There's Something About Werewolves: Seven Brides for Seven Shifters, Book 1 (19 page)

They broke apart. He searched her face for some sign of her love for him. She had nothing to offer but friendship.

“Let Nox go,” she said.

His face crumpled. The passion of only a moment before ebbed away. A humorless chuckle escaped before Ian said, “I should’ve known.”

“What?”

“You and Garrett smell like a couple now. Did you know that?”

“What does that even mean?”
How does anyone smell like a couple?

Ian rested his forehead against hers. “You want me to release Nox so he and Garrett can leave town.”

“You’ve got that right. Let them go, Ian. They don’t belong here and Nox is having a hard time with the other boys.”

“Growing pains,” Ian said. “Every pup in my clan goes through tough times with the other pups. That’s not what this is about.”

She shook her head but ignored his weird habit of calling the kids pups. He and his extended family had a lot of strange rituals. “Of course it is. Let Nox’s father handle his growing pains.”

Ian inclined his head again and breathed deep at her neck. After a second his posture changed. The muscles in his arms and shoulders seemed to shift, becoming more defined, straining the fabric of his shirt. Sudden trepidation raised goose bumps along Lennox’s arms. A predator stood where her friend had been. She saw it in the flicker in his eyes and she wanted out of that bathroom.

Ian advanced. Lennox retreated. He kept coming until he backed her into the mirrored wall on the far side of the bathroom. “Are you going to come to me when they leave?” His voice had deepened, turned husky.

Despite her worries, Lennox gave the only answer she knew would make things right for everyone she cared about. “Yes.”

Ian’s breath caught. He leaned in and caressing her cheek, he whispered, “You going to be my wife?”

“Yes.” Lennox wanted to. At least, she wanted to want to.

“Why?” The single word held an edge of disbelief. Perhaps anger too.

She hugged him, pressing her cheek to his chest, somehow freed from the panic the same gesture had brought on with Garrett, despite the tension in the bathroom. In that moment she knew the truth. She loved Garrett. Then. Now. Until the end. The ease between her and Ian came from friendship. But Garrett made her feel scared and happy and worried and excited—every emotion possible. Nothing came easily with Garrett because he pushed her to do and be more and that freaked her out. Worst of all, Garrett made her doubt whether she was good enough. The same way memories of her mother always had.

“Why do I want to be your wife?” she asked and answered Ian at the same time. “Because I’m safe with you. Because I want a life with a man who loves me, and I want babies, and a home.”

“Because you’re running.” The sharpness of the words cut into her. He punched the wall. She held on tighter, ignoring the clang of cracked mirror falling to the floor.

Running? Not at all. She wanted to put an end to all the hurt that rose up every time she thought she could have a life with Garrett. How many times did life have to kick her in the head before she caught on? She and Garrett didn’t have a future. They never had.

Back in college they’d been inseparable, then she’d burned herself and Tina stole Garrett right out of her arms. Now they had a second chance and once again things kept going wrong. Her house and her savings had burned to ash. Someone had taken a video of her with her mouth wrapped around Garrett’s… No, she couldn’t think about it without screaming. No more. She’d finally decided to let go. She wasn’t running from Garrett, she was running to Ian.

Rather than lie with more words, she shook her head in response to Ian’s question.

“I can’t believe you’re saying this to me now.” He wrapped his arms around her, clinching her waist. “Those words are everything to me. And you say them now?” The rasp in his voice betrayed his actions. The heavy weight of his chin settled on the crown of her head. “My Leni. You never could make the hard choices.”

“I’m deciding now.”

He scoffed. “No. You used your father’s illness to leave college for good when you were really escaping Garrett and his wife.”

“That’s not it. I—”

“You use Gran as an excuse to stay put rather than get out there and see the world.”

“I love LuPines. I’m safe here.”

“No Averdeen stays put. Your family globe trots.”

She looked up in time to catch his bitter nod. “Now you’re using me so you don’t have to fight for Garrett’s love.”

“Ian—”

“Go on and lie to me. We both know you’re bad at it.”

Any argument she raised he’d shoot out of the sky, so she kept silent and clung to him all the more. “Save me, Ian.”

He shuddered in her embrace. “Nope. I’m not going to be able to do it. You need to deal with this. You need to choose.”

“You don’t know the trouble I’m in,” she whined. Her pleas didn’t make her proud.

“Yeah, I do. Believe it or not Garrett filled me in. He wants my help.” Ian released her. Gripping her by the arms, he broke her hold on him. “But in this situation I’m not going to rescue you. You and Nox are both going to see your trials through.”

The shame of begging him to swoop in hero style sliced her to the bone. Had she always been this pitiful and hadn’t known it? Had she appeared strong only because she’d gone untested? Awareness of her own weaknesses bled through the cracks in the armor of her self-confidence.

Ian walked to the door. The clicking of the bolt boomed gunshot loud. The blast reverberated through the room. “I must be broken,” he said, “because after it’s all over, if you come to me. If you say you’ll be mine. I don’t know whether I’ll welcome you home or show you the door.”

“Don’t give up on me, Ian. At least say you’ll be my friend.”

