01 Taming the Wolf - Anna Avery Page 11

  I stopped walking. “What do you mean?”

  “He said to keep an eye on you earlier tonight. Something about you not being left alone.” Sawyer shrugged, and I smiled. I guess this is what Adam meant when he said he’d make sure Nicholas would leave me alone. Nicholas seemed like the type to make his move when there weren’t any witnesses.

  “I’m sorry you got roped into this,” I told him and continued to walk. Sawyer fell into stride beside me. “I know it must be awkward for you considering…”

  “I’m a big boy, Anna.” He smiled. “What we had was short, but I don’t hold any ill feelings towards you. I guess you can’t help who you fall in love with.”

  “I’m not in love with Adam,” I retorted. Sawyer nodded his head and pursed his lips to mock my words. Was I in love with Adam? How was I supposed to know? I’d never fallen in love before.

  “Anyway, I’m sorry. You’re a hot piece of ass, so you’ll land on your feet,” I told him. Sawyer pushed my arm, and I stumbled a couple inches. Laughing, I hit him back.

  “Well for that to happen, I’d have to leave Wyoming. If you haven’t noticed there aren’t a lot of pickings here.”

  I frowned because he was right. Our pack was seriously lacking in the female department. Poor Elle and Sawyer were bound to end up alone if something didn’t change.

  “Hey,” I tapped his arm. “Just sing to them, it made my panties drop.”

  Sawyer laughed. “Is that the only thing that made you sleep with me? Are you one of those groupie girls?”

  “No, but I’d be lying if I said it didn’t help.” Sawyer and I were both laughing when someone called my name.

  “Anna?”

  We stopped and turned to see Adam and Wade driving up the road.

  “Uh-oh, I think it’s time for your experiment,” Sawyer teased.

  “Shut up.”

  Wade stopped the SUV alongside us. Adam sat in the passenger’s seat, and his eyes flicked between Sawyer and me. Not that he had anything to worry about, Sawyer and I were just friends, but the jealousy in his sapphire eyes pleased me.

  “Get in,” Adam ordered. I said goodbye to Sawyer and hopped in the backseat. Wade pulled away and took off down the winding mountain road. The uncomfortable silence hung thick in the air. Both men’s bodies were ridged and hard.

  “So, where are we going?” I finally asked.

  “Nowhere specific,” Wade said. “Just around town to get you used to humans.” He looked over at Adam. “This wouldn’t be necessary if your alpha would’ve raised you right.”

  Adam released a heavy breath and continued to stare out the window. Wade returned his eyes to the road, and I slouched in my seat. In the four months I’d been in Adam’s care, he’d taught me a lot about who I now was. I assumed the reason the leaders were being hard on him was because of the killings. There was a possibility that I was responsible, and Adam was the scapegoat for my alleged actions.

  “I went grocery shopping by myself a month ago, and I didn’t attack anyone,” I told Wade like this was the equivalent to winning a gold medal.

  Wade looked at me through the rearview mirror and said, “Congratulations, but from what I saw today you still aren’t comfortable with humans.”

  I had the strong urge to stick my tongue out, but decided that would be immature and not help my cause. We sat in silence for the rest of the trip, which like everything else in Wyoming, took forever. Buffalo was at least forty-five minutes away, and the view outside my window was land with a few houses every ten miles or so. My mind traveled back to when I was still human. I adapted to living with Adam’s pack so quickly I hadn’t thought about the life I’d lost. Not that I really had a life to speak of, but it was a lot simpler then. Sure I barely made enough money to get by and I came home to a dog at night, but my life was my own. Now, I could be a murderer and was obsessed with a man who was with someone else. Oh how the tides turn. I’d traded one extreme—boring life—for another—exciting and dangerous life.

  I eyed the back of Adam’s profile. His blonde hair was tucked behind his ear, giving a clear view of his strong jaw and full lips. Part of me wished I’d given into him a month ago and to hell with the consequences. Of course that’s how I felt now, sans sex. I hated the thought of them sharing a bed or worse—their bodies.

  I shook the thought from my mind. As much as I didn’t like Eve, I felt like a horrible person for wanting her man. Adam was hers, and it wasn’t right, or moral, to want otherwise. I felt like one of those bimbos who got involved with a married man and believed when he said “he’s going to leave his wife.” How pathetic was I?

