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Well, I will just have to make sure not to morph into a wolf or run off, I think to myself dryly.
When I speak, my voice is firm. “Yeah, I’m in.”
* * *
Layla
* * *
The guys text their families, letting them know they’re staying late at my house, and we go back to studying. At first I think it’s super cool of their parents to not care, then I realize we’re all technically adults. Despite the many ways my years on the streets instantly aged me, there are some things about me that are apparently stunted. Now that I live in a house with a family again—sort of—I’m right back to a fourteen-year-old girl, believing I’ll be told no when I ask to do anything, and have a curfew before the sun goes down.
Of course, I know now why my mom did a lot of those things. Roxanne never really pushed a curfew, aside from forbidding me to go to West Hollywood again, but then again, I never really asked to go out or stay out late. I wasn’t in school making friends, and I had little interest in meeting people online, so I just focused on my rehab and prep work for the GED, and that was pretty much it.
Now I still have to remind myself that I’m an adult and can do whatever I want.
Like having three boys in my room past midnight. Even the thought of it makes my heart race, let alone the idea that it’s these three boys. Darkly sexy Milo, gorgeous but shy Landon, and all-American football-playing Jared.
No one comes to check on us, or suggest that it’s long past time the boys should go home.
My eyelids grow heavy, and I allow them to droop for longer periods of time.
Once again, as if reading my mind, Milo speaks. “I think I’m tapped out on the studying, guys. Why don’t we watch a movie or something?”
Landon and Jared agree, stretching, and relief fills my chest as I close my book. “That sounds like a great idea.” I fetch some drinks and snacks from my cupboard, and when I return to the suite, they’ve rearranged the furniture. They moved aside the coffee table, and Landon sits on the floor at Jared’s feet. Milo is on the opposite end of the small sofa, leaving a spot in the middle for me.
Heat floods my cheeks, but I take my designated spot and soak in the warmth of being surrounded by my super-close new friends. They settle in around me, and I end up cross-legged with Landon resting his head against my shins. Milo and Jared’s hips press against mine, but rather than feeling crowded, I feel… comforted. We choose a movie on Netflix and enjoy the respite from school work.
Time passes quickly, and before I know it Milo is hitting pause on the TV. “It’s almost midnight. Are you guys ready?” His serious gaze travels to Landon, then to Jared, and finally to me.
The other guys look extremely nervous, which surprises me. I try to reassure them. “Come on guys, it’s just some wolves. I’m sure with so many of us, we have nothing to worry about. Let’s do this!”
When we emerge from my suite, the hallway lights are all off, but with four cellphone flashlights, it might as well be fully lit. As if by telepathy, we all head toward the stairs instead of the tiny elevator, and even my clumsy footsteps are quiet as we descend the curving staircase.
We reach the bottom and I head toward the front door, but Milo stops me with a gentle hand on my shoulder. “No, let’s use the back door,” he says softly. “This way.”
I follow him through the kitchen to the rear entrance, and when I check the time on my phone, it says 11:59. My heart rate has grown steadily since we left my room, and now it’s positively racing.
There’s energy in the air, like static electricity. I can feel it on my skin, the same way the close proximity to these boys felt at first. I glance between their faces, and they all look nervous, practically sick to their stomachs.
“Are you guys okay? If you’re that worried about it, we don’t have to go out,” I offer quickly. “I appreciate you being willing, but you look positively terrified.”
“It’s not that,” Milo says in a shaky voice. “Lex, we have to tell you something.”
“Now? Can’t it wait until after we see the wolves?”
He shakes his head, dark eyes gleaming in the low light pouring through the windows. “No, it can’t. Because… because wearethe wolves.”
I snort a laugh. “Haha, very funny. You’ll have to try better than that.”
“No, he’s being serious, Layla.” Landon’s lips are in a tight, hard line, and his face ghostly pale.
“There’s a lot you don’t know about this place, Layla,” Jared adds. “We don’t have much time to explain, but Dom charged us with telling you before Friday, so here goes.”
“Dom did what? Wait, is this some kind of prank?” My jaw clenches and I glare at all three of them, arms crossed. “Whatever this is, it’s not funny.”
“It’s not a prank, Layla. It’s the truth. You feel different here, right? Here in this place, in this house, in Smoky Falls, and with us?”
His words stop the angry retort on my tongue. It is almost word for word what I’ve been thinking. “Yes,” I reply slowly. “But that’s just because I’ve never had a home like this, or lived in a place like Smoky Falls.”
