“You have questions.”
“How did you—never mind. Yes. I have questions.”
“About the Alpha, I assume.”
Her cheeks heated. “About wolf behavior in general. Professional interest only.”
“Of course.” Irene’s small smile suggested she didn’t believe that for a second. “What would you like to know?”
“The moon cycle thing. You said it affects your moods, your… responses. What does that mean, exactly? How much does it change them?”
“It varies by individual. Some wolves experience the pull more intensely than others.” Irene added spices to a simmering pot without looking away from Harper’s face. “Alphas in particular can become more primal. More driven by instinct. The closer tothe full moon, the harder it is for them to maintain their human restraint.”
“And what kind of instincts are we talking about?”
“The usual. Territorial behavior. Possessiveness. The drive to protect what they consider theirs.” Irene’s gaze didn’t waver. “The drive to claim it.”
Claim.The word sent an involuntary shiver down her spine.
“I’m not anyone’s to claim.”
“No? Then perhaps you should tell the Alpha that, because from where I’m standing, he seems to have different ideas.”
She opened her mouth to protest that she hadn’t asked for his protection or his growling or the way he looked at her like she was something precious and frustrating in equal measure, but Irene was already continuing.
“Pack males are simple creatures at heart. They respond to instinct more than logic, emotion more than reason. When they want something, they pursue it. When they feel threatened, they fight. When they find their—” She paused, seeming to reconsider her words. “When they find something valuable, they protect it with everything they have.”
“What were you going to say?”
“Nothing important.” Irene smiled enigmatically. “Just that you should be careful, Harper. Not because you’re in danger, but because the next two months might change you in ways you don’t expect.”
She wanted to press further, but a commotion in the doorway announced the arrival of several hungry pack members, and themoment was lost. She grabbed some bread and cheese from the counter—too hungry to wait for the full meal, too unsettled to stay and make small talk—and retreated back towards the office.
Change you in ways you don’t expect.
The words echoed as she settled back into her corner workspace, as she stared at her laptop screen and tried to remember why she’d come to Monster island in the first place.
To get away from my computer. To have a more active social life. To stop being the girl who only felt comfortable with machines.
She’d wanted change, wanted to be pushed out of her comfort zone. She just hadn’t expected the push to come from a golden-eyed Alpha who smelled like forests and made her body respond in ways she’d never felt before.
Chapter Eleven
The scent hit Adrian before he even reached the corridor.
Frustration. Exhaustion. That maddening sweetness beneath it all that had been driving his wolf insane for the better part of a week now.
Harper.
He’d returned from a late patrol fully intending to grab a few hours of sleep before the moon’s pull made rest impossible. Three days—no, two now, the midnight hour having slipped past—until the full moon, and his control was already fraying at the edges. Every instinct screamed at him to check his territory, to prowl his boundaries, to make sure nothing threatened what was his.
And that instinct kept dragging him back to one particular human who had no business being his anything.
He paused outside his office door, jaw tight. He could hear her heartbeat through the wood—faster than it should be, stressed rhythm punctuated by sharp breaths of irritation. The soft click of keyboard keys came in rapid bursts, then stopped, then started again with renewed aggression.
She was still working. Long past midnight, alone, pushing herself past exhaustion.
Foolish little female.
