by Rayna Stone
* * * *
James felt the July heat blast him the minute he opened his car door. He preferred the fall weather in Colorado to this oppressive heat. Still, it would never be too hot for coffee, and at seven in the morning, that was exactly what he needed. It had become their routine. James and Ryan would hit up the local coffee shop that their friend Kent owned and have a cup or two before they headed in to work. Half the town usually dropped by before they left for work, so it was a good way to keep in touch with everyone.
He had a feeling that Kent could use a friendly face right about now. Last week there was a murder victim found within their town’s limits, and Detective Troy Davis believed that the murderer had been in their BDSM club. Kent was head of security there, and this breach was pissing him off. They had all been aware of the serial killer that Troy was hunting, but last week was the first time the whole situation hit so close to home. James and Ryan’s closest friend, Kelly Rivers, was dating Troy and they were all feeling the stress. Now, Troy wanted them to help get information from the Denver BDSM club members.
He knew that all of them would do whatever Troy asked to find the monster that was killing young women in their community, but he also knew things would get worse before they got better. For now, they would take it one day at a time.
Ryan heaved a sigh as they approached the door. “God, I need a whole pot of coffee if I’m gonna make it through my appointments today. I have Mrs. Simms. I swear that woman will never be convinced that she didn’t actually give birth to that cat. If she starts crying again just because he needs vaccines I’m gonna lose it.”
James smiled at Ryan. He would never tell him that most of the crazier clients specifically asked for Ryan because he catered to their insanity. He even once spent a whole appointment “listening” to a dog because the owner insisted that the dog just needed to vent. Of course, since Kat usually dealt with most of the owners and their extreme demands these days, he did feel sorry for Ryan. She was home with the new baby for a few weeks and Ryan had a hard time saying “no.” Even if he ended up doing home visits because the owners didn’t think the animal could handle the stress of the trip.
James opened the door to the coffee shop and stopped dead in his tracks. Ryan slammed into his back and cursed under his breath until he spotted what had paralyzed James. It wasn’t until Kent came out of the kitchen and cleared his throat that James realized they were both still standing there just staring at the elusive little woman who held a starring role in their fantasies.
She had at least four tables pulled together at the back of the shop with maps and papers spread out everywhere. Two laptops were open on either side of her, and she was furiously rummaging through a book so thick he doubted she could lift it. Her curly hair was pulled into a bun at the top of her head, and there were at least four pencils sticking out of it. She was a mess. He had never seen a more adorable sight.
James left Ryan staring at their mystery girl and went to the counter to pump information from Kent. “Hey, man. Two coffees and anything you know about the woman back there.”
Kent smiled at James and shook his head. “The coffee I can handle, but that little number is a bit of a mystery. She’s been here since six this morning. Just showed up like she was going to move in and asked for a pot of coffee while she started rearranging my tables.”
James could understand why Kent seemed confused. Kent was one hell of a big guy. Most people were a little afraid of him. He couldn’t imagine such a little thing coming in and taking over Kent’s shop. The plot thickens.
“She said her name’s Alexa and that she moved here at the beginning of summer, but I don’t recall having seen her. You?”
Oh yes. They’d seen her. Since that night at the Tavern, their angel seemed to haunt not only their dreams, but their town. They’d see her for a split second in her car, or just miss her at the grocery store as she was hightailing it out of the checkout. But the sightings were so rare he and Ryan often joked that they’d imagined them. The professor had been gone all summer with his students, and nobody knew a thing about this woman. Poor Justin was still having heart palpitations because he never got to give her a peanut butter pie.
“How does she find anything? I want to go over there and organize everything for her.” Ryan’s hands kept fisting like he couldn’t hold himself back. He hated disorganization.
