by Jones,Skye
“You should train the female with the long brown hair. The one who fought the rogues when they attacked.” I tried to keep the peace.
Jake stared at me as if a green alien stood in his kitchen.
“Females aren’t enforcers, Laura.”
“Oh, sorry.” My face heated. Great, I’d put my foot in it. “She fought so well, I thought…”
“You thought right, hon.” Cait rubbed my arm and shot Jake a heated glare. “Your rules are antiquated. There are at least three females in this pack who’d be as good an enforcer as any of the males. So bloody sexist.” She stomped to the kettle and flipped the switch.
“Not sexist, babe. Practical. Females—”
“Are rare.” Cait finished for him. “Yes. We get it, you tell us all the time. But think about this. None of the women…females I have in mind seem at all ready to settle down. So they aren’t going to be having young anytime soon and perpetuating the pack. Might not do so for decades—or even centuries! So what? In the meantime, they sit around here knitting? For the love of God, when you face a real threat, you use your best weapons. You don’t keep them on the shelf gathering dust, on the off chance that at some unknown point in the future they will possibly produce more weapons.”
Wow. When she put it like that, she made a good point.
Jake’s jaw looked about to shatter he held it set so tight, but he looked at Cait and slowly let out a breath. He nodded. “I don’t like it, but you’re right. I’ll bring it up with my father.”
Cait smiled at him and kissed his cheek. His features softened, and his eyes darkened as he gazed down at her. He pulled her in for a hug, and I turned away, wanting to give them a moment of privacy and not wanting them to notice the tears I brushed away. The way Jake looked at Cait astounded me. So much love shone in his eyes. I longed for someone to feel the same way about me.
I might have been the popular girl at school, but I’d always picked the worst guys to go out with. I seemed to have an arsehole radar. In a room of great guys, I’d reliably pick the dick every single time. Gemma once told me she thought I had a fear of commitment and so picked unsuitable men as a way of avoiding it. I thought maybe I’d broken my streak with my fixation on Boyd, but he seemed as unavailable as the players from my past, only for markedly different reasons.
A loud banging at the door rent the air. My God. Startled, I dragged in a deep breath and put my hand to my heart and tried to calm its racing. Talk about skittish!
Jake untangled himself from Cait and walked to the door, his long-legged gait eating up the space. He turned the lock and pulled back the latch. Something new I presumed, because Cait often raved about how they often left their doors unlocked in the village.
Drew, Louis, and Boyd stood in the early morning light, and as Jake stepped back, they all trooped into the kitchen. I swallowed hard. These guys made the room seem small by their very presence.
“Hey, Laura.” Drew threw me a friendly smile, and Louis raised his hand in a wave, too. Boyd simply looked at me. His eyes seemed devoid of any particular emotion, but I didn’t miss the way he flicked his gaze down my body and back up again. Hell, it licked a path of heat all over, from the top of my head to the tips of my toes as if he’d scorched me with his mere look.
I glanced down at myself and remembered too late I only wore a strappy camisole top and my cotton pajama bottoms. A simple outfit, but particularly now with the new boobs I’d gained, it seemed somehow to scream out my femininity. I crossed my arms over my chest and aimed a scowl at him, and I swore his mouth twitched in return.
“No women at the meeting, then?” Cait rolled her eyes.
“Actually, yes. Three of the elders will be there, along with Marissa.” Drew smiled at Cait.
“Oh, okay. Well, that’s good.” She raised her chin. “About time you males stopped acting as if anything without a Y chromosome was useless.”
“We don’t think you are useless,” Louis said. “But you are most certainly precious.”
“Oh, God. Not in the mood today.” Cait surprised me by going over to Louis and giving him a hug. “I love you, Louis, but you and Drew make Jake here look positively feminist.”
Louis shrugged. “Not sure what you mean, but I love you too, Cait. Thanks for the presents for Izzy. She loves the bath oil.” He kissed the top of her head, and she came to stand by me.
“Lock the door when we’re gone, and please don’t leave the village without letting us know.” Jake fixed Cait with a deadly serious look.
