Wilder (The Wild Ones Book 3)

by C. M. Owens

  I hear something shutting and the sound of a dryer starting, and I smile a little more.

  “They should be dry when we get back,” he says as he walks toward me, pulling on a coat as he moves.

  I’m still staring at him as he deliberately walks right up to me, crowds my space with his distinct lack of personal boundaries, and leans forward.

  A slight squeal escapes me, because I swear he’s going to kiss me. He reaches behind me instead, and he smirks down at me as he pulls back, holding out a coat for me.

  “You’ll need shoes too. Or do you want to keep staring at me? We can stay here if you’d like to see more of me,” he suggests.

  Talk about forward and unapologetic about it. If he hadn’t saved my life, I’d be hella turned off by him. Since he did save it, I’m still too caught up in the hero effect.

  At least that’s what I’m telling myself when I let him help me into the coat. His fingertips deliberately brush my neck as he pulls the hood out over the coat, and I bite back a grin.

  Subtle flirting is a lost art.

  First the cheesy arm-stretch that turned into him putting his arm behind me. Now this.

  Pulling the scrunchy off my wrist, I twist my slightly damp hair up.

  “Your nose is still a little red,” he tells me, lightly tapping my nose with his knuckle.

  “It’s not every day a frozen lake tries to kill me.”

  “You think the entire world is out to kill you, don’t you?” he muses, pressing closer.

  I stumble back a step and find myself pushed against a bunch of hanging coats.

  “Just this place, actually. I do just fine at home and pretty much anywhere else in the world,” I assure him.

  His grin crawls across his face anew.

  “You’re even pretty in my clothes,” he tells me very abruptly.

  I’m so caught off guard by the sudden compliment that I just blink at him. Especially since he says it so sincerely.

  He should really give me some space so that my head isn’t all sorts of confused by his proximity. Because damn…he’s pretty too.

  White teeth flash through perfect lips that are outlined by a damn sexy beard. Really, though, beards have never been my thing. Now, however…

  “Didn’t you say we were going for food?” I ask, needing some space.

  Without another word, he steps to the side, and I pull on my boots, eyeing the cougar as he opens the door.

  She’s licking a paw, eyes already trained on me like she’s been burning holes through my head through the door. I bet she’s been tracking my movements too.

  “Is she the jealous type?” I ask, wondering if I’m about to become cat chow now that she’s confirmed me as her enemy.

  “Nah. I’m the only one she’ll let touch her, so just don’t try to pet her and you’ll be okay,” he tells me.

  As if I’d ever try petting any wild animal. Not even Bambi would have gotten a head pat out of me.

  The cougar gives me one last menacing growl before turning and bolting off the porch, racing into the woods.

  “So what does Count Chocula look like?” I ask…

  It’s possibly the oddest question to ever leave my lips.

  “He looks like a regal piece of fuzzy chocolate, according to my sister when she was sixteen,” he states with a certain dismissive air to the question. “He also wears a set of bells around his feet. We did that to keep track of him so he couldn’t ever sneak up on us. It doesn’t hinder his hunting skills too much, though. He’s still faster than his prey.”

  My mouth opens and closes. I decide against saying anything. I’ve insulted his hometown enough to be considered a major douche as is.

  That solves it. We’re selling the cabin. We simply don’t belong. There’s nothing wrong with them. We just can’t blend into the crowd here.

  As Kai walks to his Jeep and opens the passenger side door, staring over at me with both amusement and unhidden interest, I decide staying until the end of the week won’t kill me.

  Hopefully.

  Wild Ones Tip #477

  If it’s sharp, then we like to play with it. A helmet’s not gonna help too much.

  Chapter 6

  KAI

  *******

  Like fucking putty in my hand. Finally.

  Hale Vincent can kiss my ass. No way is he still out ahead of me, because my girl is wearing my clothes through town.

  People scatter like cockroaches when they see me coming, and I smirk, dropping my arm around Piper’s shoulders. Now no one here will have the balls to try and woo her.

