Chapter Three
Raul stepped out of the motel room, then crossed the lot. He found a dark corner screened from the road by a semi and shifted. Standing still for a moment, he sniffed the air. The stench of the town, as opposed to the forest, was a bombardment on his senses. Fuel, food, so many people, other dogs, cats too. He caught a whiff of the ocean—a slightly salty undertone to everything else—and to his right he guessed there was a pile of stinking cigarette butts floating in stale water.
He shook, then set off at a trot. Sticking to the back streets and avoiding any late-evening pedestrians, he continued his westward journey. It was certainly a town of canines. He saw several with owners and also a couple of strays hanging around behind a fast food restaurant.
But, undistracted, he made for the gas station Malec worked at. From memory, he knew it was on Kelp Way, just out of town.
Soon he was trotting alongside the ocean. The road was quiet and he didn’t imagine the gas station got a whole load of business. Twice he paused and stepped out of view, once behind a trash bin, another time behind a parked car. The last thing he wanted was to be reported to a dog warden. That happened in places like this. He’d heard stories of it happening. If he were a standard dog, he could understand it. As a shifter, not so much fun being caged for the night.
The few residential homes thinned and the scents wafting toward Raul became more countrified. Trees and flowers, raccoons and other wildlife. Still, the ocean’s briny, tangy smell stuck with him. He could hear the waves now, too, crashing rhythmically over and over.
Finally, the gas station came into view. Seeing it added speed to Raul’s trot. His heart beat faster. Soon he’d see Malec. Get to the bottom of whatever the hell was going on. Not only that, he’d hopefully get to hold him, kiss him, tell him how much he meant to him.
Hopefully.
Still in his dog body, he halted just before the bright lights of the forecourt touched the grassy knoll surrounding the station. He peered into the lone building and saw a man sitting at the till. He was motionless, his head propped on one hand as though resting, half asleep maybe.
Malec.
Raul pulled in a deep breath as love filled his veins. There was his man, right where he said he’d be. And he was alone, not in some passion-infused embrace with another.
Of course he isn’t.
Rising onto his hind legs, Raul shifted into his human body. He hiked up his jeans and straightened his white T-shirt, thankful as always for the ancient magic that allowed him to shift with an outfit covering his modesty.
There were no customers at the gas station. Each pump sat idle. But just as Raul stepped from the shadows, a bike appeared. The low rumble of its engine bounced around the forecourt and roused Malec.
Raul retreated and watched from behind a tree trunk as Malec wandered out, lethargy in his swagger, and spoke to the driver. He began to add fuel to the bike’s tank as the driver tugged off his helmet and walked toward Raul’s hiding place. But he stopped short of the grass, plucked a cell from his pocket and made a call. He was obviously late and had to placate the person on the other end of the line.
When he’d finished he wandered over to his bike, paid Malec and jammed on his helmet.
As the bike roared off, the low rumble seeping into the distance, Malec idled back into the gas station store.
Raul’s heartstrings tugged. His mate was exhausted, that much was clear. Just how many hours was he doing here? He was a fit young man. Working in a gas station shouldn’t be taking a toll on him this way. Hell, if Raul had known it would be such a drain, he’d have come to town and earned their cash.
He could stand and watch no more, and stepped out into the bright light of the forecourt.
Malec was inside the store, moving around. It wasn’t until Raul pushed open the door that Malec appeared to become aware of another presence.
“I’m closing…” Malec’s spun, then as his gaze landed on Raul his mouth hung open. He rubbed his eyes. They had bags beneath them. “Raul?”
“What’s going on?” Raul rushed up to him and cupped his cheeks. “We’ve been so worried and clearly we were right to be.”
“Are you really here?” Malec searched Raul’s face.
“Yes, I am. And Flo, too, back at the motel.”
Malec sighed and his shoulders sagged. His eyes fluttered as though giving into his weariness.
Raul pulled him into a tight hug. He’d get to the bottom of what the heck was going on soon enough, but right now he just needed to hold his mate.
He closed his eyes and inhaled Malec’s familiar scent—oh, how he’d missed that—and ran his hands over the contours of his back.
