Unraveling Midnight

by Stephanie Beck

  She tossed her trash in the garbage and took a little drink of water with her new endeavor in mind. There was never a better time to start learning than the present. She set her cup aside and froze when something out the window caught her eye. Scott had joked about how no raccoons or squirrels hung around their house anymore, so she knew the movement hadn’t come from them. The backyard was fenced in and whatever had moved was within its barrier. She ducked to the side of the window, but kept watching, hoping she was wrong.

  Nothing moved. While Lucy knew her imagination could be wild, she also knew a real bump when she heard it. Outside the kitchen door was a patio and she heard something…something that was turning the door handle. Damn Scott for never locking the freaking door.

  There was no time to yell for Scott and if whoever was at the door actually came in, the kids were only a room away. Her breath caught in her chest and she looked for some kind of weapon. Knives would have been the logical answer, but the first thing she saw was her new knitting tote. She’d only just bought the needles. They’d been wicked expensive, but she’d looked at them as an investment and when she pulled them from the tote, she was grateful for their length and unrelenting points.

  The knob on the door turned in earnest, her heartbeats marking the moments in suspended time. No one was supposed to be coming. Scott had made it very clear that he was a lone wolf and had to take special care with his kids. Whoever was entering wasn’t welcome.

  “Lucy? Are you up?”

  The sound of Jessie’s voice did what nothing else could have done when it came as the door opened. Spurred on by the feral need to protect the child, Lucy launched at the dark figure entering in the house, slashing blindly with the heavy needles. Lucy continued to stab at him despite his yelling. Jessie screamed and within moments, the kitchen exploded into a frenzy. It wasn’t safe yet, her mind shouted as she kept striking out. The intruder was a threat to her family, her pups, her mate. There was no way in hell she was going to let him hurt them.

  Someone grabbed her from behind and Lucy fought the new attacker, trying to pierce the hands with the bloody needles so she could get back to the real threat.

  “Whoa, whoa. Lucy, it’s okay. It’s okay.”

  “Let me go. We can’t let him hurt the kids. Jessie—”

  “You got him, Lucy,” Scott said, his voice calm and soothing, like he was attempting to calm a crazed animal. “You got him good and there’s no way he’ll ever hurt the kids now.”

  “So why is he still there?” she demanded, kicking her feet out at the man groaning on the ground. “You’d better run before he lets me go.”

  “He’s a friend, honey,” Scott said and she froze, suddenly feeling like a fool. She’d overreacted and this time she’d hurt a friend. “You didn’t know. All you knew was that he was coming in the back way and being sneaky. You couldn’t have done a more perfect job. He deserved to be skewered, right, Owen?”

  “Shit, no, I didn’t deserve to get stabbed.” The man on the floor gasped and coughed. “That sucked. Hell, Chris said she’s the one who called for us to come check on you guys. Do you sic your crazy human on all pack visitors or am I special?”

  “I’m not crazy,” Lucy snapped, suddenly not so worried she’d hurt an actual friend. “And if any other werewolf thinks they can sneak through our back door when our babies are sleeping down the hall, I’ll stab them right through their hearts.”

  “Bloodthirsty for a human.”

  “Jeez, Owen, shut up. You’re a moron,” Scott said, but his grip on Lucy didn’t ease and she wondered if in addition to claiming his children as her own, maybe she had taken on a bit of her mate’s need for blood and violence. “You know you’re just jealous anyway.”

  “Yeah, maybe,” Owen muttered.

  Scott tucked her to his side and Lucy dropped the slippery knitting needles. “Can he get the hell out of here now?”

  “You bet, sweetheart. Give me a minute to see if he has anything interesting to say.”

  There was nothing the idiot could say that could be remotely interesting, but since Scott was holding her and the big danger groaned like a pansy on the floor, she tried to relax a little.

  “Owen, what the hell were you thinking, sneaking into my house? If she hadn’t torn you a new one, I would have.”

