Well, here I am again. My laptop broke (urgh) so am having to use my boyfriends comp at the moment – didn't realise until just before uploading, but this chapter is really really long! ((I had even cut off a bit of it in editing to add into the next chapter.)) So I hope this makes up for my absence.
FavoriteCharacter; I don't think I will explain what made Reese leave Oz as there is a Reese fic out there from KA, but it's in a limited edition print, so if it comes to that I might just glaze over it, as it's a pet hate of mine to recount stories that are, well – wrong lol
Don't know if anyone's read my profile. But I have a deviant art page where occasionally I upload some of my artwork, and I even have a picture of Rachel up there (another one is currently in progress) check it out and tell me what you think! .com/
Chapter 11
Six months Later
Noah was in his room going over some homework his teacher had set him for extra credits. He had music blaring over his headphones as he usually did, finding that it gave him more focus – as the CD paused, waiting to play the next track, he heard a deep rumble coming from the road. He pulled the headphones from his ears and walked cautiously to the window, listening intently as the rumble became the evident sound of a motorbike turning up the winding driveway to the Sorrentino's estate.
"Shit." He cursed as he tripped over his desk chair in an effort to sprint from his room, and then knocking it into the wall as he went.
As he got to the front door Reese was already there, standing guard in the middle of the driveway, growling low in his throat. Noah waited with anticipation as a black Suzuki motorbike pulled up. He noticed the sky was tinged with an almost orange haze, with some of the lower clouds in the atmosphere a dark purple-grey, forecasting a definite storm front. On the breeze he tasted the motor fumes, and the scent of werewolf as he let out one of his own growls.
"It's okay Noah." Reese waved him down, visibly relaxing. The younger werewolf frowned in confusion as the rider of the bike dismounted and took off their helmet.
"Oh my god…" Noah recoiled biting down on his tongue as the scents that assaulted his system sparked a shocking arousal. He covered his nose with the back of his hand. She was marginally taller than him, long black hair, with ample breasts – only accentuated by the biker jacket she wore, and stunning blue eyes. She gave him a coy little wave as he felt his erection stretching the denim of his jeans.
"Go back in the house Noah." Reese instructed snapping him out of his daze. "Now!" He ordered demanding eye contact, as Noah quickly hurried back inside.
I watched the little one continue to watch us from the window. "Is that anyway to welcome someone into your home?" I asked.
Reese's eyebrows rose at my question. "What?"
I smirked, resting my helmet on the bike seat and pulled my hair over my shoulder. "So," I sighed, keeping the awkwardness from my voice. A blush burned my cheeks, stinging the inside of my mouth. "I don't suppose Antonio has any rooms to let by chance?" I paused. "I was hoping his offer still stands..?"
Reese nodded once, and stepped towards me. He gave a moment's pause when I stiffened. "Come on in then." He said, unfastening the duffle bag I had to the back of my bike and led me into the house. I could see his shoulder muscles were bunched up under his tee-shirt, reminding me I had to relax somewhat myself. I was safe here.
I walked into a grand foyer with white marble flooring, with doorways leading off in all different directions, and a large open stepped staircase.
I saw the younger wolf standing in the doorway to a living room, eyeing me apprehensively.
"Hey…" He mumbled.
"Hey." I replied, noticing his nostrils flaring and unfortunately, the slight bulge in his pants. I resisted the urge to hightail it out of here and followed Reese's scent into the kitchen where I heard him talking to someone on the phone. Antonio I was guessing by the sound of the voice.
"Yeah, she's right here." Reese was saying.
"Okay," The voice on the other end replied. "Get her set up in one of the guest rooms down the end of the hall. I can't get away earlier than six-" I looked at the clock mounted above the stove on the wall, a quarter past two "-just keep her occupied and we'll talk it over when we get home." He paused long enough for Reese to hum an agreement. "I'll give Jer a call; let him know she's there… and Reese? Don't let her out of your sight." Antonio warned. "Or at least keep a closer eye on Noah."
He locked his gaze with mine. "Okay – see you later." Reese flipped the phone shut, and stuffed it back in his pocket. "Hey kid." His attention turned to the younger wolf standing behind me; no doubt he had heard Antonio's warning as much as I did.
"Noah, right?" I asked turning to look at him. He nodded his head a little, wringing his hands together. "I'm Rachel." I introduced holding my hand out, to which he shook rather nervously.
"It's starting to rain." Noah said to me. "Its just you're bikes still outside – you could park it in the garage…" He suggested. "If you want to, that is."
