•••

With the full moon just a night away, working on the books didn't calm her as much as it usually did. A local business hadn't kept up with the accounting details and had hired Candice to do their books to get everything in order to make taxes easier to sort out. One of the benefits of bringing the work home with her was that she could work when she wanted to. So, she'd slept in and started working around noon. By the time night was starting to fall, she was only halfway through her workload and had to get out. She needed air and to walk off some of her excess energy.

The cold November air was refreshing and Candice was half tempted to shift and run through the forest in her wolf form, but she decided against it. The pain just wasn't worth the freedom, especially since it wouldn't help her get back to her numbers afterwards. No, she opted to go for a leisurely stroll outside.

Going wherever her feet carried her, Candice was quick to turn around again when she found herself in the forest. She knew that was a place a lot of the local werewolves liked to hang out and she had no interest in getting mixed up with the pack mentality and an alpha trying to either scare her off or make her join, especially once he learned she'd been living there for over a year already with no connections. Thus she forced her feet to walk in the opposite direction until she found herself back at the grill.

Ordering a whiskey she sat down by the bar and sipped her drink, enjoying the blissful burning as the liquor made its way down to her stomach. It warmed her to her bones, making her cheeks blush slightly. She was glad the vampire on her left seemed blissfully unaware that he was sitting next to a werewolf as she continued to slowly sip her drink and calm her nerves. Hopefully she could get back to the books later.

As long as none of the wolves figured her out, she'd be safe though. She never went for a run during the full moon anyway what with the risk of hunters and all.

•••
Outfit: Like the image + jeans and black, knee high boots.
Tag: Jack Stone
Words: Quite enough thank you
Notes: Hope you don't mind. Made sense to introduce her to the alpha before she runs around meeting everyone else.

Jack was at the bar, drowning another shot of vodka and had to be careful that he didn't go overboard, much like he had lately. Kailah was with Amanda's parents, so there was no reason for him to not drink at all. He had been keeping the little monster away from her mother and his ex boyfriend for the time being. He didn't trust either one of them when it came to Kailah and wasn't sure if he ever could....Amanda maybe if she changed, but Mason was a entirely different story.

He pushed the five shot glasses away from him, letting the bartender take them to get them out of the way and got him another shot. It wasn't until the feeling that another werewolf did he look away from the bottle of Vodka and looked to his right to see a blonde female werewolf sitting beside of him. He usually knew all the wolves here in Somber, but her he had never seen before.

Alcohol won't help with the full moon approaching. He said.

Candice had been enjoying the alcohol aware that there were others like her in the room, but not really caring as long as they didn't figure her out. Hopefully she would be able to get through the night without incident, but if not she'd make the best of the cards that were dealt her. After all, she usually sorted out numbers for a living, why not try and fix a situation before it got out of hand in real life as well.

So, when she was told the alcohol wouldn't help with the approaching full moon, she couldn't help the nervous chuckle that escaped her. "How do you know that's why I'm drinking?" She said in a feeble attempt to joke away her nervousness at being called out on what she was. How did the other wolf do it? So far the only people she'd come across who'd been able to tell what she was right away were witches, and that was only because magic had made her the way she was.

"Do you have some sort of wolf-radar or something? Even this guy" -here she pointed to the vampire on her other side who was just getting up and leaving from the looks of it -"didn't seem to notice." Though she was nervous that she'd been found out so quickly, she was curious as to why this particular wolf had been able to nail her within five minutes when it usually took people a lot longer. Maybe he was some kind of super-wolf? Or special or had just been around witches too much... She was dying to know, and hoping he wouldn't be some sort of control freak wanting to have her join a pack or something.

It was interesting that this wolf didn't have a scent to her. Most gifted usually could tell what kind of being another was by their smell, but she didn't have one. He could tell that she was a wolf though, he could practically hear the wolf inside of her wanting to get out and he could just feel it.

He chuckled some at what she said and took another shot of Vodka and turned his dark eyes to her. That's because blood suckers don't know what to listen for. He replied simply, leaving her to figure out how exactly he knew what she was.

Candice was fascinated to learn why the guy could tell what she was. She'd never actually thought about it like that before, that she sounded differently from normal people, but when she stopped to listen rather than rely on her nose for a moment, she could understand what he meant. She'd never realized how one could hear if someone was a wolf by listening intently.