  My head snapped up when Wade pulled into the theater. Not exactly the venue I’d expected for testing my limitations to humans. The small cinema only showed two movies at a time and those movies had been out for months. Of course since I’d been a werewolf for the past few months, I hadn’t seen the flicks. Once Wade parked, he hopped out of the SUV and Adam and I followed. Downtown Buffalo could barely be considered a city. Its buildings were small and the majority sold hunting stuff and antiques. Even the theater was tiny with its square roof and bland plastered walls. If it wasn’t for the sign announcing what it was, it could’ve passed for a warehouse.

  “What are we seeing?” No matter how sad the building was, I was excited to see a movie in an actual theater instead of in my living room. I guess that explained how pitiful my life was. Not that I was a social butterfly before becoming a werewolf, but I did have times I’d have fun.

  “You choose,” Wade said. “But we’re not here to have fun. We’re here to see how you do sitting in a room with humans. We’ll start here and see how you do just being around them, and then we’ll interact, depending on how this goes.”

  Great, so I wouldn’t be able to enjoy the movie with two pairs of eyes judging my reactions to the crowd. Maybe I could stuff my face with buttery popcorn and get lost in some hot vampire action, so I wouldn’t notice being stared at for two hours.

  “Fright Night,” I said, pointing to the poster of Colin Farrell in a tight white tank top. Both Wade and Adam groaned as I walked inside the building. I stopped short as a thought came to me. I leaned closer to Wade, cupped a hand in front of my mouth, and asked, “Are vampires real?” It seemed likely considering I was living proof werewolves weren’t just the monsters fairytales are made of.

  Wade sucked in a deep breath as if annoyed or pissed. “Yes, they exist.”

  My eyes shot wide. “Seriously? Have you met any? Are they sexy and mysterious like in the movies and books?” I couldn’t keep the excitement out of my voice.

  “Well,” Wade said, smiling. “They don’t sparkle.”

  “How can I help you?” The young girl behind the counter asked. I took a moment to judge my reaction to her. My wolf bristled underneath my skin as the girl stared me in the eyes. I sucked in a deep breath and tried to calm my inner beast.

  “Three for…Fright Night,” Wade said dismally. I smiled at the girl, but turned towards Adam so my wolf had something more scrumptious to focus on. My clever trick worked because as soon as my eyes found those azure orbs, my body relaxed. Adam smiled and a shudder ran the length of my spine. Man, he was gorgeous.

  “Come on you two,” Wade ordered and we followed him over to the concession stand. A young man with a skin condition smiled at us revealing braces wrapped around his teeth. Man, I’m happy I’m out of that awkward stage.

  “Tell the man what you want, Anna,” Wade said. I stepped closer to the counter, took another deep breath, and made sure my eyes were focused on the menu board instead of the kid. As I searched the set of choices, my stomach rumbled. I hadn’t eaten at dinner and now I was feeling the effects of my lost appetite.

  “I’ll have a large popcorn, large coke, and nachos” The young kid looked surprised at how much food I’d ordered. His beady eyes flicked to my slim waistline and then he nodded. He probably thought I would scarf the greasy goodness down and throw it up later. Hey, as l
ong as he didn’t think I was a werewolf all was good.

  After we had our junk food, we headed for the room that our movie was playing in. It wasn’t hard to find, there were only two showings total. As I picked a row and walked towards the middle of the seating, Wade took the row behind me.

  “What are you doing?”

  “I can see your reactions better if I sit behind you,” he said as he sat down. Shrugging, I placed my soda in the drink holder and sat down as I tried not to drop my popcorn and nachos. Adam sat next to me, which was both awkward and exciting. Almost like we were on a date.

  There weren’t a lot of humans in the room, maybe six. So far my wolf was more focused on the food and Adam’s close proximity to worry about them. The lights dimmed and the large screen flickered to life as previews started to play. I was aware that the arm rest to my right was pushed up and Adam’s hand was resting against the side of my leg. I wondered if Wade would have a problem with Adam and mine’s relationship, or if it was normal for alphas to sleep with the females in their packs. Knowing how Nicholas was, Wade probably wouldn’t bat an eyelash if Adam stripped and mounted me right there. My wolf got excited thinking about it.

