Whatever will be, will be.
If he forgave her, everything else would be okay. That was her priority. She didn’t like the sick feeling gnawing in her gut, telling her she’d made a huge mistake with him.
“Don’t do that,” he said. “Don’t stop fighting with me.”
His response surprised her. Her brows shot up. “You want to fight with me?”
“How else am I supposed to know you’re feeling okay?”
Laughter bubbled in her throat. “I suppose you’re right.”
A crooked smile curved his full lips. “You keep things interesting around here.”
“You’re crazier than I am,” she commented.
“You’re not crazy, Beth. Truck thief, definitely. I appreciate you not wrecking it, by the way. Not everyone can drive a stick shift.”
One brow arched high. “Hey, I know how to work my way around a stick. I’d show you if you’d give me half a chance.”
With a playful growl, he snapped his teeth at her. “Wild woman.”
“Wild?” she asked with a laugh. She’s never been called wild before. It didn’t feel like an insult. “It’s not as if you’re very tame yourself, wolf. I bet you’re not even fully house-broken.”
She heard his snort of laughter as she got out of the truck. Kaleb followed her to the back door before unlocking it and letting them inside. She headed up the stairs and he followed after locking them in.
“Are you hungry?” he asked her once she was inside the apartment.
“Famished.”
“I’ll make us something.”
Beth headed toward the bedroom to grab a change of clothes, intent on taking a shower to get the hospital germs off her body while Kaleb worked his kitchen magic. It didn't take long for her to get cleaned up and join him back in the kitchen.
“Want help?” she asked, tying up her still damp strands in a pony-tail holder. Whatever he was making smelled delicious. Her stomach rumbled in anticipation.
Kaleb shook his head. “Almost finished. Have a seat.”
There were already two tall glasses of water on the table. She sat and sipped the water while she watched him moved around. He stayed focused, cutting corn from the cob before dropping it into a large bowl.
“What are you making?”
“Steaks are finishing in the oven and then there’s this corn thing I found the recipe for online earlier. It looked good and we had all the stuff.”
“That's one heck of a lunch.”
“More like dinner. I have to work tonight so I figured we can eat leftovers tonight if you’re hungry. There’s still leftover beef stew in the fridge.”
Another night where she'd be locked in the apartment, alone and bored out of her mind. It would turn into another movie night since she was out of reading material. Worst case scenario she could buy a book on her phone but staring at the screen for too long always ended up giving her a migraine.
“Do you work every night?” she asked.
“Most nights. More so now that Gabriel isn’t here. Do you work every day?”
“Most days if I can. Buying a house takes money,” she reminded him.
He nodded, his back to her as he stirred the vegetation in the large glass bowl. Turning around a moment later, he placed the bowl on the table and went back to the stove, bending to retrieve the steaks from the oven.
The big hunk of meat was placed on a plate and set in front of her. No way would she be able to finish it but she’d give it a shot. Kaleb handed her silverware and she went to town as he sat down.
“Hungry?” he asked with a laugh.
Chewing, she nodded. The meat was tender and cooked perfectly. The seasoning was right on and she savored the bite.
“I hope you like it.”
She swallowed. “You know how to cook a steak.”
Kaleb ate just as fast as she did. Beth took a few more bites before putting some of the salad on her plate.
“When you’re not working, what do you do?” she asked, trying to make conversation.
He shrugged. “I go fishing over at Declan's if it’s not too cold. He owns quite a bit of property and there’s a large lake out there. We’ll take the canoe out and sit for hours.”
"I’ve never been fishing,” she commented.
“Never?” he asked in disbelief.
“Never.”
It was as if he couldn't even comprehend that. He put his fork down and surveyed her. She continued eating, watching him regard her and wondering what he was thinking.
“Let’s go fishing tomorrow,” he said.
“I thought you didn't want to leave here anymore?”
He shrugged. “Declan owns about fifty acres. There's no one out there except my family. Declan is in Boston, Gabriel is shacking up with Lila...we won't run into anyone out there.”
“It’ll be nice to get out.” That wasn't a lie. She could learn to love fishing if it meant getting outside of the apartment.
“I think we both need to get out after today,” he commented.
Beth wondered what he had thought about Ruby’s revelation but didn't want to bring it up now. She’d broach the subject at another time when she knew more about her own feelings on the matter. Sitting back in her chair, she stared down at the remnants of food on her plate. If she ate any more, she'd burst.
“Are you done?” he asked her, eyes on the other half of the steak on her plate. She noticed his was gone.
“Yes. Do you want it?”
He stabbed his fork into her steak and moved it over to his plate.
“I should've made more,” he commented before taking a bite.
“I can imagine the changes your body goes through whenever you transform require an abundance of calories.”
“No kidding. The full moon is the worst. After those three days, I'm ready to eat three times my weight in protein alone.”
“How does that normally play out?” she asked him curiously. It was something she wondered about. “Changing with the full moon?”
“We usually go somewhere that's unpopulated with miles of woods. We turn whenever the moon rises and usually wake up in skin whenever the moon sets.”
