“But I…” I did. Ididdo that. With how out of control I was, it could have been so much worse. Though who’s to say it wouldn’t be next time? “So… what is this meeting about?”
“We’re just concerned, Wolfie.” Zee crossed his arms over his chest.
I huffed out a laugh. “You and me both.”
Silas peered at me, or rather, his purple sunglasses peered at me. Maybe I could be turned to stone instead of being scrutinized by my friends. “What do you think triggered it, sugar?”
My head shook from side to side. “I don’t, uh, I don’t know.”
“A guest,” Maxime supplied.
“What?No! No, that’s not it.” Through the fuzziness of the lost time, I suddenly remembered a smell that had drawn me to the lobby, to him. Even now, the memory of it had my nostrils flaring, and my pupils blowing wide. It was the best thing I had ever smelled, and it had my feet moving before I could stop them. Holy hell, had I…sniffedthe guy? My cheeks heated.
A loud laugh broke through the memory, drawing me back to the present to find a variety of expressions surrounding me, from the amusement on Zephyr’s face to the quiet, thoughtful look on Ash’s.
“What?” I asked, my head swiveling to look around.
“Fascinating,” Maxime murmured.
“Who is this guest, orwhatare they, I suppose, is the better question? Is he inhuman?” Kieran asked as he pulled out the tablet he always kept on him. He began typing on the screen. What was he looking for?
Maxime folded one leg over the other as he contemplated. “Hmm. I do not know. I can’t get a read on him. He was a walk-in.”
“A walk-in? Really? How does that happen?” Zee asked.
Maxime shook his head. “I’m not entirely sure. He didn’t seem to know anything about our venue, so I don’t think he simply came across a flyer or anything.”
“Do you think he's human?” Ash asked in the slow, easy tone he had.
“I can usually get a better read on someone from the scent of the blood in a being, but I’m havingtrouble picking out the notes with him. I would have to taste him to be sure.”
“NO!” I growled out before slapping a hand over my mouth. My eyes went wide, surprised by the visceral reaction Maxime’s suggestion caused. It wasn’t me, but my wolf.
Zee let out a loud laugh. “Why, Wolfie, this is a side of you I haven't seen before.”
I hadn’t either. “I’m sorry. I don’t know what came over me.”
“I’ll do some research,” Kieran said as he stared at his tablet. “If there are any details you can think of, let me know.”
Details like what? Like I wanted nothing more than to smell the man again? Nobody needed to know that.
“Good. In the meantime, Rudolph, perhaps you should try to keep your distance from him. If you think he’s dangerous, we can ask him to leave.”
A snarl lifted one side of my lips at the idea of him leaving. I was overwhelmed by a feeling of protectiveness. If anyone, even one of my friends, did something to him, it would be the last thing they ever did. The thought shocked me. My friends meant everything to me; I never wanted to hurt them, but something deep inside of me was prepared to do whatever it had to for a man I hadn’t even spoken to, except to apologize and run away.
“If everyone can keep an extra eye out and let me know if you see anything worth mentioning, please do.You're not alone, Rudy. We're here to help.” Maxime clapped his small hand on my shoulder.
“Yeah. Thanks.” I shrugged off his hand and stood up, suddenly needing to be anywhere but here with the beastly, intrusive thoughts that were running through my head. I didn’t want to look like an asshole with all their good intentions staring at me, so I added, “Sorry, I’m just a little out of sorts still.”
Without waiting for a response, I walked off, pulling my phone out to check the work order requests. If I could get my hands moving and my mind occupied, it would hopefully help me get out of this funk or whatever it was.
Bowen
Sitting in the hotel’s restaurant, I ran a hand over the shirt I’d found in the courtesy closet. It was similar to the short-sleeved button-up I’d been wearing when I arrived. The ‘closet’ had been surprisingly big and well-stocked. I still didn’t understand why a hotel would offer such a thing at no cost, but I was glad to be in clean clothes, and with the deodorant and other personal necessities I’d found in their gift shop, I felt clean and refreshed.
I’d snooped around the place a little earlier, but the lobby had been closed for cleaning, so I stayed in my room and read, content with the day off I didn’t expect to have. Though my boss hadn’t been too thrilled to hear that I’d had an emergency that took me out of town for an indeterminate length of time. At this point, I would be lucky to still have a job when I got back. Or a car… which was still sitting in a pay lot at the beach. Which meant I couldn’t simply bleed my bank account dry, staying at an inn I never intended to be at.
Oh well, that was a problem for another day. Tonight, I was going to enjoy a nice dinner and maybe do some exploring. I might as well try to make the most of it, right? At least while I wasn’t being warned to run away, and before I went to bed to have my dreams haunted by shadowy hands.
