by K. S. Martin
She’s asleep and nestled in the crook of my shoulder. I slide my finger from her forehead down to the tip of her nose. She sighs and I can’t help the smile that spreads over my face. I love that sound. I kiss her forehead. She called that brotherly yesterday. I don’t get it. Why is that brotherly? I don’t see brothers kissing their sisters at all much less on the forehead. Maybe if he’s twenty and she’s six then I can see it but not at our age. I do it again just for spite and grin at her when her eyes flutter open.
“Hi.” She murmurs. I kiss her mouth. She prefers that. “I haven’t brushed my teeth yet.” She turns away and I pull her back. “Jake.” She’s exasperated with me. I chuckle and let her go. I roll off my side of the bed and go to the bathroom. We need to get moving, I let her sleep late. I wanted to be on the road by six and it’s past six. I smell bacon and possibly pancakes. Jocelyn is cooking and she probably has it ready for us. I gave her the rest of the holiday weekend off but she wants to see us off. I think she was bored at her sister’s house. I flush and go to find Jane.
“Come on, shower.” She’s still in bed. “We’re behind schedule.” She sticks her tongue out at me. I should make her use it on me again. I thought my brain was going to shatter when she put her mouth on me yesterday. I hope she does that again and I hope I can last through it to the end. I doubt it though. When she looked up at me with those beautiful blue eyes, I had to be inside of her. I couldn’t make it another second. I’ve never had that problem before. I’ve had dozens of women look up at me from that same position and not one had that effect on me. Ever. I’m leaning in the door watching her fuss over the bed. I have a housekeeper. “Jane, let Jocelyn do that. Come on.” I clap my hands together sharply and she stops. She puts her hands on her hips and raises a brow. God I love it when she’s indignant. And naked.
“Don’t you clap at me Jake Williams!” Dad does that and she probably hates it, I always did. I hold out my hand and wait. She comes, unwillingly I think. I twine my fingers in hers and lead her to the shower. I turn it on while she uses the bathroom. I look at her and her face goes crimson. “Don’t watch.” She’s stopped midstream. I turn back around with a grin splitting my face and she finishes. I admire the control. Stopping a morning pee is no easy feat. She flushes and follows me inside the stall.
I love to shower with Jane. She stands in the water while I get the shampoo. When she leans back, I scrub her hair. We don’t have time for this every day but I think we should make time. She likes it and so do I. She steps back under the water and I shampoo my own hair. When I get the body gel, she steps around me. I lather myself instead and rinse. She’s got a fluffy net in her hand. I don’t understand the purpose of that thing. I get out and leave her inside to do whatever it is that takes her so much longer. I brush my teeth and hair then go to the bedroom. I have a text. Breakfast is ready. I dress then go back to the bathroom. Jane is drying her hair.
“Breakfast.” I say and she nods.
When I get to the kitchen, Jocelyn is busy at the stove. “Put all of this on a tray. Jane likes to watch the news while she eats.” Jocelyn nods and finds a tray to load down. I’m coming out of the kitchen with it and almost run Jane over. “Come on.” I take it to the media room and put it down on one of the seats. She sits on the floor and puts her plate in her lap. “You can sit in a chair.” I tell her but she shakes her head.
I sit down beside her. Barney will install a TV in the kitchen over the weekend. I hate sitting on the floor but I’d do anything for Jane. The weather man with the funny ties is on and has Jane’s full attention. What does it matter, we’ll be at Dad’s cooking, eating and cleaning. Who cares that it is going to be sunny on Friday? Jane. Only Jane. I shovel pancakes, scrambled egg, and bacon in my mouth while she picks at her food. They’re talking about the war again. I change the channel and she perks up.
There are women talking about current events. I check my cell. It chirped. She looks over at me. She’s watching TV but I still feel guilty. It’s Barney asking if Saturday is okay. I tell him it is then send a text to the security team to let him in. Jane’s finally finished eating and is sipping her coffee now. I should have Jocelyn put that in a travel mug. “Are you ready?” I ask shoving the phone in my pocket. She nods. “We can take the coffee to go, if you want.”
“I’d like that.” I let her put everything on the tray then I stand and pick it up. “How do I turn it off?” She has the remote.
