by Kim Fox
A fluttering filled her chest as she picked up her favorite chocolate bar and read the note scribbled on the wrapper. It was from Rory and it read:
I’ll take over for you this afternoon so that you can nap. Until then, fuel up on your favorite chocolate bar. Great dance moves last night BTW!
- Rory
Candice smiled to herself as she carefully opened the wrapper of the chocolate bar, breaking off a piece as she read the note again. Rory was so thoughtful and cute. How could she not have a crush on him?
She had told him that this was her favorite chocolate bar about three weeks ago and he remembered. He’s so sweet.
Bubbles swam over and watched her with glazed over eyes.
“Things are looking up!” Candice said, biting into the chocolate. “Things are definitely looking up.”
Candice had been living in Colwood, Montana for almost two months now and so far it wasn’t too bad. She had left her hometown when the small stretch of forest by her house got bulldozed down to build an endless stretch of condominiums.
Candice was a fox shifter and needed some wilderness to let her animal run wild so when the forest was gone, so was she. She had heard a lot about the small town of Colwood. Every shifter was talking about it and it was quickly becoming known as a shifter haven; A place where shifters could come and let their inner animals run free.
It wasn’t quite that free and open she had discovered. But that was still the image that was out there in the shifter community.
Joan had hired her after a quick interview and Candice had been working at the inn ever since. She had a small apartment near the town, which wasn’t much but it was cute and comfy. The best part of it was the forest out back where she could let her fox roam for hours.
She liked everyone that she worked with but she had been drawn to Rory from day one. She absolutely loved his enthusiasm and lust for life. He was always happy and it felt like nothing could bring him down for long.
They quickly became friends, joking around and chatting all day. It didn’t take long for her to develop feelings for him and her new friend had rapidly become her new crush.
They flirted a lot but whenever Candice tried to bring things to the next level, he backed away, making it awkward.
“I don’t know what to do, Bubbles,” she said as she tossed another chocolate square into her mouth. “I’m stuck in the friend zone. Give me some advice.”
The fish swam away, giving her nothing.
When all of her work was done, she sat down and started reading her book. Joan let her read on the job if she had no work to do, which she loved. She was a big reader.
“Hey, Candice,” Jennifer said, looking hungover as she walked in and shuffled to the kitchen. “It’s mornings like this when I wish I was a shifter.” She held her head and closed her bloodshot eyes. “My head feels like there’s a Metallica concert going on inside of my skull. I can’t keep up with you shifters.”
Candice couldn’t relate. Her enhanced shifter healing meant that she never had hangovers.
“Are you going to be able to cook?” Candice asked, marking the page in her book as she put it down.
Jennifer turned green as she thought about it. “I’ll try,” she said, covering her mouth. “But if you lock the front door and tell people that we’re closed for the day, I won’t tell on you.”
“Good luck,” Candice said as Jennifer shuffled into the kitchen.
I guess I’m not eating here today.
She got back into her book, a fun romantic comedy. The main character in the story reminded her of Rory, so naturally, she pictured him as the male hero and herself as the female.
She had been so absorbed in the book a few hours later, that she didn’t notice the door open until a man and woman were at the front of her desk, ringing the bell rudely.
“Oops,” she said, tossing the book under her desk. It was right at the sexy part where the couple was about to do it for the first time. I hope my cheeks aren’t too red.
The man was large with wide strong shoulders and heated gray eyes that sent butterflies racing to Candice’s stomach. He was wearing a leather jacket with a patch of a paw print stitched onto the side.
“Rory,” he said, his deep voice coming out like a growl. “Where’s Rory?”
Candice shivered. She didn’t like the look of him. His face was hardened with dark stubble on his large jaw that contrasted with the short gray hair on his head.
“Who?” she asked, playing dumb as she glanced at the woman beside him. She was young and pretty with jet black hair that made her light gray eyes pop. Her features were small and delicate but her attitude was anything but. Candice didn’t know her at all but she could tell by the girl’s cold and rude body language that she was a total bitch.
