A/N: Here's the next chapter. I also want to send out an apology for any grammatical errors you see. I haven't had a beta in a while, so some things have slipped through.
Also, this first section is for my pre-reader who has been asking countless times for some info on John and Rebecca.
Here's to you, Costa!
34
John stood in the back room of Breakers watching his crew work. Previously, that area was a section of the main dining area, the breakroom, and one of the storage closets.
Now, it was the beginning of a new stage and dining area for upcoming Open Mic nights and other special events. It was set to open in two months.
There was a large, white tarp separating the main restaurant from the construction zone.
Music played in the background. John didn't mind it as long as it was kept at a decent volume.
Whatever helped them work.
He did warn them that the language of that music and their conversations had to remain PG-13 since Jo was known to walk in and check on things.
Luckily, his crew loved Jo. She took care of them like they were her family, so that wasn't an issue.
Beneath the sound of hammering and the scent of sawdust was the aroma of heavily perfumed body lotion. It probably had some fancy name like Morningstar Glow. High heels clicked behind him, then stopped.
"Hi, John," a female voice said beside him.
"Hi, Shari." John began breathing through his mouth. To the average person, her perfume probably smelled good, but to supernatural creatures, it was overkill to the senses.
Jo had hired Shari as the new event coordinator to book talent and parties. She was young and eager to make a name for herself.
"How are you?" she asked, batting her eyes slightly.
"Good." John pasted on a smile.
She was an attractive woman, one any man would want. Her dark auburn hair was long with a slight wave reaching midway down her back. Her eyes were hazel green and welcoming. Her clothing-a black skirt with a white blouse-was professional with a slight hint of sexuality. She wore a white hard hat which was mandatory while in the area.
"Everything is coming along nicely." She smiled as she looked out at the room. "You're doing a great job here."
John shrugged. "It was Matt's idea. Mickey and Niko came up with the design."
"You do more than you know. Matt, Mickey, and Niko should be very proud of you." She bit her lip, looking at him through her lashes. "I know I am."
Yes, she was attractive; very attractive if he were being honest. She wasn't just beautiful though. She was smart, ambitious, a hard worker, all the things any red blooded male would want. But there was something about her that just wasn't clicking for him.
"At least tell me you're going to be here the first night we open." She gave him a scolding, yet playful expression.
"We'll all be here."
"Good. I'll hold you to it." She nudged his shoulder. "If you need me for anything, I'll be on my cell. You have that number, right?"
"Yes, ma'am. And your office should be done soon, so you won't have to work from home anymore."
"Thanks, John. You take such good care of me." She walked away with a slight sway in her step, then glanced back to make sure he was watching.
"Oh, man, she wants you so bad," Niko said, appearing next to him. "You're going to ask her out, right?"
"Nah." John started walking. "She's not my type."
Niko followed him. "Not your type? What kind of shit is that? She's hot and she's obviously interested. What's the problem?"
"That heavy perfume is enough to get me to say no. Why do women cover themselves in that shit? Their natural scent is more than enough to get my attention."
"So, tell her that you're allergic to lotions and perfumes. Problem solved." Niko slapped his hands together. "What else?"
"How about, I'm sixty-four years old. And I can turn into a werewolf. How do you think she would handle that?"
Niko shrugged. "What is she, twenty-five? Twenty-six? That means she's legal, so you won't be going to jail. Women are always saying we're not mature enough. You clearly are." Niko patted his back playfully. "As far as the werewolf thing, she might think it's hot."
"Yeah, like that chick in Michael Jackson's Thriller video." John chuckled. "You could hear how smitten she was with that bloodcurdling scream."
They were both laughing when they walked into the main dining room.
It was semi crowded, which at one time would have been too much for John. When he was first bitten, he couldn't be around too many people without his wolf picturing the carnage they could cause if he would let him out.
The beast was hard to control then.
"I'm just saying to keep your options open. You're not getting any younger, old man."
"You're older than me," John challenged.
"By what, six months? And, I'll have you know, Karen and I just had our third date. If things keep going this well, I'll be introducing her to the pack soon enough."
