by Sarah Makela
Chapter Nine
Ethan
This dinner with Mia and her parents tonight was making me nervous, especially after all we’d been through yesterday. I grimaced. Regardless of what had happened, that didn’t change our relationship, even if I knew I wanted more than what we were. I didn’t want the commitment and being with her still felt forbidden.
Besides, I still had no clue why she was in danger. There had to be something she hadn’t told me. If I didn’t talk with her soon, this whole thing might get swept under the rug, since I doubted we’d be discussing it at the dinner table.
Getting my jeans and shirt on, I decided to go for a walk. That would attract far less attention from Nolan than going for a drive. Besides, Mia didn’t live that far away.
When I knocked on her front door, no one answered. I frowned, glancing back at her car, which was parked in the driveway.
Somehow, I doubted she wasn’t home. I rang the doorbell a few times, then I knocked again.
“What is it now?” she grumbled behind the closed door. Her eyes widened when she opened it and saw me, and she took a couple steps back. “I, uh....” She wore a pair of tiny shorts and a tank top. Her hair was ruffled from sleep and she didn’t appear to be wearing a bra, from the way her nipples hardened as the cold air blew inside her house. “Ethan!”
“Mia.” I nodded, trying my best to keep my gaze at eye level. The hard peaks on her chest were tempting the hell out of me. The need to brush my fingers over them and hear her moan my name beneath me had my dick swelling. Damn it!
This was getting ridiculous. Either my hormones were going into overdrive again, or the secret ingredient in the healing salve had been a stupid love potion. Why would she have concocted a love potion, then added some to a healing salve that she’d used on herself? It didn’t add up.
“What are you doing here?” Crossing her arms over her chest, she looked around my shoulder as if expecting to find me with someone else.
I frowned. “After last night, I wanted to swing by to see if you were okay. Besides, we were both stressed, and we didn’t get a chance to really talk about what’s going on.”
Grimacing, she pulled away from the doorway. “I’m fine. Just a few bumps and bruises.”
A few of the bruises in question looked like handprints on her upper arms. That fucking asshole. From the way she’d reacted, I had a feeling....
Her gaze drifted down to where I was looking, and she gulped, retreating deeper into the house. I followed and shut the door behind me. “Those were.... He was just....” She grabbed a blanket from the couch, wrapping it around her shoulders. “It was tense last night. He overreacted.” She looked indecisive for a moment. “I don’t know.”
I took a few steps toward her. My anger retreated at the look in her eyes. “You don’t have to defend him to me. What he did was wrong. Plain and simple. He shouldn’t have touched you that way.”
She sighed and looked up at me. “I know. If Nolan put you up to this, then tell him to buzz off. I already told him my reasons.”
“That’s not why I’m here. Like I said, I wanted to talk about last night. The...werewolf. Why is it after you?”
She chewed on her lower lip. “I can’t really talk right now. Dinner is at—”
“I know perfectly well when dinner is. We’ll make it in time. If you want my help like you implied last night, then talk.” While she’d covered herself with the blanket, I could still see the outline of her nipples. God, how was I supposed to pay attention with her looking like that? “If you want, you can get dressed while we talk.”
Mia gave me a dubious look, her lips curving in a frown. “Fine, we’ll talk. My friend asked me to make a potion for her shop. Apparently, the potion was for a werewolf who came in disguised as a man. I used an ingredient that’s supposed to be poisonous to werewolves, not knowing that was what his sick friend might be.” She leaned against the couch, as if she wasn’t expecting us to be here for long.
“Didn’t you sense that the man was a werewolf? Why didn’t he tell you?” None of this made any sense. While I knew she hadn’t wanted to tell anyone about being a witch, this werewolf was a member of the supernatural community, too. Surely the guy would have told her what he or his friend were, in order to get what they needed.
“No, I didn’t know werewolves existed.” I couldn’t suppress my laugh, and she shot me a dirty look. “I thought they were beasts of legend and folklore. There were vibes from the guy that caught me off guard, but without having ever met another werewolf, I didn’t know that’s what I was picking up.” Sighing, she sat on the couch, getting a little more comfortable. “I wished he’d told me. I hate to think that I unintentionally hurt someone.”
“Is there anything you can do to help?” I sat on the opposite side of the couch, not wanting to make her feel uncomfortable.
She threw her head back, laughing rather hysterically. “Well, he certainly asked for it so nicely, didn’t he?” The look she gave me was haunted. “Maybe he just wants to kill me. Werewolves are known for their violent tendencies.”
This whole werewolf thing was new to me. “Come on, Mia. Don’t be like this. We’re going to make sure you’re safe.” A fierce protectiveness flared within me. It slammed in my gut, nearly doubling me over. I gripped the arm of the couch to keep myself from falling.
When I caught a look at her, her eyes were wide with panic. “Oh, no.... No, no, no.... This can’t be happening.” She whispered the words, but I could hear them as if she were talking normally.
Realization flooded my senses. I lifted my shirt to see that the claw marks were gone. There were no scars, nothing to signify that I’d been attacked last night. “Mia, does this mean...?”
“Sorry. I’m so sorry.” She rubbed her arms, wincing when she hit the bruises. “I never should’ve gotten into this mess. Never should’ve let you get involved.”
My heart pounded in my chest and I slumped into the couch. Life had upended itself, and I’d been home for less than twenty-four hours. Part of me wished I was back in the desert. While it was dangerous, it didn’t rival the level of complexity I’d been hit with since coming back.
“Fuck.” I stood, my body moving on its own volition. A werewolf had attacked Mia, and now I’d been turned into the same beast! I didn’t stop when I hit the front door.
“Ethan, wait!” Mia stood on her front porch, the blanket long gone. “Where are you going?”
“I need to clear my head. This is way too much.” I continued walking away, not looking forward to dinner at her parents’ later. If my life was going to be spent as a werewolf, then I had no idea what I’d do.
Life kept hitting me with curveballs. One day I’d learn to catch them. But maybe that day was one too late.