Page 6 of Wolf's Midlife Bite

“He’s at it again.”

Brody yanked his sketchbook out of the way just before Max could snag it. “Selene’s blood, what the hell do you want from me?”

“An opinion,” Max growled. “We asked you who you thought would be a good third, and you didn’t answer.”

“That’s because I don’t have shit to say about it.” With a sigh, Brody flipped his sketchbook shut and tucked his pencil into the binding. He eyed his two older brothers. Rex had always been a standout guy, the kind who was admired by everyone because of his position in the family and the pack. He had a temper just like any of them, but he’d quickly built himself a reputation as a credible, stable leader. He even owned a rock club to give some of his pack members jobs and a fun place to hang out. Talk about a guy who contributed his entire self to the Glenwoods.

Then there was Max, the pack’s beta. He was the strong and silent type, but their parents had fallen all over him when he’d become a father. It didn’t matter that Max was a single dad; he’d produced a Glenwood heir. Hunter was a great kid, and at seventeen, he was becoming more and more active in the pack. Max got all the credit for that, of course.

It wasn’t any different now than when they were kids. Max had been right about that. Rex and Max were the big brothers who could do nothing wrong, and Brody had to be content to slink along in their shadows. He’d been left out of things when they were kids because he was ‘too young,’ which made him feel too far behind to catch up. He’d gotten involved in his own thing, and he’d made himself a successful career out of it. Most of the time, they were content to leave it at that.

So why the hell were they asking his opinion now?

“You’ve got to havesomeidea,” Rex insisted.

“I don’t know. Why don’t you put everyone’s name in a hat and just draw one out?” Brody tucked his book under his arm and stood up.

“Do you really not care at all?” Max asked.

He didn’t want to explain himself, but he could see how it looked. “I’m just not into politics. I care about the pack and the fact that it’s run well, but that’s about it. If Dave had the third position out of some obligation, then I’m sure someone else fits the bill just as well. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got something I need to do.”

He made it out of the basement and up onto the first floor of the packhouse before either of his brothers had a chance to argue with him. He grabbed his keys off the kitchen counter and headed out to the garage. His Harley was there waiting for him, reminding him not only of how nice the weather was today but also the fact that it would be cold and rainy again soon enough. The power of the engine beneath him was just what he needed. The motorcycle moved quickly and smoothly underneath him, rounding curves with little more than a thought as the wind rippled through his hair. He pulled in a deep breath and let it go slowly, reveling in the freedom that came with traveling this way. It was almost as good as when he could let his wolf out and take off through the woods.

But as good as his animal form felt, it wouldn’t exactly do for this errand. Brody hadn’t spent much time in this part of Eugene, but he easily found the parking lot of a shopping complex with a sandwich shop, a shipping store, and several other small mom-and-pop establishments. In a new building sitting out in front of them all was Watson Dentistry. It was hard to miss, considering the massive wooden sign out front. A small electronic billboard had been mounted onto the side of the building itself, flashing photos of the doctor with his own megawatt smile and all the reasons why someone should schedule their appointment with Watson Dentistry today. The sleek, black BMW parked in the reserved spot showed that plenty of people did just that. Brody noted the license plate: 230 DOC.What a douche.

He wasn’t in the mood for corny jokes. His wolf was already clawing to get out, and he hadn’t even gone into the building yet. Robin was there, and his body knew it. He pulled in another deep breath to control it, but it wasn’t the same relief he’d gotten while on his bike. She was too close now.

Grinding his jaw, he opened the front door and stepped inside. A woman with a pert nose and curly hair piled on top of her head looked up at him over her wireframes and smiled. “Hello! Can I help you?”

“Yeah. I’d like to make an appointment with Robin.” Brody leaned an elbow on the counter. He’d really only intended to check the place out, to see where this mysterious woman who’d so thoroughly enraptured him the other day worked. It would’ve been just as easy to call to make the appointment. Hell, he probably could’ve gone online and scheduled something there. But coming in meant there was a chance he’d actually see her again. He glanced around the office space through the window that looked out over the waiting room, but there was no sign of Robin.

The receptionist flicked her fingers over the keyboard of her computer. “So, you’d like to schedule a cleaning?”

“Um, no. There’s really just a tooth that I need to have looked at.” That was the excuse he’d given her at the shop, so he needed to stick with it.

“Ah, so you’ll want to see Dr. Watson then.” Her fingers flew over the keyboard once again.

“No.” He thought about the man he’d seen on the electronic billboard on the side of the building and grimaced. “No, I really just want to see Robin.”

The woman wore a nametag that said ‘Maggie’ in bold letters with a smiley face sticker after it. Maggie looked up at him. “Robin is a hygienist. You’ll have to schedule a cleaning to be seen by her. She can take a look at the tooth, but Dr. Watson is the one who will actually need to diagnose the problem. I could schedule you for a cleaning with Robin, and Dr. Watson will stop in for your exam.”

Tension rippled through his body. He hadn’t thought this through, and now he was stuck. Hell. Whatever. As long as it meant he had a chance to see Robin again, then it didn’t really matter. “Sure. That’d be fine.”

“Are you a new patient?” Maggie asked, clacking away.

“Yes.” And then he had to wonder if Robin had been kidding or not when she’d said they were usually booked two months in advance. If that was the case, this would be one hell of a long game to play, one he wasn’t sure his wolf would tolerate for long.

Even now, as he waited for Maggie to look through the calendar, he could feel his heartbeat ramp up, a high and thready rhythm. His hearing sharpened, picking up the murmurs of the office staff as they went about their jobs, the whir of the machinery, the splash of water. He smelled the fear that a patient in a nearby exam room was exuding, tampered by the harsh scents of disinfectant and bubble gum toothpaste. Somewhere in all of that, he knew he could find Robin. Hell, if he’d been on four legs he could probably go straight to her, just following the scent of peaches.

“It looks like we actually have an opening next week,” Maggie chirped, interrupting his thoughts. “Normally, we have a much longer wait time, but we had a cancellation, so I can squeeze you in if you’re good with two o’clock on Thursday.”

“That’s fine.” He wanted to leap over the counter and type it in for her, far too eager for this chance to see her. It wasn’t like she’d be returning to the tattoo shop anytime soon since she’d gotten that shitty job covered up and hadn’t asked about any future pieces. He’d gladly take two o’clock on Thursday.

“And your name, please?”

His impatience was killing him, and he was fully aware that he’d roped himself into this. He rattled off his information as quickly as possible.

Maggie wrote his appointment on a card in loopy handwriting. “There you go. Two on Thursday, with Robin and Dr. Watson.” She gave him a coy look as she handed it up to him, her grin a little more than just the pleasant smile that customer service required.

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