  “Aw, come on. I was going to wait at the table. You would have woke up, offered me food since I was in the kitchen and it would have been fine.” Owen pushed to his knees slowly. “How was I supposed to know you had a rabid human on guard?”

  “You’re a werewolf, right?” Jessie asked. “You should have smelled her.”

  Reminded of the little girl, Lucy looked up and saw not only Jessie stood in the shadows looking on with amazement, but the boys were there as well. The blood didn’t seem to bother them and the violence hadn’t sent any of them running either. It was too crazy, too wrong.

  Her hands and arms were covered in blood, the second T-shirt she’d borrowed from Scott a mess as well. If anyone noticed, they didn’t say a word. Laughter bubbled up from somewhere deep within her and Lucy couldn’t stop the irrational babble spewing from her lips at the absurdity of what had just happened. More laugher at random times. What the heck was wrong with her?

  Scott held her tighter and she realized her laugh was a tiny bit crazy. But to be fair, she’d attacked a werewolf with knitting needles and lived to tell about it.

  * * * *

  “I think your human might be a little overwhelmed, there, Scott.”

  “I think you’re an asshole who’s going to get his butt kicked after my human is laid down and checked out. You better not have hurt her.”

  “Hurt her? Did you not see the freaking holes in my arms? I didn’t even touch her.”

  Scott kept a tight hold on Lucy. She didn’t try to escape him, but the second the adrenaline high topped out and she crashed, exhaustion would invade and he wanted to be there to catch her. She might even feel bad and cry, which would not bode well for Owen Meyters, the main enforcer of the Haven pack. When he’d met with Owen and his alpha, Chris Meyters, he’d liked them both a lot.

  They were good, honest wolves, and he hadn’t perceived either as stupid. He was rewriting his first impression of Owen. The idiot Were was lucky it had been Lucy in the kitchen. If it had been him, Scott wasn’t sure if he’d have been able to differentiate friend from foe, especially after the last few intense days and with his kids and mate in the house. That Lucy had taken on an intruder for the sake of protecting his children—their children—humbled him and guaranteed Owen another ass-kicking if Lucy felt at all bad about hurting him.

  “She’s fine, it’s me who’s bleeding from three freaking holes. What did she get me with? Knife sharpeners?”

  Scott smiled, and petted his hand through Lucy’s hair. She’d turned into his arms and clung to him while she fought to catch her breath, still in obvious shock. “She defended her mate and pups the best way she knew how—with knitting needles.”

  “Knitting needles? Ahh,” Owen groaned. “No freaking way. I’m never going to live this one down. Brought low by a damn human with sticks.”

  “Knitting needles aren’t sticks,” Lucy protested. “Those ones were handcrafted out of steel and cost more than your ugly shoes.”

  Scott rolled his eyes when Owen immediately looked down at his feet. The Were was a bit dumber than he’d thought. And Lucy was very articulate even when approaching hard shock.

  “Kids, head back to bed,” Scott said. “Greg, lock up for me, will you? I need to get Lucy laid down.”

  “She saved the day,” Jessie whispered to her brothers. “You should have seen her. She attacked like a tiger or something.”

  “Not a wolf?” Ross asked.

  “Way scarier than a wolf. It was awesome.”

  Owen chuckled and Scott bit back his own. Lucy was truly awesome and though Scott would have said he’d always been proud of her, he was floored by how she’d risen to the occasion. A bette
r mate for him or better mother for the pups…there was no such thing.

  “Owen, you can head down to the basement for the night if you want. There are bandages and first aid supplies in the bathroom down there.”

  “Yeah, I’ll head down and we can catch up in the morning. Night, Lucy.”

  “I can’t believe he’s talking to me,” Lucy mumbled against his ear. “Crazy stinking werewolf. I swear to gosh, I should have stabbed him in the mouth.”

  “Bloodthirsty… I should have figured you’d find a mate like her, Scott. Lucky bastard.”

  Owen’s words were too quiet for Lucy to hear, thank goodness, because Scott didn’t know how the ‘bloodthirsty’ label would go over with his usually even-tempered female.

