Lydia hitched her backpack up to her shoulder and her brain seemed to short out and go numb as she found her big ugly suitcase among the nicer, newer luggage and dragged it behind her, shivering from a chilling gust of wind as she followed the other guests into the lodge. The doorman grinned at them all and Lydia smiled tightly, feeling horribly out of place.
She stood in line behind everyone else in the lobby, ducking her head, half hoping she would somehow go unnoticed by the very man she had come to see. Her stomach was in knots and her hands felt clammy and then…
There he was.
Eric had always had startling blue eyes, but they seemed to blaze as the tall man in front of Lydia in the line stepped away and Eric appeared. He was clean shaven and that was new. He had always worn a little bit of stubble on his chin before. His chestnut brown hair was cut just a little long, just enough that a loose lock fell attractively over his forehead. His jawline was sharp as glass and when he smiled briefly at her she saw the neat rows of white teeth.
Eric had always had pretty teeth. He’d laughed when she told him that once.
“Lydia.” Eric said her name and she breathed in, her heart thumping in her chest. He looked older, but he looked good. He looked about a hundred times better than she did, she was sure.
“Hey,” Lydia said. “I didn’t know if you would be working the desk. I don’t know. I feel like you’d be doing something more important or-”
“I don’t always check people in,” he said quickly. “But I knew you were coming. I wanted to see you. Take you up to your room…”
This already feels awkward, Lydia thought. They should have been hugging and gleefully laughing about how they hadn’t seen each other in so long and oh, how time flies. There had been a time when Eric would tell Lydia his deepest most secret thoughts, often with his head in her lap. Now, they looked at each other as if they were strangers.
Everything felt stiff and wrong and she already had a lump in her throat, but she swallowed it down and forced an artificial smile on her face.
“Thank you so much for the suite,” Lydia said. Eric was glaring at his computer screen as other desk clerks helped the rest of the guests in line. “You really didn’t have to…”
“No, it’s fine,” Eric muttered, not so much as sparing her a glance. He waved two key cards. “Here we go. Follow me. Let me get your suitcase...”
Eric came around the desk and because he wasn’t watching her, Lydia treated herself to a long look. He was wearing a flawlessly fitted charcoal suit with a powder blue tie. When she visited five years ago, he’d worn sweaters and jeans, still figuring out his role of concierge of the Strauss brothers’ new business venture. Now he looked like a man in charge. He also looked…
Yummy, Lydia thought. Her mouth actually watered and she shook her head at herself.
She’d dated men here and there. There were a few flings. She was always determined to find someone who would fill that hole that Eric had made for her, through no fault of his own. But no one had stuck and nobody else had ever compared.
“I’m giving you the spa suite,” Eric said, as she followed him up the wide flight of stairs to the west wing of the lodge. “If you take the small staircase just to the left of it, it will take you right to the spa and then right beyond that is the shopping promenade. The suite also has a double jacuzzi which is practically a pool and a small private sauna.”
“Whoa.” Lydia managed a smile and glanced at Eric as they strode down the hall side by side. “You didn’t have to do all that. Thank you.”
She hadn’t counted on him spotting her the room to begin with. She’d been hoping for a discount on the cheapest room and even that would be brutal on the pocketbook. But a free suite was something else. She almost wondered if he was trying to say that she should have visited a long time ago.
“You sounded a little stressed out,” Eric said, casting her a wary look. “Thought maybe you could use some R and R.”
“I sounded stressed out in my texts?” Lydia said.
Eric stopped cold in the middle of the hallway as guests bustled around them, small children shrieking as they were scolded by their parents. Outside the snow fell in flurries.
“Yeah,” Eric said. “Don’t forget how well I know you, Liddy. I can totally sense stress in your texts.”
“Right.” She nodded, and shifted from foot to foot, uncomfortable under his penetrating gaze.
Those eyes had become bluer somehow. She was sure of it.
