Suddenly Wolf(38)

Xavier leaned against the gate, crossing his arms and ankles in a show of nonchalance that he was sure nobody missed. He knew that the pack was liable to follow his lead, and if they thought he had no doubt of his mate’s ability, then they were less likely to doubt her as well.

Sheila looked startled by the challenge, but short of turning away and revealing herself as a coward, she had no choice but to brazen it out.

“You’re not welcome here,” she said at the top of her voice. She turned to the people behind her, perhaps expecting a vocal show of support. She got none.

“Says who?” Andrea asked with a relaxed grin. Even her body language was nonthreatening. She seemed calm and composed, and her smile invited others to relax also.

“Says everybody,” Sheila yelled with no small amount of frustration. It was kind of like watching a bratty four-year-old throw a tantrum. “Nobody wants a human leading our pack.”

“Lucky then, that I’m no longer human.”

Sheila growled and stamped her foot. Even some of the people gathered around started to laugh quietly. But it was when Shelia started to change into her wolf that Xavier felt fear burst through him.

Faster than the eye could see, Andrea pulled a handgun from the back of her jeans and aimed it at the half woman, half wolf before her.

“Change back, little girl,” Andrea said with steely determination, “or we are going to have a serious problem.”

Sheila giggled, the noise sounding strange coming from her current half-changed form. “Stupid human. Bullets don’t hurt us. Not even silver can hurt us.”

“True,” Andrea said with a relaxed smile even though her aim didn’t waver in the slightest. “But I hear quicksilver will leave you with a nasty case of dead. You know that’s another name for mercury, right? Amazing how easy it is to add a drop to hollow point bullets.”

Sheila looked terrified and quickly changed back to her human form.

“No fair,” she said in a high-pitched, whiny voice. “You brought a gun. It won’t be a fair fight.”

“And you tried to use your wolf form against someone you know hasn’t yet got the ability,” Xavier added as he realized stepping into the fray now wouldn’t hurt Andrea’s standing. She already had the pack’s approval, even if many of the people standing around didn’t fully realize it yet.

“But feel free to challenge me again, Sheila,” Andrea added with a smirk. “I’m sure I’ll have fun smacking you down in wolf form, too.”

The woman shot Xavier a baleful look, but left without another word. Dave caught his eye, and Xavier nodded in approval as his beta turned and followed his sister. In werewolf terms Sheila was still quite young, and no matter how poor her choices had been, Xavier wasn’t willing to banish her for behavior that had been most likely encouraged by his mother.

His mother on the other hand…

The woman was trying to blend into the crowd, but he spotted her easily and headed straight for her. “Mom, I’d like you to meet our mate.” The woman blanched but let him lead her over to where Isaac and Daegan held Andrea in their embrace.

“It’s very nice to finally meet you,” Andrea said in a friendly tone as she took her mother-in-law’s hand. “I trust that today’s events aren’t going to affect our relationship.”

Xavier’s mom nodded, but it was clear that she heard the demand in Andrea’s voice. Andrea was giving her mother-in-law a second chance to make a first impression. Hopefully, this time his mother would take the time to get to know his mate instead of making snap judgments based on superstitious nonsense.

“I love you,” Xavier said as he pulled Andrea from his brothers’ arms. They echoed his words, kissing her quickly before letting her go. “Welcome home.”





Epilogue



Andrea pressed a hand against her belly, trying to still the fluttery feeling inside. She hadn’t been this nervous since her first shift into wolf form. She knew it was good news she was about to share, but still, it had taken far longer than any of them had been expecting, and in some ways they’d given up trying.

The past eight months hadn’t all been a bed of roses. Her first shift had been a complete disaster. All the planning, all the explanations, all the confidence in the world hadn’t prepared her for the overwhelming primitive instinct to hunt. Andrea hadn’t felt any pain as she’d instinctively changed from human to wolf when the full moon rose in the night sky. She’d taken off outside the house even before the shift had been complete.

Thankfully her men had been more than able to cope with her transformation from rational female to rabid huntress, and the only animal to die that night had been a field mouse in the wrong place at the wrong time. Andrea still felt a little queasy over swallowing the poor thing whole, but apparently that’s what field mice were for—at least according to her wolf half.