by Lisa M Airey
“That’s when you called Gray?”
She nodded.
“Any chance it could have been your wolf?”
“No,” she said flatly. “The forest is alive when Big Boy walks beside me. The forest was dead that day.”
Dan was quiet for a moment, puzzled by her odd choice of adjectives. Slowly, she pulled her hands free.
“Julie, think back to the woods the day of the blizzard. Were the woods also quiet?”
“Yes, but I think that was because of the storm. The animals had all hunkered down.”
“But how did the forest feel?”
“I was terrified,” she whispered, looking up at him.
“Were you aware of something tracking you back then in the snow?”
“No. All I could hear were the snowflakes.”
He nodded. “So on Saturday, Gray took how long to get to you?”
“Too long. It felt like forever, but was maybe fifteen, twenty minutes.”
“What did you do?”
“I decided to keep walking, to shorten the distance between us.”
“The animal in the brush?”
“It moved off.”
“How does Lync factor into all of this?” asked Dan.
She locked eyes and frowned. “I’m not sure that he does. I rounded a bend and there he was: Mr. GQ. Smug. Arrogant. Cocky. I tried to walk on by, but he fell into step.”
“Whoa. Whoa,” said Dan, his hand in the air. “You are being hunted by God-knows-what and you come across another person on the trail and you just walk on by?”
“I tried to walk on by.”
He just looked at her.
“In my personal experience, two-legged animals have always been more dangerous than four-legged ones. The threat ahead of me seemed far more dangerous than the threat behind me.”
“You thought Lync was a danger?”
“I had been frightened by the animal in the brush, but I was terrified of Lync. I was in total flight or fight mode. I did both.”
“What happened to the animal that had been tracking you?”
“I told you already. It had moved off.”
“Before you encountered Lync?”
“Yes.”
“What did Lync say to you?”
She turned away from him and took a shaky breath. “He asked me if I was afraid of the big bad wolf,” she whispered. Dan closed his eyes. “Then he grabbed my arm and wouldn’t let go.”
She held up her right wrist, black with bruising, then rubbed her forehead as if to erase the memory.
“What happened next?”
“Gray entered the clearing and Lync released me. I had been pulling so hard against him that when he let go, I fell flat on my back. I got to my feet awkwardly and catapulted myself backwards into a tree trunk.” She hung her head. “I’m sure I’m black and blue.”
“Can I look?”
“At what?”
“At your back?”
Julie searched his eyes then nodded. She stood and turned around. “The muscles in my back are very tender. It hurts to move my arms. You’ll have to lift my blouse yourself.”
She felt his hands upon her hips. They slid under her top and ran along the small of her back. His touch was warm and calloused. He lifted her blouse slowly, tenderly running the pads of his fingers along the cuts, bruises and abrasions.
“Am I as bruised as I feel?” she asked.
“Yes,” said Dan, his voice thick. He ran a thumb along her left shoulder blade and heard a soft groan.
“Hurts.”
He stepped into her and wrapped his arms protectively around her torso, his head on her shoulder, his right hand between her breasts. His breathing was deep and slow, as if he were trying to regulate it. He hugged her to him as if he could will the bruises away, take away her pain. She rotated in his arms and as she did so, his right hand slid inside her bra, his fingers cupping her left breast. They both froze.
“I didn’t do that on purpose,” he husked.
“I know.”
His thumb played gently across her breast.
“Are you going to exit?” she asked.
“I haven’t decided,” he said. “My hand is very happy where it is.”
She reversed rotation and turned round to face him, doing her best to tug her shirt down to her hips, pain and all. When she met his eyes, her cheeks were flush.
“That was wonderful, Julie. Could we do it again?”
She smiled and shook her head. He lifted her chin and brushed his lips gently across hers, then he deepened the kiss and deepened it some more.
“You are vulnerable tonight,” he said, his breathing heavy. “I won’t take advantage. But I want to.”
30
Dan drove the few short blocks to Julie’s home in silence. Julie, in the meantime, scanned the border shrubbery and ink-black lawns for wolves. Her house was dark when the squad car pulled into the driveway. She approached the house door with her keys, opened it and hit the floodlights. The light relaxed her immediately.
“Thank you, Dan, I think.”
He stood on her doorstep and smiled sadly. “I’m worried about you.”
“I’m okay.”
“No. No, you are not.” He took a deep breath and exhaled forcefully. “I liked holding you in my arms tonight, Julie. I just wish it were under other circumstances.”
“It can’t be that way between us, Dan.”
“Gray?”
She nodded. His eyes grew troubled, as he listened. “We have some things to work out, but we’re working them out.” She stood on tiptoes and kissed him lightly on the cheek. Just as she was about to pull back, he snaked an arm around her waist and pulled her to him tightly. He held her there for a long time until he felt her muscles soften.
“Good night Julie,” he breathed, stepping back. He gave her a tender kiss on the lips and rubbed his cheek alongside hers. “I haven’t figured all this out yet, but I will. And I’m going to do my best to protect you. I’m here. I’m here if you need me. I fall asleep at night hoping that you need me. And praying that you don’t.”
