Chapter 8

There was a routine to Mia’s days. The Red eyes bar took up exactly nine mentally gruelling hours out of her days from four in the afternoon to one in the morning. She usually had a full eight hours of sleep from two to ten, unless she went for a run in her wolf form to release stress or just to stretch her muscles. The hours between ten and four were filled with mundane activities like laundry, cleaning, listening to music, and cooking.

If she had still been in the pack lands, her days would have been extremely different. Her thoughts wandered to her days in the pack while she prepared some steak for herself. She was hungry enough to consider shifting into her wolf and eating the meat raw straight from the floor. Her wolf was in full agreement with that idea, but Mia held back. She was living in a human town. In a tiny apartment, in a building with three other apartments. She had to refrain from giving into such impulses. She could never be too safe. All it would take was for a nosy neighbor to look through her window and her secret would be out and she would be screwed. Not only would she likely end up in a secret research lab under the government, but her pack would find her. Both outcomes were terrible and had to be avoided at all costs. So, no shifting was going to happen. She was going to fry her meat and eat it like a normal human would.

It’s days like these she missed the freedom of the pack lands. She could almost remember the smell of the trees that danced to the rhythm of the fresh wind. And the sound of the water as it flowed through the creek near their homes.

It had never crossed her mind in the years she grew up there that she might one day leave the beautiful home hidden in the forest. Much worse, run from it. But she had. She had left in the middle of the night like a thief and never looked back. She still thought about it though, missed it, but she could never go back. Not if she wanted to live her own life and not the one the Alpha had dictated for her.

The steak on her skillet turned a beautiful shade of light brown. It was obviously still very much red inside. She didn’t care. That was all the patience she had. She quickly transferred the large piece of meat to a plate, then sat down to enjoy her meal. She still had time before she had to report to the bar, so she could take her sweet time enjoying every bite.

~~~ 

She wasn’t really looking forward to the shift that night. She knew it was because she wished a certain tall, muscled man who smelled of fresh air, spice and motor oil would walk into the bar, but there was no chance of that happening and she would never admit it aloud that she missed him. 

Two nights he hadn’t shown. He had obviously finally moved on and left the shitty town. She knew he wasn’t from the small town, anyway; he had only been passing through. So, it was undeniable that he would have left sooner or later. Her spirit sank lower, but she forced her mind back to her work. This was a good thing, she told herself for what felt like the hundredth time.

The bar was already full of the usual patrons. The sound of conversation and beer bottles being picked and returned to the tables was the only background noise in the place. Strangely, it was a comforting hum. It assured Mia that all was well and normal.

Suddenly, Joy ran over to the counter. Excitement radiated from her and flashed in her eyes. She looked like a little girl almost bouncing on the sole of her feet. “Guess who I just saw step out of a cab outside?”

No one came to mind, so Mia shrugged and continued with what she had been doing. Her lack of a more enthusiastic reaction seemed to irritate the woman. Joy frowned. She folded her arms over her chest and stared at Mia like she was debating if it was worth it to tell her after all.

Mia couldn’t imagine what the woman possibly found so exciting to make a fuss over. Lucky for her, she didn’t have to deal with Joy to find out. In the next minute, her nose picked up the scent and she knew exactly who had stepped out of a cab. Asher Deavan.

She looked up and saw the man walk through the bar straight for her. A shudder ran through her body, leaving goose bumps in its wake. Her wolf perked up, very alert and interested in the human just a few feet away.

In less than a minute, he reached her and smiled. “Hi.”

His warm voice washed over her like a caress. For a few beats, it was like they were the only two people in the bar. All her attention focused on him. She breathed in his scent like an addict taking a fix. The beast in her scraped and clawed, wanting out and a more intimate introduction.

That brought her to her senses fast. She blinked and took a step back, away from the counter, away from him. 

The smile fell off his face. He looked around, taking note of Jim and Joy watching them with too much interest. He cleared his throat and returned his gaze to the woman who was causing turmoil to his senses. 

He hadn’t expected her to jump on him, happy to see him, but he had at least expected her to smile.  

“Could I get a coke?” he asked and sat down stiffly on the bar stool next to Jim.

Mia fought to get control over her emotions and those of her wolf. After a few more heartbeats, she was sufficiently certain she wouldn’t do anything stupid. She reached for a bottle of coke and placed it in front of him, then walked away without saying a word.

“Ouch,” Jim muttered under his breath.

Asher turned and looked at the old man. “Nice to see you, Jim.”

“Looks like I’m the only one happy to see you here. That reception was worse than the one I got at my in law’s thirty years ago when they found out I had knocked up their sweet innocent daughter.”

Asher smiled at the old man, despite what felt like a blow to his stomach from her reaction. “They weren’t excited about the new addition to the family?”

Jim snickered. “Nope. Her old man nearly ripped my head off with his bare hands. But that reception was still warmer than the one you just got, young man. What’s up with that?”

Asher allowed his eyes to wander over to the woman he had just traveled miles to see despite his better judgement. “She’s just a little shy,” he answered thoughtfully. He didn’t believe a word of that, but he didn’t know what else to say.

“Of course.” Jim’s sarcasm was painfully obvious.  

Mia hid her own reaction by keeping her back to them, even though she stood on the other side of the counter. She had, of course, been listening. He thought she was shy? That was laughable and completely absurd.

She wasn’t shy; she was confused and frustrated. He hadn’t worn a leather jacket today. That made sense since Joy said she had seen him get off a cab. He was dressed in a white button down long sleeve shirt which he had rolled the sleeves all the way to his elbows. For pants, he had on a pair of dark brown chinos. Damn, he looked good enough to eat. She had thought jeans and a leather jacket made the man irresistible; she had been wrong. The casual smart wear he had on should have been considered a crime on a body like his.

A customer asked for a refill. She barely heard them. Her mind battled her baser instincts for control. This was bad. She needed to get herself under control, and fast.

Hours later and she was still as riled up as she had been when he just walked into the bar. 

She could hazard a guess he wouldn’t leave when the last call was made, so she didn’t even bother addressing him or asking that he leave. It was pointless. He would just wait outside, anyway. So, she let him sit at the counter as she finished up her duties for the night. Her coworkers shot occasional glances his way, but none of them said a word.

For his part, he sat there quietly. He watched her and waited. After another twenty minutes, they were the only two people in the bar. “Hi,” he said finally.

She looked up and studied him. “You came back.” 

It was a statement, but he treated it like a question. “Yes. Kind of couldn’t help it, actually,” he said truthfully.

That seemed to get her attention. She stared at him a beat before she began wiping the already clean counter. When she spoke again, her voice came out strained. “You tried to stay away then?”

There was no use beating about the bush. “You have made it pretty clear you didn’t want me around.”

“And yet you are here.”

“Like I said... couldn’t help it.”

Her lips thinned. “You should have tried harder.”

What the hell? Asher blinked. He didn’t have a problem with his self-esteem, but this woman’s constant shut down was beginning to eat at him. He decided to shoot for some straight questions. “You didn’t think of me? Not even once?”

Mia lifted her eyes. For a second, they seemed to glow before she blinked and looked away. “I didn’t say that. But there could never be anything between us. So, you should go back to wherever you had disappeared to.”

She had reached that firm decision after a lot of self analysis and an objective look on everything. She was a werewolf on the run; there was no time or place for a human in her life. It would have been better if he never returned to the bar.

Asher’s face hardened. He studied her. Then, after a few seconds, he stood from the stool. “I think you are right.”