Sapphire: A Werewolf Love Story (10 page)

“He give you any trouble?”  I ask.

“Nothing I couldn’t handle.  He’s a pansy though.” 
She crosses the room to stand with a couple of the guys.  “Never mind the
busted lip, but he called me a bitch for no reason.  I punched him in the
mouth,
now
he can call me a bitch.” 

“Pedro, we have decided to let you live… not before you
endure the consequences for terrorizing women.  It really is simple; I’m going
to remove one of your testicles.  Because I’m a fair man, I’m allowing you to
decide which testicle you’d prefer to keep.  Man to man, we have a favorite…at
least I do.  I’m partial to my right one.  Don’t worry, I worked on a farm and
we had to castrate bulls.  I’m good at stitches.”  I wink at him and thought
he’d faint before we started.  “Princess, stand guard, this might get a little
bloody.”  The guys snicker as we cut Pedro out of his pants.

The amount of satisfaction for bringing justice to
Sapphire’s assailant made me want to call her.  I’m sure she hates me for
ignoring her.  I hate me for the same reasons.  What I’ve done to her is worse
than Pedro ever imagined doing.  I betrayed her trust knowingly, which is
killing me to admit.   A sadistic smile crosses my face at the thought of Pedro
screaming for mercy.  He deserved every moment of pain times ten.  I left a business
card for a doctor the pack pays to be discrete.   Because I’m not one hundred
percent ruthless, I left a bottle of rubbing alcohol and a bottle of
antibiotics to ward off infection.  If Pedro had done more than want to see her
bra, I wouldn’t have been so kind.  His family would be shopping for a casket
instead of worrying about grandkids.   Although, every time he passed out from
the pain, we’d wake him with smelling salts.  I wanted him awake and alert and
to feel the same terror he inflicted on his victims.  He’ll never hurt another
woman.  Pru injected him with a microchip to track his movement.   He’ll be on
my radar for the rest of his lamentable life.  If I never talk to Sapphire
again, at least she’ll never be bothered by Pedro again.

My wolf is restless, which is making me antsy.  I’m
not a violent person, unless needed.  I don’t get pissed off if a line is too
long, or suffer from road rage.  I only resort to violence when the punishment
fits the crime.  The way I earn my reputation is by controlled leaks from the
pack.  We’ll send one of our guys to a bar where another pack might be
socializing at and have him drunk-talk.  We have many ways to leak a story to
spark fear in rogues, or those that want to betray a pack.  There is truth
behind every story, but details may or may-not be exaggerated.  I’ve heard that
I’m in the top three feared werewolves in the world.  It’s a title I take
seriously.

The drive back to the farm was in silence.  I know
Pru is reveling in the justice we brought for the victims.  She’s quieter than
usual, but her face gives away the victory she feels.  The victims will never
know about the day Pedro lost his left nut but there won’t be any additional
victims in the future. 

When we get to the farm, we’ll debrief and go for a
run with the entire pack.  Every time I come home from teaching a lesson, I
crave the togetherness of our family.  The General and I’ve talked about the
future and ways to keep our younger members grounded and not too full of
themselves.  Our rogue rate is low, maybe we lose a wolf every five years or
so.  We seldom open up our enrollment for new members, we prefer to recruit
those that we see potential in.  Dolly heads up the program and she’s great at
finding the perfect fit for our group.    

My mind goes back to my weekend with Sapphire.  She
was game to do anything I wanted.  Her spirit cried for my wolf on several
occasions.  Her first orgasm for me was spiritual in a way I’ve never
experienced.  One more reason she and I should be together.  The way she moaned
and held her breath at the moment of ecstasy plays over and over in my head. 

“Hey Parker!  Pay attention!”  Pru shouts.

“Huh?”

“You almost drove over that guy on his bike, you
would have if he didn’t jump the curb to get out of our way.  You’re not
regretting what we did to Pedro are you?”

I reach over and pat her leg.  “Nope, I was lost in
thought, that’s all.  Pedro deserved what he got, and no, I’ll never regret his
castration.”  If only she knew I have a raging hard-on.  Damn, I need to run.

SAPPHIRE

5 DAYS POST PARKER

“Come on sis, you can’t stay in bed forever.  You
have to go to work eventually,” Ruby says as she sits on the edge of my bed.  I
roll over to face the opposite direction. 

