Bayou Dreams

by Lynn Lorenz

  He poured another, but as he lifted it to his lips, the room tilted, and his knees wobbled. Breathing became difficult, and he staggered over to the couch and fell on it.

  “What the hell?” His heart raced, and no matter how he tried to inhale, there wasn’t enough air in his lungs. He’d never had that reaction from scotch before.

  Maybe he was getting sick? A cold? The flu?

  Whatever it was, it passed as fast as it had come, leaving Ted lying on the couch staring up at the ceiling of his apartment. He tried to think of anyone who’d been sick during the artist’s week, but everyone had stayed healthy. Not a sneeze anywhere.

  The room stabilized, and he sat up. He ran a hand through his hair and rolled his shoulders to release the tension.

  “Weird.” He shrugged, stood, and went to his room to take a shower and get some sleep.

  »»•««

  Scott paced from one side of his living room to the other. He itched. Not physically, no. But his body wanted…something, and he didn’t know what. Well, he knew, he just didn’t want to admit it.

  He strode to the door, opened it, and stepped out onto his front porch. All around him the swamp called to his wolf to come out and play.

  Not possible. Not until things settled around here, and he had no idea when that would happen. Scott looked up at the moon, just a hair past full, receding away from what his pack called the mating moon.

  He should feel relief. But he didn’t.

  The moon controlled them, he knew that on an instinctual level as his wolf, but as a rational man, he also knew he had the ultimate control over what he said and did.

  Despite that, he rubbed his hand over his now swollen and aching cock.

  He shouldn’t feel this urge. Not now. Not after they’d broken the spell, after they’d said their goodbyes, and Ted had left.

  The urge to mate shouldn’t be overpowering him, making him long to change and run in the woods, to find his mate and claim him.

  Scott’s itching increased to nearly unbearable, and without a second thought, his wolf surged to the surface, and he let the change happen.

  Tossing his head back, his now amber eyes reflected the waning moon. He lunged for the stairs, scampered down them, and bolted into the darkness of the swamp.

  He ran, the soft mud squishing between the pads of his feet, dashing in and out of the shadows of the oaks and cypress trees. At the clearing, he paused, front paws resting on the fallen tree trunk, and howled.

  Calling for his mate.

  He waited for the answering cry, but none came.

  He howled again, the yip yip yip wavering at the end of his call entreating his mate to answer back, knowing it was dangerous and wrong to be so bold, even here in the middle of the swamp.

  He needed his mate. To be without his mate wasn’t right. His urge to mate, to claim with his body and teeth the one person who would make him complete, body and soul, drove him to carelessness.

  He leaped over the log and went in search of his mate. Nose to the ground, he followed the scent, faint, but still there. He’d never stop until he found his mate.

  The one meant for him.

  »»•««

  Scott’s mother stood at her open door and listened to her son cry for his mate. She looked down at the black cat rubbing against her legs.

  “You better get inside. It’s not safe tonight.” She frowned as the cat moved past her into the house and leaped up on the couch to curl up.

  She shut the door and went to the phone. Dialing a number she knew by heart, she waited for the other end to pick up.

  “Bobby? He’s out there. You got to help him.” She wiped a tear from her cheek.

  “Fuck,” Bobby Cotteau swore. “I’ll find him.”

  “Better get Mike. He listens to Mike.” She hung up and went back to the door and opened it again.

  The wolf’s cry, faint in the distance but unmistakable, echoed through the swamp and rumbled inside her.

  “I’m so sorry, son. Breaking the spell didn’t work.” She sighed and shut the door, her duty to her pack done.

  Now she’d have to wait to hear from Bobby or Mike. Taking her rosary from her pocket, she sat on the couch and prayed for her son to survive this night.

  »»•««

  Bobby picked up Mike at his house, and they drove to the road that led deep into the swamp.

  “I got a call from Marie at Bayou End. She heard it too. Her guests came running, all in a panic, yelling about the rugarou. She told them it was just Maurice trying to scare them,” Bobby told Mike.

  “I can’t believe he’d do this. He ordered it, for God’s sake!” Mike fumed and slapped his hat on his knee.

