Bruce turned to him, his expression curious, which on the usually grumpy guy was akin to a grin. “What happened seven weeks ago?”
“I became a werewolf.”
Bruce looked at him a moment, his expression shifting to surprise. “So you’re new. I didn’t know.” And then he leaned back on the bench. “Cool.”
What did that mean? “I’m still fully capable of training you,” he said, mentally praying it was true.
Bruce turned to him with a frown. “I’m not doubting you,” he said. “I actually like that you’re new. It makes you less indoctrinated.”
Laddin stiffened. “We’re not a cult. There is no indoctrination. We’re—”
“Werewolves. Yeah. I got that.”
His words sounded agreeable enough, but Laddin could tell Bruce was still skeptical. And truthfully, he had a point. Wulf, Inc. had all the benchmarks of cult—isolation from others, a charismatic leader, and an enforced period of captivity at the beginning while new wolves learned to control themselves. But there was a major difference. “We’re allowed to leave,” he said. “I’m quitting the moment I get the moon madness under control.”
Bruce straightened in surprise. “Really? Do they know that?”
“I’ve told Captain M. If it wasn’t for the disaster at the lake, we’d all be moving on one way or another. Once you prove you’ve got your wolf nature under control, everybody chooses what they want. I want to go back to LA and my family.”
Bruce arched a brow. “Family? You got a wife and kids?”
Laddin snorted. “No wife—I’m gay. No kids either.” Then he held his breath as he slanted a look at Bruce. Being gay in Hollywood was no big deal, but Bruce was from Indiana. Who knew what he’d think? The last thing Laddin wanted was to add homophobia to their dynamic.
But far from being weirded out, Bruce actually seemed to relax. “What about a boyfriend?”
“I wish. I’ve been working 24/7 on Bing’s movie.” He exhaled in relief. It was nice here, talking casually to Bruce. “Bing’s a werewolf too. He got turned the same day I did. You’ll meet him eventually. He’s a TV star in China, an incredible martial artist, and has freaky mind control powers.”
“He the one who put me to sleep?”
“Yeah, probably. He got turned into a werewolf on the same day I did. That means his movie is kaput now, so I’m out of a job.” He was sad about that. Working as Bing’s DP had been a step up for him. But there would be other jobs. “All I’ve got is a meddlesome mother and grandmother, but they’re important to me. I’m not cutting them out of my life.”
“Good for you.” Bruce flashed him a smile. It was a relaxed look, and suddenly Laddin’s insides went liquid. The firefighter wasn’t just ripped, he was ruggedly handsome when he smiled. He’d never make it as a movie star, but when the skin around his eyes crinkled and his teeth flashed white, Laddin couldn’t help but see all that potential beauty. Assuming he stayed away from the grumpy side of life.
“But I’ve got to get control of the moon madness first. Then everything can go back to normal.” After he finished training Bruce, that is, and after they caught the demon and saved Wisconsin.
It was quite the to-do list, but Laddin had faith that someone would figure it out. His job was to take care of Bruce, and that meant getting the man to relax. So he stretched out his legs before him while they both sat quietly staring at the tilled field—pastoral beauty at its finest. Laddin knew he would get really bored soon, but at the moment he was content to let his gaze meander over the field.
Then something caught his eye, and he squinted. There it was again! Off in the distance, a yellowy-orange puff of something exploded. Laddin frowned. He couldn’t have seen that right. But then another one went off.
“Did you see that?” Laddin asked.
“Hmm?” Bruce murmured.
“Over there.” He pointed and looked back at his trainee. Bruce wasn’t looking. He didn’t even have his eyes open. Then Bruce let out a big yawn and slouched even deeper against the backrest.
Yup. Bruce was exhausted, and Laddin wasn’t going to wake him because he was seeing things out in this freezing wasteland. So he settled back against the bench, unable to resist sinking into Bruce’s hot side. And he was hot, not just temperature-wise, but in every sexy inch of the grumpy bear.
Laddin had no idea why that was so attractive to him, but something about getting a crabby man to smile was a major turn-on for him. Especially when the sourpuss was a good guy underneath. He believed that Bruce wanted to look out for his younger brother and was trying to make amends for whatever had happened when they were kids. He also saw that being a first responder was something burned into the core of his being, so that made Bruce extra appealing. But what really made Laddin’s dick sit up and take notice was the easy way they spoke to each other. Bruce wasn’t awkward with him and didn’t stare at his hand. Those were small things, but they added up to a huge win for Laddin.
And yes, there were obviously deep things going on in that grumpy head of his, but Bruce didn’t take it out on anyone else. He growled when he was annoyed, was silent when he wasn’t, and then bantered back when he felt safe. He was easy to understand, easy to navigate. And fun, fun, fun to make smile.
Bruce’s jaw had gone slack, and his head dropped sideways onto Laddin’s shoulder. It was a comfortable weight, and Laddin enjoyed the feeling of supporting him. He never got to cuddle with
