by Juniper Hart
It had not occurred to him that the pretty blonde was genuinely interested in him until a week later, when she asked him on a date. He had told her under no uncertain terms that there was no future between them, but apparently the message had not seemed to stick.
I’m going to have to do something about Carmen, he thought unhappily, but he knew his woe was based more on the fact that Everly had been hurt.
Still, he could not get the idea of the tall, slender redhead from his mind. If he thought about her before, she had almost become an obsession in his thoughts after their tryst in his office.
Just one night with her, he lied to himself. If we just had one night together, I’m sure I could get it out of my system. Maybe the same will hold true for her. She can’t possibly want a real relationship with me. I’m her dad’s best friend.
The fact that Everly was avoiding him made the desire to have her almost insurmountable, and he found himself distracted.
When his phone rang, he almost didn’t notice it until the cell fell from his desk, vibrating on the calamander wood floor.
It was Kevin Castle.
Michael grimaced and debated whether or not it was a good idea to answer.
It was the third time Kevin had called in two days, and Michael could only imagine what his long-time friend might want.
Sighing, he answered. “Michael Vanier.”
“Where the hell have you been?” Kevin barked. “I’ve been trying to get hold of you for two days!”
Michael felt his blood run cold at his friend’s tone. Everly wouldn’t have said anything to him, would she?
He couldn’t fathom a scenario where Everly might feel the need to pour her heart out to her father, but maybe she had told Cynthia and she had told her husband?
“I’m a busy man, Kevin. What’s the matter?” he replied evenly.
“I have to get out of this house. The women are driving me insane,” Kevin growled. “Come and pick me up.”
Michael wondered if there was a hidden message in his words, but he couldn’t decipher anything from what Kevin had said.
You better go get him. You don’t have a choice. If he found out about you and Everly somehow…
“I just have to figure out some things here at the office,” he relented. “Give me an hour, okay?”
“Hurry up!” Kevin snapped. “I don’t know if I have an hour.”
The call disconnected, and Michael rose from his desk, his heart pounding. He had to find Everly and ask her who she had told about them.
As he left his office, Carmen kept her eyes fixated on her computer as she had been doing since their uncomfortable conversation on Friday.
These women are going kill me, he thought, and suddenly Kevin’s words made sense.
They were nearing a full moon.
The females were undoubtedly on high alert, their mating instincts on overdrive.
Still, Michael had to be certain the full moon was the problem, and that he wasn’t walking into an ambush with a furious father.
Michael scanned the workspace floor looking for Everly, but instead, his eyes landed on the IT manager.
“Can I help you with something, Mr. Vanier?” Roger asked.
“I’m looking for Everly Castle. Have you seen her today?”
Roger shook his head, his brow furrowing in confusion. “Actually, no, I haven’t,” he confessed. “Maybe she called in sick?”
A fission of alarm coursed through Michael, and he hurried towards the elevators to pay a visit to Human Resources.
When he entered the second floor, he was met with surprise.
“Is everything all right, Mr. Vanier?” Todd asked, and he nodded.
“I’m looking for Everly Castle, the new intern. Has she called in today?”
Todd punched the name into the computer and nodded.
“Yes. Actually, she’s been out sick for the last three days, sir,” Todd replied, his brow furrowing. “She’s going to need a doctor’s note when she comes back.”
Michael barely heard him, hurrying back toward his office.
He had only thought that Everly had been expertly avoiding him for the last few days. It hadn’t even dawned on him that she had not been in the office.
Dammit! Does that mean she’s been hanging around the house? Or worse, that she’s planning to leave Ogden?
The stress of the situation hit him full force, and he rushed back upstairs and into his office to retrieve his keys, cell, and jacket before flying out the door.
“Mr. Vanier, you have a two o’clock—” Carmen started to say, but Michael waved dismissively at her.
“Cancel my entire afternoon. I won’t be back.”
