3: Caught red handed

 *Zac*

 “Okay Z ... spill it”. LZ flops down beside me and JR stops in front of me, crossing his arms on his wide chest.

 I look from one to the other, shaking my head. “Uhm spill what ?”

 “Zac ... you have been looking all pained and melancolic for the last couple of hours”. JR says softly. “And now you are just sitting here on the steps ... looking miserable”.

 “You guys worry too much.. I am fine ... everything is fine”. I run a hand through my hair, sending them a smile.

 LZ leans a bit forward, looking past me at Cynamon and Nick who are playing around with a frisbee. She is laughing, and for some reason it makes my inside clench up. “Okay ! so nothing to do with her ... Nick’s girlfriend I mean, the one you have your eyes on constantly”. 

 “I haven’t ... fuck ... it’s nothing. She is with Nick ... so”. I sigh and hang my head. I hadn’t known I was being that obvious.

 “But you ... what ? You are attracted to her ?” JR is looking at me curiously. He is always too good at reading me ... but this is hard to explain.

 I rub a hand over my face. “I don’t know what to say. I ... when I first saw her, it was like everything changed,but in a good way ... like it just ... popped into place. Does it make any sense ?”

 “It makes every kind of sense Zac”. JR says softly. “So how seriously do you think Nick is about her ?”

 “Well ...”. I shrug slightly. “I think he likes her, but they haven’t ... she didn't want to share his room ... so ...”.

 LZ nods. “He told me he likes her,  but that he doesn’t see it becoming serious. I think it’s just kind of a fling to him”.

 JR looks thoughtful for a moment. “Okay... so here is what we do. LZ will get Nick away ... keep him occupied for a bit ... and you go talk to her and see if you feel the same when getting to know her and how she responds to you”.

 “You guys would do that ... but what about Nick ? I mean he met her first”. I feel nervous and elated, but also kinda bad.

 “Nick will survive, as LZ says, it’s not like he plans to marry her. I believe deeply in love ... and I see how you look at her. I think there might be something really special here”. JR says grinning.

 I get up. “Okay ... let's do this then. I mean just to see if ... if there is something here”.

 *Cynamon*

 “Is it okay if I borrow Nick for a bit ? JR can keep you entertained”. LZ says with a big smile, already guiding Nick away with a hand on his shoulder.

 I am not that happy about being left, but I also don’t want to be clingy or problematic. Nick looks at me. “Is it okay honey ? I will be back as soon as possible ... you can trust JR”.

 ‘They are up to something’. Zyca warns me. Not that she has to, but what can I do ?

 “It’s fine Nick, I can manage”. I give him a confident smile. I mean I am used to managing on my own, so I can do this. I mean what could happen ?

 As soon as Nick and LZ are gone JR smiles at me. “So are you enjoying yourself ma’am ?”

 “I am ... this place is amazing”. I smile at him. “But please call me Cynamon or CJ, there is  no need to be so formal”.

 “Sure ... CJ. Oh hi Zac”. JR smiles at Zac who walks over, my heart instantly starts to beat weirdly and Zyca is making a weird sound that I am not even sure what it means.

 Zac sends me one of those glorious smiles. “Hi again darling ... Uh, your beautiful wife is looking for you JR”.

 “Oh she does”. He gives Zac a small nod, then looks at me. “Excuse me, I better go see what she needs ... you will be safe with Zac”.

 Part of me wants to tell him not to leave me alone with Zac ... not that I have anything against him of course. It’s just that he makes my heart, body and wolf act all weird ... and it confuses me. But I just nod. “Sure ... no problem”.

 “So what would you like to do ?” Zac is looking at me, fiddling with his hands and kinda shifting his weight back and forth on his feet, like he can’t stand still.

 “Uhm ... I don’t know. There is so much to do here”. I look around.

 He bites his lip, looking thoughtful. “I can show you how to shoot the rifle, have you ever tried ?”

 “No never, is that safe ? I mean, I am not really used to weapons”. The idea makes me nervous, but honestly I think it could be kinda fun to try. I am probably not actually allowed to handle weapons, but who is going to know.

 “I promise you ... you will be perfectly safe”. He gives me a soft grin. “And so will everyone else”.

 I breathe in slowly. “Okay then. Sure, show me”.

 “This way darling ... you are in safe hands”. He walks over to where the rifle is placed, pulling a key from his pockets and opening a secured box that turns out to contain the ammo.

 “Oh safety first I see”. I like that he has thought about that, with the gun laying around and such.

 ‘A good trait in a mate’. Zyca says as she stretches. I ignore her.

 He nods as he expertly loads the rifle. “Well we have kids here, so I am definitely not taking any chances ... come over here darling”.

 I watch as he lays down where I saw him the first time, and then he pads beside him, making me mumble. “Okay ... laying down. I can do that”.

 So I manage to lay down, making sure my skirt doesn't slip up. Luckily there is no wind really, I don’t really want to show off my panties.

 Zac starts showing me the different parts and explaining everything. He is actually really good at being like educational, without making me feel dumb. He shows me a shot, hitting the target farthest away of course ... but to be honest my focus is very much on his flexed bicep rubbing against my arm.

 ‘The build of an alpha’. It sounds from my annoying wolf. Again I ignore her.

 “Okay now you try”. He hands me the rifle and I feel my hands shake slightly as I take it.

 I try to place it right. “Uhm you are a great teacher Zac ... but I am not sure that I can do this”. 

 “Okay, let me help ... is it alright for me to touch you ?” He asks softly. “Just to show you the right grip”. 

 “Yeah ... it’s okay”. I nod. Honestly I love that he asks me first, not many men do and to me especially it means the world.

 He moves closer ... like much closer and I fear my heart will stop when he slips an arm over me. I mean he is literally like laying halfway on top of me and Zyca is mewling like a cat in heat. His arms follow mine. “Okay like this”.

 To say it is hard to focus would be the understatement of a century, even though he holds his weight mostly off me, his upper body is basically on top of mine, his breathing on my ear. “Like this ?”

 “Yeah, I like that … I mean, yeah, like that ... let's go for the closest one first”. He says softly, almost resting his cheek against mine. “Breathe ... look at the target ... be prepared for a small backlash ... absorb it with your shoulder, don’t fight it”.

 “Okay, I’ll trust you”. I breathe in, starting to push down the trigger.

 Zac’s breath is warm and tingling when he whispers. “A little to the right darling ... and don’t hesitate. Now push it down smoothly”.

 “Okay ... right ... smooth”. I move slightly and push down the trigger. Damn the backlash was harder than expected or maybe I was tense. But then I realize something. “I did it ... I hit it”.

 “You did darling ... you have a talent for this”. His voice is still right in my ear.

 Someone clears their throat and Nick’s voice sounds above me. “So I am gone for fifteen minutes and you are on top of my girlfriend ? Someone wants to explain this to me ?”