Chapter Seven

In Which Things Get Even Better

M y stop at Darla’s messes with my whole afternoon. I skid into the driveway with just an hour to get changed and out the door for my usual Thursday shift at the Wild Hare. I take the apple Darla cast a spell on and set it on my window sill before running inside and looking for a suitable stage outfit and clean sweats.

I’m back in the car, driving rather unsafely down the driveway when the rattle of the car knocks my purse off the passenger seat. Everything goes flying across the floorboard. I slow to grab it and feel the car hit a rather large bump with the front tire. I’m late and incredibly tempted to just move on, but there are so many animals out here. It would be cruel to leave a dying animal out here alone in pain.

I shove the car in park and hop out, checking under the car for anything and finding it empty before coming around to the front.

My heart sinks at what I see.

Freddie K. is laying there, just in front of my front tire, his little paws sticking straight in the air. Dread fills my gut. Did I just kill a dog? Marcus’s dog? I’ve never hit something remotely pet-shaped before in my life. I inch closer to the poor creature, trying to prepare myself for blood or guts. I’ve just gotten my nerve up to kneel down and touch him when Marcus’s voice calls from the front door of the fire station. “FREDDIE K., IT’S DINNER TIME!”

Freddie K immediately reanimates at the word “dinner.” He farts a fart louder than anything his size should be able to make, rolls over, and looks at me.

“What?” I ask.

He shoves his fluffy head under my hand like Willow, so I scratch his head for a moment until he gets bored of me and trots off toward the fire station.

I stare after him, utterly confused. Why was he asleep in the driveway? Does he have some dog form of narcolepsy? I move around the car and see the culprit–a large rock just behind the car.

“Sarah? Sarah! Is that you?” Marcus calls from the front door of the station. Thankfully, he seems oblivious to Freddie K.’s near death experience. He smiles his magnetic smile and waves me over. I cross the drive and he moves carefully across the grass to meet me halfway.

“So, I hope this isn’t too forward of me, but I was wondering if you’d like to go out with me tomorrow night? We could drive into the city and grab some dinner.”

“I’d love to, but I work weekends.”

“Oh, that’s right. I remember you telling me at Soojin’s. What about after work?”

“We don’t usually get out until two or three.”

“Two or three? Oh, do you work at that bar…the Wild Rabbit?”

My heart drops for the second time. “The Wild Hare, yeah.”

“Are you a bartender? Cocktail waitress?”

I search his face. “Lugh didn’t tell you?

He shakes his head. “He said we should talk about it.”

I sigh. “The Wild Hare is a regular bar from lunch until dinner. After that, they have dancers on the stage until two in the morning. That’s what I do.”

“Dancers? Like…”

“Topless. Strippers.”

“Oh.”

Neither of us says anything for a long moment, the “oh” hanging in the air between us. Finally, I work up the courage to say, “I’m actually running late for work, so I should get going.”

He nods. “Drive safe, Sarah.”

I nod, but I’ve already turned away, the disappointment bitter in my belly. I’ve been down this road so many times I’ve lost count. I’m not sure why I thought it’d be any different with Marcus.

Maybe because you thought he knew you? my brain reasons. That’s a dumb line of thought. He told me himself the other day he was trying to get to know this version of me. He doesn’t know me and he’s obviously not willing to look past my profession to see this go any further. I get back into my car, but all my motivation is gone. I drive slowly and carefully to work. I wouldn’t want such an “awesome” week to end with me hitting an animal for real.

“Steely, are you eating tonight?” Ginger asks as I step into the dressing room a lot later than I intended.

My stomach is in knots still, but we’ll be here until two, so I need something in my belly before I step on stage. “Yes, please. If you’ve got anything left.”

As the house mom, Ginger has a million tiny jobs–keeping the dressing room clean and stocked, fixing broken shoes, running out to grab emergency tampons. For that, we tip her like we tip the DJ at the end of the night. But some things she does to make an extra buck. One of those is cooking a big meal every night and selling plates to the staff. Ginger’s setup has evolved over the time I’ve worked here–from a crock pot in the corner to a full on warmer and trays as if she’s catering. She pulls back the foil on a huge tray revealing tater tot casserole.

Years ago, I would have stuck my nose up at the thought of eating anything of the sort, but tonight it smells heavenly. I hand her a five and she plops a big portion on my plate. “There are sodas in the cooler over there. Do you want a brownie or a cookie?”

“Get the brownie,” Marti advises from her dressing table. “They are to die for.”

I’m picking up a sandwich baggie with a brownie just as a loud knock comes at the dressing room door. There’s a short pause before Madison, one of the cocktail waitresses, sticks her head in. “Hey Steely, the boss needs to see you in his office.”

I sigh and take my plate with me. At least I’m still in my sweats. Randy Lamar, the Alpha of the Lamar pack, has his office at the very end of the hall that holds the men’s and women’s restrooms, a utility closet, and our dressing room. I knock twice before I enter and find that this is going to be a lot more involved than I had hoped. Randy isn’t alone. Zach, the future Alpha, sits at his desk. Zander Lamar, Zach’s younger brother and the future Beta, lays sprawled out on the couch. Zander nods his head at me in greeting. “Hey, Steely,” he says as Randy stands. I step inside and shut the door behind me, not sure what to do next.

Randy motions to the front of his desk. “Steely, come in and have a seat.”

