say something before the woman decided to punch him, “you must have seen a werewolf movie or two. I’m not saying they’re accurate, but they did hit a couple important points. You realize you’re going to turn into a wolf at least once a month from now on, right?”
That reminder took a little of the heat from her eyes, Jenner noted, and replaced it with worry. It was a step in the right direction.
“Well, yes...I was only thinking once a month, but...yes,” Mia said. “But, I mean, there’s got to be werewolves in Philly, right? I figured if there were a group or club or something, you know...they could help me sort it all out. Get used to it. What do you mean by at least once a month?”
The only thing that kept him from laughing was knowing it would hurt her feelings. He kept his voice carefully emotionless. “We’ll get to that. Are you talking about some kind of werewolf support group?”
“Why not?” she asked, and sure enough, a defensive note had crept into her voice. “It wouldn’t be any weirder than everything that’s happened to me so far. You’re telling me there are no werewolves in Philadelphia?”
Jenner shrugged, a gesture that seemed to irritate her.
“Does that mean no, or that you don’t know, or that you’re just not going to answer me?” Mia asked.
“It means I don’t know any, and even if there are, they’re not the kind of wolves who would be in some kind of club that would help you. There’s no known pack in that city, so any werewolves you’d find there would be outliers.”
“Outliers?”
“Yeah, you know...” He lifted his hands as though he could grasp the words he wanted out of the air. Had he wondered whether Mia was intelligent? This conversation was like being cross-examined by a particularly bloodthirsty lawyer.
“Werewolves congregate in packs,” he said. “It’s natural. We’re linked to one another. Telepathically.”
To his surprise, this bit of information seemed more of a revelation to Mia than a shock.
“Oh,” she murmured. “That explains why there were a lot more funny looks than actual talking last night.”
“It does,” Jenner said, relieved not to be challenged on something. “Pack mates can all speak that way, even over great distance. It’s a little weird at first, but you get used to it. And without it, the change, and learning to live with all of the other effects of being what we are, can be way too much for one person. The pack, this pack, is the support group you’re looking for, Mia. The group helps curb the basest instincts all of us deal with from time to time. Living away from the pack is unnatural. I’m not saying it doesn’t happen sometimes...but mostly, in an area without a pack, you’re going to find ferals.”
“Like Jeff,” Mia said. Jenner watched the way her eyes dropped, the way she wound her hands together and began toying restlessly with her fingers. The sight hit him with a flood of guilt. However much he didn’t want to be the one introducing Mia to the facts of her new life, he needed to remember what it was like to be on the other side of things. It had been ten years for him, years that felt like a lifetime away from the man he had been. And Mia had the added burden of not having asked for this. Whatever she might be holding back from him, right now she needed some sympathy, not suspicion. He knew a lot about evil. Mia wasn’t it.
He needed to remember that.
Jenner shoved his plate aside and leaned in close to her, wanting to catch her gaze. It was a mistake, he knew immediately. The scent of her, sweet and carrying the hint of orange blossoms, swamped his senses. His heartbeat accelerated, blood beginning to pump more quickly through his veins. The animal within him stirred, stretched.
Hungered.
“It’s going to be okay,” he said softly. The need to comfort Mia surprised him with its strength. She looked back at him, eyes wide and full of misery.
“I don’t see how,” she said. “I really don’t. Not unless there’s a way out of this that you haven’t mentioned.”
“Well,” he drawled, hoping to erase some of the pain from her lovely face, “there is the one ritual with antelope blood and goat heads.”
Damned if she didn’t suddenly look hopeful. “Really?”
He shook his head. “Uh, no, Mia. You’re stuck being a werewolf. But like I told you last night, it’s not