by Lynde Lakes
He gave her a weak smile. “I’ll look forward to it.”
She sent him a sidelong glance that she hoped conveyed, give me a break. She pulled a plastic shower liner from a drawer and threw it over the leather chair. Just stretch out in Dad’s chair and I’ll be right back.”
Carrying Kindra, Valerie tip-toed up the spiral stairs and slipped into the upstairs bathroom with it’s round Roman tub and well-stocked medicine cabinet. She gave Kindra a quick bath first. Afterwards, she changed the water and poured in some fresh, healing bath salts for Brain. She wrapped Kindra in a towel and while inhaling the clean scent of soap and shampoo whafting from the child in her arms, she stepped out into the hallway.
Brian was just coming up the steps. “I’ll be right back, Brian. Undress and get into the tub.”
She hugged Kindra close. I have to block out the image of Kindra’s mother and her torn out throat from my mind. Kindra is alive, I’m alive, and Brian is alive.
Brain had gone into the bathroom, but hadn’t closed the door. Balancing Kindra, she softly closed it. Then she hesitated, consentrating on the image of Brian’s face the first time she saw him. There were sounds inside. Shuffling, as if he were balancing on one foot, followed by the hollow sound of bare feet meeting tile. Next there was a rubbing sound, as if his nude body was sliding downward along the hard surface of the tub—then splashing water.
She loved water and wished she were in there with him. Feeling her temperature rising, she turned and tiptoed quickly to her room. She put Kindra down for a nap in one of her shortie nightgowns and drew a sheet over her. “I’ll be back when I finish doctoring Brian,” she said, kissing the child’s soft cheek.
When she entered the bathroom, she was taken back by Brian standing, tanned and gorgeous with only a white towel covering his hips and bulging privates. Heat and swirling steam hit her. “I’m ready,” he said.
Seeing him nearly nude made her want to say, “Me, too.” There was something about him that had tugged at her soul since the first moment they’d met…and it was getting stronger every day. Living in the same house with him and working in the same office took a great deal of control. But her restraint threatened to slip whenever she was with him, especially today. Seeing him in his quick, agile, alpha form, battling against her attacker was as thrilling as it was frightening.
With trembling hands, she grabbed the first-aid kit from the medicine cabinet. The clean smell of him floated around her. She took a deep breath and bracing herself mentally, she removed the antibiotic cream from the kit and rubbed some on his back. Brian winced at her touch, but didn’t complain. She lightened her stroke.
While smoothing the antibiotic cream over his back and shoulders, she marveled at the width. She stroked slowly, letting her hands slip down his sides, absorbed by how his upper body narrowed to a trim waist. She forced herself to concentrate on the bites and cuts. “Animal saliva can be dangerous,” she said.
He nodded. “You have a gentle touch,” he murmured. “Like the whisper of the wind across scorching desert sand.”
Her wolfman never ceased to amaze her. He could be so poetic at times.
She moved to the front of him. He placed his hands on her hips. She tried to ignore the touch of his palms resting loosely there. She smoothed the cream over a disturbing expanse of hard, muscled flesh. The feel of him beneath her fingers set her heart racing. An upward glance at his strong features only made it race faster. He closed his eyes as if luxuriating under the rhythm of her hands.
Her gaze lowered from his eyes to his slender, well-formed lips. She knew exactly what it was like to have them consuming hers. Could almost feel it. A wave of heat crept up from her neck to her cheeks. She stepped back—away from him. He was hurt for cripes sakes. Just doctor him up and get away! “I...I’ll just bandage this and then you can sneak to your room and get some clean clothes.” She longed to continue running her hands over the sleek, hot hardness of him. He was only a half step away.
Their eyes met and her cheeks flamed hotly. He closed the gap between them and leaned toward her. He was going to kiss her.... But, to her astonishment, he didn’t even try. Instead, he brushed a strand of hair back from her face. His touch made her go weak.