“Red button.” She pushes it and the system shuts down. “I reprogrammed it for you. If you push the red button, it will turn it on or off.”
“How?” She’s looking at the remote in her hands. Her forehead’s wrinkled with concentration. Adorable.
“I fixed it. Let’s go.” I tell her and she drops it in a chair. I carry the dishes back to the kitchen and ask for two mugs to go. Jocelyn is more than happy to fill two travel cups with coffee and cream. I take them out to the foyer and Jane is bringing both suitcases. They have wheels but she’s careful not to hit the walls. She trades me a suitcase for a cup. My laptop is waiting by the door in its case and I load it onto the suitcase then secure it with the strap. I jostle and open the door to the foyer. Derek is waiting by the elevator.
“Sir.” He pushes the button and it opens then he waits for us to get inside. Jane gives me a look. Crap. She doesn’t want him along. We go down in silence and I can feel the anger rolling off her.
“Derek, change of plans. Take the weekend off, go see your family.” I tell him when we get to the garage. I feel Jane’s spirit lighten immediately. I was right.
“Are you sure sir, your safety is very important.” He’s looking at Jane with disapproval and I don’t like it. He doesn’t trust her. Why?
“I’m sure.” I open the key box and get the keys for the SUV then hand them to Jane. She takes them and her things across the garage. “Have a good weekend Derek.” He nods but watches her put her suitcase in the back. I go to help and put mine beside hers. She climbs into the driver’s seat and adjusts the mirrors. I see her eyes drift to Derek. Her head cocks to one side.
“Why is he watching me?” Jane asks.
“He doesn’t trust you.” She recoils.
“Like I could hurt you.” She shakes her head. I don’t know if she thinks she is physically unable or mentally unable. She could hurt me, she could devastate me with a word and we both know it. Jane starts the monster. I secure our travel cups in the cup holders and plug in my laptop. She gives it the evil eye.
“You know the way to Dad’s?” I have to ask and she scoffs. “Okay.” I stick the Bluetooth device in my ear and put my cell on the console. My computer is ready and I stick the thumb drive in the side. This app I’m working on is simple but I have to finish the coding for it then I will turn it over to the software guys for polishing. They’re better at making everything pretty. My phone chirps and she looks at it. That is going to distract her so I silence it and touch my ear.
“Williams.” It’s security, Mack is not happy that I left without Derek. He wants to follow us to Dads.
“We’re fine. See you Sunday.” I tell him and disconnect. Jane pulls out onto the street and nearly gets sideswiped by a dump truck. “Don’t make me a liar Janie.” She rolls her eyes and keeps driving. I start coding and Jane is singing along to the radio. I join in when I know the words and she grins. When I look up after a while, I see that we aren’t far from Dads. I always lose time when I’m coding. I just get lost in it. The app isn’t done but I decide to put it away for now and check my email. I gave everyone the day off but there are still people in the office with last minute projects and things that won’t wait.
I have a report on Edmund. He didn’t take it well when I fired him. He threatened to sue. Tough. As far as I’m concerned, he was insubordinate and he was using sexually offensive language in my building. I was right and I don’t need Carol from HR to tell me that. It’s covered in the hiring package. Jane would have ripped his throat out eventually anyway. I did him a fav
or. She’s never liked the ‘C’ word. What woman wants to be called that? Not one that I’ve met. I don’t really care for it either.
Jane is turning down the road that will eventually take us to pack territory. She doesn’t know it but the land we are passing on the right belongs to me and her. It was the first thing I bought when I hit it big. There’s a cabin out there somewhere. I found it once. I plan for us to retire there once we’re very old. The cabin has to go. Right now, it’s one room with a dirt floor. There are holes in the roof and the walls. I would be surprised if it’s still standing because I haven’t been there in close to ten years. It looked as if a gust would blow it down back then. I plan to build a one level rancher with stone walls for Jane, one with bathrooms and marble floors.
