Bree

An aviation theme decorates the small living room of Aiden's house. Paintings of jets and prop planes hang on the walls. A heavy curtain blocks the afternoon sun from the main window, and a floor lamp is on, showering one corner of the room with light. A smooth wood mantel displays plastic models of aircraft over a fireplace that has never been used. A two-barrel shotgun hangs above the mantel.

The scent of sour liquor comes from the man slumped in a recliner. The half-bottle of Jack Daniel's he's been enjoying waits on a coffee table to be finished. The man's head slowly rolls toward us. "Aiden, wha...who's dat?" The man's words slur together.

Oh my Goddess. Is this Aiden's dad?

"Could you wait for me outside, please?" Aiden can't even look at me. His body slouches as if all the life were sucked out of it. He's horrified I'm seeing this.

I back away like I've walked into a crime scene and don't want to destroy any evidence. There's vomit on the coffee table, and I trace it to his father's shirt. I didn't know his father was such an alcoholic. Aiden never talks about his family much, and now I wish he would have. Why does his dad drink like that? Tossing his cookies over his own furniture and making his son feel embarrassed in front of his girlfriend. Why?

I don't understand this human need for alcohol. Numbing your senses on purpose sounds so stupid to me. Life is to be enjoyed in the moment, and your senses bring that world to you. I would be depressed if I couldn't sniff the air or run as fast as I could, jumping and rolling and living, but people like Aiden's dad choose to block those senses. I don't get humans sometimes.

Outside, I lean on my car and wait for about twenty minutes before Aiden comes back out with his hands in his pockets and his shoulders drooping. I still put up a big, friendly smile. I don't want Aiden to think I'm judging him because of his dad. That's so not fair.

"Well, I guess you've met my dad now," he says, trying to push it off as a joke that no one can laugh at. "Usually he only has one drink on days like these. Today it got out of hand. But he doesn't do this a lot."

Something tells me Aiden's lying to protect his dad, which I totally understand. Still, I wish he would trust me.

"Guess we'll have to get together some other time," Aiden says.

Some other time? My hormones wail with grief. But Aiden feels awful. I should respect that.

"What about the back seat of my car?" My hormones slip those words out before my brain can put a stop to it.

He squeezes my hands. "Are you sure? Don't you want this to be more...special?"

I do. And it should be, right? In the back seat of my car does sound gross. So that only leaves one other place. A place that's far too dangerous, but my hormones don't care.

"What if we went to my house?"

I park the car in my driveway and then pull Bullwinkle and Rocky out of the car. I do a quick sniff and detect no recent scent from my parents. I unlock the door and put in the alarm code, then lead Aiden up the stairs to my bedroom. I place Rocky and Bullwinkle on top of my dresser.

"So what's the story on those animals?" he asks.

"The story?"

"Yeah, you always have them in the car with you, and you take them up to your room. I'm wondering why because it's...how do I put this...?"

"Psycho?"

His face changes, like he thinks he's embarrassing me. "I didn't mean it to come out like that."

"I know what you mean." My fingers stroke Bullwinkle's soft fur. "These are my good luck charms." My mind falls back into the nightmare. I can't help it. Should I tell him about the enemy that nearly destroyed us? A part of me wants to confide in Aiden. A part of me wants to share the scariest moment that's ever happened in my life. My two furry friends smile. Their cheerful faces nudge me to trust this new friend in our lives.

I gently pull Aiden, and we sit on my bed's spongy comforter. I tell him about my old pack in Colorado. Our Alpha Chevalier. The vicious attack of the invincible new enemy called the Demon Skins. The killing of my friend Dawn. My mom almost dying. Our desperate escape.

"Dad was never sure where to go. We would go to other small towns that had a forest nearby, but my father was concerned that if the Demon Skins could find an out-of-the-way compound in the mountains, they could easily find us in a small town. Finally my dad came up with the last place a werewolf would want to live...right in the middle of a big city filled with humans. No offense."

Aiden holds on to my every word. "Why are they hunting you?"

"We have no clue. They're attacking packs all over the world and driving all the werewolves into hiding. But these Demon Skins still find ways to hunt us down. It's so scary. Even the Elders don't know what to do."

"And you don't know how to kill these Demon Skins?"

"They have silver in their blood so if we try to bite them or rip off a limb, it's like biting into poison. And you can't kill them like a human either."

"Are they alive?"

"Somehow they are, but honestly I'm still not sure. They don't seem to experience pain. I hit one with a car and broke its arm, but the thing didn't feel anything, only went back on the attack like nothing happened. You know those Borg aliens on that show Star Trek? They act like those things."

"They sound like soldiers of some kind," Aiden says, thinking about it, as if he wants to help. I'm so glad I'm telling him this. I should have done it much earlier. "Who created them?"

"No one knows who wants us all dead. Someone created those awful things, but it's a huge mystery, and we might not live long enough to solve it."

Aiden holds me closer, as if he can feel how much talking about this upsets me. I rest my head against Aiden's chest. He would fight for me, wouldn't he? If the Demon Skins ever came, Aiden would do his best to protect me. I know he didn't put up much of a fight with Kirk, but if the girl he loved was in danger, Aiden would fight for her, wouldn't he? Yes, I have faith in him.

I close my eyes. The heat of his body warms my cheek. Aiden kisses my hair. His fingers knead my skin and that turns up the sweet burn inside. The wolf nuzzles his neck, and the human kisses it. Aiden hesitates. His eyes linger on my forehead. My nose. And finally my lips. He leans in, pauses.

That pause draws me closer.

Aiden smiles at the gesture, and it gives him the confidence to touch his lips to mine. He's tender. And the kiss is beautiful, sweet, and so lovely.

The sweet burn swells to an inferno. The wolf shoves the nice girl aside and locks her in a closet.

I fling Aiden off the bed, and his back smacks the floor. Hard. His face betrays his pain.

"Bree?" Aiden sounds confused.

I ignore him and rip his cotton shirt wide open, scattering the plastic buttons everywhere. The seams pop and split as I claw at his shirt like it's skin because I want his clothes off. Next I break off the brass button holding his jeans together and pull them all the way down to his ankles.

The fire consumes me.

I want him.

I want him to mate with me. Now!

Aiden looks dazed, like he's unable to understand what's going on. He tries to lift himself off the floor.

But I slam him back down.

"What...what are you doing?" Aiden rises again.

This time I force the boy wolf to stay down. He wiggles and struggles against me. Why is he resisting? Doesn't this wolf want to mate? Am I not playful enough? Doesn't he want me as much as I want him? Bet this boy is playing a game to get me so excited that I won't look at another wolf. I smell the sweat coming off him so he must be excited too. He wants me.

"Get off of me, Bree."

Show me you're an alpha. Push me off, then. Make me chase you. I want to play!

Why is this wolf acting so weak? He's not aggressive at all. Am I not worth the challenge?

I check his green eyes. The boy wolf inside those eyes looks...

Terrified?

I...I don't understand. Why would he be terrified?

Aiden?

The girl inside peeks out. My friend doesn't want this. He doesn't understand what I'm doing. His eyes plead for me to stop.

I can't stop.

The wolf won't let me stop.

I've lost control over her.

Oh, please forgive me.

I can't stop her as she pulls down his underwear.

Aiden, I'm so sorry.

Then I feel two giant hands grab me and rip me off Aiden. My nose picks up the familiar scent.

Dad's home.