Page 35 of Secret Wolf Baby

“I didn’t mean to cause all the commotion,” I said.

Nolan gave a roguish grin. “Not your fault. Jackson’s always liked doing things his way. He probably deserved to have his head bitten off at this point.” At Jackson’s glower, he held up his hands, still smirking. “I’m just saying. Remember that mission in the Catskills?”

“That was one time,” Jackson grumbled.

“Then there was the time in Newfoundland—”

“I get it,” Jackson growled.

“Oh, don’t forget the one in France,” Chris drawled.

“Oh, yeah.” Nolan grinned, then whispered conspiratorially to me, “One of the few times we actually get to go international, and we wind up in the Seine because Jackson—”

“She gets it,” Jackson growled. At the same time, Nolan and Chris began roaring with laughter.

“And I’m sure you remember Declan,” Jackson continued, clearly trying to change the subject.

“Hard guy to forget,” I remarked.

Declan gave a brief nod. “Good to see you again, Audrey. I hope you’re settling in all right.”

“It’s nice to see you, too,” I said. “I’m glad you and Mira are doing well.”

He barked out a laugh and gave a genuine grin. “Took me long enough to get the common sense to do anything about it.But yeah, we’re doing great.” He turned to the others. “Oh, by the way, you guys forgot about the time in California when Jackson thought he could ride a Cerberus and got bucked off so hard, he flew into the woods and landed in a swamp. Reeked for days.”

“Hilarious,” Jackson grumbled without any real ill humor as everyone else collapsed into peals of laughter. “You guys are all a bunch of comedians,” he added tartly.

I couldn’t help it. I smiled, too.

***

I sat in the living room, reading and trying to take my mind off the bizarre day—hell, the bizarre week. I couldn’t stop thinking about it. In particular, my mind kept wandering back to meeting the Gold Wolves at town hall. They had all seemed so friendly. I had worked at the Blood Moon pack’s town hall for years. None of them had been nearly as friendly as the guys I’d met today. They had made me feel included. I had never felt that way before, except for maybe a little bit when I had been in Jackson and Mira’s old pack.

For the first time, I wondered if I could actually find a life here. At the very least, I liked it here. And it wasn’t as though I could leave, not since I was tied to Jackson. But that was different than feeling like I could fit in after a lifetime of feeling like an outcast and being rejected.

I kept trying to read, but with every attempt, I only got through a couple of sentences before realizing I hadn’t retained a single word.

The door opened and closed, giving me a much-needed excuse to put down the book.

“Hi, Mom!” Claire called from the hall.

“Hey, sweetie!” I called back as she hurried into the living room.

“There are peanut clusters for you in the kitchen,” I said. At Claire’s suspicious look, I laughed. “No strings attached this time. I promise.”

Claire broke into a grin and hurried into the kitchen. I could hear the rustling of a plastic container. A minute later, Claire came back inside, her mouth already full, the container clutched in one hand as she stuffed another cluster in her mouth. Based on the shrinking level in the container, it had to be at least her third cluster already.

“How was your day?” I asked.

Her eyes lit up. “It was great! Ms. Lupine is really sweet, and really smart.” She beamed. “AndI got my test back, the one she gave me to see where I was at based on everyone else since I came in halfway through the year. I got a perfect score! She said she’s really impressed, especially after what I told her about my old school.”

I grinned, unable to hide my relief. Claire’s last teacher hadn’t been particularly kind to her, especially considering that she knew who Claire’s mother was. She hadn’t been cruel, but she hadn’t been particularly nurturing and had been fairly dismissive of Claire’s intelligence. Knowing Claire was in a more supportive environment was a relief.

“That’s great, Claire!” I said. “Not that I’m surprised.”

She grinned through a mouthful of chocolate and peanut butter. After she swallowed, she said, “I was wondering if I could go home with Jenna after school tomorrow.”

“Jenna?”

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