Baby and the Wolf by Victoria Sue

Chapter Four

Emmett closedhis bedroom door and leaned against it in relief. He liked making friends, but Mark and Katy were both a little over the top. Katy had gone to class and Mark to his part-time job, so he had the apartment to himself. He knew he should be starting school as well, but he couldn’t seem to summon any enthusiasm or any energy. May had done her best to encourage him to look through lots of options at first, but then she’d done a mysterious one-eighty and said there was no rush. He should be enthusiastic, grateful, and grabbing at his life with both hands, but when the doctor had advised he get his eating and routine sorted first, he had agreed with relief. He knew the doctor wasn’t happy with him– he wanted to run more tests–but Emmett was reluctant and wasn’t sure why.

No, he knew. If he was honest, he didn’t want them to find anything else wrong. He was odd enough. He hadn’t passed out at all since he’d gotten the apartment. Sure, he’d felt floaty a few times, but he’d treated each occasion as a warning signal and sat down quickly. It wasn’t that. He felt like he was coming down with something, but he didn’t know what, and he wasn’t going to be labeled weak or even a hypochondriac. But he was scared. He knew there was something wrong. Something else, and he didn’t know how long he could pretend there wasn’t.

He knew he could be relocated. That was also an option. And he had briefly thought a new start might be exactly what he wanted. May thought he was scared of his uncle, and while the thought of seeing Barry didn’t thrill him, the organization’s lawyers had said his very small fine had been paid last year. Another thing his uncle had lied about. He also didn’t have an official diagnosis as he’d never seen a doctor, so Barry had also lied when he said he couldn’t get his permit. The only thing Barry hadn’t lied about was the money his mom had left him. Twenty thousand dollars wouldn’t buy a lot, but it was a nice cushion. Unfortunately, he couldn’t access it at all until he was twenty-one. About four years after his mom died, he’d come across a letter that had gotten wedged behind one of the drawers he was cleaning, and it had been addressed to Barry Smith, but it was in reference to his mom. It confirmed that there was no way that the funds could be used—even for hardship—before Emmett was twenty-one. It suggested going to a lawyer. The letter had told Emmett two things though. First, his uncle had tried to get his hands on the money, and second, Emmett just had to wait it out until he was twenty-one. He didn’t trust his uncle further than he could throw him, and he had no intention of asking him anything. Once he was twenty-one and free then he would find out on his own. The night he had met Ryker was just because he couldn’t take it anymore. Barry hadn’t let him out of his sight for months, and the closer he got to his birthday, the less he trusted him.

Now he had the opportunity to leave again, and he couldn’t bring himself to. It was pathetic and needy and made no sense.

Ryker.

He was convinced if he moved, he would never see him again. He knew in his head that after so many weeks he wasn’t going to anyway, but his heart wasn’t on board with that plan.

He really needed to contact the names May had given him about getting a part-time job, but he didn’t understand why she had been so reluctant recently. He was living here for free and even got an allowance toward food, which seemed incredibly generous and couldn’t go on indefinitely, even though he doubted he had the strength to hold down a job down at the moment. He ought to get a job that included food though, because even though he was getting regular meals, he could happily eat what Katy and Mark had between them as well as his own portion. He’d always been odd about food. Always hungry but never put on weight, but then the junk his uncle gave him wasn’t exactly full of protein.

A knock at the door briefly made him jump, but he knew no one could get into the building without a passkey and the lobby was covered with video surveillance. There were even panic buttons in the apartments, which had shocked Emmett, but apparently they had some adults who needed protection from abusive spouses, so he supposed it made sense. He still gazed through the peephole in the door though.

Then he did it again to make sure he wasn’t hallucinating. He had the door open so fast after that it was a wonder it was still on its hinges. But then sometimes he surprised himself with his own strength.

“Ryker.” He smiled and stepped back to let him in, his heart beating a little too fast. He headed for the small table and sat immediately before his body started getting any stupid ideas. When he realized Ryker had followed him but not said a word, he gazed at him carefully and his excitement fizzled out. Ryker looked like this was the very last place he wanted to be. “What’s wrong?”

Ryker jerked his head up from gazing at the floor as if he was surprised at Emmett’s bluntness. Emmett shrugged. “I doubt this is a social call.” And suddenly he was furious at himself for being this pathetic. He would get rid of him, then call May and request a relocation. It was time to get on with his life. Fuck, it was time to actually start his life.

Ryker nodded as if he had spoken. “I have something to tell you, and it’s going to take a while.” Ryker focused on him. “You’ve seen the doc?”

“I’m sitting down. Don’t worry.”

Ryker blinked, but then his frown cleared a little. “I don’t mean that. You’ve lost weight, and you didn’t have any to lose.”

