Hunter Moon (Lupine Moon Series) (7 page)

“Don’t go riding by yourself anymore, Shelby.” He tweaked my nose. “I don’t want you bumbling into a pot stand and getting yourself killed. It’s too much paperwork for me.” And then he was in his truck driving away. I raised my hand to my lips and stared after him bewildered.

What had just happened?

At two in the morning I sat up in bed so fast my head swam. Something woke me up out of the best dream I’d had in a very, very long time. Whatever it was, it would have one mad woman to deal with. I rubbed the sleep from my eyes and glanced out the window. There, once again, was the wolf.

He sat on his haunches in a patch of moonlight, staring right back at me. The moon was full and high in the night sky, and he was lit up as if it were day. Afraid to take my eyes off of him, lest he dart out of my sight again, I reached for the Glock on my nightstand. He stood up and made as if to leave, so I snatched my hand back.

He might have been reading my thoughts, but as soon as I pulled my hand away from the gun, he tilted his head for a moment, and then sat back down. Curious, I slipped my bunnies on my feet and hustled down the hall and out the door outside. I circled around toward my bedroom, and there he still sat, watching me with apparent ease. Not wanting to spook him, I knelt down in the dirt and reached out a hand. He was so huge, even though he was sitting we were eye to eye.
I must be out of my mind.

The wolf sat there regarding me for what seemed like ten minutes before standing and lazily walking toward me. Suddenly the position I’d put myself in registered and fear gripped my legs and wouldn’t let me move.
There is a 200 pound wolf coming toward you who probably wants to have a taste,
my brain screamed at me.
Run, you idiot!
But right as I prepared to stand to bolt back to my front door, the wolf stopped in front of my outstretched hand and sniffed it.

Frozen, I let it continue to smell me. It didn’t seem aggressive at all, just curious to know what I was. For some reason I was emboldened by its friendliness and I stretched my hand out and stroked its head. The wolf flinched, but then leaned into my hand as I scratched the same spot behind the wolf’s ears that Reggie loved so much. Floored, I continued to pet the wild beast until it darted forward and licked my face.

I was so startled, I sat down hard, landed on a rock and winced at the bruise I knew would be there tomorrow. The beast gave me a wolfy grin, its tongue lolling out the side of its mouth, and then darted off into the night. I sat there in the dirt unmoving for a while, staring out in the dark, until I realized I was freezing in my boxers and t-shirt. I stood up and brushed off the dirt from my behind and limped inside and back to bed.

The next morning, wondering if it all had been some weird dream, I walked out with a mug of plain coffee and examined the set of wolf tracks that led around my trailer and by my bedroom window.

“You did
what?!”
Jesse screeched as she returned with my Coke.

 I had gone with Reggie to the general store for a hamburger. The store used to be a traditional dry goods store when Raymond had been on the stagecoach road up to Yosemite Valley. Now, it was sort of a quickie mart/café. Part of the building was separated into a small grocery store, with the necessities like flour and sugar, Cheetos, beer and ice cream. The other half of the store, partitioned off by shelves, were tables and chairs and a small kitchen that served simple diner fare like hotdogs, hamburgers and French fries. Reggie sat underneath my table, happily munching on the hot dog I’d owed him.

“I know, I know. I was being stupid. But for some reason I felt safe. I haven’t lost any calves, so it hasn’t been out killing things. It didn’t growl at me or anything. The wolf just sat there and let me scratch its ears. It was kinda amazing actually. For some weird reason, I feel better knowing it’s hanging around.”

Jesse stood with her hands on her hips, looking every bit like the wrathful fifties TV mom; her apron smooth and white and a pen stuck in the bun of her dark, chestnut hair. I didn’t think she bought it.

“You got a death wish, now? What, finding dead bodies isn’t exciting enough for you, you have to try and get mauled by a wild animal?” Her voice had raised several octaves during the course of our conversation, and I was afraid the old guys would start listening in. I switched tactics.

“Well, getting the life kissed out of me by the hot warden was pretty exciting, I guess.”

She looked like she was going to have a stroke. “
YOU WHAT?”
Sure if Jesse’s voice went any higher, Reggie would start howling, I motioned with my hands for her to quiet down.

“Sheesh, Jess. Shut up! I don’t want the whole town to know!” Her eyes narrowed as she slammed her hands on the counter and leaned over.

“If you don’t tell me everything that happened right this second, I’m going to tell Matt that you secretly have been in love with him!” She hissed.

I swallowed and nodded. “Well, it was after you and Ty left. We were just standing there, and one second he was all sweet and quiet and then he said some really stupid thing about me just calling him next time and not needing to find a body if I wanted to see him.”

Jesse took in a sharp breath and I knew she thought about how well
that
must have gone over. My reputation was well founded; I had a temper.

