Page 9 of Semi-Rejected Life

“Am I that predictable?”

“Yes, Cory, you are.”

“You love it.”

I just sighed, going back to the dough I was currently ladling sauce onto. Cory was another wolf of course and one of Sam’s long-term residents. From what I heard, he’d shown up late last year during a snowstorm on foot. Not only did he have nothing to his name, but he was in wolf form when he arrived. His paws were raw from running across snow and ice for who knows how long. It took Sam nearly three days to get him shifted back into human form. Needless to say, the kid took a while to recover. Even so, he hadn’t shared his story with anyone. However, his scent gave away a small amount of Alpha heritage, but that was as far as any of us ever got.

He came around eventually and when he needed a job to help him get back on his feet, Sam brought him to me. I needed the help anyway and Cory was a good worker. It took a while for him to open up to any of us, but once he did, we got to see his playful, sassy side. It would have been annoying if I didn’t like him so much.

“So are you going to tell me why you’re smiling like a Cheshire Cat or what?” I asked, moving the pizza down the bench to add the toppings.

“A guy came in here last night,” he said, grabbing his apron from the hook and pulling it over his head. “He was looking for you.”

My heart dropped to the pit of my stomach, my hands freezing mid air. “Oh?” I was trying to play it cool. “What did he want?”

Cory lifted an eyebrow in my direction. “Well, he said he was looking for the cute guy that worked here. Since he wasn’t talking about me and you’re the only other person who works here, I figured he was talking about you. Unless he got us mixed up with, you know, the other six pizza shops in town that don’t exist.”

“Huh.” I was trying to concentrate on getting the toppings evenly spread over the pizza I was making while also trying not to panic. “Did he leave a name or anything?”

“Yeah. It was something odd… Lake or Pond or something?”

“River?”

Cory’s eyes lit up. “So you do know him!”

The jig was up. I sighed and pushed the pizza away. “Yeah. I know who it is.”

“Well, I didn’t give him any specifics. But I did tell him you were working today.”

“You know, you really shouldn’t do that. What if he’s some kind of serial killer?”

“He’s after you,” Cory scoffed. “What the hell do I care?”

“Who’s gonna sign your paychecks if he kills me?”

“Hmmm… well, I suppose I could just take over the pizza shop.” He gave me a wink. “Would anyone really notice? Hardly anyone sees you as it is.”

“That’s because I’m working all the time!”

“Except for yesterday, huh?” Cory wiggled his eyebrows at me. “You get lucky on the beach or something?”

“You are so nosy.” I went back to the pizza, finishing off the last of the toppings before sliding it into the oven.

Cory just stood there with his arms crossed, drumming his fingers. “I’m waiting. Details, bro.”

“I hate it when you call me that…”

“I hate it when you meet hot guys and don’t share the gossip!” Cory grabbed one of the order slips next to me, took out a ball of dough, and started to get to work. “Nothing happens in this town! You can’t keep it all to yourself when something spicy is going on.”

I sighed. “It wasn’t spicy. The man nearly killed me yesterday.”

“Oh shit… is he actually a murderer?”

“Only if his plan is to run over people with his surfboard and then save them from drowning.”

“Oh my god,” Cory’s flour-covered hand went to his mouth. “He saved your life?!” He leaned close, flour now covering his lips. “Did he give you mouth to mouth?”

“No… and you have flour on your face.”

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