“You kissed? How come you didn’t tell me!” Xany swatted my shoulder hard enough to leave a welt.
“Ouch! I didn’t think much of it, and it was kind of private.” I felt a bit flushed and tried to cover it up by laughing.
“What’s it like to have sex with a woman?” She grinned, trying very hard to stifle her giggling.
“We haven’t. I mean, I haven’t…” I stuttered. “I still get too scared when she touches me.” This conversation was getting way too close for comfort. Part of me wanted to wiggle out from under her and run off into the woods.
“How can you bear to wait so long? Scared of what?” She groaned.
“That it’ll hurt…” I trailed off. “And that things will change too quickly.” I took a deep, cleansing breath. It took a lot out of me to admit that.
“Hasn’t your fear stopped you from doing enough? Just go for it, Nee. What’s the worst that can happen?” Xany looked at me as if saying “duh.”
“The worst is that…” I started to say but couldn’t come up with anything.
“The only thing you have to worry about is that your two loves are opposite genders and opposite species…” She smiled sheepishly.
Chapter Thirty-One
Xany and I cooked dinner together the night after our talk. It was bizarre, in a way, to feel like I was providing nourishment to other people the way family members would. It spoke to my readjustment to pack life. I remembered the times when my mother would be in the kitchen, cooking for me and my father.
While I stirred the rice noodles, I tried to distract myself from thinking too much. “Did you learn this recipe at your classes, Xee?”
Xany was searing salmon steaks and mixing some sort of special seasoning. “Yep! It was our first dinner recipe after learning to do sandwiches and heroes.” She giggled. “The teacher said we should start with basics.”
“I didn’t think you cooked terribly before.”
“That’s because I only made you breakfast. You’re lucky I never made you lunch or dinner.” She grinned and pointed to the boiling potatoes. “Want to mash them?”
“Sure. How come you made mashed potatoes and rice noodles?” I drained the potatoes in the sink.
“Because mashed ‘taters are your favorite. Vanessa told me so.” She grinned over the fact she had garnered information without my knowing it.
“Remind me to thank her.” I smiled, letting her have her moment, and began mashing the potatoes.
“You’re welcome.” Vanessa’s voice chimed in as she snuck up from behind to give me a hug.
“Sneaky.” I was startled by the sudden embrace.
“Salmon is my favorite.” She peeked over at Xany, lifting her chin in greeting.
Xany giggled a little bit at Vanessa before pouring some dark-colored sauce over the salmon steaks. “I made plenty for you too, Ness.”
Both Vanessa and I stared at her for a moment, taken aback by her sudden warm demeanor.
“What?” Xany froze, blinking at us.
“Oh, nothing,” I replied with a laugh. Vanessa snickered and nipped my shoulder. I finished the potatoes, then turned around to face her fully. “You still have your leo on.” I glanced over her slender form clad in the tight black outfit, this time with a blue skirt.
“I came over right after work. Can I shower before dinner?”
“Of course.” With only the slightest hesitation, I kissed her cheek.
She smiled, and her cheeks tinged pink. “I’ll be right back.”
“Okay.” I watched her saunter off to the bathroom, then set the potatoes down on the table.
Xany grinned at me, her eyes dancing with merriment. “You made her feel self-conscious.”
“She’s affectionate with me in front of people, so why not return it. It must make her feel pretty awful when I pull away.” I returned her grin. “And I like when she turns pink,” I added.
“Naughty, Nee!” Xany snickered. “It’s that way for wolves too. Has Vanessa been with women?”
“She’s into men.” I smirked. “Many, many men.”
“I wonder when the guys will be back.” Xany glanced at the clock and changed the subject.
“Soon,” I said. “Mal is close. Maybe Caden is with him.”
Xany shot me a surprised look. “You can sense Mal and not Caden?”
“Mal’s easier.” I shrugged. I wasn’t really sure why it was easier to sense Mal. The alpha usually had the strongest connection to his packmates and vice versa. I didn’t mind that I could sense Mal easily. It was comforting, in a way, and Caden still freaked me out at times.
