He gave me a wry smile, even though his eyes were still filled with emotion. “Yeah. I’ve noticed.”
“People can become werewolves, right? That’s what you said before. Oliver was bitten—”
Maybe he saw the direction I was headed in, because he blanched. “That was done to save his life, Harris! Because he would’ve died either way, it seemed better he be reborn a wolf.”
“When you say ‘die either way’—are you saying the wolf bite—”
“It kills you,” Reed said flatly, a wall slamming down behind his eyes. “That’s how it works. It causes a fever that spreads rapidly. It sends your body into overdrive. It’s like fire in your veins. And then, an hour or two later, your heart stops and your life as a human ends.”
His words chilled me. “Werewolves are—what? Undead? Like vampires?”
“We’re nothing like vampires,” Reed growled. “Your heart only stops for a few moments, long enough for the magic to fully take hold and transform you.” Then he paused, his gaze searching mine. “Listen to me. When I think about anything happening to you, it makes me crazy.”
“Maybe we can table the werewolf talk for now,” I said reluctantly.
He let out a relieved breath. “Good.”
“I just thought—I would’ve thought you’d want me.”
I had meant to sayI would’ve thought you’d want me to turn, but that’s not how it came out. And the instant the words left my lips, I wanted to take them back. I felt exposed and vulnerable.
His expression softened at once and the sudden walls dropped away. “Idowant you. But I don’t want you to haveto change for me,” he said. “And definitely not at the cost of it killing you.”
“Temporarily.”
“I don’t want you to wake up one day and realize you became something else because you were trying to make this easier onme. It isn’t right. Who you are now is perfect.”
The warmth that spread through me at his words was almost unbearable.
“But where does this leave us?”
Reed’s gaze held mine, steady and unflinching. “It leaves us here,” he said. “Now. Together.”
It wasn’t that simple and he knew it. But I decided not to let it ruin the moment. We’d return to it, eventually. We had to.
He leaned in and kissed my forehead—an oddly gentle gesture for a man who turned into a predator under moonlight. “We’ll figure it out,” he murmured. “I swear.”
I let my eyes close for a second, breathing him in. The rich pine smell of a Christmas tree, reminding me sharply ofhome. That’s what Reed’s scent was: belonging. And though I wasn’t sure he was right, he was saying I didn’t have to be a vampire, a werewolf, or a warlock to love him.
When I opened my eyes again, something clicked. It wasn’t emotional this time, but purely practical.
“Witchcraft,” I breathed, my eyes widening. “We need a coven.”
Reed’s eyebrows drew together. “Huh?”
“Daniel said a circle of witches can open a door to the Otherworld. There’s a coven in Seattle. I could ask Cole. His brother knows them. Thierry has connections there.”
Reed’s expression tightened. “Harris…”
“Why aren’t we asking them for help?” I demanded. “If they can open a portal, we don’t have to be in a liminal state, whatever the hell that means. We don’t have to find some dyingperson or take stupid risks. We go in, we get Sally, then we get out. The monster takes time, right? It feeds on suffering and despair. It must drag everything out. That probably means she’s still alive.”
Hope is dangerous. I knew that.
“The pack would owe the witches,” Reed said. “Most alphas wouldn’t even consider it. This is apackproblem.”
“Stopping this thing is worth it. Saving an innocent person’s life is worth it.” I paused. “And you’re not most alphas.”
Reed studied me for a long moment, emotions flickering across his face—fear, resistance, and then resignation.
