Page 25 of What a Wolf Wants
She laughed. “I meant your bullet wound.”
He smiled. “Oh, that. It’s still there, but it’s healing. Thanks for asking.”
Chapter 7
After breakfast, Ethan drove Charlene back to her house. Luckily, Ethan was wearing shoes that were perfect for hiking over the rocks in case she wanted to do that.
“You are dressed right to go adventuring,” she said, glancing at his weatherproof hiking boots and jeans.
“Yeah, just in case you wanted to hike or beachcomb after breakfast.”
“Well, good call.” She changed her shoes to hiking boots and brought a hiking pack with a first aid kit and a couple of bottles of water.
Ethan took the pack from her so that he could carry it. He had thought of wearing the right clothes but hadn’t thought of taking a backpack. It had been a while since he’d enjoyed a hike like this in his human form.
She led the way to the spot she had been checking out when he had called last night while on the drive there. He loved hearing the sound of the breaking waves on the rocky beach and seeing the tiny creatures in the tidal pools. He hadn’t done anything like this since he was a little kid. She started taking pictures of the sea creatures and he watched her for a moment while she crouched down, getting up close and personal.
“I’m going to print the ones I really like and hang them up in the house and at the rental homes. I wanted something that was my own creation and taken of the local area.”
“I like the idea. How are your rentals doing?” Ethan hoped they would be successful.
“I already have both of them rented out for the next six months. I’m thrilled. I suspect I’ll have lulls at times in renting them, especially if storms threaten the area. Um, no hurricanes though. The water is fifty to sixty-five degrees, too cold for hurricanes to really form. The cabins are newly refurbished and have always been single-family dwellings, though property was zoned for rentals. So it gives visitors to the area some new places to stay. They’re in great locations too, within walking distance of the beach, with forests to hike in, and close to places to eat. I was looking for the best locations for rentals, not realizing that I might have wolves renting them who would love the freedom to roam in the woods, or even on the beach at night as long as the tides aren’t in.”
He wondered if that was another reason for Charlene taking refuge on the West Coast: no hurricanes. Because of her family’s deaths, he completely understood her concern. “Yeah, you better believe Cassie and Leidolf will be watching your reservation days, and if they aren’t booked? They’ll encourage some members of the pack to come out there for a visit.”
“That’s amazing.”
“Yeah, they’re great. I don’t know how other wolf packs are run, but ours has really good leadership. They want to do everything they can for wolves in the pack and those who are in the area, even though you live so far away.”
“You too now,” she said, taking pictures of a starfish.
Hell, he had to remember Charlene thought he was living here permanently. “Yeah, right.”
“Well, I’m glad to be part of the pack.”
“Good, because you’ll have to come to the holiday celebrations. They’re lots of fun.”
“If we’re still speaking to each other by then, we can go together.”
He chuckled. “Sure. That would be perfect.” He had hoped he would be done with his mission well before the holidays, but he never knew how things would go. He’d had a lot of success with another mission like this five years ago. Within three days, he had found the culprits and had them put away.
His wolf doctor said he couldn’t work for at least a week, or he might raise suspicions about his bullet wound. It was still aching, and he knew the injury still had a few weeks to go before it was totally healed, though as a shifter he healed in half the time that humans did. He was lucky the bullet hadn’t hit a bone, or an artery. He had the doctor send the report to his boss, who was surprised it wasn’t that bad, considering how much Ethan’s wound had bled—according to witnesses he had spoken to.
Ethan got a call on his phone, and he pulled the phone out of his pocket. When he looked at the caller ID, he saw it was his boss. He glanced at Charlene. She was still taking pictures and moving to another tide pool.
He answered the call, “Yeah?” He was trying not to sound like the caller was his boss in front of Charlene when he was supposed to be retired.
“How are you doing?” Grainger asked.
“I’m doing well, considering.” Ethan hadn’t expected his boss to inquire about his health. Not that it wasn’t appreciated, but he’d had the doctor send the report to him.
“Kroner was released from jail based on a clerical error.”
Ethan’s heart practically gave out. “Shit.” He glanced at Charlene.
She looked back at him. She’d heard his comment and knew there was some kind of problem. But luckily, with the sound of the waves and the wind blowing in his direction, carrying his boss’s side of the conversation away from her, she couldn’t hear what was being said over the phone. If Ethan and Charlene had been together in her home and she was sitting nearby and listening, she could have heard the rest of the conversation because of their outstanding wolf’s hearing.
“Also, I just learned that Kroner’s cohort Oakley Osburn has a great-aunt living in Oyster Bay,” Grainger said.
