Just One Drop (3 page)

"You aren't leaving, Jennifer. Jacque needs you and Sally right now. For some reason I thought you weren't the type of friend to bail on those who depend on you." Decebel figured the easiest way to get Jennifer to cooperate would be to piss her off and present her with a challenge.

Jen jerked her arm from Decebel's grasp. She pulled her shoulders back and stood up as straight as she could. Then she took a step forward and he swore that there had to be steam coming off her skin. She jammed her finger in Decebel's chest as she glared at him.

"First, you don't know a damn thing about me so don't you dare tell me what kind of friend you think I am. Second, I would never, ever bail on one of my friends. Unlike one furry canine that I know, I don't take off without dealing with whatever my friends need. Jacque knows I need to go back to the States. She has Fane and Sally."

"Is that so?" Decebel challenged.

"Yes, Cujo. That is so." Jen's jaw jutted forward as she ground her teeth together.

"If Jacque is so understanding, then why did she go to Vasile to have him call me to come get you?" The look on Decebel's face when he finished talking was that of a cat who had just caught a little birdie. He watched as Jennifer's jaw dropped open at his words. He stood silently and let the information set in. Finally, she looked up into his eyes again – the only one other than his Alpha allowed to get away with it – and rubbed her hand over her forehead.

"Is that why you came, because Vasile sent you?"

Decebel could tell that his answer had the ability to crush her and possibly push her away, making it easier to keep his distance. He stared into her blue eyes, eyes that pleaded with him for the truth, painful or not.

"Vasile called me." Jennifer's face fell, so Decebel continued quickly. "But he did not order me to come get you."

Her head snapped up at his words, her eyes searched his face for any hint of a lie. Decebel was sure she would ask why he came but instead she took a deep breath. She suddenly looked tired, defeated.

"Fine, I'll stay. But not because you said I have to. I'll stay for Jacque." Jen went to step around Decebel and head out of the plane exit. As she pushed the door open and felt the cold December air and the sun on her face, she turned back to the wolf who watched her silently. "I'll stay, but you need to make sure you stay out of my way. I don't need you thinking I need a big brother to watch over me and tell me what to do, so don't." She stepped out of the plane and the crisp, frosty air burned her lungs. Sorin stood with the passenger door held open for her.

Decebel stared at the empty space that had been Jennifer. He closed his eyes and took in a deep breath through his nose, relishing her scent. Shaking his head, he opened his eyes.

"Jennifer," he whispered her name reverently to the empty plane. "I most definitely don't see you as a sister, and I don't think I could stay out of your way even if I wanted."

Chapter 4

Jen sat in the garden behind the mansion, still wearing the parka she had put on hours ago. It was late and cold, but she didn't want to be inside just yet. She didn't feel like answering the questions she knew her two best friends would undoubtedly bombard her with. She lifted her head up to the clear sky, marveling at the thousands of stars that lit up the darkness.

A twig snapped on the ground to her left. Jen turned in the direction of the sound to see Alina coming towards her, wrapped in a heavy coat, carrying two coffee mugs. She couldn't help but smile at Alina as she took the offered mug. Jen felt the heat from the steam rise and caress her face as she drew the cup to her lips.

"So, tweedle dee and tweedle dumb sent you, I see." Jen indicated to the hot chocolate she was thoroughly thankful for.

Alina let out a small laugh as she sat down on the bench next to Jen. "Guilty as charged, I'm afraid."

Jen shrugged her shoulders, accepting that there was no way her two friends would leave her alone. She was glad it was Alina who had come. Something about her was so peaceful and comforting.

"Jen, are you unhappy here?" Alina asked gently.

"No," Jen said quickly. "No, Alina. Your home is wonderful and you and Vasile have made us all feel so welcome."

"Then why do you want to leave so badly?"

Jen looked slyly at Alina from the corner of her eye as she took another sip. She swallowed slowly, savoring the warmth that traveled through her. "No offense, Alina, but I know that you know about the fur ball." Alina laughed at Jen's insistent digs at Decebel.