“It may look that way,” Kent said, “but she sure knows where everything is. I have never seen anyone so focused when they work. She hasn’t looked away from her table and charts since she got here except to go to the bathroom. I even saw her type on both of those computers…at the same time. I didn’t know people could do that. The only thing she can’t ever find is a pen or pencil. She keeps digging new ones out and then stuffing them in that nest on her head.” He paused for a moment just to look at her and then huffed out a laugh. “Cute little thing.” This last was said so quiet James wasn’t sure he was meant to hear.
“Yes, she is cute. We’ll see you later, Kent.” James hoped the clipped words were enough of an indicator for Kent to understand that he’d better stay away from her. Until James and Ryan had a chance to get to know her and see if she was available, he didn’t want anyone else sniffing around.
James walked straight to her table, Ryan glued to his side. At the sound of their approach, Alexa lifted her eyes. He noted her surprised intake of breath, the flush of color that suffused her face. She seemed to get control of herself a little too quickly for his liking though.
Offering her his hand, James decided to finally get this woman’s full name. “Hello, I’m James Gainer and this is Ryan Stromfield. Kent over there just told us that you’re new to the area. I think we saw you with Professor Holcox a while ago at the Tavern.”
Alexa looked up at them both for a moment before she seemed to remember that a response was in order. “Yes, hi…I’m Alexa Green. I um…I moved here in May. I’m working with Professor Holcox so I haven’t been around much this summer. I remember you from the Tavern. It’s nice to meet you both.”
She seemed jittery, but he really wasn’t sure if it was a response to them or all the coffee she’d consumed. “Have you come with your family? This is a wonderful place to raise kids.”
Alexa’s expression seemed to fall a bit. “No, it’s just me. It does seem like a wonderful town though. I’m looking forward to the semester starting. My summer has been really hectic, but hopefully once the school year starts I’ll have more time to really get to know some people here. Settle in a bit.”
Single. Game on. James could see the smile lighting Ryan’s face and knew that it mesmerized Alexa as much as it did him. “Well, you just let us know when your schedule calms down a bit. Ry and I would love to show you around. We need to get to work, but I’ll have Kent write our numbers down for you.”
Alexa’s eyes widened a bit. “Wait. Are you two the vets here? I’ve been trying to remember why your names sound familiar. I’m taking in a colleague’s dog in a week. I just scheduled an appointment to update him with a woman named Katherine.” James watched in fascination as she rooted through her enormous planner and slapped at a page in triumph. “Yup, nine o’clock next Saturday with a Dr. Stromfield.”
Ryan finally seemed to find his voice. “That’s me. I look forward to it, Alexa.” James caught Ryan give her a playful wink. They’d have to talk about how they wanted to play this, and James would have to convince Ryan to go slow. There was no reason to get their hopes up for anything until they knew Alexa more, but meeting her face–to-face only strengthened the attraction he felt from a distance.
“Great! I’ll see you on Saturday then. And I’d love for you guys to show me around town. I’ve been dying to get on some of those hiking trails.”
Perfect. Hiking was a great way to have alone time to talk. Not much else to do. He’d rather take her horseback riding, but James would take any opportunity to figure her out.
They said their good-byes and headed for wor
k. Both seemed a little lost in quiet contemplation. At least they had a name and knew she’d be around more. Chasing a phantom around town was starting to wear on both their nerves.
Chapter Four
Alexa woke up the following Saturday morning and felt like she’d been shoved off a cliff. After racing home Friday night to meet with her colleague Zack to take in his dog, she barely got more than four hours of sleep. This morning she had to haul Precious to the vet and get a few more supplies for their last week at camp. She could not wait for this dig to be over. She had been working so hard and driving so much she was starting to get a little slaphappy. But she was glad Precious was here.
Five years ago on a dig in Arizona she had found the puppy and immediately fallen in love. She and Zack, the lead for that dig, had cared for the poor thing all summer and it nearly broke her heart to leave him. Thankfully, since they both traveled so much, they devised a sort of joint custody. When Zack was out of the country, she would take Precious. Since that was about six months of the year, the dog had grown close to both of them, and was an excellent companion on hikes and digs.
