by Kamryn Hart
Gwen raised an eyebrow, but she decided to shake the odd woman’s hand. “Gwen,” she replied. When she tried to pull her hand back, Willow held on with an iron grip. She definitely had to be a wolf if her wolfman's strength was anything to go by. Based on build and muscle mass, Gwen should have been the one with more raw strength between the two women.
Willow’s brown eyes seemed to lighten up, becoming a little more amber as she turned Gwen’s hand to reveal the back.
“It’s beautiful. Your Lunas Sigil, I mean,” she said.
“My what?”
“This mark. Didn’t my brother explain anything?”
“Y-your brother?” Was Willow talking about the same wolfman Gwen was hoping to run into?
“Forget it,” Willow said with a shake of her head. “Of course he didn’t tell you.”
“I’m open to answers,” Gwen replied hastily.
Willow beamed. “Great! I’ll hop in my Thunderbird and you can follow me to Julie’s house. She’ll be able to tell you everything a lot better than I could. I’m still an apprentice history keeper after all.”
Gwen nodded her head, pretending she knew what Willow was talking about. The women traveled back to the other end of the cafe’s parking lot. Gwen climbed into her yellow Jeep and Willow climbed into her turquoise Thunderbird. The people here definitely had money. Willow’s Thunderbird reiterated that.
Gwen figured this was safe enough. If Willow led her someplace shady, she could just drive away before getting into any trouble. She only had her gun when she was on the job, otherwise she relied on her physical strength and knowledge of self-defense. Even if she always carried her gun, she wouldn’t have taken it today. It would have sent a hostile message and she didn’t want that. Unfortunately, hostility was what she was getting from the residents. She reminded herself to be cautious. Her wolfman made all common sense fly out the window and bringing a gun seemed like a stupid idea. Maybe that was still true, but she needed to at least try to be the sensible human being she knew she was. Even if that wolfman made her wet by the way he looked at her.
Willow rolled down her window and waved at Gwen as she drove by, and Gwen fell into line behind her. They drove past various large farmhouses. Most of them had barns, which Gwen assumed most of the animals were inside because she sure didn’t see many outside. There was one building she saw that stuck out from the rest. It looked like it was the same style as the other buildings, beautiful woodwork and designs, but it was also covered in vines. Gwen liked it. She thought it made the building more welcoming. The other buildings were almost too spotless regardless of their beauty.
She followed Willow to the vine covered house, and Willow parked right in front of it. This was their destination. Gwen was okay with that. This house was the most like her cabin in the woods. As long as she didn’t get surrounded by people giving her hostile looks, anything was better than the cafe.
Gwen parked on the side of the dirt road in front of the house after Willow, and then she got out of her Jeep. Willow offered her a smile as she walked up to the front door of the house. Willow rapped her knuckles on the door. The door opened a second later, revealing an older woman with long brown hair streaked in silver and eyes that looked a yellowish green. Or maybe it was a trick of the light. When the woman brought her gaze to Gwen, her eyes looked brown with a hint of green. Maybe the way to tell if someone was a wolf was by the animalistic glow Gwen had caught in her wolfman's eyes more than once.
“Look who I brought,” Willow said cheerfully. Then she sniffed the air like a dog and her face fell.
Confused, Gwen looked over Willow’s shoulder. She caught movement behind the older woman as a man came to stand behind her. Gwen smashed her lips together to stop herself from gasping when she saw his face. It was her wolfman. The scars on his face were even lighter now, hardly noticeable. She wished she could heal like that. Hell, she wished she were a wolf. It must have been her crazy obsession with animals and nature that kept her from running away from this—not to mention her inquisitive nature. Because she wasn’t scared. She was fascinated.
“Get inside,” the man said gruffly.
He and the older woman stepped back, allowing Gwen and Willow entry. The inside of the house was adorned with the same impressive woodwork as the cafe, complete with wolves carved into furniture and walls. The whole town must have had a single architect. Whoever built these houses was making art as well as homes. She could appreciate that.