How can I explain to her the depth of my despair? 
I’m left a shell of existence without him.  It was as though we merged into one
person. The things he did to me, and the secrets I shared, the lies he told
me…my heart aches.  I knew him for eighty-seven hours, but my heart assured me
I’d know him forever. 

My head is as blank as the wall I’m staring at, and
my body is numb from longing for him.  One man and eighty-seven hours changed
my core belief.  How stupid can I be to allow anyone in my heart after a short
amount of time?  If I could set fire to this mattress and forget everything we
shared, I would.  I’d rip him from my memories and live as though I never knew
him.  The sweetest memory of his lips touching mine, or the way he held me in
his arms, is too much for me to bear.  No matter if I sit or stand or lie here
wallowing in my pain, I am still all alone and he is gone.

“Phire, get up and go to dinner with us,” Ruby
begged.  “You can’t stay in bed and mope around forever.”

I roll away from her and draw my legs up into the
fetal position.  “I’m not hungry.”  The bed creaks as Ruby crawls into the bed behind
me, and drapes her arm across my side.  The heat of her body is warm against my
back as she spoons me.  The moment of compassion overwhelms me in my sorrow.  I
listen to her breathe, and a sob rests in my throat.  “Sissy, I can’t believe I
was such a fool,” the words are foreign to my ears.  I’m always the reasonable
one, the one that avoids drama.

“You’re not a fool, he is!  He’s missing out on a
great woman.” 

“What is wrong with me?  I thought he was different,
but he’s not.”

“Nothing’s wrong with you Phire, he’s mental.”

Ruby held me for what seemed hours.  We didn’t say
anything, just the comfort of my sister holding me made me stronger.

10 days post Parker

The sound of my phone vibrating on the counter stirs
me out of my thoughts.  I look down at the caller I.D. and see Parker’s name
like a blaring beacon.

Normally I would pick up the phone and forgive him
without questions.  Not this time, this hurt too bad, and he will do it again…they
all do.  I see it happen with Ruby every time she breaks up, she takes him back
and he shits on her again.  I’ll take my memories of him and lock them away in
my heart.  Tomorrow, I’ll change my phone number to make sure I’m never tempted
to answer his call.

When he first left, and I didn’t know he wasn’t
going to call me, I was excited to go to work and tell the crazies about him.  Now,
I’m a fool that fell for some great sex and a sweet talker.  Lesson learned.  I
went back to work three days ago, no one knows about Parker, and they never
will.  I’ve been working at Chantilly Lace for three years.  It’s a successful
boutique in a small urban town named Yukon.   A couple of months ago, the owner
decided to move to Florida.  She and I had a meeting and if I could get the
funding, she wanted me to buy it from her.  In the beginning, I didn’t think it
was plausible.   Filing for the Indian grant for small business was the
equivalent to joining the FBI…or what I think joining would be like.   It’s a
dream come true; to be a business owner.  My five employees are a handful,
they’ve been working at the store for over a year and each one is certifiably crazy. 
There are days with so much drama it takes everything in me not to strangle
each of them.  Because of their boyfriend drama, I decide I won’t allow myself
to become crazy like them.  Not going to let Parker defeat me, not today, not
ever.

I was the first employee of the shop.  When it
opened, we only carried high-end lingerie, now we have some designer dresses as
well as the lingerie.  We had to take a loan out to afford the dresses, but it
paid off big, especially since we have so many country music stars in Oklahoma. 
We don’t have gorgeous models that wear angel wings, or commercials to
advertise for us.  We’ve grown our business by word of mouth.  I special order
one customer’s underwear from a place in Paris.  She pays over a hundred
dollars for a pair of panties, and will usually buy ten pairs at a time.   I’m
not sure why I didn’t tell Parker about the store, now I’m happy I kept it a
secret. He can’t find me here, and if he shows up at my house, he has my
brother to contend with.

40 days post Parker

“Well?  What does it say?”  Ruby paced impatiently
as I finish up in the bathroom.

