Me: Smartass. Lana has a picture of the girl in her living room.
Garrett: No kidding?
Me: Serious as fuck. I’ll fill you in later. I’m about to get some answers.
Garrett: Dude, you realize you’re fucked, right?
Me: How so?
Garrett: You’ve been using her because she reminded you of the girl. She has the girl’s picture in her house. Do the math. You’ve been banging your mate’s relative, for sure.
Me: Fuck.
Lana came back out wearing nothing. “I figured I would get comfortable,” she whispered seductively as she strolled closer to me. Honestly, I prefer to unwrap my packages. Her appearing nude took away part of the fun. Not that it mattered any longer. I, for certain, was not interested in her body, naked or otherwise, at the moment. More to the point, never again, since it seemed I just found my mate’s image hanging on her living room wall.
Shock registered on Lana’s face when I snatched her up quickly by her wrist and turned her to look at the wall of pictures. She thought I was just being rough and attempted to grind her ass down against my groin. The pout over her shoulder told me she expected me to be hard for this, and wondered why I wasn’t.
“Who is this?” I pointed at the girl’s image that made my gut clench.
Lana didn’t get the chance to hide her curious look or the disappointment the boiled close under the surface. “W-what?” She stammered. “Why do you want to know?”
“I just do. Who is it?” My demanding question was laced with a growl.
“Jesus, Dre. Calm down. Those are my nieces, Liz and Izzy.”
“Which one is this?” I pointed directly to the girl that made my insides twist.
“Izzy, I think.” She scrunched her face a minute. “Yeah, that’s Izzy. I can tell by the way they’re dressed. Izzy’s a bit more reserved than Liz. Now, do you want to tell me why I’m standing in my house naked and you’re asking about my niece?”
“Does she ever come to visit?”
“She hasn’t been here for three years. Why? Do you think you know her?”
“I do.” My answer was more for me than Lana. “Why haven’t they been back?”
“Her dad doesn’t like it here for some reason I’m not privy to. It was just fine for him when he was here trying to win my sister’s heart apparently, but he took off with her shortly after they got together. I was just a toddler when they ran off together, and they had the twins a few years later.”
“Can you get in touch with her?”
“Of course, she’s my niece.” Lana’s big blue eyes narrowed on me then.
“I need you to get her back here.”
Lana’s eyes narrowed even further so they were no longer a shocked, wide blue. Now, they were barely open slits of frustration. Her arms crossed over her bare chest, and her hip jutted out with attitude before she spoke again. “Why?”
“I need to talk to her.”
“About what, Dre?” She questioned in a clipped tone.
“Not your business, Lana.” I answered as I mirrored the tone she took with me.
“My niece IS my business, and she’s already scheduled to come here next week, after her graduation.” Lana’s voice had risen in the middle of her little tirade. It went higher when she added, “I can tell her to keep her ass at home though. I can always visit her instead. I was supposed to go for her graduation, but momma didn’t want me closing the store for the few days I’d be gone.”
“You WILL make sure she gets here.” My tone was flat, but the look I gave her had Lana wilting a bit.
“Seriously? You have me standing here, naked, and you’re demanding I get Izzy here for you? What the fuck, Dre? This is crazy, even for you.” Her lip was poking out now, and she had tears welling up behind her eyes.
Fuck. My. Life. “Lana, I told you–repeatedly–that nothing would ever come of this shit between us.”
“So, you want me to throw my niece to you now that you’re done with me? Just the one? Or are you going to wear her out, and then ask for the other one until she no longer satisfies you too? Jesus, I never believed all the talk about you, but now I’m beginning to see you for the monster you really are.”
“I’m going to ignore that stupid shit that you just spouted, because I get that your feelings are hurt, but you do not want to test me on this. I’ve been searching for that girl for three fucking years. Now, come to find out, I’ve been this close to ending the mystery all this time.” I sighed and ran my fingers through my hair.
“Are you fucking kidding me? Did you fuck my niece when she was just a kid or something? The last time she was here, she wasn’t even 18 yet.”
