by AJ Skelly
“George, did you want to speak with Megan privately?” Rev asked.
“I do, but you go ahead and stay, too, Rev. You can fill in any gaps I miss.”
Mr. Wolfe seethed as he was essentially dismissed. Mary rose gracefully and put a hand on her husband’s shoulder. His forehead relaxed a fraction, and he rose from the table in one fluid motion and jerked his head for Sam to follow them.
Sam smiled apologetically, nodded once to me, and walked out the door his father held open.
I sank down into one of the kitchen chairs, and Grandpa pushed a blueberry muffin in front of me.
“Grandpa, have you heard this insanity? This plan? I’m supposed to marry Sam Wolfe and live with him for what, a month?”
He stroked his mustache, which he only did when he was being overly thoughtful or trying to stall for time. I wasn’t sure which he was doing now.
“Meggie-Girl, life just got a lot more complicated for both of us, and before you get all fired up at me, I want you to listen to what I’m telling you.
“No one is expecting you to stay married, especially if your wolf fades. This is more of a contract that protects both you and Sam during this time of close contact. If something were to happen and you got hurt, Sam would better understand the situation and, as your husband, could sign for medical treatment for you. Your life got a lot more treacherous. He will know better what’s happening to you than I will. I’d feel safer if he were allowed serious input into any medical decisions and for him to be around for your protection.
“My sweet girl, as much as we don’t want to face it, it’s going to be dangerous for you to be home with me other than visiting during daylight, probably with an escort. Yours is such an unusual case, no one is sure what to expect, so we’re trying to cover all the bases. Besides, if your Grandma Elsie were here, she would have a conniption fit if I let you move in with a boy you weren’t married to! I’d have a fit myself. Even though this is strictly a safety issue and nothing else is expected, it just looks bad.”
And that was the clincher. I couldn’t disappoint Grandpa, or Grandma’s memory. Before she’d passed away three years ago, Grandma had dreamed of me in a white dress. I’d always wanted to be like her, saving myself for my wedding day, wearing white, Grandpa walking me down the aisle. Signing my name to a piece of paper that legally bound me to wolf-boy at seventeen wasn’t exactly how I’d pictured it.
“As soon as the next full moon passes, if you are still fully human, we can have the marriage annulled quickly and painlessly. Did Sam mention the duress clause?” Rev asked.
“He did.” I sighed.
“Actually, it might be better to approach annulment on grounds of mental impairment at the time of the marriage. I’d say wolf toxins definitely qualify as a drug interfering with your system. Regardless, what I’m saying, Megan, is that there are options. There are several avenues we can take, all of which will certainly end the contract,” Rev said. “I will personally handle all the details myself with Dominic and will ensure nothing is left out.”
This was crazy. I didn’t want to marry Sam. I didn’t want to marry anyone at seventeen, although admittedly, there were a lot of worse options than Sam Wolfe. I sighed and the wolf nudged me, bringing up images of other wolves. Guilt niggled away some frustration. If I didn’t agree to these absurd terms, I wouldn’t be the only one to potentially suffer. Sam’s actions were going to affect his pack. My actions were going to affect his pack. I sighed. I needed help controlling the beast inside me. Sam was the only one I trusted to give me that help. If signing my name to a piece of paper and pretending to be his girl got me my desired outcome, I could do that. Grandpa put his stamp of approval on it. And I knew he’d never do anything he believed wasn’t in my absolute best interests. He’d known about this world much longer than I had and felt this was the safest thing for me. I had very, very limited options to work with.
“You know this is completely nuts.”
“I know, sweetheart.”
“All right. I want to talk to Sam.”
Chapter 17
Sam
Megan walked out the front door, wrapped snuggly in her robe. Dad bristled beside me. We hadn’t said much while we’d been outside together.
“Mr. Wolfe, I’ll do this your way. But I’d like to speak with Sam again, please,” she said. Her face was resigned, her eyes sad.
“Good,” was all Dad said as he took Mom’s hand, and they legged it back into the cabin.
