CHAPTER 2.
1242 Words
She shook her head. Her hat jiggled, and her glasses
slipped, and the bothersome earrings danced.
Two men appeared in front of one of the dingy
tavern windows, and suddenly the door pulled open. Her
heart skittered.
“Hey, Sam! Bring us a pitcher of beer,” one of
them called.
About six- feet—as tall as her brother—with windswept
shoulder-length brown hair and a just-began goatee, his
golden eyes hinted at joy and good humor ringing
in his words. Both males wore leather jackets, plaid shirts,
denims, cowboy hats, and boots, and they appeared to be
twins. Multiple births abounded among lupus garous, therefore
No surprise there. They appeared like they were in their mid- to late-twenties.
and strolled inside the place like they owned the joint.
“Jake, Tom.” Sam peered in her direction, alerting
them to the presence of a stranger.
She tightened her back and held her glass firmly.
Tom—his hair the lighter of the two, longer, curling
around his massive shoulders, his face soft as silk.
focused his attention on her, raised his brows, and pointed
back his Stetson and grinned.
Self-conscious, her whole body is hot and alarming.
bells rung. Keep a low profile!
Tom drew a deep breath as if he were love-struck.
“The place looks a bit better tonight, Sam. Done
some beautiful redecorating.”
The bearded one furrowed his dark brows. “Didn’t
You tell her it’s a private club, and no matter what, that
table is reserved?”
“Bending the rules today. First come, first served.”
Sam grinned and winked at Mary.
Damn. Was this where Frank Gantt normally sat? She
imagined he’d sit in the center, so everyone could see
their leader. That’s the way Ursus did it back home.
Now what? Move? To where? If she relocated to the
table opposite from Frank’s, she was scared she’d attract too
much attention. Not that she expected anybody to hurt.
her here, but she had assumed she’d be able to keep a
low profile. The tables are positioned on the other side of
The bar sat in front of the restrooms. Anywhere else
was too near the front door or in the middle of the
floor, and no matter what, she wanted to have her
back to the wall. She wasn’t leaving until she’d had
chance to see the leader and as many of his pack
members as she could, each one of them might have
Killed Kendra.
Tom grabbed the pitcher of beer and a glass. “Come
on, Jake. Change is healthy for the soul.” He stalked over
to the table opposite her and sat where he could view both
the front door and, most of all, her.
Immersed in a goldfish tank, she wondered what had happened.
made her think she could penetrate the wolves’ den without
provoking suspicion.
Jake sat with his back to the wall to get a better look.
of the door. If he wanted to look her over, he’d have to.
Turn his head and be quite open about it. He did.
The expression on his face was dark and gloomy.
Gone was the fun his features had possessed when he initially
stepped into the room.
Laughing and shouting, three more men barged
into the tavern, glanced at where Jake and Tom sat, then
They turned their attention to Mary. Which meant what?
Jake and Tom generally sat with Frank Ganttat at the table.
Where was she now sitting?
Terrific!
“Howdy, boys,” the eldest bearded member of the bunch
remarked, nodding a hello. The other two were virtually as
aged, gray staining their brown beards, their gazes fixated.
on her. “Bring us the usual, Sam.” He turned to Jake and
pointed his head at her. “Does he know about this?”
“You're still giving orders at the factory, Mason,” Tom said.
The bearded man mumbled, “Fourth of July’s coming.
for a second time this year.”
Figuring she’d be better off sitting next to the bathrooms
to decrease the danger of producing fireworks, Mary
snatched her purse.
The door banged open again. The buzz died.
As soon as she saw him, she knew it was him—not
simply because quiet suddenly blanketed the room and every
eye in the place saw Frank Gantt’s reply. His
sable hair curled at the top edge of his collar. Brooding
dark eyes, harsh lips, and handsomely rough features,
absolutely hard, characterized him. Wearing a leather jacket,
western shirt, pants, and boots; everything was as black as
as his dismal disposition. He looked so much like Tom, and
Jake believed they must be triplets, and he was the
leader of the gray lupus garou in the area. It had to be the
way everyone watched him, waiting for the fireworks.
Something about him ignited her blood.
akin to identification, yet she’d never seen him before.
in her life. It wasn’t his face, clothes, or body that
aroused some deep memory—but the way he moved
authoritative, forceful, and with an effortless grace.
He glanced at the barkeep and offered a nod of
greeting—sullen, mute, still in sadness for his mate?
If he knew why Mary was here, he’d be enraged.
A shiver crept down her spine. She freed her.
purse and kept her position for the moment. Everyone was
acting so weirdly, she assumed it was the reason he
swiftly inspected the current seating configuration. When
His eyes lit on her, and incredulity registered.
Crap! He recognized her; she simply knew it. Didn’t
matter that she had colored her hair this terrible color that
didn’t do much for her fair skin, or that her eyes were
currently blue. It didn’t matter that the heavy cushioned leather
jacket gave her wider shoulders and made her appear
heavier, or that she wore her hair straight as blades of
uncut grass, compliments of a hair straightening iron,
when her sister’s and hers were naturally curly. She
couldn’t hide the contour of her face, eyes, or mouth. All
of them reflected her sister’s appearance.
Then again, his look was bewildered. The hat and sunglasses
appeared to confuse him. Maybe the fact that she wore
the imitation-pierced earrings that looked like the real thing
did too.
She broke eye contact first; her skin was moist.
hands trembling. God, he was more wolf than she was.
used to working with—broader-shouldered and taller.
His gaze fastened upon hers with devilish resolve.
no backing down, no compromise. No wonder, Kendra
had fallen for the attention-grabbing gray. Mary
I couldn't help wondering how a romp with a virile
wolf like him would feel. But darn if it hadn’t gotten
Kendra slain. Stick with your own kind; that’s what
her father would have said. No humans, Lupus garou
only the red variety.
Everyone remained deathly quiet—no one lifted a
mug to take a sip of a drink, no one moved a muscle.
Swallowing hard, she forced herself to gaze at Frank.
to see what he was doing now.
I'm still staring at her. She wanted to sink into the floor.
like mopping water on a hot day. She gritted her teeth and lifted
her glass of water and took another drink, hoping she
wouldn’t accidentally choke on the ice drink out of
nervousness. But she wasn’t leaving Gantt Town until
She avenged Kendra’s death.
- Writer