“But Mr. Vanier—”
He didn’t hear the rest of her protest as he bolted down the stairwell, forsaking the elevators altogether. Michael had to stop Everly from doing whatever nonsense she had planned in her mind. He hoped she hadn’t already accepted the new job. Maybe she was just sick, but he couldn’t take that chance.
He was at the Castle home in fifteen minutes, driving faster and angrier than he had in a long time
She is acting like a child, Michael thought furiously. I should have known better than to get involved with her. She is a child who is going to act out against the interest of the pack. Maybe Kevin has been right about her all along. What is wrong with me? Why did I pursue this?
Michael knew he was as much to blame for the situation as Everly, but he couldn’t help feeling that she was overreacting.
This is the price you pay for chasing young girls, he thought tersely. In his gut, though, he hoped he was wrong.
Everly had seemed different than other women her age, like she wasn’t from this century.
As Michael pulled up outside the house, he jumped from the car, trying to formulate the right words to say to Kevin.
Wiping his palms on his pants, he knocked on the door and waited impatiently. In seconds, Kevin stood in the doorway looking frazzled.
“God, get me out of here!” he cried, pushing his way onto the stoop.
“What’s going on?” Michael demanded, trying to look past him into the house. “Where are Cynthia and Everly?”
Kevin grunted. “Don’t ask,” he muttered. “They’re sick and miserable. I can’t deal with them anymore. Get me out of here.”
Michael eyed his friend with mild disgust. “They’re sick? That’s why you need to leave the house?”
“Have you ever been around two vomiting females? It’s horrible!” Kevin complained, his eyes wide with self-pity. “Don’t look at me like that!”
“Do they need anything?” Michael asked, ashamed that he was relieved to learn Everly was genuinely sick, and not merely avoiding him out of spite.
“I don’t know!” Kevin growled. “I tried bringing them soup and water to keep them hydrated, but nothing is good enough. What more can I do? All they’ve been doing for three days is bitching and complaining.”
Michael’s eyes narrowed. “They aren’t healing naturally?” he asked, his brow furrowing, and Kevin seemed to pause at the question.
“No…” he answered slowly, as if the gravity of that had suddenly occurred to him. “They aren’t…”
“What is wrong with you, Kevin? Something is seriously wrong. Where are they?” Michael demanded, pushing himself inside the foyer. “Are they in bed?”
“What are you yelling about?” Cynthia growled, entering the foyer in her robe and slippers. She looked terrible, her face bloated with red, and Michael narrowed his eyes.
Her complexion was an unhealthy shade of green, and he felt a stab of panic as he gazed at her.
“How long have you been sick?” he questioned, drawing closer to her.
He instantly felt the depletion in his body, and he quickly stepped back.
Oh, no…
“Where is Everly? Is she as bad as you are?”
“She’s upstairs sleeping,” Cynthia muttered. “I think she’s worse, but I haven’t
really seen her all day. I’m going back to bed. Keep your voices down. My head is pounding.”
“What did you eat?” Michael asked, mounting the stairs as the couple stared at him in disbelief. “What did you and Everly eat that Kevin didn’t?”
They didn’t respond, and Michael pushed his way into Everly’s room, where she was curled onto her side, pale and gaunt.
“Everly,” he called softly, pushing her shoulder. “Everly, wake up.”
She rolled over to look at him uncomprehendingly. “What are you doing here?” she rasped, her blue eyes widening. She struggled to sit up as her parents appeared in the doorway.
“Mike, what are you talking about?” Kevin demanded. “What are you asking?”
Michael rose, glaring at his friend. “Didn’t you think it was odd that they were sick and not healing?” he snarled. “Or are you so self-absorbed that it didn’t occur to you that Lycans don’t get the flu?”
Kevin seemed taken aback by his tone. “What do you mean?” he asked weakly. “It’s just a cold—”
“Since when do Lycans get colds for three days? And the vomiting? They have silver poisoning!” he snarled, and Kevin shook his head in denial as the women gasped.
