"Sorry about her," I said, for multiple reasons. "She's still young, so she doesn't quite understand that you should match the form of the person you're talking to. Plus the fact that she's trying to eat you."
Orpheus obviously didn't care. He grinned as he scooped her up. She was small and light enough that it didn't strain his arms. It pleased me to see that he was already healing well.
Starry let out a little yowl to express her annoyance that she'd been interrupted. Orpheus ruffled the fur on her head and she quickly forgot her grievance with him, purring into his hand. I smiled at their interaction. It made me happy that not only Starry, but the rest of the kids seemed to like Orpheus too. They knew when a stranger had a good heart, and if they didn't, they wouldn't last around here anyway. The pack was quick to defend our youngest, as it should be.
Not only that, but knowing he was so good with kids was a huge attraction for me. If I was normal, I might've had a chance with him. But it couldn't work out. Orpheus had made it clear that he was intent on leaving when he was healed, and my own issues prevented me from having a relationship anyway. There was no point in dwelling on it. Orpheus and I couldn't be together.
Get it through your head already,I told myself.
Once again, I'd steered myself into a bad mood. I wished I could block off parts of my brain and never go near them. I wished I could be more like Orpheus, who didn't have a care in the world. What I wouldn't give to have that kind of carefree nature. It was a good thing I was good at hiding my negative feelings most of the time. I didn't want the pack to think even more poorly of me than they probably already did.
But just how much of myself did I have to hide?
"Just in time," Orpheus said with a grin. "I knew we were missing a munchkin."
I snapped out of my thoughts to see a black and white wolf cub trundling towards us. His dads walked behind him wearing matching smiles. Orpheus kneeled and put Starry down. "Hey, Zak. Didn't want to be left out of the action, huh?"
"Nope," Nero, Zak's alpha father said. "He was a born troublemaker, so watch out for him."
I was distracted from my moodiness by Orpheus's warm laugh as he scratched Zak under the chin. The little wolf obviously remembered him from their impromptu play session in the alcove.
"You must be the other half of Zak's dads," Orpheus said as he stood to greet Nero. He weakly raised his arm to shake his hand. "Is it true that you're a shark or was everyone in on some elaborate plan to fool me?"
"Nope, it's true. I'd show you, but I don't want to make an embarrassing first impression by flopping around on the ground."
"Fair enough. I guess being a shark out of water is just as bad as being a raven who can't fly."
I felt bad that he was still thinking about that, so I pushed my own feelings to the side and decided to change the subject. "Why don't you guys go fetch the rest of the pack? I'm sure they'd like to meet Orpheus formally."
"Yay!" Lupa cried. "Everyone's going to meet Uncle Orpheus!"
"Uncle?" Orpheus asked, looking at me in amusement.
"It's what they call everyone who's new to the pack, whether they like it or not," I said with a laugh. "Get used to it."
There was a warm, fond gleam in Orpheus's eyes. He paused for a moment, as if soaking in this term of affection. Then he suddenly let out a tiny noise of surprise. We both glanced down to see Starry had returned to her post, which meant she was teething on Orpheus again.
"Oh, no you don't," I said, gently prying her away. "You can chew on him when he's feeling better, okay? Right now Uncle Orpheus isn't feeling so well, so you all have to be nice to him. Understood?"
The kids who could speak all said in unison, "Yes, Uncle Red."
From the corner of my eye, I saw Orpheus's ear to ear smile. The joy in his expression shone brighter than the sun.
I loved it, but it also made my heart ache. That joy and brightness was only temporary. I had to stop getting attached to Orpheus ASAP or else it would only hurt me in the end.
6
Orpheus
Red was a quick learner.After the first time, Red took over Remington's job as doctor. Every day and night without fail, he would mix up the herbs and apply them. Despite the strong-smelling herbs killing any hint of a sensual mood, there was something deeply intimate about it. I mean, it did involve Red kneeling close to me and rubbing his hands all over my body.
I began wishing I had the same strong sense of smell that wolves and other shifters possessed. Hell, even the two deer shifters in this pack probably had better noses than me. But I suppose that was the price I had to pay for the power of flight.
Red was noticeably quiet today, which was unusual for him. I had a big mouth and though it wasn't as rowdy as mine, Red had a smart one on him too. I’d grown to enjoy our daily banter as something to look forward to. I wondered if there was something on his mind.
He kneeled over me with a focused expression as he rubbed the tingling, cool substance along my arms. I always had to suppress a shudder when he reached my wrists. They were surprisingly sensitive. And still, I couldn't tear my eyes away from him. Would it have been easier if I stared at the dirt ceiling instead of at a handsome man? Absolutely. But did Orpheus do things the easy way? Never.
Red had just reached the soft part of my wrists when I figured I should distract myself, and also ask if he was okay.
