I swore I could hear Dastien howling in the distance.
Mr. Dawson had been right. Too much of this was a coincidence. I come here and then the vampires. As much as I didn’t want it to be about me, what if it was? Or what if I was the excuse?
What if Mr. Hoel was the rogue? And Imogene was helping him?
I hoped I was wrong. That this blew over, but if it didn’t—then I’d made some pretty powerful enemies already. I was going to have to start watching my back.
***
The sound of scratching pulled me from my dreams. Little nails clawing. Followed by a very soft whining noise. How had I gotten back in my room? Were the vampires back? I looked at the window, but the curtains were still tightly closed. It was coming from my door.
No way they could get inside. Or so I hoped.
Maybe if I ignored it, it would go away.
More scratching and whining. That sounded dog-like. Or wolf-like.
I put a pillow on top of my head.
More scratching and whining.
I grabbed a tissue, ripped it in half, and shoved it in my ears. I sandwiched my head back in between the pillows.
More scratching and whining.
I threw off the covers and stomped over to the door.
On the other side was Dastien in wolf-form. He came up to my waist, and looked like he weighed a ton. Amber eyes stared at me.
I dropped to my knees and ran my fingers through his thick fur, searching for any signs of damage. “Are you okay? I was so worried—”
Shit. I probably shouldn’t have said that.
I stepped away from him.
He lay down on the ground and covered his face with his front paws and let out a pitiful whine.
I gave it my best guess. “You’re sorry?”
He sat up, and gave a soft woof.
Good thing Meredith slept like the dead.
I didn’t know what to say. Now that I knew he was okay, some of my anger was back. The guy had been avoiding me after biting me.
But he did kind of save me.
He whined again.
“If you want to talk you should shift back to human. So you can actually talk.”
He huffed.
“What? It’s against the rules?”
He yipped.
“Guess I’m not going to find out about what happened with all the vampires then, huh?” He tilted his head to the side. “Well, thanks for saving me. But you’re really giving me mixed signals. Ignoring me one second and ordering me around the next. I’m not sure why you’re here.”
He started sniffing at my belly, and I couldn’t help but laugh as I tried to push him away. “I’m fine. Really. Just a scratch.”
He tried to get between me and the door.
“You want me to let you in? It’s like four AM. I have to get up in a few hours.”
He sat, and looked up at me. I took a step back to close the door, but he darted past.
I growled. How was I going to get a huge wolf out of my room?
Maybe having Dastien there wasn’t a horrible thought. If there were vampires around, then he would offer a measure of protection.
Shit. That’s why he was here. To see if I was okay, and to keep watch.
I closed the door behind me. “If I let you stay, then there are rules. First, you will not—I repeat—will not be changing in the middle of the night. If I wake up with you naked in my bed, there will be hell to pay. Whatever it is that’s going on with us, we’re not at that part yet.”
He tilted his head to the side and made a little coughing sound.
Was he laughing at me? “You should be thanking the Baby Jesus that I even let you in.” Which wasn’t entirely true. He’d gotten past me fair and square. “Second thing, I’m going to sleep. You keep me awake and you’re out.” I wasn’t sure I could follow up on that threat, but it was the best I could do right then.
He jumped up on the bed, circled around once, and then plopped down—nearly taking up the whole thing.
I shoved at him. “Scoot over.” I crawled under the sheets. It was dangerous, just giving in like that. If I had more energy to think about the implications, I would have kicked his hairy tush out of my bed. But I didn’t.
Wolfy-Dastien moved so that he surrounded me. His warm wolf breath hit the back of my neck. He whimpered and touched his nose gently to the bandage.
“Cut it out.” I shoved at him again, but he didn’t move much.
Having him there should have weirded me out, but it didn’t. His breath moved in and out, lulling me. I didn’t have time to freak. One second I was thinking about how warm and relaxed I was, and the next I was in Dreamville.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
When I woke, it was to the sound of birds chirping outside my window. Bright light glowed at the edges of my curtains. I’d slept through the rest of night like a rock. I stretched as I reveled in my refreshed state of mind.
And then I remembered I wasn’t alone.
I shot out of bed, but he wasn’t there. I walked over to the bathroom.
Empty.
He was gone. I should’ve been glad. It shouldn’t have ruined my good mood. But it did. It kind of hurt.