Dreaming of the Wolf

Chapter 12

Normally, Jake wouldn’t have been caught dead in a lingerie store. Certainly not that one. The women loved to get the corsets for the annual Victorian Era Day for some fun after the celebration, although without a mate, Jake hadn’t thought he’d ever get to partake in that part of the fun. The difficult part for the ladies seemed to be trying to pick just one. Lisa Grae, the thirty-year-old owner, was dressed in a conservative pale-blue dress.

She raised her brows to see him come into the shop.

“Hi, Jake. You didn’t say why you had to come here tonight.” She sounded more than surprised.

“I need some things for a woman who’s staying with us.”

“Oh. Can she visit and—”

“No.”

“But her size. Did she tell you what—”

“She’s in the car in her wolf form and has no clothes.”

Lisa glanced out the window and frowned. “Oh. Is Sheriff Peter posing as a bodyguard?”

“Yeah.”

She sighed. “A ll right. So you’re not looking for anything fun. Just functional.”

No, he wasn’t looking just for functional. But he let Lisa lead him to the racks of bras anyway. He ran his fingers over the lacy cups, then the satin ones. He picked up red ones, one lace, one satin, the one without any padding, the other with padding beneath the breasts. He didn’t know which Alicia would prefer so he would get both.

“A re you certain that’s her cup size?”

He put his hand around the cup and nodded. “Appears right.”

“Hmm,” Lisa said, smiling, and the sound she made was one of speculation. Then she took him to a rack of panties. He selected three pairs of bikini panties in red.

“Maybe a pair of white?”

He shook his head. Red suited her.

Then he looked back at the royal blue corset.

“What about nightwear? A robe or something?”

But now he couldn’t tear his gaze away from the body hose that a couple of mannequins were wearing. One was a seductive fishnet, long-sleeved body stocking with an open crotch, and the other, a spaghetti-strapped sheer fishnet body stocking, also with an open crotch.

Envisioning Alicia wearing any of it made him hard and wanting.

“A robe?” Lisa repeated, drawing his attention reluctantly from the body stockings.

He fingered a sheer, red-lace short robe.

Lisa smiled and folded her arms. “Does she wear a lot of red?”

He glanced at Alicia watching him through the Suburban window and thought about it, but he didn’t remember her wearing anything but white.

“I’ll take this,” he said, picking out a red shirt-like baby doll that reached just below the crotch, sheer enough to be revealing, but opaque enough to entice. He hastily paid for the garments, thanked Lisa, and headed for the door.

Alicia might not wear red normally, but he knew she’d look hot in all of it.

With sack in hand, Jake returned to the vehicle. He smiled at Alicia as Tom drove them to the casual-clothes shop where Jake figured he’d get her a pair of jeans and a T-shirt and sweatshirt. “I’ll bring you back to town to shop once you’re ready so you can pick up whatever else you might need until we can get your suitcases,” he said, as she eyed the sack.

When she poked at his hand still grasping the sack, he reached in and pulled out the red lace bra. She looked up at him. “Red would look good on you,” he said.

Tom glanced in the rearview mirror.

Jake pulled out a pair of panties. “To match the bra.”

He slid the robe out and put his hand underneath the fabric, smiling when he could see his skin through the sheer material. He could just imagine what she would look like in the robe. “Do you like it?”

She shook her head. He couldn’t tell if she was smiling or shaking her head in disbelief. But he didn’t think she was unhappy with his selection. Tom pulled into the parking area of the casual-clothes shop, and Jake didn’t take long to pick out two T-shirts, a sweatshirt, and a pair of jeans. He got her some flip-flops, too, not knowing her shoe size but guessing.

Then Tom drove them to Darien’s home out in the country. Trying not to show how apprehensive he felt about her shifting when they got there and learning everything about her in front of his family, Jake caressed her back, which helped both of them to relax.

He just hoped the hell he’d learn she wasn’t already mated.

