Forgotten Wolf

5 Restless Dreams

A good night's sleep eludes me most nights. Last night is no exception. I can't even remember my dreams, only snippets. Swimming and laughing with Jace one minute, then the next it's Chris in his place, holding my wrist, keeping me from swimming away. No matter how hard I try to get away he's always there, staring at me with those hard hazel eyes. Morning leaves me more exhausted than when I went to bed.

The day goes smooth enough, but by mid-afternoon, I'm fading fast. I take a seat on the back porch for a break and sometime later wake up to the sound of Jude's truck pulling up. I blink away the sleep in my eyes as he walks over, not being able to remember falling asleep.

"Did you forget?" He asks, the concern clear in his eyes as he takes me in. "You okay?"

"Shit. Sorry, Jude, I slept like crap last night and sat down for a break and must have nodded off. I'm really sorry."

"Relax, we don't have a reservation or anything, so no rush. Are you sure you're still up to going though?" He purses his lips as he studies me, warning how rough I must look.

"Yeah, I'm fine, but I need a quick shower first." I pass him a beer and head into the shower. In record time I get ready, throwing on dark skinny jeans and a blue, flowy tank top, minimal makeup, and put my long brown hair in a side braid.

I walk out and am greeted by a smiling Jude. He cleans up well. His dirty blond hair is slicked back and the dark button-up shirt makes his blue eyes pop. The shirt is form-fitting and shows off his muscular physique nicely, while his blue jeans make it casual.

"You clean up well," I say, cocking a brow.

"You don't look too bad yourself," he says, smiling. "So where to?"

"Bubby's is on the west side. Does that work for you?" He nods as we walk to his black Dodge truck. I'm surprised when he opens the passenger door for me. I blush and get in as he carefully shuts the door before walking around to the driver's side and getting in.

The truck roars to life, and he pulls out onto the main road, following my directions. Bubby's Burger has that classic burger joint meets roadhouse feel with deep booths lining the walls and tables in the middle. Crushed peanut shells litter the floor as people mill about, watching sports on tv while drinking with friends.

We decide on a booth, place our order, and get a couple of drinks while we wait. Before long the biggest bacon cheeseburger and mountain of fries are set down in front of Jude, and a bacon, bbq chicken burger and onion rings are set down for me.

"Holy crap, you weren't kidding," he says, gawking at the mountain of food.

"That's a normal burger. If you think that's big, don't get the Big Bubba. That's like a fast breaker burger," I laugh. "Onion rings?" I slide my plate over, letting him grab a couple as I grab a few fries.

He picks up his burger with both hands and takes a messy bite. "So good," he groans in delight. "This may be my favourite new place!"

"Yeah, I don't go out much but when I do, this is my go to." I toss a couple fries in my mouth to keep from laughing at his enthusiasm.

He nods in agreement as he chows down on his burger.

"So, how was your delivery yesterday?" He asks between bites. I cringe, flashing back to yesterday's encounter, and he notices. "That good, eh?"

"Well, it started off fine. The day went smooth, so it was my last stop and my day would be done like mid-afternoon. So Jace offered to show me around. We had a good afternoon, but when I was getting ready to leave, Chris came out of nowhere and was an ass." I look up to see Jude furrowing his brows with a frown on his face.