Gods and Mortals: Fourteen Free Urban Fantasy & Paranormal Novels Featuring Thor, Loki, Greek Gods, Native American Spirits, Vampires, Werewolves, & More (331 page)

I shook my head to dislodge the blanket and sent Clay a quick scowl. His lips twitched.

Over his shoulder, I saw Luke cramming my things into my ragged messenger bag. My bag wouldn’t last through another werewolf packing.

Clay left the room. Just in case anyone else roamed the halls, I laid my head on Clay’s shoulder. He held me closely and walked quickly. We quietly made it out the main entrance with Luke following us.

The black sky twinkled with stars, and crickets conversed with their night song as the two werewolves stealthily moved over the graveled parking area. It had to be Monday night. I regretted missing a day’s worth of classes, but there’d been no way to help it.

The car faced the gate. Luke must have moved it. The door’s loud creaking groan made us all cringe. Clay quickly settled me inside, reached across me to secure the seat belt, then silently jogged around the hood to get in behind the wheel.

Luke handed me my bag then moved to close the door. I motioned for him to wait and dug in a side pocket of my bag for a pencil stub and paper. In those few moments after I shocked him and before I passed out, I’d gleaned some information about the person I saw. Whoever she was, Luke needed to find her and help me understand if some of my suspicions were right. Was she like me? Was she his Mate?

I jotted him a hasty note and handed it to him with a wave. He quickly closed the door. I hoped giving him the information was the right thing to do. I barely knew him. Would he even try to find her or just hand the information over to an Elder? Worried, I looked at him through the window. He didn’t see me. His eyes scanned my note. He crumpled it in his hand and spun toward a waiting motorcycle.

Clay pulled away from the Compound, spitting gravel with the tires. The motorcycle roared to life and quickly zipped past us. Luke saluted me with a wicked grin then disappeared from sight. I peeked in the side mirror and caught the reason for their loud exit. Sam stood on the porch, his gaze locked on us. He grew smaller as we sped away. I wished I knew whom to trust.

I laid my head back and closed my eyes. What a crappy Introduction weekend. The worst yet. I hoped there were no more in my future.

The drone of the engine and the soothing vibrations of the tires put me right to sleep. I dozed the whole way home, waking when Clay lifted me from the car. With blankets still twisted around me, he carried me to my room and gently set me on the bed.

A few minutes later, he settled next to me. It didn’t matter anymore if he wore his fur or stayed as a man. He remained with me. It was enough.

C
lay tried
to keep me home Tuesday. First, he planted himself, in his fur, in front of my door so I couldn’t get out of the bedroom. Then, when I pleaded to use the bathroom, he allowed me out and took the opportunity to hide my keys.

My suspicion rose when he calmly watched me get ready. I discovered the missing keys and resorted to further pleading. I explained my need to talk to Nicole in hopes of piecing together the puzzle of my abilities. The one-sided conversation reminded me of the first time I’d reasoned with him.

Of course, Rachel caught part of my serious chat with our dog and did a double take on her way to the bathroom. I laughed and waved her away, then gave Clay a look. Grudgingly, Clay led me to my keys, and I made it to the campus on time.

I parked and took a minute to lean my forehead against the steering wheel, still recovering from sharing my ability with three people in one weekend. Clay had obviously sensed it. If Tuesday hadn’t been the only day I saw Nicole, I would have stayed in bed. Steeling myself, I got out of the car and trudged across campus.

For the first time ever, I didn’t pay much attention to the instructor. Instead, I sat by Nicole and whispered questions freely, but failed to uncover anything more than what she’d already shared. Men had hit on her quite a bit after the Halloween party. She attributed the attention to the costume, which she planned to reuse. Since it wasn’t a bad costume, I didn’t dissuade her of the idea. Better to think it was the costume than a freak friend passing some kind of power to her.

I smiled and waved goodbye to her at the end of the class. People pushed past me to leave. I watched them go and dreaded the long walk back to the car. With my pull gone, thanks to Luke and two strangers, I could safely ask someone for a piggyback ride. I’d seen it happen before. Yet, I couldn’t picture explaining to Clay why I smelled like another guy.

