“Will Sheriff Mackie and the others be there?”
“No, just Travis. I want to keep the rest of the pack out of it, if possible.” Besides, the pack alpha tended to overlook Travis and Amy’s antics since they were related.
Jenna cast a worried glance at him as she gathered her things. “Be careful. I don’t trust them.”
“Yeah, me either.” Ryan devoured the banana in a couple bites.
“So, is that where you were last night — checking on Chloe?” She arched an eyebrow as though she dared him to say otherwise.
He wished she’d get off the subject. “Not the entire night. Someone or something was in our yard.”
“What?” she looked startled. “Who?”
“I don’t know. They were gone by the time I got downstairs. I couldn’t identify who or what it was.” He smacked the counter in frustration. “It was familiar though and I think I caught the same scent around the lamb’s pen right before the pack went after Chloe.”
He plucked another piece of fruit from the hanger then peeled it. “After I made sure they weren’t here, I checked on her.” He took a bite then added, “Just to be sure.”
“Right,” Jenna said with a knowing smile. “What is with you lately? You act so weird when she’s around.”
Ryan swallowed the last bite of banana. “I do not.”
Jenna smirked at his answer. “Hey, mom and dad are going out of town tonight. I think I’ll invite Chloe over.”
He dropped the banana peel into the trash then glared at her. “That’s not a good idea, Jenna.”
“What?” With just a hint of a smile she said, “I thought you liked her.”
He opened his mouth to deny the accusation, but no words came out. His stomach knotted with the memory of their kiss. Did Chloe tell Jenna of their shared moment? “It’s just…” He shook his head, unable to find the right words.
“What?” Jenna searched his face, concern beginning to crease her brow. Her hand was on his arm, providing comfort and urging him to continue. “What is it?”
Screw it. He had to get this off his chest. Jenna was like a sister to him and had always been his closest confidant. Maybe she could make heads or tails out of it. “There’s like this strange feeling that comes over me. I know it sounds stupid, but it’s like electricity.”
Jenna shook her head and frowned. “Electricity?”
“Yeah, maybe static is a better way of describing it. Only, it feels good, kind of exciting.” He couldn’t look at Jenna as he said this because he knew it sounded insane.’
“I knew it, you do like her!” Jenna began dancing around the kitchen and taunting him in a singsong voice. “You like Chloe, you like Chloe. Na na na na na nah!”
He ignored her even though he felt she was getting far too much enjoyment out of it. “That first day in biology, she looked at me and it was like a lightning bolt zapped down my spine. Thing is, I only feel it when I’m around her.”
Jenna’s eyes widened and her gaze grew very serious. She even stopped dancing around the room. “Oh. My. God!”
Ryan frowned at her. The atmosphere in the small kitchen suddenly seemed suffocating. “Whatever it is, I don’t want to feel that way about her. I shouldn’t feel that way about her. She’s an outsider.”
Jenna covered her mouth with her hand. She made a soft sound and he was unsure whether it was a laugh or a sigh. “I’ve heard about this. It’s a little different for each person, but I think I know what’s happening.”
He wasn’t going to like this. He could already tell. “Don’t screw with me, Jenna.”
His cousin lowered her trembling hand. “She might be your beloved, Ryan.”
Ryan’s face twisted into a dark scowl. “That’s stupid, not to mention impossible. Besides, she’s an outsider. She’s not like us.”
“It could explain your fascination with her,” Jenna said with a shrug.
He groaned. “Or more likely, I’m fascinated by her because she’s a girl and she’s cute.”
Jenna waved his words away. “And it explains the strong desire you have to protect her. She’s yours.”
“I don’t want her,” Ryan scoffed then turned away from her. “You’re full of bullshit. I’ve got to go.”
Jenna looked at the clock. It was a few minutes past eight. “Where?”
“Running.” He reached for the door, anxious to get away from her and her knowing smirk.
“With Chloe?” She became impatient when he didn’t answer. “Why can’t you just admit that you like her? Who cares if she’s an outsider?”