As soon as they arrived at Darien’s home, Lelandi and Darien greeted Alicia as if she were a long-lost pack member. She remained glued to Jake’s side, however, and he recognized that she was feeling anxious.

“Come with me,” Lelandi coaxed, “and I’ll show you the guest room.” She smiled brightly. Jake didn’t think he’d seen Lelandi this excited in weeks. She fairly glowed, and he was glad she was so thrilled to see Alicia. That would make it easier for her to fit into the pack. Although Alicia didn’t seem any less anxious.

A t least when they’d had a newly turned wolf before, Carol had been from the town, had had psychic visions of what werewolves were beforehand, had been resigned to the fact she’d be turned, and had had a pack to teach her the ways once she’d been turned. Alicia didn’t know anyone here and might not know a lot about being a wolf if a pack hadn’t been watching over her. And he didn’t think one had.

Alicia glanced up at Jake, and his heart went out to her.

If he didn’t think it would upset Lelandi, and if he didn’t think Alicia might still feel unsure of herself as far as shifting into a naked woman in front of him, he would have insisted on going with her instead.

What the hell. He crouched in front of her and stroked her underneath the chin. “Alicia, did you want me to go with you?”

Her large brown eyes studied him for what seemed an eternity. Tom and Peter were standing behind them, waiting for her response. Darien and Lelandi were just as quiet. Alicia shook her head.

Jake smiled. “A ll right.” Then he handed the two sacks of clothes to Lelandi and rubbed Alicia’s head between her ears. “Go with Lelandi then. I’ll wait for you down here.”

She nudged his thigh in an intimate agreement, then went with Lelandi. He knew Lelandi would be good for Alicia, no matter how apprehensive she might be feeling right now.

When she’d disappeared up the stairs with Lelandi, Darien said to Jake, “We have to talk.”

Tom looked halfway glad he wasn’t needed for the lecture Jake was sure his brother planned to give him.

When Jake and Darien entered his office, Darien took his seat on the couch, rather than behind the desk. It was a way of saying, This isn’t pack business as much as it is family business.

Jake sat on a chair nearby and waited for what Darien had to say, already feeling defensive.

“A ll right, you don’t know for sure if she’s mated, do you, Jake?”

“She came to me in my dreams.”

“Jake.”

“No, not for sure.”

“And you don’t know if she’s pregnant or not.”

As much as he hated to admit he truly wasn’t one hundred percent sure, Jake shook his head.

“Why are these men after her?”

Jake leaned back in the chair and explained as much as he knew from the time he’d met her to what Peter was sure to have passed along to Darien from the sheriff who oversaw Crestview.

Then women’s laughter drifted to them all the way from the upstairs guest bedroom.

Darien raised his brows, questioning Jake as if he had a clue what the women thought was so funny.

“Oh, you poor thing,” Lelandi said, holding her belly, tears in her eyes because she was laughing so hard as Alicia chuckled again in the guest room where she would be staying. Lelandi’s red curls clashed with her red cheeks as Lelandi ran her finger over the “barely there” crotch of one of the red thongs. “I never liked wearing anything this skimpy. Jake must really have it bad for you.”

Alicia smiled. “I should buy him one and see how much he likes wearing it.”

Lelandi laughed, her green eyes smiling. “He might just like one. You never know. As soon as it’s feasible for you to go shopping, I’ll take you. Lisa, who owns the lingerie shop, must have been shocked to pieces to see Jake buying for a wolf no one knows.”

“Does she know what we are?” Alicia asked, incredulous. She couldn’t believe she was in a house full of wolves—Darien, Jake, Lelandi, Tom, and Peter, but that there could be more in the town seemed surreal.

Somehow she had to ask Lelandi about Jake’s ties to Ferdinand Massaro, though. She wondered if maybe he alone was tied in with them. That maybe the rest of Jake’s family was clueless about his association with the criminals.

“Oh, yes. Of course.” Lelandi reached out and squeezed Alicia’s hand. “We run the town.”

