
“You do, too.” Ronni eyed him curiously. “The woman with you at the diner, her scent is still all over you. Who is she to you?”
“A friend of a friend.”
“Not your friend?”
He shook his head.
“Well, why not?”
Rafe thought for a moment.
“She talks a lot.” When Grace wasn’t talking, she hummed. Her voice had a nice, soft melody that stayed on his mind after they parted.
That’s what really bothered him. She shouldn’t be on his mind at all.
“You must be kiddin’ because you ain’t that dumb. Unless this docile pack has sucked the wolf right out of you.” Ronni, two steps up from him, leaned forward with her hands still tucked beneath the arms crossed over her chest.
She was only ten years older, but the one cocked eyebrow and the side-scrunched mouth were a perfect imitation of his mother. He still had memories of his life before coming to Walker’s Run and she wore that look in a lot of them.
“Don’t get me wrong,” Ronni said. “I’ve met some fine people here, but they’re outta touch with their nature. You’re getting yours back. I see it in your eyes. Don’t be afraid of it. Be proud of who you are. Proud of where you come from, because you come from good stock.”
Silence hung between them but neither felt any urgency to fill it. They were family by blood, still getting to know each other. Still testing the boundaries of trust and confidence.
“So, blondie talks too much. That’s it?”
“It’s a lot of words to absorb. She doesn’t stop until she’s asleep.”
“Huh. You know this how?”
Somehow he was digging himself a deeper hole in a conversation he didn’t want to be in.
“I see.” Ronni pressed her lips. “Does she get your heart racing and your blood pumping straight down to your cock?”
He did not want to have this discussion with a woman who favored his mother way too much.
“I can see by your face, she does. Well then, don’t worry too much about her talking. Find something better to do with her mouth.”
Not the advice he was hoping for.
“One thing she can do is eat,” Ronni called after him. “Bring her to supper. Thursday is good. I’ll have the rest of your things packed by then.”
Chapter 10
“Thanks for the ride.” Grace unbuckled her seat belt.
“I do what I can for my friends.” Humor and interest danced in Shane MacQuarrie’s steely gray eyes. Twentyish, he had sandy hair and a young, handsome face, yet an edgy aura warned he wasn’t as carefree as he should be at this age.
They’d met the first time Grace checked into the Walker’s Run Resort and became fast friends.
Not of the benefits variety, but he kept trying.
A few years her junior, she considered him more of a little brother.
His gaze drifted past Grace’s shoulder. “The R&L looks closed. Wanna grab a late lunch at Mabel’s?”
“I had lunch with Cassie.”
“I don’t want to leave you stranded.”
“I’ve backpacked across Europe, Shane. I can handle myself in Maico.” Grace stepped down from the truck.
His stare made her feel as if he were assessing her ability to do so.
She closed the door and waved goodbye. She didn’t drop her practiced smile or let her shoulders drop until Shane’s truck disappeared down the road. The mechanical hum of cars from the nearby highway sounded more like a lullaby than the racket of city traffic.
She glanced at the large, Colonial-design building on the far side of the town square. According to Brice, the top floor housed the town’s small municipal court while the first floor was home to the Maico Historical Society, the Merchant and Tourism Advocacy, and a few other public interest businesses she’d researched on Google. Most had poorly developed websites and social media accounts, some had none at all. This morning she’d called to inquire if they were interested in updating their online presence and she had received informal invitations to drop by tomorrow to discuss services.
Might as well drum up some new clients for her web design business since she was going to be in town for a while.
Cars dotted the parallel parking spaces of the mom-and-pop shops framing the pretty little park of bright green grass, huge shade trees and wooden benches. The quiet, picturesque scene looked and felt homey.
She snapped a few pictures using her phone. A pinch of longing seeped into her heart. Because of her father’s military career, Grace didn’t have a childhood hometown. She envied people who committed not only to someone, but also to some place.
When she got married, Grace believed she’d finally settle down in a real home. They’d started with a small apartment, but had had plans to grow.
She’d hoped the restlessness within her would fade. Pretended that it had. Truthfully, she’d felt trapped. Until Derek had asked for a divorce after the miscarriage, she hadn’t known he felt the same.
Grace thought a new beginning in a new place would help. Derek refused. He wanted out, wanted to pretend the marriage and the baby had never happened. It was difficult to understand because they’d never fought during their brief marriage. She thought he’d loved her. She had loved him.
When it was over Grace had realized she wasn’t cut out for permanency. How could she be when she’d never known what it was?
Some dreams were better kept in a scrapbook.
A horn tooted and she turned around to face the old converted service station. R&L Auto Repair was painted in black across the glass front window.
Two side streets flanked the building. An abandoned store stood on the right corner, the paint peeling in long curls. Spider-webs and hornets’ nests decorated the dirty front window and a metal sign dangled above the door. At one time, it might’ve read Bait-N-Tackle, but the rust had eaten holes in the lettering, so only “Bai” and “ckle” remained.
Anchoring the left corner, Mabel’s Diner, painted bright yellow with white trim windows, bustled with patrons, even in the midafternoon.
