Whoever or whatever the ghost wolf is, she said, its doing all the wolves in the area a big favor by chasing away the hunters. I hope he keeps it up.
He? Beck asked as he picked up the box and started toward her car. You called it an it first. How do you know its a he?
Daisy ran up to unlock the trunk. Surprisingly, the tiny car held a lot in the back end. I dont know if its a he, or an it, or a ghost. But this whole story has superhero undertones, dont you think?
Superhero? Beck winced. I dont know about that.
The underdogs, which are the wolves and us in this case, Daisy explained, need a defender to protect them. And suddenly from out of nowhere comes a hero on a quest to set things right. I love it!
Yeah, but Im guessing the ghost wolf doesnt have a cape.
You dont need a cape to be a superhero. Just a focus and a desire to do good. That is my new angle.
Your angle?
I did tell you Im trying to win an internship for the local paper.
Youre doing a story on the ghost wolf? His expression changed so suddenly Daisy wondered what shed said to offend him. I renew my warning for you to be careful and stay out of the woods unless you bring someone along with you.
And I renew my assertion to being able to take care of myself. You are such a guy.
Beck sighed and shook his head. He did appear genuinely concerned, but Daisy was trying to prove herself here, so she disregarded his anguish. She could do anything the boys could do. Oftentimes better.
So can I pick you up later? he asked.
Um, I guess I could call my brother and cancel with him.
Really? So its a choice between your brother, whom youve gone to this event with before, or the lone wolf? Beck winced. You should probably go with the safer bet.
Yeah, but thatll never get me the tangle I want.
The tangle?
Oops. Where had that confession come from? Deep inside, where the yearning part of her ignored her armor of introversion and just wanted to get tangled, that was where. If she didnt stop blurting her secrets out to Beck, shed tell him about her shifting troubles, too. No way. That was mortifying.
Daisy nodded toward the trunk, indicating he set the box inside. I gotta go. I have some research to do online before tonight.
He settled the box into the trunk and stood back to look over the box. I cannot believe that fit.
Thanks, Beck. I appreciate it.
Where do you live? Ill pick you up around ten.
The man would not take maybe as an answer. So shed let it happen. Beck would make a much better date than Kelyn. She gave him her address, which he entered into his phone.
Walking around to the door, Daisy paused and turned to find Beck standing right before her. His breath fogged out. Ice eyes took her in. The moment felt as if he should kiss her. And then it did not. It wasnt right. Sunday wasnt far away, and even if she said she couldnt hear anything, Daisy knew that cats had as excellent hearing as wolves did.
She held out her hand, and Beck stared at it awhile before conceding and shaking. Later. Uh, will there be brothers at this event tonight?
Probably. You scared?
Should I be? Whats the ones name? Trouble? I should probably keep a good distance from anyone with a name like that.
Trouble is all bark and no bite. Blade is the one you wont see coming until its too late.
Daisy slid inside the car and turned the key to fire up the engine. As she backed out, she smiled and waved. Sometimes brothers came in handy. Couldnt let him think it was going to be easy courting her, could she?
But really? The guy was courting her. How cool was that?
* * *
Beck went over the brothers names in his head as he pulled up before Daisys building. Kelyn. Had she mentioned he was faery? Faeries were no problem. And Trouble was not the one he was supposed to worry about? But Blade was? There was another brother, as well. He didnt know his name.
But he did know the fathers name. Malakai Saint-Pierre. The mans name was as much a mouthful as he was a menace. The wolf was big, and he made swords for a living. Freakin swords. Hed asked Beck on two occasions to join the pack, once a few years ago, and then only a month ago when hed seen him in town at the local hardware store. Both times Beck had felt disdain in the mans growl.
He couldnt do it. Severo had lived free and alone, but he had been the best wolf Beck had ever known. His father hadnt needed the approval of a pack. Hed lived life on his own terms and had thrived, earned respect from his fellow breed and married the woman he loved and had a son
With another child on the way.
Beck squeezed his fingers about the steering wheel. His father should have been here for the birth of his second child. The hunter needed to pay.
The stir of his werewolf twisted inside. It straightened his spine, prodding his skin to form goose bumps. Beck growled. Now was no time to shift, so he redirected his thoughts.