“Well, it’s really sweet of you,” she said, still feeling oddly stiff. “I really didn’t come for that. I mean I didn’t come just for a free room. Actually, I…” She swallowed her words, her cheeks burning. She’d been about to tell him that she’d had to quit her much needed job just to make the visit. But it all felt so pathetic.
“You what?” Eric said. He took a step closer and her heart thudded uncomfortably.
“Nothing,” Lydia said quickly. “I’m just, I mean I came to visit you. But I didn’t come for, you know… amenities.”
Eric didn’t look at her. His expression was dark and he glowered as he slipped the key card into its slot and let Lydia in. She wondered if she had already fucked up. Did he not believe her? Did he really think she’d come to visit after five long years away just to stay in a fancy hotel room?
“Whoa.” She was distracted from her worry momentarily as he let her in, and she took a look around.
The room was ostentatiously luxurious. The design was tastefully classical with modern touches. Everything looked new and expensive, a plush taupe couch decorated with tapestry throw pillows, plush rugs, oil paintings on the walls, a huge flatscreen…
Eric was making himself busy showing her the cable remote and the dimmer switch for the lights before leading her into the massive master bedroom and bathroom with its double jacuzzi and sauna and fancy soaps and robes. It was all a bit overwhelming, especially considering she’d been staying in a tiny rented room with roaches for friends for the last couple of years.
“Eric...this is amazing.” She felt completely out of place, but on the other hand, there was a double jacuzzi. She was hardly going to turn it down.
“I’m glad it’s satisfactory.”
She whipped around to face him. His tone sounded so cold, but just then he cracked a smile, wryly shaking his head.
“That’s my concierge voice,” Eric said with a snort. “It’s just… This feels weird. Doesn’t this feel weird?”
“Yes,” Lydia whispered. She took a step closer. She had a strong urge to throw her arms around him and not for any romantic reason.
She just missed her old friend.
“I don’t want it to feel weird,” Eric said. “Look… I don’t really know why you came here. But I hope you want to talk. Really talk. I…”
“Yeah?”
That lump in her throat was back. Lydia clasped her hands together and valiantly attempted to keep it down.
“I’ve missed you,” Eric said. “I’ve missed you a lot. And I’m glad you’re here.”
“I’m glad I’m here too,” Lydia whispered.
“Jesus, Liddy.” Eric lunged and abruptly there were strong arms wrapped around Lydia and she sighed, leaning her head on his shoulder, not caring if her hair was too lank or her clothes were too threadbare as he gave her the all encompassing hug that was as familiar to her as her own pair of arms. “It’s really good to see you.”
Lydia felt like she could have stayed there in Eric’s embrace all night, but too soon he was pulling away again and her sensitive bear shifter’s ears heard his phone vibrating in his pocket.
“Oh…” Eric whipped out his phone and a dark expression came over him. “Shit.”
“What’s the matter?”
“Nothing… Nothing, I just have to take care of something.” He clapped a hand to her shoulder and she liked to think he was reluctant to move it away again. “Go ahead and get settled in.” He took a few plastic cards out of his pocket and h
anded them to her, pressing them into her palm. “This is complimentary use of full spa days downstairs and meals. You don’t pay for a thing at the Black Bear Lake Lodge, Liddy. So don’t argue. In the dining hall and the lounge, just tell them to charge it to the room and we’ll take care of it. I’m talking about queen treatment at the spa too. Mud baths, massage, the fancy cucumber water, the mimosas, the whole bit-”
“Eric,” Lydia said, chuckling. “You really didn’t have to-”
“I’m also going to give you a few gift cards to the shops downstairs, just in case you need anything.” He shrugged. “Honestly, it’s chump change. We get VIP guests on occasion, they get comped. You are beyond VIP. I promise you. Go on a spree. Treat yourself. Okay?”