“And you can call his wolf?” Xany put her hands on her hips.
“Why?” I asked, setting five places at the table. I didn’t understand why she was grilling me so much about this. It didn’t seem all that special to me.
“Just curious is all.” With her lips pursed in thought, Xany turned back to the vegetables she was preparing.
I didn’t get a chance to press her further because just then, Mal waltzed through the door. He brought a whiff of outdoors with him, the smell of fresh air and what I thought might be jasmine. “Evening,” he said cheerily.
“Hey.” My cheeks heated with a flush at the sight of him.
Xany began placing the food on the table. “Where’s Caden?”
“Hank called him on the way home. He’ll be back soon.” He jumped right into helping Xany place dinner on the table.
Vanessa emerged from the bathroom wearing her usual dress with her hair brushed out long and wet. She sat down at the table, purring contently. I served everyone iced tea and Vanessa her typical glass of milk.
“Should we wait for Caden?” Xany asked Mal as she placed the salmon steaks onto the table.
“He’ll be along shortly and probably wouldn’t want us to wait, knowing him.” Mal began serving everyone the salmon. Xany worked on dishing out potatoes and noodles. Vanessa was the first to begin eating once everyone was seated. She smiled at me. I imagined she was happy to be eating her favorite food. Mal shook his head, smiling as if he knew exactly what the cat was thinking.
After dinner, Vanessa sprawled out on the couch, nursing her full belly while Mal lit a fire. Xany and I cleaned up the kitchen as quickly as possible so that we could join the others by the warmth of the fireplace. Xany lingered to fix Caden a plate and set it aside for when he returned. Mal sat down at the edge of the sofa, and Vanessa pulled her feet back to allow room for him. I sat beside him, nudging Vanessa’s legs into my lap. She purred and rubbed her foot along my inner thigh. I swatted her knee, then rubbed her long, soft legs. Mal watched and if it were possible, I could have sworn I felt fur cover his arm and bristle against me. Vanessa purred, and I moved my hand farther up her leg so that I was rubbing from her ankle to her thigh.
Can you call her like you call me? Mal popped into my head; this time I had to look at him to see if he was speaking aloud.
No. I had to focus for a moment to speak back to him in my thoughts. I think it works differently. She can usually just sense if I’m in danger. Like, she shows up at the right moments. I can’t call her though, unless I’m using a phone. I smiled at him.
“What’s funny?” Vanessa asked, looking between Mal and me.
Busted, Mal said in my head.
With a grin, I looked down at her. “Mal asked if I can call you like I call him.”
“What’s that mean?” Her brow furrowed at the new term.
“I can call his wolf. Like, if I’m far away and I want him to come to me, I can call him.”
“I didn’t hear him ask that.” She frowned at us.
“I can initiate mind conversations, Red, remember?” Mal chimed in.
“Weird telepathic dog,” she muttered.
“Weird devoted puss,” Mal mumbled, his lips tugging into a smirk.
Vanessa hissed at him, then returned to her quiet purring, rubbing her foot against my thigh again to get me to go back to caressing her legs.
I’m surprised she’s sitting this close to you, but then again, I’m really not surprised at all.
She’s clever, Shawnee. She’s not going to deny you anything, even if it is a wolf…
I watched Vanessa, and she met my gaze with a smile. I leaned down and nipped her thigh before crawling up closer to lie beside her, our feet near Mal. She hugged me. I pulled the blanket down from the back of the sofa and tossed it over us while Mal clicked on the TV, turning to the news. I knew he was pretending that he wasn’t paying attention. Xany scuttled about the kitchen in her anxiety over missing Caden and then brought a bag of marshmallows into the living room. She snatched up the fire poker and began jabbing marshmallows onto it to toast in the fireplace.
“Gross,” Mal said as he wrinkled his nose in distaste.
Xany grinned and set the sweet treats ablaze on purpose. I laughed at their usual sibling antics. Watching Xany could be entertaining at times.
