Sassy Ever After: Sassy and a little Bad-Assy (Kindle Worlds Novella) (2 page)

Walking out of the building’s breezeway, he started his trek across the parking lot. The feeling of the jeans moving against his legs chaffed the wolf under his skin. They had spent half of the last five years in fur, so wearing clothes all the time again sucked. Even when he had been in his human form, Cruz had forgone clothing unless he had to cover up due to the weather. The Wolfe’s were clever, though. They had placed him in the busy city so that he couldn’t freely run off whenever he wanted to shift into his wolf. Here, he was forced to wear his human skin all the time.

It was two weeks until the next pack run. Then, he would be allowed to shift and run free all night, shed these damn uncomfortable clothes, wear nothing but his wolf’s fur, and race off into the solitude of nature. He would be surrounded by trees that wouldn’t talk to him, smaller animals that feared him, and an environment that would allow him to be what he wanted most: alone.

Two weeks couldn’t go by fast enough.

Chapter Two

“Give me that back, you little heathens!”

Nikki cringed at the shrill, feminine teenage outrage. Her fourteen-year-old sister Brynn sounded like she was on the warpath. The heathens in question could only be their younger twin brothers, Erik and Olaf, who were eight years old and devious as hell.

Thunderous running footsteps sounded off above her head, sort of like she imagined a stampede of wild elephants might sound.

Shaking her head in resignation, Nikki returned her attention to cooking. It was five in the afternoon, so her parents should be home from work soon. If she was lucky, her five younger siblings would keep their brand of crazy contained for a little while longer.

Her nerves were on edge, but there was never any time for a break when she was home with Papa Ái and Ivar. When her parents got home, though, she was going to go for a walk. All she needed was a few minutes of quiet to find her center again. Then she would feel better.

Bang!

Nikki’s head shot back as she looked at the ceiling above her. What in the world had made that sound?

Bang, bang, bang!

The ceiling literally shook above her head as a soprano battle cry rang out, followed by her grandfather’s shout, “Harder, young shield-maiden! Put your back into it, girl!”

After turning the stovetop off and pulling the pot off the hot burner, Nikki scrambled out of the kitchen, running up the stairs to the second floor.

When she got there, she wasn’t really prepared for what she saw.

There, in the hallway, was Papa Ái in a white tank top, plaid beach shorts, and flip flops. It was October, for heaven’s sake! That was not what she’d had in mind when she had asked him earlier to change out of his leather pants. Unfortunately, her grandfather’s apparel was the least of her problems at the moment.

Brynn, completely oblivious to her presence, was holding her father’s rather expensive replica of what was supposed to be Thor’s hammer. How the hundred and twenty pound fourteen-year-old girl was swinging it like a baseball bat was totally lost on Nikki. This was no costume prop. No, it was a thirty-pound, oversized, iron rectangular hammer head attached to a sturdy wooden handle that was almost the length of her arm and wrapped in premium leather. It had also cost her mother about three thousand dollars to have it custom made twenty-four years ago as a wedding present for her father. And there her sister was, using it to batter down the twins’ bedroom door.

At first, Nikki was too shocked to say anything, but as Brynn swung the hammer again, she snapped out of her shock. The hammer broke through the wooden layers, making a complete hole in the door just as Nikki screamed at the top of her lungs, “Brynhildr Antoinette Wolf!”

Her sister stumbled as she pulled the hammer out of the door then turned her head to look at Nikki. “What?” the girl snapped angrily.

“Have you lost your ever-loving mind?”

“Nope, I’m perfectly sane. You know I don’t like it when someone calls me by full name,” the teenager growled. Not that Nikki could blame her on that count. How many people were actually named after Valkyries from Norse Mythology?

In a world full of marvelous things such as werewolves and vampires, Nikki always felt that her family was the strangest thing in town.

Her sister turned her attention back to the closed door, lifting the hammer again, ready to swing until Nikki lurched forward to grab the end of it.

“Oh, no, you don’t!”

Her sister glared back at her. “Let go! Those little brats stole my diary, and I’m going to get it back.”

The sound of two little boys snickering on the other side of the door almost made Nikki go cross-eyed in exasperation.