  Hence the reason I wanted to walk her through town in my clothes…

  She immediately stares over at where my arm is hanging, shaking her head as she fights a smile, not protesting any. She’s warming up.

  Cougar is going to get an extra special meal for this.

  The local gossip squad are all gawking at us, pressed against the shop glass windows, as we head down the main sidewalk. Within the hour, everyone will know Piper is off limits.

  “I like the town,” she says with a slow smile. “It’s clear you guys don’t get too many visitors. Everyone is staring,” she adds, completely clueless.

  They’re not staring because she’s new to town. They’re staring because she’s mine and they’re nosy fucks. They’re probably curious how amazing she must be to pique a Wilder’s interest, but also smart enough not to get too close and piss me off.

  Skunks can sometimes get involved if I get pissed off.

  “Yep,” I state, not elaborating.

  My feet almost trip over themselves when I see Lenny Nickel heading toward us. Shiiiiiiit.

  Not now, Lenny. Not. Now.

  He’s not smart enough to be scared of me, no matter what I do to him.

  His eyes widen like he’s just spotted me, and I mentally curse for not taking the opportunity to escape—

  “Kai Wilder!” he shouts.

  Piper startles against me, eyes wide as she stares ahead at Lenny, who is pointing a finger as he gives me a furious glare.

  “Shit brains, not now,” I tell him, giving a not-so-subtle head gesture toward the girl I’m regaling with all my refined charm and shit.

  Everyone remaining on the sidewalk scatters into whatever door they can reach first. Piper is tense against me.

  Lenny is going to pay if he makes me look like an idiot. Fucking Nickels. They have a quarter of the sense a real nickel has.

  I snort, laughing at my own mental joke.

  Lenny narrows his eyes.

  “I challenge ye to the ye old duel!” he shouts, pulling his hatchet from the holster on his side. “That squirrel done chewed through all of my underwear, my mattress, and my collection of old-school porn magazines! This means war!”

  “Take the fucking hint and don’t piss me off right now,” I warn him. “Besides, that collection of old-school porn was just your dad’s hand-me-downs. Most people would have been pretty fucking repulsed to take their dad’s porn.”

  He looks confused for a second. “Why? My dad’s cool. You know that.” His eyes narrow. “You talking bad about my daddy now, Wilder?”

  Rolling my eyes, I count the many ways I’m going to punish him for this. “Think about what your hands have on them when you put those magazines away…”

  He blinks as though he’s never thought of it that way, and he recoils, seeming lost inside his own head. There’s a telling moment when true disgust drives him to almost gagging. I’m half-worried I’ve broken his brain when he shakes his head, shudders dramatically, and makes some hellacious sound.

  Piper simply stares with wide, unblinking eyes, her lips parted in surprise.

  “Why’d you have to go and put that in my head? You’ll pay for that too!” he threatens.

  Piper makes a smothered squeal, hands going to her mouth as her eyes go wide in her head, because the stupid fuck hurls the hatchet in our direction. Before it can reach us, Piper drops like dead weight to the ground, coverin
g her head as she screams.

  The hatchet stabs the thin tree beside me, cracking the wood loudly, as it wedges in there real damn tight.

  Fucking hell. I thought she wasn’t a screamer. I think she only screams louder when she sees the hatchet has hit its mark. I’m not sure why a hatchet in a tree warrants all those high pitches.

  Lenny cringes along with me, and I glare at him again.

  “Can this wait? I’m on a date,” I tell him.

  His eyes widen like he’s just noticed the soft girl he’s effectively terrified.

  “My bad. Hey. Nice to meet you. Friends call me Lenny,” Lenny tells her as he hurriedly moves in our direction and crouches down in front of her, sticking out his hand.

  Piper gawks at him like he’s the loony motherfucker he is. He grins at her, never reading a situation very well.

  “Everyone calls you Lenny,” I bite out when she actually reaches up and finally shakes his hand.

  “Everyone’s my friend,” he chirps.

  “It’s your only fucking name,” I remind him.

