Runt of the Litter (7 page)

“Both of our dads are looking for a way to help.
They’ve not found anything out yet. I wish there was something I could do to
help.”

“Look for me, Marshall. Do anything you can.”

“I’m helping. I really am. I wish I was there with
you.”

Jack looked up as the back door opened. Tori was there,
dressed in a pair of shorts and a tight shirt. She looked vulnerable to him.
Everyone was worried that he wanted sex with her, but right now all he thought
about was getting her ready for the transition. Sex hadn’t entered his mind. He
had thought about kissing her but not sex.

“I’ve got to go. I’ll call you as soon as I know
what’s going on,” Jack said.

“Take
care,
and the pack is
behind you.”

Closing his phone, he smiled up at her. “That was
Marshall.”

“I know. You said you were calling him before you went
outside.” She walked down the steps and moved toward him.

“You’re getting started already?” he asked.

“Yes. I figured there’s no reason to wait around. Each
day is a day closer. Uncle Paul’s getting dinner ready.”

“Can he cook?” he asked.

“Yes, he can cook. You’ll be surprised. He could have
been a chef.”

“I’ll soon find out.”

Paul had given him a set of keys. “Let’s go and check
out the torture chamber.” Jack didn’t like this, not one bit. There wasn’t anything
he could do until he had another plan.

Opening the barn, he locked the doors so they would
have privacy. Flicking on the light, he stared around the large space. “I have
to say he did wonders with the place.”

“I agree. This entire place was filled with hay when I
left at the beginning of summer.”

The scent of the hay was still in the air.

“What do you think we should do?” she asked.

“I think we should start by covering up those pretty
eyes of yours and testing your reflexes.”

“How’s that going to help?”

“Marshall and I were able to detect each other with
our senses. I want to know where you’re at. Only, I’ve got nothing to cover
your eyes with.” Clicking his tongue, he stared around at the room before
looking at his shirt. “You like me naked anyway.” He pulled his shirt off.

“You’re egotistical. I really need to talk to these
girls you hang out with.”

“I don’t hang out with them.”

“Really?”

“They’re only good for one thing. I’ve not got a
girlfriend. Scarlett is the only girl I’ve spent time with that I’ve not fu—”

He stared over at her. Her brow was raised. “Fucked?”

“You shouldn’t be saying stuff like that.”

“Fucked? What do you think I am, Jack? I’ve not
disappeared. I go to school with other people, and I read.”

“You read about sex?”

“I read romance books. I like them. You shouldn’t
treat me like a baby.”

“We’re not talking about this.” He moved toward her,
bunching up his shirt.

“Why? Are you embarrassed to talk about it to a girl?”

“I’m not embarrassed about anything.”

“I bet you are. You sound embarrassed.”

“Shut up, Tori. Be still.” He covered up her eyes,
tying the shirt around the back. “There, can you see?”

“No. Your shirt stinks, Jack.”

“Stop being
cheeky.”
He moved her toward the center of the room.

“You’re right in front of me.”

“Smart ass.
We’ve not started yet.” He released her arms and stepped away from her.
The shirt covered her eyes and she reached up to touch it. “No, you don’t get
to move it. No cheating.”

“Sorry.”

Stepping back, he kept his eye on her.

“What can you sense?” he asked.

“Nothing.
I can’t sense anything at the moment.” She dropped her hands to her
sides. He saw her fisting her hands, looking nervous.

“What are you afraid of?”

“Failing.”

He started to move, and she stayed still.

“Are you moving?”

Jack didn’t say anything. He circled her, moving up
close behind her and tapping her shoulder. She gasped, whirling around. Her
feet tangled together, and she was about to fall onto the mat when he caught
her.

“You’re afraid, and it’s clouding your senses.”
Helping her to her feet, he held her close. “You told me you were able to hear
your family in your house. Was that a lie?”

“No. It was the truth. I heard them moving.”

“Your fear is ruling you here, and you’ve got to stop
it.”

“I don’t know how.” She bit her lip.

He removed his shirt from her eyes. There were tears
glistening in her depths.

“Baby, why are you crying?”

“I’m not crying.”

She sniffled, and his insides twisted at seeing her so
sad. “You’re crying.” Wrapping his arms around her, he pulled her close. “Talk
to me. Don’t cut me out. I’m listening.”

He stroked his hand down her back. “I can’t even
handle this. How can I handle opening up the cage? What if it’s wrong, Jack?”

“What do you mean?”

“What if I’m not meant to ever turn and I’m supposed
to remain this way? What if I’m supposed to die during the transition?”

