Chapter 1
Calamity was even unusual in a family of unusual people.
Her name was the first indication that she wasn’t your average person.
Cally’s mother had said that her daughter’s birthday had been the worst day of her life until that red-faced, wrinkly, screaming bundle of joy had been dropped into her arms. Candi was sure it was true, especially since she was a single parent.
Marley, Cally’s mom, had told Candi the whole story once when she asked why she had named her daughter Calamity. Candi remembered it well.
She hadn’t been expecting her baby for two months when she made a surprise appearance.
The day Cally was born, the water heater broke, so she couldn’t take a shower.
The fridge had broken down two days before, and when she opened the door, all she smelled was spoiled food.
She closed it back quickly before she hurried out, hoping to stop for a bite of food on the way to work.
Why hadn’t she noticed it was raining? It looked like she would get her shower after all.
She stepped to the curb, waiting for the bus.
A car raced by, sending muddy water from the edge of the road, spraying high into the air and covering the whole group at the bus stop with dirty water.
Oh well, the rain would wash her clean as she walked from the bus stop to her office job.
Marley got to the office and stopped by the cafeteria first. They were out of everything she liked, and all that was left was yesterday’s clam chowder.
She hated clam chowder, and she felt the baby kick, so she got a carton of milk.
It was better than nothing. Marley rounded the corner, going to the elevator, and a young child ran right into her, knocking the milk out of her just-opened hands and onto the floor.
Drat! She just left it there since she was running late, and she almost missed the elevator, but a nice man held it for her.
She smiled at him in appreciation, thinking she was lucky the man was so well-mannered.
It went up two and a half floors, and then it went completely dead.
Could it get any worse? That was when she felt the labor pains start.
Lesson learned, never ask if it can get worse or if it will.
One of her coworkers, who was in the elevator with her, called out on her cell phone.
The baby was ready to come by the time the elevator was fixed, and she gave birth in the hallway with the help of the EMTs who were waiting.
They got her whole story in between the last labor pains.
One of them handed her the crying baby and said, “Looks like you had one calamity after another today.”
That was the way her life began, and it had been interesting ever since.
In time, she had developed into a tall, lithe temptress.
Carlos looked to be about six feet two, so Cally’s five feet ten would still be short to him.
Cally was long and lean. The two of them together would be a striking couple with his dark and her blonde good looks.
Carlos drew her in, and she needed to discover if he was something special to her.
Besides, she was here to help him set up a security company that he would own in partnership with Tyne.
It had been off for over a year, and it was time to get it done.
They’d not even begun the work yet, and Carlos had only done a little bit of preparation.
She would have a four-hour drive from where she lived near Ariel’s to where Carlos lived.
Tossing her bags in the back of her SUV, she loaded and took off.
About an hour later, she stopped for breakfast, to use the bathroom, and to fill up her gas tank. So far, the trip has been going well.
Once she got on the road, her mind drifted to Alpha Ruiz, and she imagined how it could be between them.
They’d kissed a few times but never took things further.
She was cautious about relationships, and the attack had prevented anything further from happening.
But had it not been for the attacks, would something have developed between them? She couldn’t help but wonder.
No one had spoken about her work for Tyne because, if it were known, it might raise property prices at a time when Ruiz was looking to buy a good, solid older building, or at least a conveniently located place to build a business.
Ruiz would provide the venue and assist in securing personnel, while Tyne would provide the know-how and a handful of capable, already well-trained people.
Tyne would oversee things until Ruiz was well-trained in security, something she would help with.
Once he was considered fully capable of running things, he would.
Tyne had discovered he liked time off with his mate and pup.
He no longer fought as hard to be fully in charge of all his business locations.
Who could have seen that coming? Not Moe, who was thrilled to get time on trips she’d never really expected to take, like Mexico just last month.
That Tyne had discovered a new business location was just a cherry on top.
That was enough thinking of her boss and her cousin.
It was time to move on to this new business; she would have the first chance to run if she chose to.
How would running a business with Carlos be?
Would it help them develop a relationship, or would it make it impossible?
That’s what she would soon see. She’d stopped two more times, and the last stop would be her arrival near Wister, OK, at the Ruiz Pack House.
The house came into sight, and she was glad the trip was over.
Two wolves came out right away, showing her Carlos had been expecting her around this time.
Both were tall and good-looking, but she would guess they were teenagers.
She smiled, thinking he didn’t want any competition.
The smile left her face as she thought about what he’d probably been up to while she’d been gone.
No one had such a big reputation without cause.
His two wolves got her luggage out and took it to the same guest room she had been in last time. “Alpha said to meet him in the dining room as soon as you feel ready.” One of the young wolves said, his face red from embarrassment.
“Thank you.” This time she didn’t offer them a tip like she had last time. They’d felt insulted because the alpha tipped them, but she’d not known that.
She was alone now and might have taken a nap, but Carlos was waiting, and it had been a while.
They’d spoken weekly on the phone, but that didn’t help build their personal relationship; it only strengthened their business relationship.
The business property had been bought, and it was nearly set up.
Now that she was here, it would get up and run.
With her things in the room, she took a moment to freshen up and then went to find Carlos.
The house layout was easy to figure out when you were looking for the main rooms. They were all on the front side of the house with bedrooms and suites on the back and upstairs.
Where you entered the formal living room, the family room downstairs took up half the basement.
Once you hit the living room, you keep going into the dining area. That was where Carlos waited.
Calamity had missed him, and her breath came harder as she looked at him a moment before he looked up. “Calamity! I’ve missed you.” He said it as he meant it, and she hoped he did.
Carlos rose and came to her side of the table to hug her and give her a kiss that made her weak in the knees. “I missed you, too.” She said with a giggle as he stepped back.
“Let’s talk business while we eat an early supper,” Carlos suggested.
“Sounds good to me.” She agreed.
They finished business as they ate, getting everything worked through. “We’ll start training tomorrow as we take a few early customers.”
“I can handle that. You’ve read up on the manual?”
“I have and went through all the videos and tests,” Carlos explained.
“Perfect.”
“Since we’re done eating and have finished all the work for tonight, why don’t we take a walk?”
“That sounds great.” Calamity said.
Carlos took her hand and led her out of the door.
Two wolves walked ahead of them and two behind.
Now that she would be staying here, guards would be part of her life.
They went for a walk along the lake since the pack house wasn’t far from it.
The moon was bright above, but it wasn’t a full moon.
Had it been, the pack would have gone on a run.
“I was afraid you weren’t coming back,” Carlos admitted.
“Why would you think that?”
“You were gone a year. That’s a long time.”
“But Tyne explained why. Everything had to fall into place before I came back.” Cally explained.
“Did you find someone else?” He stopped and looked deep into her eyes.
“No, I would have told you.”
“The same here. So, we take up where we were?”
“Yes.” She said as he pulled her against him for a sweet kiss.
With the guards around, further intimacy was out.
But they were walking back to the pack house, and she needed to decide how far she was willing to go tonight.
The pack house quickly came into sight, and the guards returned to their usual places or possibly went off shift.
Carlos took her to his suite, where a bottle of wine and a plate of cold cheese and meats awaited them.
He handed her a rose. “For my lovely lady. There’s a vase you can put it in and place it wherever you want. Sit here by me, and we can talk.” Carlos patted the sofa next to him, and she sat down after placing the rose in the vase.
“Thank you. It’s a beautiful flower.”
“Not half as lovely as you are.” Charming, yes, but it reminded her of his reputation. “I mean it.” He added as if he saw the doubt in her eyes. “There’s been no one since you were here. I’ve waited for you to return.”