He opened the door and slid out, holding up a hand when she would’ve joined him. “Stay inside.”
She settled back into the seat as he crossed in front of the truck and moved several yards back. He strode back and forth, unashamed of his nudity. Even covered in blood, he was sexier than any man had a right to be. He seemed to give himself a pep talk, his lips moving and his head bobbing as if he were talking to someone.
She rolled down the window and leaned her head outside. “What did you want to show me?”
Ty held up his hand once more. “Just wait. I’m having stage fright. I’ve never shifted in front of a girl before.”
“Shifted?” she questioned. “Is that a dance move?”
“Tolly,” he said with a groan. “Please give me a break here.”
She shrugged and poked her head back inside the jeep. Ty raised his arms overhead, stretched, and bent down to touch his toes. He straightened, and a moment later a fuzzy green glow seemed to radiate from his skin. His hair lengthened, and his entire body changed before her eyes.
She watched with horrified fascination as his limbs changed into that of an animal, and his features became decidedly furry. In less than a minute, he dropped onto all fours, a solid black wolf with honey brown eyes.
Tolly blinked, sure her eyes were playing tricks on her, yet the image of the wolf remained, the same one she’d photographed.
“What the fuck?” She breathed out.
Without stopping to think, she slid across the seat and slammed the jeep into reverse. Tires spinning on loose dirt, she whipped Greg’s jeep around and headed back to the highway. Her hands trembled, and her foot was heavy on the pedal when she rejoined traffic, going anywhere but the abandoned road where the man she loved turned into an animal.
A wolf. A beautiful, gorgeous wolf.
But still an animal. First the ginormous snake, and now this.
No. It wasn’t possible. She was dreaming, and any moment now she’d awaken and find nothing had changed. Humans didn’t transform into animals. It wasn’t possible. Werewolves were things of legend, bedtime stories her grandfather had told her to scare her.
They didn’t live here in Montevallo.
They didn’t make love to her until her eyes crossed with pleasure.
They didn’t…
Crap, they didn’t exist. Period.
Somehow she made it home. She parked the jeep in front of her tiny one-story and shoved through the broken gate to the safety of her yard. Without looking back, she unlocked the door and slipped inside. Drawing the shades, she locked the door and threw the deadbolt home.
“Tolly.”
She screamed and spun around to face Ty, who sat in her camouflage recliner naked. “Shit.”
He stood, but remained in one spot with his hands held out at his hands. “I won’t hurt you.”
She patted her pockets, relieved the weapons she’d borrowed from Greg were still inside. “How did you get here?”
“I ran.”
She kept her hand on the doorknob, ready to run if he got any closer. “I need you to leave.”
He took a step closer. “Tolly.”
“No!” She shook her head. “It’s not possible. Whatever just happened, it’s not right, and I want no part of it.”
“I’m a werewolf.”
She clamped her hands over her ears and hummed aloud. “Not listening.”
“I shift into a wolf at will. I won’t hurt you, and I can’t bite you or turn you into one of us. Werewolves don’t eat humans, contrary to popular legend.”
She moved her hands away and glared. “What part of ‘not listening’ did you not get?”
“Please give me a chance to explain.” He took another step closer. “I’m a wolf. My brother is too. We can’t help what we are. That snake you saw? That was Omar. He was a member of the Blood Wolves, but he deserted.”
She’d heard of his unit. He’d sent her a picture of the flame and droplet tattoo not long after he enlisted. “The army knows about…people like you?”
“The Blood Wolves are a special unit, made of shifters. High-ranking officials know about us, yes.”
She loosened her grip on the door. “Jackson was a member too.”
He nodded. “He’s a wolf too.”
She gaped at him. “So you mean to tell me that all three of you are wolves, and that people transform into snakes too?”
“And dragons and lions.”
Holy crap. “You’re not serious.”
He took another step closer. She allowed it. Even through the doubt, she trusted what she’d seen. Ty had become a wolf. He wasn’t lying about that. She didn’t understand how or why, but he’d turned into a wolf.
