“Sophie! Come inside! Give your mother a few minutes of privacy,” Lindsey’s voice rang out.
Chris backed away a step, still holding her waist as she got her balance.
“Well, now I really do feel like a teenager caught kissing his date. How come it is turns out to be just as embarrassing to be caught by the girl’s daughter as it is to be caught by her father?”
“And you have lots of experience with that?” Ana asked, laughing.
“A little bit.”
“You’ll have to tell me all about it on Saturday then.”
“I’m sure we can find something more interesting to talk about than my teenage romances. But right now I think you’d better go in. I see the curtains twitching. And I don’t think it is just Sophie watching.”
He gave her another quick kiss on the cheek and turned her toward the door. He watched as she walked up the steps and into Joe and Lindsey’s house, then turned away, humming to himself. He hadn’t expected to enjoy his time in Rivelou so much. Coming here had been an obligation to his sister more than any real belief he would find out something useful in this small town. It had been a few years since he’d had any romantic interests in his life.
Chris hadn’t, exactly, given up on romance, he had just not pursued it. Once women found out what he did they either ran from him, figuring he was a crackpot, or they were too interested because they were more than a little cracked themselves. He wasn’t interested in women who thought he was a real life ComicCon hero. What he did was serious business.
Yes, Ana Dugan had definitely sparked his interest with her combination of guts and insecurity. She covered up her sense of humor and wit. She’d been unappreciated for far too long, he thought.
As Chris walked away, his thoughts moving from Ana to his business in Rivelou and back again, he forgot to be vigilant. He didn’t notice a dark shape growled softly to itself in the bushes beside her house as it watched him with glowing eyes.
Chapter8
The animal stayed in the bushes and watched as Ana and Sophie, chattered happily to her mother about her day at school, crossed from the Lessing’s house to their own front porch. The door closed behind them and lights popped on throughout the house.
Do wolves think? Do shapeshifters, when in animal form, reason in the same way that they do when in human form? Or do they rely on instinct?
Whether intellectual reasoning, or animal instinct, the wolf outside Ana’s door knew it had to watch her. It wanted her. It needed her.
The lights in the house slowly went out, and still the animal crouched in the dark. He heard the back door open and he crawled along the high privacy fence until he found a crack where he could see into the backyard.
~~~
Ana stepped out onto the small back deck. She wore only a terrycloth bathrobe. The moon called to her. She could ignore it no longer. It was the third and final night of the full moon.
It would be easier when Sophie was older, when she could turn with her mother. But for now, her daughter needed to be safely in bed while her mother changed. It meant Ana couldn’t often run with her pack, something she heard about constantly from her grandfather, the leader. But she would take this time to slip out of her human form and worship the moon in the way of her ancestors.
Her backyard was tiny, but private. The privacy fence was solid and high. Many of the neighboring shotgun houses had converted their attics into second floor bedrooms, but the sloping roofs meant that there were windows only on the front and back of the houses surrounding her. No one could see as she slipped off her robe, stretched her muscles and began the change.
Her legs and arms stretched and elongated and she crouched on all fours. As her ears grew larger her hearing became more acute, her nose, elongating, also became more sensitive.
Another wolf was nearby.
Was it the rogue who had killed only last night?
Now was not the time to find out. Not with Sophie asleep and vulnerable upstairs. Ana quickly returned to her human form, slipped her robe back on, and went inside locking the door behind her.
In the dark the wolf continued to watch. He could be very, very patient.
Chapter 9
Saturday morning Ana helped Sophie pack for her overnight with her father and stepmother. They lived only a few miles away but their neighborhood, their house, and the lifestyle they lived were completely different from Sophie’s weekday world with her mother.