“No way!” Kevin protested. “They would be dead.”
Michael scoffed. “It’s not intentional, so it seems they only had a very small amount. It likely came from something they ate or drank.” Michael looked back to Everly, softening his tone. “Think, what did you eat?”
The three stared at him, and a look of understanding seemed to fall over them collectively.
“Oh…” Everly mumbled. “The fish.”
Cynthia sat on the bed at her daughter’s side. “Right,” she recalled. “The leftovers from the restaurant.”
“Thankfully, that won’t be enough to kill you, but you will probably be sick another day or two. You need electrolytes,” Michael told them. “Kevin and I are going to the pharmacy.”
He gestured for his friend, who stood motionless as if he realized what an ass he had been.
“Kevin!” Michael barked. “Let’s go. They need coconut water.”
He nodded, looking at his family in despair, but the women were too weak to acknowledge his silent apology.
“Michael,” Everly croaked, and he turned to look at her.
“Don’t try to speak,” he told her. “Just rest.”
She shook her matted red hair and sat up weakly. “No,” she murmured. “I… Thank you.”
They stared at each other for a long moment, and Michael felt his heart begin to pound as he studied her face, bruised with fatigue and illness, but still beautiful.
“You’re both going to be all right,” he promised, pulling his eyes away from her. “Trust me.”
“I do,” she sighed, and Michael turned away, but not before he saw a flash of concern in Kevin’s eyes as he squared his shoulders and his lips formed a fine line.
“What are you waiting for?” Michael snapped at his friend, trying to regain control of his thudding pulse. “Let’s go.”
Without a word, Kevin followed him down the stairs, but Michael could feel the shift in his friend’s behavior as they left the house.
He sensed something there, Michael thought, gnawing on the insides of his cheeks. And I don’t care as much as I thought I would.
But somehow the thought of being discovered by Kevin was outweighed by the knowledge that Everly still cared about him and was not hiding away in some childish sulk.
Hope still remained for them, after all.
Chapter Eight
Something significant had changed when Everly returned to work three days later.
The electrolytes had cleansed the silver nitrate from both her and her mother’s bloodstreams, and when she woke up that morning, Everly felt energized and healthy.
She went into her parents’ room to check on her mom, but she was still asleep. As Everly dressed for work, she wondered why she suddenly felt differently about Michael.
Dad was more concerned about getting out of the house and away from us than he was about our health. It took Michael two minutes to figure out what Dad couldn’t see in days.
The understanding filled her with anger and gratitude simultaneously.
She wanted to scream at her father for being so insensitive, but she held her tongue, staring out the window as they drove silently to work.
How long would we have been sick if Michael hadn’t come by the house? Would Dad have ever noticed? Probably not.
When she walked inside the office, Everly tried to keep her head down, but her co-workers swarmed her, demanding to know where she had been for the past week.
“Lunch hasn’t been the same without you!” Lizzie insisted. “And Carmen has been acting crazy since you’ve been gone.”
Everly felt her jaw clench at the sound of Carmen’s name, but she didn’t react. “Oh, yeah?” she asked calmly. “What happened?”
Lizzie chuckled, linking her arm through Everly’s and leading her toward the lady’s room.
“She’s been reassigned to assisting Ian Charlton instead of Mr. Vanier.”
Her head jerked up and she gaped at the older woman.
“What?” she demanded, her cheeks flushing. “Why?”
Lizzie shrugged her shoulders. “Between you and me,” she whispered, glancing about to ensure they weren’t being overheard, “I think that Carmen has a thing for Mr. V.”
Everly tensed. “What makes you think that?” she asked, desperately trying to maintain her stoic appearance.
Lizzie chuckled. “At the Christmas party, Carmen made a pass at him, and he shot her down flat. I’m shocked he didn’t fire her ass right on the spot, but that’s Mr. Vanier for you. Always willing to give people the benefit of the doubt. I guess he realized she was drunk and acting stupid.”
