by Cara Adams
“Why can’t we look sitting in the truck?”
The man in the black T-shirt groaned and Teddy used the sound he made to cover the click of his camera as he took a picture of both men. At the foot of the hill was a dirt track and he was sure if he followed it, he’d find their vehicle, but they were much too likely to see him. They’d also hear him if he switched on the engine of the quad bike. They were noisy pieces of equipment. He was just lucky they’d arrived when he was on foot. Teddy crouched more comfortably behind his rock waiting and listening.
“Right, Tom. Walk to the top of that hill and have a good look around.”
“What for?”
Oh, shit. They’ll see me. Teddy craned his neck around in every direction but there was nowhere for him to go where they wouldn’t see him move. There was a nice, bushy shrub that extended all the way to the ground that he could roll under, but he’d need to take at least three steps to get to it and they’d notice him for sure. Fuck. Fuck! Fuck!
“Just do it. We’re supposed to look around, remember?”
“But you already said we weren’t going to see anything. If I walk up that hill someone might see me. Hell, someone might shoot me. Mr. Green wouldn’t like it if we got caught trespassing.”
Fuck, yes. Listen to Tom. Stay where you are, please.
“You won’t get caught. Go and look.”
“I might. We heard that tractor go past when we first got here. What if the tractor comes back when I’m standing on the hill? Why don’t you go stand on the hill?”
Tedros stayed behind his rock, fists clenched, heart pumping hard, begging in his mind over and over again, Don’t come up here. Don’t come up here. Just go away.
By the time the argument petered out and the men’s voices faded into the distance, his T-shirt was soaking wet with sweat and he felt like he’d run ten miles. But they’d left. They hadn’t seen him and they didn’t know he’d seen and heard them. Now he really did need to run. Right back to Okapi and Cooper to tell them what was happening.
* * * *
Keisha had set a mental deadline of Saturday. One week. If Okapi and Tedros hadn’t invited her on a date by noon Saturday, she’d ask them out. The question, though, was where to go. There was no way she could think of anything as exciting and different as the chess competition, but it was more an opportunity to get to know each other better anyway. She had six months to choose a pair of bachelors to marry, and two months was already gone. Of all the available bachelors, the ones that interested her most were Tedros and Okapi. Tedros because he was so very smitten with her. So truly loving and helpful, and she couldn’t resist his appeal. Okapi because he was strong and powerful, and that was damn appealing, too.
The mail-order brides had all been warned that there was no divorce under shape-shifter law, so it was very important that before she decided on her men, that she was sure in both her mind and her heart that she would be happy with them. She’d come to Cooper’s Farm with her eyes wide open. Keisha was no naïve teenager, thinking sparkling fairy dust would land on her head and she’d live happily ever after. However, she planned to make damn sure she wasn’t just going to become a household drudge or a baby-making machine. Sure, she’d likely do housework and she might even have a kid or two at some future date, but she wanted to be respected as a person in her own right as well. And that, in turn, meant she had to respect the two men who claimed her.
Right now, she did believe she could respect Teddy and Okapi. Okapi was obviously damn good at his job. The other werewolves on the farm treated him with honor and she was sure they wouldn’t do that if he were incompetent or unfair. She got no sense of people walking on eggshells around him as they would if he was likely to be abusive or illogical. And Teddy was so loveable and cute. He really was just like a great big teddy bear or an overgrown puppy with his huge, expressive eyes and his desire to help and please her all the time. It would be impossible not to love him back.
But first, she needed to spend more time talking to them, getting to know them better. It really didn’t matter what they did together. The outing would just be an excuse to spend time together and to talk. So, she’d better not choose a movie. They’d have to be quiet for too long and would talk about the show afterward instead of about each other. A meal would be okay, though.
Keisha waited until one of the two computers in the women’s barracks was free, and then she sat at it and Googled local restaurants. She vaguely recalled someone saying there was a place in Coopersville where there were half a dozen restaurants all together in one mall, or something like that. Instead, she got distracted by a German restaurant. They had people playing traditional German music, yodeling, playing a cow horn, and a menu featuring some German dishes, and beer, of course. Surely the men would like the beer if nothing else? Besides, the entertainment would give them something to talk about, and the women’s costumes looked pretty.
Her plan all sorted in her mind, Keisha logged off the computer and went to do a load of laundry. Monday she’d be working in the office again, and she was still on a mighty steep learning curve, which meant she needed to do her chores today so she could have an early night ready for work tomorrow.
* * * *
It might be Sunday, but for Okapi, after taking Saturday off work for the chess date, it was an opportunity to get busy lowering the stack of items in his in tray before Monday burst upon him with all its regular chores and demands on his time. Besides, Cooper worked a seven-day week, which meant he expected Okapi to be available to help him twenty-four-seven. Although Cooper was also very sympathetic toward the bachelors finding their mates. Bringing the mail-order brides into the community had been an absolutely brilliant idea. It’d taken a hell of a lot of courage to do it, and the planning and organization involved had been immense. Already, however, several bachelors had found their mate, and the others were a lot happier knowing there were women available, despite there still not being enough females for everyone to marry.
