Chapter 4 - Dane #2
Dane blew out a breath, shaking his head as he rounded the corner onto South Oak Drive.
He shouldn’t be curious. Not now. Not with tensions rising on the borders and Felix already breathing down his neck about pack security.
The last thing he needed was a jittery academic scowling at him with berry-red lips yet looking at him with naked curiosity of her own when she thought he wasn’t looking.
She’d only been here three days, for God’s sake.
Lost in his reverie, he was halfway up the street before he noticed her.
There, under the soft yellow light above the apartment complex entrance, Lola stood at her door, frowning furiously at the lock. She was muttering to herself, gripping a keyring with both hands, her brows furrowed in frustration.
He stopped in his tracks.
She lived here?
Right next door to him?
The universe had a sick sense of humor.
For a long beat, he just stared, surprised. Then a slow, entirely inappropriate grin tugged at his lips.
This was going to be interesting.
He approached without thinking. “Having trouble there, love?”
She jumped, spinning around, “You!” she hissed, clearly startled. “Why are you sneaking up on me?”
Dane lifted his hands innocently, “Wasn’t sneaking. I live here.”
She blinked, stunned, her mouth opening and closing several times before she managed to blurt out, “You what?”
He pointed to the door beside hers. “Apartment 4B.”
She looked at him with blatant shock, then at the door, then back at him. “No. Absolutely not.”
He leaned against the railing, amused. “Afraid so. Looks like we’re neighbors.”
She groaned, turning back to the lock and jiggling the key again, “Of course, you live next door. Because why wouldn’t the universe hate me just that much?”
“Careful,” he drawled, “you’re starting to sound like you’re not thrilled to see me.”
Her response was to shove the key with unnecessary aggression. The slight blush staining her cheeks didn’t escape his notice.
“You know,” he said, stepping forward, “if you’d stop fighting it and try asking it nicely, that door might actually open.”
“I am asking it nicely,” she snapped.
“That’s your nice voice?” he raised an eyebrow. “Terrifying.”
Before she could argue, he reached around her, close enough to smell her perfume, something delicate and expensive and infuriatingly perfect, and gave the handle a firm jerk. The door gave a heavy creak and swung open.
Lola stared at it like it had betrayed her. “I loosened it,” she mumbled.
“Sure you did.”
She glared up at him. “I don’t need your help, you know.”
“Didn’t say you did,” he replied, still grinning. “Just thought I’d save you from dying of hypothermia out here.”
She made a frustrated little huff, smoothing down her skirt like it had personally offended her. On anyone else, the plaid wool might look frumpy, like something from one of Rick’s stuffy English boarding schools, but on her…
Well. He’d had a few more naughty librarian fantasies over the past few days than usual.
Before Dane could tease her again, the sound of heeled boots clicked along the sidewalk. He turned as Daisy approached, a paper bag tucked under one arm, her cheeks flushed from the cold.
“Lola,” she called. “Oh, good, you’re still up.”
Lola straightened, pulling her bottom lip between her teeth, her distress palpable. “Oh…hi, Daisy!”
Daisy’s eyes darted between them, tucking her hair behind her ear with deceptive innocence. “I’m sorry, and am I interrupting something?”
“No,” Lola said too quickly, “he was just…breaking into my apartment.”
Dane held a hand to his chest. “Now, why would I bother breaking in when most women would jump at the opportunity to invite me inside?”
Lola scowled darkly. “Maybe you should go find one of them, then.”
Daisy chuckled nervously. “Well, since I’ve apparently walked in on a domestic, I’ll keep this quick.
” She turned to Lola, clasping her hands in front of her, all pretty sweetness.
What the hell Nicolas had done to convince her to put up with his shit, Dane would never know.
“There’s a coffee morning this Friday at the Pine Shadow Club, just something low-key.
Mostly pack females, some kids, and a lot of pastries. You should come.”
Lola hesitated. “Oh, I don’t know…”
“Please?” Daisy added, batting her big green eyes. “Cassie and I would love to have you there. You said you wanted to get involved in stuff, right?”
Lola flushed, looking down at her feet. “I did. I just…don’t know if I’d be welcome. Isn’t it a pack thing?”
“Lola,” Daisy said gently, “you are welcome. Everyone I’ve spoken to thinks your research sounds really intriguing. It’s just coffee and cake, no pressure.”
Dane almost laughed out loud at the stricken expression on Lola’s face. “You…you’ve talked to people about me? My research, I mean?”
Daisy cocked her head. “Of course I have, it’s fascinating!”
Lola nodded slightly too frantically to come off as normal. “Okay, great, I mean…that’s great!”
Glancing between them nervously, Daisy offered her a smile. “So…you’ll come?”
“Mhmm,” Lola said, trying her best to return Daisy’s smile. “Yep, definitely! Sounds like a blast!”
“Wonderful!” Daisy smiled. “Ten o’clock. And I swear, the cinnamon rolls alone are worth it.”
With a parting grin, Daisy waved and disappeared down the street back towards the club.
Lola clutched her keys like they were a lifeline.
“Well, look at you,” Dane said, nudging her lightly with his elbow. “Makin’ friends already. Aren’t you the social butterfly.”
To his disappointment, she didn’t rise to the bait, just turned to the door and mumbled, “Goodnight.”
Dane pushed off the wall, running his hand through his hair, “Sleep tight, neighbor.”
As her door closed behind her, he stood there for a moment, staring at the wood.
Lola Devereaux, a shy librarian with just enough attitude to hook him in, was his neighbor. And he wasn’t exactly known for his stellar self-restraint.
But she wasn’t the type of girl to mess around with. He could tell that a mile off. Some girls just couldn’t handle casual. Couldn’t turn their brains off long enough for plain old fun. Unless he was actually a complete bastard with a heart of stone, he’d have to keep his distance.
Fuck. This was going to be a problem.