“Thanks, Valerie.” Sincerity mingled with lust in his voice. His deep tone and unbelievably tender touch stirred and excited her. Alarms went off in her mind—her spine stiffened. Her heart and psyche were in a tug-of-war. It took every ounce of determination and restraint not to step into his arms and beg him to make love to her. After all, didn’t they deserve to celebrate they were both alive?
What was wrong with her? They had big problems that needed solutions. She stepped out of his reach and willed her pulse to stop racing. “Just let me wrap some gauze around you and tape you up, then you can go to your room and rest until dinner. She thought of the king-sized bed in his room. She hadn’t been in that guest room since he’d moved in, but she knew the well-constructed bed was strong enough to handle rough activity. How it would feel to romp and play on that bed with her gorgeous, brave alpha wolf? Darn, here I go again…
It’s my internal wolf’s fault. I have to learn to control my lust and get beyond the feral instincts and desires distracting me, and making me more vulnerable to the whims of the evil monster out there, waiting to strike again. Having a wolf inside me with an unquenchable hunger for passion makes control nearly impossible and constantly challenged.
She withdrew a clear plastic drinking cup from the storage drawer and filled it with water and uncapped some codeine from the medicine cabinet. “Here. This will help with the pain.” She watched him drink it down with thirsty gusto. “Want some more water?” He nodded. She filled his cup again, thinking that the wolf inside him could devour great quantities of water…could devour her with great unrivaled passion. He dribbled a little liquid on the enticing bulge in the towel around his waist. She felt like fanning herself or putting a cold washcloth on her forehead.
“Look,” she said, forcing a firm tone and desperately needing to put a distance between herself and temptation, “I’m going to my room to bathe and change clothes. And no, you can’t come with me.”
He laughed without humor. “I don’t recall asking.”
But you would if you weren’t all chewed up, she thought, fearing what her answer might have been under different circumstances.
****
Brian studied himself in the mirror. He looked like hell and felt the pain of the bites and gouges, but he was a fast healer and the hot, steamy bath, codeine, and Valerie’s loving touch had done wonders. In a couple of days he’d be right as rain on a thirsty desert.
He put on some deodorant, splashed on the cologne Valerie had given to Him, and then opened the closet. Since going to work for her father, he had more clothes than he’d ever had before. Although he paid for them from his earning, he felt a little like a kept man. Everything was different since meeting her. He wanted so much more…wanted to be so much more…
What about Kindra’s mother? Was she dead, or had the police gotten there in time to save her before she took her last gasp of breath? And was Kindra’s baby brother okay? What kind of creature could bring such disaster to a little family he didn’t even know? And how could he justify doing such horrendous acts simply to draw Valerie into his evil clutches?
He suddenly had the same lost, hurt feeling as when Maggie died. Was Kindra feeling something like that? His heart went out to her. And that pained him deeply. To survive and stay tough, he had to fight to remain detached from loving so deeply. The ache tearing him apart proved again that such human emotions were dangerous. But how could he avoid them?
After seeing the kind of torture, trickery, and manipulation the evil wolf could bring down on Valerie, he had to step up to the plate and prevent her from ever falling prey to the monster again. Was his goal a pipedream? Could anyone destroy the walking dead? How could he succeed with a foe who would only be resurrected again and again? Today, after alm
ost losing Valerie, he’d made up his mind to let Damon’s scientists test the serum on him.
Now he wondered if the timing was too soon. If the serum cured him, would it also steal his strength and the ability to win over his enemies and shelter those who needed his protection?
He’d always been a werewolf. Would he miss that highly-passionate part of himself? Was he even cable of being a regular man, or by destroying his wolf counter-part would he ultimately destroy himself…and Valerie with him? He was ready to sacrifice for her, but dammit, it was a big risk. Now that he knew the kind of evil she was up against, he dare not make a mistake. It might destroy his power and leave her alone and defenseless.
Chapter Twelve
Valerie heard the hum of a helicopter overhead and then minutes later, the roar of a motorcycle in the driveway. She rushed to the bedroom window and glanced down. It was Victoria, riding behind Rick, her raven hair whipping in the wind. All the noise had awoken Kindra. Valerie grabbed the hand of the lanky, malotto-skinned girl in frizzy pigtails. “Come with me, Honey. I want you to meet my twin.”