He tossed her a pained look over one shoulder. “I guess that’s the risk you’ll have to take.”

Chapter Twenty

At 11:30 p.m. Garrett pushed his way into suite 455 at the LuPines Hotel. If the pricey room gave any indication, Dan Hewes had already started spending Garrett’s money. If the reporter thought to protest the invasion into his room the three red wolves flanking Garrett silenced him. Or perhaps Cash and his crowbar scared Hewes more. Cash also had a flair for the cinematic.

The reporter stood at the door, shaking, as though in the middle of a private earthquake long after the five shifters entered his room.

The wolves formed a line of offense in front of Garrett. Putting on a show, Garrett pulled the desk chair out and flipped it to face Hewes. Taking a seat, Garrett stretched his legs to full length. Cash stood behind him. “Sit down before you shit yourself or I punch you in the head,” his friend told the reporter.

Hewes sat on the bed. Garrett took over from there. “I’ve decided to meet your demands. You’ll find four million dollars in your account tomorrow.” Cash handed over an envelope. Garrett tossed it onto the bed. “Inside you’ll find the contracts naming you the writer and director of
A Theft of Shadows
.”

Once again the oily smirk that had become synonymous with Hewes oozed across his face. “I’ll destroy all copies of the tape once the money clears and my lawyers review the contract,” the reporter said. “In a couple of days everyone will be happy.”

“Perhaps. Perhaps not,” Garrett said. He stood. “We’ve got a hacker erasing every web account and computer you’ve got. Your Cloud, your Dropbox, your laptop, your workstation, even the alias you use for porn. It’s all gone.”

In a feat of athleticism, Hewes leaped five feet off the bed. “You’re not serious. We have a deal.”

“That we do,” Garrett said. “Consider my actions a form of insurance.” He stalked over to the shorter man. Amber burned within his irises. He saw it reflected in Hewes’s eyes. Garrett’s fangs snapped inches from the leer he despised. Fear wiped the smirk off Hewes’s face. “Allow me one last shred of insurance,” the wolf spoke through his voice. “If any part of that tape ever shows up anywhere, Cash, the red wolves, and I will come for you. With your background, I’m sure you understand. We’ll hunt you in the night and we’ll feast on your entrails by the light of the moon.”

Hewes shrank away from him.

Garrett chuckled. “As my Elle would say...” The largest red wolf interrupted by growling his dissention. Garrett ignored his rival. Advancing on the reporter, he forced Hewes to his knees. “Say you believe me.”

At 11:40 p.m. Lennox rapped on the hotel suite door marked 455. Her old friend and neighbor answered, holding the door in front of him like a shield.

“Hi, Dan.” She walked into the room, plopped down on the bed, and took a look around. Everything from the wallpaper to the furnishings screamed luxury. Yet somehow the white envelope, in contrast against the duvet, caught her attention first.

“If you’re here to celebrate your victory, you can forget it,” Dan said. “I still got everything I wanted.”

“Is that right?” She gave him two thumbs-up, both of them dripping with sarcasm. “Awesome.”

For a few seconds she measured the arrogant bastard up. Some people made turning the tables on them so sweet. But nerves roiled in the pit of her stomach anyway. What she’d come here to do made her want to hurl, but she’d get the job done anyway.

Picking up the envelope, she tapped it with a fingernail. “Is this the contract Garrett wrote up for you?”

“That it is,” Dan said. Crossing the room, he took a bottle of Maker’s Mark out of the minibar. Under the disguise of a gentleman he held up a second bottle for her. She declined with a headshake.

“Take a look if you’d like,” he continued. “It’s good reading.”

“No need.” She shrugged before ripping the contract into the most miniscule pieces possible. The bottle of Maker’s Mark hit the floor. Golden-brown liquid sloshed out as it rolled in a circle, staining the gold-and-gray-patterned carpet.

“Oops,” Lennox said with all the cuteness of a cartoon character.

“You bitch.” He snatched the remaining bits of contract out of her hands. “Prepare to be an Internet sensation. I’ve still got a copy of your tape on my thumb drive. The wolves missed that one”

“Did you know I’m broke?” she asked offhandedly. Hewes’s sneer transformed into puzzlement. “I might become a reality TV star and make millions behind this scandal. Sex tapes are the hookup these days. That’s why I’m going to release the tape myself. My best friend has the copy you sent Cash ready to go live the minute I leave here.”

She stood up and paced the space between the bed and the TV. “I wouldn’t normally ask this—” She lowered her voice in a conspiratorial tone. “But tell me the truth. I look damn good on that tape. Don’t I?”

He went from tan skinned to paper pale in seconds. “You can’t be serious. I know you, Lennox.”

“Yes, you do, don’t you, Danny? I wondered why you called me Leni when you got out of the car that night. Only people who know me do that.”

His sneer returned. “I figured your old schoolmate was too insignificant for you to remember.”

“I’ve never thought of another human being as insignificant until tonight.” She gave him a pointed glare. “But since you know me so well I’ll tell you something. Garrett has dreamed of making this film since he read the book to me while lying in my lap.”

