SEAL Wolf In Too Deep (13 page)

“Okay.” He pulled up a chair and took her hand again.

“How much work have I missed?”

“None.”

She frowned at him. “You're an awful liar. How many days have I been out?”

“Three.”

She sighed. “Any news about the case we're working on?” Then she grew concerned because Allan seemed so worried about her. “I'm not…dying, am I? Unfit for duty?”

The worry frown remained. “You're not dying,” he said.

“But I can't work.”

“Not for a while.”

“How long?”

“We're not sure. We'll have to see how quickly you can get back on your feet.”

“But I'm going to live. Not physically incapacitated from diving?”

“No. But you're going to have to take it easy. And you're going to need around-the-clock care for a while.”

She smiled just a little bit. “You wouldn't be volunteering for the position, would you?”

His jaw hardened. “Hell, yeah, if you're all right with it.”

She relaxed a bit. “I know you won't be able to be there around the clock, but—”

“I'll make arrangements to have someone come in and stay with you whenever I need to be out.”

She smiled and felt better. She knew Allan cared for her. She wouldn't have wished anything like this to happen to her on purpose, but looking on the bright side, maybe this would turn out to be the best thing that ever happened.

“How will your family feel about that?”

“They'll be glad to hear it.” He motioned to the flowers. “From family and more.”

“They're beautiful.” She eyed them, trying to determine which might be from Allan, if he'd gotten her any.

“The one with the dozen roses,” he said, as if reading her thoughts.

“They're beautiful.”

The nurse knocked on the door, then came in. “We need to do some more blood work on you, Debbie, if you don't mind.”

“As long as I'm going to live, no, not at all.”

Allan left the room, hating the deception of the whole matter. All the pack members had been both welcoming and wary about the situation.

For the last ten days, he'd practically been staying at Debbie's room at the clinic, though often when she woke, he'd been taking care of business and the nurse had been attending her. So he was glad to finally see Debbie awake and conscious enough to talk and recognize him and everything around her.

But he hated that she didn't know what she'd become. After what Lori had told him about Debbie being suspicious of him as far as Tara was concerned, he'd worried about Debbie's reaction to seeing him.

So far, she seemed fine. He assumed she hadn't seen it happen, or if she had, she didn't believe her own eyes. After all, who in their right mind would believe it? And she'd been in really bad shape at the time.

He knew he had to tell her sooner than later, because the sun was nearly lighting the moon to the fullest extent, and she would most likely shift. That would be a terrifying experience, he imagined. Having been born a
lupus garou
, he'd never given it much thought. They were proud to be who they were.

Everyone was affected differently too. Some newly turned wolves were more accepting of the enhanced abilities they had. Others were not, particularly about the shifting when they didn't have much control over it during the pull of the full moon. Or that they had to be watched at all times by other pack members. It could be frustrating if the man or woman was used to being alone or doing things their own way in their own good time and without being accompanied.

He talked to Dr. Christine Holt, wondering if Debbie was really well enough to go home with him.

“She's healing just fine, Allan. You know how our faster healing abilities are. She'll need to take it easy for another week or so, but after that, she'll be able to do anything she wants to. As long as she's being watched because of her wolf condition, she'll be fine. Do you think you can handle it?”

He wanted to say it would be no problem, but what did he know? She was a wild card until he told her the truth and she shifted, and then how would she react? He had no idea.

“Paul said you wanted to do this alone if she was agreeable to stay with you,” Dr. Holt said. “But I still wonder if it wouldn't be better if we had more pack members involved. Maybe some of the original members and someone on the medical staff in case she needs a sedative.”

Allan shook his head. “We'll try my idea first. If it doesn't work, we can have a wolf pack intervention.”

“All right. Paul was wondering if maybe one of the newer turned wolves of Hunter's pack could come and talk with her. To share how he or she felt in the beginning. One of them might be able to show her that there's life after being turned and that new wolves are perfectly comfortable in their new skins.”

“Maybe. If this doesn't work out, we could call Hunter and see if his mate wants to talk with Debbie.” No way did Allan want a male wolf to speak with her. He could see one of them sympathizing with her, and the next thing he knew, she'd be angry with Allan and the rest of the wolves who were born that way and join Hunter's pack.

That notion didn't set well with Allan in the least.

“Are you really okay with taking care of her?” Christine asked. “It's a big responsibility. I know you're a highly trained SEAL and have dealt with all kinds of crises, but this is different. It doesn't take guns and bullets or teeth. It takes a lot of patience, loving, caring, and understanding.”

