ROMANCE: Mr. Mystery: (New Adult Bad Boy Romance) (Contemporary Mystery Short Stories) (17 page)

Chapter 10

He was almost afraid to look when he opened up his eyes. She was a small wolf with red wiry fur. In her own unique way, she was beautiful. There was a strange feeling in his chest which he couldn’t quite understand as she looked up at him. He didn’t know what to do about it, but somehow his body eased into the form of a wolf.

His larger form hovered above hers for a moment. They locked eyes and everything shifted. Something in his heart stirred like there was a magnet fused into both of their chests, causing them to gravitate together. His heart thudded in response as he moved his jaw closer to her neck. He could smell her like never before.

It was the clear scent of arousal and he wondered what it meant as he got closer to her, his paws pinning her down. All of a sudden she tried to squirm away, but he kept her there, tightening his grip on her as he growled. He wouldn’t let her escape him now. He wanted her. He needed her.

With this thought, he suddenly bit her neck, making her howl in response. The sound sent a shiver down his spine, the fur on his body standing on edge. He had never felt that way before. It was the mixture of excitement and fear, underlined with the subtle hues of love. He shied away from thinking about such strong feelings, but there was no denying that he had fallen for her. Inside of him, his wolf was calling out to him, making him realize that this woman was his
mate
.

As his instincts took control, he couldn’t shy away from it any further. He bit her neck once again, this time keeping his jaw locked on it, until he was sure that there would be clear bite mark left behind. She howled once more before her body went limp and she took on a submissive position beneath him.

She whimpered softly before gently licking his chest. When this happened, he turned back into his human form and looked at her. “Valery… I need you to listen to me. I need you to relax and calm all the emotions that are overwhelming you. I need you to turn back into a human.” His voice was calm as he gently reached forward and scratched behind her ears. She seemed to enjoy the feeling as she stopped and stared at him as if seeing him for the very first time.

She seemed to almost nod and close her eyes as she tried to concentrate on her task. Doing so, she slowly started to transform back into a human, her wolf body making its small transition back. Elliot smiled when it seemed to be less painful. He was glad that he had managed to prevent her from going on a wild rampage, much like he had.

“Are you okay?” He asked, obviously concerned as he laid his hand on her cheek, his thumb soothingly rubbing against her skin. She nodded, but she had this glazed-over look in her eyes. He could tell that she was not quite with it yet. “Valery…” He whispered and shook her slightly, hoping it would help her remember.

She blinked a couple of times and the life returned to her eyes as she looked up at him, suddenly wrapping her arms around him tightly. She cried into his chest as her arms slung around his neck, pulling him close. He was taken by surprise, but wrapped his arms around her waist anyway, pulling her toward him as he tried to comfort her.

“What’s wrong?” He asked, trying to figure out what had caused the sudden surge of emotions.

“Thank you.”

“What?”

“Thank you for saving me.” She whispered into his chest when she managed to stop herself from sobbing for a moment. Elliot looked down at her in utter shock. That was the last thing he had expected her to say. He hadn’t saved her at all. On the contrary, he had allowed her to fall into the realm of werewolf. She was now a monster like himself and it was all his fault. He felt sick to his stomach just thinking about it.

“But… I didn’t protect you… I let Stanton bite you.”

“He could have
killed
me.”

“But he turned you into a
werewolf
…” The words hung in the air as she remembered her short time as a wolf. She was now part of this group of individuals that she didn’t even know existed, until very recently. Would she be able to go back to normal life despite this new development to her character or would she be shunned into a life of living in the woods? All of these questions swarmed around in her mind, threatening to overwhelm her. She suddenly felt very afraid of the future. There was no telling what it could hold for her.

“What do we do now?” She asked with fear in her voice as she tried to picture her new life.

“We bring Stanton’s head back to the pack, so they know that I beat him,” Elliot said bitterly as he looked down at the corpse still lying down in the middle of the room. Valery looked over and instantly regretted it as her body tied up into knots, seeing the dead animal-like figure. She couldn’t believe that Elliot had actually killed him. She knew he was left with no other choice, but at the same time, it was a little chilling to know she was holding onto someone who had blood on their hands.

