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  Wolf in Waiting

  Wolf in Waiting | By | Shyla Colt

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  Copy right Shyla Colt ( 2018) All rights reserved

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  Wolf in Waiting

  By

  Shyla Colt

  Chapter One

  Luc Dryden smoothed the nonexistent wrinkles from her black pencil skirt in an attempt to curb the nervous energy coursing through her body. The line to exit the airplane was moving at a snail's pace, which left her time to think. It had been five long years since she had set foot in her hometown of Blackburn Falls. But when her baby sister called to tell her she was getting married and named Luc the maid of honor, she was forced to suppress her adolescent issues, put on her big girl panties, and fulfill her duties with a smile on her face. She had cleared her schedule, packed her bags, and told Ivy she was looking forward to her visit. Her voice had dripped with false cheer, but her sister hadn’t picked up on the sarcasm. It seemed easy enough to deal with being back for two weeks. But as she stood here now with no wedding plans of her own to focus on, Luc felt her confidence rocked.

  She clutched the handle of her laptop case like a lifeline and did her best to focus on the woman she had become. The little girl who left home with her tail tucked between her legs and her heart shattered into a million pieces was a thing of the past. In the world outside of the Falls, she had found acceptance. Luc was one of the best in her field. As a contract historian, she was known to get the job done, work well under pressure, and immerse herself seamlessly in new cultures.

  The feeling of never being more than her disability in her hometown still stung but was no longer relevant to her happiness. In her youth, the inability to shift into a wolf had overshadowed every accomplishment she had achieved. It sounded like a punch line, a shifter who could not shift. Not quite human but not a true member of her pack, Luc had never really fit in anywhere. The shamed existence of an immutable could only be topped by being feral, and even then the wolf in question was too mad to understand how ashamed the pack was before it was put down. Her people were not overly cruel, and other than the spiteful bullies her age, no one said anything to her face. Of course, when you had superhuman hearing, whispers traveled far.

  "LUC!" THE SOUND OF her name brought her head up, causing a smile as she spotted her little sister's head bouncing up and down as she waved like a maniac.

  Clad in a pair of form-fitting designer jeans, a crisp white button-down blouse with cream-colored heels, and sun-kissed mocha skin, Ivy Dryden was impossible to overlook. Her little sister was all grown up and stunning.

  "Ivy, you look fantastic!" Luc set her bags down, embracing her sister with a huge smile on her face.

  At 5'8", her sister was a few inches shorter with an athletic build born of a high school career of track and drill team.

  "So do you!" Ivy squealed. She eagerly grasped Luc's hands and moved them from her body as she gave her a quick once-over.

  "I am so glad you're finally here! I missed you, big sis."

  "I missed you too, Lil' bit. You know I wouldn't miss your wedding for the world, Iv."

  Luc’s brown eyes filled with tears as she used their familial link to convey her guilt over her long absence. Despite her handicap, Luc could communicate in the telepathic method of her people. Ivy issued a warm smile as she sent her waves of reassurance and told her forgiveness had never been needed. A weight lifted from Luc’s shoulder as she breathed a sigh of relief. Things had been set right, and now they could proceed as they always had.

  "What's on the agenda for tonight?" Luc asked. She drank in the scenery as they headed to the parking garage. Not much had changed since she had left, but her pack had always been steeped in tradition.

  "Dinner with Ash and his folks, nothing too taxing," she said as they walked to a shiny silver BMW convertible.

  "I see the position of Head Editor at the paper is making you cheddar," Luc said. A long whistle of admiration ensued.

  "It is, but this is one of Asher's."

  "One of the perks of marrying into the Hunter family I guess," Luc said teasingly as Ivy rolled her eyes tossing her bags into the trunk. Randall Hunter was their pack leader, and as his nephew, Asher was set for life.

  There had been a time when Luc too thought she would become a member of the Hunter brood. She was overjoyed her sister had found her mate, but Luc was not sure how she would deal with seeing Randall's son, Kalyx. He had been the love of her life and a fellow immutable until his sudden change at twenty-one had thrown her world into disarray and chaos. The loss of her confidante and longtime love had chased her from town, placing her in a dark place it had taken years to escape. She could let the whispers and stares roll off her back. But his presence was a blow she would never be ready to withstand. His title as the best man would be a true test of her character.

  "ALL RIGHT MAN, I NEED to head out to Ivy's place now, or I'll be late, and you know how Ivy is about stuff like that." Asher’s voice was full of exasperation, making Kalyx smile. With his wedding less than two weeks away, Asher had made Kalyx's home a sanctuary.

  "Family dinner again?" Kalyx asked as he spared a look of sympathy for the stress his favorite cousin was enduring.

  "Yeah...Luc flew in today," Asher admitted hesitantly.

  "I knew she'd be here soon. She's the maid of honor," Kalyx said. He wrapped his long fingers around the neck of his beer until it cracked in protest.

