Garden of the Wolf #1 (BBW Werewolf Shifter Romance) Read online

  Chapter 5

  Susie couldn't free herself until I dragged her outside the lodge. She yanked her arm from my grasp. "Not so hard. It's the only right arm I have," she protested.

  "And I have only one brain, but you keep killing the cells with your insanity," I countered.

  We walked toward our cabin and Susie shrugged. "It's the least I could do for a friend."

  "Yeah, thanks," I replied. I paused and glanced up at the sky. The sun had set during our half-long dinner and a show, and over our heads was now the clear night sky. The bright moon hung just above the horizon and hinted at a full moon in the near future. A few loose gray clouds lazily wandered by and a small breeze wafted by us. I sighed and couldn't help the smile that slipped onto my lips.

  "I forgot how fast the sun sets here," Susie mused.

  I gazed at the western sky and noticed the tall, shadowed mountains that stood there. They set the sun a few hours earlier than was usual. "This place seems to have no end of beautiful views," I murmured.

  Susie grinned and prodded her elbow into my side. "Liking this place?" she teased.

  I straightened and coughed. "Well, maybe just a little," I admitted.

  "It's a great view, isn't it? Not something we can get from our apartment window," she agreed.

  "Yeah, we'd better enjoy it while we can. We've only got two weeks here," I reminded her.

  Susie rolled her eyes and gently wrapped her hands around my arm. "You're such a spoiled sport," she commented as she pulled me along toward our cabin.

  I shrugged. "It's the truth. This is only a vacation."

  Susie leaned toward me and wagged her eyebrows. "But what if you got sweet with that manager? I bet he stays here year-around and then I could visit you two in your love nest."

  I snorted. "Uh-huh, and I bet he has a gorgeous dumb blond waiting for him at his place."

  "And she probably has some assets on mortgage, too," Susie added.

  We cackled and reached our cabin in a few moments. Susie flopped herself on the bed, laid her hand on her stomach, and sighed. "You know, I don't know how I lose weight here with all the food they give us."

  "Must be all the mountain air," I commented. I sat at the end of my bed and pulled off my shoes. The stiffness of my feet told of the long day. I studied my shoe and glanced over to Susie. "Did that manager go around the tables the last time you were here?"

  Susie shook her head. "Nope." A grin slowly crept across her lips and she rose onto her elbows. Her eyebrows wagged at me. "Maybe he saw you staring at him and wanted to get your number."

  "Or maybe he was just being nice and saying hello to everyone," I argued.

  She snorted. "He didn't go to any other table after ours and the way he snuck up on us I'd say he came from the lobby or some place like that."

  I shrugged. "Well, whatever he was doing we'll see if we meet him again. He's going to have his hands full with all those other guests."

  Susie sat up and frowned. "Yeah, they weren't very easy to get along with. I'm glad Linda got stuck with us so those guys didn't chew her up."

  I yawned and stretched my arms over my head. "Well, whatever happens it's going to have to happen tomorrow. I'm going to hit the hay."

  Susie jumped up and grabbed her bag. "Ditto."

  In a few minutes we slipped into our beds and fell asleep. Whatever they put in that special sauce on the meat must have been part-waking powder because I slept horribly. I tossed and turned for a few hours, long after Susie was out like a light. There was a nightstand between our beds with a simple clock, and I glanced at the time. Midnight. The witching hour.

  In this case it became the howling hour as a sound like the wailing of a wolf wafted came to my ears. I sat up and so did the hairs on the back of my neck. My eyes flickered between the window and my friend. Neither moved. I flung aside the covers, slipped on my slippers and shuffled to the window. I looked out the glass, but still nothing came to my sight. Another howl was heard, and this one sounded like it came from the direction of the lodge. I grabbed my coat and went for the door. I could have woken Susie, but she was impossibly slow in an emergency and I was curious.

  I slipped out the front door and crept onto the gravel road that ran along the cabins. The moon was still low in the sky but on its downward march to disappearing. I turned my head to the left and right. Nothing. Not even a twitch of a shadow.

  Wait. There it was. The howling. It definitely came from the lodge. I strode down the road toward the shadowed building. Everything was shadows. Only a few stars dared show their faces against the light of the moon. I wish I hadn't been in such a hurry and forgotten to bring a flashlight.

