Warren came closer and they looked at one another.
“What do we know about her besides what we just found out from Zeke?” Warren asked.
“Nothing,” Dominick stated.
“Well, we can’t just let any woman into our lives. We need to find out if we’re all attracted to her or not, and our top priority is protecting Shimmy. The last thing he needs right now is to get mind-fucked by some piece of ass looking to play games with a soldier,” Culhane said to them.
“She isn’t like that. Doesn’t seem that way,” Dominick said.
“Dom, she’s been pretending to be a twenty-year-old bimbo. You’ve even complained about her inability to waitress, and now, suddenly, she’s this super-experienced bartender and not so shy and inexperienced? Something is up with that. Why lie, or pretend?” Culhane asked.
“I don’t know. She must have her reasons,” Dominick said.
“She’s living with people she isn’t related to but somehow have a connection to her. She’s got secrets. Let’s face the fucking facts here,” Warren said and took another slug from his beer bottle.
Culhane glanced at her again. “We need to find out. Shimmy doesn’t need more bullshit in his life and we don’t either,” Culhane said to them.
Warren stuck out his bottle of Bud. “To doing recon on the little angel and finding out if she’s the one,” he said, and they tipped beers.
Dominick shook his head.
“Recon, Warren?”
“Hell, yeah. I intend on doing some major hands-on investigating as soon as the opportunity presents itself.”
Dominick looked concerned, and Culhane felt the exact same way. This better not turn into a clusterfuck of a situation, because it could just be the last screwed up thing to send Shimmy over the edge.
Chapter Three
Cali adjusted the backpack and continued the long hike through the woods with Wayde. He talked to her about outdoor survival and some basic things anyone should know before going on a hike. He was informative and easy to talk to. She could see that he was compassionate and caring in everything he did. Including his love for his wife, Marlena. He, Peter, and Cole adored Marlena and the kids. They were their everything.
She tried not to think about what it might be like to be involved with a man romantically. It was kind of hard not to, with so many good looking men living around Repose, never mind the ones who came into the Filling Station. She had been asked out so many times she didn’t even freak out and clam up anymore. She simply said, “I don’t date.” When they pushed, she said she was in a long-distance relationship. That seemed to work. The men assumed she was involved with a soldier. It seemed soldiers had some unwritten rules of loyalty between one another. She started feeling like brothers who shared a woman and loved her had sort of the same thing. The woman became their life.
She didn’t think she could handle the intimacy of that. Nor could she handle having to talk about what happened to her, and especially not even knowing why. She didn’t belong or fit in anywhere. It was truly time to establish herself and what she wanted. No harm could come to her in Repose.
“Have you thought about trying to shoot the gun again?” Wayde asked her.
She looked at him while they walked side by side, stepping through higher brush. She was slowly getting used to the fact that he held a rifle over his shoulder and was packing two guns on each hip. Add in the hunting knife and other items he had and the man looked well prepared for battle, yet they were going on a hike through the woods.
“I’m just getting used to you carrying them. I’m not sure I could aim and pull the trigger. I think it’s the sound I’m most fearful of.”
“Well, you’re going to hear shots go off. The closer we get to Lake Freeman, the more likely we’ll bump into some hunters.”
She looked at him and tried to act brave. She was determined to get past her fears.
She pulled on the bright orange windbreaker she wore.
“They won’t mistake me for a deer or something with this on, right?”
He smiled.
“Honey, we won’t be close enough to any hunters. It’s precaution, but you will hear the firing of the shots in the distance. The sound travels across the open land. It’s one of the reasons why I thought this would be a good place to start working on your mind. On you conditioning yourself to not fear the sounds, but learn to recognize the type of weapon, and to judge the distance from where you are to where the gun went off.”
“How the heck can I do that?”
He smiled. “I’m going to teach you.”
