"I don't know. I think tonight's experience solidified it for me. I'm not cut out for this kind of work."
"Fair enough. Where can I find you then?"
Tania's gaze flittered behind Noah to Eliana and at how happy she was. Without worry and just enjoying her life as best she could. Tania wanted that.
"I work part time at Betty Jo's cafe. I'm a waitress."
He smiled. "Perfect."
"Tania, you ready to go?" Eliana asked as she approached.
Surprisingly, the two men weren't on her tail anymore.
"Yeah," Tania said, fumbling for her keys and still unable to take her eyes off of Noah.
"I'll see you around then," Noah said, backing away from her.
"Yeah…see you around," Tania said.
Before long, he'd put so much distance between them that his body became no more than shadow as he retreated back to the night club.
Once Tania was inside the car and had the engine started, Eliana asked, "Cute guy. Who was he?"
"He said his name was Noah."
"Noah? Never heard of him. You like him, don't you?"
"I just met him," Tania said.
"So?" Eliana replied.
Tania went home that night with a grin on her face that she couldn't even hide from her best friend. The other thing she went home with was his scent from the leather jacket. He reminded her so much of what she wanted in this life. The perfect husband. A family. And security.
Chapter 2
ONE WEEK LATER
* * *
Tania had just clocked in at Betty Jo's and the place was already packed. People were hungry, it seemed, and the cooks were swamped in the back. Her manager had already told her to expect to work a full shift tonight. One of the waitresses had called out sick and there was no telling how much more traffic they'd get. She didn't know what was going on in Aspen Valley to cause the surge in business, but the restaurant's owner wasn't complaining, and neither was she. Rent was due soon and since she quit her gig at LIVE nightclub, she certainly needed the money.
"Tania." The head waitress, Clara, bumped into her and handed her an order pad and then said, "What are you daydreaming about, girl? Do you see all these people in here waiting to eat? There's only three of us working these tables tonight. You take the smaller back section and Aimee and I will take the front."
"Works for me," Tania said, grabbing up a few menus from the hostess stand before heading toward a table full of hungry and impatient looking people.
Tania's shift had just gotten started, but she expected she'd be soaking her feet when she got home tonight.
Chapter 3
Noah couldn’t believe he was doing this. He was here. At Betty Jo's. He was actually following through with his plans of not letting this woman slip away from him. And for once, he lucked out. He spotted Tania the moment he entered the cafe. The wait to be seated in her section lasted over thirty minutes, but it was well worth it.
He couldn't tell if she looked more beautiful in her dancer outfit or in her waitress skirt and tights. She was just a natural beauty all around. The khaki skirt barely brushed the top of her knees and the apron was tied around her torso, cinching in her waist. Her hair was about waist length and jet black. Every time she took an order, she tucked her long bangs back behind her ear. He found her more interesting than the menu he pretended to review. The entree choices were extra appealing considering the fact that he hadn't had a decent meal in over a week, but he'd give up any meal to spend the day with her.
Everyone who worked at LIVE nightclub knew that the owner didn't particular care for intimate relationships between employees. But good thing that rule didn't apply anymore. It had been a week since Noah first met Tania and she hadn't been back to LIVE since. He didn't blame her. Even with his responsibilities as a bouncer, the incidents at the club tended to get a little nasty. Even nastier than the spats with the rival wolf packs back home.
Funny how things worked though. Noah was on an assignment for his Alpha to consult the Aspen Valley Pack enforcers on how his comrades kept the wolves of Timber Rock safe from outside human threats. The Aspen Valley wolves had done a standup job at forming alliances with neighboring Packs, but they faced a bigger threat from the humans who didn't want them there—humans that took any opportunity to drive them from the lands they'd been calling home for decades.
Lending support and demonstrating had been easy. All the Aspen Valley Pack enforcers had to do was implement the suggestions, no matter how trivial or unfair they might seem. The Timber Rock wolves had been surviving without hostile demonstration from opposing human groups for years and they planned to call Timber Rock their home for many more years to come. The consulting assignment his Alpha sent him on wasn't what was keeping Noah on his toes these days, it was Noah's temporary gig as a bouncer that proved to be the most exhausting. But the owner of LIVE had insisted that he work several roles in the club before giving Noah the primer on how he ran a successful nightclub. One day, Noah wanted to own a bar of his own. The Timber Rock territory was vast and there just weren't enough places for entertainment these days. The wolves were getting restless, maybe even a little bored. Fights between neighboring Packs broke out quite often. Noah was relieved to have a break from it all. And he was extra elated to have found a woman that had awakened feelings that had been dormant for as long as he could remember. No…he was wrong. He'd never had these feelings before. He had the urge to mate.
Noah rubbed at the mate mark on the inside of his left wrist. Someone else might have mistaken the imprint on his skin for a birthmark or maybe even a tattoo, but that wasn't so. His mate mark—which was in the shape of big ship—had never remained activated for this long. Plus he was certain that the birthmark right below Tania's collarbone was similar.
