Running from...: A Blackrock Wolf Pack Novel, page 5
It seemed like they all knew him, from the happy smiles they were sending his way, so I decided to pounce on the opportunity and see what they thought of him. That way, I might get a little insight into the man.
“He's the one who helped me when I fell my first day here and then I think he insulted me,” I whispered to Ana.
“Deacon? I can't imagine him saying anything bad. He's a great guy.”
“Maybe you heard him wrong?” Rachel leaned forward, watching Deacon as he strode over to the bar.
“He must have just taken a disliking to me, then.” I couldn't think of any other explanation. He didn’t know what I was, he didn’t know me from Adam, but from the scowl on his face, he had a problem with me.
“Don't worry about it. We all have off days. He was probably just preoccupied.” Veronika picked up her glass and clinked it again mine, “Drink up and enjoy yourself. You've earned it.”
“Earned it?”
She burst out laughing. “Hell, you’ve moved from the big city and it’s been snowing nonstop since you got here, and yet you're still sane. To me, that is a cause for celebration.”
“Amen to that.” I picked up my shot glass and downed the refill Ana had bought. A couple of drinks weren’t going to hurt. I could have fun, but I knew how to keep myself in check.
Even though I was not planning on drinking much more, I got up and walked around Veronika to stand at the bar to get our next round in. I could feel the buzz and that was good enough for me, but I wasn’t going to stop the others from having a damn good time.
“What can I get you?” The bartender asked as he paused in front of me.
“Can I get three more shots of tequila and a cola with lots of ice, please?” I had to lean on the bar to make sure he could hear me over the music that was playing from the jukebox.
“Sure thing, sweetheart.”
I had already been told by Ana that the man serving me was called Marv and he owned the bar with his brother, Asher. From all she had said about him, he was a dream to work for and an all-around gentleman.
What she didn’t know was that he wasn’t human.
Or maybe she did?
I was yet to find out the workings of this small town.
“Here you go.” He placed the drinks on the bar, and I passed him the money to pay for them, but he shook his head at me. “This is on me, as a welcome to the town.”
“Oh, thank you.” I was a little taken aback by the generosity of the people in this town. Sure, you could say it was just a round of drinks, but to me, it meant a lot. It was acceptance.
“I hope you're happy here, sweetheart.” He gave me a wink and moved on to his next customer before I could say another word.
When I took the drinks back to the girls, Ana leaned in to whisper in my ear, “See? Didn’t I tell you he's the greatest?”
Looking at her, now that the alcohol had lowered her inhibitions, I could sense there was something else there. Ana had a crush on her boss. Now, that could be a problem, but I had the feeling that no one else had noticed and she didn’t seem like the kind of girl to act on her feelings. It wasn’t my place to say anything, anyway. Nodding in agreement, “He really is.”
Ana grinned back at me and then joined back in with the conversation that Veronika and Rachel were having.
Eventually, the tequila buzz had almost totally worn off, and watching the other girls get hammered was entertainment in itself. Personally, I didn’t need alcohol to have a good time, but I understood how it could help. They were hilarious to watch.
“Good evening, ladies.”
I turned at the voice and the smile froze on my lips. It was Mr. Creepy McCreeperson, the man who gave me the chills. It was such a shame because his child was so ridiculously sweet, and I hoped he wouldn’t grow up to be a lech like his father.
“Hey, Damon.” Ana waved at him, cheerfully.
His intimidating eyes fell on me. “Good to see you again.”
“I didn’t expect to see you here.” And I truly didn’t. it hadn’t crossed my mind that he would be at the bar tonight, although it should have. Perhaps I was letting the ease of the town get to me.
“Please, call me Damon.”
“And you can call her Ellis.” Ana smiled sweetly, not realizing she was inviting trouble for me.
“Ellis? How unusual and pretty.” He leaned in closer and whispered, “Just as beautiful as you.”
