She Doesn't Know She's His

Chapter Two

               Elaine couldn’t believe she had stumbled into him, whoever he was, like that. Looking down at her hand, the very spot where he had so gently pressed his lips to her skin, she realized that the tremor, the tension, had left her. It had been months since she had felt this calm. Maybe she needed to get out of the lab more. If a night with peers and the simple polite gesture of a man, handsome as he was, calmed her nerves, perhaps she was just toeing the line of burn out. So many of her classmates had gone through some sort of breakdown during the past year, it only made sense.

               Still, she couldn’t get those intense eyes out her head, neither green nor blue, or the way his touch had felt. It was like everything sensuous in life had been compressed into an electric shock through her body. Trying hard not to let it show, Elaine was intensely turned on. The thought of those firm lips pressed other places, his warm hands trailing down her body… she knew she would have to do something about her state or trying to sleep would be pointless.

               Watching the lights of the city pass, the noise and controlled chaos that she had never gotten used to, Elaine was glad of the quiet when they left the city limits. Her family’s home was just over the wooded line of hills to the West of the city. Someone of her bloodline had lived in this house since it was built in the 1700s. The original structure had long since been replaced with modern materials, but the foundation and some of the outbuildings had been preserved. Driving through the large wrought iron gates that could have come from any horror movie, Elaine ran through the excuses that would get her up into her rooms as quickly as possible. She and her father were close, but she didn’t want to risk him thinking that the color in her cheeks was anything more than maybe a little more champagne than was wise.

 Settling on a semblance of the truth, she looked again at her now steady hand while Bernard pulled in front of the house. Normally she would have opened the door herself and gotten out on her own, but tonight she was so distracted she didn’t even notice the car had stopped until Bernard was opening the door.

“Elaine, are you ok?” Bernard looked down at his charge, wondering what could possibly have her so lost in thought. The young woman was usually very observant and not-so-secretly hated being treated like a porcelain doll. It spoke volumes that she actually accepted his steadying had to step out of the dark interior of the car where she would usually have gotten out with a ‘Goodnight Bernard’ and been on her way. He became even more worried when she visibly shook herself before turning on her smile and nodding up to him.

“I’m fine Bernard, truly I am. Just tired.” Elaine knew she wouldn’t be able to fool the man who had helped her get away with numerous childish transgressions, but she couldn’t articulate what she was feeling. And she really was tired, frustrated, but tired. With a slight squeeze of her friend’s hand she nodded and moved on to the house, hoping he would let it go.

Her father was in the kitchen, baking of all things. At 11pm her father was baking? And in his worn flannel pajamas of all things. That was not something she had expected at all. He was just sliding a tray of what looked like cookies into the top of double stacked, stainless steel wall ovens as she walked into the well-appointed kitchen. Like everything in their home, the kitchen had been arranged to accommodate her mother’s wheelchair. No one had had the heart to redecorate after she passed, least of all her father.

Her father obviously had been lost in thoughts of his own, because he startled when he noticed her standing just beyond the granite topped island. She had taken off her heels the moment the door was shut behind her, so there had been no footsteps for him to hear on hardwood floors. His tan skin paled for just a second before he realized who he was looking at. Elaine would have bet good money that her father had either had a dream of her mother or considered going on a date with another woman. Only those two things could take the light from her father’s eyes and replace it with such despair.

“Hi Daddy, I’m sorry I startled you.” Elaine smiled softly at her father, noticing again the crows’ feet deepening at the corners of his eyes and the silver creeping into his still thick hair and beard. He wasn’t the type of man who would ever look old, but right now he looked worn down if nothing else.

“Hello sweetheart. It’s ok. I just had a dream about your mother, that’s all. Did I tell you that she craved peanut butter cookies when she was pregnant with you?” Jeremy heard the pain in his voice as he looked at his daughter. She looked so much like her mother had at her age, sometimes it was almost too much. But then she would smile, or say something that he would have, and there was his baby girl again.  Tonight, seeing her as obviously distracted as he was, he tried to focus on her.

“You told me I inherited my sweet tooth from her, but never about the cookies.” Watching the pain in her father’s eyes quickly pushed the thought of the stranger’s eyes to the back of her mind. Still present but not a priority. She knew her father would need to talk, maybe even pull out the old photo albums, before he would pour himself a glass of the bourbon her mother had preferred and head off to bed. “Do I have time for a quick shower before those cookies are ready?”

               “You don’t have to babysit me you know.” He couldn’t help but smile as he watched the thoughts cross her face. Over the years he and his daughter had grown to know each other’s tells. He could tell how her day had gone just by the set of her shoulders, and she could see his pain the way no one else could.

               “It’s not babysitting Dad. I had a rather, unsettling evening and those cookies smell like exactly what I need.”

               “Ok honey, go get pjs on and we can binge on cookies while you tell me what shook you so badly.” The way she seemed startled at mentioning being unsettled told Jeremy that his little girl hadn’t been planning on bothering him with whatever was on her mind.

               “Ok Daddy.” Impulsively she leaned across the counter and quickly kissed his cheek before turning and heading down the hall like she would have as a little girl. Maybe talking to her father about the gentleman from the gala would be a good thing. Either way, she had no chance of keeping it to herself now. In hind sight, Bernard might have told him in the morning anyways. Best to take care of it now before things got blown out of proportion.

               Ian had dropped Leo off in front of the hotel where they were staying while in town. Almost on autopilot Leo nodded to the doorman and made his way to the suite he and Ian shared. Normally he would have wanted to be closer to downtown where his meetings were scheduled, this wasn’t just a business trip. Anticipating a longer stay and potential need to work off some energy, they had chosen a ridiculously priced, “Historical Treasure” on the edge of town. The patio off the living area gave them access to the woods beyond. Perfect for tonight.

               Leo had known his share of women over the years, a few he had even thought might be his mate, but nothing had prepared him for this. His heart was racing, his breathing not quite heavy, but not slow either. Pulling the slim cellphone from his pocket as he dialed Ian, “Do I have anything planned for tomorrow?” Ian had noticed his tension during the drive and knew what was coming.

               “Nothing that can’t be rescheduled. Are we going on a run then, or shall I have room service find you a bottle of something older than you are?” Ian never missed a chance to tease his favorite cousin about his years.

               “If you need your beauty rest you can stay behind, puppy.” Falling into their banter was like breathing for both of them, and the familiarity was comforting.

               “And let you wander out into unfamiliar woods in your state? Old man, you might fall and break a hip!” Anyone else listening would have interpreted thought them more like older uncle and favored nephew than the truth. Ian was only 15 years younger than Leo, but among their family, that was like growing up together. Throw in Ian’s preoccupation with his appearance, and there was plenty of fuel for the fire.

               “With that attitude I should leave you behind. But that would leave you free to harass the bartender you were flirting with last night, and I would never wish that on anyone.” Leo really did have to keep an eye one his cousin. Ian was still young enough to pursue casual lovers, and he had never shown a preference for gender.

               Ian walked opened the heavy oak door just in time to see Leo coming out of his room in basketball shorts and running shoes. To anyone else he was a stressed businessman worried about his health. Nothing could hide the silver shine to Leo’s eyes though, and his voice held a growl to it that told Ian more than anything else how shaken his cousin was.

               “Hurry up puppy!” Leo could feel the prickle along his spine, the slight itch allover his skin that was the beginning of the change. He would try to wait for Ian, but he knew the boy could track him and would only wait so long. His wolf was dying to get out and run. If he couldn’t have their mate, they would run the game trails until their minds were clear and sleep was the only option.