by Rose Pressey
* * * *
Jack stood in my room. From the foot of my bed, he looked down at me and, without saying a word, moved closer to where I sat. My senses were on overload from watching him gaze at me with what I knew was longing.
Jack reached for my arms and then pulled me with him as he fell back onto my bed. He moved his face close to mine and began softly kissing me. Jack slid my gown over my head and immediately began gently caressing my body, mapping out the shape of my hip with his hand. I tugged at his clothes, yearning to feel his skin pressed against mine.
After I removed the shirt, I traced the outline of his chiseled abs with my finger and he moaned in approval. Just as he stood to remove his jeans, I jerked up in bed. It was the middle of the night, my legs were tangled in the sheets and my heart raced. I felt a bit confused. My dream had felt so real, and it saddened me to discover it was nothing more than a fantasy. It felt so lifelike I could still taste the sweet flavor of his mouth on mine. I wanted to hang on to every detail so I wouldn’t forget. The dream would be the closest thing I got to actual sex for no telling how long. I couldn’t just let it float away from my memory.
Probably a noise from the street below woke me, and I cursed under my breath at whoever made it. Needless to say, I tried to drift off again. I wanted to pick up where we’d left off, but no such luck. It always turned out that way. Just when I’d gotten to the good part.
The next morning, I reflected on my glorious dream and the previous evening. The date had turned out all right, I thought. In spite of the ripped-shirt, naked-woman calamity. Granted, that old lady gave me the evil eye all night, but other than that, things worked out fine. The werewolves hiding in the alley and then following me spooked me a bit. But what could I do? With no clue as to who they were, I wouldn’t know how to make them stop.
Jack hadn’t specifically asked me out again, but he had hinted. At least I read the signs as allusions to another date. I was almost afraid to agree to another outing, for fear of the curse taking over. It was a lot of fun with him and the thought of not having the opportunity to do that again was not a pleasurable one.
Without knocking, I slipped into Jennifer’s bedroom, thinking she was still asleep. I wanted to borrow her black wrap-dress. I’d already seen what it looked like with my Prada pumps. To my surprise, however, Jennifer wasn’t in her bed. In fact, she wasn’t even in the room. Her bed was already made with her pink floral comforter, and placed safely by the door waiting for her arrival home, were her coveted bunny slippers. Rarely did she beat me to work. I grabbed the dress from the hanger, snatched my shoes up from the floor of the closet and went to my room to slip into my clothing.
As I put on the dress, securing it around my waist, the faint sound of voices wafted in from, I thought, just beyond the front door. With a swift brush of my hair, then slipping into my shoes, I hurried from the room. My guess was correct--there were voices. But it was way too early to deal with Lily, I thought, as I poured myself a cup of coffee. Wait. What if Lily was in the hallway having a one-on-one with Jack? I spit my coffee into the sink, tossed the mug down, grabbed my bag and made a leap for the door.
It didn’t budge when I yanked on it. I pulled again, and the door flew open. Two sets of eyes looked back at me as if I were insane.
Chapter 7
How to Date a Werewolf Rule # 7:
Don’t give your date a bouquet of wolfsbane.
Jennifer and Jack were once again having what looked like a lively conversation in the hallway. All right, I wasn’t the jealous type, but I did have a tinge of some strange feeling in the pit of my stomach and I didn’t like it. Jennifer was my best friend, for heaven’s sake. There was no need to be mistrustful of her, or was there? No. She probably just ran into Jack on her way to work.
“Oh hi, Rylie. I just bumped into Jack on my way to work.”
Phew. See, nothing to worry about. I could send that green-eyed monster packing.
“Hi, I didn’t hear you leave.”
She eyed her dress that clung to my body. If she said anything about my borrowing it, I might have to make her eat it. But Jennifer wasn’t the only one eyeing me in the dress. Jack drank in every ounce of my appearance and I loved each second of the attention.
“I was quiet. I thought maybe you needed to sleep in. You know, after last night.” She winked at me, then glanced at Jack. What was wrong with her? I needed to remind her to stop with the teasing looks and tones. We weren’t in eighth grade anymore. Feeling fidgety, I smoothed the front of the dress.
