Shifter’s Fate: Willow Harbor - Book One Read online

  “What part?” I flinched at the sudden subject change.

  “Having a boss proposition you and then treat you that way.”

  “It did. Which is why I need to do well at this job.” I started walking again. The tree was beautiful, but it wasn’t doing anything to help the cold.

  “So my mom will be a good reference when you leave?”

  “Yup.”

  “Already thinking about leaving?” He walked beside me.

  “I can’t yet, obviously.”

  “Obviously.” His face turned serious. “Are you cold?”

  “No. I’m fine. You are the one wearing only a t-shirt.”

  “I don’t get cold.”

  “Oh yeah?” Everyone got cold.

  “Yeah… I like the cold.”

  “You should move up north.” No matter how much I could complain about the chilly night, it was far warmer than the weather I’d left behind.

  “I’ve thought about it.” He put his hands in his pockets.

  “I can’t believe I ran out of my own apartment.” I willed myself to warm up. Not surprisingly it didn’t work.

  “I can. That was pretty rough. I’m sure you’ve already realized Delpha lives by her own rules no matter what everyone else wants.”

  “What’s with her and Cad? I don’t get it.”

  “Wondering how long she will be in your hair?” He cracked a smile.

  “No…”

  “I get it. I wouldn’t want someone pushing into my place either. And I don’t really know how to describe their situation. It’s complicated.”

  “She told me I wouldn’t understand, but that she’d explain later.”

  “And she will. I’m sure.” He seemed to actually believe what he was saying.

  “So you won’t?” I crossed my arms.

  “It’s hers to explain.” He shifted his weight from foot to foot.

  “Then what about you? You know my embarrassing past. Give me something.”

  “How is your past embarrassing?” He stopped walking. “You said no to a jerk. That just shows you’re strong.”

  I stopped with him, wanting to get something from him, anything so I wouldn’t feel like the only one exposed. “It’s embarrassing.”

  “It shouldn’t be, but it is personal. So you want to know something personal about me?”

  “Sure.”

  “My mother says I have to find my soul mate.” He crossed his arms.

  “Your soul mate?” That was a new one.

  “Yup.”

  “And what do you think?” That was the interesting question.

  “I think it’s not going to happen.”

  “You don’t believe there’s someone out there like that?”

  “Oh, I believe there is, but I don’t believe I’ll find her in time.” There was some sadness in his voice.

  “What do you mean in time? You’re still pretty young.”

  “Yeah…” He trailed off. “Ok. Enough of that.”

  “Why are you changing the subject?”

  “Because I want to.” He put his hands back in his pockets.

  “Oh, very sensible reason.”

  “Do you want to do something?”

  “Do something?” I was getting annoyed, and that combined with the cold wasn’t a good thing.

  He laughed. “Ok, that sounded lame. I mean get coffee or something? Take a walk?”

  “I was already walking.”

  “True. Want to see one of my favorite places?”

  “Depends,” I answered carefully.

  “Depends on what?”

  “Is it safe?” I wasn’t in the mood for an adventure. I was far too cold and tired for that.

  “Is the place safe, or am I safe?”

  “Wow.” I was taken aback. “Do you want me to be scared of you?”

  “It’s a fair question.”

  “Both. Are both safe?” The night was quiet, almost too quiet.

  “The place is safe, and I’m safe for you.”

  “For me? But not safe for others?”

  “Yes.” He smiled.

  “You’re weird. Do you know that?” I should have been afraid, but I wasn’t.

  “Yes.”

  “You admitted that easily.”

  He shrugged. “I tend to accept reality easily.”

  “Can’t say I do the same.”

  He laughed. “No?”

  “No. I’d live in a fantasy world if I could.”

  “You kind of are.”

  “What?”

  “Nothing.”

  “So where is this place you wanted to show me?” I started walking in the direction I was already heading in.

  “You’re okay with my safe answer?”

  “Delpha knows you followed me, doesn’t she?”

  “Yes.”

  “Then if I show up dead someone will know it was you.”

  “You willing to bank your survival on that?”

  “You’re morbid.” In any other circumstance I would have cut my losses and gone home, but I wasn’t ready to head back to the apartment yet. There wasn’t anything for me there.

  “I’m morbid?” He put a hand to his chest. “You’re the one who talked about you showing up dead. Although that’s a funny way to put it. Showing up dead.”

  I smiled. “Well, technically I could if I were a zombie.”

  “You’re not a zombie.” He grimaced.

  “Nope. Not yet.”

  “You’ll never be a zombie.”

  “You sound very sure of that.”

  “I am sure. I know about this kind of stuff.” He ran a hand through his dark hair. Part of me wanted to do the same thing.

  “What about vampires, know about them too?”

  He nodded. “Yes.”

  “And werewolves too?”

  “Unfortunately, yes.”

  “Unfortunately? Not a fan of the hairy fellows?”

  He grinned, his entire face lighting up. “I like you even more now.”

  Was he implying he had liked me before?

  “Ready to go?”

  “Now that I know you’re an expert on all things supernatural, sure why not?”

  We’d only made it a few feet when Pierce groaned.