  The spot that the back of Adam’s hand touched tingled. Closing my eyes, I gave myself a pep talk to ignore those lustful feelings and concentrate on the screen in front of me. Unfortunately, the pep talk didn’t work. When I opened my eyes, I snuck a peek at Adam and a sexy smirk lifted one side of his mouth. How I wanted to kiss those lips. Fisting a hand in my popcorn, I shoved the kernels into my mouth and ground them into nothingness. Adam turned his hand so his fingers faced my leg, and with the slightest movement, he caressed it. Heat flourished through my body. The arm holding the popcorn squeezed the bucket tighter while my free hand crushed the arm rest. What in the hell was he doing?

  I can’t focus on anything but you. Adam’s voice sounded in my head and the intrusion was surprising enough that I jumped. Luckily, a scary preview was showing, and Wade would think I got scared. Adam didn’t speak to us, well me, telepathically unless we were in wolf form.

  Well, Wade is focusing on me too, so knock it off. I smiled, unable to contain it.

  Oh, come on. Don’t you want to see how far we can go before we’re caught? His voice grew huskier.

  I bit my lower lip as the heat settled between my legs. Considering he’s right behind us, we won’t get far. There may have been a bit of disappointment in my voice.

  Is that a challenge?

  I suppose it is. I ran a hand over my mouth to conceal my growing smile.

  “Anna has to go to the restroom,” Adam said, turning around to face Wade. My eyes shot wide as I realized what Adam was thinking. “We’ll be right back.”

  “Maybe I should take her,” Wade countered, and Adam’s defenses perked up before he calmed himself down. “Anna?”

  “Um…” I stammered. “I’m okay with Adam.” I hoped the nervousness in my stomach didn’t sound in my words.

  “Okay, but don’t let her out of your sight,” Wade warned Adam.

  “Oh, I’ll be on her like white on rice,” Adam replied with a grin that caused my legs to shake. A whole month and he hadn’t touched me. The anticipation was so strong I about sprinted to the bathroom.

  As I stood I caught Wade’s eyes and the suspicion within them. Looking away, I followed Adam out of the theater and towards the restroom. My heart was jackhammering in my chest.

  You go in first, Adam said. Shouldering past him, I stepped into the small bathroom. Deciding it’d be safer to hide in one of the stalls, I shoved the doors open on all of them and entered the last one. It would make it easier for Adam to know which one I was waiting for him in. I was so excited I felt jittery. Blowing into my hand, I checked my breath. Ack, popcorn, that couldn’t be sexy. Slipping out of the stall, I turned on the faucet and brought a handful of water to my lips. Swishing it around, I spit into the sink and slipped back into the stall. It was the best I could do and hopefully Adam wouldn’t mind too much.

  Two minutes passed and no Adam. I leaned against the wall, shifting my feet back and forth and staring at my watch. Four minutes and still no Adam. Did I misread the situation, and he was just waiting for me to pee? That didn’t make sense. After eight minutes, I was no longer jittery with excitement. I slipped out of the bathroom and headed out. Adam stood off to the side, cell phone pressed to his ear, and an annoyed look on his face.

  “Eve, I don’t know what to tell you. She’s my responsibility, and I couldn’t just shove my duties off on Wade. There’s nothing going on between me and Anna.”

  And there it was, the proof I needed that Adam didn’t feel the same way I did for him. My heart felt like it’d fallen to my feet and my chest rose and fell heavily as I stared at him. He looked up and our eyes met. His eyebrows furrowed and his mouth hung open slightly as he realized I heard his conversation. I didn’t want to hear anymore, I stalked back to the theater.

  If someone asked if Fright Night was good, I wouldn’t be able to tell them. After Adam returned from his phone conversation, he tried to talk to me through telepathy for the entire movie. I ignored him as best as I could, but it made focusing on the film difficult. The only good thing that came out of it was that I also couldn’t focus on the humans. After the movie, we hopped back in the SUV, and Wade drove to Wal-Mart. It was the only store that was open all night and had a sufficient amount of people. I walked on the side of Wade where Adam wasn’t. How could I believe he was my chante or that the heartfelt words he’d spoken in the past had meaning. They were just that—words.

