Brick House: Blue Collar Wolves #2 (Mating Season Collection) (3 page)

But a year of them protecting her and her son, and she couldn’t turn away from them anymore. They had more than proven themselves to her, and her continuing to take from them without giving back was nothing more than cowardice.

A muscle ticked in House’s jaw, but his voice was clear and even when he answered. “We grew up together. We were both orphans and being raised by the alpha, so we spent a lot of time together.”

“Why did you leave that pack?” Mel braced herself. This was the most intimate question she could ask. Wolves rarely left their pack. Even if they travelled, they would eventually come home to the pack, and any reason she could think of to cause a break final enough that the wolves would search out another pack was horrifying.

Even with all the warning signs in her head radiating danger and flashing
don’t ask
, she still asked. There was this all-consuming need to know them, a need which had been slow in growing, so slow she hadn’t known it existed, until the thought crystallized all at once, striking at her with such intensity she couldn’t spend another moment
not
knowing these men – what shaped them, what drove them, what they wanted now. They were tangled within her life and she needed to know their edges and their landscape so she could begin to navigate.

“Which one of us are you interested in knowing about?” His eyes were laser focused on her, as if the question he asked was the most important she would ever answer.

Would mentioning Brick now shut House down if he did have any interest in talking? Did it matter? She didn’t play games, and it had become very clear in her head that her interest was centered on both of them… what exactly that interest entailed, well, that she was still sorting out. “Both. I know you guys have tension sometimes, but you’re both my friends and important to me.”

If anything, her answer focused the intensity of his gaze even further, and sweat formed underneath her shirt on the back of her neck. It was disconcerting how impossible to read he was at this moment.

House stepped closer to her with purpose, had her rising from her seat behind the desk, but before he could take more than a step towards her, Sparky opened the office door. Sparky was the same age as her dad and had originally worked for Old Man Tyler – was, in fact, the only wolf Brick and House hadn’t been able to run off when they bought the place, even if he wasn’t officially employed. He’d known her since she was a kid, and Sparky was now looking at House, though he was speaking to her. “Mel, you got a unwanted guest in front.”

Whatever signals Sparky was sending out had House bristling, and looking out the office window, even Brick seemed to catch on to something, his gaze locked on her from the shop.

Whoever Sparky meant, she wouldn’t want them here and she needed to get this cleared up with a minimum of fuss and without House or Brick or Danny getting involved. “Excuse me, let me see what’s happening.”

She walked out, and thank heavens neither wolf followed her. She wasn’t quite as thankful when the door opened up and outside was John, scum of the known universe and Danny’s father. “What the hell are you doing here?”

She hadn’t seen him in five years and hadn’t gotten a dime in support from him at all during Danny’s life. Her whole policy was to leave him alone, because he was a vindictive bastard, and she wanted nothing more than to be free of him and not start worrying if he would start making noises about taking Danny. So why had he decided to show up now?

He smiled at her, that same smile that had weaseled him into whatever he wanted in life, including into her pants and into her pussy without a condom.
I’ll pull out baby, I swear.
God, she had been
such
an idiot. There was no denying he was good-looking in a smooth way, very different from the rough strokes that categorized the wolves she had grown up with. Even House, as Hollywood-like as his looks were, had an animalistic quality that was undeniable.

That smoothness had appealed to her when she had been about rebelling, about getting away from everything familiar, people and attitudes and values. She’d been too young to realize how important pack and familiarity was, and it wasn’t until she had to return with a baby in her belly and no money in her pockets, when the only people who cared what happened to her were the very ones she’d been running from, that she broke down and wept over the pointless rebellion.

“We share a son. Can’t I come and say hi?”

“No, you can’t.” Mel had to shut this down quick. What if Danny came out? What if John tried to go in to get Danny? Panic rose in her throat, panic she beat back and swallowed hard against. “Now, what do you want? You shouldn’t be showing up here.”

How had he found out she was here anyway? Probably sweet-talked one of the girls around here asking about her, giving those dark, longing looks which had fooled her so long ago.

“Do you have a break? Come and talk to me. I want to catch up a bit.” He tilted his head and gave it a small jerk, combining it with his smile, knowing it made him look approachable and earnest and all those things young girls craved.

Mel didn’t want to head anywhere with him, but she also didn’t want to have any kind of discussion where Brick and House could overhear and realize what a stupid kid she’d been, to be caught up with someone like this. Without a word she began to walk to a small area on the side of the building, used for smoke breaks, but no one would be there now.

After arriving she faced him, arms crossed over her chest and her best no-nonsense look plastered over her face, the one that had Danny spilling his misdeeds in seconds. “Please tell me what you came for without any bullshit. I can’t risk losing this job and I need to get back to work.”

He snorted, pulling his head back, the smarmy charm disappearing from his face and cold craftiness replacing it. “Since I’m sure your job involves you opening your legs for the bosses in there, I don’t think you’ll be losing it by taking an extra break.” His eyes raked over her body, and she refused to move and inch and let him know he made her want to shower with that little display. “You look good for someone with a rugrat. Still nice and tight.”

“What do you want?”

“I need money. Ten grand.”

Mel’s mouth fell open before she could stop the reaction. He was actually coming to her…for
money
? After abandoning her while she was pregnant? After years of no child support? “You got to be kidding me.”

He shrugged, looking supremely unconcerned about her shock. “I need money. The people I owe do not fool around.”

“Sorry, you’re going to have to deal with it. I don’t have it, and even if I did, I wouldn’t be giving it to you.”