My stomach did a few flips as Megan closed the distance between us, coming to stand a few paces away. Nervous anticipation tap danced down my back and coiled my belly into knots.
“Sam, I will agree to this for one month. I will live here at the cabin with you. We will not be sharing a bed.” Her eyes flashed, and I recognized the fear coming out as anger. I nodded, trying not to react at her words. “I will sign the marriage contract with the express understanding that as soon as the next full moon hits, and whether I am still human or not, it will be annulled the next business day.” I swallowed, a mix of dread and elation warring within. Wolf jumped around, thrilled with this turn of events. I’d be living in the same space as Megan for the next month, at least. While that was exciting, it was also going to be a huge temptation. With the way I felt toward her, I’d have to be careful. She continued, oblivious to my internal war. “I will go along with this dating charade for the benefit of your pack.”
“Our pack,” I interrupted. Her eyes narrowed in a way that said, don’t push it.
“I will pretend to be your girlfriend in front of the pack and at school. We get to drop the act at the cabin or when we’re alone. However, I have non-negotiable ground rules. There will be no hands under clothing. There will be no touching skin covered by clothes. You will not touch my boobs, and you will not go near my butt. I will agree to this dating scenario for the next four weeks. After that, if I’m still human, I will walk away with no strings attached. If I’m still a wolf…we’ll figure it out then. Do I make myself clear?”
I blinked at her, honestly shocked that she agreed to go along with this at all. “Megan, you have nothing to worry about from me. I respect you. Your rules are fine. I’m here to help you through the next few weeks and make them as painless as possible.” Painless for her, at least.
Gravel crunched as Rachel’s car came into view at the end of the drive up to the cabin. Meg’s face broke out in a hopeful but tentative smile.
“Do you think I’m safe?” Meg murmured, watching Rachel’s approaching car hungrily.
“Probably?” I ventured. It was so hard to tell anything with the unpredictability of first shifts. “Do you want me to stay close in case?”
She sighed, momentary sorrow clouding her face. My gut twisted. “It would probably be safest.” I nodded at her words.
Rachel parked and hopped out of her car, waiting by the door, the uncertainty covering her face matching Megan’s expression as she moved slowly closer to her best friend.
“Megan? You all right?” Rachel called from the driveway.
“For the moment, but I want to take things slowly, just to make sure I don’t shift on you.” The words came out sounding painful.
I matched Meg’s slow pace until we were about ten feet from Rachel, then Rachel raced forward and wrapped her arms all the way around Megan, heedless of any possible consequences. I sucked in a breath, watching for any signs that Megan’s wolf would react badly. I shouldn’t have worried. Meg collapsed into Rachel’s arms, sobs suddenly echoing loudly in the still air.
Wolf paced around inside me, wanting to get out, wanting me to comfort Megan, wanting me to hold her and kiss away any distress. That, however, would have been a mistake of monumental proportions, so I clenched my fists at my sides and kept a respectful distance.
“Meg, it’s fine. We are going to get through this. I swear,” Rachel whispered as she held onto Megan for dear life. Megan just cried harder and clung tighter.
I had no idea w
hat to do, so I stood there like a worthless fence post, watching for any shifting activity, wishing it were me Meg was clinging to. After a few minutes of this new type of torture, Meg’s tears dried up. She pulled back from Rachel and swiped at her swollen eyes.
“Sorry,” she said.
Rachel glared like she couldn’t believe Meg had even uttered the word.
“All right. Give me every detail. But let’s go in, if you don’t mind. It’s getting cold out here. Let’s grab your stuff,” Rachel said as she clicked her key fob and popped her trunk open. She glanced at me and nodded to her trunk.
My lips thinned as I resisted the urge to roll my eyes, but I dutifully went to the trunk and retrieved not one, but two large duffels that were stuffed to capacity.
The girls walked ahead of me to the cabin. Just as they reached the door, Meg turned back to me. Her face wrinkled like she’d swallowed something sour and was embarrassed about it. I had no idea how to interpret it.
“Sam, do…do you think you could make sure the wolf…stays away for a little bit? I would like to talk to Rachel alone.”
