Gabrielle Demonico (12 page)

“
Did you? Oh
please
say yes…”

“
Yes, I did.”

“
Yay! So what happened?”

“
Well, I just decided to get it over with so I texted him and told him that there was someone else.”

“
Wow
… Oh my God, you lied about it? What did he say?”

“
Yes, I know it’s horrible. Well, anyway, you know Lukas. He was demanding to know who it was.”

“
Ellie
… what did you tell him?”

“
Uhhhmmm… I said it was one of the trainers at the gym.”

“
Ellie! Oh my God. Was he pissed?”

“
Big time.
And, I know I shouldn’t have lied but I really believed it was the only way to end it.”

“
Wow…” Avery said as her voice trailed off. She then asked, “So, where are you now?”

Ellie replied, “
Well, heading home but I’m not even
close
to being finished with what happened.”

“
Okay. Go on…” Avery said.

Ellie squinted her eyes briefly and exclaimed, “
I kissed Ben!”

“
What!!!?!?! Ellie he’s human, what are you thinking.” Avery demanded.

“
Well, actually…
no
he isn’t.”

“
What do you mean?”

“
He’s a
shifter
and so is Jason.”

“
What? Impossible. We would have been able to sense that the first time we met them if that were true.”

“
You don’t understand Avery. They
aren’t
wolves.”

“
Huh? Well, if they aren’t wolves then what are they?”

“
Lions.”

“
Lions? I didn’t even know that there were lion shifters or anything but us for that matter.”

“
Me either…” Ellie replied quietly.

“
But… wait a sec… How do you
know that
for a fact?” Avery asked.

“
Well, that’s the last part of what I have to tell you.”

“
Okay, I’m listening. You are blowing my mind so far but I’m still listening.”

Ellie
’s car came to slow stop at a traffic light. She then said, “One of them knocked Lukas out cold.”

“
Lukas
came up there?”

“
Yeah. I’m guessing he was so pissed at my texts that he wanted to talk to me face-to-face. Anyway, when he got there, Ben was walking me to my car. Long story short, he threatened to expose my ‘relationship’ with Ben to Marlon unless I left with him.”

“
Typical
Lukas. What a jerk.” Avery said.

“
I know! Anyway, I told him that there was no way I was doing that.”

“
I’m sure that didn’t go over very well.”

“
No. So Ben told him to get lost and of course Lukas flipped out. Next thing you know, he’d shifted.”

“
Unbelievable. What did Ben do? Did he shift?”

“
No. Well so remember that I just thought Ben was human and I was freaking out and yelling at Lukas?”

“
Right…”

“
Well Lukas wasn’t listening at all and next thing you know he’s heading towards us. Ben immediately got between Lukas and I.”

“
Awwww!!!!” Avery cooed.

“
I know… Anyway, I had almost reached a point where I was ready to just leave with Lukas. You know, just to keep Ben from getting hurt. And then, out of nowhere Jason slammed into Lukas and knocked him out -
cold.
”

“
Wow. So he’d shifted?”

“
Yeah.”

“
So what was it like?”

“
Honestly? It was
really hot
. I am telling you. As sexy as they are as humans, the lion form is a hundred times hotter.”

“
Oh my God, I bet. I can only imagine. So then what happened?”

“
Well, Lukas came to and basically left. I’m pretty sure he’s headed straight to Marlon’s house to tell him everything.”

“
Shit.” Avery said.

“
I know.”

“
What are you going to do about Ben?”

“
I’m not sure.”

“
Ellie! You can’t be serious.”

“
Why? Why can’t I be Avery? You said he was into me and you were right. What’s so wrong about that?”

“
Ellie… You
know
what’s wrong with it. You are going to be shunned.”

“
That’s not guaranteed.”

“
Ellie…
”

“
Well, it
isn’t
.”

“
Look, I just pulled into the parking lot of my apartments. I have to go. I’ll call you later.”

“
Ellie,
please
think carefully about what you are doing.”

“
I will. I promise Avery. I love you.”

“
Alright. I love you too.” Avery said.

*
**

Ellie parked her car and got out as Ben pulled in the spot next to her. He brought his vehicle to a stop and then quickly got out.

“Hey.” He said.

“
Hey yourself.” She replied smiling.

“
Do you have everything from your car?” he asked.

“
Yeah.” She answered.

“
Okay then, lead the way…” he said as he made a sweeping gesture with his hand. They crossed the parking lot and headed up two flights of stairs to the front door of her apartment. As she neared the door, she fiddled with her keys and then pinched the one that unlocked the front door between her thumb and index finger. As she slid it into the lock she heard his footsteps come to a halt behind her as the deadbolt lock opened.

“
Ellie, my brother and I were really only kidding with you. You don’t have to offer me wine or play hostess. We both just wanted to make sure that you got home safely.” He said quietly.

