Little Red and the Wolf

“Dissin’ the boss, eh?” Maizie tsked. “No wonder he left the thing on.” She looked around, trying to locate the box, or maybe a speaker on the wall. Whatever. She slipped out of bed, carefully moving Gray’s arm from around her belly. Rag-doll limp, the man was dead to the world.

She reached over and brushed a thick wave of hair from over his eye. He turned his head and rubbed his face into her pillow, fluffed it, tucked his hand underneath, then stilled. Sexy and adorable.

“Whoof,” she said, smiling.

Maizie tiptoed into the bathroom and found her torn bloodied clothes where they’d left them last night. The shirt and sweats were garbage, but she could salvage the bra and panties.

“Miss Lynn and de others know?” the cook asked.

“No…er…I don’t think so,” Annette said.

Maizie padded back into the bedroom. She’d need clothes if she meant to go downstairs for some of that food. The smell of bacon was making her mouth water. Her stomach growled. She clamped a hand to her belly and went to the armoire.

“Dress shirts. Surprise.” All long sleeved, all linen, some with folded collars, some with short mandarin collars, but no two alike. “Decisions. Decisions.”

She snagged a plain white shirt, pleated, with a stylish wrinkled look and shoved her arms through the sleeves. “Very cool.”

She pulled the collar over her nose and inhaled. It smelled like flowery detergent, but underneath, woven into the fabric was the sweet, earthy smell of Gray. Odd that a washing hadn’t removed his scent completely. She’d suggest a better detergent. Or not, if she planned on wearing any more of his shirts.

A final deep whiff and she wandered around the room looking for the intercom while she buttoned. The shirt was big on her, brushing her mid-thigh, with sleeves an inch past her hands.

“Perfect fit.” Gray’s smooth voice made her jump. She spun to catch him lying back, propped on his elbows, watching her. He wore that same I’d-like-some-of-that look on his face from last night with a sexy lopsided grin to top it off.

Her cheeks warmed. She laughed. “You like it? I figure it’ll make up for the T-shirt you ruined last night.”

“Your T-shirt was already torn.”

“It covered the important parts.”

“And bloodied.”

“But still wearable in a pinch.”

“You said I could tear it. In fact, you enjoyed it.”

“Fine. You want me to take this off?”

He sat straight, eyes wide. “Yes.”

She laughed at his eagerness. “Later. I smell food. Aren’t you hungry?”

“Always.” He winked.

Maizie blushed again. The man could melt icebergs with those eyes and that voice. “Good. Me too. I think your intercom’s broken, though. I could hear people in the kitchen but I don’t think they can hear me. Where’s the speaker?”

“No speaker.” Gray reached for the phone next to the bed and held it for her to see. “Through the phones.”

Maizie blinked at the receiver in his hand. “But I heard Annette and Greta.”

“My cook.”

“Whatever. I’ve never met her, but I know her name. Why? Because I heard them talking. How did I hear them talking if there’s no speaker? I can smell that bacon like it’s in the room…and the eggs and toast. She’s squeezing oranges right now.” There was a reasonable explanation. There had to be. But something about saying it all aloud made her heart race, her words rush, as the realization sank in.

“Okay. Let’s talk.” Gray put away the phone then held a hand out to her. “Come here. I want to explain-”

“Can we just forget about that for now? I already know. That’s why I came.” Maizie waved the gesture away from the end of the bed. Did he think she was joking? She was hearing through walls, through floors. Now was not the time to discuss a theft he committed twenty-one years ago.

Gray’s hand dropped. He blinked. “You know?”

Ugh. Did he really think Granny wouldn’t have told her about the locket? About him being at the accident? What else could put that guilty glint in his eyes, the soft regret in his voice?

“You may be friends with Granny, but I’m blood,” she said. “I know about the locket. Okay? I’m not pissed. I’m not happy you stole it, or that you waited twenty-one years to give it back. But I’m not pissed. Okay, maybe a little. But that’s not what made me come here last night.”

“Then what?” Gray sat with one knee bent on the bed and the other dangling over the edge, covers at his waist.

“What? What made me come here? I…had some questions. About the accident. About that night.”

He shrugged, his face darkening with his sobering mood. “So ask. I’ve got nothing to hide.”

Was that attitude? He was giving her attitude, now? “No?”

“No. I’m not a thief…Little Red.” He made the nickname sound like an insult.

She matched his scowl. “Don’t call me that.”

Gray shook his head, threw back the covers and stormed past her to the bathroom. His beautiful body, tan and muscled. “You’re a child. Their child.”

He returned, wearing a gray silk robe, the lapels and sash a lighter shade. “Next time you come to a man’s house accusing him, get your damn facts straight.”

She propped her hands on her hips. “Correct me if I’m wrong, but didn’t you give Granny my mother’s locket yesterday? A locket you found at the site of their fatal accident? A locket you’ve kept for twenty-one years?”

He turned on her. The movement so fast she dropped her arms, losing the cocky stance. “Yes. I found the fucking locket at the scene of an accident. My wife’s fatal accident.”

“What?” She couldn’t breathe. “Fatal? But I thought she just moved away.”

“No.” Gray straightened and seemed to reel in some of his anger. “She’s the reason I was there. I didn’t give a damn about your parents. They’d killed her. Mowed her down like a…a…” He made a frustrated growl and turned, walking to the turret windows off the sitting room.

“What are you talking about? We didn’t hit anyone. We hit a wolf.” Her own words sent a shiver down her spine, made Gray’s shoulders tense as he stared out the windows. She knew, but she didn’t want to.

Memories flooded back. “We were driving to pick up Granny. My parents were happy but…I wasn’t. I didn’t want to leave my forest.”

“My forest,” Gray said.

Maizie barely heard. “Daddy had just gotten a promotion. We’d be moving…”

Gray knotted his arms over his chest. “They were trespassing in our forest. Mine and Donna’s.”

“It was dark and raining. We took the shortcut.”

“They were driving too fast,” Gray said.

“The wolf, it jumped out of nowhere.”

“She had every right to run in her woods.”

“My parents couldn’t stop. They tried…”

“Not hard enough.”

“Daddy jerked the wheel. We went over the side. Mommy was screaming, Daddy too. And then those eyes, cold green, heartless eyes…” Her gaze focused on Gray’s back. “The wolf. The wolf that caused my parents’ death. It was your wife. Your wife was a wolf. A werewolf.”

His voice was soft and cold. “And I’ve gone and mated with her killer’s child.”

“But there’s no such thing as-”

Gray turned, anger etching his expression. “As what? A werewolf? Stop lying to yourself, Maizie. You’ve been doing it long enough. What do you think attacked you last night? What do you think I am?”

She flinched. He was so angry. No. It wasn’t anger glistening in his eyes, it was guilt…and blame. “Ohmygod,