The Girl Who Cried Werewolf

by Heather Hildenbrand

  “Obviously, I wasn't planning on being caught,” I mutter.

  He smirks and my belly tightens.

  It doesn’t matter that his smirk is slightly scary. Not when he looks so damn sexy doing it. My gaze snags on his mouth, and when I finally look up at his eyes again, they’re dark and fastened intently on mine.

  He closes the distance between us, pinning me against the wall. His hands box me in, and he takes a deep breath. My heart races at our sudden closeness. He groans, setting his forehead against my own, and my heart pounds so hard I worry it will give out.

  “Not everyone is as affected by your charm and delectable ass as I am, Pepper. It would do you well to remember that,” he whispers roughly. Despite the threat in his words, his eyes are fixed on my lips. I can practically feel him fighting the urge to kiss me.

  I tilt my head up, giving him access to my mouth, and his gaze burns into my own. The sound of a door slamming open has me jumping, and Kash turns, hiding me behind him as a figure emerges from the restroom at the far end of the hallway.

  “Kash, I know it’s your celebration and all, but I thought we’d share the party favors.”

  I peek around Kash’s shoulder to see Doyle and a couple of the other guys looking past him to me.

  Kash’s expression darkens, and he lets out a growl before grabbing my arm and dragging me out the side door.

  “What are you doing?” I hiss, wrenching my arm out of his grip the moment we’re outside.

  “You can’t be here,” he says.

  I exhale, trying to calm my racing heart, because deep down I’m a little relieved Kash decided to let me off the hook for whatever performance those guys wanted from me. “You don’t get to tell me where I can go.”

  “Maybe you didn’t hear me. I’m telling you where you can’t go.”

  I growl at him in frustration, and he laughs.

  “That's cute. Now, get your fine ass back in your car, and get out of here,” he says between clenched teeth.

  I cross my arms. “Make me.”

  “With pleasure,” he growls, stalking towards me.

  I squeak as he picks me up and throws me over his shoulder before turning to head in the direction of my car.

  “Let me down, you prehistoric mutt,” I seethe as I flail wildly.

  His hand slaps my ass with a resounding crack, and I still, the shock vibrating to my core.

  “Behave,” he grunts, making quick work of the walk to my car before depositing me unceremoniously on the hood.

  I push against him and scramble off, stomping to the door and ripping it open. I’m not even going to ask how he knew which car was mine. I need to get the hell out of here. Not because he told me to but because it's clear I'm going to have to come up with another plan.

  I slide into the front seat and reach out to slam my door. Kash stops me, gripping the frame and leaning down into the car.

  “Don't make me regret letting you go again, Pepper. My world isn't for you,” he says before shutting the door and walking back to the bar.

  I watch him go, openly admiring the view until the door closes behind him.

  When he’s gone, I pull my phone from my pocket and open my Instagram account. I cringe as I read some of the comments on the video I posted earlier. They range from people asking if this is a joke to people straight up calling me insane. I note my follower count and realize it’s dropped in the past hour. Not a lot, but it's definitely the opposite of what I was hoping to accomplish with my big announcement. And now, I have nothing to show for it. No proof. Which makes me look like a liar.

  I growl in frustration, throwing my phone back onto the seat.

  This is all Kash's fault! If he thinks I'm going to stop just because he told me to, he's about to have a rude awakening. I've got followers to do right by, and no flea bitten mongrel is going to stop me. Not even one as hot as Kash-fucking-Montgomery.

  Chapter 5

  “Sorry I’m late,” I call as I hurry in with my arms full of bags.

  Anna jumps up and grabs a couple of the bags, and I follow her to the kitchen.

  “About time,” Talia calls.

  She’s already in the kitchen, pulling glasses from the cabinet as Anna hands over the bottles I’ve brought home.

  “I know, I got held up,” I tell her.

  Talia’s eyes finally slide to me, taking in my all black outfit, and her brows lift. “Do I even want to know?”

  I bite my lip. “Drinks first,” I decide.

  Talia doesn’t argue.

  “What can I do to help?” Anna asks.

  “Slice the oranges,” I tell her, and then we all get to work on mixing the drinks.