  “He’s still talking,” Lucy muttered and Scott laughed out loud.

  “You are fantastic. I adore you and I can’t wait to hear about what exactly happened. Try to calm down for now, okay, sweetheart?”

  Her laughter turned to hiccups and Scott was thankful the hiccups weren’t tears. He turned on the bathroom light and set her on the counter to survey the damage. She had blood on her hands and quite a bit had spattered onto her sleepshirt as well.

  “Oh my gosh, I’m covered in blood. Get it off.”

  “Shhh,” he said, already turning the water on. “Calm down, Lucy. You’re a thinker, remember? What would your grandma say about this?”

  “She’d say not to stab people in the kitchen with knitting needles.”

  “She’d say to protect your family and to do it in the most practical way possible,” he replied, using the warmed washcloth to gently scrub away the blood left from Owen. He hoped the other Were found the first aid kit quickly because he’d lost a lot of blood. “And that’s exactly what you did. You assessed the situation and you protected Jessie the best way you knew how. I’m so proud.”

  “He’s a friend!”

  “Naw, I don’t like him that much. You can stab him whenever you want,” he told her, drying her hands and considering the best way to get her out of her soiled shirt.

  “Get this off of me, please,” she said, wriggling away from another of his ruined shirts. He considered the options and shrugged. It was wrecked anyway, so he tore it from neckline to hem. She shuddered as he pulled it away from her body, her nakedness not even an issue. “Ahhh, thanks. Throw it away. Gross. Are you sure you’re not mad?”

  “Of course I’m not mad—I was planning buying a few new T-shirts this weekend anyway.”

  “No, about your friend.”

  “I already told you that you did the right thing. Besides, I honestly don’t like him much. Want me to grab you another shirt and take you downstairs to stab Owen again to prove it?”

  She laughed and wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him close. The crazy and panic had ebbed enough for him to know the hug was just a hug and that made it wonderful. He moved between her open thighs, taking full advantage of the embrace and since she didn’t stiffen or push him away, he figured she needed the contact too.

  “I think I get it now,” she whispered.

  “Get what?”

  “I think I get why you went and beat up the robber. I would stab Owen again if I thought he was a threat. I’d do the same a hundred times if I thought it would keep you and the kids safe. I’m sorry if I made you feel bad for doing what you knew was right.”

  He nuzzled her neck. “Don’t be sorry. I’m glad you understand, but I never want you in a scary situation again. I’ll do my job better so you can keep your needles to yarn only.”

  “They really were too expensive to use as weapons.” She laughed and rubbed her nose to his shoulder and he knew it was a good laugh. “I had plans to jump you when I got back to bed, but is it okay if we go to sleep?”

  “You bet, sweetheart.” He brushed his hand through her hair.

  “Could you maybe be a wolf? We got distracted last time you said you’d show me.”

  He froze, the request so unexpected he had to let it process a moment.

  “Are you sure that’s what you want? After everything, I don’t want to give you another shock.”

  “No, I really want…unless it would make you uncomfortable,” she said in a rush.

  “If the wolf is what you want, you’ve got him. He’s been dying to meet you,” he replied, lifting her from the counter into his arms. “I just didn’t want to scare you.”

  She shook her head against his shoulder, the fatigue he’d anticipated after her rush making her quiet. He stopped by his dresser and grabbed a fresh T-shirt for her before setting her on the bed. She gave him another hard hug before she freed him and let him put the shirt over her head.

  “Did I ever tell you I always wanted a pet?” she asked. “My grandma was allergic so I had tons of stuffed toys instead. Cats always made sense with the knitting stuff, but I think I could embrace being a canine person. Who’d have thought one I’d have my own wolf pack to play with? Can I rub your belly?”

  He chuckled and shucked his clothes. “Sure, baby, you can rub whatever you want. Just scoot back and get cozy. And because I won’t be able to talk as a wolf—sleep well and I love you.”

  Her gaze softened as she did as he asked, giving him plenty of room on the bed to change and lay.

  “Thanks, Scott. I love you too.”

