by Lori King
She turned away from the window and went back to getting her store ready. Dreams of romance were for other people.
7
Luke glared at the talkative blonde. He had tried several times already to get the annoying woman to leave, but she kept coming up with one reason or another to stay. When he went to ring up the chair she said she wanted, she changed her mind and told him that it wouldn’t match anything she had in her apartment. He showed her several other pieces, unable to stop himself from glancing out the window in his desire to return to speak with Rita, but Chrissy wasn’t cooperating.
Then she asked him if he could stop by her apartment to get his expert opinion on what would look good there. “You would certainly look good in my apartment.” She touched his chest with her hand. She had been doing that the whole time she was there, touching his hand, arm, shoulder, and chest. His wolf growled inwardly with distaste every time. His wolf definitely didn’t like Chrissy. He was working on finding a way to get her to leave when she started making insulting remarks about Rita.
“You have to be careful who you spend time with around here, like Rita. People might think you’re actually interested in that chubby, plain bottom-feeder. I’m sure since you’re new, you don’t know who you should be spending time with. She probably cornered you and tried to push herself on you with her unwanted attentions. She just doesn’t understand she doesn’t stand a chance with you.” Chrissy kept on talking, clearly oblivious to the slow fury building in Luke.
“It’s just like when she tried to date my boyfriend in high school. She didn’t have a chance, though; my friends and I taught her a lesson. She would never have been able to make Robby happy. We were the ultimate childhood sweethearts. We even planned to marry and have children.
“Of course, he and I just recently broke up. He didn’t appreciate all that I have to offer a man. He complained about the apartment I wanted, the furniture I picked out. He even tried to compare me to Rita to make me jealous! As if that fat pig could hold a candle to me.”
He had enough. “You need to leave now.”
“What? I haven't found the chair I want yet! I need a piece that will satisfy my particular tastes.”
Luke took her arm gently but firmly and walked her to the door. He couldn’t stand the sound of the woman’s voice any longer. His wolf wanted to rip her throat out. She needed to leave now!
“Miss Baker, nothing and no one will ever satisfy such a selfish and ridiculous person.”
“Why, I have never been so insulted in my life!”
He pushed her the rest of the way out of the store. “Lady, you are an insult to everyone else’s life!” He closed the door on her shocked face. He was tempted to lock it, but he was a werewolf, after all—an alpha at that; one mouthy little human was no match for him.
Luke watched from the cashier counter as the woman paced back and forth, clearly confused and furious about what had just happened. Mindy the werefox strolled by the irate woman. They exchanged a few words. Then Chrissy stormed off. Good riddance! Mindy waved at him through the window before heading toward her diner. All Luke wanted was to head back over to Rita’s shop, but then his phone rang. He sighed but answered it.
“This is Luke.”
“Alpha, we found another body,” his beta Riker told him over the line.
Fuck! “Where?”
“The old abandoned mill just outside of town.”
“I’m on my way. Secure the area.”
“Yes, Alpha.”
He hung up the phone, flipped the Closed sign on the front door, and went out the back, locking up. He removed his clothes and boots and put everything, including his keys, inside a plastic bag with a drawstring. He shifted into his wolf form and took the strings of the bag in his teeth.
He made sure no one observed him before he took off into the nearby woods. He could have driven his truck, but going through the woods would be much quicker and save him some time. Plus, it allowed him to approach the area from the back so he could scent for any evidence that may have been hidden. He felt uneasy for some reason. That uneasiness grew as he came closer to the clearing where the old mill was located ten minutes later. The sounds of the woods faded into a telling silence. The normal animal life was reacting to the death.
It was worrisome that the killer was leaving a trail moving closer and closer to the town. It was like the person was trying to attract the humans’ attention specifically to the existence of shifters.
He saw his enforcers and beta standing near the well on the old mill property. He shifted to his human form and pulled on his pants. “How did you find the body out here?”
“We didn’t. Several of the pack cubs were chasing rabbit and they ventured too far off. They ended up passing by the mill. They scented blood that trailed to the well, and after investigating it, found there was a dead body at the bottom. They came back to the ranch to let us know immediately.”
“Are the cubs okay? This must have been distressing for them to find.”
“They were upset at first, but their parents are comforting them, and your father told them how brave he thought they were, so they’re being spoiled beyond belief.”
Luke felt a little relieved to hear that. He turned to look at Hutch, who had emerged from the well with a body slung over his shoulders. Hutch laid the body down on the ground and turned the person onto their back.
“That’s—a human.” Riker frowned.
Shit. Things just got a lot more complicated. “Riker, notify Sheriff Rose. We’ll have to include him in this investigation after all. Did you find anything else in the well that might clue us into who is doing this?”
Hutch held something up in his hands. “Just this.” It was another bag from Rita’s store. After he had decided she was innocent, he had hoped to keep her away from all this ugliness, but it looked like there was no real way to avoid it. He was going to have to tell her what was going on.
