The Keeping (33 page)

Once she was left
to her own devices, Mel tossed the Harley-wolf incident round and
round in her mind. The only possible reason she could think of him
lying about the wolf, was that Ryne hadn’t wanted to frighten her.
Yet, that didn’t make total sense. When she’d first met him, after
nearly being attacked by wolves on his property, he’d seemed to
relish telling her about the vicious beasts and the damage they
could have inflicted. Hmm... That was another strange point. Ryne
had shown absolutely no concern over the presence of a wolf and—a
thought just popped into her head—how had he ‘saved’ her from the
wolves on his property? Just before she’d knocked herself out,
they’d been howling and snarling, yet Ryne never mentioned chasing
them away. And how did one scare off two wolves, anyway?

Furrowing her
brow, Mel wondered once again why, all of the sudden, wolves were
figuring so prominently in her life. Draining her cup of coffee,
she decided to head back to the Gazette and do a bit more work on
her laptop. She’d compile a list of everything wolf related that
had happened lately and see if any pattern appeared. There probably
wouldn’t be one, but it was a way to spend some time before heading
over to The Broken Antler. Ryne hadn’t left a message cancelling
their meeting, so maybe he’d show up. And if he did, well, she’d
have some very pointed questions for him.

*****

Ryne sat in the
small donut shop and studied the man across the table from him. The
fellow’s story was solid and there was no scent of deception. Just
the usual amount of nervousness and fear that any wolf would feel
when meeting an Alpha for the first time. His gaze shifted to the
far side of the seating area, where, at another table, two young
women and an infant sat awaiting his decision. Both females kept
their eyes downcast, one quietly humming to the child cradled in
her arms while the other, possibly sixteen or seventeen years of
age, nervously tore a napkin into pieces.

“So, tell your
story again?” Ryne shifted his attention back to the male before
him.

The man replied
quietly and respectfully. “As I said, there was a change in
leadership. The Alpha and I did not agree on the mating of my
younger sister. He saw her and desired her, but such a union was
not...pleasing to her and she was too young, anyway. As a result we
had a...falling out.”

Ryne nodded. It
was commendable that the fellow wasn’t bad-mouthing his old Alpha,
even if the leader had been a bastard from the sound of it. “So you
moved to Canada from Spain. That’s quite a distance. Was there no
pack in another part of Europe?” He sipped his coffee and observed
the man over the rim of his cup.

“My previous Alpha
has much influence with the European packs. We thought it best to
make a completely new start.”

“And you chose my
pack, how?”

“The registry, of
course. We thought that, as a developing pack, you might be more
willing to accept us. We wouldn’t represent a drain on your
resources or space.”

Ryne nodded in
understanding. The more established packs were often reluctant to
accept outsiders, especially when there was little opportunity to
expand the territory on which they lived. Wolves might be social
animals, but they also needed room to roam. His pack—all three of
them, he inwardly chuckled—didn’t face such problems. Stats would
show there was considerable space around Stump River and he’d
listed as being open to accepting new members. Many packs were
harder to join than the most exclusive human country club, birth,
or bonding being the only possible avenues in.

“What was your
position in your old pack?”

“I was a scout.”
The man lifted his chin slightly, obviously proud of his job which
entailed constantly patrolling the territory, keeping tabs on
neighbouring packs, and warning the rest if there were
intruders.

“Good. We can use
help in that area.” Ryne smiled at the man for the first time. “How
are you at construction work? Ever done any carpentry?”

“A little... Does
this mean, you accept us?” His tone was cautious, but Ryne noted a
slight flush of excitement showing under the man’s swarthy
skin.

“Yes. Welcome to
my pack, Marco Lobero.” They shook hands across the table and Ryne
stood, gesturing towards Marco’s family. “Come and introduce me to
your mate and sister.”

*****

It was five
o’clock. Mel sat at the bar in The Broken Antler, morosely sipping
her beer. She didn’t like beer and wasn’t sure why she’d ordered it
except, when Armand approached her, she’d been too in awe of the
giant man to think.

“Bear.” It was the
first word that had popped into her mind and out of her mouth, upon
looking at the man. Trying to cover up her faux-pas, she’d quickly
coughed and then said “I mean beer.”

