Two of them were young, though. I guessed just a few years older than Mary and me.
One of them stood out. Perhaps it was because Winifred was glowering at him as he stood before her with his arms crossed. Or maybe it was the way the muscles of his shoulders bunched in agitation. Or better yet, the smooth skin of his corded back. My blush reignited as I stared.
My stomach spun and dipped again at the sight of him shirtless.
His muffled voice reached us through the glass.
“Winifred,” he said with a stiff nod. “We’ve heard some rumors that there’s a human here and that you’re exposing our kind to her.” His angry tone carried his dislike of the idea.
My instinct to be wary of him had been right. I narrowed my eyes at his back.
“That’s correct,” she said.
“How is allowing a human here in the best interest of the packs? Of our people? The last humans who were here shot four females and a cub. She needs to leave. Now.”
“I disagree,” Winifred said calmly. “You know nothing of her. She’s not like other humans.”
“I don’t care,” he said. “For the safety of our kind, there can be no exceptions.”
“For the safety of our kind, we need to adapt. You need to listen to reason.”
She looked away from him and addressed the listening men.
“There can be no life without purpose and no purpose without reason. We struggle to survive because, as a species, we’ve lost our purpose. The world is changing, and we need to change with it. We need to find our reason. It is the only way to continue our existence. Even nature is telling us it’s time to change. Charlene is human and a potential Mate. Turn her away, and you might be turning away your future. Think about it.”
She turned to the young man in front again.
“Some leaders are born. Some rise out of necessity and are refined by circumstance. The best leader is one who listens openly and considers all possibilities.”
Winifred looked up at the window, and I ducked away again. Not Mary, though. She stayed centered within the frame. A slow smile curled her lips.
“He’s looking at me. I have to go meet him.”
She turned away from the window and started toward the door. I quickly moved to follow.
“He was pretty handsome,” I agreed, trying to keep up with her. “But enough to let him bite me? No thanks.”
Her steps slowed, and she gave me a troubled look.
“I guess I wasn’t thinking of that.”
How could she not?
“What were you thinking about?”
She sighed and gave a slight smile. “I don’t know...just him.”
“You don’t even know his name.”
“No, but that doesn’t matter.”
“Maybe it should. I think that’s what Winifred was trying to say. You need to think more. All of you. Don’t just let instinct rule you. You’re intelligent people capable of reasoning. What if he’s grumpy most mornings or snores at night? What if he wants twenty kids, but you only want two? You need to think about what comes after the bite. Plan ahead.”
Her frown grew, and her steps slowed further. We reached the main room while doing a slow shuffle.
“You’re right. But I still need to meet him, to talk to him. If he tries...” She glanced at the door. She didn’t have Winifred’s promise like I did.
“I’ll roll up a newspaper and smack him on the nose for you.”
She grinned at me. A knock at the door made us both jump. The door opened a moment later. Winifred strode in, her irritation still very evident.
“Mary, there is someone out there who’d like to meet you.”
Mary glanced at the floor for a moment, and Winifred gave a long-suffering sigh.
“You know I can’t promise that, Mary. Charlene is unique. If I tried preventing him from Claiming you, the tenuous trust they have in me would be lost.”
I knew what Mary had silently asked and felt sorry for her.
“Can I meet him first?” I asked. Both of them looked at me in surprise. If Winifred couldn’t ask him to wait, I was willing to try.
“That would be up to Mary,” Winifred said slowly.
“It’s okay with me,” Mary said.
“I’d prefer he come in here, though,” I said, thinking of all the men who still waited for me outside. “Alone.”
Winifred gave me a long look then nodded. As soon as she left, I waved Mary back toward the bathroom door. It placed me between whomever would step through the door and her.
It only took a moment for the outer door to open again. A tall man, who looked in his late teens, walked in. He wasn’t the lead man I’d noticed from the window but still one of the three. His eyes skimmed over me as he searched the room for Mary. His gaze warmed when it landed on her.
I took a step to the side to block his view and smiled at him.
“Hi. I’m Charlene.”