A while later they were heading through the woods a short distance from the lake when the first shot rang out. Cali jumped and froze in place. A second shot followed that sounded much closer. Wayde was immediately next to her, whispering into her ear. “That’s the sound of a .22. The hunter using it is more than likely hunting small things like fox, groundhog, or rabbit.”
She heard another shot and it sounded deeper, louder.
“Did that sound like the first shot?” he asked her. She shook her head. “Good. That was a bigger rifle. Maybe a Ruger 44 semi-auto carbine. A lot of hunters use them for deer and other large animals.”
“It sounded so close.”
“It is close, but there’s a limit to where you can go and shoot around here. We’re safe here. All shooting, if any, has to take place way behind the ridge there. You okay?” Wayde asked, and set down his gear, squatted, and unzipped his backpack. He took a small sip from his water bottle.
She nodded, although she wasn’t completely sure she was okay.
She pulled out her water bottle and took a sip next. She looked at Wayde. He was staring at the water and the woods around it. It was a pretty big lake and it was hot out. That was another thing she couldn’t enjoy doing. Going swimming in the swimming holes with friends when they invited her because they all wore bikinis and she had a bullet wound scar to hide. She knew if she wore a shirt they would question her. She had an olive complexion, a bit of Italian in her bloodline from what her father told her, and of course her mom, Maria, was Italian, too. She used to love lying out in the sun in the summer season and getting all tan.
They heard several more gunshots, but at a distance.
She closed her eyes the moment the first one went off. “Rifle, and farther from us, maybe going back the other way.”
“Very good,” Wayde told her.
“The water looks so inviting. It really is very beautiful here. Has Marlena been here, and the boys too?” she asked.
“Oh, yes. They love it here. When we first met Marlena and she was recovering emotionally from her attack, she found much peace here.”
She looked at him and gave a small smile. “I could see that. It’s a thinking place, or even a not thinking place,” she said and chuckled at how that sounded.
They were enjoying the scenery when what sounded like a dog barking had Cali looking around frantically. It got louder and louder and then she heard a second dog barking, too.
“Oh, God,” she whispered, letting her breath drag out from her lungs.
“Cali, are you okay?” Wayde asked and she shook her head just as she saw the dogs coming from a distance, but they were not alone. Two men in fatigues were with them, and they were carrying weapons.
The two men realized they weren’t alone and gave a command to the dogs just as they spotted Cali and Wayde and began barking.
Wayde reached out and covered her knee. “It’s okay. The dogs won’t hurt you.”
“Keep them away from me, Wayde. Please, I can’t. I can’t,” she said and covered her ears and closed her eyes.
She couldn’t even hear a sound. The dogs were immediately quiet and the men walked closer.
“Hey, Culhane, Warren, how are you guys?” Wayde asked and she was shocked. When she looked up and locked gazes with their firm expressions, she just stared at them. They appeared even larger dressed like that and wearing boots. Then she felt the nudge to h
er back and she gasped and pulled away, falling on her ass.
“Wesson!” Culhane ordered and the big German shepherd stopped right in front of her, panting. The second one lay down on the ground a few feet away and stared at her.
“Are you afraid of dogs or something?” Warren asked her in a tone that said that instantly pissed him off and annoyed him.
“N–no,” she stuttered.
Wayde reached for her hand and pulled her up. Culhane watched the move and gave Wayde an angry expression. “You’re here alone with her?” he asked.
“Yeah, just showing Cali Freeman Lake and a little bit about hiking. What about you guys? You look dressed for hunting big game.”
“Nah, just trying to work the dogs to get rid of that nervous energy they have.”
She held on to Wayde as the one called Wesson moved closer to her.
“Wesson,” Warren reprimanded.
“Why are you afraid of dogs? These two won’t hurt you, Cali,” Warren told her. She felt on the defensive, which was becoming a common thing around any of the Perkins brothers.
“I was attacked by dogs once,” she said without thinking and then saw their eyes widen and she quickly added. “It was years ago, but left me with a bit of fear.”
Warren walked closer and then bent down next to her and Wesson.