  “He’s not in control, and you know that.” Bobby talked from between his clenched teeth, so angry at the man he considered a son he wanted to turn him over his knee and spank him.

  “I know. It’s his wolf talking.” Mike nodded.

  “And his wolf is gay, but he isn’t?” Bobby sighed.

  “I’ve known Scott my whole life, sir. He’s never shown a single sign of it. Why we even went on dates, and he was in the front of the truck with his girl, and I was back in the bed with mine, and we’d…”

  Bobby held up his hand. “Stop right there. No need for details.” He shifted in his seat. “You said he sent this Ted fellow away. That he and this guy and his mama broke the spell?”

  “That’s right. He was sure it was the spell, and the guy wasn’t really his mate.”

  “Well, it looks like he was wrong.” Bobby spit out the window. “This isn’t good. You know pack law, just as well as I do.”

  Mike nodded, but he didn’t want to think of what would happen to Scott once they found him.

  “He’s got to leave, Mike.” Bobby grimaced. “It hurts me to my heart, but for the sake of the pack, he’s got to go. If he won’t claim his mate and end this shit spilling over all of us, then he’ll have to leave.” Bobby didn’t have to say the “or else.”

  “I can’t imagine this pack without Scott. Where would he go?” Mike shook his head. “Wyatt can’t be put in charge. The men don’t respect him, and you know that.”

  “Then it’ll have to be you. Can you do it?” Bobby shot him a hard look, and Mike’s belly rolled.

  “Fight Wyatt for alpha?” He ran his hand over his stubble-covered chin. “If I have to, but I’m not sure I’d win.”

  “You’re going to have to, son.”

  “Right. Easy as pie.” Mike stared out the window as they came to the end of the shell covered road. He’d never been a coward, but a fight to the death for control of the pack had never been in his plans and definitely not in his wife, Sharie’s, plans either. They’d planned to start their family.

  Bobby parked his truck, and they got out.

  “Best if I do it.”

  Mike nodded, relieved he didn’t have to hunt down his best friend and challenge him.

  Within a few moments, Bobby’s wolf stood on all fours, his once black coat now covered in gray hair, his muzzle nearly white. He shook himself, then slipped into the shadows to hunt his prey.

  Mike went to the truck and took down the shotgun from the gun rack, broke it open to see if it was loaded, snapped it shut, then cradled it in his arms and waited.

  If Bobby’s plan didn’t work, it’d be up to Mike to stop Scott.

  ∙•∙

  Scott caught the scent of another wolf, and for a moment his body lunged, his jaws snapping. Then he recognized it.

  He growled. He didn’t want the bigger wolf to find him. He slunk on his belly, nose twitching as he sniffed the air downwind of the one he knew tracked him.

  In and out of the trees he maneuvered into position. Then the scent was gone. He froze, waiting for it to return.

  Danger gone. He relaxed, his head dropped, and his tail gave a single wag.

  The gray wolf crashed into him, and they rolled together over the soft ground. The larger wolf’s jaws clamped around his throat, ho
lding him on his back, his belly vulnerable, but the wolf didn’t kill him.

  Bright amber eyes gazed into his. He whimpered, his tail coming up between his legs in submission.

  His alpha growled, his big paw came down on Scott’s ear and pressed.

  Scott gave a yip of pain.

  He knew what he had to do, but he wanted his mate. He needed his mate.

  The wolf twisted his paw on the ear and tightened his jaws.

  Scott whimpered and began his change.

  He opened his eyes, and Bobby stood over him. He sat up and put his face in his hands.

  “Oh God,” he moaned.

  “You got to leave, son. You disobeyed and endangered everyone in the pack tonight.”

  “I know.” Scott pulled his knees up and wrapped his arms around them.

  Bobby placed his hand on Scott’s shoulder. “There’s no other way. This isn’t a spell. Ted is your mate. Claim him or leave.”

  Scott looked up at Bobby and nodded. “I’ll have to resign from the department, find a new sheriff for now. I can be gone in two weeks.”

