Page 23 of Wolf's Midlife Bite

Which would be?she challenged.

Put your jaws around my throat.

Robin took two steps away, pleased that she’d managed to go backward without falling, but appalled at the idea.What? I can’t do that.

You can, and you should. The underbelly is the most sensitive place you can go for, but it’s hard to get your opponent to expose it if they know what they’re doing. If someone comes after your throat, you need to know what it’s like. So do it.

Gingerly, feeling like a complete fool, Robin opened her mouth. Brody had lifted his head to give her some space, offering a chance that no one else would if they were actually trying to survive. It didn’t help much. She tried one angle and then another, but it was awkward, to say the least.

Kind of like this.Without warning, Brody’s teeth flashed. He bowled her over with his shoulder, but his legs braced against her to keep her fall to the ground as a gentle roll. She landed squarely on her back with Brody’s jaws wrapped around her throat, just the way he’d tried to tell her.

Robin’s breath was ragged, and even in a different form, she couldn’t help but remember how things had been with him before. He could snap his teeth shut and kill her in an instant, but it was both that possibility and the knowledge that he wouldn’t do it that made a shudder of excitement rise up in her stomach.Oh. Well. Why didn’t you say so?

He hovered over her, his eyes burning into hers, for a long moment. When he finally stepped over to allow her up, Robin felt how badly she wanted him back. Not just to have things back the way they were between them, but to have him close like that. She didn’t care if he was a wolf, a human, or a blue whale. She just wanted him close.

Are you ready for the next one?

The shake that took over her body when she got up was a natural one, and one she hadn’t expected. Dirt flew off her fur, solving that problem.As ready as I’ll ever be.

On second thought, you probably need to know how to defend yourself in that position.With a quick leap, he was on top of her again.

Robin wanted to laugh, and she batted a paw against his muzzle.Fresh.

I’ll show you fresh.

They rolled and wrestled, tumbling over each other, playing and fighting, darting in and defending. Brody coached her as they went, encouraging her every time she missed and praising her when she didn’t. It was far more fun than Robin ever would’ve realized. The anxiety that’d swept over her over the last twenty-four hours was gone. It wasn’t just because she was so thoroughly distracted. It was something else that tugged at her, pulling from the very depths of her soul and reaching out toward Brody. He was her anchor in this unfamiliar storm. This magnetism between them was something she couldn’t help, but she didn’t want to. She’d never felt anything like this.

Okay, okay! I surrender!He’d been chasing her around the clearing they’d entered, trying to show her all the ways that another wolf could dive in and find her vulnerable spots, but she’d finally lost all of her breath.I’m pooped!

Fair enough.Brody trotted to a stop beside her.I think we’ve made good progress, anyway. Why don’t you just sit down for a bit.

With more confidence than she’d felt when they’d first come out there, she managed to curl her tail and back legs underneath her and keep her front legs straight. She felt more balanced this way, and she breathed a sigh of relief.

Now look up. You see the moon?

I’m not supposed to howl at it or anything, am I? Because if I am, then I’m not so sure I’m going to be a good wolf.

He sat next to her, lifting his chin.You can if you want. I don’t think she’d mind. Selene’s up there, the goddess of the moon. Our pack is devoted to her, but don’t start thinking about werewolf movies and the full moon. It’s not like that, but that’s where some of those old tales came from.

Robin studied the burning disc in the sky. She’d been through plenty of science classes, and she knew that the hunk of rock was held in place by Earth’s gravitational pull. She knew that it only glowed as it did because of the light it borrowed from the sun. Even so, she could feel its pull on her, one that filled her chest and heart with light.It’s beautiful.

I think so.

When she finally looked over at him, she saw that Brody was looking straight at her instead of the moon.Brody, I owe you an apology. I’m sorry I blew up at you. You were trying to do the right thing by telling me about the bite and what would happen because of it. I appreciate it because I think if I hadn’t known, it would’ve driven me even crazier than it already did. Still, I wish I’d been able to calm down and listen to you.

He turned his gaze back toward the sky, but he leaned so that their shoulders brushed.That’s all right. I knew it wasn’t going to be easy, not for either one of us, really. I wasn’t ever mad at you for leaving. Just worried.

Robin thought about that for a moment.I’m glad you did because I think I needed someone to worry about me. I was so freaked out, not just at your place but even today at work. I didn’t know what to think or what I was going to do.

And now?

Now?Robin gazed up at the sky. Everything felt different as an animal. The sharpened senses she’d experienced during the day had grown even more intense, but they were easier to handle now. Her muscles and brain had no idea how to control this body when she’d first managed to shift into it, but now she felt the power and elegance that came with it. There was still plenty of this journey left, and she wouldn’t delude herself into thinking otherwise, but it was a hell of a start.It’s going to take me a while to adjust to this new identity, but I’m kind of grateful for it.

Hope shimmered in his eyes.Really? You don’t mind it?

No.Her answer was quick, but it was honest.It’s actually kind of nice to know there’s a wolf lurking inside me if I ever need it.

Never a bad thing to be carrying around,he agreed.Robin, I know things have been strange lately, but I’d like to take you out again. In human form.

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