Page 7 of Pack Baby for the Silver Foxes

My phone buzzed.

Damien: Where are you

Damien: I can take you to the clinic

Damien: Marli answer me

I blocked him for an hour. It should be forever, but I needed to tell him exactly what I thought of him. But for the next hour, I needed his voice out of my head and his concern off my skin.

The car pulled up with its hazards flashing. I checked the plate twice, because I’m a McCarthy after all, and kidnapping is in the family.

The driver watched me in the mirror. “Are you okay back there?”

“Yeah, I’m grand.”

“Is that a yes?”

“For now.”

He pulled into traffic. “You want the hospital?”

“The uni dorms and then this hotel, please.” I showed him the address on my phone.

His nose twitched. “Are you sure? You’ve gone the color my sister went before… Ah, you’re going into heat.”

“It’s the flu.”

“You smell.”

“It’s perfume.”

“You’re going to have alphas chasing the car.”

“Oh God. Please say anything else in your head. I’m already in panic mode.”

He turned the radio down two notches, and we headed to the dorms, where Nina stood by the roadside, my bag in her hand.

“Here,” I yelled. The car pulled over. Nina opened the door and flung the bag beside me.

“Call me when you get there.” She looked at the driver. “And I have your number.”

He pulled away.

The campus slid past the window and somewhere behind me, Damien was annoyed he’d been caught.

The first wave of heat eased and left sweat cooling at the back of my neck. I put my forehead against the cold glass.

Mary McCarthy would have called her sister, Maeve. She’d have admitted she was frightened, but Marli was independent.

“You’re fine. You can do this.” I swallowed hard.

Chapter 2

Hudson

Boston had changed less than I expected. I hadn’t decided yet whether that was comforting.

The streets still held traces of sleet, and the hotel bar still charged nineteen dollars for a mediocre whiskey.