Behind the Eight Ball

by M. A. Church

  “We haven’t gone out there yet. We were waiting on you.”

  Marshell jumped up from the table. “What? Are you serious? Janelle, it’s misting outside, and from the looks of it, it has been for a while now.”

  “Oh shit.” Janelle scrambled up too. “Oh no, Marshell. I thought it would be better if we waited on you. I had no idea it was misting. It wasn’t when we got here. Oh no. Your sense of smell is better than mine, so I thought—”

  “Maybe we should take a look before the rain washes away any scent whatsoever,” Sam said.

  “Dammit, dammit, dammit.” Marshell pointed at me, his eyes slowly changing as his fangs dropped. “We’ll be right back. Don’t you dare step foot out that door until we know for sure it’s safe.”

  “I’m going to hit you between the eyes with this coffee mug if you don’t stop acting like I’m stupid. I expect the three of you to come back in one piece too.”

  Marshell blew out a long breath. “I… man. I’m sorry, Lawson. I’m just a little stressed at the moment.”

  “I got that. But that doesn’t give you a free pass to be an ass,” I said. “Now be careful out there.”

  Chapter Eight

  Heller

  MY CELL rang, startling me. I’d been sitting here trying to talk myself into calling Lawson. I’d driven by his shop but his vehicle was already gone. Wondering who could be calling me this late, I pulled it out of my jean pocket. I didn’t recognize the number but answered it anyhow. “Hello?”

  “Is Heller there?”

  “Yeah, you got him.”

  “Oh, good. Heller, it’s Sam. I hope you don’t mind that I asked Dolf for your number, but, um…. well, Janelle and I are over at their house. Lawson called Janelle earlier and told her a werewolf showed up here and… it stalked him and—”

  “Wait, wait… what?” My heart stopped. Did Sam say “werewolf”?

  “Hey, now. He’s fine,” Sam hurriedly reassured me. “It didn’t hurt him. Scared the crap out of him, yeah, but it didn’t hurt him.”

  I grabbed the back of the couch to steady myself. What happened to all the oxygen in the room? “Are you sure? Absolutely sure?”

  “Yeah, not a scratch on him. Look, I ducked out to call you while he and Janelle were talking, and I heard him tell Janelle he let the werewolf know he was aware of what it was too.”

  “Just… wait a minute. Goddess.” I clutched the cell. “That doesn’t make sense. Paranormals don’t just randomly show their shifted selves off to humans. We don’t do stuff like that… jeez. Unless—”

  “Unless we were challenging another paranormal. It’s the only reason I can think for a shifter to do this.”

  “But Lawson’s human.”

  “True, but he does live with two paranormals. Maybe it’s related to that. I don’t know exactly what prompted this, but something did, obviously,” Sam said. “It basically got in Lawson’s face and made a statement.”

  “There’s no denying that. But that doesn’t make sense either. If it were challenging Lawson, then… for what reason? It can’t be for me. Only a few shifters know Lawson and I are mates. Certainly no wolves know, and I can’t think of a single good reason they’d care.”

  “He said it barked and howled, even lunged at him, but never actually got close. Honestly it sounds more like intimidation than a challenge.”

  I gritted my teeth, resisting the urge to hiss in anger. “Lunged? Fuck all, that does sound like intimidation. That’s my mate it threatened, and you better fucking believe I take that personally. You’re at their house, did you say?”

  “Yeah, I am. And Heller? I think you should take it as a threat.” Sam quickly recited Lawson’s address. “Got it?”

  “I do, thanks.” I grabbed my keys and a coat as I walked to the door, not bothering to tell Sam I already had Lawson’s address. “I’ll be there shortly. Thanks, Sam. I appreciate this.”

  I locked up the house and walked out to my truck. The drive passed quickly, mostly because my mind was on why this happened. I debated calling Dolf, but what could the head beta do? I hadn’t mated Lawson yet, and I hadn’t gone through the joining ceremony. Lawson wasn’t part of our clowder, so there wasn’t much Dolf could do to help.

  I’d just turned into the drive when it struck me Lawson might not know I was coming. Sam hadn’t said if he told Lawson he’d called me. It also brought home that I’d do whatever was needed for my mate. So Lawson was human, and I’d had an awful experience with one long ago.