Her legs shook. She sat down before she fell. She’d never thought sacrificing her modesty for someone else would be so difficult, especially for someone she loved. It should be easy. Love should make it simple. It didn’t. Still, she’d do what she came to do. No turning back into the little kid she’d been for so long.

For the sake of her opponent Lennox kept up the façade of confidence. “Oh, Danny, when he talks about this film he’s a teenage man-child all over again, filled with passion and swagger.”

She envisioned Garrett and his excitement in sharing the screenplay with her. That image gave her the strength to go on. “That man, who calls himself Anderson G. Westlake, secured the adaptation rights the rest of the industry said were impossible to get. He’s worked so hard for so long.”

Dan’s cold stare didn’t waver. Neither did Lennox. “Now you ride back into town and want to use me to steal Garrett’s dreams? Am I supposed to let that happen? Just to keep you from showing my ass to the world?”

Her laughter cut through his silence.

“I have to tell you, Danny, my ass is right here and I’d be delighted if you puckered up.”

“Close your mouth,” he shouted.

Impassioned by her own boldness, she got into his face. “I won’t shut up. And I’m not making anything easy for you. That’s been your problem all along. Right, Danny? Your daddy should’ve spanked your wayward butt a long time ago and saved me the trouble.”

He lifted a hand. It shook in midair as though he wanted to smack her.

He didn’t have the balls.

“Since your daddy didn’t bother keeping you in line, consider this your first ass whipping,” she said, shoving a finger into his face and wagging it.
Gran would be proud.
“I will never, no matter what you do, let you snatch Garrett’s dreams away from him. I’ll show my own ass to the world first.”

Afraid she might actually beat him senseless she strode to the door. A thought stopped her. Now that she’d made her first tough decision everything she’d struggled with became clear. She knew what needed to be done. “Maybe I should thank you,” she said.

Dan’s cold-blooded scowl said he either didn’t believe her or didn’t care.

“I mean it.” She smiled at him. “I’ve just decided to sell my secret peach butter recipe. It’s not something I ever wanted to do, but it’s time I stop leaning on everyone else and grow up.”

All her life she’d imagined she was strong. She hadn’t been. The truth of that rang as clearly as the newfound energy buzzing through her limbs. Before today she’d had nothing within herself to compare strength to, but now she understood the difference between it and weakness. She stood strong today.

“You know what, Danny? Thank you for slapping me awake.”

With a toss of her curls, Lennox left the reporter behind.

Fifteen minutes later, Sheriff Stanley Hewett pushed through the door to suite 455. He’d watched Lennox leave it open when she’d left. Inside the room, a laptop sat on the bed with a bright blue screen. From Stan’s experience that usually meant the hard drive had failed. Or been erased.

Dan drained two bottles of whisky into two glasses. He looked up and caught sight of Stan.

“Hey, Dad. I knew you were here by your scent. Why didn’t you come in earlier to enjoy the show?”

Dan walked over and put one of the glasses in Stan’s hand. Stan sat on the edge of the bed while his son paced.

“Anderson Westlake should’ve thought twice before he declared war on the boar clan with his little threats. Idiot.” Dan rolled his eyes. “And Lennox. She might just make a million when I release that video. I kept a copy on my thumb drive. She’s delectable. Wanna watch?”

“Sit down, boy,” Stan said.

Clearly his words struck his son off guard. He sat. Stan stood and hooked his thumbs on his gun belt. Humiliation made it hard to sit still. He didn’t know what twist of grace kept him on his feet though. Inside he’d already collapsed. As though his son had ripped out his bones and left him twitching on the ground.

Fatigue eroded any force Stan’s voice might’ve carried. “I never thought you’d disgrace me this way. I knew you didn’t have a heart of steel but I never thought…you’ve done a lot in your lifetime to make me hang my head.”

“But, Dad—”

Stan slapped his son. It stung them both. The sound echoed through the room. Dan recoiled, retreating a few feet away.

Horrified by the act, Stan grabbed his own hand and squeezed it for the offense. “I’m sorry, boy. Might be if I’d disciplined you, like Lennox said, you’d be a better person. I don’t think I ever could’ve hit you before today. As sure as hell runs hot I can’t stand to hit you again.”

“Good,” Dan said. The entitled gleam returned to his eyes.

Stan ignored the immature jerk he’d raised into less than a man. He shifted his weight, his bones creaking. Extra years seemed to have piled on him during the short chat with Dan. An old man would walk out where a middle-aged one had come in.

“Let’s make this official. Daniel Stanley Hewett the Third, for crimes against the honor of the Boar Clan you are exiled. You have no standing and you stand alone.”

Realization carved fear onto Dan’s face. “Dad, no. What about the wolves? Even if I don’t release the tape Lennox will. And when she does the wolves will come for me.”

Turning his back on his son sliced him open, eviscerating him. He laid a hand over the heft of his belly to hold the pain at bay. “I suggest you reach out to Lennox and beg for her favor before you leave town.”

Stan took one last look at Dan Hewes, now a stranger in his eyes. “Like Leni’s favorite movie suggests,” he said. “When you call her to ask her to save your hide, you better be one charming motherfucking pig.”