Authors: Dahlia Rose
* * * *
Light poured through the
open slot of the curtains covering the large picture window
and
Dominic
turned
his head slowly and instantly inhaled the femini
ne scent of Tempest.
The night came back to him and he smiled. It was the first night he really slept and didn’t wake up at three in the morning to roam the house restlessly. The smell of her
lingered on
the sheets
. H
e looked over and she and Alex
were
already
up
. The smell of coffee and bacon filtered through the air.
And h
ot cakes?
He sat up with a grin
,
knowing full well that Alex didn’t know how to make anything unless it was meat on a grill. Tempest had to be cooking in the kitchen. He climbed out of bed and
went to the window, pulling the curtains aside
. The sky was still thick with heavy cloud
s
and rain
was still coming
down in a
steady stream. If it kept up
,
the bayou would swell its banks and there would be flooding. It would’ve been a worry if they didn’t install culverts around the property for water drainage when they bought the old plantation.
Dom
inic didn’t even look for socks. H
e went into the
master
bathroom to clean up and
slip
on a pair of sweat pant
s
. H
e
pulled a shirt from a drawer in his bedroom and then decided against it.
B
oth h
e
and Alex rarely wore shirts. Half the time
,
clothes felt
confining and
it just being the two of them
, there really was no need to cover up
. T
hey could do whatever they wanted. If Tempest was meant to be
here
, looking at their bare torsos wouldn’t be a problem.
We’ll
call it a first test,
he thought with a small smile and headed downstairs.
It seemed she passed with flying colors because Alex
w
as already sitting at the table
, bare
-
chested,
wolfing down a stack of hotcakes. Satisfaction was written all over his face. Tempest turned
from the stove,
a smile
on her face
. In her hand she
held
a plate with bacon draining on paper towels.
“Good
m
orning,” Tempest greet
ed
him.
“It seems like you’ve been busy,” Dominic commented.
“I like to cook and Alex said you
boys
usually had cereal,
” Tempest replied. “Since I prefer a full breakfast at home, I made enough for three.”
“Or an army
.
” Dominic sat down.
“Don’t knock it
,
man
. T
hese are awesome,” Alex said and cut into
his
stack again.
“At least you
two are
not squabbling,” Dominic said ru
efully.
Tempest pulled
out
a cha
i
r and
sat down before sliding a plate piled high with food towards him. “We’re getting to know each other
. N
ow eat your breakfast.”
“
Yes
,
ma’am.”
Dominic
gave a mock salute
as Tempest turned to get her own plate.
The
y
ate
in
silence for a
while
, but
to Dominic it wasn’t uncomfortable in the least. It felt homey like they had done it many times over the years instead of just actually meeting last night.
“So how did two lone wolves become
a
pack?” Tempest asked. She snagged a slice of bacon from
her
plate and bit into it
,
watching them both. She had pulled her hair back into a ponytail and her face looked fresh and clean. Tempest was the kind
of woman
that didn’t need
makeup
. Her natural beauty shined through.
Her cheeks always had a soft glow to them and her lips were a creamy red.
“You field this question,” Alex said
to Dominic
.
“I will
; d
on’t let me interrupt your meal
.
” Dominic rolled his eyes.
Alex pointed his fork at him. “
Y
ou can make mac and cheese or put a frozen meal in the ove
n
. I roast meat on the grill and heat up potatoes in a bag and vegetables from a can.
For the last year we’ve been eating like kids in a lunch room.
I’m going to enjoy this, so bite me.”
“We burn fuel quickly,” Dominic explained
,
“
so we eat a lot of carbs and we met because we had no one else.”
“How so?” Tempest asked.
“We b
oth
grew up
in foster care,
though
I was two towns over from where Alex grew up.
”
Dominic let the memories take him while he spoke. “I was in high school
when I learned
what I was. I was pretty good at sneaking out of the group home to go run in the woods of Tennessee
—where we are originally from
. One night while I was in my wolf
form
I saw this black wolf and
we began to run together. We each thought we
were running with a real wolf unti
l he shifted to pet me and said
,
‘
T
hanks
,
wolf
,
I hate running alone.