“No, I don’t accept that you’re supposed to die.” He
pulled away long enough to cup her face. “You will never give up, Tori. I won’t
accept it. You’re going to fight, and we’re going to get through this
together.” He wiped away the tears.

“I can’t handle this.”

“Yes, you can.” He stared at her plump lips and her
desolate blue eyes. “If you can’t do this for yourself then do this for me.
Please, I’m begging you.”

“Why?”

“I need you to trust that if you don’t fight, this is
going to kill me, too.”

Her hand landed on his chest. “You’ve always been so
good to me.”

He loved her. Jack loved her with all of his heart and
soul. “I’ll continue to be good to you. No more tears. We fight this, and we
fight it together.”

“Do you really think I’ve got a chance?”

“Yes, I do.” He wasn’t going to give up faith. “I’m
not going to let you die on me, Tori. I’m here, and I’m going to be here every
step of the way.”

“For the next two years?”

“For however long it takes. I’m going to be here.”
Kissing her head, he stepped back. “Are you ready?”

“Yes, I’m ready. I’m more than ready.” She took several
deep breaths, and he placed the shirt over her eyes. “What do I need to do?”

“Simply move to where you think I’m moving to. I’m
going to stop talking now. I don’t want to make it easy for you.”

“No, no one wants to make it easy for me.” She blew
out then squared her shoulders. “I’m ready.”

He moved away, and he kept his gaze on hers.

Jack took three steps to the left, and she followed
him. He stepped around the barn and each step, she followed him. When he
stopped moving, she did as well.

“I’m going to throw soft balls at you now. I want you
to try to dodge them.”

“Thank God they’re soft.”

“I wouldn’t dream of throwing anything hard at you.”
Paul had showed him the soft balls before they left the ranch earlier. There
was a collection of thirty balls. Collecting several, he started to walk around
the barn. The first one he threw hit her right in the stomach.

“Okay, I didn’t see that one coming.”

“Concentrate, Tori.”

“It’s hard to concentrate like this.” She released a
breath before nodding. “I’m ready.”

He threw the next three balls one after the other. Two
of them hit while she dodged the third. For the next hour, Jack circled her as
he tossed the balls her way. It was pretty equal in the ratio between hits and
misses.

Paul stepped into the room stopping their progress.
“Dinner’s ready.”

“We’ll be right in.” Jack gathered the balls while
Tori removed the shirt over her eyes.

“Do you really think this is going to work?” Tori
asked.

“We’ve got to try.”

“How do you think we’re going to call my wolf?”

“I really don’t know, Tori. I only know that we can’t
let anything happen to you.” He finished putting the balls away and turned to
look at her. “Do you think this can work?”

“I’m hopeful it can. I can’t be any other way.”

“Then that’s all I need to know.”

He reached out, touching her cheek. “We’re going to
get through this. I promise.” Before he could stop himself again, he pressed a
kiss to her cheek.

“You’re always so good to me.”

“Always.”
He took her hand, leading the way out of the house. On the outside he
was calm, composed, and ready for anything. On the inside, he was screaming in
agony.

Chapter Seven

Four months
later

Tori twirled her pencil between her fingers. Math
class was always a nightmare, but she couldn’t get her mind off the guy waiting
for her at the end of the day. She had an hour before she saw Jack again, and
she couldn’t wait. He hadn’t left her side once even though he must be missing
the pack. On the last four full-moons she’d watched him through her bedroom
window turn into a wolf and run through the ranch. They didn’t have any
neighbors, and the men who worked on the ranch left every day.

Biting her lip she saw the way his body looked with
the moonlight shining down on him. He was so tall and muscular. The nights were
becoming hard for Tori. Her dreams were full of Jack. He was everywhere as a
wolf and a man.

“Tori?”

Glancing up she saw the teacher had stopped in front
of her desk.
“Sorry, Mr. Evans.”

“You can be in fairy land on your own time, Tori. When
you’re in my classroom I demand your attention.”

“Of course, I’m sorry.” There were a few sniggers from
the fellow pupils, but she ignored it.

Looking toward the board she quickly did the sum that
was remaining.

“Well done. It’s good to know you’re paying attention
when it matters.”

Smiling, she quickly scribbled down her notes, begging
for the bell to ring. She hated being in high-school, especially knowing that
Jack was at home on the ranch. When she wasn’t there he helped Uncle Paul run
the place. He fitted in with her life.

Remember the dream.

Her dreams were becoming more vivid and detailed where
Jack was concerned. She didn’t like the thought of having wet dreams about her
friend. He wouldn’t do anything about her little crush. For the longest time
she’d pushed her crush aside for Jack. Nothing would ever come of it. Jack was
the beta while she was the runt. Why would he want someone like her when he
could have anyone he ever wanted?

