They nodded.
“Okay,” I said.
This was going to be fine.
IT WAS not fine.
It had been fine, for the most part.
When we arrived at the clearing, the moon was rising and Joe and his pack were already there. The eyes of the wolves were flashing at the pull of the moon. Gordo’s tattoos were glowing, and I realized this was the first time I’d ever seen him as part of a pack on a full moon. It hurt dully to think he’d been a part of something for so long and I hadn’t been there to see it. There hadn’t been enough time to ask him about it after everything had happened.
Like they did when they first came back, they all moved together, watching us as we walked into the clearing. I was sure that if I were a wolf, I would have heard their hearts beating in sync.
It felt tense as we approached, a little bit off, but I didn’t think it was too bad.
It might have been wishful thinking.
“Ox,” Joe said, but not before his gaze flickered over my right shoulder, where I knew Robbie stood.
“Joe,” I said.
“Thank you for allowing us to join you tonight.”
I nodded, hating how formal this was. “Thank you for being here.”
“Oh my god,” Rico muttered. “They are so awkward.”
“Shut up,” Tanner hissed. “They’re werewolves. They can hear you.”
“I know what they are, stop whisper-shouting at me!”
“They are really awkward, though,” Chris whispered.
“They were always like that,” Jessie mumbled under her breath.
If I hadn’t been watching Joe, I would have missed the way his lips quirked for just a second, like he was fighting back a smile.
“This is my pack,” I said, trying not to snarl at all of them.
“And this is mine,” Joe said.
Carter and Kelly were snickering to each other. Gordo looked like he was ready to roll his eyes.
“Shall we run?” Joe asked.
“We can,” I said.
“And here comes the part where really attractive people get naked,” Rico said. “And most of them are related. Which isn’t weird. At all.”
“Rico,” I said.
“Yes?”
“Shut. Up.”
“It’s weird. Just because you don’t see it as weird, doesn’t mean it’s not.”
“Talking about it doesn’t make it any less weird.”