  “Awful” didn’t quite cover what happened, but that was something I’d have to tell Lawson when the time was right. Hopefully then Lawson would understand why I acted like an ass when we first met. It wouldn’t excuse my behavior, but maybe it would help explain it. Death of a loved one was never easy.

  “Great.” There were two other vehicles in the driveway besides Lawson’s, one of which was a huge black SUV I knew belonged to Marshell.

  I parked behind Marshell, got out, and locked my truck. As I hurried through the misting rain, I tested the air. Good, I wasn’t picking up any fresh werewolf scents. As I walked to the front door, I promised myself I wouldn’t let Marshell yank my chain.

  I tried the door handle and was relieved to find it locked. At least they were taking basic precautions. I knocked and waited. Moments later I heard a heavy tread approaching the front door. Of course it’s him, the bastard. The door was unlocked and thrown open.

  “What the hell are you doing here?” Marshell demanded, folding his arms across his chest.

  I fought to keep a hiss from escaping. Don’t let him yank your chain. Don’t let him yank your chain. “My mate was threatened. Where else would I be?”

  “Oh, you mean Lawson? The mate you rejected twice now? That mate?”

  Don’t let him yank your chain… fuck that. I’d like to take that chain and wrap it around his throat. “You sound like a broken record, man. Seriously you need to move on.”

  Marshell just shrugged. “No, Lawson is the one who needs to move on.”

  Damned if I was going to let some paranormal who couldn’t even shift bully me. “That’s not up to you.”

  “You’re right. More’s the pity. But I can sure voice my opinion.”

  I took a step closer. “You can sure get out of my way too.”

  Marshell raised an eyebrow. “Naw, I’m good here, thanks.”

  The hiss I’d been trying to keep inside finally wormed its way out.

  “Ooooh.” Marshell smirked. “The kitty can hiss.”

  “I’m about to do more than hiss, you overgrown, legless reptile.” I shoved right into Marshell’s personal space. “In fact why don’t I just show you—”

  I heard a rush of footsteps.

  Lawson appeared and pushed Marshell out of the doorway. “Dammit, Marshell, that’s enough.”

  There wasn’t a doubt in my mind Marshell moved willingly. Lawson didn’t have the strength to move such a mountain of a man.

  Lawson faced me, huffing out a breath. “Heller? What are you doing here?”

  “You were threatened. Where else would I be?” I demanded.

  “Really? You… you…. Really? Well, thanks for letting me know.” Lawson waved both hands in front of him as if clearing the air. “Never mind that. How did you find out about what happened? For that matter, how did you know where here is?”

  Seeing Lawson tremble, I put Marshell out of my mind. The need to take care of my mate rose up. “Why don’t we go inside? You’re shivering.” I stepped forward, and Lawson moved back. Okay, seeing Lawson step back from me smarted. “Please? Let’s get you settled, and I’ll answer your questions. Then you can tell me what happened.”

  Lawson let me inside then led the way to the kitchen. “But how did you find out about this?”

  “I called him,” Sam said.

  Lawson dropped down in one of the kitchen chairs and looked at Sam. “When did you…? Oh, that’s right. You stepped out of the kitchen for a moment.”

>   Sam shrugged as he sat at the table too. “I probably overstepped my bounds, but Heller needed to be told. I’d want to know if this had happened to Janelle.”

  I sat next to Lawson. “I’m glad he did call. As for knowing where you lived? Sam told me.” I didn’t tell Lawson I’d done a search on him. That might not go over very well. Humans got perturbed about the damnedest things. “So what did you guys find?”

  Janelle sat in the other chair next to Sam. “Not a lot, unfortunately, and that’s my fault. We focused on getting information from Lawson, but what I should have done was gone straight out there and tried to pick up the shifter’s scent. Instead we waited for Marshell. His sense of smell is much better than mine.”

  Since there wasn’t a spare chair, Marshell leaned against the counter as he refreshed his coffee. “The unfortunate part is they didn’t know it’d started misting. That dispersed its scent. We know from Lawson it was a werewolf, but that’s all we know.”

  Lawson glanced at me. “We made a pot of coffee. Would you like some?”

  “Sure,” I said. “Thank you.”