“I guess that’s why you chose this area to settle,” she commented, referring to Cantor's mediocre population. There were hundreds of miles of unpopulated woods just a stone’s throw away.
“Anywhere you have a low population with a lot of uninhabited lands, you're going to find werewolves or shifters.”
“Alaska?” she asked.
He nodded. “Definitely.”
“Where else?”
“Upstate New York, Appalachia, parts of Wyoming and Montana. You get the idea.”
“So, if I stumbled upon you in the woods on the full moon, would you kill me?” She was genuinely curious.
He shook his head before draining the rest of the water in his glass. When he set it back down, he said, “No. No, I wouldn't kill you.”
“How do you know?”
“Because you smell too damn good,” he said, picking up his empty plate and grabbing hers before turning toward the sink.
It took her a long moment to process his words. Her heart thundered, and she stood but then realized she didn't know where she was going. He set the plates in the sink and turned to face her while she stood there like an idiot.
Her face warmed. “What do you mean by that?”
The corner of his mouth lifted. “You smell good enough to eat.”
Oh.
Oh my.
Her belly clenched at the thought of him between her legs, devouring her. She took a step back, bumping into the chair.
“What’s wrong?” he asked her as she all but fell back into her chair.
“Nothing,” she said too quickly.
He laughed. It was a husky sound that made her shiver. He stayed still, not coming any closer to her and Beth thanked the heavens for that. She didn’t know what she’d do if he strolled over to her. Latch onto his leg and beg him to
carry her off?
There was something wrong with her. No one else affected her like he did. One dirty line and she was ready to lose her drawers and plead for release.
“I have to head downstairs,” he said. It was as if he’d thrown ice water over her head. “I have to open the bar.”
“Oh.” It was going to be another long night, holed up in the apartment with the television to keep her company while she listening to the bumping of the noises coming from downstairs. The constant reminder that she wasn’t allowed to be there.
“Come downstairs tonight."
Her eyebrows shot up. “Really?”
Nodding, he said, “I want you close to me. I can't watch you upstairs.”
“Why the change of heart?”
“Ruby. Gabriel. Shit, I don't know.”
“Gabriel?” she asked, not hiding her surprise. “What did Gabriel do to change your mind?”
He sighed and she didn’t miss the bitterness on his face. “Gabriel mated Lila.”
Beth opened her mouth and then immediately closed it again. What could she say? She understood the basics of what mating meant. On the one hand she wanted to call Lila and congratulate her. On the other, she wanted to throttle her for being so dumb.
This wasn’t going to be over in three weeks. Beth realized she probably knew that as soon as Kaleb transformed in front of her that day in Lila’s living room but she hadn’t taken the time to dwell on the repercussions.
“Mated,” she said, turning the word around on her tongue, trying to decide whether she liked the taste. “Mated?”
“Mated. As in until death do we part, forever is only the beginning, mated."
“Huh.” She tilted her head. He’d mentioned that werewolves mated for life before but now she was confused. He made it sound like it was an act rather than a choice. “How does it work? How did he mate her?”
He choked. She handed him his glass of water while he coughed, waiting for him to catch his breath. When he could breathe again, he said, “They had sex and he bit her.”
Ouch. “He bit her?”
“If I were to fuck you,” he said, his green eyes darkening, “and bite you, we’d be mated.”
Words. She needed to find words but the only thing she could think about was how badly she wanted him to do that first thing he said. Gooseflesh erupted on her skin at the thought.
“We’d have to bite each other,” he amended. “There’s a blood exchange.”
“A blood exchange? What did he do? Turn her into a werewolf?”
Kaleb rolled his eyes. “You can’t turn someone into a werewolf.”
“I’m sorry, I got caught up on the ‘blood exchange’ thing. It’s weird.”
“It’s natural.”
She shook her head. “I don’t know what your definition of natural is but drinking each other’s blood is not natural.”
“It is for a werewolf, for vampires, for shifters, for—”
“Not for a human.”
He shrugged. “Lila would’ve been wrapped up in the pheromones Gabriel put off. I’m sure she didn’t think it was too weird when it all went down.”
Those would’ve been some dangerous pheromones. It scared her, the thought that her friend would’ve been so wrapped up in a man that she had no qualms against drinking his blood. One look at Kaleb and she realized just how dangerous their own situation was. The thought of exchanging blood with Gabriel disgusted her, but the idea of being wrapped in Kaleb’s arms, her legs around his hips, his teeth on her skin…
Yes.
Chills wracked her body. He was staring at her as she stood up. She needed some distance. “I’m going to get changed.”
Closing herself in Gabriel’s room, she pressed her back against the door and took a shaky breath. She ordered herself to relax as her heart thudded in her chest. Maybe going downstairs and distracting herself with pleasant conversation and loud music would help get her head back on straight. And stop thinking about a future with him that could never be.
She didn’t really need to change her clothing but she didn’t want to go back into the apartment wearing what she already had on. Going through her clothes, she picked out a pair of tight dark gray jeans, a thin light gray V-neck t-shirt. It didn’t scream notice me but she didn’t want to draw too much attention to herself.