Malec snuggled closer, burying his face in Raul’s neck and breathing deep.
“It’s okay,” Raul said. “It’ll all be okay. We don’t need bucks this badly.”
“I know…it’s just…”
“Shh.” Raul silenced him by sweeping his lips over Malec’s mouth. “We can talk later. Right now you need to rest.”
“Yes, it’s been a long day.”
“How many hours have you done?” Raul frowned.
“Eight here at the station.”
“But…?”
“And five somewhere else, too.”
Raul clicked his tongue on the roof of his mouth. Two jobs, he should’ve guessed. “Come on, let’s lock up and get out of here.” Raul reached for a metal shutter on the window and slid it into place.
Malec went to the till and closed it down. He then put the takings in a safe, out of view.
Raul fidgeted as he waited for Malec to finish up.
Eventually Malec pulled on a pale green sweater and swung a bunch of keys from his finger. “All done. Let’s go.”
They stepped into the fresh air and once Malec had locked the door, Raul took his hand.
“Shall we get a cab?”
“To where?”
“The motel. See Flo.”
“No.”
“No?” Raul frowned. Was Flo the problem? Had Malec fallen out of love with her? Shit.
How the hell would he explain that to her? How would they move on from this? He had to be with Malec, he loved him. But he loved Flo, too.
Panic swarmed within Raul. His mind fired off a glut of painful scenarios and awful consequences. He swallowed, his mouth suddenly dry. “Why don’t you want to see Flo?”
“Oh I do, really I do. I’ve missed her desperately.” Malec stopped and pulled Raul to face him. “Please don’t think otherwise.”
“So why aren’t we going to the motel?” Raul clenched his jaw. Confusion was a bitch and it had caused all of his muscles to tense.
“I’ve…” Malec looked into the distance, along the highway. “I’ve got something to do.”
“What?”
“It’s complicated.”
“Try me.” Raul had planned on being patient with Malec, but his refusal to go to the motel and see the woman they loved had taken a big bite out of it.
Malec glanced at the ocean, then the ground—everywhere, it seemed, except Raul. “Come on. I’ll show you.”
Raul pressed his lips together to stop himself from demanding answers even though he wanted them right now.
“This way.” Malec set off at a fast pace, tugging Raul with him. “It will only take a few minutes.”
“Shall we shift?”
“No, it’s better this way.”
“Why?” Dog form was a quick way to travel.
“It just is.” Malec appeared to be scanning the vicinity as they passed a set of bins standing a yard back from the beach. A lifeguard hut stood in shadows on the sand, and Raul guessed it was a popular place during the day. His guess was right when he glanced at the bins. They were overflowing with trash. A rustle and a glimpse of a dog’s tail caught his attention. “Poor thing, must be starving, he’s in the trash and…”
“Shh.” Malec stilled and tugged on Raul’s arm. “Keep still. Let me deal with it.”
“Deal with it?”
“Yes, it will all become clear.” Malec stepped away, tugging a leash and something small and round from his pocket as he did so. He navigated down the short but steep bank to the beach, his feet sinking into the soft dark sand. “Hey, buddy, you hungry?”
As he held his hand forward the dog appeared, taking hesitant steps to see what Malec was holding out. It was a beautiful big golden dog. It certainly didn’t appear to be vicious, just hungry and alone.
“That’s it, this way,” Malec’s voice was calm and quiet as the dog approached. “Let’s get you sorted.” The moment he was near enough Malec slipped the leash around the dog’s neck then gave him the biscuit he’d been holding. He ruffled the top of his head. “This dirty old food is no good for you. I’ll get you some of the proper stuff if you come with me.”
He encouraged the dog to follow him up the bank to the path, then came to stand by Raul.
“What are you going to do with him?” Raul asked, giving the dog a tickle behind his ears. “Take him to the local shelter?”
“Yeah, kind of.”
“Kind of?” Raul tipped his head and frowned. “Explain, Malec.”
“I am the local shelter.”
“What?”
Malec sighed and set off at a walk, his shoulders sagging again. The dog trotted alongside him.
