My phone vibrates, a text from Pru. YOU DIRTY MINDED WOLF!
I reply back. LOL - STALKER!
“What does yonks mean?”
“Oh, maybe you’d say a long time. I get flustered thinking about the United States and their different dialect. I’ll try harder.” She smiles up at me.
“No, I think it’s cool. Your accent is cute.” Her cheeks flush ever so slightly. “Are your brothers here?” I couldn’t hold back any longer, I need to know if they’re here or not.
“Day are here somewhere,” her accent seems to get stronger when her brothers are mentioned. Brianna turns to her right as though she heard someone call her name.
I didn’t hear anything so it must be another pack member talking to her. I remember when I’d turn in the direction I thought the voice was coming from too.
A girl walks over and Brianna stands up to give her a hug.
“Abel, this is my friend Violet, she’s from the Cary Pack, and they’re out of Dublin too. Violet, this is Abel, he’s from America.” Brianna places her hand on my arm and my mind measures and records every aspect of her hand. My skin is keenly aware of her touch, even through my clothes.
Violet is striking with her almost-black hair and her flawless fair complexion. The most noticeable feature has to be her eyes; they are literally violet in color. I’ve never met anyone with such gorgeous eyes.
I hold my hand out to shake hers but she smiles at me in return. “I’m sorry; I don’t do the handshaking thing. Are you Abel as in Abel Casey? Are you the Great Wolf?”
Her accent doesn’t sound Irish, she sounds like she’s from England. “In the flesh.”
“That’s absolutely amazing. I’m so happy to meet you! Do you mind if we take a picture together? I must text it to my mum; she’d absolutely die if I didn’t.” Without waiting for me to reply, she has her phone in her hand and asking Brianna to take our pic.
“Sure, anything to keep the mom happy.”
“I had no idea you’d be smokin’ hot. Good lord, how much do you work out, you’re like a brick wall,” she says as she rubs her hands all over my arm. Miss Germaphobe doesn’t have any problems getting close and personal.
Pru walks over, her face set in her resting-bitch-face and her eyes glaring holes at the girls. “Abe, we’re going to be in the first bus, we’ll be leaving in five minutes to go get breakfast and go touring.”
“Is it okay if Brianna rides with us?” I look at Brianna and see a grin stretch across her face. “Would you like to go with us on our bus Brianna?” Here I go assuming she’d want to hang out with me all day long. Good thing I remembered to ask or Pru would have jumped my ass.
“I’d love to, but Violet is the only person in her pack here, would it be okay for her to go with us?”
I can tell Pru’s aggravated about something, but I’m not certain why.
I’ve met Violet before, be careful, she’s a relentless flirt. She’s already introduced herself to Oakley and sent a pic to her mum. Brianna is into you, she’s the real deal. Pru thinks to me.
Yeah, Violet already took my picture too. Let’s go sightseeing, she’s harmless.
****************
Chapter 3 Date Night
We spent the entire day sight-seeing. The tour guide took us to an old cemetery and a local mall. We bought a few souvenirs to take back home with us. On the way home, Dolly had the guide take us to The National Irish Art Gallery. A painting from the artist Susanna Drury, called, A View of the Giant’s Causeway is on loan from Dublin’s National Museum of Art. The story about the painting had been something her mother would tell her when she was a child. She spent half an hour grilling the tour guide about the lore of the giants.
While Dolly was talking, we met a few of the wolves from other packs. Brianna and Violet kept me entertained all day with their commentary about our tour. They are complete opposites; Violet is a smartass and has something to say about everything, Brianna is quiet, but laughs hysterically at some of Violet’s antics.
As everyone stood around chatting in the café of the museum, Brianna and I slipped away. The building has an outdoor deck that leads down to the smoking area. The air isn’t as cold as it was at the crack of dawn, it has a light hint of someone smoking at the end of the path.
“Are you cold?” I ask her.
Her eyes are haunting as they make contact with mine. She has a way about her, something deep and soulful. It’s a moment before she answers me, “not really.”
