by Macy Blake
“Damn it, Caleb. You should be in bed.” The nurse in him took over. He supported Caleb as they made their way back into the bedroom. Caleb lay back on the bed but kept hold of Andrew’s arm. Without claws this time.
“Jed, give Andrew a brief demonstration.”
The bodyguard huffed and stripped off his suit jacket. Andrew stepped back, but Alfonse shot him a reassuring glance. It didn’t reassure Andrew at all. Jed continued stripping off his clothes until he stood naked in the doorway. Andrew fought to keep his eyes above the waist.
Jed’s eyes began to shine with that odd amber glow. His entire body twitched and shuddered, much like Caleb’s had earlier. Instead of the fluctuations of muscles leading to nothing, Jed’s body began to shift. To the sound of cracks and pops, and not a few snarls, Jed transformed into a huge black-and-gray dog.
No, not a dog. A wolf.
Andrew hadn’t seen a wolf in person before, but he knew enough to see the difference. In fact, this animal was the same breed as the dogs—no, wolves—he’d seen in the laundry room the previous day.
Andrew sat down on the edge of Caleb’s bed, his legs unable to support him.
He looked at Alfonse, who stood watching his reaction. “And now you know our secret.”
“You’re—what exactly are you?”
“We’re shifters. Some call us werewolves, but I prefer the other definition.”
“And what exactly is that definition?”
“We’re sentient beings, Andrew. Werewolves are often seen as slobbering beasts, creatures of the night, if you will. Shifters still have many of their human thoughts and emotions. We can still think in our animal form, although our thoughts are filtered somewhat by our animals.”
“Huh. That’s good. So you’re all shifters?”
“We are.”
“Good. Good to know. Okay then, I’m going to head on home now. Actually, no. I think I’m going to head to the hospital to have my head examined. I’ve clearly lost my mind and shouldn’t be out in public. Right. That’s what I’ll do. It’s been nice knowing you, and I’m sorry to impart my brand of crazy on you.”
Caleb chuckled, and Andrew turned to him. “You’re not crazy, Andrew.”
“Uh huh. Sure I’m not. I mean, everyone knows that werewolves—shifters, I mean—are real. Yep. They aren’t just from horror movies. Nope. They’re real. And I’m a lunatic. See? Easy enough to explain.”
Alfonse joined Caleb in his laughter. “Andrew, it’s okay. We know it’s hard to believe. This is why we were hesitant to bring an outsider in for Caleb’s care. However, when his condition worsened and nothing we could do would help with his pain, I had to do something to make him more comfortable. We thought we’d be able to keep our secret. Caleb hasn’t shown any signs of changing since he became ill.”
“Of course not. Unless you consider the glowing eyes, growling, and weird muscle twitches. Nope. Not a single sign. And I kind of think I’m going to pass out now.”
Caleb sat up quickly and pulled Andrew to him. He wrapped an arm around Andrew’s waist and pushed his head down to his knees. “Take deep breaths.”
“Sure,” Andrew gasped. “Deep breaths. Right. Breathe in, breathe out. I can do that.”
Alfonse knelt on the floor by Andrew’s legs and laid his hands on Andrew’s knees. “You’ll be fine, Andrew. We aren’t going to hurt you. Jed, come over here.”
The wolf padded over to Alfonse and nuzzled against his arm. Andrew shivered. “This is not real.”
“It’s very real. Now get ahold of yourself.”
“Oh, sure. No problem. I’ll just get right ahold of myself and calm down. Because there isn’t a wolf standing six inches from my very vulnerable neck. Not an issue at all.”
Caleb lifted Andrew back into a sitting position and used a hand on Andrew’s cheek to turn his face. “You will not be hurt again. Please believe me.”
Without the glow, Caleb’s eyes weren’t scary or intimidating at all. Andrew searched his gaze, could see the sincerity in his plea. “I do believe you. I have no idea why, but I do.”
And damn, but he really did. The likelihood was high that he’d really lost whatever marbles he had left.
Alfonse cleared his throat, and Andrew turned to him. “You understand that we can’t have this spread around.”
“Yeah.” Andrew choked back a laugh. “Like anyone would believe me.”
