“Tell me you at least kicked up some gravel on the way out,” Betsy whined hopefully. “The bastard deserved a face full of rock.”
“I probably would have reversed over him but Dane was driving. He’s a good guy. He even drove the speed limit on my dirt road.”
Betsy and Grace were in the kitchen of Betsy’s small apartment cooking. More accurately, Grace was cooking and Betsy was yelling directions. In between instructions, Grace told Betsy what had happened the night before.
“I’m not surprised about Jack. That man doesn’t talk enough. There’s something freaky going on in that head.” Betsy clicked her tongue. “I would not be surprised if he had cut up animals in that wood shop of his.”
Grace rolled her eyes. “Of course there are cut up animals on Jack’s property. The man is a wolf. I’ve seen his freezer.” Grace cocked her head at the mass of lumpy dough she was elbow deep in. “Is it supposed to look like this?”
“Oh hell no, that thing is a mess,” Betsy didn’t bother looking up from her phone.
“Why didn’t you say anything? I’ve been kneading this for half an hour!” Grace threw the sticky mess into the trash.
“You came to my house at seven in the morning. Do you expect me to let you get away with that?” Betsy finally stood up and started to roll up her sleeves. “Besides, no one makes a decent loaf of bread on the first go. You’ve got your first screw up out of the way. Now, clean your hands and get your ass over here.”
Betsy started measuring more flour into a new bowl.
“So,” Grace drawled, “you left pretty early last night. And without a goodbye too. What was that about?”
Grace had a pretty good idea what had caused Betsy to disappear last night. It wasn’t because her step brothers had showed up. That wasn’t anything new though. There was only one bar in town it was nearly impossible for the Robbins brother not to crash ladies night.
It also wasn’t new that Cal had taken the opportunity to lecture Betsy about her life choices. Cal really took the over protective brother role very seriously. Grace was willing to bet that had nothing to do with why Betsy had run out on them last night.
Grace was willing to bet that Betsy’s disappearance had something to do with the fact that she had seen Paul stomp out of the bar.
Betsy kept measuring out ingredients. “It’s not much of a ladies night when your brothers are there.” It wasn’t a lie, Grace would have noticed if Betsy was lying, but if that wasn’t an evasive answer Grace was a cat.
“I noticed Paul has been hanging around the restaurant lately.”
The noise that came from Betsy was pure frustration. It would have done any wolf proud. “That idiot hasn’t just been hanging around the restaurant. He’s been harassing my kitchen staff.” She whipped around wielding a measuring spoon like a knife. “Last week he wandered around the prepping station during the entire dinner service. He kept asking questions and sampling things. It slowed down everything.” Her eyes rolled. “And since the female population of this town is in love with him no one kicked him out on his ass.”
Grace pointed at Betsy. “Did you kick him out?”
Betsy threw her hands up. She always got animated when she was angry. Paul made Betsy angrier than most. “I tried being polite.” Grace doubted that. “I told the owner to drag him out. When that didn’t work, I grabbed him by the collar and hauled him out.” Betsy turned back to the dough. “The idiot made a big show of it making it look like we were hooking up.”
“So, last night you snuck off to give him a piece of your mind?” Grace guessed. When Betsy didn’t say anything she asked, “How did that go?”
“Weird,” Betsy admitted. Her face was pinched. She looked confused. “I went to the parking lot to cut him off at the knees but before I could open my mouth, he bit my head off.”
That was weird. Pail never lost his temper. Sure, he was as dominant as they came but he was more of a joker than a fighter. He didn’t yell at people.
“He just went off on me. I don’t know what he was so upset about. He just kept saying that he was done and that he wasn’t going to be standing in the way of me and my poor decisions.” Betsy shook her head, at a loss of words.
“Do you have any idea what he’s talking about?”
“None. I don’t have time to make a bad decision let alone so many bad decisions that they drive Paul insane.”
Between her head chef position at the only fine dining restaurant in seventy miles, taking care of Mr. Robbins now that his back kept him from working, and her three ever present brothers Betsy really didn’t have the time to do anything. Let alone the opportunity. Grace was surprised she’d offered to teach her how to cook with what little free time she did have. Something wasn’t adding up.
Betsy snapped to attention. She narrowed her eyes at Grace, “Don’t think you can distract me from asking about the hottie living on your porch. I’m pissed I left for that.”
Grace blushed. “There’s nothing to say. He’s my contractor. He’s very nice and I’ve acted like an idiot in front of him twice.”
“Oh,” Betsy sang, “you like him.”
“Shut up,” Grace shoved Betsy out of the way.
Betsy gasped. “You do! I was just joking around. You want him.”
“He’s hot, okay? That’s it though. There’s nothing going on.”
“Nothing going on my lily white ass. The man is camping outside your house. People don’t do that.”
They do if someone is stalking you Grace thought. She didn’t say anything though. She didn’t want to freak out any of her friends.
Early that morning Dane had gotten up and seen a wolf standing under the tree line. Neither of them had sensed him there. Dane shifted and tried to chase him down but he lost the wolf in the woods. Grace had tried to pick up a scent, a print, anything that would help her identify who was sitting outside her cabin at night but couldn’t find a trace. Just like before. It scared her.
