Wolf's Pack (Wolves Next Door #3) - Auryn Hadley Page 0,199

could only be translated as cussing out his new body. With a laugh, I tossed the blanket over him and squatted down, but that was more than Jonah's mother, Michelle, could take.

"That's a tiger," she said.

"And a... Are you sixteen, Theo?"

He nodded, making another of those soft noises.

"A sixteen-year-old boy," I finished. "He just turned last month, so this is his first full moon, and it sounds like the new ones are pushing the pack hard."

"You have a tiger in the pack?" she asked.

David chuckled. "Yeah, three of them now. And three bears." Then he paused. "Huh, and a triplet of foxes, too. Seems three is our lucky number or something."

"Just worked out that way," I explained to her, before looking back down to the boy. "You ready to shift back?"

"Can I..." Michelle stopped herself.

"What?" I asked.

"Pet him?" she finished weakly. "That's probably very rude, isn't it?"

Theo just rolled back to his feet, heaved himself up, and made his way over. When he was close enough, he shoved his head against her arm just like every cat I'd ever known. Awe filled Michelle's expression, and then she reached over to pet the hair between his ears gently.

"You're so soft," she breathed. "I thought it would be more wiry, or something."

I grabbed the blanket and dragged it back over to the boy. "Change back, Theo, catch your breath, and try not to show off too much skin." Then I told Michelle, "Some people get dizzy if they look."

So she closed her eyes tightly, and Theo shifted. "You're good," he told her before dropping into the closest chair - mine. "And the petting actually feels good. Like when someone gives you a massage or something."

"It's hard to stop, too," David admitted. "I promise that I know my wife isn't a pet, but when she lays her head in my lap? I still play with the hair at the scruff of her neck the way I used to with a dog. They all say it's ok, though."

"So when they're, um, like that?" Michelle asked, making some vague and fumbling gesture. "Like animals? They don't think like animals?"

"Nope," David promised. "We think the exact same after the first shift. Keep in mind, when we turn the first time, we're all running a fever. A bad one."

"Jonah was at one-oh-seven," Michelle told him.

David just nodded. "Pretty normal. But you know how you feel when you're very sick? Almost like you're drunk? It's worse. Then you have the new senses, and they're impressive. Our animal bodies move differently because the joints are set at different angles, and that makes the first time like a very bad acid trip. Somewhere along the way, we figure out what's going on, then we start to enjoy it, and when we're tired enough, we can change back. Since this pack has so many alphas in it, that's all but guaranteed."

"We've also done it a few times lately," I added. "My daughter, myself, and then Theo. Now we have these three."

"This is all amazing," Michelle breathed as she turned to the others. "And you two are human?"

"I'm trying to get exposed," Sasha said. "My husband and I want kids, but I know that if I'm pregnant and get this, I could lose the baby before I turn. So I want to turn first, but I'm not as brave as our Alpha Female."

"Completely unfair," Theo grumbled.

"I know!" Sasha agreed. "You get this on your first try?"

Theo just held up two fingers. "Second. Um, and I kinda wanted to be a wolf back then, but I think I like being a tiger better."

"I've been trying for months," Sasha told him. "Nothing."

"I'm going to get bit," Emily announced. "Not yet. I mean, we've had so many lately, and I'm thinking probably this summer, but my husband and I talked about it. I think Elena had the right idea. Get bit at the last minute, have a short infection, and then run."

"Let me know when," I told her, "and I'll run with you."

"Thank you, Alpha!" she said.

Michelle just waggled a finger at them. "Ok, what's with the 'Alpha' thing?"

"Her title," David explained for me. "Ian is our pack leader, and he not only inherited the position, but proved that he deserved it. Think of it like the president. She's the first lady. Since the whole titles are Pack Alpha and Alpha Female or Alpha Mate, everyone has shortened them to just Alpha for centuries. So, they get the same title, but it's a Mr. and