Page 13 of Take Me
She sat down on her hind legs and blinked slowly. I pressed my lips together. “So what do we do now?” She laid down on her front paws and blinked again. “I can’t communicate with you, I don’t know what to do. You proved a point.”
“She can’t transform again for a little bit.” A little voice behind me made me jump.
I peered over my shoulder and came face to face with a little boy that couldn’t be over the age of eight. He was a little thing. His orange eyes glowed. He had dark hair that flopped over his forehead and slightly into his bright eyes.
“Why is that?” I asked.
He shrugged. “It takes a lot out of our bodies to transform into our wolves. It’s not an easy feat.”
I licked my lips. “No, I suppose not. I’m Jade.”
He smiled and there was a huge gap between his front teeth. “I know, the whole pack is talking about you.”
I nodded my head.Of course.
“I’m Ford,” he held his hand out and I took it in mine. His scent was slightly familiar but I couldn’t place it.
“So we can shift on command?” I found myself asking.
He teetered his head back and forth. “Kind of, our shift is stronger on a full moon though. She’s not going to recover as quickly from this shift as she would have last night or if she was shifting with the rest of the pack.”
I nodded my head. “Do you go to school?”
“We’re homeschooled until we can control our shifts.” He watched Tracey with me. “Around middle school.”
“I guess it’s not too funny to have a kindergartener transform in a class full of kids.” I tried not to laugh at the picture in my mind. Maybe I could accept this as my new reality, but there was still nausea swirling around inside of me. I mean, I had to accept it, there was a werewolf sitting in front of me… but maybe, it wasn’t so bad.
He shrugged as the corner of his mouth lifted up in a sideways grin. “Yeah, it’s happened.”
Tracey’s body started to contort again and Ford smiled at me before he turned to leave. “Nice to meet you, Ford.”
Chapter 19
Rafe Crimson
“She really isn’t that bad,” my little brother, Ford, muttered at the dinner table later that night. He pinched off a piece of his bread and made a face. He was getting closer to being able to control his shifts. I was surprised he had even entertained the thought of sides or extras besides the rare steak on his plate. Children usually preferred the red meat over anything else and then the rest of their palate developed later in life.
I rolled my eyes openly but inside was cringing. I couldn’t let on what I knew. It would cause too many issues. Granted the ass-chewing I had gotten from Axel hadn’t been a good one. He would have never done anything like that in front of the rest of the pack but I allowed it when we were alone. When we counseled on things regarding the pack. I valued his opinion and insight, even though it did rake my nerves. He had been second hand to the Alpha a lot longer than I had been alive.
But war was brewing and I couldn’t even trust my second. Which didn’t make anything easier either.
Poor Jade was going to end up right in the middle of it.
“Yeah?” I asked. “What do you know about girls, anyway?”
“I know that if you’re nice to them, they’ll be nice to you and they won’t punch you in the nose or try to kill you.”
“What if I tell you that this wasn’t because I did anything?” I waved at my slightly crooked nose and bruising. She packed a wicked punch. This girl was going to be a seriously dangerous problem.
Ford laughed. “I wouldn’t believe you.”
“Hmmm,” I scratched at the stubble on my jaw. “Glad you know me too well.”
Ford balled up his little fist and punched me in the arm. I barely felt it. “You’re too bad for someone like her. You should probably stay away before she finishes you off.”
“Don’t I know it, buddy.”
Chapter 20