Vanessa watched the news along with Mal for a few minutes. Something must have sparked her memory because she spoke suddenly. “Have you done the stuff you need to get your Utah medical license?”
“Not yet. I have the paperwork, I just need to do it.” I tore my gaze away from Xany to return it to Vanessa.
“Take your time.” She grinned at me. “I like having you home a lot.”
“I knew there was an ulterior motive to that question.” I tried to tickle her.
Vanessa laughed and squirmed, then nipped my bottom lip. “Caught.”
“Yes, you’re caught.” I smiled, giving her another kiss on the cheek.
Her hand fell to my stomach. She lifted up my shirt, then pulled the blankets up to keep us both hidden.
“Everyone’s around,” I whispered.
“No one’s paying attention.” She leaned in for a kiss. I let her lips meet mine until she sneakily slipped in her tongue. It surprised me at first. I pulled back, but she caught me again. I felt like a virgin who’d never used her tongue to kiss before. She broke the kiss to nibble my lip. A rush of warmth ran through me and lingered between my thighs.
“I think I like kissing like that,” I told her.
“I think you do too.” She snickered and leaned in to kiss me again, this time more delicately.
I broke the kiss to caress her neck and shoulder. My gaze wandered over her body, then back up to meet her gaze.
“What is it?”
“There’s something I should tell you.” I gnawed my lip. I had the sudden urge to tell her why I’d quit working at Mercy General. I wanted to tell her everything. The burden of keeping that from her seemed like too much to bear. I didn’t know where it came from, but it was overwhelming.
“What is it?” she asked again, her voice gentler this time.
“It’s about—”
I was cut off by Caden busting through the cabin door. Xany dropped the fire poker with a clang. “Caden—” Xany began, but he interrupted, his gaze falling on Vanessa first.
“Vanessa, you need to leave now. Hank’s cubs popped at the same time, and he’s having difficulty controlling them,” he said, quickly filling everyone in on the situation.
Vanessa and I got up together as Mal rushed over to Caden.
“They’re headed here?” I asked.
“Yes. When he told them to run, they disobeyed and headed this way. Mal, Hank is heading them off, will you…?”
Mal nodded and disrobed quickly before leaping past him out the door, then down the steps to disappear in the woods.
“What do you mean they popped, Caden?” Xany asked.
“They came to their Firstings together. Hank has two sons, fourteen and thirteen, and a daughter who is twelve. The younger boy changed first, which set off the older boy. The sister has the fever. Vanessa, you need to go now,” Caden urged.
“Shawnee too, “ she demanded as she growled.
“Shawnee is needed here. She’ll be fine,” Caden reassured her, then glanced to Xany who suddenly jumped when she caught his eye. She looked confused and stood completely still for a moment before nodding faintly to him.
“She’ll be fine, Ness.” Xany’s voice shook. “You’ll know if there’s trouble.” She glanced to me for support.
I caught on to the exchange that occurred between Xany and Caden. Vanessa looked to me when I spoke to her. “Ness, you need to go. They’ll come after you, and in their frenzied state, they are harder to control.”
“Why can’t Hank control his own cubs?” She was gripping my waist so hard I thought she might knock me down.
“They’re both dominant sons of a sept leader, and Hank’s beta has been injured,” Caden answered. “They’re his children, and he’s worried that they won’t survive the change if they can’t get control of their beasts.” Caden seemed like he was forcing his voice to sound calmer than his tensed body appeared. “How would you feel if they were your kits?”
There was a long, silent pause. “I’ll go,” she said and hugged me.
My heart raced while I imagined frenzied young werewolves headed toward the cabin to tear up Vanessa. “I’ll be okay,” I assured her, caressing her cheek gently. “I’ll call you when they’re under control.”
She leaned into my hand and let me go. Caden gave her a firm nod, and Vanessa disappeared into the windowpane. Caden seemed to let out his breath. I knew that cubs in the frenzy of their Firsting wouldn’t hesitate to attack Vanessa. I also knew that Vanessa wouldn’t hesitate to defend herself. That part scared me the most.
“What do we do, Caden?” Xany asked.
