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I tilted my head, keeping a carefully schooled smile on my face. Waiting. Locked down meant locked down. Besides, he wasn’t really the kind of man I would ever be tempted to tell my secrets to, though he was a persistent fucker.
“The town is curious about you. They can only talk for so long about why you’ve been a hermit since arriving and only ever seen at the B&B and here at the diner.”
I shrugged. Since when had being quiet and compliant been an issue? Shouldn’t the troublemakers be more of the talk of the town?
“Just a gal minding her own business,” I said. I wished he would give that a go, too.
“What’s your last name?”
Apparently, we’d moved past pretending to be pleasant. His attitude and insistence were irritating, and I was about to tell him where he could shove his questions when he shifted his weight, and I caught a glimpse of the deputy badge on his chest under his jacket. It made a little more sense that he was probably just doing his job and checking out the newcomer, but didn’t the police force here communicate with one another? Hadn’t the sheriff told him he’d met me and we’d had a friendly conversation?
Just because he was the law didn’t mean I had to tell him anything about myself, and I didn’t want him poking around in my business. Especially when I didn’t have a believable fake ID on hand. He had no reason to follow up on me. So, I did the next best thing. I ignored him.
“Well,Deputy, would you like some coffee, tea, or something else?” I wanted him to know that I was well-aware of who he was. And that I didn’t care.
I stepped back to reach for the coffee pot when he rudely grabbed the cleaning rag I was still holding and pulled me in closer to him.
“Don’t play with me. You’ve been hanging around with Margo, and I want to know if you’re in trouble or bringing trouble here because she doesn’t need that in her life.” He added a little venom to his tone and dug his fingers into the soft tissue of my upper arm. “Now, you have two choices. You can tell me your name, why you came to Blackwood Creek, and why you’re acting so shady, or I can haul you to the station and lock you up for a couple of days. As you said, I’m a deputy and have a right to those answers.”
Right? He had norightto anything. Men like him were all the same, and it made my blood boil.
But more worrisome than that, my wolf was responding to the threat. I tried hard to control her, doing the best I could, but bloodlust flooded every one of my senses. An aching pain throbbed behind my eyes. The room seemed to flicker in and out of darkness as my body moved erratically, making it difficult to keep my footing. My legs tangled together, coming dangerously close to sending me sprawling to the ground.
Getting away was my only option. If I didn’t, I’d bring the trouble that he was so bent on finding out about me.
I yanked the rag out of his hand. “Mind your own damn business,” I hissed, fighting to keep the threatening growl out of my voice.
I could feel the inner fight to shift. My wolf was building up to a ferocious howl, yearning to tear him to shreds. I didn’t care what people saw when I treated him harshly in my human form. I was far more worried about the wolf’s violent urges inside me and what harm she’d cause to the people in this café if I lost control.
I swiveled around to make my way to the back of the diner when he grabbed my arm again. My shoulder twinged from being forced to stop my forward momentum.
A dark growl started to fall from my lips, but I clamped my jaws shut, hoping I’d caught it fast enough. It wasn’t normal for a woman to growl and snap her teeth.
I tried to breathe and didn’t turn around. If I looked at the deputy, I wasn’t sure I’d be able to control my infuriated wolf. My skin crawled as she clawed her way to the surface, my body aching as my joints popped. Panic and anger battled inside my head. Once again, my wolf and I were at odds.
A loud chime from the door sounded in the room, and Ridge’s spicy scent wrapped around me like a warm blanket. My wolf settled enough to give her attention to the alpha.
“Deputy Hill, let go of her now.” A harsh command emanated from his voice, and my wolf fought the urge to bare her neck. “I need to speak with you about a pressing matter on the way to the sheriff’s office.”
Ridge’s tone was one of commanding authority, and he expected to be obeyed completely—there was no question about that. Phil instantly let go of me. He huffed, but the squeak of his shoes thundered through the quiet diner. The door slammed shut, and then Ridge’s scent was gone.
The remaining customers started whispering energetically as I went to the back of the restaurant and stormed out the back door. I didn’t tell anybody I was leaving. I couldn’t. I needed space to walk out this aggression before I did something stupid like shifting in the middle of the diner or something else equally insane.
I stomped on the ground with every step, keeping my arms and fists tense as I worked through the anger, fear, and self-loathing. Without watching where I was going, I followed a trail that led into the woods.
The fresh air calmed the beast and helped me rationalize my mind against the wolf. It could take ages to get her settled until I didn’t have to worry about an impromptu shift. The thought scared the shit out of me. I wouldn’t know what to do if I shifted.
At least for now, though, I’d ensured the people around me were safe.
I wasn’t sure how long I had been walking, but the sun had started to set and the light streaming through the trees was fading. I knew it was time to head back. I had left the marked trail some time ago, wanting to be as far away from anyone as possible.
I circled back and noticed a woman who was out for an evening hike. She looked lost in her thoughts. Not wanting to scare her, I made sure to make a lot of noise.
She was a human. The longer I stayed in town, the easier it was for me to differentiate between human and shifter. Scent was still my go-to clue, but I’d started to notice that shifters had a subtle energy buzzing around them while humans had a quieter aura.
“Oh, hello.” Her soft, shy voice met my ears.
“Hello. Out for an evening stroll?” This town had to be getting to me. I would normally never start a conversation with a stranger unless it was for my gain.
