Page 30 of Big Bad Wolf

“Shit.” He let out a long sigh, still not bothering to sit up or cover any part of his very distracting anatomy. His gaze stayed locked on Ruby’s, and she gripped the windowsill for dear life, glad it stood as a barrier between them. She needed as many shields as she could get right now.

Lena, however, had no such qualms. She opened the side door and tossed him one of the old picnic blankets they kept stacked by the door. He caught it with his good arm and pulled it over his lap, slowly working his way to a seat.

“Sorry. Uh … I’ll get out of your hair.”

Ruby let out a strangled laugh and Lena looked at her as though she’d lost her mind. She probably had. “You’re not going anywhere.” She joined her sister in the doorway.

Rafe raised an eyebrow.

“I have questions.”

“Right, me too,” Lena said, her gaze flicking between Ruby and Rafe like she had questions for both of them. “But I will go grab you some clothes first.” Lena hurried into the house, glancing behind her to give Ruby a look. And it was so reminiscent of the way Aunt Millie used to look at her when she’d get into trouble as a kid that she almost laughed.

She was definitely in trouble.

She inched her way into the small space and Rafe’s mouth tipped into a smile. He wrapped the blanket more firmly around his waist and maneuvered gingerly into an old patio chair.

“What the hell is going on?” she hissed as soon as Lena was out of earshot. “Last night I dragged a wolf in here, a wolf with your exact injury, and now…” She waved a hand in the general direction of all his muscle-y nakedness.

Rafe studied her, his silver gaze lingering on her bare feet. She tucked one under the other, like she could hide them. He raised his eyes back to hers and sighed.

“That was me.”

“That was you? That wolf?”

“Yes.”

Ruby pinched herself hard under the arm. “Ow, damn it.”

“Why did you do that?”

“Just making sure.” She rubbed her arm, ignoring the small smile dancing around Rafe’s lips. “So, the wolf was you and this is you, so that makes you…” She couldn’t bring herself to say it. It was too absurd.

“That makes me a werewolf.” He winced a little at the word as though the admission hurt him, but he still held her gaze.

“Jesus Christ.”

His laugh sounded so similar to the wolf sound he’d made last night she nearly tipped over. She ran her hands through her hair, combing it with her fingers and then twisting it into a knot. Rafe watched every movement like she was the most interesting thing he’d ever seen. Goosebumps broke out across her skin and heat pooled in her belly.

“Here you go.” Lena’s voice broke through the sudden tension in the room. She tossed Rafe a pair of sweatpants and a T-shirt, apparently not wanting to get close enough to him to hand them over. They must have been left over from Lena’s last boyfriend. Unfortunately, she’d already gotten to them with her latest crafting hobby, and the T-shirt was now covered in a very bold tie-dye pattern and a hole in the knee of the sweats had been patched with some vibrantly colored embroidery floss.

Even in all the chaos Ruby couldn’t wait to see Rafe in this ensemble.

Lena’s gaze flicked between them. “I’m going to make some coffee. Anyone want some?”

“Yes. A lot.” Ruby said with a nod.

Rafe opened his mouth, but Ruby didn’t give him a chance to answer.

“He’ll take a cup too. We still have things to discuss.”

Rafe gave Lena a sheepish smile. “I’m Rafe, by the way. Thanks for the clothes.”

“Lena. Nice to meet you.” That was her sister, polite in even the most bizarre circumstances. She gave Ruby another questioning look before wandering back into the kitchen, but Ruby had no answers for her at the moment. At least none that didn’t make her sound like a lunatic.

She swung her gaze back to Rafe and struggled with what to say next.

Where should she even begin?