“Why?” She finally asked, not being able to understand why they couldn’t just forget about the whole thing. Why did they need to go back to the pack?

“Because… if I do, I will be the new alpha and then we can live together in peace…” His words were tender as he tried to pick them out carefully. He looked at her warily, trying to figure out how she would reply.

“What do you mean?” She asked, confused.

“In a wolf pack, wolves cannot challenge the alpha. So if I become their leader, I would be able to live with you without any qualms from anyone else…” He once again let the end of his sentence hang, as if leaving it open ended for her to interpret.

“Wait… are you saying you want to live with me?” She asked. Even though they had lived together for the last three months while she had healed, it seemed almost strange that he was suggesting something more permanent.

“Yes. Is that bad?” He added in quickly, looking up at the ceiling, refusing to make eye contact with her. At this point, he wasn’t sure what he wanted to do. There was no denying the fact that he had mated with her and had marked her as his own, but at the same time, she was now free to do as she pleased, without Stanton to track her down.

“I have a question.” She said, suddenly looking at him with this earnest expression on her face.

“Y… Yes…?” He asked hesitantly, wondering what had suddenly sparked her attention.

“What’s this?” She moved her hair out of the way and then reached up to touch her neck. There was a hickey-like mark on her neck, which burned whenever she touched it. It wasn’t a painful type of burn, but something that raged between her loins and made her want to pounce on Elliot and have her way with him.

“A mating mark…” He whispered, softly looking around.

“What does it do?” She asked, suddenly eager as she rolled over and got on top of him. The fire that was burning inside of her grew even stronger. She wanted him like she had never wanted anything before. Her inner wolf was coming out and she pounced on him, pinning him down to the bed. Her lips flew across his skin as her hips moved against his, teasing the member trapped in his pants.

Elliot groaned as he saw the lust in her eyes. This was the lust of a mate. Female wolves were notorious for their sex drive and as Valery started to grind into him, he could tell that she had already tapped into that. Before he could really react, however, her now razor-sharp nails were running across his bare chest, lightly marking up his skin with thin red lines.

He groaned at the feeling before he saw her move between his legs and pull his pants, shimmying them ever so slowly off his hips. He bit his lip, knowing that she was probably going to tease him until he couldn’t take it anymore. She suddenly squeezed him through his boxers before looking up at him ever so innocently. “You never answered me…” The sound that emerged from her lips was divine and that alone was enough to make him harden through the thin material of his boxers.

“It marks you as mine… as my mate… eternal partners in the wolf world…” He gasped out, his body wanting more of her, but he was paralyzed, caught in her stare. She seemed to enjoy the answer as she grabbed him again, making him groan out at the excited pain he felt.

“So we are lovers then?” She asked, tilting her head, letting her strawberry blond hair fall over her shoulders and frame her face. She grinned to herself. “Forever?” She opened up her eyes wide, letting their blueness show. Elliot was forced to bit his lip, just to control himself.

“Yes, you’re mine. If any other wolf tries to steal you, I have the right to kill him.” Elliot explained, trying to take her thoughts away from teasing him. It didn’t work. She didn’t respond. Instead, she ripped off his boxers and wrapped her hand around his shaft, moving it up and down ever so slightly, feeling him getting as hard as a rock in her hand. He was warm and she smiled to herself as she looked down at him, making eye contact for a moment.

“So if we are wolves… we can live together. If you are the alpha that is?” She asked for clarification as she leaned down, giving the tip of his dick a small little kiss, making him jump in surprise.

“Yes!” He called out in pleasure, his cheeks coloring almost instantly at the prospect.

“And I get to
mate
with you whenever I want?” She asked, her voice innocent, slowly pushing him toward the brink of insanity. He couldn’t quite handle this any longer. She was way too sexy for him to deal with. He just wanted to pick her up, slam her on the bed and ravage her. But she was in control now, his balls firmly in her hands. She grinned to herself as she knew of the power she possessed over him.

“Y… yes… all the time…” He answered, hoping it would please her. She grinned ear to ear at his response and giggled to herself, as her sex-crazed mind now conjured up all kinds of dirty fantasies. With this newfound wolf instinct flowing inside of her, she smiled to herself, knowing that this transformation from human to wolf wouldn’t be all that bad.

