Page 52 of The Mating Frenzy
He started to get out of the car. She didnot.
“No.”
Kieran paused. In the yellowish glow of the car’s overhead light, his expression turned question. “No,what?”
“No, I refuse to believe this nonsense. Maybe there are things of this world, or another world, that are evil and can kill me. One cast a spell on my mom. I don’t deny that. I could see it with my eyes. But the idea that I’m a werewolf? It’scrazy.”
She threw her hands into the air. “I’d rather get ice cream and walk on thebeach.”
For a long moment he stayed quiet, one long, muscled leg outside the car, one inside, as if he were torn between going and turning around. Kieran jammed a hand through his thick, darkhair.
“You can believe, for now, that it’s nonsense. It’s the truth. You cannot run and you cannot hide from what you really are. You cannot run nor hide from thetruth.”
He rubbed the stubble on his chin and seemed to consider. “I’ll make you a deal. Come with me, and try to shift. Try to explore that side of yourself you’ve been taught to repress. If it doesn’t work, we’ll leave and I’ll take you out for icecream.”
Ella’s stomach grumbled. She looked hopefully at him. “Mint chocolatechip?”
A grudging laugh fled him. “Whatever youwant.”
“Deal.” Worry riddled her. “Are we going to do some weirdritual?”
“No. It’s fairly simple. I’m going to teach you to embrace your wild side. Release your beast. All this time, she’s been quiet, waiting for you to awaken. That craving you had for red meat? That’s your wolf, needing for you to acknowledgeher.”
Her stomach curled into knots. “If this is true, what if I can’t control her? What if I losemyself?”
“There’s always a risk of the beast taking over. With time and discipline, you’ll learn to work with her, let her out when you need her most.” Kieran gave her a solemn look. “Ella, I want you to experience the wonders of my world. Up until now, you’ve only seen the horrors of what Others cando.”
He sounded so confident and assuring and yet doubts riddled her. It was difficult to break the habit of nearly twenty nine years of thinking she was a normal humanbeing.
“What if I can’t find the cure for my mom?” She gnawed on her lower lip. “What if I fail? Am I condemning my mother todie?”
“You won’t fail,” he said gently. “It’s deep inside you,here.”
He rested a palm over her heart and the warmth of his hand sank into her skin, even through the cotton of the t-shirt. A tingle shot through her body, and her nipplestightened.
Let’s move your hand a little lower, Kieran. Like over mybreast.
Ella pushed the thought from her mind. Things were far too serious to even entertain the idea of sex. She plucked at her clothing. “I suppose I’ll have to removethis.”
“Yes.” A wicked sparkle ignited his gaze. “You’ll have to get naked. Best way to shift the firsttime.”
They walked into the park on a pathway cut through the thin woods. The night air was slightly cool, and she heard the buzz of insects and the song of tree frogs. Certainly her senses seemed more sharpened, moreaware.
An oblong lake, the water smooth as glass, dominated the green space. Kieran led her over a small wooden bridge to an island in the middle of the lake. Every once in a while the water rippled, as if something below stirredit.
Fish, she told herself. Not creatures that ripped and tore and turned humans into icesculptures.
Kieran really thought she could turn into a wolf. As nutty as it sounded, she had started to believe him. With her own eyes, she’d seen him turn into a snarlingjaguar.
“And I shaved my legs this morning for this?” She sighed. “What a waste oftime.”
He gave an admiring glance downward, past the hem of her shorts. “I wouldn’t sayso.”
“What happens? Will I start pawing the ground and howling at the moon?” sheasked.
“Only on Saturdaynights.”
Ella halted. Kieran laughed. “I’m teasing you, Ella-mine. Come on. We have work todo.”