And of course, Emmett’s stomach chose that moment to growl. “I haven’t had breakfast yet.” Well, not if you didn’t count cereal and toast. He knew he’d lost a little weight. Too much probably.

Ryker nodded again and pulled his phone out of his pocket. “Yeah, can you send two full breakfasts up to 528?”

Emmett’s mouth fell open as Ryker put the phone down. “What are you doing?”

“Eating. I’m hungry,” he said reasonably.

“But who were you talking to?”

“May. You know her.”

“Of course I know her,” Emmett said in exasperation. “But she’s not some delivery guy. You just can’t—”

“Sure I can. She offered. She was just waiting to see what we wanted.”

Ryker was lying. Emmett wasn’t sure how he knew, and he doubted he wanted to call him on it, so he changed tack. “You haven’t said why you’re here.”

“I can’t visit? Fuck.” Ryker scrubbed a hand over his eyes, and Emmett took pity on him. It seemed like this was hard for Ryker as well.

“Do you want coffee or some tea?” Emmett offered.

“I’ll get it.” Ryker headed for the kettle.

Emmett assumed they would get to the reason he was here eventually, so he needed to be patient. After all, the last thing he wanted was for Ryker to leave, despite his earlier bravado. Emmett gazed hungrily at his massive body, all six foot whatever of him. He could look his fill now that Ryker had his back turned. Massive thighs encased in washed denim tapering to a slim waist, then muscles spreading out along his massive back. Emmett could see them rippling under the plain black T-shirt he wore. Dark, almost military-short hair and a trimmed beard that had felt fabulous on his skin. And those arms. If Emmett closed his eyes, he could feel them around him. Warm, strong, protective. And so damn hot. His cock twitched in agreement. But then the memory of Ryker had fueled every erotic moment he’d had in the last seven weeks. He’d just thought he would always be a fantasy.

“Hey, Emmett, you okay?”

Emmett opened his eyes at the touch of Ryker’s fingers. Ryker looked worried. Must have been because he had his eyes closed. He nodded and with reluctance moved his head back away from Ryker’s touch before he did something rash. Like try and kiss him.

“I’m fine.”

Ryker put down a mug of tea in front of him. It was peppermint, supposed to reduce anxiety, and Emmett found it a little funny that Ryker hadn’t even asked, just assumed. Ryker glanced down at it. “You said you don’t drink coffee.”

That he remembered sent a silly pulse straight to Emmett’s heart. It was ridiculous. He was ridiculous. He wrapped his hands around the warm mug and leaned forward. “You were going to explain why you’re here.” Because there would be another reason. A practical one. Not the one his silly heart was flip-flopping over.

Ryker nodded and pulled out the other chair. He took a sip of his coffee, then winced. “I don’t know where to start.”

Emmett could say all sorts of smart-ass things, but he didn’t. “Then tell me why it’s the first time you’ve come to see me.” He wasn’t sure he could physically handle being told it would be the last.

Ryker pinned him with his gorgeous brown eyes. If Emmett looked hard enough, he imagined he could see a gold glint in them. “The organization that operates these apartments, the charity, has another side to it.”

He knew it wasn’t the answer to his question. Emmett’s eyes widened, but Ryker shook his head. “No, crap, that sounds like the fucking mafia. I don’t mean that. Nothing like that. It’s just the side you see only applies to humans.”

“As opposed to animals?” Emmett guessed. That was cool.

Ryker winced. “Kind of.”

“Why is a charity helping animals a problem?” Emmett asked, bewildered. He didn’t get why that was so unusual. There were lots of animal charities.

“Because in this one, the animal and the human are the same thing.”

“Huh?” Emmett wrinkled his nose.

“Look, there’s no easy way to say this, but I can shift—as in my whole body can—into a wolf.”

Emmett gaped.

“There’s a whole group of different shifters. Bears, wolves, panthers. The tiger shifter is extinct in the US, but there—”

“Get out.”

Ryker jerked. “I know it’s—”

“I said get out.” How could he? How could he come here with this fucking nonsense? Tears threatened.

“Emmett. I’m not—”

“Why?” he interrupted again. “Why do you have to come here with this utter shit? Don’t you think it was hard enough walking away from you? Don’t you have enough guys you can—” Emmett snapped his lips closed and stood up from the table. “I said get out.”

“Sit back down.”

Emmett shook his head.

“I said sit the fuck down. I’m about to prove it to you, and I don’t want you keeling over.” Ryker thundered the words, and Emmett was so stunned at his raised voice, he sat. It was actually a good idea to sit his shaky ass down anyway. At least he wasn’t turned on anymore. Every cloud and all that.

