Wolf at Her Door: BBW Paranormal Romance (10 page)

Pinky laughed and Rafael turned to smile at me.

"Ainsley and I usually keep to ourselves," I said. "It's hard to know who to trust sometimes and we know we can always trust each other. That's why we travel together, it's for protection."

"You call your mother Ainsley?" Pinky asked.

"Well, other than having the same green eyes, we don't look like mother and son," I said. "With the exception of some grey, she doesn't look much older than me. And when you consider our ages, she really isn't older by much. No one questions it if we tell them we're brother and sister, so we've gotten used to that lie."

"Go back, Callen," Rafael said. "What do you mean you travel together for protection?"

I narrowed my eyes at him, trying to guess what his motive was. I didn't sense anything negative from him, but there were those stronger than I who could use what I told him against me.

"I've already said too much," I said. "Pull over."

"I didn't mean to cross a line," he said.

She's close.

It wasn't much more than a whisper, but I heard it easily. I even recognized the man's voice from long ago. Sitting up, I positioned myself between the two front seats and looked out the window.

"Stop the car," I growled. "Now!"

Rafael jerked the car to the side of the road as he slammed on the brakes. As Pinky got out of the car, I put my hand on Rafael's shoulder.

"She's close, but this is something I must do alone," I said.

"If you ever need anything, come to Night Shift. It’s close by and you'll be among friends there," he said.

I squeezed out of the car and stretched my long legs. It didn't matter how many years I hadn't worn a kilt, I still longed for its freedom and comfort. Jeans were very restrictive, but it was a sacrifice I had to make to fit in with the times.

As I closed the car door behind Pinky, the car sped off. Maybe Rafael wasn't so bad after all.

Tall pine trees lined the two-lane road. As I walked on the shoulder, the dirt and gravel crunched underneath my boots. I didn't know where I was going, I just knew what the voice said. It was the same voice, on a similar road that guided me to her six months ago.

Six Months Ago

The night was clear and unseasonably warm, the perfect night for a walk. I wasn't sure where I was, but the voice was never wrong. In all the centuries I had spent looking for Heather, the voice was what helped me find her in the end. My attraction to a location was the best I could do on my own.

The road opened up and the trees were gone. In their place was a small strip mall, and beyond that were several houses. It was a quiet area without many streetlights. I didn't think I had been to that area of Leeds Point before, but it didn't matter. I knew I was in the right place.

Everything in me said she was near. I walked faster, feeling her close by. My senses came to life. I wanted to shift to get to her faster, but I had to be patient. I needed to look human, too. I had to remember that Heather didn't know who I was.

A three-story brick building came into view as I followed a bend in the road. That's where I had to go. Running, I reached the edge of the building's gravel driveway at the side of the tall building.

The lights were on in some of the apartments. As I came closer to the building, the murmur of voices rose. I ignored the sound as I usually did and walked to the mailbox to see if I could find her name.

Heather always came back as Heather. The first few times she came back to life, I was surprised by her name, but eventually I came to expect it. She always looked the same, too. There were only a few differences between my Heathers over the centuries.

I scanned the mailboxes but didn't spot an H. Disappointed, I took in a deep breath and forced myself to slow down. Starting at one end, I read each of the mailboxes until I read 'Mather, 3A'.

Blinking, I looked at the mailbox again. Mather was too much of a coincidence. How could she have the same name from when we first met? It was impossible.

Stepping onto the wide front lawn, I looked up at the third floor and waited. Several lights were on and the shades hadn't been drawn yet, but I didn't know if it was her apartment or not. With the windows open, I knew I'd be able to listen in until someone passed by the window.

I closed my eyes to focus on one window in particular. I hoped to hear something, her voice, her name, anything to let me know that Mather really was her.

"Dad, you know I love it when you come visit, but you knew I was going out."

My eyes flew open. It was Heather. I took a step forward to run to the door, or climb up the brick to her window, then stopped. I needed to remember she didn't know me. I found her, now I needed to make her fall in love with me again.

If I could just get one glimpse of her, it would hold me until we could meet. I looked towards the window again and waited. She had to walk past or close the blinds. She had to do something. I had to see her.

The minutes felt like hours as I waited for a glimpse of her. I focused my hearing on her open window and listened in again.

"I won't be back until late, but if you feel like going home, I'll understand," Heather said.

And then I saw her. She moved to the window, the glow of the lights behind her making her glow like an angel. The dark red hair that was pushed behind her ear was straight and shoulder length like she always wore it. As she reached up to the top of the long window to close it, her shirt rose and revealed the thick curves I always loved.

She turned around and two men, one older and one younger, moved into view. Even from this distance, I knew they weren't human. As I watched, the hair at the back of my neck stood as I recognized one of them.
How could it be him?

Undressing quickly, I shifted into wolf form and moved closer to the driveway again. A row of bushes lined the walkway leading to the driveway. It was dark enough that I could watch but not be seen. Now wasn't the time for us to meet.

The younger man opened the car door for my Heather and I let out a low growl. His eyes flashed amber as he looked for me, but I knew he'd never find me. Unlike other shifters, my scent could not be traced. He closed her door and looked into the darkness at the bushes.