What scared her more was that Dane was treating it like a serious threat. It was one thing for Grace to freak out but it was something else to have another person validate her fear.
Dane came back into the clearing after losing the wolf’s trail and walked right up to Grace and clasped her to him. His body had been overheated from shifting and he’d smelled musky. It comforted Grace’s frazzled nerves.
“It’s no big deal. He’s just trying to save on commute time.” That was the best she could come up with to explain why Dane was staying with her. “Besides, the timing is off.”
“I think its fate. You make the choice to get on with life and practically the next day a hot man literally knocks on your front door.” Betsy stopped what she was doing and turned to Grace. “You should go for it. He’s nice. He got the clear from Ben, so he’s not a psycho and if he turns out to be an ass you can always kick his hide back to South Creek.”
“I don’t know, Betsy.” Grace didn’t feel right moving on so quickly. She just got dumped by her mate. That should be properly mourned.
Betsy turned back with a shrug. “Whatever you want, girlie. You’ve got some time to figure things out. Now, break out the tomatoes. We’ll make some spaghetti sauce while this rises.”
Pulling up to her cabin Grace could see Dane on the roof. The sun was starting to set. There was a definite chill in the air but she could see sweat drenching his shirt.
He was temptation personified. There was something about a man wearing a white t-shirt working with his hands that got Grace going. When that man was over six feet of cut up muscle, it was a sight to behold.
It also helped that Dane was sweet, playful and easy to talk to. After the debacle at Miller’s Bar, Dane hadn’t pressed Grace for details. He hadn’t asked awkward questions or given unsolicited advice. Instead, Dane started talking. About his life, about South Creek, about his business. Within minutes, he had Grace laughed so hard she couldn’t breathe.
Then he asked her about her life and what she was planning to do with the cabin. He didn’t criticize her for her choice to move out of town. He had wanted to know more.
Grace looked down at the covered food sitting in her passenger seat. Taking a deep breath she got out of the car and yelled, “Dane, do you want to call it a day and have dinner with me?”
Dane froze on the roof, his hammer mid swing. “Yes, I’d love to.” He sounded eager. He looked around. “Let me just put my things away and I’ll be right down.”
“No rush, I’ll get everything set up while you clean up and take a shower.” Grabbing the take away boxes Grace went inside.
The house was a wreck. Everything was clean but elbow grease only went so far. The floors suffered from their cleaning. Now they showed all of the scuffs and scrapes that were hidden under years of dust. There were piles of remodeling junk all over.
Rushing to the kitchen, Grace put the sauce on low and started boiling water for pasta.
Grace ran to the bathroom. She gathered all the piles of clothing and pushed all of her makeup into drawers. Checking to make sure there wasn’t anything embarrassing she left behind. Grace ran across the hall to her room.
“Grace?” Dane called as the front door shut.
“Back here,” she called, “just getting you a towel,” she lied. Grace snatched a clean towel from the dresser.
Dane was standing in the hall. This close she could see the rivets of sweat that cleaned pathways down his dusty face. He smelled like hard working man. Underneath the sweat and dust was the unmistakable scent of wolf. Her own beast gave a purr of appreciation.
A cleared throat woke Grace out of her trace. Dane was smiling. Obviously, she had been caught. Heat blazed her cheeks.
“Well,” her voice was shrill, “I’ll just leave you to it. Take your time. Dinner will be ready whenever you are.”
Dane flashed his teeth. “Thank, Grace.” The deep tone sent shivers down her spine.
Not wanting to make a fool of herself again, Grace squeezed past Dane and made a beeline go the kitchen.
Why did the man have to be so hot? He fried her brain. He didn’t make her feel like an idiot about it though. He smiled. He played along.
The timing was garbage. And Jack’s sudden obsession was a disaster in the making. But there was chemistry between her and Dane. Maybe Betsy was right. There wasn’t any reason not to.
“Can I help with anything?” Dane’s hair was wet. It was styled haphazardly as if he had run his fingers through it. He was wearing a new shirt. The thin black cotton clung to his damp skin. Grace could see the definitions between his deltoid and bicep.
“If you want, you can set the table.”
Dane started opening cabinets trying to find plates and cups. “Everything smells delicious.”
He passed closely behind Grace at the stove. Her body lit up with awareness. She shook her head trying to clear her dirty thoughts. “You’ll have to thank my friend Betsy. She’s teaching me how to cook. If I had been on my own we’d be eating frozen pizza.”
Dane chuckled. “That’s my specialty. The trick is to not burn it.”
Grace smiled widely. “Well then, you’ve got me beat.”
Dane put out plates, silverware and cups. Grace drained the pasta. They both helped put the food on the table. Once everything was set, they sat down.
“Why is your friend teaching you how to cook?” Dane asked between bites.
“I thought it was about time I learned how to feed myself.” Grace shrugged. “Frozen pizza and rabbit can only go so far.”
“Now I feel like you’re attacking me personally. I happen to roast a mean rabbit.” Dane pointed a fork at her.
Grace put her hands up in surrender. “Hey, I didn’t say it was a bad thing. I just said it was getting old. I wanted to change things up.”
