His Wolf (Wolf of My Heart) (6 page)

"Just taking a little break.
There's, um, no prettier state."

Erik didn't seem to be buying my story.  "You're this close and you aren't dropping by your Dad's?"

"I told you it's complicated."

"You are staying in touch, aren't you? I mean even if you don't go home."

"I…  Not really." Was I actually squirming?

"Did you guys have a fight or something?"

"Nosy much?"

His gaze nailed me to my chair. "You're right.  This isn't any of my business, but speaking from experience, you'll only regret it if you cut ties.  He's probably thinking he did something to alienate you."

With my lips in a tight line of anger, I got up and threw my plate in the trash. "I'm doing what I have to do. He'd never believe me or be able handle this if he did."

"So
lie
a little." He sighed. "At least think about it. I accidentally hurt my dad once upon a time without knowing I did it.  He imagined all kinds of things, none of which were true.  I was just caught up in my own life.  Mending fences took forever."

I just looked at him, unconvinced.

"For what it's worth, I'll go with you if it'll help."

Really?
With a doubtful slight shake of my head, I tossed Erik's plate, too, and changed the subject. "Lunch was delicious."

"Thanks." He got up and stretched, looking out the window the whole time. "I really need to take some more photos of the snow. We don't get blizzards like this all that often."

I walked over. "What do you do with the pictures?"

"I make postcards, greeting cards, and stationery that some of the local souvenir and gift shops sell for me. I also sell them as stock art online."

"I'm so amazed."

Erik rolled his eyes as if to make light of what he did and gave me a grin.

I wanted to kiss it, an odd reaction considering I barely knew the guy and he had a tendency to get on
my  nerves
. "That earns you a living?"

"That and my guitar.
I'm the live entertainment at
Sasparilla
Sam's, Burger Bay, and Run for the Hills Café." He pointed to a leather case propped against the chair I'd hidden behind earlier.

"You have a great voice."

His eyebrows shot up.

I hummed "I Won't Give Up."

Erik's face turned as red as the berries on the holly bushes outside his cabin. "You heard that?"

"Yes, and it was amazing, even to my wolf ears."

He scuffed his boot against the slatted floor and didn't say anything. I wanted to laugh. Surely he wasn't shy. I mean, he sang for a living before a live audience, didn't he? "Would you tape this cut of mine together?" I showed him my wrist, now minus the gauze and bandage he'd put on earlier.  It didn't seem to be as red as before.

"Okay." Erik got the first aid box again, and, while I held the edges of my injury together, he put some antibiotic ointment on the cut and taped it as tightly together as he could. "Better?"

I checked it out. "
Much,
thanks."

He put up the kit. "Guess I should get going. You'll be okay here alone, right?"

"Sure. Or I could go with you. Wouldn't you like some shots of a wolf that isn't wounded?"

His face lit up. "I would, yeah. But that'll mean another bandaging job when we get back."

"I don't mind if you don't."

"I don't.  Tell me more about Goddess Danu."

"Her name means 'the flowing one' and she's considered the most ancient of all the Celtic deities. She's popular throughout Europe. The Danube River supposedly gets its name from her."

"Sweet."
He got very quiet. "You know what would be way cool?"

I shook my head.

"If we dressed you up like a goddess in the spring, I could take some photos that explore the myth a little."

He thought I'd still be in his life then?  I hid my smile of pleasure.

"I know this isn't Ireland, but the mystical cards I make by manipulating shots are my most popular. I guarantee anything with Danu on it would sell like crazy. So what do you say?"

"If we're still together.
  I mean if we're still friends." I tried again.  "Let's see what happens between now and then, okay?  I'll just go and, um, shift now." I pointed toward his bedroom, the one with
two
beds in it.

"I'd love to see how that works."

"And I'd love to let you, but I have to strip or sacrifice my clothing, so…"

"Oh, um, right.
Forgot that."
Now his face matched the blood racing through his jugular. I could see it pulsing from where I stood. His heart had to be pounding.

I had no idea why. "I'll just be a sec." I got all the way to the door before I turned to him and
smiled,
a calculated move. "I noticed you have two beds."

"Yeah."

"How would you feel about renting one of them to me? Just until I figure out what to do about the truck. I have money." When he didn't answer right away, I shrugged.
"Never mind.
It was just an idea." I ducked into the hall, had a second thought, and ducked back out. "You're not worried about the wolf thing, are you?"

Erik still said nothing.

"I'm always me, you know.
Just in a furry body."

"You can shift any time?"

"Yes, but full moon shifts are best because I can transform back into my human form whenever I want.
NFM
transformations--that's
non
full moon--are different in that I have to remain a wolf for a few hours before I can be Bronte-girl again. Not sure why that is."