’
When I shifted
and surprised him,
he cussed and next thing we knew
,
we were laughing like crazy people. For the first time
,
we
felt relief
in what we were and that
we were not alone
. F
rom th
at point
on
,
we
have been
best friends and inseparable.
”
“What happened then?” Tempest leaned forward on her elbows
, her plate now mostly empty.
“We ran away and joined the army together, served together, went to Iraq together and when our time was up
,
left together.” Dominic answered.
“
Bought this place and renovate
d
it.”
“
Haven’t you ever wondered about your family or if you have a pack somewhere in Tennessee?”
s
he questioned.
“We’ve looked into packs
. A
ctually found one or two
, but
it
’
s not for us
.
” Alex spoke up this time. “I’m not about
to
be led around by the nose by some guy who was born
to be
A
lpha by blood
. If he says cop a squat and lift my leg
,
I
would
have to do it. Nor do I want to challenge anyone for the
A
lpha seat an
d
spend the rest of my life ripping into someone to prove my balls are bigger.
I don’t want to be challenged by anyone
for anything to gain
a rung in the
hierarchy
ladder. We fought enough overseas and for the military. We just want to live in peace.
”
“What he said.” Dominic too
k a
nother
bite of the breakfast she p
re
pare
d and the flavors of
warm butter and
maple syrup filled his mouth. He closed his eyes and moaned. “Ok
ay,
I can eat this
for breakfast
,
lunch and dinner. Is there apple bit in these?”
“My m
omma
’s secret recipe
.
” Tempest winked.
“
It
’
s still raining cats and dogs out there,” Alex commented. “
But
I think I can get you home in the Land Rover.”
“Great
.
I need a couple of things, including my clothes.
” Both men looked at her and Tempest frowned. “You thought after what I told you last night I
was just going to go home and twiddle my thumbs?”
Dominic cleared his throat. “Honestly
,
we had no clue what would go on today. I half expected that you would be gone when we woke up.”
“Well
,
I’m not
,
and you’re eating my breakfast to prove it.” Tempest
ga
ve them both a long stare.
“This weather
is
sticking around and today is Friday
which starts the weekend. I’m going to grab some stuff and hang out here for the weekend. I don’t think any of us are going to be h
eading into town for the Saturday night
stomp at
Wallows
.”
Wallows
was a hole
-
in
-
the
-
wall bar that graced Cormina. It had bad food,
bad
service and it was a place where the usual low class hook up took place on the weekends.
“I’ve been in that place once and some
large
-
chested redhead tried to hit on me at the bar. Then her really drunk boyfriend with a
U
nion
J
ack tattoo
on his arm tried to
pick a fight
,” Alex said.
“That would be Lorna-Sue Middleton and Bubba Ross, high school sweethearts
who
just happen to be
my age,” Tempest explained with a laugh.
“If she’s your age, time has waged a hard war on her and won,” Alex laughed. “They are actually named Lorna-Sue and Bubba?”
“Yes and they were
the
bane
of my existence
in high school
.
I ended up leaving and getting my GED and heading off to college to get
away from them,” she said.
“H
e was one of the ones who tried to
—
”
“Rape you in the woods?” Dominic growled.
She nodded.
“
That sealed the deal for me to head off to
college in Atlanta.
Then my m
om
ma got sick and I came back. My dad passed soon after she did and I refused to let them run me awa
y again
,
so I
dug
my heels in.
”
Dominic looked down at his pla
t
e and ate
what was left
quietly. W
hile Alex usually went off half-
cocked in anger, he
was also quiet and seemed to be
contemplat
ing something
.
There would be a reckoning for Bubba since no one in Cormina seemed to think Tempest deserved justice. He would make damn sure
of that
. Already
,
he felt
a
protective instinct towards her
—
a wolf’s instinct to
care for and shelter
his
mate.