Little Red and the Wolf

by Alison Paige

  “Then keep your voice down.” He went to the door, palms flat, peering through the arched window at the top.

  “What can I do to get my grandmother’s property back? How official have things gotten?”

  Cadwick glanced over his shoulder, his dark brows tight. “She signed the deed.” He turned his attention back through the window. “It’s done. I’m taking it to the courthouse Monday.”

  “You mean the papers in your pocket are the originals?” Could it really be that easy?

  He looked at her again, eyes narrowing. “Whatever you’re thinking, Red, you can forget it. I’ve waited too long to get one over on Gray Lupo. I’m not turning back now.”

  She heard something scratching and flicked her gaze toward the door. It was soft, like a padded foot in the gravel driveway. She could barely hear it. She looked back to Cadwick, still staring as though he might read her mind. He hadn’t heard anything at all.

  The pack was outside. She could sense them—now that she knew to try. Maizie exhaled a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding. She wasn’t alone. She closed her eyes for a minute, opening her mind to them. A deep breath brought the scents of the pack into her body, the musk of their fur, the earthy smell of the forest, the wild tang of their breath.

  “What’s with you?” Cadwick said, and Maizie opened her eyes.

  He straightened, turning his back to the door, studying her. “You look like…like you just got hugged or something.”

  She couldn’t stop her smile if she’d wanted to. “I can’t let you leave here with those papers, Tony.”

  His glower deepened. “It’s Anthony and I don’t know how you’re gonna stop me, Little Red.”

  The door suddenly shook with a loud boom. They both jumped and turned in time to see the wolf charge again. His huge face snapped at the window, drool splattering the glass. His eyes flashed for an instant, big and furious, before he fell out of sight below the window.

  “Shit.” Cadwick grabbed Maizie’s hand, yanked her along behind him. “Back door. Let’s go.”

  Maizie could’ve pulled free, could’ve broken his arm if she wanted. She didn’t. She wanted those papers, so she went with him through the living room into the sunroom to the back door.

  Cadwick crouched as he passed along the wall of windows, watching the darkness as he went. He pulled Maizie in front of him when he reached the door, slipped his arm around her waist and opened the lock.

  “Go,” he said.

  “What if that thing’s out there?” She knew he wasn’t. Ricky was still out front with Shelly and Joy. There was only one wolf waiting in back. But Cadwick didn’t know that.

  “Guess we’ll find out. Now, go.” He brandished the knife at her and Maizie stumbled backward, narrowly avoiding the sharp point. She pushed through the door and made it beyond the arbor before Cadwick followed.

  Movement to her left caught both their attention, a flash of blonde-tipped fur among the moonlit flowers. Poor Lynn, her dye job didn’t transfer forms the same.

  A low growl raised the hairs at the back of her neck and had Cadwick scampering up beside Maizie. “You hear that?”

  Maizie nodded, allowing Cadwick to cower behind her again. He held her above the elbows, using her body to shield against whatever watched from the high flowers.

  “Christ, what kind of fucking beasts does Lupo keep in these woods?” He squinted into the darkness. “Not that it matters. They’ll all be roadkill once I get through with this land.”

  Lynn’s growl went primal. She leapt from a patch of towering sunflowers, teeth bared. Cadwick’s girlish squeal deafened Maizie’s ears a split second before he pushed her into Lynn’s path.

  It was too late for Lynn to stop. Her heavy furred body slammed into Maizie, chest to chest, knocking her off her feet, driving the air from her lungs. Maizie’s head smacked the patio brick, starbursts lit her eyes.

  Lynn writhed on top of her, trying to find her footing. Her long wolf legs and sharp bones poked Maizie’s stomach as she launched into the chase. She followed Cadwick’s trail through the flowers in the opposite direction, her blonde-tipped fur disappearing in the thick foliage.

  Shaking off the dizziness, Maizie followed, leaves and stems sticking to her clothes, smacking her face despite the shield of her hands. She broke through the edge of the garden at the corner of the house, already angling her body for the turn and nearly toppled over Gray before she could stop.

  She threw her weight backward, landing hard on her ass, her feet sliding into Cadwick’s outstretched legs. He lay spread eagled on his back, Gray’s snarling face inches from his, one thick paw pressing his chest.

