Chapter Two
Ray’s first thought was to take Julia to the hospital. She was clearly in a worse state than he initially believed, and Shandaken hospital was less than two miles away. Still, he decided to do no such thing. Doctors did tend to ask too many questions, and they would probably notify her family. There was one doctor in the area, guaranteed to be much subtler: her good friend, Monica. Ray only hoped that he could sneak Julia past Kate. Seeing her maid of honor like this would upset her too much. Therefore, he chose to drive her home.
Luckily for her, it was much quieter when they arrived. The only vehicles on the driveway were his brothers’ trucks and Kate’s car. Raul and Monica were outside, pacing across the yard, as his own truck came to an abrupt halt. Ray switched off the engine, and then stormed out of it, catching their attention.
“Hey, man,” Raul winked at him. “I thought you’d go out tonight.”
“I did,” Ray muttered, moving around his truck. “You’ll never guess who I ran into.”
“Julia,” Monica interjected. “She said she’d go out tonight. Where is she? I don’t see her car.”
“Right here,” Ray replied, swinging open the back door to his truck. “Drunk out of her freaking mind,” he added, as he reached down to grab her by her feet.
“Drunk?” Monica squealed, her brows popping up, as she half-ran off towards him.
“Yep,” Ray nodded, pulling her towards him.
“How much has she had to drink?” She posed another question, this time in a harsh squeaky whisper.
“Not a clue,” Ray responded, placing both hands under her armpits. He bent his knees, before lifting her body upwards. Flexing his muscles, he picked her up, her light body draping over his shoulder, as he turned right. He started towards his brother’s cabin, as Raul smiled down at him. “This isn’t funny,” he growled.
“I respectfully disagree,” Raul declared, as his smile broadened to a grin.
“Why were you so reckless, Jules?” Monica asked, her tone still squeaky, as Ray brushed past her. “Kate’s going to kill you if she finds out.”
“Isn’t he great?” Julia wondered as her voice weakened, her friend following right behind them. “Too bad he doesn’t have a beard.”
“Don’t listen to that nonsense, Ray,” Monica urged, as he strode through the open front door. “Get her to the couch. I’ll be right with you.”
“Beards must be your fetish or something,” Ray grumbled. “Trust me; they don’t feel as good as they look.”
“How do you know?” She inquired, with a silly smile on her face, as he eased her down on the couch. “Have you ever kissed a guy with one?” His anxiety didn’t allow him to appreciate her joke. For a moment, he believed she wasn’t kidding, and barely held on to his temper. But, when a wild cry of laughter burst through her lips, he realized he’d be a fool to get angry. He could not get mad at someone who was merely teasing him, and Julia was doing precisely that. More than that, Ray couldn’t deny that she was beautiful. Red curls adorned her face. Her skin was creamy, though somewhat pale, and her cheeks were dotted with freckles. He caught himself staring down at her, unwilling to interrupt this outburst of silliness.
“Ray, please give us the room.” Monica requested, as she hurriedly approached them, with an empty bowl in her hands. “This is not going to be pretty.”
“Get out, pretty boy,” Julia chuckled, raising her left arm to point up at the door. “You don’t want to see me throw up, do you?”
“Women…” Ray hummed, turning his back on the two friends. Yes. Women: gorgeous; capable of sending him to heaven; or dooming him to the worst possible death; complicated like nothing else in this world; the only creatures he had to stay away from. Shoving his hands into his pockets, he walked out of Raul’s cabin, only to find his brother with the same, astute smile on his face.
“That Julia chick’s a piece of work,” the Alpha stated, as his eyes glinted with amusement. “You should hear Monica’s stories.”
“I don’t need to,” Ray replied, assuming a stiff tone, furrowing his brow at his older brother. “I saw it tonight with my own two eyes. She’s supposed to give her friend away tomorrow, and she drank herself senseless. Why the hell did she do that?”
“Hey!” Raul’s stentorian voice rumbled like thunder, his smile falling from his lips, as he closed in on his brother. “Ok, she got drunk. It’s not the end of the world. You seem pretty upset. What’s going on?”
Sadly for Ray, his emotions had given him away. Now, he had to confront his brother, and he had no idea how to phrase his rebuttal, without aggravating him any further. Still, they had to have this conversation. Raul had to know about his opinion.
“I almost lost you; and Dean.” Ray spoke, his tone calm and steady. “I’m sorry, but I think maybe grandpa was right. Humans cannot be trusted. Look what Monica did to you. Look what Kate did to Dean.”
“What; made us happy?” Raul’s voice rose up an octave. “We took a chance with them, but they’re here now. We both made the same mistake. Care to know what it is?”
“Yeah,” Ray said with a nod.
“We had…” Raul faltered, lowering his gaze as he ran his hand through his hair, “… special enemies; invisible things, out of our control. Monica’s a doctor. She thinks a little too much. She found it hard to believe in the unknown. Kate is a singer. She had a life before she met Dean. She wanted to focus on her career. Neither of us paid any attention to those details, and we almost paid the price.”
“What could you have done?” Frustration crept into Ray’s voice, as it picked up volume.
“Taken those facts into account,” Raul’s reply was sharp, as his gaze shot up to meet his brother’s. “It sounds simple, doesn’t it? I’m telling you; it wasn’t. I had to talk to Monica more about our kind: show her how we lived; take it easy with her. Dean totally forgot about Kate’s job. He thought helping her out with her mother would be enough to keep her here. Last night, he told me that he had never even considered the possibility of her wanting to keep her job. Grandpa was wrong, kid. Humans may be complex, but they’re worth it. Now, this town is packed with submissives. Don’t tell me you want to spend the rest of your life with one of them.”
“Hell no,” Ray uttered, pursing his lips. “But what do we do about our longevity? I’m not sure I’d be willing to give up almost half my life, just to mate with a human.”
“Fuck our longevity,” Raul assumed an emphatic tone. “So what if I live less? Like I told Monica, it’s better to have a life that matters, than no life at all. You’re still young to take a mate, but, whenever you do, don’t hesitate to choose a human. Just don’t make the same mistake, and you’ll be fine.”
“Will I?” Ray asked himself, as his brother left him alone. Despite Raul’s thorough explanation and his encouragement, he was still not convinced. The Alpha’s points were valid, but they were not enough to make him reconsider. In the equation of love, no humans, equaled no heartache, and he intended to keep it that way.