“Want me to leave you alone with that sandwich?”
“I’d like you to leave me alone, period.” Ben grinned at his brother and knew that Josh wasn’t going anywhere until he was ready.
His brother held his peace while they ate in companionable silence. Just as he was starting to relax and enjoy the quiet, Josh balled up the wrapper that had held his sandwich and shoved it into the now-empty bag, signalling to Ben unequivocally that the peace between them was about to be broken.
“So,” Josh said, after taking a long pull on his bottle of beer, “you want to tell me what put your boxers in a knot before I walked in here?”
He certainly didn’t, but he had to tell his nosy brother something. “There are two of them now.”
“Two what?”
“Humans.”
A look of confusion crossed Josh’s face. “The town is full of humans, or are you just realizing that now?”
“I was at the bookstore earlier, and apparently that woman has a friend.”
“Well, we better tell the wolves to arm themselves if there are two dangerous women in town. Whatever are we going to do?” Josh made a gesture like he was clutching at a non-existent string of pearls around his neck.
“Listen, smart ass, I’m not in the mood for your jokes.” Ben’s mouth gave a sour twist, and he wondered why he’d even told his brother about Lana’s friend. He knew very well that Lana and the other woman didn’t pose a threat to the pack. The only danger Lana presented was to his peace of mind.
“And I’m not in the mood for you to lie to me about what the hell is up with you. Don’t think I haven’t noticed how you’ve been acting lately. You’ve been running like hellhounds are after you every night since the fire.”
Ben knew his brother wasn’t going to let this go until he told him what the hell was going on. But if he was going to open up to Josh, he wasn’t going to take the chance that the rest of the pack might hear it, too. He got up and moved toward the door. Once he was sure that they had a modicum of privacy, he moved around to stand behind his desk.
Josh looked at him expectantly, and Ben chose his words carefully.
“I’ve been feeling something lately…it’s hard to describe. Have you been able to feel anything different? Like a shift in the electricity in the air?”
“Like before a storm comes?” Josh looked thoughtful. “Is it a feeling like something is coming?”
“Yes. It’s like there is a danger I can’t see, but it’s coming for the pack. Am I the only one who feels it?”
“I don’t feel anything, and no one has said anything to me about feeling any different.” Josh was careful with his words. “Do you think that Lana has something to do with it?”
“Not in the way you think. It’s almost like being around her soothes the feeling, but I don’t think she is the source.” He knew with a certainty deep in his bones that Lana was not the danger his instincts were warning him about. He was beginning to wonder if the feeling was all in his head. There were stories that had circulated around wolf packs through the centuries about Alphas who had been driven mad under the strain of their own power and responsibility. He’d never believed it, had always told himself it was a myth, but what if it wasn’t?
“It could be a shift in the energy of the territory that you need to adjust to.” It wasn’t a terrible theory; Alphas were much more in tune with their territory than the rest of their pack. “But the fact that it goes away when you’re with Lana is...interesting.”
“Interesting how?” Ben wasn’t sure that he wanted to hear any more of what his brother had to say, but he was in too deep to pull back now.
“You have to hear me out without tearing out my throat. Deal?”
Now he really wanted this conversation to end, since it appeared that whatever was going on in Josh’s mind, Ben wasn't going to like at all. And he had a feeling he knew what it was. But even if he kicked Josh out of his office right now, Ben knew his brother wouldn't stop until he’d said his piece.
“I make no promises. Now spit it out. What is so interesting about the feeling going away when Lana’s around?”
“Do you think it could be possible that you have met your mate...and it’s Lana?”
“What the fuck are you saying? That my mate is a human?” It was preposterous. How would that even work? He couldn't exactly go up to her, declare that she was his mate, and by the way he was also a werewolf.
“Stranger things have happened.” Josh put his hands up and spoke faster, like he always did when he was nervous. “I’ve seen the way you look at her.”
“You can’t be serious.”
“And does that feeling go away with anyone else?”
“Get out of my office. This discussion is over.”
Josh knew when to beat a hasty retreat. Ben sat behind his desk, his heart pounding as he remembered how close he had been to kissing Lana in the bookstore that morning. Was it even possible that she could be the mate that Fate intended for him?
7
Lana
The inside of the bookstore was quiet this morning. Harper had left right after breakfast with a list of things they needed from the hardware store. Lana stood alone inside, admiring what she and Harper had managed to accomplish.
The empty space looked huge, and in her mind's eye she could see it filled with the books and shelves and happy customers. She felt much better now than she had when she’d first seen the fire damage. There was still the upstairs to contend with, but her insurance agent said that as soon as they got the report on the cause of the fire from the fire marshal, they would release the funds necessary to start the repair work for the upstairs.
The bell over the door rang, and Lana turned with a smile on her face, expecting it to be Harper coming back from the store much sooner than expected. But it wasn’t her best friend that walked in, it was Ben, and her mouth went dry as she took in his appearance. He was out of his uniform, and instead wore faded blue jeans that molded to his muscular thighs. To top it off, he had on a navy cotton shirt that was visible from the opening of his black leather jacket and clung to the muscles of his chest and abdomen. He held a pink cardboard box in his hand that stood out vividly against the darkness of his clothes.