The bell sounded, and she packed up her stuff, not
wasting any time to talk to anyone. She’d not made friends. None of them were
pack, and she didn’t like taking the chance in case she didn’t make it. The
training with Jack was going amazingly. She was stronger than ever before,
within herself and her body.

She quickly gathered the remaining books from her
locker. There were three girls heading her way. They were laughing and
giggling. Her senses were on high alert as she turned around.

Becca
, Doris, and Lauren were waiting for her.

“Can I help you?” she asked.

“The guy who comes for you,” Lauren said.

Her hackles rose. They were talking about Jack.
Jealousy struck her hard. The three girls were blonde, beautiful,
strong
. Jack could easily be attracted to any of the three.

“What about him?”

“Is he your brother?”

“No.”

“Who is he?” Doris asked.

“He’s my friend.”

“Maybe you could introduce us,”
Becca
said.

Tori pushed her way through the trio wishing they’d
just disappear. “I don’t know if that’s a good idea. He’s older, and he doesn’t
go here.”

“Where’s he from?”

“Nowhere
you know
.” The pack
wouldn’t want just anyone rushing to town to visit.

“Well I think it’s fair that you introduce us,” Lauren
said.

“What?” Tori asked looking from one girl to the next.
They were all smiling, but it didn’t reach their eyes.

“We want you to introduce us to your friend. We can
make you one of the most popular girls in school,” Lauren said.

Tori held her hands up. “I’ll introduce you, but I
can’t guarantee he’ll want to date any of you.”

“Please, all guys want to be with us.” This came from
Doris.

Tori really hoped Jack wasn’t the kind of guy who
wanted girls like this. “Sure, I’ll introduce you. I don’t expect anything back
in return.” Hiking her bag onto her shoulder, she blew out a breath as she made
her way outside. Jack was leaning against the truck with his arms folded. He
looked like a wet dream come true. His muscles were large and bulging. The sun
beat down, only adding to his appearance.

Come on, Tori, you can do this.

“Hey,” he said, glancing behind her with a frown.

“Hey.”

“What’s going on?” He nodded toward the three behind
her.

“Oh,
Becca
, Doris, and
Lauren really wanted to say hi to you. This is Jack,” she said, glancing
between the two. Jack was on one side of her with the girls on the other.

“Hello, Jack, it’s so nice to see you,” Lauren said,
purring.

Tori had never been so embarrassed in her life.

“Yeah, great.
You’re friends of Tori’s?”

“We are.
Great friends.”

“Right, yeah, you’re not. Come on, Tori, let’s go
home.”

Tori looked up at Jack to see the laughter in his eyes
as he looked at her.

“Wait, don’t you want to take our numbers? We’re happy
to do anything you want,” Lauren said, stepping forward.

“No. Don’t waste your time.” He opened the passenger
door for her. Sliding inside, Tori held her hands up to the three girls. She
was so pleased it was the weekend. She hoped someone would give the girls some
attention by Monday so they were not looking for a way to kill her.

“They accost you at the end of the school?”

“Yep.
I was grabbing my books from the locker.”

“Wow, high school really doesn’t change.”

“You’re telling me you weren’t tempted?”

“I’m telling you that I know the kind of girls that
proposition men and think they’ve got the right to have whoever they want. I
went to school with girls exactly like that.”

“And you didn’t take them up on their offer?” Tori
asked.

“When I was in school I took them up on their offer.
In case you didn’t notice, I’m older. I’m not interested in schoolgirls.”

Tori was
impressed. “You should have heard them. They were so confident that you
were going to be falling all over yourself for a chance with them.”

“Not likely.”

“How are you, erm, handling those needs?” she asked.
Her cheeks heated as she quickly looked out of the window.

“My, my, Tori, are you trying to ask me how I’m
handling my manly needs?”

She was going to catch on fire if she continued.

“Well, if you’re used to it I mean, how are you? Crap,
you know what? Forget about it. I don’t want to talk about this. It’s the wrong
thing to think about.”

He started laughing. “You don’t need to worry about my
needs. I’m exactly where I want to be.”

“Yeah, training a runt how not to die.”

Jack swerved the truck to a stop. “What have I told
you about using that fucking name?”

“It’s what I am.”

“Don’t, Tori, or I swear to God I will spank your
fucking ass in this car. You’re not a runt. Do not let anyone make you feel
small. Those girls, they’re everywhere. Any boy could have them, and when
they’re older, they’ll be easy to every single man. Guess what, not all men
like a woman who’s fucking easy. We like to have a challenge, to have someone
we know we can trust with the fucking mailman.”