He walked back to the police car while she shut the front door and locked it. The dead bolt clicked hollow and empty.
She tossed her keys onto the coffee table and climbed the stairs in the dark. She froze in the doorway of her bedroom listening to a swoosh of skin on fabric.
“Gray?” she called into the darkness.
“It’s me.”
She crossed the room to find him in bed. He pulled her to him possessively, his touch both gentle and firm. She relaxed into the sanctuary that was his embrace and welcomed his hot hands as they touched her body.
“How did you get into the house?”
“I know where you keep your spare house key.”
“How would you know that?”
“You are frequented by a very observant wolf.”
“What other secrets do you know?”
“You cry during all the movie love scenes and you don’t eat breakfast unless I cook it for you.” He tugged her close. “What did Dan Keating worm out of you?” he said, tucking her hair back out of her face.
“Well, it’s a long story.”
“I’ve got all night,” he said, bringing her hand toward his lips. He tucked his head into her neck and stiffened. “He has touched you.” The tone of his voice stilled her. “I smell him on your skin.”
“Dan wanted to see the bruises on my back.”
“I don’t like him touching you.”
“Well, just for the record, he doesn’t like you touching me either.”
He grunted and pulled her to him, wrapping himself around her. His warmth melted the day’s tension from her body and soothed her soul.
“Gray?”
“Yeah?”
“Am I your sack of potatoes yet?”
When he didn’t answer, she turned around to face him. He searched her eyes for a long moment then moved to place a soft kiss on her left breast. Ge
ntly, she ran her fingers through his hair and cradled him to her.
He teased the nipple with his lips and Julie arched upward in response. Gray pulled back and propped himself up on an elbow, a soft smile playing at his lips. “Yeah, Julie, you are mine.” He toyed with her curls. “Question is, are you willing to be mine forever?”
Her eyes flew open in surprise. “Are you proposing?”
“I’m trying to explain… sex.”
“I think I’m aware of the fundamentals, Gray,” she said dryly.
He laughed then grew serious. “Lycanthrope sex is based on different fundamentals.”
“Like what?”
“Well, there is no such thing as casual sex.” He kissed her nose. “If you and I make love, we’d bond with each other, or at least I would bond to you. Like geese do. It’s a forever commitment, like a brand on the soul. It cannot be undone.” He tucked a loose strand of hair back behind her ear. His face, so earnest, so serious, erased her smile.
“You don’t want that?” she asked.
“This isn’t about me,” he said, his eyes searching hers. “This is about you. You’d never be free of me, even if you wanted to be.”
“I don’t understand.”
“Lycanthropes play for keeps, Julie. Our union would be more permanent than marriage. And there is no escape clause. No divorce.” He traced his fingers lightly down her neck. “We can’t make love until you are ready to give me the rest of your life.” He brought her hand to his lips and kissed it. “Would you like to think on this a little bit?”
“Yes. I think I should.”
She awoke to find him holding her as always, his breath tickling her ear, his heat keeping her warm. She turned to face him and felt her body slide unencumbered beneath the sheets.
“Gray?” she said, coming fully awake. “Did you remove my nightgown last night?”
“Uh huh,” he said, sliding a warm hand down the length of her body, pulling her close.
“And why?”
“I wasn’t wearing any clothes, so I didn’t think you should be wearing any either,” he said with a devilish twinkle in his eye. She sat up and poked at his ribs.
He swatted her hands away as if she were a pesky gnat. She jabbed him again. He made a grab for her and missed. She jabbed him again. This time, he captured her hands then sat up to face her. “There are a few more things you need to know about lycanthropes, Ms. Hastings.”
“Such as?”
“Such as they have powerful libidos. He hugged her to him with such power she was forced to expel the air from her lungs. “Once they claim their mate, they are passionate,” he flipped her onto her back. “They are demanding.” He wedged himself between her legs. “And they don’t take ‘no’ for an answer.”
“Oh!”
He bent to kiss her tenderly, smelling the faint musk of her arousal. He growled softly in her ear. “They become possessive, protective, and very, very needy when they have a mate.”
“I thought all men were like that,” she teased, trying to wiggle out from beneath him.
He held her firm. “Not by a long shot.”
She continued to try and worm herself free.
“Julie. When lycanthropes become sexually active, they become very sexually active.”
He shifted to sit on the edge of the bed and looked down at her appreciatively. Then, he swallowed and looked away.
“Gray?”
“Yeah?” His voice was deep.
“You’ve already bonded to me haven’t you?”
He turned back to look at her, his eyes soft. “I’ve got to go to work, Spud.” He exited the bedroom and came back as Big Boy. She wrapped a robe around herself and led him to the door. After nuzzling her hand, he bolted for the forest.
She stood there and watched him run.
What on God’s green earth had she gotten herself into? She sat down on the edge of the sofa and stared into space. Absently, she listened to the morning sounds of her neighborhood, children’s voices, car doors slamming, wind chimes. So normal. So reassuring. So routine.
She climbed the stairs slowly, showered and dressed. She looked in the mirror then hung her head.