Raul followed, watching the way the distant lights highlighted his lover’s profile.
“Not long after I arrived,” Malec said. “I realized there were a lot of stray dogs in this town, poor old things, thin and flea ridden.”
Raul shivered just at the word flea and glanced at the stray dog. He looked clean enough, despite having been in the trash.
“I took a couple in, fed them, bathed them and managed to rehome them.”
“What did the motel think of that?”
“They didn’t notice for a few weeks, but when I got more—one a little terrier who yapped all day when I was at the gas station—they got angry and threw me and the dogs out on the street.”
Raul shook his head. “So where have you been living?”
“It’s cheap. I haven’t been spending all my earnings.”
“I’m not worried about that. I’m worried about you.”
“It’s just up here.” Malec pointed forward. “You’ll see.”
Raul peered into the distance. Beyond the last house on this stretch of land was an open space. In the far corner, it appeared to have a fenced-off area containing a shed, plus a bunch of kennels. “There?”
“Yes, it’s a cheap patch of land, came with the fence and the shed. I made up a bunch of kennels for the strays. So far I’ve rehomed over twenty-five, and this one will go quick, he’s beautiful.” He nodded at the dog walking at his side. “If he’s not chipped, that is.”
The dog glanced up at Malec, its big brown eyes sparkling in the moonlight.
“Good, you know, that he’ll be in a proper home soon. Dogs don’t like kennels.”
“No, but they like being fed and clean and safe. The turn around is fast.”
“So this is where you live now.”
“Well, not permanently. At least, I don’t want to. I want to come home to you and Flo but I’ve got myself in too deep here.”
The bark of dogs filled the air.
Raul stopped at the gate as Malec pulled a key from his pocket. He understood what Malec meant. With all this responsibility, he was trapped. Unless of course he could resist picking up stray dogs and just rehome what was here. The trouble was with a soft heart—one of the reasons Raul loved him—that wasn’t likely to happen.
The wire gate rattled as Malec opened it.
“Shh, shh,” he said to the dogs who’d come to the end of their runs to greet him. “We’ll have the neighbors complaining again.”
“It’s quite the set up,” Raul said.
“It does the job.” Malec opened the entrance to a free run and ushered the golden dog inside. “Wait there, buddy. I’ll go get you some proper food.”
The dog went straight to a bowl of water and drank deep.
“So you live here, with the dogs?”
“Don’t be shocked.” Malec shut the gate. “I am a dog, after all.”
The new dog paused and sniffed the ground, checking out its new surroundings.
“Well yes, but don’t you prefer to sleep in your human form? In a bed.”
“Yes.” Malec huffed. “And I do. Come on, this way. I’ll show you.”
As Raul followed Malec down the slim corridor between runs, a cloud slid over the moon. A dog to his right howled and the urge to shift and join in rushed through him. But he wouldn’t. Not now. He had to find out more about the conditions Malec had been living in and what he’d been doing with all these dogs. He’d known the third in their relationship could be impulsive and generous to a fault but this was something else.
At the shed-like structure, Malec unlocked another door. He opened it and stepped in. Raul followed.
The room was filled with an amber glow as Malec lit a Kerosene lamp. A double bed was pushed into the corner, the center sagging as though it had seen better days, and the sheets rumpled in a way that suggested they’d been hastily tugged upward. A makeshift counter held a gas stove, and beneath it, the fuel bottle feeding through a bright blue connection. A single chair was topped with a bunch of unfolded clothes and a desk made of crates with a wide plank of wood was spread with papers and another lamp.
“You live here?”
“Yes, it’s perfectly fine.” Malec sounded a little indignant. “I’ve rigged up a shower and toilet around the back.”
“Oh, that’s good then.”
Raul didn’t like to think of Malec living in such a place. Not when they had a comfortable cabin in the woods which, compared to this, was luxury. But he wasn’t going to press the matter, not when Malec held a look of defiance in his eyes. This was his thing, what he was doing, a sacrifice he’d made for the dogs.
And, at the end of the day, as Malec had said, he was a dog, too.