sighed out loud, holding on to the warm glow. A dream shouldn’t be the best sex she’d ever had, but it was. They did it again and again, and each time, he took her breath away.
Kyle. A lover, not just a friend.
The feeling lasted even after she showered, dressed, and tentatively pulled the front door open. She breathed deeply, and there it was: a promise, hanging in the air. A promise that somehow, everything would be all right. She found herself sinking down on the mat in front of the door. The spot seemed ridiculously cozy, perfect for hugging her knees and soaking in the sun.
She was just drifting off into another sizzling dream when Tina came up and shattered the bubble.
“Morning!”
“Morning,” Stef mumbled, wishing it was Kyle there. Where was he anyway? What fantasies were playing in his mind?
“How about breakfast?” Tina offered, leading her away.
She reluctantly shook off the fantasy. At least her blissful morning made up for a miserable night.
There were an awful lot of paw prints around the bungalow, she noticed. They formed a track, like the kind left behind by an old-fashioned pony ride that went around and around. Which didn’t bother her in itself—in fact, something about it set off an inner glow. But the track was like a moat, and the minute she crossed it, the world came crashing back in.
Wolves. Shifters. Mates. A world she wanted no part of.
“So, I wanted to show you the paddocks…”
Tina was either oblivious or pretending to be because she took off on a post-breakfast tour to every corner of the ranch, from the barns to the irrigation channels and the schoolhouse. Stef dragged her heels the whole time. She didn’t want views or facts or introductions. She wanted…Kyle.
His name popped right into her mind. He hadn’t left, had he? The thought had her nostrils flaring, desperate to locate him. And they did—he was out there somewhere, not far away.
For a warm instant, she felt better, but then it hit her. Jesus, it was really happening. She was turning into a wolf, sniffing the air. Soon she’d be down on all fours, scratching an ear with her back foot and peeing on bushes to mark her turf. A line of sweat broke out along her forehead as she fisted her hands in her shirt.
His shirt.
She pulled the collar up to her nose and took a deep breath of it.
“How are you doing?” Tina asked.
“Fine,” she blurted, pretending to study the greenhouse. The one around the back, full of rich colors that contrasted with the dustier desert hues. But there was beauty in the open landscape, too. Just a subtler one. The desert was like Kyle: bristly and rough on the outside, contemplative and quiet inside. Full of hidden secrets, like the wrinkles in the hills.
“And over here we have the pump house…”
She made it through an endless morning and through another lunch, this time with Tina and two nice old ladies named Jean and Ruth. Stef just couldn’t picture them changing into anything but…well, nice old ladies.
“So lovely that you’ve dropped in on us,” Jean gushed, as if she really had dropped in and not been blown in by some twist of fate.
Fate brought us to him,
said a faint, scratchy voice from somewhere inside.
She looked out the window and tapped her foot against the floor. Where was he?
“And how long will you stay with us?” Ruth asked, her face bright.
Stef looked at Tina, and Tina looked at the floor.
“Um…I’m not quite sure.”
The old ladies didn’t miss a beat. “And you’re an old friend of Kyle’s! Isn’t that sweet.”
Sweet, like his kiss. Like his soft touch on her back when she needed it most. Like the little warble in his voice when he said her name.
“Such a nice young man,” Ruth nodded.
“Reminds me of that Baker boy, don’t you agree, Ruth?” Jean winked.
Tina cleared her throat sharply, and they went back to stirring their tea.
Yes, they really were nice, those two. If they shifted into anything, it might be a
Kyle. A lover, not just a friend.
The feeling lasted even after she showered, dressed, and tentatively pulled the front door open. She breathed deeply, and there it was: a promise, hanging in the air. A promise that somehow, everything would be all right. She found herself sinking down on the mat in front of the door. The spot seemed ridiculously cozy, perfect for hugging her knees and soaking in the sun.
She was just drifting off into another sizzling dream when Tina came up and shattered the bubble.
“Morning!”
“Morning,” Stef mumbled, wishing it was Kyle there. Where was he anyway? What fantasies were playing in his mind?
“How about breakfast?” Tina offered, leading her away.
She reluctantly shook off the fantasy. At least her blissful morning made up for a miserable night.
There were an awful lot of paw prints around the bungalow, she noticed. They formed a track, like the kind left behind by an old-fashioned pony ride that went around and around. Which didn’t bother her in itself—in fact, something about it set off an inner glow. But the track was like a moat, and the minute she crossed it, the world came crashing back in.
Wolves. Shifters. Mates. A world she wanted no part of.
“So, I wanted to show you the paddocks…”
Tina was either oblivious or pretending to be because she took off on a post-breakfast tour to every corner of the ranch, from the barns to the irrigation channels and the schoolhouse. Stef dragged her heels the whole time. She didn’t want views or facts or introductions. She wanted…Kyle.
His name popped right into her mind. He hadn’t left, had he? The thought had her nostrils flaring, desperate to locate him. And they did—he was out there somewhere, not far away.
For a warm instant, she felt better, but then it hit her. Jesus, it was really happening. She was turning into a wolf, sniffing the air. Soon she’d be down on all fours, scratching an ear with her back foot and peeing on bushes to mark her turf. A line of sweat broke out along her forehead as she fisted her hands in her shirt.
His shirt.
She pulled the collar up to her nose and took a deep breath of it.
“How are you doing?” Tina asked.
“Fine,” she blurted, pretending to study the greenhouse. The one around the back, full of rich colors that contrasted with the dustier desert hues. But there was beauty in the open landscape, too. Just a subtler one. The desert was like Kyle: bristly and rough on the outside, contemplative and quiet inside. Full of hidden secrets, like the wrinkles in the hills.
“And over here we have the pump house…”
She made it through an endless morning and through another lunch, this time with Tina and two nice old ladies named Jean and Ruth. Stef just couldn’t picture them changing into anything but…well, nice old ladies.
“So lovely that you’ve dropped in on us,” Jean gushed, as if she really had dropped in and not been blown in by some twist of fate.
Fate brought us to him,
said a faint, scratchy voice from somewhere inside.
She looked out the window and tapped her foot against the floor. Where was he?
“And how long will you stay with us?” Ruth asked, her face bright.
Stef looked at Tina, and Tina looked at the floor.
“Um…I’m not quite sure.”
The old ladies didn’t miss a beat. “And you’re an old friend of Kyle’s! Isn’t that sweet.”
Sweet, like his kiss. Like his soft touch on her back when she needed it most. Like the little warble in his voice when he said her name.
“Such a nice young man,” Ruth nodded.
“Reminds me of that Baker boy, don’t you agree, Ruth?” Jean winked.
Tina cleared her throat sharply, and they went back to stirring their tea.
Yes, they really were nice, those two. If they shifted into anything, it might be a
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