  “Hey, Pierce.” A towering, massive guy strolled over. Like Pierce, he was inappropriately dressed for the cold.

  What was with these guys and wearing t-shirts in the middle of winter?

  “Hello, Ty.” Pierce nodded tersely.

  “Who’s your new friend?” Ty pointed to me.

  “My friend.”

  “Aren’t you going to introduce us?” Ty grinned at me in a way that showed off all of his teeth.

  “No need.”

  What? I was so surprised by Pierce’s words that I couldn’t respond.

  “Then I guess I’m going to have to introduce myself.” He held out his hand. “Ty. And you are?”

  “Don’t answer him.” Pierce scowled at Ty. “You don’t have to.”

  Great. I had somehow wound up in the middle of a pissing contest.

  “Don’t mind him, he’s always a jerk.” Ty smiled at me.

  “I’m Mattie.” I didn’t see why I couldn’t tell the guy my name.

  “Mattie, it’s nice to meet you. I was heading over to the bar for a drink, want to join me?”

  “No, she wouldn’t. We have plans.” Pierce put a hand on my lower back.

  What the hell was going on?

  “I’ll explain later,” he said in barely a whisper.

  “Let her make up her own mind. Not everyone wants to waste their time with the likes of you.”

  “Thanks for the offer, but Pierce and I already have plans. It was nice to meet you though.” I would play along for now, but after Pierce was going to have to answer a whole lot more questions.

  “Suit yourself. I’m sure I’ll see you around.”

  “It is a small town.”

  “You don’t know the half of it.” He no
dded at me before walking away.

  Pierce hurried forward, pulling me with him.

  “Ok, what was that?” I may not have liked the huge guy, but that didn’t mean Pierce needed to get all alpha male on me.

  “He’s a jerk. You’ll thank me later.”

  “A jerk in what way?” I wasn’t going to take any more half-answers.

  “A jerk in all ways. Now that he knows your name he’s never going to leave you alone.”

  “Why does my name matter?” I probably sounded as exasperated as I felt.

  “It doesn’t… but since you gave it to him he’s going to think he has a shot with you.”

  “Telling a guy your name equals having interest in them? This town is weird.”

  “Yes it is.”

  “Can I ask you something?”

  “Sure, as long as it’s not about Ty. I don’t want to talk about him.”

  “Why is one of the card catalog drawers locked?”

  “Locked?” He seemed to consider what I’d said.

  “Yes.”

  “Oh, I know which one you mean.”

  “Is there more than one locked one?”

  “It’s not really locked.”

  “It can’t be opened. It’s locked.” I put a hand on my hip. “And no implying I’m weak. I’m not that weak.”

  “It can’t be opened by you.”

  “But I’m a librarian… I’m supposed to have access.”

  “Yes, but not to those records. At least not yet.”

  “What kind of books are you hiding in this library?” This place was starting to feel weirder and weirder.

  “More than you think.”

  “So you admit there are books being hidden?” I took a seat on a bench. I wasn’t going anywhere with Pierce until he explained himself more.

  “Hidden from you, yes.” He sat down on the opposite side of the bench as if purposely putting lots of space between us.

  “Only me? Like I have to pass a rite before I can see them?”

  “Kind of.”

  “You’re kidding, right? You’re just good at telling jokes with a straight face.”

  “Believe what you want.” He dug the toe of his black boot in the dirt.

  “I don’t get you at all.”

  “What don’t you get?”

  “You.” I pointed to him and moved my hand up and down.

  “That’s kind of a broad statement.”

  “First, you act like a jerk, then you find out I’m working for your mom so you act nice, then you snoop through my stuff—”

  “Nope. Stop there. I did not snoop through your stuff. It was an accident.”

  “An accident that happened because you were willing to snoop through another person’s stuff?” I wasn’t letting him off the hook that easily.

  “Not true. I was testing the new set-up, but that’s beside the point. Go on and continue. I can’t wait to hear what else I’ve done that you don’t get.”

  “Ok. Lots more.”

  “Let’s hear it.” He crossed one leg over the other.

  “Then you follow me, even though it was obvious I wanted to be alone.”

  “Was it obvious?” He leaned over. “I mean you seemed perfectly fine when I caught up with you.”

  Because I had been. The guy should of creeped me out, but instead I enjoyed his company. It was the grey eyes. I was going to keep blaming it on them. “And then you acted all weird with your friend.”

  “Ty is not my friend.” There was no hint of a joke left on his face.

  “Sorry, my mistake. Your acquaintance. You told me telling him my name was dangerous. And now you are showing me a place that’s cool. Ok, got that. And then on top of that you’re being all secretive about a card catalog. Really? Of all things to hide.”

  “Who said I was hiding anything?” He leaned back against the bench.

  I leaned back as well. The wood was hard, but I was too tired to care. “You did. You said there were books being kept from me.”

  “There are. That doesn’t mean I’m hiding something.”

  “Oh, but your mother is.”

  “My mother is the library director. That doesn’t mean she has say over everything in the library.”

  “Then who does?” Was there a boss over Vicky I didn’t know about?

  “That’s an interesting question, isn’t it?” He stood up.