Her only concern was how other people would react to Precious. As best they could tell, he was a wolf and Malamute mix, but he looked like he was all North American wolf. He was about one hundred and ten pounds of muscle covered in silver and black hair. Not the cuddliest looking creature, but he was as docile as a lamb. She’d already warned Katherine at the vet’s office that people tended to be afraid of him and was assured that she would be the only client in the office at her appointment time. Hopefully Precious behaved himself and they could get this over with quickly. He may be docile, but he didn’t mind growling a bit and she really didn’t want to upset Dr. Stromfield.
That man was luscious on a stick with peanut butter coating. When she first saw the two men at the restaurant, she was stunned by their beauty. It was rare for her to be attracted to anyone, she usually didn’t even notice men, but both of them were just too gorgeous to miss. She couldn’t help but stare in admiration. Then when they introduced themselves at the coffee shop and said they wanted to show her around town she nearly peed herself. She was determined to throw caution to the wind and make friends. She was going to stop worrying that she didn’t deserve them, and she was going to stop worrying about rejection. She wanted to feel like part of something, and starting with two men like that at her side would definitely not be a hardship. She’d had sex, but it wasn’t anything to miss. And though she wouldn’t be having any with those gods, it wouldn’t hurt to look.
Alexa trudged into her little bathroom that was covered in green marble and let the smile overtake her face. She loved her new home. She didn’t care that it cost a bit much for its size, it had custom marble and stone just about everywhere she looked. She couldn’t imagine a more beautiful place to live. And after next week, she could actually start to furnish it. Sleeping in her sleeping bag was really starting to piss her off. Her muscles didn’t take to the hard surfaces like they did when she was twenty. She turned on the shower and made the water as hot as she could stand it so it would loosen the kinks. A cup or three of coffee and she’d be ready to face the day. And those gorgeous men.
* * * *
“Come on, you stupid mutt! Get out of the car.” Alexa was pulling on Precious’s harness with all her might, but the damn dog just sat stoically in the back seat with a look of disdain on his face. “You want the good doctors to think you don’t listen to me? Fine, I’ll find you a really big pack of mean wolves and let them decide if they want to keep you.” She hissed. “Precious, get out of the damn car right this minute!” Shit! She really wanted him to make a good impression with everyone, and so far he was just making her look like a lunatic. “I bet there are some lovely kitties in there,” she said in a singsong voice. That got his attention. Precious bounded out of the car and dragged her to the door. What an ungrateful…he is definitely not getting any steak for a week.
Alexa opened the door a crack to peek in and make sure there really weren’t any unsuspecting kittens in the waiting room. When she only saw a woman behind the desk, she breathed a sigh of relief. Precious had never actually killed anything other than the occasional rabbit or squirrel, but he was still part wolf and she wouldn’t take any chances with other people’s dearly beloved pets.
When Precious pushed his way into the room, the woman squealed with delight and ran around the desk to get a better look. “Oh my God! This is so cool. He’s gorgeous. I can’t believe you actually own a real live wolf. I always wanted to see one up close. He’s so big. Can I pet him? Has he ever been aggressive? I read a lot about wolves ever since you called. You can barely see any Malamute in him! Ryan is gonna freak. He’s a tiny bit afraid of wild animals, but don’t say I said that. What an enormous head!”
All Alexa could do was stare. She could swear the woman hadn’t even taken a breath yet. She was ogling Precious like he was the rarest creature she had ever seen and yammering away. Thankfully Precious was just sitting there like a king who knew his subjects were in awe of him. He really was a good dog.
“You can pet him if you want, but don’t take off the muzzle. He’s never bitten a person before, but I don’t take chances with him and strangers.” Before she could even finish the sentence the woman was all over Precious. It was cute to see such unrestrained joy over such a large and feral looking animal. She couldn’t remember anyone reacting to Precious this way before. It was nice that someone else appreciated his beauty like she did.
