Page 43 of Wolf Bound

“Okay.” She nods before lying back down and cuddling closer to me. “By the way, I’m drunk.”

“I know.” I chuckle. “Ransom texted me and gave me a heads up.”

“Remi ate likefivecheeseburgers on the way home.”

* * *

“Good morning, sunshine!”Ransom tells Remi louder than necessary as she walks into the kitchen. She must have fallen directly into bed after coming home last night because black makeup surrounds her eyes, and her hair is sticking out all over the place. “Sleep well?”

“Bite me,” she growls at him as she plunks down into a chair at the kitchen table and immediately lays her head down, turned, so she isn’t facing me.

“How much did you guys drink last night?” I ask her. “Both of you look like shit this morning.”

I swing my gaze over to Pru, who sits next to me wearing one of my old hoodies and is using both hands to hold her head up. Her usually bright skin is looking a little green, and she hasn’t touched any of the breakfast Mom put in front of her.

“Gee, thanks,” she scoffs at me.

“Did you guys drinkeverythingin the bar last night?” Ransom questions around a mouthful of food.Polite as always, it would seem.

“We didn’t drinkthatmuch,” Remi defends, picking her head off the table.

“Well, considering the fact Pru is wearing her sunglassesinside,” Mom says as she comes around the corner with weirdly dull-colored smoothies in each hand, “I would assume that’s a lie.”

“Ugh, that is so smart,” Remi whines when she lifts her head enough to look at Pru.

“Here, you can use mine. I’m starting to feel a little bit more human.” Pru starts to pass the sunglasses across the table to Remi, then pauses halfway there. “Can I even say that anymore? I mean, I’m obviously not human. But I can’t shift into a wolf, so basically Iamhuman? I’m so confused…” she whimpers.

“Shut up, you’re hurting my brain.” Remi snatches the sunglasses out of Pru’s hand.

Mom pats Pru’s back as she places one of the smoothies in front of her. “Ryker and you have an appointment with Esme set for today, so you’ll be able to get more answers on how to get your wolf out. Don’t worry, dear, we’ll have you shifting in no time. Now drink up, you’ll feel much better after you get something into your stomach.”

“Thank you.” Pru gives her a strained smile before groaning and leaning against my shoulder for support. “Has anyone seen Addison? I haven’t seen her since yesterday afternoon.”

“She went home last night,” Ransom replies with a shrug. “Said something about needing to sleep in her own bed.”

“I should probably go home tonight, too,” Pru announces before taking a sip of the smoothie in front of her. She hides it well, but by the slight cringe of her face, it apparently doesn’t taste great. “I can’t keep sleeping in your spare bedroom.”

“Why not?” I sit up straighter in my seat.

“Because this isn’t my home.”

“You said last night, you don’t like sleeping without me,” I remind her.

She glances around the table, losing what little color there is in her face and lowers her voice. “I know, and I meant it, but I can’t stay here forever. Besides, I need to be with Addison. What if something happens and I’m not there?”

“We can send Noah over,” I suggest even though I know it’s not really a viable plan.

“Oh sure, let’s send over the guy she’s been in love with for twenty-some years but can’t have,” Pru deadpans. “Doesn’t exactly sound fair to her, toeitherof them.”

“It’s so stupid that wolf shifters can only mate with other wolf shifters,” Ransom grumbles. “Our birthrates are so low, and every year more males are turning rogue. It’s only a matter of time before there aren’t any females left, and we become an endangered species.”

“Birthrates are low for wolf shifters?” Pru questions, her curiosity piqued.

“Unfortunately, yes,” Mom says with a nod. “Wolf shifters have always struggled to conceive, and even then it’s difficult for the female to carry to full term. And if they do carry to term, the chances of having a girl are very slim. The male to female ratio has been off for centuries.”

“But you have four kids? How were you able to have so many?” Pru asks.

“I got lucky with my children, but I also miscarried many pregnancies between each of them. I lost two before I gave birth to Ryker.” Mom reaches across the table and squeezes my hand. “He was my little miracle.”

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