“It doesn’t say anything yet, it takes five
minutes,” I snap as I hold the stick up and watch for the solid line. “Hold
your panties on!  You can quit tapping your foot, or I’ll stomp on it and you
won’t go dancing.”  I stare at the stick, waiting for it to confirm what we all
suspect.  Within the first two minutes the double line appears.  In one split
second, I’m catapulted into being a single parent.  My deepest fear is true…
I’m pregnant.  I haven’t been with anyone except Parker in almost a year, and
now I’m carrying his child.  Fan-fucking-tastic, I get to be a poster girl for
one night stands. 

Ruby flings open the door to the bathroom, and in an
instant she knows why I’m upset.  “Oh shit Phire, what are you going to do? 
Stone is going to kill that guy…I bet he’ll never show his face around here
again.”

The stinging in my eyes as tears well up, and my
throat constricts as my breathing becomes labored.  I stand there unsure what
to do next.  My tears give away the fact I’m not ready to be a mother.  The
walls are closing in, and my heart has now started beating so hard, I’m sure it
will cease at any moment.  I put my face in my hands and shake my head back and
forth.  “I don’t know what to do; I guess I’m having a baby.  Don’t tell mom,
I’ll do it after I go to the doctor.  Promise me.”

Ruby pulls me in for a hug and whispers in my ear,
“Of course not.  I’m here with you every step of the way.  I won’t judge you if
you decide to - you know…..”

“Get an abortion?  No, I wouldn’t do that…it isn’t
an option.”  Maybe I should call him…NO!  I will not call him, he doesn’t
deserve to know.  I push past Ruby and run to my bed, diving head first into
the covers. Ruby closes the door to my room, and says she’ll be back to check
on me in a little while.  Why?  What’s the point?  I’ll be pregnant in an hour,
in a day, in a month…up until the day I give birth. 

PART
TWO

915 Days Post Parker

SAPPHIRE

“Mom, are you still watching Storm for me tomorrow
night?”  I set his bag on the kitchen counter and talk to my mom at her
breakfast table.  We’ve worked out a system that keeps Storm from going to
daycare.  We tried doing a play-date with other kids his age but it always goes
wrong.  He doesn’t play well with other children, he tries to play a game where
they are a rabbit and he’s a dog.  His active imagination shows when he draws. 
You’d never know a toddler was doing the drawing.   I tried taking him to
karate with me, up until I watched him practicing his karate chop on my
friend’s baby.  He’s all boy, rough and tumble attitude with a big affection
for his mommy.  My brother has been a great male figure for him when he needs
‘guy time.’   

She nods yes as she takes a sip of her tea.  “Oh,
that’s right, they moved your karate lessons to Wednesdays.  Of course I’ll
watch him.”

“Great, I’m leaving you the car, so you can go to
the park or whatever.  It’s so nice outside, I’m taking my bike.”   The shop
flourished over the last two years.  We were able to give a bonus to the girls
and get a loan to expand the business.  When Storm was a couple of months old,
I hired Melvin to build a motorcycle for me.  Ruby and I joined a local all
women’s bike club and ride once a week as a group.  I get tickled when my mom
calls it a
motorcycle gang
.  We’re all business women and mothers,
except Ruby, she doesn’t want children.  I’m not sure if working at Hot Topic
in the mall rates her a business woman, but she is the manager. Stone moved out
last year and bought a house with his girlfriend.  A couple of the girls heard
me tell the story about what happened to me at the library.  They convinced me
to take karate with them.  I’ve been going for the last year.  I’m on my last
level before I get my black belt.

Mom rolled her eyes and clucked her tongue.  “You
and your sister are going to get yourself killed on those bikes.  A
self-respecting mother wouldn’t put herself in danger like you’re doing.”

“Mom, I’m not putting myself in danger and whoever
said I want to be self-respecting?  I’m trying to protect Storm and make sure to
stay around to watch him grow up.  Stop trying to guilt me into not riding.”  I
lean over where she’s sitting and kiss her on the cheek.  “Mom, I love you…stop
worrying.”  The same argument we’ve had since I gave birth to Storm.  He was
born on New Year’s Day after five hours of labor.  I never called Parker and changed
my phone number so he couldn’t call me.  Storm has my last name and sadly under
the father’s name it is listed as unknown...  It isn’t like I know him, we had
a few days of great sex, it doesn’t make him daddy material.  “I’m going to be
late to work, Stormy give mommy sugar.”