  “You did very well at the theater,” Wade said, and I reined in my anger to pay attention.

  “Thanks,” I said coolly. “So are vampires as sexy as Collin Farrell?” I needed something to occupy my mind, so why not find out more about the fanged?

  Wade laughed. “Only if they were sexy to begin with. Turning vampire isn’t an instant beauty serum; they look just like everyone else.”

  I could have met one and not even known it. “Are there any in Wyoming?”

  “I’m sure there are a few, but they tend to migrate to more crowded states.”

  “Have you ever met one?”

  “Yes,” Wade said a bit annoyed. “Enough about vamps. I need you to pay attention to the humans. Your wolf needs to interact with them.”

  I rolled my eyes, but kept my lips sealed. “Hello,” I said to the greeter at the doors. The old gentleman smiled and my wolf perked up. I reminded myself that the elderly man wasn’t challenging me, just simply smiling. Once we stepped into the large store the scent of human overwhelmed my senses. Sweat, perfume, cologne, urine, and food assaulted my nostrils and made my brain swirl with mixed emotions. My wolf wanted to growl, while I wanted to vomit. All the smells mixed together were enough to turn the greasy theater food sour in my stomach.

  We walked down the aisles in silence. Wade observed my body language, and I hoped he didn’t notice I wasn’t paying attention to the people. Instead, I stared at various items on the shelves. If a human crossed my line of sight, I’d shift to another item.

  “How are you feeling?” Wade asked, using a psychiatrist tone.

  “Well, Doc, I’m feeling a little agitated that I’m being paraded through the store like a science project.” Uh-oh, the bitchy attitude was a dead giveaway that the humans were getting to me. Not that I wanted to turn hairy and chomp down on some homo sapiens, but my wolf didn’t enjoy their company. Her feelings make me agitated. I needed to calm down and show Wade they didn’t have an affect over me.

  Wade growled low in his throat. “If dead bodies weren’t showing up on Adam’s mountain, you wouldn’t be subjected to this experiment.”

  “Only one body was found on the mountain,” I argued. Not smart. Wade grabbed my arm and hauled me into an empty aisle.

  “You will respect the leaders and their methods. I say you need to interact with humans, so you’ll interact with them. No more back talk, understand?”r />
  I nodded and kept the snide remark on the tip on my tongue from slipping out.

  “Good. Now I want you to go up to the woman and ask where the paper plates are, got it?”

  I nodded again and looked in the direction he pointed to. My eyes shot wide when I recognized the young woman’s face. She was tall and slender with wavy brown hair that hit to the middle of her back. Large, almond-shaped, blue eyes studied some sort of pricing gun in her hand. With unsteady steps, I walked up to my old friend.

  “Chelsea?” I said with mock surprise. Chelsea’s head popped up and her face brightened at seeing me. We’d met in high school and had been almost as close as best friends. It wasn’t until a year after school that we lost contact. I assumed she went away to college while I hung back.

  “Anna? Oh my gosh, it’s been forever!” Her arms went around my neck and squeezed. My body went rigid and on high alert. My wolf squirmed underneath my skin and fought to break free. Closing my eyes, I sucked in a breath through my nose and released it through my mouth. This is Chelsea, she’s not a threat. Calm down.

  When she released me I was a bit calmer. She didn’t run away screaming, or look scared, so my eyes must have remained their normal brown. A wide smile stretched her lips and all the tension in my body subsided.

  “How have you been?” I asked when I was sure words would leave my lips instead of a growl.

  “Good. I just finished school. I couldn’t find a job in graphic design, so I came home, hence the horrible work attire.” She held out her blue vest and laughed. “I’m living with my parents, but I’ve almost have enough saved up to get my own place,” she paused. “Sorry, I’ve always been a talker. How have you been? What school did you go to?”

  I returned her smile and shrugged. “I didn’t go to college. It wasn’t for me.” Chelsea nodded as if she knew as much. I was the type of kid to go to school and do my homework simply because I had to. I didn’t strive for straight A’s or have stacks of college pamphlets as a freshman.

  “I heard about your parents. I’m so sorry. Are you living in their house?”