Page 21 of Someone Else's Wolf

He removed his hand quickly, his face suddenly serious. "Oh, okay, I won't tease." He'd read my discomfort quickly enough, at least. He studied me for a moment, then smiled. "I guess you're not on the menu. Don't worry about me. I'm harmless, I promise." He sat down on the edge of his bed and kicked his feet lightly. "Honestly, don't worry about Kirk, either. He's not so bad. He's super stressed out, but if you're nice to him, I'm sure he'll come around. He's convinced himself that everyone but him is here for a giant orgy, and it's freaking him out." He gave me a wink. "It's actually only some of us." Then, a quick flash of guilt crossed his handsome face. "Oh, hell. I'd better talk to Conrad." He was on his feet in an instant, fast and light-footed on his way out the door, calling, "Oh, Connie..."

Okay. Talk about a whirlwind.

I sighed and sat down on a bed to unpack my bags. It was going to be a long couple of weeks.

CHAPTER NINE

First chance I got, I called Peter.

"What is it? What's wrong?" he demanded.

"Nothing."I just wanted to hear your voice.I couldn't say that, could I? I shouldn't stick my neck out like that. Maybe he hadn't missed me at all.

"Are they treating you well?" he asked cautiously.

"Oh, yes. Everything's great."

While we took several classes a day, and there was some physical work as well, none of it was particularly strenuous. It's true we filled out multiple forms a day, evaluating the course work and our experiences, but they seemed mostly designed to give the teachers plenty of feedback rather than to trip us up or weed through the group. So I didn't mind that, even if there were a lot of open-ended questions I had no idea how to answer.

The carrots Professor Max had promised were really nice meals, plenty of downtime, and long walks in the woods. We were encouraged to be contemplative, to delve introspectively into our internal goals for this period, and things like that. I certainly enjoyed the opportunity to take long walks without some outward goal in mind. It was a beautiful area, and without the pressure to excel and outperform every other non-shifter, walking could be quite relaxing. Sometimes it felt more like a retreat than a training course. I liked that, since I'd been expecting to feel like it was a boot camp of some sort, designed to whip us into shape and weed out the weak-minded.

With lots of unscheduled time, we had a chance to really get to know each other. I hadn't met everyone yet, but I was trying to. Some came right out and told me they were (or weren't) shifters, but plenty of people liked the ambiguity, I thought. There were subtle things going on all the time, and it was a fascinating time to study human nature. But it didn't feel highly competitive, and that was amazing.

"It's a bit different. They're trying something new — mostly not wolves, either," I told Peter. I'd met a beaver shifter, two coyote shifters, a squirrel shifter and an owl shifter, as well as a fox shifter, a scrawny-looking guy it was difficult to believe was actually a wolf (since I'd met Peter, anyway), and of course my roommates, a hawk shifter and a deer shifter. There were more yet to meet, as well.

It felt too complicated to try to explain all of this over the phone, especially when I didn't know what all of the differences between this and his course were. I'd never been through the course before. So I settled on, "It's really not bad. My roommates are an interesting bunch."

That was one way to put it: wary Kirk, flirty Trevor, and grumpy Conrad. I hadn't gotten to know any of them particularly well so far, since we were mostly out and about, but they had strong personalities, that was for sure. Trevor was open about the fact that he was interested in sleeping with a variety of people, and since I wasn't on the menu, he spent his time with others. Conrad was a grumpy guy who didn't want anything to do with me (perhaps because I'd seen his humiliation), and Kirk...well. It rankled me how he'd treated me. I was pissed off with him judging me for having a wolf boyfriend.

WasPeter my boyfriend? How could I ask that, though, especially over the phone?

Peter sighed. "I hope it works out. Seems like a long time already. I miss you."

I stopped breathing, then found I was smiling broader and broader. I adjusted my grip on my phone. There; he'd been the brave one and said it. I hadn't known we both felt that way till he did. "Thanks," I said. "You too."

It made me feel off-balance in a good way, knowing it wasn't just me, this confirmation of his softness towards me. It made me feel lighter, and somehow more real.

"Everything okay at the precinct?" I asked.

"I suppose. The other day, I sat on your desk, and Guerrero gave me a look of pity." He sighed. "I don't mean to be so pathetic. I'm just used to you being here."

He gave and gave. I would be reassured for weeks by that.

Maybe it didn't matter about defining our relationship. What did labels like boyfriend and mate actually do? They described something. If the relationship was already there, surely the label didn't matter. And if it wasn't, the label sure as hell wouldn't make it true.

"Thanks." I breathed out a sigh, hoping I didn't sound like I'd been holding my breath.

"Thanks? For what? Missing you? Oh, you meant for help getting into — sure. Yeah. Not a problem." There was his old awkward self again.

I smiled. "No, I meant missing me. That's really good to hear. Because I missed you, too." It sounded inane, but those simple words were true in a way I didn't dare express any more firmly. This was going out on enough of a ledge.Don't say love — don't even think it. It's too soon!It wouldn't do.

"Oh, well. Good. Listen, I've been rethinking the whole sexting thing. They can be weirdly strict there. I'd rather not get you kicked out if it's against some rule or other."

"Okay." I'd figured he was joking about that, anyway. Cops needed to be careful.

"When you come home, I'm making you beef Wellington. And then I'll show you how much I missed you."

My toes curled. "That sounds...nice."