“You said she’s graduating? I assume she’s 18 now?”
“You’re one sick bastard,” she fumed before carrying on. “She’s graduating college. Early. She’s 21 now, but she was only 17 when she was here.” Her tone was accusatory then.
“So, what’s your problem then?”
“Other than the fact that we’ve been fucking for months?” Lana screamed at me.
“I told you…”
“Yeah, you fucking told me, you prick. ‘Don’t get attached, Lana.’” She mocked the phrase I repeated every time she said or did something stupid that hinted at her wanting more. “Is this why? You’ve been carrying some sort of weird freaking torch for my niece all this time? Is that why there never could be anything more? Is that why you were with me to begin with? Is it because I looked like her?”
“Yeah, it is. You were as close as I could get.” The words rolled off my tongue before I could pull them back. I didn’t want to hurt Lana, but she was pissing me off and bringing the animal out with each and every scathing accusation she threw my way. I knew, deep down, that she couldn’t possibly understand the dynamics of my kind. She had no clue what was happening between her niece and myself so of course she’d be pissed; but knowing that and getting past my own issues tonight didn’t seem to be happening. I brushed my hand back through my hair in a rare show of frustration.
“Fuck you! Get out of my house!” Without a doubt, her shouts could be heard out by the street. Her voice was raised so loud I had no doubt the humans down there would pick up on it too.
“You don’t understand. I’m sorry, Lana. She is everything. I can try to explain, but I don’t think…” I shook my head. I wasn’t sure what she knew about my kind, if anything, and I wasn’t going to be the one to reveal it to her. Her sister had apparently married, or shacked up with, a werewolf. It didn’t mean she knew what he was though.
“It doesn’t matter. You’ve lost anyway.” Lana sneered at me as she spoke.
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It means I won’t stop my niece from coming here, but only because I know it will mean watching you twisting in the wind. I’ve already told her about you, about seeing you so much, and other things.” Her voice drew low at the end like she had told Izzy things she would never admit to me now. Fuck. I knew exactly where she was going with this. It was the same thing Garrett meant when he told me I was screwed. “She’ll never be with you, not after knowing that we were together.
“Izzy’s a twin. They have their share of man problems to deal with because those sick bastards want to bed the both of them. Do you know what they do when one of them has dated a guy?” She paused waiting for a response she wasn’t going to get from me. I already had it all figured out. “The other one never goes after him. She’ll be the same way with me, especially because…” Lana stopped herself short again. I could just imagine what she’d been telling her niece about me. Lana fancied herself in love with me. Just fucking great. Instead she pointed toward the door, her breast jiggling with the movement. An hour ago, and that gesture would have had me rock hard. Now, it didn’t, not at all. “It doesn’t matter. Just get out of my house, Dre.”
That’s exactly what I did.
“How bad is this going to be?” Garrett’s voice called out to me from the street as I w
alked down the outside set of stairs.
“You were right. I’m fucked,” I huffed out while I once again ruined my normally unshakable facade as I pulled a hand through my hair furiously. It was time for a cut. The shoulder length brown locks were something from my youth. It was definitely time to let go of the old me, and embrace some change before my mate came back around.
For once, my best friend didn’t laugh. Lana may not understand about mates for my kind, but Garrett did. He knew how important it was to our kind, how undeniable the connection is for potential mates. The problem was, while the women felt the pull to us, they weren’t as trapped by instinct as we were. I’d seen it once, when a man met his mate too late in life, and she was already married with kids. She refused him. Even after he explained the pull, after she cheated on her husband with him, she still denied the mating, because she had a family to deal with and kids to protect. I wasn’t even a twinkle in my dad’s eye when it happened, but I was there, growing up in the aftermath for a while before he ducked out of pack life altogether. That man was wrecked.
“Thinking about Jackson?”