“Run the town? Jake said Darien did. But—”

“Our pack does. As far as I know, it’s pretty rare for a pack to run a whole town. Most packs just infiltrate towns, work at jobs among the humans, live among them, and have their getaway spots when they have to take a run on the wild side. But they don’t decide who works in all the key positions. We only allow wolves to run the hospital, in case we have an emergency. And the vet clinic is werewolf run, too. So are the bank, the bed and breakfast, the florist shop, and most other businesses. But we’ll explain all that later.” Lelandi lifted the nearly sheer robe and raised her brows. “This barely covers anything lengthwise, and it’s practically see-

through. I’ve got an extra robe if you need one. Do you like red?”

Alicia frowned at the push-up bra. “It’s all right. I would never have worn red lingerie, though, if Jake hadn’t bought it for me.” She pulled on the T-shirt and jeans.

“I have to ask you,” Lelandi said, growing serious. “A re you mated?”

Lelandi seemed so concerned that Alicia paused at zipping up the jeans. “I heard Jake talking about it to Darien. Does it mean my having had sex with a man?”

Lelandi’s eyes widened marginally. “Only if he was a werewolf.”

“No. Not with a man, either, since I was turned.” Except for her dreams with Jake, and she didn’t figure that counted.

“Good. And you’re not pregnant?”

“Oh. No. I’m so sorry about that. I’m afraid I got poor Jake into a lot of trouble over that. I didn’t know what else to say when I shape-shifted so all of a sudden at the art gallery. No one saw me, but I had to give a reason for not answering them when it was closing time and I wouldn’t leave the restroom stall.”

“That must have been horrible for you, Alicia. You’re too newly turned to be out in public. I don’t want you to worry about it. But the pack is your family, and we take care of our own.”

Alicia was so overcome that she gave a hug to Lelandi, who returned the gesture with heartfelt sincerity. Alicia had been so worried about how others would view her that she couldn’t believe how welcoming they were. But she had to know if any of them were connected to Massaro and his cohorts. “When are you due?” Alicia asked.

“A month. Triplets are on the way.”

“Triplets? Oh, my. And…” Alicia’s eyes widened. “Jake is a triplet?”

Lelandi smiled. “Hmm-hm.”

“Oh.” The idea was finally sinking in that if she’d ever had a child with Jake, it could very well be three at once.

The worrisome thought suddenly struck her—would they be werewolves, too?

“Where’s your family?” Lelandi asked, quickly changing the subject, and Alicia wondered if Lelandi could read the worry in her expression.

“I don’t have any.” Alicia thought Lelandi gave a slight sigh of relief. “My dad ran off when I was two, and my mother and grandmother raised me. But they’re both dead now.”

“I’m sorry to hear this,” Lelandi said with genuine feeling. “But in a way it makes it easier because keeping your lupus garou genetics secret from them could be a trial.” She shifted on the chair and rubbed her lower back. “Darien said you are a bounty hunter. But until you’re sure you’ve got the shifting under control, you’ll have to put your job on hold.”

Alicia relaxed a little. “I was rethinking whether I should stay in that job anyway after what had happened this last time. Although I often go after women so that we don’t have cases of some woman screaming that there was sexual misconduct.”

“Something we can talk about later.” Lelandi took a deep breath. “Where’s the man who turned you?”

Good. The opening Alicia needed. “Dead. And the man who turned him is dead also. Ferdinand Massaro was the name of the one who turned me.” Lelandi showed no recognition of the name whatsoever. Alicia tried again. “I thought you might know him since he was one of you.”

“Oh, my goodness, no,” Lelandi said thoughtfully.

“Given our uniqueness, our secret is well guarded.

Certainly we run into each other in communities beyond our own, but that’s the only way we learn others exist.”

Alicia sighed with relief. A t least Lelandi didn’t seem to know this man. “But Jake must have known him then.”

