Page 34 of Season of the Wolf

I zoned out to the sound of murmuring voices, clanking glasses, and low-playing country music. It wasn’t exactly how I wanted to spend the remainder of the evening, but my coming here was the only bargaining chip I had, the one thing I could do that finally swayed Evangeline to call Beth about crashing at her place.

I both loved and hated her stubbornness.

Another smile broke free as I scanned the crowd, thinking of her. The place was packed. With the town being so small, there was no need for more than a couple bars, but with the sudden shifter population boom, Dallas and I had been lucky to get a booth.

A plate of bones sat at the center of our table. He dropped another onto the pile and started in on the next.

“Lay it on me,” he prompted in between bites. His distinct drawl rose above the volume in the bar and I glanced his way.

“Not sure what you mean,” I said, sipping from my glass right after, wishing it was something stronger.

He lifted a brow, sucking the last morsel of meat from the wing. “Don’t give me that,” he rebutted. “Man-to-man, I can see it,” he reasoned. “All over your face. Something’s bugging you and you need to set it free ‘fore it eats you alive.”

I didn’t readily respond, which made him go on again.

“You won’t talk to Evie, because that’s your woman,” he broke down. “You won’t open up to Elise because she’s been distracted lately, and you don’t wanna feel like you’re bothering her. So, you’ve got me. And I’ll listen to whatever it is with no judgment. I’ll even cut you a deal; first time’s free,” he joked.

We hadn’t known one another long, and my trust in him was kind of grandfathered in, thanks to Elise, but I wasn’t itching to tell the guy my feelings.

“I can sit here all night,” he uttered, pausing mid-chew. When I still didn’t speak, he raised an eyebrow defiantly while glancing up, as if to say he wouldn’t take no for an answer.

I breathed deep and eyed the crowd, unnerved by the fact that I could no longer tell a supernatural from a human. Being like this made it impossible to know when, and from where, a threat was coming.

“I’m no good to her like this.”

It pained me to let those words leave my mouth, but they were the truth. Nearly biting a hole through my lip, I gazed around the room, at nothing in particular while I thought.

“She’s a nervous wreck all the time. She tries to hide it, because she’s used to being brave, but I know what she sees when she looks at me.”

Wiping sauce from his fingers, Dallas looked up. “And what’s that?”

“Weakness,” I answered, adding, “someone who’s gonna die on her one day. Even if not by the hand of a supernatural—which is a very strong possibility—it’ll be something. Someday.”

I never feared death, but leaving Evangeline to grieve was one of the hardest things I ever had to imagine. When Sebastian captured me, the only thing that made laying down my life an easy decision was considering the alternative—which was losing her. My only comfort was knowing she had Elise to look after her. But still, there wasn’t a soul on this planet I trusted to put everything into taking care of her thatIwould. She had to survive.

With or without me.

Dallas sat back, shoving his plate aside. “Hmm … that’s interesting,” he stated. “I guess you and I have two totally different vantage points then.”

I didn’t reply.

“I won’t lie and say that girl isn’t probably scared out of her head, thinking you’re not as durable as you used to be, but if you ask whatIthink she sees when she looks at you … I’d say she sees a man who’d give up his life for her.” His brow quirked, and he smiled a bit. “Partly because that’s exactly what you did.”

My eyes drifted to the glass in my hand as I twisted it aimlessly across the tabletop.

“I haven’t known Evie or Elise as long as you,” he breathed, sipping from the fresh mug the waitress brought over. “But from what I can tell, you and me have ourselves two of the toughest women this side of heaven. You’ve gotta learn to rely on that strength a little bit, learn to trust she won’t shatter into pieces the second you turn your back.”

I heard him, but he hadn’t seen it before, hadn’t seen with his own eyes that Evangelinewasn’tindestructible.

“My purpose has always been to protect her,” I admitted. “Now that I can’t, I’m painfully aware of the fact that I’m more of a liability than an asset.”

Hilda had all but said it just a little while ago.

“Nah, man. That’s where you’re wrong,” Dallas reasoned. “Yourassignmentwas to protect her. Yourpurpose… that’s only ever been toloveher. And that has nothing to do with what you are.”

All sound left the room when I zoned out, thinking on his words. This body I was in, it was mine and yet, still felt foreign. The aches and pains of recovery were an everyday reminder of how finite this life was.

“Take my advice,” he went on, belching into his fist before continuing. “The main thing Evie needs from you right now is reassurance. Let her know you’re okay.”

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