one
STELLA
As I reacheda fork in the dirt road, my gaze swept the forest in front of me. Fall had hit in full force, so everything was saturated with the gorgeous reds and oranges that made the season feel so alive. With the sun rising over the lake in front of me, the scenery was stunning in a way that made my fingers itch for a paintbrush.
I could see two cabins nestled in the trees, as far in separate directions as they could be while still remaining visible. They looked fairly similar, with dark green siding and plenty of exposed wood.
“Dammit, Abby,” I muttered under my breath. “Why did you think tangling with werewolves was a good idea?”
The question was rhetorical.
I knew why she thought it was a good idea.
Romance books.
Freaking romance books.
For most women, mating with a werewolfwassomething from one of those books.
But I knew firsthand that the experience could be a horror just as easily.
And considering my friend had gotten herself tangled up with someone from the Feral Pack, that seemed more likely than the potential for romance.
I’d kept my head down since moving to Moon Ridge, but everyone knew about the feral guys. They had a good reputation for helping people control their wolves, but the strikes against them were too big to ignore.
Most of them had been rejected.
My wolf was one of the few to reject the man who had hunted her, so I knew what usually led to rejection.
Abuse.
And I wasn’t letting my friend get trapped in that.
I’d gotten myself out—now I was going to get her out too.
I just hoped I wasn’t too late, because she hadn’t answered any texts in multiple days.
Turning left, I drove slowly enough that I hoped the werewolves wouldn’t hear me.
Her car wasn’t in front of the first house I passed.
Squinting, I tried to see if it was in front of the next one, further down the road. None of them had garages as far as I’d seen.
I wasn’t sure how many guys were in the feral pack, but I was pretty sure there were at least six. Most packs had six dudes. Plus their mates, after they paired off.
Then again, if the feral guys had been rejected, that probably would’ve messed with their numbers.
There could’ve been a dozen of them.
There could’ve been two or three.
I had no idea. Maybe I should’ve asked around, but I’d been too worried someone would realize who I was and I’d end up paired off with a wolf again. Supposedly, there was a chance my wolf would choose a mate at some point after rejecting our last one.
I didn’t see Abby’s car in front of the next house, so I pulled off to the side of the road with a sigh.
Stepping out, I hiked toward the lake. My gaze swept the perimeter of the body of water.
I could see seven different houses from there.