A cat came out of nowhere and came to a stop about ten feet away from us. The tabby cat slowly arches its back and starts to hiss. It is probably one of the funniest things I’ve ever seen a cat do unprovoked. The next thing we know, the cat is pouncing around, growling with a juicy sounding hiss.
“I don’t think it likes us much,” Brianna laughs as she bends down to try and calm the animal down. Like a rabid animal, the cat Velcro’s itself to Brianna’s pea-coat.
I reach down and attempt to remove the cat from the front of her coat. The now very-pissed-off cat is screaming in a barbaric cat call. My attempts to touch the cat are futile.
Together, we both reach for the cat and it undid itself from her coat and ran.
“Are you okay? It didn’t bite you or anything did it?” I ask.
She starts laughing and soon I’m laughing too. “I’m fine, oh dat was funny, crazy cat. Makes you wonder if it would do that if it met us on a run!”
“I’m betting the answer is no,” I snorted.
I take her hand into mine and walk her back into the building.
I’m so focused on Brianna, I practically run into Oakley.
“You’re lucky I heard you laughing, we were about to sound an alert,” Oakley complains.
“Yes, I am lucky. Let’s go save the tour guide,” I maneuver past Oak and head out to find Dolly.
****************
“You have a limo for tonight,” Pru says as she climbs onto Oakley’s bed. She’s going out with Oakley tonight so Shaynie will be our chaperone. “Oak and I are going to dinner and one of the host families has invited us over for dessert. They invited the whole pack if you and Brianna want to go.”
I squirt on some cologne and double check that my shirt is tucked in correctly. “I think I’ll pass, it’s our first date and it will be awkward enough without being at a stranger’s house.”
Oakley walks in carrying an armful of sodas and a bag of granola is dangling from his mouth. He drops the bag on the bed and hands us a soda.
“I need to leave if I’m going to be on time. Thanks for the drink. I’ll catch you on the flip side.”
****************
We pull into the drive of a mini-mansion bed and breakfast. The hotel is like nothing in Oklahoma. The shape of the tan and grey building is square but the corners jut out on the sides like round towers. Vines cover the upper level of the two stories hotel. I notice a curtain pulling away from one of the windows on the second floor, and see Brianna giving me a quick wave. My heart races as I step out of the car, my wolf is practically tripping me to get to the door.
The carved wooden doors are larger than any I’ve ever seen on a house. The doorbells chimes are loud to my ears. A large man who resembles Brianna’s brother, Marc, answers the door. He reeks of pipe tobacco and a hint of alcohol is on his breath. He holds his hand out for me to shake and introduces himself as Philip. I follow him into the family room. The honey colored wood floors creak as we walk across the room.
I zero in on voices on the other side of the house and realize Brianna is talking to another woman. She tells the woman not to embarrass her and to stay in the kitchen. The other woman is amused and tells her not on her life. I guess that means the woman plans on embarrassing Brianna. The ticking of heels on the wood floors catch my attention. My wolf is impatient and dying to see her face, to be near her, to protect her. He’s going to be hard to harness if this other person does anything to embarrass Brianna.
“Hi Abel, I see you met
my dad. I hope he hasn’t bored you with tales of winning the Olympics in his youth.” She smiles at her dad and he pulls her into a half hug. They have an easier relationship than she does with her hotheaded brothers. “This is my Aunt Rosalie, she’s my mother’s sister.”
“Nice to meet you,” I say and turn towards Brianna. “Is your chaperone ready?”
“I talked with Dolly and she’s comfortable with Shaynie keeping an eye on you both. Please make sure she’s home by ten, we have a busy workout in the morning,” Philip says and kisses the top of her head.
Rosalie is a duplicate of Brianna, only older.
“So you’re the Great Wolf? What’s it like?” Rosalie asks excitedly. Brianna rolls her eyes as she shakes her head back and forth.
“Honestly, I don’t know how it feels. I haven’t ever been any other type of wolf, so I’m not sure how to measure the difference. I will say that being a wolf is amazing, I’m proud of my pack and everyone in it.”
Rosalie smiles at me. “Yeah, I guess that’s true. If you live in America, why are you going on a date with my niece?”