Sophie was required to pack a tennis outfit for the weekly lessons at the country club, and a dress in case they decided to go back to the club for dinner. The typical worn t-shirts, old shorts and torn jeans she dressed in after school each day just weren’t good enough for Melanie. Sophie had to pack “casual wear” for lounging, playing, or doing homework. If some of Melanie’s Junior Women’s Club friends stopped by Sophie had to look “presentable.” And for some reason Ana had never understood, Sophie never had what she needed at her dad’s house. Her daughter did keep some things there: a toothbrush and other toiletries, plus some extra clothes, but it always seemed as if the outfit she particularly wanted was at the house she wasn’t staying in at the time.
It all made for Saturday mornings that were just a little tense as Ana and Sophie got ready for Melanie to pick Sophie up. It wasn’t that she didn’t love her father or didn’t want to see him. Ana knew that Sophie did. It was just that Sophie felt that she was required to change into a different person every Saturday morning. And the transformation was painful for both of them.
As usual, Sophie complained about the tennis lessons.
“Mom, I hate tennis. I’m the worst in the class and Ava always makes fun of me, she thinks she’s the next Serena Williams or something. All the kids are such snobs. Why do I have to keep taking these stupid lessons?” Sophie crammed underwear and socks into her backpack as she spoke. “Why can’t dad understand I’d much rather practice for track on the weekends? I’m good at that. I’ll never be any good at tennis. I’m like you, I was built for running. Not chasing a ball around a court. I might as well be playing fetch.”
Ana ground her teeth. “I hope you don’t say things like that in front of your father.”
“Of course I don’t. I don’t see how you were married to him and he never figured things out. When I get married I’m going to be completely honest with my husband whether or not he’s….”
“Sophie, you really don’t understand what you are talking about. There are rules you have to follow. It’s much more complicated when you get older.”
“That’s what everyone always says,” Sophie groused. “Where’s my tennis skirt, mom? Have you seen it?”
“It’s right where you left it last week,” Ana said, handing her the short, white skirt. Sophie stuffed in her bag in a way that made sure it would come out a wrinkled mess. “Tennis is good exercise and knowing a sport is always useful. It can be a great way to make new friends.”
“I don’t want to make new friends if they are like the ones at dad’s club. Those kids are such snobs. They all go to North or the Day School. They think Thomas Jefferson is inferior just because it’s a downtown school. They act like I live the ghetto or something, just because we live in town and not out in the suburbs. I don’t have anything in common with them.”
“Maybe not right now, but next year? You never know. If we stay here a lot of them will end up in the same high school you’re in; both TJ and North are feeder schools for Rivelou East High. That will put you a step ahead of people from both schools in ninth grade. You’ll already know twice as many people.”
At that moment the doorbell rang. “There’s Melanie.” Sophie ran down the stairs to answer the door.
“Mom, Dad and Melanie want to talk to you,” Sophie yelled as Ana walked down the stairs carrying the overnight bag Sophie had left in her room.
“Of course,” she said, grinding her teeth one more time. She was going to have to stop that, she thought. She’d wear out her teeth if she continued this hab
it every time she had to deal with her ex-husband.
“Ana,” Jonathan gave her a polite peck on the cheek. “Sit down, sit down,” he added, and she forced herself not to grind her teeth this time. Why was he asking her to sit down in her own home, as if he was the host and she the guest? Of course, at one time it had been his home, too, back in the days when they were just starting out. He had just passed the bar and she had been the dutiful attorney’s wife, juggling her job at the university, taking care of Sophie, and appearing at every political and social function Jonathan decided they needed to attend to make a good impression on the partners in his new firm.
A request to sit and talk could only mean one thing: He wanted something from her. What was it now?
Jonathan, at 35, had begun to lose his hair. At least he had the sense not to try to hide it, like his father, Ana thought. The senior Dugan had taken to styling his hair in a Donald Trump comb-over for the last few years. It had Ana on the verge of giggles every time she saw him.
Jonathan and Melanie sat down on the flowered sofa that had seen better days, but before Jonathan could say anything, Sophie broke in.