The thought of new clothes sounded like cold water in the middle of a hot desert. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d worn a set of new clothes. She nodded dumbly and pocketed the cards and couldn’t help but wonder if he would have been as generous if she’d shown up looking more put together. She hated the thought of pity, but resisting the gesture would only make her look like she actually needed it.
Instead she tried to seem casual. “Chump change,” she said, shrugging. “Sure. Thanks. That’s very sweet.”
“Can we go to dinner tomorrow?” Eric said. “We could go on a run too.”
“Oh…” Lydia felt the tension leave her shoulders at the very idea of going on a run with Eric Strauss, just like when they were kids - wild-eyed Eric glancing over his haunches, his thick dark fur ruffled in a breeze. “Yes. That would be great.”
“Okay.” Eric nodded curtly. “I’ll see you tomorrow then.”
Eric took his leave and Lydia sighed, though she felt marginally better about things.
She left her backpack and suitcase on the floor and wandered into the huge master bedroom. She knew she shouldn’t lie down. She’d never want to get up again, but she wanted to get a shower in before trying out that spa. She finally gave in and plopped down on the bed, groaning in contentment. It was like lying on a cloud.
“Girl could get used to this,” she mumbled. “Thanks, Ricky.”
3
Michelle
Michelle had never been traditionally great at controlling her anger when she was upset.
But after Eric Strauss had the gall to break up with her, she’d seen red.
She thought she’d done very well at that table when he had dumped her like she was nobody. She hadn’t shifted and ripped his throat out. She hadn’t even punched him in the face. She’d played it cool and left the door open, at least on her end. She had tried her best to come across as the devoted girlfriend. She was somebody for whom a little break-up was just a stepping stone to better things.
But once she’d returned to her suite on the east end of the lodge, she’d slammed the door so hard the walls had rattled.
The walls had rattled again as she shut her eyes and felt magic coursing through her. She was always more powerful when she was angry.
And just now, she was angry.
“Son of a bitch!” Michelle shrieked and her hand shot out, magic shooting from her fingertips and sending a side table slamming into the wall. Impressively, it was high quality enough not to shatter.
James poked his head out of the bathroom. He was wearing one of those fluffy white resort robes and his brows knit together in concern.
“Honey?” James said. “Something happen?”
James liked to think of himself as Michelle’s real mate, the one she returned to when she was done scamming other shifters for everything they were worth, often leaving a bloody mess behind. In reality, he was more like her lackey. That was how she liked things.
“The asshole broke up with me!” Michelle screamed, and in lieu of destroying the lodge suite with the force of her magic and drawing unwanted attention to the room, she shifted into her bear form. The bear was primal, in some ways more emotional. But that body and mind were also grounding. Michelle opened up her big maw and roared, and James tentatively crept out. His hair was wet and he was drying it with a bath towel.
“He broke up with you?” He frowned at the upset bear now pacing around on the plush cream carpet. “Why would he do that? I thought things were going well?”
Michelle shot her boyfriend an annoyed glance and growled softly, shaking her big burly head and pawing at the carpet, though it didn’t make her feel much better. James wandered into the bedroom and left her to her upset, eventually returning in a pair of skinny jeans and an overpriced v-neck t-shirt. His long black hair was still wet and he’d twisted it up into the towel. He crossed his arms and frowned at Michelle as she paced.
“C’mon, baby,” James said. “Talk to me?”
Michelle finally shifted back into her human form and glared at James. “He said he doesn’t feel whatever you’re supposed to feel! I was so close! Gah!” She clenched her fists, using every bit of her will power to contain herself.
It wasn’t easy.
She wanted to kill Eric Strauss so badly she could spit, which was entirely the point, except that she should really be married to him first in order to lock down his fortune. Otherwise it would only be fun, but there would be no real profit in it.
“Did you uh...get upset?” James reared back a little, hesitant.
James looked downright afraid of her. Michelle preferred it that way. James should be afraid of her.
