Claiming My Wolf
Chapter 32

~~Sadie’s PoV~~

As soon as I open my eyes the next morning, a million thoughts are already flying through my head. Between Ava and Aaron’s party, our moonlit excursion out in the woods, and the fact that apparently someone out there wants me dead, I’ve got a lot to think about.

But one thing keeps pushing its way to the front of my brain, drowning out everything else.

Logan.

He almost kissed me last night. I thought for sure he was going to until at the last minute he seemed to change his mind and kissed my cheek instead. But even that little contact was enough to start my heart racing. As he walked away, my cheek felt warm where his lips had been, almost like I could still feel them there.

Not even my aunt and uncle’s stern reprimands when I got back inside the house could wipe the smile off my face.

I’ve dated other boys before. I’m almost 18, after all. I’ve fooled around with a some of them too, but I haven’t gone all the way yet. I’m not sure exactly what I’m waiting for, but I figure I’ll know it when I feel it.

And the way I feel around Logan, well, that might be it. It’s something new, anyway. He’s not like anyone else I’ve ever met.

It’s not that he’s gorgeous. Okay, it’s not just that he’s gorgeous. I also like the way he talks to me straight, answers my questions and shares things with me too. He’s smart and he listens and he cares about people. I feel like we’re really connecting.

But then there’s still the fact that he’s a werewolf! And not just any werewolf, but the one that would be in charge of this whole pack one day. And I can tell from the things he’s told me that he believes in all of this mate business and everything that goes with it.

Was that why he didn’t k**s me last night when it seemed pretty clear he wanted to? Because I’m not his ‘mate’?

It still strikes me as ridiculous. If we like each other, we should be able to decide to see each other. It shouldn’t depend what some goddess, who I’m not even sure exists, decides for us.

I shake my head at myself as I get in the shower. Why am I getting all worked up? I don’t even know for sure that he does like me or if he really was thinking about kissing me. I’m getting way ahead of myself.

All I really know is that he invited me over to his house this morning and I’m planning on going.

It’s not until I get out of the shower and get dressed that I realize I haven’t even thought about my parents yet today. For the last two weeks they’ve been the first thing I think of as soon as I wake up, and today they didn’t even cross my mind until now. It makes me feel a bit guilty, but I think maybe it’s a good thing too.

~~Sadie’s PoV~~

As soon as I open my eyes the next morning, a million thoughts are already flying through my head. Between Ava and Aaron’s party, our moonlit excursion out in the woods, and the fact that apparently someone out there wants me dead, I’ve got a lot to think about.

I’m finally starting to feel a bit more like myself again.

Ava and Aaron are both supposed to stay at home all day as their punishment for going out last night, but I think it’s more because my aunt just wants to keep an eye on them and make sure they’re both doing okay after everything that happened at the party. My aunt and uncle never specifically said that the restriction applied to me too, and sure enough, when I ask at breakfast if I can go to the pack house to see Logan, my aunt quickly agrees.

“Of course, Sadie,” she smiles. “The Alpha’s son wouldn’t ask you over unless it was important.”

I manage to stop myself from rolling my eyes. So Logan could do whatever he wanted and it would be okay because he’s the Alpha’s son? With that kind of attitude among the rest of the pack, it’s amazing he’s not a self-entitled a*****e. Maybe his personality got switched with Micah somehow?

I send Logan a text to see what time he wants me to come over and he replies right away saying whenever I want, so I head out now. The man watching our house, a different guy from the night before, follows behind me as I make my way through town. Even though I understand a little better now why I need a bodyguard, I still don’t like it.

This is the first time I’ve gone to the pack house by myself and I’m not sure if I’m supposed to say something to the man who stands guard outside the door. Logan just nodded at him when he brought me here yesterday, but it’s his house, after all. So I stop and say good morning and we talk for a minute before I ask if I can go in.

He gives me an amused smile. “The pack house belongs to the whole pack. You can go in whenever you like.”

Oh. I didn’t realize that. Isn’t that weird for Logan that people can just go in and out of his house all the time? I don’t think I would like it.

When I step inside the front hall, there’s no one around and I’m not sure where to go next. There are four different hallways off the rectangular room, one to the left, one to the right, and one on either side of the big staircase that leads up to the next floor. I pull out my phone to send Logan another text when a voice calls out to me.

“Hey, Sadie.”

I look up to see Micah standing in one of the doorways. He’s not wearing his usual scowl that he has for me. In fact, he’s almost smiling.

“Did you get back to sleep last night?”

The question throws me off until I remember that he was also there in the woods, as a wolf. So although I don’t feel like I saw him, he obviously saw me.

“For a little bit,” I answer vaguely. “What are you doing here?”

He winces a bit at my tone, and honestly, I didn’t mean it to sound quite the way it came out. It’s just the way I’m used to talking to him now. It’s kind of our thing.

“Logan asked me to come over and brainstorm with you guys,” he replies.

Really? I can’t help feeling a bit disappointed. I kind of hoped that Logan asking me over to talk about what happened was just an excuse to spend time with me, but I guess not.

“I don’t know where to go,” I admit, gesturing to all the different halls.

Micah smiles properly this time. “No problem. I’ll show you.”

He gestures down the hallway he’s standing in, so I go over to him and we walk side-by-side down the hall. He stops in front of a door and I’m about to open it when he puts a hand on my arm.

“Listen, Sadie, before we go in, there’s something I need to say.”

I give him a wary look. I haven’t liked most of what he’s had to say to me before, but I let him speak.

“I’m sorry for the way I’ve been acting,” he starts, and I blink in shock.

Micah is actually apologizing to me? That might be the most surprising thing that’s happened since I got here, and that’s saying something.

“I’ve never really spent time with any humans before,” he continues, looking a little embarrassed. “I was told my whole life that they’re not as good as us and I never bothered to question it. I guess it was kind of stupid. I should have made my own mind up instead of just believing what I was told.”

That’s actually a big deal for him to say that, I can tell. And he’s changing his mind about all of humanity because of me? I’m kind of flattered.

“Well, I’m only half-human,” I remind him. “So maybe I’m only half-bad.”

He looks surprised and for a second I think he doesn’t know I’m joking, but then he grins, and I remember how good-looking I thought he was the first time I saw him. When he’s not being a total jerk, I can kind of see it again.

“Let’s go with that,” he agrees. He finally sounds friendly talking to me, like he does with other people. “After all, half-bad is still pretty good.”

Then he opens the door and walks in, leaving me shaking my head in surprise in the whole exchange. Who’d have thought? Maybe there’s a decent guy in there somewhere after all.