7. Did you kill Nedley?

Wrapping her extra-long, extra-thick scarf up around her neck in a vain attempt to keep out the cold and the doubts, Waverly barely even looked to see if anything was coming before storming across the road towards the building that held Purgatory’s woefully understaffed Sheriff’s Department. She could almost feel sorry for them having to deal with all the B.S. that went with having a larger than normal werewolf population… if they weren’t holding her Alpha!

She had held off from action for as long as she could even though everything within her had demanded that she should just march her ass on over and find out what was happening. She had done it though. She had made it through her shift even though Shorty had begged her to leave when her fierce growls had started to scare people away from the bar without getting their drinks.

Her feet crunched determinedly through the layer of freshly fallen snow that blanketed the small parking area, the one bare spot upon the ground laying where the Sheriff’s S.U.V. usually stood.

How dare he leave Nicole there alone!

She had a good mind to storm on over to his house and give him a piece of her mind!

Ever polite though, she stomped her feet to remove the excess snow from her boots before stepping inside and making her way down the corridor to the reception desk. As she had suspected from the empty parking space, Nedley’s office was in darkness and the place looked to be deserted.

Waverly glanced around wondering what she should do to get the attention of whoever should be on duty, which was Lonnie… it had to be, he was the only other Officer working there even though working was a word used very loosely when it came to Lonnie. He was a nice man but not exactly cut out for the job. Which proved how inadequate her ex-boyfriend Champ had been as he had tried out at the same time as Lonnie and had been turned down.

Giving it a glower, Waverly finally decided to save her voice for a good old shout when it didn’t work. Stripping off her knitted gloves, she rang the ridiculously useless looking hotel bell on the reception desk. “For god’s sake! Why haven’t they gotten anything more modern!?” she grouched under her breath as it let out a pathetic DING at even her hardest slap.

“Sheriff Nedley says it’s ‘quirky’.”

Waverly had been so distracted by her building anger and concern that it was only then that the delicious scent hit her in a body aching rush. Jaw dropping, Waverly spun back around and blinked in shock as she took in Nicole.

Standing there.

Not locked up.

And wearing… wearing a P.S.D. uniform!?

Wearing it very well too.

“Wait…! I came to…! You’re not…! Did you break out? Oh my god… did you kill Sheriff Nedley?!”

Nicole blinked in bemusement as Waverly pushed open the barely even waist high swing gate and bustled through to her side of the long reception desk that stood between the public and the bullpen. A slender but surprisingly strong hand grabbed her wrist and started trying to drag her back through the gate, catching Nicole so unawares that she took a couple of steps before she even thought to resist.

“Waverly? What are you doing? Kill…? No, god no! This is my uniform. Ow!” Nicole rubbed her stinging shoulder and hastily held up a hand to ward off any more attacks. “Really, Waverly! Assaulting an officer?”

“Assaulting? Assaulting a… a butthead maybe! I thought you’d been arrested and came to bail you out! And ask if there was such a thing as conjugal visits if I couldn’t. Why didn’t you say something, you… butt!?”

“You can say ass you know. Ow! Well, I might but you were too busy trying to get in my clothes. And stop hitting me or I’ll have to cuff you! No, Waverly…” Nicole backed up, her hands raised in an attempt to ward Waverly off at the spark of interest in her eyes at that. Oh my god! Had she really said conjugal visits? “Behave or I will cuff you and call your sister!”

“No you won’t,” backing Nicole up, Waverly ran her fingers down across the buttons of her dark blue uniform shirt. Lifting the name tag pinned to it above Nicole’s right breast with the tip of a finger, Waverly let her fingers linger upon the tempting swell of her breast a moment, or twenty, longer than absolutely necessary as she read her Alpha’s surname.

“Haught, huh? Of course,” she smiled. It was the last name she would ever have thought of for anyone and yet it was totally appropriate for the redhead. There was only one thing wrong with it, “Wynonna is going to have too much fun with your name.”

“Don’t worry I’ve heard them all before… police cadets can be very inventive. As for your sister, Nedley’s already warned me to steer clear of that branch of the Earp family tree.”