  The nervous glance he earned from Asher made his face flush with shame as he took a deep breath and struggled to rein in his temper. It was no secret Kalyx bordered on feral. The nasty by-product of shifting so late in life kept his family on edge.

  "Are you sure you can handle this, Kal?"

  "What's not to handle?" The sharp tone was undeserved, and Kalyx was careful to keep his too bright green eyes trained on the floor. He did not want Asher to see how upset he truly was. He would have to keep the aggression that flared without warning on a short leash while Luc was here because a feral wolf was a dead one.

  "You guys need to clear the air," Asher stated as he shrugged into his jacket.

  "Yeah."

  Luc Dryden had once been the reason his heart beat, and in one night everything had changed. The moment he first shifted, his parents isolated him, told her God knew what and began to groom him to take the throne. He owed her an explanation; that much he knew.

  BLACKBURN FALLS, 2007

  "Where's Luc?" he forced out of his badly bruised vocal chords as he turned his head to meet his mother's gaze. The change had blazed a path of fire through his body as his muscles had reformed and bones twisted into a shape and structure they had never been forced into before. The older the age of the shape shifter at their first change, the more pai
nful the process was. He had no real concept of how much time had passed since the pain had rendered him unconscious. But he was grateful for the oblivion it had provided. Each emergence from the dark came with snippets of lucid moments where his mother bathed his brow and soothed him with her voice and healing herbs burning in the background.

  It was now, with the pain at a manageable level, he realized he had yet to see Luc. Had she known about the shift, he had no doubt she would be glued to his side.

  "Where's Luc?"

  "Don't worry about her now, Kalyx, just rest."

  "Where is Lucy?" He pushed the words through gritted teeth. A low rumble resonated in his chest as his mother's eyes grew wide and the scent of fear assailed him.

  "Y-you need to stay calm."

  " Where is she?" His teeth pierced his bottom lip as he forced his body up into a sitting position and his temperature spiked in preparation for a shift. Tremors began as the newly unleashed beast inside him grew restless.

  "She is no longer a concern!" boomed the chilly voice of his father as he entered with Kalyx's younger brother Chase on his heels.

  "Vivian, leave us," he commanded.

  "Yes, Randall." His mother gave a curt nod and scrambled out of the chair and through the doorway.

  "You need to control that temper. Anger will trigger the change, and your body is not ready to handle it again this soon."

  "I d-don't understand. How did this happen?" he asked. A first shift this late in life was unheard of.

  "The doctors aren't sure of much, but tests are being run around the clock. Right now you're a danger to yourself and everyone around you if you fly off the handle," he chided. Kalyx looked down at the bedspread, ashamed. He had always been a disappointment to his father. Kalyx was a man with a mind of his own. It was something that had caused constant friction. When they discovered he was unable to shift, the discord between them changed to embarrassment. A royal was only as strong as his lineage, and as far as Randall Hunter had been concerned, Kalyx was the weak link in the chain. That he had dared embrace his condition and date the other immutable in their pack had pounded the final nail in his coffin.

  "How long have I been here?" he croaked. Kalyx was grateful when his brother brought him a cool glass of water to quench the desert in his mouth.

  "About a week. We got worried when you didn't show up for dinner on Sunday, and Chase found you unconscious on the floor in the bathroom. The smell of the pheromones that rolled off you announced you were in the first stages of the change."

  "Has anyone called Lucy? She must be worried to death by now."

  "Luc has been informed that she's no longer needed," his father said.

  "What!"

  "Everything has changed now, Kalyx. You have responsibilities and duties to fulfill, a whole new life that Luc Dryden cannot be a part of."

  "That's my decision to make," he whispered, voice deep and distorted by the voice box wavering between human and wolf.

  "I am your pack leader! And you will do as I say!" His father growled, using his own power to stop the shift threatening to overcome his son's body, the convulsions that struck rendered him limp as his weary body gave out.

  "You have a lot to learn and no time for distractions. Chase will help you shower and dress, and once you've rested, we will begin lessons." Randall stood and strode from the room without a second glance.

  Chase gave a sad shake of his head and said, "Don't make this harder on yourself than it needs to be, Lyx."

  "But what about Lucy?" he whispered. Tears welled up in his eyes as his heart shattered one piece at a time.

  "Trust me; she's better off with a clean break."

  His head felt like it was ready to explode and his body protested even the most minute movements, but all of this paled in comparison to the shape of his heart. He had planned to ask Luc to marry him next week on their anniversary. He had the ring picked out, the reservation at Damon's booked, and now none of that mattered.

  Pulled from the past by the click of the door signaling Asher's departure, Kalyx swallowed the bitter taste of regret. What he would do for another chance to make things right.