The curvy redhead on the floor suddenly looked up like she just realized Alexa was there. “I’m sorry, I didn’t even introduce myself. I got carried away. I’m Kat. The technician here. I’m actually still on maternity leave, so I only work a few hours a week, but I could not miss seeing this dog.” And that was it. She was back to loving on Precious. Alexa was starting to worry that maybe Kat had a condition. How did anyone lose focus so easily?
“Um, Kat? Could we maybe get him in a room soon? I don’t want to scare the locals if anyone decides to pop in.”
Kat looked up at her with a sheepish grin. “Yeah, that might be wise. Sometimes I have the attention span of a gnat. I’m sorry. I know you’re a little worried about all this today. It will be just fine, Alexa. I don’t think anyone will call animal control on you.” She led Precious into an exam room, all business again. Alexa hoped she was right, she hadn’t even thought about animal control.
“Here you go. Just have a seat and Ryan should be with you in a minute.”
“Wait! You just said Ryan would freak out! Can’t the other doctor maybe take the appointment?”
Kat looked utterly excited. “Well, it’s Ryan’s appointment slot. Trust me, it will be fine.” With that, Kat spun around and closed the door behind her. Shit, shit, shit. Alexa looked at Precious and just prayed he acted like a civilized animal.
* * * *
Ryan was sitting in his chair in the office he shared with James. He was trying to calm the raging hard-on he had from knowing that his next appointment was with the luscious Ms. Alexa Green. Damn. She was one fine-looking woman. If he didn’t get this under control, he’d embarrass himself in a way he’d managed to avoid since he was sixteen.
He opened his eyes when he heard James walk into the office. “What are you doing? Don’t you have an appointment?”
“Yes,” Ryan snapped. He closed his eyes and blew out a frustrated breath. “My appointment is with Alexa. I can’t go in there like this.” He pointed to the obvious tent in his pants.
James groaned softly. “Shit, I forgot she was coming in today. Well, hell.” Ryan opened his eyes a bit and noticed that now James was suffering from the same problem. Yup, they needed to figure out how to get that woman between them before they ended up with medical problems. Their sex life had amped up considerably since they first saw her, and it was never slack to begin with. James had a very good imagination. Every time he shared a fantasy about Alexa, they ended up fucking like maniacs. If the
y didn’t have her soon, he’d start needing to invest in ice packs for his overused cock. That just wasn’t something he ever thought possible.
James shook his head and ran his hands down his face. “Get it together, Ryan. We need to get to know her before we entertain anymore thoughts of getting her in bed. In the meantime, just try to be a gentleman. Which means you need to control yourself.” James’s tone was severe. Ryan knew he’d just been given an order by his Dom, but this was a tough one to follow. Cold showers, old ladies, swollen dick. That did it. Apparently his cock understood the message. Taking a deep breath, he stood up and glared at James. The smile on his face and the bulge in his pants told Ryan that he was probably going to jack off in the bathroom to the image of Ms. Green. Fucker. Why the hell didn’t I think of that first?
Ryan stomped out of the office and down the hall. Time to be a gentleman. He opened the door and pulled it closed behind him. He couldn’t look at her just yet, he needed to get into doctor mode and get this appointment started. Just then he noticed the extremely large wolf eyeing him up from the floor. Holy fuck. A sound escaped his lips he was pretty sure five-year-old girls couldn’t make, but he didn’t care. He whirled around and bashed his face right into the closed door. Son of a bitch! He heard a gasp and saw a flurry of movement in his peripheral vision, but he was mostly seeing spots. Right when he turned back and bent over to grab his potentially broken nose, he smacked into Alexa’s face with his forehead.
“Fuck! Ouch!” Alexa was now holding her own nose, and tears were streaming from her eyes. Goddamnit. He grabbed her arm and managed to get them both out of the room with the deadly predator and slammed the door closed again. Alexa was staring at him with her big blue eyes, her strawberry-blonde hair in a mass of curls around her head. “You’re bleeding,” she whispered. “I’m so sorry. I should have warned you about Precious.”