Page 26 of Wolf Lost

“Packs aren’t democracies. They’re—that is, the alpha—” Sawyer broke off and looked at each of them, then nodded. “That wouldn’t really work for you guys. But that doesn’t mean you have to listen to—”

“Please don’t finish that sentence with anything derogatory about yourself, your designation, or your status in the pack,” Asher interrupted, and Dez was glad for it. He tended to be a little on the growly side when Sawyer denigrated himself, and it didn’t particularly help, just made Sawyer nervous.

Proving them right, Sawyer opted to not finish the sentence at all.

“As the democratically elected arbiter of good taste, I’m going to go through those chairs and decide which ones aren’t worth saving,” Gavin decided aloud, and went to work with gusto. Clearly, the line had worked this time.

“You’re not gonna go pick out the cushy chairs?” Dez asked. It was a bit of a surprise the guy was going to turn down a chance to decorate. Dez was pretty sure he’d been depressed over the fact that the house had come furnished.

Gavin turned back to him with genuine surprise. “Oh no. It was Sawyer’s idea. He gets to pick it. You can go with him to keep it on a budget.”

That was how Dez found himself in a furniture store for the first time in his life. The way Sawyer zipped ahead of him, insisting on sitting in every chair and on every couch, told Dez that they were probably in the same situation. Sawyer was just much more excited about it than he was.

“I’m gonna reupholster the vinyl in black,” he reminded Sawyer as he flopped onto a sofa that looked like a reject from the seventies, with a huge sepia cabbage rose print. It looked a lot like one his mother had owned.

Sawyer lifted his chin so he could stare at Dez with his head almost upside-down. “But it’s so comfy.”

“And very popular right now,” a salesman announced brightly, coming up next to Dez. “Plus a little scotch guard and it’s very easy to clean.”

“See?” Sawyer asked, raising his brows at Dez. “Easy to clean. If anyone spills coffee on it, we’ll be okay. And even if it stains, who’ll be able to tell with this big red-brown print?”

That was a fair point, but it didn’t change the basic problem. “It won’t go with the chairs. They’re too green. You’ve met Gavin. He’ll insist that we strip them and restain them in a brown to match.”

Sawyer stuck out his full lower lip, and Dez sighed. He turned to the salesman. “You’ve got chairs and stuff that go with it?”

Sawyer threw his fists in the air, then hopped up and pointed to some matching overstuffed chairs. “We can get those brown ones. And maybe something brighter to contrast. Blue? No, red. Cozier.” He pointed to something halfway across the show floor, and before Dez could speak, he was off.

Dez sighed and looked back at the salesman, who grinned at him. “It really is one of the most comfortable sofas in the place, even if it’s godawful ugly.”

Dez looked back at it, and found that annoyingly enough, he liked it more already.

“Can we arrange delivery in about two weeks?”

“Not a problem,” the salesman said, as halfway across the store, Sawyer threw himself into a red chair.

17

Bad Moon Rising

Dez had warned him that stripping the chairs would be awful, but he’d dismissed it. After all, the sofa was perfect. Or it would be, once they finished with the chairs and got everything into the space.

He wondered if he could talk them into painting the walls red, so everything would go together.

It was a little weird, but he was pretty sure no one blamed him for the extra work on the chairs, removing the old varnish and changing the shade to something that went with his sofa.

They had to know it was because of him. Dez would never have chosen furniture that would clash with what they already had. Dez would have preferred not to choose furniture at all, as much as he’d put up with Sawyer having to sit on every chair in the place before settling on the first thing he’d spotted.

None of them had said a word when Dez had declared it chair refurbishing day and dragged Sawyer out for the supplies to strip and revarnish the chairs. They were going to be a rich mahogany, and even Gavin seemed pleased by the selection.

So there they were, front doors propped open for the best ventilation, stripping the old finish off the chairs. It was harder than he’d imagined, and his arms were aching with exhaustion, but somehow doing it as a pack made it better.

“So when’s one of us going to learn how to make coffee?” Dez asked, out of nowhere.

Sawyer looked up at him. “You’ve never made coffee?”

“In a coffeepot? Sure. Or one of those single-serving machines.” Dez pointedly ignored the face Gavin made at the mention of single-serve machines and motioned to the huge contraption on the counter. “I don’t know how to pronounce the name of the company that made that thing, let alone how to use it.”

Asher’s brow furrowed, and he bit his lip, staring at the machine. “You guys think it’ll be hard?” After a moment, he stood and went over to the door between them and the bookstore, knocking on it and waiting for an answer.

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