Wolves. Both of them.
She could smell them. It kind of smelled like-
“Rory,” the guy repeated, grabbing a stack of invoices off of the desk. “Where is he?”
“Hey!” Candice said, jumping to her feet. She ripped the papers out of his hand and glared at him. “Those aren’t for you.”
The man stood up straight, staring her down with a look that made her stomach turn. “I asked you a question.”
“He’s not here,” she said, defiantly. She wasn’t about to tell this scary looking wolf shifter where her crush was.
“Bullshit,” the man said, walking around with his nose in the air. He was subtly sniffing the room, trying to find Rory’s scent.
“If you leave your name I can tell him that you stopped by,” she said, just hoping that they would leave. She had a bad feeling about them.
“The name is Drake,” he said, marching towards the front door. “But I’ll find him and tell him myself.”
“Wait,” Candice called out but it was no use. Drake didn’t stop. He left the inn, slamming the door closed behind him.
“So,” the girl said, turning to her with curious eyes. “Do you know Rory?”
Candice cleared her throat. “I’m sorry, who are you?”
The girl rolled her eyes. “I’m Rory’s mate, Nikki.”
Candice’s knees went weak and she fell backward onto the chair, letting out a huff of breath. If the chair hadn’t been there she would have fallen onto the floor.
She stared at the chocolate bar wrapper with the handwritten note that she had folded to bring home with her. He has a mate? Why didn’t he say anything?
“Oh,” she said, feeling all the color drain from her face. “He didn’t mention it.”
Nikki was watching her closely. “Really?” she said, her eyes hardening as she watched Candice. She seemed like she could sense what Candice was thinking, that she could sense her disappointment in hearing the shocking news. “Do you know him well?”
Candice tried to clear the hundreds of thoughts clouding up her mind. “Yeah,” she said, shaking her head. “I mean, I know him. He’s my boss but I don’t know him that well. He works on the ranch. He’s not here on me, I mean in me, I mean with me.” For the love of God, stop talking woman. She took a deep breath as she smoothed out her red hair with her hand. “Yes, I know him.”
“Then I’m sure he’s talked about me,” she said, flashing her a tight smile. “I’m his mate.”
“Yes,” Candice said, nodding as she finally recovered. “He speaks about you all of the time. I just didn’t recognize the name because he usually calls you his mate.”
Candice inched a little closer to the garbage can in case she had to barf in it.
“Oh,” Nikki said, sneering down at her from across the desk. “That makes more sense.”
Her eyes narrowed as she looked at Candice’s hair. “I love your hair,” she said. “It’s so ballsy how you just let it hang down all wild and carefree like that. I could never leave the house like that but good for you!”
Candice swallowed hard as she tucked a wild strand behind her ear. “Thank you,” she said, gritting her teeth as she looked the wolf shifter over. S
he wants to play like that? Alright, bring it on!
Candice had been enrolled in an all-girl Catholic school so she knew all about backhanded compliments. She could give it just as good as the next cunt.
“Thanks,” Candice said, smiling tightly at her. “It just goes wherever it wants to. I wish I had dry and damaged hair like yours. Then I could put it in whatever boring style I wanted to.”
Nikki took in a low hissing breath as she glared down at her. “What did you say your name was?”
“I didn’t,” Candice said, smiling wide. The two women just stared at each other as Candice didn’t offer her any additional information.
Nikki raised her nose and gave the air a quick sniff. “Fox shifter,” she said with a grin. “I thought fox shifter women were usually foxy.” She shrugged as she sneered at her. “I guess it’s just a name after all.”
“A wolf shifter, huh?” Candice said, not backing down from the bitchy bully. “It must be hard having two inner bitches living inside of you.”
Candice sat there, crossing her arms over her chest as the two of them glared at each other.
How could Rory be mated to a girl like her? He was such a nice guy and a bitchy girl like Nikki would just constantly take advantage of his good nature. She would chew him up and spit him out on a daily basis.
