Destiny of Three (2 page)

“Are you crazy?  Hell, with her attitude she’ll run them off,” Banks warned.

“Come on, Banks.  She isn’t like that with others, just you and Jansen.  Maybe all of you need to get in a room together and work this out.”  River shrugged when Banks raised his eyebrow at her.  Holding up her hands, she added, “Just a suggestion; either that or just stay away from her.  Listen Banks, I know my sister, and she’s strong-willed.  She had to be, growing up.  Living in an orphanage most of their life does that to a person.  She doesn’t like people telling her what to do, and you sound like you’re ordering her around instead of giving her some advice.  Next time, if she’s hitting the bag wrong, then so what?  Just let it go.  Get someone else to tell her, and maybe she’ll take it better.  Better yet, take a different tack with her and stop demanding that she do it a certain way.  You’re way to bossy with her.”

“What did I do that’s so wrong?  I mean, we can’t say anything to her without her going off on us.  She actually threatened to shoot me yesterday when I told her her gun was on safety.”  River and Ash looked at each other, then broke out in giggles.

“Women,” Banks said and walked out of the room.

“Did you see your sister jump up and punch Banks in the nose?  She might have broken her hand with that punch.  I mean, Banks is a grizzly bear.  He’s nothing but muscle, and she hit him in the nose.  I just don’t get it, River.  She acts like she hates Banks and Jansen.” 

“Don’t you remember, Ash?  Hell, you said yourself how bad-tempered it made you when you met your mates and the mating pull started.  Larken and Larsen made you crazy.  I can totally understand why you panicked when you found out that they were not only twins, but also the lodge owner, the sheriff, and the Alpha and Beta of the local werewolf pack.  My God girl, I would have run for the hills. I almost did when I met mine.”

“I sure remember those days,” Ash said. “Thank God I had Nash to explain everything to me.  I tell you what, River, if it hadn’t been for him, I don’t know what I would’ve done.  Unfortunately, I was just like her for a while; I was scared to death of them, and it pissed me off that every time I saw them I wanted to jump their bones.” 

“It must be great to have such a long-lasting friendship.”  River looked at her friend with a far-off expression.  “I still remember the day that I met Nash at the lodge and he welcomed me into his family with open arms.  No questions asked.  He just welcomed me.  That shows great character.”

“Nash is one of the best people I know.  As a matter of fact, he just might be the answer to our problem.  He has nothing to gain by talking to Star and giving her advice.” 

“We don’t want him to end up bloody,” River warned.  “You know how sensitive your sister is about anything to do with Jansen and Banks.

“We need a plan to get them together.”  Ash rubbed her hands.  “I love it when a plan comes together.” 

“What plan you, big dummy?  We have to figure out one first.  We need to find some way to get them in the same room without them getting violent.  If we can do that, then maybe we’ll have a plan.”  River snorted.  “Preferably a room without any guns or knives in it.”

“It can’t be that hard,” Ash commented.

River knocked on Ash’s head.  “Helloooo.  Didn’t you just see my sister punch Banks in the nose?  Come on, Ash.  They hate each other right now.  How are we supposed to get them together without killing each other?  Because right now, I think my sister can take them.” 

“Do you think people can die from sexual frustration?  Because those three sure need to get some soon or they may kill us all.”  Ash chuckled.  “I think we need some help.  I bet Nash can help us with matchmaking.  He’s real good at getting people together.  When Larsen and Larken and I were first having trouble getting together, Nash was able to help us.  In fact, it almost ruined our friendship, but Nash is my best friend, so we got through it.”  Ash thought back on the day she’d told Nash that all he cared about was getting his Alpha a mate, that he wasn’t concerned about what she wanted. Thank goodness he was her friend and overlooked a lot of the cruel words she spouted at him.  It took her a while, but she’d eventually started to understand how the mating pull wreaked havoc on your body.  She only hoped that they could help her sister before she killed one of her mates.

“Yeah, I heard about that, and maybe we need a little bit more help from some others, too,” River suggested.  “Not saying he wouldn’t be helpful, it’s just that these three are all fighting it, and I don’t want to see a repeat of today.  So we need to work fast.”

“Like who?”  Ash asked.

“I don’t know; who do you think?”  River shrugged.  “This is going to be a hard one.”

“Please don’t say Reece and Jonas,” Ash complained.  “I don’t think your mates would be the right ones to help us out.”

“Are you crazy?  I know my mates, and they’d tell us to mind our own business.  I can hear them both now, talking to me like I was a child.”  River lowered her voice, trying to sound like Reece, “Now baby, just let nature run its course, and it’ll happen.  Just stay out of your sister’s business.”

“Men!”  Ash and River said in unison. 

