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She said, “He told me he loved being a wolf, that this was who he was, but he wanted to be a man too. To be with me, to have a family.”

She shrugged, “There are two sides to him, I had to accept that. But it is easier said than done.”

“But did you?”

She nodded. “Sometimes, it’s hard. I don’t know what he gets up to when he is a wolf and he doesn’t either. His mind is animal then, not human. I saw him once, in the forest… I had gone looking for him because one of the girls was sick and for a moment, I thought he was going to attack me…”

“But he didn’t?”

She shook her head. “No…But there was a moment, when I wasn’t so sure…”

The door opened and Diran came in. He was a tall, powerfully built man with a shaggy beard and warm, brown eyes.

Alsha introduced us and he shook my hand.

“Good grip,” he said, looking me in the eye.

I had not met him before, but I liked him.

“I’ve come to ask Alsha’s advice about being with someone… a bit different.”

His eyes widened. “Oh,” he said. “A shifter?

“No…”

Seeing me hesitate, he said, “I’m going to wash up, give you girls time to catch up.”

I waited until he was gone, then I said, “It’s a vampire.”

Alsha’s face went white.

“A vampire,” she whispered.

“Yes.”

She blinked a few times, then fetched our tea, it was strong and sweet and gave us something else to focus on for a few minutes.

“The wolves and the vampires are natural enemies,” she said, casting a nervous glance in the direction of her room, where Diran had gone off to. “In fact, the vampiresare enemies to most.”

I nodded.

“What about you,” I asked. “What do you think about them?”

“It’s not about what I think,” she said, gently taking my hand. “It’s about what you think and feel. Do you like him? Is he good to you? Can you trust him?”

“I don’t know,” I said, honestly. “I was raised to hate them and it’s hard for me to change that view. I feel so conflicted…”

“Who is he?” Diran had appeared behind us, his voice was loud and hard.

Alsha got up, tried to calm her husband down. “Hang on…”

“No! I demand to know his name!”

He had a temper and he was strong but I could take him down in a fight. Wolves were instinctual but not particularly clever fighters.

“It’s better if I go,” I said, quietly to Alsha. “Thanks for the tea.”

I looked him in the eye, dared him to make a move towards me, but he decided to back down and I left. Alsha came running after me.