She smiled wider. “Do you see her often?”
The humor shriveled up inside me as I realized I was flirting with revealing the biggest secret I’d ever kept. The secret I’d had to keep since as long as I could remember. Now, though, it was so much worse. I wasn’t just hiding the fact that she was a human, I was hiding her entire existence.
I didn’t want to lie to Callie, but I also couldn’t tell her the whole truth.
“She, uh, lives with me actually.”
Callie’s brows furrowed. “Your mom lives on pack lands? How come I’ve never met her?”
Shit.
Shit. Shit. Shit.
“Oh. Um. You haven’t?”
I sounded like a moron, but my brain wasn’t moving fast enough to play defense in this conversation. I needed to either come up with a plausible story or change the subject before Callie dug too far.
Her frown deepened. “No. I would have remembered if I met your mom.”
The lightest shade of pink colored her cheeks for a moment, but I barely had time to admire it.
“Yeah, I guess you would, huh?”
I was stalling.
And I was an idiot.
“Is that why you and Wes don’t live in the lodge?”
I reached up to rub my neck again. “Yeah. We wanted to stick together.”
Callie leaned back against the booth and nodded. “I can understand that. Especially after losing your dad.”
“Exactly.”
Silence descended again and I wracked my brain for a way to diffuse it. Thankfully, Stubbles came to my rescue.
“Here you go,” the waiter said as he placed our food on the table. “Does everything look okay?”
His eyes were on Callie, but I answered for us. “Looks great. Thanks, Stubbles.”
The waiter shot me an irritated look before turning and leaving us to our food. Thankfully, Callie was a werewolf like me which meant, when food was involved, everything else took a backseat. Including the monster of a secret I was desperately trying to keep.
This had been a close call. Closer than I’d had since joining the pack. I knew it was only a matter of time, but I was hoping I could put it off for as long as possible. Maybe if Callie got to know me first, she wouldn’t look at me differently when she found out I was half human. Maybe for once in my life, I’d have a normal relationship with a woman and not feel less than.
It was a long shot, but I was willing to try.
Chapter 9
Wyatt
Thankfully, the rest of our lunch was uneventful. Callie ate more than I thought could fit in her slim body, but other than that, it was blissfully ordinary.
Conversation flowed easily and we got along like we’d known each other years and not months. I didn’t know what was happening between us, but it was somehow right. Natural.
I was feeling good. Like things might actually work out for me for a change. Like I might be able to worm my way into this woman’s life and figure out why I felt this unexplainable connection with her.
There was even a tiny part of me that thought there was a chance Callie might not care I was only half werewolf. Or that my mother was human. Maybe she’d accept me and all my baggage as easily as her other two siblings had.
But would it be enough?
Being packmates with a half-breed was much different than dating one. I knew that all too well. There had been a whole slew of women in my last pack who thought I was good enough to sleep with, but not good enough to be seen with in public. It used to sting, but after a while, I just started using them too. It was easier that way.
But maybe things with Callie could be different. It already felt like it was.
The check came and I snatched it off the table before she could.
“Wyatt. Let me see that.”
Man, I loved the way she said my name. “No.”
She let out an irritated huff. “I just want to pay my half.”
I shook my head. “No.”
“Why the heck not?”
I pressed my lips together to stifle a smile. I found it adorable that she tried so hard not to cuss. “I invited you to lunch, so I’ll pay.” Besides, I’d been working as an enforcer for Abraham for a couple months now and had some money left over after all the bills were taken care of. That was a rarity in my life, and I figured I deserved to enjoy it a bit.
I fished out my wallet and dropped a bunch of bills on the check before sliding out of the booth. Stubbles might have pissed me off by staring at Callie too much, but I couldn’t really blame the guy. She was stunning. And besides, he deserved a nice tip after he saved me from that conversation about my mom.
My lunch churned in my gut as I remembered the lie I was keeping, but I did my best to ignore it.
Callie stood up next to me and lifted her chin in my direction. “Next time, I’m paying. I don’t need a handout. I’m perfectly capable of covering my own lunch and I don’t appreciate the macho crap.”
I knew she’d said a lot of stuff just then, but my brain was stuck on one thing. “So, what you’re saying is I get a second date?”
A bright blush washed over her pretty face before she spun around and stomped off. “This wasn’t a date, Carter.”
I laughed before running to catch up with her. “What do you mean?”
She shot me a small, narrow-eyed look before whipping open the restaurant door and storming outside. “What I mean is, this was not a date. What don’t you understand about that?”
I rushed ahead and opened the truck door for her, which only earned me another withering look. My smile just grew. I stood there with my arm on the top of her door as she climbed in. “When two single people share a meal together, doesn’t that make it a date?”
She kept her eyes focused straight ahead, chin lifted. “How do you know I’m single?”
I leaned in close, her rose scent filling the air between us. “There are no secrets in a pack, remember?”
“That still doesn’t make it a date,” she said with a roll of her eyes.
I leaned against her door and propped a foot up next to her seat. “Then what would you call this?”
“Lunch! Just lunch!”
