Page 1 of Spellbound & Speechless
Chapter 1
Mac
Why doesmy wolf always lead me to places like this? The motel is a total shit hole. It isn’t theworstI’ve been in, but it isn’t the greatest. The only other option in town is a bed and breakfast, which I plan to avoid for as long as possible.
Way too kitschy for my taste.
Smoking is one of the few things that soothes my wolf. A fuck can do the job, too, but most days… I’ll take this. This is better than pulling someone else into the gutter I’m stuck in.
Smoke curls from my lips along with a sigh. I hold the cigarette between my fingers, staring into the gray morning.
“Can I bum one?” A melodic voice comes from nearby.
My wolf perks its ears, and I turn my head.
A tall, blonde stranger grabs my attention in a chokehold. Her hair flows down her waist in perfect curls, and her eyes are the calm of a lake, steely despite the sparkle of mirth in her smile. She looks out of place here. Her pink dress, which skims just over her thighs, doesn’t have a single wrinkle. Her hair looks like it has never seen a flyaway.
Locking eyes with her catapults meinto another dimension. The beast in my chest relaxes, but I can’t put my guard down. If my wolf reacts to her like a puppy curling up on someone’s lap, there’s a reason.
I don’t trust it.
“You smoke?” Somehow, I doubt it.
“Never. Is that so obvious?” The corner of her lip ticks up.
I snort. “Yeah. It is.”
“I was thinking of taking it up.”
She doesn’t need to be tainted. This stranger, whoever she is, should stay sweet and soft. I won’t be the one to change that. I take a slow, selfish drag of the cigarette. I’m not sharing.
“Well,” I drawl, “I don’t recommend it.”
“Then why are you doing it? Hm?”
“Because it’s better than the alternative.”
“Perhaps it’s better than my alternative, too.” She wiggles her fingers. “Come on. I thought sharing was some kind of smoker’s creed.”
“You thought wrong.” I take a long drag and drop the butt, crushing it under my heel. “Besides, that’s my last one. Sorry.”
It’s a lie, and she can probably see right through it, but I don’t care. I have bigger things to worry about than whatever her game is.
Her steely eyes narrow. “You’re not from around here, are you?”
“Nope.” I look her up and down. “And I’m willing to bet you aren’t, either.”
She’s better dressed than anyone I’ve seen in Starbrook.
“That would be a poor bet.” She clicks her tongue. “You’re willing to lose your money on this bet, but unwilling to tell me whereyou’refrom?”
I bend down to pick up the cigarette butt. It sits between my thumb and index finger, precarious, and I fight off the feeling that I’m also resting between two things. A decision. A timeline. Anything I tell her about me can push me in a new direction—one I may not want to go in.
“Washington state,” I say.
“The other side of the country?” She lifts a brow. “How did you find yourself in Starbrook?”
“I could ask the same of you.”