“I started to say this really wicked comeback,”
Liar.
“When all the sudden he was just kissing me.” Jesse stood back up, eyes wide and grinned. I continued before she could say anything. “It wasn’t a really big deal. I think he did it just to shut me up. And then he just left. Personally, I thought it was kind of rude to just invade my personal space like that. I’m sure Cash could tell I didn’t want him to kiss me.”

Jesse laughed and looked over my shoulder. I frowned.

“Oh, I don’t know,” a rich baritone voice behind me said.
Oh crap!
“It seemed like you enjoyed it to me. In fact, I’m pretty sure I heard you moan.”

Jesse nearly doubled over with laughter. I was paralyzed with horror.

There he was, in all his glory, standing right behind me. I opened and shut my mouth, knowing I must have looked like a fish, floundering at what to say.
Ba dum, ching!
Cash just stood there, all self-satisfied hotness. Finally my brain kicked back into gear.

“I did
not
moan. I tried to tell you to stop, but you took that as encouragement and kept on fumbling around,” I said in my best haughty voice. “You
might
have heard me moan if you practiced kissing a little more.” I heard Jesse gasp for air behind me as she struggled to breathe.

 I glared at her. “
A little warning might have been nice,
best friend!” I hissed.

 I turned back toward Cash and he still had the same self-assured grin on his face. Matt Albert walked in behind him and I smiled.

“Matt over there at least knows how to kiss a girl,” I said loud enough for him to hear. I knew I’d regret it till the day I died. Still, the look on Cash’s face was priceless. Jesse started wheezing. I put a ten on the bar, whistled at Reggie and stood up.

“See ya, Jess. I’ll call you about tonight.” I turned toward Cash who glared at me. “Oh, and Cash?
Be
a stranger, okay?” Smug with triumph, I turned to walk out of the store, but he grabbed my arm and whirled me around.

I started to object, when he pulled me against him and pressed his lips to mine. It was a good thing he had his arms wrapped tight around me, otherwise I’m sure my knees would have given out. As it was, when he was finished, I sucked in air with my head on his chest. He chuckled into my hair.

“How was that,
Shells?
Do I still need more practice?”
Holy crap, I’m done for.
I knew a threat when I heard it, albeit a delicious one. I started to reply when I felt his arms tense around me.

“Is this guy bothering you, Shelby?” I wiggled out of Cash’s arms and turned toward Matt. His cheeks were red with fury and I knew, if he’d had a few already, he was inches away from throwing a punch. Not wanting for poor Matt to go to jail for assaulting an officer, I stepped away from Cash. I felt a twinge of regret. Jesse stared at us with her mouth gaping.

“No, Matt, I’m okay. Thanks though. I was just leaving.” I walked out the door and started to open my Blazer door when a large hand kept it from opening. I turned around and stared into those amazing sapphire eyes.

“I meant what I said last night about not riding out alone. Until I find out what happened to that man, I don’t want you going anywhere on that property by yourself.” He stood so close I had to lean against the truck door to get a few inches of space between us. I tried to think up a good reply, but he smelled like the forest and campfire.

“I’m sorry, Cash, but that’s not going to happen. I have to ride to check on my cows. I can’t afford to lose any more calves this year, especially not now, even if it’s not the wolf that’s killing them.” He frowned, and I wanted to kiss the corners of his delicious mouth and make it better.

“I thought I told you to call me when you see the wolf?”

It was my turn to frown. “
When
I see the wolf? Why were you so sure I’d see it again?” That seemed to take him by surprise and he fumbled a bit before answering.

“I guess I just assumed since you had all those calves that it would come back around again. That’s not the point. Next time you see the wolf I want you to call me so I can come over and get a look at it. This is not a good time to be proud, Ms. Flint.”

Irritated again, I put my hands on his wide shoulders and pushed. I was no wuss, but it was like pushing against a brick wall. I resorted to crossing my arms in front of me instead.

“So it’s back to Ms. Flint again, is it? Well, since I’m Ms. Flint,
warden,
I’m a big girl and I can take care of myself. I’ve done just fine on my own so far.”

I threw open my door and tore out of the parking lot. When I looked back in the rear view mirror, I could’ve sworn he was laughing.

I sat down on my couch and grabbed my phone. I
had
gone out and checked on my cows, in spite of whatever Cash wanted. I have too much riding on those cows to let them go unprotected. My whole year depended on the calf sale at the end of the month, and with a trial looming, I really needed the money.

The ride had been uneventful. I didn’t find any dead calves, and the cattle were contentedly munching on the grass. I also didn’t find any dead men, so all in all it was a good day. Now all I wanted was to have some drinks with my friend and whine about my crappy family. I dialed Jesse’s number.

“Hey Jesse. So, you’re good to come over tonight and hang out?” I was afraid her husband would convince her to stay home. He wasn’t too fond of our sleepovers. Mostly because we drank and watched movies with half naked men.