Jane is taking it easy because the road is unpaved now. The pack designed it this way. It looks like you may end up at a farm or dead end eventually. There are four ways out of pack territory so there isn’t much traffic seen entering and exiting. I go through more email. Mack is pissed and says that he’s sent Derek home as requested but would like to make the trip out himself. I respond with a resounding ‘NO.’ Jeez, what does he think is going to happen at Dads? I’ll be surrounded by a pack of wolves and my mate. Nothing is getting past her. Jane can be vicious when she wants. I slip a glance at her and she is concentrating on the road, that little wrinkle has formed over her brows. So far, she’s driven like a champion but this skinny gravel road is trying her, I can tell. I want to drive but I don’t want to make her angry.
“Are you done with what you were doing?” She asks when she notices that I’m just sitting there doing nothing. I nod. “Do you want to drive?” I smile.
“I’ll take it off your hands Jane.” I can see the relief roll through her shoulders. We should’ve kept the driver. I don’t say that aloud because it will flip her bitch switch. Jane eases the big SUV to the side as if she were on a busy highway and puts it in park. I open the door and get out. I stretch and walk around the vehicle.
I kiss Jane as she passes me then I smack her ass. She jumps and squeals. I can’t wait to get her home. I’m going to take her in her bed. I can’t do it in my old room, too many memories for both of us in there. If I had a choice I would burn it out of the house and never open the door on the charred remains again. Not one of those she-wolves eased the ache of Jane being across the hall.
I get in and start the truck. Jane is buckled and waiting. I sip my coffee but it’s cold now because I forgot about it. I ease back onto the gravel road and continue. We are there in less than thirty minutes. Dad comes out onto the porch when I pull into the driveway. It’s weird not seeing his truck there. He smiles and Jane launches herself out of the passenger side then into his bear hug. I don’t want him touching her. I growl low in my throat. He’s Dad to her though, me too but he’s also an eligible male.
A woman comes out of the house and hugs Jane next. Shit. He’s done it already. This will crush Jane. The woman waves at me then starts walking across the yard. I recognize her now. She’s the Alpha’s mate. Good. I didn’t want to wipe tears all weekend. I unload the luggage and my computer then drag them up the driveway. It’s bumpy because of the gravel. “Jake.” Dad wraps me in his arms and I let him hug me. He’s getting fatherly in his old age. “Come inside.” I have you guys all set up in Jane’s room.”
“Oh yeah?” I ask.
“Yes, I hope you don’t mind but I’ve turned your room into a studio.”
“Why do you need a studio?” I raise my eyebrows.
“I’ve taken up painting again. I hope the smell doesn’t bother you guys, it bothers me so I put the paints upstairs.”
“I want to see Dad!” Jane is excited. She went to school to study art. I don’t get it but I don’t have an artistic bone in my body. Jane used to sketch and watercolor but I haven’t seen her do it in a long time. I vaguely remember Dad doing it when Mom was alive. He painted in oils. I got it on my hands once and it was a few days wearing off. He was angry that I ruined his painting too. I think it was the last time I saw him paint. I remember them fighting about it and I never went near the paints again.
Jane is following him upstairs and they’re chatting. I follow behind and take our things into the bedroom then unpack them while Jane and Dad are across the hall. She likes whatever he is showing her. I get my computer out and check email again. I hear Jane and Dad descend the stairs, now they are talking about the menu. I think I’ve been ditched. I grin. It’s good to hear her sound so chipper. I don’t want to bother her because she is going to start cooking. I hear her banging around down there. Dad comes back upstairs.
“How’ve you been?” He says from the doorway.
“Okay.” I answer without looking up.
“And Jane?” I smirk.
“She’s fine.”
“Is she?” I nod.
“She’s pregnant.” My heart leaps and I swallow. “You didn’t know?” I shake my head.
“How? She hasn’t been in heat.”
“Of course she was Jake. How could you not know that?” How is right. I never scented…anything. “I assumed that you knew when you left after the funeral.”
“You’re wrong.” I tell him. I would know.
“I’m not, go buy a kit and let her pee on the stick.” He crosses his arms across his broad chest. I see myself in him in that second.
“Did you tell her that?” If he did, she isn’t excited about it or she would be up here telling me instead of him.
“No, she’s oblivious. She would’ve said if she knew. Jane can’t keep a secret.” He grins at me.
“You’d be surprised at what Jane can do.” I counter.
“Doubt it. I’ve known Jane very well a lot longer than you have. She is her mother in a different package.” I make a face again. He’s delusional. They are nothing alike. He’s only thinking this way because he misses Sandy.