"Okay, guilty. Yet again." Alina smiled, then it faded slowly as she placed her hand on Jen's arm. "Give it time, Jen. If it's meant to be then it will be." Jen started to interrupt but Alina continued before she could. "I know you think that because you aren't having any of the mating signs it's hopeless, but we've never been around someone with werewolf blood as diluted as yours. There is no telling the repercussions, so be patient, little one. He'll come around."

Jen opened the door to Sally's room to find her two best friends sitting on the floor, going over the homework their tutor had assigned them. Neither of them stopped to acknowledge her and she could admit she deserved the snub.

"So, I guess I need to apologize for being a complete ass," Jen told them, remorse written across her face.

Sally looked up at her slowly. Her eyes were drawn together in a glare that would stop a grown man. "Look, Jacque. The prodigal wolf returns. Isn't that sweet of her."

Jen winced at Sally's words, which were laced in sarcasm and dripping with vehemence.

Jacque gave Jen a passing glance as if she were nothing more than a gnat. "Huh, so it is." And she went back to her homework.

Crap
, Jen thought. She was going to have to grovel. How she hated groveling. "I really am sorry. I know that you guys were worried and that you're mad at me for being selfish."

Sally sat up abruptly. "Worried, yes. Mad, no. Hurt, definitely. Jen, you won't talk to us about what's going on. You've been sulking around here for the past two months. You won't talk about the wolf blood thing, you won't talk about Decebel, and then you throw the hissy fit of the century and start packing your stuff, spouting off how you can't do it anymore. We are sitting in the dark twiddling our freaking thumbs." Sally's voice had slowly gotten louder as her rant continued. "I change my mind, we are mad. Hurt, mad and worried."

Jacque stared at Sally like she had grown a third eyeball while Jen was looking for a hole to crawl into.

"I'm sorry, Sally. I don't know what else to say, but truly I'm sorry. I've just been so, crap, I don't know. Frustrated, scared, lonely-"

"Lonely?" Jacque interrupted, obviously hurt.

"Not because you guys haven't been there," Jen added quickly. "I can't describe it. Okay," Jen stopped and sat down by her two best friends, "you want me to talk, here goes. When Decebel left after your ceremony, I felt like a hole had been cut inside of me. I don’t know how to describe it other than utter loneliness. I've been so stinking frustrated because I don't ever get depressed over a guy. I mean, hello, I'm Jen. I don’t
need
a guy." She ran her hands through her long blonde hair in agitation. "But there I was, pining after a werewolf and I don't know why. I don’t understand why he just left like he didn't give a damn." Jen wiped the tears that were now staining her face. "And bloody hell, I'm sick of crying."

Jacque sat up and took Jen in her arms; Sally wrapped hers around them both. The three girls sat there silently while Jen tried to get her scattered emotions under some sort of control.

"Between me and White Fang? Well, I will admit that when I saw Decebel I was shocked. As in 'what the hell do you mean a woman sat on a toilet so long that she became attached to it' shocked."

"Oh, snap. I forgot about that. That was wicked." Jacque cringed.

"Hey. Lucy, Ethel, focus," Sally snapped.

"Oh, right." Jen shook her head. "So shocked, because he was the last wolf I expected to see. To top it off, he was sweet. Which only ticked me off..." Jen trailed off, remembering how Decebel had momentarily gone to another place while looking into her eyes.

"What?" Sally asked.

"It's probably nothing, but there was one point when he was looking at me and he sort of zoned out. I had to say his name several times before he snapped out of it. Then I felt him pull back, if that makes sense. I mean emotionally. It was like he put a wall up between us."

Jen proceeded to tell them, at their insistence, word for word what was said between her and Decebel. And true to form, Jacque and Sally spent the remainder of the night dissecting the conversation. Jen swore they had it down to an art form.

