Untamed

Chapter Three

I shook my head to free myself from my reverie of the tan man standing before me.

"H-hi," he cleared his throat nervously. My God, his voice was pure silk. Deep, masculine silk.

"Hi," I waved at him. Why was my heart racing? Where did I know him from? I couldn't place it but the questions tugged at my brain viciously. "Are you looking for anything in particular?"

He hesitated, his wide eyes locked on mine. He looked confused. "Uh, books," he stuttered.

"Books?" I smiled, "you're certainly in the right place."

He scratched the back of his head in embarrassment, his ears turning the slightest tinge of pink, "I'm Liam."

"Maeve," I responded holding my hand out for his.

He reached forward enthusiastically and his large, warm hand clasped mine, his long fingers wrapping around my hand in the process. Sparks immediately flew up my arm and I tugged my hand back abruptly.

Liam looked equally as shocked as he clenched and unclenched his fingers. What the hell was that?

"So," I cleared my throat, trying to engage in a normal conversation with this mystifying man, "was there anything specific you were looking for?"

He glanced at me nervously before replying, "Do you have anything on oven repairs?"

I nodded, walking next to him to retrieve a couple books on oven DIY makes and repairs. There was a palpable buzz by just being next to him that I found utterly confusing.

I handed them over and he clutched the bundle with one hand. "Are you new in town?" I asked as I guided him to the register to ring the books up.

He shook his head as he set the books on the countertop. "I'm just passing through."

I couldn't for the life of me explain why I felt upset at that. This was a man who had just walked into my shop. Why in the world would I care if he passed through or stayed? What difference did it make to me? Besides, I had a boyfriend. Charles, I scolded myself for even thinking of someone else like that.

"Is this your place?" Liam asked as I handed him a bag filled with his purchase.

"It is," I beamed. "Well, technically it was my parents, but it's mine now and I love it all the more for it."

He handed me a few bills and as I checked the amount, I realized more than a few bills too many. "Keep the change."

There was a loud growl and I jumped with a squeak. Outside of the glass window were two huge wolves baring their fangs at us.

I grabbed onto Liam's arm, trying my best not to dwell on the warm feeling fluttering in my body as I did so. "Hurry, I have a safe room in the back," I whispered to him, my eyes glued on the two wolves.

He gave me a sad smile, "Please go in the back, Maeve. I'll be fine."

"Are you nuts?!" I tugged his thick arm back and I imagined he humoured me by moving his large body closer to mine.

"Please," he stated, his hazel eyes steady on mine. 

He moved away from me and walked out the door as I gawked at the back of his figure. He was going to die. He had a death wish. I took a key sitting at the back of the shelf and unlocked a drawer at the bottom of my desk, pulling out a gun and ducking below the bookshelves in my shop. I was going to have to rescue this fool.

I peeked out the window and saw Liam trying to talk with the beasts. He was an even bigger idiot than I thought he was. His arms were rigid at his sides, his feet standing apart as he braced himself to fight the wolves.

I jumped up and walked out the door, my fingers shaking on the trigger as I pointed it at the wolves. "Leave now," I warned, my voice steady though my heart was currently beating outside of my chest.

The wolves appeared to be snickering at me, which was unattractive on a human and much less so on a beast like them.

"I've used this before and I won't hesitate to use it on you. Leave us be."

"Would you get behind me?" Liam inquired so casually that if I didn't see what I did in front of me, I would have thought he was having a casual conversation with me.

I eyed him like he was insane. Which he clearly was. "Please, Maeve?" He asked as one side of his mouth tugged upwards.

The wolves seemed to snarl even more ferociously at this and in the blink of an eye Liam had transformed into a massive salt and peppered wolf before my very own eyes, and currently wide, gaping mouth.

He jumped in front of me gracefully, snarling viciously at the other two wolves, while I gaped at him. He was a wolf. But he was so normal. I chastised myself for thinking anything positive about their kind. They were all the same. Beastly and ruthless creatures who took pleasure in our pain and suffering. Took pleasure in demonstrating their strength on us.

Still, Liam was seemingly trying to protect me. I think.

Either way, there was no running back for me as I aimed my pistol towards the two wolves. One of the wolves began to meander around Liam, getting closer to me in the process and Liam snapped his jaw and launched at him, causing the other wolf to fall on his back. Liam stood over the other wolf's chest easily, heaving down and seemed to give him a warning growl before bouncing back and standing in front of me. His haunches were raised and his front paws were steady on the ground, looking ready to pounce at any moment.

After a few moments and several snarls and growls so loud I thought my eardrums would burst, the two wolves dashed into the woods as though they had never been there to start with.

Liam turned slowly to look at me. Now that the other two were gone I was left to wonder whether Liam posed a similar threat. My finger stayed on the trigger of my pistol just in case. I saw those familiar hazel eyes flicker down to my gun before he placed his head low on the ground and just stared at me from a few feet away.

Wolves were vicious. Wolves were cruel. I repeated this as though it were a mantra to myself over and over again. The repetition slowed my heartbeat down at the very least.

As I calmed down, Liam stood up slowly and began to walk into the forest himself.

Multiple questions flitted into my brain every nanosecond, but one rang louder than them all: What the hell did I just witness?