  Maizie scrambled backward, got to her feet before Cadwick’s wide frightened eyes found her.

  “Help me. Please. Help me.” His voice was breathy, panicked.

  Lynn gave a hard snort from a few feet away, her tail snapping once against her rump. As if on cue, Ricky, Shelly, Joy and Shawn jogged around from the front of the house, forming a circle around Maizie, Gray and the pleading Cadwick.

  Maizie threw a glance at Shawn, his darker fur and larger body a nice contrast with Lynn’s. He rubbed his muzzle along her neck, taking his place at her side. He was new to the pack, new to being a werewolf, but he seemed to fit seamlessly. Could it be that way for Maizie? Could she forgive and forget?

  She stepped nearer to Gray, his low growl vibrating the silvery fur along his back. She dug her fingers in, closing her eyes at the luscious feel of his fleece. His scent filled her lungs, wild, earthy forest and the barest hint of sweet male cologne. Gray leaned into her touch, the shift almost imperceptible, but enough to send a warm shiver straight through Maizie, from her head to her toes.

  She dropped her gaze to Cadwick. “Give me the deed.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  “You knew?” Maizie stared, dumbfounded by her grandmother’s cheek-pinching grin.

  “Of course, dear,” Granny said. “How else would I know to crazy up my answers when the judge called?”

  “Then why didn’t you go through with it?”

  Granny gave a nod toward Gray beside her. “Lost his nerve.”

  Gray’s stoic face flushed, the tightness around his eyes softening as well as the lines across his forehead. A smile flickered across his lips, but he spoke before it took control. “It was a last resort, and not a pleasant one.”

  Maizie leaned back in her chair, folding her arms under her chest. “Especially if Granny decided she wanted to sell.”

  Gray’s brows creased. “That was never her wish.”

  “If it was? I mean, after you’d gotten control over everything. What if she decided she wanted to sell?” She wasn’t sure why she was testing him. She just had to be sure, had to hear it from his own lips.

  Gray’s pale blue eyes narrowed, his expression questioning. He leaned forward, elbows on his knees. “The guardianship was a ruse, Maizie. A line of defense against rash decisions.”

  “Doesn’t answer the question.”

  “You’re really asking?” Gray shook his head and pushed back, his lean body tall in the chair. He looked away, talking more to himself than Maizie. “Of course you’re asking. She’s your grandmother. You should.”

  His gaze darted out over the plush lawn of Green Acres backyard. Nearly an acre of manicured grass dotted with trees and flower gardens, and edged by the forest. They’d snagged a comfortable set of wicker chairs under a giant white ash. The limbs, thick with leaves, let the sun dapple through around them.

  Gray’s handsome, sharp-boned face darkened, yet there was no anger in his eyes. He’d worn his normal Armani blazer and slacks, lightweight, dark charcoal gray, with a white crewneck shirt underneath, business casual, sexy as hell. His thick silver-gray hair matched perfectly, curling just below his collar, a striking contrast with the glacier blue of his eyes.

  He looked back to her and it was all Maizie could do not to gasp at the impact of those eyes. “Had it come to it. Yes, I would’ve
taken control of Ester’s holdings. I would’ve kept her from selling until I could be sure the decision was sound, sure she knew what she was doing, and why.”

  “And if she was?”

  His gaze locked with hers, his expression unflinching. “I would’ve followed her wishes.”

  Was it enough? Maizie caught her bottom lip between her teeth, looked away. She couldn’t allow his sexy good looks, his sweet, wild aroma, or the memories of his hard body pressed to hers cloud her mind. She couldn’t let her hormones distract her again until she was sure.

  “It was my idea, Little Red.” Granny reached her hand out to Maizie’s, so soft and frail Maizie hardly felt it. She relaxed the tight knot of her arms and took Granny’s hand.

  “With my spells I can’t always be sure what’s real and what’s not,” Granny said. “I didn’t want to bother you. You were already so busy with the bakery. So I asked Gray to watch out for me, even though I knew it made him uncomfortable. He agreed. He’s a good man, dear.”