It was true. Niko was getting serious with his new friend. She was a nice lady, one of the few people that actually thought Niko's impressions were funny. Niko hadn't told her about his wolf, but things did look promising.
John was one of the few members not involved with someone. It wasn't like he wasn't attracted to anyone. He just hadn't found anyone who he thought would understand his condition.
"I'll think about it, okay?"
"Okay, it's a start."
John froze as a familiar scent wafted under his nose.
It wasn't easy to catch with the normal aromas of the restaurant, but it was there, calling him.
Rebecca.
He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, wondering if it she was really there or if her scent was transferred from something, or maybe it was in his head.
As he scanned the room, he saw her, sitting in a booth. Her sister was standing with Paul kissing him, while Rebecca waited patiently.
"Ah," Niko said, catching John's attention. "Now I see why Shari isn't your type. You have your sights on her." Niko titled his head toward the booth in question.
She was just as beautiful as he remembered. Her long black hair was pulled in a braid that fell over her shoulder. Her skin seemed to glow in her light pink sweater dress.
And no perfume, just her natural sweet scent.
"Did you know she was coming?" John asked, surprised at his nervousness.
"No," Niko said, eyeing him curiously. "Rachel is here to help Jo upgrade her computers, but I didn't know she was bringing Rebecca."
John had seen a lot over the years so not much surprised him. He'd seen men landing on the moon, Watergate, the Vietnam War, the Civil Rights movement, the assassination of John F. Kennedy, and John Lennon.
But the woman sitting in the booth about fifty feet away threw him for a loop. Ever since that day in the woods, he couldn't get her out of his mind. Although his conversation with her was brief, he remembered holding her in his arms while she played the victim during a training exercise.
And wasn't that nice.
She fit so easily there, and her scent was so enticing. It reminded him of cinnamon toast and Sunday mornings. It wasn't normal for him to bury his face in the victim's neck during training exercises, but something about her drew him in. He could get lost in it for hours.
He liked it when she played the victim. So much so, that he had secretly hoped that she would come back.
"I think you should go talk to her," Niko said, reminding John that he was still standing there with his mouth open. "I have to take Rachel to the back anyway. She'll be there all by herself."
"I wouldn't know what to say." John scratched the back of his neck uneasily. You would think a man his age would know how to talk to a woman, especially to one who had played his hostage for the day.
"Try, 'hello'," Niko said, then lowered his voice. "But I wouldn't be a proper best friend if I didn't remind you that she's Jacob's sister and the daughter of Chief Billy Black."
In other words, she practically royalty. No pressure there.
"Yeah, thanks." John smirked.
"That's what friends are for." Niko walked over to the booth and greeted them both before taking Rachel to the back office.
There she was sitting there all alone.
Now was his chance.
Instead, he took a seat at the bar and turned his head away.
Was he really hiding?
He could turn into a nine foot werewolf, he was capable of ripping apart other werewolves and vampires alike, yet he was hiding from one female?
"Can I get you something, John?" the bartender said, breaking his thoughts. He was a thin man with dark brown hair.
"Ah, yeah, sweet tea, Mike. Thanks."
"You got it." He went to the wait station in the back.
He peeked over at her again. There she was, all alone, looking around the room.
Nowadays, when people were alone, they would pull out their cellphone to play some game or check their social networks accounts.
Not Rebecca.
She looked around the room, studying everyone and everything.
Her eyes soon found his. Her smile was shy, timid, but not at all off putting. He smiled back and hoped that it wasn't too harsh.
He watched as Jo went over to her to greet her, breaking their eye contact.
Why in the world would someone like her be interested in someone like him?
Niko had mentioned that she would be joining their tribe's council, and she knew everything about the pack. She even knew about his status as werewolf.
So, she could be open to him.
But John was a different kind of wolf, one that was tied to the moon. On those nights when the moon was full, he was forced to change into the beast, no matter how much he hated it.
There were a lot of people that were scared of him, especially in his werewolf form, and rightfully so.
When he'd first turned, things weren't easy, and he made mistakes. Mistakes that he wasn't proud of; mistakes that would haunt him for the rest of his life.
But he had a handle on things now.