Ryan growled in exasperation when he realized there wasn’t a safe, easy answer. “What if she can hear me?”
Jenna laughed. “I thought you didn’t believe her.”
“I said what if.”
“She reads animals, not humans.” She poked him in the forehead. “So you’d have to be an animal for her to look around up there, right?”
He shrugged. Honestly, he didn’t know how Chloe’s mind trip worked. “I don’t know. It kind of weirds me out.”
“There’s a simple way to find out,” she offered.
Ryan grimaced. Surely Jenna knew he couldn’t test the theory. It would be too reckless and crazy.
“I’m going to tell her what I really am.” Her hands curled on the table and she sighed. “Or what I’m supposed to be anyway.”
He stared at her a moment, waiting for the punch line. Surely she was joking. When one didn’t come, he said, “You can’t. You’ll put the entire pack at risk. They’ll punish you.”
“I won’t mention you or the pack.”
“Don’t be stupid, Jenna.”
“Chloe’s my best friend. I want her to know,” she said as he hurried out the door.
His cousin’s words wiggled and wormed their way through his mind. It was all he could think about. Worry gnawed at him as he trudged into the woods that separated their house from Chloe’s. Would her advice about testing Chloe work? He started to shrug out of his t-shirt then thought better of it.
Ever since Chloe stood in their kitchen and admitted she could pick up random animal emotions, he’d been a little freaked out. He was mentally exhausted, always trying to shield his thoughts and emotions. He didn’t know if it worked, but he’d rather be a little tired than allow Chloe know each and every thought he possessed. And what was this about her being meant to be his mate? That was just crazy!
Ryan stepped out of the trees just behind the clinic. He moved up the driveway and slowed his pace when Chloe’s house came into view. The aroma of bacon and coffee made his mouth water.
Chloe bounded down the steps, allowing the screen door to bang behind her. She wore light blue running shorts and a matching sport bra covered by a loose pink tank top. That same electric sizzle zipped down his spine and made him shudder.
“Bye, mom!” she called over her shoulder.
She hadn’t noticed him yet. Now that he was actually here, he felt a bit self-conscious. He kicked at a pebble and grinned when she finally spied him. He just hoped that she didn’t ask how he knew what time she usually went for a run. Awkward!
“Oh,” was all she managed to say. Then a big, goofy grin lit her face. “You were serious?”
He nodded.
“I’m pretty fast,” she teased. “I hope you can keep up.”
“I’ll manage.” All he could think about was what Jenna had said about him and Chloe. He mentally shrugged it away. Jenna didn’t know what she was talking about. She read too much, that’s all.
Chloe looked him up and down. “Nice legs.”
He smirked as he glanced down at his legs. They were covered by fine dark hair.
“Not as nice as yours.” He wasn’t exactly looking at her legs. Oh, they were nice alright, but she had other fine qualities that he’d noticed in the skimpy outfit. He grinned in satisfaction as a fierce blush reddened her cheeks.
An older, taller version of Chloe came out to stand on the porch. Her hands we
re on her hips and she didn’t look too pleased to see him standing there with her daughter.
“Chloe?” Her mother called. She rested a hand on the railing, one foot on the top step.
Chloe glanced over her shoulder then groaned. “Let’s just go.”
“Aren’t you going to introduce your friend?” Karen called from the porch. She descended the last two steps as her gaze darted from Ryan then back to Chloe.
A frown pushed Chloe’s brows down. “Later, okay?”
In a surprise move, she grabbed his hand then broke into a clumsy run. He had no choice but trot alongside her. Chloe’s reaction confused him. Was she embarrassed by him? Could that be why she didn’t want to introduce him? He almost laughed out loud. What did he care? It wasn’t as though he wanted to date her.
Once they picked up the pace, he slipped his hand from hers then concentrated on running at a slower pace. He didn’t want to leave her behind, at least not yet.
“You’re fast,” she said after they’d passed the clinic and turned onto the main road. “You don’t have to hold back. Let’s see what you’ve got.”
