On Wednesday, Garrett asked Breck if he could
join his pack for the full moon run and, of course, Breck said yes.
So after his shift, he headed to North Plains, where their pack
gathered to run through the coast range. It had been a warm week,
but he could tell the weather was changing. Clouds were rolling in
and obscuring the moon. It was painful being with Sarah's home pack
this week, but it was better than being a victim of Sonya. He
pulled his work boots and t-shirt off, waiting for everyone to
assemble. The alpha greeted the visitors and read the rules for the
boundaries so they would be safe from hunters, traffic, and human
sightings. He then called a beginning to the run. Everyone finished
stripping off their clothes; the alpha and his mate shifted first,
followed by the rest. Garrett shook out his dark chocolate fur and
loped away in a different direction than everyone else. This was
his one run alone. He didn't want to run and play or hunt. He
wanted to find a spot and howl at the moon. Breck and his mate,
Emma, whimpered at him, asking him to follow with the group, but
Garrett slowly shook his head back and forth and headed for the
nearest hill in the opposite direction.
He found the perfect spot to look over the
valley below and watch the others run around and play. He looked at
the sky and let out a mournful howl. A few moments later, he heard
Breck and Emma answering his sorrow; joined in each other’s
loss.
It was
Friday night and Riley pulled up outside of Rowdy's Pub, scowling
at the full parking lot. She didn't want to think about what she
would find inside the doors. She was still feeling sad over her
lost patient a few days prior and couldn't get past the loneliness
plaguing her. She thought maybe her hormones were out of whack. She
begrudgingly stepped out of her car into the chilly night air and
zipped up her coat. It felt like it might snow soon. She walked
through the dark parking lot, weaving through cars and praying she
could make it through this evening without breaking down in front
of her friends. As she opened the door, she pasted on her best
smile.
Rowdy's was hopping with activity, the after
work crowd was trying to shake off another week at the office. The
walls were made of wood paneling, and covered by flashing beer
signs and photos of sports stars. TV's in the corners with their
volumes muted showed various games playing with subtitles. There
was a long bar along the far back wall with a kitchen behind it.
Black leather booths lined the perimeter of the other three walls,
and about fifteen tables sat in the middle of the square pub.
Peanut shells littered the wood plank floors, one of the
"attractions" of this establishment. In the side room were a couple
of pool tables and dartboards. Riley showed her ID to the bouncer
and found the girls sitting smack dab in the middle of the ruckus.
Great, just my luck.
She wound her way through the crowd and
sat down at the empty chair. She ordered a beer from the server and
did her best to engage in conversation.
Thirty minutes later, she was twirling her
beer on the coaster, trying to listen to the conversation Sam was
having with Jennifer and Lyla. They were talking about a group of
eligible men on the other side of the room, but Riley wasn't
interested in talking about something she couldn't have in her
life. She knew the girls meant well, but this outing wasn't helping
at all. In fact, it was becoming more painful than being at home.
At least at home she wasn't verbally reminded about how lonely she
was. She had never felt the need for anyone in her life, and now
that she realized she was missing something, she didn't know how to
fix it. No one had ever been interested in her and she'd never
actually been on a date.
How do I change a track record like
that at the age of 29, soon to be 30?
*
Three tables away Garrett sat alone, with his
shoulders hunched and a grimace on his face. He hated being the
only person sitting alone in a bar, and tonight it was packed with
groups of friends, coworkers, and couples. He had a horrible day,
hell, he'd been having a horrible couple of years. For some reason
his lonely house was getting more unbearable by the moment. He
almost went to the pack social last night until he remembered Sonya
was still in town. He was worried about the trend of drinking alone
at home - it had that closet drinker feel to it. Instead, he
stopped at this pub for a drink after leaving the jobsite. Drinking
alone in a bar seemed slightly more acceptable for some reason. The
harried server rushed over and asked if he was waiting on someone,
which only made him grimace more. Really, did she need to ask the
one question he didn't want to hear? He affixed his best fake smile
and replied, "Nope, only me tonight. May I have an IPA, please?"