Chapter 5

Decebel lay on his bed, staring aimlessly at the ceiling. He couldn't sleep. Every time he closed his eyes he saw her face. Jennifer. Her scent was burned into his brain, and the hurt he had caused was etched in his memory. Her face had been clouded with it on the plane. For the first time in his long life he was truly unsure about the path he was to take.

The feelings that were stirring inside him towards Jennifer were foreign to him. The only thing he could compare it to was what he had felt for Cosmina, his younger sister. She had been the brightest light in his life. Sweet, kind, and gentle. There wasn't a day that went by that he didn't feel the hole inside caused by her death. Somehow, when he was with Jennifer he didn't feel so empty, so alone.

He kept waiting for the mating signs to happen, to hear her thoughts, for his markings to change. At the same time he feared the changes. If the mating signs appeared he would have no choice. He would have to claim Jennifer, and that scared him more than anything had since the day he watched his sister die in his arms.

He thought back to that gruesome day, how helpless he had felt. Cosmina was being courted by two wolves, one of which was her true mate. After several months of more or less passive pursuit, they challenged one another. Cosmina had to be present at the challenge per pack law. Decebel had begged her not to go but she wasn't a rule breaker. Cosmina always did what was expected of her. The wolves fought and the victor took pity on the other wolf and let him live. The losing wolf had gone feral at the idea of not having Cosmina and attacked her before anyone could stop him.

A true mate would never be able to lay a hand on his mate – it went against everything inside them. Their wolf would sooner die than lift a hand against his mate. The wolf had decided that if he couldn't have Cosmina then no one could. Decebel had reached the wolf a moment too late – Cosmina's throat had been ripped and the blood poured out of her in a flood.

The rage that consumed Decebel had given him more than enough strength to kill the guilty wolf and he had torn him limb from limb. As he held his sister and watched the light fade from her eyes, she spoke her final words.

"When the time comes, brother, don't fight destiny. Let it happen even if it doesn't happen the way you think it should." And then she was gone.

Cosmina had always had the ability to know things, future things. Nobody understood it and the pack had long ago accepted it.

Now as Decebel laid on his bed, his emotions a turbulent storm inside him, he had to wonder if she had been talking about Jennifer.

He grabbed his phone off the nightstand to check the time. One a.m. He groaned. Tomorrow – or today, rather – was going to be miserable if he didn't get any sleep. As pack Beta it was his job to train the younger wolves. Even in the twenty first century it was necessary for the wolves to know how to defend themselves, in human and wolf form.

After the training he was due to attend a conference call with Vasile. Some of the surrounding packs had called and asked to speak with Vasile, but didn't specify what it was about. When Decebel had asked if he had any inkling of the topic, Vasile nodded solemnly and told him that whatever it was he didn't think it was a good thing. Although packs tried to keep peace between themselves, there were times it was easier said than done. Werewolves were extremely territorial and it didn't take much for them to get in a pissing contest – no pun intended.

With a frustrated sigh he grabbed the ear buds to his iPhone and put them in, then turned on Jason Walker's "Down." He normally listened to classic rock, but he needed something soothing to calm him tonight, something to help him focus. He closed his eyes and listened as the words of the song poured over him. As he listened, he felt like it was written just for him. With every word Jennifer's face became clearer in his mind. Her infectious smile, her eyes twinkling with mischief, the quick wit that could cut a person in half – or make them feel like the most important person in her world.

Pictures ran through his mind of his time in the States when she was in the wreck, the fear that had ripped through him when he had seen her still form on the ground. He remembered feeling so out of control as the doctors tried to treat Jen when his wolf didn't want anyone near her. He let out a low growl as his mind wandered to her little stunt with the human male, Matt. Decebel clearly remembered the name Jennifer had whispered in his ear. He still hadn't talked with her about that night, about what had happened with this Matt character. He grinned slowly to himself as he finally began to drift off. He planned on talking with her very soon about Matt, and Decebel had a feeling she wasn't going to be too pleased about it.