Josie stared out of the window as Eddie drove them out of the pack territory.
She watched as rows and rows of trees flashed by in a blur of green. “What do you think…,” she began, and trailed off.
“What do I think of what?” Eddie asked, waiting for her to finish her question.
“I don’t know. Nothing…”
“Ahh, don’t give me that,” he prodded. “What’s going on? You’ve been out of it all morning.”
“I know… I’m sorry. I was kind of surprised by something, and I can’t tell if it’s a good thing or not.”
“Tell me. I’ll let you know if it’s a bad idea,” he pushed.
“You remember Gideon, right?”
“Julia’s cousin?”
“Yeah.” She nodded, embarrassed, and looked out the window. “He kind of offered to be my, umm… bed buddy… until we both find our mates.”
“That’s… weird. And gross,” Eddie said, shaking his head. “What the hell?”
“I know, but—”
“You can’t be considering it.”
“I’m not!” Josie argued, immediately defensive. She paused in thought. “You don’t know what it’s like,” she said, lowering her voice. “You found Hanna just a few days after you came of age. I’ve been waiting four years with no end in sight. He’s been waiting six. We’re both… lonely.”
“You’re right,” her brother said sadly. “I don’t get it.”
He sighed as he thought for a moment.
“I wouldn’t judge what you do. But you should think before rushing into this too soon. We might even find your mate this week.”
“I haven’t decided if I want to say yes.” She shrugged self-consciously as she shoved her hand into the cupholder and grabbed a handful from the bag of Skittles. “You want some?” she asked, wanting to change the subject.
She felt a thrill as the forest of their pack territory disappeared behind them. Eddie was right. She might meet her mate very soon.
Josie and Eddie stood beside each other, staring at the room filled with the Harvest Moon Pack. She sighed, looking at all the faces of the pack members grouped together at the large dining tables. They didn’t seem to notice her yet, busy enjoying their meals.
“Well, you ready?” Eddie asked softly, nudging her with his elbow.
“I’m not sure,” she replied nervously.
“There’s no reason to be anxious. If he’s here, great. If he’s not, we’ll move on tomorrow.”
“Okay,” she said. She stepped forward, freezing as the alpha spoke loudly from the other end of the room.
“Harvest Moon Pack!” Alpha Weston bellowed. “I want to take a moment and welcome our visitors, Josie and Eddie Grayson. They are stopping here as they pass through visiting packs in the area. Please make them feel welcome.”
Josie watched as the entire pack spun around, their eyes glued to her and her brother.
“No reason to be anxious?” she muttered back at him.
He looked at her with a guilty smile before offering an innocent wave hello to the pack.
The pack members quickly all turned away again, continuing with their conversations and meals. Josie and Eddie each grabbed a plate of food and sat at a table. They smiled as a few wolves sat down across from them.
“So, what brings you out this way?” one of them asked politely.
“Well…,” Josie stuttered.
“Just on one last brother-sister road trip—” Eddie cut in.
“—and we’re out here looking for my mate,” she added, surprising Eddie with her candor.
“Oh, did you lose him somewhere?” one of the men joked.
Josie laughed a little. “I guess you could say that.”
“I understand,” another interjected. “I’ve been waiting for two years now.”
“I had to wait five,” another said.
“Well, that makes me feel a little better.” She smiled. “I’ve been waiting four years.”
“Four still feels like an eternity,” he said reassuringly.
“That’s true.” She sighed.
“Hope you find him.”
“Thanks.” She grinned, disappointed that not a single one of them was her mate but touched that they’d all been so welcoming.
After spending the entire evening chatting with every mateless wolf possible, Josie finally gave up and went to her room. They’d made a comfortable bed for her, and she was happy to let sleep claim her.
She woke early in the morning and met her brother in the dining hall for breakfast. The last few men of the pack stopped by to eat at their table, clearly feeling hopeful. She had to stifle a yawn and offer a bright smile instead. “Good morning.”
She threw her long brown waves over her shoulder as she talked with them, making polite conversation, but knowing none of them were her mate. By the end of the meal, they had all drifted away. One of them wished her luck.
