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“Gimme.” I held my hand out for the brown paper bag in his hand, my stomach rumbling.
I unpacked the bag as Kyle looked over the list. He laughed. “I think that Wolf Tattoo Studio might be a bit too on-the-nose.”
“Hey, it would fit right in with The Tipsy Tavern and Moonlight Café.” I grinned as I dug into the breakfast sandwich. “I’m just trying to come up with a name for this place.”
“Let me take a look.” Kyle chuckled as he read through more of the outrageous suggestions. “What about Luna’s Ink?”
“Too pretentious.” I wrinkled my nose. “I want something that represents both me and the town.”
“Okay, how about Blackwood Tattoos?” Kyle suggested.
“Maybe,” I answered, tapping the pen against my chin. “It has potential.”
“Great. Now that you’ve got a name in mind, let’s move on to the important stuff,” he said, grinning mischievously. “Like, when are you going to give me my tattoo?” He reached out and gently stroked the heather flowers tattooed on my inner wrist. “I can’t think of a better way to honor Mom.”
“Patience, big brother,” I replied. “First, I need to get this place up and running.”
“Fine, fine,” he said, holding up his hands in mock surrender. “Just don’t forget about your favorite sibling when you’re a tattoo artist to the celebs. I’ll expect big brother special freebie rates, too.”
Our laughter echoed off the bare store walls, though mine faded quickly. As excited as I was about getting this place set up, I couldn’t help but be brought back to earth. No point in creating a business if there wasn’t a town it could cater to.
The threat of the hunters, coupled with the recent surge in hostilities and infighting among the wolf shifters in our community, made me doubt how much time I would be able to dedicate to setting up and running the studio. My time was already divided between extinguishing metaphorical fires around town and preparing the shifters for the impending battle with the hunters.
“Did you hear about Martin Greenthorne?” Kyle asked between bites of his own sandwich. “He’s pretending he almost died after Christie attacked him at the jailhouse yesterday. Of course, since he’s a shifter, he’s already healed up just fine, but the pompous ass is pretending he almost lost his life.”Kyle rolled his eyes. “He’s trying to gain sympathy points from anyone who bothers passing by his room.”
“Typical,” I said, shaking my head. “What about Christie?”
“Locked up in the town jail for inciting violence and physically assaulting her husband. She’s in a shifter-proof cell,” Kyle said, a hint of satisfaction in his voice.
I took a moment to absorb the news. “Things have really intensified with them, huh?”
“Yep, and honestly, I think Ridge should just kick them out of the pack. They’re causing so much trouble and tension between the packs taking refuge here.” The muscles in Kyle’s jaw went tight.
“Seems someone’s still mad at them for how they’ve treated Audrey,” I replied, raising an eyebrow.
Kyle didn’t deny it, and his cheeks flushed slightly. “Well, yeah. They’ve been nothing but trouble since I got here. I don’t like the way they treat people, especially Audrey.”
“Neither do I.” I thought about their disdainful attitude toward my friend. “But we can’t let them get under our skin. We have more important things to focus on. This place is my home now, and I’ll do whatever it takes to protect it.”
His expression turned serious. “Good. Just remember to be careful, especially with Jaxon Hyde around. You don’t know what his intentions are. We don’t need another William situation on our hands, having someone else tracking you down all over the country, to do who the fuck knows what.”
“I know.” My voice softened as I began thinking again about my biological father and the uncertainty that surrounded him. It was time to broach a subject that had been weighing on my mind. “Kyle,” I said hesitantly. “I need to talk to you about something.”
He looked up from my notebook and raised an eyebrow in response. “Sure, what’s up?” he asked, concern etched on his face.
“Jaxon Hyde.” I watched as Kyle’s eyes narrowed at the mention of my biological father. “I don’t think he killed Mom.”
“Really?” Kyle asked skeptically. “Why do you say that?”
“Because,” I spoke slowly, gathering my thoughts. “He seemed genuinely upset about her death. I mean, really heartbroken. And I…look, I know I don’t know him well, but I can’t shake the feeling that he didn’t do it.”
“Or he could be a great actor, and you’ve fallen for his shit,” Kyle answered, his jaw clenching. “For all you know, he might have sent the Everwood Pack wolf that killed her. The one William killed shortly after Mom’s death.”
“Maybe.” I slowly crumpled the brown bag. “But I don’t think so. My inner wolf isn’t threatened by Jaxon. In fact, she was perfectly calm around him. And I’ve learned to trust her instincts.”
Kyle frowned. “How can you say that? You’re still getting used to the whole shifter thing, aren’t you? Just a few months ago, you thought your wolf was some kind of monster.”
“True,” I agreed with a nod, keeping my calm. “But I’m learning. My wolf is here to protect me, and I trust her judgment.”