He and his beast had come to an understanding. John had come to the realization that the beast was going to be a part of him for the rest of his life, but the beast had to come to terms with something too. John was in charge. It was his body and he would be calling the shots. True, he had no choice in letting him out during the full moon, but any other time it was his choice to change. And on those nights when he had no choice, didn't mean he couldn't exercise self-control.
"Hi," a soft, angelic voice said behind him.
John's eyes widened and he turned around slowly. He looked up at Rebecca standing there, patiently waiting for a response.
"Hello."
She bit her lip tentatively as she placed her hands on the chair next to him. "May I sit?"
"Of course," John said quickly, standing up to show respect then pulling out the chair. "Have a seat."
Even with those high heeled boots on, she was shorter than him.
"Thanks." The chair scraped over the tile as held it out for her, then pushed it forward.
John slowly sat down and tried his best to take his eyes off her, but just couldn't do it. She was so beautiful.
It amazed him that he'd seen her Rachel dozens of times and didn't look twice at her, but now he couldn't take his eyes away from Rebecca and they were identical twins. They were the same, but different. He imagined that Paul felt the same way when he looked at Rebecca.
That warm scent was there, swirling around him, making him crazy and keeping him calm at the same time.
"I hope you don't mind. Rachel said she might it might be awhile, and Niko asked that I keep you company."
He could hear the apprehension in her voice, and it helped John relieve some of the tension leave his shoulders. She was nervous too.
"I don't mind at all."
Just then the bartender brought John's drink.
"Thanks, Mike." He turned to Rebecca. "Did you want something?"
"Oh, yes. Just a glass of water, thanks."
"No problem."
"I'm looking forward to the peach cobbler everyone's been talking about," Rebecca said, as she settled in her chair. "Jo said she would bring out a piece for me. She's such a nice lady."
"Yeah, she's great. She takes care of all of us."
Rebecca thanked Mike for the water, then said to John, "She's related to Matt and Niko, right?"
"Yes." John folded his hands in front of him. "She's their niece."
"That's so awesome and weird at the same time." Rebecca giggled a light, airy sound that would make anyone smile.
"Yeah, it is. I remember when she was a toddler. Now she's like our parent, looking after us, making sure we eat and get enough sleep."
"That's must be nice."
"It is."
"Speaking of Jo," John said, sensing her behind him. He turned around slowly. She was carrying two plates of peach cobbler. "How did you know I wanted peach cobbler?"
"Because every time you come here you want peach cobbler." Jo placed his plate in front of him. She looked at Rebecca and smiled. "Here you go, darlin'."
"Thanks." Rebecca looked at hers uneasily. "Is this the normal serving size?"
"I gave you a little extra since you have to wait for Rachel to fix my computers." She patted Rebecca's shoulder. "I gave him extra because his appetite is insatiable. Enjoy. And don't even think about pulling out your wallet."
Before Rebecca could protest, Jo held her hand up. "It's on the house." She rushed away before Rebecca could argue.
"Seems like you're one of her charges now too." John smiled.
"Seems like it. She reminds me a little of my mother." Her smile was endearing, loving.
John pushed her plate closer to her. "Now, try that and tell me that's not the best peach cobbler you've ever had."
Rebecca opened the napkin of silverware and picked up the fork. He watched as she sectioned off a small piece then placed it in her mouth. Her eyes closed and she let out a sweet, sensual sigh.
He bit his lip to hide the moan that threatened to come out.
"Oh, my God," she said as her eyes rolled back. "This is delicious. No wonder Leah fell in love with Matt."
"I told you so." John picked up his own fork and started eating. "So, Rebecca, tell me what you do." He smiled. "Besides climb trees."
"Hey, don't pick on me." She pointed at him with her fork. "Niko told me to hide. I guess I figured that you wouldn't find me there. Can I just tell you how surprised I was to see you run up that tree? I've never seen anything like it. I was impressed and a little scared at the same time."
"I didn't run up the tree." John grinned. "It was more like a jump."
"Whatever it was, you were up that tree before I could even think of what to do. Then you grabbed me and jumped out of the tree! We could have been killed or at least broken some bones."
John shook his head. "I wasn't going to let anything happen to you. You were safe with me. You still are." He heard her heart pick up a beat.
