I'm leaning against the kitchen counter in the Lowell brother's house as they cook dinner and we have, another, informal meeting. Even though Yuri is the alpha of their pack, he seems to be on a power rush lately when it comes to calling meetings. I hope this isn’t how it always is.
Dmitri stands across the room from me coating some chicken in marinade for the grill and smirks whenever he catches my eye. My stomach does that weird little flip again as I take in his broad shoulders and forest green eyes. He's as handsome as most of the other pack members are pretty, and he's my mate. God. I never thought I'd feel content thinking that. My life mate.
Yuri crosses his arms over his bare chest, his pale, toned skin flawless. Black hair falls over his shoulders and the evening sun illuminates shades of brown and red in his midnight mane. "Tomorrow. You should join the pack tomorrow, Sammy," he says with his slight Russian accent.
I open my mouth to speak, but Alexei cuts me off. "And what about the white wolf? When are we going to deal with him?" the second oldest Lowell brother asks. His dirty blonde hair is cut short, similar to Dmitri's, and his broad frame is similar as well. The strong Russian nose and rough cut of his jaw also reminds me of Dmitri- too handsome and manly to be as pretty as their other brothers.
"What’s there to deal with? If we all claim Sammy, the white wolf won't have a right," Nikolai says and brushes his dark hair off his shoulders. He looks startlingly like Yuri in every way except his eyes aren't as bright blue as his older brother’s, but more of a deep fathomless blue like the ocean.
"He never had a right since I claimed Sammy first," Dmitri says and brushes more barbecue sauce on the chicken.
Pasha, the youngest, looks up from chopping vegetables for the salad. "Shouldn't we let Sammy decide?"
For a moment, the kitchen is so quiet I swear I can hear every brother's heart beating in their chest, as well as some kids playing down the road. Everyone looks at their feet, avoiding my eyes, except Pasha. He smiles at me across the kitchen; his pale blond hair and fair skin make him stand out even more than the other Lowell brothers.
We’ve had this discussion several times. How they're overprotectiveness drove me away- although that's really only part of the story. But they did admit they needed to let me in on the decision-making, especially since I'm a werewolf now too.
"Fine. I'll join your pack tomorrow. You can all claim me or whatever. But I'll deal with the white wolf on my own."
The room erupts in a chorus of Russian and English and I only catch snippets of what's actually being said- most of it out right refusal.
"After what he did?" Yuri growls as the other brothers slowly calm down. Although everyone still bears their teeth at the absent antagonist.
"He cured me," I say simply and glance around the room. This time only Alexei, Nikolai and Pasha lower their eyes. Dmitri and Yuri both hold my steady gaze.
I can't explain it. And I know it will take them a long time to accept it, but no matter what else Caleb did I owe him my gratitude. Being wolf's bait, while exciting, burdened me more than anything else in my life. I had no choice when it came to werewolves- they all got me horny as fuck and I had the same effect on them. It made me doubt my own feelings and run away from my best friend. But now I'm free, and strangely lighter- happier- than I ever thought I could be. My parents, I think, would be proud.
Dmitri grits his teeth and I can tell he wants to say something, but Yuri speaks first. "He can still hurt you."
I bite back a sarcastic retort; I know they're concerned because they care about me. "What else is he going to do that he hasn't already done?" I ask since they know the whole truth about what happened when I was the white wolf's prisoner.
Dmitri's face flushes crimson, and he slams his fist on the counter. How can I explain? I just don't think he'd hurt me, but I doubt any of the Lowell brothers would believe that. Not after Caleb faked my death and held captive me for nearly three weeks.
"No," my lover says firmly, his face almost the same rusty red as his hair.
Every instinct I have tells me to fight back, push away. My heart pounds in my chest and blood rushes to my ears- but we can't all be the angry one. Instead, I sigh. "If you want me to join your pack you can't always tell me what to do. I get to make my own decisions. We leave Caleb alone. That's how we deal with him."
All five pack members stare at me, and I stare back. While there was a time when I would have either crumpled under their gaze or fled, now I do neither. If I’m going to be a member of this crazy Eurasian wolf pack, I have to learn to hold my ground inside it.
"Leave him alone?” Alexei balks, "what if he comes after you again?"
The same question is echoed in every Lowell brother's face. I really can't blame them. This fear they've been harboring for years- this idea that the white wolf wants to claim me- it's hard to let go. Even after I told them his true intentions.
"He no longer has a reason to come after me. His goal's complete," I say and grab the pan of chicken from the counter. "Now can we start the barbecue or what? Someone needs to explain to me how this claiming ritual goes down."
Pasha smiles and grips onto my shoulder. "I'll start the grill," he says and the other pack members follow us outside.
Looking over the golden fields of wheat toward the eastern mountains, I sigh. I hope the brothers don't mind this one last lie because I have to see Caleb before they claim me. And I know they won’t let me go if I tell them.
We feast on meat and beer and other goodies until well after the sun dips behind the mountains to the west. The sky twinkles with evening stars, lighting up the dark purple mantle. The new moon peaks from behind a brush of clouds, and I feel the tug of the wild, the urge to change, engulf my body.
Unfortunately, every Lowell brother was born a werewolf and not bitten. As far as I can tell there's a slight difference, and they don't really understand my particular control issues. I hope Caleb has some advice, at least.
I smell Yuri's sensual musk right before his hand grasps my shoulder, squeezing it gently. "We don't all have to claim you if you don't want it, Sammy," he says through tightly gritted teeth.
Glancing at him, I notice the pained expression on his face, like the look my mother got when Dmitri and I decided to cut down all her tulips and daffodils for Mother's Day bouquets.
"What makes you think I don't want it?" I don't say it just to see him squirm, although it's a bonus, but I really do want to know.
He sighs and pushes the long dark hair from his forehead, tucking it behind his ear. "I know you love our brother."
At least the darkness hides my flushed cheeks. "Does Dmitri want you to claim me?"
Yuri looks at me, his bright blue eyes shining in the shadows of the night. "He left it up to you."
A smile creeps over my lips. Even if it took them a while, at least the Lowell brothers are starting to understand the idea of personal freedom. "I think a better question is do you still want me now that I'm a werewolf?"
The alpha wolf furrows his brow. "Why wouldn't we want you, Sammy? We've always wanted you, wolf's bait or not."
My stomach flips about ten times all at once and I hope, feverishly, wolves don't have some weird heat vision I don't know about. "I already said you can claim me, didn't I? I wouldn't have said it if I didn't mean it. But I still don't know what goes on during the ritual."
Hints of his fangs glint in the darkness. "You'll have to wait until tomorrow to find out."
Anticipation gathers on my skin like static electricity, and I nod. Suddenly, tomorrow can't come fast enough.