The Alpha's Reluctant Mate (4 page)

Tera sniffed the air before leaning in and giving me a sharp series of barks that were somewhere between a woof and a growl.

In response I dropped my head and whined before I could stop myself. Dizzy too whined, coming out from beneath me and wagging her little butt hopefully at Tera.

I scowled. If my butt started wagging like Dizzy's, I would be more than a little mortified.

Tera's face popped back into shape as she leaned down and stroked my dog's head reassuringly; satisfied all was well with her world, Dizzy sauntered back to me. Shock had made me sink to sit on the floor with my legs wound tight beneath me. She jumped up in my lap and curled into a ball, obviously ready to go back to sleep since the danger had passed.

“No offense, but this is all getting a little too freaky for me,” Epenie spoke up from her tense position on the couch. “What just happened?”

Freaky for her? Apparently my face was going to turn into a muzzle with teeth!

Tera sighed and made her way over to my big chair and a half to sit down. “Simple. Dizzy ran in to protect her pack mate, but when Alexandria acknowledged me as the more dominant wolf, Dizzy had to as well; once the order of things was established and she knew there was no danger, she was fine.”

“Order of things? More dominant wolf? This is all too twisted for words,” I muttered, not moving from my position on the floor.

“It's not necessarily the order in which things will remain, but right now everyone in my pack outranks you. You're a new wolf; you won't come into your full power until after you've changed at the first full moon.”

“How did this happen? How is it even possible? New wolf, full moon, full power, fur…” I couldn't go on. This couldn't be real. I couldn't be a werewolf. Could I?

“You were attacked, survived, healed completely in the span of hours, and lived to tell about it. Living to tell usually involves occasionally being furry.”

In response I collapsed backwards to lie on the floor. This was just too much to process.

I stared morosely up at the ceiling. Maybe a sandwich would cheer me up.

Dizabell, miffed that I wouldn't be still and provide a more comfortable bed, growled in protest before jumping off me and trotting back to my bedroom. Apparently we were disturbing her beauty sleep.

“I guess since I'll be staying here for a while, I should go and get my things out of the car,” Tera said, starting toward the door with purpose.

That brought me all the way up to my feet. “Why will you be staying here? I don't remember inviting you,” I said rather belligerently. Too much had happened in the last twenty-four hours to leave me with much tact or diplomacy.

Tera smiled understandingly. “Just a precaution; new wolves are a tad unpredictable so we always assign a mentor to make their transition a little easier.”

I frowned. “Easier for whom?”

“For both the new wolf and the rest of the world, who for obvious reasons need to continue believing things that go bump in the night are just make believe.”

Epenie sat up a little straighter on the couch. “Should I be getting concerned?”

I immediately sat down next to E on the couch, placing myself between her and Tera. This might be new to me but no one was eating my best friend.

“You do present an interesting dilemma. Since I could hear your discussion with Alexandria through the door, it was obvious you'd already figured out what was what, so I went ahead and spilled the beans. Honestly, Alexandria was being so difficult, I wasn't sure I'd get another chance if I didn't just blurt it out.” Tera shot me bit of a look that said I better be worth the trouble.

“Xandie can definitely be high maintenance,” E said helpfully.

“Thanks a lot.”
Maybe I will let Tera eat her,
I thought sourly.

“Since you know that werewolves exist, the only way to keep you safe is to make you a friend of the pack. The problem is that usually humans only become friends of the pack if they possess a skill we need. Do you do anything interesting?”

“I don't do any tricks if that's what you mean,” Epenie said tartly.

Tera laughed. “Tricks would be a plus, but I meant do you have any special skills like telepathy, telekinesis, or something along those lines.”

“I can use a tele-phone,” E said.

I rolled my eyes.

“No special psychic skills then?”

“Fresh out.”

“Hmmm…” Tera had a thoughtful look on her face.

“E is a great researcher,” I piped up helpfully.

The way Tera cocked her head at me was a little too canine for comfort. I hoped I wouldn't start scratching fleas at inopportune moments.

Epenie brightened considerably. “Yes I can find out anything about anyone or anything. I'm a great researcher.”

“The pack doesn't have anyone that does that sort of thing. We don't do well at sedentary activities. Most of us prefer jobs that keep us outdoors.”

I wrinkled my nose. “That particular side effect hasn't kicked in.”

“It will, once you get your first taste of running through the forest and smell the rich earth, the trees, and grass. It's wonderful.”

It was obvious Tera was caught up in some sort of sensory memory; she looked like she was about to roll around on the floor.

I cleared my throat loudly.

She blinked and sat back up in the chair, smiling a little sleepily like she'd just woken from a nap.

“I suppose you can get your stuff,” I said grudgingly, knowing Tera was the best chance I had of getting answers to my growing number of questions.

“Okay.” She popped off the couch and out the door almost before we could blink.

“Wow, she's fast,” Epenie said wonderingly.

Nodding, I leaned back on the couch and closed my eyes. Was I really ready for any of the answers I sought? Another thought snapped my eyes back open; they quickly found the big block wood calendar I kept on the living room wall. The next full moon was only eight days away.

Not very long to get used to the idea of being a werewolf and get all the answers I needed, ready or not.

 

* * *

 

After Tera ran to her car to grab her suitcase, the evening wound to a close. I was on information overload and I think both she and Epenie realized that I needed a little time to myself to come to terms with all the changes in my life.

Epenie left and I gave a polite goodnight to Tera before going to my bedroom and closing the door.

If I'd been a polite host, I would have gotten her extra blankets and pillows and made sure she didn't need anything before bailing on her, but I was done for the day. Besides, she could probably sniff out anything she needed anyway.

Slipping out of my size twenty clothes, which were already starting to get baggy, I climbed into bed with Dizzy.

