To Walk Alone

- wary -

Tossing the used tissue in the trash, Sif checked herself over once more in the chipped mirror. Her windblown hair was a lost cause, and she let it fall over her shoulders in a heap. The heavy locks looked almost blue in the weird florescent lighting of the restroom, but she paid it no mind. She could hear the wind pick up outside when the restaurant doors opened, and then the sound dimmed when they closed. There was an immediate shift in the air around her, and she had to pause to assess what it could mean.

From inside the restroom, she could smell nothing unusual, and attributed the shift to the approaching storm. She needed to get going if she was going to make it home before the storm hit. She hated traveling in the rain on her four-wheeler.

Pulling the door open, she hurried out and headed straight for her booth to grab the bag she'd left on the seat. When she stepped out of the bathroom though, the change in atmosphere was even stronger. Pulling her bag up off the seat, she stopped dead in her tracks when the smell hit her like a fricken freight train. Her body went rigid, as if she'd been frozen by an invisible force, and as she slowly drew in a breath, the scent was unmistakable.

Forest earth and firewood filled every one of her senses, and her mind went into overdrive. Her wolf jumped up and started yapping, and Sif clamped her mouth shut. Exhaling, she let the shoulder bag drape over her while she very carefully turned herself around. She smelled them before she saw them.

The next breath revealed some startling information, and she froze once more when her eyes landed on the group of six men. Her eyes locked on the largest and the color drained from her face.

'Mate! Mate! Mate!' Her wolf howled excitedly, but Sif's face paled even more.

Fuck, fuck, fuck, she thought to herself, but her wolf only howled again.

'Yes, we'll do that, too!'

Any other day of the week Sif would have scolded her wolf for being the horny animal she was, but not right now.

Right now, her mind registered the fact that there were six of them in all that were seated around the tables together. Their chatter died instantly when they spotted her. They stared at her and she could tell they were sniffing the air, but the only gaze she could meet was his.

Icy blue irises locked on hers. His tousled brown hair looked like he'd just ran his hands through it multiple times. It was a dead sexy look for him, and her fingers twitched with longing. Oh, how she would love to run her fingers through those soft locks of his.

Mentally shaking her head, she blinked herself out of her trance.

The smell on the air was not one that was familiar to her, telling her these wolves were not from around here. The only one of them she had eyes for was the one staring back at her so intently she thought she might melt into a puddle where she stood. The unmistakable urge to jump the counters and fling herself into his arms like a lovesick puppy made her muscles tense up while she struggled with her wolfs urges.

'Mate! He's mate!'

'No!' Sif growled back, but that was clearly a mistake. All six heads trained on her simultaneously, their bodies stiffening into defensive postures as if she'd growled out loud. She must have, because the Alpha rose slowly from his seat. She could tell he was an Alpha; his aura easily told her so. Lord was he tall, and her mouth went inconveniently dry.

Unconsciously she touched the bracelet hidden under her sleeve. It was a small gesture, but the tension at the table amounted even more. Confusion was evident on their faces as they stared at her. Their nostrils flared but even if no scent drifted to them, they knew she was like them; after all, her nose was sniffing them out, too.