Wolf danced around, doing his version of a happy jig. She was asking me to kiss her? I looked at her face again. No, she was not asking me to kiss her, just to make the wolf leave. I bit back a sigh.
“Sure.” It was the gentlemanly thing to do, anyway.
She huffed a breath and stood still, waiting, totally not participating. My insides crumbled a little bit watching her passivity. Trying not to think too much about it, I leaned down and carefully pressed my lips to hers, making sure not to put too much into it, especially in front of Rachel who watched us through slitted eyes.
“Okay,” Meg said, presumably pulling back as soon as she felt her wolf quiet. She opened the door and glanced around. She came up short when she saw my dad sitting like a judge at the kitchen table. She cleared her throat.
“Can we have a few minutes?”
“You think that’s safe?” my dad deadpanned.
“Dom,” Mom inserted softly.
“She should be fine for at least a half an hour or so,” I said. Dad’s eyes narrowed.
“Rev, why don’t you take me down to that ice cream shop you like so well. It’s only a few minutes’ drive from here, isn’t it?” Mr. Carmichael said, already moving for his jacket and hat. “Dominic, Mary, why don’t you come with us. I’ll even treat,” he added, giving Dad a sugary sweet smile. George Carmichael had a pair, that was for sure.
Dad snorted but got out of his seat, waited for Mom, and then walked past us with Rev and Mr. Carmichael.
“Do you want me to stick around, just in case?” I asked Megan as the other four moved toward Rev’s car. Megan bit her lip. “I don’t mind,” I offered. I’d stay as close as she’d let me.
“Are you sure you don’t mind?”
A smile tipped the corner of my mouth. “I’ll go hang out by the fire pit. It’s close enough I’ll easily hear if someone raises their voice.” I glanced at Rachel as I said the last part. “Rachel, if for some reason Meg starts to twitch or act a little funny, and she hasn’t already called for me, get to the other side of the room or out the door—as far away from her as possible—and yell. I’ll be there in less than a minute.”
Rachel blanched a little, and Meg hung her head. I couldn’t help tapping Meg’s arm. “You’ll be fine. She’s quiet for now. Shout if you need me.” How I wanted her to need me.
Chapter 18
Megan
The door shut, and it was just me and Rachel. I took a shuddering breath and plopped into a chair. Rachel followed, not quite nervous, but a little unsettled.
“Was he serious? About getting to the other side of the room and yelling for him?”
I winced. “Yes. Gah, I hope it doesn’t come to that. This shifting business is pretty unreal.”
“Tell me!”
I smirked. “Rachel, you would want to know the gory details.”
“Of course, I want to know the gory bits! It’s not every day your best friend turns into a werewolf. Leave no gruesome detail untold.”
And I didn’t. On more than one occasion, Rachel caught her breath, her eyebrows drew together, and a few times indignant grunts came from her gaping mouth.
“Which brings us all to this ridiculous contract I’ve agreed to.” I gave her the run down on the marriage contract I’d be signing at some point over the weekend.
“Wow.” Rachel sat, stunned, as I finished. “If you ever get over being mad at the situation, pretend dating one of the hottest guys at school could be fun. Mrs. Wolfe has a nice ring to it,” she teased.
I shot her a scathing look.
“But seriously, Meggie. This is a good thing. Not necessarily that you’re getting married. That’s kind of crazy. But it’s safer for you to be with Sam if what they’re telling you is true. And I’m guessing, based on what you’ve told me, you believe them.”
I sighed. “I do. I’m still shocked that any of this has happened. I mean, this is something straight out of one of your fantasy novels.”
“It is,” she conceded, her eyes serious. “Who knows what other creatures could be out there?” Her eyes lit mischievously.
I rolled my eyes at her, but said nothing, because after being changed into a werewolf, who was I to argue that there might be other previously believed mythical creatures out there, roaming the streets with us? I glanced at the clock above the sink. We’d been talking for almost an hour. It had been several hours since my last shift.
As if the mere thought of a shift could bring one on, the wolf stirred.