“I didn’t know there was going to be more investigating today.” Lana wiped her hands nervously down the sides of her jeans. She hadn’t thought she’d see him today and was ill-prepared for it, especially considering how weird their last encounter had been.
“There isn’t. I’m off-duty.” His voice was quiet, and he looked slightly unsure of what he wanted to say.
“What can I do for you, Ben?”
He looked at her, startled for a second when she said his name. He took a deep breath and a thoughtful look crossed his face, as if he was searching for the right words. “I have come to realize that I’ve been less than kind to you.’
“You’ve been an ass.” Lana softened her words with a grin.
He seemed caught off-guard by that for a moment until he let out a soft laugh. “You could definitely say that. And you were right the last time I was here; I have let my feelings of distrust towards strangers cloud my judgment. I would like to give you the benefit of the doubt, if the offer is still open.”
“I’d like that.” He seemed to be extending an olive branch and it would be ungracious of her not to accept it. “What’s in the box?”
“I brought donuts as a peace offering.” He extended the box to her and she came over to take it. Her fingers brushed against his, and it felt like a jolt of electricity went up her arm. He must have felt it, too, because he cleared his throat and took a slight step away from her.
“I’ll put the kettle on.” She turned away from him and went toward the small table she had set up against one wall. “I still only have tea, I’m afraid. No coffee, which is utterly shameful for a city girl like me.”
He gave a soft laugh, and she thought for a moment that she could get used to the sound. “Tea will b
e fine.”
Lana busied herself making the tea while she tried to ignore the way his big body filled the shop. She was hyper-aware of how close he was and told herself to calm down. All they were doing was having tea and donuts, nothing more.
Ten minutes later, they were sitting on the floor, cradling their mugs of tea with the box of donuts between them. They ate and drank in a comfortable silence. Ben looked more relaxed than she’d ever seen him and that in turn helped ease some of the tension inside her.
He looked around at the newly painted walls. “The store’s coming together nicely. You’ve accomplished a lot.”
“Thanks to Harper. I wouldn't have gotten nearly as much done without her.” Lana took a sip of her tea and set the mug down on the floor. “She called me the night of the fire and once I told her about it, she took time off work to come and help me. I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to repay her.”
Ben’s eyes softened as he looked at her. “That’s what family does for one another, isn’t it?”
There was understanding in his face, as if he knew that was how she defined the bond she had with Harper. Harper was the closest thing she had to family, and it struck her just how observant he was to notice that.
“Yeah, it is.” Lana looked into his eyes for a long moment. The silence deepened between them until she thought she had to say something to him. “Is Josh your only sibling?”
“He is.” He took a sip of his tea; he didn’t appear to mind her asking him personal questions.
“And your parents? Do they live in Lenox, too?”
Tension tightened in his shoulders for a moment and he got a distant look in his eyes. “They passed away twelve years ago.”
“I’m sorry.” Lana’s heart went out to him. “My parents are gone, too. My mother very recently.”
He moved a little closer, the gray of his eyes warm as he looked at her. “Is that why you’re here? Why you moved away from your life in Boston?”
Lana bit her lips for a second. She wanted to look away but found herself caught by his eyes. “Maybe. Partly. I don’t know.” She gave a little laugh. “Honestly, I’m still trying to figure that out.”
Ben set his mug down in a careful gesture and stood up. She followed suit and stood in front of him, her body moving as if it had a mind of its own.
He shifted closer to her so that she could feel the warmth radiating from his body. She didn’t feel crowded by his proximity and the urge to lean closer to him, to draw in some of the strength that was within him, was strong. She refrained from moving as she held still under his gaze.
“I get it. I’m trying to figure some things out, too.” He was so close to her that she could smell his aftershave and another scent that was unique to him. She trembled slightly as she fought the urge to melt into him.
“What are you trying to figure out?” Her voice had taken on a huskiness she barely recognized.
“You. I’m trying to figure out you.” He reached up and brushed a strand of hair away from her face.
“I told you, I’m not here to cause trouble.” Lana swallowed hard as he moved his thumb over her cheekbones.
“I know.” His voice was a husky whisper as he leaned toward her and captured her lips with his mouth.
With a soft sigh, Lana melted into him and he put his arms around her in a loose hold. He moved his mouth softly against hers as if he were trying to memorize the taste of her lips. Her heart pounded in her chest as the scent of him surrounded her and the feel of his hard, muscular body contrasted with the softness of her own. A man as big as him should frighten her, but despite the gruffness that he sometimes displayed toward her, a deeply-held instinct told her that he would never hurt her.
He pulled away from her. Her eyes drifted open and she looked up at him. She felt tongue-tied in the wake of the kiss they'd shared.
What she hadn’t expected was for his face to go pale and him to wince like he was in pain.
“Ben, what’s wrong?” She took a step toward him, and he put his hand out as if to ward her off.
“I have to go.” He turned toward the door and she was at a loss to explain why he was going now.