Armand had smirked
and Mel had a sneaking suspicion that the man had known exactly
what she’d said and found it highly amusing. Still, he hadn’t
commented, merely placing a glass in front of her. Nervous at being
alone in a bar, Mel drank the first glass much faster than
intended. It had given her something to do and kept her hands
occupied, as she continuously scanned the room for any sign of
Ryne. When the first glass was gone, another had miraculously
appeared in front of her. At first she’d been going to protest, but
the firm look Armand gave her, had her quietly accepting the
offering.

That had been two
beers ago. Ryne still wasn’t here and she’d given up looking
expectantly at the door every time it opened. Sighing, she knew she
should just leave, but some small part of her held onto the hope
the he would still come; that he’d just been delayed.

What kind of a
masochistic person did that, she wondered. Here she sat, alone in a
bar, waiting for a man who didn’t have the decency to tell her he’d
be late or unable to come at all. Not only that, but he’d lied to
her about the wolf by the stream, and she strongly suspected there
was something fishy about the wolf attack on her first day in Stump
River. On top of those sins, there was the fact that he had given a
ridiculous answer to a very basic and harmless question about his
background.

‘Didn’t exist
before photography’ indeed! He’d been mocking her, just as he’d
done so many times before. Why did he have to be so difficult? And
why had he been all in a snit about those stupid pictures she’d
accidentally downloaded? Why had he suddenly walked away, just when
things were getting interesting between them? He’d had sex with
her, then brushed her off, then teased her by getting into her bed,
all naked and hunky. Mel felt herself getting aroused, just at the
thought of the man being between her sheets. She shifted on the bar
stool, trying to ignore the excitement building low in her
belly.

“You okay, little
lady?” The bear was back, leaning against the bar and staring down
at her from his incredible height.

“Sure, I’ve never
been better.” Mel tried to put on a happy face and lifted her glass
to take another sip, only to find it empty. She set it down and
pouted. Darn, it was all gone, just when she was starting to
actually like the stuff.

“No problem. Have
another.” The bartender placed another beer in front of her and Mel
smiled up at him. What a nice man, even if he did look like a bear!
She told him so and he laughed. It was a booming sound that filled
the whole room, causing several patrons to turn and look their way.
“Thank you. So, if I’m a nice man, care to tell me all your
troubles? I’m a good listener.”

Mel considered the
idea while eyeing him up and down. He was big and hairy, but in a
friendly, overgrown teddy bear kind of a way. “Well, you see—”

“Mel!” A friendly
voice spoke behind her and an arm encircled her shoulders. Mel
looked up wondering who was behind her and saw Bryan grinning down
at her.

“Hey, Bryan!” She
peered around him, spotted Daniel as well, and waggled her fingers
at him.

Bryan slid into a
seat beside her. “What are you doing here all by yourself?”

Mel felt her mouth
droop. She didn’t want to bad-mouth his friend, so just
shrugged.

“That’s what I
want to know.” Armand added. “She’s been sitting here for over an
hour, all alone and drowning her sorrows.”

“An hour? You mean
you didn’t read Ryne’s message?” Bryan stared at her
quizzically.

“Message?”

“Yeah. I left it
at the Gazette for you when I went to pick up a copy of the paper.
Beth said you weren’t in yet, so I...” His voice trailed off and he
got a funny look on his face. “Oh man, I’m in deep trouble
now.”

“Why? What’s
wrong?” Mel, Daniel, and Armand spoke simultaneously as they
watched Bryan dig frantically in his pocket, finally pulling out a
crumpled bit of paper.

He handed the
paper to Mel, then folded his arms on the bar and buried his head
in them. “I am so dead.”

Mel opened the
note and blinked at it. The scrawl that passed for writing was hard
to read given the dim lighting and the wrinkled state of the paper.
Nor was the legibility improved by the way her eyes kept going in
and out of focus, as the effects of the beer she’d drank took
further hold.

Armand plucked the
note from her hand and read it out loud. “Melody, I have to go out
of town. Meet me at six.”