  Maizie studied Granny’s adorable weathered face, sky blue eyes peering from beneath soft wrinkled lids, wisdom sparking in their depths. Granny trusted him, loved him even, it meant everything.

  She swung her gaze back to Gray, his brow creased, worry glazing his pale eyes. She smiled. She couldn’t help it. “He’s a very good man.”

  Relief washed over his face, relaxing the muscles along his brow, the stiffness of his mouth. He dropped his gaze, his cheeks turning a shade pinker.

  He looked back to her, his eyes intense, earnest. “Ester is beloved to me. But you’re part of me, Maizie, a part of my soul. You have been since I held you in my arms that night. You were so young, and I was…a mess. But none of that mattered. The bond was made between us anyway. We’re helpless against it. Just took me twenty-one years to admit it.”

  Maizie reached across the low glass coffee table and Gray took her hand in both of his. “We’ll have to work on that stubborn streak.”

  He laughed and kissed her hand, his gaze sliding up to hers so the pale blue peered beneath long black lashes. “Sounds like fun.”

  His low voice rumbled through her body, vibrating all the tiny hairs along her skin and sending a liquid hot flood to her sex. She exhaled, her breath shaky, leaning back in her chair when he released her hand. Oh yeah, it was definitely going to be fun.

  “Now you’re sure that Cadwick fellow won’t be coming around anymore?” Granny said.

  Gray nodded, still staring at Maizie, his head turning slowly toward Granny, his eyes the last to leave her face. “Yes,” he said. “I stopped by his office to see how he was, uh, handling last night’s events.”

  Maizie took her glass of tea from the table, her mouth suddenly gone dry. “What’d he say?”

  Gray glanced her way. “He’s convinced you’re a female Dr. Dolittle and now has a powerful desire to donate money to the Bad Wolf Wild Game Preserve. He said he wants to make sure the animals never have reason to wander from the forest.”

  Granny laid her hand on his forearm. Her thin fingers squeezed. “Thank you, Gray. I know how difficult it’s been for you having to deal with him. I’m so sorry.”

  Maizie took another sip and set her glass back on the coaster. “I think I’m missing something.”

  Gray caught her gaze but looked away. “Cadwick, he…he’s the man Donna was seeing before the accident.”

  “Oh, Gray…”

  He shook his head. “It was a long time ago. A meaningless affair. It was my fault. I wouldn’t listen to what she needed. Wouldn’t let her go. I think he really fell for her though. He thinks she left town. Everyone outside the family does. But it seemed to make his issues with me even worse.”

  “He’s a dang fool,” Granny said. Both Maizie and Gray looked at her. “Comin’ ’round here pretending to be my sweet Riddly. Thinkin’ I wouldn’t know the difference.”

  Maizie glanced at Gray and Gray at her. Neither wanted to mention the fact Cadwick had done exactly that.

  “Asked me to sign those papers, like I wouldn’t know what they were.” She huffed. “Fool. Never even checked how I signed.”

  It didn’t matter, Gray had shredded the documents. “How’d you sign them, Granny?” Maizie asked.

  Her smile brightened, cheeks apple-round. “Little Red Hood of course. I told you he was a wolf of a man.”

  Maizie stood and threw her arms around Granny’s neck, pressed a kiss into the soft skin of her cheek. “I love you, Gran. You’re a trip.”

  Granny patted her arm. “Thank you, dear. I may be old, but I ain’t stupid.”

  Gray laughed as Maizie plopped back in her seat. “No, Ester. No one would ever call you stupid.”

  “Still,” Granny said. “That money would’ve gone a long way to help ends meet, wouldn’t it, Little Red?”

  Maizie’s face warmed. She didn’t want Granny worrying about her financial problems. “Cadwick say something to you, Gran?”

  “I don’t want to be a burden.”

  “You’re not,” Gray said. “Maizie’s money problems are solved.”

  “I’m not taking a handout from you, Gray,” Maizie said, guessing how his rich-boy mind worked. “I started the business on my own. If it succeeds I want to be able to take full credit. Same if it fails.”

  “I’m not giving you money.”

  “You’re not?” A part of her had kind of liked the security, even though she’d never take it.