Ryker stood up and grabbed the bottom of his shirt and pulled it over his head.

“What are you doing,” Emmett squeaked out.

“I don’t want my clothes tearing.”

Emmett had no reply to that, just watched in astonishment as Ryker kicked off his boots and jeans. If he’d had any spit in his mouth, he would have swallowed. For a second, he even considered pressing the panic button. There was clearly something wrong with Ryker. He needed help.

“I won’t hurt you.” Emmett met his eyes again, and Ryker’s face softened into a smile. “Just stay seated and don’t worry. I promise, I won’t hurt you.”

Then, Ryker seemed to shimmer in front of him. Emmett rubbed his eyes. He closed his eyes, counted to five, then opened them again. Nope, a huge black wolf really was standing in his tiny kitchen.

Emmett took a few steady breaths. His instinct was to run, but his legs wouldn’t have held him. Then the wolf shimmered, and Ryker stood in its place. Emmett looked down accusingly at his tea.

Ryker strode over and hunkered down in front of him. “You feel okay?”

“Peachy,” Emmett whispered. His mind was going a million miles an hour. “That was real?” And he was naked. His brain was screaming it had just seen the impossible, while his body was definitely screaming something else

Ryker nodded solemnly. “It was why I was so secretive. The organization chiefly helps shifters who are in trouble and can’t for obvious reasons get human help.”

Emmett frowned. He couldn’t believe—it was impossible—but unless he was hallucinating, Ryker had just changed into a wolf. He’d been so shocked, he hadn’t been scared. “Do it again.”

Ryker nodded and stepped back. In another moment, the same black wolf stood there. This time it sat on its haunches, then slid its front paws out on the floor and lay all the way down.

Emmett took a deep breath and stood up.

The wolf’s ears immediately pricked up, and he rose back up. Emmett sat back down at the unspoken order. “Can you understand me?” The wolf nodded. “Okay,” Emmett croaked out, and the wolf sat as well. Emmett reached out cautiously, and the wolf nudged his fingers. Did that mean he wanted to be touched? He wasn’t a dog, but almost as if Emmett couldn’t help himself, his fingers ran through the thick hair on his head. He dropped his hand, and in another moment, Ryker was standing there. He reached over for his jeans, and Emmett immediately regretted not looking properly. When he was dressed, he pulled out the chair again.

“I don’t know what to say,” Emmett murmured. No, he did. “Why now? Why couldn’t you tell me weeks ago?”

“Because I help look after a lot of vulnerable shifters. If the human world ever found out about us, it would be a disaster.”

Emmett nodded. That made sense. “I get that, but what I mean is why now. What’s changed?”

“This is harder,” Ryker admitted, and they both jumped as the doorbell rang. Ryker shot up and opened the door to May, who glanced at Emmett before Ryker took the sack and just about shut the door in her face.

“Is she one?”

Ryker nodded and put the sack down and went to the drawer. He found the forks and grabbed a couple of paper napkins. “She’s a bear shifter.”

“You’re kidding me.” May was tiny. Five foot nothing if you didn’t count her hair and heels. Maybe she was a Koala?

Ryker smiled ruefully and pushed the food toward him. “Eat.”

Because Emmett was still processing and hungry, he dragged the sack over. His belly rumbled again as he took in the number of containers, enough food to feed five people. He took a small portion, arguing that the amount was due to Ryker needing it. He guessed all that shifting took a few extra calories.

“Nope.” Ryker shook his head and grabbed another one of the paper plates that had come with the food. He piled it high with amazing thick slices of ham, spooned a huge portion of eggs and potatoes on it, and then put it down in front of Emmett. “Eat.”

Emmett blinked slowly. “But don’t you need it? I mean, I’m guessing shifters need a lot of calories.”

Ryker helped himself to a large plateful. “Yep, they do,” he said quietly, then pinned Emmett’s gaze. “Which is why I gave that to you.”

It took Emmett a minute, and then he laughed. “I think I’d have noticed suddenly turning into a wolf.” He looked down at the plate, and starving as usual, he picked up his fork. Ryker watched him until he seemed to think Emmett was going to eat it and then tucked into his own.

About halfway through, Ryker got them both some water, and Emmett chugged his gratefully. He eagerly ate the ham. It seemed expensive, and he always tried to fill up on cheap pasta. When he couldn’t manage another bite, he laid down his fork. Ryker had finished his. Emmett had recovered a little by this time, and while Ryker had shown him something incredible, he still hadn’t answered any questions.

“Apart from the obvious no-shifting thing, whatever makes you think I might be a wolf?”

Ryker shook his head. “You’re a cat, a panther. You’re never shifted because we think you’re an omega, but you have all the other traits, or a lot of them.”

