by Leela Ash
“Oh, what are you moping about?” Riley asked. “It’s really not that bad.”
“No…,” Walker muttered.
She examined his torso, touching his bruised ribs gently. He flinched away and Riley sighed. “You’re going to have a lot of trouble climbing out of that tub.”
“I’ll manage!” Walker exclaimed. “And I don’t need help with the rest of this. I’ve got it. I’m a grown man.”
“And a stubborn one to boot,” Riley mumbled, shrugging her shoulders and heading to the doorway. “Suit yourself. But if you need me, don’t hesitate to call me.”
Walker nodded miserably, and she fixed another warning look on him before closing the bathroom door and leaving him alone in the room.
He undressed quickly, his mind a million miles away before finally sinking into the steaming hot water. It was exactly what his body needed after such a physically demanding day, and he had half a mind to call Riley in just to thank her for being considerate enough to think of a bath. He probably would have just showered as usual and then dropped into bed, waking up stiff as a board the next day. He wasn’t used to anybody taking care of him, but for once, it wasn’t so terrible.
“You doing okay?”
Riley’s gentle voice wafted into the room, and again, the wolf responded. It was eager for more of Riley, now that he was lying naked in the water. If she just came in one more time, he might be able to convince her to come into the tub with him…
No. He couldn’t allow himself to harbor such perverse intentions. She was there to take care of his child, for God’s sake, not take care of the wolf’s insidious needs. He couldn’t believe the level he was stooping to. It was embarrassing.
“I’m fine, thanks,” he replied, hoping his voice didn’t sound too strained. It would be even worse if the wolf gave away his innermost thoughts without being any the wiser. He wanted her to feel comfortable in his home, not like she was being pursued.
“All right. Well, I’m here.”
“I know.”
Did he ever. The wolf was begging him to invite her into the bathroom again; to feign some injury or pain that she could come in and rub right out of him. But he couldn’t allow himself to stoop that low. She deserved to work for an honest man; not a man so driven by desire that he would succumb to the inner trickster that was his animal self.
Once the water began to cool off, Walker decided he’d had enough of soaking. It was time to face the world again, whether he was ready or not.
He grunted painfully as he hoisted himself out of the tub and wrapped a towel around his waist. Usually, he brought in a change of clothes to put on, but the bath had happened so suddenly that he hadn’t had a chance to prepare.
Walker emerged from the bathroom, glancing nervously for any sign of Riley. Thankfully, there was none, and although the wolf was disappointed, he was relieved more than anything. He would be able to live another day knowing he had been able to resist the temptations of the nanny and allow her a safe and comfortable place to work, and if necessary, somewhere down the line, live.
He walked up the stairs and turned the corner to his bedroom, colliding with Riley as she came down the hall, presumably after putting the girls to bed in Erin’s bedroom.
“Shit,” he hissed, the wolf awakened suddenly by the smell of arousal wafting from Riley. She had seen him there, half-naked in his towel, and the wolf had caught the scent that she was a hot-blooded woman after all.
“I’m sorry,” Riley mumbled, averting her eyes and trying to suppress the aura of arousal that was emanating off her. “Are you all right?”
“I’m fine,” Walker said.
They both stood there, frozen, facing each other but not looking at each other, until Riley looked up into Walker’s eyes, fearless and bold.
“Good night, Walker,” she said, managing to walk away from the situation with dignity despite knowing full well that her attraction to him had been detected.
Everything in Walker told him to chase after her; not to let her go without letting her know just how strong the wolf’s claim upon her truly was, but if he did, it would have ruined that frail balancing act of dignity and respect they had been playing with from the moment she had first arrived in his home.
No, Walker wasn’t going to let the wolf have its way this time. Whether it liked it or not, he was going to live to fight another day.
At least, he was if his wounds didn’t kill him first.
He walked into his dark bedroom and painfully pulled on a pair of boxers before falling into bed with a heavy sigh. As annoying as it might have been, he was grateful that Riley was there with him, insisting, in her own small way, to make sure both he and his child were cared for in the event of the worst case scenario. If it were Molly, she would have taken off hours ago, as soon as she had heard his car pull into the driveway. In fact, that’s exactly what she had done.
Walker closed his eyes, half delirious with sleep as he considered the two women and their stark differences. Molly, with her model-like face and body and sour soul, versus Riley, who was beautiful in her own dignified way, even if a little mousy, and probably smarter than everyone he knew combined. He wished he would have kissed her, and fell asleep living a fantasy in his mind, of what might have happened if, in another time and another life, he had been able to love the right woman first, instead of the one he had so stupidly married.
5.
“Are you all right?”
Riley felt really wrong about intruding in the dark, cool bedroom where Walker was slumbering.
He opened his eyes and sat up, the moonlight hitting his sculpted chest and making her breath catch in her throat. He was truly a beautiful specimen.
“Hmm? Oh, yeah, I’m fine.”
“Okay,” Riley said quickly, scurrying out of the room and back to the guest room where she had made herself comfortable for the night. Erin had insisted that she and Lily sleep in the same room, so both girls were on the floor in sleeping bags because Lily wasn’t comfortable on other people’s beds, and Erin had insisted on joining her.