Concentrating on the angry girl in front of her, she said, “You cannot destroy their bedroom door! Mom and Dad are going to be mad as hell when they come home and see this.”

Trying to tug the hammer out of Nikki’s hands, Brynn yelled back, “Papa Ái gave it to me and told me to use it!”

Behind her, her grandfather said rather proudly, “She speaks the truth. You should be proud that such a young girl is already handling a weapon of such weight.”

Nikki scoffed back, “Last week, he told you to shave half your hair off and braid the other half so it would be out of your face during the next battle. I didn’t see you running off to the bathroom to do that!” She yanked on her end of the hammer, pulling it out of Brynn’s grasp and staggering to the side as the weight of the object threw her off balance, causing her to fall into the hallway wall.

Brynn stood across from her angrily with her arms crossed over her chest. “I don’t see the problem here. They have my diary, and I want it back.”

Nikki did her best to restrain the urge to reach over and smack the girl upside the head. It felt like it might be a losing battle.

“You don’t see the problem here?”

Brynn pursed her lips and shrugged nonchalantly. “Nope.”

Nikki pointed at the door. “Okay. Then, when Mom and Dad come home and see this, you can tell them it’s no big deal. You’ll use your allowance to pay for a new door.”

The girl threw her hands up in the air, dramatic as ever, then pointed her finger at the two boys peeking at them through the hole in the door. “It’s their fault. They shouldn’t have taken my property! Make them pay for the door.”

“They’re not the ones who used Thor’s hammer to put the hole in the door. So, no.”

Stomping her foot, Brynn screeched, “This isn’t fair!”

Losing what little patience she had left, Nikki snarled back, “I realize, with your raging hormones, you’re only a step away from turning into Satan himself, but if you don’t reel back your attitude now, I’m going to replace your shampoo with hair removal cream. Got me?”

Brynn’s facial features morphed from pure girlish rage into stricken puppy dog eyes. A big fat tear rolled down her cheek as her bottom lip trembled before she looked away from Nikki, refusing to make eye contact any longer. “Can you at least get my diary back?”

Nikki walked over to the door and glared at the two little troublemakers on the other side. “Give me that diary right now, or I’m telling Mom and Dad about your stash of candy hidden in your dresser drawers.”

The sparkly pink journal popped through the hole so fast Nikki didn’t have time to catch it. It smacked her right in the face before dropping to the floor at her feet.

Not bothering to pick the diary up, Nikki tipped her head back, taking a deep breath to try to calm down. Suddenly, she totally understood why her little sister had gone after the boys’ door with Thor’s hammer. She sort of wanted to hit the damn door now, too.

Brynn snatched her diary off the floor then stormed away, stomping into her bedroom before slamming the door shut behind her.

Nikki was still staring at the ceiling when her grandfather’s voice came from right beside her. “These young ones should learn to channel their anger into something useful, like learning how to wield a sword. Think of the riches we could bring back from the next raid!”

Done.

She was so done.

Not bothering to answer her grandfather, Nikki walked slowly down the stairs and back into the kitchen, placing Thor’s hammer on the dining room table.

