Same Old (Same #3)

Chapter One

Dodger Nause wished he was anywhere but here.

It was cold in Coeur d’Alene today, and the snow had piled up around the main road here.

Currently, he was the only one sitting outside of Copper’s Brewery by the single space heater.

He glanced over at the flower shop across the street, but Delta Harrington wasn’t off work for her lunch break yet. He’d gotten here early.

Why had she called him? Why did she want to do this? Why was he even freaking here?

A snarl rattled his chest and he shook his head hard. The wolf had been harder to manage lately, but he couldn’t figure out why.

It was probably Nate’s fault. Or Vic. Or Tabian. Or Liam. All of the werewolves in the Rogue Pack were pissing him off.

Another snarl vibrated through him, and he shook his head hard.

“H-hi,” a timid voice uttered.

He ripped his glare from the door of the flower shop and turned to the waitress. “Water is fine.”

The pretty woman frowned. “Uh, okay.”

“Thanks,” he grunted.

“Right. I’ll let your server know.”

He’d swung his attention back to the flower shop but jerked his gaze back to the lady. She was walking away.

“Hey,” he called.

Slowly, she turned around. Her cheeks were rosy with a blush, and she was looking down at the snowy ground.

“You aren’t a server?”

“Oh, no. I don’t work here.”

Dodger cocked his head. She was maybe in her late twenties to early thirties, with a burgundy beanie over mouse brown curls.

She had skin-tight leggings that hugged her lean legs, and wool lined snow boots.

She wore a bulky beige sweater and a deep red scarf.

Her eyes held him though. They were a strange mixture of blue with brown near her pupils.

She probably looked like a werewolf in saturated sunlight.

Definitely human though. She smelled slightly of animal, but from the fine gray hairs on her leggings, she had a dog or something.

“What do you need?” he hadn’t meant for his voice to come out all growly, but again, his wolf was a lot and he’d been startled by the woman.

“Ummm…” She shifted her weight on her other leg and gestured inside the restaurant. “I’m sitting in there.”

“Congratulations?”

“Right.” She inhaled deeply and gave him a little wave. “Have a nice day.”

A frown took his face as he watched her walk to the door to go back inside. “Why did you tell me you’re sitting inside?” he called.

“I just saw you out here alone, and I thought you could be warmer in there.” He’d never witnessed this shade of red on a human’s cheeks before.

“You were inviting me to sit with you?”

“Y-yes.” She let off a nervous laugh. Cute. “Also, my mom dared me to come talk to you.” She gestured to the window of Copper’s again, and sure enough, there was a lady sitting at the table by it, watching them.

Humans. Most of the time they saw a werewolf, and scurried away, but sometimes they lacked survival skills and got curious.

He shrugged and shook his head. “Did you look up local werewolf registrations?”

“Oh, uh, yeah. You’re Dodger.”

He pursed his lips and cast a glance at the flower shop to see Delta jogging across the street toward him. “I’m waiting on a friend. I prefer to sit in the cold.”

The woman’s pretty eyes darted to Delta. “Oh, of course. Of course you’re waiting for a friend. I’m so sorry…for…you know.”

He didn’t know. He didn’t know at all. “For what?”

“For assuming.”

“For assuming what?”

Her cheeks were so intensely red now. “That you’re single. I’m sorry!” She turned in a rush and yanked the door open and disappeared inside, leaving him staring after her blankly.

What?

“Hey,” Delta said, squeezing his shoulder as she scurried around the table to the other side. She took her seat and removed her jacket. “It’s hot today.”

It was actually about three degrees out here, but he got it. He was nearly sweating by the heater. He stood and dragged the heater farther away from them and glanced at the window. The pretty woman had taken the seat right by it, facing away from them.

Had she been trying to ask him out or something?

He didn’t get it. Humans dating werewolves was taboo and frowned upon by both sides.

There was no way her mother had dared her to go after him.

Humans didn’t do that. Well, except for Nory, who was paired with his Alpha, Liam.

She was crazy though and lacked self-preservation.

Hell, if he was a human, you couldn’t pay him enough to send one of his kids to talk to one. Werewolves were all disasters.

“Hello?” Delta asked.

He dragged his attention back to Nate’s mate. “Hey.”

“Who is that?” she asked, looking at the menu.

“I think some human just tried to ask me out,” he murmured, still in disbelief.

“Well, that tracks.”

“What do you mean?”