She lay down quickly, angry at herself for checking in on him, even though it was the morally responsible thing to do. She didn’t want anything bad happening on her watch; the little girl had already been through quite enough with her mother abandoning her. The last thing she needed was her stubborn fool of a father killing himself for no good reason.
It was hard for her to sleep in such an unfamiliar room and she found her eyes wandering the walls. They rested on the dresser across from the bed, at a framed photo of a woman who looked like a model. She, like Walker and Erin, had glittering blonde hair, and smoky blue eyes. Erin resembled her in ways, but it was clear she was a combination of both her parents.
Riley suddenly felt embarrassed on her own behalf, and maybe even a little angry. Why would she think she had any right to be attracted to a man who, not only was paying her to take care of his child, but who was the kind of man who was romantically and sexually interested in women who looked like they could make money just on their looks alone? It wasn’t fair. And she was embarrassed that she had allowed herself to even allow the seed of hope to be planted in her mind. It was a ridiculous thought and she should never have allowed herself to have it in the first place.
She soon managed to fall asleep, her mind still rife with the possibilities of exploring her attraction to Walker more deeply. But when she woke up the next morning, she felt only disgust and contempt toward herself, and avoided the picture of his ex-wife as if it were the plague.
Riley would never be a supermodel. She was a decent, modest woman, and she would rather be seen as a mother and an intellectual than a model anyway. Those were much more important. She wouldn’t let anything bring her down.
***
“What did the doctor say?” Riley demanded as soon as Walker strode through the door that afternoon.
“He said everything is fine,” Walker said, his voice low and patient. “I told you you didn’t
need to worry so much.”
“I wouldn’t if you worried more about yourself,” Riley hissed, slapping his shoulder with the dish towel she had been using to dry Erin’s plate from lunch.
“I know,” Walker said patiently. “I’m working on it.”
“Good.”
Walker moved past her and into the kitchen, looking at her evenly as he sat down at the table.
“Oh God, you’re going to fire me, aren’t you? I was too pushy. I’m sorry…”
Walker’s face broke out into a broad smile and he shook his head. “No, that’s not it. I was going to ask you how the meeting with your landlord went. You know, the offer to live here is still open. I know I’m lucky to have you.”
Riley’s cheeks grew hot and she stammered, sitting down as she attempted to collect her thoughts. She was already so bitter about Walker’s ex-wife that it was almost ridiculous to even consider sharing a home with the man. But truth be told, it had been unbelievably seamless to simply wake up and get the girls ready for their day, making everybody breakfast and checking in on the stubborn fool of a man to make sure he was all right…
“Well, they aren’t going to be changing their minds about the eviction any time soon, even though I already gave them everything you’d given me for the week. So, I will just have to keep looking.”
“When do you have to be out of there?” Walker asked, his handsome eyes alive with concern.
“Next week. But we will figure something out. We always do.”
Walker raised his eyebrow at me. “You don’t have to try very hard. Even if it’s just for a little while…it’s been kind of nice having an adult around to talk to.”
Riley chuckled despite herself. “Honestly, I know what you mean.”
“I’m sure you do,” Walker said, his face good natured. “It can be hard to have to change your vocabulary to suit that of a three- or four-year-old. And God help you if you say a bad word.”
“Tell me about it,” Riley said, smiling wistfully. “I haven’t cursed in seven years just because I had to keep up appearances with the shifter families I was working for. I don’t even think I would remember how to use them.”
“I’m sure you would if you got the chance,” Walker said, his eyes flashing.
For some reason, it sent a wave of powerful heat coursing through her and Riley looked away quickly, trying to suppress the feeling of longing she had surging within her. The last thing she needed to do was get caught up in them and have Walker sense those feelings within her. She was already embarrassed enough at herself without giving him a reason to make her feel ashamed of her as well.
“We’ll just go back to the hotel like we did when we first moved here,” Riley said decidedly.
“How long can you afford that?” Walker asked, frowning.
“That’s really not any of your business, is it?” Riley asked, prickling. “I’m a mother. I know what I can and can’t do when it comes to caring for my daughter. And if I couldn’t take care of her on my own, then yes, I might consider your offer. But…”
“Of cours, you can take care of her yourself,” Walker said, his voice calm and gentle. He stood and walked toward her, putting his hand on her shoulder. The heavy warmth of his body was immediately soothing, and Riley looked down at the table. Why did it have to feel so good to have this man near her? “I just know what it’s like to be a single parent with one income, and honestly, it isn’t doing you justice to knock your price down low enough for a guy like me to afford you. Maybe part of what I owe you could be considered rent. You know, just in case you want to save yourself some money. Like I said, we’ve got the room. And I know Erin would be thrilled.”
Riley opened her mouth, nearly ready to keep fighting him, and then thought better of it.
“Thanks,” she said instead. “I’ll think about it, if things get too rough, okay? I appreciate the offer.”