She cleared her throat nervously. "Um. Anyway, I was a clinical therapist back in Hawaii. I'm trying to get my license here so I can start practicing again. Until then, I've been volunteering at the crisis center."
John was impressed, but not surprised. She was easy to talk to. "That must be interesting and fulfilling work."
"It is. Sometimes, it's heartbreaking, other times it's heartwarming. What about you?" Rebecca took another bit of her cobbler.
"Niko and I own a construction company, Moonlight Construction." John laughed. "Niko picked the name."
"Kind of a play on words, huh?" Rebecca laughed. "Cute. How does it work with your…um…nightly schedule?"
"Our main office is located in Seattle, which is fortunate that the werewolves ended up here, but we have crews all over the country. Honestly, it's not easy doing both."
"Oh, I believe it. I see how stretched thin you all are." Rebecca shook her head. "So do you build homes?"
"Yes, as well as renovations. We're working on the room in the back."
"Really?" Rebecca looked over John shoulder at the white tarp.
"Yep. Niko is an architect and a genius. Some of his designs are so creative and imaginative, it's scary. Mickey, who joined our pack about seven years ago, works with us. Aside from being an excellent tracker on patrols, he's a brilliant carpenter. Together, they're unstoppable."
"So you handle the business side?" Rachel finished the last bit of her cobbler, and then wiped her mouth with her napkin.
"I'm just the general contractor."
"Just the general contractor?" Rebecca's eyebrows rose, those beautiful brown eyes widened. "That's like telling Steven Spielberg he's just the director. You put it all together and make their visions come true. Without you, they're just ideas. You make it reality." She blushed and looked down at her empty plate. "Sorry, I'm bringing my positive affirmations from work to you. It's a habit.
"It's okay. As you can imagine, supernatural creatures come with a lot of baggage. We've seen things that you can't unsee. So, positive affirmations are always good to hear. I bet you're good at your job. You should consider being the pack's therapist."
"I just try to help."
"Now who's being modest?" John gave her a pointed look.
As they continued to talk, John couldn't get enough of her. She really was an amazing woman, not just one who smelled good. He wanted to know more about her.
He hadn't realized the time passing until Rachel came up to them.
"Hey, guys." Rachel put a hand on her sister's shoulder. "I'm all finished. I called Paul to come get us, but he said it might be a little while. I was hoping to stop by the hospital to see Angela."
"Is everything okay?"
"I think so," Rachel said. "Apparently, she had a little scare at work, but the doctor checked her out. She's fine, but she told her to take it easy."
"Is she home now?"
"Not yet. They want to keep her overnight for observation. I was hoping to sit with her for little while. Embry's says she's a little nervous. I think he might be a little anxious too."
"We should go," Rebecca said, a look of determination on her face. "Can we call Jake?"
"No, he's with Eden talking to the insurance adjuster about her house."
"What about Uber?" Rebecca suggested.
Rachel shook her head. "You know Jake won't let us leave without a guard. The only reason he agreed to let us come here is because of Matt's pack is here."
Rebecca snorted. "When did out little brother start controlling our comings and goings?"
"When he became Alpha," Rachel shrugged.
"I can take you." Yep, he said that out loud. His only thought was that he didn't want his time with Rebecca to end.
Rebecca and Rachel looked at John, their expressions of surprise eerily the same.
"I don't mind. This way you don't have to wait for Paul or Jake."
Rebecca exchanged glances with her sister, then said, "Thanks, John. That would be great."
"Okay," Rebecca said. "Let me call Paul and tell him we have a ride."
~*}{*~
"Okay, take deep breaths," Emily heard Mickey say. Her vision blurred, the world was spinning, and for the life of her, she couldn't catch her breath.
Footsteps moved around her, then she heard the water running from the kitchen sink.
More footsteps, then she saw Mickey's shoes next to her.
"I can't…breathe right…" she managed to get out. Her hands were on her knees and she was looking at the designs on the tile that wouldn't stop moving.
"Okay. Put your head between your knees." Mickey moved her hair aside and placed the cool, wet towel on the back of her neck.
As Mickey rubbed smooth circles over her back, Miss Cohn's conversation played in her head as if it were on repeat.