  “No. I did, however, cosign a loan.” He held up a hand at the hint of her protest. “I am not giving you the loan. I simply assured the bank you’re good for the money. I know you can make a success of anything you set your mind to, Maizie. I’m just making sure you get the chance.”

  “Thank you.”

  “But if I could make a suggestion regarding your one-eyed driver…”

  “Bob? He quit,” Maizie said. “Got a job driving a city bus.”

  “Jeezus.”

  “I know. Great job. Union, perks and everything. Couldn’t pass it up. Speaking of jobs…” She checked her watch. “I was supposed to help Cherri ice four hundred and fifty-three cupcakes for the elementary-school open house tomorrow night. I really have to go.”

  “I’ll drive you,” Gray said.

  Granny took his hand and Maizie’s. She squeezed. “It’s right the two of you came together. I knew yours would be the kind of soul match people tell stories about. Only out of tragedy could such a love be born. That’s what you’ve found, the kind of love dreamed of in fairy tales.”

  Maizie fought hard not to roll her eyes. She smiled and kissed Granny’s cheek and watched as Gray did the same.

  He whispered in her ear, but Maizie could hear as clearly as if he’d whispered in hers. “Thank you, Ester. You’re right. She’s my Snow White, my Sleeping Beauty and my Dorothy Gale. She couldn’t be a better match for me if she’d been plucked from the pages of a storybook.”

  Granny’s grin brightened just a bit and Gray kissed her cheek again. She stared at him as he straightened, but then her gaze focused on something behind him, her eyes went wide.

  “Oh dear, I hope he didn’t see that.”

  Maizie and Gray both followed her gaze to a white-haired man fussing around a bird feeder several feet away. He held a fistful of violets in his hands and couldn’t seem to stop himself from glancing Granny’s way every few seconds.

  “You have a suitor, Gran?” Maizie couldn’t help the teasing tone in her voice.

  “Stop it, Little Red. I had the love of my life already. George is just a…a hobby.” She blushed, smoothing fine wisps of hair back toward her bun.

  “Cute hobby.” Maizie watched George adjust his bowtie and smooth his suspenders over his plaid short-sleeved shirt. She knew it was the thick mane of white hair that had captured her gran’s attention. The preference must run in the family.

  Granny licked her lips, then pinched her cheeks for a sweet natural blush. “Now run along, the two of you. He won’t come over if I’ve got co
mpany and his memory’s not what it used to be. He’ll forget why he’s waiting over there before long.”

  Gray caught Granny’s chin with the crook of his finger, met her gaze. “You’re happy?”

  Granny smiled. “Yes, my lovely silver wolf. I’m happy being human. But thank you for the offer as always.”

  Maizie’s belly warmed watching him bend to kiss her cheek one more time. “Only for you, my sweet Ester,” he said then took Maizie by the hand.

  “I love how you are with her.” Maizie settled into the deep leather seats of his limo.

  “She’s a dear friend,” Gray said. “Without her Donna’s death would’ve been intolerable.”

  “Annette said you wouldn’t turn her because you were so unhappy with the life you’d been saddled with, you wouldn’t commit someone else to the same fate.”

  “I decided long ago, for Ester I would make an exception if she truly wished it.” Gray slid his hand across the seat to Maizie’s. He couldn’t be this close and not touch her.

  Their fingers laced. Her hand so small in his, he treasured it. “She’s always refused. I believed, although she denies it, Ester knew the emotional trials far outweighed the added years. Still, it was all I had to offer.”

  Maizie’s forest-green gaze dropped to their clasped hands. “Is being what we are really so bad?”

  The trepidation in her voice touched his heart. He brought her hand to his lips, tasting her sugar-sweet skin as he spoke. “For twenty-one years I couldn’t imagine a worse fate.”

  Her exhale shuddered, her skin warming against his lips. “And now?”

  “It was worth every moment to have you as my reward.”

  Her quick arousal scented the air, filled the private compartment like the most captivating perfume.

  He closed his eyes, breathed her in. He’d never get enough of her. How could he? She was his life mate and yet he’d tried for so long to deny she existed. But she did exist and he’d make damn sure she had every reason to stay.

  “You know, when I was a teenager all the young lovers went parking on Saturday nights.” He tugged her hand, and brought a mischievous grin across Maizie’s lips.