any day now with my parents in tow to officially excommunicate me. I wasn’t hanging around hoping to change their minds, I just needed to see my parents one last time.
Not for an emotional goodbye.
I was going to guilt-trip the fuck out of them, so they gave me some money to get me set up. It was really the least they could do.
They usually felt bad for me after a pack run and would show their faces at the house. Tomorrow was the day I would take what I could get and get the hell out of here.
A quiet knock on the door pulled me out of my enraged thoughts. Shit. He was getting bolder.
I darted to the door and pulled it open a little, grabbing Marco’s arm and yanking him inside before he drew any attention.
Marco was my only friend. Friend with benefits, I guess, though it was more about quenching touch cravings for both of us. We were both black sheep in a pack of wolves — me because of my dominance, Marco because his wolf had yet to emerge.
I pulled him into a hug, nuzzling my head against his. We were a similar height and build, both on the lean side. His family was my closest neighbor, and we’d always played together as kids.
“I figured they’d come for you tomorrow,” Marco murmured, running his hand up and down my spine. “I had to say goodbye.”
“Leave with me,” I urged Marco for the millionth time. “Sorry, sorry, that wasn’t an order,” I added hastily when he made a pained noise, his submissive nature urging him to please me.
“Wren,” he sighed. “It’s not that bad for me here.”
“It’s not that good,” I retorted, pulling away and gently gripping his elbows.
“I wouldn’t survive without a pack. No other pack will want a dormant, Wren. You know that.”
“We’ll start our own pack.”
“Packs need an Alpha. You can’t do it all, Wren. Your wolf is a Luna, she’d be miserable with Alpha duties.”
“Don’t ask me to leave you here, Marco.” I gave him a pleading look.
“I’ll be fine. You need to go, Wren. This,” he said, gesturing around the room, “is no life for anyone, particularly not a dominant Luna wolf.”
The oven dinged, and I pulled out the enchiladas, putting some in a separate dish for Marco to take home.
“I’ll miss your cooking,” he said ruefully, giving me a small smile.
“Just my cooking?” I rolled my eyes playfully.
“And the rest of you,” he added. I pulled him back into a tight hug, wrapping my arms around his neck and swaying side to side with my chin resting on his shoulder. There would be no impassioned kisses or romantic declarations. Our sexual relationship had been purely a matter of convenience, but we’d been friends to each other when friends had been hard to come by.
I’d miss him like crazy.
“Take care of yourself, okay?” I sniffed, stepping out of his embrace but gripping his shoulders tightly. “That is an order.”
“I will.” He nodded, his eyes a little glassy. I grabbed the dish off the counter and pushed it into his hands, watching him walk out the front door, swallowing past the tightness in my throat. I took a steadying breath and shook off the grief as best I could. I couldn’t afford to feel sad about leaving the pack that had treated me like I was worthless.
If I was heading out into the world alone, I had to have my wits about me.
Even after washing the dishes and cleaning up the kitchen, the house smelled so potently of garlic, no one would ever guess Marco had been here.
I had a quick shower before curling up uncomfortably in my childhood bed, doing my best to ignore the howls and thundering paws of running wolves outside my window.
✽✽✽
His full lips drifted down the side of my exposed throat as his hands ghosted over my naked hips. I buried my fingers in his dark blonde hair, just long enough to get a good grip on, and moved to straddle his thigh, shamelessly grinding down on it. He growled in warning. Not yet. I didn’t need to hear him speak to know what he meant. He liked to be in control. His hand slid up my back as he slowly, oh so slowly, wound my long hair around his fist—
WHAM.
I woke with a start, jackknifing into a sitting position, clutching the sheet to my chest. Wings flapped frantically outside as the bird regained its bearings and flew away