Sensing my mood, she climbed up to my pillows and snuggled into my neck and chest with a commiserating snuffle.

“What am I gonna do?” I asked with a small wail.

She just wagged her butt a little and squeezed even closer. It was comforting; there was nothing like a dog for love and loyalty. I wondered if, when I turned into a wolf, I would be able to communicate more effectively with Dizzy.

It would be interesting to find out if she had thoughts on… well, anything.

The events of the day had taken a toll on me both physically and mentally. Even with a nap, I was suddenly exhausted again, so I quickly escaped my thoughts and fell asleep.

Chapter Five

 

 

The new day dawned brightly with a cacophony of sounds filling my ears. I could hear everything from the slight ping in the engine of the car going by, to the conversation of people walking on the street below and the rather loud discussion going on the apartment next door. If I concentrated I would probably learn way more than I wanted to know about my neighbors.

Great! I hadn't even been awake for a minute and I was already overwhelmed.

I got out of bed to rummage through my closet for some clothes. Shock made me freeze in front of the mirror hanging on the outside of the closet door.

My body had gone through more drastic changes during the night. A little chub still hung around here and there, but I'd gone down to at least a size fourteen while I slept, maybe smaller.

For the first time in my adult life I could probably go into a regular clothing store and find something that would fit.

My skin was different too; my complexion was so good it practically glowed. I peered more closely into the mirror; my once hazel eyes were now the deep green of a forest glen with little specks of molten amber spread around the irises. I reached a hand up to touch my hair, which frankly had never been my best feature.

Yesterday, it had been a nondescript brown, hanging rather lankly down my back in a stringing mass with very little body. Today it was a rich, vibrant brown with red and caramel highlights; full of body and wave, it was shiny and lush. I enjoyed running my fingers through the soft fullness of it and watching the light catch on the highlights as it fell from my fingers.

I almost squealed with excitement; for the first time in probably my whole existence I felt attractive… even pretty.

Finding an old t-shirt dress from the back of my closet, I quickly pulled it over my head and ran out to talk to Tera.

It nearly swallowed me whole but it was the best fitting thing in my closet. I would have to buy new clothes, something I would actually enjoy for a change.

Tera was in the kitchen making bacon and eggs. Thoughts of shopping quickly fled in the face of the gnawing hunger I felt the minute I smelled the bacon.

My stomach grumbled loudly.

Tera smiled and took down two plates; I frowned when I noticed she'd put the lion's share of the food on the plate she handed to me. I wasn't complaining but I didn't understand.

I looked up at her in askance.

“Your appetite is trying to keep up with all the changes going on in your body. Your metabolism is much faster than normal now that you're a werewolf and though you'll always have a larger appetite than a human would, right now it's supercharged because you're still changing. Once you've completed your first change during the first full moon, things will settle down and you won't constantly feel like you're starving; everything will be a little more manageable.”

“Is that why new wolves need a mentor? How do you stand all the noise?” I asked as I shoveled bacon and eggs into my mouth. “I swear I could hear the crickets walking around in the grass this morning.” It was poor form to talk with my mouth full but I was too hungry to stop eating long enough to talk.

“You'll get used to the noise; you can tune it out unless there is something you want to hear. Kind of like listening to a radio station; sometimes you feel like listening and sometimes it just fades into the background. Mentoring is an important part of our society. An older wolf is always assigned to explain all the rules. It's important you understand what they are and the consequences should you ever break them.”

“It would be awful to be going through this all alone.”

“Awfully dangerous, both to the human world and our way of life; can you imagine what would happen if people found out we existed? People fear and hate what they don't understand. Our people would quickly go on the endangered species list.”

“That's why you have to stay with me?”

“Partly. New wolves have done some pretty horrendous things without someone there to help them learn self-control.” Obviously done with that topic, Tera quickly changed to another. “Do you have any clothes that fit?”

I laughed. “Nope, I haven't been this small since junior high. I… I'm actually pretty.”

“You were already pretty, Xandie, what you are now is just really enhanced. Werewolves are always extremely attractive in their human form. We also give off hormones that draw members of the opposite sex like flies.”

I cocked my head at her in puzzlement. “What do you mean, I was always pretty? You didn't know me before.”

Tera froze for a minute and then relaxed with another easy smile. “You have pictures of you and E all over the apartment.”

While the answer seemed plausible, something didn't quite ring true, but I couldn't put my finger on it.

“We should go shopping,” she suggested.

“Can we?” I asked eagerly.

Tera nodded. “While we're out, we'll go ahead and buy clothes of several sizes to get you through the next few days; by the time the full moon rolls around, you should be at the perfect size for you.”

“I hope it's a size two.”

She eyed my generous curves and shook her head. “I doubt it.”

Well, that was disappointing; I wouldn't have minded having Tera's sleek athletic build. She appeared delicate, which I knew was deceptive but I would bet my eyeteeth she was a size two.

“I should probably walk Dizzy before we go. She's been cooped up in the apartment for the better part of two days.”

“No, too dangerous, I'm afraid she'll have to make do with her litter box until your change is complete.”

“It's too dangerous to walk my dog?”

“You can't be around other dogs with her; you won't be able to control yourself if one of them growls at Dizzy. Your protective instincts would kick in and the risk is too great. You'll either be locked up as a nutcase or outed as a werewolf, which would subsequently out the rest of us.”

It made a strange sort of sense. I had snarled at Tera when I thought she was threatening Dizzy, so I might actually bite a dog, though the thought was rather distasteful. But still, I had bitten Dizabell.

Poor Dizzy, she really enjoyed walks and the dog park. “Sorry, girl, but it's just for a little while.”

As if she understood every word, Dizzy sniffed at me with disapproval before turning her back and leaving the room.