Chapter 7

THERESA

The excitement in the air was palpable. The whole pack had gathered on the airplane runway. This was the one part of the pack that was consistently plowed so that we’d continue to receive food and supplies throughout the harsh winters after we gave up on plowing everything else, especially the roads that lead to the main highway. It was how I was able to get back and forth from school during the holidays.

Full moon runs were a long-time tradition of our pack’s and one of my favorite celebrations during the long, cold, sunless winters. Even when seasonal depression tried to sink its way into my bones and pull my spirit away, these runs tended to give me the adrenaline I needed to keep going. There was something magical about an entire community coming together to expel all their energy in the wilderness, and then subsequently feast together on the kill we’d contributed to the celebration. My heart was full of gratitude in knowing that no matter how tough things got, this pack would always have each other’s back.

I spotted my friends in the crowd and pushed through to make my way over, simultaneously staying aware of my surroundings. I knew he was here, and the last thing I wanted was to have to interact with him. During the past few months in school, I’d done so much work to find acceptance in the situation and learn to move forward. But I knew I was still on thin ice. Seeing and interacting with him could easily form cracks in the delicate, newly formed ground I was standing on. No, it was best I stayed away. What was done was done, and I couldn’t change anything now.

“Hey, girl!” Sophia, one of my closest friends from forever waved me over. A balaclava covered her naturally thick and voluminous curly blonde hair and she donned a snow suit that would be easy to zip off for the run, similar to what many others were wearing. It was definitely a balancing act to find something that would keep us warm in our human forms, but easy to slip off when shifting.

I was about a yard from reaching my destination when I felt a firm grip on my shoulder. I instantly turned to come face to face… well, face to ski mask with my mom.

“Are you trying to rob a bank or something?” I tried to joke with her.

“Come,” she responded, not even acknowledging it, grasping my wrist and pulling me along. My mom may have been a petite lady, but she definitely wasn’t weak. She fought every lump, wrinkle, and sag like she was at war with her mortal enemy, and was no stranger to the gym.

Within seconds, she planted me right in front of Alpha Nikolai. Okay, let’s be honest. He was hot! Like really really hot. It was rare that I felt any attraction to anyone. I mean, sure, I’d had crushes in the past. But that crazy, lustful, need to get my pants off right now feeling? I thought it had to be made up in books and movies. Because I’d never felt that with anyone, at least not when first meeting them. I Googled it once out of curiosity. I knew I wasn’t demisexual, because I did feel solely physical attraction sometimes, and I was certain I’d never be able to date someone based on personality alone. There were tons of people I enjoyed being around with amazing personalities, but I didn’t feel attracted to them. After my long search, I finally settled on graysexual. It was kind of asexusal, but not really. It was the best I could come up with if I could label myself. And I wasn’t even sure that label was quite right.

But this man? Holy wow.

His scent hit me first—musky, raw, undeniably masculine, and far too many pheromones. Like a good version of a man’s locker room. Goddess, that sounded so wrong, but it made sense in my head. It shouldn’t have stood out among the chaos of scents around me, but it did. 

My heart thudded and heat crept up my neck. He was massive, casting a shadow over my mom and me in the moonlight. Under all his winter layers, I knew he was built like he could uproot an entire massive tree.

I looked up into his silver eyes—yes, definitely silver, not grey—and I sensed a deep sadness emulate from him. Granted, I was a pretty empathetic person, and great at reading facial expressions. But this was different. It was almost as if I were feeling my own emotions, but they were definitely his. How strange!

“Nikolai! You’ve met my daughter, Theresa, right?” My mom pushed me forward. “I’d like you to take her on the run tonight. You just never know what’s out there in the dark wilderness. It would be good for her to have an alpha watching out for her while her brother is out of town and her father is preoccupied leading the run.”

He looked me up and down, and didn’t say anything.

“You’ll do this favor for me, won’t you, Alpha?” My mom crossed her arms and stared him down. Although she was shorter than me, my mom knew how to intimidate.

“She seems capable of taking care of herself,” he finally replied.

“I can just run with my frie—” I started, gathering that he was not a fan of the idea.

“Hush, Theresa,” my mom cut me off. “As a mother, I worry about my pups, especially my daughter. You’ll understand when you have your own one day. Now, come, Alpha, take her with you. After all, we’ve done so much for your pack. What is this small favor in comparison?”

It was clearly difficult to argue with that. I could sense him weighing the options in his mind. But Julia knew what she was doing.

“Of course, Luna Yulia. I will do this favor,” he finally responded, and I could tell it was hard to grit out each word. He pressed his lips together in resignation, and then forced the corners of his mouth into a half smile.