Page 44 of The Howl
“I get it,” he said. “Our situations aren’t the same but similar enough that I get it.”
His understanding helped me regain a measure of control.
“How are they similar?” I asked.
“All the pack girls are obsessed with being around me. And I don’t use that word lightly. Look at what happened to Aubrey.”
Aubrey had been the head of his fangirl club and bullied the rest of the girls to the point of submission. Her obsession had ultimately led to her removal from Uttira. She’d been insane with her infatuation with Fenris. And why? That was one piece I’d never understood. Was Fenris more like me than I thought?
“Why are they so obsessed with you? There are other males in the pack, right?” I thought I remembered one a grade ahead of us and two a grade behind. They were quiet and didn’t garner nearly as much attention as Fenris.
Fenris shrugged.
“Dad and I have talked about it. He thinks it might be something in my scent. But I don’t smell any different from Walden.”
“Who’s Walden?”
“He’s the only other unmated male in my pack.”
“Wait. I thought there were three in the school.”
Fenris shook his head.
“They’re already mated. I’m late with my run. I wasn’t kidding when I said we’re both behind.”
That just made me feel bad for both of us.
“I don’t understand what sitting here and talking about it is going to do to help us,” I said.
“It probably won’t, but it’s nice not being surrounded by a bunch of admirers, isn’t it?”
He put his feet up on the chair in front of him and grinned at me. And I realized right then that while Fenris always smelled like lust, he’d never seemed overly interested in me.
“Do I attract you?” I asked before I could stop myself.
His humor slipped then returned doubled.
“I’m a male with eyes. Of course you attract me.”
I considered him for a moment, feeling a bit of hope and companionship because, despite his assurance that he found me attractive, I knew better. If I’d really attracted him, he would have been compelled to hit on me, just now, in order to find a way to bring us both a bit closer on an emotional level. But he hadn’t.
I smiled.
“Thanks, Fenris. So what do you think is missing from your life? What’s holding you back from realizing your full potential?”
“That’s easy. My mate. Everyone’s so worried about me not going on my run yet. But, when the time’s right, it’ll happen.”
As he spoke, the scent of his lust increased, coating my taste buds. I itched to lean toward him and inhale, to take what he had in plenty.
I stood abruptly.
“Tell LuAnn I needed to go.”
Before I could run, he grabbed my wrist.
“If you keep running, Adira will keep pushing. It’s what she does. Instead of running, tell me what’s wrong. We can work through it together.”
I trembled, my entire focus on the contact of his skin against mine. My heart thundered in my chest as I struggled not to turn on him. Not to straddle his chair and bury my fingers in his thick, dark hair.