She moved to walk away but he grabbed her arm, his grip strong enough that she couldn’t break it by twisting in his grasp. “You will find a way to get it to me, or those guys I owe money to? I’ll mention how I don’t want them to
hurt
my
son
, and how I still care
so much
for his
mommy
.”

Black terror rose through her as she stared into those cold brown eyes, those lips she once kissed now turned up into an ugly, vicious sneer. “Don’t you
dare
say anything about Danny.”

He lowered his head and lowered his voice, pure evil in both actions. “I’ll be giving them your parents address if you don’t get me the money by this time next
week
.”

And then he was gone, out of her space, and it took a few blinks to readjust her eyes, to see House a few feet back, John dangling from his grip and, in House’s eyes, a massacre ready to be unleashed upon John, the pure hatred making her take a step back from the wolf for the first time in her life.

“Mel.” House’s voice was low and steady, devoid of the teasing undertone she’d all but assumed was permanent. “Get back to the shop. Go to Brick.”

“He–”

“Mel, go now.” That voice booked no refusal, and Mel found herself halfway to the shop before it occurred to her that she never took orders from anyone, not like that, not when it involved her life.

Brick waited inside the door and grabbed her up, as if he feared she might decide to go back out again. He took her to Danny, still sitting on the bench beside the car restoration, and Mel’s arms went around her son, mindful of his injury, unable to let him go.

Brick worked as he always did, with Danny talking off his ear and Brick giving his occasional one or two word answers. Though she had forced herself to let her son go after some squirming and some sighing from Danny, she wasn’t able to move away to get back to the office and finish her job. Instead, she stayed by her son, watching Brick as he worked on the engine, grease layering him in ever darker streaks, clinging to him like a tattoo.

It was quitting time, and still no House. Brick cleaned up and drove her and Danny to her parents, who had already agreed to take Danny tonight since she had wanted to get back to the bar, Iron’s words be damned. With the mating season in full effect and with Danny in better shape than they originally thought, he didn’t need to be the only one working right now.

Of course, she was second-guessing that now, John’s words ricocheting around her head. How someone could sink that low was beyond her – threatening his
son
? Yeah, her he didn’t give a damn over, but to put Danny in danger like that…it was beyond her.

They ate, Mom and Dad welcoming Brick into the House. They’d already met him and House. In fact, it was Brick’s and House’s reactions to her parents and Danny that convinced her to accept the job with them. Mom and Dad had come into the bar one day with Danny to pick her up while the two wolves were there. The stood up in respect, called her parents
sir
and
ma’am
, and they shook Danny’s hand, telling him how impressed they were with his science fair wins and asked him if one day, could he teach them chess? In their world, where academic achievements for boys so often took a back seat to sports, it was the first time Danny was acknowledged for his gifts. The look of astonishment and pride on her son’s face was one she still treasured.

Danny was settled watching cartoons with Mom and Dad, and Mel went out into the back yard with Brick, not wanting her parents to know about the afternoon’s meeting quite yet. “What’s House doing?”

“Making sure you and Danny are safe. He’ll be back when that happens.”

“He didn’t…” She wasn’t sure how to finish that. There were so many possible avenues, and even after all this time living with wolves, they were a mystery to her sometimes.

They weren’t human. Most of the time she forgot that, but every once in a while something happened that slapped her hard and reminded her,
they weren’t human
. They didn’t think like humans, they didn’t perceive moral issues the same way as humans, and how they handled those issues wasn’t like most humans.

Here and now, how House would react and what he would do was a mystery.

Brick reached out one hand, the thick fingers trembling as they touched her cheek. “He’ll be back when you and Danny are safe. Don’t worry about the rest.”

Brick was not a good-looking man, but here and now, there was no face she wanted to stare out, no eyes she wanted to gaze into more, save one pair. “I’m surprised you didn’t go with him.”

His hand followed the slope of her cheek to rest against her neck. “I knew you’d want Danny protected, so I stayed.”

The bottom fell out from her heart, breaking her chest open to expose messy emotions she’d kept bottled up for so long. Here was a
wolf
protecting a boy that wasn’t pack, while his own blood was using threats of harm for selfish purposes.

There was no thought in her next actions. She had been looking into those earth brown eyes, hearing him vow to protect her son in that rusty voice that always walked the edge of discordant, and she was in his arms, pulling herself up and his head down, meeting his mouth with her own.

If he was surprised it didn’t come through in his actions. His lips were hard on hers, forcing her open to him, his tongue sweeping her mouth, acquainting itself with her taste and texture.

Brick crushed her to him, his body overwhelming her smaller one, the flat planes of his chest tight against her breasts, one arm across her back while the other cradled her under her ass. He was hard and holding her tight and yet, she wasn’t crowded or trapped. She was safe and surrounded, and so
so
warm.

His tongue tangled with hers, bringing it into his mouth so he could play with it more, and as she retreated he followed, now his teeth coming into play, small nips at her mouth before he dove back in.

She wasn’t sure what alerted her, but something travelled over the edge of her senses and she broke apart from Brick and looked over to see House staring at them from only a few feet away.

House’s expression was confusing. She would have thought he would be hurt or upset at the sight of her with someone else. Instead, his eyes were wide and hopeful and
hungry
.

She was still in Brick’s arms. He hadn’t loosened his grip, and on his face was a near identical look to House’s.

If House was here, that meant she and Danny were safe. For tonight, that was enough. She was done thinking, done fighting, done with all the other expectations and weights on her.

Tonight, she was flinging them to the side. Good or bad, tonight was about forgetting responsibilities and worries and what her choices would mean for the future.

Tonight was about sensation.

Tonight, she was going to indulge.

Putting her lips to Brick’s ear, keeping her gaze locked with House, she said, “Take me to your house.”

‡