<h4>Chapter 122: Meet My Wolf</h4>


    <strong>CLARE POv:</strong>


    Then I saw it—his eyes shifting from warm brown to glowing yellow. Slowly, like sunrise burning through fog. And when they were fully golden, I knew just from the way he <i>looked</i> at me... this wasn’t Reed anymore.<strong></strong>


    "Hello, mate," came his voice—but it wasn’t <i>his</i> voice. It was deeper, smoother, moreposed.


    I gave a tiny, awkward, "Hi."


    What <i>was</i> I supposed to say? I was literally talking to a wolf in Reed’s body. The weird just keeps piling up. Just another day in this supernatural horror-dream I now lived in.


    "Forgive my human for his stupidity sometimes," the wolf said smoothly, his toneced with amusement.


    I gave a small nod, trying not to smile. I think... the wolf is more mature than Reed.


    "Can I ask your name? Your <i>real</i> name?" he asked gently. "Reed’s too chicken to ask himself."


    I burst into giggles at that. Hearing a literal wolf spirit call his human a <i>chicken</i> wasn’t what I expected this morning.


    "re," I said after I calmed down, still grinning.


    He lifted my hand and kissed the back of it — formal, almost regal — before murmuring, "It’s an honor to meet you, re."


    God. Reed’s <i>wolf</i> is more human than Reed himself.


    Just then, I saw his eyes flicker — a blend of golden yellow and brown swirling together. I guess Reed didn’t appreciate being called a chicken and was fighting for control again.


    "Bye for now, mate," the wolf said with a soft smile, and then... the gold disappeared.


    Reed’s brown eyes blinked up at me, now fully back in control, and he looked like he’d just walked in on the tail end of a conversation he <i>knew</i> he’d regret asking about.


    *******


    I blinked, still feeling the ghost of warmth on the back of my hand where his—<i>its</i>—lips had touched. That wasn’t Reed. That was... <i>his wolf</i>. Using his body like a borrowed suit. Like it was normal. Like it wasn’t utterly insane that I just had a polite tea-party-level conversation with the feral half of a supernatural being.


    Reed’s eyes were brown again, wide and kind of sheepish.


    "Okay," he said awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck, "so... that happened."


    I just stared at him.


    "That was your <i>wolf</i>?" I asked, just to double-confirm that my world was as upside down as it felt.


    He nodded, still not quite meeting my gaze. "Yeah. He’s usually not that... formal. I think he just wanted to make a good impression."


    I scoffed, grabbing my coffee again. "Well, mission aplished. He’s nicer than you."


    "Hey!" Reed objected, mock offended. "I <i>made</i> you breakfast!"


    "And he kissed my hand and asked my <i>real name.</i>" I raised an eyebrow. "Chivalry isn’t dead, it just lives in your spinal cord."


    Reed rolled his eyes but couldn’t hide the grin tugging at his lips. "So... you’re not freaked out?"


    "Honestly?" I took a sip. "After blood-drinking freaks, redheaded twins with hunger issues, and you guys ying tug-of-war with me in bed? A wolf politely hijacking his host to flirt with me is... low on the weird scale."


    That got augh out of him. A real one.


    "Good to know." He paused. "So... re, huh?"


    I shrugged. "Yeah. Just re."


    He looked at me for a beat, longer than normal, something thoughtful in his gaze. Then:


    "I like it. It suits you."


    And for some reason... I blushed.


    Dammit.


    <strong>REED POV:</strong>


    Of course my wolf would go and try to score bonus points with our mate—even if it meant tossing <i>me</i> under the damn bus.


    Just to set the record straight: my wolf is <i>never</i> polite. That word doesn’t even exist in his vocabry. The guy’s a jerk ny percent of the time—cocky, reckless, and all too aware that barely anyone out there can challenge us. You know what they say about power and corruption? Yeah. That’s him. My wolf is Exhibit A.


    So watching him act like some gentleman straight out of a romance novel? Shocking.So imagine my shock when he acted all... <i>charming</i> with her. Like, actual <i>manners</i> came out of his mouth. He even kissed her hand like some old-school gentleman. Who <i>is</i> this guy?


    He even surprised <i>me</i> with how... human he was being. Calm. Respectful. Actually nice. It’s like all it took to soften a hardcore beast was a pretty girl and the magic of the mate bond. Boom—terrifying predator turns into a golden-eyed puppy just begging for attention from the girl.


    And sure, I’ll admit it—it’s my wolf who forced me to ept the mate bond in the first ce. He felt it before I did, pushed for it harder than I ever would have. I fought it at first, told myself I wasn’t ready, that it was just a pull, nothing more. But he knew better. He always does when ites to instinct. But calling me a <i>chicken</i> in front of her?


    Not. A. Bro. Move.


    That was straight-up sabotage. And he was so <i>smug</i> about it afterward too. Wouldn’t shut up about how "we" got re to give us her real name in under a minute—with <i>him</i> at the wheel.