Caleb’s hand pressed against Andrew’s back, and Andrew looked over his shoulder at his patient. They shared another intense look.
“Okay, so can someone explain to me now why Caleb is sick and what I can do to help?” Andrew stared into Caleb’s eyes as he asked the question, but he asked it of Alfonse and the guards as well. He needed answers.
The mood darkened in the room. Caleb turned his stare to his father, and Andrew followed suit. The older man shrugged, and Andrew could see the pain in his eyes. “We’re uncertain. A few weeks ago, Caleb lost his ability to shift.”
Caleb growled low in his chest. “I don’t know what happened. Nothing changed that I know of. I started feeling sick, weak. When the full moon came, I couldn’t shift.”
Alfonse ran his hand over his short-cropped hair. “We have no idea what could have caused this. It’s unheard of, really. I’ve contacted our elders, and even they are at a loss.”
Andrew thought about the books he’d read the night before, the symptoms he’d seen firsthand. “Is there any way he could be poisoned?”
Chapter Three
Alfonse seemed to easily dismiss the idea of poisoning, but Andrew couldn’t think of another explanation that fit. “Okay, why couldn’t it be poison?”
“I’d have known,” Caleb answered. “Shifters metabolize things differently.”
Alfonse nodded. “He might have been sick for a short period, but nothing that would be drawn out like this.”
Andrew stared at Caleb, trying to read some mysterious explanation simply by looking at him. “There has to be something you’re missing. Something happened to cause this. Caleb, did you retrace your steps prior to getting sick? Did anything unusual happen at all?”
Some flicker of unease flashed across Caleb’s face. He wasn’t telling them something. “What?”
Caleb shook his head. “It’s nothing.”
“No, you need to tell us. If we want to get you better, we need to know exactly what happened to start your illness.”
A flush began to creep up Caleb’s neck and over his cheeks. “Well, this is really embarrassing, but I did get slipped a mickey at a club the week before.”
“What?” Alfonse’s startled outburst drew all of their attention. His eyes flashed that creepy amber, and he glared at his son. “Why am I just now hearing of this?”
“Come on, Pop. I didn’t want to tell you this.”
“Tell me what?”
Caleb sighed. “Look, I went out to the club the weekend before. I hooked up with this guy and we….” He paused and darted a glance at Andrew. “Well, we went into the bathroom together. I’d just had a drink, and I started feeling woozy. I must have passed out because I woke up in a stall with my pants around my ankles.”
“Who was this man you were with?”
“Aww, Pop. I don’t know. Just some hookup. You know I keep you away from all that.”
“Yes, I know your little trysts are something you’d rather I not know the details of, but I can’t believe you didn’t think this was significant.”
“I still don’t. Look, it happened almost a week before. When I woke up, only ten minutes or so had passed, and I felt fine other than feeling really stupid. I didn’t start feeling bad until several days later. Like you said, I would have metabolized anything faster than that. Or it would have killed me outright.”
Alfonse turned to Jed and Monty. “We need to find out who that young man was. Go to the club, and see if we can get their security tapes. Use my name if you need to, but get it done.”
They nodded and left Caleb’s
bedroom in a hurry. Alfonse turned back to his son. “You will never keep something like this from me again, is that understood?”
Caleb lowered his head and tilted his neck to the side. Even Andrew had felt the push of power behind those words. He couldn’t imagine how much more intense it must have felt to Caleb.
“Yes, Alpha.”
“Andrew, thank you for your wisdom in this. If Caleb was poisoned, we now have a lead. I won’t forget your help.”
Andrew didn’t know how to respond, so he just nodded his head and looked at the ground. His mind spun over the realization that Caleb was gay. He’d been at a club. And taken a guy to the bathroom. It made Andrew wish he went out to the clubs more often. Maybe if he and Caleb had met in a different way, they would’ve hooked up. Andrew’s blood began to pound at the idea. Damn, he did need to get laid.
He glanced over at Caleb, who looked highly embarrassed by the conversation. It had given a little color to his cheeks, though, and Andrew wanted to run his fingers through Caleb’s messy curls to comfort him.
