Page 61 of It All Started with a Bite

“It wasn’t your fault.”

Tears bloomed in her eyes at my words. She started bawling.

I sighed and hugged her, flour and all. Bo whined.

“Look, Samuel’s gonna be there,” I reminded them, trying to sound more confident than I felt. “And the rest of the pack.”

“That’s what worries me,” Ellie muttered in my shoulder. “You’ll be on your own.”

Bo started howling.

These two were not helping.

I stayed with them a few more minutes before heading for the shower, hoping the hot water might ease some of the tension in my muscles. It didn’t. If anything, being alone with my thoughts made everything worse.

The fears I’d harbored about becoming a werewolf bubbled to the forefront of my consciousness like a nasty bout of indigestion.

What if I hurt someone one day? What if I bit Ellie or Bo in a moon-induced frenzy? What if I could never turn back into a hum?—

A sound at the bathroom door interrupted my spiral of panic.

“Your heart’s going crazy again,” Bo said anxiously through the door. “I can hear it from here.”

I wrapped myself in a towel and froze at the glint of amber in my eyes when I saw my reflection in the cabinet mirror. I swallowed and opened the door.

“I’m fine.”

Though Bo’s ears flattened at my sight, he didn’t back away.

“I’d feel better if I could come with you,” he quavered.

I realized he was trembling and ruffled his head.

“Even Pearl doesn’t go on pack runs.”

Probably because she might accidentally get eaten, but I refrained from voicing that thought.

I’d already laid out the clothes Victoria had insisted on buying specifically for shifting on my bed that morning: soft pants and a top made of some kind of magical fabric that was supposed to transform with me. I got dressed and checked my watch.

It was six-thirty p.m.

The doorbell rang at exactly seven. My pulse spiked where I sat waiting with Ellie and Bo in the living room. I took a deep breath and went to answer the door, the pair of them trailing behind me like they were going to a funeral.

Samuel stood in the hallway, looking tall and brooding in dark clothing that hugged his physique. His eyes already held more than a hint of amber and the power rolling off him made my skin tingle.

“Ready?” he asked quietly.

I nodded and grabbed the bag of goodies Ellie had packed for me. My best friend and my dog watched us leave wordlessly.

19

How to Wolf (A Beginner’s Guide)

The driveto the preserve was mostly silent. I could feel my wolf getting closer to the surface with every mile, like she was pressing against my skin from the inside and dying to get out. Everything around me felt heightened: smells, sounds, even the texture of the leather seat beneath me.

As for Samuel’s scent, it filled the car and swamped my senses, the untamed undertone making my wolf want to roll over and show her belly. Or possibly jump him. I wasn’t entirely sure which and that was terrifying in itself.

“Not feeling like groping my thigh tonight?” he teased with a smile.

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