“Well, these two are military dogs. They’re trained to protect and to alert us to dangers before we get close enough to get hurt. They sniff out bombs and they love to hunt now.”
“They know how to bite and kill, too, right, if they were military service dogs?” she asked and stepped behind Wayde.
Warren looked at Wayde and then Culhane.
“Not anymore. They’re well behaved. Give me your hand, Cali, and I’ll show you.”
She shook her head and Wayde squeezed her hand.
“Culhane and Warren are amazing with the dogs. Smith and Wesson would have been put down after serving but they fought to keep them alive and adopt them. The dogs are smart, loyal, and listen to commands. They won’t hurt you, and something tells me Culhane and Warren will make certain of that,” Wayde said to her in encouragement.
She had to remind herself about wanting to be free from the fears, and make positive changes in her life to be stronger.
She swallowed hard and remembered her time in captivity. Other people were mauled by the dogs those men had. When they had moved her from one spot to another, the large dogs would nip at her ankles and make her hurry along. She had had scrapes and teeth marks along her skin, but they hadn’t broken the skin. They’d been trained to be aggressive and to scare the prisoners.
She looked at Warren, who apparently saw her dazed expression because he reached out and took her hand. The moment her skin touched his, her lips parted and they stared at one another.
“Trust me, Cali, neither dog will ever hurt you,” he said and her heart instantly warmed. She was attracted to him. Holy God, no, this was bad. But as she tried pulling back, he pulled her closer until she was standing against his side.
“Smith, Wesson, sit,” he commanded and they did. They stood straight and tall and looked so military like. Their eyes locked onto Warren’s and Culhane stood behind them with his eyes locked on her.
“Meet Cali,” he said, and he moved Cali’s hand closer. “Hold out your hand and they will each shake it.”
She hesitated, but when she opened her hand to Smith, he lifted a paw and slapped it into her hand. She gasped.
“Good boy.” He moved his paw and then Wesson lowered his head and nudged her hand. Culhane chuckled. “Sap. He wants you to rub his head,” Culhane said and even Wayde smiled.
She worried her bottom lip and looked at Warren. “It’s okay?” she asked. He nodded.
With a shaky hand she reached out and caressed Wesson’s fur. He tilted up and licked her wrist and she pulled back, afraid that he would bite her.
“Easy, Cali,” Culhane said and Wesson sniffed her and then lowered down to his belly in front of her.
“What is he doing?” she asked, but then watched him roll over onto his back like he wanted a belly rub.
“Unbelievable. He sees a pretty young woman and he’s hamming it up big time,” Culhane stated with his arms crossed in front of his chest, watching. Warren laughed and rubbed the dog’s belly.
“Go ahead, Cali, he’s doing this for you,” he told her.
She wasn’t sure as she bent down and then ran her hand gently over the German shepherd’s belly. As she got more comfortable, he panted and they chuckled until she felt the heated breath of Smith sitting next to her and breathing on her neck. She slowly looked at him and he licked her, shocking all of them. Wayde started laughing. Culhane reprimanded the dog. “No kisses, Smith,” Warren ordered.
“Can’t blame him, she does smell really good,” Culhane said and she locked gazes with him and felt her heart racing. What the heck was going on here?
* * * *
Culhane couldn’t believe they stumbled upon Wayde and Cali, of all people. At first he was jealous. Plain and simple, but then he knew that Wayde and his brothers were married to Marlena, and that Cali was living in an apartment above their attached garage. He wanted to use this opportunity to get to know her, and by her response to Smith and Wesson, and her mentioning a dog attacking her, he felt an immediate sense of protectiveness.
“So what are you guys doing out here?” Warren asked.
Cali stood up and moved closer to Wayde. Wayde rested one hand on his holster and the butt of his gun and the other on his hip.
“Just enjoying the scenery and showing Cali some basic hiking skills,” Wayde said and then glanced at Cali, who looked uneasy, to say the least.