Clearing my throat, I didn’t think his comment warranted a reply. It wouldn’t do any good to encourage the man.
Rachel caught my eye and furrowed her brows in question. I shook my head at her slightly, hoping she would get my meaning. Luckily, even though we still hardly knew each other, she got the message and quickly got up from the table and walked around the back of us until she was standing next to me. “Come on, Ellis, there are some more people I want you to meet.”
“What about me?” Damon held up his hands as if insulted.
“There are plenty of people who are more important than you, Damon.” Rachel rolled her eyes at him.
Gratefully, I grabbed her hand as she pulled me through the crowd, quickly losing Mr. McCreeperson in the throng of people.
“What was all that about? Are you okay?” she asked as soon as we were far enough away and could hear each other over the music.
I wasn’t sure how much to say. After all, this was a small town, and everyone seemed to know everybody. “It’s just difficult. He seemed interested the other day when I met him outside my house, and I didn’t want to give him any false encouragement.”
“Damon’s got a reputation as a bit of a leach.” Veronika joined us and gave me a knowing look. “Honestly, he’s not as bad as he seems. He’s got this reputation, but I think it’s just because he’s too full-on.”
“I’m sorry. He just makes me feel a little uncomfortable. I don’t know how else to put it.”
“I’m sure you don’t have anything to worry about. Damon is all show. He comes across as an asshole, but he’s not that bad once you get to know him,” Ronnie smiled at me reassuringly.
Rachel squeezed my hand. “I’m sure he’ll get the message, but if he doesn’t, I’ll spell it out for him in a way that he won’t be able to misinterpret.”
“I don’t want to make waves.”
“I’ll make sure he stays away from you.” Rachel hooked an arm through mine and I was relieved I didn’t have to explain further. Once I had been there a while, it would be easier to explain these things, but for now, it was nice to know that they still had my back without me saying a word.
The crowd in the bar didn’t seem to be thinning, despite the late hour. Dancing with Rachel in the middle of the dancefloor, we seriously shook it like no one was watching. In the center of the crowd, it was easy to let loose and have a little fun. Everyone seemed intent on having a wild night, so no one took any notice of us, no one judged. It was a blast.
This was probably the most fun I had had since I got to Blackrock. Sure, my new assignment was even more interesting than I could have wished for, and I loved my new house, but finally, I managed to let my hair down. After all the stress lately, and the move on top of that, tonight was the perfect way for me to let go and just enjoy myself. It felt like everything had been getting on top of me lately and it felt good to forget about it all, even just for a moment.
Giggling like a couple of teenagers, we made our way back over to the bar where Ana was now staring at her boss like he walked on water and Veronika was busy talking to the jerk who had seen me fall on my ass.
“Hey, do you need a drink?” Ana asked as soon as we sat down on the stools next to her. I think she was looking for any old excuse to talk to Marv.
“A water would be great.”
Rachel slid back off her stool. “I’m heading to the ladies. I’ll hit the bar on the way back.”
“Don’t worry, I’ve got it.” Ana all but ran over to stand near Marv at the bar.
Veronika lead me back to the table and sat down. I was happy to take the weight off my feet and leaned over the table and whispered conspiratorially, “Do you see it too?”
“Ana’s crush?”
She nodded in response. “I asked her about it, but she told me I was imagining things.”
“Well, I didn’t want to say anything because I haven’t known her all that long.”
“And you shouldn’t.” Deacon butted in, taking a sip from his bottle of beer. I didn’t realize he was still standing there, but even if I had, I wouldn’t have expected him to invite himself into our conversation.
Just seeing him up close gave me tingles. He was a man to be reckoned with and everything you would want and expect in an Alpha.
“Why not?” Veronika looked back at him, clearly just as annoyed at his interruption as I was.
“Because it is none of your business. If she wants to do something about it, she will. And if she doesn’t, she won’t. You don’t need to stick your nose into it.” Deacon followed this with a subtle little glare in my direction.