“Wow, Jack. You sound way older than nineteen.”

“Being a wolf, it changes you, Tori. We’re older and
wiser. The pain, you don’t have a choice but to grow up. Marshall and I, we
grew up the summer we transitioned. Wolves mature a lot faster than others.”

“I’m sorry.”

“You’ve got a long way to go, but in the last few
months you’ve really shown a side of yourself that is worth being here, baby.
I’m going to get you through it and so is Paul.”

“Baby?”

“Shut up and stop with your whining. Don’t think to
send girls out to try to date me. I don’t like it.”

Tori smiled. “You weren’t tempted?”

“No.”

“Not even a little?”

“Not even a little, Tori. There’s someone out there
for me, and I’m waiting for her.” He started driving again, and Tori
was
curious about his girl.

“Do I know her?”

“You’ll have to wait and see.”

She couldn’t look away from him.

“Why are you staring at me?” he asked.

“You’re pretty hot.”

He snorted. “Whatever.”

“I’m being serious. You’re pretty hot.”

Jack looked toward her, and she couldn’t help but
laugh. “Stop teasing me.”

“I will, Jack, I promise.” She turned to look out of
the window. They pulled up outside of the ranch where Uncle Paul was talking
with several men.

“They’re dealing with ranch work. Come on, dinner’s
already inside.”

She grabbed her bag as she jumped out of the truck.
Giving the men a wave, she walked into the kitchen behind Jack.

“Did you make this?” she asked.

“Yes. I was on the phone with Scarlett, and she told
me how to make the chicken casserole.”

Taking a seat at the counter she watched him pull the
casserole out of the oven. The scent of garlic, chicken, and cheese was
heavenly.

“I’m starving.”

Dropping her bag beneath her feet, she watched as he
started to serve. When he’d gotten their portions, he placed the casserole back
in the oven.

“Paul can come and serve himself when he’s ready.”
Jack sat opposite her, putting another plate on the counter in front of her.

“How’s the pack?”

“They’re doing well. Marshall and Scarlett are looking
at moving in together now. They’re house hunting and trying to find a place
close to the pack.”

“Do you think it’ll work?”

“Of course.
His dad’s not happy with him moving out, but everyone knew it had to happen
soon.”

“They’re a newly married couple. I doubt they enjoy
his parents listening to them make out.”

“No.” She twirled her fork in her dinner.

“What is it?” he asked.

“Nothing.
It’s nothing.”

“Tell me.”

“I was just wondering if I’ll ever know what it’s like
to be mated, you know? Apparently I’ll know who I’m mated to when I become a
wolf.”

“Marshall knew the moment he saw Scarlett again.”

“Was he happy?” Tori asked.

“He was happy to find his mate, but he wasn’t happy
that it was the one he’d bullied.”

“I still can’t believe you were a bully.” She smiled
at him. “You’ve always been nice to me.”

“I like you, Tori.”

“Good. I’m glad.”

****

Jack watched as Tori meditated. They’d been training
for four months straight, and they weren’t any closer to reaching her wolf.

“What are you thinking?” Paul asked.

“We’re running out of time.”

“Yes, in a couple of months she’ll be seventeen.”

“Yet we’re no closer to understanding what’s going on.
This is fucking cruel. I can’t believe she’s just here for eighteen years.”

“Jack, over thirty years ago Tori wouldn’t have
survived the birth. It’s only because medicine has the advances it does.”

“She would already be dead?”

“Yes. Premature wolves are not well known. Runts of
the litter don’t survive.”

“And some packs may have just killed them to save the
emotional strain,” Jack said. Marshall had told him everything that his father
had learned. Years ago, before their time, packs would have sacrificed wolves
that were too weak. Some were sacrificed because of the savagery of the pack
while others were killed because they couldn’t handle the stress of becoming
attached to someone who’d die.

They were no closer to finding the truth.

“We can’t lose hope.”

“I’m not going to lose hope.” Jack couldn’t accept
anything that involved Tori dying.

“We need to start trying to bring out her wolf.”

“How do we do that?” Jack asked.

“I’m going to need your wolf to call to hers,” Paul
said.

“I can’t. You know how out of control my wolf is when
we’re around her.”

“We need to know what we’re up against. Tori’s ready,
and we’re wasting time. I didn’t want to wait until next year to try this.
She’s as strong as she’s going to get.”

Jack looked toward Tori. She couldn’t hear them as she
had headphones in her ears. “What’s the risk?”