Tania came back around the corner again bringing in several glasses of ice cold water on a tray. Noah's location was in the far back behind a screen, so she hadn't even seen him yet. She was just that busy. She worked hard and diligently as she took orders from her guests and served a cute smile every time. She took the waters to the couple that was seated right at the same time he was, exchanged a few words with them, wrote something on a pad, and then tossed the empty tray on a cart.
The moment she lifted her gaze toward the corner section and spotted him, her lips fell apart and her eyes widened a little.
She came up to his table. “Hello Noah,” she said breathlessly.
Damn, she was beautiful. With the lighting just right in the diner, this allowed him to see her full beauty. He was glad he came. He needed this. He needed to know there was still something—someone—left in the world that could make him smile. A woman who could make him forget all of his troubles while he was with her.
He smiled. "Tania."
"Come for your jacket? It's in the back. I can get it for you."
He shook his head. "No, I came for you."
She grinned. "You found me."
"Wasn't hard. My problem was catching you here during your shifts."
She chuckled. "Yeah. My hours are all over the place. Sometimes I work first shift, and other times I'm scheduled to work until closing—just like tonight. I've even been here a few times overnight when our cleanup crew bailed."
"You're a dedicated hard worker. I can tell. It's pretty busy in here."
"I wish someone had warned me beforehand. I would've taken an aspirin or two to get me through it."
"There's a shop across the street. I can go grab a bottle for you," he offered.
"No need. You're so nice to offer, but I'll suck it up for a few more hours," she said.
"There's a number of things going on in town this week. We've been getting quite the crowd at LIVE too. The owner knows I'm leaving, but yet he's been trying to squeeze every last ounce of work out of me."
She laughed. "That's the way it goes sometimes."
"So, you like it here?" he asked.
"Yes, things are fine here," she said.
&nbs
p; Noah had a very unique skill, a skill that could detect when someone was lying or hiding the truth. Tania was lying.
"What would you rather be doing?" he asked.
Her eyebrows arched downward. "I do what I have to now, so that I can do what I want to later."
"Beautiful and smart. You'll succeed," he commented.
"I want to talk…I do, but I have a full section." She looked down at her wristwatch. "There's only about an hour until closing. We can hook up afterward. If you want…"
"Yes…afterward."
His gaze shifted to the front door of the cafe.
"You aren't in a rush, are you?" she asked.
"No, not in a rush at all. Unless you're sending me away," he replied.
"No, never. So, what would you like?"
She posed a pen over her pad. Her nails were painted a bright red to match her lipstick. She had the sexiest neck he'd ever seen. He couldn't stop himself from staring at her face, her neck, and her tits as they pushed against her tight top. Truth was, he wanted her. On a platter…or without. Didn't matter. He was so hungry to claim her, he'd take her just about anywhere and in any manner. He licked his lips thinking about how good she would taste and how sweet she would sound screaming his name if he bent her over the table and fucked her right now.
Noah blinked and shook the images from his head.
He took a deep breath and willed himself to control his urges. This wasn't the time to let his dick do the decision-making. Not with Tania. No. Tania was different.
"Whatever you suggest," he said.
She smiled. "Sit tight. I'll be right back."
Chapter 4
"Who was that guy you were talking to in your section?"
Tania was refilling a pitcher of iced tea at the drink station when the other waitress asked her the question.
"Which guy?" Tania asked, digging crushed iced from the freezer.
"You know which one I'm talking about," Aimee said. "The cute one with the green eyes and all the tattoos."
Tania grinned. "He is quite a catch, isn't it?"
"Yeah, just don't let him loose. Men like that are hard to come by in this town," Aimee said.
Tania piled a few empty glasses onto her serving tray. "He's still a mystery. I don't even know him."
Aimee smacked her gum and peered over the serving station in the direction of Noah.
"You know, he kind of looks like one of those loggers who live out in the mountains. He looks wild and rough, but in a sexy kind of way," Aimee said.
"Sound like you're into his kind," Tania teased.
"I wonder if he's a shifter." Aimee's statement came out more like a question.
Tania turned her attention back to Noah as he sat alone at the table, enjoying his meal. He used a knife and fork to cut into his steak just like everybody else. Buttered his yeast rolls just like she would expect. He looked like a normal human being—just like everybody else in the cafe.
Suddenly he lifted his gaze. Even with the large distance separating them, he managed to lock eyes with hers. He just sat back in his chair and grinned, watching her expression from across the room.
Her breath quickened and her body temperature rose quite a bit as she became the center of his attention yet again. Whatever he was, human or otherwise, she felt connected to him. That was strange. She barely knew—she didn't know him at all. Sooner or later, she'd find out more about him. She didn't know how much more she could take of him looking at her like she was the meal. She couldn't wait for her shift to be over and for everyone to leave the diner so she could talk with him later on.
Aimee cleared her throat. "He's got the hots for you, girl. And it looks like the feeling's mutual."
Tania shrugged. "Like I said, I don't really know."
"Slide him your phone number or something before he leaves," she suggested.
"Maybe." Tania gathered up her tray.
"Be careful too. One of the cops in my section said they've been on the look-out for a gang of criminals. Listen…"
Aimee turned up the volume of the radio by their workstation.