Collapsing into one of the chairs, she put her head in her hands and somehow managed to keep from crying. At least, she didn’t cry until another brother, Harald, came barreling into the kitchen, not paying attention to where he was walking since his nose was stuck in a book, and bumped into the dining room table. Thor’s hammer tipped to the side so that it fell off the edge of the table and right onto Nikki’s foot. Then she let herself cry, scream, and rage to her heart’s desire until her parents finally came home.

~~~

Cruz approached his new place of employment, expecting a quiet, little bar, a menial job to keep him out of the way. But, as he approached the rather large building and took in the full parking lot, he thought maybe this wasn’t such a little bar, after all.

The building itself had an old pub look to it. Emerald-green paint covered the outside walls, embellished with dark brown accents, and there was a sign with a huge howling wolf. He couldn’t help snorting at that. There, on the sign with the wolf, was also a bright blinking bar name.

The Thirsty Wolfe.

Stopping just outside the bar’s front door, he put his hand on the handle and listened to the commotion on the other side of it. Plenty of conversation and laughter could be heard. If the place was busy, perhaps his job wouldn’t be completely boring.

Pulling on the door handle, he then walked through the entrance, taking in the patrons. It was completely packed with every table filled by either couples or small groups.

Taking a deep breath, he took in the scents of the people in front of him, surprised to find a mix of both wolves and humans. He hadn’t expected to work in a bar that had humans. Not that he had anything against them. It was just, where he came from, the human population tended to avoid the businesses known to be run by paranormals.

Over to the left, there was a long bar against the wall. Every seat in front of it was full of men talking or watching a football game on TV. A woman stood behind it, doling out drinks as a door behind the bar opened and a man with dark hair walked through, spotting him immediately.

He gave Cruz a friendly smile, approaching him with his hand held out. “You must be the new hire, Morales. My name is Nathan Wolfe, and this is my bar.”

Cruz shook his hand to be polite. He might have lived in the woods by himself for five years, but he did remember what manners were.

After letting go of his new employer’s hand, he waved it to encompass the bar around them. “This is a nice place.”

Nathan nodded. “Thanks. We do pretty well here. Any questions before I give you the tour?”

“Yeah, that last name of yours, it means you’re related to the alpha?”

Nathan’s eyebrows rose a little at the forthright question, but Cruz figured the guy should get used to it. He was a blunt guy. If he was going to be working here, his new boss might as well get used to how he was.

Crossing his tribal-tattooed covered arms over his chest, Nathan gave him a considering look. “It does. You got a problem with that?”

“Nope, but you can’t blame a guy for wanting to know exactly what sort of situation he’s stepping into, can you?”

Nathan laughed. “I guess not. Smart man. Anyone you run into here with the last name Wolfe is a relative of mine. Now you know. Follow me into the back, and we’ll get you acquainted with the layout of the bar and what your duties will be.”

Cruz followed the man behind the bar, through the door, and into the back where they walked into the kitchen area. Off to the side was a door Nathan headed for, and when Cruz saw the interior, it wasn’t hard to guess it was the man’s office.

His boss picked up a piece of paper that had Cruz’s picture on the top left-hand corner. “This says you used to be an enforcer for your pack. Want to tell me why you’re not one anymore?”

Now it was Cruz’s turn to cross his arms. Staring unblinkingly back at the other wolf, he told him the truth. “Not really.”

Nathan cocked an eyebrow back at him. “No?”

Cruz shrugged. “You asked me if I wanted to tell you about it. I don’t want to tell you, but I will. My mate and child died. After that, I just wanted to be left alone.”

The other man’s face softened in sympathy. “I’m sorry to hear about your loss.”

This was the part he hated most: other people’s sympathy. He didn’t need nor want it. While he knew people meant well, it didn’t bring his family back. Nothing ever would. The pain might not be fresh anymore, but it was also something that would never go away. That was why he didn’t like it when people gave him pitying looks or whispered about his situation behind his back.

He had been forced to move here to have a fresh start, hadn’t he? Which meant it was time he let it be known that he was not willing to live among people who only looked at him with sympathy.

“I appreciate the sentiment, but I’d like to keep that tidbit between you and me. I decided to live in the woods away from the others of my old pack because every time they saw me, it was with a look of sadness. They either felt sorry for me, or the sight of me made them think of what it would be like to lose their own loved ones. I’ve seen enough of that sort of look to last me a lifetime. They sent me here to reintegrate and make a fresh start, so I don’t want to see people looking at me like that here. Understood?”

The man in front of him was watching him with an inscrutable expression. Cruz literally felt as if his boss was trying to peel back all of his protective layers to get a good look at the heart of him. And perhaps he shouldn’t have spoken to someone related to the alpha that way, but he had always felt it was better to ask forgiveness than permission. He was who he was. If the pack wanted to keep him around, they would figure out really quickly that he was and would always be a straight shooter, whether they liked it or not.

Finally, after waiting for long, tense moments, the two of them just staring at each other in a silent battle of wills, Cruz watched as the side of Nathan’s mouth tipped up in a fraction of a smile.