Page 29 of Wolf Forgotten

“You’re playing with fire then.” Eli stood and started clearing the dishes.

"Maybe I like to feel the burn," I muttered, cradling the wine bottle to my chest. It was some vintage red that probably cost an arm and a leg, and I planned on drinking all of it.

He hummed as he rinsed the plates he had set in the sink. “I think what we need is a movie night. Unless you’re tired.”

"I'm not tired. I took a pretty long nap." I stood up to help him clear the table. “Do you live here too?”

“Yes. I have a suite down here. Cole's my best friend, and I make sure he's taken care of. The pack hangs out here a lot too, mostly out back or in the den and gym next door. Cole told them to stay away until we made sure you weren’t rabid.”

"Gee, thanks." I handed him the rest of the dishes from the table.

“By the way, Cole hates when dishes are in the sink. Shall we watch a movie?” Eli left all the dishes in the sink and walked out of the kitchen with a smirk on his face.

I was glad to see he liked to poke the bear. Watching Cole lose his shit made me giddy. I was twenty-six, but that didn't mean I had to act like it all the time.

Eli sat down on the large sectional that looked like it could easily fit ten people and turned on the flat screen above the fireplace. I sat a safe distance away from him, put the bottle of wine on the coffee table, and hugged a pillow to my chest.

I was conflicted. On one hand, I knew I needed to be there with them. On the other, I just wanted to go back to my life and pretend nothing was real. But it was real. I wasn't in denial. As a teenager, I had seen for myself that there was another world right under the ocean. It only made sense there would be another world on land.

My mind never really focused on the romantic comedy movie Eli put on. Between going over my options and trying to figure out where they might have my phone, I was distracted. About an hour in, I felt like the world was pressing down on my chest.

"Is there a bathroom down here I can use?" I stood and stretched.

"Third door on the left. Do you want me to pause?" He hadn't looked away from the screen. He was more into the romantic comedy than I'd thought.

"No. I've seen it." I hadn't, but it didn't matter since I'd already missed half of it.

I made my way down the hall, passing the busted door to the basement and trying to remember if Eli had said the third door on the right or third door on the left.

I opened the door next to the basement, and instead of a bathroom, the garage greeted me. I had lived in a pretty big house growing up, but it had nothing on this house. It probably could have fit even more vehicles than it had if he moved them forward and parked them bumper to bumper.

It was an impressive collection. I had never imagined garages this size existed outside of mega mansions. There was an oversized SUV, a motorcycle, two fancy cars, and enough off-road vehicles for half a dozen people. Plus, there was the truck with the crashed car in the driveway.

Cole had to be a drug dealer to afford all these things. I didn’t know much about sports cars, but they had to be expensive. Some had to belong to Eli.

I stepped into the garage, gently shutting the door behind me so I wouldn't draw attention to myself. I had thought I was going to be able to deal with my predicament, but reality really sank in as I had tried to relax in the living room. I had been so tense that when I finally let go even just a little, my mind caught up.

I needed to sleep in my bed and wear my own clothes. Maybe I wasn't as accepting of the situation as I told myself I was.

I tentatively approached the cars and peered inside them. I don’t know what I had hoped to find. Nothing would have changed from when I had looked in the morning, but I had a small sliver of hope that maybe I'd get lucky.

Not finding any keys, my last bit of courage left me in a rush, and I let out a cry of frustration. I sat down on the hard cement and leaned against a car, bringing my knees to my chest. I buried my face in my arms and let myself have a moment of weakness.

I cried for what felt like a lifetime before sensing eyes on me. I lifted my head to find Cole leaning with his hip against a car, arms crossed. He was the last person I wanted to see. Now he knew I was a weak, blubbering mess.

“Why are you out here?” His eyes flashed with concern, but it was gone in an instant.

“Why areyouout here?” I spat back. I picked myself up off the floor and held my head up high despite the red puffiness I knew always plagued my face after crying.

“It’smygarage.” He pushed off the car with his hip and stood blocking my path back to the door as I went to walk past him.

He smelled like whiskey and carnauba wax, making the wolf part of me want to whimper in glee. She liked him a little too much for my taste. It was an odd feeling, having something inside me that had its own set of feelings and thoughts.

“Well, since it’s yours, I guess I should leave.” I tried to scoot past him, but he moved to block me. “Let me go, Cole.”

I wasn’t above fighting my way past him if I had to. His frequent shows of dominance were pissing me and my wolf off.

“We need to talk.” Of course, he wanted to talk about things I didn't want to talk about at the worst possible time.

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