Page 77 of It All Started with a Bite

Victoria stiffened.

“And we all know why he turned out that way,” Helen added in a syrupy voice.

The temperature in the room dropped several degrees.

I couldn’t tell if Victoria’s rigid expression was from Helen’s words or the general reference to Hugh.

“Now, now,” Priscilla said smoothly. “Let’s not dwell on the past.” She focused on me. “How are you finding life as a werewolf, Abigail?”

There was something about her perfectly pleasant tone that made my inner wolf uneasy. Judging from the way Bo was watching her, my dog felt the same.

Since Victoria had decided to ignore the thinly veiled insults directed at the Hawthornes, I elected to do the same.

“It’s been interesting,” I said calmly.

“Interesting?” Helen scoffed. “Is that all you have to say?”

I arched an eyebrow. “Would you prefer I describe my first transformation in detail?”

“Abby,” Victoria pleaded softly.

I ignored her. I knew I was playing right into the Council’s hands, but the way they were treating Victoria was getting on my nerves.

“The pain hit me like a brick wall.” I bared my teeth in what I hoped passed for a smile but judging from the way a few eyes widened probably came across as a threatening smirk. “Luckily, my alpha decided to dull my agony by kissing me. It was hot. And heavy. Tongue was involved?—”

Martha and Felicity choked on their teas.

Several of the elderly werewolves sucked in air behind their cups, their expressions a mix of shock and horrified interest.

“No need to be crude, dear,” Priscilla said with a tight smile.

Martha steered the conversation in a less confrontational direction.

“I must say, you seem to have adapted remarkably well for someone so newly turned,” the elderly werewolf said affably.

“Indeed,” Isobel said in a disapproving voice, steering it right back in the danger zone. “The pixies say you’re faster than any werewolf they’ve ever seen.”

My shoulders knotted. I could see where this was going and I didn’t like it one bit. Judging from the way Pearl’s eyes shrank to slits and Victoria’s knuckles whitened on her cup, neither did they.

“The pixies need to mind their own business,” Victoria said sharply.

“But it’s true, isn’t it?” Isobel arched an eyebrow. “Your new luna outran the entire pack during her first run.”

I shifted uncomfortably as all eyes locked onto me.

“I wouldn’t say the entire pack.”

“I was told even the proud Hawthorne alpha couldn’t keep up with you.” Isobel’s expression turned calculating. “When was the last time we had a white wolf in Amberford?”

“Not since my great-great-grandmother’s time,” Victoria replied reluctantly in the fraught silence.

“Hmm.” Isobel sipped her tea. “Fascinating how these things skip generations, isn’t it?”

I suppressed the growl working up my throat. Bo pressed against my leg, equally tense. Surprise jolted me when Pearl jumped from Victoria’s lap onto mine.

I could tell from the cat’s body language that she was telling me to stay calm.

“Speaking of fascinating things,” Helen said in an oily voice. “I notice Samuel isn’t here today. You would have thought he would have wanted to come, considering it’s the first time his luna is being introduced to our community.”

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