Her lips wrapped around his tip for a moment as her tongue flicked it around, teasing his hole ever so slightly before she pulled away completely and then got up, walking over to Stanton’s dead body. “Well, c’mon then. Let’s go get his head to the rest of the pack so you can claim your spot as an alpha and I can have my fun with you.”

THE END

The old bed and breakfast sat on a quiet street in the tiny New England town.  It was one of those towns that when you spied the name on the map, you imagined a picturesque classic New England town with church steeples peaking over neat rooftops.  In the case of Canvers, you would be correct.   

In fairness it wasn’t much of a town.  It had once been big when shipping had run along the river.  Then that had died, and only the long time families had remained.  Now they relied heavily on their tourist industry.  The town’s quiet atmosphere, combined with their quaint coffee shops and cute cafes was highly appealing to those looking to have a true New England experience. 

It was that which Elizabeth Werner had relied upon.  The bed and breakfast she now owned had been her grandmother’s.  When she’d died, her grandmother had left the house specifically to Elizabeth.   The lawyer stated that Thelma Werner had always hoped that the house would once again host guests.  She had supposedly thought that her youngest granddaughter would be the best choice for innkeeper.  Somedays, Elizabeth wondered just what Grandma was thinking. 

The house was a large two-story which had fallen into disrepair over the last few years.  Grandma had been living across town in a senior high rise.  The house had been managed by the caretaker. 

Today she did her first walk through of the house.  The front door opened to the stairs.  To the right spilled a front parlor and a sitting room.  On the opposite side of the stairs were the dining room and kitchen, with a hallway stretching beside them all the way back to the kitchen. 

It wasn’t as bad as she thought.  The lawyer had made it sound like it was much worse.  It was dirty, but that wouldn’t take much to fix.  The downstairs wallpaper was peeling in a few  places.  The plaster in the ceilings didn’t look bad, but that was just her first glance. 

The upstairs had four bedrooms with the attic divided into another.  The carpet didn’t look good anywhere, but there were supposedly hardwood floors beneath.  That was remediable. 

Elizabeth had always heard the old houses were money pits.  She was hopeful that was not true.  She’d been saving up a good bit over the last year, but now she wouldn’t be working full time until the house was ready to open.  It was going to be tight for a few months. 

“Hello!”  A man’s voice was calling into the house.  “Anyone here?” 

“Coming!”  Elizabeth slipped through the dining room into the front hallway.  A man with shining dark curls stood in the doorway.  To her, he looked a bit like a young Patrick Duffy.  His eyes were bright blue and friendly looking.  Elizabeth was momentarily cringed at by her own appearance. 

She was forty, and in good shape.  In fact everyone said that she didn’t looked her age.  But right now she was wearing dirty jeans and sneakers that needed to make their way to the trash.  Her Villanova sweatshirt was a faded out gray, and her blonde hair was covered by a green bandana.  She knew that in anyone eye’s she would  look a mess.

“Hi.”  The man offered her a hand.  “You must be Elizabeth.  I’m Rick.  I’m Philip’s son.” 

“Oh right.”  Elizabeth suddenly remembered the caretaker’s name.  “It’s good to meet you.  I haven’t seen your father today.” 

“No, he had to make a run for some supplies to Home Depot,” Rick explained.  “So are you going to be working here with us?” 

“I’m planning on it.”  Elizabeth answered him.  “I figured that I can at least strip wallpaper while you all tackle the heavy stuff.” 

Rick grinned at her.  His smile added to his looks.  He was very tanned.  Elizabeth thought he must spend all of his free time in the sun.  

“So we’re probably a little quieter than Hartford.”  His eyes were studying her.  “That is where you’re from, right?” 

“Right.”  Elizabeth smiled brightly.  “Are you…from here?” 

“All my life.  Dad got my brother and I working for him out of high school.  We’ve been here ever since.”  At the look on her face, he waved a hand.  “Oh it’s fine.  It’s good work.  I’ve learned a lot in the years I’ve been working for him.  Anyway, I think you’ll like it in town.” 