  He changed under her the gaze of her wide eyes. It only took a moment and, unlike the last time she’d witnessed the change, he wasn’t beat up, so this one didn’t hurt. He nosed aside the blankets and crawled deeper into bed. The wolf could hear Owen already snoring in the basement and the kids were whispering quietly in their beds, nearly back to sleep as well, so the only thing left was to cuddle with his mate. He turned in a circle and lay down beside Lucy, tucking his nose to her cheek. She giggled and he licked her, making her laugh harder.

  Like he was one of the stuffed animals she’d spoken of, she wrapped her arm around him and squeezed, holding him to her chest. He didn’t fight the hold. No, that would have been insane. Instead, he settled deeper into the bed, letting her cuddle him however she needed. As he fell asleep, he hoped she’d remember the belly rub in the morning.

  Chapter 17

  Thirty-five boxes. Lucy counted them again and, while she was thrilled to have them finally in her shop, she couldn’t believe they’d come at the same time. She’d put aside the shop for a day to take care of the kids after their long night with the intruder. Now there was nothing keeping her away from getting things done.

  The haze of new love was wonderful, but the shop had to get set up if she was really going to be able to enjoy an everyday life with Scott. She didn’t want the added stress of restocking the shop and stilted income to distract her from her new family. Jessie had wanted to come along to help and, with the daunting task before her, Lucy wished she’d taken the girl up on her offer. Jessie wouldn’t have been a huge help, but still, the task would have been less intimidating with company.

  Lucy looked again between the plethora of boxes and spans of empty shelving. It was going to take her weeks to get everything sorted and into the baskets she had yet to unpack from their boxes still waiting in the back room. Even then she’d have pricing and labeling and—the bell over the door twinkled and Lucy cursed.

  “Hello, hello.”

  She should have locked the front door, but she’d gotten distracted by the delivery and had left it open. Her heart sped slightly as she braced for whomever was there. With forced calm, she walked into the main shop. She wondered if she’d ever be able to answer her door without the panic. With only the empty shelves, she recognized the newcomer instantly—at least one of them.

  She stepped toward the counter where she’d left her knitting needles. Owen must have seen where her gaze landed because he took a step back.

  “You. What are you doing here?” she demanded.

  Owen rolled his eyes but made no move to walk farther into the shop. The Were was younger than Scott and good-looking enough, though he had absolu
tely nothing on her mate. And Scott was just that, her mate. If Owen needed a reminder, well, she was all too happy to oblige.

  “Come on, can’t we start over?” Owen asked, all charm. “I didn’t mean to scare you and I hope you know I had no intention of hurting your step-pups or Scott.”

  “Yeah, I know,” she admitted. “That doesn’t mean I won’t cut you with my new scissor if I think that changes.”

  “Damn, Owen, you were right,” the short blond woman said with a laugh. “I do like her. A lot. I apologize for my husband’s cousin, Lucy. For all of his good points, he does tend to be a moron. My name is Mona Meyters. This is my husband, Chris. We’re the alphas of the werewolves in this part of the United States and we wanted to stop by and say hi and make sure everything was okay.”

  Lucy stiffened. Scott had explained why he and the kids weren’t welcomed into the Haven pack. Part of her could respect the decision, but mostly she thought it was bull honkey.

  “Well, I’d say things are approaching okay. Scott was the victim of a hit-and-run a few weeks ago, my shop was robbed and nearly destroyed, but the kids are all fine. And that’s what they are, kids. I understand your desire to keep your family safe, but this leaving things separate is ridiculous. I called weeks ago for help. If you thought anything at all of Scott, one of you would have come down then, not over a month later.”

  “Lucy—may I call you Lucy?” Chris asked.

  “You’re the one I spoke with on the phone,” she said, recognizing the tall, dark and handsome Were from the voice she’d heard.

  “Yes, I am. And I didn’t set aside your call. However, you’re human and humans always exaggerate werewolf injuries. Scott’s strong and I knew then, just like I know now, that he can take care of his family. And now I also know his mate can do the same.”