by Tamara White
I can’t help the snort of laughter. One, because even though I barely know the girl, it feels like it’s true. And two, because just listening to how he’s talking about her and the way Jayden is crinkling his brow tells me Ash isn’t the first brother she has snapped up.
“Oh, wow! She’s dated all of you, hasn’t she?” I inquire, not even needing a response. The moment my question is out there, I can see it. Man, I don’t like to call women nasty names, but if she’s dated all three of them, well then, maybe she is in need of a name stronger than head bitch.
“Wait, how old are you?” I ask Jayden.
He’s definitely over eighteen, judging by the tattoo on the inside of his wrist marking him as a hunter. I thought he was maybe in his mid or late twenties when I first spotted him on the training mat, but now I have to readjust his age in my mind. If Hannah is in my year, she’s between seventeen and eighteen, and if he dated her, then when?
“I can see you’re getting creeped out trying to figure it out, so just stop. I’m not some perv. I’m twenty-one, and I didn’t date Hannah. Even though she tried to get me to take her out. I did, however, have a fling with her sister when we were seniors. So whatever gross thing you’re imagining, stop it.”
My eyes widen. I’m struggling to believe he’s that young.
“You’re really only twenty-one? I find that hard to believe.” No freaking way is he that young.
Jayden grins and reaches into his back pocket, pulling out his wallet. “Didn’t think I’d be getting carded by a teenager, but if you really don’t believe me, then here.” He hands his license over and I study it.
Sure enough, he’s twenty-one according to this. He could have handed me a fake, but what would he do that for? Why would he fake being younger than he really is?
I hand it back to him with a scrutinizing gaze. “Okay, I believe you, but it doesn’t change the fact that you look way too old.”
He chuckles under his breath. “Thanks, I think. You’re not the first one to say that though. It’s made buying beer for parties a hell of a lot easier when I was still at school.”
“Alright, now that we’ve ascertained Jay is indeed the age he said he was, do you want to come inside and check out the house?” Tyler addresses me, his eyes intense.
It’s so eerie looking directly into their eyes. Each of the boys, while slightly different in outward appearance, have the exact same blue eyes. Must be from their mother, since their father’s eyes are a dark shade of green.
I smile at him, gesturing for him to go ahead. “Alright, lead the way then.”
He grins, steps toward the wood-framed glass door, and opens it dramatically, sweeping a hand out to allow me to go first. I shake my head, not moving an inch. “You first,” I insist.
“You just want to stare at my ass, don’t you?” Tyler laughs as he steps into his home.
I find my gaze unintentionally dropping to his ass. It’s his own fault. I wouldn’t have if he didn’t draw my attention to it in the first place.
Jayden chuckles at my side, and Tyler turns back around, catching me looking.
I shrug, meeting his eyes. “It’s okay, I guess. Not a ten, but it’s fine to look at.”
“You’re a very strange girl, you know that, right?” Tyler stares like he’s trying to deduce just what makes me tick.
“Well, duh. Who the fuck wants to be normal in this world?”
I enter the house, Jayden and Ash following after me. I’m not sure what I was expecting since four males live here, but it definitely wasn’t something this beautiful.
I’ve walked into an immaculate kitchen with a stunning floating marble counter that takes up most of the room.
The cabinets and walls are the same shade of green and gray as the outer walls, making it feel very welcoming. Honestly, being inside here feels like we’re in a house on the beach, not on the edge of the forest.
“This is freaking beautiful, guys. Was it like this when you moved in?” I ask as I start exploring the house. The kitchen leads into a large, open dining room with a long bench style table and chairs. It appears as if it’s for formal occasions rather than for family time.
Then again, they have an outdoor deck with a grill and a table, so they don’t really need an informal area inside.
My hand runs along the smooth, dark wood tabletop as I walk around the room. I notice that despite the outside appearance, the house is very modern-looking within.
Ash followed me in, he’s watching me with fascination. “The look on your face, it’s so strange. The expression in your eyes is the same as when my mother first walked through the house before we fixed it up. Like you can see the potential it holds.”
“Oh. So this was all your mother’s doing? Is she home? I would love to meet her.”
Jayden and Tyler are just inside the dining room doorway, watching me with sad expressions. I instantly feel horrible for asking. I should have known she wasn’t around. Most hunters have lost someone either to a wolf or because of the commitment required with being a hunter.
“Our mother passed away a few years ago,” Ash explains, unable to look me in the eyes. “She loved this place when she first saw it. None of us could see the potential she did. All we saw was a dilapidated building that should have been destroyed, but Mom saw the beauty of what it could be, so Dad bought it. After six months of hard work, we helped make it what she wanted, and since she passed, we haven’t changed a thing. We’ve just ensured it stays the way she dreamed in an attempt to honor her memory.”
The emotion when he speaks of his mother is so profound that it makes my eyes sting with unshed tears. He loved her dearly, and I can hear in his voice just how much he misses her.
After listening to him speak that way and watching how he had all but given up on his training has me putting the dots together.
I turn to Jayden and Tyler, needing to ask the question. “His training started to get sloppy when your mother passed, didn’t it?”