Sam was guarding Leah that afternoon, and according to her, it wasn't like he was forced to do it. He went over there willingly.
Not only that, Leah didn't send him away.
Normally, she wouldn't have minded, but that was when Sam only had eyes for her. Now, his eyes were wandering back to his ex, the ex that he was madly in love with at one time.
What were they talking about?
Is he going to confess to her that he still loves her?
Maybe he's going to tell her it was a mistake that he imprinted.
And why would they even be together? Leah wanted nothing to do with her or Sam, so why would she agree to let him guard her for the day?
"I don't know what that phone call was about, but you have to calm down, Emily. Your heart is beating like a freight train." He lifted her chin and she was caught in the intensity of his deep brown eyes. He was on his knees in front of her, a look of worry marring his handsome face. At this position, they were the same height. "Breathe with me. In. Out. In. Out."
As his broad shoulders rose and fell with each breath, she kept contact with his eyes.
"That's it," he said, his gravelly voice soothing her.
Once she felt the anxiety leave, she leaned back against the chair. She exhaled deeply. "I haven't had one of those in a long time."
"How long has it been?" He leaned back on his haunches.
"Wow, I don't know. David was still a baby." Emily pulled the towel from her neck. "At one time, they were bad. I could barely leave the house. It was hard being around people who weren't in the pack or on the council, and it wasn't because of this." Emily gestured her scars. "A lot of people didn't like me back then. Some still don't. Sam used to help me through them, especially the really bad ones."
Emily remembered those nights. They were hard, because with those anxiety attacks came nightmares and crying and dark thoughts.
At that time, Sam was all she had, and he'd been there for her.
Where was he now?
"Let me ask you something." Mickey was still on his knees, his hand on his chin thoughtfully. "Is this anxiety about what happened in the past or what's happening now?"
"A little of both, I suppose." Emily looked at him carefully. "So, I guess you know the story."
"I know some of it."
"Yeah? Well, this town has its own theories. To them, I'm the homewrecker who ruined Leah's life by stealing Sam away. I'm the one who forced her to be in my wedding just to rub it in her face. And the reason I was attacked by a bear-" She used air quotes around the word bear. "-was karma for being such a selfish bitch and breaking Leah's heart. To them, I got what I deserved. Maybe I did."
Emily stood up abruptly, while Mickey stayed in his kneeling position, his mouth closed, his expression unreadable.
She went to the sink to place the wet towel over the rim to dry. Her back was to him, the guilt washing over her again threatened another panic attack.
"I didn't want to hurt Leah, but the council told me that Sam's wolf chose me!" Emily turned around abruptly. "They told me that I was his soulmate, and that we were meant to be. They were convinced that Leah would get past it and maybe even understand. The last thing any of us expected was for her to become part of the pack, to actually see how deep Sam's feelings for me went. Then her father died! Do you know how bad I felt then?"
She felt the burning behind her eyes. "I wanted to be there for her, but she wouldn't talk to me. She wouldn't even look at me. She was so closed off and angry. It was so hard going near her without her snapping. That upset Sam, who yelled at Leah, which made her hate me even more. She pushed everyone away. She was cruel then, so much different from the woman she is now and nothing like the happy go-lucky girl she once was."
Mickey was still silent, which was unnerving. As much as she wanted to stop talking, she couldn't.
Why did she feel the need to explain her actions?
"And I only asked Leah to be in the wedding because we always said we would be in each other's weddings. I wasn't trying to be cruel. I knew it was a long shot, but I had to try something to get her to talk to me. Besides, things were already set in motion. There was no stopping the wedding, and maybe if she saw how happy Sam and I were, she would get past it. I hoped that she would realize that we didn't do this to hurt her, but she felt so betrayed.
"We've fought before, but we always came back to each other. Always." Emily dropped down in the chair and put her head in her hands. The tears came hot and heavy, searing her cheeks as they fell. "I was such a fool to think that would fix it, that it would fix us. You know what's sad? I keep trying. I keep reaching out to her, and even now she pushes me away. She wants nothing to do with me."
The silence was deafening. She really wished he would say something.
She heard Mickey get up and wondered if he was leaving. It seemed to be the growing theme lately.