  BEING BACK WAS A DISARMING experience, but adding dinner with a high-school sweetheart's family was a mind fuck. It was like an episode of a sitcom as they sat around the table pretending they were merely casual acquaintances. Luc did her best to ignore their pity-filled glances, but the experience drained her energy. Two weeks of this would feel like an eternity.

  Later, in her bedroom, a glance in the mirror attached to the teak vanity made her wonder once again why she had been singled out. The pack believed things happened for a reason and a wolf’s path was predestined before birth. So what had she done to get the short straw? Her face was fair, oval-shaped and blemish-free. She could be called attractive. Her creamy peanut brittle-colored skin stretched over a supple body toned and sculpted by yoga and weights, and there was not a damn thing wrong with her brain.

  Less than twenty-four hours back in Blackburn Falls and Luc felt like a useless failure. She turned her face from the familiar image and began a mental pep talk.

  Just get through these weeks, and you can leave and not return for a very long time. This town is no longer home and other than family and memories, nothing holds you here. A timid knock sounded just before the sight of her sister's face accompanied the opened door.

  "Just checking to see how you were doing."

  "I'm fine, Iv," Luc said. A small smile on her lips as she patted the bed beside her and waved her into the room.

  "I know that was uncomfortable—"

  "No, I had to face his family sometime. It was such a long time ago; I doubt anyone thinks about it now."

  "So you don't?"

  "'Don't' what?"

  "Think about him anymore?" she asked. Ivy's eyes narrowed with the careful scrutiny of a trained reporter.

  "I try my best not to, but after the years we spent together it happens from time to time."

  "Maybe you're not the only one," she suggested.

  "Ivy!" The only way to get through this was to maintain the frigid facade she had carefully constructed over the years. It had taken power from others to hurt her.

  "After all this time, he's still alone, Luc. You think that's a coincidence?"

  "I don't care what it is."

  "Really?" Ivy crossed her arms over her chest and leaned in with a thousand-yard stare meant to make her tell the truth.

  "Yes, really."

  "Well then, I guess you don't care that Violet Winters has been sniffing around him like a bitch in heat, trailing his every step for the past year."

  "She's acceptable in his social circles. I'm sure plenty of people think they're a good match," she replied nonchalantly. At her very core, she fought back the bile threatening to travel a path up her throat.

  Violet had made their lives hell through school. The tiny bleach-blonde cheerleader had used every opportunity available to let the immutable know her place was at the very bottom of the pack.

  "We had to invite her to the engagement party we're having tomorrow night," Ivy confessed apologetically.

  "What?" The knowledge struck her like a punch to the gut and stole the air from her lungs.

  Ivy wrung her hands as she spoke. "I know there's a lot of bad blood between you two, but with her daddy being my boss, it was pretty much impossible to snub her. Maybe she won't even show up."

  "Yeah, maybe you're right," Luc replied. The last thing she wanted was her sister to feel bad. But she knew damn well there was no way Violet would miss a chance to rub their role reversal in her face, now that she was the one with Kalyx.

  Chapter Two

  "You got your head on straight?" Chase asked doubtfully as Kalyx paced from one end of the room to the other.

  "As ready as I'm ever going to get," Kalyx said.

  Luc's return had the potential to throw everything they worked for upside down. The persona his father had constructed with meticulous
detail stood balanced on his ability to perform well in public. His aggression issues had always been gossiped about behind closed doors, but he usually managed to keep it together for his brief stints at public events.

  "You need to keep it together, bro. Enough people question you as it is."

  "Don't tell me what I already know. Dad preaches to me on a near daily basis."

  Despite his miraculous transformation at twenty-one, he had yet to live up to his father's expectations. There was always something more he needed to be and responsibilities piled up on his door like snow in a blizzard.

  "Just keep your mind on what's important," Chase said with a pat on the back.

  I think our definitions of what's important differ, he thought as they made their way out to his black Dodge Charger and headed to the celebration.

  THE ENGAGEMENT PARTY was being held at the town hall, and Luc paused to admire the transformation from the interior's bland appearance. A pink and cream-colored wonderland fit for a princess replaced the sterile white decor. Ivy would be pleased. The bridal party made their way down to the hall ahead of Ivy and Asher to add a few much needed personal details. The linen-clothed table tops now held heart-shaped glass picture frames featuring Ivy's favorite shots from their engagement photos and pink-and-cream-colored, candy-covered chocolates adorned with their names.

  "All finished on this side," Luc called to the girls as they made their way out toward the front door to await the guests of honor.

  "This is gorgeous!" Ivy cried. She covered her mouth with a shaky hand as Asher stood behind her and beamed behind her. He was good for her.

  "Surprise!"

  The look on her face was payment enough as they all laughed and moved in to exchange hugs.

  "Did you know about this, Ash?" Ivy asked. She shook her head in wonder and moved around the tables.

  "I might have known," he replied, coming up behind her and wrapping an arm around her waist and guiding her over to the table of honor.