Winter's Pack (The Cursed Book 2)

by Lou Grimes

  “Thank you for the help,” she said. Louvette had planned to wear the jeans and a concert T-shirt, but had decided it wasn’t dressy enough.

  Someone knocked on the now-closed bedroom door.

  “Come in!” Cara shouted as she was twirling around a mirror, fluffing her hair, and making outfit adjustments. This outfit adjustment would solely be one of a thousand before the night ended. It was the reason why Louvette had wanted a less high-upkeep outfit.

  Garrett strolled through the door with his brown hair bouncing, his curls wild as he moved. He grabbed Cara and spun her around. When he stopped, he popped a wet one on her cheeks. It was the kind of kiss you saw on TV acted out more than it needed to be so the audience could see it. Louvette was currently that audience.

  The black hoodie he had on caused them to match like she was the stars, planets, and everything else in the cosmos. He was space. A pair of denim jeans and some grey boots were the style he decided to rock for the night. Cara was the queen of the stars.

  “Excuse me, I’m looking for my girlfriend. She’s pretty hot, but you’re definitely hotter than her,” Garrett teased, searching the room as if he didn’t recognize Cara.

  The image of the giant teddy bear squeezing her best friend burned in Louvette’s mind. He placed Cara back on the ground, steadying her as she wobbled back to the ground.

  “You must have just missed her. Guess you should have been here on time,” Cara jested back.

  “I’m glad I’m late, to be honest. Want to make me forget about her?” Garrett teased, but the truth was in his voice, and who could blame him for wanting to skip out on girl time?

  “Anyways, I’m here so now you can have some actual fun,” Garrett added comically.

  “I’m going to put all this extra crap back in my car so I don’t have to later,” Louvette announced, starting to collect her items Cara had strewn about.

  “You’re welcome to stay the night,” Cara said.

  “Thanks, but I think me and my mom need to spend some time together since she and Thomas split,” Louvette admitted. Garrett met Louvette’s eyes sharply.

  Louvette looked away first. She didn’t look away out of weakness, but more of avoiding a conversation she didn’t want to have. As far as she knew, Garrett was in the dark, not because he wasn’t trustworthy. It was solely because no one had the time to tell him. With Cara being around, it wasn’t feasible to drop that bomb now and he deserved to enjoy himself tonight.

  “I’ll be back,” she said, swinging her half-zipped bag onto her shoulder.

  “Hey, Louvette. I’ll help you,” Garrett called before Louvette could get her other things.

  “I can do it by myself,” Louvette pointed out as they walked outside to remind him she turned into a wolf the same as him. She could probably throw him if she was mad enough. The strength abilities that Lupines had gave everyone the power to lift many times their body weight similar to a lab-created superhuman.

  A part of her didn’t want him coming. She didn’t want to have to lie to him about what happened between her mother and his Uncle Thomas.

  “Yeah, but doesn’t mean you should have to,” Garrett replied. He had a large makeup floral clutch in one hand, another bulky bag with shoes, and a bag that had some jewelry that matched about everything she owned. The image of this he-man holding all this femininity would forever be burned into her brain.

  “I wanted to thank you,” Garrett added out of the blue.

  “Thank me for what?” Louvette wondered, peeking at him sideways. She was secretly thanking him for not touching the subject.

  “You’re the whole reason I’m with Cara. Thank you so much,” he explained. Louvette was astounded and a little in awe that the giant Lupine had a more complex personality than she had perceived before. Deep down he had one, but this was the first time she had gotten to see it firsthand.

  “Thank you for covering for Arsen when Blaise was trying to kidnap me,” Louvette said.

  “I’m pretty sure I love Cara. She just can’t handle it yet. If I didn’t think she’d bolt, I’d tell her. You’re Cara’s best friend, so that puts you at little sister level as far as I’m concerned. I always help my family out,” Garrett said, offering a piece of paper he had clumsily scribbled a number on.