“Well,” Nikki said, adjusting her leather jacket as she slowly backed away from the reception desk. “I better go find my mate.”
“Good luck with that,” Candice said. “It may take a while, especially if he’s hiding from you.”
Nikki stopped as she opened the door, turning to Candice with a threatening look on her face. “Don’t worry,” she said with her eyes shining a sinister gray. “I’ll find him. And when I do, he’s coming back home with me.”
three
“I know what you’re thinking, punk,” Rory said, pointing his toothbrush like a handgun at the reflection staring back at him in the mirror. He tilted his cowboy hat as he glared forward, doing his best Clint Eastwood impression. “Did he brush six teeth or only five? To tell you the truth I forgot myself with all of the mintiness. But being this is a Colgate toothbrush and the most powerful toothbrush in the world and will blow your gingivitis clean off. You could ask yourself a question. Do my teeth feel minty?”
A hard knock on the door startled him and he dropped his toothbrush into the sink with a clatter. An old familiar smell came snaking in through the open window. It can’t be…
Rory’s slippers were frozen to the floor as he stared at the chipped paint on the back of the door with his heart racing.
“Rory,” Drake growled. “I can smell you in there. Open up!”
“Coming,” he said, his voice coming out in a squeak.
He tossed off his cowboy hat and slippers and opened the door, trying to look casual. “Drake!” he said, forcing out a smile. “What a surprise!”
Drake pushed the door open and stormed into the trailer, pushing Rory out of the way with his thick shoulder. “Is this where they got you living?” he asked, looking around with his hands on his hips. He picked up Rory’s favorite cowboy hat off of the bed and laughed. “Playtime is over. You’re coming home.”
“Wha-” Rory asked, feeling the room start to spin. He grabbed onto the counter to keep his balance. “I don’t understand. You kicked me out of the pack.”
Drake whipped his head around, glaring at him with a look that had Rory drop his eyes to the floor. Drake used to be his alpha and he hated having his orders questioned. Drake hated everything, actually.
“Was that a refusal of an alpha order?” Drake asked, the thick vein on his neck ready to pop.
Rory raised his chin, meeting Drake’s eyes. He wasn’t the scared little pup anymore who they had shipped off to the military. He had been through a lot, seen his fair share of fighting, and he wasn’t a coward by any stretch, but Drake had always been more than a little terrifying.
“It was just a question,” Rory corrected, keeping his breath calm and steady. “I was under the impression that I was out of the Tracker Pack when you handed me over to General Samson.”
It was still a sore spot with Rory. Years ago, a general in the US military came sniffing around their pack and demanded a recruit to be sent into the special shifter program. General Samson needed shifters to fight in his special missions and he came to an agreement with the Tracker Pack’s alpha Drake.
He would take one wolf shifter and the rest of the pack could carry on untouched.
Rory was ready to fight the general to the death or anyone else who tried to break apart his pack of wolf shifters but Drake had another idea. He just gladly turned Rory over.
It hurt then, and it still hurt now. It was his home and his family and they had just shipped him off like an unwanted puppy a week after Christmas.
General Samson had placed him in the Wilde Crew and that’s where he met Ashton, Gunner, and a few years later, Cole.
“To answer your question,” Drake said, stepping forward like a dark cloud. His voice was tight with anger, his upper lip curled over his teeth. He was the toughest wolf shifter that Rory had ever seen. He ran a pack of nearly two dozen wolves so he had to be ready to attack and ready to kill at the drop of a cowboy hat.
Rory gulped as he approached.
“You made a vow to the Tracker Pack,” Drake said with his nostrils flaring. “That vow is set for life as far as I am concerned.”
Rory wasn’t as tough as Drake but he did have some fight in him. “It didn’t expire when you betrayed me?” he asked, standing his ground.
“Betrayed you?” Drake repeated, snorting out a laugh. “Please. I have twenty-one wolves under my command. I have to do what’s best for my pack.”