“Did I do something wrong?” She must have if a man could kiss her like that, then turn and run the other direction as if she had the plague.
He turned and put his hands on her arms. He brought his mouth down on hers again in a swift kiss. “You didn’t do anything wrong. This is not about you, I promise. I’m sorry, but I have to go.”
And that was all the explanation she got before he turned and all but ran out of her shop.
8
Ben
“Everybody, calm down.”
The wolves in Shadowbrook’s great hall fell silent and looked to him for guidance. There was no denying the feeling that something was coming. It had slammed through him when he’d been with Lana, and even her soothing influence couldn’t take the edge off the foreboding that had knifed through him. He’d been compelled to come home, where he found his whole pack in an extremely agitated state. Fear had taken hold of them like it was a living thing. And it was Ben’s duty as Alpha to be the pack’s strength, to keep fear from taking hold and destroying it.
His eyes found Josh, and he knew his brother wouldn’t betray the fact that he’d been feeling this same anxiety and foreboding for much longer than the rest of the pack. He should have told the pack the moment that he felt danger coming, but he hadn’t trusted his own instincts. And if any members of the pack found out now, it would only make things worse.
“What’s going on, Alpha?” Eloise’s voice was the first to break the silence. She sat perched on the arm of a plush red sofa, and there was cold, stark fear in her eyes.
“It feels like my skin is on fire.” Tyler was sitting beside her and practically vibrating from his agitation.
“We should run.” There was pure terror in Kevin’s voice as he spoke. He was barely twenty years old, and Ben knew that this feeling would hit young wolves like him hard. “And I don’t mean to the woods. I mean, run away from here. We have to get as far away as possible.”
A cacophony of cries rang out, some in protest and some in agreement. Ben straightened up. This was exactly what he’d been hoping to avoid by keeping this feeling to himself.
“Enough.” He slashed his hand through the air and the room fell silent again. “We are not going anywhere. We’re not abandoning our territory. Those who came before us fought too hard and sacrificed too much for us to walk away over a simple feeling.”
“But what is it, Alpha?” The gravelly voice of Gavin, the wolf who’d been his father's best friend and second when he was Alpha, rang out. Ben looked at him, and he could see that his eyes were so dark they were almost black. Ben had never seen the older man look so shaken. If anyone had asked the day before if it was possible to faze Gavin, Ben would have said no. The older wolf had seen a lot more in his long life than any of them. But now, seeing him so tense and uncertain shook Ben like nothing else had.
But he couldn't give in to that. He was the leader, and the pack was only as strong as he was. He stood a little taller and did what he could to project calm and self-assurance. His pack needed him to be fearless and that was what he would be.
“I don’t know what it is. If something is coming, we’ll face it. Let it come; we’ll be ready for it. And we will annihilate whatever it is!” By the end of his small speech, Ben’s stern voice was bouncing off the walls of the silent room. He tilted his head back and let out a howl.
Cheers of pride erupted in the room. The fear was still there, but as the pack echoed Ben’s howl of resistance, it was shoved aside for the moment in favor of solidarity and strength found in numbers.
Only one wolf didn’t respond. Derek stood in the back with his arms crossed over his chest. It was clear that he had not learned anything from his last encounter with Ben. Once the room finally fell into silence, he spoke, his eyes glittering with malice. “I wonder if our Alpha is being entire
ly truthful.”
Derek stepped forward as the assembled wolves turned to look at him. Ben stared at him hard, but it didn’t seem to faze him.
“What exactly are you implying?” There was a growl of warning in Ben’s voice, but it was apparent that Derek was too full of himself to heed it.
“I’m not implying anything, I’m coming out and saying it. You just said you don’t know what it is.” The corners of Derek’s mouth curled up in an ugly smirk. “I think you do have an idea what it is, and I think it’s got something to do with the new bookstore owner. You haven’t been the same since she came to town. I think she has something to do with the danger we can all sense.”
Every eye in the room turned towards Ben as the threat Derek was stirring up against Lana suffused his muscles with an urge to protect her. Every instinct inside him wanted to wipe that ugly look off Derek’s face with his fist. Even his suggestion that Lana was the danger could mark her as a threat to the pack, and Ben needed to diffuse the situation before the pack took the notion into their heads to do something to eliminate the supposed threat Lana presented.
“It’s got nothing to do with her. Leave her out of this.” Ben stepped toward Derek, the command clear in his voice. But instead of backing down, Derek stood a little straighter and curled his lip in a snarl.
“You’re leading this pack to destruction, and I am not going to stand by and let you do it!”
Ben stepped so close to Derek that they were almost nose to nose. Derek swallowed for a second, but didn’t look away. Ben knew that the other wolf had gone too far in front of the pack to be able to back down now.
“What do you intend to do about it?” There was a lethal softness in Ben’s voice that should have been a warning to Derek. He did not heed it.
“I’m challenging you.”
Shocked silence enveloped the room. Ben nodded his head and turned toward the door. He led the way outside, the pack following him.
Firefighter Wolves Shifters (A Paranormal Romance Series Boxset) Page 4