“Who cares, right? I mean, it’s sort of fitting, you know? And even if there wasn’t this thing between us, I could.…” I shook my head. “Even when he was stuck as a wolf, I felt it. I didn’t know what it was. In hindsight, I should have. I hated it at first, but I got used to it. Then he was gone. It hurt more than I ever thought something like that could. And all I could think about was getting to him. I need him to be my shadow because without him, I’m … I felt lost. He’s snarly. He’s surly. He’s a pain in my fucking ass. But there’s no one like him. Dad told me once that there could be others, that there wasn’t just one person. That we had a choice. I think I’ve made mine, though. If he’ll have me. Do you think he’ll have me? I’m not perfect. I make mistakes.” I shrugged awkwardly. “He sees through that, though. I exasperate him, I annoy him, and he scowls at me like he wants to punch my fucking teeth down my throat. And it all goes away when he says thump, thump, thump. Because he hears my heart and it anchors him. How can I say no to that? Who cares if he’s a man or a woman or somewhere in between? It doesn’t matter. All I care about is that he sees me. Like, really sees me. And I see him.”
I looked at my brothers.
They were gaping at me.
“What?” I said, suddenly self-conscious. I rubbed the back of my neck as my face grew hot.
“Holy shit,” Kelly breathed.
“You love him,” Joe whispered.
I glared at them. “I do not. Shut up.”
“No,” Kelly said, voice growing louder. “You looooooove him.”