"I guess it takes one to know one," she smiled slightly and sipped her drink. At least her nervousness was gone for now and she was just left with the restlessness of the impending change. Unless she could absolutely avoid it, Candice never turned when she didn't have to, simply because it was messy and quite a bit of a blur actually. No one had ever taught her how to keep control of the wolf as she'd mostly stayed in the basement as a teenager when the full moon came around.

Finishing her drink, Candice ordered another one with a rather cheery smile despite the headache she knew she'd have all day the next tomorrow. "I like this place, so many numbers to work with and strange people. There isn't like a pack or anything here that's mandatory to join is there?" Since this other wolf knew what she was, it was safe to ask him. As long as she wasn't forced to do anything she didn't want to do, she'd be fine. More likely than not, the guy would just forget her at the end of the night anyway and she could go back to being anonymous and just do her job. If not, then she'd have more excitement in her life, so she wouldn't complain either way. It always amused her to hide from people anyway.

When the bartender asked if he would like another drink, he kindly decline and sigh softly before looking to the female werewolf. It amused him when he surprised people, just because he didn't have any special powers didn't mean that he was useless or not strong.

Of course, no vampire would guess or know what to look for. He said with a chuckle.

He smiled at the blonde and took out a pack of smokes, lighting one up and inhaled deeply. He cocked an eyebrow at her next question and held his smoke in-between his fingers and smirked. No, the alpha isn't that cold hearted. He said.

It was true what he said about the vampires. From what she'd experienced, they relied more on smell than hearing when it came to figuring out what species someone was. So maybe that was why she was able to remain hidden amongst them as they all seemed to think she was just a regular naive human. Spells going awry had its perks that way, she ought to thank her adoptive parents for that one day.

A sigh of relief escaped Candice when she learned the alpha wasn't going to force her into any pack. "Well, that's certainly a relief. Don't get me wrong, I don't take shame in being what I am, I just don't like obligations or following orders. Anonymity is a great ally at times," she said full of mirth. Of course, she only now realized it was rather odd that she was talking so openly to a complete stranger who she had nothing in common with other than their species.

"Can I have one of those?" She asked, gesturing to the cigarettes. Something about alcohol always made her crave smokes. "I'm Candice, but don't go telling everyone." There was humor clear on her face though, she was having a good time after all.

It was funny that she didn't sense that he was the alpha. Alpha's usually have a different scent than the other wolves, it was use to distinguished between the alpha's pack mates and loners. He didn't try to force anyone into his pack, sure, he would try to talk them into it but he wouldn't make them.

He looked down at his pack and handed one to her, putting the smokes away and inhaled deeply. Jack Stone. He replied with a smile.

Can you tell the difference between a alpha and a normal wolf? He asked.

Candice gladly accepted the cigarette and smiled at learning the wolf's name. Now they weren't strangers anymore and they could talk more freely. Then again, that didn't mean she would tell him everything as she wasn't entirely sure that was a good thing. Even if it would be nice to be around like-minded people from time to time.

"Honestly, I've never really been around enough wolves to notice the difference," she chuckled and placed the cancer stick between her lips before she lit it up. Inhaling deeply, she decided to continue her train of thought and exhaled again before speaking. "I never really settled down anywhere where I had to learn to make that distinction. With my erm... condition for lack of a better word, only people who always know where to find me are my parents and I don't mind being able to blend so seamlessly in."

Blending in certainly wasn't a problem when most people couldn't figure out she was a wolf. It also helped her get to where there was work and leave again if she needed to without worrying about being followed. Maybe she was a bit paranoid about the matter, but that came with fixing the books for companies that paid her to make them look good. If people were able to track her, she'd probably have been locked up a long time ago.

"Don't tell me you're the damn alpha and I've been making a complete fool of myself?" She said with a chuckle and inhaled deeply again.

She was the perfect definition of being a loner. Jack didn't care for loners really, but he wasn't going to be rude or anything towards her. He took a deep inhale, exhaling through his nose and sigh softly. He rested his head in his hands now, but kept his eyes on her as she explained her excuse for not being able to sense the difference between a alpha and a normal wolf and her ability to blend in so well.

