Truly, my toughest problem had been keeping Lee from going to bat for me and getting people’s backs up. He needed their goodwill. I was willing to let folks take their time getting used to me.
So life was good— I slowed further at the sight of Tomlinson’s cruiser idling at the curb— life was very good and Lee was waiting for me. The last thing I wanted was a traffic ticket delaying my return home.
The pawn shop’s front window said “Under New Management” and I grinned as I drove past. Punching the sheriff had been Chuck Fletcher’s biggest mistake, but the other charges had added up too. Particularly smashing the cruiser. Chuck was doing seven years of hard time behind bars, and he’d had to sell his house and business to pay for his lawyer and all the fines.
Sadly, that left nothing for Peggy and the child, should she ever come back to claim her share. So far, no one knew where she’d gone, despite the sheriff’s inquiries. Hannah was holding onto a couple of trunks of Peggy’s own things but even she’d had no word. All we could do was hope that the wide world was being kinder to Peggy than her husband had ever been.
Once out of town, I turned up the now-familiar dirt road between autumn-bare trees. Through the branches, I caught glimpses of the mountains that had been hidden by summer foliage. Soon there’d be snow. I liked the idea of learning this part of the country in all its moods and colors.
Lee’s curving driveway came up quickly, and I slowed, pulling off the road.Close to home now. Close to Lee.I let the car coast, savoring the moment, until I reached Lee’s cabin, turned off the engine, and got out. A crow cawed from the top of a pine tree,and behind the house, a steady ringingthunkmarked an axe blade meeting wood.
Sneaking up on a werewolf was an exercise in futility. I knew Lee would’ve heard my car, long before I parked. He’d have recognized the engine, caught my scent as I stood up out of the driver’s seat and stretched my cramped limbs. Which meant if he was still out back, chopping wood, it was because he wanted me to watch him.
I sauntered around the side of the house. After two months apart, I had better things than watching in mind, but I could wait a bit while I admired the sight of my man, shirt off and tucked into his waistband, axe in hand. He raised the blade. Muscles in his back and arms bunched. Then he swung down and half of a log split neatly to either side. I applauded.
Lee rested the axe head on the ground and turned to me. “Hey, I didn’t hear you coming.”
“Liar.” I grinned and stalked toward him. “You wanted to drive me crazy with your skin and sweat and muscles.” When I reached him, we gripped hands, two friends, reunited. Even here at his house with our sharp senses to guard us, we were careful. Man-on-man sex was still illegal, no matter the hopes that had begun filtering into the left-wing press. And not just illegal— even a suspicion of queerness would kill Lee’s business dead as a doornail and force us to leave this place he called home.
His strong fingers closed on mine. The touch of skin on skin, even to that limited degree, echoed through me. My wolf stirred, saidYesin satisfaction, and went back to sleeping. I had to force myself to let go.
“I had a feeling you were coming home today.” Lee picked up the quarter splits and tossed them over toward the woodpile. “I have venison stew on the stove.”
“You do know how to tempt a man.” I didn’t mean the stew.
He slanted a look at me from under dark brows and a hint of gold rose in his eyes. “Likewise.”
I laughed, then lowered my tone to one only he could hear. “Oh yes, my parka and boots are so alluring. While you… What if a human saw you out here with no shirt?”
“You’d be surprised what the local men do to prove their manliness,” he answered at the same low volume, while untucking his shirt from the back of his chinos and slipping his arms into the flannel. “But I am a bit chilled. Perhaps we should take this inside.”
“I’ll get my bags out of the car and meet you there.”
“I’ll help you.” He carried the axe in one hand, walking at my side as we rounded the house. I unlocked the trunk of my car and pointed him toward my suitcase of clothes, while I took the precious camera bag.
We said nothing more till we’d entered the house and the door closed behind us. Lee set the axe aside and reached behind him, flipping the lock on the door. “All the curtains are closed.”
“Wow, youdidthink I was coming. Unless you’ve been living in the dark for a week.” I’d called him collect once I hit US shores, but that had been many miles back. Long distance phone calls were a luxury we used sparingly, given what they did to his phone bill.
“You’ll never know.” He hefted the suitcase. “Any cameras in here?”
“Nope.” I barely had time to brace myself before he tossed the bag toward the main room, grabbed my face between his hands, and kissed me.
I met his kiss with just as much desire, driving my tongue into the welcoming heat of his mouth. He murmured inarticulate sounds as he arched against me, nipping my lips, then pushing back into the kiss. We rocked together, a little off-balance as I hung onto my hard case. I broke free to say, “This bag iscameras, though, and I don’t want to drop them. Let me set them somewhere safe and then show you how much I missed you.”
“Seems like an unnecessary delay.” He ran his tongue under my ear.
“Well, if you don’t want my hands on you…”
“On second thought, let’s put that bag out of the way and free up your hands.”
Happiness rose up in me like Monarch butterflies taking flight until I had to laugh. “Good idea.”
Lee let go of me, gave me a moment to hang my parka on a hook, then led the way, scooping up my suitcase as he passed. We headed into the small bedroom that we’d cleared out to be my space. Hardly anyone visited, but it seemed prudent to keep up the fiction. Besides, the closet in Lee’s room was small, and the new bed took up a lot of the floor.
As soon as my bags were safely set aside, Lee tackled me onto the narrow bed.
“We have a better bed fifteen feet away,” I protested.