“I understand. I can handle it.” But he wasn't sure how it would all work out. How could anyone be? He had no idea how she'd react to what she was now. But he had every intention of giving it his best shot and hoping to alleviate her fears as soon as possible. She'd trusted him before this, cared for him, knew him the best, so he figured it was better if he worked with her than someone else. “When can she go home?”

“She needs to stay for three more days at the clinic. That will give you time to get your place ready for her to move in. Make sure that you can secure the house so that she can't get out in case she tries to run. And don't hesitate to call any of us if you need some help with this.”

“We'll be fine.”

Afterward, Paul and Lori talked to him about what he needed to do, and even Hunter's mate, Tessa, called to give her two cents.

The day Allan went to pick Debbie up, she was as cheerful as she always was when he visited her. Which meant? She couldn't possibly know what had happened at the shoot-out. He thought she looked positively thrilled to see him because he was taking her home from the clinic. Only not to her home. He'd already talked to her about it, and she seemed eager to do it. But first, she wanted to go to her place to get some clothes for her stay at his cabin.

As he helped her into his hatchback, he thought she still looked pale and tired. He pulled a blanket and pillow out of the backseat, tucking the pillow behind her and wrapping the blanket around her.

“How do you feel?” Allan tried not to look as worried as he felt, but tonight the full moon would be out in all its glory and he had to tell her what to expect.

He pulled out of the parking lot and started driving toward Whitefish.

“So much better. I can't believe I could have been so bad off and feel so great.”

The faster healing genetics. Allan would talk to her about those later too. He glanced over at her, but she appeared to be drifting off to sleep.

When they were nearly to her place, she yawned.

“Feel any better?”

“Some. Still feeling a bit wiped out. I guess that's why I need to stay with someone for a while. I guess we'll be missing the Penguin Plunge in Whitefish.”

“There will always be next year. And I'll definitely take you to it.” He would take her to anything her heart desired, if she was still speaking to him by then. “Paul said you told him the man who shot you was so bundled up, you couldn't tell what he looked like.”

“Yeah, unfortunately. I was hoping I could positively identify that friend of Lloyd's, Otis. The man was wearing a ski mask and a bulky winter parka so I couldn't tell. He wore snow boots and he was dressed all in white—to blend in with the snow, I imagine. Zeta did say that Otis wore a white parka when it was snowy out.”

“True. It's a wonder he didn't get shot by a hunter. Did you see the color of his eyes?”

“His eyes were wintry blue. I didn't remember until now, but we stared at each other for a moment before he shot me and I shot back. But they were icy blue.”

“Okay, I'll let Paul know. And he can contact the police. In the photo, Otis was too far away and turned to the side a bit, so I couldn't really see his eyes.”

“Me, either.” She stretched out in the passenger's seat, pulled the blanket under her chin, and yawned. “Are you sure this isn't going to be too much of an imposition?”

He'd already learned what she'd like to eat, so he had stocked the pantry and fridge at his cabin with her favorites. He'd asked her if he could pack her things and haul them to his place, but she had wanted to return home and pack for herself.

“No, not at all.” As much as he'd like to see this as a way to get to know her better, he knew things would change between them in a heartbeat as soon as she knew what she had become. It was his fault for not moving her so she wouldn't see Tara change. Not getting there sooner so she wouldn't have been shot in the first place. Not treating her wound fast enough. If Allan had confronted the shooter first, he wouldn't have hesitated to kill the bastard and not waited for him to fire a round first.

“When do we start back on the case?” Debbie asked, as if she hadn't just dealt with a life-threatening trauma of her own.

“When the doctor okays you going back to work.” He wasn't sure how that was going to work out now. She'd have to take a leave of absence. He could just see her in a skintight wet suit trying to shift into a wolf. That would be a sight.

“She said you've been hanging around the hospital the whole time I've been there. Thank you.”

“I had to know you were going to be okay. Early on, you were sleeping nearly every time I came in.”

“Allan, you know none of this was your fault. I know you, and I know you blame yourself. I should have waited for backup. I'm so sorry. They said Tara went home today. She was going to be all right too. What…happened to the wolf? Did you save it? Everything was such a blur. I…I thought they were one and the same.” She laughed a little.