Rachel and Clay-the-man stood in the kitchen together making an early dinner. Surprised, I hesitated in the doorway. Rachel typically spent her free time with Peter or at work. And Clay tended to stay in his fur when she was home.

Rachel paused her one-sided conversation to wink at me. I glanced at Clay, stepped further into the room, and slowly closed the door behind me. Clay remained focused on the food he stirred in the pan. Rachel walked past me on her way to get silverware.

“You didn’t tell me he could
cook
,” Rachel stage whispered.

Giving her a crooked smile, I made my way to a kitchen chair. I was exhausted.

“He cooks, he cleans, he warms up my feet at night, and he keeps the toilet seat down...so hands off. He’s mine.”

Rachel laughed, and Clay turned to give me an undecipherable look. I had a feeling he liked the “mine” part.

“How you feeling?” Rachel said, coming over to touch my forehead. “I asked Clay, but he didn’t say.” Rachel gave Clay a pointed look. Clay shrugged and went back to cooking at the stove.

“Not the best, but it’s getting better. I think it’s mental exhaustion, nothing contagious.”

“Mm,” she said in a noncommittal way as she eyed me speculatively. “I still think you should go to the doctor. Could it be something you didn’t think of yet?” She casually leaned close to me. “Pregnant?” she whispered.

Clay dropped the spoon. It hit the stove and bounced back at him. He caught it tight after a close fumble. Both Rachel and I stared at his back, but with dignity, he stayed facing the stove and kept cooking.

I turned back to Rachel with a wide smile. “No. Now, behave.”

We ate dinner companionably. After we finished, they shoved me out of the kitchen with orders to rest while they cleaned up. I went to my room and changed into my lounge clothes while listening to Rachel tell Clay about a cute pair of shoes she’d found. It made me smile. She would never break him. He’d never talk.

Dinner, though delicious and entertaining, had drained my reserves. I lay on top the comforter thinking I’d rest for a bit before I tackled that day’s homework. I still needed to talk to Clay about what I’d seen in the woods at the Introduction.

S
unlight penetrated
the darkness behind my eyelids. I no longer sprawled sideways on the bed on top the comforter but underneath it, snugly tucked in. Clay sat up in the space next to me, pillows stacked behind him as he read a book. His posture didn’t fool me. He really sat there to watch over me while I slept. I knew with an unexplainable certainty that he would never leave me again.

“Good morning,” I said, pulling the covers up to my chin. Thanks to Rachel-the-heat-miser, the room felt cool, but I enjoyed lower rent.

Clay closed his book as soon as I woke and turned to examine me.

“I want to talk to you but keep falling asleep. If I do it again, wake me up.” I smiled at him when he pulled me close to snuggle against him. It was much warmer that way.

“During the Introduction when I said my head hurt, I saw a man step away from the line. I know how your kind view Introductions. It didn’t seem right so I peeked at his spark. It hurt like hell, but I saw he had the same color light as Elder Joshua and the wolf that’d attacked us. I thought maybe it could be the same guy, that he needed to leave because you’d recognize his scent. Then I saw three more, further away. Something’s going on, but I can’t figure out what.

“I know you didn’t stay with the pack full-time, but did you ever notice any of them acting different?”

He shook his head, actually giving me a direct answer. It should have made me happy. Instead, I sighed. I still didn’t have a clue.

He gently stroked my hair as I thought it through. “If only I could trust Sam. If I could ask him questions about Elder Joshua without him repeating them, I might be able to figure this thing out.”

My head started to hurt again. Maybe if I stopped thinking about it so much, the answer would just come to me.

S
am called
my cell the following weekend. I’d expected to hear from him much sooner. He surprised me by asking if I’d come back to the Compound over the long holiday weekend. I hedged. Did he want me to return so he could arrange another Introduction?

When I didn’t give a definitive answer, he launched into a long speech about how he knew he’d disappointed me and how he really did worry about me, not just the pack. I tried to be understanding but didn’t bend much.

Finally, he came right out and asked what had happened to me during the last visit. I answered vaguely, claiming ignorance. Werewolves couldn’t recognize lies as well over the phone. A long moment of silence passed. When he spoke, he didn’t comment on my answer but again asked that I consider coming home over holiday break. I knew he meant the Compound and told him I’d think about it.