“Have a seat,” the woman offered, gesturing to the custom furniture.
Gwen took a single chair instead of sitting on the couch. She was busying herself with looking at everything but her wolfman. He had made it clear last time that he had no intention of seeing her again, and here she was. Would he be angry? Could he blame her? After everything that had happened between them, could he really expect her not to be looking for answers? She wasn’t the type to let things go unanswered. Especially when something interested her. He could turn into a wolf. That was something she could only do in her dreams, but he could do it in reality. It didn’t have anything to do with him being drop dead gorgeous. Okay. That was a lie. His handsome face and chiseled body definitely had something to do with it too. She had been with one man before, for one night, but that was because she felt pressured into sex since she had never had it. She didn’t even like the guy, and she had never had sex with anyone since. But her wolfman was different in every way. With him, she’d try sex again.
Very different.
She could sneak one peek. That wouldn’t hurt anything. With her head slightly bowed, she did just that only to catch him looking back at her with eyes that flashed an unmistakable yellow. Her face heated up and her legs felt weak even though she was sitting down. She locked her gaze on Willow.
Willow glanced at Gwen and then at the man and said, “So this is awkward. What are you doing here, Nicky, brother of mine?”
“That’s what I want to know. What are you doing here?” he retorted.
Gwen chanced another look at him because she was pretty certain he was addressing her. He was indeed looking at her. Expectantly. “Uh,” she responded, feeling like an idiot. “I had the day off and I’ve never seen Moonwatch before, so I thought I’d check it out.”
He eyed her suspiciously.
“So your name is Nick?” she said, trying to get rid of the tension shrouding the room.
Willow gasped. “You never told her your name?!” She jumped up and slugged her brother on the arm. “That’s so fucking rude!”
When she went to slug him again, he caught her hands effortlessly. Damn was he strong. “Knock it off,” he said. The words were simple, but there was a power behind them that seemed to subdue Willow.
She backed off, but there was a sour look on her face as she sat down on the wooden couch next to the older woman. Nick continued standing, his arms folded. He didn’t look happy. At all. Maybe Gwen had made a big mistake.
“Yes, my name is Nick,” he said, breaking the silence. “That’s Julie.” He gestured to the older woman. “You’ve obviously met my sister, Willow. And you’re Gwen.”
She raised an eyebrow. “How do you know my name is Gwen?”
Nick winced. “I heard it on the radio you dropped and assumed…”
She nodded slowly. “Yeah, okay. I’m Gwendolyn Laney, a park ranger stationed in Blue Forest. And you’re a wolf. And everyone else here is probably a wolf.”
Julie looked up at Nick as if asking a question. Willow clapped her hands, apparently giddy about something Gwen had said.
“Would you drop the wolf thing already? Do you know how insane that sounds?” Nick said, exasperated.
“I know what I saw,” Gwen replied, folding her arms to match his, though she stayed sitting in her seat.
Nick ran a hand through his short and dark curly hair. “Julie, since she’s here, take a look at the Lunas Sigils.”
“Certainly,” the woman replied with a voice as smooth as still waters. She g
ot up from the couch and held out her hands. “Hands please.”
Gwen stood up and gave Julie her marked right hand. Nick did the same with his left after removing the gauze he had wrapped around it. Julie took a moment studying one hand and then the other.
“I think it’s been changing shape,” Gwen commented. “It doesn’t seem as thin as before.”
“Yes. It reflects the Moon in the sky. It’s a Moon Mark,” Julie informed.
That kind of made sense. Did that mean the moon and these wolves were all part of some kind of magic? She always thought nature was magical in a way, and now it seemed she was right.
Her mark was itching again. Probably because her hand was so close to Nick’s. Whenever he was around, the mark seemed to act up. She supposed that was the magic trying to tell her something. She wished she knew what. She wished she understood any of this. She always felt different. Now she knew she was different—if for no other reason than her being a part of this hidden world not many people seemed to know about.