  “Really?” I stood up too, not willing to be left behind or shut out of finally getting answers. “That’s how you are going to play this? Avoid answering yet another question?”

  “Listen.” He stepped toward me until we were mere inches apart. “I can’t answer all your questions because it’s not my place to answer them.”

  “How could it not be your place?” I didn’t hide my exasperation.

  “You don’t know much about Willow Harbor.”

  “How could I? There is no information available! You guys don’t even have a Wikipedia page. What town doesn’t have a Wikipedia page? And the not being found as a location on GPS thing. Clearly you are all trying to stay off the grid, so then what was the point of hiring me?”

  “I don’t know.” He shrugged. “No one but my mom knows that.”

  “Ok. Forget wherever we were going. I’m going back to my apartment.” I turned and started back in the direction I’d come.

  “It’s faster to loop back another way.”

  “I’ll do it my way.” Mostly because I refused to admit he was right.

  The cold didn’t bother me as much on the way back. The one positive side effect of anger is that it makes me hot. But the walk did seem to go on for awhile. I didn’t check to see if he was following me. I assumed he wasn’t. No matter how weird this town was, I was sure Pierce had something better to do.

  It was only when I was just about back to the library that I realized my mistake. I noticed the cars parked all over, and I heard the loud music. I was about to walk straight into a party.

  Eight

  Pierce

  Stubborn as a mule. The girl was stubborn as a mule. And reckless. Was she crazy? Walking around alone at night. Maybe the first time she hadn’t realized how quickly the sun would set. But now? It was completely dark out. Either she had a death wish, or she expected me to follow her.

  Out of annoyance I didn’t want to follow, but if something happened to her I’d never forgive myself. I wanted to think my worry was about what my mom would say, or because I cared about everyone’s safety, but it was more than that. I cared about her, and that annoyed me more. I’d done a great job of blocking everyone out—and then this girl came along and slipped through.

  I stayed back just enough that she might not see me if she turned around. I wasn’t looking for another fight. I was torn between knowing she’d be safer if she left Willow Harbor, and being hopeful she’d stay.

  I was so focused on Mattie I let my senses relax. I didn’t sense Ty until I felt myself knocked to the ground.

  I stood up, uninjured but annoyed. “What the hell do you want, Ty?”

  “Have a fight with the new girl already?” He sneered. Even in his human form you could tell he was a wolf. His snarl made it completely obvious.

  “No.” I tried to watch her, but she was getting too far ahead. “I don’t have time for this.”

  “Yes, you do.” Bane, Ty’s annoying friend, showed up. “You have time for this.”

  “What is it?” I watched Mattie disappear around the corner.

  Ty stepped in front of me, blocking my view. “Keep your hands off her.”

  “Excuse me?” I hadn’t seen that one coming.

  “You know how long it’s been since there’s been a new human in town.”

  “And?” I waited for him to elaborate. Despite his annoying short-comings, Ty had never been lacking in female attention.

  “And, she is off limits to you.”

  “Is that your way of trying to say you are interested in her?” Did he notice something special about her to
o? Was I reading too much into my attraction?

  “I don’t have to tell you any of that. What you need to do is continue to keep your nose out of things.”

  “Stay away from her.” Anger swelled inside of me.

  “Nope. Not going to work that way.” Bane grinned.

  “Why not?”

  “Because we out number you. We get a say.”

  “I can destroy you.” I embraced the shapeshifter inside of me.

  “Oh yeah? Like to see you try.” Ty smirked.

  I shoved his chest, sending him flying. He crashed down onto the grass a few feet away. There would be a dent when he got up, but it wasn’t my problem. He was the one who’d started it all.

  Bane grabbed for my shoulders, but I shook him off. I knew better than to really hurt them. Fighting among supernaturals was frowned upon in Willow Harbor, and my mom would kill me if I got our family in trouble again. My shifter side begged me to pick a fighting animal though, to finally give these jerks what they deserved.

  He lunged for me, but I tripped him, biting back the smile that wanted to slip out.

  I started to walk away. I had to find Mattie. Now more than ever I knew just how much danger she was in, and it was quite possibly all my fault.

  “This isn’t over!” Ty yelled.

  “Yes, it is,” I called over my shoulder as I hurried back toward the library. Hopefully Ty and Bane were the only dangerous creatures out tonight. It was an unlikely hope, but it was all I had.

  I ran the rest of the way, throwing open the door to the library. It was unlocked, but that didn’t mean anything. Delpha would have kept it open to allow party guests in. I still couldn’t believe she was throwing one in Mattie’s place her second night there.

  I ran up the three flights of stairs and burst through the apartment door. Like the downstairs door, it wasn’t locked either. I stepped inside and then stepped back in surprise by the massive crowd inside the small apartment.

  I pushed through the crowd. Was everyone in town here? I guess news of the new girl had spread quickly. It usually took a lot to get most of these types to show up at a party anytime before midnight.

  I searched around, looking for a flash of her dark hair. I didn’t see her anywhere. Had she gone straight into her room?

  The door to her room was closed. This was the moment of truth. If she wasn’t in there, I had to worry. If she was in there, she was going to get pissed I was knocking and bothering her.