VIOLET

The steamy hot shower was just what I needed. I washed everything away. The dirt. My attacker’s blood. The pain of my failed relationship. The guilt of wanting to leave my whole life behind. I allowed myself to be free of those burdens for just a moment. I’d traveled away from home to find peace. Despite what happened, I had to believe there was still hope for me.

I wrapped the plush, white towel tightly around me. With my savior being such a big fellow, one would have thought he’d have gotten me a bigger towel, but the towel barely reached the midpoint of my thighs. There was no way I was going out into the living room in a towel, and he still hadn’t come back with spare clothes.

My phone call to Janet went smoother than I thought once I calmed her down and convinced her that I was okay. She had already called the police, but they had told her they weren’t able to report an adult missing until a certain amount of hours had passed or foul play was suspected. Thank God she hadn’t called my parents asking for me and ticking them off that I was taking a mini vacation instead of going to my counseling sessions with Donovan. I promised Janet that as soon as I got my car back that I’d be headed her way again.

I sighed and fussed around with my hair, trying to finger my strands into shape. My curls were still damp. My hair would probably remain wet for the rest of the night since Jayce didn’t own a blow-dryer. Since his shampoo didn’t work on my hair like the expensive brands I usually bought back home, I took a rubber band and pulled my strands up into an unruly bun.

After taking a look at my reflection in the mirror, I examined the bite. I took the bandage off before entering the shower so I could clean it, but there was nothing to clean. The bite was almost healed. While volunteering at an animal shelter, I was once bitten by a puppy, so I knew an animal’s bite took time to heal. But not this bite. The process seemed almost lightning fast. Then I remembered what Jayce said about the healing process after a bite from their species was quicker. They had so much of an advantage over humans. I almost wondered if humans had somehow shifted down toward the bottom of the food chain. Was this why the shifter species was so fear? Could this have been the reason why many of them chose not to reveal their shifter status?

There was a knock on the bathroom door.

“Yes,” I called out softly.

“I finally found something that might fit you. Can I slip it through the door?” Jayce asked.

I swallowed. “Um…just leave it there. I’ll get it.”

There was silence and then he said, “Okay. I’m going to go heat up the food.”

I waited until I was sure he was gone, opened the door a pinch, and then snatched up the clothes from the floor. I peered out into the hallway and thought I saw a dark shadow lingering there. The shadow moved closer. I slammed the bathroom door shut and locked it again.

I lifted up the big oversized t-shirt which smelled so much like him. Masculine and woodsy. I pulled it over me, and it felt warm and cozy against my skin. At least the shirt came all the way down to my knees. I took one look at the blue pair of running shorts and knew it wasn’t going to fit me. I pulled it on and tried to tighten the waistband, but despite my best efforts, the shorts keep falling right off my hips. I wasn’t the slimmest chick around, but the shorts were just too loose. After utilizing the drawstring from the waistband to tie around my waist like a belt, I folded the shorts neatly and placed them on the counter.

I then took my panties and used some of Jayce’s shampoo to wash it in the sink. I did my best to dry the panties by wringing it tightly with the towel. It was better than no underwear at all.

I could smell the aroma of something good wafting under the bathroom door. Hungry as hell, I unlocked the door and walked cautiously down the hallway and back out into the living room area. The cabin was a pretty good size and very spacious from what I could see. Besides Jayce’s bedroom and the guest bedroom where I would be staying, I wondered how many other rooms there were. I had spotted a short staircase leading up to a small second level earlier. From my view, I made out a bookcase lining one of the walls with dozens of leather-bound books.

Jayce peeked his head around a wall. “Come on in the kitchen. I’m just setting the table.”

Even the kitchen was spacier than I thought. There was a wooden table with four chairs, a large center island, and a massive pantry off to the left side. The pantry door was open, revealing rows of shelf-stable food inside.

“Your home is…nice,” I said.

“Thanks. I’ve been out here all my life. I bought the place from my uncle a few years back.”

“Do you live alone?”

“Yes. But I’m not really alone. Plenty of us live out here. We’re just scattered. I like it that way, anyway,” he said, pulling out a couple plates from the cabinet. “How did your friend Janet take the news?”

“She’s good. Everything’s fine. When I get my car back tomorrow, I can be on my way. I have a full tank of gas now so I won’t have to stop again.” I meant the last bit to come out as a joke, but being kidnapped, threatened, and then attacked wasn’t amusing at all. “I know you shifters have your own laws and stuff, so I’ll do my best to give you a description of the other three. They need to be caught and locked up so they can’t do anything like that again.”

“Look. I’m sorry about what happened to you. I’d want to get out of here as fast as I could too.”

“Thanks for all your hospitality. I’m hoping there are more people around here like you.”

“Yeah. Sure there are,” he said, opening the refrigerator. “I don’t have many options for drinks. Beer. Whiskey. Water. I could whip up some coffee or hot tea if you like.”

“Water is fine. The food smells good.”

“It’s chili spaghetti. I made it earlier.”

He closed the distance between us and placed his hand against my back. “Sit.” He led me to the table.

I smoothed the back of the t-shirt down and sat down in the wooden chair and waited while he plated the food and brought it and a glass of ice cold water in front of me. The spaghetti looked so good, and he even included a warm buttered roll on the side.

“Wow.”

“You look surprised?”

“I just don’t know any man who can cook,” I teased.