  We’ve done this often enough the process goes like clockwork, and in almost no time, we’re all settled in front of our fireplace with drinks in hand, dressed in cozy pj’s and slippers.

  “Mmm, I think this drink gets betta’ every time we make it,” Anna says after a sip.

  “We get better every time,” Talia corrects.

  “I’ll drink to that,” I say, lifting my glass in a toast.

  Anna and Talia raise theirs.

  “To the only Midnight Kisses we’ll eva’ need,” Anna says.

  “To you bitches,” Talia adds.

  “Hear, hear,” I say with a laugh, and we all drink.

  “Ugh,” Talia groans after a large gulp. “This is exactly what I needed today.”

  “That bad, huh?” Anna asks.

  “I thought today was your free day,” I say.

  “Free from classes, yes,” Talia says, sighing loudly. “But you know it was time for my monthly meeting with my parents. I spent hours being grilled about school and my extracurricular activities via Skype. Then, as the cherry on that crap sundae, I had to sit through another hour of being briefed on the company’s latest quarterly financials by my father and his attorney—who, by the way, has a voice like Gilbert Gottfried. Ugh. My brain is totally fried.”

  She takes another gulp, draining half her glass.

  For the next hour, the three of us commiserate over our college woes–from classes to exams to the stress we feel about transitioning into the real world in the next few months. It feels good to bitch and complain about life with the people who get it.

  By the time we’ve finished heckling Anna about her new guy, I’m sufficiently drunk. I know that, because my failure from earlier doesn’t sting quite so badly. That and the image of Kash standing over me in that hallway, hands propped on the wall, delicious mouth looming, is enough to tempt me in ways that would probably be bad for my health.

  “So,” Anna drawls, her Southern accent more pronounced after the drinks. “Are ya’ gonna tell us about your mystery errand earlier?”

  Both of them turn to look at me. “Um, well, it wasn’t so much an errand as an appearance,” I hedge, trying to decide how to tell them what happened while avoiding the lecture I’m sure they’ll both try to give me.

  “An appearance,” Talia echoes, already frowning.

  But Anna’s eyes light up. “Wait, like you got together with someone?” She leans in. “Like a date? Holy shenanigans, Romy. Do you have a guy?”

  She practically squeals, and I wince at her enthusiasm, knowing the truth is only going to upset her that much more. “Not exactly.”

  Talia lowers her drink. “You were out stalking that werewolf dude, weren’t you?”

  “Stalking is such a strong word,” I say.

  She rolls her eyes.

  Anna gasps dramatically, and I glance at her half-filled glass, wondering if I shouldn’t cut her off. “Oh, Romy, no. Alone? Even after our talk? Please tell me you didn’t,” she says.

  “Listen, it’s not a big deal, okay. I was perfectly fine—”

  “Romy, you promised! He could be dangerous,” Anna says. “Remember the missin’ girl from the other day? Well, I heard another girl went missin’ last night! They both lived on campus. You can’t just run around followin’ strange guys around. Espec
ially a guy you think killed someone.”

  “I was careful,” I argue even though I pretty much just waltzed into that party earlier completely unarmed. I hadn’t even thought to carry my mace. Though I decide to keep that bit to myself with the way Talia’s eyeing me over the rim of her nearly empty glass.

  “I just worry,” Anna says, and her voice becomes more of a crooning. Yep, definitely cut off.

  “Don’t worry, I’m telling you he won’t hurt me,” I assure them.

  “Whatever. Listen, I trust that you know what you’re doing,” Talia says.

  I blink at her. “You do?”

  “Sure.” She shrugs. “Besides, if you get kidnapped, I’ll know exactly who to torture in order to find you.”

  “Mobster!” I fake cough into my hand.

  Talia grins, shaking her head at me.

  “Thanks,” I tell her, not quite sure whether to be relieved or not.

  “I don’t even want to think about somethin’ awful like that happenin’,” Anna says. Then she brightens. “Hey, do y'all want a cupcake? I brought home some leftovers from my shift tonight.”

  “Is that really even a question?” I ask.