“I hope so.”  Elizabeth hadn’t been so sure about that.  It was a small town with not many younger people.  She wasn’t sure just how many people she could meet.  After her divorce, she’d had trouble reaching into the social realms.  She was really hoping that Canver would be a fresh start for her.

Now Elizabeth found herself sharing a smile with him.  She didn’t know what had gotten into her.  She hadn’t come here to meet a man.  But on the other hand, she wouldn’t exactly have minded it.

“Good.  Well, I’ve got to get back.  Dad will need help unloading soon.  So we’ll be here bright and early tomorrow, ok?” 

“Sounds great.”  Elizabeth held the heavy door as he stepped out.  “Nice meeting you.” 

“You too.”  He winked at her as he headed down the porch steps.  Elizabeth felt a flutter of excitement.  She’d been suspicious about taking such a big leap by herself, but today made things better. 

As she closed the door, she reminded herself that she was just being silly.  She didn’t know anyone in town and was latching too quickly onto the first person that she had met.  Just because a handsome man had been polite to her didn’t mean she was about to live happily ever after. 

Regardless, she felt a tad bit happier than she had a few hours ago. 

Elizabeth did not plan to live in the main part of the house.  There was a guest house on the back of the property where she would live once the inn was ready.  But for now, she was staying in the main house.  She’d brought in an air mattress and set herself up in one of the bedrooms. She’d picked one in the back.

It overlooked the outbuildings including the house she would eventually call home and the caretaker’s house.  There had been a light on in that building, but it was off now.  She knew Philip lived out there year round.  She wondered if anyone lived with him.  Well, actually she was wondering if Rick lived there with him.

From this view, Elizabeth decided that she liked this town.  The rooftops and steeples made it look like a postcard.  She wondered what it would be like in the winter.  Seeing these rooftops dotted in snow would be adorable.  She figured she’d get a ton of people out who wanted to take advantage of the nearby ski areas. 

Elizabeth lay down on the air mattress.  It wasn’t uncomfortable, but she’d be glad when she got her own bed.  Her things weren’t scheduled to be delivered for another two weeks.  She’d brought the bare minimum with her.  Getting by on so little was rough. 

Her mind wandered as she started to drift off.  If there was a chance she’d be meeting men in town, maybe she didn’t need to hit up the local shelter for a cat just yet.  Unmarried women over forty were almost required to have cats.  Maybe she’d be able to dodge it. 

Elizabeth didn’t realize that she had been asleep until she jerked awake.  For a moment, she wondered just what had awoken her.  Then she heard it again. 

It was a faint scrapping sound.  It sounded like a door that had gotten stuck.  That made her sit up in bed.  Who could be in the house opening doors?

Elizabeth got off of the mattress.  She stood with her hand on the door.  She wasn’t entirely certain what she was going to do.  Quickly, she reached down to grab her cell phone.  She should do the logical thing and call the local police. 

But what if it was nothing?  She was in an old house which was unfamiliar to her.  She hadn’t spent a night in this house in thirty years.  It was going to be a bit unusual.  She didn’t want to be the new crazy person in town for calling the cops out on her first night. 

With a renewed sense of confidence, Elizabeth threw open the bedroom door.  She stepped into the hallway, looking around suspiciously. 

She heard something creaking downstairs.  It might have been floor boards, it might have been nothing.  Frowning, Elizabeth started down the stairs.  When she reached the bottom, she unlocked her phone.  She typed a “9-1” into the keypad.  If someone was in the house, she’d only have to hit one more number to call. 

Elizabeth went into the hallway that lead into the kitchen.  She could no longer hear the creaking.  That relieved her a bit.  Placing her hand on the door, she pushed it open hard.  If someone was standing behind it they were going to feel that. 

She was not surprised to find that the room was empty.  Elizabeth chastised herself for being ridiculous.  She stopped when she noticed something odd on the counter. 

Propped neatly on the edge of the kitchen counter was a toy monkey.  Elizabeth thought it was probably the ugliest thing that she had ever seen in her entire life.  As she drew closer, she saw that it had once been brown.  Now it was losing fur in patches, revealing a filthy brown body.  Its eyes were black button sitting on top a wide flat nose.  It had two overly large ears poking awkwardly from the side of its head.  It appeared to be smirking at her.  It was even uglier up close. 