As they stepped out of the bedroom, Brian dragged out of his, his sultry eyes sleep-laden. “Is something else wrong?” he asked. “I just heard your parents pass my door on the run.”
Her heart pounded in excitement. “No. I think everything is right for once. Come meet my twin.” She grabbed his hand, and the three of them rushed down the stairs, Kindra’s pigtails flying. When they charged out the open entry door, Victoria and Rick were in a group embrace with Mom and Dad, laughing and all talking at once.
Victoria hugged their parents once more, then broke away and flew into Valerie’s arms. “Baby sister,” she said with a squeal.
Valerie let go of Brian’s and Kindra’s hands to return the hug. “Goodness, I missed you,” she told Victoria through tears of joy. She had so much to ask her…to tell her. Then she remembered her manners and drew Brian and Kindra forward. “This is Kindra, my very special friend.”
Victoria shook Kindra’s hand. “Aren’t you a little beauty. I just know you and I will be special friends as well.”
Kindra blushed.
A warmth rose in Valerie’s chest. “And this is Brian Jones, my boyfriend,
executive-assistant at a new charity foundation Dad and I set up, and the talented and very artistic guy who keeps our home grounds looking like a park.” She leaned forward and whispered inVictoria’s ear, “And he’s my wolfman, bodyguard, and brave protector.”
Victoria’s eyes widened, and then she laughed, her eyes glinting with mischief. “It sounds like a lot has happened in the short time we were off honeymooning.” She hugged Brian. “Nice to meet you. And this is my husband, Rick, my everything.”
The two men shook hands and shifted their feet.
Valerie introduced Kindra to her parents. They both hugged the child.
Kindra beamed.
While Valerie’s parents made Kindra feel welcome and special, Victoria said in a low voice, “Tell me more about Brian.”
“Later, when we’re alone. Right now everyone wants to hear about you. What was your wedding like and,” she arched a brow, “and your honeymoon?”
“I’ll tell you all about the honeymoon and our travels.” Then she winked at Valerie, leaned close, and whispered, “And I’ll tell you the juicy stuff when we’re alone—after, of course, you spill the beans about the handsome, feral hunk of muscles you clevery captured in your sexy she-wolf net.”
Valerie shivered. Her net wasn’t like the steel mesh net that had dropped over her earlier that day.
Victoria gestured to the bright afternoon sun still warming the air. “Surely you’re not cold?”
“No, the word net just made me think of something chilling. And I’ll tell you about that, too, when we’re alone.”
“Hey it sounds like we’re going to have a lulu of a gabfest. Let’s go inside and I’ll show you our great pictures.” She turned to Mom and Dad and looped arms with them. “We had a fabulous time, but it’s sure good to be back home.”
****
Over an early dinner, with aromas of fetticini and fresh-baked sour-dough bread swirling in the air, Victoria told of their plans, while sending love glances to Rick. “The big news is we’re waiting for the escrow to close on our new home.”
“What?” Dad said, raising his voice. “But this is your home.” Disappointment rang in his tone like a rusty bell.
“And it always will be,” Victoria said with love in her voice. “But we need a place of our own, too. Somewhere to raise the family we hope to have someday. Soon.”
Mom’s eyes widened. “You’re not—”
“No, Mom. No worries there.” Victoria paused. “Along those lines, have the scientists made any progress on the serum?”
“Our results are promising, but we need a volunteer to test the product before distribution.”
“Shoot, I’ll volunteer,” Victoria said.
Valerie watched the color drain from her dad’s face. “Me, too,” she said, not willing to let her sister outdo her.
“Don’t even suggest that, either of you,” Dad shouted, then lowered his voice. “We need someone outside the family.” He glanced at Brian.
Brian loosened his collar. “I could do it.”
Valerie gasped, not only at his reluctant tone but at her confused emotions. “But you’re like family. Today, you saved my life…and Kindra’s life and almost lost yours in the process.”