“Oh, well that
explains it.” Mel glanced at the clock on the wall and frowned. It
was a typical round-faced time piece except for the fact that all
the numbers were a five rather than the accepted one to twelve.
Underneath there was a caption declaring “this bar opens at five.’
Huh. She supposed that was funny. Right now, however, it was just
annoying, because it really was five, or at least she thought so.
Scrunching her face, she studied the clock carefully; the big hand
was at the...

Obviously noticing
her confusion, Daniel reached over and patted her shoulder. “Yes,
it really is five o’clock, so Ryne won’t be here for another
hour.”

“Well, that’s just
great. I’ve sat here for a whole hour for no reason and now I have
to wait an hour more.” Mel growled in frustration and lightly
smacked Bryan on the back of the head.

“Hey, that’s not
nice.” He lifted his head and glared at her.

“Neither was
forgetting to tell me.” She propped her chin on her hand.

“We’ll make it up
to you, won’t we, Daniel?” Bryan sat up straighter and glanced at
his friend.

“Sure, but just
remember when Ryne shows up, none of this was my fault.” Daniel
threw up his hands, indicating an abdication of responsibility.

Bryan scowled.
“Glad I have your support.”

“Any time.” Daniel
grinned and then guided Mel off the bar stool. “Come on, Mel. Let’s
go wear off some of that beer and play some pool. Armand, can we
have some food?”

Chapter
24

Ryne hummed under
his breath as he approachedThe Broken Antler. Damn, but it had been
a good day. New pack members, what more could he want? They seemed
like a nice family and were staying in Timmins for a while until
temporary housing could be found in Stump River. Marco’s mate was
Olivia and the baby was Angelo. The sister, Tessa, seemed quite
nervous, but Ryne supposed given the fact that the last Alpha had
been trying to force a union, it was understandable.

At first, Marco
had wanted to come back with Ryne, but there weren’t enough rooms
prepared at the house just yet. Also, in order to keep people from
wondering too much about the new arrivals, Ryne had decided that
they should appear to not really know each other at first and then
gradually develop a friendship.

“Otherwise, the
townsfolk might become suspicious as to why I’m suddenly importing
families to Stump River and housing them at my place.” He’d
explained. After checking that the family had all they needed, he’d
given Marco the job of contacting the registry. Soon the
underground Lycan network would be in motion, working on the
necessary documentation to smooth over immigration laws. No one
would ever be able to question the family’s sudden appearance in a
new country.

Ryne spotted a
familiar pickup truck parked nearby. The boys were in town. Bryan
and Daniel would be pleased with his news. He hadn’t told them why
he was going to Timmins, though he suspected Bryan had a good idea.
The boy might enjoy a good time, but he was no dummy, able to read
his Alpha’s mood with a high degree of accuracy. Ryne appreciated
that quality. It saved time, not always having to explain
himself.

Pausing outsideThe
Broken Antler, Ryne went over his plan, if you could call something
so simple a plan. He was going to explain to Melody he’d changed
his mind and the interview was now cancelled. She’d protest, but he
was sure he’d be able to get her to comply. For some reason, she
bowed to his Alpha will almost instantaneously.

He felt a tinge of
regret at having to cut off their relationship this abruptly, but
it was for the best. Now that he had even more pack members to
watch out for, the need to remain out of the limelight had
intensified.

As he contemplated
Melody leaving, he felt a wash of anger flow through him, strong
enough that he stopped in his tracks. What the...? Giving his head
a shake, he leaned against a nearby building and rubbed his hands
over his face in frustration; this was happening too often. His
wolf was forgetting its place, which meant lurking in the
background and only coming out when called. The rough texture of
the wall dug into his back and he welcomed the feeling and the
distraction it provided. Keeping his senses busy kept his wolf
busy. If the beast was sufficiently occupied with assessing the
sensations around it, his logical human self could regain
control.

Slowly, he felt
himself calming and relaxed his tightly coiled muscles. He took a
deep breath and began to analyze the situation. Okay, what was
upsetting the balance inside him? This had been happening on and
off all week, his inner wolf fighting for dominance, affecting his
moods, leading him into actions he would normally think twice
about, such as bedding Melody even though he knew she was a
potential threat.