  “Yeah, and why are you just now mentioning this?” Talia demands.

  She jumps up and disappears into the kitchen. Anna laughs, grabbing my glass while mumbling about a refill, and follows Talia. Alone, I pull my knees up to my chest, thinking about my run-in with Kash earlier. My mind plays back our conversation, and I’m so lost in it I jump when a drink appears in front of my face.

  I take it and look up as Anna plops down beside me. She sets a plate of cupcakes between us and grabs one then goes to work licking the frosting off the top.

  “So. What’s his name, anyway?” she asks.

  “Kash.”

  “And you’re sure he’s not a serial killer?”

  “I’m ninety-nine percent sure he doesn’t want to kill me,” I tell her honestly and then take another drink to hide the heat in my cheeks. Kill? No. Spank? Hell yes.

  Talia snorts as she drops back down on the other side of me with her own cupcake.

  “What?” I ask.

  “Nothing. I mean, that’s about as sure as you can be concerning any guy on this campus,” she points out.

  Anna’s eyes widen. “That’s terrible.”

  “No, what’s terrible is that it’s true,” Talia says. “Think about your new boy toy. How much do you really know about him anyway?”

  “I know he doesn’t want to kill me,” Anna protests.

  “But are you one hundred percent sure?” Talia lifts a brow dramatically.

  I giggle.

  Anna turns to look at me with wide eyes, so I shove half a cupcake into my mouth to keep from laughing.

  “Well played,” Talia says to me.

  Anna turns to her. “Y’all are evil.”

  Talia laughs, but it’s quickly cut off by her shoving a cupcake into her own mouth.

  Our eyes meet, and we both laugh so hard that I struggle to keep from choking on my dessert.

  “Whatever,” Anna says, pouting. “All I know is he’s goin’ to look fine as heck in his little waiter outfit tomorrow.”

  Talia stops laughing, her eyes gleaming now. “We’re going to make so much damn money tomorrow. Then, next month, I’m going to make my father sit through a stupid financial meeting of my own making.”

  I chuckle but groan when I remember the fundraiser. “Ugh, guys, I totally forgot about that.” I glance down at my phone then groan again. “It’s after two. I can’t possibly get up in time.”

  “Oh, you’re getting up,” Talia says. Her expression morphs into the same hard-ass bossy one she always wears when money’s involved. “And you’re going to wear that skimpy outfit we put in your closet and shake that moneymaker for me like you promised.”

  I bat my lashes at her. “Wow, you really know how to make a workin’ girl feel classy, pimp daddy.”

  “Pimpin’ ain’t easy,” she says, waving her hands around like a rapper.

  Anna and I dissolve into laughter.

  Finally, when all the Midnight Kisses have been consumed, I stumble to bed. Stripping down to my panties, I crawl underneath the covers, clutching my phone. Through half-open eyes, I manage to set an alarm for the morning. Then, out of curiosity, I check my Instagram account one last time.

  More followers gone.

  Doggy balls.

  The comments are even worse than before.

  Is she 4 real? Werewolf proof?! I can’t even with this.

  #TheGirlWhoCriedWerewolf is my new favorite internet drama!

  #RavingRomy

  With a sigh, I chuck the phone on the nightstand, newly determined in my drunken state. Dammit, I will prove to the world I’m not crazy if it’s the last thing I do. And despite what I told the girls earlier, considering Kash’s propensity for murder, maybe it will be.

  Chapter 6

  A few short hours later, I glare at the ridiculous “outfit” I found hanging in my closet. Calling it an outfit is being extremely generous. In fact, looking at the slip of fabric in my hands, the memory of Talia referring to it as an “outfit” last night feels like an outright lie. The hot pink, sequined booty shorts are, unfortunately, the least embarrassing part of this getup because the accompanying bikini top is shaped like two sparkly cupcakes. Even the heels appear to be made up of what look like tiny cream puffs stacked on top of each other.

  I slip into the offending costume then groan at my reflection. What the hell did I agree to?

  While I look for a cover-up, I contemplate murdering Talia and Anna for tricking me into this. The sneaky whores left when it was barely light outside, claiming they had to get a head start on the baking and would see me there. It may have been true, but it was also part of Talia’s evil plan to leave me surprised and alone so I couldn’t back out until it was too late.