A faint look of wariness appeared in Lelandi’s eyes, but she quickly changed her expression and gave Alicia a faked smile. “You’ll have to ask Jake. Although I have to tell you that when we locate other werewolves in other locations, or when they stray into our own territory, we share that knowledge with our pack. It’s instinctive. As co-pack leader with Darien, I would have been made aware of this discovery. In that light, I don’t believe Jake knew the man who bit you.”

Alicia didn’t know what to think. On the one hand, she got the distinct impression Lelandi was defending Jake—that the coolness or hint of condemnation Alicia had tried to keep out of her voice when she mentioned Jake knowing Ferdinand had put Lelandi on the defensive.

Alicia had to remember she was dealing with a family—one that seemed cohesive and all supporting. And she was the outsider, no matter how happy they seemed to be that she was now among them.

“Then if none of you knew Ferdinand Massaro, the knowledge he is dead is of no great importance to you,” Alicia said coolly, watching for a reaction.

“We would only be concerned if he had done something to gather the attention of humans, revealing what he truly was either in life or death.” Lelandi rubbed her belly and frowned at Alicia. “Was he…” She hesitated.

“Was he what?” Alicia had the impression Lelandi was about to ask if the creep had been her lover. But how could Lelandi think that when she could see how much Jake wanted Alicia and how she felt about him?

“I’m sorry. I meant to ask—did he force himself on you? Did he turn you against your will?” Lelandi’s questions were spoken in a manner that showed concern mixed with controlled anger.

Her reaction took Alicia by surprise. She hadn’t thought anyone would ask her the question, let alone be upset about it. Except maybe Jake. She suspected if he’d known Ferdinand had planned to do this to her, he would have killed him. Yet wouldn’t Jake have wanted to do the same thing to her? Turn her so they would live together as werewolves and have… werewolf kids?

“Alicia?”

Alicia looked up from her hands, not even realizing she’d been wringing them. Tears filled her eyes as she recalled what had happened to her that night. Thinking about Ferdinand stripping her of her clothes. Fearing that he intended to rape her, torture her, and kill her.

Recalling the bite on her arm and the men who had come to murder him and who had searched for her while she’d hidden from them in abject terror. How she’d turned into the wolf and felt she’d become some alien being—all alone to face her uncertainties.

Lelandi took her hand and squeezed. “It’s all right. You can talk to me about it later when you feel more like it.

I’m sure the men are waiting for us to return to them downstairs. There are tons of things we’ll need to discuss with you so you’ll understand what we’re all about. But I don’t want to overwhelm you.”

Alicia sighed, having to get this off her chest.

“Ferdinand declared I would be his, knocked me out, and when I came to, I’d already been bitten. Men were with him in another room. They murdered him, and I must have passed out from the earlier blows to the head.

Anyway, when I came to, I found I was a wolf. I couldn’t shape-shift back for some time, but I left his place as soon as I was able.”

“Where were you when they killed him?”

More than idle curiosity was backing Lelandi’s question, Alicia thought. Did she wonder if Alicia had watched the murder take place and then walked out of there on her own? That she was in on this whole mess? One of the bad guys?

“I was half-groggy from being knocked unconscious the two times,” Alicia said quietly. “Somehow, I managed to pull my clothes off the bed and slide underneath it.”

“You were naked?” Lelandi’s brows were arched in surprise.

Alicia swallowed. “Yes. I… I assumed after what had happened, as far as I could piece together, I should say, that Ferdinand meant to bite me and…” She shrugged, figuring Lelandi could fill in the blanks. “I was terrified the men would find me. I still remember the odor of the cologne worn by the man who came to look in the bedroom. His method of searching for anyone in the condo reminded me of one of my…”

Alicia had done it again. She hadn’t meant to mention her ex-husbands. Her face feeling warm, she clenched her fingers together. “My ex-husband would look for something but if it wasn’t lying out in plain sight, he’d ask me to find it. He never thought to look under anything. In this case…” She shuddered. “It was a good thing the murderer didn’t look beneath the bed.”

Lelandi let out a breath as if she’d been holding it in.

