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The day of the full moon arrived, and Giselle was itching to get out and run. She couldn’t wait to confirm their plans with Asher. She scooted into class a few minutes early and practically pounced on the sleepy-eyed wolf when he lumbered into the room.
“I’m going to bring the pack to the cave tonight. What time do you think you’ll have your people there, and how many of your pack will be coming?”
“Not tonight, okay.” He yawned and tossed his bag on the table.
She did have her days right, right? It was the full moon, wasn’t it? She could feel the pull already. Maybe he’d forgotten what day it was. “Um... hello? This was your idea. And it’s full moon tonight. We agreed we needed to try and do it now.”
He flopped into his seat and opened up his notebook to the wolf picture he’d been working on. It had taken up the entire notebook page now, with intricately patterned trees and hidden images of other wolves looking down on the central one baying at the full moon. “We agreed to get everyone in the same place to bring out the truth.” He yawned again – more like roared by the sound of it. Was he a lion or a wolf?
“Did you wake up in another time zone or something? When better than a full moon to get the groups together?”
“Not tonight, okay? Wait until next month.”
She stifled her own frustrated growl. “Why?”
“Last night’s meeting didn’t go too well.”
“Yeah, your dad’s a dick!”
His head snapped in her direction. “He’s my father.”
“I’m sorry... for that.”
His lip twitched, and she could have sworn she saw his teeth sharpening beneath.
That didn’t stop her, though, from continuing. “Being old and an Alpha does not give anyone the right to act like he did. If you’re defending his actions, you’re no better.”
Asher’s breath slowed, deliberately taking in long pulls of air and audibly letting them out. “I do not have control over his actions, but if you wish this idea to have any chance, you need to let me smooth the way. He’s not going to listen to anything right now, agitated as he is.”
“And what does the great Alpha have to be agitated about?” She should have let it drop, but couldn’t hold her tongue.
“Some hot head young lone wolf sticking her nose where it doesn’t belong.”
If she hadn’t been in class with other normal people nearby and a teacher who was already out to get her, she might have risen to his challenge and snapped at him. But she forced herself to take the high road, and after a moment of silence to calm her inner wolf, she said, “I’ll be there, whether you are or not.”
“What is that supposed to mean?”
“Exactly what I said.”
“But the old loner?”
“Will kill trespassers... yes, I heard the threat.”
“You won’t go. You won’t subject your pack to possible slaughter.”
“First of all, they’re not my pack... yet. And second, who says they’d get slaughtered? He’s only one wolf.”
“Your pack has two feeble adults and three pups...need I say more?”
They might not have been her pack officially, and she might not have known them for very long, but loyalty had already taken root with her, and his insult would not stand. Whatever forgiveness for his attitude she’d given him before no longer applied. He was just as much a dick as his father. How dare he! “You know what? We’re done here...”
“I didn’t mean...”
“No. Stop. We’re done.”
“Giselle...”
She raised her hand and got the attention of Mr. Harper. “I’m going to need a new lab partner.”
“Having another lover’s quarrel, Ms. Richards?” Mr. Harper must have enjoyed embarrassing her. The smile on his face was proof enough of that.
“Sure. Whatever. I can’t work with him.”
“Ms. Richards, in life and in this classroom, we all have to work with people we don’t like. Suck it up.” He turned his back on her and began scrawling out instructions for the day’s experiment on the board.
So much for her grand exit.
“You’re stuck with me, so let’s forget I said that. I’m sorry.” Asher was trying, but Giselle wasn’t taking it.
“I said, we’re done. And you can do whatever the hell you want with the full moon. I don’t need you.” All she really needed was to show Martina that her sister was alive, and as long as Damien was still on her side and could get his people there, it should still work out.