I reached into my pocket and handed him my keys. "You know how to drive a bike kid?" I asked watching his eyes light up, before he ran out the house as quickly as he could.
Reese continued to watch me as I kept one ear on the noise of my bike starting up as Noah drove it round to the side of the house, presumably into the garage.
It was a few minutes in semi awkward silence before I broke it. "So, are you just going to stand there all day? Or am I going to be living in the kitchen?" I asked raising an eyebrow.
"Oh right, sorry." He physically jumped with a flushed little smile, covering it up by hefting my duffle bag up over his shoulder. "This way – we'll go up the back stairs, your rooms just at the top." He informed me opening what looked like a pantry door, and started to ascend a narrow staircase.
We got to the top and through another door which opened up onto a long hallway that stretched the length of the house. "Antonio's room is the end one on the left - Noah's is on the right, and that's Nick's room two doors down." He explained letting me know there was at least half the house's distance between my room and theirs. "All of these are empty." He motioned to the other three doors.
"Don't tell me, this is your room?" I asked as we stood outside another door he had so far neglected to mention.
He gave me one of his half smiles as he opened the door into a gorgeous corner bedroom, extensively furnished with very expensive looking furniture – the room even had its own sofa set in one of the double sided bay windows and a large king size, four poster bed on the far side.
"I'm afraid… this is your room." He said with a grimace.
My mouth fell open in shock. "Seriously?" I gasped walking into the middle of a room that was big enough to swallow my entire apartment. "Oh my god… is that a bathroom?" I couldn't help but screech a little as I threw open a door to an en suite blue tiled room.
"Well, it sure looks like a bathroom – but then I could be mistaken." He replied dryly, dumping my duffle bag on the little sofa. "There's some bedding in the closet." He told me walking over to a walk in closet and came out with a duvet and pillows mounded in his arms, returning for the covers.
"My mum always told me the first thing to do in a new place – is make your bed." I noticed he said Mum with his Australian tang, rather than the American Mom.
Kind of what I do when I get a little emotional.
He smiled at me warmly as he tucked the sheet around the mattress.
I was halfway through pulling the quilt into the duvet cover when I realised he hadn't said where his room was. I shrugged internally but the question kept circling my head. "Dare I ask where your room is?" I asked teasingly.
"In the guest house." He said patiently taking up the opposite end of the duvet I held and completed the task in a mere moment.
"This place has its own guest house?" I asked as he starting doing up the buttons on the cover before draping it over the bed. I'm sure my eyes looked like they were about to pop out of my skull because he let out a little chuckle as he nodded his head.
"More than a guesthouse." He noted, still laughing to himself. "I'll let you get your things unpacked and for you to get comfortable. I'll be down the hall when your ready, then I can give you the grand tour." He bowed for emphasis, and watched me for a few seconds as I paced around the room, checking the firmness of the bed, looking in the drawers, examining the prosthetic flowers et cetera before he left the room.
I gave it a moment, listening to his footsteps retreat before going to the door and flicking the lock. Obviously it wouldn't do much against a werewolf's strength, but the other two would hear it, and hopefully guess I didn't want to be disturbed for the time being. That forecasted storm must be heading in by now. I realised just how dark it had gotten outside, I flicked on the lights and took a good look at my surroundings.
I went to my bag and unpacked the majority of my wardrobe I had hastily stuffed into it, taking my time to hang up each item of clothing. I took out the bag of toiletries and my little bag of make-up and took them into the shower room. I took a moment staring longingly at the shower, noticing the couple of towels hanging from a towel rail. Sniffing inside the scruff of my t-shirt I decided I definitely needed that shower. If not for the smell, then for the sake of my muscles, which still felt stiff and cramped from the long bike journey. I eagerly kicked off my motorbike boots and leathers, and indulged myself under the water, setting the temperature as high as I could stand.
Almost an hour later with the shower out the way and done with, I towel dried my hair and tied it back into a ponytail and dressed myself in some jeans and a sweatshirt, before venturing outside into the hallway. I followed Reese's scent down the hall to Noah's room, where I heard them murmuring inside. I cleared my throat to get their attention, as a second later Reese opened the door with a smile that did that stupid clench in my stomach again.
"Sorry was I interrupting?" I asked sheepishly looking around the corner at some scattered books around Noah's laptop computer.
"No worries. Just helping this one with some Calculus." Reese mussed up Noah's hair as he walked past, getting protesting noises from the kid and a swift kidney punch in return. They acted like a pair of proper Pack brothers. Cute.
