Page 73 of Wrestling With Werewolves

Grimacing through the pain, I settle into it, wrapping my mind around it as my body twitches and jerks. I grip the edges of the chair, grunting and murmuring Alaya’s name over and over to center myself.

This would be terrifying if I didn’t know what was happening. I wish Richard was here with a desire so deep I could choke on it.

I search for him in the bond as my back arches, pain slicing through me as my muscles twist and rip and grow.

Around me, Papá’s office flaps every window and the rug beneath his desk. She’s calling for help, desperate to fix whatever’s happening. It hurts too much for me to find words to calm her, so I place a hand on the table next to my chair and will her to understand that I’ll be okay.

I lose track of time through the pain, but when it dissipates, the room is clearer to me, sharper and full of edges I couldn’t see before. The sound of water washing up on the shore is audible, even up here in the rocky hills. Flaring my nostrils, I scent the fish stands down by the boardwalk. I can hear the mercado in full swing, vendors hawking their wares.

Smiling, I raise my hands to look at my fingers. They’re longer, the nails black and sharp. I stand on shaky, trembling legs to cross the room and look in a singular, ornate mirror. My face looks the same, but on the side where Richard bit me, I’ve got black markings all the way down my neck.

No, not just markings. Jaguar spots.

I read about this in one of Papá’s books. There was a Luna-bound omega once who received her bond and could shift into anything she wanted. I focus inward on my wolf, but she’s in as much shock as I am, trying to navigate how she feels. When I think about shifting into something else, though, I find we’re both too tired from the transition to attempt it.

The door slams open, Papa’s footsteps ringing up the short hallway. He enters the room with all the aggressive energy of a pissed-off king. I’m having none of it. Clasping my hands together, I turn to face him, keeping my expression as neutral as possible.

“Sit, Lola,” he commands, striding around his desk and flopping into his well-worn chair.

When I don’t, he glares at me.

But before he can open his mouth to repeat the directive, I lift my chin. “No thank you. And don’t even think about using your alpha bark on me again. That was low. Just one of the shitty things you’ve done to me today.”

He blanches, regret flashing through his eyes before he steeples his fingers and stares hard. “I had to get you away from him, to get you home so we could talk.”

“We could have talked like adults in Ever,” I remind him. “You could have trusted me to know my mind, because I can assure you that I do.”

His eyes—eyes the same color as mine—narrow. “I mean just you and me, not that fucking asshole I thought was my friend.”

I examine my brand-new, longer nails. “You took me from my mate. It doesn’t seem like talking is really what you have in mind.”

He shakes his head and rises, banging a fist on the desk. “The challenge has been moved up to tonight, Lola. I came because I wanted to see you one more time, to remind myself what I fight for. And imagine my shock to find you shacked up with a man old enough to be your father.”

I sigh and glance out the window, over sun-drenched Santa Alaya to the sparkling blue bay. “Richard is mine. You’ll see soon enough, because he’s coming for me.” I say it with all the surety I feel in my heart. My alpha won’t let a little thing like haven security stand between us.

“The portal’s locked down,” Papá growls.

I smile, because to me, he’s missing the entire point. When I bring my eyes back to him, I let the smile fall. “What happened in Ever was entirely unexpected by both of us. Believe me, we struggled to wrap our minds around the impossibility of it. But we share a Luna bond, Papá, the first Luna bond in over two thousand years. Even you can’t deny that.”

He pales and slumps against the back of his chair. “You don’t know anything about the Luna bond, Lola. I don’t know what Richard said to you, what he did to make you believe this is true, but it’s all lies. It has to be.”

“Why?” I question. “Because you can’t bear to believe that your daughter and your best friend are destined by the goddess to be together? Is it really so awful for you that you’d take away my choice? Because what you’ve drilled into me my whole life was how my choices matter. Except now you’re saying they don’t because they don’t align with your plan for me.” My voice rises as the fury rears up and overtakes me. It’s a struggle not to yell and scream, except that’ll get me nowhere.

Before Papá can answer, I barrel on. “You’ve kept me caged in this haven for my entire life under the guise of protecting me from others making choices on my behalf. But you’re the worst one because, when I finally do choose, it’s not good enough for you to accept. But you know what’s Parenting Fucking 101? Supporting your children when they take a different path in life than the one you thought they would!”

His mouth drops open, eyes wide as the door opens again and Nuñez appears. If he heard any part of our conversation, he gives no indication. “I’m sorry to interrupt, mi rey, but the challenge begins at sunset, so you’ve got less than an hour to get ready. We need to take you both to the formal dressing room.” He glances over at me, then back to my father.

Papá sighs as he stands, rolling his long shirt sleeves up his muscular forearms. Has he even noticed that I’m taller? That there’s a giant tattoo down the side of my neck and shoulder?

No. He’s so wrapped up in anger, he isn’t noticing anything at all.

“Buena suerte, Papá,” I whisper. “Que luches bien.” Good luck. Fight well.

His gaze softens as he rounds his desk and stares into my eyes. He blanches, finally noticing we’re the same height. “We’ll talk more afterward, mija.” Chocolate eyes fall to the tattoo on my neck, a muscle working overtime in his jaw.

Still, he says nothing.

As I watch him leave the office with Nuñez, it occurs to me that a male who isn’t noticing basic things, who’s so wrapped up in anger that he can’t see reason, is not in a good position to fight off a well-armed alpha. A male this distracted could easily lose against a well-armed opponent.

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