“Rachel, go outside with Sam. Now!” I ordered as the tingling started in my toes. Wide-eyed, Rachel sprinted to the door.
“Sam!” she hollered.
Fluidly, I felt the knife pricks move in a sweeping motion up my legs, my bones cracking. I bit my lip, holding in the guttural sounds choking my throat for Rachel’s benefit. Sam was there then, blocking my view of everything else.
“Megan, look at me.”
I locked onto his bright blue eyes and held them, their depths offering focus as my back arched and my arms snapped. My eyes screwed shut as the scream I’d been trying to hold in came clawing its way out.
Once I lay panting in my fur, I glanced at Rachel. Her eyes were so large that white showed all the way around her green irises. Her mouth hung open like a door sagging on one hinge. Her whole body was frozen, one hand on the doorframe, the other on the handle of the still-open door.
I whined. I wanted to tell her it was me, but I couldn’t in this form.
A word I’d never heard out of Rachel’s mouth dropped from her lips and hung in the air between us.
I glared accusingly at Sam. I couldn’t believe he’d let her watch my shift. He swallowed, his Adam’s apple bobbing.
“Sorry. My main priority was making sure you were okay and that she was out of the way,” he said.
Had he just read my thoughts? I whined again, this time in concern. Sam winced, his eyes scrunching up as his face contorted.
Before he could say anything, I let out a harsh yip and felt my tail retracting back into my body.
“Rachel, she’s shifting back, if you want to turn away,” Sam said, though his entire focus was on me again, quietly coaching me back to my human form. Of course, Rachel did no such thing. She watched the whole thing in horrified fascination.
As soon as I had my breath back after the shift, my eyes speared Sam.
“How did you know what I was thinking?” I demanded.
He ran a hand through his hair. “Remember how I told you about the Beta having a mental link to his pack members?”
I nodded, my belly curdling. I glanced at Rachel. She was far more intrigued than disturbed.
“That’s how I knew what you were thinking.”
“This is not happening,” I muttered as panic tickled my gut. Hardly daring to think the question, but knowing I had to know, “How much can you hear?”
Relief washed
over his face, and he held his hands up like he was surrendering to me. “I only hear what you want me to. I can’t read your thoughts or pry into your secrets or anything like that. You thought your question at me, and that’s how I picked it up.” He hesitated. “Your thoughts will come loudly to me though, so, if you don’t want me to hear, make sure you’re thinking things to yourself, and not directing them to me. Make sense?”
My eyes narrowed as I nodded. “I think so. We may need to practice this. You do not need to be inside my head. Having this wolf-thing in here is one too many as it is.”
“Is it really like a secondary personality?” Rachel asked, all interest.
“Aren’t you supposed to be on my side?” I complained.
She instantly sobered. “I am. Sorry. Just curious. I didn’t mean to be insensitive.”
I shoved back into the chair I’d vacated when the shift started.
“It’s okay.” I gave a mirthless chuckle. Sam cocked his head to the side at the sound. “You know, Rachel, in some ways you’re probably more equipped for this wolf business than I am.”
Sam glanced at her and raised an eyebrow.
“I read a lot of fantasy and paranormal fiction,” she explained.
Sam grunted. “Don’t believe everything you read,” he replied dryly.
****
Sam was right. Having him hold off the wolf twice that day did make my uncontrollable night shifts more intense. While the end of my daytime shifts had been painful, they were coming more easily. Once the moon was high in the sky, I couldn’t go more than forty-five minutes without a shift for the first four hours. After that, they became less frequent, and I was able to snatch a few hours of sleep between them. Sam didn’t fare any better. True to his word, he helped me through each one of my shifts.
At about three in the morning, after my seventh shift of the night, I was beyond exhausted, but my body was too tightly strung to relax back into sleep. My brain buzzed with activity, humming through the events of the day.
“Do you want to try calling up your wolf?” Sam asked quietly from his spot opposite me on the couch. The two of us were alone, everyone else having left hours ago. Rachel had wanted to stay, and Grandpa would have been happy to if I’d asked, but there wasn’t anything either of them could do to help the situation, so I sent them home.
