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The moment she mentioned breakfast, my stomach began to rumble. She chuckled at me as she collected our cups from the table.
I smelled Bryn the moment I stepped into the mess hall, her sweet, earthy scent overpowering me. For the second time that morning, I remembered flashes of my dream, the way her gray-blue eyes looked up at me, wide and wanting, and the way I made her scream my name in ecstasy as she gripped the bed sheets in her hands. I had to physically shake away those thoughts.
As I scanned the room, I watched her bring the last of the food out from the kitchen and to the buffet tables. Against my better judgment, I started to approach her.
I wasn’t sure what I’d say to her. Last night, I had demanded that she not leave Mom’s house, but she’d obviously disregarded my order. Though her disobedience ought to annoy me, I couldn’t hold on to that negativity as I watched her talk and laugh with the wolves who were getting breakfast.
Our fight last night had amounted to nothing; Bryn’s fiery temper had made me zone out and say ridiculous things, things I couldn’t quite recall after I learned of Iggy’s death. All I could remember of our argument was the sight of her full, pink lips and the way her chest rose and fell with her heavy breathing. And that outfit. Why did thinking of her legs in those stockings and the few inches of skin that weren’t hidden under her dress make my heartbeat race?
I think I would have kissed her last night if not for the timing of the attack.
I drew nearer to her, my mind still blank about what I planned to say, when Mabel and Frankie, two older female wolves, entered the mess hall carrying a large tub. Bryn stopped what she was doing and rushed to help them carry it. They smiled at her with adoration glimmering in their eyes. Immediately, my chest began to ache in that way that made me want to draw close to her, to hold her.
No longer hungry and no longer brave enough to go and talk to her, I found a place to sit and watched Bryn throughout the remainder of breakfast. She only sat down to her own food after she was sure that everyone else had plenty to eat. And once she was done, she was the first to get up and start cleaning.
The other families on cleaning duty tried to convince her not to help, but she laughed them off, and soon they were smiling at her and working together. I was amazed. Somehow, a human woman had my entire pack eating out of her hands after just over a week of interacting with them. They seemed enraptured by her.
I rested my elbows on the table and really looked at her and tried to see what they saw. Her warm chestnut hair was pulled into a messy bun at the top of her head, held in place with only a few clips. Tendrils stuck out around her face, fluttering in the wind of her graceful movements. She stopped wiping down a table and removed her gray sweatshirt, exposing an inch of her stomach as she did. She wrapped it around her waist and returned to work, the t-shirt she wore underneath clinging to her chest. My eyes moved a bit lower to where the jeans she loved to wear were practically painted to the curves of her ass and thighs.
Though Bryn was drop-dead sexy, she didn’t seem to be aware of it. She had no idea that nearly every single wolf in my pack was drooling after her. I’d even heard them talk about her during training. I had silenced that talk the moment I was aware of it, but looking at her now, I couldn’t blame them for obsessing over her.
“Hey, Night.” Tavi’s voice surprised me. She stood just behind me, her hands on her hips and a smirk on her face. “I’ve got a bone to pick with you.”
“You and everyone else.” I turned my full attention to her. “What’s up?”
“Don’t you think it’s time that Bryn became less a prisoner and more a live-in human?”
I raised a brow. I should have expected that this would be about Bryn.
“I mean, it’s just that she’s so intelligent and attentive to everyone’s needs. Mom tells me she’s doing a kick-ass job in the garden, and, I mean, everyone loves her, so by this point, keeping her on house arrest is a little unnecessary, don’t you think?”
“In your opinion, sure.”
“Aw, Night, come on.” Her voice dropped into a whine. “I’ve never asked you for a favor or anything, but Bryn is so depressed and trapped inside all the time. Couldn’t she have free rein of the compound so she can breathe a little? Please? I’ll take full responsibility for her.”
I snorted. “You can barely take care of a houseplant.”
“Night—”
I raised my hands, and she quieted. “Alright. I suppose I can ease up on her restrictions a little more.”
Tavi’s eyes brightened. “That’s great! Night, I promise you won’t regret this!”
I nodded along. I’d agreed begrudgingly since I couldn’t think of a good reason to keep tight reins on Bryn anymore. What she’d said last night about being unable to escape the camp was true; I would drop everything to track her down myself if I found out she had escaped into the forest. Keeping her bound to Mom’s cabin had been more to make sure Bryn stayed in line than anything, but now that she’d stopped trying to escape, those restrictions weren’t really necessary.
As Tavi started to ramble beside me about something or other, I caught movement out of the corner of my eye. A young pup—I thought his name might be Pax—ran in through the door. He paused near the entrance, frantically looking from left to right, and then his face lit up when he spotted what he was looking for. I watched him maneuver easily through the crowd of wolves and make a beeline for…Bryn?
The moment the boy reached her, he hugged her from behind. His little arms were just long enough to wrap around one of her thighs. At first, I wasn’t sure what to think. Could the little boy have somehow mistaken Bryn for his mother? But no, Bryn laughed as she crouched to hug him back. He cupped his hand to his mouth and whispered something in her ear. I tilted my head. If I focused on Pax, I might just get a read on what the boy was saying…
I paused. Something Tavi had said stole my focus, but I hadn’t quite heard it. Returning my full attention to her, I stopped her as she got up to leave.
“I missed that last bit,” I said. “What were you saying?
“Oh! I was talking about Jasper,” Tavi said, not missing a beat. “He’s been asking me about Bryn nonstop, and I think it’s because he has a gigantic crush on her.” She giggled.
Those words caused my wolf to growl, but Tavi, who was unaware of the bomb she’d set off, went on talking.
“Anyway, he’s a really good guy, and I think he’s maybe the only person who could treat her the way she deserves. Plus, I think they’d look really cute together—”