I had to press my lips together to suppress my smile, but I didn’t think I was doing that good of a job because she let out another annoyed sigh. “Okay, so then this was just a warm-up. Got it. Next time we’ll go on a real date.”
“There will be no next time, Carter.”
“That’s not what you said a minute ago.”
“Well, I take it back.”
“So, what happens if you get hungry again next week after I take you to the lab? Am I just supposed to let you starve? Or do I take you on another date?”
“This wasn’t a date. And I’ll bring a snack.”
I shook my head. “After the way I saw you tear into those bacon cheeseburgers, I don’t think a snack is gonna cut it.”
She turned her head slowly to face me, her eyes narrowed and pointed at my chin. “Wyatt Carter, if you don’t shut my door and get your butt in your own seat, so help me.”
“You know, you sure talk about my butt a lot.”
“Wyatt!”
A loud laugh shot out of me as I took a step back. “Okay, okay.”
I could still hear grumbling as I shut her door and walked around to the driver’s side. I was convinced in that moment that nothing could wipe the stupid smile from my face. Even once I climbed into the truck and Callie laid into me, the grin wouldn’t budge.
“You know, you can’t just go around asking people to a simple lunch and then calling it a date. If you want to date someone, you ask them properly. You don’t just… sneak attack date them!”
“Is that what I did? Sneak attack dated you?”
“You certainly tried!”
I laughed loudly, which earned me another huff from her direction. Riling her up was a hell of a lot of fun, but that wasn’t what all this was about. That’s not all I was about. So, as I
turned onto the main road leading out of town, I sobered up a little and shot her a small glance.
“Can you blame me, Callie? You’re beautiful, you’re crazy smart, you’re funny, and you’re beautiful. How could I resist?”
She was quiet for a long time as I drove us back toward pack lands. Finally, she said, “You used beautiful twice.”
Knew she’d catch that.
I smiled wide. “That’s because you’re so beautiful, it’s worth mentioning twice.”
She shook her head, but out of the corner of my eye, I caught her pink cheeks and her mouth twitching with a smile. That was all I needed.
She could protest all she wanted, but I was getting somewhere. Wearing her down little by little. And, with the promise of having this alone time with her every week while driving her to the lab, I knew it wouldn’t be long before she stopped fighting it and gave into this.
Whatever this was.
My phone rang in my pocket, and when I pulled it out, Wes’ name was scrawled across the screen. “If you’re looking for your truck, we’re on the way back now,” I said instead of greeting him.
“I don’t care about the truck.” He was quiet for a moment as I frowned at the windshield in front of me. “Can you talk?” he asked softly.
I knew Callie could still hear our conversation if she wanted, so I answered honestly. “Not really. Why? Is everything okay?”
“No. I’ll be next door when you get back,” he said before hanging up.
I shoved my phone back in my jeans pocket while my mind raced. We had neighbors on either side of us, but I knew he wouldn’t be calling to tell me he was visiting Aubrey. That meant he was at Doc Monroe’s place. That meant something was wrong with Mom.
I pressed harder on the gas, wishing the SUV had wings instead of wheels and could transport us home as fast as possible.
Every imaginable set of circumstances sped through my mind as I did my best to race back to pack lands.
Maybe she got hurt.
Maybe she had another fever.
Maybe the disease had finally reached one of her organs and it was failing right now as I sat here miles away.
I ground my teeth and squeezed the wheel tighter.
This had been a colossal mistake.
I had no business being so far away when she could need me at any moment. Sure, she had Wes, but it was clear he needed me too, and I was too far away to help.
I glanced at Callie and my stomach churned harder.
I’d thought this was a perfect afternoon, but it had just been an escape from my reality. I didn’t have time to date because I had a sick mom to take care of. I couldn’t have lunch downtown because then I’d be too far away if something bad happened.
And worst of all, I had no business pursuing the alpha’s sister.
If she knew I was a half-breed, there was no way I’d have even gotten her in this truck. No one wanted to be paired with a half-human. No self-respecting wolf would even be seen with me out in public. If she knew the truth, she’d turn her back on me like every other woman in my past had. It was just a question of when.
I’d thought I’d have the time to worm my way under her skin before she found out about Mom, but now I realized that didn’t matter. There was nothing I could do to make her like me enough that she wouldn’t care who I really was. That was something I should have already known and needed to come to terms with now.
“Everything okay?” Callie asked from next to me, and I almost jumped. Somehow, I’d gotten so lost in my thoughts I’d forgotten I wasn’t alone.
“Wyatt?”
The way she said my name made the hair on my arms stand on end, but I worked to ignore that. I didn’t have time for the way Callie made me feel. I needed to get to my mom and make sure she was okay.
“Um. Yeah. Everything’s fine.”
“Is your brother okay?”
Obviously, she’d overheard our conversation, which made sense since she was right next to me and had werewolf hearing.
“Yeah, Wes is fine.” I forced a strained smile onto my face. “The guy is a bit of a drama queen. Always making a big deal out of nothing.”
