Ever After

by Carrie Ann Ryan

  Realization settled on his shoulders before traveling down his spine. His whole body clenched at the thought. “Are you telling me I’m mated to a latent?”

  “You sound like a snob.”

  He rolled his eyes. “I couldn’t care less most of the time. I’m running a war. If she can’t defend herself, than she’s going to be forever at risk.”

  “Travis.” Matilda put her hand on her hip. “Do you really think the mate of the Alpha of Philadelphia is going to be hurt? Do you think anyone would dare?”

  He gripped the side of her table. “I think that son of a bitch Cyrus Fennell, who won’t answer my peace treaty, could very easily take her.”

  “Then you’re going to have to do a better job than that at taking care of her.”

  His head pounded. He needed to go, to think, to plan. Lilliana came out of the kitchen holding his meal on a tray. The platter practically dwarfed her. The woman couldn’t be more than five feet tall. She had no fat on her bones, and when she moved, it seemed graceful, as though she floated instead of walked.

  Her brown eyes were huge and chocolate. Lilliana had a pert nose and a cleft in her chin that he wanted to pinch until she smiled. Her blonde hair was held back by a rubber band to keep it away from her face. He’d love to see it flowing down her back, not stopped by anything, maybe blowing in the wind.

  Lilliana’s breasts were ample and she had hips to match. An image of him taking her up against the wall filled his mind, and he had to adjust his pants. This woman would be able to make him pant.

  He walked over to the table and set down twice as much money as he owed. Cyrus wouldn’t be showing up to leave any notes today. The asshole liked to be obtuse just to get under his skin, but if he pulled any more shit, Travis would take his peace offering and show him why his pack had such a high success rate in battle.

  “Are you not going to eat the meatloaf?” Lilliana looked between him and the plate.

  “No.” He had to stop himself from growling, tossing her over his shoulder, and taking her home. If she’d been a full wolf, that wouldn’t have been a problem. She might have challenged him, bit him, or attacked, but it would have all been part of the mating game. Given the circumstances, he might as well be thinking about mating a human. “I need to think.”

  “And you can’t do that here?” She tapped her foot, and he stared down at it. So she did have fangs…just of the verbal variety.

  “Don’t worry. I’m going to be back for you, Lilliana.” He liked saying her name and intended to do it all the time just for fun. “There will be other meals.”

  He made his way toward the door, forcing himself to turn his back on his mate. Travis needed a war plan. He had one for dealing with Cyrus, and now he had to make one for wooing. Someone needed to give him romancing-the-latent-half-werewolf instructions.

  Matilda grabbed his arm. “One more thing.”

  He pulled his gaze away from Lilliana walking back to the kitchen to stare back at Matilda. She dropped her eyes. Really? It was that kind of conversation? A submissive one?

  “What?”

  “She’s in and out of heat, even though she has no idea that’s what’s happening. The were genes might be latent, but they’re there. The swearing-off-men she’s done is just because somehow she has to know that she’s waiting for the one in a way beyond what humans do. Men of all types—humans and non—can’t stay away from her.”

  “And what you’re reminding me is that, one way or another, a were female eventually has to have sex, even if she doesn’t find her mate, or she goes crazy for wanting it.”

  Matilda nodded. “Don’t wait too long to take her. She’s been celibate for six months.”

  Damn it.

  ****

  Nothing ever came easily. After a full day of working, when all she wanted to do was go home and curl into bed, Lilliana sat outside the diner in her vehicle, her mouth gaping open.

  Her. Car. Wouldn’t. Start.

  She banged her head on the steering wheel. What would it be this time? The alternator? Some kind of auxiliary fan? She sighed. Whatever it turned out to be would cost a ton of money, something she did not have.

  “No signing up for school right now, I suppose.” Maybe she needed to throw out this idea of ever being a college graduate. She couldn’t even get her prerequisites done. Her mother’s illness. Her car. Getting thrown out of her apartment when the landlord had moved his sister in.