“We weren’t out too late, you know that. I have a client at nine, and I need to do some work before then, so I didn’t sleep in.” My gaze flicked to Jack. I probably had Jennifer’s doe-eyed look after his kisses and my dream last night. Thank God he couldn’t read my mind.
“I have to get going too,” Jack said. “Can I walk you to work?”
Once again, he looked utterly delicious. I loved his style. He was a casual kind of guy--just the way I liked them. His navy chinos were a perfect fit, and his rugby shirt was untucked. I swear if I knew psychiatrists looked like him, I would have made an appointment years ago. Heaven knows, my parents provided me with plenty of reasons to need one.
“Absolutely,” I said.
“I’m off.” Jennifer moved around us and bounded down the steps. Her curls bounced with each step. She was always a bundle of energy. Like a cheerleader chugging a can of Red Bull.
“Again, Emilio’s is delicious. I had a great time last night.” He held my arm as I stepped down onto the first step. He was such a gentleman.
“Me too.” There I was, making a great impression again with my vast vocabulary.
When we made it to the bottom of the stairs he said, “Before I let you get to work I wanted to ask you...”
Yes, yes. That’s what I wanted to hear. Or did I? I was torn apart on the inside. Did I want to date him or not? One step closer to the curse, I reminded myself. Oh well, did it matter anyway? I’d probably discover some serious flaws--like he secretly wears women’s clothing.
“A client of mine runs...well, er, has access to tickets for one of those walking ghost tours. He insists I can’t live here without doing it at least once.”
“He’s right. You have to do it no less than one time, preferably several. It’s a part of the city. Practically a requirement.”
“Well, I wouldn’t want to do something like that alone. I’m afraid of ghosts.” He wiggled his eyebrows. He didn’t seem to be the type to believe in the supernatural, which was unfortunate for me.
“I’d love to,” I said.
“You would? It wouldn’t be too boring for you?”
He had no idea. Working with the supernatural world on a daily basis made me somewhat blasé about the whole ghost story thing. Yeah, there are ghosts. Everyone should know that by now. But I wouldn’t let him know my feelings on the subject. I’d go on the tour and pretend I had the time of my life. With Jack by my side it wouldn’t be a stretch.
“I wouldn’t want you to be afraid. I can handle the otherworldly creatures for you.” He thought I joked--little did he know I was completely serious.
“Great. I’ll call and let him know we’ll be there. It’s tonight, a special nighttime tour. Is that all right? You didn’t have other plans? I know I haven’t given you a lot of notice for our dates.”
“Sounds perfect. I don’t have anything planned for this evening, so don’t worry about it.” Perhaps I was too available for him. I needed to be vaguer, more mysterious.
“I’ll pick you up at seven thirty? The tour starts at eight. Maybe we can have dinner afterward?”
“I’d like that. I’ll be ready. Should I bring a crucifix?” I laughed.
“Maybe. You’ve got a great sense of humor, you know.” He chuckled as he walked backward toward his office. He was so cute when he did that. Of course he’s cute all the time, but I really liked it when he did that. I was halfway serious about the crucifix, though. Those vampires can
be vicious.
“I’m looking forward to it,” he said.
“Me too. I’ll see you then.”
I stepped into my office. Someone had slipped a present under the door. It wasn’t chocolates or diamonds, though. The scribbled writing across the envelope let me know my diva-wolf was at it again. Cussing under my breath, I picked up the white envelope. It was like the one before with the black marker text scrawled along the front. Cruz was scratched across the front. I tossed my purse on the desk and plopped down in my seat. Might as well see what threats this one had.
The seal was partially open, so I easily slipped my finger through and tore it open. Another thing to stew over, just what I needed. Sure enough, the package contained a single piece of paper with the words Watch your back. If Lily had been watching me, I would have let out a huge yawn to let her know I wasn’t impressed. But a trickle of doubt washed over me. Perhaps I should be more concerned. After a short time passed with my frustration at an all-time high, I picked up the phone and punched in Jennifer’s work number. I prayed I didn’t disturb her from one of her furry patients. Too-loud Muzak played in my ear, then relief when she picked up.