Emmett absorbed that ridiculous notion but went with it anyway. “Such as?”

“I bet you’re always hungry. You need a high-protein diet. I’m guessing part of the problem you had with passing out is connected. It wouldn’t surprise me if you got a wrong diagnosis.”

Emmett sighed. “I never got a proper diagnosis. Barry’s friend has a sister who’s a nurse. She wanted me to come in, but there was the no health insurance problem. She took a guess, and we went with that.” He hadn’t had as many episodes since he got here, and it was true he seemed hungry all the time, but he couldn’t take any more than his fair share of what they all bought to eat. And lately he hadn’t felt as well, even when he’d gotten the chance to eat more, which was why he’d worried he had something else wrong with him. Another thought occurred to him. “Why didn’t you tell me before? I’m guessing you knew.”

Ryker shook his head. “All shifters can tell other shifters by scent. Panthers are unique in that they don’t have one.”

Emmett frowned. “But that just tells you I’m not a wolf or a bear. Why wouldn’t you assume I was just a human?”

Ryker dipped his head, acknowledging the point. “This is where it gets more complicated.”

“More than humans turning into animals?” Emmett blurted out incredulously.

“I didn’t know at the cabin you were a shifter. Everyone has standard blood tests run when they get here and that flagged you were a shifter. I was shown this thirty minutes ago.” Ryker slid his hand into his jeans and took out a wallet and what looked to be a piece of paper. He held it out to Emmett, and Emmett took it suspiciously. He stared down at the picture and rubbed his chest at the sudden stab of recognition.

“Where did you get this?”

“My boss here knew your mom. He didn’t know you were here or that you even existed until yesterday.”

“Existed?” That was an odd expression. He stared at Ryker. What was he saying? “Why has your boss kept a picture of my mom all these years?”

“Because, I understand, he loved her very much.”

Emmett managed to swallow down the hurt that was clogging his throat. “Why didn’t anyone tell me?”

“The tests would flag you as a shifter but not what kind. As you have no scent, May was suspicious, but she decided to wait until he returned from his trip to ask.”

And Emmett knew. “And he gave you this?” Ryker nodded. Even though he had to ask, he knew. “What’s his name?”

“Zeke Coleman.” Emmett waited, held Ryker’s gaze until he shook his head. “No, he’s not a panther shifter.”

Emmett’s stomach churned sickly, and he pressed his hand to it. Mom. That had to mean his mom was and she’d never told him.

“Emmett—”

“I’d like you to leave now.” He stood up, ignoring his jelly legs.

“Emmett, please.”

“Please what?” Emmett asked carefully. “It’s why you’re here, isn’t it? He just wanted you to deliver the bad news. You didn’t want to come here at all. Well—” He waved in the direction of the door and swayed. “—let yourself out.”

In another moment, the arms that, up to a few seconds ago he would have given anything to feel, wrapped him up and lifted him gently. Ryker settled himself on the couch and kept ahold of Emmett while the room steadied.

“I’ve regretted every second since I let you walk out of my life.”

“You didn’t trust me,” Emmett said bitterly.

“I didn’t know you,” Ryker shot back. He swallowed. “I want to get to know you.”

Emmett ignored the tears that threatened to fall. “How do I know you’re telling the truth? How do I know you’re not just after some fancy job thanks to the boss’s son?”

Ryker tucked Emmett against his chest, and Emmett closed his eyes with the perfection of it. He inhaled the delicious scent that seemed so uniquely Ryker’s and didn’t want to move, ever.

“Technically, your father and I are partners. He handles the human side of everything, and I run the rescues, the pack house. I call him the boss because he handles all the admin, raises the money. I’m a grunt, really.”

Emmett let out a contented sigh. His heart beat steadily, and he felt stronger, which was a little odd. “The cabin?” He was curious, and while Ryker seemed to want to hold him, Emmett wasn’t giving him any reason to let go.

“No. We have about forty cabins over a five-hundred-mile area. The pack house is like a secure compound near the Cherokee National Forest. It’s where the most vulnerable shifters live.” Emmett thought about that. “Your dad very much wants to meet you.”

Emmett scoffed. “Why now?”

“Because he didn’t know your mom was pregnant. He hoped one day he might see her again, and he built this whole organization because of it.”

“She ran from him?” Emmett squeezed his eyes closed, but a tear still managed to escape.

“No, sweetheart, not him,” Ryker said gently. “But it’s not my story to tell.”

Emmett considered that. “Will you be there?”

He felt Ryker’s arms tighten and reveled in it. Ryker nodded, seemingly unable to speak. “For as long as you need me.”

Emmett could only wish that were true.