"Why did you use air quotes when you said 'bear'?" Mickey asked which forced her to look up. He was holding a paper towel for her tears.
"What?" Emily said, watching Mickey as he kneeled back down in front of her.
"You said you were attacked by a bear, but you used air quotes. Why?" He wasn't pushy, but she could see the concern.
She took the paper towel and wiped her tears. "I thought you knew. Leah didn't tell Matt?"
"If she told Matt, he didn't tell us."
Emily started biting her lip anxiously, then began twisting the paper towel in her hands.
What was she going to say?
She could try the truth.
Sam did it because we had gotten into a big argument, and I said some harsh words to a new shifter who could barely control his wolf.
"Personally, I never thought a bear attacked you." He carefully put his finger under her chin to lift her face, then titled her head to the side. His eyes followed the scars as they disappeared under her shirt and reappeared down to her wrist. "Who did this to you?"
Emily could see how wound up Mickey was getting, the need to protect and defend shining in his eyes. It was what shifters did.
Mickey seemed to be seasoned enough to control his wolf from spontaneously exploding from his body. At the very least, he probably would have left if he was in danger of hurting her.
Looking at his expression, she realized telling him the whole truth would probably cause more harm than good; at least at that moment.
So she settled for half of it.
She took a deep breath and looked him square in the eye. "It was an accident that happened a long time ago, Mickey. I got too close to a new wolf while he was phasing. That's all it was. To this day, he's very sorry about it."
"He? So, Leah didn't do this?" Mickey seemed to be relieved.
"No." Emily said with a sad smile. "Leah hated me, but she wouldn't do this. She hurt me much worse by cutting me out of her life completely." Emily looked down at the claw marks that ran down her arm to her hand. "To this day, she won't say more than five words to me. I thought she cut us both out of her life."
"Was that what that conversation was about?"
Emily sighed to help relieve the tightening in her throat. "Sam went to see Leah. He's guarding her now since she can't be alone. So they're together."
"Why should that bother you? Leah's with Matt. Do you think something will happen between the two of them after all this time?"
"I don't know. I just…" her voice trailed off. "I think he's trying to convince her to stay with our pack. He wants her near him. She left our pack before once."
"Really?"
"Yeah. When Sam was Alpha, Jacob left and started his own pack." Emily snorted. "That's another long story involving the Cullens. Anyway, she and Seth went with him. I couldn't blame her. She was listening to how much Sam loved me, and she was still very much in love with him. When she left, I could tell Sam was really hurt. He tried to hide it from me, but I knew it bothered him, but I didn't realize how much until now." Emily laughed humorlessly. "It makes sense now. He lied and said that the feelings he had for Leah paled in comparison after he saw me. Really, he was just suppressing them. Having her around meant that he could still hold onto her, even if he couldn't be with her."
"Okay." Mickey stood up abruptly. "We're getting out of here."
"What?" she said, looking up at him.
"You need to get out of here and clear your head."
Emily stood up, even though she wasn't near Mickey's height. "I can't."
"Why not?" Mickey crossed his arms. "You need a change of scenery. You can't leave La Push without a guard. Luckily, you have me. So let's go."
"I have to pick up David from school," she said hurriedly, even though a large part of her wanted to go.
"We can pick him up." Mickey shrugged. "We can go get pizza or something. Does he like pizza?"
Emily searched her thoughts.
David was very perceptive. She has already been dodging his questions about Sam, but he knew something wasn't right. Her showing up with Mickey would raise a lot of questions.
And let's not forget with the other moms would think.
But was true. Being in the house that she shared with Sam was making her crazy.
"I can ask Sam to pick up David," Emily said.
It would certainly ensure that nothing happened between him and Leah. Not that it would, but it would keep him honest. There's no way he would be as open about his feelings with their son in the car.
"Sounds good. Call him on the way." Mickey went to collect his tools.
As Emily wiped her nose, she couldn't believe what she was doing. So many scenarios of what could go wrong flashed in her mind, but then she remembered that Sam was guarding Leah, and not out of a sense of duty.
Her mind was set.
You only live once, she thought. Then she grabbed her purse.
A/N: As always, I'd love to hear your thoughts.