“Dad, did you hear about the man who was killed by a dog in Mitchell Park the other night? Mom got attacked by the same dog!”
“What! That’s horrible. You must have been terrified,” Melanie spoke up, as Ana tried to make shushing faces to Sophie without her ex-husband noticing. He would have something critical to say about the neighborhood, or the fact that she walked home from work, or who knew what. She really was not in the mood for him to go off on one of his usual rants.
“I’ve told you for years you need to leave this neighborhood. It’s not safe for Sophie. This just proves it. I’m really not sure Sophie should be living here at all,” Jonathan began, but Melanie stopped him with just a hand on his arm.
“Jon, this isn’t the time. You know that is not what we came here to talk about today.” As Melanie gripped her husband’s hand and smiled glowingly, Ana suddenly knew what they had come to say.
“We’re having a baby,” Melanie burst out. “Sophie, you’re going to be a big sister!”
“OMG! That’s so cool!” Sophie ran over to give her dad and stepmom hugs.
“That’s just wonderful. I’m so happy for you, Melanie, I know how much you’ve wanted this,” Ana said, feeling as if the smile on her face had suddenly been glued in place. As she got up to hug Melanie in turn, she kept saying to herself, “I’m happy for her. I’m really happy for her. I know she’s wanted this for a long time.”
But it also hurt. She’d wanted another baby herself—had dreamed about giving Sophie that little brother or sister years ago, when the two would have been close enough in age to actually share things. She was still only thirty-two, plenty young enough to have a second baby, even if she wasn’t as young as Melanie, who wouldn’t reach thirty for another six months. Of course, Ana had no real expectations of finding someone to settle down and make that baby with. A first date tonight with a stranger who was only visiting Rivelou and might leave at any minute scarcely counted, she thought.
And in reality she was happy for Melanie. She liked her former husband’s new wife rather more than she liked her former husband. Although Melanie certainly filled the bill as the perfect country club attorney’s wife in ways Ana never had been able to, she sometimes found herself exchanging exasperated looks or eye rolls with Melanie when Jonathan did something too over-the-top snobbish.
Once the congratulations were over Jonathan got to what Ana knew was, in his mind, the whole point of today’s conversation. “I’d like to keep Sophie until Monday morning,” he said. “We’ve planned a special evening tomorrow to tell our parents the news. I’d really hoped Sophie could be part of the event. We’ll keep her overnight on Sunday and bring her to school on Monday morning. That way you won’t have to worry about her this weekend, at all.”
“Said as if he’s doing me a favor,” Ana thought, “as if being with Sophie puts me out. That’s him, not me.” But she plastered her smile on even harder. This was not the day to create a fuss, even if Jonathan kept acting as if he expected one.
“Of course. Sophie, I’m sure you want to be part of the event,” Ana prodded her daughter. Like most thirteen-year-olds, Sophie could sometimes be clueless about the need to be gracious about invitations she wasn’t particularly interested in accepting, and Ana knew that Sophie was often reluctant to attend events with her father’s family, where making sure you always used the right fork and spoon was more important than enjoying the meal.
“Yeah, Mom, of course I want to go. Dad, I’ve got to run up and get my books, though. I’ve got an English test first period Monday morning, and I’ve got to study.”
It took another fifteen minutes to get Sophie and all of her gear into the car and the trio on their way for the weekend. Ana headed into the kitchen for a cup of coffee. She sat down with a sigh of relief to enjoy the peace and quiet. As she sipped the coffee and started to relax she smiled. For once, she not only had the entire weekend to herself, she also had a date.
Chapter 10
With so much unexpected free time, Ana realized she would be able to not only study for her own classes, but relax, too. Although, in the world of a single mom, relaxing didn’t mean sitting down with a good book or taking an afternoon nap. She decided she would visit the farmer’s market for some fresh vegetables, and maybe pick up a couple of pumpkins to carve later in the week with Sophie, who might be in eighth grade, but still enjoyed certain “childish” activities as long as none of her friends were around to see. And then, if there was time, she’d give herself a manicure and pedicure before her date.