“Can you break the contract, Julie?” Nick asked as he reclaimed his hand and wrapped the gauze around it again. He was speaking in that solid and commanding voice of his, but to Gwen, the question sounded like more of a plea.
“You know I can’t,” Julie replied quietly, giving Gwen her hand back. “This contract has nothing to do with me. It’s between you, Gwen, and the Moon.”
“Jeez, Nicky,” Willow spoke up. “Why are you worrying so much?” She rested her elbows on the arm of the couch and rested her chin in her hands. “It’s so romantic.”
Nick’s eyes flashed yellow as he turned to his sister. He snarled too, showing sharp white teeth. Instead of backing down this time, Willow growled back.
“You are all wolves, right?” Gwen asked, her calm voice cutting through the increasing tension.
The brother and sister stopped snarling at each other and turned to her. Nick said, “No,” while Willow said, “yes,” simultaneously.
“Yes, we are wolves,” Julie clarified with a wave of her hand.
Nick growled again, his eyes glowing fiercely at the older woman. She cowered like she expected Nick to hit her or something. Enough was enough. Gwen shot out of her chair and placed herself in between the wolfman and the woman.
“Stop it,” she ordered. “She didn’t do anything wrong. I’m not an idiot. Even if you tell me you aren’t wolves, I know you are. I was just hoping you’d be upfront about it, give me a little credit or something. I’m not here to cause trouble. I want to know more about what’s happening.” She held up her hand with the Moon Mark, or the Lunas Sigil. Whatever they called it. “I’m part of all of this too.”
Nick stepped closer to Gwen, so close they were almost touching. He fucking growled right in her face, bending down so their eyes were closer to level.
“I want you to leave and never come back,” he stated.
“Fuck that,” she replied angrily. “We’re bound together by some kind of magic right? I mean, my hand always burns whenever you’re near me. Like right now.” She scratched at the back of her hand. There was an irritating heat stemming from her hand similar to when she tried to stop Nick from leaving her cabin last evening. Basically, the mark seemed to hurt whenever there was contention between them. When they first met in her cabin, when he was bare-ass naked and they were silently taking each other in, she felt something very different from her mark: a pleasant warmth rushing through her body.
She stopped scratching her hand when she realized she was making herself bleed because she was digging so furiously. Nick glanced down at her hand. Maybe he noticed the blood because he faltered.
“Can we just talk? And can we agree you’ll stop treating me like an idiot?” Gwen asked, suddenly feeling extremely self-conscious of the way Nick was looking at her. His anger was gone like someone had flipped a switch. The look on his face now was one of concern. Did his mood change because she hurt herself a little? She couldn’t think of any other reason.
“I think it would be wise, my Alpha,” Julie said quietly.
Nick nodded. “Fine.” He turned to the older woman and bowed his head slightly. “And I’m sorry, Julie. That was uncalled for.”
She smiled. “There is nothing to be sorry for.” She stepped around Gwen and gave Nick a little pat on the arm. The way she looked at Nick reminded Gwen of how her mother looked at her. “Take her to your home and talk. Willow will stay here with me.”
“What?!” Willow exclaimed. “I want all the juicy details. I want to be a witness to everything.”
“Gross, Will,” Nick said with mock disgust.
“Oh, come on. I didn’t mean it like that,” she replied.
Gwen almost laughed. Almost. Was it wolf nature to be enraged one second and then to be chill the next? Well, one thing was clear. These wolves were close. And apparently, Nick was an alpha. Did that mean he was the alpha wolf over everyone in Moonwatch?
Nick gestured to the door. “You want to talk, so let’s go.”
“Yeah, okay,” Gwen said as she stepped past him and the others, letting herself out of the cozy home.
Gwen only saw hers and Willow’s cars, so that meant Nick hadn’t driven here. She kicked at some loose dirt and looked behind her when she heard the door shut. Nick walked up to her with his hands in his jeans pockets.
“Where are we talking?” she asked. “Here?”
“My home,” he said. “It’s private. We won’t have any Willows listening to every fucking word we say.” He gave her a sideways glance. “How is your hand?”
