Wolf Among Sheep: A Paranormal Werewolf Romance (Roadside Angels Motorcycle Club Book 1) (4 page)

“I didn’t say anything about secrecy,” he hissed, his face for the first time showing impatience—and something else she couldn’t put a finger on.

“Would you like to come in, Mr. Cole?” she offered, thinking that if she could get him to engage with her, maybe he would let something slip. Plus, the fact that she had finally gotten a reaction from him meant she was on to something, even if she didn’t know what that something was. “I’d rather not discuss your request in the hallway.” She hoped she sounded reasonable rather than condescending.

She watched him think about her invitation, regarding her with suspicion and that same look from before.

“I promise I won’t bite,” she continued in a teasing tone, shocking herself. Something about this man’s nearness was setting her off, making her do and say things she would have balked at before.

She was not a tease, even if Garth thought she was the worst kind. While she admitted that she had used Garth’s interest in her to get close to her subject and get answers, she had never knowingly led him to believe she would put out in return for his attention. Now, here she was, using words that might be construed as having some kind of sexual message with the last man in the world she would ever think of teasing in that way.
I’m a virgin, for Pete’s sake! This isn’t my way at all
, she thought.

She shied away from anything sexual because she didn’t know what to do and didn’t want to make a fool of herself. So even though she was hungry for sexual experiences, she knew her limits; and, in the end, she would be very choosy about the person to whom she would give away that most personal and intimate gift.

A light flickered in his incredibly blue eyes, and he smiled, unexpectedly. Tammie felt as though he had slammed a fist into her chest and knocked all the air out of her lungs. The smile revealed deep dimples in his whisker-feathered cheeks—and the hint of mischief in his eyes was more than she could withstand. Struggling not to respond to his potent charm, which he had apparently decided he should unleash on her, she stepped aside to let him enter. Closing the door, she walked over to the armchair and indicated that he should sit. Then, she went to the chair and sat in it facing him.

“Why are you so insistent that there’s something different to learn about this?” he asked, back to the hard man who had brushed her off earlier that day.

“I didn’t say I thought there was anything different,” she countered, “but I do think there’s more to be said. For example, why has no one pursued the question of where black wolves came from around these parts?”

“Perhaps they realize that line of questioning only leads to a dead end every time,” he said, a curious note in his voice that made her look at him more closely. His eyes had grown dark, though that might be a trick of the light.

“I disagree,” she said sharply, wondering why he was so adamant about her ending her investigations. “What is it you have to hide? Why can’t you just talk to me? What harm could it possibly do?”

“I
am
talking to you, aren’t I? And why do you assume there is something hidden here? And most importantly, why would you want to drag all this out again, reminding Tom Wheeler and his grandson of an ordeal they’d both rather forget?”

His tone was reasonable and measured, but his eyes remained too dark for her to read his thoughts through them. His face remained a smooth mask, further hiding them from her.

“I’m not trying to hurt anyone, Mr. Cole. Surely you must see that! I don’t know these people, so why would I wish to hurt them?”

“That’s my point exactly. You
don’t
know us, and your investigation can cause more harm than good!”

He stood up, as though he couldn’t remain seated a moment longer. She stood as well—though that did nothing to make his size less intimidating to her.

“I won’t change my mind just because you don’t like it, you know, Mr. Cole!” she said adamantly, looking up at him defiantly.

He stepped closer to her, and she inhaled a steadying breath. That was a mistake. The scent of him invaded her lungs and sent her senses reeling. She wasn’t a connoisseur of men’s colognes, but whatever he was wearing made her want to rub up against him, like a cat in heat. The man smell he wore like a badge of honor ripped her control to shreds. It was earthy and clean and very, very male.

“Call me Lex,” he invited her in a low and sexy voice. She wasn’t sure he meant it to be sexy, but that’s how she heard it. His voice was as deep as his foreman’s, but with a subtle rasp, as though he had a sore throat. However, that might just be because he felt the sudden rise in temperature in the room and felt the lick of desire that seared her skin so much that she had to move away from him at once to cool it.

She could feel his eyes on her, as she moved away to stand by the window, shifting the curtain aside to look out into the courtyard. Breathing in again to clear the scent of him from her lungs and to fortify herself against his next assault on her plans, she turned back to face him and wondered why her body felt like someone had lit a candle inside her.

She moved to check the thermostat but couldn’t figure out how to lower the temperature. Her thoughts were a jumble for no reason she could think of.

“Are you okay?” he asked, his eyes filled with concern.

“Yes...just feeling a bit warm.” Tammie kept her eyes on the point of his chin, where a shadow rested in the cleft.
I can’t seem to catch a break where this man is concerned
, she thought almost angrily.
His scent, the dimples, the smile, and now a cleft in his chin--all things I love on a man, and all on this man, who wants me gone, but whom I’m inexplicably drawn to. And who, if I’m reading his body language right, is caught in the same web of lust
.