“We heading out, then?” Eddie asked, pushing his plate away and setting his elbows on the table.
“Yeah, I guess we should keep moving,” she replied with a shrug, looking down at her empty plate.
“All right.” Eddie grinned as he stood up straight and ran a hand through his scruffy red hair.
They walked to the car, footsteps crunching over gravel. “Where next?” she asked.
“Next up is White River Pack,” Eddie yawned as he dropped into the driver’s seat.
“Want me to drive?” she asked, climbing in.
“Ha!” he scoffed. “I’d like to actually make it there alive.”
“Oh, shut up.” She chuckled, shoving his arm.
After driving for a few hours, enjoying their time listening to music and audiobooks as the trees sped past, Eddie turned the knob on the radio to silence the music.
“So, Josie. This thing with that Gideon guy…”
“Oh, geez,” she sighed, rolling her eyes dramatically. “Eddie, I only mentioned it as a last resort. I would never jeopardize things with my true mate for some guy I barely know.”
He gave her a sideways stare, still looking unsure of her answer.
“Look,” she continued, “I’m still waiting for my true mate, just like you. But if, by chance, we don’t find him this week, I just want…a backup. Someone to spend time with. I’m tired of being alone.”
“Okay.” He nodded. “I’m just making sure you’ve really thought about it.”
“Don’t worry about me,” she replied with a tight grin.
“But it’s my job.” He winked.
Josie turned the music back on and looked out the window, ending the conversation.
As the red sun was sinking to the horizon, in the last minutes of daylight, they pulled up to the pack house of White River Pack.
They climbed out of the car, stretching the stiffness from their bodies. “Stop number two,” Josie said, staring up at the old red-brick pack house.
“You must be Eddie and Josie!” said a scratchy voice.
Their attention was drawn to a tall, overweight, middle-aged man standing in the doorway of the house.
“Alpha Theon?” Eddie asked hesitantly.
“That’s me,” he said with a broad grin, stepping down to greet them and stumbling slightly over his feet. “Whoops—well, come on in! Everyone is excited to meet ya.”
Josie gave her brother a stifled grin and received one back from Eddie, each knowing they both thought this alpha was a little silly.
Following him into the meeting hall, they were surprised to find the entire pack enjoying a noisy party.
“Oh!” Josie exclaimed. “I hope you didn’t do all of this for us.”
“No, no, no,” Alpha Theon said, speaking over the music. “Once a month, we have a big shindig to celebrate all of the pack birthdays of the month. Your visit just happened to be at the perfect time!”
“Ahh, I see,” Eddie said, his eyes wide as he watched the pack members all dancing and drinking in a rowdy commotion.
“Let’s introduce you to some people,” Alpha Theon said, pushing them forward.
Josie met and danced with what felt like every single man in the pack. She was pushed between countless potential mates. She began to get hot and out of breath from all the dancing. None of the faces she met seemed familiar at all. Her wolf whined in frustration, pacing in her mind.
The men vied for her attention, grinning at her. Some were leering.
“Hey, Josie!”
“Why don’t you dance with me?”
Finally, she fled to a table in the back where her brother was hiding.
“How’d you get out of being social?” she asked, her breathing heavy from dancing and running away.
“I have a mate,” he said smugly, taking a sip of his drink.
“You suck,” Josie muttered as she pulled her long hair into a knot on top of her head. “It’s so hot in here,” she said, fanning herself with her hand. She was itching for a break from the party. “I’m going to step outside a minute.”
“Be quick,” he replied. “I don’t want you out in a strange pack by yourself.”
“What are you, my father?” Josie teased.
“No, but you better believe I’d never hear the end of it from him if I lost you somewhere,” her brother said, shaking his head.
“Yeah, okay. I just need to get out of here. Be right back.”
Josie wove through the room to the large double doors. Outside, she sat on the front step and took a deep breath, savoring the cold night air.
She looked up at the moon and sighed. “Do you even have one for me?” she whispered. “If you do, where the heck is he?”