She released the keys and turned back to face him.

After they’d made eye contact he said, “Even though I don’t know anything about what that was all about in the parking lot between you and Lukas, I can sense your uneasiness. I know that all of this must be awkward for you. The last thing I wanted was for you to feel that way around me.”

She sighed and said, “
I don’t, trust me when I say that
you
are not the problem. The problem existed long before you and Jason arrived in town. And, really, it’s probably for the best that things have taken this turn.”

“
Why do you say that?” he asked.

As much as she wanted to tell him, the last thing she want
ed to do was bare her emotions as it related to
Lukas
. She couldn’t think of one good reason why she should tell him that she’d willingly given herself to him for years on end with nothing offered in return. What would he think of her? That she had no self-esteem whatsoever? Or worse, that she was just a slut?

Neither scenario was appealing so she quickly dismissed it out of hand and said, “
It doesn’t matter… Let’s change the subject. Listen, if you’d like, I do have some Merlot. I’m more than happy to offer you some, that is, if you want to stay for a while.”

“
Of course, Ellie. I was hoping that you’d say that.” He replied.

Luckily today was cleaning day and as much as she dreaded doing it earlier at least she didn
’t have to apologize or make him wait in the hall while she tidied up. Maybe there was a bit of justice in the world after all. They entered the apartment and he closed the door behind them.

“
Please, have a seat on the couch. I’ll grab the wine.” She said.

“
Okay.” He replied.

A few moments later, s
he returned with their drinks and took a seat next to him on the couch. After taking a sip he nodded and said, “Mmm, very good. Thank you.”

“
Of course. I mean, It’s the least I can do after everything that happened tonight.” She said.

He set his wine glass
down on the coffee table, slung his arm up on the back of the couch and angled his body towards her. “Ellie, about what happened. I don’t want you to get the wrong idea.”

“
What do you mean?”

“
Well, I suppose I mean that I didn’t want you to think that what we did tonight is something that I make a habit of.”

“
Ohhhhh, you mean seducing innocent clients in your office?” she said.

A sly grin came over his face. “
Yeah…
that
. I could see how that could be taken the wrong way. I just want you to know that I’m not like that.”

“
You’ve given me no reason
not
to trust you Ben. Besides, it was wonderful.” She replied.

“
Yes. It was.” He said in agreement.

She smiled and said, “
Can I ask you a personal question?”

“
Of course, anything.” He answered.

“
Why did you and Jason come here? What I mean is don’t you belong somewhere… with your own kind?” she asked.

“
You mean like you with your pack?” he said.

“
Yes. I suppose that’s what I mean.” she said.

“
Yeah, we do or more accurately, we did. It’s called a pride and yes, we did belong to one.” He said.

“
What do you mean did?” she questioned.

He reached for his wine, took a sip and then said, “
Well, the way things are for a young male lion is quite different from your wolf brethren. When we reach a certain age, we are expected to go out into the world and start our own pride.”

It sounded
horrible
. Ellie was so used to be connected to everyone in her pack. She couldn’t imagine being cast out into the world like that. She felt terrible for him…
and Jason.

He cont
inued, “And so, that’s what we’ve been doing for many years now. It’s been a nomadic existence and so far, totally fruitless.”

“
So far? What do you mean?” she asked.

He looked deep into her eyes. In much the same way he did in his office and said, “
Ellie, I don’t know any other way to say this so I’m just going to say it.
You
are the one Ellie.”

“
What? What do you mean?” she asked.

“
Ellie, I didn’t want to just blurt this out. We were hoping that we’d have more time to get to know you and discover if our instincts about you were correct.” He said.

“
Your instincts? Wait, what do you mean
we
?” she asked suspiciously.

“
Jason and me. The two of us. Ellie you are everything we’ve been searching for all of these long, lonely years. We knew that you were the one we’ve been searching for but at the same time, we had no idea that you were part wolf. It’s clear that, after tonight, there’s no time to waste.” He replied.

“
I don’t understand. You
and
Jason want me to be with you?” she asked.

“
Yes, Ellie. That is, if you want that.” He said.

“
Well, I don’t know what to say. Is that normal for your kind?
Sharing
women?” she asked.

“
Yes…Quite. To us, love is not
selfish
. The survival of the pride supersedes the desire of the individual. Is it not that way for wolves?” he questioned.

“
No, not at all. In fact, it is the
exact
opposite.” She said.

“
What do you mean?” he asked.

“
Well, in the pack, once a female is claimed by a male she is bound to him, for life.” She responded.

His head dropped suddenly as a dark awareness overca
me him. He then softy asked, “I see. So Lukas… Is he?”

“
No!” she exclaimed. “I mean, I won’t lie. There was a time when I thought that was all that I wanted. But now…”