“Exactly.”  Ash poured a glass of orange juice and handed it to River then drank out of the bottle.

“Did you just drink out of the bottle?  The same bottle that we all drink out of?”  River alleged. 

“Do you have a pen?”  Ash asked.

River frowned then looked over on the desk and gave her a pen.  She watched as Ash wrote her name on the top of the bottle.  Then to make matters worse she held the bottle up to her, “See this bottle here?”  Ash asked.

“Yeah.”  River answered then proceeded to watch her best friend like the bottle all around the top.

“It’s mine, but if you want some then I can share.”  Ash laughed.

“You are such a goober.”  River couldn’t help it but she started laughing.  “Okay, okay we’ll meet back tomorrow with some more ideas,” River agreed.

“You know who could help us, is your friend Mary.  You talk about what a great friend I have in Nash?  Well, I think your relationship with Mary is amazing.  She’s like your grandmother. She’s awesome, and she always has great wisdom about everything.  Plus, I think Star would actually sit and talk to her.”

  “You’re right. I’ll talk to Mary, and you talk to Nash.  Hey, what about Lilly — you think she’d help us?”  River grinned.

Ash’s eyes got big as she thought about her sister-in-law.  “You know, that might work.  Lilly has put together plenty of Valentine’s Day dances in the past, and people have always ended up finding their mates.  Maybe it’ll end up working for Star, Jansen, and Banks, too.  Just let her loose so she can work her magic.  It’s coming up in a couple of days, anyway.” 

“That might work.”  Ash rubbed her hands together, a gleam in her eye.  “Okay, now we have OVDR in order.”

“What the hell is OVDR?”  River asked, confused.

“You know, ‘Operation Valentine’s Day Romance,’” Ash explained.

“That has to be the worst name ever.  Goodness, come on you crazy girl; let’s go find Lilly.  Maybe she can come up with a better name than that,” River complained as she dragged Ash out of the gym.

Sullivan kicked the side of his tire as the air slowly hissed out.  He’d been through almost every town in Colorado looking for the Powerful Three, and come up empty.  Regis said they were playing in snow; Hell, he’d been to every town that had snow falling on the ground.  Why couldn’t he have seen a damn road sign, or anything that would help identify the area?

“You need some help?”  A man about thirty years old, dressed in a brown sheriff’s department uniform, asked Sullivan as he stood at the back of his truck watching him.

“Well, unless you have a tire to fit this size truck, then I guess not.”  Sullivan hated getting agitated because it made him act like a smart-ass, and this was so not the time or person to be that way with.

“We can take the tire off and I can run you into town to get Spike to fix it.  Then I’ll bring you back out here and put it on.  How about that?” the officer suggested.

When he got closer, Sullivan realized his mistake; this wasn’t an officer, this was the sheriff.  He sure as hell didn’t need any problems now, so he gentled his gaze. 

“Sure.”  Sullivan nodded, then knelt down on the ground and started taking the tire off.  He glanced up as the sheriff looked through his window to the inside of his truck. 

“You just passing through, or going to the lodge?” the sheriff asked.

“Lodge?”  He hadn’t even realized there was a lodge nearby.  He needed to rest a bit, so maybe he would go there and get a room for the night. 

He glanced up as the sheriff looked though his windows again.  He wanted to laugh.  Fortunately, he wasn’t a drug dealer or burglar.  Just a man on a one-point-five million dollar mission, Sullivan wanted to say to the sheriff; instead he bit his tongue. He didn’t want to go to jail tonight. 

“The Meadowland Lodge is just up the road.  Spike might’ve already left for the day, so we may have to get him to fix it tomorrow.  He likes to go up there for dinner.  Just a suggestion.”  The sheriff continued to look into the truck’s cab.

Sullivan got the tire off and stood up as the sheriff said, “I didn’t get your name.”

“I didn’t give it.”  Sullivan stopped and blew out his breath.  Yeah, he had a problem with law enforcement.  When he was younger, the local cops in Tennessee always considered it their right to harass the shifter kids, even when they hadn’t done anything wrong.  They knew something was different about them, but they couldn’t figure out what it was.  He remembered the time a local kid told the cops that Sullivan had said he was going to tear his throat out.  It was a lie, but they booked him for it anyway.  On numerous occasions he was arrested just for being in the local arcade and having the human kids try to take his money or start fights with him.  They called all of the shifters freaks simply because they lived together in a pack.  The locals considered them a cult.  He couldn’t back down, because once he did they’d jump on that and harass them more.  His Alpha finally banned all of them from going to local arcade.  They had to close the place because of loss of revenue.  He only hoped this guy wasn’t as bad as the cops he grew up or he’d end up in a cell tonight, too. 

