Page 33 of The Sacred Wolf

“Yeah. Both of us.” He sniffed as if he’d been crying. “We’re a package deal.”

I pressed one hand to my throbbing forehead. “What did she say?”

“Um… not a lot? She was obviously pretty in shock, and I had to roll out like every inside joke we’ve ever shared to convince her it wasn’t a hoax.” He paused. “She’s okay, Elyse. A little scared of you though. And she doesn’t know I’m a shifter yet, of course.”

I bit my lip, tears threatening to boil over. Jayla. Afraid of me.

“Elyse, you’ll ruin your lipstick,” Ruby protested and then stopped, probably seeing the look on my face. “Are you okay?” she mouthed.

I nodded. “Evan, maybe I shouldn’t go. Or I should go with you but not get out of the car. You could gauge if she’s ready for all this. I mean, it’s a lot, even for us. I wouldn’t want to see me if I were in her shoes.”

Ruby frowned at me in the mirror and clucked her tongue. I ignored her always-on cheerleader mode. Besides, I’d spoken my truth. If the roles were reversed, I couldn’t imagine wanting to see the person whose stupid secrets had cost me one of my dearest friends. And probably given me PTSD at the same time.

It wasn’t your fault the humans attacked, my wolf reminded me.

Oh no? Remember who drew their attention in the first place?

Kiana. It’s not your fault you share a face… and wear it better.

“She wants to see you, Elyse,” Evan cajoled. “I promise. I told her I’d be right there, and that I knew you were safe, that you were still our friend. I even told her to try to imagine what it had been like to be you all those years, having to hide who you were from the people closest to you. Like I did.”

Wow.

Tears pricked at my eyes. I’d never thought of it that way.

I didn’t deserve him.

“It’s not the same, Evan.”

“Sure it is, Elyse. Neither of us can change who we are, and half the world doesn’t want us. Believe me, it’s why becoming a shifter overnight hasn’t been that strange. I’ve got plenty of practice hiding…and fighting.”

The tears finally broke their bonds and slid down my cheeks, taking half an hour of Ruby’s hard work with them. She handed me a tissue without saying a word. I knew she wouldn’t chide me for mussing her art.

“I’m coming to get you,” Evan said. “Don’t make me throw you over my shoulder and tell everyone I’ve claimed you, starting with my mother—”

“Okay, okay.” I snort-laughed, dabbing my cheeks. “Just give me a little bit. Ruby has to start all over now.”

“Ruby? Why do you need Ruby to see Jayla?” Evan gasped. “Oh, my Gods. Do you have a crush on Jayla? I knew it. Y’all were always vibing with that junk food bant—”

“No!” I snorted again, and Ruby looked pained. “Stop! I just want to look…”

“Human?” I could practically hear his eyebrows lifting. “Newsflash, honey, you always look human. Except when you don’t. So just wash it off and get your fine ass out here. I’m almost to your door.”

“Evan, no,” I whined as Ruby took back the tissue and began blotting away her damaged artwork herself. “I have to make a good impression.”

“Why???” His voice echoed twice, once inside the phone and once right outside my door. “We’re just going to cry when we get there and probably never stop.”

Ruby and I looked at each other. She nodded in defeat and stepped back for me to rise. With a quick promise to do better for her next time, I hopped into the booties Ruby picked out for me and threw open the door. Evan gave me a once over and wolf-whistled, which was obnoxious, but it never got old seeing him in the hall.

Without a word, he grabbed my hand and dragged me down the long narrow hall toward the elevator, so fast I could barely keep up in my unfamiliar footwear. Halfway there, he started laughing for no apparent reason, and a smile split my cheeks, knowing we were both thinking about that scene in Titanic where Jack and Rose run through the halls of the ship after he draws her in nothing but that big blue diamond.

We skidded to a stop in front of the shiny metal doors, and Evan lurched forward, pressing his whole hand to the down button. Once, twice, three times… I grabbed his wrist to stop him before he broke the damn elevator and trapped someone inside. And so it was that when the doors abruptly home, Sebastian and Kenzo caught us in a double hand-hold, as if we were practicing our mating ceremony vows.

“Oh!” I startled, jumping back, but Evan held on tight, flailing our arms between us like jump ropes.

"Girl, can I borrow those shoes?!” He screamed. “Let me put those on right now!”

He dropped my hands and bent over as if he were going to steal the booties off my feet. It was… overkill. Sebastian’s eyes darkened like clouds rolling in from the ocean, his anger lashing my shores. And I realized then that the more Sebastian performed stereotypical gayness for him, the more my movie-loving beau saw right through his terrible acting. He thought Evan was pretending in order to cover up his blossoming heterosexuality.

---