Even the older people were much more relaxed, knowing the werewolf clan wouldn’t die out in a couple of generations, but would be revitalized and renewed. The thing was, when a werewolf mated a human, the birthrate returned to roughly half boys and half girls being born. It was only when there were several generations of wolves only marrying wolves that female babies became fewer and fewer. Okapi would be interested in finding out the genetic theory behind why this had happened. But right now he’d settle for shifting the bulk of his to-do list across to his out tray.
He wasn’t even halfway through when Teddy appeared in his office, his shirt and pants brown with dirt. “Are you okay? Did you fall off the quad bike or something?”
Tedros looked down and brushed a hand carelessly over the front of his T-shirt. “Oh, yeah, I guess I need a shower. But I wanted to tell you and Cooper about this first.”
As soon as he mentioned Cooper, Okapi’s heart sank. “More problems?”
“Yeah. Well, probably.”
“Grab a chair.”
Okapi picked up his landline and hit number one on the speed dial. “Tedros is in my office, sir. He has something to tell you.”
“One minute.” The line clicked off.
The inner door to Cooper’s office opened and Roderick Cooper appeared, rubbing a hand through his salt-and-pepper hair. It was a habit he repeated a dozen times a day and Okapi sometimes thought it was a miracle the man wasn’t bald already.
“Trouble, Tedros?”
“Yes, sir. Well, it could be. I mean…”
Okapi smiled at Teddy, while his friend gathered his thoughts together and said, “I was checking the fence line on the quad bike and there are quite a lot places where I had to get off and walk though bushes and stuff to see it properly. I’d just come back from checking one of those areas and walked up a small rise to look at the next section of the fence when I heard some people talking.”
“Where were you?” asked Cooper.
“Over near the east boundary.”
“Go on. I feel sure you aren’t going to tell me it was a couple of werewolves out for a run.”
“Yes, sir. Well, I slithered up the hill and looked and listened. I managed to take a picture of them. The one in the red shirt is Tom. The other one’s name wasn’t mentioned but they work for Mr. Green.”
Fucking Rinehart again!
“What did they say?” asked Cooper.
“Just that they’d been told to look around and would be back tomorrow. The one in the black shirt tried to convince Tom to walk up the hill to see if he could see anything and I was really hoping he wouldn’t do it. But Tom had too much sense to put himself where he might be seen. Likely they will be back tomorrow though, as they said.”
“Good work, Tedros. We’ll make sure there’s a welcoming committee expecting them tomorrow. Someone can get their license plate number, too. That could be interesting. Finish checking the boundary now, but take someone else with you. And look to see if the fence has been cut for easy access, somewhere. Or even in several places. Message me the photograph you took as well. Good thinking to take it, by the way.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Okapi, bring me Green’s file please.” Cooper went back into his office and shut the door, no doubt to mess his hair up even worse than it was already.
“You’re damn lucky they didn’t see you. Or hear you take the picture. You did great though, to get the information.”
“Yeah, I was really hoping like hell they didn’t come up the hill. I had nowhere to hide and they’d have seen me straight away.”
“Who are you going to take with you?”
“Someone big!”
Okapi laughed. “Good answer.” He patted Teddy’s shoulder as he went to the filing cabinet to pull out Green’s file. He would read through the one on his computer, too. The other things on his to-do list could wait. Green had to be watching them for a reason. But what the fuck was it?
Chapter Three
Teddy hadn’t been joking when he said he planned to take a big, tough wolf with him to finish the fence line check. He often worked with Zoan, but Zoan was much the same size as him. Right around the six-foot mark. Xola would be better. He was at least five inches taller and solidly built. But when Teddy saw brothers Rafiki and Katungi leaning against the railing of the store, not appearing in a rush to get anywhere, it occurred to him that two companions would be twice as good as one.
It was only when he’d walked up to them that he realized he had no idea what to say. Cooper hadn’t told him not to tell anyone, but he probably didn’t want a wave of gossip consuming the community either. Ah, fuck!
Then he remembered Cooper had suggested he take someone with him. And he had to tell them something. He’d keep it a bit generic, though.
Rafiki waved a hand in front of his face. “Tedros? Tedros? Are you there?”
“Sorry, I was thinking. Cooper’s asked me to check the fence line, to make sure it hasn’t been cut or damaged or anything. He suggested I take someone with me and you two were just standing here, so…”
“But it’s Sunday,” complained Katungi.
“I’m really thrilled you’ve learned the days of the week,” teased Rafiki.
Tedros suddenly wondered if they were standing here to catch a glimpse of some of the human women. Or maybe one of them in particular. Oh well, he looked disgusting with dirt all over his clothing, but he’d only get dirtier. Those men had to have gotten in somehow and he thought quite likely they’d have cut the fence.
“So will you come with me? We can take the quad bikes and take a few tools with us,” he said, looking from Rafiki to Katungi.
“I’ll just go back into the store and pick up some bottles of water for us. Wait right there,” said Katungi.
“Thanks.” Teddy was relieved they’d agreed so easily without asking questions.