“That’s all I ask,” Walker said, winking at her. The gesture left her feeling foggy. It was hard to keep trying to fight these ridiculous feelings of attraction for this man. It was purely physical, surely, and it wasn’t like she could help it to be attracted to him. And yet, she couldn’t help but feel horrible about it.
“All right…”
“Well, I’m going to get to work. I hope you keep the thought in mind. Erin and I are both happy to have you two around, and it might do the both of us some good to have some company around every once in a while. Things can get pretty lonely around here, just the two of us. I mean…I think it’s really good for her to have a woman around.”
Walker looked unexpectedly vulnerable for a moment, but then a wolfish grin creased his face. “Can’t necessarily say the same for myself, but I can be a good boy. Put toilet seats down and whatnot.”
With that, he departed with a wave, leaving Riley in the kitchen looking after him as he hugged his daughter goodbye and left for work, despite the incident the day before.
Wolves were stoic creatures, she had realized early on in her career. The children rarely showed any signs of pain unless they were particularly fond of garnering sympathy. She’d had to begin to look for all the subtle signs of injuries lest the pup’s parents come home and demand what had happened to their precious spawn in the time they were gone. Usually, she was clueless until the pup pinpointed exactly when and how they had been hurt or started to feel sick, and soon, she had learned to master all the body language of young shifters.
It was lucky she had, too, or she might not have even noticed Walker was injured. Sure, he was walking slowly and had a minor limp, but the thought of not detecting his injuries made her feel sick. Even though everything had turned out fine, there was the possibility that it wasn’t, or wouldn’t have, and then where would his poor little girl be? The idea of losing him was awful…
Riley shook the thought away and sighed. He wasn’t hers to care for in that way. Whether she cared about what he was experiencing or not, she would have to keep her emotions as surface-level as possible. It wasn’t her place to worry about what happened to him, not to this extent. She couldn’t let her feelings for this man deepen. Not when she had two children to care for. She needed this job, more than she had ever needed anything in her life, and the security it promised her–even the potential for a home–was unbelievably comforting.
Of course, she would never be able to accept his hospitality. Not when she had such inappropriate feelings for him. But just knowing the offer was on the table gave her a sense of security unlike anything she had managed to feel ever since setting foot in Stonybrooke all those years ago. It almost felt as if she had something stable she could rely on; a place to call home.
That was ridiculous, though. She and Lily were on their own and probably always would be. She would never put her daughter’s future at risk for her own silly daydreams. She hardly even knew Walker. There was no way they could live there with him. It was out of the question.
Riley sighed and walked into the living room, where she spent the rest of the day half-heartedly playing the mommy in the girls’ games and trying her hardest not to think any more about the man who had offered her a place to live.
***
“Come on, honey, we have to get to the motel. I told them we would check in at noon and it’s already 11:45.”
“I don’t want to move,” Lily said, her brown eyes filling with tears. “I want to stay here. I have my own bedroom!”
“It’s just for now,” Riley promised, her heart breaking. She couldn’t help but feel like a horrible parent. Her child was at an age where security was incredibly important, and she was uprooting her to live in an uncertain future. “I promise. And you’re going to have a new bedroom sometime very soon! Mommy just has to figure a few things out.”
“I don’t like it when you have to figure things out,” Lily said, sadly stringing her backpack over her tiny shoulders and taking Riley’s hand. They walked to the car together, hand in hand, and then headed to the motel.
“You th
e girls gonna stay here a while?” the clerk asked once they walked inside.
“That’s right,” Riley said. “That’s still all right, isn’t it?”
“Oh yeah, I just wanted to make sure. Here’s your key. It’s to the left and up the stairs.”
Riley sighed. She had been hoping to avoid steps with Lily being so small. She was always paranoid about the littlest things. Still, Lily was the most important being in her life, it was hardly surprising that she would want to be extra cautious.
They walked slowly and carefully up to the room, and Riley smiled down at her daughter.
“I have to unpack,” she said. “Can you be a good girl and stay inside this room? Don’t let anybody come in even if they ask nicely. Only mommy will come in and I will let myself inside, do you understand?”
“Yes!”
“Good!” Riley said. “You promise?”
“I promise.”
“Okay. Let’s get some cartoons on the television. I’m going to be right back, okay?”
“I know, mommy,” Lily said impatiently, getting on the bed and making herself comfortable in front of the TV. “Can you bring in my blankie?”
“Of course. I’m going to bring in everything.”
Riley took off, hoping to make the move as painless as possible. She had learned, long ago, about the pleasures of being a minimalist. Moving around all over the state, and then from place to place in Stonybrooke, had meant she wanted nothing more than a simple life and only the bare necessities. It didn’t hurt that she also didn’t ever seem to have a lot of spare money to spend on frivolous items. She probably owned more toys for Lily than she owned much of anything else.
She hefted up one of the heavy boxes full of necessary appliances and carried it up the stairs, grumbling to herself the whole way. She had specifically requested a ground floor room, but she was just going to have to deal with this. It wasn’t the classiest establishment, but it would do for the time being.