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I nod.
“I’m sure she didn’t mean it.”
“Doesn’t matter,” I mumble bitterly.
Turning away again, I stride forward a few paces before dipping off the path, reaching behind my back to grab onto my t-shirt and shucking it off overhead. I toss it down on the large trunk of a fallen tree and start toeing off my shoes when Avery’s shirt lands on the trunk beside my own.
“What are you doing?” I snarl, whipping my head around to face her.
“Coming with you,” she replies nonchalantly.
“I want to be alone.”
Avery shrugs a shoulder. “Then let’s be alone together.”
I narrow my eyes on her, searching her face. “Why?”
Her expression softens as she takes a step toward me, setting her hand on my arm again and staring into my eyes. “Because I’m your sister, and I know when you need me.”
I grunt, giving her a curt nod.
It’s as good of an admission as she’ll get from me, because damnit, she’s right. Avery’s always fucking right these days.
The two of us undress in silence, leaving our clothes piled neatly on the overturned tree and averting our eyes from one another’s naked forms. Nudity is accepted in shifter culture, but it’s not like I want to see my sister’s bits if I can help it. Then we both call our wolves forward, bones popping and rearranging and the air shimmering around us as we take on our animal forms- a matching pair of silver wolves.
My own wolf is larger, but the similarities between us are still pretty damn apparent as we shake out our fur and bound away from the complex, heading deeper into the forest. With the earth under my paws and my wolf taking the lead, I can already feel the tension slipping from my muscles. Too bad I know it’s only a temporary fix.
The Stillwater Tap is packed for ladies’ night. It’s a weekly event that always draws a huge crowd, and ironically, even though it’s dubbed asladies’night, it’s always a total sausage fest. Females drink for free, so dudes flock to the place to sniff around the she-wolves, hoping the complimentary alcohol will increase their chances for an easy hookup.
My friends and I claim a huge table near the bar, the top of it already crowded with empty beer bottles and shot glasses. I don’t typically drink this much, but tonight, I’m aiming to get drunk enough to forget for a few hours.
Too bad the person I’m trying to forget is seated across the table from me.
I should’ve known Sloane would tag along with Avery and Lo. She keeps throwing me looks, but I’ve been dodging every one of them, eyes flickering away the moment hers meet mine. The run with Avery this afternoon helped me clear my head, but I’m still all fucked up when it comes to my ex, especially after learning that she was involved with someone else.
It was easy to ignore the idea of her being with anyone else when I didn’t have a name to put to it.
FuckingGarrett. What kind of a name is that, anyways?
I’ll bet he has a small dick.
I throw back another shot of cinnamon whiskey, the liquor burning my throat the whole way down. I don’t know why Ares is obsessed with drinking this stuff, but I’ve gotta admit, after the number of shots I’ve had, it’s not half bad. I’ll probably be breathing fire tomorrow, but that’s a problem for sober Madd.
“Another round?” I ask, slamming my empty shot glass back onto the table.
“Fuck yeah!” Ares whoops. “Fun Madd is out tonight!”
I furrow my brow, frowning. “I’m always fun.”
Iver laughs and claps me on the shoulder. “Yeah, that look on your face justscreamsfun, bro.”
Everyone else laughs at my expense as I push up from the table, a little wobbly on my feet as the liquor seems to hit me all at once.
Shifters metabolize alcohol quickly, so it takes us a lot to get drunk… and judging by my poor coordination right now, I’ve probably had enough to drown a sailor. Still, I head for the bar, signaling to the server for another round of shots for me and my friends.
“So what’d I do to earn the cold shoulder this time?”
I whip my head around to see Sloane leaning an elbow on the bar top beside me, batting those long lashes of hers and twirling a dark curl around her finger.