8
It has been two hours since Luke had gone to his store with Chrissy. Rita had tried not to watch out the window for any signs of them. She hadn’t seen them at all, and it bothered her. What were they doing? Had Chrissy left already, or were she and Luke having sex?
Okay, she had to admit to herself that she was extremely jealous. She glanced out the window, but the setting sun was reflecting off the window, so she could see no movement from inside the store.
Frustrated, she went to the back storeroom area to get a new item for her shelf display. She heard the chimes over her door ring out.
“I’ll be right there!”
She quickly grabbed the little Halloween lamp and rushed to the front of her store. She saw a man standing with his back to her. She got immediate creepy vibes, which was ridiculous. Rita shook off her weird feelings. A customer was a customer.
“Can I help you?”
“I hope so.”
The man turned around and faced her. He was an older man, maybe in his mid- to late fifties. He had a handsome face, with silver hair swept back, and he wore a black suit. He definitely wasn’t from around there. When he smiled at her, his teeth were too perfect and too white. He looked like he wanted to eat her, and not in a good way.
“Is there something in particular you’re looking for?”
“Yes, I need a special gift for an old friend.”
“Is your friend a man or a woman?”
“A man.”
“Does he have any special interests or hobbies?”
“He likes to hunt.”
Man, this guy sure was dragging out his answers. “He’s a hunter? I don’t know if I have anything for hunters. There’s a gun and rifle store one block up that might have something.”
“He likes wolves.”
She felt relief at having something she could offer him. “I have several figurines. This one is a gray wolf howling at the moon.”
The man picked it up and looked at it carefully. “Do you have it in black?”
She smiled. “I
do. If you’ll wait for just a moment, I’ll go in the back and get it for you.”
“Of course, take your time.”
She went to the hallway that led to the back. Rita could feel his eyes watching her the whole time. It took her a few minutes, but she found the figurine covered by a quilt. She brought it to the front and found the man in exactly the same spot that she had left him in.
“Here it is, I just recently pulled it from my shelf and was going to send it back to my manufacturer.”
Instead of taking it from her, he stepped closer to her and touched it as she held it up for him. It was extremely awkward, so she placed it on the glass counter and walked around to the other side.
“You’re new here?”
He tapped his nails on the glass next to the figurine. “I’m actually returning to the area after being gone for a while. I used to own this shop.”
She was surprised. “Really? I don’t remember you living here.” She tried to think of what had been in this space before she bought it. As far as she knew, it had been empty for nearly five years before she opened her store.
“I used to live ten miles outside of town on a ranch. I owned this store for two years, but the economy was bad and I had to shut down, but I always planned to come back and reopen one day.”
“The bank said that the store had been vacant for a while.” She wasn’t sure how to respond to him. Did he want the store back? She still had a loan for the business and she wasn’t sure how to handle this situation if it turned ugly.
“Don’t worry; I’m not interested in taking my store back. I’m interested in another store. What can you tell me about the owners of the furniture store?”
“I know the family a little bit, they usually keep to themselves. The parents, Randall and Marjorie, are very nice. They have a lovely daughter, and their son, well, he’s not as—easy to get along with.”
He noticed that she was leaving something out about Luke.
“I take it you don’t like the son?”
She shrugged. “I don’t know him well enough to like or dislike him.”
“Well, I’m very interested in their store.”
“If you give me your name and number or a business card, I’ll pass it on to Luke. I doubt that they’re interested in selling, though, since it’s a family-owned and -run store.”
“You are just so helpful, but I’ll leave my own message for—Luke. How much for the wolf?”
“Since I was sending it back, I’ll give you the discounted price of ten dollars.”
He pulled out his wallet and handed her a ten-dollar bill.
“Would you like a bag?”
“Oh, yes, please.”
She carefully bagged up the wolf, making sure to double-wrap the figurine first, so it would be protected. She handed the bag to him and watched as he left the store, breathing a sigh of relief. There was just something very intimidating about the man. She hoped that Luke’s family turned him down. She would hate to have to deal with him every day.
9
Later that afternoon
Rita exited her store, turning to lock the door. She glanced over at Luke’s store. The lights were still on, but she hadn’t seen Luke come or go all day. She tightened the belt of her coat and headed down to the diner.
Her stomach growled as soon as she came close enough to catch the delicious aromas. She smiled when she opened the door and saw the crowd inside. Mindy had almost given up hope of running the place because the townspeople hadn’t initially liked the change in management. Rita had promised her that they just needed time to realize how good she was, and then they would come in droves. Sure enough, the place looked packed.
Her usual table was occupied, so she went in search of somewhere else to sit. Preacher Stevenson and his wife were leaving a booth near the back. He saw her and waved her over so she could take the empty seat. Dottie the waitress came and took her order.