  A tap on her window made her jump. Travis’ face stared down at her from the other side of the glass. After he’d left, she hadn’t been able to think about anything else for the rest of the afternoon, especially the way his muscles showed off the ink of his arms. Is he tattooed anywhere else? That thought had been the reason she’d carelessly dumped tomato soup all over a man wearing a suit, who’d stormed from the restaurant.

  She’d be lucky if Matilda didn’t become ex-boss number six this year.

  With a sigh, she rolled down the window. “Can I help you?”

  “I’m thinking I can help you. Car won’t start?”

  “That’s right. Can you fix cars?” She opened her door, and he scooted backward so he wouldn’t get hit with it. “What are you still doing here?” He’d left five hours earlier.

  “I had some things I couldn’t get out of my mind. A person I expected to see earlier didn’t show up. I drove by to see if he was here. And, well, I wanted to see you again.”

  “You did? Why?” She’d done nothing but stumble and stammer the whole time he was around.

  “Because.” He smiled, and her heart stuttered. Small lines dotted his face. Laugh lines. Travis had a dimple on his left cheek. It made him look softer and she liked the effect. With his ink and the sheer size of Travis, he intimidated her. However, the laugh line showed her that he had a gentle side too. She wanted to reach out and touch them. Only that would be weird and she really worked on not doing odd things. That had to be one of her goals. “Pop the hood for me.”

  She bent over to flick the switch to show the engine for his inspection. Her shirt rode up her back just a touch, and when she stood up, she noticed him watching her from the corner of his eye.

  Lilliana bit down on her lower lip. No sex. No men. No. No. No. Somehow she had to remember that meaningless sex made her feel exactly that way…meaningless.

  The next time she took a man to bed he had to be the right one.

  Even if Travis made her wet just by looking at him.

  He bent over and studied her engine.

  “Is this what you do? For a living?”

  He raised his head, leaning to the side so she could see him. “I own a collection of body shops in Philadelphia. I don’t repair the cars myself anymore, but I certainly remember how.” He moved away from the car. “This one is shot. When was the last time you changed the oil?”

  “Um.” She’d done so much to the car. Had she really forgotten to have the oil changed?

  “Um.” He laughed. “That says enough. Regular maintenance on all cars keeps this situation from happening.”

  She could have taken anything but him patronizing her. Unable to stop the surge of anger that flowed through her veins, she banged on the side of her car.

  “You know what? You don’t know the slightest thing about me. Do you think that I’m just some stupid woman who couldn’t be bothered to change her oil? Because I was, what, going to the mall?”

  “No…”

  Whatever he would have said she didn’t hear because she kept going. “I have bills beyond bills. My mother is dead. She left a ton of debt, and my name was co-signed on all of it. I’ll never be able to pay any of it off. Not ever. This car is the only thing I own in the world, and now you tell me its dead. Before yesterday, I hadn’t eaten more than a cracker with a slice of cheese on it in two days. You can take your superior attitude and shove it where the sun doesn’t shine.”

  She turned on her heel and stormed back toward the diner. A tow truck would cost and arm and a leg, but wh
at choice did she have?

  “Wait.” Travis grabbed her arm, and she spun around, her fists clenched. If he didn’t let go, she might punch him in the nose.

  “Relax.” His eyes met hers, and the strangest thing happened. Her heart rate started to calm down. Little by little she could feel herself doing as he’d told her to do. He smelled really nice. She could make out the scents of soap and sandalwood. Her mother had often said she had a gift for aromas. In another life, maybe she could have designed perfumes. Made millions of dollars.

  Travis raised an eyebrow. “You okay now?”

  “Yes. I’m sorry. I don’t usually have a tantrum when things don’t go my way.”

  “I think it sounds like you’re entitled.”

  “I really don’t know what came over me.” Her throat clogged, and she feared she might start to cry.

  Anger to weeping in less than a minute. A new record for her. What kind of hormonal mess had she become?