  “Lenny Paul Nickels. I’d say that means I have three names,” he dutifully informs me, still grinning like a sly fox at my girl.

  Since she’s wearing my clothes, clearly that means she’s accepted her fate.

  I don’t particularly like her touching him. Lenny gets a lot of damn girls. Not girls from Tomahawk, because they know him too well, but other girls.

  I don’t know how. It’s never made sense. It’s baffled all of us since the days puberty began. He’s one Wild One who has no trouble at all with the opposite sex, even though the Nickels have shit for brains.

  All of them.

  She wastes no time ripping her hand back away, so the jealousy ebbs quickly.

  “I’m Piper,” she tells him as I help her back to her feet.

  I smirk again when she moves to be a lot closer to my side, and Lenny stands as he pockets his hands, rocking back on his heels.

  “Is throwing hatchets and challenging each other to a duel as normal to the two of you as you make it seem?” she asks uneasily.

  I knew he’d make me look bad.

  My arm goes around her shoulders, and she seems more relieved than amused this time. She even puts her arm around my waist, and Lenny’s eyebrows almost hit his hairline.

  “You’re really his date?” he asks.

  “So we’re just going to skip right over my question. Got it,” she mumbles as she glances over at the shop next to us…and jumps.

  Her hand squeezes on my side, but I’ve already returned my attention to the dumbfounded Nickel. It’s not like I can do anything about the nosy townies of Tomahawk.

  To them, she’s an exotic creature if she’s wrapped around me. It’s the first time they’ve ever seen anything like it.

  “She’s really my damn date,” I tell Lenny, glaring a little. “Why’s that so hard to believe?”

  “Because you’re you,” he answers too quickly, eyes roaming over her like he’s looking for a visible defect. “Do you like explosives?” he asks her.

  She’s silent, eyes on the shop still, seeming to be lost from the conversation now.

  “She a dummy or something?” Lenny stage-whispers, warily inspecting her now.

  “I’m a damn good catch. I just get overlooked a lot. I have game,” I grind out, wishing I could tie his feet to the back of my Jeep and drag him around.

  I know better. Fancy girls won’t like that sort of thing.

  His phone starts ringing, and he absently answers it.

  “Yeah?” is the only word he says for a minute, eyes still on Piper like she’s a mythical, dangerous creature of some sort.

  He hands me his phone. “It’s your mom.”

  I don’t even bother asking how she knows I’m here with Lenny right now as I take the phone.

  “Ma, you’re starting to scare me with how often you do this now,” I tell her, turning my head away.

  The second-to-last thing I want is for Piper to think I’m a momma’s boy in his late twenties. The last thing I want to do is piss off my crazy ass momma.

  “I put some candles in the house. All you gotta do is light them. I spread around some rose petals, and left some bump-and-grind music in the CD player—just press play. There’s some of that fruity booze in the fridge. There’s also some fun chocolate in the kitchen—my treat—”

  “Ma, you’re officially out of your mind,” I state dryly, shutting my eyes as I take a calming breath.

  “I poked holes in all your condoms. Penny convinced me it’d be wrong to do it without telling you, so I couldn’t do it without feeling guilty,” she drones on.

  “This is why I asked for my emergency key back,” I dutifully point out.

  My cheek apparently bumps the speaker phone button, because the phone is a lot louder when she talks again.

  “If you have problems getting it up, I bought you some—”

  “Ma!” I hiss, eyes widening when Piper chokes on air.

  Of course this would fucking happen. I hate damn phones.

  “Fine. Fine. I’ll leave you alone,” Ma says as I struggle to get the damn phone off the obnoxious volume.

  There’s a reason none of us ever got a phone. We knew if we got one, Ma would get one. And then we’d never have peace again.

  “Oh! Pick me up some of those winged pads while you’re out, would you? I’ve been flowing too much all—”

  I barely manage to end the call, and Lenny almost looks too disgusted to take the phone back from me. So this is hell. This is why guys don’t introduce chicks to their mothers before they’ve bedded them and robbed them of all rational thought.