They walked around to the barn and climbed on the big bikes, then Teddy led them directly to the hill out on the eastern boundary.
“Why are we starting here? Wouldn’t it be more logical to start in the corner of the property?” argued Rafiki.
Teddy sighed. He’d have to tell them, but at least there weren’t other people around to overhear. “I saw a couple of strangers near here. They looked to me to be the kind of people who’d cut the fence rather than bothering to climb over it. But maybe I’m wrong.”
“You won’t be wrong. I don’t like the idea of strangers wandering onto our property. That really sounds bad. Let’s find out where they got in.” Katungi led the way over the hill and to the fence. Teddy went right walking along slowly, checking everything was in place, while the brothers went left. He hadn’t gone far when Rafiki gave a shout. “Found it!”
Nevertheless he kept walking. He really wanted to be sure there weren’t several entry points. It would be bad news if they fixed one and left another one open. He walked back to where he was sure he’d checked that morning, then hurried back to the other men.
“It’s all fine in the other direction.”
The men hadn’t even bothered to hide what they’d done. The top two strands of wire were cut and folded back, making a wide space for people to enter simply by stepping over the lowest wire. While Tedros had been checking in the other direction, one of the brothers had walked back to the quad bikes and collected the roll of wire. Quickly and efficiently, they mended the fence where it had been cut. But instead of wrapping the ends neatly, Katungi twisted them into nasty barbs pointing in several directions.
“If they try to just walk through, that might teach them to think again,” he said.
“What about adding a trip wire a little farther in? If they want to climb the hill and spy on us, we could put it maybe a foot above the ground, between those two trees,” said Rafiki.
“If they’re looking carefully, they’ll see it. You need fishing line to be more invisible,” argued Katungi.
“Yes, but we don’t want to damage them, just deter them,” said Tedros.
In the end they strung two trip wires, one at the foot of the hill and the other part way up. Teddy wasn’t sure it would stop anyone, but he thought the redshirted man, Tom, might be quite easily deterred, and if he fell flat on his face, he might go home.
Tedros checked the fence line farther along while the others packed up their tools, then he joined them. They went right around the property, but there was no other sign of anyone trying to get in. It was only after he’d returned the quad bikes and put away the tools and wire that Tedros remembered he’d need to tell Okapi what they’d done. They didn’t want a werewolf breaking a leg on the trip wire.
Okapi was pragmatic. “I’ll tell everyone to stay away from there. If they disobey and get hurt that’ll be their own problem.”
“I’d hate for someone to break their leg,” argued Teddy.
“It’s okay, I’ll tell them. But if people are stupid and disobedient and injure themselves, they have to learn to take responsibility for their own actions.”
I hate this. Why did they have to come onto our land? What are they doing here?
* * * *
At lunchtime on Wednesday, Keisha looked up from her computer to see Tedros and Okapi standing in her office doorway. Instantly excitement roared through her body. The only other time this had happened had been when they’d asked her out on a date. Did this mean they were going to ask her out again?
“Hi, Keisha. Are you free on Saturday night? Will you come out to dinner with us, please?” asked Teddy.
“Yes and yes. I’d like that very much, thank you.”
“Oh, great. Is six o’clock okay?”
“Yes, that’s fine. Where are we going, or is that a secret?”
“Somewhere where there’s dancing,” said Okapi.
Ah, he wants me to know I need to get dressed up. She smiled and nodded. Message received. No jeans.
Damn it was difficult to concentrate on her work for the rest of the day. She tried to think of where they might be going. Th
en her mind wandered through her few pretty dresses trying to decide which one to wear. And when she’d finally gotten past that, she wondered if they’d take her to bed afterward. If she wanted to go to bed with them.
Well, at least the answer to that was easy. Hell yes she did. No way was she marrying someone from whom there was no divorce available, unless she knew she was prepared to sleep with them every night for the rest of her life.
Thursday and Friday alternately raced past, and dragged, as Keisha kept thinking about her date with Okapi and Tedros. She really did like both men and was eager to know more about them. She was excited that they wanted to spend more time with her as well. But would the evening end in bed as she hoped? Would they even kiss her? Ugh! At least she had her wonderful new job to keep her distracted as the hours passed.
Getting dressed didn’t take her very long. She had exactly two nice outfits to choose from, the blue or the green, and the blue one had always been her favorite.
Dera was now mated to Gowan and Maitho, but when they’d been dating Maitho had given her a box of a dozen different bottles of nail polish. She set them out on the table in the living area of the women’s barracks and everyone helped Keisha choose which color to use. Finally she decided on pale blue on her fingernails and dark blue on her toenails.
Then Shakina, another one of the mail-order brides, did her hair in a complicated French braid that looked absolutely amazing. “You’re so talented, Shakina. You should have your own beauty parlor,” she said.
“They cost way too much money to establish. There’s no way that’ll ever happen.”
“Seriously, with the ability to do women’s nails and hair, you should think about it,” Keisha said.
Shakina laughed, but Keisha kept the thought in the back of her mind. Why not start up a small business? Surely it was worth thinking more about?