She opted for her black work boots instead of her sneakers. There wasn’t a heel, but they still made her feel a bit taller. Combing her fingers through her hair, she tried to sort out the crazy curls. Finally giving up, she let them fall as they were. At least they weren’t overly frizzy now.
When she emerged from the bedroom, Kaleb was waiting for her by the door. His eyes swept over her, his mouth tight, but he didn’t say anything. Instead, he opened the door, and she followed him down the steps.
“Find something to listen to,” he suggested when they entered the bar.
Beth went to the jukebox, pressing a multitude of songs so there was a good, long playlist going before the patrons started making their way inside. She was going to be a music hog.
Kaleb was getting things set up as she chose. By the time she sat down at the bar, he was unlocking the front door. Beth didn’t anticipate the place being super busy since it was Monday but she never knew with the Wolf’s Den. Some Fridays were empty and some Tuesdays were off the chain. She never thought about the reason why before but now she wondered if it had something to do with the moon cycles.
With a shrug, she played with her phone.
The employee door opened behind her and Alex came into the bar. She hadn’t heard him come in through the back but that didn’t surprise her. He moved almost as quietly as Kaleb did.
“Hey,” she said when she saw him.
He looked at Kaleb as if he needed his approval to not cart her out the bar but finally said, “Hey. I see he's letting you come out to play tonight.”
“Yup, I'm free. For now, anyway.”
Kaleb frowned. “I want her close.”
“Whatever you say, boss.”
“I promise to be on my best behavior,” she said, as her phone vibrated with a new text alert.
Natalie.
I miss you, it said.
I miss you, too. Are you okay?
Yes. Are you?
Physically, she was fine, but was she mentally? Probably not. I’m my normal miserable self.
“Want something to drink?” Alex asked her as the door began opening and patrons started sidling up to the bar.
“Amaretto sour,” Kaleb said behind him.
“He knows me well,” she commented. “Yes, amaretto sour, please.”
Is Kaleb kind to you? I know you weren’t thrilled about going with him.
That was the understatement of the year. I wasn’t but we had some history that I may have forgotten to mention.
What history?
Alex set the drink in front of her. “Thanks.”
“You’re welcome.” He stepped away from her and she went back to her phone.
She’d never told Natalie, or anyone else for that matter, about her interaction with Kaleb years ago. She didn’t know why she suddenly wanted to confess it to her now but she did.
Remember a few years ago when you dropped me off at my car and I’d told you my tires had been slashed?
Yeah. He’d changed them out for you. Beth had never told Natalie that she’d suspected Kaleb bought and changed out her tires but she would’ve put two and two together when she brought her by the next morning when she had new tires.
The night before we made out in his truck when he drove me home and then he rejected me.
Had you been drinking?
Duh. Of course. I guess I was still pissed at him when we were at Lila’s.
A loud, chipper voice cut through her thoughts as she was typing her response to Natalie, “Hey, Beth!”
Beth turned in her seat, already knowing who the annoying voice belonged to. She jumped when she saw Quinn’s grinning face less than
a foot away. The girl had no concept of personal space. Beth’s eyes darted directly to the girl’s shoulder, a sigh of relief escaping her when she saw no iguana was sitting there.
“Hi,” Beth replied, praying the girl would just say hello and then fade into the background somewhere so she could go back to her phone.
“You’ve been gone for days,” Quinn remarked.
“Yes.”
Shoo.
“Simon sure has missed you!”
“Aww.” Blech.
A big man came up to stand behind her and Beth recoiled in her seat. His nose had been broken at least a dozen times she guessed, based on the way it twisted and turned on his face. When he grinned, she saw the dark gaps where teeth should’ve been.
Dirty yellow hair sat on the top of his head, and he had wide, piercing blue eyes that made her increasingly uncomfortable the longer he stared at her.
“This is my friend Vic,” Quinn said as a way of introduction.
Vic couldn’t be much older than Quinn but he easily had over a hundred pounds on her. For the first time, Beth worried crazy Quinn may have bitten off more than she could chew with Vic.
“Hi there,” Beth said, extending her hand but willing him not to take it.
He did. Sausage fingers wrapped around her hand, his hold unnecessarily tight. Sharp pangs shot through her joints.
“Beth,” Kaleb’s terse voice interrupted the painful greeting and Vic dropped her hand before taking a slight step back. “Do you want another?”
He must have sensed her discomfort, she surmised. It had to be radiating off her in waves. She nodded. “Please.” Shit, she needed a stiff one after that. Rubbing her knuckles, she kept her hands tucked safely in her lap.
Kaleb’s eyes didn't leave Vic as he made her another Amaretto sour before setting it next to her half empty one.
“What do you want?” Kaleb asked Vic, his voice almost a growl.
“Yuengling.”
“Bottle or draft?”
“Bottle.”
Alex was behind Kaleb, a bottle of Yuengling in his hand. He dangled it over Kaleb's shoulder. Kaleb took it, his stare never leaving Vic’s face as he handed it to him.
When Vic backed off, drinking his beer as he went, Kaleb went back to making drinks but she noticed he stayed in her line of sight. Alex stayed close to her as well.
Wild and Untamed (Netherworld Series Book 4) Page 13