Clearing her throat, she said, “Look, Mr. Cole…”

“Lex, please.” He sat down again, but she remained standing since any advantage she could get she would take at this point.

“Lex, I think there might be something important to be told here that wasn’t told in the news items I found. First of all, I didn’t even know there were wolves in Arizona, which is why the story caught my eye. But then when I did the research, I found out that there had been, that they had all been killed off, and that they were being reintroduced here. Except, they weren’t black wolves. So, why would Toby Wheeler have been attacked by a black wolf? They aren’t native to Arizona...gray wolves are.” Finally, unable to avoid it, she looked him in the eye and continued, “Don’t you think that’s significant? I mean, what if someone, or some people, are reintroducing wolves, but of the wrong kind? Wouldn’t that be illegal? And doesn’t that concern you? I mean, you’re the guy who saved a child from a non-native wild animal. Don’t you see that if anything illegal is going on it needs to be exposed? People’s lives could be in danger!”

“And you think your trying to find out if anything illegal is happening will make it go away? You think we haven’t addressed that possibility? You think one news article will make a difference in an operation like that?” Lex’s voice was hard, his tone skeptical.

“You think it won’t?” she challenged him, her spine stiffening in outrage because he seemed to be making light of her concern and her ability to do anything to help. Part of her wanted to throw her achievement during her senior year in the college newspaper in his face, but it seemed a childish thing to do, and she was determined that he take her seriously. She couldn’t afford to come off as a kid out of her depth.

“What I think is that you should stop trying to make news out of nothing and go back home.”

“Well, even if you are right about there being nothing to see here—but you know I disagree with you—I also came to talk to you. You’re a biker, and you guys have a reputation for being badasses. So, I think it would be a cool thing to write a story about the badass biker who is a good guy underneath all the gruff stuff. Would you at least let me interview you for
that
story?”

Pinning him with her gaze, she refused to let the tremors she was feeling interfere with her goal. There was something about this man that was completely unsettling, something that made her body buzz and tingle, and she was happy there had been no reason to touch him. She hoped there never would be because as much as she wanted to become a woman in every sense of the word, she wasn’t sure she had what it took to handle a man like Lex Cole. Plus, she was sure he wouldn’t look twice at someone like her.

“There’s no story there, either. I’m just me. No hype, no myth, no legend. Drop it, okay?”

His tone was uncompromising. He stood, watching her fume, and walked to the door. “Thanks for your time but take my advice and go home. You’ll be better off looking for something real somewhere else.” He opened the door and turned to hold her still with his stare. “And take care of yourself, Ms. Gibbs. It’s a crazy world we live in.”

A brief smile, and he was gone. By the time she got to the door, he was around the corner, and she heard a door close, which meant he had taken the stairs. Sighing in frustration, she closed the door and went back to her chair, sitting and biting her lip in concentration. He wanted nothing to do with either of her ideas, but she was sure he knew much more than what he was saying. She was also stunned that he seemed to have no interest in playing a starring role in his own soap opera. She didn’t know a lot about men, but she supposed the average guy would have been all over that opportunity to be seen and heard by a wide audience. He was definitely not your average guy though. Apparently, she would need to remember that for future reference.

***

Ray called her, just as she finished brushing her teeth for bed, and she told him what little else she had learned, plus the current stalemate with Lex Cole.

“Well, you have another couple of days to find something, Gibbs, or you’re out of there. Cole will no doubt breathe a sigh of relief.” He sighed. “I know how you can get, but for God’s sake don’t stir up any trouble you can’t handle.”

“I promise, Ray. I’ll call you tomorrow. I’m going back to the newspaper office. Maybe the managing editor will be more forthcoming.” She ended her call and went to sleep, curiously enervated. Disappointment was as tiring as hard labor, she found. However, she had no plans for giving up. Somewhere, she had to find something she could use to get a lead to what had to be a top story.

CHAPTER FOUR

“Progress always involves risk; you can't steal second base and keep your foot on first.”

―
F.W. Dupee

The next morning, after a breakfast of leftover pizza and flat soda, Tammie dressed carefully in a baby blue sundress and high heeled strappy sandals, and she braided her hair over her left shoulder. Knowing she should probably wear a hat, she grabbed the straw hat she had brought with her and took her go-anywhere slouch bag with her. First stop, the newspaper office.

Bob Rose was in the office this time; in fact, he was standing at the front desk talking to the woman from yesterday. He turned as she entered and that lady introduced them.

“Oh yes, Ms. Gibbs, Don mentioned you had come in yesterday. Right this way, please!”