She hurried away, looking frustrated that he was sitting at a four
top alone.
I would have sat at the bar, but it was full.
After such a warm welcome, Garrett decided to
leave. He was about to lay a $10 bill on the table and walk out
when he turned to the side and saw the most striking woman he'd
ever laid eyes on. His heart lurched as if it had been kick
started.
What was that about
? He hadn't felt a reaction like
this... ever. She sat uncomfortably in a chair with her chin tipped
down and was swirling a beer around. He could almost feel sadness
radiating from her. He couldn't get a good look at her face, but
from what he could tell, it was heart shaped with perfect, pink
lips. She looked to be natural in her appearance, not a lot of
make-up on and her brown hair was pulled back in a messy ponytail.
He couldn't pinpoint what was drawing his attention, but it was
magnetic. He discreetly took a sniff of the air to see if he could
pick out her scent. Wham! He almost fell out of his chair. He felt
lightheaded from the hit; he'd never smelled anything that enticing
before. There were notes of apple and cardamom with a touch of
hickory. He shook his head to clear his mind, what was going on?
She smelled human, not the scent of a shifter.
There were four women at the table, and they
were all wearing medical scrubs, two of them with puppies in the
pattern.
Maybe they were veterinarians. How ironic.
He felt
drawn to her and stared at her for an indecently long length of
time. She occasionally lifted her eyes to the conversation around
her and made a comment as if she was trying to join in, but
couldn't muster the strength for it. He knew that look, because
he'd felt the same way many times. The server returned with his
drink and asked if he wanted anything to eat. He hadn't planned to
eat, but now he didn't want to leave so he absently ordered a
burger and fries.
He sat there trying to figure out what to do.
Then he saw her delicate hand reach for her wallet as if she was
getting ready to pay and leave. He immediately panicked. He
couldn't let her get away, not without finding a way to see her
again. He hadn't approached a woman since Sarah, and his heart was
hammering in his chest as if he was fifteen. His palms were sweaty
and he felt he might go into cardiac arrest. He shook his head
again and gave himself a mental pep talk, wiped his palms on his
jeans, and quickly worked out a way to talk with her.
*
Riley was tired of staring at the rivulets of
condensation on her beer glass and half-heartedly joining in
conversation. She discreetly grabbed her wallet, and then waited
for the server to come by so she could ask for her bill. She knew
Sam wouldn't be happy she was leaving so early, but she couldn't
take sitting here any longer. Even though she loathed crying, she
needed to get home and have a cathartic cry after this trying week.
Tomorrow will be her first Saturday off since she started the
practice five years ago. As she mentally planned her crying session
and fence repair, she nearly jumped out of her skin as someone
cleared their throat and mumbled "excuse me" directly behind her.
She felt the hair stand up on the nape of her neck and a strange
feeling ran over her skin, almost like an energy field. It reminded
her of going to the children's museum and putting her hand on an
electrostatic generator, but more soothing. She noticed the
conversation at the table had died and Sam's eyes widened as she
inhaled looking over Riley's shoulder.
She slowly turned around and craned her neck
back to see the darkest chocolate brown eyes she'd ever seen,
staring at her from under thick eyelashes. She guessed he was a
little over 6' tall and had dark brown, wavy hair, which reached
his collar. An enticing five o'clock shadow dusted his strong jaw,
and his full, kissable lips were set in a grin. She couldn't help
herself as her eyes traveled down his body, taking in his black
t-shirt, which stretched taut over his defined chest and shoulders.
He had well defined biceps, but not grotesquely huge. His hands
were in the back pockets of his faded jeans, which hung low on his
hips and hugged his muscular thighs to perfection. Scuffed, steel
toe work boots covered his feet. He was gorgeous from head to toe.
Her gaze traveled back to his eyes and she gulped. He was staring
at her and she knew he had caught her looking him up and down.
How embarrassing.
