KylarAva. After all this time, I finally have her name. I watch her vanish through the door into the back offices of the medical center. It takes all of my willpower to stay and not follow her. Sabre is growling at me, and I shut him down. She's afraid of me. She flinched when I reached towards her. Dr Ava Green is doing a good job acting confident and she’s brave enough to challenge me. But she’s afraid.I push Sabre away more firmly, kicking myself as I hear Ava moving around in the far office. My feet are burning, eager to follow her. I don’t want to let her out of my sight again. But I’m a grown man, and I could kick myself for my behavior this morning.Seeing her for the first time in all these years, was an assault to the senses. Elder Marie asked me to help the new Healer set up in the rundown medical center. I’m between mercenary assignments at the moment, enjoying my downtime back at the Village. Seeing my niece and nephew, Kate’s kids. I never imagined that I’d walk thr
KylarLuca is a pain in the ass. He’s been a pain in my ass my whole life. He’s a best friend that’s more like a brother and he’s saved me more times than I can count. I’d lay down my life for him, in an instant. But for the first time in my life, I want to punch him out. I want to rip his throat out and I’m glaring at him. Sabre’s growling, low and throaty hackles raised. Luca’s and Tandy are staring at me in shock. Tandy reaches out, touching the back of my arm and I flinch away as if she’s burnt me. ‘Woah, Kylar…’ her voice is soft, the calm but firm tone she uses when someone’s had too much to drink. But everyone in the pack knows better than to mess with Tandy, her wolf is bigger than most and her bite is one of the worst. She could have been a part of our mercenary unit, but insists she’d miss being home. I push away from the bar and pace across to the pool table, buying myself time to calm down. I take a drink. Focusing all my attention on not snapping the plastic bottle
Ava - TuesdayI feel like I’ve only slept a few hours, after passing out last night I was up early to start clearing through the storage cupboard in the middle of the two medical rooms. They each have a door that opens into it, but it only has a small window and the light is broken. I take a picture of the jumbled mess to send to Lou. She’d be horrified at the chaos. After an hour of pawing through boxes in the half light I give up and start throwing them into the medical room that I’m going to take as my own. The one that connects to the back office. The out of date boxes skid across the floor before I hear laughter. Nervous, I straighten up, dusting off my knees and carry an armful of old bandages out into the medi-room. There’s a tall man standing in the middle, grinning at me.‘You’re a good shot,’ he smiles. In one hand he’s holding a coffee cup, his free hand rubs across his cheek. I blink at him, taking in his dark hair and bright blue eyes. ‘I didn’t hit you, did I?’ I gr
AvaI breathe him in and he moves. He kisses me, soft and slow. Lips lingering over my own. Our breath mingles with tantalising slowness and my body is hyper aware of the touch of his hands against my waist. His fingers are curled around me, holding me in place. Pulling my hips towards him as he slants his mouth over mine. Our tongues tangle. I know that I should turn and run, but I just can’t make myself do it. He tastes better than I remember and I’m losing my mind. He teases me, seductive as he increases the pressure and strokes his tongue against my own. I’m lost. Sparks race through my body from the points that we touch, lips, tongues and mouth. My chest and belly pressed against his. Our hips and thighs nudge together as my hands hang limp at my sides. The loose plaid shirt half-falling down my arm. I’m kissing him back before I know it. Pressing myself against him. I can feel his skin burning against my own, the touch of his wolf aura against Seren. She’s whining with delig
KylarI walk down the path, back through the village. Moving away from anyone else I see on the path. For a Wednesday night it’s pretty busy. But I’m not fit for company. She kissed me back. I damn well know that she kissed me back.My blood is pounding through my veins. My vision is narrowed, focused on the raging beat of my heart and the tightness in my chest. I’m frustrated, pent up and I either need to fight, fuck or run. So I aim for the pack house and then take a right into the forest. I left my shirt back at the Medical Centre so it’s just my boots and pants that get thrown down to the side. I shift and let Sabre take over. He wants to run back to her. I refuse him. I’m not going back to be rejected again. She kissed me back! She wanted it as much as I did. Where do I keep going on with Ava? I run, with my thoughts a mess. A large grey wolf that towers over the others in the pack. I can’t help but circle back to the medical centre and the house on the edge of the village, th
AvaI can see the frustration all over Kylar’s face. But he just shrugs it off. ‘Well, I’ll see you at the bar then,’ he smirks, ‘because there arn’t many places that Luca will be taking you.’ Nerves tangle in my stomach, skipping all over the place as I force a smile. I can’t imagine anything worse, than getting a drink with Luca, and having Kylar in my line of sight. Just the thought makes my skin crawl. It makes me want to run. ‘Thank you though,’ I reach out, unable to help myself and touch his arm. He pulls away and I’m stung by the motion as he walks over to the door. ‘If I don’t see you tonight, I’ll see you tomorrow? For the delivery?’ I’ve spent all week trying to avoid Kylar, and now I’m trying to make him stay? What’s with that.‘Sure,’ he turns back, lifting a hand in a brief wave, ‘but I’m pretty sure I’ll see you tonight,’ he warns with a grin. One that sends sparks right through my body.‘It’s not a date,’ I follow after him as he traipses down the steps to the path t
AvaAlright, I’m jealous. I’m jealous and it’s completely ridiculous because Kylar has been the one trying to get close, and I’ve been the one putting up boundaries. Luca ushers me over to a booth and I slide in. Eclipse is busier than I expected, there are about a dozen other patrons. some younger guys hustling at the pool table, laughing as they swing the cue back and forth. There’s an older couple sit chatting away in the back, eyes locked on one another. Mates, I assume, because they’re comfortable, happy. Two women, maybe in their early thirties stand beside the retro jukebox, taking it in turns to select songs. Luca slides into the seat opposite me, hands laid out on the table, watching the bar over my shoulder. ‘So this is Eclipse?’ I look around. It’s an older building, and the wooden floors are bit sticky. It’s got dark paint on the walls and ceiling, bringing the space in and lending to a more intimate atmosphere than most dive bars. Because it definitely has that edge.
I smile, listening to my boys, occasionally interrupted in their jabbering story by Lou who explained what they’d been up to. They sound like they're having fun, but I miss them badly. At least after the delivery tomorrow I can spend the evening with them. I glance back at the bar before walking away, still smiling into the phone. It wasn’t a date and Luca ditched me. It’s uncomfortable sitting opposite Kylar so I do want any sane person does. I start walking home. I’m watching the blossoms as I go, giggling along to the twins adventures before Lou calls time for bed. I tell them how much I love them, that I can’t wait to see them before hanging up.My phone slides back into my bag and I finish off the journey to the edge of the village. But someone is following me. I walk faster, grateful for my boots and the tread they’ve got on the fallen blossom. I hold my purse on my shoulder, fingers gripping it tightly. But I’m a wolf, should I just shift and snap their head off? Who would be