He ushered Tammie into an office only slightly larger than the one Donald Street occupied; but, it was clear, once she got in, that this was the boss’s office. He invited her to sit in a plush chair across from his desk, offered her coffee, which she gladly accepted, and once the niceties were settled, he asked her what her business with him was. Because, as he said, “Don reported his conversation with you to me, and I have to say I can’t see any further need for a meeting.”

He smiled as he spoke, taking the sting out of his words, but his eyes were sharp and watchful, and Tammie knew he would make a formidable opponent, and she would have to watch him the way you watched a snake. He could strike at any moment, so she needed to be on her guard.

“Well, as I was saying to Lex just last evening, I think there are two stories to be told here. First, is the one about the black wolves. I’m sure you know they aren’t native to Arizona. I think it would be interesting to pursue that line of inquiry, don’t you?”

She knew she was name dropping when she mentioned Lex, and she knew this man would probably know it, too. However, she needed to use every weapon in her very limited arsenal if she was to salvage anything from this trip. Before he could speak, she continued, “And I think there could be something big here if I told a human interest story with a twist—the bad-boy biker with the heart of gold.”

Bob Rose threw back his head and laughed. It was a hearty, thoroughly amused sound that reverberated round the room. Tammie bristled, knowing he found her as amusing as the ideas she was presenting to him. However, she was not a quitter, and she squared her shoulders and set her feet firmly on the ground, digging in for the long haul.

“I don’t think wild wolves that might represent a threat to the community are a laughing matter, do you, Mr. Rose?” she demanded. “And whether or not Lex thinks so, a story about a good-hearted biker can only go over well with readers who have very negative impressions about men on hogs.”

She sat back, needing the support of the chair to keep her spine stiff, and waited for his response. It was not long in coming.

“Your idea for the good biker is a cute one, but hardly likely to sell in this day and age when people enjoy the image of the badass biker so much more. Just look at the surge of books you women read about bad boys winning the hearts of good girls! Nobody cares if a biker is a good guy; they want them bad to the bone, so to speak. Which is not to say Lex is like that. I’m just illustrating my point.”

“So what
are
you saying?” she asked, chin up.

“I’m saying you’re better off going back to Connecticut and finding something else to write about. There are no wild wolves here, and no tame good-guy biker story is going to make much of an impression on your editor.” He paused, then continued, “I’m surprised he let you come all the way down here on a wild goose chase.”

He stood up, a sure sign that he had given her all the time he intended to give her. Tammie stood too, but held her ground long enough to say, accusation sharp in her tone, “There must be something really big going on in this town that you guys are so keen to keep hidden. I guess I’ll just have to send word to my editor that you guys are harboring wild wolves down here illegally, which is why you’re in such a lather to keep outsiders away!”

Tammie could see he was startled and troubled by her brash threat, and she wished she could feel happy that she had scored something against this man. Taller than Donald Street, he was nonetheless still far less of a man than Lex in stature and bearing. Yet, he exuded confidence, strength, and a steely will. His response to her threat made her even more certain that something big was happening in the town, and that not only Lex, but probably a lot of other important people, knew exactly what it was.

His voice brought her out of her musings. “You’d best be careful about making false accusations against the people in this town. We don’t take kindly to strangers stirring up trouble around here, especially when they try to destabilize our community.” He walked around his desk to the door and opened it for her. “Take my advice, Ms. Gibbs. Find some other fish to fry.” His eyes were cold and aloof as she approached him, and he waited silently for her to walk through the door before he shut it firmly against her.

Tammie tried not to feel angered by the complete zero she had turned up from a second visit to the newspaper office.
What could these people possibly have to hide? Maybe I should talk to the police chief. He must surely be interested in getting to the bottom of the riddle, if only to keep his town secure.
The thought that he might be as obstructive as the newsmen and Lex filled her with frustration and defeat, but she tamped them down and walked resolutely out of the building. She would visit the police station and see what she could find out there.

Approaching her car, she felt Lex’s presence before she saw him striding towards her, his steps fluid and elegant, like a lion stalking his prey. He was a magnificent specimen of a man, and as it had been the night before, her hormones seemed to go into immediate overdrive. She felt herself grow warm, if that were possible in the increasing heat of mid-morning, and she huffed out a cooling breath, as he stopped before her.

“Good morning! How are you this morning?” His voice was quiet and pleasant, the rasp gone.

So, he didn’t have a cold, just whatever had sparked between them
, she thought and then said,
“Do you really care, Mr. Cole,” she refused to call him Lex, in a fit of pique, “or are you just making small talk?”

He smiled at her, a full blown, intimate smile, and her thoughts scrambled like chickens before a marauding fox. “I don’t do small talk,” he informed her. “So, are you going to be huffy, or are you going to answer me?”

