Page 34 of Falling for the Werewolf
Chapter 11 – A Ray of Hope
“So, you’re leaving, huh?” Tiny leaned his huge arms against the counter, his dark eyes boring deeply into hers.
The nickname was an oxymoron. The diner’s cook/owner was huge and built like a professional linebacker for the NFL.
It was three a.m., and the diner was empty except for the two of them.
“Yeah. It’s time.” Dani had been giving it a lot of thought, weighing her options. It hadn’t been an easy decision, not by any means, but after what had happened at Jace’s, she thought it best to go away for a little while, if not permanently.
Tiny continued to stare.
“Don’t look at me like that,” Dani squirmed, self-consciously smoothing the front of her uniform.
“You’re leaving me high and dry why, exactly?”
“You’ll find someone easy enough,” Dani said, avoiding his question.
“Want me to kill him for you?” Tiny asked casually, as if he were asking her if she wanted toast with her omelet, the ever-present toothpick in his mouth shifting.
Rumor had it that Tiny had been in some sort of special forces unit before he bought the diner two years ago. At six-five and two hundred and fifty pounds of solid muscle, he was scary enough. But his eyes were even scarier. Strangely, though, Dani had never felt afraid of him. Maybe that was why she was one of the only people he talked to on a regular basis. He only appeared at night, and usually stayed in the back, letting others work directly with the customers.
She smiled and shook her head. “It’s not just him,” she told him, receiving a snort in response. “No, really. The district rejected my applications.”
“So? Apply somewhere else.”
“I did. To every school within an hour’s commute. Same thing.AndI lost my part-time position at the senior center.”
“You still have a job here,” he pointed out. “I can give you extra hours.”
“This was only supposed to be a temporary thing until I got a full-time job,” she reminded him.
Her degree was in Education. Good teaching jobs were hard to come by under normal circumstances, and she had been adamant about not being a total mooch on her aunt while she looked for a position, which was why she had picked up the night shift at the diner. It was now clear, however, that there was more to that stack of rejections than bad luck or poor timing.
Amanda wanted Dani out of the picture, and her family’s reach was long enough to ensure that she wouldn’t get as much as an interview in Kenner’s Mills, or any of the surrounding districts.
She also suspected that there was plenty of pressure on Tiny to let her go, just like there had been at the senior center.
“I know you’ve been standing up for me, Tiny. Thank you.”
His eyes flickered only slightly, but it was enough for her to know that she was right.
“Fuck them,” he rumbled with a shrug, making Dani smile. “I don’t answer to anyone. You’re a damn good waitress and a good person, and the decent folk in this town know that. The ones who don’t have their heads up their asses, anyway.”
Dani put her hand on his arm. “Thanks,” she said gratefully. He had no idea how much his words meant to her. Unfortunately, they weren’t enough.
Everyone around her was suffering. Even Amos was feeling the pinch. She had overheard him telling Bess that several jobs he had had lined up with some of the wealthier families had recently been cancelled or postponed indefinitely. She saw it for what it was: a deliberate attempt to pressure Jace right into Amanda’s claws.
Had it just been her, she would have stayed and fought, but it wasn’t. She had a child to think about now. No one knew, and no one could know, not yet. She didn’t want to put any more pressure on Jace, and she couldn’t bear the thought of him thinking of her and their child as simply another responsibility.
No, Jace had to make his decisions without that knowledge. What was that saying?If you love something, set it free? Well, she did love Jace, and this was her way of setting him free. Hopefully, he came back to her. If he didn’t ...
She didn’t want to think about that. However, she couldn’t just sit around, either. She needed a job, and a pregnancy wasn’t going to be something she could hide for much longer. There were doctor appointments to think of, preparations to be made. That kind of thing wouldn’t be kept a secret in a town the size of this one. Not to mention, her small frame wouldn’t be able to conceal a growing baby bump for long.
“So, what will you do?”
“I applied for some cyber-schooling positions”—she sighed—“and got a few hits.”
“Cyber schooling?”