This type of questioning is what I expected to happen. I’d been thinking up answers all the way here. Brianna turns to her aunt and gives her the ‘what the hell’ look.
Philip stands taller and pulls his shoulders back. “If you’re not in a hurry, why don’t we sit at the dining table and have a talk.”
“Oh God, Dad, I’m sure Abel doesn’t want to get grilled to death. It isn’t as though we’re getting married; we’re just having fun….no biggie. I told you already that I’m showing him around town.” Brianna reaches over and grabs my hand.
The alpha in me understands why they’re questioning me. Hell, I’m questioning myself. I didn’t plan on dating anyone for a while, especially someone who lives thousands of miles away.
“It’s okay Brianna, if the General was still alive, he’d ask the same questions,” I glance in her direction to ease her discomfort.
Rosalie winks at me before turning to follow Philip to the dining area. The large custom table seats at least sixteen people without a leaf extension. Every pack house I’ve been to have a large table to seat all the pack members. We just had another one made since my parents and a couple of new wolves have joined us.
I pull out a chair for Brianna and I take the one directly to her right. My wolf feels content with her so close. Without prompting, a woman appears with four glasses of water and a plate full of cookies. My stomach rumbles with hunger pangs.
Brianna pulls the plate of cookies over and offers it to me, I nervously take a cookie.
“Is this your first time to visit Ireland?” Rosalie asks.
I nod my head up and down, “Yes ma’am, actually I’ve always had dreams of visiting Ireland.”
Rosalie and Brianna look stunned as if I just told them I wear girls’ underwear to feel pretty. It’s a struggle to keep from laughing out loud. Brianna looks at me curiously, almost as if she did hear me. No, she wouldn’t be able to hear my thoughts. Just like I have to do when I’m with my pack, I throw up my wall to keep her from hearing me think. Because her hearing my thoughts wouldn’t be a good thing…no, it would be very, very bad.
“I guess if you have to dream about something, Ireland is a great place to fill your dreams,” Rosalie says.
Philip takes a sip of water and pats Rosalie’s hand to calm her theatrics.
“This might sound strange, but when I met Brianna the other night, I felt like we’ve met before. She offered to show me around town and I’m happy to get out of the hotel and the scrutiny of everyone. Being the Great Wolf, puts me under a microscope 24/7, and she promised me a day of scrutiny free fun. I promise to have her home by curfew,” I explain.
Philip smiles and stands up. “Well, I don’t want to hold you up from having some regular fun the old fashioned Irish way. Have a good time, and remember what I said about work-outs in the morning Bri. You kids have a good time.”
****************
Brianna asks the driver to take us to Yindees Downtown on John Street.
Even though Shaynie was trying to be quiet; you get two girls together who seem to have a lot in common, you get girl chatter. Thankfully, they didn’t talk about fashion and girlie stuff. Nope, they talked about knives and the best way to use them in combat. Shaynie can get descriptive when she talks about stabbing people.
Shaynie isn’t your typical tall beautiful blonde model type; she’s vicious in a fight and lethal with weapons. When she first came to our pack from Texas, she and Pru had issues. They would glare at each other every time they found the opportunity. The tension was immense, and then one day it stopped. No one asked why it stopped, but we were thankful it did. It’s still unclear if Shaynie was after Oakley, but it never escalated into anything.
“Is it true Shaynie, that you’re a sniper? My brothers have talked non-stop about how badass you are!”
“She practically killed me when they were training me to be a wolf. I bet the C.I.A. would die to have someone like her on their team,” I chuckle at the memory.
Shaynie blushes, which is funny to see since she doesn’t embarrass easily. She ponders the question for a minute before answering. “I’ve been called worse. I love weapons of all kinds…throwing stars…assault rifles…butcher knives, you name it, I love it.”
Brianna and I say, “Butcher knives?” at the same time.
“I get bored in a kitchen, if I’m not eating,” she replies quickly and shrugs her shoulders.
