Page 63 of It All Started with a Bite

I heard voices dimly through the blood rushing inside my skull. Victoria was calling my name and telling me not to fight what was happening to me. Caroline and Kent were ordering the younger pack members to stand back.

A presence loomed close to me. One whose scent focused my scattered senses.

“Breathe,” Samuel said. “Breathe, Abby.” His hands cupped my face, strong and hot. “Look at me!”

His face blurred in front of me. I blinked and willed myself to focus on his amber gaze through my tears. Even through the haze of agony, it dawned on me once again how beautiful his eyes were.

Great. Trust me to focus on that while I was literally being torn apart from the inside. I cursed my inner wolf as another wave of excruciating pain washed through me and robbed me of breath.

“This part will hurt.” His expression grew determined. “But I think I can help make it easier.”

Before I could ask how, his lips found mine.

I froze even in the throes of the most savage agony I had ever endured in my life.

The kiss was gentle at first, his mouth exploring mine like he was testing the resilience of my lips. It deepened as the mate bond flared between us. Heat flooded my body, the fire filling my veins different from the burning torment of my transformation. My wolf surged forward with a joy and hunger that momentarily overwhelmed the debilitating pain threatening to drown me.

I found myself clinging shamelessly to Samuel, my nails lengthening and digging into his powerful shoulders as I molded myself to his body, seeking his heat just as he sought mine.

When Samuel pulled back, his eyes were fully wolf.

“Let go,” he whispered against my lips. “Let your wolf loose, Abby.”

I did. And it was easier than I could have imagined.

The last thing I saw before my vision shifted to that of my wolf’s was Samuel’s expression changing from concern to wide-eyed shock as my fur began to emerge under the moonlight.

Victoria’s gasp cut through the night air. “It can’t be!”

I was too busy marveling at my new senses to process her tone.

Everything around me was sharper, more clear, more vibrant than ever before.

The scents surrounding me painted vivid pictures in my mind, just as my new vision and nose did. Earth and greenery. Water gurgling in distant brooks. The wild tang of my pack and the fear of prey hiding in the woods.

Even the moonlight felt different on my fur.

Fur that was apparently causing quite a stir among the Hawthornes.

“After all these years,” Aunt Lucille breathed.

“But—I thought they were just urban legends!” Caroline mumbled.

I turned my head, trying to see what had everyone so worked up. My wolf moved with surprising grace at my command, like I’d been born to this form.

I froze.

I was white from head to toe. A pure, dazzling white and not at all like the mousy brown of the first morning after I’d turned.

Even my tail gleamed blindingly in the moonlight.

A low growl rumbled through the clearing. I looked around to find a massive black wolf where Samuel had been standing. His amber eyes locked onto mine with an intensity that made my fur stand on end.

More wolves emerged around us as the pack transformed. They spread out in a loose circle, all of them staring. Yet I did not feel in the least bit threatened.

“Why—why am I white?!” I said, my heart racing.

My words came out a questioning whine instead.

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