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And she’s mine.

Ours, my wolf reminds me.

I just hope she starts trusting me soon because I’m not sure my wolf and I can hold back for much longer.

4

Elsie

I take my time in the shower, washing off the dirt and grime of the last few days. I feel terrible about sleeping in Pyrce’s bed in my dirty clothes.

I should offer to change the sheets.

I work the shampoo through my hair, closing my eyes as the hot water eases the aches and lingering soreness from my muscles. God, this feels good. I can’t remember the last time I felt this clean. Or this safe.

I smile as I rinse away the suds and step out to dry off. My backpack is waiting by the dresser, and I dig through it for the last of my clean clothes before getting dressed.

I need to do laundry.

And figure out what the hell I’m doing next.

I can’t stay here forever. A few days, that’s all. Long enough to rest and work out where I can go.

Have my parents noticed I’m gone? Do they care? Do I really want them to?

I shove the questions aside before they can drag me down and head into the hall to find Pyrce.

He’s in the kitchen, and the smell of seasoned meat hits me before I make it through the doorway. My stomach growls loudly.

“Hungry?” Pyrce asks, glancing over his shoulder at me with an easy smile.

I nod. “Starving.”

“Well, your timing is perfect. The tacos are done. Go ahead and grab a plate. Help yourself.”

I do as he says, adding three taco shells to my plate and fixing them with sour cream, lettuce, tomatoes, and cheese.

“You live here alone?” I ask as we sit down to eat.

“Yeah, just me. Well, before you.”

“Have you lived here long?”

“A few years. I grew up kind of weird. I guess you’d call it off the grid,” he explains.

“Were your parents like doomsday preppers?”

“In a way, I guess. They wanted me to be able to take care of myself.”

“Yeah, most parents see that as their job, I think. Make your kid self-sustainable. Make them successful.”

“Yeah, but I grew up alone in the middle of nowhere. In a cabin that I helped build, surrounded by gardens I maintained and harvested and woods I hunted in.”

“Sounds lonely,” I say softly.

He nods, swallowing hard. “Yeah, it was.”

“Are your parents still there? At the cabin?”