Delta looked up from her menu and her bright green eyes were genuine as she said, “You’re single, you have a good job, you have a house, and some would say you’re handsome. Not me, I think you’re annoying, but I could see the appeal.”

“From a human?” Maybe everyone in this town had lost their minds, including him.

“Nory’s a human, and she paired up with Liam.”

“Nory’s crazy,” he said, leaning forward. “Nory’s life span is probably shortened by two decades because she wanted to bang a werewolf.”

“Whatever, Dodger. I’ll keep her safe.”

“From the Elders?” If they were doing lala land today, he needed a drink. He waved at the server who was coming outside with a pad and pen.

“I’ll be honest,” she said in greeting, “I thought you were just sitting out here people watching. We hardly ever have people out here when it’s this co—holy cow, you’re one of those.” She’d apparently just noticed his eye color.

Automatically, he pulled a pair of sunglasses over his eyes, but she was already smelling like panic.

“I can’t do this,” she said in a shaky voice.

“What’s happening?” Delta sounded confused, but Dodger wasn’t. This happened a lot.

“It’s fine,” he said, trying to control the growl in his tone. “Is there someone else who could take our order?”

“No one here is going to serve you,” she said from where she’d settled near the door.

“Wait, I’ve come here a few times,” Delta said, and God bless the little innocent tone in her voice. She’d been raised soft in her old Pack. “I never bother anyone and I tip well. No one has ever refused to serve me.”

“Well, you don’t look like that one,” she said, pointing.

Dodger crossed his arms over his chest and considered how he was going to handle this one. Through the window, he could see the pretty lady had turned in her seat and she and her mother were watching them with matching confused expressions on their faces.

He should’ve just walked away. He’d learned over the years that was the best way to handle these situations, but Delta was so confused, and she was genuinely nice, and she worked across the street, and he didn’t want her losing a favorite lunch spot.

Dodger stood and grabbed his menu off the table, and strode right past the woman, yanked open the door and waited for Delta.

“What are we doing?” Delta asked, her voice wrenched up an octave.

“Eating inside today,” he said gruffly. He tilted his head.

And Delta, bless her, got a steely look in her eye and stood, grabbed her own menu and her jacket and then stomped right past him.

“Bar,” he advised her. There was an open door near it where a couple men were unloading a delivery truck into a big fridge, so he had an escape to try and keep his wolf calm, and the cold breeze would save them from the heat.

Pissed, he pulled out his wallet as Delta sat down on a bar stool.

He threw down a hundred-dollar bill and told the bartender, “We’re werewolves, we want no trouble, we’re just hungry, I will give you a hundred-dollar tip to just get us food and a couple beers and then we will leave this place like we found it. ”

The guy behind the bar had frozen with his eyes on the cash but defrosted enough to look over Dodger’s shoulder at the server. “I’m taking these two.”

“Seriously?” the server asked in a shrill voice.

The guy sighed and looked at Delta apologetically as the rude one stormed off through the kitchen door. “She’s new.”

“Thank you,” Delta said softly. “We really don’t mean any harm.”

“You’re fine. I’ve seen you in here before. What can I get you?”

“Three beers,” Dodger muttered.

“Oh, I don’t want beer,” Delta said. “I have to work.”

Dodger pulled a face. “Those are for me. Order your freakin’ iced tea, I don’t care.”

Delta blinked hard, and looked at the non-alcoholic section of the menu, then ordered a peach iced tea. Yack. He would rather drink piss.

“We can’t serve three alcoholic drinks at a time,” the bartender explained.

“I’m walking two of them over to the table behind us for those ladies.”

“Oh. That’s cool then.” The bartender poured three draft beers of their specialty they brewed in house, and Dodger did as he’d said, and took two beers back to the table by the window.

He nodded to the mom. She had the same pretty eye color as her daughter. He set the pair of beers down in front of them and swung his attention to the woman from earlier. “Thanks for being nicer than most people in this town.”

She looked like she wanted to say something, but her lips parted, and nothing came out.

He didn’t need a thank you. Dodger walked away. Honestly, he had no idea what had possessed him to do that. He’d never bought a human a drink in his life, but her being genuinely kind outside was a stark contrast to how the server had treated them, and good deeds deserved rewards.

Even if it had been a prank, or a joke she and her mom were pulling on him, at least he felt good walking back to Delta.

He cast the server a glare as she came out of the kitchen with what looked like a manager.

That manager didn’t want any of this smoke though.

He lowered his gaze immediately and said something under his breath to the server.

Yeah, that’s what he thought.