  “When I see Liam Harper again, I’m going to punch him in the face for giving Ma that phone,” I tell Lenny with all the seriousness I can muster.

  “Gut shot would be better,” he says without missing a beat. “He may have rock hard abs, but he’s a pansy with gut shots. Face shots piss off Kylie too much. Trust me, that bitch has only gotten crazier since her ego shot up three times higher than it already was. And she hangs out with the Vincents more than ever, which of course makes her worse instead of better. People rub off on her too easy, and the Vincents be loco.”

  He twirls his finger in a circle next to his head.

  “Vincents? As in Hale Vincent?” Piper asks in confusion.

  “Damn, you let her meet the Vincents and didn’t bring her out to meet us first?” Lenny says on a shocked breath as he covers his heart with his hand. “That’s cold, man.”

  Why did some rich Ken doll have to stalk her home from California just because he fell for Kylie? I wouldn’t have minded him if not for the phone thing.

  I almost forget Piper is beside me, until I feel her tugging on my shirt, drawing my attention back. Right. She just heard my mother once again trying to turn her into a human incubator for a child I don’t plan on having.

  At least ten people are pressed against the glass, gawking at Piper and pointing at her very obviously. They scatter away from the window, feigning innocence, when I smirk in their direction. A few quake in fear.

  Putting my arm back around her shoulders, I start guiding her away from the fish tank, heading toward the diner.

  Lenny falls in step beside her.

  “This is a date. Fuck off—”

  “But you’re so pretty! Just imagine how pretty our kids would be!” Krysta Nickel shouts as she chases Benson’s prissy brother, who is walking a lot faster, looking slightly wide-eyed.

  He says nothing, and she keeps at him like it’s her mission.

  “I’m good in bed, if that’s the problem,” she assures him. “Guys always rave about my skills!”

  Lenny turns a little green. It’s what gets rid of him. He’s gone in the next instant.

  “I’m not having babies with you just because you like the way I look. Do you hear how crazy that sounds? I don’t even know you!” Deacon—I think that’s his name—shouts.

  Piper almost cra
shes against me when she spins to get a better look at him. Great. Now I’ve got to punch him too. Never had a problem with him until now. What if Piper turns into the stalker Krysta has clearly turned into?

  Girls seem to be into the pretty-boy types like that. All the women in town went crazy over Kylie’s pretty boy for a long damn time, until Kylie laid claim.

  I’m definitely punching his face so that he doesn’t draw Piper in like one of his flies.

  “Please! One of my best friends is married to your brother. That makes us practically like non-blood-related family. Unlike Lilah, I don’t care if a litter comes out of me, so long as they have our good looks, my family heritage, and your family’s money,” Krysta carries on.

  “Is this for real? Or is this some curbside skit?” Piper asks in a flat, even tone, eyes still wide as she just stares at Deacon.

  I have no idea what that second question even means.

  “You got a thing for Deacon too?” I ask a little bitterly.

  All the damn women in town bake him things and take it to him every time he comes to visit.

  “Do you even hear the words coming out of your mouth?” Deacon shouts at her, putting both of his hands in his hair and pulling at it like he’s losing his mind.

  “Do you hear the words coming out of my mouth?” she volleys, hands on her hips as she smirks. “I’m offering free sex.”

  “You’re offering a lifetime responsibility you don’t seem to fully comprehend!” he snaps as he gets in his car and hurriedly speeds off.

  Krysta glances over, spotting me, and rolls her eyes. “I’m wearing him down. He’ll be wrapped around my finger soon enough.”

  She gives herself a pat on the back—literally—and struts away like she’s not humiliated by the public rejection.

  “I don’t even want to understand why everyone is still more interested in me than the crazy shit that just went down,” Piper says evenly, casting a slanted look toward another shop with gawking patrons.

  There’s a crackle, a screech, and a loud pop that snaps through the air. Immediately after, I hear Lindsey Stirling suddenly blasting over the town speakers. Piper startles for the hundredth time since we started our perilous trek down Main Street.