“She’s not pregnant, I would know.” I decide he’s wrong. I’ve been with her a week. I am not that lucky.
“Have a lot of experience with pregnant she-wolves do you son?” No.
“Fine. I’ll go buy a kit.” He winks. His way of saying ‘you’ll see.’ He leaves me to my thoughts. She wasn’t in heat. She would’ve said so because she isn’t ready for pups yet. She would know if she was in heat, wouldn’t she? Now my mind is moving so fast it’s blurring.
I grab the keys and make my way downstairs. Dad is helping her find things that he’s put away. It looks like she’s already started on pies. I go over and kiss her. Hard. I want him to know in no uncertain terms that she is my mate. She growls quietly. “I’m going to the drug store. Do you need anything?” She shakes her head. “I’ll be back soon.”
“I’m going to tag along Jake.” Dad says. “I still don’t have a vehicle and I need a few things.”
“Do you need one?” He stays quiet. “Truck or SUV?” I say more forcefully. He shakes his head. “Dad, I can afford it, think nothing of it. Just tell me what you need. Call it a Christmas present if it makes you feel better. Borrow one from my garage for as long as you like if that makes you feel better but don’t sit here stuck because you don’t have a vehicle.”
“I can drive Sandy’s if it’s important.” He says it so quietly that I almost don’t hear over the birds when I step outside.
“You don’t want to though do you?” He shakes his head. I understand. Too many memories. I’ll have one delivered over the weekend. Let Sandy’s car sit until he’s ready. It was the last place that she was alive. We get in and buckle up. I back out of the driveway and head down the gravel road toward the drug store.
Dad and I putter around the store and I finally go to the pharmacy and ask for a pregnancy test, then I ask for a second. The woman working behind the counter smiles at me and her eyes twinkle.
“You’ll make a fine Daddy.” She assures me. I pay her then wait for Dad. I read the box. Two pink lines means pregnant. I know she isn’t but I secretly hope for two lines. Ja
ne won’t be happy though. I’m torn between my happiness and hers. I know she will want pups eventually, just not yet. She isn’t ready for that. It’s too much too soon. Jane needs to ease into things. We drive back in silence.
I sent a text while I waited for him at the store. Mack is arranging for a vehicle to be delivered on Saturday morning. Dad is getting a new pickup with an extended cab and a long bed. It should last him awhile. His last truck was nearly thirty years old. I pull up in the driveway and park it.
We go inside and I holler for Jane. No answer. The kitchen is empty and the oven buzzer is chiming. Dad turns it off and opens the door. The kitchen is filled with the scent of pumpkin pie. “Jane!” I shout again. Something is wrong. All the hair on my body is standing at attention and Dad has a similar look about him. I’m scenting the air. Something is unfamiliar. I sprint upstairs and she’s nowhere. Dad is coming from the back of the house when I come down. I go out the back door and he goes out the front. The backyard is empty but I scent that unfamiliar thing again. It’s wolf and it’s wild but there’s also Janie. I struggle to hold my shift. Dad is suddenly in front of me with his hands on my shoulders.
“Jake!” He screams in my face and my gaze snaps up. “If I didn’t know better, I’d say it was Tommy.” He says quietly. That’s what I scented too. Tommy. Tommy isn’t dead and Tommy has taken my mate.
~21~
The ground is cold under me when I try to move. My hands and feet bound with rope that is very scratchy, are asleep. I have pins and needles pricking through them. I can’t get free. Why am I tied up like this? My eyes don’t want to open. They’re gritty and burn but I force them open. I’m in a cabin. There is a fireplace with an old-fashioned cast iron Dutch oven pot hanging over it against one wall. The whole wall is gray stones that look ancient. This whole structure looks as though it was built hundreds of years ago. It is dilapidated and I wonder about its structural integrity.
There is no furniture except a table that has been put together from some tree limbs and some old planks. On it sits a duffle bag. I don’t know whose it is, but it looks fairly new. The windows are dirty but I can see dust floating on the air in the beam of sunshine coming through. The sun is low in the sky. I squirm around and see that this place is very small. There are no other room’s just three log walls. Someone has stuffed newspaper into a hole on one of the walls.