    Great. Just great. I’m never living this down.


    When my eyes fully shift back to brown, the first thing I see is re watching me like she’s trying to piece together what just happened—like the supernatural world just tipped sideways again and she’s trying to stay upright. Her expression is a weird mix of amusement and curiosity, but there’s no fear.


    Thank the gods.


    "You okay?" I ask, my voice normal again, though a little rough—like my wolf left behind some of that raw presence.


    She stares for a second before replying, "Your wolf is... weirdly polite."


    I blink. "Weirdly polite?"


    She nods, lips twitching. "Yeah. I didn’t expect that. He even kissed my hand. You don’t even <i>look</i> like the hand-kissing type."


    I scratch the back of my neck, trying not to grin, but it’s hard not to when she’s looking at me like that—somewhere between surprised and impressed. "He’s... older than me, in a way. Wiser. He’s also kind of pushy. But I guess that’s what you get when a giant wolf spirit lives in your body."


    re hums, sipping thest of her coffee. "He said you were too chicken to ask my name."


    I groan. "Of <i>course</i> he did."


    She giggles, a soft, genuine sound, and damn—if I didn’t feel something in my chest stretch a little too tight. "So... re, huh? Not use?"


    I shrug sheepishly. "use sounded like a name someone made up to sound badass. re fits you better."


    "d you approve," she says dryly.


    I lean forward a little, elbows on the counter. "So? Was that scary? Weird? Do you regret agreeing?"


    She looks thoughtful for a moment before shaking her head. "Honestly? Weird, yes. Scary? Not really. I’ve seen scarier things in thest few days than your wolf politely flirting with me in your body."


    <fn2426> Original content can be found at find[?]ovel</fn2426>


    "Flirting, huh?" I smirk.


    "Don’t get cocky," she warns, but there’s no venom in it.


    "Toote," I grin.


    And for a moment—just a moment—it feels like we’re something closer to normal. A boy and a girl, a te of half-eaten eggs, and a little bit of quiet in a world that rarely gives any.


    I’ll take it.


    So, I guess we’re really making progress.


    She didn’t freak out. She didn’t run. Heck, she even smiled —ughed, actually. And that’s saying something considering how tense she’s been since all this madness started.


    She didn’t scream. Hell, she evenughed—a <i>real</i>ugh—not one of those awkward, half-hearted ones she gives when she’s just being polite. And that? That meant something.


    Yeah, maybe she seemed a little more excited about my wolf than she was about <i>me</i>, but I’m not going to be bitter about it. (Okay, maybe a little.) Still—better him than that bloodsucking vampire.


    At least my wolf and I share the same body.


    Sort of.


    It stung a bit, not gonna lie. Watching her smile so easily at him, talk to him like they were already close... But hey, we’re a package deal. If she likes him, that’s still a win for me, right?


    Yeah, I saw the way she looked at ze too. Don’t think I missed that.


    But today, I got a win. <i>We</i> got a win. Even if my wolf stole most of the credit. Honestly, I’m just d she let us in — not just into her apartment, but into her space, her trust. That means more than either of us will probably admit out loud.


    Progress is progress.


    One step closer. And if it’s apetition — which it totally is — then the leech better start sweating, because I’m not backing down.


    <strong>*****</strong>


    She finished her breakfast, slow and quiet, and I could see it in her eyes—<i>she was looking for him</i>. Her gaze flicked to the door, then to the window. No ze. Not yet.


    And damn if that didn’t sting.


    She had <i>me</i> right in front of her, cooked her breakfast, gave her the softest side of my damn wolf... and still, she was looking for the leech.


    I tried not to let it show, kept my face neutral, but inside I was already sinking into that familiar pit of irritation. It wasn’t even jealousy anymore—it was the fact that I was <i>right here</i>, trying, and still being treated like a ceholder.


    Then she hit me with it.


    <i>"Do you know what happened to rk? A guy who enrolled herest year?"</i>


    Boom. Just like that, all my inner whining dried up. My body went cold.


    rk.


    I blinked, stunned, her voice snapping me out of my own head. My wolf, who had been purring smugly since our little "victory," went dead silent. I could practically feel him slinking back, retreating like a coward.


    Shit. Why now?


    Of all the questions... why <i>that</i> one?


    For a second, I actually wished I was the one who’d stepped out instead of ze. Let him deal with this mess. Let him lie. Because that’s what it would take.


    And lying to her, now—after we’d just started to get somewhere? After she let my wolf in?


    Gods. I didn’t want to do that.


    But what the hell could I say? That we knew him? That we both had a history with him? That she’s his <i>twin</i> and thest time two supernatural beings fought over a human, it didn’t end well?


    Yeah. No.


    She wasn’t ready. <i>We</i> weren’t ready.


    So I did what I had to do.


    I forced my expression to stay casual, even though every muscle in my body felt like it was wound tight. I swallowed hard and bought myself a second, hoping ze would walk through that door any moment and save me from this.


    But the door stayed shut.


    And I was on my own.