He glanced at her, but said nothing. It was now or never. He might as well test out Jenna’s theory. Ryan relaxed and allowed himself to run at a natural pace. Chloe fell behind, but gave no indication that she’d heard what he thought he was sending straight to her. “You are mine.”
He slowed, allowed her to catch up to him then broke into the wooded area. She hesitated for just a moment then followed cautiously.
“We should stay on the road,” she called. Her feet crunched on the fallen branches and dead leaves. “Ryan, did you hear me?”
Like any man on a mission, he set his mind to completing the task. He had to know if she could really read the brain waves of animals. She didn’t pick up on his previous thoughts, so the next step was to test her amongst the woodland creatures. Perhaps it wasn’t the nicest thing to do, but he had to know once and for all.
Ryan slowed his pace then turned to jog back to her.
Chloe’s eyes danced from side to side as though she couldn’t find just one thing to focus on. Her gaze was no longer relaxed and now took on a more concerned, somewhat panicky appearance. Suddenly she stopped and peered at a thick, overgrown area of trees and weeds.
Maybe he’d gone too far with the experiment. She did seem genuinely frightened. “What’s wrong?”
“There’s too much.” She blinked several times and refused to look at him. A visible shudder ran the length of her body. The fingers twisting tight coils of her hair trembled.
Hands on her shoulders, he gripped them gently then stared down at her. “Are you picking up something?”
She nodded then squeezed her eyes shut. “Hunger.” She licked her lips. “Fear and restlessness… and sleepy?”
Chloe looked at him then, her face warped into a pained frown. “I’m sorry, I can’t do this.”
Ryan didn’t release her. Instead, he clasped her hand and drew her toward the thick pile of brush. He knew what was hidden there because he’d caught the scent as he ran by.
Chloe’s body stiffened and she tried to yank away. He held on.
“Look,” he said as he brushed the weeds and fallen branches aside. Beneath it, four tiny rabbits squirmed, stretched and yawned. When their shelter was disturbed, they retreated into a small hole that had previously been hidden.
“That’s so mean!” Anger blazed in her brown eyes. “Why would you do that?”
“It was just a test,” he answered with a shrug.
“Jerk!” She stamped the ground and yanked herself out of his grip. Then she shot him a ferocious frown. “Why are you always so mean to me? You won’t even talk to me and then when you do it’s only to play a joke?” Something like a frustrated scream escaped her. “You’re just like the pack, maybe worse.”
Worse than the pack? That stung just a little. He’d done everything in his power to turn himself around, to become the opposite of what he had once been.
Chloe whirled to leave.
Ryan trailed after her. “Okay fine, so you can hear them. I believe you now.”
She stopped and hunched her shoulders. “Just leave me alone.”
“It must be hard dealing with all those thoughts and emotions when you can’t even handle your own.”
“Shut up! You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Hands on her upper arms, he pulled her toward him. When he tried to kiss her, she turned her face away. His lips brushed her cheek instead. He didn’t even realize that he wanted to kiss her until that very moment. Still, the rejection stung.
She pushed him away then stumbled backward. Her cheeks were flushed and she looked everywhere but at him. “Don’t you dare!”
He stood where he was. Why did this spoiled brat twist his insides around and confuse him so much? He was trying to help her, but she obviously didn’t understand what he was trying to do.
He wasn’t really mad at her. Mostly he was frustrated with himself. He couldn’t be around her. It simply wasn’t safe. He had too many secrets to hide. Getting close to her would only put her at risk and it wasn’t all that safe for him either.
A slight shift in the wind brought a familiar scent. It was the same strange, pungent aroma he’d picked up in the yard the night before. The memory of it tickled his senses and he felt uneasy when he couldn’t recall where he knew it from. It left him with a strange tightening in his gut. The musty, decayed and somewhat filthy odor drifted past again.
“Run home, Chloe.”
Her face clouded first with hurt then anger. “Don’t tell me what to do.”
