Page 4 of Wolf Heart

CHAPTER2

JUNIPER

The next morning, I skip the visit to the healer because our town is alive with dozens of new werewolves from neighboring packs. Not to mention I've always healed freakishly fast.

This bruise is already faded like it’s days old rather than from last night. And with a little concealer, I salvaged on the last outing to the nearby town, the mark isn't noticeable.

I drift deeper into the throng of new wolves. There’s even a group of Irish wolves who came here at the turn of the century. Their wolves are a bright red and look more like foxes, but larger.

Whole families have tents pitched up in people’s yards, in the forest, it’s like an explosion. I’ve never seen this many people in my entire life.

A river of tents leads down the road to the town. Woven, brightly colored fabric overlaps like an archway, bursting into a wild explosion of colors.

The tents are made of soft wool and bound with cords showing they’re roamies. No land of their own and I wonder why the Alpha allowed them here.

I inhale and the air is ripe with the smell of breakfast cooking, oatmeal and berries, and spices. Sounds of the camp fill the morning.

A family of campers begins a song and the tune is quickly picked up by others, the singing growing louder and the words more accented by the forest’s acoustics.

Their voices blend and make me feel warm all over as they sing.

The song is about a lone wolf mourning the death of her love. Twin souls who will be reunited in death. How she will hold strong until then.

An ache spreads across my chest, and I rub my breastbone to ease the pain.

“Didn’t think the rumors were true,” says a male voice behind me, and I spin around. A man is leaning up against a pine tree that lightning burnt and broke off the top leaving it looking like a wooden stick with blackened tips where branches used to sway.

I ignore his comment about rumors because I already know it's probably Casey and the others tearing me apart to the outsiders before I even get a chance to see if my wolf can resonate with one of them and allow me to shift finally.

“I didn’t hear you approaching.” I try to keep my voice cool, but I can feel the pounding of my heart in my throat at the sight of him.

His hair is golden like my father’s and his eyes are a deep brown. His mouth is wide and his lower lip is fuller than the upper. A dark golden goatee and mustache frame his face.

His arms are crossed across his chest and he stares at me. He has a leather harness on with leather pouches for tools and hanks of twine. The scent of leather and something sweeter, wilder floats around him.

I can’t place his pack because the scent of his wolf is one I've never smelled before.

“I know who you are,” he says.

My heart flutters in my chest. “You do?”

"So the rumors aren't wrong," says another man appearing from behind a black tent. His hair is dark brown and his eyes are grey, a warm color even though he’s watching me with a cold stare.

"What rumors?" I ask.

"That your pack had the most unique wolf in the world," the blond guy answers for him.

Heat caresses my cheeks. Three times I tried dying my unique hair with hair color boxes leftover from the turn and nothing worked.

"Are you going to introduce me to your friends?" Vella runs up to us like I've taken the last brownie from someone's birthday.

Her bone-straight brown hair sweeps down her back and her dark eyes sparkle at seeing the new men. Her lips are always painted a soft red and she has the confidence and curves to back it up.

She’s the one girl in the pack that all the guys drool over. The one that all the girls wish they were like. Well, except me. I've seen through her fake smiles and banging every guy she can.

“Junie?” she asks, batting her eyelashes at them and puffing out her chest to show her breasts.

I roll my eyes, fighting back the tension that builds between my shoulder blades at her using the same stupid nickname that Casey does. Then again, I shouldn’t be surprised, because she and Casey are two bullies that I could see together, since they have so much in common. Mostly being irritating as fuck.

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