“First time hiking in the woods, Cali?” Culhane asked. She immediately nodded.
“Well, don’t plan on trekking off on your own. It can be dangerous, and especially around here with people hunting and shooting. Sometimes non-locals come up here and hunt off track and come too close to campers and hikers,” Culhane warned her.
“I won’t be coming up here alone, at least not for a while.”
They heard a shot and it sounded kind of close.
Wayde looked at her.
“44. Semi-automatic?” she said to him but looked unsure. He gave a wink.
“Something close to it,” Wayde said to her.
She smiled softly and then looked at Culhane and Warren.
“You teaching her about guns and hunting?” Culhane asked and looked her over. She was so pretty she even made a pair of jeans and a bright orange vest look sexy.
“Starting to. Planning on helping her recognize the different types of guns and determining how close to her they are.”
“What for? She planning on doing some shooting today?” Warren asked and now he looked at her with his eyes narrowed. Culhane wondered what his brother was thinking.
“Eventually, she’s going to learn to shoot. Just trying to get her used to the sounds of guns going off, and, well, people carrying them around her right now.”
“Why is that? Got a fear of guns too?” Warren pushed.
She swallowed hard and her cheeks turned a nice shade of red. Culhane adjusted his rifle and she stepped back and pressed against Wayde.
“So, what are you guys doing up here? Getting some hunting done?” Wayde asked and Cali watched Smith and Wesson go down to the water and take a drink from the lake.
“Letting Smith and Wesson do some maneuvers, hunt and retrieve exercises to keep them sharp and get rid of their nervous energy,” Culhane replied. Cali looked at the dogs, then back at Culhane.
“Nervous energy?” she asked.
He explained about them being military service dogs and how they would scout ahead of the line and protect the troops. She seemed very intrigued by that.
“So you continue to train them, let them protect you and feel like they’re still doing their jobs, yet you’re transitioning them into civilian life like human soldiers do?” she asked.
>
Culhane felt his lip curl. “Exactly,” Warren replied.
“How long have they been retired?” she asked.
“Two years,” Warren told her.
“I didn’t realize that the dogs could re-adapt like that. I thought they had to be kept in training shelters or special environments?”
she asked.
“Warren and Culhane fought hard to gain ownership of Smith and Wesson. It’s difficult to adopt the dogs because they worry that they may have PTSD like human soldiers get, and could not be trained and transitioned. Smith and Wesson prove that theory wrong, thanks to Culhane and Warren’s training,” Wayde told her.
“That is impressive. Dogs getting PTSD like humans do?” she said and Smith and Wesson came back up and Wesson nudged Cali’s hand and she gasped, truly looking scared. Culhane understood a person’s fear of dogs and he didn’t know what she might do. Would she pet the dog or retreat from the dog? Then she surprised even Wayde, who widened his eyes as she knelt down and petted Wesson on the head and behind the ears. The dog sat there and took it all in until Smith came over and nudged her side to get some of Cali’s attention next. Culhane was shocked. Neither dog ever reacted to a person they didn’t know in such a way. In fact, the dogs tended to keep to themselves and remain right by Culhane and his brothers’ sides at all times. This was interesting indeed.
* * * *
“We’re heading up the shadows to do some shooting if the two of you want to come along and see how Smith and Wesson operate. We’re going to set up some targets for shooting practice if Cali wants to give shooting a try?” Warren offered.
Wayde looked at her and she was shaking her head before Warren got his full offer out.
“It can be fun. We can set the targets up closer to help you for the first time shooting if you want to learn,” Warren offered.
She looked at Wayde.
“I don’t know if I’m ready for that,” she said to him.
“Aw, don’t be scared or intimidated by the guns and shooting. It feels strange at first, but then you get used to it and can even enjoy shooting at targets for practice. Most of the women around these parts know how to shoot a gun,” Culhane added and Warren saw her eyes light up with a fire in them at Culhane’s challenge.
The Battlefield Series 5: Breaking Through the Pain (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) Page 5