“Rowdy's rubbing off on me with all his paranormal musings. And I watch too many paranormal shows. Anyway, I don't know how I didn't see Tara and how injured she was. Only the wolf. I wish I could have helped you more by assisting her and providing a better description of the shooter, but I guess I was fading fast. They say you saved both of us. When I asked about the wolf, they said they hadn't seen it. So it must have been okay and run off.”

Nobody had told a lie. They'd seen Tara, but not in her wolf form. He really didn't want to discuss this with Debbie right now. He could talk to her about everything at his place—with the cabin locked tight in case she tried to bolt.

“I was busy with Tara and you at that point,” he said again, not really lying.

“What about the red Camaro?”

“It was impounded at the scene. The serial number had been removed. License plates had been stolen from another vehicle.”

“Wow, okay. I called Rowdy's office. What happened on that?”

Thankfully, Rowdy had been in the middle of another homicide case and wasn't called until after Tara and Debbie arrived at the clinic. He'd dropped in a few times to see Debbie, but she'd been so out of it, he hadn't learned anything from her. One of the nurses had always been present. At least Rowdy hadn't let on that he figured anything was amiss. He had talked to the doctor and learned the seriousness of Debbie's injuries.

“He came to visit you several times, whenever he could. I'm sure he's still looking to date you. He sent roses.”

She smiled. “That was sweet of him.”

Debbie continued to chat away in a lighthearted and cheerful way, while Allan was feeling the onerous duty of speaking about all of this to her later and was in gloomy spirits.

When they reached her duplex, she waited for him to get the car door for her.

“Are you still tired?” he asked, concerned that she might have needed to stay longer at the clinic.

“I felt so good for a bit.” She sighed. “Maybe because I could leave the clinic. But yeah, I'm exhausted. I feel I need to sleep for a week to get over feeling this way.”

“Do you want me to pack for you?” He offered his hand to help her up. She relied on his strength, which worried him all the more.

“No, as long as you don't mind me taking a while. I want to shower too. If you don't mind, could you fix us something to eat? I've got an ice chest that we can fill with some of the food.”

He didn't want to tell her they would be moving her completely out of her duplex. For right now, they'd left everything as it was. But once she was settled in with him or someone else who she trusted in the pack, they'd move everything that was hers. She might not want to stay with him once she learned about what she'd become, but she was going to have to stay with someone in the pack. No way could she live on her own until she had her shifting under control.

“Sure, I can do that,” Allan said.

“The ice chest is in the garage. Plenty of ice in the freezer. Oh, what happened to my car?”

He hadn't expected that question. Catherine had taken it to an outer barn for safekeeping until Debbie was ready to drive it again. But he didn't want to tell her that and make her suspicious. “It's parked in your garage.”

“Oh. Good.”

He unlocked the door for her, and she headed inside. “Is there anything in particular that you want me to fix for lunch?”

“Maybe chicken à la king? I've got noodles to go with it. Anything you don't mind making.”

“Okay, I'll let you know when it's ready.” Paul and Lori had already told the duplex manager about Debbie's injuries and that she was going to be staying with family for several months and would need to move out. Thankfully, the duplex came furnished, so they didn't need to move any of the furniture.

He just hoped Debbie didn't learn about it until after they were settled at his place and he told her the truth.

He was glad she was feeling so good, but he could tell she was still tired. He was afraid she wouldn't take the news well when he told her the truth tonight, and he would have to deal with the mess. For now, he had to play along—feed her, help her pack. When they reached his mountain cabin, that was another story. He'd had security alarms put in so that if she managed to somehow get through a lock on a window or door, an alarm would go off. He didn't think she would be able to, but he wanted to be prepared.

He had to even put a lock on his wolf door.

He opened the cabinet and pulled out a can of chicken à la king and a bag of egg noodles, dreading taking her home and what would happen as soon as the full moon reached its zenith. It was one thing to deal with an angry human. Another to deal with a wild and angry wolf. Especially one that would have no idea what her strengths and capabilities were.

* * *

Debbie had never taken acting classes, but she sure hoped she had snowed Allan over. And the rest of those associated with him. Sure, she was half out of it when the wolf had turned into a woman. Yes, she had seen Allan giving the wolf CPR. And she hadn't seen any sign of Tara. Then suddenly, Tara was there and the wolf was gone. Even so, Debbie still hadn't believed they were one and the same. Not until she overheard the doctor and nurse talking in another room. What had scared her the most was that she now knew the real reason the doctor said she had to be with someone for some time—not because of health issues, but that they were afraid she'd tell someone what she had seen.