I had no idea what I had done for him to take a dislike to me, but it was bugging me. “I wasn’t going to say anything.” I snapped. Why did he presume to know anything about me? Asshole.
He just gave me another look and carried on drinking his beer. Why he continued to lurk next to our table was beyond me, but I was glad I had switched to soft drinks for the time being. I needed to be aware.
“Ignore him. I don’t know what’s crawled up his ass tonight.” Veronika shot daggers out her eyes at Deacon. “I guess if Ana wants to do something about it, she will.”
“It would be complicated, what with him being her boss and all.” I had never known that kind of situation to end well. Ana was one of the sweetest people I had ever met, and I didn’t want her to get hurt.
“Seeing as you two are going to keep out of it, you’ve got nothing to worry about.” Deacon rolled his eyes at us and stood up.
“Do you have a problem with me?” It wasn’t like me to be quite so forward, especially when I was trying not to draw attention to myself, but I was fed up with the vibe he was sending me. Everyone else in this small town had welcomed me with open arms, yet he was passively aggressive with his short words and standoffish demeanor. It was almost like he knew who I was and why I was in town, which was ridiculous. I hoped.
“No.”
Well, what the hell was I supposed to say to that? It wasn’t like he left any room for conversation or even argument. I looked over to Veronika for help, but she just shrugged her shoulders.
Deacon didn’t say another word as he finished his beer and walked over to the other side of the bar.
“Well, that was weird.” Veronika frowned. “I’ve never seen him like that before.”
“I don’t know what I did to offend him. Hell, I’ve only spoken to him once.”
She looked over to see Deacon striding out of the bar. “I’ll talk to him.”
Shaking my head, I said, “Don’t do that. I think it would only piss him off more. Seriously, it doesn’t matter.” I liked to think that I was a pretty decent person, but I was also wise enough to know that I wasn’t everyone’s cup of tea. That’s just life. All I had to hope was that my cover wasn’t blown just yet. That wouldn’t go down well with the powers that be and I would be yanked out of Blackrock quicker than you can blink.
Veronika did not comment, but at least she didn’t storm after him to see why he was being such a jerk to me.
Raucous laughter filled the room and I glanced over to see a bunch of old women, not a single one of them under seventy-five, all bent over in gales of laughter. It was the kind of sight that made you smile, even if you didn’t know what they were laughing at.
Tapping Veronika on the shoulder to get her attention, I said to her, “I’m going to head on home in a minute. Will you say ‘bye’ to the girls from me?” I was worried about the situation with Deacon and wanted to get out of dodge before anything else happened.
“You’re leaving already? This place keeps jumping for a couple more hours still.” She looked disappointed that I was heading out early, but I was rattled. After getting flowers earlier, and now Deacon acting strange, I needed to leave.
I may have been overreacting, but better to be safe than sorry. This evening was just what I needed, but after a hectic couple of days, I needed to get home and get some sleep and get my head together. “We’ll do this again soon, I promise.”
Standing up to hug me, Veronika shouted over the music which had suddenly turned up now that the jukebox was playing some country song one of the old women had chosen, “I’m so glad you could come tonight.”
“Me, too.”
“I’ll call you tomorrow, okay?”
I gave her the thumbs up and tried to get Rachel and Ana’s attention, but they were both involved in conversations at the bar and I didn’t want to disturb them or gain Deacon’s attention. Waving over my shoulder at Veronika, I pulled my coat around me and pushed my way out the door and onto the street.
This wasn’t the sort of place where you could just call up a cab, and the walk home was only five or ten minutes at the most, but darkness had descended completely and now I was feeling nervous. The streets were empty and the only sound I could hear was the crunch of the snow under my feet.
I wish I had thought this through. Driving in the snow made me nervous, but walking in the dark, surrounded by stark silence, was just plain eerie. Perhaps next time, I would steer clear of alcohol and have a quicker and safer way to get home?