"You're welcome to stay for a while. Do you have insurance on the truck?"

"No." I moved right along so he wouldn't ask questions. "Thanks for letting me stay. I'm sure the money will help you out, and I'd definitely rather be here than Branson. It's just so pretty, you know?"

"It is, yeah." He waited.

I went into his bedroom, stripped, and shifted. Erik gasped when I showed my face again and joined him by the door. Guess it was still a lot to take in.

"You,
er
, make a beautiful wolf."

Aw, thanks.
I gave him the equivalent of a
wolfy
grin.

He managed a grin back and even chuckled as he walked out the door with me right behind him. We walked those woods for hours without me feeling any ill effects from my sore muscles, a shocker. Erik the photographer called directions to me the wolf, which was hysterical. I'd have laughed if I could.

"Tip your head a little. Yeah, that's great."
Ching
-click.
"Now look straight at me.
Awesome."
Ching
-click.

Since I'd never done anything even remotely resembling modeling, the whole experience was a trip. I couldn't wait to see the photos. When we began to lose light, Erik motioned for me to join him in tramping back to the cabin. We hadn't made it ten yards before I caught the scent of something…different.

Different, but the same, actually.
It was a musky aroma that reminded me of Yarbrough. I paused and sniffed the air.
Was I smelling
another werewolf? The moment I wondered, I knew. A werewolf had moved through these woods and not that long ago. Why? Was it after me? Suddenly all those tracks came to mind. I'd never been so spooked.

Though my first instinct was to run, I didn't let myself. Instead, I put my nose to the ground and trailed the scent.

"Bronte? Where're you going?"

I ignored Erik, following my nose off the path we were on. I saw wolf tracks here and there in the shallow snow sheltered by pines. Hot on the trail, I picked up speed and soon left Erik behind.

"Bronte? Bronte! Come back!"

How could I bother with Erik's feelings when the enemy lurked? I couldn't. If I was in danger for whatever reason, then he was, too. I had to get to the bottom of this. But soon the trail ran cold, and since it grew darker by the second, I decided to give up and return to the cabin. I'd been a wolf long enough to shift back easily, which was a good thing, but I'd have to figure out what story to give Erik, which wasn't.

I found him pacing the porch when I got there and climbed the steps.

"Where the hell have you been?" he asked even though he knew I couldn't answer.

Slipping past him, I went inside and straight to the bathroom, where I quickly shifted, washed up, and dressed.

The moment I got back to the living room, he started in on me. "I've been worried sick."

"Why? No one asked you to."

He ignored that. "It's dark, and it's cold. I thought you'd gotten lost."

"I'm a wolf, Erik. Wolves don't get lost."

"Then what took you so long?"

"I smelled something. I wanted to know what it was."

"Something as in food?
You said you didn't like raw stuff."

"And I don't. I wasn't tracking food. I was tracking…something else."

His eyes narrowed in suspicion. "What?"

"If I knew, I wouldn't have tracked it."

Snorting his impatience, Erik went into the kitchen and began putting out food for our dinner. The way he slammed things around told me he was pissed. But I couldn't tell him what I'd been tracking without sharing a lot more than I wanted to. So I got pissed, too. For that reason, our supper was a little tense, with both of us practically snarling. The hamburgers he'd cooked were delicious, and I'd have loved to tell him so. My pride wouldn't let me. Toward the end of our silent meal, the sharp crack of something just outside the window made me jump a foot out of my chair.

Erik gave me the oddest look. "It's just a branch, breaking from the weight of the snow." His eyes narrowed slightly. "What did you smell out there? And don't tell me you don't know. I think you do know, and I think it has scared you half to death."

With a sigh, I opened my mouth to lie yet again. But that's not what came out. "I may be in trouble."

Chapter Five

Erik thought about that for a sec. "What kind?"

"I'm not sure." I sighed again. "You know that truck I wrecked?"

"Yes."

"It wasn't mine."

"You borrowed it from someone?"

"Um, not exactly."

Erik's eyes flashed. "You
stole
it?"

"Yes."

His mouth fell open.

"It's not as bad as you think, okay? If you'd been in my shoes, you'd have done the same thing."

Erik scooted his chair back and stood.  After getting the first aid box from the counter he silently motioned for me to join him as he walked over the fireplace. After poking it a few times, which sent sparks flying and revived the flame, he sat on the couch. I slowly followed, settling next to him.  He held out his hand for my injured wrist. "Maybe you should start at the beginning."

As if. I reluctantly stretched out my arm. "My last employer wasn't a very nice man. In fact, he's in prison now, which is exactly where he needs to be. I took his truck because he owed me for work I'd done."