“They do have something of a love, hate relationship going… in that they love to hate each other,” she smiled ruefully. “He didn’t warn you about this branch though?” Waverly pointed to herself.

Pleased that Waverly had, apparently, been side-tracked, Nicole tried to put some distance between them but Waverly just followed her, keeping the same lack of personal space between them. “Apparently I would do well to have you as a friend so I’ll take that to mean you don’t make a habit of cornering people in public restrooms too often?”

“Nope, you were my first.”

“Well don’t do it again.” Bending down instinctively, Nicole reached for a pen that had rolled to the floor.

“Don’t worry, Officer Haught… I’ll restrain myself to only doing that with you.”

Nicole straightened up abruptly at the dreamy tone of Waverly’s voice and the glimpse of where she was looking caught out of the corner of her eye. “Waverly,” she warned softly, “I have a Taser, don’t you make me use it.”

“From cuffs straight to Taser… do I make you that nervous, Nicole?”

“Which answer would make you behave, yes or no?”

“I once got hit with a tranquiliser dart and still made band practice so… neither.”

Nicole blinked as she absorbed that. Anyone else she might have accused them of spinning a tall story but there was just honesty in Waverly’s hazel eyes and, seriously, who would come up with something like that? “I’m not sure if I should admire or be terrified by your determination or ask who shot you and what instrument you play?”

“I play guitar but I was there as head cheerleader. Not sure. And yes.” Waverly grinned at the confusion on Nicole’s face as she tried to put answers and questions together. There was just something so adorable and sexy about the way her mouth softened and her eyes flickered to the left, while her brow creased ever so slightly when she was confused.

And she tended to go still, which made her easier to catch hold of. She wanted to launch herself into Nicole’s arms and taste her mouth again but, showing restraint, Waverly moved her hands gently over Nicole’s forearms instead. Each brush moving slightly higher as she felt the flex of strong muscles beneath the poorly fitting shirt. Brown eyes watched her warily but her gentleness worked in that Nicole didn’t try to hold her back even when they were so close that Waverly could feel the rise and fall of her body as Nicole breathed.

“Why didn’t you claim me earlier?”

“Waverly—”

“I know you wanted to… Still do?”

“I don’t—”

“You’re staring at my neck, Nicole. Right here, at my pulse.” She tapped the area and felt a growl rumble through Nicole’s body and vibrate against her at being caught out. “So… why won’t you?”

“Because it would be wrong! Because you deserve better than a wolf like me! Because I don’t want you! Just pick one, Waverly… please?”

Nicole had thought… hoped? That it would work but instead of storming off or slapping her, Waverly’s arms slid around her waist, pulling her closer and Nicole felt herself sag into her. “You are a very bad for an Omega, you know that right?”

“Why? Because I want to be claimed by my Alpha? Because, maybe, I’m exactly the Omega my Alpha needs me to be? And yes, you are mine, Nicole. Go on, take in my scent and tell me you don’t feel our connection.”

“It won’t change my mind about claiming you,” Nicole stated with more determination than she felt. But not even that seemed to quell Waverly’s determination to get her way. In fact, whatever she had heard in her voice beyond her words seemed to just make her look even more sure of herself.

“Just take in my scent before I handcuff you. And don’t think I won’t… I’m super bendy and I will get to them before you. Yep… super… super… bendy,” she whispered seductively against the silky skin of Nicole’s throat.

“More like, super, super naughty. Fine… okay,” Nicole rolled her eyes at Waverly’s pointed look and pressed her nose where she was pointing. Not that she needed to be that close or even to do it at all as she already knew Waverly’s scent and what it did to her.

From the moment she had caught it across the clearing it had been like something had clicked within her. From that second she had just known that lavender and lime had been a part of her soul that had been missing until that moment.

It didn’t change anything though. She just needed to take it in again and walk away. Maybe then, Waverly would give up and let herself fall for someone more deserving of her love and affection.

Strengthening her resolve, Nicole took a deep breath… that she released with a plaintive whimper as Waverly’s scent filled every part of her being, making her feel whole even as it weakened her knees.

And the sneaky Omega rubbed against her, scent marking her again.