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.

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."