Jayden just stares at me, not confirming what I already know.
Tyler nods sadly, his gaze dropping to the floor.
So that’s why Ash has given up. He stopped caring when he lost his mother.
My eyes go back to Ash, who’s watching the interaction with sad eyes. I move to stand directly in front of him before I grip him by the shoulders and give him a gentle shake. “If you have no will to live, you will die out in the field.”
Ash stares down at me with unseeing eyes. “I know that. It’s why I’m training to be better.”
Jayden growls and pinches the bridge of his nose in frustration. “Really? Because all I saw today was a lazy idiot who would die if he ever faced a wolf.”
Something about Jayden’s words cause me to stop and stare at him, sure I misheard him.
“Wait, are you implying Ash has never gone up against a wolf? At all?” I ask, slightly perplexed. All hunters should have at least faced a wolf by the time they’re fifteen, and he’s got to be about seventeen considering he’s in my homeroom, so why the hell hasn’t he handled one yet?
My first encounter with a wolf was when I was only twelve years old, but from what Dad said at the time, he let me do such a thing so early because of what I am.
Fifteen is the usual age hunters introduce their children to the wolf hunt though. It’s supposed to show us what wolves are really like and how dangerous they can be.
If Ash is the same age as me, then it means his encounter with a wolf should have been two years ago. So why hasn’t he been?
“No, he hasn’t gone yet. He should have, but Dad has been pretty busy since Mom passed away. I’ve been training both him and Ty to go out for their first hunt, but I refuse to take them until I know they can handle it. While Tyler has more than proven himself to me, Ashton hasn’t even managed to take Tyler down once in all the time I’ve been training them. If Ash can’t beat Ty, then how the hell can I expect him to kill a wolf?”
I understand the fear he has for his br
other’s safety, but the big question for me is why isn’t their father doing this? Why has Jayden been burdened with this responsibility? Why have both his younger brothers been denied something that’s basic hunter training?
You can’t go out to show them how to hunt a wolf with only one hunter. Ideally, another trained hunter should be along for the ride to ensure no mishaps occur, but it seems like Duncan doesn’t care enough to make sure his sons are trained.
I can’t even imagine how Jayden must be feeling with this pressure on his shoulders. It’s ridiculous. He may officially be an adult, but still, Duncan is their father. He should be the one teaching his sons, training them, and exposing them to the world of wolves. He should also be there to help them when they face their first wolf.
The more I’m learning about Duncan, the less I like him. How can one man neglect his family so much?
Chapter Seven
We don’t tour the rest of the house, the awkwardness becoming too much for any of us to handle.
They all know their father is shirking his responsibilities and there is nothing they can do about it. Rather than continue through the house, we go back outside and sit at the table, me on one side, the three guys on the other.
My father and Duncan are still sequestered over by the grill, talking in low whispers. I can hear it all, but I simply ignore it as best as I can.
“So if I approach you at school tomorrow, will you pretend I don’t exist?” Ash asks me, leaning back in his chair.
“Yep. Your girlfriend is a bit too much for me and, well, I have a bit of a temper when pushed. She seems like the type of person who will keep pushing until I explode, then Dad will be getting a call from the principal telling him I broke a girl’s nose and I’m now suspended from school until further notice.”
I pick at my cuticle, only glancing up when I realize it’s gone as silent as a cemetery. My father and Duncan have wandered over, most likely hearing what I just said, judging by the grin on my father’s face.
All eyes are on me when Tyler leans over the table with a gleeful smile. “Why does that sound like a true story?”
Why is he happy about my exploits? Maybe he’s one of those people who likes to live vicariously through others.
Dad chuckles, his eyes twinkling with laughter. “Because it is a true story.”
“Tell us everything,” Ash says, excitedly bouncing in his seat.
I can just imagine he wants some embarrassing dirt on me so he can tattle to his bully of a girlfriend.
I glare at Dad when he opens his mouth to reveal my dirty laundry to the group.
“I’m not the only one with embarrassing adventures, Dad,” I pointedly caution him. He’s got just as many embarrassing things in the closet as I do. Some more embarrassing than others.
“You’ve got nothing on me, Eliza.” Dad looks way too cocky for his own good. Maybe I should remind him of the idiotic things he’s done.
I tap a finger to my chin thoughtfully. “I have nothing? So then it wouldn’t matter if everyone knew about the time I had to explain to you the difference between a man and a woman? How one has an Adam’s apple and one doesn’t?”
My father pales considerably and clears his throat in embarrassment. “Er, yeah… sorry, guys, but you’ll have to hear Eliza’s story another time.”
I lean back in my chair with a grin. “That’s what I thought.”
The three boys are watching me with smiles while my father looks embarrassed. Duncan, however, appears less than pleased. Almost like he’s upset with the way I manipulated Dad to keep my secrets to himself.
He leans down to whisper in my father’s ear. I’m sure he doesn’t mean for me to hear anything, but I hear it all.
“Anton, I think before you leave tonight, we should have a talk about your daughter. She has a little too much control.”
My father nods but he doesn’t seem happy. Duncan straightens and goes back to the grill to continue cooking the meat.