She’d probably never lived half as dangerously as Alicia, not with a caring pack to watch over her. And the notion anyone would have wanted Lelandi dead would be alien to her.

“This Ferdinand Massaro just grabbed you off the street?” Lelandi asked.

“He was my informant, although I’d never met him before in person. But yes, he grabbed me when I was about to issue the warrant for his brother’s arrest.”

Lelandi’s eyes grew big. “I see.”

“No, I don’t think you do. Ferdinand told me where to find his brother to make the arrest. Turning me was only part of his agenda.”

“So what about the men who came after you at the motel in Crestview?”

“They were part of Mario Constantino’s family. One of them, the only one who got away unscathed, was Danny Massaro. The man who shot and killed my mother. He also was Ferdinand Massaro’s brother.”

Lelandi’s lips parted, then she closed them and didn’t say anything.

Alicia got the distinct impression that Lelandi and her pack wouldn’t like having a troublemaker like Alicia in their midst. “I don’t want to bring any danger to your family,” Alicia reasoned. “Maybe Darien could help me return to my car in Crestview, and I’ll be on my way.”

Lelandi didn’t say anything right away, and Alicia thought she was considering her request favorably. Then she said, “You’ll stay with us, dear Alicia. We won’t let any harm come to you. As I’ve said, because of our uniqueness, we must keep what we are a secret. Newly turned, you can’t possibly get along on your own without a pack to…” Lelandi hesitated. “We’ll guide you. But I don’t mean that in a controlling way. It’s just that living among us, you’ll learn how to cope with your abilities.

Besides, Jake said the two of you are dream mated. And if you haven’t figured it out yet, he’s not about to let you get out of his sight again.”

“I don’t understand what dream mating means,” Alicia said, not about to get into a discussion of what Jake wanted or didn’t want.

“It seems to run in the Silver genetics. We were all confused, though. It only happens between werewolves, and Jake swore you were strictly human.”

“Having… dreams of him didn’t happen until after I was turned. And then it was if Jake was coming to comfort me after what had happened to me. As though it didn’t matter about what I’d become. Of course, I kept thinking that being a werewolf was like some kind of weird virus and that it would go away. But when we were together, at least in the dreams, I knew he didn’t care what I was.

Which in retrospect was crazy, because how would he have known I was a part-time wolf? In my dreams, though, I felt as though he knew because I did.”

Lelandi ran her hand over her arm. “You don’t know how worried I was—well, all of us were—when Jake seemed so depressed. He kept retiring to his bedroom earlier and earlier, and we couldn’t figure out what was wrong.”

Alicia smiled at that. She knew the feeling.

“A t first, he’d been so reluctant to drop his pictures off at the art gallery in Breckenridge. Then he didn’t come home until the next night. Darien and I figured he’d met a woman and hung around a while longer. But when he was so disconsolate upon returning and said he was going back to Breckenridge, we didn’t know what to think. Darien was sure Jake was planning on turning a human woman. Not something we do lightly.”

Alicia’s jaw dropped in astonishment. “You weren’t turned?”

“I was born as a lupus garou. Same with most of our people. A few were turned a very long time ago. Every once in a while, the choice has to be made to turn someone who has seen what we are.”

“Or kill them?”

Lelandi nodded. “Not something we want to do, but sometimes it’s our only choice.”

Alicia swallowed hard. “When the woman came to the restroom at the gallery and I had shifted, I was so afraid I’d have to bite her. And then the others. And once the police were summoned, I knew I’d be dead. They’d figure I was a rabid wolf.”

“Until you died,” Lelandi said softly, squeezing Alicia’s hand. “Then you would have turned into a human. And, well, that would have taken some explaining.”

Alicia’s mouth dropped open again. “Ohmigod.”

“Yes. That’s why until you get your shape-shifting abilities under control, you need to stay with only our kind.”

Then Alicia had another horrible thought. “One of the men who planned to kill me—I bit him. What if I turned him?”