Once their order was filled, Beth turned to her. “Do you want to go back to your house or stay with me? We can drive into work together. It might be safer for both of us.”
Beth had a point. “How about I stay with you tonight? I’d like that.”
“My house, it is.”
Ariel was relieved when Beth’s complex came into view. In hindsight, Ariel probably should have asked Beth to stop off at Ariel’s apartment so she could pick up Betty, but most likely the old Volkswagen wouldn’t start.
Ariel carried in the pizza, while Beth took in the suitcase. Being back in familiar surroundings helped calm her.
“Red wine, okay?” Beth asked.
“Absolutely, though I think you’ll need the drink more than I will.”
Beth chuckled. “Whatever happened, I bet it was just a misunderstanding.”
“You could say that. Or rather it was that the men failed to tell me something important about themselves.”
Cabinets opened in the kitchen while Ariel placed the pizza on the living room coffee table. They would often eat in there while they either watched TV or chatted.
Beth came out of the kitchen carrying two glasses of red wine and handed Ariel one. She sat down. “Tell me everything. I know they were in a bad fight. What could have happened after that.”
Ariel inhaled. “What I am about to tell you will seem as if I was hallucinating, but I was not. Benson can confirm what I say is true, though I have the sense that no humans know about them.”
Beth sipped her wine. “Humans? As opposed to what? Aliens?” Her eyes widened. “I bet they are from Mars. I knew that planet was already inhabited. Why else would Musk be so anxious to establish a colony there?”
She couldn’t blame Beth for jumping to that conclusion. “Again, don’t tell anyone about this. And if you did, no one, and I mean no one, would believe you.”
“I’m ready.”
“Benson and Preston are werewolves.”
Unfortunately, Ariel’s timing was bad, because Beth was in the middle of drinking her wine—wine that ended up on Ariel’s shirt.
“I am so sorry.” Beth jumped up. “I’ll get some club soda.”
Normally, Ariel would have told her not to worry about it, but she didn’t have that many clothes with her. Once Beth returned, Ariel cleaned up the potential stain. Her shirt should be good as new once it dried.
“You can see why I kind of freaked when I learned this.”
“They actually stated they were werewolves?” Beth asked.
“Worse. They shifted right in front of me.” She explained that Preston wasn’t feeling well and had passed out in front of them. In the process, he shifted. “Since I thought it was a trick, Benson purposefully shifted so I could see it was for real.”
“You’re really telling me that a man can change into a wolf and back again at will?”
“Yes, but that’s not all.”
Beth finished off what was left of her wine. “What could be more incredible than that?”
“I am their soulmate. And by them, I mean both Preston and Benson. They claim that when a wolf meets that one special woman, they know they are meant to be together. I guess forever. And yes, Benson said both men love me.”
Beth squealed. “That is incredible.”
“Why? Would you want to be with someone who could turn into a wolf?”
“Hell yeah, I would. He could shift and spring into action to protect me.”
She supposed it was better than being caught without a gun if they were in danger. “Maybe. I didn’t go into the details of what they could or couldn’t do. I was too freaked out.”