  Lawson stood and walked over to the coffeemaker. “No problem. How do you want it?”

  “Black, please.” I turned my attention back to Janelle. “I’m just going to ask this: you or Marshell done anything to piss the wolves off?”

  Janelle shook her head. “We both thought of that, and the answer is no.”

  I nodded at Marshell. “Not even Mr. Sparkling Personality over there?”

  Marshell just bared his teeth at me.

  “Nope,” Janelle answered. “Only you seem to be on the receiving end of his wit lately.”

  “Lucky me,” I groaned.

  Lawson held out the mug of coffee to me. “Here you go.”

  Our fingers touched and Lawson gasped. I barely stopped my hand from shaking as a jolt of electricity raced up my arm. Holy cow, what a kick. I went from upset and worried over Lawson, to hot and horny so fast my head spun. I wanted to rub against him from head to toe so he smelled like me and only me.

  Then I wanted to lick all that golden skin and maybe even take a little nibble to see if he tasted as good as he looked. Our gazes collided and I saw the shock in Lawson’s face. Guess he felt it too. The clean and salty scent of the ocean washed over me. Was Lawson aroused from just a touch? I certainly was.

  Cautiously I took the mug. The last thing I wanted was to spill the hot liquid on my mate. “Thanks.”

  “Um, yeah.” Lawson stared at me for a moment, confusion clear on his face. Finally he sat, running a hand through his curls. “I, ah…. We’ve talked about it, and none of us can figure out a reason for what happened.”

  Sam nodded in Lawson’s direction. “We do agree Lawson needs to be careful. Since we don’t know what pack the were belongs to, we can’t even talk to its Alpha about the situation.”

  “Shit.” I pinched the bridge of my nose.

  Marshell studied his coffee. “Until we figure out what this is about, I’ll stay with Lawson. He doesn’t need to be running around alone.”

  Lawson scowled at Marshell. “Oh, I don’t think—”

  I debated throwing my mug at the Vetala. “You? Over my dead—”

  Marshell perked up. “Body? Works for me.”

  Janelle’s scowl matched Lawson’s. “Marshell, stop being an ass.”

  “Has anyone outside of me noticed how often one of you tells Marshell to stop being an ass? Just curious,” I added.

  “Oh, come on!” Lawson’s voice rose over the ruckus. “The last thing I need is a babysitter.”

  “While Janelle and I taught you how to defend yourself against paranormals, you’re still human, Lawson,” Marshell said, ignoring me. “You’re still at a disadvantage.”

  “I’ll start carrying the knife like I used to when the hunters were bothering you guys, and I’ll be more observant of my surroundings.” Lawson looked at Marshell. “No more trips to the garbage cans late at night either.”

  “That’s a good start,” I agreed. “Especially since I’m going to be stuck to you like glue.”

  The entire table went silent.

  “Okay.” Janelle stood. She tugged Sam up with her. “That’s our cue to beat it.” She started out of the kitchen, holding hands with Sam. She stopped and glared at Marshell. “That includes you too.”

  Marshell rolled his eyes. “Fine.” He followed Sam and Janelle out of the kitchen. “Besides, I haven’t had a chance to feed. Have you, Janelle?”

  “Well….”

  I listened to their voices fade. With three other paranormals in the house, there was no such thing as a private conversation, but at least Marshell was no longer adding his two cents’ worth.

  “Heller?”

  I turned my attention to my mate. “Yeah?”

  “What the fuck are you doing, man?”

  I flinched. Should have seen that coming after how I acted. Of course Lawson was confused. Why wouldn’t he be? I’d denied him, but here I was pushing my way into his life so I could protect him.

  “I… I’m sorry, Lawson. Truly sorry for how I acted. I hurt you, I know, and I’m ashamed of myself for doing that to you. I can’t change it, and believe me, I wish I could.”

  Lawson just sat there.

  “I’d give anything if I could. Walking away from you… I hurt us both. But that second time? I wasn’t rejecting you, but I see why it looks like that. I can explain, but I’d rather do it when it’s just us. Paranormals have excellent hearing, as you probably know.”

  Lawson still just sat there, not speaking.

  This was not going well. “Please? Give me a chance. I swear I’ll make it up to you.”