She always enjoyed wandering through the various booths at the farmer’s market, which was held down near the river levee every Saturday until Thanksgiving. The booths included not only fresh vegetables and baked goods, but several antique stalls, as well. Over the years Ana had picked up quite a few bargains at the market for her home, everything from vintage china to a lovely Victorian hall tree that had only needed a little refinishing, and which now sat beside her front door.
As she stepped out of one of her favorite antique vendor’s stalls she noticed Alexander, apparently browsing the used bookseller in the next stall. Was it a coincidence that he was here, in the next stall over from her? No, she decided, she was becoming totally paranoid if she thought he might be stalking her.
Still, she hesitated, wondering if she should say hello or just sneak away. Despite their very pleasant lunch on Thursday, she wasn’t totally comfortable with the man. He was, after all, a professor, and Dr. Tormisano had always made it quite clear that staff should always treat faculty with a great degree of respect.
On top of that, he was not only handsome, but he seemed so sophisticated as well. While most of the men at the market were wearing the traditional Midwestern “uniform” of work jeans, a plaid shirt and a cap, Alexander wore black designer jeans and a black, short-sleeved silk polo. Today his watch had a black leather band and black face, the perfect complement to his outfit. He should have looked out-of-place, but somehow he seemed totally comfortable, with himself and his surroundings. It was a self-assurance Ana envied.
Still, she hesitated draw his attention to herself. The way he spoke often seemed to make fun of the Midwestern, small city ways of Rivelou. His little digs at the culture—or lack of it—of the town were delivered with a smile and a laugh to show he was really joking, but Ana couldn’t help but wonder if the smiles were just a cover for how he really felt about her hometown. He had obviously traveled quite a lot. Did he see Rivelou and the people in it, including Ana, as hopeless country bumpkins? Why would someone with Alexander’s sophistication want to talk to her on his day off?
Ana hadn’t always been this insecure, she remembered. She’d been young when she met Jonathan, barely out of high school, but that young girl had been much more secure in herself. She would have assumed an attractive, interesting male was interested
in her. She took a deep breath. It was time to take some of that confidence back.
She had finally prepared herself to say hello to the professor when the choice was taken out of her hands. As she stood at the front of the stall gaining her courage and deciding exactly what to say, Alexander looked up and saw her.
“Ana. Hello, what a surprise to see you here.”
“Professor…Alexander. I didn’t expect to see you here today, either.”
“I love the market. It reminds of the stalls in Paris, where I’ve often spent a pleasant afternoon. You never know what you might find. I’m very interested in old books, and I often find something thought-provoking to pick up here.”
“I love them, too. I agree, I never know what interesting things I’ll find here.”
“Would you join me? I’m sure you know all of the best vendors. Are you looking for anything in particular today?”
“I thought I’d pick up a few pumpkins at the vegetable market, but other than that, no. I’m just browsing.”
It was an enjoyable afternoon. The weather was crisp and cool as they browsed the various stalls. When they reached the flower vendor, Alexander bought an autumn bouquet of chrysanthemums and sunflowers and gallantly presented it to her.
Just then, Ana heard a familiar voice calling her name. “Oh no,” she muttered under her breath and pretended not to hear. Unfortunately, Alexander heard it also. “Isn’t that someone calling and waving to you on the other side of the path?” he asked.
“Oh yes,” she said with a forced smile. “It’s my sister.”
“Well, of course we must go say hello.”
With a smile fixed to her face, Ana crossed to the Chamber of Commerce booth where her sister, Jennifer, presided dressed in an antebellum hoop skirt.
“Don’t you just love the outfit, Ana?” her sister asked, stepping out of the booth to give her a hug.
The Patient Wolf (Wicked Urban Fantasy #1) Page 5