  Louvette took it, grinning at the declaration of love that he had made for Cara. Admitting that he was right, that she couldn’t handle it at this time, made her still feel warm and fuzzy inside because Cara had most likely found her forever man. That was as long as she didn’t run away from him.

  The want to invite him to go to Mexico flooded her. He would be the perfect bodyguard, guide, and cover because she could get Cara to go, too. Though she needed to do this on her own or at least without guards.

  “You know that goes both ways, don’t you? Arsen doesn’t have to be told,” she asked.

  “Yes,” Garrett answered in a more muted tone as Arsen pulled up to Cara’s house.

  Arsen got out looking as handsome as the day Louvette first saw him, wearing his tight blue dark wash jeans, grey button up, and navy jacket. His black boots contrasted against the white snow crunching lightly as he walked toward them. Louvette smirked when he headed to her as if he was on a hunt and she was what he was hoping to catch.

  They kissed, softly at first. It soon picked up speed. The kiss was no longer a kiss. It had morphed into a make out session. Garrett cleared his throat as if to remind them he was still there. They ignored him.

  “I should be elsewhere getting kissed myself,” Garrett muttered as he went back into the house to find Cara. Louvette shook her head in agreement through the kiss.

  “I missed you,” Arsen said when he could find his breath.

  “Me too,” Louvette whispered, giving him a nudge with her nose in a Lupine manner. Her heart thundered against her rib cage in the same way as an army of shifters beating their shields.

  She had noticed when emotions were high, her wolf tended to come out more. The emotions could be both good and bad for her wolf to want to join in. Each time Louvette believed she had gained new heights of control, such as not killing Thomas, something as simple as a kiss would test that control. A kiss held some of the most power in the world. People fought and died for the ones they loved to kiss.

  She blinked, coming back to the present reality.

  Love and lust seemed to have the same effect on a person when they were around the ones they wanted and needed. It created a drug in their mind that drove any person wild. Arsen’s eyes were drugged when they stopped. Louvette suspected hers were the same.

  “You look gorgeous,” he said, taking in her outfit.

  “I didn’t think you noticed. It’s not that dressy,” Louvette replied.

  “It fits you. Clothes don’t matter to most Lupine. You will never be more beautiful clad in clothes than you will be while you’re hunting in your own wolf form,” Arsen revealed.

  Louvette had had enough. He was too perfectly delicious to be lying to. They both needed to come clean. She opened her mouth, but Cara cut her off before she could.

  “Are you guys ready?” Cara asked, looking rosy cheeked. Louvette tried to stop herself from smirking, but failed because Garrett had clearly made good on his word. At this rate of distraction, Louvette wouldn’t get a chance to fess up to Arsen about her Gift.

  The agreement was unanimous, so they all headed to the car to ride over to Matt’s. It only took a split second for Louvette to understand that a car full of people wasn’t the right choice either. They wouldn’t have made it to Matt’s that night and at minimum two people’s nights would have been ruined.

  Louvette had almost reached the handle of the passenger back seat, but Arsen opened the door before she could.

  She dove into the other opened door, and then across the seats, giggling.

  “How am I supposed to be a gentleman if you won’t let me?” Arsen demanded.

  Cara slid into the seat next to her after she had allowed Garrett
to open her door.

  “It must be nice to have a boyfriend who opens doors for you,” Louvette said to Cara sarcastically.

  “It really is,” Cara said, preening as if she was a queen of the peacocks.

  “You have one too, you know?” Arsen told her in an incredulous tone.

  “I don’t recall any door opening,” Louvette teased, fully aware he had.

  “Arsen, don’t you like Louvette enough to open doors for her?” Cara wondered.

  “Yes, I do.” He started to say something more, but stopped. Louvette froze.

  “You must not like your girlfriend as much as I do mine,” Garrett said, getting in on the fun, too. Louvette relaxed, comprehending that the heart to heart with Arsen would not be happening right now.

  “Shut up,” Arsen said before turning the radio volume all the way up. The rest of them continued to taunt him over the radio, but they soon tired of his lack of response.

