“So when did Clay leave? I thought he’d still be here after you said I shouldn’t hurry home.” Rachel kicked off her shoes and flopped sideways on the chair.
I turned off the movie, giving her my full attention. “Nah, I turned my back and he took off on me.” I patted Clay on the head and he snorted. “It’s okay, though, I have my favorite guy here.” And I realized it was true. I liked no man better than I liked Clay in his fur. Sam used to claim first place, but I still felt disappointed in him for not warning me about the last Introduction and about the possibility of Clay showing up at the back door.
“He was a little scary looking if you ask me,” Rachel commented reaching over to pet Clay. Turned away from her, he took the opportunity to arch a brow at me. I fought to keep my face straight.
“When I first met him, I told him he looked like a crazy man. I still think he’s crazy, but he’s also nice and dependable.” Clay heaved a sigh. It seemed werewolves didn’t like to be described as nice either.
“So does he act like Scott ever?”
“No way.” It came out so fast I paused to rethink it. Nope, I definitely spoke the truth. “Most guys talk about themselves, trying to impress me, or just act scary obsessive. Clay’s different. I don’t think I affect him like I do other guys.”
I looked away from both of them, thinking. At times, he showed his possessive streak, like when I went on the double date, but he didn’t act obsessive about it. According to my reliable sources of werewolf lore, Clay did feel a strong pull for me, but dissimilar to what normal men did. The pull should make him territorial and controlling, but he never seemed affected by any of that. Yet, for some reason, he stayed.
“I think he just likes being with me,” I commented and noticing Clay looking up at me, met his gaze. Even when he wrecked the truck back at the compound, he didn’t creep on me like most guys had. “And I’m grateful that I get to be normal around him. I guess I just need to figure out how.”
Rachel laughed at me. “You sound like you’re really serious about him. Why didn’t you talk about him before this? And why didn’t you say the dog had the same name? We could have changed it.”
I decided to ignore the part about being serious. “I wasn’t sure if or when he’d make an appearance. And I like the name Clay. Besides, he doesn’t mind.” I wasn’t sure if I was talking about Clay-the-dog or Clay-the-man anymore.
Rachel switched topics and stated, “We should probably talk about overnight visitors… What rules do we want to set?”
“Um, no loud noises?”
“Come on!” Rachel laughed louder. “I meant, weekends only? Maybe guests ‘til midnight on weekdays? Notice needed? You know… that kind of stuff.”
She still lounged sideways on the chair grinning at me. I really didn’t want to have this conversation with Clay present. He laid quietly, head on my lap, considerately pretending to sleep.
“I don’t know. I trust you and your judgment, and you can trust my lack of a social life. I really don’t think I’ll see Clay very often so you don’t need to worry.”
“Oh, he’ll be back. I saw the way he watched you. Are you sure the only rule you can come up with is no loud noises?”
I thought of adding that she should warn me when we had a visitor, but I looked down at Clay and figured we had it covered. “Yeah, I think we’re fine.”
“Great!” she exclaimed with a huge grin. Then she cupped her hands and yelled, “Peter!”
The front door immediately opened and a sheepish looking Peter entered. “You were supposed to text me,” he muttered, appearing uncomfortable.
I laughed. “Come on in, Peter. Clay and I were just going to bed.” Clay jumped off the couch first and I got up to follow him into my room. “Night guys.”
Closing the door behind us, I whispered, “Another early Friday night for us.”
I pulled back the covers and slid between the sheets. Clay settled in his usual spot and began breathing deeply while I lay awake thinking about the conversation with Rachel.
As she’d pointed out, Clay wasn’t like the other guys. At the compound when I’d felt the pull Sam had warned me about, I’d panicked, thinking Clay would be just like the rest and I would spend the rest of my life trying to avoid him.
When he’d shown up at the door as a dog and not as a man, he’d thrown me off guard. Now, I realized he’d been pretty smart about it. Somehow, he’d known I would be more likely to give him a chance as a dog than as a man. Again, I’d underestimated his intelligence.
She was also right about him watching me. He followed me everywhere. I assumed his attentiveness was to observe and learn. What if it wasn’t? His quiet presence had already lulled me into indifference over his company. I needed to be more careful.
Chapter 10