She turned away without another word and stomped back the way they’d come. When she was safely out of sight, he shucked the t-shirt from his body then did the same with the shorts. His shoes followed. It would be much easier to track the scent in his other form.
He squeezed his eyes shut as new sensations coursed through his body. His lungs seemed to squeeze shut and cut off his air momentarily, but it was over too quickly to cause any concern.
When he opened his eyes again, he was lower to the ground. His senses were sharper. Everything around him was so much more vibrant and alive. He could hear things he hadn’t noticed before. Even his sense of smell was more powerful in this form. Ryan lifted his head and breathed in the air. Chloe’s scent was all around him as though she’d never left.
He moved silently through the low brush and passed between tree trunks. His nose was inches from the ground, ears forward and tail held parallel to his body. Silently he followed the scent that enticed and annoyed him.
Ryan was so focused on it, that he barely noticed when he reached the road that led to the clinic. Whoever or whatever had drawn his attention must have crossed the road. They could be hiding in the tress just across from him. The sound of shoes crunching gravel drew his attention. Chloe was just coming out of the woods.
He crouched low amongst the weeds and wildflowers then darted across the road behind her.
Chloe whirled to glance at both tree-lined sides of the road. “Hello? Very funny, Ryan. Leave me alone.”
Ryan had no time to worry about whether she’d seen him or not. Again he searched for the source. He broke out of the trees into an area just off the highway that was frequently used as a make out spot by the local kids. Sometimes travelers used it as a turn around point. Growling, he pawed at the ground in agitation. The trail was gone. It was as if it had just disappeared. He circled the spot where it dropped off then broke into a run back the way he’d come. Perhaps it had led him away then circled back around to Chloe. She could be in danger.
He was panting by the time he broke through the dense trees. Without thinking, he skidded to a stop just behind her. She squealed then bolted. It was all he could do to keep from chasing her. The bad wolf in his brain wanted a rollicking hunt. The only problem was, he didn’t know what he would do if he caught her. While he had a good grip on the wolfish part of his brain, the an
imal instincts sometimes took over his better judgment. Watching her lithe legs pump and her hair stream behind her, he yearned to devour her. Her flesh would be sweeter than any deer or rabbit’s.
Ryan’s fur bristled as he cursed himself for thinking such things. If Chloe could understand animals, she’d just received a frightening description of what the beast inside him was thinking. No wonder she was running as though her life depended on it.
She stumbled over the gravel and he just knew she’d go down. That’s when he’d move in. No! He would not hunt her. He could not harm her.
Chloe gasped and moved a little faster. She cast a glance toward the trees she’d just left and screamed his name.
Ryan didn’t want to scare her more than she already was. He couldn’t change back just yet. He’d be naked and it would require quite a lot of explaining. Instead of moving toward her, he sat down. His tail curled around to touch his front feet. Ears erect and alert, he listened for any telltale sign that they weren’t alone. He sniffed the air, but no longer picked up the strange scent from earlier.
He tried to think of ways to calm her. How could he tell her he wouldn’t hurt her if he couldn’t speak? Hadn’t he protected her before? Why should this time be any different?
Chloe stopped then snapped her head around to look at him. He cocked his head in question. His tail thumped the ground as if he was just an ordinary, friendly dog.
She held up one hand as though it might keep him at bay. Her body language conveyed her fear. Ryan wondered which she was more afraid of, being mauled or hearing his thoughts.
“Both,” Chloe answered softly. Her voice wavered. “Be a good boy and stay there, okay?”
His ears twitched as her voice rose and fell. She backed away and her gaze never left him. He inched forward.
Horror paled her face. Ryan hoped she didn’t bolt. Rabbits and deer had not fared well when they’d reacted this way. He’d rather gnaw his own leg off than chase a human like prey, but the primal urge was undeniable.
He wished he could speak so he could say, “I don’t want to hurt you. Please don’t run.”
Chloe gasped and her eyes widened in confused alarm.
The Bad Wolf Page 8