“Yeah. How could I not?” I sighed deeply. “Lana hinted at the fact that there have been other men. She was talking about the problems the sisters have with guys because they’re twins, and the code they have. The one that will ensure Izzy won’t touch me because I’ve been with Lana.”
“Izzy?” Garrett gave me a funny look as he repeated the name.
“Yeah, that’s her name. Her twin is Liz.”
“Funny you should be thinking about Jackson then.”
“Why’s that?” I stopped walking at that point and pulled Garrett to a stop with me.
“Jackson took up with a human girl before he left here. Your dad was still in charge, and you were just a pup so it makes sense you don’t remember. He has two daughters, Isabelle and Elizabeth. Just what do you think Izzy and Liz are short for?”
“Motherfucker! How could he? He knows. He knows what it’s like. How could he take her away from me?” My skin was starting to prickle, a warning that I was about to seriously lose my shit. “Why didn’t you bring that up before?”
“I didn’t realize. When Jackson left he said he’d never be back in these parts, couldn’t bear it because his lost mate was here with her family. The girls came along after he left. I’ve just heard rumors of them here and there, you know?”
“Jackson’s Kindred moved away four years ago. That’s probably why he allowed the visit.”
“Aw, man, if I had known…” Garrett swiped at his brow. “Fuck man, we’ve been so close to knowing this whole time.”
“Yeah,” I huffed out. My chest hurt, my entire body tingled with pent up energy, and I just needed to get out of my own skin. Literally.
“No one’s to blame, except maybe Jackson.”
“I’m the only one to blame, man. I let my hopelessness get the best of me, and stuck my dick in anything that walked. I should have known when Lana looked like her. I’m a fucking idiot.” I started walking faster then, heading for the forest that bordered the town. “I gotta run.”
“Want company, or you need solo time?”
“I’ll catch you later.”
“Dre?” I turned toward my friend before taking off. “When is she going to be here?”
“How did you know?”
“I figured Lana gave you a hard time for a reason. Plus, I caught the tail end of her screaming fit as I walked up.”
“Next week.”
“Okay, we’ll figure it out then. We have time.”
“Yeah, meanwhile she’s just a phone call away for Lana to poison her views about me before she ever even gets close.” I took two steps then turned back once more. “Find Jackson. He has some explaining to do.”
Chapter Three
~*~ IZZY ~*~
“Liz, I just got in. I’m not sure about cell reception at Lana’s place so I’ll e-mail or text as soon as I get everything settled. You know her numbers, just in case you need me.”
“I’m fine. You need to stop worrying all the time, sis. Seriously, we’re going to have to learn to live apart sooner or later. We’ll consider this a test run until I get there. Then, we’re going to party it up a bit. You missed out while you had your nose stuck in all those books. I’m going to miss you at school next year.”
“I know, me too. Lana doesn’t look so good. That mystery guy of hers really did a number on her heart.”
“Damn, that sucks. Tell her we’ll find her a much better man when I get out there. Love you.”
“You too.”
I turned my attention back to Lana. “Is there anything I can do for you, hon? Ice cream? Want me to punch a dude in the face? I will. Just point me in the right direction.” I thought I saw a small smile until I told her to point me in the direction of the jerk that hurt my aunt. She just shook her head instead.
“No! You need to stay far away from that animal. He doesn’t have a heart. He’d probably consider your punch foreplay.”
“Ew, really?” I asked, then plopped down on Lana’s sofa with her. “What the hell did you ever see in him then? Don’t tell me you get off on beating men, and Mister Manly liked being abused?” I laughed playfully, trying desperately to cheer her up.
“Not likely on either count. Can we just not talk about him?” She looked more annoyed than hurt at that point.
“Sure, whatever you need. I’m tired from the drive. How about we kick back with some Netflix, order some food, and have a chill day, just the two of us. You can wallow in much deserved self pity for the day, and I can be here to cry on, fetch tissues, or whatever you need.” Lana looked up at me appreciatively. “Only for today, though. After today, you wipe your hands of this jerk, and we enjoy the time we have to hang out together before my dad goes ballistic and tries to come force me to go back to school or home.”
