Wanted By a Wolf

3

Troy couldn't take his eyes off Annette. His wolf came to life for the first time in two years. His mate was standing in front of him. However, she did not look pleased to be there at the moment.

"Nice to meet you, ladies. Are you ready to play corn hole?" Peter's voice pulled Troy out of his thoughts.

"Yes. Um, how do we want to spit up? Boys versus girls to start?" Troy suggested he did not want to be next to Annette at the moment. His wolf was going to embarrass both of them.

"Yes, that sounds good. Alexis, you stay here with Troy, and I will go with Peter." Annette walked to the other corn hole target and picked up the red bags. Peter shrugged and followed, picking up the blue ones. Troy took a deep, cleansing breath to clear his head.

"You like my friend," Alexis murmured while picking up her bags. Troy almost dropped the bags he'd picked up.

"What makes you say that?"

"Your wolf is rumbling in your chest. I can tell. I'm a rabbit shifter, so we are attuned to the surrounding predators."

"I'm defective. I don't have a mate," he lied, then plastered a fake smile. Alexis shook her head and focused on the game.

"Ladies first," Peter said, motioning to Annette to start. Annette sent the first bag flying. It landed with a thud right by the hole. She did that three more times, dropping two in. The look of determination on her face stole his focus. Troy raised an eyebrow, impressed. On Peter's turn, he sent his bean bag flying, and it dropped in the hole.

"Yes!" He sent his other three all dropping into the hole. Troy let Alexis throw her bags first. All of them went wide. Peter had to duck out of the way of one. Troy did his best not to laugh at her. Annette didn't hold back. She let out a loud laugh. His wolf settled, hearing their mate's laughter. Not this time, buddy. If you won't work with me, no, mate. His wolf growled at him.

"Yo! Troy, focus!" Peter yelled, drawing him back to the game. He lobbed his first bag, missing epically. Annette snorted, covering her mouth with a delicate hand. Troy frowned and tried harder. This time, his bag hit the board with a thunk. He threw another, and it landed closer to the hole. The rhythm of the game was coming back to him.

"Bit rusty. I haven't played in a while."

"Better than me. I've never been good at lawn games. You should see me play horseshoes. I almost took out my brother-in-law once." Troy winced, thinking about a horseshoe coming at his head.

"Are you dangerous doing anything else?"

"Sometimes I can be a clutz. Annette can attest to some of my clumsy moments," Alexis said as Annette geared up to throw again. Troy watched her through the game, admiring her body. She was curvier than other shifters. He loved it when she took her stance. The tattoo on her thigh showed more to reveal an anime character. The hem of her dress still obscured the face. He enjoyed watching anime. Recently, he began rewatching My Hero Academia. He had a Todoroki-inspired tattoo on his left shoulder. The game ended with Peter and Troy winning. They played two more games, changing up the partnerships. He played the worst when Annette stood beside him and partnered up with Peter. Peter laughed the entire round, shaking his head.

"You were better with Alexis next to you," Annette said with a chuckle.

"Hard to focus when a pretty woman is next to me," Troy replied with a shrug. He didn't want a mate, but that did not mean he needed to be rude to her.

"Thank you." Annette bobbed her head in thanks and drank out of her water bottle. Troy watched as she swallowed. With her head back, he saw the elegant line of her neck. Her creamy skin shone in the sunlight. As he watched, he understood why people thought it was sexy to watch a woman drink from a bottle.

"So, where are you and Alexis from?" he asked as they walked away from the cornhole game.

"White Valley." Troy raised an eyebrow and took Annette in again. He had never seen her around town. Not that White Valley was small, and he knew everyone. It just occurred to him that he'd been living in the same town as his mate, and it took him an hour to drive to find her. Stop thinking about her as your mate! You are defective. No one will want a shifter whose wolf is lame.

"No kidding. Peter and I live there too," he said, reaching into a cooler and pulling out water from himself and another one for her. He noticed she hadn't had any alcohol as they played. Her friend went through three hard seltzers, and Peter drank four beers.

"Really? What do you do for a living?" They took two camp chairs around a banked fire pit for the day.

"I used to do bodyguard work. Now, I manage the scheduling part of the business with Marcus Zephyr." She nodded and took a sip of her drink.

"I know Zephyr Protection Inc. Their business front is not far from my job."

"What do you do?"

"I am a masseuse. I am also a licensed massage therapist. I work two days a week at Bionic Physical Therapy." Troy cocked his head to the side. That was where he had done his physical therapy after his injury. He was cleared about a year ago from physical therapy.

"This is crazy. You work down the street from me. I went to Bionic for physical therapy last year. How have we never met?"

"I don't go out. Alexis pushes me out into the world. If I had it my way, I would be curled up in bed watching anime or reading manga. I like my solitude." Troy nodded his agreement. Ever since his injury, he preferred a night at home playing video games or watching TV.

"What anime do you like? I am currently on my third run of My Hero Academia." Her eyebrows shot up into her bangs.

"I never would have pegged you as an anime watcher. I am currently watching My Spy Family, but my all-time favorite is Sailor Moon. She was the reason I got into anime. I own all the manga and seasons. They are my comfort show and books." Troy could not believe his ears. She was perfect. Fuck!