I fought the desire to jump out and attack him. I didn't want him anywhere near my love, but as he entered the car, I saw her smile at him and my heart sank a little. Would Heather be better off without me?

I didn't want to think about the many times Heather and I fell in love, only for her life to be ended brutally. Each time she lived, that was her fate, but maybe it wasn't. Maybe that was just her fate as my mate.

I stayed hidden as the car drove away. The last time she died was the worst for me. It took me so long to get over her death. It was the least expected and therefore most brutal for me. What if she could have a life without me? What if that was why she kept coming back?

Thinking about the curse of my clan, I wondered if I needed to accept that I would never be with her forever. That no matter how many times I found her, she would be ripped away from me unmercifully. Maybe the reason she came back wasn't to be with me, maybe my one love was meant for someone else.

Chapter Three

Heather

Six Months Ago

As I got ready for my date that night, I never expected it would be one of the worst nights of my life. I was still in my bedroom getting ready while my apartment magically shrank because of the two men in the living room, my date Gavin and my father.

Both were large, muscular men who might have drawn stares in any other town but in Leeds Point. Men like them were the norm, especially since Leeds Point was full of shifters. Not that my father was one, but he was so tall and muscular he could easily be mistaken for one.

Unfortunately, I couldn't hide out in my room all night. Eventually I had to come out and pretend my father stopping by when I had a date was no big deal. Wasting time getting ready wasn't going to make things out there any better.

I tucked my dark red hair back behind my ear, applied a peachy lipstick that I hoped didn't clash with my skin tone, and pulled at the hem of my top, hoping it hid my hips. From the right angle I thought I looked amazing and had the perfect amount of curves. Somehow, that angle only existed in the bathroom mirror.

While my father sat on the recliner in the corner, Gavin sat with his ankle resting on his knee in the middle of my old beige couch. Neither of them spoke, but the daggers coming from their eyes said enough.

"Pop, you know I love it when you come visit, but you knew I was going out," I said as I entered the room, wringing my hands nervously.

"That's why I'm here," he said. "I knew you were hiding something from me when you hadn't introduced me to the new man in your life."

"Father," I said between clenched teeth. "In the kitchen. Now."

Pop stood up and snorted in Gavin's direction before turning towards the kitchen. His head looked like it glowed silver with his short hair, and I hoped when I reached his age I'd have such great grey. He was wearing the brown knit cardigan he liked to wear when it got cooler, which reminded me it was fall. I put my hands on his shoulders and gently pushed him out of the living room.

Turning back, I forced a smile at Gavin, hoping he didn't think anything of this before heading into the kitchen. Gavin was by far the best looking man I had ever dated. With his broad shoulders and perfectly cropped blond hair, he looked like a sexy military man. His looks weren't enough though. We didn't click.

Seeing him sitting there in his crisp white button-down shirt and khakis, I wished I felt the flutter and excitement towards him I always heard about between couples. It just wasn't there for me. Gavin was definitely not my dream guy.

"That," Pop said as I entered the small kitchen. "That right there. That look on your face says it all."

"What are you talking about?" I asked, trying to keep my voice down.

"I know you, Heather. You and me, we've always been peas in a pod. Even your mother was jealous. I knew there was a reason you were keeping him from me."

"For God's sake, Pop, I'm twenty-five, not sixteen. Give me a break, I hardly date to begin with. You know what he would think if I brought him home to meet you. I don't want him to get the wrong idea."

"That you like him is the wrong idea?"

"Fine, I'll admit it. You're right. Gavin's a nice guy but," I hesitated, unable to find the right words. "I don't know. Something's just not there."

"So cut your losses now, sweetie, before things get complicated."

Pop put his hand on my shoulder and I sighed. I knew he meant well, but it wasn't like him to get involved in my dating life. I couldn't help but think something was up.

"You know I appreciate your advice, Pop. You know I tell you everything so now it's your turn to spill. Quid pro quo, remember? Why are you even being like this? You've never acted like this before. Not even when I was a child."

"I don't trust him, Heather. There's something not right about him. I can't pinpoint it, but you know I can read people. I know people. I made a career using that to enforce the law, and the siren is wailing on this guy."

"He's a nice guy, and he's a cop just like you were," I said. "I thought if you ever met you'd get along."

I sighed as I turned to look towards the living room where Gavin waited. I really didn't care about dating, especially not him, but I was tired of being at home all the time. I couldn't admit that to my father though.

"You know he's not right, don't you?" he said. "You need to trust yourself more, Heather. Sometimes intuition is a good thing. Stay home tonight, we can rent a movie and I'll make some popcorn just like old times. What do you say?"

The idea of staying home in a pair of sweats, my hair up in a ponytail, and watching movies with Pop was tempting, but with Gavin in the next room, I didn't feel like I could back out of the date at the last minute. Unable to answer, I shook my head. I hated to disappoint my father, but I had to go on this date. Even if something inside me was agreeing with everything my father said.

Looking at my father, his grey hair standing straight up from his dominant forehead, I wondered why he was being so pushy. As I searched his eyes, all I saw was genuine concern for me, not a father being foolishly overprotective.