  Sighing, Lawson looked down. “Watching you drive away that day killed me a little. Maybe if I hadn’t known what was happening, it might not have been so bad. Rejection hurts no matter who you are or how old you are. You hurt me. Do you understand that?”

  I reached my hand out, letting it lie on the table, palm up. “I know. But please give me a chance to explain. Please, Lawson. Look, if you want, I’ll even get down on my knees and ask you to forgive me.” I flashed what I hoped was a sexy smile.

  Up went one of Lawson’s eyebrows. He didn’t reach out to me either. “Okay.”

  My mouth fell open in stunned amazement. “Huh?”

  Lawson pursed his lips. “You walking out on me left my heart around my knees. Think it’s only fair you end up on yours now.”

  “I… I….” Shit, he isn’t kidding. Suddenly I smiled. I could do this. Absolutely could I do this for my mate. I could get on my knees for my human. I left my chair and walked over to Lawson. Without stopping to think, I slid to my knees on the tile floor. “Give me a chance, please.”

  A slow smile covered Lawson’s face. “I’ll be damned. I didn’t think you would.”

  “I messed up, and if this is what it takes to get you to give me a second chance, then that’s okay.”

  Lawson reached out and gently caressed my cheek. “Be sure. I can’t… I deserve someone who cares for me, who’ll love me for me. Can you really get past my being human?”

  I turned my face into Lawson’s hand, nuzzling the soft skin. “I already have. Not that being human should have ever been an issue. But I’m here, aren’t I? I’m literally on my knees for you, and I’m not going anywhere. I want you. Can you get past what I did in the beginning?”

  Lawson leaned closer. “Yeah. I can if you can. But I still deserve to know why.”

  “Yes, you do.” With a sigh, I stood. “Will you come home with me and spend what’s left of the weekend at my house?”

  Lawson stared up at me then stood. “All right. Let me tell everyone where I’m going to be, and I’ll be ready to go.”

  AN HOUR later I had Lawson standing in my living area. The last time I was this scared, some nutcase was trying to burn up one of Dolf’s mates. I watched Lawson wander around. Thank fuck I picked up yesterday.

  “I like these chairs. They l
ook comfy.” Lawson sank into one of the overstuffed chocolate-brown leather chairs. “Yup, comfy.”

  I shifted from foot to foot, unsure what I was supposed to do. “Um, what about something to drink?”

  “No thanks.” Lawson shook his head. “Why don’t we, you know, just talk?”

  “Let me get something to drink first.” I quickly fixed a glass of unsweetened tea and sat on the leather couch across from Lawson. I took a deep breath, nerves racing. “Jeez, I don’t know how to begin.”

  “At the beginning, isn’t that what they always say?” Lawson grinned slightly. “Just start talking.”

  “At the beginning,” I echoed. “Yeah.” My laugh was slightly ironic. “Let me ask you something. Do you have a brother or sister?”

  Lawson kicked off his shoes and curled his legs up under him in the chair. “Nope, it was just me.”

  “I see. Your parents?”

  “Dumped me like a hot potato when they—” Lawson suddenly cleared his throat. “Ah. Well, guess we both have some unloading to do tonight. My parents stopped having anything to do with me not because I’m gay, but because I was dating a black man.”

  I clutched my glass. “Let me guess: Marshell?”

  “Yes. Before you get the wrong idea, that was nine years ago. Our relationship ended, but our friendship is still strong. I knew back then he wasn’t the one. I wasn’t his mate either. As it turns out, we’re better friends than lovers. I love him like a brother, and I mean that from the bottom of my heart. There hasn’t been anything between us in a long time.”

  I fiddled with my glass, more relieved than I could admit. “And Janelle?”

  “She and Marshell swing both ways, but I’m gay. There has never been anything between Janelle and me. She’s like a sister. Do you see what I’m saying here? They’re my family.”

  I nodded. “A sister, huh? Sisters can be great, or they can be a pain in the ass.”

  Lawson watched me. “Un-huh. Sounds like you’d know.”

  “Yeah. I had a sister.” I fought the insistent pull to travel back to that day, that day that she died. I thrust the memories away. I’d be sharing those soon enough. “She was the greatest unless she was being a pain. Her name was Lynette.”