A Nurse Among Wolves

Chapter 1: Miren

I had worked as a nurse at an inner city hospital for 3 years before I worked up the courage to leave. For 3 years it had felt like the life was being sucked right out of me. Like a leach was attached to my soul. The city was a lot of things, loud, crowded and full of people who didn't give a crap about anyone else. So I had gotten out. I had bought a small farm just north of the ass end of nowhere. After spending my childhood in foster homes with up to 7 different kids at any given point, I was fed up with it being cramped and noisy. After working my butt off getting through school I thought I was all set. Only problem was that my "dream life" in the city was not much different from foster care. My room was small, nothing ever seemed to work and there was ALWAYS someone yelling. So I went out and got a job at a clinic in a little town called Wolves Run. It was a quiet little place, one clinic/doctors office, one grocery/hardware store, one clothing/outdoor store and one coffee shop/bakery. It seemed that every business in this town was having an identity crisis. But despite its dual personalities it was a nice place to live. 

Everyone was friendly and nobody tried to mug you on the way to your car which is always a bonus. All in all I felt that I had made the right decision. I had found a nice little farm that I could afford and moved my ass out there as soon as I could. 3 months later and I was still trying to get it fixed up. I was doing my best but the fact was, that there was only so much I could do by myself. I sighed as I finished packing up my things before heading out. Friday was my short shift and I was able to leave just around 1 which meant that I would have time to get a cup of coffee from the cafe/bakery. I LOVED coffee and might be just a bit of a caffeine addict. I threw my thing in my car before heading over. Another perk of small towns was that almost everything in town was within walking distance and by that I mean all on one street. The smell of fresh baked pastries and hot coffee hit me as I walked in.

"Hey Miren" Emma the barista and owner of the Midnight Cat cafe and bakery.

"Hi Emma" I smiled, staring at the board with today's specials.

"I'll be with you in just a sec" Emma called over her shoulder as she finished.

"Take your time I'm in no hurry for once" I actually had some time today and I planned on enjoying every minute of it.

"Having a good day?" a deep voice asked from behind me, making me jump with a squeak.

"Sorry" the man said, coming around into my line of sight. And oh boy! He was the tallest, most gorgeous man I had ever seen. This guy had to be at least 6'5' with black hair, olive skin and vivid blue eyes. Between his chiseled jaw and black swirling tattoos swirling down his arms and neck he was like a character out of a romance novel. B

"That's ok" I said, trying to pick my jaw up off the floor.

"I'm Toren" the guy says, smiling down at me. I was used to feeling short being only 5 foot but Toren mead me feel small.

"Miren" I said as Toren took the hand I offered, holding it more than shaking it. Holy cow, even his hands were huge. Dwarfing mine in comparison.

"Are you new in town?" He asked, finally letting go of my hand but not stepping away.

"Yes," I told him trying not to bush, "I only move here 3 months ago"

"Do you live in town?" He walked with me up to the counter where Emma was now waiting with a suspicious smile tugging at her lips.

"And what can I get the two of you?" She asked.

"I'll take a white chocolate mocha with caramel" I tell her trying to pull my card out of my wallet.

"Doesn't worry about it" Toren said, handing Emma some cash "and I'll take a latte"

"You're a latte man?" I asked, not quite being able to hold back a giggle.

"I know," he said, blushing "it's my guilty pleasure."

"We should all have at least one of those," I smiled.

"Or two," Toren muttered.

"What" I asked, not sure what I just heard.

"Would you like to grab a seat?" he asked while Emma made your drinks.

"I wouldn't want to take up your time" I said, not sure exactly why this man was paying attention to me.

"For you I have all the time in the world," he said, giving me a magazine worthy smile. Ok what was going on. I look back at Emma and she gives me two thumbs up. I nodded and grabbed a table in the back honestly wondering if this was some kind of joke. A few minutes later Toren came over with your drinks. He smiled, putting mine down in front of me and sat down.

"So," I started, pulling my coffee towards me "do you live in town?'

"I live just outside town, my brothers and I have a piece of property," he took a sip of his drink before continuing "it's mostly woods but we do have a small lake"

This piqued my interest "a lake? Does it by any chance feed a stream?"

"It does," he said, tilting his head at my question.

"Sorry it must seem like a weird question, I only ask because I have a stream that runs through my property and I just thought that your lake might be where it comes from" I ducked my head, my cheeks flaming in embarrassment.

"Do you own the farm on the dirt road off of 23" he asked, seeming to perk up "the one with the Blue house?"

"Yeah that's me" I said, smiling at how excited he seemed to be about it.

"Then were neighbors, we own the property next to you"

"Really, I didn't even know anyone lived further down that road" I laugh.

"Maybe we could" before Toren could finish his sentence his phone rang, belting out "Born to be Wild" by Steppenwolf. Toren practically ripped the phone from his pocket and smashed the answer key. "what!" He growled into the phone. The drop in his voice made my hair stand on end but not in a bad way.

Toren listened for a minute before answering "are you sure?, fine I'll be right there". Toren hung up and shoved the phone back in his pocket before standing. "I'm sorry about this but I have to leave, something came up"

"It's fine" I told him, hoping the disappointment didn't show on my face "I'm sure we will see each other again sometime"

Toren looked down at me for a moment before grabbing a napkin and writing a number down on it. "Here" he handed me the napkin "this is my number, if you ever need anything, an extra pair of hands, a date" he winked "just call" and with that he turned and left. He hadn't even given me a chance to say anything.

"I don't get it" I whispered into my coffee "I just don't get it."