“There are several types of shifters. We’ve died out over the years, but the few of us that remain hide our true selves. Not many humans understand what we are. They fear us for our animal nature. They covet our strength. My family went underground several generations back. Jackson is more public in certain circles, but it’s not safe for us to reveal our true identities. I took a huge risk showing my wolf to you. I trust you, Tolly. I love you. And I need you to accept this part of me. I can’t change who I am. I don’t know how to explain how I came to be, but I don’t want to lose you. You’re everything to me.”
Days ago, she would’ve given anything to hear him say that. But now, with the shock of seeing him as a wolf, she didn’t trust her brain. She’d gone her entire life not realizing the guys she’d grown up with were wolves. How was that even possible?
Ty nodded as if she’d said something aloud. “I understand this is a shock to you, and you need time to process everything. If you’ll give me Greg’s keys, I’ll leave you alone and give you a chance to let this sink in. But know this; I don’t plan on letting this change whatever is happening between us.”
She tossed the keys to him. “Good-bye, Ty.”
He caught them one-handed. “Call me when you’re ready to talk.”
She moved aside for him to leave. It’d be a cold day in hell before she recovered enough to call.
* * *
Ty drove to Greg’s house and went inside to check on his brother. He borrowed clothes and went to join him. Greg was in his garden, puttering around with the vegetables he’d planted the year before.
Ty leaned against a fencepost. “I told her.”
Greg glanced up. His eyes were haunted, but his expression remained calm. “How did she take it?”
“Not well.” Ty moved forward and helped his brother pull weeds. He needed an outlet for his frustration. “Did you call Jackson?”
Greg nodded. “I told him what happened, and he called the Blood Wolves for assistance. They’ll have the area cleaned up in no time.”
Ty pulled a clump of weeds and tossed them aside. “Thank you for coming.”
“That’s what brothers are for, right?” Greg swiped his hand over his forehead.
Ty studied him “Are you okay? I know how the blood—”
“I’m fine. Let’s leave it at that.”
Ty plopped down and sat with his legs crossed, plucking at the roots of the weed he’d just picked. “Have you ever revealed yourself to a human?”
Greg’s jaw tightened. “Once.”
“And how did that go?” Ty questioned.
Greg shrugged. “Not well would be an understatement. Jackson was lucky. He found a half-shifter, someone familiar enough with our world to make their romance work. Not everyone is meant to be with the person they love.”
Ty wondered who had ruined his brother’s shot at romance. “I understand if you don’t talk about it, but I don’t care if you’re—”
“Gay?” Greg supplied. “I don’t know if I am. I kissed a guy, yes. My brain is too fucked-up right now to process more than what vegetable grows best in what soil. I can’t handle anything else.”
It was the most Ty had spoken with his brother about it. He was surprised Greg let the conversation go on as long as it had. “Well I
’m here if you need to talk.”
Greg chuckled. “Same here, bro. Looks like you’re in a bit of a slump yourself.”
Ty groaned and lay back on the damp grass. Dusk approached, and it was past time he was at Hog Heaven, but he wanted to enjoy the peace a little longer. Crickets chirped, and in the distance a katydid buzzed. The dirt and vegetation lulled him into a sort of trance, one where he’d forget his worries and just be.
He pulled a blade of grass and cupped his hands around it, blowing inside his hands to make a whistling noise. Greg chuckled and moved to sit beside him. “I remember when Dad taught us how to do that.”
Ty tossed away the blade. “Me too. You took hours to learn.”
Greg found his own piece of grass and copied the whistling sound. “But I did it. So what are you going to do?”
“With Tolly?” Ty rolled his head to the side to focus on Greg. At his nod, Ty shrugged. “Wait for her to come to terms with what we are, I guess.”
“And she never suspected?”
Ty sat up and brushed grass from his borrowed shirt. “Nope.”
“How long will you wait?”
Ty inhaled a deep breath of the spring air and exhaled slowly. “As long as it takes.”