  Bobby cuffed him on the back his head. “Fool! Just go claim your damn mate.”

  Scott stood, rubbing his head. “Claim him? Right. Then what? I’ll still have to leave.”

  Bobby gave him a long look. “He’s your mate, isn’t he?”

  “Yeah.” As much as Scott hated to admit it, he couldn’t deny it anymore.

  “Then go get him, claim him, and bring him to the pack. Fight for him, if you have to. The Scott Dupree I know wouldn’t let this stop him. You’re the goddamned alpha. It’s your right to mate, and it’s your right to bring him in front of the pack.”

  “They’ll never approve it. Wyatt will challenge me.”

  “So what? You were going to have to fight him eventually. And don’t dismiss your pack’s loyalty so easily, son.” Bobby grabbed his arm and dragged him along the path.

  “You came by yourself?”

  “Mike’s with me. He’s at the truck.”

  “Oh.” Scott shook Bobby’s hand off and followed.

  Fifteen minutes later, they came to the truck. Scott stepped out of the trees.

  Mike straightened, swinging the gun’s barrel around to face him.

  “Gonna shoot me?” Scott asked.

  “If I have to.” Mike frowned. “Gonna make me?”

  “Nope. Not tonight.” Scott laughed. “Maybe later. I’ll let you know.”

  “Sure.” Mike lowered the shotgun and exhaled.

  Bobby followed. “Scott’s going to take some time off. He’s going to get his mate in New Orleans.”

  Mike’s eyes widened. “That true?”

  Scott shrugged. “Seems I don’t have a choice.” He glanced over at Bobby. “He seems to think I should give it a chance.”

  “For what it’s worth, so do I.” Mike grinned and slapped Scott’s back. “Besides, we’ve all be waiting for you to whip Wyatt’s ass for years.”

  “Oh yeah. Me too. I just didn’t think I’d be fighting him over a man.”

  “Not a man, Scott. Your mate,” Bobby added. “Don’t ever forget that, son.”

  Scott barked a laugh. “No, can’t seem to forget it, that’s for sure.”

  Mike opened the door to the truck. “Get in, and we’ll take you home.”

  It was a tight squeeze, but they climbed into the cab. Once they reached Scott’s house, Mike hopped out.

  “You need me to stay with you?” he asked.

  “No, I’m fine. I’ll be in to the office in the morning, get things set up, then head for New Orleans.”

  “Good luck, man.” Mike held out his hand.

  Scott shook it, waved to Bobby behind the wheel, and went up his steps to the house.

  They waited until he’d gone inside before pulling away.

  Scott looked around. It’d be okay. His place was big enough for two. Now all he had to do was convince Ted to be his mate and come home with him.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  The next morning, after two cups of the sheriff’s office chicory-and-coffee brew, Scott cleared his desk of all his work, told his secretary he’d be out of town for a few days, and that she could reach him on his cell.

  He’d thought long and hard about whom to leave in charge. In all this confusion, Deputy Billy Trosclair was the one who came to mind. Billy might be young, but he’d kept a level head and showed real promise.

  He called Billy and asked him to meet him at the diner for lunch. That would give Scott enough time to go home, change, and pack a bag. He’d leave from there, and if the traffic in Baton Rouge was good, make it to New Orleans before four that afternoon.

  At the diner, Scott slid into one of the booths in the back, ordered a cup of coffee and waited for Billy to show.

  Right at noon, Billy came through the door. The man was certainly punctual. Scott scanned his deputy’s appearance. Everything in order, neatly pressed, hair cut tight and high. Real officer material if Scott ever saw it.

  Billy came up to the booth and waited for Scott to ask him to sit down. Then he slid in and put his hat on the table.

  “Yes, sir?” Right to business. Scott liked Billy, and he believed the younger man respected him. It was going to be a shame to lose that, but Scott had to do what he had to do.

  “I’m going out of town for a few days, and I want you to have my delegation of authority.” No sense in beating around the bush.

  The waitress came up as Billy’s mouth hung open. “Can I get you boys anything?”