“Get your stuff, and I’ll put this in the trunk.”  The sheriff seemed to ignore his attitude, which was different.  He reached out, took the tire from Sullivan, and walked back to his SUV. 

Sullivan needed to calm down before he found himself in jail for being a smart-ass.  He reached in the cab and grabbed his overnight bag and coat, then locked up his truck.  He walked over to the sheriff’s vehicle and got in. 

He turned to look at the sheriff. “Sorry. My name is Sullivan Grayson.” 

He noticed the sheriff look away at the mention of his name.  He didn’t think he had any unpaid tickets or outstanding warrants, but something was up with that look.

“Alright Sullivan, let’s go to the lodge and find Spike, then get you checked in.  By the way, I’m Larsen Wilder.  I’m the local sheriff in these parts.”

“Thanks for stopping, I appreciate it.  I didn’t want to hoof it back to town with a tire.”  Sullivan tried to feel the sheriff out but he didn’t say another word to him until they started up the mountain.

“For a minute I thought you might be coming in early for the Valentine’s Dance,” he said.

“Valentine’s Dance?” Sullivan asked.

“Yeah, we have one every year for shifters to see if they can find their mate.  I thought you were here to find your mate,” Larsen explained.

Sullivan inhaled, catching the sheriff’s scent.  “I guess I’m real tired and was too busy looking at the badge to even realize you’re a shifter. But to answer your question, no, I’m not here to find a mate.  I’m just passing through.” 

“Well then, you came to the right place to rest.  My family owns the lodge, and they should have a room available.  We stay pretty busy this time of year, but we stop taking reservations the week of the Valentine’s festivities.  We make sure there are no humans staying at the lodge unless they’re mated to pack members.  You should stick around; you never know.”

“You don’t even know me.  Why would you want me to stay?”  Sullivan watched the sheriff closely.  He couldn’t figure the man out.  Was he always this nice?

“No reason.  You’re a shifter, and you might be a potential mate to some of my pack members.  Once the girls see you, they’ll have a field day.”  Larsen laughed.

Sullivan didn’t ask any more questions as they drove up the mountain.  He was about to ask how much further it was, when they came around a corner and the lodge came into view. 

He leaned up in his seat and stared at the lodge.  It was huge and majestic-looking.  Twinkling lights were strung throughout the trees, making it appear as though a thousand fairies had doused them with their magic.  “Beautiful.”

“We think so.  You came at the right time of year, when it’s snowing and all decked out.  Come on,” Larsen said as he got out of the vehicle. 

Sullivan got out and looked up at the building. It was the biggest log-cabin lodge he’d ever seen.  Where on earth did they find logs this large?  They were dark red wood, and stretched upward at least four floors.  He could understand why there were so many vehicles in the parking lot — this place was booming. There were ski slopes on one side of the mountain, and he could see a skating rink on the other side of the lodge. 

Looking at everything the lodge had to offer, he decided it was time for a break.  He’d been going for two months non-stop, looking for three people who probably didn’t exist, and he needed a good rest.  He grabbed his suitcase and got out, following the sheriff up the steps. 

They had to stop and move to the side as a group of people came out the door.  He watched as a sleigh pulled by horses pulled up to the steps, where everyone stood and waited for their turn to get on.  Kids were jumping up and down, excited about the ride they were about to go on. 

The first group cheered as they got on the sleigh, and then another pulled up for the next group.  The sleighs were decked out in twinkling lights and bells.  He closed his eyes and listened to the bells jingling as the horses started on their way.

“You like horses?”  Sullivan felt odd that he’d let the sheriff walk up behind him without knowing he was there.  He jerked around.  “You okay?  You look kinda spooked.” 

Sullivan blinked. “Just watching the people.”  He turned around and followed the sheriff into the lodge. 

The smell of cinnamon tickled his nose as he walked through the door.  He inhaled deeply, thinking how his grandmother’s house smelled just like this.  As he followed the sheriff, he noticed the biggest rock fireplace he’d ever seen.  Older people and kids were scattered throughout the room, and sitting in rocking chairs beside the fireplace.  He smiled as an older man nodded in his direction as he waited for his wife to make her move in the game of checkers they were playing. 

“Hey, Becky.  Can you get Mr. Grayson a room for a couple of nights?” 

“Sure Sheriff, let me see what’s open.  We’ve been so busy this week, I don’t know if we have any rooms available,” Becky said as she typed on the computer. 

“If not, Becky, then give him my room, next to Mary’s,” Larson insisted.

“Well, you’re in luck, Mr. Grayson; we have a room available on the third floor.  Great views of the ski slopes, too.” 