* * *
Tolly heard her porch creak, and she bolted up in bed, pressing one hand to her heart and reaching for the baseball she’d left beside her with the other.
After seeing a gigantic snake wrapped around Ty, and then him turn into The Animal Kingdom, she’d be prepared next time. Since she didn’t know if bullets worked on shifters—as Ty had called them—she went with the bat. Nothing like a solid piece of maple to do the trick.
She listened for more sounds, but none came. Cursing the wind and her aging porch for waking her from a fitful sleep, she slid out of bed, avoiding the window in case the beasties were out there watching.
The clock down the hall chimed out the hour, and she counted the dings. Three o’clock in the morning and she was tiptoeing around her own home, scared of shadows and the wind. She grabbed a beer from the fridge and cut on the television. She didn’t care if it was Monday morning, she was drinking. After the Sunday she’d experienced, she deserved it.
Flipping on the television, she moved through the channels, flying past anything sci-fi or horror-filled. She needed a nice, cozy romantic comedy or drama. No things that went bump in the night. Not even Animal Planet, one of her favorite programs. No need to be reminded that the animals on television may be humanoids in disguise.
Tolly turned at another creaking sound and turned down the volume. There it was again.
Gripping her Louisville Slugger, she crept to the window and peered outside. A shadowy figure moved past, and she flattened against the wall.
Shit, shit, double shit.
She dropped to her knees and crawled to the front door. She stretched up an arm to flick on the outside light and peeped through the window.
Pale, yellow illumination spilled over the porch yet the figure remained. A glint caught her eye, and she recognized the chrome Harley in her yard. How had she not heard it pull up?
With a sigh, she flipped the lock and opened the door. “I know you’re out there. You might as well stop skulking around my porch.”
Ty sat in the ancient, wooden swing, pushing it back and forth with the toe of one boot. “I didn’t mean to wake you.”
She loosened her grip on the bat, but kept it at her side. “What are you doing here?”
He stopped swinging and stood. “I wanted to make sure you were okay.”
“Don’t come any closer.” She held out her hand.
“Tolly,” he said with a sigh. “I won’t hurt you. You’ve known me my whole life, and I’ve been a wolf all twenty-eight of those years. Have I ever given you reason to doubt me?”
His words hit her like a blow. No, he hadn’t, and that was the problem. How could she have been so blind? There had to have been signs, some way for her to realize he wasn’t what he seemed.
He continued forward, not stopping until he stood in the doorway with her. “I’m still me. Can’t you see that? I’ve used my wolf for good. We all have. I would never hurt you. My wolf lives within me, but my heart is that of a man. I understand if you can’t accept me as I am, but please don’t shut me out.”
She closed her eyes. “Ty.”
He touched her cheek and pulled her closer. “Please, Tolly. I’m nothing if I don’t have you. I was stupid for not realizing it sooner.”
He whispered a kiss across her lips, and she allowed it because her body wanted him, even if her mind didn’t.
“Can you feel me? My touch is the same as it’s always been. Nothing is different about me. Not if you don’t want it to be.”
She opened her eyes and focused on his face. He looked the same, but she’d seen what he became. A beautiful wolf, granted, but still an animal. She loved animals. Always had. But love loving one was an entirely different matter.
She held still, allowing him to put his hands on her waist. “Are other people okay with this?”
He turned and put his back to the door, drawing her into a loose embrace. “I haven’t told anyone else. You’re the first non-shifter I’ve told.”
The enormity of what he said, if it was the truth, struck her mute. “I’m the only one you’ve told.”
“The only human, yes,” he confirmed with a nod.
“Why me?”
He held her gaze. “It isn’t obvious?”
She placed her hands on his chest, holding herself away from him, but not completely moving out of his grasp. “To say I’ve had a shock would be an understatement. I need you to spell it out for me. In logical, non-kooky terms.”