Dad glances over at me, knowing I heard every word. He winks my way, which eases my anger a little, but how dare this stranger think he can dictate how I’m raised? My dad and I may have a very strange relationship, but it works for us.
I trust him with pretty much every little thing going on in my life, and he trusts me. Sure, there are things that we may keep from each other, but nothing important that could affect us or our relationship. Hell, he even knows when I lost my virginity.
I told him when I began to grow curious about sex. I also told him the day before I planned to sleep with a human. He didn’t judge me or tell me not to do it. Okay, he did tell me that I should be sure before going ahead with it, but he didn’t flat out deny me my experience.
Instead, he showed me the different types of protection I should use and explained about my menstrual cycle and how ovulation worked. Since we didn’t really know how being a wolf affected those things, Dad and I settled on the fact that condoms were probably the best way to go for my protection.
I’m not sure how many other girls would talk about such things with their father, but for me, it’s normal. He’s never made it awkward or uncomfortable to discuss those topics with him. He knows we can’t see a doctor because of my wolf side, so he ensured he knew everything that could possibly help me.
Jayden gets up from his seat across from me and comes around to sit beside me. “You okay?”
I offer him a smile but don’t speak. I don’t know what to say. Since I can’t say ‘no, I want to rip your father a new asshole for speaking about me like an idiot child,’ it’s better that I remain silent.
“Don’t worry about my dad. He’s rough around the edges, but he means well.” He sighs softly when I remain quiet. “So, how long you think you’ll be here for?”
My lips twitch at his attempt to change the subject and distract me. “What makes you think I’m only here for a short period of time?”
He rolls his eyes as if the answer should be obvious. “Because you’re a hunter. We don’t stay in one place long.”
“I’ll be here at least the rest of the school year. Dad wants me to finish my last year and graduate, but I don’t mind moving again if we need to. I love traveling all over the country and visiting different places. It’s fun learning about new towns and their history. Plus, we meet other hunters along the way, which means I can build good working relationships with them for the future.”
Duncan smiles over at me, having heard my statement. He points a metal spatula at me, grinning like a fool. “Now that, my boys, is real dedication to the cause. When have any of you three ever travelled out of this town to explore? To meet others who lay their lives on the line to ensure those filthy wolves know their place in this world? Never, that’s when.”
Man, this Duncan guy is giving me whiplash with his moods. First, he acts nice, like I would be a good influence on his sons. Then he wants to berate the relationship my father and I share. But now he’s back to being a nice guy because I like visiting other hunters? He really needs to make up his damn mind about me. Either I can help his sons, or I’m the bad daughter who needs more discipline. He needs to bloody choose which it is and stick to it.
To make matters worse, Duncan continues his rambling. “You’ve done a good job training your daughter. She’s committed right to the core. And with a little more intense training, she could be one of the best hunters we’ve ever had.”
Oh yeah, this guy is a master manipulator, that’s for sure. My dad doesn’t say anything, only smiling with a look that resembles pride, but I know him better than anyone here. His eyes are filled with nothing but concern—concern for me.
He and I have both shared our fears of me becoming too noticed by hunters. It’s why Dad has been training me to control myself, and why he doesn’t want anyone here knowing just how good I am.
If I become too good of a hunter, word will get around and it will bring unwanted attention my way. Especially when I’m of official hunter age. People will come and ask for
my help, and since I can’t exactly risk assisting on the full moon, it will cause suspicion.
Sure, sometimes I can withhold my change until the moon reaches its highest point, but it hurts to do so. And since most hunters ask for help with their marks on the night of the full moon, well, it doesn’t exactly scream ‘good idea’ to work with the very people who would kill me if they saw me change.
“Right, food’s ready. Boys, if you could go grab the salad and water jug from the fridge, we can all dig in.” Duncan places a plate that’s piled high with burgers and fresh steaks in the middle of the table.
My mouth waters at the scent of meat that wafts over to me.
Dad and I exchange a grin across the table because he knows that the plated food is what I usually eat in a single sitting. It sucks that I’ll have to be careful about the amount I consume, but it should be easy enough if I watch how much the others are eating.
Once the boys have returned, Jayden again takes the seat beside me and pours me a glass of water.
“Sorry I didn’t ask sooner, but if you don’t eat meat, I can make you something else,” he offers with a friendly smile.
I snort. “Yeah, I’m not a vegetarian. I’m what Dad fondly calls a meatatarian.” And he does, many times a week. I don’t think there’s actually ever been one day where I went without meat. I doubt I even could.
“Is that even a word?”
“Meh, no clue. I just know I love to eat, and if there’s meat on my plate, I’ll eat it first.”
“Well then, don’t let me stop you from your meat-loving ways.” He waves a hand toward the food and I help myself to everything I need to make a steak sandwich.
I eat slowly and do my best not to look like the pig I am. Dad is watching me too, as if he thinks I won’t be able to contain my beast and gorge myself on food. I’m proud of the fact that I seem to be able to eat at a normal rate in front of everyone.
For the rest of the evening, I pick at more food while the men all talk about various things. Jayden is the only one who remains somewhat quiet, and I think that’s because he’s watching me most of the time.