Zach moves over to the couch, shoving Zander’s legs out of the way, as I sit in one of the uncomfortable chairs in front of Randy’s desk.

“I wanted to have a little talk about what happened Wednesday night.”

I bite my lip, not sure what to say. He meets my eyes as he leans back in his chair. “Relax, kid, we’re not here to let you go. Just to make a plan. Darla told me what she saw from her point of view. Can you tell me what happened from where you were?”

I sigh. “Marti and Cara came off the stage ahead of me and warned us all that the groom in the bachelor party that night was a little too much, so I started on the pole closest to the dressing room.” I look up to find all the wolves staring intently at me.

“He was right up against the stage. I knew I couldn’t stand on that side forever. He would just come over there, so I made my way to center stage and then he grabbed me by the foot and pulled. I fell on my ass and he started trying to get into my pants.”

Zach starts to growl low in his throat. “Fucking assholes. I’m never going to trust the Fines pack to do shit again.”

Randy nods. “Agreed.”

Their reaction makes me feel slightly better as I continue on. “Darla was still dressed up from the party, but she started shoving guys out of the way to get to me. I just had so much anger boiling up inside me at the man. It felt like something inside me exploded and then suddenly he was on the ground screaming.”

Randy leans back in his chair. “Darla told us that the spell you cast was incredibly strong and indicative of a very strong propensity for fire magic. Her exact words were that you had a very rare gift.”

I snort. “That’s not what she told me. She said I was like all the other girls.”

Zach and Zander smile faintly at my half-assed joke.

Randy clears his throat. He looks uncomfortable, like we’re talking about my period and not magic. “When will your apprenticeship begin?”

“Monday.”

He sighs. “My concern is the likelihood that we could have a repeat of this event.”

“It’s not going to happen again,” I interrupt. “I’ve lived twenty-seven years without an incident so far. That man was sexually assaulting me in front of everyone. It’s not like he didn’t deserve it.”

“Steely,” Zach says before Randy can respond, “we’re totally on your side about this. This should have never happened. But uncontained magic in a place as volatile as this can be an extremely dangerous thing.”

“So, what are you saying?”

Randy and Zach exchange glances. “We’re going to have to make some changes to your schedule for the time being. We don’t have any other witches on staff other than Darla, so you’ll only be able to work nights she works.”

Darla works days at the animal clinic down the road, so her only days are Fridays and Saturday nights. Four nights cut down to two. My chest is heavy, and tears sting at the corner of my eyes. I have savings, but I still have bills to pay. Stripping isn’t regular work and you have to push to make as much as you can to cover the times when things are dead, like the holiday months coming up. Anger and frustration boil up inside me, but I remember Darla’s warning. Setting something or someone on fire wouldn’t exactly help my case.

“So, what about tonight? Are you telling me to go home right now? I have regulars that come out every Thursday night.”

Randy opens his mouth to answer, but Zander speaks up before he can say anything. “I got her. It will be fine. This all happened because the Fines pack is a bunch of lazy assholes. No one should have laid hands on her. Period.”

Zander’s support makes me feel somewhat better, like I’m not completely on the outs with the pack.

I swallow the lump that has built in my throat. I hate how my body betrays me, how my first instinct is to cry in reaction to the frustration and anger I’m experiencing. “Is there anything else?” I manage to get out. “I need to get ready.”

“No,” Randy Lamar says. I’m out the door before they can say anything, Zander on my heels.

“Hey, Steely,” he calls out as I try to hurry away.

I stop, unable to ignore him, and turn to face the wolf. Of all the Lamars, Zander is the closest to what I’d consider an actual friend. He’s the peacemaker, the calm one.

Back when I was the new girl and still stuck on the weekday shifts, he was usually the one left to manage the club. If I ever had a problem with a customer, he was always there, diffusing the situation. I’ve never not seen him on the dancer’s side when something comes up.

“Hey, don’t stress about it,” he says, putting a friendly arm around me. “Randy will see in a few weeks that it was a one-time thing and put you back on the schedule.”

I don’t look up, afraid my anger is going to turn into tears. “I hope so.”

“He will. And if you need anything, just ask. If the pack can’t help you, I’m more than willing to.”

“Zander, that’s sweet, but you and Nolig have the baby coming.”

He laughs as he folds his arms across his chest. “Nolig does not need any money I can provide. In fact, I’m pretty certain she’s slumming it by sticking with me.”

I smile despite myself. “I don’t think she sees it that way. She looks perfectly content being stuck with you.”

“You think?” he says.

I shake my head, letting him suck me into being distracted. “She’s a fae. I think your trailer would have had a million problems by now or you’d trip every time you passed a pretty lady if she didn’t want you around.”

He laughs. “I think I’d be in a lot more trouble than that.”

“Could she turn you into a toad?”

“Would that be so horrible, though?” he jokes as we walk down the hall. “Hopping around and napping by the pond sounds like heaven compared to bills and responsibilities and, now, with the baby coming…”

“You okay?” I ask.

“Yeah, just wondering if I’m going to do this dad thing justice.”

“You’ll be fine,” I reassure him. “You’re responsible and attentive. And if not, it’s not like she can’t turn you into something useful.”

He snorts. “Thanks for putting things into perspective.”

“I’ll see ya out there.”

“Yeah,” he says, shaking his head and walking off.