“Fine.” He smiled, but it held sadness. “I L-O-V-E Y-O-U. That’s all that matters. In time, you’ll grow accustomed to the other side of me. Just give us a chance to see if this thing between us can become something more. You’re the first person who’s ever made me feel something. Granted, half of the time it’s frustration.”
“Hey!” She slapped his arm.
He laughed and continued, draping his arm around her back and tucking her close. “But the other half, I’m consumed by you. Your cinnamon smell, even when you’re covered in fish guts. Your messy ponytail. The way you challenge me in everything. You make me man up, Tolly, and I don’t want to lose you.”
“Is that your idea of a declaration?”
He toyed with the elastic waistband of her pajama shorts. “It’s all I have.”
“You need to work on your wooing skills,” she retorted.
The brush of his fingers along the base of her spine sent shivers down her legs. Even now, her body craved his with a vengeance. She’d lied. Wooing had never been his problem.
He slipped his fingers beneath the waistband and cupped her ass. “So where do we go from here?”
Her body chanted “bedroom,” but her mind cautioned her to stay sensible. “I have a few questions first.”
He nodded. “Figured you would.”
She glanced around the porch. It was late, or early morning depending on how you looked at it, but she didn’t want witnesses. “Come inside.”
Ty patted her bottom. “Lead the way.”
CHAPTER SIX
Ty sat in Tolly’s recliner and watched her settle into the ridiculous, overstuffed armchair she’d picked up at a yard sale. The floral motif matched her pajamas. He wouldn’t have taken her for a girl who wore flowers to bed, but he’d have to remember the little tidbit.
He leaned back and waited for her questions. Tolly seemed to consider them, alternately gnawing and licking her bottom lip. “What do you need to know, Tolly?”
The light from the ceiling fan spilled across her tanned cheeks, lending her a yellow glow. The blades wafted air around, bringing her scent to him with every rotation. She tucked her legs beneath her and gripped the arms of the chair. “Does the moon affect you?”
Ah, the age-old question. Hollywood had go
tten it wrong, and every werewolf since had to explain it away. “I don’t need the moon to shift if that’s what you’re asking, but it makes it harder to resist.”
“What do you eat? As a wolf, I mean.”
You if you’d let me. He bit back the inappropriate response and kept the conversation in safe waters. “I prefer cooked food, but I have chased rabbits and squirrels. The usual stuff.”
Her lips curled into a grimace. “So you don’t eat them raw?”
“For a country girl, you’re being remarkably girly about this.”
She rolled her eyes. “Excuse me for being grossed out by the thought of raw bunny.” She tapped her fingers on the chair. “Moving on. Is what you are hereditary?”
“It can be. Two shifters parents result in a shifter offspring. If a human and shifter intermarry, it’s a coin toss. I’ve heard of half-shifters, non-shifters, and full shifters coming from a human and shifter mating.”
“So say we had a baby—”
He chuckled. “Getting ahead of yourself aren’t you?”
She shot him an aggravated look. “It’s possible he or she could shift too?”
“Yes.” No need to beat around the bush with it.
She pondered for a while. “Or he’d be like me.”
“Now he’s a boy?” Although he teased her, Ty envisioned Tolly holding a tiny, black-haired baby to her chest, and he experienced a deep pang of longing.
He wanted babies with her, didn’t care if they shifted or not. He’d love them because they were a part of him and her.
Tolly’s cheek flamed red, and he guessed what the next question would be. “Go ahead and ask.”
She lowered her gaze to the floor. “Do you…have sex?”
“Umm.” He lifted an eyebrow. “Yeah.”
She covered her eyes. “I mean as a wolf. Do you have sex in wolf form?”
He stood and went to her, kneeling before her and pulling her hand away from her eyes. He lowered his voice, scared he’d spook her if he sounded too determined. “Many wolves enjoy mating in animal form. I’m not one of them. I enjoy skin. I want to touch my partner, not paw her.” He ran a hand down her arm. “I want to see her beautiful skin as it should be seen, not through a green lens. I want to hear her gasp my name and rake her nails down my back.”
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