Page 120 of His Hungry Wolf

In the morning, I wasn’t covered in blood and I hadn’t woken up in an unfamiliar location. I was in my room on my bed. Yeah, the door was thoroughly gouged from its claws, but it hadn’t been opened.

It had been close to getting out. If it had given one more attempt, it would have done it. It would have freed itself and who knows what would have happened after that. But, it didn’t. It hadn’t even made that final attempt.

More than that, all morning I couldn’t shake the feeling that he wasn’t completely gone. It felt like he was lingering over my shoulder watching everything I did. It was him who told me that Lou had left in the middle of the night. He could even tell me the time he did it. I didn’t know how, but my wolf knew.

Seeing Cage when he entered the classroom, it felt like his ears perked up. He seemed to like Cage even more than I did.

I wasn’t a slave to his desires, though. And I was the one who had been introduced to his girlfriend, not him. So, there was no way I was going there, especially considering what he and his girlfriend had brought out in me.

I was willing to walk away from Cage and never see him again. Then he chased me down, and made that offer. The reason I said yes, had nothing to do with what my wolf wanted. It also didn’t have to do with that weird connection I felt with him staring into his eyes.

I accepted his proposal because Quin Toro had come to the middle of nowhere Tennessee for one purpose, to figure out how to have a life. Sure, I couldn’t have one with Cage. But, as I walked through the party with him was the most relaxed I had felt in a social situation in my life.

I needed to know how to feel that on my own. And, when I was looking into his eyes, something told me that he could bring it out of me. How did I know that? I don’t know. But I was sure of it.

Could it have been my wolf playing with my mind for its own nefarious purpose? That was always a possibility — I had only just met him. He was something I only heard stories about before. — But, I didn’t think so. There was something more going on with Cage.

Whatever it was, it was drawing me to him. It wasn’t just how hot he was. — Don’t think I suddenly got over that. He was still a gorgeous god. — But… I don’t know.

There was more there that I couldn’t put my finger on. It was telling me to accept his offer. And, once I did, my wolf went wild. Not in a way that felt dangerous. In way that made me smile.

“Lou, you’re back?” I said reentering our apartment and finding him looking frazzled.

“Should I not be?”

He was seated at our dinner table terrified but trying to look brave. Sadness washed over me as I witnessed how much I had freaked him out. For the first time I had witnessed what my wolf sounded like when he was trying to get to someone. It was horrifying.

If I were the one who had listened to the scratching on the door as the beast tried to get to me, I probably would never have returned. Yet, here he was. Why was he back? Why would anyone return after seeing that part of me?

“No, you should be back. This is where you live… Should I leave?” I asked realizing that he might only have returned to stake his claim on the place.

“Should you leave?”

“I don’t know. Should I leave?”

“Okay, I don’t think we’re getting anywhere here,” he said handling this a hell of a lot better than I might have. “Look, I know you told me about your condition. But, you said that you hadn’t had an episode it years. You said it had passed.”

“I thought it had,” I said easing myself into a chair facing him.

“Then, what was that?”

“I don’t know.”

“Did it happen because of the full moon?”

I heard my wolf growl at the suggestion. “No!” I snapped. As soon as I said it, my mind wandered. “At least, I don’t think so.”

“Well, you’ve been living here for months and that wasn’t the first full moon.”

“It wasn’t. Was it?”

“Then, what was the difference this time?” Lou asked as if he was concerned about me instead of his own safety.

I thought about his question. What had been the difference? I couldn’t be sure, but I had an idea. I pulled my phone out of my bag and found the picture from last night. I placed it on the table between us.

“Who’s the guy?”

“His name is Cage. I met him at the party I went to.”