S. Yule - Lycan Christmas

In between writing down items on her list, she glanced at him—from under her lashes this time so he didn’t catch her ogling him. He wandered around the living room for a few seconds before sitting on the couch. His movements were graceful, and it was a little unsettling how he made no noise as he moved about the cabin. Was stealth a lycan trait, or was it just natural to him? She had tons of questions she was dying to have answered about lycans, but had decided to let him teach her how he saw fit. At least that way he’d be doing most of the talking.

She’d save the questions for those times when he was lagging with the conversation. Quit staring at the gorgeous man, and get the list done so you can put him out of his misery. But a small part of her thought it was good for him to wait.

She focused back on her list, and just as she’d written down the last item, a commotion from the living room caught her eye.

“What the hell is that?” Lorent stood staring down at Puss, who had obviously decided to get acquainted with him.

“It’s called a cat. Her name is Puss.” She watched them as they stared each other down, trying hard not to laugh at the scene. Finally, Puss sauntered away with a flip of her tail.

“I know what it is, but what’s it doing here?”

“She’s my pet. You know, pet? People do have them from time to time?”

He rubbed at the back of his neck again.

“You got a problem with my cat, Lorent?” She put her hands on her hips and fixed a stare on him that would rival any mother about to scold a disobedient child.

Melony stood across the room glaring at him, daring him to touch one hair on Puss. A smile tugged at his lips, but quickly vanished. The fact that he was entertained by her protective nature of her beloved pet irked her.

“I said, you got a problem with my cat? Because if you have a problem with my cat, you have a problem with me.” Her hands balled into fists.

“No. I don’t exactly have anything against cats. I just wasn’t expecting to see one. I mean, I scented it when I came in, but I assumed the scent was on something you’d brought from your previous home. I was startled when it jumped in my lap.”

“Puss is not an it . She’s a she.”

“Honestly, I didn’t mean any harm. I simply wasn’t expecting a cat to jump on my lap.”

After a couple minutes, she smiled. “Okay then. We’re good. Let me get my coat, and I’m ready to go.”

“I’ll make sure to remember that if you fuck with Melony’s cat, she’ll turn into a hellion and rip a few strips from your hide,” he mumbled under his breath.

She raised a brow. “I didn’t quite catch that. What did you say?” She’d caught every word of it.

“Nothing.”

She started down the hallway, but stopped as she reached the basketful of clothes she’d moved earlier. She stared down at the thing, wishing it was human so she could do it bodily harm, before picking it up, sliding the door open to the laundry area, and dumping the contents into the washer. She set the empty basket on top of the washer, added soap, and started the cycle. If Shannon wants her unmentionables washed on delicate, she can do it herself. She went down to the bedroom to get her coat, one of her favorites—black wool with tiny pink dots. The dots were barely noticeable unless one looked hard, but the shade of pink matched her hair perfectly.

She was extremely irritated about doing Shannon’s laundry. However, she’d be irritated more if she didn’t do it, Shannon showed up later, and decided to stick around to do it herself. After all, Melony couldn’t refuse to let Shannon use her washer. What would be the excuse? Sorry, Shannon. I don’t like you, so you can’t wash your clothes here. No matter her feelings toward Shannon, she wouldn’t act like a spoiled brat.

She walked by Lorent to the front door. “Let’s go.”

Lorent walked just behind Melony, mesmerized by the sway of her hips.

She was a tiny slip of a thing, but she packed some serious curves. If the dictionary had the cliché “dynamite comes in small packages,” he was sure a picture of Melony would be the only definition required. She amused and intrigued him. When she’d lit into him about her cat earlier, he’d found her protective nature endearing. He’d almost let his lips slip into a smile, until she’d glared at him. While she didn’t frighten him, he thought it best not to provoke her further.

And what had been the deal with the laundry? He could have sworn he’d smelled Shannon’s scent coming from the clothes, but why were they at Melony’s, and why would she be doing Shannon’s laundry? He figured the incident with the cat had sparked but a momentary lapse into anger born of her love for Puss. Her current mood, he was sure, was due to whatever Shannon was up to.

He found he wanted to ask her what had happened, wanted to comfort her, listen to her and assure her, but he didn’t quite know how to do so. As they walked on a path through the trees toward the Learning Center, she remained silent. Strangely enough, he found he wanted to hear her voice, even knowing that once she started talking, she’d probably ask him questions he didn’t want to answer. But most of all, he wanted to brighten her mood and make her smile.

He did the only thing he could think of to distract her from whatever was bothering her and started telling her about the trees and plants in the area.

“White spruce.”

Melony stopped when Lorent spoke and turned toward him. “Excuse me?”

“This is a white spruce. It’s an evergreen and can grow up to sixty feet tall.” Lorent laid his hand on the wide trunk of the huge tree he stood next to.

“Oh.” She blinked as if clearing her head. She gazed up to where the top of the tree stretched toward the sky. “It is beautiful. I was admiring one last night while the moonlight glimmered through its branches.”

Yeah, he remembered and wondered what she’d think if he told her he’d been admiring her while she’d been admiring that tree. Would she think him a perv? Probably. Women didn’t tend to like men who stalked them, although had he found her sneaking a look at him, well, that wouldn’t feel creepy at all. It would turn him on to know that she’d been covertly ogling him. Hell, it would turn him on if she openly ogled him.

“If you liked that, wait until you see the moonlight on a quaking aspen.

The underside of its leaves shimmer silver in the wind. When there’s a light breeze and a full moon, it’s an amazing sight. Of course, you’ll have to wait until spring to see its leaves again.”

Melony pursed her lips and nibbled the bottom one with her teeth, watching him in silent contemplation. “What are some of the other trees here?”

Now that was a question he didn’t mind answering. “I won’t name them all, but some of the more abundant ones are red maple, tamarack, bur oak, and arborvitae. The arborvitae attract deer.” She continued to watch him as they slowly walked along the path. “If you had gotten here in September, I could have shown you the yellow flowers of the witch hazel and white flowers of the edible elderberry. The cranberry bush also has white flowers, and bears bright red fruit that the birds love to feed on. Those three are shrubs, though, not trees.”

She followed him as he searched through the plants. When he found what he was looking for, he turned around and motioned for her to come closer. He pointed to a wilted-looking bush. “This is wolfberry. They flower white in the summer, but in September and November, ripened seeds fall from it and attract wildlife. There isn’t much left of it because it’s late in the year.”