Reese led the way back down the main stair case. "So we have Antonio's and Nicks study through there…" He pointed back through a doorway under the stairs. "Living room – Numero uno." He looked at me as I raised my eyebrows.
"These guys are loaded, aren't they?" I asked rhetorically.
He nodded suppressing another little laugh. "Living room number two – or the TV room as Noah calls it." Again he pointed to another open door, into a snug little room where the furniture looked more used and definitely more comfortable looking. Reese continued opening doors to show me the interiors, as my bare feet padded silently on the cool marble floor. "Dining room - kitchen… This door leads down to the games room in the basement - and here we have the sun room." He led me to the back of the house to a grand conservatory, with views onto the gorgeous back lawn.
The unexpected smell of chlorine burnt my nose slightly; I followed it to another door at the far end.
"No way…" I shook my head disbelieving.
Reese opened the door into an enclosed swimming pool, with a hot tub set in the far corner. The rain could be heard pinging off of the roof, as I couldn't quite put my finger on the ceiling, something was different about it until I clicked that it was a retractable roof, so as effectively you could swim outdoors if you so wished.
"Hmm, not bad." I pursed my lips, walking around the exterior of the pool. "You must find this place a real babe magnet." I quipped.
Reese shrugged. "Cant say we have any company up here – apart from Nick, who has the occasional girlfriend over."
As he said this I walked us back round to the kitchen. "Not to sound rude, but I don't suppose you have anything to eat? I'm starving." I rubbed my stomach, and as if on cue as it let out a loud growl.
Noah laughed as he sat at the breakfast bar eating a slice of pizza, my keys sat next to him on the counter; I looked at his food hungrily. "There are a couple more slices in the fridge…" He offered nodding to a refrigerator the size of a closet.
"Pizza it is." Reese discovered half of a pepperoni pizza, throwing it in the microwave.
We stood in relative awkward silence while the pizza reheated before Noah left to continue with his homework. I scooped up my bike keys he'd left on the counter top, and perched myself on the vacant stool. I looked out the window as the rain pelted itself against the glass; a rumble of thunder wasn't far away.
"So how have you been?" Reese asked me grabbing two cans of cola from the fridge.
I shrugged. "I had to quit my job."
The microwave beeped as he retrieved the pizza, cheese still bubbling as he set the remaining slices onto a plate and put it before me. "Has something happened?" He asked taking a gulp of his soda. "I'm guessing that's why you've come back."
Right on the nail. Dammit, he's good. I nodded, not wanting to meet his gaze so I looked at the can of cola I had pressed between my palms instead. "Some Mutt showed up at my work. Said he'd caught my scent at a bus stop and had been watching me." I curled my lips back as I remembered him. "Two days later another one showed up."
"Did they hurt you?" Reese asked. I met his gaze and I could see his eyes had frozen, the usual warm blue icy cold, yet I could quite easily hear the growl low in his throat.
"Just the once." I mumbled, not really wanting to continue – but knowing it would be easier to recount to the Pack later on, if I got the emotional version out of the way now. I looked back down to the soda can, for focus. "I was on my way home from the gym as I caught one of their scents on the wind - he jumped me and…" I paused; grinding my teeth as I vividly remembered the mutts groping hands on me. I heaved a sigh to ease the tension I felt in my chest, and cleared my throat as I felt it begin to constrict. "And now I'm here, and that's all you need to know for now." I put on what I hoped was a convincing smile, but it didn't look like Reese agreed. "As soon as the second Mutt appeared, I got the hell out of there."
"I'm sorry." His eyes softened as he whispered his apology; I shrugged in response poking at the food to see if it was cool enough to eat yet. "Rachel?"
I gasped back the sob building in my throat as he took hold of my hand feeling a jolt of energy pass into my skin.
"Really – I am."
I concentrated on looking at our hands, my brow furrowed as I noticed the two smaller fingers on his right hand were missing the tips. "What happened to them…?" I uttered the words before I registered what I had said.
"Oh - that old chestnut." He laughed uneasily pulling away. "Some Mutts up in Alaska a few years back." He shrugged hiding his hand under the table. "Wanted me off their 'territory'"
"That must have hurt." Again, my mind spoke for me before I had time to register what I had said, as I still looked at the space his hand had just occupied. "Hang on a second, mutts can't hold territory."
Again, he laughed. "Yeah, but these guys were a bunch off assholes." We were interrupted by the house phone ringing.
Reese got up to answer it as I took a bit of pizza. Hmm, can't say I'm impressed. I've had better. Still, foods food.