Dad and Mom paled and Dad asked, “What’s that all about? What haven’t you told me, now?”
Uncle Hugh sauntered into the room. “Why didn’t someone wake me? Oh, hey Victoria, glad to see you back. We all missed you.”
“Sit down, Hugh,” Dad said in his commanding tone. “It seems Valerie has something important to tell us.”
“Hold up, Dad.” She rang for Kyle. He appeared almost instantly like an apparition. “Please take my little friend Kindra to the kitchen and show her your blue birds. And show her the garden. Maybe there’ll be a squirrel or two out there, and she can feed them peanuts or something.”
When Kindra was out of earshot, Valerie told of the wolf attack on the child’s mother, the kidnapping and the harrowing rescue. “I think it might have been Reeves, your evil stepbrother, Dad. He chewed out Kindra’s mom’s throat and said if I didn’t come to him immediately, he’d do the same to her little girl. I had no choice.”
Dad rested his forehead on the pads of his fingers and shook his head. “And here your mother and I thought you were safely at work. Why didn’t you call us for backup?”
She shrugged. “There wasn’t time—and I had Brian.” She glanced at her dear wolf-man with gratitude and patted his hand, thankful he didn’t tell them that she’d ordered him to stay away.
“If you believe it was Reeves, who is his host body? Is it someone we know?”
“His black hairy features were too distorted and wolf-like to identify the host. But he was tall and muscular like Brian, only heavier.” She paused and took a breath. “But there’s something interesting and a bit frightening that we don’t understand fully. Somehow the stress brought on by our need to rescue Kindra before he harmed her forced us into a daylight morphing mode. The fact that the evil wolf also morphed in the daylight hours was peculiar. It complicated things and upped the risk.”
“Our morphing wasn’t all bad,” Brian said. “The advantages were increased strength, ability to run distances quickly, and—”
“Where did all this take place?” Uncle Hugh asked, leaning forward.
“That was part of the complication,” Valerie said, noting that the blood had drained from her parents’ faces. “It was in a condemned house in the barrio gang territory. Most of the houses were empty. Just entering the walled area creeped me out.”
“With good reason,” Brian said. “The gang had their sights on her. However, another advantage of the daylight morphing was when those tattooed thugs heard and saw us in our morphed con
dition, they scattered like a hen house of frightened chickens.”
Victoria sat quietly, squeezing her new husband’s hand. He’s eyes were wide and he kept shaking his head. “God help us all,” he said.
Brian nodded. “Amen.”
“Reeves has pushed us too far,” Hugh said. Somehow, we have to identify his host body and destroy him.”
Brian shook his head. “I’m all for that. I’d start looking closely at Rory.”
“What? Victoria said, her expression wide-eyed. “Why?”
“A lot has happened during the short time you were gone, Sis,” Valerie said, realizing they were talking about a guy Victoria had dated and maybe still thought of as a friend. “But basically he’s become a jerk.”
Victoria rolled her eyes. “Give me a break. He was always that. You want to kill a guy for being a jerk?”
“No. Of course not,” Brian said. “We need to uncover the right host. But once we do, how do we destroy the resurrected walking dead?”
Hugh sighed. “We can only keep killing him. He’s protected by evil. The devil gave him the gift of eternal life. It’s a non-ending circle.”
Brian reached over and touched the cross he’d placed around Valerie’s neck. The heat and electricity of his touch shot through her. “Maybe God’s the answer,” he said.
Dad scoffed. “And maybe fairy tales come true. I’ve been praying for my family for years.”
Brian rubbed his chin, looking reverent. “And they’re still alive,” he murmured quietly.
Valerie’s heart did another double-time from his touch. Still, his exquisite fingers on the cross hadn’t distracted her beyond her ability to appreciate the depth of Brian’s belief, or to realize fully what everyone at the table was faced with. The reality of the situation could really bring her down if she let it.
She forced a smile. “We need a change of focus for a while. Victoria, show us your pictures and tell us about your trip.”