“I won’t,” she muttered.
“Good girl.” He came and lifted her chin and laughed. “Only joking. Knew that would rile you. She only likes me to boss her around in bed.” He said this with a glance over his shoulder at his friends, then looked back to Cait, straight-faced. He kissed her hard before walking out the door and not looking back.
Drew and Louis followed him, chuckling. Boyd shot me one last carefully blank look before heading out the door and shutting it behind him.
Cait fanned her cheeks when the door closed and sighed. “He’s such an idiot sometimes.”
“Maybe, but he’s an idiot who can make you blush with a few words.”
“True.”
“So…what are we going to do all day?”
“First, breakfast. Then we can go see if Izzy and Brooke wanna hang out. They might know more about Boyd’s story.”
My heart sped up at the mere mention of his situation. “Jake said it is Boyd’s story to tell.”
“Jake says a lot of things,” she countered. “Some of which I listen to, and some of which I don’t.”
She headed over to the counter running the length of the kitchen and pulled some bread out of a cupboard. “So, for example, when Jake says not to leave the compound alone, I listen. When Jake says to wait for Boyd to tell his story, I don’t listen. Of course, we will be discreet, but we can see what the girls have heard. And what Jake doesn’t know won’t hurt him.” She shot me a deceptively innocent little smile.
An hour later, we were knocking on Brooke’s front door. We’d eaten toast and peanut butter and drank more coffee. In fact, I felt vaguely wired.
The door pulled back, and Brooke gave us both a big smile. Petite with long red hair, she looked friendly and naturally beautiful. Her clothes were simple, and as she ushered us into her home, I saw her house reflected similar taste. Utilitarian, simple, but comfortable, the space proved welcoming. Larger than Jake’s house, Drew and Brooke’s home came filled with chunky, quite masculine furniture. She led us down a hallway and into a large seating area, and I gave a gasp of delight. Wooden floorboards shone in the morning sunlight, and a large fire with huge candles on either side of the hearth dominated the room.
“So, the men are having an important meeting, eh?” She rolled her eyes at Cait, and both women smiled.
“It drives me mad,” Cait said.
Brooke shrugged. “Doesn’t bother me. The whole edict about not being allowed out of the village walls unless escorted, on the other hand, not so happy about.”
“Did you go out alone before?” I asked.
“Not alone. They’ve always drummed it into our heads to be careful,” Brooke replied. “But if there were a few of us, then we’d head out. Now, though, they seem to want us under an official guard. It’s going to suck because, frankly, they don’t have enough trained fighters to do it. There’s Drew, Jake, Louis, Boyd, Adam, and another male called Lee. That’s literally it. Of course, the other wolfen can fight well in their wolf form, but they aren’t trained or anything.”
“It’s part of the purpose of the meeting, to instigate a training program.” Cait shook her head. “I pointed out to Jake they should maybe consider taking on some females as fighters and enforcers.”
Brooke let out a laugh, the sound warm and rich. “Bet your suggestion went down well.”
“He says he’s going to put it to Adam. I mean, Reba would be an amazing enforcer. Look how she fought alongside Louis and t
he boys when those rogues attacked.”
“Reba?” I didn’t know the name.
“The brunette who helped fight off the wolves. The one you suggested they should train.”
Yeah, maybe I’d opened my mouth too soon… She’d been drop-dead gorgeous, as well as tough as nails. If she trained as an enforcer, she’d end up working with Boyd. Maybe I’d lose any chance of gaining his attention then.
I picked at the hole in my jeans and sighed.
“What’s wrong?” Brooke brought me out of my funk with her question.
“Nothing.” I plastered on a hopefully bright smile and glanced around the room. “So…this place is lovely.”
“Yes. It is.” She still regarded me. “I’ll put the kettle on, we can have a cuppa, and then you, Laura, can tell us all about what ails you.”
She walked out of the room, and I shot a panicked glance at Cait. I wasn’t sure I wanted to spill my guts about my weird Boyd obsession.