After that, he continued to call me daily just to talk. Most of our brief conversations touched on weather, school, or investments. Anything pack related stayed off limits. I could tell he was concerned, but trust, once lost, took longer to earn back. I wouldn’t tell him any of my suspicions until I could confirm some of them.

F
or the next few weeks
, the challenges stopped, and I pushed the pack, strange colored sparks, and my pull from my head. Instead, I focused on my studies.

Clay worked at Dale’s while I stayed on campus. I hadn’t given up trying to figure out why he’d picked Dale to be his employer. However, whenever I asked, he responded with a shrug. I never asked him if he followed me to school as Luke had suggested. Some things I preferred to remain a mystery.

I thought Clay’s expectations would change after our kiss, but he never pushed for more. He continued to stay in his fur most of the time, except for Tuesday nights when he had dinner waiting for me. I looked forward to our nights together and not just because he cooked exceptionally well.

Rachel knew I was spending more time with him, and on one of our quiet nights together, she asked about Clay-the-man while Clay-the-dog lay curled on the floor next to me.

“You are so weird about him. What is it about the guy that keeps you coming back?” She sat on the couch, folding her summer clothes and packing them into a tote.

Smiling slightly, I turned the page of the book in my lap before I answered.

“You don’t know him like I do.”

“How can you know him at all when you two don’t talk?”

“You don’t need to talk to get to know someone. You just need to listen,” I said absently, trying to concentrate on my reading. My words rattled in my head for a moment before what I said clicked into place. I froze and looked at Clay. His brown eyes met mine steadily.

Damn the patient, clever dog. A smile twitched my lips. I never had a chance...and I didn’t mind.

“But that’s what I’m saying. He doesn’t talk. What are you listening to?”

I laughed at her and myself. “Actions speak louder than words,” I quoted, finally looking up at Rachel. “He’s there when I need him, he’s kind and caring, he keeps me safe, and as you’ve seen, he cooks and cleans. What’s not to like, Rachel?”

She grumbled under her breath but didn’t have anything else to add.

Clay walked over to her and lay on some of her dresses, ending her mutterings that I should get out and meet other people. She laughed at him then tried to move him. He laid his head on his paws and winked at me. He wasn’t mad but enjoyed giving Rachel some grief.

Shaking my head, I went to the fridge and left Rachel to tug her dresses out from under his bulk on her own. In the fridge, I saw a new carton of orange juice along with a double-chocolate cake. Two layers of chocolate frosted goodness. My mouth watered. I usually ignored the food Rachel bought, but that one begged my attention.

“Can I have a piece of your cake?”

“I thought it was yours. It was here when I got home,” she called back.

I stood staring at the cake a long time. How could I be so blind? He’d shrugged when I’d asked why he’d gotten his job, but the answer, wrapped in layers of sinful chocolate mousse frosting, sat before my eyes.

Thinking back, I identified several of the little things I’d previously overlooked. Things I’d assumed Rachel had purchased, like movies I’d mentioned I wanted to see. He’d gotten his job for
me
because of my speech the day after we met. My heart melted a little as I thought of all the effort he’d put into trying to be what I needed, and I knew I fought a losing battle.

T
he air grew
colder and snow started to fall the week before Thanksgiving. The wind howled outside, still finding a way past the new windows. Despite the low-set thermostat, the heat kicked in often, and I worried about the bill. Even with Clay warming my feet, I’d added another quilt to the bed.

Broke and out of quilts, I lay under the covers, shivering. I wore two pairs of lounge pants, a t-shirt, and a sweatshirt. If I could just fall asleep, I knew I’d warm eventually. During the night, I usually stripped to one layer. But warming the bed took forever...on my own.

“Screw this,” I said, sitting up. I started pulling off my sweatshirt. The streetlight filtered through the curtains, so I could make out the shapes in my room. I tossed the sweatshirt toward the closet.

Clay lifted his head, tilting it just so.

I ignored him for the moment and shimmied out of my second layer of pants while trying to stay under the covers. The pants soared through the air and landed next to the shirt.