  They jammed out on the car ride over, laughing and yelling. Louvette’s side hurt so much from giggling. She wouldn’t be shocked if defined abdominal muscles sprouted up instantly after that car ride.

  It was dark when they turned onto the road to the Bonesteels’ residence. Louvette saw they were near the end when cars started lining the road. They followed the last part of the drive that reached their cabin. Louvette could imagine how it must have looked during the daytime. There were enough lights lining the property to let her process how this place looked.

  The property was right off the lake and had a dock and all. It was two stories and the top one had a vast balcony overlooking the water. The bottom had a huge patio with various benches lined about. Guests teemed the Bonesteels’ house.

  Louvette stepped out of the car along with the others. The warm ashy aroma of a fireplace burning permeated her nose. The particular scent put her at ease. Since coming to Whitefish, she and her mother always had a fire going. They didn’t even have to be cold for it to be on. They just loved the ambience; one that Louvette had never had before this because small apartments rarely had fireplaces in them.

  They didn’t have to look for long before Matt found them.

  Appearing out of the crowd, he strode toward them, bearing the confidence only a host carried. Tonight, he had on a T-shirt that had something borderline inappropriate and funny on it, jeans, and brown boots.

  “Hey, guys! I’m glad you all came,” he said. From his tone of voice, Louvette got the hint that the statement was more for her than anyone else.

  “Thanks for the invite,” they all said to a degree. Matt left to go handle some other hosting duties.

  They all headed into the house where the music was coming from. A bouncy techno song was vibrating the walls.

  “Let’s dance,” Cara exclaimed, raising her voice over the music. They all headed into the mob of people. Cara found the rhythm within seconds. Louvette loved all music, so she found herself smoothly moving to the beat. The guys danced as if they had been to a thousand of Matt’s parties and each of them had been the same as this one.

  All of them danced together for over an hour. It was the hottest hour on earth. Louvette was drenched in sweat, both from her overabundance of body heat from being a Lupine, and from all the people surrounding her.

  “Do you want anything to drink?” Arsen asked Louvette.

  “Yes, please,” Louvette said, grabbing her throat as if it couldn’t handle any more. She would have drunk anything at that point. The snow outside might have been an option before too long. Her throat was so dry it clenched painfully from lack of liquid.

  Arsen and Garrett went off into the sea of people to fetch drinks.

  Cara and Louvette danced together. They didn’t stop until Garrett returned, carrying drinks. Louvette downed hers because, if she didn’t, she knew she wouldn’t have been able to vocalize her next question.

  “Where’s Arsen?” Louvette shouted over all the noise.

  “I don’t know. He was in front of me, but I lost him in the crowd,” Garrett said, searching around for him, furrowing his brow.

  “He’s probably still looking for drinks,” Cara said. A foreboding emotion rose up in Louvette’s mind that this wasn’t like him. However, the thought of Arsen being in any kind of trouble was difficult to imagine.

  The three of them danced for a few songs. The feeling continued to remain trapped in Louvette’s mind.

  “I’m going to find Arsen,” Louvette called before breaking away from the dancing.

  “We’ll look with you,” Cara offered like the best friend she was. Louvette sent her a grateful look at the offer.

  “That’s okay,” Louvette promised.

  “Are you sure?” Cara asked.

  “Yes, stay and have fun,” Louvette ordered before walking off as Garrett and Cara continued to dance.

  Louvette tried spotting Arsen among the masses, but had no luck since she was the farthest from tall. The dim lights and people dancing made it hard to focus on faces.

  Seeing a set of stairs, Louvette climbed up them halfway to secure a better look. After a while, she gave up her position to search the rest of the house. Losing patience, Louvette shifted her nose. Following that cedar scent she loved, it took her up the set of stairs that she had just been on. Her final destination was a door at the end of the hallway. Pausing, Louvette returned her nose back to normal.

  Louvette opened the door to the room. The room itself was familiar from Emily’s memories. What wasn’t familiar were the people inside it.