A few minutes later, Mindy came over and plopped down across from her. “I only have a few minutes. A new construction company a few miles up the highway is calling in orders to be picked up. It’s been hectic all day. But I have something to tell you! On my way to work, I walked by the furniture store. I heard raised voices coming to the door, so I waited to see what was happening. Luke was kicking Chrissy out of his store, and he told her, and I quote, ‘Miss Baker, nothing and no one will ever satisfy such a selfish and ridiculous person.’ Then Chrissy said, ‘Why, I have never been so insulted in my life!’ Guess what he told her then!”
Rita was hooked, “What?”
“He said, ‘Lady, you are an insult to everyone else’s life!’ And then he shut the door in her face. Can you believe he said that?”
“What did Chrissy do?”
“Chrissy just stood there outside the store, cursing up a storm about Luke and about you.”
“About me? What about me?”
“She was rambling something about stuck up men who think they’re better than everyone else. Then she something about if he preferred fat pigs like Rita, he could have them. I stopped and demanded to know what she was talking about, and she told me to tell my fat friend that Luke would tire of her just like Robby did. I wanted to tell you right then and there, but you were helping a customer and I was late for work.”
“I can’t believe he kicked Chrissy out.” Her opinion of Luke had just increased a hundredfold.
Mindy laughed. “She’s an insult to everyone else’s life! That’s priceless!”
Rita laughed, too. “I wish I could have seen Chrissy’s face.”
“Oh, my God, it was frozen like this.” Mindy screwed up her face, exaggerated frown lines forming on her forehead and her chin. Rita almost spit out her drink.
“You are too funny.”
“You have to admit, he’s kind of redeemed himself in your eyes now.”
“He did come by this morning to apologize, and he asked me out—for dinner.”
“He did? You didn’t tell me!”
“I didn’t have a chance yet.”
“So are you going to give him another chance?” Mindy asked hopefully.
“You think I should?”
“Hell, yeah. I know you’re hesitant to get into relationships with men, but Luke isn’t like anyone else you’ve ever met. I believe he’s truly attracted to you. For him to call Chrissy out on her crap when no one else in town will, shows he can see the truth of a person, and the way he looks at you, I can definitely tell he sees who you really are inside: a beautiful and sexy and very sweet woman. I think you should take a chance on him.”
Rita listened to her friend. This was a person who knew her better than anyone. If she thought that Rita should give Luke a chance, then she would consider it.
“Maybe I will.”
Mindy smiled. “Good, now I’ve got to go cook your food.” Mindy got up and headed back to the kitchen. Rita went to the bathroom, and when she came back, her food was already on the table waiting for her. She ate while thinking about everything that happened with Luke.
Voices from the booth behind her caught her attention. No one had been there when she went to the bathroom earlier, so they must have come in while she was gone. She stiffened when she recognized who those voices belonged to—Chrissy and Robby. She could move, but then she wouldn’t be able to spy on their little fight.
“Mikey saw you go into the store with that creep. He said you were all over him!”
“You can’t believe everything you hear, Robby. Besides, Mikey’s a drunk and half the stuff he says is lies.”
“He wouldn’t lie about this. I can’t believe you would cheat on me, after all I gave up to be with you, all the times I forgave your little transgressions.”
Chrissy laughed harshly. “Right, let me remind you that you were in a celibate relationship when we got together. You couldn’t wait to finally have sex after that frigid, fat girlfriend.”
“Rita wasn’t sexually cold, she was a virgin and too young to have sex. I t
ried to respect that, but I was older, and when you propositioned me, I couldn’t refuse. My mother has never fully forgiven me for breaking up with Rita. Every time I go home for dinner, my mom asks if I’ve broken up with you yet. She’s always telling me how Rita is still available.”
Rita felt the heat rise to her cheeks at being talked about so publicly. She saw movement out of the corner of her eye and raised the menu to hide her face.
“Your mother has always hated me, and you’ve never once defended me to her!”
“She’s my mother and I’m her son. That won’t change.”
“Well, guess what, you can tell your mother she finally got her wish. We’re done!” She stormed out of the diner, causing some heads to turn in question.
A few seconds later, Robby got up to leave, stopping at the cash register to pay. The door opened and Sheriff Hank Rose, Robby’s uncle, walked in.
“Robby, why the hell haven’t you answered your radio? You’re on call for the next twenty-four hours.”
“Chrissy complained about it, so I left the radio in the truck so I can eat in peace. What’s wrong?”
They had attracted the attention of everyone in the diner. She locked eyes with Sheriff Hank and knew that something was terribly wrong. He headed in her direction, stopping at her table.
“Miss Russell, I need you to come with me to answer some questions.”
“What’s going on?” Robby demanded, noticing Rita there for the first time. Yeah, this was going to get real awkward.
Sheriff Hank shook his head. “Not here, let’s head back to the sheriff’s station.”
Rita couldn’t imagine what this was about. “Dottie, the money’s on the table.”
“What about your food, honey?”
“Put it in a to-go bag. If I have time, I’ll stop back by and get it.”
She followed the sheriff and Robby out of the diner. The sheriff opened the back door of his SUV and she climbed in. Robby climbed in the passenger side while Sheriff Hank took the driver’s seat.