She had almost forgotten about that. She raised her hand and glanced at it. Yeah, she was cut and bleeding, but it wasn’t deep or anything. It looked messy though. “It’s fine. I’ll wash it off when we get to your place,” she replied. “Should I drive?”
Nick nodded to her Jeep. “That’s yours?”
“Yep.”
He gave a little smirk, but he hid it quickly. “Yeah, sure. You’ll want your car when we’re done talking anyway.”
Because he apparently still wanted to boot her out of the town. That was the only conclusion she could come to from those words.
When they were both loaded into her Jeep, Nick pointed out the huge mansion Gwen had spotted when she arrived in Moonwatch. Of course that was his home. Why should she even be surprised? She didn’t know anything about Nick other than he was a great big alpha wolf. She started the engine and drove. She tapped her bloodied right hand on the steering wheel with impatience. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Nick staring at her hand.
“Alpha wolf,” she teased, “do you have a problem with blood?”
“No,” he responded quickly.
“Then stop staring at my hand. It’s like you’re thinking about eating me or something.”
She was teasing again, but when she glanced over at him, the look on his face was serious.
“That was a joke,” she clarified as she pulled up to the mansion. It looked even bigger up close like this. Everything surrounding it was paved nicely with fancy rocks. She parked her car outside of a garage and took in all the plants and the pond that winded around a garden in the front of the mansion.
“You do all of this yourself?” she asked when they were out of her Jeep. She walked up to the pond and saw a bunch of glittering koi.
“No, but I help maintain it,” he said as he walked up to the front doors.
Gwen went to join him as he opened one of the doors. “That doesn’t seem like a very alpha thing to do.”
He ignored her and waited for her to enter the mansion before he closed the door behind them. He pointed ahead of them, between the two staircases prominent in the grand foyer. “Bathroom’s on the right.”
“Thanks,” Gwen answered as she walked forward, finding the bathroom easily. She was surprised when there wasn’t a shower in there, but she supposed it was more of a pit stop kind of bathroom for guests only. Based on size, it was modest compared to the rest of the mansion, but the d
ecorations were just as opulent, just as much burgundy wood and wolf.
She turned on the tap and ran her hand under warm water. It stung a little, but she had worse injuries than this before. She scrubbed for a few seconds, washing away all of the dried blood clinging to her skin. When she was done, she was left with some raw scratches. They weren’t bad enough to warrant her to search through the bathroom for bandages. Satisfied, she left the bathroom to find Nick waiting for her near the front doors.
“That’s it?” he asked, nodding to her hand.
“Yeah. It’s not that bad,” she replied, waving her hand in front of him. He frowned slightly, and she asked, “Are you actually worried about it?”
“No,” he asserted.
Without another word, he left the grand foyer for the room on the left. It was large and wide open. A sitting room with nice cushy furniture and pricey looking sculptures on display like in an art museum. Gwen had the urge to look around and inspect things, but Nick sat down and gave her this let’s-get-this-over-with kind of look. She sat on a cushy sofa opposite of him.
“What do you want to talk about?” he asked.
“Everything I guess?” she answered. “Like what’s with this magic and contract stuff you were talking about, and how are you people wolves?”
He scratched the back of his head and let out a little breath of pent up tension. “When you found me, as a wolf, I was pretty sure I was going to die. You said something, that you’d help me if you had the power, and my wolf got riled up. And I bit you.” He paused. “I got a surge of energy after that.”
“And I started passing out,” Gwen added.
“Yeah, and I started healing faster. Really fast.”
“Come to think of it, I’ve been unusually tired lately.”
He winced. “I’m probably sapping your strength.” He looked at her hand. “And you don’t seem to be healing faster at all. I don’t know exactly what my bite did, but the Moon basically decided to save me through you. I thought it was just borrowing your strength because of what you said about saving me. But, if that was all there is to it, our marks should have faded away by now. Since we still have them, I was thinking that if you got hurt, you’d sap my strength and heal faster like I have been.”