“This is getting out of hand. I really need Lily to stop. She’s out of control,” I said as soon as she said hi.
“Oh no. What happened this time? Another silver bullet?” Jennifer asked.
“Another envelope. This one has a little love letter in it.”
“A love letter? Is it from Jack?” She sounded confused and maybe a little hopeful at the same time.
“No, I was being facetious. It says, watch your back.”
“Oh my God. She’s threatening me now? What do I do?”
“No, you nincompoop. She’s telling me to watch my back. I’m just telling you what the note said.” Jennifer could be so ditzy sometimes. Although I guess I hadn’t made it quite clear when I explained to her what the letter said.
“Do you still think it’s only Lily sending those? Maybe it’s someone else. I mean after last night and all.”
“Who else could it be? Those sleazebags from last night don’t know where I live. Besides, now that I think about it, they probably just caught a whiff of werewolf and followed me into the restaurant to harass me. That’s what thugs like that do. There’s no one else mad at me, as far as I know. Everyone else seems to be more than happy with my work.” Did I really believe that? “I have a couple getting married next month, for heaven’s sake.”
“All right, calm down. It just all seems so weird. Maybe it’s Lily and someone else, like the goon looking for your uncle. I’m just sayin’...”
“Yeah, I know. I guess anything is possible. But I think it’s her and it’s high time she quit. Enough is enough. I can’t stand silly games. I owe my parents and if I lose my business because of her, they’ll never get their money back.” I flipped the phone to my other ear and cradled it with my chin.
“What are you going to do?” she asked. A dog yapped in the background. I hated to disturb her when she was working.
“I was hoping you had some ideas. A bit of helpful advice, perhaps?”
“Why don’t you start with talking to her? These things can be resolved with open communication.”
I snorted.
“That, or you could make her eat her words, literally. Stuff those envelopes down her throat.” She yelled over the loud howling in the background.
Jeez, remind me never to make Jennifer angry.
“If I talk to her, more than likely I’ll end up losing my temper. Then I’ll have to change into a werewolf and that messes up my hair and nails. I try to change over as little as possible. Any other suggestions?”
“The police.”
“Well...I guess I can call the pack police, but I hate involving them, unless it’s absolutely necessary. I’d only call them if I felt my life was seriously in danger. There’s so much red tape involved. And honestly, how much trouble can little Lily Friedman cause, anyway? Besides scaring away potential clients.”
“Look, Rylie. You never know how wacky people can get. Or werewolves, or whatever. The point is, she is making your life uncomfortable, at the least. You have to do something. I know you have a big heart, and you want to help everyone. But you can’t let people walk all over you all the time.”
“You’re right, just some of the time.” I laughed, trying to make a joke. The other end of the line remained silent. Even the dog had stopped barking. Tough crowd. “I know. I’ll talk to her, I promise.”
“Sometimes you have to take a stand.”
“Thanks for listening, Jennifer.”
“You know I’m always here for you… I worry about you. Remember, anytime you need to talk.” She paused. “Now listen, let’s lighten the mood. Victoria’s Secret after work, right?”
“Do I have a choice?” I groaned.
“No, you don’t.”
“Then I’ll see you after work. Should I meet you there?”
“I’m coming home first, so I’ll see you upstairs. We can leave from there. Can you take off a little early?”
“Sure, shouldn’t be a problem. How about four?”
“I’ll see you then. Oh, and no backing out. You’re going shopping, understand?”
“Yes, ma’am,” I said. I let the sarcasm ooze.
I hung up knowing what needed to be done, but I didn’t know if I could do it. Regardless, it would have to wait. I had a meeting in ten minutes.
Someone knocked on the door. My appointment was ten minutes early. Great. I hadn’t even put on my matchmaking hat yet.
“Come in.”