The driver pulls up to an exit area near a parking garage. He tells us this is as close as he can get. Shaynie takes the device he hands to her and tells her to just press the button and he’ll meet us in the same spot. Sounds easy enough.
The tan building is very plain on the outside with a simple sign that says Yindees Downtown. As the door opens, I get a waft of ginger and curry. We’re at a Thai restaurant. How unexpected.
Brianna takes my hand in hers and easily leans in to me. “Do you like Thai food? I hope so, because this is the best in Ireland.”
“Yeah, we love Thai food. The whole pack will go into the city to eat Thai together.”
We check our coats as we enter the restaurant in exchange for a ticket to claim them at the end of dinner. A sign in multiple languages states we will be asked to leave the dining area if caught talking on the phone. It also state, we must silence our ringer. The dining room is rich with dark wood and candles on the tables. A semi-circle glass bar is lined with nothing but high-end liquors. It’s relatively early so the dining room is pretty empty. It’s the first place I’ve been where everyone who is here, is speaking English.
A hostess comes over and smiles brightly at Brianna and they start talking like old friends. Which I soon discover, they are former roommates at Trinity University of Dublin. At first my brain doesn’t realize they are conversing in Taiwanese. She guides us across the room to a table by a big window that overlooks the cityscape. Shaynie sits at the bar to allow us some privacy. Pru probably would have sat down with us; she’s annoyingly overprotective of me.
We sit and place an order. It’s time for high tea, which the restaurant though Thai, have adapted the tradition. They serve Irish Tea and cheese to us before taking our order. Brianna asks if she can order for both of us, which is fine because the menu isn’t in English. I find that odd since all the patrons are English speaking.
“What did you study at Trinity?” I ask as the waitress clears away our dinner dishes.
She licks her lips, which distracts me momentarily. “I studied Ancient and Medieval history and culture. I’ve always been fascinated with the past. I mean, even the story of you is… well, it’s incredible. Everyone just thought it was a made-up story, and then you came along.”
“Then I came along,” I repeat. “The story is incredible to me too. Life is funny, especially when you find myths to be true.” I don’t elaborate on my status. Even if my wolf was offended that I didn’t tell her how cool he
is and what cool things he can do. Like the ability to listen in on other peoples inner thoughts. It’s harder to do to weres from other packs, but if I try hard enough, I can. I don’t do it to people I know, I want them to have privacy, plus people have dirty minds or obscure thoughts. I can jump as high as a three story roof. We’ve tried to see if I can go higher, but it gets complicated to do with so many humans around.
The waitress brings me the check. I had to get Brianna to help me figure out the Euros to pay for dinner. The currency translation hasn’t been my strong suit.
After dinner we walked around the square of shops and places to eat. Shaynie falls back as we walk over to a small garden area. The temperature has dropped about ten degrees since we arrived downtown. As wolves, we are hot natured, but the cold weather will still give us a chill. Brianna reaches in her pockets of her pea-coat and pulls out a pair of black leather gloves.
“Are you cold?” I ask as I put on my gloves too.
She nods her head at me and loops her arm through mine. “I’ll be fine, I have you to keep me warm,” she boldly says.
I concentrate on my breathing, which seems silly but I don’t want her to know how fast my heart is pounding. It’s cold enough to see your breath and I am practically panting. “How is Ireland in the summertime?”
“I love summer here; everything is so green and beautiful. We typically go to England on holiday for a month or so every year. My father enjoys going to the Middle East as well. When we’re in London, there are werewolves everywhere. Paris on the other hand, is filled with vampires. My brothers track the vampires and figure out what they’re up to and report the findings to the alpha. I heard you were in Paris and had a run in with some vampires. Is that true?”
“Yes, we stopped the vampires from telling the humans of our existence.”
Brianna pulls her collar up to cover her neck. “Oh that would have been a mess.”
“You’re telling me, everything was insane. It’s hard enough that I had only technically been a werewolf for less than a year, but they were counting on me for decision making and strategies. My wolf was wanting to go ape-crazy on someone.”
The Great Wolf: A Legacy of Kilkenny Novel Book Three (The Legacy of Kilkenny Saga) Page 3