"Hi, I'm Garrett. I noticed you ladies all
have scrubs on and since a couple of you have puppies on them I was
wondering if you were veterinarians." Her bright green eyes
mesmerized him and her face was more perfect than he imagined,
heart shaped with a spattering of freckles across her nose. Her
lips were full, but not fake. Her brown hair had highlights of gold
and red through it and the fringe of her bangs fell over her arched
eyebrows. She was sitting, but he could tell she had a curvy little
body and was quite a bit shorter than he was. He itched to touch
her, so he kept his hands in his back pockets so he wouldn't
inadvertently reach for her. He needed to play this cool and not
turn into a complete and utter freak show.
It took a moment for Riley to gather herself,
feeling like an idiot as she stared at him with her mouth open. She
shook her head to clear it and looked back at her friends, who were
equally agape. "Umm. Yes, we're veterinarians... Actually, I'm a
vet and these women are my amazing support staff: Sam, Lyla and
Jennifer. Is there something we can help you with?" He answered
with a full megawatt smile that blew her away. She felt like she
was about to have a heart attack. She was scared he could hear her
heart beating from where he stood. She suddenly felt flushed and
she knew her face was red.
Darnit! Why do I have to blush so
easily
?
Garrett couldn't believe she was blushing.
Blushing is good, right?
He definitely caught her giving him
a once over and for some reason he was having a hard time not
picking her up and throwing her over his shoulder like a caveman.
All of his animal instincts came alive and his wolf barked that she
was HIS and he wasn't going to let her go. He hoped he didn't screw
this up and decided to press on with his plan. "Yes. Actually, I
just adopted a dog out of the local shelter and need a good vet in
the area. Is your office near here? Are you taking new clients?" He
waited anxiously for her answer, but she didn't answer and
continued to stare at him. He was starting to feel incredibly
self-conscious, when the blonde woman sitting next to her piped
up.
"Yes, we're taking new clients, aren't we Dr.
Riley?" Sam said.
Dr. Riley. He got a name. Now if he could
figure out her first name. He didn't miss the fact she didn't
introduce herself as she went around the table earlier.
"Oh yes, of course. Ummm, what kind of dog do
you have?" Riley asked. She felt like her brain was mush and she
could barely get the words out. She inwardly chastised herself for
acting like an idiot.
Great, Riley. Way to sound brilliant. If
you can't even answer a simple question, why would he bring his pet
to you?
This man rattled her like she'd never been rattled. She
was having a hard time focusing on what he was saying. She had an
overwhelming urge to touch him, which was completely absurd.
Garrett Stiffened. Crap! He hadn't thought
that far. He didn't have a dog, in fact, he was now going to have
to adopt or borrow a dog because of his lame excuse to talk with
her. He couldn't have a dog - they all hated him... They didn't
like his smell; they could all sense the predator in him. "It's,
it’s just a mutt. Not a certain breed that I know of." He could
tell this lie was going to get him deeper in trouble. At this
point, he had to find a way to make contact again and get the hell
out of here before he made a complete idiot out of himself. "So, do
you have a card, so I can make an appointment?"
Riley couldn't take her eyes off this guy.
She felt as if she was on a hidden camera and someone was going to
yell "gotchya" any minute. Men like this didn't exist in the real
world. She nodded her head and reached for her purse hanging on the
back of her chair. "Yes, let me get it for you." Her hands were
shaking and she was hoping he didn't notice. She finally fumbled a
card out of her bedazzled Great Dane cardholder, which Sam had
given her as a birthday gift the year before. When she handed it to
him, his fingers brushed hers and she nearly jumped from the
electricity.
What was that? Static electricity?
She shook
her head to clear it for at least the third time in the last two
minutes. What was wrong with her?!?
Get it together Riley, he's
merely a guy; a guy who would never look twice at you.
Garrett sucked in a breath when he felt the
electricity. Yep, she was his. They had the electrical connection,
which signified Kismet. How could this be? He was so stunned he
could barely breathe and his mind was spinning. She is most
definitely human. He'd never heard of a shifter and a human having
Kismet before. He had no idea how this was going to work. He didn't
even know if it was possible. No, he'd make it work no matter what.
She was his and he fully intended to claim her.