My Wolf’s Bane(58)

A spattering of hairs over Zack’s chest made a narrow trail leading into the waist of his jeans. His chest was well-defined; above his hips, the muscles at his sides flared up and out. I swallowed. At that moment, I couldn’t think of anything more beautiful than him.

Plucking his boxers off the grass, Zack shoved them into his back pocket, then slipped his arms through the shirt, leaving the front unbuttoned. “You were supposed to turn around.”

His voice distracted me from his washboard stomach and brought me to the present.

Oh. My. God. Zack was a werewolf. It had been him, the black wolf, every night in the woods. The werewolf theory fit with Jeff’s story that Daniel had been dragged away by a wolf, before Daniel’s drastic change.

“We ran together. I talked to you as a wolf. Trusted you. All this time, you knew and I didn’t. You should’ve told me.” I glared at him. “You sneaky—”

“I couldn’t tell you.” His voice rose, matching mine in volume, his hands balled into fists. “You were a human.”

“According to you, I’m not human.”

“I didn’t know that at the time. Besides,” his muscles relaxed, a smile forming, “I did tell you.”

“You were joking and knew I wouldn’t believe it.” We were getting nowhere and I was no closer to finding out about myself than before.

“We don’t reveal ourselves to mortals. The penalty is death. When I realized you weren’t human, I tried to tell you, but you shut me down. You weren’t ready.”

I searched my memory for anytime he’d hinted, then gasped in disgust.

“Informing me that I stunk was your way of telling me you were a werewolf? Are you kidding me?” I breathed deeply to keep from slapping him.

He opened his mouth, but shut it when I held up a hand.

“Never mind.” I squeezed my eyes shut for an instant in an effort to wipe away the frustration. Now was the time for prying information from Zack, not arguing. “Let’s move on. You said we can’t reveal ourselves to mortals. Where does your mom fit into all this? Does she know?”

“No. At first, I thought I was coming down with something and didn’t want to worry her. By the time I figured it out, I didn’t want to burden her with all the things that went with it. Then I learned some werewolf law and realized I couldn’t tell her because she’s human.” He gave a quick laugh as he bent down to put on his socks and shoes. “All this time, I haven’t been able to tell anyone.”

He’d been all alone in his weirdness, unless… “So someone bit you? Is that how you turned?”

“No, my mom had no clue she was marrying a werewolf.”

Which of my parents were supernatural? Did the other know? Maybe it wasn’t hereditary in my case. For all I knew, they could be human and I would be alone in this, too. Except for Zack, but he wasn’t exactly a friend. More like he was just fulfilling a duty.

So what was I? My head spun with too many questions that weren’t going to get answered tonight. Suddenly, my limbs sagged and I just wanted to crawl into bed. “Do you ever wish you were just a normal person?”

“It is what it is. I deal.” He slipped on a shoe and glanced up at me. “And so will you.”

But I didn’t want to anymore. Not tonight. “I’m going home.” I turned to leave.

Zack leaped up, leaving his laces untied. “What?”

“Maybe I just need a good night’s sleep.” I shook my head, my throat aching.

He grasped my hand and pulled me to face him. “It’s a lot to absorb and you’re confused. You’ll get through this, just like I did.”

I nodded, staring at his chest. His beautiful, smooth chest.

He pressed me closer and stroked my hair. “Soon, it’ll all be second nature and you’ll wonder how you ever survived as a mere human.”

“Why don’t you like me?” I mumbled into his shirt.

Zack chuckled softly in my ear. “I just morphed into a wolf right in front of you and you ask that?” He gently pushed me away, turning around to tie his shoe. “It doesn’t matter if I like you. I’m not staying here and wherever I go, you can’t come with me.”

“Why?” I sounded pathetic, but at that point didn’t care.

He stood and stepped toward me. “I don’t have much experience with… whatever you are — none, actually. I suspect you’re a shifter. If I’m right, couple months from now, you’ll be lucky if you’re still alive.”





CHAPTER NINETEEN

“Lucky if I’m still alive?” I squeaked.