Alarmingly, I thought I could hear footsteps behind me. I didn’t pause or look around, choosing to quicken my steps to get to the safety of my home as quickly as possible.
My breathing became heavy with the exertion of trampling through snow and the fear that was coursing through me. I couldn’t hear anything else over my own panting, but that didn’t stop me from hot-footing it home.
I could no longer determine if there were separate footsteps or if it was my overactive imagination fuelling my paranoia, but I didn’t stop to question it. This was a strange place for me for the time being, and until I could get out and get a better lay of the land, I had to stick to the route I knew.
Grabbing my keys from my bag as soon as I reached the gate in front of my house, I sprinted to the door and slammed the keys in the lock. Shutting and locking the door securely behind me, I dashed into the living room and peeked out the window. I couldn’t see a single soul out there and wondered immediately if my mind had been playing tricks on me after all.
Regardless, I couldn’t shake the feeling that I had been followed and nervously checked all the windows and doors to make sure they were secure.
Heading into the kitchen and flicking on the coffee machine, I couldn’t help but feel that a cup of coffee would help to calm my nerves. It probably wasn’t the best idea as it would take forever to get to sleep, but I had a feeling sleep would be evasive anyway.
This was the only thing I didn’t like about living by myself. I loved the quiet and solitude, no arguing with anyone over how long they were hogging the bathroom or if they had left the toilet seat up. No fear of doing something wrong or what they had perceived as wrong. But, on the flip side, there was no one there to reassure me that I was safe and secure in my own home.
The coffee did nothing to settle my nerves and my Kindle couldn’t hold my attention. After a quick shower and getting wrapped up in fluffy pajamas, I still could not get my mind to rest enough to relax or sleep. Plonking myself down in front of the television, I hugged a cushion to me and flicked through the channels until I found a Game of Thrones boxset.
It was going to be a long night.
∞∞∞
Tossing and turning, sleep evaded me. It was infuriating. After such a good night out with the girls, all I wanted to do was go home and get a good night’s sleep. Evidently, that was too much to ask for.
Disconcerting thoughts ran through my mind. Who had followed me home? Was there anybody there or was I going crazy and causing myself an unnecessary restless night? Was my cover blown? The questions whirling around my head were on an endless loop.
What if it had been Damon? Ronnie didn’t seem to think that I had anything to worry about, but did she know him that well? He could be capable of anything, or I could just be making a mountain out of a molehill.
Had Rob really found me already? Did he know where I was? The flowers had to have been from him, but the bigger question was why? Why now? Why wouldn’t he drop it and leave me the hell alone?
As soon as that thought raced through my mind, I jumped out of bed and raced to flick on the lights. There was no way I could sleep now.
Moving over to the window, I looked out at the peaceful night and tried to calm my nerves. I was sure I was worrying over nothing, or so I hoped. The night remained still and silent, unlike my frazzled nerves.
Chapter Four
Ellis: Do you know what? Friday is my favorite day of the week
Charlie: Friday is my third favorite F word. Food is my second favorite. Can you guess what my first is?
Ellis: Farm animals?
Charlie: Weirdo
The rest of the weekend passed by in a blur of tidying, marking, planning, and vegging out in front of the TV. There never seemed to be enough downtime, but seeing as I loved my job, it wasn’t much of a hardship. I was more than capable of multitasking, researching, and keeping one eye on Vampire Diaries re-runs.
Although, in theory, I was capable, putting it into practice was more difficult. It took all my effort to concentrate after a couple of ridiculously bad nights’ sleep. Once the nerves set in, it was hard to get rid of them again.
After submitting a report to Roz, I was thankful that I didn’t hear back from her. After letting my boss know that there were several wolves in the area and that it was possible my ex had already tracked me down, I found it entirely possible that she would pull me out of Blackrock, which would have been devastating. I may have only been there for a few days, but I was already settling in and could see myself staying here for the long haul.