Andrew shook his head and clamped his fingers in the material of his scrub pants. This was ridiculous. Caleb was his patient. The silence built until it pulled Andrew out of his thoughts.
Caleb and Alfonse were locked in a staring contest, and neither seemed willing to budge.
He didn’t have such qualms. “Caleb, you’re getting paler by the minute. You need to lie down. Sir, I don’t want to be rude, but we really need to let him get some rest. It can’t be good to have him this wound up. We need to keep him calm and as relaxed as possible until we find out more information.”
Alfonse nodded. With one final glare at Caleb, he turned and left the room.
“Thank you,” Caleb muttered.
“Yeah, well, it’s my job. And I can’t believe you’re such an idiot. It’s one thing to not want to tell your dad about some random hookup at a bar, and another entirely to not tell him something when you could be dying. You could be better by now.”
Caleb lay back on the bed and pulled the covers over his legs. Andrew tucked him in and bustled about for a few minutes. He settled in his chair when Caleb’s eyes drifted shut.
A shifter. Andrew couldn’t wrap his brain around the concept, even though he’d witnessed Jed’s shifting with his own two eyes. Alfonse hadn’t given him enough details of their—what would you call it? Condition? Curse? Abilities? Blessing?
Andrew opened his notebook and jotted down a few notes. A fan of horror movies, Andrew had seen enough werewolf flicks to have a good idea of some of the lore. Maybe he’d just ask one of them what was true and what was Hollywood embellishment.
He made his list quickly. Silver, full moon. That was about as much as he could remember as far as werewolf legends were concerned. He’d have to see what resources he could find, not that he could even be sure those would be reliable at this point.
Putting the notebook on the arm of his chair, Andrew pulled a folder out of his duffel bag and started going through his bank statements and credit card bills. Using the back pages of the notebook he kept Caleb’s stats in, Andrew calculated his pay and began trying to figure out a way to dig himself out of the hole Danny had put him in.
No matter how many times he added the numbers up, they still didn’t come close to balancing. He’d never be able to make more than the minimum payment on the credit cards, and the interest would eat him alive.
“What’s wrong?”
Andrew jerked his head up to find Caleb watching him. “You’re supposed to be resting.”
“I was. You were sighing too loud. And mumbling. Who’s Danny?”
“My brother.”
“Damn.” Caleb raised his eyebrows and held up his hands. “Stay away from me with that look. And I thought shifters were scary.”
Caleb’s mocking tone cracked Andrew up, and he smirked. “Yeah. Scary human here. Really terrifying, I’m sure.”
“So what did Danny do to piss you off so bad?”
“Stole a bunch of money from me and ran up my credit cards. The asshole. I’m trying to figure out how to get myself out of the mess he made. I should press charges, but he’s my brother, you know?”
“Well, if you need help—”
“No. I’ll be fine.”
Caleb grunted and rolled onto his side. “You didn’t even let me finish.”
“Lie still. And I didn’t have to. I can’t take help from you.”
“I don’t see why not. And if this whole thing pans out from the club, I know my dad would be happy to give you a reward.”
Andrew gave Caleb his most shriveling stare. “Don’t be ridiculous. I’m doing my job. Are you thirsty? You haven’t had anything to drink since I’ve been here.”
“No. And don’t change the subject.” Caleb winced and rolled back over. “Damn, I can’t get comfortable.”
Andrew laid the notebook and folder on top of his bag and went over to help. “Does something hurt?”
“Everything. I’m aching today. My legs are the worst.”
“Is there anything I can give you? Aspirin or something?”
Caleb shrugged. “It burns off too fast. That’s the weird thing about all this. Nothing should affect me this long. I mean, we’re pretty tough.”
“Yeah. I’ve seen the movies.” Andrew hid his smile, but he could tell Caleb knew he was kidding from the pretend horror on his face.
“The movies? The movies? Dare you compare me to some B-grade horror flick?”
“Well, if the hairy beast fits….”
Caleb laughed and tried to adjust himself again on the bed. “When I get better, we should go see one at a theater or something.”