The R&L storefront was dark and the bays were closed, so Grace followed the sidewalk around to the back and sat on the ground. The tow truck was gone from the lot and the gate was locked. Either Rafe was out on a roadside call, or he’d played hooky from work to go fishing or hunting. Or run with the wolves, naked.
No, no, no. She didn’t want to think of him naked, again.
Okay, she did. But she really, really shouldn’t.
A ticklish current ebbed through her body as a white double-cab tow truck turned the corner.
Waving, she flashed her best smile, then stood to brush the gravel off her backside with the borrowed shirt she was returning.
The gate behind her clicked and slowly opened. Rafe motioned her inside the lot and waited until she reached a safe distance before he drove in behind her.
“Why are you here?” Rafe shut the truck door.
“Hello to you, too.” She held up his wrinkled shirt. “I forgot to give this to you last night.”
Rafe caught it in his left hand when she tossed it.
Grace turned to the sulky teenager cautiously studying her. “You must be Alex.”
“Yeah.” He approached, squinting at her with the same cobalt blue eyes as Rafe had, and his were just as intense.
“I’m Grace. I met your mom at the diner Saturday.”
The teenager stared at her outstretched hand.
Walking past, Rafe thumped the boy on the back of the head. “Mind your manners.”
Alex adjusted the backpack slung across his shoulder. “Um, hi.” He squeezed her hand for a half second and bolted after Rafe.
Grace followed them inside the garage. The faint odor of motor oil
and citrus greeted her.
Automotive supplies stacked in precise order filled the large metal shelves along the wall and all the tools in the work area looked clean. Immaculately, obsessively clean. Even the gray, concrete floor shone like it had been polished.
When she was here before, her focus had been on getting her coffee fix, not the pristine order in which Rafe kept everything.
Her mother ran a tight ship when it came to cleaning, her father even tighter. Rafe’s fastidiousness surpassed them, which kinda freaked her out.
“Go to the kitchen and get started on your homework,” Rafe said to Alex.
“I hate math. I hate school.” Alex lowered his head but his eyes lifted toward Rafe, hard and angry. “I hate you.”
“Homework.” Rafe hit a series of buttons on the wall and the service bay doors rumbled to life. He held open the metal door to the customer service area. “Now.”
Alex didn’t budge.
Tension leavened the air like sweltering humidity.
Rafe’s eyes narrowed and a low menacing, guttural noise rose from his throat.
“I hate this friggin’ place.” Alex huffed, squared his shoulders and stomped past Rafe.
Rafe shut the door and strode toward the large metal toolbox. Grace intercepted.
“Did you growl at him?” It sounded a lot like the one she’d heard at the elevator.
“I have a lot of work, Grace.” Rafe gently bumped her aside. “Stay out of the way.”
She noticed he didn’t tell her to leave.
“You could’ve handled Alex better. Maybe offered to help. Make him cookies. Given him some of your time, rather than issuing orders.” She bumped Rafe back.
He glared down at her, rumbling.
She poked his chest, hard. “You’re doing it again.” Only the sound turned less menacing. Becoming softer, sexier. “Are you purring?”
“There’s nothing soft, cuddly or feline about me, sweetheart.”
“I am not your, or anyone else’s, sweetheart.” She jabbed him center-chest again.
Rafe’s stony expression could’ve been set in granite, but a twinge of humor warmed his eyes. He captured her hand, stroking his calloused thumb over her tattoo.
An explosion of tiny bumps erupted across her skin. Her body alternately flushed hot and hotter until she shivered and Rafe released her.
“I gave Alex and Ronni a home and a car, and I’ll give them whatever else they need.”
Her dad’s military check had paid for all their necessities and more than a few nonessentials, but his career had meant far more to him than his family. During the brief times he had come home on leave or between deployments, he’d ordered her and Matt around like mini-soldiers rather than treating them as children.
“Invest time. Share an experience. Teach him something you love to do. Participate in something because he asks.”
“I will once I get caught up on my work.” Rafe sidestepped her and rolled the large, wheeled tool chest to the car in the first bay. He turned on the antique radio on one of the metal supply shelves. Not once as he set up his work area did he glance at Grace.
She sauntered behind him as he leaned over the engine of the car. “What if I make you an offer you can’t refuse?”
Chapter 11
Rafe banged his head on the open hood.
“Goddamn it.” He grabbed the sore spot and slowly turned, his muscles rigid, his brow frowning, his mouth pulled flat.
“If you have a computer and internet service, I’ll help Alex with his homework.”
“That’s the offer I can’t refuse?” Rafe leaned against the car grille, arms crossed high on his chest and a very grumpy look on his face. “I nearly knocked myself out when you snuck up behind me and whispered in my ear.”
“I didn’t sneak or whisper.” She lowered and softened her voice. “If you want to compare boo-boos, mine is far worse.” She lifted the hair covering the goose egg at her temple.
The hardness in his demeanor cracked. His gaze warmed the ugly bruised spot even after her hair fell back into place. “Come with me.”