Perhaps I shouldn’t just blindly invite folks in--especially considering present Lily-fraught circumstances--but wasn’t that what appointments were for? You got who you expected when you were expecting them. At least that was the way it was supposed to work. Living my life in fear was not an option.
The door creaked open and a dark head popped through. Martin Blake stood in the doorway--Lily’s ex-love. The true beer expert and notorious real-lime lover. “Hi, Miss Cruz. Can I speak with you? Is this a good time?”
“Oh hi, Martin. Please come in and have a seat.” With a wave of my hand, I motioned for him to sit in front of my desk. The same chair in which Lily had been crying over him a short time ago. “It’s fine, I’m not expecting a client for a few minutes.”
If he was here to chew me out like Lily had, I would scream. There was no way I could keep my cool any longer if that happened. One jilted customer at a time was all I could handle.
“Is everything all right?” I asked in my best business tone. Grandma Cruz always said you could attract more werewolves with honey BBQ ribs. I never said her advice made sense.
By the pained look on Martin’s face, I wasn’t sure. More than likely, this was a visit to complain about his ex. An ex whom I had matched him with--my responsibility.
“Not exactly.” He paused. With a serious tone evident in his voice, he continued. “I need Lily to leave me alone. She is driving me crazy. When I signed up for your service I had no idea it would be like this. She’s everywhere I go. When I go to the grocery store, she’s there. When I hit the tanning salon, she’s there. I mean, everywhere I go.”
Bingo. Another unhappy customer. I guess with all my success of late I had to expect some negative experiences once in a while. It was bound to happen. A flash of my parents’ money circling the toilet bowl and then sucked away ran through my head.
“I am truly sorry, Mr. Blake.” I steepled my fingers to let him know I was all business. At least that’s what I’d seen businesspeople do on television when they were in serious negotiations. I hoped it worked for me.
“Please, call me Martin.” He showed a toothy smile. His green eyes reminded me of two pools of stagnant water.
“Martin, I do a thorough screening of all clients, but sometimes it’s inevitable that a relationship won’t work out. I can offer assistance with obtaining a restraining order. Other than that, I don’t kn
ow if I can help.”
He rested his chin in his hand and mulled over what I’d offered. “I’m not sure I want her to get in trouble.”
“I don’t know that she would get in trouble. It would just keep her from having contact with you.”
“I’ll think about it. I hate to see someone go to jail.” He shifted in the chair and pulled at the collar of his slightly wrinkled striped shirt. It was the best I could offer him. I couldn’t blame him for not doing it, because I hadn’t, either. I wasn’t taking my own advice.
“There was one other problem,” he said, adding to my surprise.
Things kept getting worse by the minute. I wasn’t sure I wanted to hear what he had to say.
“Yes, what’s that?” I forced myself to ask.
“I don’t have a mate now.”
Whew. That I could fix, or I thought I could. Maybe he was unmatchable. No, everyone had a mate. “Oh right. Sorry, I wasn’t thinking. Would you like me to find someone else for you? There wouldn’t be an additional charge, of course.” It was the least I could do.
“Actually, I already had someone in mind.” He fiddled with his hands.
“Wow, good for you. Well, that does make my job easy. Is it someone I know?” He didn’t waste any time getting over Lily. I hoped the next one liked fresh limes.
“Yes, you know her.”
Hmm. Who could it be? He had me curious. I placed my hands on my desk and waited. He watched me, but didn’t say a word. We were at an impasse. Who was going to talk first?
“Do you want to tell me who it is?” I pressed.
“I’m a little too embarrassed to say.”
Now he did really have me intrigued. Who could the mysterious woman be?
“Don’t be shy. Maybe I can help set up a date. I can’t help you if I don’t know who she is.”
“It’s you,” he blurted.
Oh God. The walls closed in on me. My throat tightened. The air zapped from my lungs--I couldn’t breathe. Martin wanting me as a mate was the last thing I needed.
“It’s just that I watch you move and you’re so eloquent. And you smell like cookies. Cinnamon cookies no less, my favorite. Not all werewolves smell that great, ya know?”