He shut off the engine and stretched out his legs. Focusing on the pull at his hamstrings diverted the werewolfs urge to run free. He normally experienced a twinge of the werewolf when upset or angry. But lately? It was growing stronger. More insistent.
Concentrate on Daisy. Glancing over the brick buildings facade and arrowing his gaze up toward the third floor, Beck muttered, What am I getting myself into?
Did he need to mess around with Malakai Saint-Pierres daughter? Hed never let a pretty face distract him so easily. And then again, hed always let a pretty face distract him. Anytime he went out into the world, whether walking through the grocery store or standing in line (even with a date) at the movie theater, he appreciated a pretty woman. If a guy didnt notice the beauty walking around him, then there was something wrong with him.
But he hadnt dated seriously in months. Not since his fathers death. The salad chick last week had been a fruitless attempt at jumping back into the social game.
Hed gone through the grief process rather quickly. Or so he felt. Lately, he was more concerned about his mother. Didnt have time to worry about himself. He was fine. He missed Dad dearly. But he had to move on. For his mothers sake.
So getting back into the groove with this date tonight felt right. Like he was moving forward.
As long as Daisy didnt learn about the other thing hed been involved with lately, then everything would be golden. Hell, hed have a tough enough time acting accordingly if any of the brothers were wandering around the fireworks, so he didnt have to worry about the other thing coming up.
Jumping out of the truck, he landed on the compacted snow. He wore his Arctic Cat overalls and a warm matching coat, plus gloves, pack boots and a knit ski cap. It was already bitter cold tonight. And he intended to test the whole touch not the princess theory. He looked forward to holding Daisy close to keep her warm.
Grabbing the flowers hed worried over for a full five minutes at the grocery store, he headed inside and up the stairs to the top floor, just as shed directed him to do. It was an old warehouse that was slowly being retrofitted for apartments, and so far Daisy and a few other residents were the only ones in the building.
Nice, he muttered as he topped the stairs and took in the open framework that exposed the original ironwork and ducts. Not what hed expect a woman to choose.
Daisy was the opposite of the usual sexy, soft, slinky woman he preferred. She punched, too. Entirely unexpected, but she had warned him hed get a black eye for calling her princess. And the pink hair? He liked it. It looked like cotton candy.
Unzipping his jacket because it was hot up here, Beck knocked on the door, then whipped the flowers around behind his back. He waited a few seconds, listening. All wolves could hear well, and if she had been in the shower, hed hear the running water and start to imagine that water slicking over her skin
Those for me?
He spun around to find a pink-haired pixy wolf standing behind him, a smudge of black across her cheek. She wiped her hands down an old gray T-shirt, imbuing it with more grease.
Uh, yes?
He held out the fluorescent blue daisies. The color was god-awful, but they had made him think of her. For Daisy Blu, blue daisies.
Thats so... She wrinkled her lips into a moue as she accepted the horrible bouquet. Sporting wilted leaves, with one of the flower heads chopped off, it had been the best of the bunch. A guy couldnt find any better in the middle of January in a Midwestern Minnesota town.
Thank you, she breathed, in a more impressed tone than he had expected or deserved. Its sweet that you got them because of my name.
You dont have to act all happy about it. Theyre an ugly bunch, but
No, I love them. Come inside. She opened her door and he followed her in, but stayed on the rubber mat inside the doorway. Ill put them in water, then get ready, she called as she disappeared around a corner.
The vast loft ceiling was two, maybe even three, stories high. He loved the wide-open space. Immediately before him lay the living area with couch, TV and armchairs. To his right must be the kitchen that he couldnt see from his position. Off to the left and behind the living area, he saw something big covered with a sheet. Tools and a workbench stood nearby.
Im sorry. Daisy appeared before him, twisting her hair about a finger. I completely lost track of time. I was over at my neighbors. Her old stove is trying to kick the bucket, and she wont invest in a new one. I had to pull out the heating coil and give it a good talking-to.
That works with appliances? A good talking-to?