Tammie looked up at him, blinded by the light that seemed to radiate off him, as much as by the sunlight. She realized suddenly that she had left the newspaper office with her sunglasses still on her head. Sliding them down over her eyes, she answered, “I’m frustrated, actually, Mr. Cole. You people are hiding something, and I want to know what it is.”

She frowned up at him, and his continuing smile infuriated her. She was therefore quite unprepared for the invitation that came hard on the heels of his grin. “Does that mean you won’t come with me on a little excursion, then?” He quirked an eyebrow at her.

“Excursion? Where to?”

“Would you like to see where Toby and I were when the wolf attacked him?”

Tammie’s jaw dropped. She was beyond astonished that he would make such an offer after refusing to help her the night before. Plus, she was just a little bit suspicious.

“Why make the offer now after refusing to help me before?” she asked, instead of answering his question.

“I’m going out there to check the repairs and thought you might enjoy a different view of our town.” There was no inflection in his voice, not even when he added, “Of course, you’re under no obligation to come with me. I was just being neighborly.”

A startled laugh burst from Tammie’s lips, and after a second, Lex joined her. “Okay, I’ll come along.” She looked at her car. “Do you think it’s okay to leave it here till we get back?”

“Why don’t I follow you back to the hotel where you can park it, and then we can leave together from there?”

Tammie thought that it was a great idea and hurried to do as he suggested. Happy to find a spot in the shade to park the vehicle, she walked around to the passenger side of Lex’s truck, where he was waiting to help her in. She was floored by his gentlemanly gesture. Because he had spent so much time being obstructive, she assumed he didn’t really like her at all.
Maybe I can get some more information out of him while he is still in this mellow mood
, she thought.

Lex’s truck was high, wide, and red. She liked the luxurious interior and the pulse of the engine when it idled at the light. The diesel hum was a masculine sound that pleased her, and she thought, as they drove along the road she had driven the day before to his ranch, how very much it suited him. He was big and wide, and his voice made a thrill go through her every time. Feeling suddenly warm, she focused on something other than her increasingly inexplicable feelings of arousal around him.

“So, what is it you are hiding from me, Mr. Cole?” she asked, remembering too late that he had said to call him Lex. If she wanted to get anything out of him, she needed to be as conciliatory as she knew how to be. “I mean Lex,” she added lamely.

He glanced at her and smiled. “I’m not hiding anything,” he answered. “Why do you keep insisting that I am?”

“Because you and the other people I’ve talked to are so close-mouthed about the whole thing.”  

“Maybe because there’s nothing more to tell. Ever thought of that?”

“How can there not be more when the reports didn’t say the wolves were captured? And why won’t you even consider the biker angle? What’s so bad about people knowing what you did, and who you are?”

“I’m not one for the limelight,” he said, turning off the main drag onto a secondary road.

“So, this animal you saved Toby from was native to this area?”

“No, it was black.” He kept his eyes on the road though Tammie still felt like he was watching her.

“What kind of wolf is found in these parts?” she asked next, even though she knew.

“Mexican grays,” he replied. “But you already know this. Why ask again?”

Instead of answering him, she asked, “How exactly did you save Toby again?”

This time, he turned his eyes to her for a moment before answering. “I’m sure you read all the news reports, so you know the answer to that as well.” He sounded exasperated with her.

Join the club
, she thought, beginning to fume and responded, “None explain exactly what you did, just that you did.”

“Why isn’t that enough for you?” he wanted to know, turning again and driving through wide open gates above which the sign “Four Star Ranch” told her they must be on the mayor’s spread. “You’re not planning on doing an unauthorized story on this, are you? Because I’ve already said no.”

Tammie remained silent, not knowing how to bridge the gulf between them. He was adamant about not being interviewed, and she was just as adamant about writing the stories she thought were here. They were at an impasse, and suddenly she wasn’t sure this trip had been such a good idea. They were not friends, and yet she knew some kind of link was being forged between them, and she wasn’t sure it was wise of her to strengthen that link if she was going to have to leave without a story. She looked at his hands on the steering wheel, and her pulse drummed in her veins at the sight of the long, strong fingers and the ropy veins.
Another thing to make me wish
… She stopped the thought in its tracks. The last thing she needed was to lose control around this man. She was sure he wouldn’t respond kindly to her lustful inexperience.

She heard a sharp inhalation and turned to find his eyes on her, almost glowing, it seemed, before he turned them forward again and stopped the truck.

“The mayor has a lot of land, doesn’t he?”

“This is a fairly modest spread,” he replied.

“Why did the mayor need your help with his fences?” she asked, although she knew the answer. She would try any method to get some information out of him.