“We need to watch the Fevered one.” I moved closer to Caden who nodded in approval.
“Mal will push the cubs toward the lake where we will have a better advantage. Hank’s daughter, Arielle, is waiting outside.” He opened the door.
“Cool.” Xany giggled as she watched him. “Sleepover!” She grinned at me. I rolled my eyes.
The young girl stalked into the room with her arms crossed over her chest in annoyance. Caden chuckled at her attitude and glanced to Xany, giving her a light nod. “Arielle, you’re to stay here with Shawnee and Xany.” His voice was firm. The girl met his gaze with a defiant stare down, which of course she lost. Only a cub with the Fever would ever have the guts to try something like that with a wolf as dominant as Caden.
“Why should I stay with them?” She spat the words out like an angry cat. The girl was about the girth of Caden’s left leg, and yet she was attempting to defy his orders.
“Because I’m going to help your father manage your brothers. You’re to listen to Shawnee and Xany.” He kept his gaze on Arielle, who again had her gaze broken by Caden’s powerful dominance. She frowned at him, stomped over to a chair in the kitchen, and sat. Caden smirked and took off his shirt, tossing it on the floor.
“If she changes, guide her toward the mountains,” he said, then disappeared out the door.
Arielle frowned at me first, then Xany. “I’ll go where I want,” she demanded. Xany, obviously stunned by the rudeness of the cub, stared openmouthed. I’d always wondered about Xany’s pack experience, and this was proving that she had very little experience in handling Fevered cubs.
I put on my best, fake smile. “Of course you will,” I said to Arielle, putting my hand on her forehead to feel for her temperature. She rolled her eyes at me and pulled away. “Xee, will you get the thermometer from the black bag in my room?” Giving Xany a task seemed to unfreeze her, and she trotted off to my room.
“You’re not sticking anything in my ass.” Arielle glared at me and stood up.
“It’s an ear thermometer. You won’t feel it. Now pipe down,” I demanded, pressing her back down to sit in the chair. Arielle curled her lip at me but sat. Xany skipped back into the room and laughed at my sternness with the cub when she handed me the thermometer. I took Arielle’s temperature quickly before she could push my hand away.
“One hundred and four
,” I told Xany who shrugged.
“Should we give her ice or something?” Xany asked.
I shook my head, knowing it would be useless. “No. That’s prime temperature for an adolescent cub’s Firsting.”
“Oh. So…now what?” Xany looked at Arielle as if she were about to explode.
“You’re both idiots.” Arielle huffed as she crossed her arms over her chest. “I’m hungry.”
“She’s a brat, Nee. Can I smack her?” Xany frowned at the ornery cub.
Arielle stood up and growled a weak, human-sounding growl at Xany. I put my hand in front of Arielle to stop her forward movement.
“You’re a bitch.” She spat at Xany, “I want something to eat.” Her human growl slowly turned into a deeper, guttural growl.
“So are you. I don’t care if you’re sick and going to turn into the big bad wolf, I’m not feeding you until you can be nice.” Xany huffed and stomped away from Arielle.
One hundred and four degrees Fahrenheit…
The cells went through puberty…
Prime temperature for an adolescent cub’s Firsting…
The voice of Doctor Reynolds, mingled with my own, suddenly echoed in my head. With wide eyes, I looked between Xany and Arielle. The pieces began to fall into place. Arielle moved in Xany’s direction, but I blocked her and shoved her back toward her chair. My body reacted automatically to the situation playing, yet the only sounds I could hear were the echoes.
Create a serum to stop it…
“Oh god!” I said as dread raced through me.
I watched Arielle, who was seething when she was forced to sit. Her eyes locked onto Xany.
“What is it?” She looked between me and the cub.
Arielle struggled against the grip I had on her shoulder. Then, as if she could sense my sudden distraction, she stood up and shoved me away from her. I fell backward and slid half way across the kitchen on my ass. She roared in victory and then blinked when she heard herself make the bestial sound. She looked at me, her expression a mix of fear and rage.
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