Which wasn’t true at all and I didn’t like lying to Callie, but I had no choice. I couldn’t tell her my mom was at Doc Monroe’s because she’d ask why, and if I told her she was sick, she’d know there was something wrong. Werewolves didn’t get sick. The only reason a doctor was of any use in a pack was for the injuries we sustained. Especially during full moons when our inhibitions are lowered and our beasts ran wild.
I finally pulled onto the drive that led to the pack lands and did my best to not make ruts in the gravel as I raced toward the lodge. When I got there, I threw the truck in park and climbed out. My feet itched to run toward Doc’s house, but I stood there as Callie rounded the vehicle to stand before me.
“Let’s get your samples in the garage,” I said through gritted teeth, my eyes flitting toward the tree line that separated the pack houses from the lodge.
Callie’s soft hand landed on my strained forearm and my eyes darted to it before landing on her face. She was looking down at her hand too, almost like she couldn’t believe she’d really put it there.
It was so warm it felt like it would scald me, but I didn’t want her to ever move from that position. I wanted to live in this moment with her for a little longer before the spell was broken and we both went our separate ways. Before we both went back to where we belonged. Her in the lodge, and me on the outskirts. Like always.
When she finally pulled away, she cleared her throat and looked up at me, her eyes landing somewhere around my chin. “You go find out what’s going on with Wes. I can take care of this.”
I shook my head, even though my limbs ached to leave. “No, that’s okay. I’m sure it’s nothing,” I lied again.
She tipped her chin higher. “Wyatt. Just go. I’ve got this.”
My insides were torn as my mind warred with what to do. I wanted so badly to race to the doc’s house, but I knew the gentlemanly thing to do was help Callie with her stuff. My eyes darted back and forth between the tree line and the truck before she placed her warm hand on my arm again.
“I’m serious. Go.”
I let out a deep breath. “Okay. I’ll catch you later,” I said before turning on my heel and heading farther down the gravel drive. My body almost burned with the need to run, but I knew Callie could still see me and I didn’t want to make it any more obvious how upset I was. But when I made it down the hill and out of sight from the lodge, I broke into a sprint.
Within seconds I was racing inside Doc’s house, not even bothering to knock. Following my mom’s scent, I hurried to one of the exam rooms in the back and finally found them.
Wes was holding Mom’s hand while Doc Monroe tinkered with some equipment on the other side of the room. I crossed the distance in two long strides and scooped her other hand into mine. It was burning up.
“What’s going on?”
“I’m fine,” Mom said as Wes rolled his eyes and shook his head.
“She’s had a fever all day that I haven’t been able to bring down, so I brought her over here.”
I narrowed my eyes at Wes. “What if someone saw you?” I hissed.
She shook her head. “Leave your brother alone.”
“I didn’t have time to wait for Doc to get there. She was almost incoherent.”
“I said I’m fine,” she said, her voice so frail and breathy.
“You will be, Nora,” Doc said, interrupting our family squabble and pushing us both aside to get to Mom. “We’ll get that fever down and adjust your medication. You’ll be good as new in a few hours.”
“See?” she whispered, the spunk still in her despite how sick she was.
But I did see.
That despite the reprieve we’d gotten in the past couple of weeks, my mom was still really sick and needed me. And that meant I needed to keep my distance from Callie. I couldn’t afford to let myself get
wrapped up in something or someone that would take my attention away from her again. She needed me more than ever and I vowed to not let her down again.
Chapter 10
Callie
“Stop being ridiculous, Callie,” I berated my reflection in the mirror.
Despite that, I pulled off the fifth shirt I’d tried on and pulled on the sixth. This was a royal blue sleeveless top that made my eyes look great, but it was all wrong too. With a huff, I ripped it off and threw it onto the growing pile at my feet.
Standing there in a plain white bra, I rolled my eyes at myself and slid my arms into one of my typical flannel shirts before buttoning it up.
Like I said, ridiculous.
It was Wednesday, which meant Wyatt was supposed to drive me to the lab in his brother’s truck and I was losing my mind. I hadn’t been able to get him out of my head since last Wednesday, and I also hadn’t been able to find him, which made for a confusing week.
Part of me couldn’t wait to see him again, while the rest knew it was best to keep my distance. I was just finding that harder and harder to do. I’d even almost gone down to his house to make sure whatever was going on last Wednesday had turned out all right before I talked myself out of it. But with the disappearing act he’d pulled this week, I’d been more curious than ever.
With one last unimpressed look at myself, I grabbed my bag stuffed full of notebooks and reference texts and left my room to find Abey. I didn’t know how else to get in touch with Wyatt since we hadn’t exchanged numbers before he ran off last week.
When I got to my brother’s office, I knocked once and walked in when he called for me.
“Hey, Callie. You ready to go?”
I took a quick glance around his office hoping to see Wyatt even though I already knew it was empty. “Um. Yeah. Is Wyatt on his way up here?”
Abey shook his head as he rose from his chair and walked around his massive desk. “No, he had something come up. I’m taking you.”
My insides deflated like a party balloon. “Oh.”
Chasing Callie (Southern Werewolf Sisters Book 1) Page 8