Page 60 of Fighting Furry

She smirked. “Moving in with Axel?”

My throat closed and my eyes burned with unshed tears. Shit. I needed to get it together. “No. I have to go back to LA. I'm bringing too much attention to the pack.”

Her eyes widened. “Was it Axel's idea for you to leave?”

Damn, she was nosy. “It was Darius's idea. He didn't give Axel much choice.”

A growl rumbled from her chest. “I hate the council.”

“It doesn't matter,” I said. “I have to leave. Can I borrow your car? I'll get it back to you as soon as the paps are off my tail.”

She waved a hand in the air. “Yeah, sure. I hardly ever use it anyway. If you dent it or wreck it, you're going to pay for it.”

“I'd expect no less. I'm sorry I won't be able to train you.”

She stood and wrapped her arms around me in a tight hug. “You're not a very good teacher anyway.”

I pushed out of her arms and stared at her. I'd worked damn hard teaching her and her friends some moves. “Maybe the problem is that you weren't paying attention when I told you to lead with your dominant hand.”

She tilted her head to the side. “No. It's your teaching style. You're all punishment, no reward.”

“I'm not there to make you feel better, I'm trying to teach you how to defend yourself.”

She sat back down and faced her computer screen. “Confidence has a lot to do with how you comport yourself in a threatening situation. You should always build your students up, not tear them down.”

It annoyed me more than a little that she might be right. I considered arguing some more, but she was already typing away at the keys, in her own world. I huffed, went back to my room, and packed my meager belongings.

I rolled my suitcase onto the front porch and carried it down the stairs. Lucinda didn't even say goodbye. After I'd locked my suitcase in the trunk, I headed over to Krista's.

The sounds of laughter and chatting carried from Krista's house to the front walk, but she answered the door right away. “Julie,” she said. “You're just in time.”

“Actually,” I said. “I came to say goodbye.”

“You're leaving?”

“I'm heading back to LA. My presence here is drawing too much attention to the pack.”

Her eyes widened in surprise, but she didn't seem too terribly upset about me leaving. “You can't leave tonight. Stay for my party.”

“Party? Aren't you under house arrest?”

“I'm not leaving my house, and it's a small party. Just a few close friends.”

Tempting, but the longer I stayed, the harder it would be to leave. And I needed to leave, needed to get the hell away and draw the paparazzi with me. “I'll visit in a few months,” I said. “After things settle down.”

Krista waved her hand. “Just stay for an hour then. Come on, I've barely gotten to see you.”

I wrapped my arms around her shoulders and hugged her tight. “Thanks for being my refuge,” I said. “Even if it was just for a little while.”

“Any time, sweetie. Have a safe trip and call me when you get back to the city.”

I released her and stepped back. “Take care of yourself.”

I hurried to Lucinda's car and took off before I changed my mind. Bumping along the muddy lane away from the small town, I told myself the bumps were the cause of my tight chest and the lump in my throat. I barely knew Axel, barely knew the pack, I'd be fine without them.

I leaned to the right to pull my cell phone from my purse, but it was caught on something. I almost let it go, I could call Shelly when I got back to LA, but I needed to hear her voice, needed to feel I was going toward something instead of leaving behind everything that mattered.

Leaning a bit farther over, I glanced at my purse for just a moment to see what my phone was snagging on. It was caught on a hair band, but I couldn't see what the hair band was caught on. I shot a quick glance at the road and then back to my purse, trying to work the phone free as I bounced over potholes and ruts.

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