Elizabeth’s lip curled in disgust.  She got a roll of paper towels and a plastic bag.  Holding the roll in her left hand, she awkwardly swiped the ugly doll into the bag.  Then she unlocked the back door and carried the bag to the burn barrel.  She dropped the bag in with an unceremonious crinkle.  She did not want to look at that doll again.  It was too ugly. 

As she made her way back upstairs, Elizabeth tried to come up with a rational thought for why the doll was even in the house.  She knew it had not been there earlier when she had come back from dinner.  So the doll mixed with the strange sounds….

Elizabeth settled back into bed, trying to put the ideas out of her head.  No one had broken into the home of a single woman only to put a creepy doll on the counter.  She must have missed it.  Or someone had dropped it off while she was out. 

She fell back into a trouble sleep with the thought of the creepy monkey burned into her head. 

“Good morning!”  Rick was standing on the other side of the door.  He looked ridiculously cheerful.  Elizabeth wished that she could extend the same sentiments.  She hadn’t slept well after the monkey incident.  A hundred thoughts raced through her brain.  None of them did much to calm her down. 

Rick appeared to notice, for he frowned. 

“Everything ok?” 

“I-uh-.” 
Don’t tell him, he’ll think you’re crazy.
  “I’m just tired, that’s all.” 

“Well, you’ll sleep tonight.”  Rick turned.  Behind him was an older man in a pair of worn overalls.  The man’s hair was gray, but his eyes were blue like Rick’s.  He was tall.  His son had obviously gotten his build from his father.   He offered her his hand. 

“Ma’am.”  He nodded.  “Nice to meet you.  I’m Philip Turner.  Sorry I missed you yesterday.” 

“Oh, it’s fine.”  Elizabeth shook the man’s hand.  “Are you a Phil or a Philip?” 

“I’ll respond to either.”  He winked at her.  “You met my son Rick.  This is my other son, Daniel.” 

Daniel had his brother’s dark good looks, but did not look as friendly.  Elizabeth gave him a bright smile and offered her hand nonetheless. 

“My pleassure.”  The other man mumbled. 

“We’ll be getting started.  You want the carpet up first so we can do the floors?”  Philip asked. 

“I heard that we should refinish them last.  Is that true?”  Elizabeth didn’t claim to know the first thing about redoing old houses. 

“That’s it.”  Rick gave her another of his sweet smiles.  “No use it doing it over.” 

“We’ll get the carpet up and out.  And we’ll start checking the plaster.  That’ll be the biggest job.  Have you hired an electrician?”  Philip paused a few steps into the house. 

“I found a great recommendation,” Elizabeth assured him.  She figured if Philip knew everyone in this town, she could vouch for the particular man’s credits.

“That’s great.”  Philip motioned the other two men into the house. “All right boys, let’s get going.”   

Elizabeth was pleased that the men seemed to know what they were doing.  She’d heard too many times of women getting ripped off by contractors.  In this case, she couldn’t imagine that it would happen.  Philip had known her grandmother for years.  He’d taken care of the house for years.  He’d never rip off one of her family members. 

Elizabeth let the men handle the hard stuff.  She set to spraying the wallpaper so she could start tearing it down.  She found that it wasn’t terrible work.  You could get long strips off in one pull.  She found that satisfying.  Slowly, the walls beneath began to become visible. 

She’d gotten a good bit done when she heard a voice calling to her.  Moving into the kitchen where the men were working, she found Rick standing at the door. 

“What is it?” 

“Did you know this was here?”  Rick was pointing.  Elizabeth suddenly realized what it was.  A door was open.  But there had been no door there earlier. 

“What on earth-?” 

“Looks like it’s the door to the cellar.  Connects into the servants’ stairs.”  Philip was leaning in the doorway, looking up.  Elizabeth looked.  Sure enough, a twisting staircase led up and out of sight. 

“But my grandmother never said anything about it.” 

“She probably didn’t know.”  Philip explained.  “She might have had an idea of it.  But we just got the latch uncovered.”