“Don’t worry about it.” Cait read my mind. “She’s been through the exact same thing herself, as have I. These males don’t inspire rational behavior. Anyway, you want the juice on Boyd, right?”
I nodded because I so did.
“So spill your guts and hope she gives us the insider info. If she knows. Which she may not, but she’s been here a while, and she and Louis are good friends. He works with Boyd, so if anyone knows it will be either Brooke or Louis’s mate, Izzy. I can get it out of Jake if I want.” She giggled then, low and dirty. “I have my ways, but this is easier. He’ll be all butthurt after, as if I somehow tricked him. Plus, these guys, they make human men look positively chatty. We’d only get the bare bones from the men. I’m hoping Brooke will give us the deets.”
Okay. So I needed to spill my guts in order to hopefully gain information on what happened to Boyd to make him so damn sad.
I could do it.
Chapter Four
“So you’ve got it bad, huh? You remind me of myself.” Brooke smiled at me, her eyes warm.
I’d spilled my guts and more. I’d basically vomited all my internal neuroses about Boyd and the weird feelings he inspired in me all over Brooke’s lovely room. Christ, I hoped I got something in return, because I’d humiliated myself completely. Once I’d started talking, it had been as if I couldn’t stop. Like some crazy teenager finally able to talk about the boy band she worshiped with her peers, after weeks stuck with only her parents. I’d developed verbal diarrhea.
“We were wondering about something, though, Brooke.” Cait bit her lip. “Jake says Boyd has suffered the loss of his mate, and he won’t be interested in anyone else. He didn’t say much more. You know what the guys are like. Do you think Laura should give up all hope?”
Brooke shifted on the couch and drew her legs up, pulling them under her and wiggling around a little. “I don’t know much, only what Drew told me. I asked Louis once, but he closed up on me. From what I can gather, Boyd’s mate was murdered by a rogue whilst carrying their young.”
I gasped and clapped a hand to my mouth. Oh, my God. All thoughts of my own feelings fled, and tears stung my eyes as I wondered how anyone got over such a thing.
“Shit.” Cait shook her head. “I had no idea. I feel bad for asking now.”
“Don’t. It is best you know, Laura. I wouldn’t be expecting much from Boyd. He blames himself for their deaths. She’d been taking him food out in the field where he worked. Back then, he wasn’t an enforcer. Her friend got taken, and Boyd’s mate, Ali, had her throat slit and her belly ripped open.” She looked at us with wide eyes. “He found her like that.”
Nausea washed over me. I didn’t even want to imagine such a thing. To go through something so terrible. How did a person ever recover? I doubted they did. Instead, they somehow managed to keep going, but always with the pain inside them. A permanent part of them. Any dreams I’d been cherishing about Boyd vanished, blown away on the wind of knowledge.
After having a cup of tea and some delicious cake with Brooke, we headed back through the village. I wanted to leave. My shame at my unrequited feelings burned me up inside. I’d never made a fool of myself over a man, and I didn’t intend to start now.
When we neared Cait’s house, she turned to me. “Fancy a swim?”
I did a double take. “What, in the lake nearby?” It didn’t feel warm enough for outdoor swimming.
“No.” She laughed and swatted my arm. “I’m not a masochist! No, there’s a small health center in the medical building. There’s a pool. Its first use is for rehab if anyone’s injured, but when there are no rehab sessions, we’re free to use it when we want.”
“I don’t have a suit.” I’d love a swim, but hadn’t thought to bring a swimsuit.
“I do. It might be a little bit big but should fit okay. If not, we can pin it with some safety pins to keep you decent. There’s not likely to be anyone else there.”
“Yes. Let’s do it.” I grinned at her.
We’d have a swim, and maybe I’d stay for one more night. Visit with my friend before I headed back home. I doubted I’d come here again much, moving forward. I needed some time to get over Boyd. I nearly stopped walking. Get over him? I didn’t even know him, not really. My thought process showed how skewed my thinking had become. I needed to get a grip. Perhaps a fling with some hottie when I got home would take my mind off him.