  “Sure. I’ll have the lunch special, and so will Deputy Trosclair.” Scott raised an eyebrow at Billy, and he just nodded.

  “Got it. Anything to drink for you, Deputy?” she asked.

  “He’ll have coffee.” Scott chuckled. She left them, and Scott snapped his fingers in front of Billy’s face. “Deputy?”

  “Yes, sir? Did I hear you correctly? You’re leaving me in charge?”

  “Yes, I am. You’ve proved yourself with me, Deputy. And besides, it’s only a few days.” Scott smiled and took a sip of his coffee.

  “But there are other men, men with seniority…” he stammered.

  “Men who are going crazy. Sure, if I wanted my force to come completely unglued. But I don’t, so it’s you.”

  “Me.” Billy blinked, then nodded.

  The waitress returned with his coffee, and he took it from her and downed a big gulp of it.

  “Thank you, sir. I won’t forget it.” Billy gave him a nod.

  Scott hoped he’d never need to ask Billy for anything because that’s not why he did it. If so, he could have picked several other older men with more influence in the pack than Billy.

  “Good. Let’s eat.” The food arrived, and the two chatted about the current issues the force had and what to do if anything else arose.

  “Mike and Bobby will keep the pack in line. I just need your clear head on the force, understand?” Scott asked.

  “Sure do. Mike and Bobby are the best.” He grinned. “Besides you, sir.”

  Scott chuckled. “Right. Here’s my personal cell phone number in case you need to reach me.” He gave it to Billy who programmed it into his cell phone. “Don’t use it unless you really have to.”

  “Yes, sir.” Billy saluted.

  “At ease, Deputy Trosclair.” Scott was positive he’d made the right choice.

  When he said goodbye to Billy and got in his truck, Scott’s resolve to get his mate and return with him hadn’t weakened. If anything, it had grown stronger.

  Nothing would stand in his way of claiming his mate.

  Not even his mate.

  »»•««

  Ted stood outside the judge’s offices on Governor Nichols Street. The lights were on. He glanced at his watch. Time to face the big bad wolf.

  Funny, that phrase just popped into his mind, but he shook off the weird feeling that came with it.

  He pushed the doorbell and waited.

  The door opened, but it
wasn’t the judge. A large man with a bald head stepped back so he could enter.

  “I have an appointment with the judge,” Ted told him.

  “Come in. He’s expecting you.” The guy nodded and closed the door, then showed Ted to an office.

  “He’s here,” the man announced.

  “Send him in.” The judge’s deep voice sent a shiver down Ted’s spine. Seriously, he was letting this werewolf shit get the better of him.

  Judge Charbonnet wasn’t a werewolf. No fucking way. He was a man, a powerful man, but just a man.

  Ted entered and crossed the room to the desk where the judge sat.

  “Take a seat, Canedo.” Charbonnet motioned to a chair in front of the desk.

  Ted sat. “I have my report.”

  “Good. I want names and details.” He clasped his hands on the desk and leaned forward.

  “Plain and simple—she’s clean. She met no one, she talked to everyone, she painted, and she had all her meals with the group.” Ted shrugged. “If she’s cheating on you, it wasn’t there.”

  Charbonnet frowned. “That’s not possible. I know she’s been with someone else.”

  “How?” Ted asked.

  The judge looked down at his hands. “I just know.”

  “Did you see her with someone?” Ted didn’t know why, but he couldn’t resist pressing for more info.

  “No.”

  “You heard her speaking on the phone to someone? Found receipts she can’t explain? Read her e-mail?” Ted threw out some of the usual warning signs of unfaithful spouses.

  “No, not that.” The judge’s eyes narrowed at Ted, and his face flushed.

  “Then what? From what I could see and learn from talking to her, she adores you. I don’t know why, but she does.” Ted shrugged. “I think you’re making a problem out of something that isn’t.”

  “Don’t tell me what I’m doing!” Charbonnet exploded, coming out of his chair. “I know it! I could smell—” He cut himself off.

  “You could smell him on her?” Ted cocked an eyebrow. “Is that what you were going to say? That’s some sensitive nose you have there.”