  “Maybe you really wanted to tell me about it. That’s okay. People talk to me. I’m good at listening.”

  To her surprise, he pulled her against his large chest. “I’m going to give you a ride home, and I’m going to take care of your car. It will be outside your home tomorrow morning.”

  “You don’t have to.”

  He petted the back of her head. “Consider it already done.”

  His actions were highly inappropriate, but she liked the feeling of being taken care of, even if it was temporary and by a stranger. For once, maybe it was okay to take a deep breath and just say thank you. Her shoulders sagged. Maybe the universe was finally giving her a break.

  Chapter Two

  Travis pulled up to her apartment and turned off the car. He didn’t like this neighborhood one bit. Several of the apartment buildings were really run down, and two of the houses seemed abandoned. The whole block smelled of rotten food and rust.

  How long did humans like to date before they moved in with other humans? He’d give Lilliana two days. The wolf side of her couldn’t need more than that to recognize they were supposed to be together. More would just be ridiculous. Once he had her set up in his place in Philly, he’d breathe a lot better.

  She’d fallen asleep in the brief ten minutes it had taken to get to her home. He leaned back in his seat and studied her. He’d been so overwhelmed with her presence, with her ability to defy him—something few humans, let alone wolves, did—and with the fact that she was downright beautiful, that he hadn’t made proper note of the dark circles under her eyes and the red skin on the palms of her hands. She must have them in water constantly. Her sneakers had a hole in the left side of one shoe and the front of the other.

  His mate should not be living like this. If she’d been raised surrounded by Pack, this wouldn’t have happened. Even half-wolves were part of their community. Why had her family kept her from her people? Hidden the truth from her? He had lots of questions and no answers.

  He walked to the side of the car. The closer they got to full moon the better his senses would get. Two weeks away meant he wasn’t at his peak, but his Alpha abilities made him more capable than most. He opened her door. She stirred when he did, and he knelt down so they’d be at eye level.

  “I was going to carry you.” He stroked the side of her face and then frowned. No one would ever accuse him of being gentle or romantic. His mate brought out certain instincts in him he hadn’t anticipated. With war on the horizon, he couldn’t be gentle, not on the inside or out.

  “I’m sorry I conked out. How did you find the place?”

  He pointed to his phone. “You gave me the address, and I plugged it in. GPS is a magical tool.”

  She laughed, a low sultry sound. “I guess I must have been exhausted.”

  “Bone deep, I think.” He reached over her to undo her seatbelt. This Lilliana, the easy, smiling lady without the care of the world on her shoulders, was even more beautiful. She should look like this all the time.

  He extended his hand, and she took it. Together, they moved through the night, Travis focusing his hearing on the neighborhood around. If something—or someone—threatened, they’d wish they hadn’t.

  “I hadn’t realized this area got so bad so quickly.”

  She shrugged, her lips pursing. “It’s the best I can do right now. I’ve lived in worse.”

  “I don’t like to hear that.” He shook his head. Trying to keep cool proved harder than it ever had before. Usually, he did a pretty good job of concealing his animal nature. Since he’d met Lilliana, he’d already growled in public and just then he’d wanted to do it again. If it had been a full moon, he’d be completely out of control.

  He continued speaking because he had to know more about her. If he had knowledge of her circumstances, he could try to make her life better. Assuming she would let him and not cut him down verbally as she had before. He’d melted into the ground at her words, in a way no one had been capable of doing to him in decades.

  “Tell me about your family.”

  “Tell me about yours.” The defensive tone of her answer told him more than the words she spoke. The girl had boundaries she’d set up to protect her heart. They weren’t going to come down just because he ordered her to speak. Sometimes wolves had to be coaxed into trusting him. He knew how to do that.

  “My parents are both dead, but I am surrounded by family. I’ll never be alone. You?” How else to explain pack to her? He really missed his mother in that moment. She’d have taken Lilliana away, and when she returned, Lilliana would know everything about werewolves and accepted all of it.