  I reached the front doors of the lodge and a few dim interior lights allowed me to see into the lobby. Nothing again. I turned back to the main road and the forest that lay beyond it. "I swore the noise came from here," I muttered.

  "Good evening, Miss Lee."

  I yelped and spun around. My arm was outstretched for a fight, but a hand caught me by the wrist. I pulled and yanked. "Let go of me!" I yelled.

  The man stepped closer to me and by the weak lights of the lodge lobby I realized it was Mr. Young who held me. He had a wide smile on his face as my cheeks blushed crimson. "I'd like to be sure you don't try to hit me again before I let you go," he teased.

  "I-I'm sorry, Mr. Young. I didn't-"

  "Scott."

  I blinked at him. "Beg your pardon?"

  "My name is Scott. I prefer that one to Mr. Young," he explained.

  "Well, I didn't mean to try to hit you. You just sort of came out of nowhere and I was following this strange sound-" I glanced behind him to the lodge doors. I had not idea how I'd missed him. "Where did you come from?" I asked him.

  He chuckled. "The darkness, of course, but you forget that I know this place much better than yourself." He released me and scrutinized my face. His lips twitched up in a sly grin. "Miss Lee, it seems to me your cheeks are always red when we meet. Do you have a fever?"

  I spun away from him and turned my face from his prying, dashing eyes. Even in the dark their blue color sprang out of the night shadows. "I-it's nothing, I'm just-um, cold. You know, not used to this night air or something."

  Scott chuckled. "Well, whatever your reasons I must remind you that you're out after dark, and that's prohibited."

  I glanced back to him and raised an eyebrow. "No, you said being on the trails after dark was against the rules." I pointed down at the gravel beneath my slippers. "I'm on a road."

  Scott grinned and bowed at the waist toward me. "I stand corrected. However, I must ask that you return to your room. It isn't safe to be walking around an unfamiliar area in the middle of the night, and I'm sure you must be tired."

  I shrugged. "Not really. I couldn't get to sleep."

  He raised an eyebrow and his lips thinned to a line. "I'm sorry to hear that. Are you often unable to sleep in new places?"

  I shook my head. "Nope. Usually I'm asleep faster than Susie, and that's saying something. Maybe it was something I ate."

  His smile returned, but not as wide nor as jolly as before. "Possibly, but I hope that won't stop your eating our diet. It's very important for the guarantee."

  I snorted. "You honestly believe in your guarantee?"

  "Absolutely." He spoke in such a firm tone that I furrowed my brow.

  "But how do you guarantee that?" I persisted.

  "Through fun and vigorous exercise, a strict diet, and relaxation in-between," he told me.

  I crossed my arms and raised an eyebrow. "And that's somehow supposed to make people years younger?"

  "You can ask any of our previous guests in our sessions. I'm sure Miss Baker will agree," he insisted.

  I sighed and shrugged. "Yeah, Susie told me about the place and got me to come, but I still don't believe it, and I don't think you'll be able to use this session for any advertising
posters. You almost had a mutiny on your hands during dinner."

  "Not all our sessions are a complete success, but every round has their jewels among the rocks," he argued. His eyes wept over me and my damn cheeks performed their blushing routine. "But it is getting late, and this night air, refreshing as it is, isn't always the warmest," he warned me.

  "Um, yeah, I guess," I replied. His beautiful eyes had transformed my mind to mush.

  "Would you like me to escort you back?" he offered.

  "What? Oh, um, no, I'll be fine. I'll just follow the cabins back," I assured him.

  I turned and scuttled away without actually dashing. Halfway down the rows of cabins I paused and glanced over my shoulder. He was gone. It was both a relief and a disappointment. The man was much too handsome for his own good, and he had such a way of wrecking my natural confidence that it unnerved me.

  I slunk back into my cabin and shut the door behind myself. Susie still snored softly in her bed and I tiptoed to mine. Just as I pulled the covers over my body I recalled one very important fact: I hadn't found the source of the noise. Hell, I hadn't even asked Scott-er, Mr. Young about the sound. I furrowed my brow and narrowed my eyes. He'd actually done a really good job of distracting me from my purpose. Him and his wondrous blue eyes.

  "Bah," I muttered. I flung the sheets over my head and buried myself into the pillows and mattress.