Rachael, you’re so beautiful I didn’t know anyone could be so beautiful)
—beautiful.
Cue Edward staggering backward; cue Edward tripping over desk and hitting his big stupid skull.
And now, he was locked inside the den with the she-beast! She’d led him back here in her treacherous human form, she had led him into a basement that didn’t have an exit for a wolf, she’d penned him up with her, and now he was trapped in the lair of the beast!
The beast had taken a moment before devouring him to rush over and make sure he was okay. Oh, the deceitful cunning of this ravenous monster knew no bounds!
Dude: lock it down, will ya? You’re embarrassing yourself.
Good advice. “Quit it, Rache, I’m fine.” Again he brought up his hands, but this time found the courage to very, very, very gently rest tented fingers on her shoulder as he gave her a very, very, very slight push.
Well, she didn’t bite any of his fingers off. That was something. Emboldened, he increased the pressure. She didn’t budge, nor did she devour.
“Don’t worry about me, it’s my own stupid fault and it’s just a bump. But you can’t stay in here all night. Can you?” He’d never imagined such a thing. Maybe real-world werewolves didn’t howl and hunt. Or at least, howl and hunt during the entirety of the full moon. Maybe some of them stayed indoors.
“Shouldn’t you be roaming the countryside looking for chickens? Ow!” He glared at her and rubbed the spot on his shoulder where she’d nipped him. “Okay, sorry about the stereotype. Not very PC of me. Listen—no, I’m fine.” He gave her another shove. It was like trying to knock over a fire hydrant. Then she gave him another nip, her teeth and jaws so quick he felt the mild pinch before he realized she’d moved at all.
“Okay, o-kay! Jesus. You’re a nag in every form, anybody ever tell you that? Look.” He dropped his head and she sniffed the part in his hair. “Don’t worry, I cleansed myself thoroughly with Suave Mountain Strawberry. You may sniff me without fear!” She already was, so he figured he might as well give her permission.
“Okay, I know what you’re thinking. But it isn’t like that! Okay, it’s a little like that.” He absently rested his hand on her lush dark fur. “Listen, this is gonna sound pretty dumb, but when I was in your bathroom the other day, I saw what you used for shampoo, so I went out and bought some for my bathroom so it would be like you were there. I know, I know. Just so lame, right?”
That was when he realized what he was doing. He was speaking to her like she was a real person. Like she could understand him, like this was a conversation. How cool was that?
Then he slapped his forehead, hard. Of course she’s a real person, you nimrod! What, you were expecting a hologram? Didja think she was a computer program?
He examined the almost-invisible nip she’d given him with her teeth, Rachael-ese for, Do you think you can stop acting like a dumbass for ten whole seconds?
“Y’know, that’s twice you’ve subjected me to your unholy jaws. What if I turn into a werewolf during the next full moon? Hey, is that it? That’s it, isn’t it?” He sat bolt upright with excitement. “That’s why you picked me! You want a boyfriend who you can run with by the light of the full moon, a mate who shares your passion for the hunt as well as a Quicken spreadsheet. It all makes sense now!”
She laughed at him.
Okay, it wasn’t exactly a laugh. Her canine grin widened and her expression got downright playful . . . amused, even, and he . . . he could just tell. She was laughing.
“Fine, I guess I deserved that.”
Her eyes were exactly the same.
He looked closer. Yes, it was true. She was a little different on the outside, but her eyes, those gorgeous tip-tilted pools of deep brown, and what was behind her eyes, was the same.
In that moment, he knew that for the rest of his life he would always be able to spot a member of Rachael’s family, her Pack. It was nothing he could have taught someone. It was nothing he could have described. Recognizing Pack was like riding a bicycle: it couldn’t be taught, you had to learn it yourself . . . and once learned, you could never un-learn it.
Her fur was also deep brown,