Violet groans, and I tug her up and into my arms.
Hattie comes over, her blonde hair bobbing up and down as she practically skips over. “So, I’m aware that I’ve practically been sexually harassing you for the last little while. I’m pretty mortified over that, so if you want, you can stroke me…uh…I mean my…my hair.”
Violet snort laughs. “Good fix.”
“I don’t think I’m ever going to live this down.”
“Nope,” Violet says. “Never.”
“What do you say we don’t stroke each other ever?”
“Deal.” She holds out her hand and I shake it.
“Hey blondie. Get over here and have a drink with us.”
Hattie looks at me for confirmation that she’s not about to walk into the lion’s den.
“If they give you any trouble, I’ll set Violet on them.”
Violet goes to elbow me and misses. “Damn it.”
Hattie heads over and grabs a drink from a guy who looks like he’s the Hulk’s stunt double. Within moments, he’s shifted, and she’s rubbing his fur. I pull Violet into another hug. “Want some moonshine?”
“I can still smell it on your breath, so I’m going to pass.”
I cover my mouth and turn my face. “Sorry.”
“Ah, come here and kiss me, wolf man.”
“It’s the least I can do since you saved my life.”
“I’d say.”
Later, when the sun drops and the sky turns purple, the pack starts to howl in loose, overlapping waves. It’s not aggressive, more like a celebration, a sound that vibrates in my bones and makes my wolf push forward with a strange, aching joy.
Violet tilts her face up, smile soft. “They’re beautiful,” she whispers.
“You can tell?” I ask.
“I can feel it,” she says. “In my chest.”
I swallow hard.
“Jason?”
“Yeah?”
She turns toward me, and even though her eyes don’t focus, I feel pinned in place. “You know this isn’t just your pack now,” she says. “It’s mine too. If I want it.”
“Do you?” I ask.
She considers it, breathing in the smoke, the laughter, the howls.
“Maybe not right away,” she admits. “But… I wouldn’t mind visiting. Getting used to it. Learning the rules.” A small smile. “I like the part where we don’t get murdered.”
“Yeah, that’s a good rule.”
Her fingers search for mine. I give them willingly.
