Page 37 of Runaway Wolf
“Change. Just change,” she mumbled, jumping when he pitched himself again. He could hear her. He could hear through the door, just like when he had super-hearing as a human.
And then it was still.
She looked out the window and couldn’t see the wolf in the trees any longer. Maybe he’d gone back to crew territory? Maybe Isaac was okay now?
She waited a few minutes, but there was silence. He was definitely calmed down now. Maybe even changing, right there on the porch where she couldn’t see. God, she was so untrusting. She’d get used to wolves, this was just so new and sudden.
Slowly, she slid the sliding bolt back. It clicked out of the port with a heavy thud, so loud it echoed through the house. For a brief moment, she thought of the movie. The heroines always did something stupid… like this. But the door was still locked. She was safe. This was Isaac, even when changed into his animal. His animal wouldn’t hurt her now, not since they’d made love. And he was changing back, for her. Right? What was taking so long? But there, there was a little scuffle on the porch, maybe the sound of dragging feet. Maybe labored breathing? Did it take a longer time to change to human? Was he cold, caught between shapes? Need help? What could a puny human do if so?
She could just check to see what was happening.
She waited a bit longer, then curiosity got the better of her. She could unlock the door, open it just enough to look out,but engage the bottom lock. Then she could slam it closed and it would lock automatically, long enough for her to engage the deadbolt above the knob.
She would be safe.
She unlocked the deadbolt and waited, the bottom still locked.
Still nothing. Okay, then. She took a deep breath, twisted the tiny latch counterclockwise and turned the handle enough to disengage it from the door. She released the knob and then slid it back clockwise so it would be locked when she closed the door again.
She opened the door barely enough for half an eyeball to peer through and looked out.
She wasn’t sure what she was expecting… nothing, maybe. An empty porch that would tempt her to walk outside, but she wasn’t stupid enough for that. She’d simply slam the door. But what she was not expecting was to see Isaac’s wolf calmly sitting back on his haunches waiting for her.
He wasn’t crazed. And the last thing either of them needed was to get locked outside, so she slid the bottom lever back counterclockwise.
“Isaac?” she whispered through the open inch.
He was calm so she opened the door a bit wider. She had a backup plan. She still stood in the doorway, the partially closed door a barrier between her and him. He wouldn’t know the door was unlocked and if she slammed it between them, the door would at least latch if he pushed against it. She could quickly lock the bottom, then the deadbolt, and finally the sliding lock.
“Isaac? Why haven’t you changed?”
He was sitting back, still as a statue, afraid to scare her. Maybe he couldn’t change. Maybe he was exhausted from changing to wolf and couldn’t go back to human yet, but couldn’t tell her.
“Isaac?” she whispered.
He snarled, exposing his teeth.
That snarling didn’t seem friendly. Something was wrong. Did his mark wear off? Maybe Rhett’s scent was coming back? But they had sex. Couldn’t his wolf smell himself on her? Wasn’t that how it worked? Or was she being paranoid?
The hair on her arms stood on end, and she realized she’d been holding her breath. Her lungs felt like they would burst. Heat rushed up the back of her neck, and a trickle of sweat gathered at the edge of her hairline. Her legs felt so weak from the adrenaline rush, they quivered and threatened to buckle.
But wait. From across the street, she saw the guard wolf. He wasn’t moving, just watching. So, everything was okay, they were all waiting for Isaac to change, go inside in his human form and explain to her what the hell was going on. It must be something big, since they’d been meeting about it back at his house. Everything was all right. This was Isaac, even though he was in wolf form. His crew trusted him, she trusted him. He was hers. He would never hurt her, just like he’d controlled himself enough to cover Rhett’s mark from her neck.
When she held her hand out tentatively to the wolf? It shook uncontrollably.
“It’s me. Isaac, it’s me,” she chanted. “Please don’t bite. Please don’t bite. I know I’m marked, but you covered it up, remember? It’s okay. You can change, come inside.”
The wolf snarled, the loud growl reverberating up from the ground through the soles of her feet. She could feel it moving up her ankles, her calves, her knees. Her legs felt weak and the icy cold fingers of fear roiled in her middle.
“It’s okay, baby—”
But it wasn’t. The wolf’s eyes changed—literally grew harder, right before her. Drool dripped from his teeth, splatted right on the ground before he leapt at her.
Isaacleaptat her.
He was massive, the biggest animal she’d ever seen, and of course, much larger than a regular wolf. He had to weigh probably two-fifty, maybe two-seventy-five.
Huge front paws thudded against her chest, knocking her over, and they both toppled over the edge of the porch. Her first thought as she hit the ground? He was so much heavier than she expected. It was like a freight train blasting into her at full speed, right in the middle of her chest, and for a moment she thought her heart stopped from the collision. That maybe her ribcage caved in.
