Wolf's Call (Wolves Next Door #2) - Auryn Hadley Page 0,97

being careful," Elena admitted. "I sent texts to you, I had the girls, I knew Kim was coming, and I even checked to make sure Karen's car was gone when we drove by. I did everything, guys. I wasn't trying to be stupid, but she came out of the woods!"

"She was probably out for her own run," Pax said. "She was a little obsessive about staying in shape."

"Or," Trent said, "she noticed you drive that way and made a lap to see what was going on. Elena, that woman hates you. Not for who you are, but because you have the one thing she never could."

"The title of Alpha Female," Elena said, proving she understood. "What if she had bit me, though? It's..." She pushed out a breath, her eyes jumping around the room like she was looking for something. "Three weeks? I don't know, but a long time until the next full moon. What if that happened, guys? I'd be sick the whole time? Because Gabby was not in good shape, and that was a matter of days."

Seth moved closer, sliding in right in front of her just to sit on the coffee table. Then he leaned over his knees. "I went weeks," he said. "The infection is like a cold. Coughing, headaches, achy all over. That sorta thing. Then, about a week before the moon is full, it kicks up. You'd be puking for days, and it's really not fun, but we would all take care of you."

"And when I lost it and tried to bite all of you?" she asked.

He smiled. "What? I'm into it."

That made her laugh once, but it was weak. "Seth!" she groaned. "I'm trying to be serious."

I knew where she was going with this. I had a feeling we all did. Elena was terrified of being turned, and I could respect that. What I wouldn't let her do was keep rehashing the same feeble excuses. If she wasn't ready to be a wolf, then that was all we needed to know. She didn't have to keep falling back on the same excuses. This was something that should be her decision.

That one little thing had almost ruined us once, and I wouldn't let it happen again. We'd assumed that 'mostly safe' was enough. We'd been so wrong. I'd never imagined the fear of turning, the pain and agony of it, or the challenges of learning a whole new body. This was how I'd always been, and I liked it. I reveled in the advantages of being able to shift my form, but that was me. I wasn't her, and I had no right to make that decision for her. I understood that now, and I had to find some way to prove it to her.

"No one is going to make you turn," I promised. "Elena, we can step back on the stages if that makes you more comfortable, because this is up to you. We've all agreed to that. I know we messed up before, but - "

"No," she said, cutting me off. "Ian, what if she had bit me? What if some other wolf does? What if it's an accident, and it still happens? I'm a human living with werewolves! I..." She looked over at Lane as if seeking help. "I'm worried about Gabby."

I hated that she looked to him instead of me. I also loved it. I knew that man deserved her, and I was thrilled that his feelings were returned, but I still wanted to be the man to fix everything for her. I was the alpha. I was supposed to be the one who had the answers. I was supposed to be her protection, and instead, she looked to him.

Pax's hand dropped down to rest on my shoulder. "Legally speaking?" he asked, his words for Elena. Only the touch was for me.

She nodded. "I think I need to be a wolf. One way or another, it's going to happen, and I don't want to go anywhere. I'm happy in Wolf's Run, and Ashley's like a sister to me. I have all of you. I just don't want to hurt Gabby because I'm chasing my own happiness."

"Call Henry," Pax said. "Ian, you know he'll come over. Let's work this out. Let's get her the answers she needs, even if they aren't the ones she wants to hear."

"Thank you," she whispered at him. "If I know, then I can plan for it."

"Do you really want to turn?" Trent asked, even as I