Dane nodded his eyebrows furrowed. “Does this have something to do with moving to a cabin in the woods?”
“Maybe.”
He leaned back in his chair. “And does this have anything to do with the angry contractor that followed us into the parking lot last night? You don’t have to answer,” Dane added quickly, “I might be reading this situation wrong.” Dane set down his fork and looked into Grace’s eyes. “But I don’t think I am.”
Grace laughed weakly. Setting aside her food she took a deep breath. “Jack is my fated mate.” Dane’s eyebrows rose into his hairline. Grace held her hand up. “Before you say anything, he has formally rejected the bond. This isn’t a rough pat. I’m not messing around on him.”
“I don’t think you would,” was all he said.
Silence filled the dining room. Dane stared at Grace. She couldn’t handle his piercing eyes after that admission. She looked down at the table. The silence went on, weighing heavily. It made Grace anxious.
She knew this was going to happen. This was what the rest of her life was going to be like. Any time she met someone she liked they would immediately make assumptions when they heard her fated mate rejected her. Even a nice guy like Dane.
Dane stood from his chair the sound of it scraping against the floor causing Grace to lift her head. He took two steps towards Grace and pulled her to him.
“Shh,” he cooed, “relax. You’re fine, everything's okay.” He pet her hair. Grace’s breath hitched at the soft touch. “You’ve got to calm down, Gracie. My wolf is getting worked up smelling your anxiety. I don’t want to shift in the middle of your dining room.”
He continues humming and rocking her back and forth. Grace closed her eyes feeling the vibrations of his voice through his chest. When her breathing calmed Dane let her go. Without words they left their food and sat on opposite couches.
Dane ran a hand through his hair. “I didn’t expect that but it does explain things. That guy is way too interested in your life to be some guy you didn’t hire.” He looked at Grace a question in his eyes. “Want to talk about it?”
“Oh God, no,” Grace wheezed. “You are probably the only person in the state who hasn’t heard about this.” And that was about the only thing saving the last of Grace’s pride. “It’s humiliating.”
Dane’s shoulders tensed. Suddenly, he was alert. “He humiliated you?” Yellow exploded through his irises. Guess his wolf wasn’t as calm as Dane was pretending.
“No, no,” Grace quickly added wanting to prevent him from losing his control. “I humiliated myself. Jack made it very clear from the beginning that he didn’t want a mate. I didn’t catch the drift until recently.”
“That is not the impression that I got yesterday.”
“Yeah,” she admitted, “I don’t know what that was about. Over the last year he couldn’t be far enough away from me but in the last few days he’s talked to me more than he ever has.” Grace snorted. “Well, he’s been yelling, not so much talking.”
“Do you want him?” Dane reclined against the couch. He was back to being the laid-back, sexy man she met that first day. There was something about him that relaxed Grace. It made this conversation feel less threatening than she imagined. If Anne had asked that question Grace would have jumped on the defense. With Dane she honestly reflected the answer.
“You know, tough questions are usually off limits on first dates.” Grace smiled attempting to lighten the mood.
“Yeah, they usually are.” He agreed. “They aren’t with us though are they? This is exactly what we are supposed to be talking about.” Grace oddly agreed with him. He propped his elbows on his knees getting closer to her. “There’s something between us. We’re connected somehow.” He sighed leaning back. “Just not romantically.”
Grace’s heart dropped. She knew the mate thing would be a deal breaker.
“It’s a serious let down too,” Dane rubbed his chin. “I am wildly attracted to you. I just think that there’s something unfinished you between you and Jack.”
“The bond has been rejected. There’s nothing there,” Grace argued.
“Do you want him?” Dane asked again.
“I don’t know if I want him. My wolf does.” She answered honestly. “I’m conflicted.”
“You should think about what you want and if Jack is someone you want in your life.” Dane shrugged. “If it makes any difference, I think Jack is feeling conflicted too. I know you think that the bond has been rejected but from where I’m standing it looks like you’re both experiencing the same conflict. I think there’s a connection between you and him.” He laughed. “I don’t think we would work out if you and I tried to be together.”
“You don’t know that,” Grace contended.
Dane rose from his seat and stalked over to her. He placed his hands on either side of her head. Her breath froze in her lungs. He bent over her until they were at eye level. Gently, Dane pressed his lips to her. The kiss was soft, polite. Grace leaned into his body trying to be enthusiastic.
Dane broke the kiss and lifted an eyebrow. The kiss had been nice but it was nothing like the kiss she had shared with Jack behind the diner. That had nearly burned her. It made her pant just thinking about it.
“See? No spark.” He went back to his seat, “Which is so disappointing because when two extremely attractive people kiss it should never be bland.”
“You didn’t feel anything either?” She asked to be sure.
“Like kissing my grandma.”
“Gross,” Grace shuddered, “don’t tell me you kiss your grandma on the lips.
And just like that the awkwardness disappeared.
“Only when she asks very nicely.” Grace threw a pillow at him. “Now, I’m pretty sure that since you made dinner I get to do the dishes.”
Grace grinned at Dane’s retreating back.