Everly felt a wave of relief wash through her. He never had anything with Carmen. She has been chasing after him and he’s been refusing her.
She suddenly felt foolish for how she had acted towards Michael.
I should apologize to him, she thought as Lizzie entered one of the stalls. I acted like a jealous wife, and I had no reason to treat him like that without hearing his side of the story.
“The good news is,” Lizzie continued, “Mr. V is looking for another assistant. I recommended you.”
Everly froze. “Me? I just started working here. Surely, he’ll want someone with more experience—”
“No,” Lizzie called out, interrupting Everly’s doubt. “He thought it was a great idea. You’re starting today, but he’s out of the office all day, so you’re stuck training with Carmen.”
Everly didn’t know what to make of the sudden promotion. Is this his way of keeping me close, or does he really believe I can do this? Realistically, both ideas filled her with excitement.
No matter how upset she had been with Michael, her attraction to him had not faltered.
“He’s not here today?” Everly mumbled.
“No,” Lizzie replied, opening the stall door. “Once a month, he has meetings with the board and goes into Salt Lake City all day. He’s not to be disturbed.”
Once a month he goes to Salt Lake City…
The hairs on the back of Everly’s neck began to rise, and she realized what day it was.
“What’s the matter, Everly? You suddenly went pale.”
She blinked and looked at the receptionist, shaking her head. “I’m actually not feeling as strong as I thought,” she replied suddenly. “I think I might need to take another day.”
Lizzie peered at her skeptically. “Are you sure you can afford to miss another day?” she asked pointedly. “You’ve been out sick all week.”
Everly swallowed and nodded. “Yes,” she whispered. “I have to go.”
She flew from the bathroom, almost knocking over Carmen.
“Sorry, Carmen,” she mumbled, shuffling past the blonde, but to her surprise, Carmen’s hand shot out and she grabbed
Everly’s arm.
“I heard that you’re going to be Mr. Vanier’s new assistant,” she said, and there was anger in her voice.
For the first time since Everly had known her, the lovely girl seemed mean, her blue eyes narrowing dangerously.
“I’m not sure,” Everly replied cautiously. “Lizzie mentioned something about it, but I haven’t been officially asked.”
“You’re screwing him, aren’t you?” Carmen spat, and Everly was stunned by the ire emanating from her lips.
Her face flushed deep red. “Of course not!” she hissed. “And keep your voice down!”
“Then why would he choose you over people who have been here for years?”
Everly studied her angry face and bit her lip. I have to stop this rumor from flying around before it gets ugly.
“Mr. Vanier is my dad’s best friend,” she confessed, heat rising to her face as she admitted the connection.
Michael had been very clear that she was not to mention their relationship from the start, but the repercussions of not saying anything would be astronomical.
She watched as Carmen’s face shifted into several different expressions, finally settling on embarrassment.
“Oh, I didn’t know,” she mumbled, turning away. “Please don’t tell him I said anything to you. He already— I mean, I’m already— Never mind.”
Carmen hurried away before Everly could respond, and she sighed deeply. She didn’t have time to worry about Carmen. She had to get out of the office and back home as soon as possible.
Why didn’t Dad remind me? Everly wondered, clenching her jaw. It was just another reason to loathe her father. I bet Michael would have reminded me.
“Is that true?” Lizzie asked from behind her, and Everly whirled to stare at her.
“What?” she asked. “Is what true? About Mr. Vanier?”
Lizzie nodded, her eyes narrowing. “Yes. Is he really your dad’s best friend?”
Everly shrugged and then nodded. “Yes. But it’s no big deal—”
Lizzie scoffed, her mouth becoming a fine line of anger. “Easy for you to say. You’re the one who’s been spying on us since you got here.”
“Spying on you? That doesn’t make any sense. Why would I spy on you?” Everly retorted.