It was interesting that she didn't have a smell like that. If he were a vampire, he would more likely mistaken her for a average human. A light hearted chuckle left him at her next choice of words and flicked the ash off the end of his cigarette. Well you guess right......I'm the alpha of the Bitter Springs pack... He said.

Candice was enjoying her cigarette as well as her drink when Jack spoke next. "Well, I'll be damned," was all she managed to say and chuckled slightly before she flicked the ashes off the end of her cig. "As long as you don't mind my being in town, we won't have a problem. I suppose it won't be a problem if you do either, unless you find a clever way of keeping track of me."

The blonde wasn't fully aware of how that last bit sounded at first, but the moment she realized it sounded like she was there to cause trouble she sighed slightly. "Look, I just want to go about my daily life without being ordered around. No offense, as you don't strike me as the guy to order people around for no good reason. I'm not here to cause any trouble for you or your pack, I hardly ever even go out during the full moons."

There was a perfectly good reason as to why she preferred to stay inside on the full moons rather than enjoy the freedom. It had nothing to do with being ashamed of being born a werewolf, it was rather that she didn't want to admit to anyone else that she had never learned how to be in control of the wolf when the time came. It was an embarrassment that she woke up with only a fuzzy memory of anything the next morning. She loved all the enhancements that came with being a wolf and she relied heavily on her senses when she was around and about, so if there had been a way to avoid losing control entirely, she would jump on it.

He knew that this girl was probably worried that he would make her join his pack or something. He wouldn't make someone do that, mainly because he didn't want someone lolly gagging around and maybe causing some trouble within the pack. Now the only way he would make her join is if she wanted something from him, then she would have to join his pack. He never did any little favors for another werewolf unless they join his pack...or unless they were rather young like Beau, he did save the boys life and never made him join...but he did make his older brother in exchange for protection of Beau.

I am not one of those alphas that make people join my pack......I personally don't care what you do in this city, as long as you don't endager anyone or harm one of my pack mates then there will be no trouble between you and I. He said with a smile.

He leaned back in his chair some and decided on ordering another glass of Vodka. But don't expect that I will be keeping a eye on you or do any favors for you....I only do favors if I get something in return. He said.

She could live with him not being one of the alphas that made people join in their packs, and she wasn't there to hurt the other wolves so it seemed it wouldn't be a problem that she stayed. Which she was more than happy to hear as it meant she could go about her business. She wasn't going to be asking him any favors either, as long as he let her be.

"I wouldn't dream of asking for favors without having something to offer in return. Besides, I've gotten by so far on my own." Sure, if she had something to offer in return, she might ask for help with her whole memory issue and the blur of it all, but she wouldn't trade her freedom for control. She would keep trying to learn on her own. For now at least, until she had something cool to offer up.

"I'll stay out of your way and you'll stay out of mine, meanwhile we can just enjoy the moment and think nothing more of unpleasant things," she said with a chuckle. Flicking off more ashes from the end of her cigarette, she inhaled again and exhaled rather slowly, forming a smoke ring and smirked, rather pleased with herself.

"So is life in a town like this always this quiet?"

He might keep a close eye on this wolf though, she didn't appear to be one of those ferocious loners, but that didn't mean he didn't keep his close eye on the ones that weren't in his pack. He just shrugged his shoulders some and looked down to his right to see a quite good looking young lady batting her eye lashes at him and was clearly giving signs of being interesting. He merely gave her a charming smile back, making the young woman blush before he looked away again and back to Candice.

Sometimes...... He said, not really sharing any news about a battle and killer wolves with the loner.

Candice was hoping she didn't have to run into Jack again any time soon after that night. It wasn't that she thought he would be mean to her or anything, she'd just prefer not to get mixed up with with the pack or anyone expecting anything of her that she wouldn't be able to perform. Like following orders. She was horrible at doing what others ordered her to do unless they paid her. When people paid her to do something, she was excellent at doing just though, but she doubted the alpha would pay her to do as he said. After all, she wasn't there to cause any trouble.

"Well, in that case, it's the perfect match for me." She said and finished the rest of her drink before she turned to the alpha again. "Don't you worry Jack, I'll stay clear of you and your wolves in the future."