He wasn’t even my usual type. I’d always gone for sharp dressers. Guys who wore nice suits and great accessories. Who styled their hair and paid attention to how they looked. Cut guys, lean but muscled, who worked hard on their physiques.
Boyd wore faded jeans and T-shirts most days, from what I’d seen. If the air carried a chill, he threw on a sweater. His shoes weren’t polished, but instead were faded construction-style boots. His hair came buzzed close to his head, and his body didn’t look gym-honed; it looked massive and powerful and a little scary.
We reached the house, and Cait tried the door before pulling the key from her pocket. “Jake’s not home. Seems like they’re still discussing things.”
She unlocked it, and we headed inside. Once up in her room, I asked her a question. “Does it bother you? The way the guys are. I mean, they’re hot, don’t get me wrong, but they’re also domineering.”
Cait seemed to consider my question as she raked through a drawer looking for swimsuits. “Not really. If Jake didn’t listen to me, it would. But he never ignores what I say, and often, like today, he’ll take my ideas on board. He’s not overbearing or anything, except for when it comes to my safety. I’ve visited you guys on my own before, remember? We don’t tend to leave our mates for long, though, but it goes both ways. Neither male nor female mates leave for more than a few days, because both mates suffer and may even start to feel physically ill.”
My mind boggled. “Truly? You get ill if you’re away from Jake too long?”
“Yep, it’s a possibility. It’s supposedly like having the flu.”
Crikey. These guys did have a special bond. I wasn’t sure I’d ever be ready for a commitment so deep, despite my monumental crush.
I thought of Boyd’s lost mate and how he must have been physically wrecked, too, when it happened. My heart gave another painful spasm.
“Put this on, and if it gapes too much, I’ll safety pin it.”
Cait passed me a shocking pink swimsuit. I peeled my clothes off and pulled it up my body. It fit okay in most places, but it hung open around the bust. A couple of pins later and I seemed good to go.
We shoved loose sweaters and track pants over our swimwear and headed down the stairs and out the door. Once we reached the center, I followed Cait down a long corridor until we came to a glass door. The scent of chlorine gave away the pool beyond it. The familiar smell soothed me. I loved swimming, and whenever I saved the cash, I’d book myself in for a spa day at the local gym, which involved free use of the pool and hot tub.
We stripped our clothes off and left them on a couple of chairs by the pool, and th
en we padded around the outside edge, our feet slapping on the wet tiles.
Cait slithered in, sitting on the edge and letting her body slide into the water, and I followed suit. I did a mean dive, but I didn’t want to tax my body too much after my injury.
We did a few fast-paced lengths and then simply bobbed about in the water. We chatted about the gossip back home, and I began to suggest another few lengths, when a door banged open.
I turned behind me. Boyd walked along the side, toward the pool. I hadn’t seen him quite like this before, half naked in swim shorts. Heart thudding, I turned narrowed eyes on Cait.
“I didn’t know, I swear.” She pleaded with her eyes and kept her voice ultralow. “I’ve never seen him here before.”
Boyd walked forward, seemingly lost in thought, and I took the chance to admire him covertly.
He wore loose swim shorts, and his body made the blood in my veins run hot, despite being in cold water.
His legs were thick and heavy with muscle. He didn’t look like the gym rats I saw at the health club back home, with a big chest and scrawny little legs. Color me impressed.
He looked to the water and froze. Fuck. I wanted to get out, but I didn’t want to seem as if I was trying to get his attention.
Cait saved me from staring and doing nothing by waving at him. “Hey, Boyd. We’re only doing a couple more lengths, then you’ll have it all to yourself.”
“No worries.” He gave us a nod and walked around to the far side of the pool where he executed a perfect dive.
We swam up and down one side of the pool, Boyd the other. It didn’t help my stupid crush any to see his powerful body slicing capably through the water.
After ten or so lengths, Cait and I decided to call it a day. Which meant I now needed to get out of the pool in front of the object of my desire, carrying at least thirty more pounds than I was used to, and feeling stupid with my pale body in a shocking pink swimsuit.