She shrugged. Such a pretty pink little pixy wolf. He could kiss her right now. Run his fingers through her hair, pull her close and taste her mouth until he forgot his name. But she probably read about that kind of stuff in her books all the time.
How to win over this particular woman, who was like no woman he had ever dated before? The flowers had been stupid. Should have gone for one of those paperback romances hed noticed in the checkout line.
Give me ten minutes, she said. Ill go wash my face and change quick. You can sit on the couch.
He lifted a foot. Uh, I should stay here. My boots are wet.
Suit yourself. In that case, Ill make it five.
She scampered off to the back of the loft. A king-size bed sat against the wall, and near that an iron bar suspended from the high ceiling served as a clothes rack. She pulled a few items from it then disappeared into the bathroom, which appeared to be the only room that was actually walled and private.
Beck squatted down and took in the place. The window at the end of the bedroom was curved to a peak at the top, sort of cathedral-like. Cool. And probably romantic as hell to lay snuggled in bed together watching the moonlight.
He smiled and rubbed a hand over his grin, but realized he didnt need to hide his reaction to the sexy thought.
Beyond the window, the rest of the place was clean and industrial. It was the ultimate bachelors pad. Big, spacious, minimal decoration. Nothing froufrou. And there was a welders torch on the bench over by what he assumed was the covered artwork.
Hed like to see how she was using the bicycle chains. Hell, hed like to see anything she wanted to show him, so long as that meant they got to spend some time together.
What about the brother? he called when she stepped out of the bathroom five minutes later, pulling her hair back and twisting it into a ponytail.
Brother? Oh, right. Kelyn is going to look for me there. Hes got a date tonight, too. So were on our own. She scampered up before him, dressed in snug gray jeans and an oversize black sweater that looked softer than a kitten. You okay with that?
With having you all to myself? I think I can deal.
Great. She pulled on some snow pants, a coat and a black knit hat with the cat ears on the top and long strings that hung down over her coat and ended in big black pom-poms. Whats wrong? Youre staring.
Youre just so cute, Beck said.
Daisy punched him in the arm. Apparently this womans way of dealing with compliments was with violence.
Good, he thought. Shed keep him on his toes. If not leave a permanent bruise on his biceps.
Grabbing a tote bag from the kitchen chair, Daisy led him through the doorway. Toggling a cat ear on her hat, he closed the door. This way, kitten.
Oh, do not kitten me, she said as she locked the door behind them.
You prefer pixy wolf?
Pixy wolf?
Yeah, you look like a pixy.
Apparently you have never seen an actual pixy. Theyre no bigger than six or seven inches and have pointy ears and a nasty manner.
Then nix the pixy reference. How about faery wolf?
Why dont you try Daisy? she suggested, and shuffled down the stairs.
Beck nodded. Hell, he was nervous. He felt like hed never been on a date and he was doing everything wrong.
Chill, man. Relax and get to know the girl.
What was it Beck had heard about faeries and their wings? Something about touching them being a sexual turn-on.
Nice, he muttered.
Chapter 4
Theyd found the perfect perch on a hilltop and up against a rock, just behind the masses of people who had gathered at the park. The ice castle sat before the lake, its neon lights reflecting on the shoveled lake surface. The fireworks would begin when they turned off the multicolored spotlights on the castle, usually around eleven.
Daisy poured Beck a cup of hot chocolate that she had made before going to help her neighbor with her stove. The brew smelled so good, she took a sip before handing Beck his cup.
Had to check, she said. Make sure its not too hot for you.
Thank you, mother.
Hey, Im a chocolate freak, so you know. And I dont share my chocolate with just anyone.
Then Im honored. To sharing. He tilted his cup against hers, and they drank the toast.
What? Beck stared at the cup, mouth open in awe. This is... He took another sip, eyes closed and a satisfied murmur rising. This is the most amazing stuff Ive ever tasted.
Daisy bristled with pride. Why thank you. Its a recipe from my aunt Kambriel.
Did she steal it from the gods?
Daisy chuckled. Actually, one of her friends works at Angelina in Paris. Its a ritzy place known for its decadent hot chocolate. The recipe is a lot of work, but in the winter I make it at least once a month and freeze it for emergencies. Its necessary to me, like breathing.