She sat in silence for a moment, as if waiting for the moon to really answer. The moon shone brightly down on her.
“Do you often talk to yourself?”
She turned with surprise to see a man standing in the shadows. “Oh, I’m sorry. I thought I was alone.”
“Too bad we couldn’t dance earlier,” he said, stepping into the light. She tried not to show her dislike of his dark, greasy-looking hair and mousy face.
“Mm-hmm,” she replied shortly, uncomfortable being alone with a stranger.
“I’m Jack. Nice to meet you,” he said, offering his hand.
He was standing too close, and he reeked of bad cologne. He didn’t seem to notice her discomfort.
She stared at his hand for a moment before looking up and offering a strained smile. “Josie.”
“You’re much better-looking than I thought you’d be,” he replied with a smirk. “I’m glad I have you alone now. It was hard fighting past the other guys all night. But once I saw you, I understood the hype.”
Josie gave him an odd stare, daring him to say more. “How nice,” she muttered.
“Well, Josie, you want to get out of here?” he asked, his mouth curling into a dirty smile.
Her wolf growled and raised her hackles. “Um—I’m good, thanks,” she said, standing up from the steps.
“Don’t be like that,” he snapped, grabbing her by the wrist.
“If you like that hand and want to keep it, you better let go,” she threatened, trying not to stammer as she tugged away from him.
Another man’s voice spoke up. Half of his face was in shadow and the other half was lit up by the moon. Josie didn’t know where he had come from.
“Am I interrupting something?” he asked. His cool blue eyes fixed on Josie’s face. Then he looked at her wrist where Jack was gripping it.
Jack dropped her wrist and scowled.
“This is Enzo,” he said. His voice was sullen. “He’s an omega visiting from Elk Forest Pack. Enzo, have you met Josie? She’s visiting too. We were just talking.”
“Yeah. Nice meeting you, but I’m going back inside to dance some more now,” Josie lied, seizing the opportunity to escape.
“I was on my way in as well,” Enzo replied, approaching them.
Josie looked away from him, hiding the tears in her eyes. She was afraid that Enzo would be the next one to corner her.
Still, she let him guide her inside. She just wanted to escape the reek of Jack’s cologne as fast as possible.
Enzo was silent. His hand was warm on her arm, and she found herself leaning close to him as the door closed behind them.
He released her almost immediately. “I was just going to speak to the alpha about something,” he announced indifferently, and walked away.
Josie felt a mix of confusing emotions. For some reason, she wanted to cry. Sudden warmth was spreading through her body. She’d gotten cold outside, but it was still too hot and loud when she stepped inside.
It had all been too much for one night, and they were only on the second night of their trip. She almost wanted to go home.
She shook her head to clear it and quickly found her brother.
“That was a short trip,” he said, offering a smile.
“It was interrupted,” she mumbled.
“See!” he hollered. “I told you I can’t leave you alone!”
He muttered angrily as he began to stand from his seat.
“Oh, sit down!” she exclaimed as she pulled his arm, forcing him back into his chair. “The creep probably ran off already.”
Eddie shook his head as he mumbled into his drink. “Can’t even walk outside without…”
She calmed down at her brother’s normal, comforting presence. She even smiled at his teasing and his insistence that she stay in his room tonight so the pig wouldn’t get any ideas.
“Who was it, anyway?” Eddie asked. “Do you need me to talk to him?”
Josie hesitated. “Just a guy named Jack. You don’t need to talk to him. We’re leaving tomorrow anyway.”
At the end of the night, Josie walked down the hallway toward her guest room. She walked cautiously, the hairs on the back of her neck standing up, making her and her wolf alert.
She shook the dark thoughts from her mind and went inside her room. She gathered her things quickly back into her bag, ignoring that her hands were still shaking slightly.
There was a knock on the door.
Josie grabbed her bag and walked to the door. She opened it, shaking her head at her brother’s smug grin. He took her bag, and she followed him to his room.
She was unaware of the darkness plaguing the house, unaware of the person standing in the unlit corners, watching her every move.
