Huntress

Chapter 16

When Cassey asked if I could cover her shift at the café almost two weeks later, I knew I should have turned her down. I had too much to do and this was not how I needed to be spending my time. But the fluttering warmth hadn't left my belly and I felt like I couldn't deny anyone anything at this point. So, I scrubbed the floors and stocked pastries with my head completely in the clouds. A few of the regulars even commented on my positive mood.

My dating history was not extensive beyond high school. I had tried and failed to keep a handful of relationships afloat after my parents got sick, but my caginess and their inability to understand made things fall apart. Still, even with my limited history, I knew this was good. Very good.

A couple days ago, Ryder and I had gone on a date to a newly released block-buster movie. It felt so normal to sit in the dark with his thigh pressed against mine, one drink and one bag of popcorn between us. When a jump scare occurred, I flailed like some desperate damsel, finding myself clutching Ryder's arm, barely biting back a shriek. After I apologized in rushed whispers, he had just laughed and eased his mouth against mine. First kisses shouldn't have mattered much anymore. I wasn't a kid with distorted ideas of love, searching for a prince with a glass slipper in his hand. But kissing him had been something different, something I couldn't even put into words. One hadn't been enough. I had almost followed him when he pulled back.

Just a taste. That was all I had been given. And I felt like I was addicted. The idea of kissing him filled my mind when I should have been focused on literally anything else.

The following days I had barely been bothered by a hurricane. I returned to scout out new route to the royals, I had trained relentlessly with Milo until we found the perfect combination. Each time my muscles screamed at me or I felt exhaustion creeping into my bones, I thought of Ryder. How he had accidentally sung along to a punk song and blushed crazily when he realized. How we both admitted to loving terrible movies, especially with poorly dreamt up demons. Or the kiss that would not leave my mind.

At least, not until a massive man walked up to my counter.

"Hey, one second, I'll be right with you," I called over my shoulder, placing the clean coffee cups on the counter.

When I spun to face him, I realized just how huge this guy really was. I had to crane my neck to look up at him. I was average height for a woman, if not then a little on the tall side. He towered over me like I was a dandelion among a spruce tree. The tee shirt would have been baggy on most fit men, but it was tight to his body, hugging his biceps and his pecs.

I subconsciously took a step back.

"What can I get you?" I forced out.

The man grinned, his teeth gleaming at me. but I was studying his eyes. They were so red, as if he had spent the previous hour rubbing them. Was he on drugs? Drunk? I couldn't smell anything on him and the rest of him appeared normal. Too large, but normal.

"A flat white, please," he answered. He had one of the lowest voices I had ever heard.

"To stay or to go?"

"To go, please."

I had a job to do. I knew that. He was just a customer and if he wanted to pump his body full of steroids, that was not my problem. Even so, my body felt tight as I turned my back to him. Vulnerable. Th hair on my arms raised as I prepped his drink. I should have been in my element. This was my home as much as my house was. But I just strained to hear something, anything from behind me.

But as I spun around to give him his drink, he was texting away on his phone, only offering me a smile when I set the drink down. His fingers closed around mine as he grabbed it. his warm touch startled me, as if I expected his fingers to be ice cold. My gaze snapped up, only to find him already watching me. the bloodshot eyes flickered once over my features before his grin returned and he pulled away.

"Sorry, my bad," he murmured, stepping back.

I gave him a tense smile and all but ran to begin prepping sandwiches.

A couple hours later, I gave another werewolf hunter the reins, but my day was not finished. I parked the old Subaru outside of Dawn and Armond's home, feeling the warmth and tenderness from my date finally drift away. And the feeling only got worse when I entered the little compound, finding both of them waiting for me.

"Oh, you smell like cinnamon buns," Dawn sighed as she hugged me tight.

Armond didn't even bother to rise from his chair in greeting or so much as nod his head. I settled myself down on a nearby chair, hearing it groan under my weight.

"You've lost weight," Armond commented.

And I had. I had never been the kind of girl who looked like women in magazines. But even less so now. There were no soft, subtle curves. I was rigid muscle. I no longer represented what was traditionally accepted as femininity. I was an athlete. A powerhouse.

"I've been running and lifting," I said flatly. Which wasn't a lie. But certainly not the whole truth either. I didn't know how they would react if they found out I was still seeing Milo.

"Good, good," he muttered to himself. "Your body is going to have to be strong. Once you get on their land, you'll stay there until the task is done. We have limited intel on them. We don't know their movements. But we can't risk getting you in and out more than once. Cassey is going to be waiting in a car on the trunk road for you."

"I didn't realize we were so far into planning," I said, gnawing on a piece of celery.

"We move on Wednesday," Armond stated.

"Wednesday," I repeated. The gears in my brain were slow to catch on. "Like in two days, Wednesday?"

"Yes. The team has been notified to pack up their belongings so that we can move on. A new owner for the café is going to open it on Friday."

Just like that. My entire life was being uprooted. I had known this was coming and I had been doing was obsessing over a man. "But—"

"We will make sure your parents are taken care of, here or there. We'll tell you all where we are going on Thursday, but it might be best if you pack your stuff now. We don't want one of them figuring out where you live and waiting for you or something similar. You just focus on what you have to do. You aren't going to be more ready than you already are, Huntress. This is what you were born for."

~~~Distraction Section~~~

Hello everybody!

I am doing one update per day until June 30th on this book and on Burn Out to celebrate an upcoming announcement! Stay tuned for more updates and all the excitement!

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