Shielding her grin, she followed him from the garage, through the customer service area. He opened the heavy metal door to the apartment and ushered her inside.
The door clanged shut, cloaking them in blackness.
Her lungs constricted inside her chest and refused to accept any air. A half gurgle, half gasp was all she could force from her cottony mouth.
She spun around, smacking into a solid wall of muscle. Rafe’s warm hand pressing against her back slowed her panic.
She wasn’t ten, she wasn’t alone and she wasn’t trapped.
Overhead, a soft incandescent glow appeared and pushed back the void. Rafe peered down at her.
Heart tripping over its own beat, Grace could only stare up at him. And wait.
Wait for the ridicule because only small children and wusses were afraid of the dark.
“I won’t let anything hurt you, Grace. Not even the dark.” His hand glided slowly up and down her spine, the heat spreading through her muscles and easing the spasm in her chest. “Better?”
She nodded.
He took her hand. Warm, steady, strong.
Her heart still pounded, but for a different reason.
He guided her down the hallway and paused at the dark kitchen. Rafe flipped on the light. No Alex.
A few steps farther, they reached the bedroom-living area. Rafe opened the door. Light from the flat-screen TV mounted on the wall filled the room. Alex sat on the couch, a video game controller in his hand, his attention glued to the race car exploding on the screen.
Still holding her hand, Rafe turned on the overhead light. “This is not where I told you to go or what I told you to do.” Annoyance sharpened his tone.
Surprise and irritation flashed across Alex’s face.
“Go to the kitchen. Grace is going to help with your homework,” Rafe said. “Be mindful and do what she says. I won’t take kindly to you disrespecting her.”
Alex tossed the controller on the coffee table, snatched his backpack and trudged past them with glaring eyes.
Rafe left Grace standing in the doorway, walked to the dresser and pulled a laptop from the top left drawer.
“The Wi-Fi password is rlauto.” He handed her the device.
“Your password is ripe for hacking. You should include an upper- and lowercase letter, a number and a special character.”
“I have a secondary password for my files.”
“You aren’t doing yourself any favors if it’s as easy as your first.”
“It isn’t.”
She followed him out of the room. “Would you mind if I did a video chat with a friend? He’s a math whiz and I think he can help with Alex’s attitude.”
“As long as Alex gets his homework done, do whatever you think is best.” Rafe continued down the hallway.
Grace walked into the kitchen and sat the laptop on the table.
“Nothing to eat or drink.” Alex slammed the small refrigerator door. “This sucks.”
Grace reached into the cabinet above the sink, pulled down the plastic container of beef jerky she remembered seeing and tossed it to Alex.
“Thanks.” Alex ripped open a package and chomped the first bite.
“Math gives you trouble, huh?” Grace booted the laptop. Several business-related folders appeared on the desktop, and one labeled family history.
Knowing Rafe was adopted, she assumed he was researching his biological family. She would ask him later if he wanted help. She had a friend who was an expert genealogist.
“Math is boring.” Alex unloaded two books from his backpack. “And I’m never going to use it.”
“What career are you planning?”
Alex shrugged. “Don’t kn
ow yet.”
“Then you can’t be sure you won’t need math.” Grace clicked on the internet icon and accessed a video chat app.
“What do you do?”
“I design websites and manage social media accounts, so I need to understand the analytics data on social networks to target appropriate audiences for my clients.”
Alex gave her a cautious look.
She laughed. “I call my friend, Raj, when I need help. He’s a math geek and works for NASA.”
Alex’s eyes widened. “You know someone at NASA?”
“Sure do.” She directed Rafe’s computer to dial Raj’s number. “He taught me how to play a decent game of chess and I taught him how not to suck at baseball.”
“For that you have my lasting gratitude.” Rajesh Patel’s dark-haired, dark-eyed, bronze-skinned image burst onto the computer screen. “Are you okay? I saw the TouchBase post about your accident.”
TouchBase was a social network that Grace and two friends had created in high school, specifically to help her military-brat friends stay connected with each other in a secure online environment.
“I’m good. Can’t let a little bump on the head get the best of me.” She turned the laptop so Alex could see the screen. “Raj, this is my new friend Alex. He’s having math troubles. I’m hoping you have a few minutes to give him pointers.”
Raj’s face lit up the way a parent’s did when talking about their beloved child. He seemed to forget about Grace and jumped right in to help Alex with his calculus homework.
Her skin began to tingle. She glanced at the kitchen entryway and saw Rafe lingering in the hallway. He turned to leave. Grace eased away from the table to follow.
“Hey,” she said, before Rafe reached the heavy door at the end of the hallway. “I thought you’d gone back to work.”
He turned, his brow creased. “I wanted to make sure Alex wasn’t giving you a hard time.”
“He was a little grumpy about your lack of snack foods, but we’re getting along fine.”
“The NASA guy,” Rafe said. “He’s just a friend?”
“Yeah. We attended the same junior high school in Okinawa. I kept in touch with him and most of the military kids I knew growing up.” Spread all over the world and in varied professions, they were her virtual family.
Rescued by the Wolf Page 7