Andrew almost responded with a contrived answer, some flip comment that he would use on any other random guy who tried to pick him up. He resisted the urge and met Caleb’s hopeful expression with a small smile. “We could do that. When you get better.” When Caleb was no longer his patient.
He went behind the bed and raised Caleb up a little so he wasn’t lying flat. Caleb grabbed his arm when he passed back by. Andrew couldn’t help his flinch and checked to see if Caleb’s claws were back again.
Caleb released his hold and seemed to shrivel up inside himself. “I forgot.”
“It’s fine, Caleb. Just a few scratches. You startled me, is all.”
“I don’t want you to be scared of me.”
“I’m not.”
Caleb snorted in disbelief. “Right. I saw your face. You were scared that I was going to hurt you.”
Andrew sighed and moved closer to the bed. “Scoot over.”
Caleb slid to the side a little, with a slight wince. Andrew sat down beside him and held Caleb’s wrist to check his pulse. He kept time on his watch as he counted the beats per second. When he finished, instead of placing Caleb’s arm back on the bed, he put Caleb’s hand in his.
“Okay, brutal honesty. I’m a little scared. Can you blame me? This is all new to me. You’re forgetting that part. And, let’s keep it real, you did claw my arm up not too long ago.” Andrew smiled down at him and ran his thumb over the top of Caleb’s hand. “But I know you won’t hurt me. I don’t know how I know that. Maybe it’s that ‘crazy’ thing I seem to have. Hell, maybe this is all some big delusion that I’ve gotten because of stress. Actually, that makes a lot more sense than thinking werewolves are real, and I’m sitting here beside one.”
Caleb pushed himself up. Andrew pressed his hand to Caleb’s chest to stop him, but Caleb covered it with his own and leaned in. “I promise I won’t hurt you.” Caleb’s hand brushed over part of the bandages that covered Andrew’s scratches. He stared down at the gauze and frowned. “I won’t hurt you.” The words became a mantra of sorts. Andrew wondered if Caleb was trying to convince Andrew, or himself.
He couldn’t think of anything else to say to help Caleb not feel guilty. Part of him needed the reassurance, needed to know Caleb would do everything he could to keep the earlier accident from happening again
. The moment stretched between them. The gentle thump of Caleb’s heart beat steadily under his hand, and the heat of Caleb’s body warmed his skin where they touched.
Caleb’s heart sped up, the beats soft against Andrew’s palm. He stared down at his fingers where they rested on the bright white of Caleb’s T-shirt, covered by Caleb’s too pale hand. He still held Caleb’s other hand, and his gaze drifted between the two.
Caleb leaned closer, slid his hands from Andrew’s and up to cup Andrew’s face. His palms were soft, slightly damp. Andrew wiped his own against the blanket. He was nervous too. His heart began to beat more quickly, his breath coming in soft pants.
Caleb’s thumbs traced over Andrew’s cheekbones. They were calloused. Andrew wondered how he’d gotten them, what Caleb did for a living, what he did for fun.
“I really want to kiss you,” Caleb whispered.
He closed the distance between them and brushed his lips over Andrew’s. The barest touch, then he leaned back and checked Andrew’s face. Andrew couldn’t think. He brought his hand up and laid his fingers over his mouth. It tingled. He dropped his hand and met Caleb’s eyes with his own.
Caleb must have found whatever answer he sought because he leaned in again, and kissed Andrew a bit harder this time. He guided Andrew’s head to the side and pressed closer. Andrew parted his lips. The stubble on Caleb’s face scratched at the skin around his mouth, tenderizing it for Caleb’s soft touch as he nibbled his way around Andrew’s lips and over his jaw.
He let Caleb set the pace, the slow exploration perfect. Caleb’s breath came in hot bursts against his mouth, and when he traced his tongue over Andrew’s lips and dipped it inside, Andrew parted for him and teased with his own.
One of them moaned. Andrew didn’t know which one. It was probably him, but he couldn’t be sure. All he could think about was Caleb’s taste, the thick thrust of tongue in his mouth.
Until Caleb flinched. Andrew’s senses returned in a rush, and he pulled away and laid his forehead against Caleb’s shoulder. It took a minute to get both his thoughts and breathing under control, but when he did, he raised his head.
