“It hasn’t even been a year yet,” the alpha said severely. “You’re allowed to—”
“No, I’m not,” Dominic snapped. He didn’t need Cole’s attempt at encouragement, and it wasn’t true. “Tolstone stillneeds a Prime Alpha, and right now, that’s me. I’ll own up to this, and I don’t need anyone to make exceptions for me.”
That harsh admonition seemed to silence whatever Cole had planned to say next, and he nodded. “Just be careful out there. Do you want me to pick you up in the morning?”
Dominic shook his head, turned, and bolted into the woods before the sheriff could say any more. With his inhuman speed putting more and more distance between him and the road, he could feel a bit of the tension slip away.
The roar of the car engine faded, displaced by the drone of crickets and the rustling of critters as they darted out of the predator’s way. With the duffel bag banging against his hip with each step, Dominic kept running faster and faster, weaving through the trees until he was completely and utterly alone. No Cole, no pack, no Erica to torment him with complicated feelings. Even his father’s commanding voice seemed a little softer so far from Tolstone.
He slid to a stop in some nameless, trackless part of the park and stripped down to stand naked in the wilderness. Only the stars, trees, and moon witnessed him tuck his things away under a sheltering bush and begin the shift from man to wolf.
The excruciating pain of the change was unaffected by age, rank, or dominance. Only time and experience enabled some wolves to ignore the pain. It hurt all wolves equally, without prejudice or mercy. It was the only equalizer among shifters that they could never escape. Though the rewards outweighed the intense agony they all felt. When hands became paws that dug into the soil, when human skulls morphed and elongated into a wolf’s, when their screams were displaced by howls, beneath it all, there was the oneness that could be as addicting as any drug.
It had taken him years to learn how to keep his mouth shut and muffle his cries as bones and joints dislocated. His blue eyes became golden, and his muscled body became covered in blackfur. The mark of the Prime Alpha was seen in his black pelt, a marbling of silver streaks that trailed from his chest, around his thick mane, and down his back like a royal mantle.
He shook off the last achiness of the shift, and his tail disturbed some of the fallen leaves around his hind feet. A complete wolf, with the heart and understanding of a man, he took off through the forest, outrunning all he tried to escape from, all that threatened to push him to the point of madness. Tonight, there was only him and the forest. Tonight, there was only him and the forest. If only he could keep it that way.
*
It took a while, but Erica finally found it. With the heavy box propped against her hip, she flipped through the rows of CD cases until she spotted the right one. She pulled it out, checked the label, and grinned before she popped it into the old stereo player she had set on the fireplace mantel in the living room.
She hit play, and the first track pumped a fast Latin pop beat through the speakers. Instantly, she was twelve years old again, sitting in the passenger seat of her mom’s old Ford Mustang. It was the first time she’d heard “Let’s Get Loud” by Jennifer Lopez, but certainly not the last. Her mother, no matter how difficult life became through the trials of being a single parent, never forgot to have fun, and neither would Erica.
She set down the box as she felt the excitement build in her chest, warming her core and lifting her spirits. She danced, shaking her hips and shoulders like her mom would whenever she played this song. For a moment, they were together again, celebrating another small victory, like when they paid off the car or when her mother got a raise at work. Erica could thinkof no better way to spend her first night in her new home than listening to this fun mix her mom had made.
Spinning, twirling, and rocking to her mom’s CD, she lost all track of time, but her progress was seen in the piles of empty boxes in the foyer. The kitchen, bathroom, and her studio with all her equipment were finally set up.
With her socks on, floor clean, and boxes scattered about the house, Erica went from room to room, dancing and sliding to the beat as she unpacked. She couldn’t think of anything more satisfying than this, except maybe one.
While she ate her takeout dinner and sorted through her things, Erica thought of Dominic and the way his soulful eyes had called to her earlier that evening. She wondered what he was doing, if he was still at the antique shop, or if he was home already. It was hard not to watch the street for him from her bedroom window while she laid out her blankets and bathroom linens.
When she finally gave in and took a peek from one of the back bedrooms, she found his house completely dark as if no one was home. The only exception was the old blue truck parked along the curb on Highland Road, but that was there earlier, which told her that he must have walked to and from work.
Surely, he didn’t sleep at the antique store? There was an apartment-like space on the second floor, from what she saw on the street, but she imagined that would have been either empty or utilized as storage space. Did anyone live above old stores like that anymore?
Each time she looked for him along Crescent Lane, Erica laughed at herself and how ridiculous she was. Dominic lingered in her mind like a catchy song, unwilling to leave and pestering her in the best way possible while he was stuck there between her ears. He was just a guy. A really cute guy, but that was all. She didn’t even know why she cared. Never had a man capturedher imagination as Dominic did. The borderline-obsessive checking only pushed her to stay busy around the house.
Erica pulled out her first box that contained pictures small enough to be placed on tables and shelves. The mix CD was on its last song when she found the eight-by-ten portrait of her and her mother.
She had to be five or six at the time when it was taken, dolled up in a dress dotted with red roses and trimmed in white lace on the sleeves and neckline. She was propped on her mother’s hip, feet dangling and clad in little Mary Janes over frilly socks. Her mother, elegant and smiling, looked toward the camera as they stood on the church steps. She wasn’t sure who had taken the picture or what the occasion was. All Erica knew was that they both looked happy, and she must have lost a front tooth recently because there was a little dark hole in her smile.
Erica gazed at the picture, and the need for Dominic’s company was dislocated by a need for her mother’s warm embrace just one more time. With a tear pressing at her eyelids, she placed the picture on the mantel right next to the stereo.
Chapter Four
Erica spent mostof the day trekking across half of the business district of Tolstone, distributing her business cards to the local stores and offices. The next step would be to update her online presence and get things buzzing on the digital side of things, though she had a feeling that Tolstone was far more traditional in its networking methods, which is why she’d decided to do this first. With luck, she’d get some insider information on the best places to advertise.
At each establishment, she explained the brief details of her photography service and her credentials. Dressed in her best, she hoped to make a good enough impression so the owners of those businesses would refer her to their own customers and clients. From what she learned, there were no other professional photographers in the town, only the occasional enthusiast who practiced the craft for yearbook photos or weddings. With any luck, she’d have appointments scheduled for prom and graduation photos within a couple of months.
One of the last places she visited was Lunar Lantern Diner, and with all the walking she had done that day, she was ready to take a seat and maybe grab a cup of coffee. At three in the afternoon, the diner wasn’t as crowded as it had been the first time she visited. The line of swivel barstools along the counter was vacant, and Erica quickly claimed one.
She let out a contented sigh as she propped her aching, high-heeled feet onto the chrome footrest. It didn’t take long for her to be noticed by an older man behind the counter. He ambledtoward her, tall and sturdy in stature despite his age. He looked fit enough to run marathons, kind of like her neighbor, Burt.
“I’ve been seein’ ya walk around the square in those heels,” he said with an amused look in his dark green eyes. “I can’t imagine that feels good.”
His deep, gravelly voice held a certain twang that reminded her of the Deep South. She had never personally been to the south, but she had watchedGone With The Winddozens of times growing up, and he would have fit in with that cast of characters perfectly.
Erica gave a tired huff and smiled. “It doesn’t, but I’m almost done.”