Walk away. She felt guilty for thinking the thought, but it fluttered against her consciousness like a panicked moth. She gripped the sink tightly and took a few deep breaths.
Power through, she told herself.
Walk away, whispered her subconscious.
Power through.
31
Dan pulled into her driveway as she locked up to head off to work. He weaved a go-cup of coffee before her like a snake charmer. “For you,” he said. “I thought I’d be your official escort and chauffeur.”
“Wow,” said Julie, brightening. “My very own star buck.”
“You look like you could use a little java,” he said, his face full of concern.
“I’m okay, Dan.”
“You keep on practicing that one,” he said. “I’ll tell you when I believe it.” She took the coffee from him and stood before him unsure of what to do next. Her hand started to shake. At first, it was just a little tremor, but it swiftly degenerated into a violent palsy. Dan placed both hands around hers trying to steady a cappuccino that was swiftly becoming a frappacino.
“My nerves are shot.”
“I see that.”
“Maybe coffee was not the best course of action.”
“My apologies. I was all out of truth serum.”
She looked up at him. “I haven’t lied to you, Dan.”
“But have you told me the whole truth?”
She had enough strength to continue to hold his eyes with her own, but not enough strength to speak. She shrugged helplessly. “Nothing else has any relevance.”
“Can I be the judge of that?”
“No. It’s personal.”
Dan was not happy.
“I need to get to work,” said Julie. “I have a surgery this morning.”
“All right. I’ll take you,” said Dan. “But I will also pick you up at six o’clock. We can continue the conversation.”
Julie shook her head and kept shaking it. She closed her eyes. She was beginning to feel a little boxed in. Dan was a crashing boulder of relentless pursuit. Gray was a quietly patient yet unmovable wall of stone. She found herself between a rock and a hard place and it was starting to make her extremely uncomfortable.
“Julie?”
She opened her eyes to look at him.
“I’m not asking.”
The words ripped her heart apart like shrapnel. As Dan stood there, the light faded from her eyes. Julie was an ice sculpture in the front seat of his squad car and an automaton when she bid him goodbye.
Elliott called mid-day trying to schedule another gig for the band. She told him that she didn’t want to sing for the band anymore. There was a lot of shouting after that and she ended up hanging up on him.
To top things off, she found Dan waiting for her in the parking lot after work. As she drew near, he opened the car door for her. She got in without a word. Resentment roiled in her.
“How was your day?” he asked politely. The undercurrent of tension was so thick that she felt as if she were drowning.
“Quiet. Yours?”
He gave her a significant look. “It will go better for me if you tell me what is scaring you so badly. In fact, it might go better for the next female hiker if I hear something from you besides one word answers.”
“There is no need to bully me, Officer Keating,” she said stiffly. “I really don’t deserve it. There was nothing more I could have told you about my lost time in the blizzard. I omitted not one detail. I didn’t see or hear anything. Ditto for the second woman. I didn’t hear about either murder until days afterwards. You know this is true.”
Her voice broke.
They drove the rest of the way to the station in silence, and Julie pivoted as far away from him as possible. When he parked the car, she was out the door and up the stairs f
ar in advance of him.
“Sit,” he said, gruffly.
She took a corner of the couch, unconsciously drawing her body up, pulling her legs back and away from him.
“Julie? What has upset you so badly?”
“I told you. It’s personal.”
“I need to hear about it.” He leaned back, hoping she’d fill the space between them by relaxing and extending her body forward, but she sat rigidly frozen, physically withdrawn. Although the distance between them was three feet, it might as well have been three hundred miles.
“You are abusing your badge, Dan.”
“Am I?” he asked. “Am I, Julie? Or are you hiding something?”
“Like what?”
“Like murder.”
“Whose?” she asked, confusion flooding her face.
“Lync’s.”
Her jaw dropped open.
“We can’t find him,” said Dan.
“Is that unusual for someone who is accused of a crime? You expected him to be sitting on his front porch just waiting for your social call?”
He ignored her sarcasm. “Did Gray over-react when he confronted Lync? Hit him too hard by accident? Self-defense is a defendable position in a court of law.”
Julie looked him straight in the eye. “Lync was alive when he walked out of the clearing.”
“Was he injured?”
“Gray had wrenched his arm pretty good, but it was nothing life-threatening.”
“What happened when Gray arrived?”
She frowned. “I’ve told you this already. I fell. I got up. I backed into a tree. By the time I had regained my feet, Lync was slinking away with his tail between his legs.”
Dan cocked an eyebrow.
“It’s a southern turn of phrase.”
“What did Gray do?”
“He comforted me. I was upset.”
“He took you home?”
“No. He took me to his cabin. Fed me some dinner.”
“What time?”
“What time what?”
“What time did he feed you dinner?”
Julie shrugged. “Dinner time. I don’t know. Evening.”
“So,” said Dan, “What did you do all afternoon?”
She just shook her head at him. “I washed the dirt off of myself. I was nauseous and light-headed. Gray insisted that I lay down. I did. I slept. When I awoke, Gray had dinner ready.”