  One way or another, Travis knew he would somehow screw this up.

  “I’m sorry about your parents.” She reached out and rubbed his arm. “I know how that is. My parents are gone too. My dad died when I was two and my mom just last year after a very long battle with cancer.”

  “I’m sorry for you too.” He really was. It couldn’t have been easy. His had gone very quickly in battle and together.

  She rounded the corner, and he stayed tight on her tail. “You were saying earlier about being in debt.”

  “I wish I hadn’t.”

  “Well, you did.” He wanted to close his eyes and rub his head in her hair, but she might run away and refuse to see him ever again. Travis needed to convince her to stay with him forever, not force him to leave her alone.

  “My mother had credit card debt. After a while she, apparently, faked my signature to take out some loans. I know, it sounds really bad. She had some mental problems. I’m working on forgiving her.”

  “You can go ahead and do that.” Dead or not dead, he wouldn’t be letting that woman off the hook. “How much money do you owe?”

  “Oh.” She sighed loudly, sticking her key in the lock. He hated the paint peeling off the walls, the smell of mold wafting from the stairwell. The landlord needed to be reported for not up keeping the place. His mate did not belong here. “Who knows anymore? I shouldn’t let you in. Only you drove me here. I fell asleep in your presence. It’s probably too late to start being cautious now. Besides, Matilda likes you. I’m hoping that means you’re not dangerous.”

  She had no idea just how dangerous he could be. Only never to her. “Give me a ballpark figure.” There was no way that she didn’t know.

  “A few hundred thousand. Look, it’s not your fault or your problem.” Her back stiffened, and he nodded. Lilliana had her pride. He wouldn’t step on it anymore that night.

  Her apartment appeared clean. She clearly took care of what little she owned. There were small touches everywhere that spoke to her tastes. A small figurine of an angel positioned in the center of a coffee table, a music box in the corner of the room. Hung on the wall, two fairies in mid-flight. His mate had whimsical tastes. He wanted to spoil her and would.

  “Why are you so interested in me?” She put her hands on her hips. Physically, her latency might put her at risk, but no one would make his mate cower emotionally. He grinned, and she cocked her head.
Travis figured he must seem crazy to her.

  “Why do you think?”

  “Look. I really don’t get it. I’m not that pretty, kind of plain, actually, but lately men can’t seem to get enough of me, and I’ve sworn off meaningless relationships. If nothing else, I can take care of how I feel about myself. I appreciate you walking me in, but nothing is going to happen here.”

  He held up his hands in mock surrender. “Have I made a move on you?”

  “Kind of. With your why do you think remark.”

  “You don’t back down.”

  She shook her head. “Never.”

  “Good.”

  They stared silently at one another, and his hands itched to reach out to caress her. He put them in his jacket pockets.

  “Listen, I don’t mean to be so tense all the time.” She crossed to the refrigerator. “Can I get you something to drink? I don’t have much. Maybe two diet sodas.”

  “No. Thanks. I’m fine.” Tomorrow her fridge would be full. He’d see to it. His mate wouldn’t go hungry or thirsty. That much he would insist on, with or without her consent to his interference. Basic necessities had to be taken care of.

  She pulled out a can for herself, opened it, and took a large sip before speaking again. “I get a little defensive when it comes to my family. I can’t help it. I was adopted, and sometimes I wonder what my life could have been like if I’d ended up somewhere else. Then I feel badly for even considering that, and it starts this whole nasty cycle.”

  “No one gets hurt from your private thoughts. If that’s how you’re feeling, you’re entitled to go there in your head, if nowhere else.”

  She shrugged, her blonde hair rising and falling on her shoulders. “People really do talk to you, don’t they? All the time.”

  “It comes with the job title.”

  That was only part of what she didn’t know about her heritage. Perhaps the fates had been kind giving her no wolf to shift into. What would her human family have done if every full moon their daughter had gone furry and torn up the house? He shuddered to imagine it.