“That will be fine.  Thank you, Becky.”  Sullivan smiled when Becky finally looked up at him.  He was used to women looking at him.  Apparently, they liked what they saw, because his bed was never cold when he wanted some action.  He wanted a bed tonight for sleeping, but maybe tomorrow he would give in to the local beauties.

“You’re very welcome, ahh…Mr. Sullivan.”  Becky stuttered as she fumbled with her pen and the paper he needed to sign.

Sullivan smiled and winked at Becky as he took the pen and signed the paper.  “It’s Sullivan Grayson, but don’t worry sweetheart, you can call me Sullivan if you want.”  He pulled his wallet out and dropped his credit card on the counter. 

“Let me get you a receipt.”  He watched as Becky blinked a couple of times, then blushed, and walked over to the credit card machine.

Sullivan turned around to tell the sheriff thank you but he was gone.  He looked around the room then came back up to the counter.  “Did you see where the sheriff went?  He has my tire in his vehicle.” 

“I’m sure he went to find his mate,” Becky whispered.

“Will you tell him which room I’m in so I can get it from him?”  Sullivan asked as he looked around the lobby again.

“Will do, Mr. Grayson,” Becky smiled back at him.

Sullivan picked his suitcase up and started toward the elevator.  He’d pushed the button and was waiting for the doors to open when the most intoxicating scent drifted to his nose.  He closed his eyes, inhaling deeply, and turned around looking for someone carrying sweets.  The only person near him was a man who’d just walked through the door carrying a chair. 

The elevator opened; he walked in, and when he looked back the man was staring at him.  “Damn, he’s gorgeous,” Sullivan, whispered as the elevator doors closed.  Being a shifter, he could see how blue the man’s eyes were as he reviewed every delicious detail about him.  He obviously worked out with his arms a lot, since he was carrying a chair.  He appeared to be in his twenties, with brown hair that curled around his ears.  The man was simply stunning, and all he wanted to do was step out of the elevator.

“Hello.”  Sullivan almost jumped when he looked down at a well-dressed older woman who was standing in the elevator with him.

“Hello.” 

“That was Sky Johnson, and you’re correct when you said he’s gorgeous.”  Sullivan noticed the lady was straining to carry four heavy shopping bags. She looked like she was about to fall over. 

“Oh, I’m sorry, let me help you with those.”  Sullivan put his suitcase down and took all of the bags from her.  They were packed to the brim with clothes.

“It looks like you had a great day shopping,” Sullivan commented as he pushed the button to his floor.

The lady leaned against the wall. “Can you believe that I got all of this on sale?  Every shirt, bra, and piece of underwear was just sitting there waiting for me to buy it.”  Sullivan’s lips turned up as he smiled at the woman’s comments.  This feisty lady reminded him of his grandmother. 

Her hair was chestnut brown with gray streaks, but it was her smile that put him at ease.  She had the biggest blue eyes, which glinted in the light.  She just looked like she was happy to be alive and enjoying what life threw at her.  Like his grandmother, she seemed to have a keen sense of humor. 

“If you’re anything like my grandmother, then I believe it.  She can find a sale going on anywhere within fifty feet of her.”  Sullivan noticed that the lady hadn’t pushed a button yet.  “Did you need me to push a button for you, ma’am?”

“I think we’re neighbors, since we’re on the same floor.”  The lady just continued to smile as the elevator took them to the third floor.  “My name is Mary Swift.”

Sullivan put the bags in his other hand and stuck his right hand out to shake Mary’s.  “Nice to meet you, Mary.  My name is Sullivan Grayson.” 

“Are you here for the Valentine’s Dance?”  Mary asked.  She picked up his suitcase when the elevator opened on their floor. 

“Oh no, let me get that.  I can carry them all.”  Sullivan tried to stick his fingers out so he could grasp the suitcase, but Mary continued walking to her room.  He noticed that they were indeed neighbors — his room was next door to hers. 

“Just bring them in and drop them on the bed.  I have to unfold them and put them away.”  Sullivan gently laid the bags down on the bed and picked up his suitcase.  He was walking to the door when Mary stopped him.  “Sullivan, for your kindness I’d like to buy you dinner tonight at the lodge.  They make a great steak here.  Well, everything here is good, so if steak isn’t what you want then you can have anything on the menu.” 

He was going to say no, but she acted so much like his grandmother he didn’t want to be rude.  Plus, he had to eat anyway.  He missed his grandmother so much, and this would be a little bit like home. 

“I won’t take no for an answer.  Please pick me up at seven sharp.”  Mary went to the door, waiting for him.  Now he knew he couldn’t say no; she’d used the old ‘I won’t take no for an answer’ routine.