“He didn’t take it well that you were coming here, huh?”
“Nope, and I just don’t get it. I mean, my mom’s from here. You’re here, my grandmother is here. What is his deal with this place?”
“No telling. I am of the opinion that all men are dumb right now.” We both laughed at that even though Lana sniffled through hers. She was twenty-eight years old and I knew it bothered her that she was still single. The last time we’d visited Lana had been waxing poetic over some crush she had and what their wedding and their children would look like. It sucked that this guy she’d been so into recently had crushed her heart again. I know she had been having dreams of settling down and becoming a family with him. Sadly, that was probably part of the problem, knowing Lana. She was so ready to be in love that she tried to force it on every guy she dated with any kind of seriousness.
“Amen, sister!” My answer was probably too cheerful for her man-hating state, but whatever.
“So, what do you want to do tomorrow? I have to go back to the shop for a little while for my mom. You could come with or go explore a little bit. Whatever you want.”
“I might head over to Deep Creek for a while. I could use some creek side chill time.”
Lana smiled at me. “Are you going to tube the creek or just watch everyone else do it?”
“You know me too well. I think I’ll just watch for a bit. It’s not as fun tubing without someone else.” I ate a spoonful of my ice cream while lost in thought.
“You miss Liz, huh?”
“Yeah, I do. We did our own thing a lot in college, but we saw each other every day. It’s weird thinking about not being able to go explore with her tomorrow.”
“I get it. You guys were blessed and screwed by being twins.”
“You can say that again.” We both let the conversation trail off then as we became engrossed in the show we were watching.
I must have fallen asleep on Lana’s couch, because when I awoke it was with a blanket draped over my shoulders and a note sitting on the coffee table in front of me.
Had to go open the shop. I’ll be off around 5pm. See
you then, we’ll go do dinner together.
Hugs & Kisses,
Lana
It didn’t take any time for me to get ready for the day. I tossed on some old cut off denim shorts and a bright blue tank top that covered the bathing suit I wore underneath. I slipped into some water shoes, and took off for the creek. Lana was lucky that she lived so close to nature. It was something I missed out on while I was stuck in libraries at college all the time. While I’d missed being able to get out and about I didn’t regret the sacrifice. I had my bachelor’s degree in three years instead of four, and I was able to go job-hunting now. Well, job hunting was going to wait until Monday. I had an entire country to scour for jobs, and I was allowing myself one weekend of fun before I got started. I had thought about staying close to University of Memphis to be near Liz for her last year, but our family was right, we needed to learn to be independent from one another at some point too.
I snatched up my bag that held a towel, sunblock, a book, and a snack in case I lost track of time at the creek and I was out the door. While heading down the steps leading from Lana’s second story apartment I felt a chill go through me that didn’t match the unseasonably warm temperatures we were having. Looking around, I didn’t see anything out of the way that would cause the feeling either. The closer I got to my Jeep, the more my gut clenched. It was an unsettling, but not entirely unwelcome, sensation. I stopped at my Jeep, took my phone out, and texted my sister.
Me: Just got the weirdest feeling in my stomach, like butterflies with steel wings or something. Intense.
Liz: Uh-oh, remember when that happened the time we took the train? I almost broke my ankle, better watch out. lol
Me: Wow, I forgot about that. Maybe I’m not supposed to go to Deep Creek today?
Liz: Aw, you suck. I’m heading to class and you get to go tubing.
Me: Not tubing alone. ☹
Liz: Poor thing. I’ll be there in a few weeks to tube with you. Gotta go, professor just walked in.
Me: Love you
She didn’t respond and the feeling in my stomach eased up a bit so I hopped in the Jeep and took off for a day of laziness. It only took a few minutes to drive over since Lana lived so close, and I found a nice spot a little ways away from the crowded areas to park my butt. I pulled out my towel, and cleared a spot to sit down and read my book.
Entwined (Vukodlak Brew Book 1) Page 3