Chapter 7

Gryph

I’d been hesitant to buy a new place since I didn’t invite people over. Even after I’d started taking odd jobs and made some friends, I didn’t invite anyone into my home. I didn’t have women over because I’d already found my mate. Regardless of whether she accepted me as her mate, I couldn’t imagine being with another woman. Werewolves mated for life, and Julia was it for me. She didn’t know that. From what I could tell, Julia knew very little about werewolves. That wasn’t uncommon. Most witches could go their entire life without ever talking to a werewolf. Both species could be exclusive and secretive. Even those witches who spent a lot of time around werewolves knew very little about them. So, while I’d told Julia she was my mate, she probably just thought it was some macho claim I was making on her.

We’d left Julia’s car in her garage since I’d be driving her everywhere until I knew she was safe. My house was situated near the back of a vampire subdivision that bordered a large regional park. Julia spoke for the first time in nearly half an hour as we neared my house at the end of the cul-de-sac. “This is your home?” she asked, pointing to the yellow two-story house with the white trim. I was surprised she’d guessed correctly rather than picking one of the nondescript brown homes.

I smiled at her. “Yeah, it is. How’d you know it was my home?”

“I’m really sensitive to magic,” she explained. “The wards on your home are different from the ones on the vampire homes.”

“Do you like it?” I asked before adding, “My home, not the wards.”

“It’s really nice,” she praised.

I was definitely pleased since I’d bought it with her in mind. There was a great view of the park from the deck off the master bedroom in the back. That had been my biggest security concern, so I’d had it warded with extra security spells. The spells to deter non-vampires had been removed as it was the only way to make a vampire home habitable for a werewolf. Vampires weren’t usually friendly creatures. Their antisocial reputation was part of the reason I’d picked a vampire neighborhood to live in. I didn’t want to hang out with the neighbors. At least, that’s what I’d thought until I moved into my new home. My vampire neighbors were surprisingly friendly people. Eventually, they’d worn me down, and I’d accepted one of their many invitations to hang out with them. As it turns out, I like my neighbors.

“I never would have pictured you living in a cute little yellow house,” she mused as I pulled into the garage.

“It’s a good location,” I replied gruffly.

“I guess it makes it easier for you to run with the wooded area in the park right behind your house,” she remarked.

“It’s also an area the local pack doesn’t use much,” I explained. “I’m not supposed to have contact with them. There are areas where I’m not allowed to run.”

When I looked over, I expected to see some form of pity on Julia’s face. Instead, I saw anger. She looked seriously pissed.

“Werewolves can be complete assholes, can’t they?” she asked.

I chuckled as we both climbed out of the car. “Yeah, they can,” I agreed. “Even when I was still a member of the pack and expected to defend decisions like these, they didn’t make sense to me. The packs have their reasons.”

Julia went around the back to remove Oliver first, while I grabbed two of her bags.

“The reason is most werewolves are assholes,” she muttered.

“I guess we can be difficult,” I admitted.

“Difficult?” she demanded, setting Oliver’s carrier down in the family room and opening the door. “You saved the pack leader’s life. They owe you.”

“I saved the old pack leader,” I pointed out as I set her bags down and went to help with Oliver. There was no reason to mention that the old pack leader had kicked me out for losing my arm. Admittedly, he’d done it in a much kinder way. He’d at least allowed me contact with other werewolves in the pack, not that I’d had many friends. Still, I’d had visitors from time to time, along with female companionship whenever I wanted it. I’d felt less isolated.

“Come on, Oliver,” Julia crooned.

I didn’t fully understand Oliver, but I picked up a lot of his meaning. He was whining softly in the carrier, and he definitely wasn’t sure about his new surroundings.

“You wanted to come to Gryph’s,” Julia argued with him. “It’s very rude to say it smells funny here. I don’t smell anything.”

I suddenly realized what was bothering Oliver, and I understood his problem. I’d dealt with similar issues when I moved into the vampire neighborhood. Beagles had a keen sense of smell, almost as strong as werewolves. Vampires are dead. I’ve been told it’s impolite to refer to them as dead, but they are, and they smell dead. Cats tend to love vampires because they thoroughly enjoy that faint scent of decay. Werewolves and dogs hate that smell. It took me months to get used to it.

“He doesn’t like the vampire smell,” I told Julia.

“Oh!” Julia exclaimed. “I can’t even smell them, so I never stopped to think that Oliver can.”

“Why don’t you let me try?” I suggested.

“This may not work,” Julia told me. “Oliver’s nose is very sensitive, and I’m not sure he can adjust to living near vampires.”

I raised an eyebrow and waited. Julia laughed when she realized how ridiculous she sounded. “I suppose you know how that is.”

“I do,” I agreed.

“Oliver is also a little high-strung,” she added.

I laughed at her calling Oliver a little high-strung. That was definitely an understatement. “I noticed. Why don’t you take your stuff up to the guest room? It’s the second door on the right at the top of the stairs. I’ll have a word with Oliver and see if we can work this out.”

“You have a guest room?” she asked, sounding more shocked by that than anything else I’d said that day.

“I paid someone to decorate,” I explained. “He seemed to think I needed a guest room, despite my arguments on the subject.”

She nodded her understanding before grabbing her bags. “Got it. You didn’t want to shop for furnishings, so it was easier to hire someone to do it, and he didn’t listen to any of your suggestions.”

“Would it have killed him to add one old recliner for me to sit in when I watch television?” I asked, voicing my biggest complaint about the decorator. “It’s not that the furniture is uncomfortable, but sometimes a man just wants to sit in a chair that’s already broken in.”

“Poor Gryph,” she teased. “Are you sure you can handle Oliver?”

“We’ll be fine,” I assured her.

After she walked up the stairs, I crouched in front of the carrier. “Get out, now!” I told Oliver in a commanding tone. We might be buddies, but I was still dominant to him.

Oliver slunk out of the carrier, eyes downcast. When he was standing in front of me, I put my hand on his head and spoke in a gentler tone. “I know vampires stink. It drove me up a wall when I moved here, but I got used to it. You will, too.”

Oliver whimpered his disagreement.

“We have to keep Julia safe, right?” I asked.

Oliver looked up at me, meeting my eyes for just a moment. There was a special bond between witch and familiar. I knew he’d do anything to keep her safe. His bark was agreement.

“This is the way to do it, my friend,” I assured him. “If I thought it was safe for you to stay at your home, I’d agree to that. No one will look for Julia in a vampire subdivision.”

Oliver regarded me for a long moment before finally flopping down on his back and releasing what I could only describe as a canine sigh. I immediately reached out to scratch his belly.

“You got him out,” Julia said as she joined us. I’d known she wouldn’t stay up there long while her familiar was in distress. It was touching that she’d trusted me this much.

“Sometimes, we males need to just work through things without females getting in the way,” I stated as I stood to my full height.

Oliver made his agreement known by taking his place at my side. As for Julia, she rolled her eyes and regarded us like we were complete morons.

“Save me from idiot males,” she muttered before turning her back on us and walking away. “I hope you have food. We can talk over dinner,” she called out on her way to the kitchen.

“Who does she think she’s talking to?” I asked Oliver.

Oliver gazed in the direction she’d disappeared before looking back up at me, and I easily caught the meaning in his stare.

“Of course, I have food,” I told him. “I’m a werewolf. I eat six meals a day. Do I have food?” I muttered to myself. “You feel like ribs?”

I assumed from Oliver’s excited yip that ribs sounded good to him.