“No.” Michelle took a deep breath. She needed to go on a hunt, she thought. That would make her feel better. If she couldn’t rip Eric Strauss’s throat open, she could at least rip open the throat of a deer or two, maybe some lone stranger who wouldn’t be missed… Humans were so much more fun to kill. Just the thought alone was making her mouth water. “I was very calm and collected. I told him we just needed to take some time. Shoot...I should have said space. That’s what people say. People are always talking about space.”
“That’s good,” James said hopefully. He looked at himself in a mirror on the wall and dried his hair with his towel. “I believe in you, baby. You’ll catch this fish, no problem. Then you can get married and then bam.”
“Bam.” Michelle took a deep breath. “I’ll have his stake in the lodge. Then once he’s dead, I’ll take over. Get rid of the others. And Black Bear Lake will be mine. This place is a gold mine.”
“Don’t you mean…” James spun around and winced, looking sheepish. “Don’t you mean it will be ours?”
“Dream on,” Michelle mumbled.
James cleared his throat and said, “Uh, sorry.”
She rolled her eyes. Sometimes James could really be pathetic. But she had sought out a weak man deliberately. It just made things easier. He did what he was told and he was also good in the sack, which helped.
She had promised him he would be the one man she wouldn’t scam and murder. That would remain true...for as long as she meant it.
“Hey, baby?” James said. “You want to look at your vision board?”
“Yes,” Michelle said. “Bring up my Pinterest page. I need the visual motivation.”
“Have a seat,” James said knowingly. He found her laptop in her suitcase and set it on the dining table. “I’ll pour you a drink. Don’t worry, baby. It’s not over. If anybody can pull this off, you can. I believe in you. Before you know it, you’ll be covered in Eric Strauss’s blood.”
“Oh, James.” Michelle couldn’t help but smile and her heart softened just a fraction. “You always know what to say.”
“Good,” James said, but his voice was just a little shaky. He was chastened. Hell, he even sounded scared when she told him he was doing a good job. He was really a perfect toady. “That’s good. I want to please you.”
They had been through a lot together. He’d helped her hide more than one body. Some of those killings had been premeditated and some of them had been more...spur of the moment.
“You should want to please me,” Michelle said, as he handed her a drink. She took a sip of the bourbon and it burned p
leasantly on the way down. “Everyone should.”
She felt a shiver of a familiar dark feeling run through her. It was a feeling she’d possessed since she was a child. It was the urge to conquer and make the world hers, one weakling at a time. She deserved the best and she would have it at any cost. It was the magic itself too that hummed in her blood. It was dark magic. She had always had the potential for great power. But she had also deliberately called on the forces of evil to assist her. She had given a lot of her own blood as well as that of innocents to get this far and she had the diamonds and designer wardrobe and life of luxury that went with that kind of ability.
It had changed her. It had even warped her. She was angier than she used to be and more prone to spill blood even when she didn’t need to.
And she liked it.
4
Eric
Please meet with me. I’d like to talk.
The text from Michelle had come while Eric was talking to Lydia. It made his stomach tighten. It also made him feel guilty, and he wasn’t sure if that was justified or not.
Eric left Lydia to her spa treatments and her shopping spree and as soon as he’d left her, his head had started swimming. He wasn’t used to this much drama in his life. Connor and Cody were often the ones getting into romantic entanglements with women. Then, there had been Nathan’s recent romantic fiasco. Now Nathan and Alanna were happy as clams. Nathan had found his mate and she was pregnant on top of it. Eric hardly saw his brother, who worked as the lodge’s handyman these days. When he wasn’t working, he was doting on his mate, waiting for his new cub to come.
Eric didn’t even date much. He had always just hoped the fates would bring him a mate and he’d know. Michelle had been an outlier. When he’d met her in the lounge one night, she’d been so attractive and confident, he’d found her hugely appealing. He wished he knew why things had never felt right between them but why they seemed so right for her. That was just the mystery of romance, he supposed.
Eric (Strauss Bear Shifter Brothers 0f Colorado Book 2) Page 2