  Arsen and Emily were standing next to each other. Anyone walking in on these two might wonder if they were lovers. Emily had this fake victim look plastered on her face with tears rolling down her heavily makeup-covered cheeks. She was half flung on him.

  Not once did the thought that she was a betrayed lover enter her mind. It wasn’t Arsen’s style. She expected what had happened before Arsen spoke and blamed herself for not seeing this coming.

  “Get out,” he said to Emily. Louvette felt a small sense of satisfaction when her face fell. In that split second, Louvette could see Emily had believed she was going to pick up Arsen’s broken pieces. Arsen made it clear that it wasn’t going to happen.

  Louvette glared at the spiteful viper as she passed. Emily looked down, pretending to be ashamed, but she had no shame. Emily’s plan to get rid of her and take her place would never happen. Arsen hadn’t wanted Emily, even before Louvette had showed up.

  After the door closed, Arsen’s eyes met hers. He knew. The betrayal was shining in his eyes like two supernova stars swirling together in a dance of death. A dim glow of fire in his eyes faded as he attempted to remain in control.

  “How long have you known about your Gift?” Arsen grilled angrily. His jaw clenched tightly.

  “About as long as you not telling me you were ambushed,” Louvette said in defense. He wasn’t an innocent little babe in all this, and he needed to be reminded of it regardless if he thought he had done it for the right reasons.

  “I had no idea you knew about that. I didn’t tell you because I didn’t want you to blame yourself,” he said out of guilt. For a second, his face filled with regret.

  “Yeah, your lovely mother told me. I do blame myself because if I hadn’t come here, then none of this would have ever happened between the packs,” Louvette pointed out.

  “Don’t drag my mother into this,” Arsen said. Now that she was being forced to come clean about her Gift, she was coming clean on the whole thing. Louvette was skeptical telling him would achieve anything, but at least she wasn’t keeping secrets anymore and that was all that mattered.

  “She dragged herself into this when she said I needed to get lost at the Christmas party,” Louvette revealed. Arsen looked away in pain.

  “I wish you had told me. I would have set her straight,” Arsen said. His declaration to defend Louvette against his mother was something to marvel at in her eyes.

  “It wouldn’t have worked. I’m a menace to the pack and to you in h
er eyes,” Louvette responded, getting that no matter if she did everything right that it would still fail to meet Arsen’s mother’s expectations. Louvette could save Arsen’s life, the pack from destruction, and destroy their enemies and still be a disappointment to her.

  “There have been so many times we have been together, so why didn’t you tell me about your Gift?” Arsen pleaded. The pain in his voice made her stomach feel as if it was plummeting to the deepest depths of the ocean floor where the mermaids, krakens, and sirens all called home.

  “It was never the right moment. You have been too busy with the pack. Someone else was always around. I didn’t want to ruin our date, especially if it might be the last time,” Louvette said, listing off all her reasons.

  “Come on, Louvette! Those are excuses. It all boils down to the fact you don’t trust me,” he snapped, starting to lose it.

  “That’s the pot calling the kettle black, now isn’t it? You don’t trust me enough to go for a walk in the woods alone,” Louvette reminded him, lifting up her arm and brandishing her bracelet in his face.

  “Why not tell me when you found out about your Gift? Do you have any idea how rare that is for Lupines?” Arsen asked.

  “I just wanted to process it. I wanted to be semi-normal for one second. Why didn’t you tell me?” Louvette tried explaining, but she knew it wasn’t going to be enough.

  “I love you, Louvette!” Arsen shouted, finally losing it. Louvette had never seen Arsen this enraged.

  At first, he appeared infuriated with himself more than her. The cause of that anger was him revealing how he felt and the fact that it seemed one sided in this instance though it was far from that. That changed swiftly because his focus turned back to her.

  Louvette’s jaw dropped at the infamous “L” word. No coherent thought developed before Arsen could cut in again.

  “And you don’t even trust me,” Arsen continued. He began to leave.