"Cops are on the lookout for four suspects in a string of unarmed car robberies. The men were masked and none have been identified. Although unarmed, they are considered to be very dangerous and aggressive. If you're in the city tonight, please use extreme caution and don't go out alone. Report any suspicious activities to police…"
"Sounds like the same old, same old. A bunch of guys trying to flip cars for a profit," Tania noted.
"How are they gonna sell a hot car?"
"Easy." Tania shrugged. "There are at least three chop shops within less than a hundred miles of Aspen Valley."
"What do you know about that anyway? I thought you were one of the good girls."
Tania grinned. "Just when I wanna be."
Aimee smiled. "Right. Just be careful when you clock out tonight, alright?"
"I'll be fine. I don't have to wait outside for Eliana. I've got the car tonight."
"Good," Aimee said. "Is she coming back to work? Ever?"
"She's full-time at her other gig now, so I doubt it," Tania said.
"You mean that shifter nightclub? Money must be really good," Aimee replied.
"She says it is and that she just puts up with a whole lot more crap than we do."
Aimee rolled her eyes. "Why don't I believe that? I get complaints even when the order is accurate, the food is exceptional, and I've got my best customer service smile pasted on my face."
Tania chuckled. "Let's get these people served. I'm trying to get out of here early tonight."
"I hope that's because you have a hot date with the green-eyed hottie checking you out," Aimee called out over her shoulder as she walked away.
Chapter 5
Relieve that Aimee agreed to cover the last thirty minutes of her shift, Tania cleaned up her station quickly and clocked out. Usually, she'd be the one covering the closing shifts for people, but tonight was different. It was her turn to check out early for a change. Besides, Noah was waiting on her in the lobby.
Stuff like this never happened to her. It wasn't that she wasn't approachable. Guys usually took notice, but nothing ever felt right about them. She wanted a boyfriend—a lover, and eventually a family and kids, but she wasn't about to rush things just because she was lonely.
She didn't know what it was about Noah, but it was like she understood him already. From what they'd discussed so far, they both had sketchy pasts. Pasts that shaped them into who they were today. She was anxious to get to know him better, but hopefully she wouldn't find out that he was like the rest of them—guys who said they wanted to change and make their life better, but hadn't even bothered to take the first step. Could Noah be different?
Tania grabbed her handbag from the locker and made a beeline for the lobby where she told Noah to wait. When she got there, the only person around was the hostess. All of the benches were empty. Her heart nearly dropped in her belly as she stood there in the center of the lobby with Noah's leather jacket draped across her right forearm, ready to give it to him…ready to see him again.
"Something wrong?" the hostess asked.
"Uh…" Tania didn't even know the girl by name. She had just started a week ago. Her mind was too occupied to think of the name now.
"No, I'm alright. Just looking for someone that's all," Tania said.
"But everyone has left or is already seated. By my count, we only have eleven guests inside right now, including the couple at table eight in your section," the hostess said proudly. "Looking for anyone in particular?"
"Um…no," she mumbled.
Tania nibbled at her bottom lip as her gaze shifted to the windows. In the parking lot, some cop cars were just pulling out and a few bystanders loitered around.
"Someone eating here saw something suspicious and called it in. Cops were looking for some guys," the hostess noted and then shrugged. "They must not have found what they were looking for."
"Weird.
You know what? I just remembered that I parked out back."
Going back into the little diner where Tania spent eight hours a day, six days a week on her feet wasn't what she had in mind tonight, but something didn't quite add up. Noah couldn't have just up and left after saying that he'd meet her in the lobby. But then again, she didn't even know this guy. She only thought she did.
"Dammit," Tania muttered as she took a quick glance in the direction of the table where Noah once sat. Of course, he wasn't there.
Aimee passed by holding a tray of empty dishes. "What's the matter? Don't tell me you let the hot guy get away."
Tania smirked and then rolled her eyes. "Then I won't. Thanks again for covering that last table for me."
"No problem. And I hope you got his number, at least."
Tania frowned. "No, I didn't. See you tomorrow."
Aimee made a tsk-tsk noise, shaking her head. "Girl, get it together or you'll miss out." She backed away, heading toward the kitchen.
Tania headed outside, wishing she had asked Noah for his number instead of agreeing to chat with him. It was probably a good thing that he'd left. Truth be told, she was dead tired and ready to get back to her apartment.
There was a brisk chill in the air as she walked out the backdoor. The asphalt was wet. Raindrops covered almost every surface. She heard cars whizzing by on the busy main road out in front of the diner. Police sirens blared somewhere off in the distance, but the noise was muffled by the breeze near the adjacent fence.
Tania wondered if Noah had gotten tired of waiting for her. Nonetheless, he wasn't here and she wasn't going to wait out here all night by herself. The area was safe for the most part, but nothing could come of her standing out in muddy puddles in the middle of the night. With a disappointed sigh, she tugged her wool coat tighter around her.
She had only taken a few steps when she heard something rustling in the bushes nearby. Thinking it was some old stray dog or cat looking for leftovers in the dumpster, she quickened her pace. When a dark figure merged from the shadows, she slid her fingers down into her handbag and clutched her pepper spray, ready to defend herself if she had to.
Aspen Valley Wolf Pack (The Complete Series) Page 70