  She was going to make a great mob boss.

  Muttering curses as I put on my makeup, I do my best to erase the effects of our Midnight Kisses Ritual before hurrying to my car.

  The street lining Greek Row is an absolute madhouse when I arrive, and I wind up having to park several blocks away. I glare down at my stupid uniform peeking out from my coverup one last time before hoofing it to the Kappa house. It’s an unusually warm day, but I still worry about the likelihood of me freezing my lady bits off.

  As I get closer to the Kappa house, I can finally see Anna’s Just Desserts truck. The mint green and peach truck is swarmed by people, but the window is closed, letting me know they haven’t started serving yet.

  Head down, I adjust my cover up before skirting around the crowd to climb the stairs to Kappa’s house. I stand beside the plaque labeled Kappa Alpha Tao and bang on the door.

  Talia answers, and the crowd lets out a deafening roar when they see her. She smiles her broadest smile and waves at them like some sort of sequestered celebrity.

  “Three minutes,” she screams to the crowd before ushering me in and quickly slamming the door. I can still hear the chants of the people waiting outside, and my eyes narrow when I take in what Talia is wearing.

  “What the hell, Talia? Why am I in a fucking cupcake bikini if you’re wearing that?” I gesture to her black leather pants, black muscle tank, and mint green bandana aggressively. If I wasn’t so pissed, I’d be awed by how badass and beautiful she looks.

  Talia tries–and fails–to hide her smile. “Perks of being management.”

  “Oh, good! You’re here! I was so worried you were gonna bail,” Anna says, joining us in the hallway. Fuck my life. She’s dressed in a cute peach dress with her favorite cupcake heels and matching apron.

  “Et tu, Brute?” I ask, my shoulders slumping in defeat.

  Anna has the decency to look ashamed, but Talia just rolls her eyes. “Quit being so dramatic. We’re not working the crowd like you are. Anna’s baking, and I’m helping her in the truck. It would break a million health codes for us to be dressed in
a cupcake bikini. Besides, it's not like you’ll be the only one dressed like that.” She turns me around to face the sunken living room, and I choke on my laughter.

  Not only are all of their sorority sisters dressed in varying shades of the same horrible cupcake bikini as I am, but the Deltas are all there as well. Their toned bodies are on full display in different colors of sparkly booty shorts with matching bow ties. They look like sexy man sprinkles, and I suddenly understand what the ravenous crowd is really hungry for.

  Talia is an evil genius.

  “Romy,” a big voice booms.

  I look up to see Brody striding across the room with a massive grin on his face. He’s wearing sparkly booty shorts just like the rest of the guys, and I avert my eyes, but it’s too late. I’ve seen too much.

  “Take it off, girl! If we have to show the goodies, so do you,” he says, gesturing to my cover-up.

  I roll my eyes at him and cross my arms firmly over my chest. Nothing and no one is going to get me out of this coverup.

  “Aww c’mon, Romy. Don’t be a party pooper!” a familiar deep timber shouts.

  My eyes scan the room, stopping when they land on the only Delta I consider a friend, Justice. His bright blue eyes stand out in stark contrast to his caramel skin and inky black hair. All of the Deltas are handsome in their own way, but Justice has always been my favorite. I even had a brief crush on him freshman year before I decided he was too beautiful for me. If he were a girl, he’d be so beautiful you couldn’t help but hate him. Still, he’s funny and definitely the least douchey of the bunch, so we’ve frequently wound up hanging out at Delta Kappa mixer events.

  Today, his mocha colored skin stands out in stark contrast to the turquoise booty shorts and matching bow tie he’s wearing. He wiggles his brow, making his pecs dance and I lose it.

  “Don’t hate me ’cause you ain’t me,” he quips, adding a pelvis roll to his ridiculous seduction dance.

  Brody laughs as more of the Delta’s join in with their own peacocking. Cupping his hands around his mouth, he begins chanting, “Take it off! Take it off! Take it off!” Soon, the entire room has joined in.