“You hung me out to dry.”
Drake shrugged. “If you want to make an omelet, you have to break some eggs.”
Rory took a deep breath, trying to steady his nerves. “I’m happy here.”
“That’s great,” Drake said, nodding. “Pack your bags.”
Rory glanced at the exit as his heart skipped a beat. “What if I say no?”
Drake turned to him with bared teeth. Rory gulped as he glanced at the thick vein in Drake’s neck that was pulsing and twitching. Everyone in the Tracker Pack knew that when that vein started twitching, you’d better run because skulls were about to be cracked.
“What if you say no?” he asked, grabbing the back of Rory’s neck. His huge hand was incredibly strong and felt like a vice wrapped around his neck. “What if I take your head and shove it through that keyhole?”
He pulled Rory’s face to an inch from his. “You’re in the Tracker Pack for life,” he hissed with his warm spit and foul breath assaulting Rory’s cheek. “You either come back with us or I’ll skin your hide and hang you from a tree for those ravens out there to eat. You pick.”
“I’ll have to talk to my alpha first,” Rory said, cringing under Drake’s fierce grip.
“Your alpha!?!” he hollered, launching Rory at the door.
Rory crashed through it, breaking it easily as he fell onto the grass. He turned just in time to see Drake rushing through the doorway with a scowl on his face. “I’m your alpha!”
Drake looked like he was going to murder Rory as he jumped down onto the grass with his fists clenched by his sides. Rory tried to get to his feet but Drake crashed down on him, grabbing him by the collar.
“I let the first few signs of disrespect slide since you’ve been pussified by this crew,” Drake said, pulling back his fist. “But it’s time to give you a reminder of who your real alpha is.”
“Who his real what now is?” Joan said, stepping out of her trailer in flip flops.
She had jean shorts on that were short on her skinny chicken legs and a tight tank top that showed off her complete lack of biceps. She was chewing a big wad of bubble gum as she put her hair up into a ponytail on her way over.
Drake dropped Rory and stood up straight, staring down at the tiny girl
like she was a bomb that was about to explode. He stepped back carefully, barely taking a breath.
Rory couldn’t help but smirk as he got to his feet and stood beside his real alpha.
“I’m not looking for trouble,” Drake said, suddenly looking nervous. He was the alpha of the biggest wolf pack on the west coast and knew another dominant alpha when he saw one.
Joan may not have looked like much in her human form but there was a raging beast hiding under her skin. She had the most dominant animal inside of her that Rory had ever seen. A ferocious grizzly bear who Rory was always happy to have on his side.
“Why are you here?” Joan asked, crossing her skinny arms over her small perky breasts. She glared at Drake as she chewed her gum, waiting for his answer.
“I came to fetch Rory,” he said, never taking his eyes off of her.
Joan laughed. “You put your hands on my friend, you try to take a beloved member of my crew, and you say that you’re not looking for trouble?”
She kicked off her flip flops one by one and stepped forward with her bare feet on the grass. “Buddy,” she said, walking right up to him without a care in the world. “You may not be looking for trouble but you stepped right into it like a big steaming pile of dog shit.”
Drake glanced at the two motorcycles that were parked near the trucks. “I didn’t realize-” he stammered, not finishing his sentence.
“You didn’t realize what?” she asked, throwing a hand up in his face. “That there was a ninety-pound white girl about to stick a dog bone up your ass? Get the fuck off my ranch!”
Rory glanced over his shoulder when he heard a laugh. Cole and Rhett were leaning against the trailer, watching with amused expressions on their faces.
Drake looked at Cole and Rhett before settling his hard eyes back on Rory. “You made a vow, Rory,” he said, making Rory shudder. His alpha words ripped straight through him, seizing the wolf within. “You drew the blood, you said the words. Tracker Pack forever.”
Rory’s wolf shuddered from within, trying to make Rory submit to his old pack leader. Wolves valued loyalty over anything else and it was killing his inner animal to disobey his former pack leader.