He grinned. “I’m only half man.”

I chuckled. I just couldn’t help myself. He was such a charmer, and he knew it.

“Well, to tell you the truth, I wasn’t really much of a cook myself until I took some classes for fun,” I said.

“What about your parents? Didn’t they teach you?” he asked.

I shook my head. “No. They had a chef. Still do, actually.”

He looked at me like he wanted me to say more, but I’d revealed enough about my life. I didn’t even want to talk about it at this point.

Finally, we broke eye contact, and I dug into the spaghetti. It was love at first bite. I had never tasted a better version of the dish. I took several bites before I allowed myself to speak again.

“It’s so good.”

“Yeah. It’s not my best dish. I love food. I’m not a fast-food, bar food type of guy, so once I left my grandfather’s house, I learned how to cook. No classes or anything. Just trial and error and a lot of smoke and grease fires in the kitchen. You’ll probably laugh, but the Cooking Network is my favorite channel right after ESPN and NFL.”

“No, I wouldn’t laugh at all. I love the Cooking Network. You could be a chef if you wanted. I’m impressed,” I said, buttering my roll.

“Naw, I’m not good with customer service. I prefer fighting bad guys.”

I lifted my gaze to meet his. “So, you really are like a cop to the members of your community?”

He shrugged. “Us shifters are still governed, just like the humans. I police when it comes to pack matters and pack crimes.”

“Well, I bet you’re very good at what you do. You saved me.”

“Stuff like what happened to you shouldn’t even be happening. Unfortunately, I don’t police other members of other packs. Just my own. The incident you were involved in happened outside of my territory. Everything outside of my territory is off limits, but I’m not the kind of guy who turns a blind eye to men picking on helpless women.”

“The men that attacked me, they had tattoos.”

“Can you describe it?” he asked, eagerly.

“A solid black star inside a circle.”

Jayce ate slowly while looking down at the table but said nothing.

I continued, “Have you seen that mark before?”

“Members of the Black Ridge pack carry that mark.”

“So, there are two packs here?” I asked.

“Yes. There are more than two, actually. The region of Arrow Lake is huge. It covers a good sized piece of Minnesota and most of the mountains.”

“When you shifted in the forest? I saw your tattoo…I think. The moon. A crescent.”

“That’s correct. You’re very observant,” he said with a small smile.

“It’s how I knew you were different. That and the fact that it didn’t look like you wanted to tear me to shreds.”

“I wouldn’t do that to you,” he said.

The way he looked at me made me think of things other than revenge for what was done to me and getting to my friend’s house. I’d never forget how sexy Jayce looked under the moonlight, holding me in his arms. I’d never forget how aroused he was after he shifted from wolf into man.

I swallowed as my entire core heated. If I wasn’t mistaken, I saw Jayce’s nostrils flare, and he stole a glance at me. I picked up my glass and guzzled down some water, attempting to cool my temperature.

We ate in almost complete silence after that. Just small talk and stolen glances. I cleaned my plate, and Jayce helped himself to seconds—even thirds.

After putting our plates in the sink, he glanced down at his watch.

“I have a meeting,” he said, bluntly.

“You work the graveyard shift or something?” I asked, trying to keep a straight face.

“All the time, but this is impromptu. I called my Alpha while you were in the shower and told him what happened.”

“So, your meeting’s about me?”

He nodded. “And how we’re going to stop this from happening again.”

I sighed. “Oh, God. If I had only stayed on the main interstate.”

“Hey…this isn’t your fault. You were just in the wrong place at the wrong time. They singled you out. There’s a lot you don’t know about us. As to us shifters, we have certain rules. It doesn’t matter what pack we’re pledged to. They crossed the line. If you had shown up dea—” He paused and shook his head. “If something had happened to you and a human had found you, there would have been chaos. To humans, we’re just violent wolves. They make no distinction between the packs. All wolves regardless of affiliation would’ve been blamed for your disappearance.”

“I understand,” I said, quietly.

“It’s why I had to call my Alpha. We have to take care of this. I…uh…I want you to stay here. This is the safest place for you.”

“I don’t have anywhere else to go without a car. I don’t even know where I am and it’s dark,” I chuckled, nervously.

“Just making sure you weren’t thinking of trying anything like running off into the night.”

“Oh no! I’m not going out there again.”

“I should only be gone an hour, but I won’t go far. There’s a landline in the upstairs loft area. I’m going to leave my phone number if you need to call me. I’ll come running if you need me,” he said, scribbling some notes on a pad.

“Fine.”

“Make sure to lock the door behind me. Don’t open it for anyone. I can let myself in, and I have a spare key buried out in the yard. Just don’t use the deadbolts unless you don’t want me to come back in.”

He grinned.

“Okay, but I want you to come back in. Trust me on that one. I don’t want to be alone.”

“No one will hurt you here. I’ll be back. Promise,” he said, before pulling his shirt over his head and hanging it over the chair.

My eyes lingered on his chest for a moment, and then I turned away. I figured he couldn’t have the clothes on during the shift. I thought he would strip down naked in front of me next, but he went out into the living room, opened the front door, and crossed the threshold.

“See you in about an hour,” he said just before closing the door.

Everything became eerily quiet, and I knew he was gone. My fear returned, and I realized that I wanted Jayce back here with me.

I looked around the large room, taking in the severity of my situation. My life had changed in just a matter of hours.