Page 20 of Hungry Like the Wolf

“We’re almost at the cabin, pup,” JJ said.

“I’m gonna barf,” Robbie said, clamping a hand over his mouth.

JJ didn’t drop him, but he did set him down with what his mama would have called a quickness.

There wasn’t any food in Robbie’s stomach, but that didn’t stop his body from trying its damnedest to exorcise every possible demon from his attic, another expression from his mama.

He heaved, his body racked by the effort, dimly aware of people talking nearby. With nothing left—neither strength nor stomach contents—he crawled a few feet sideways and collapsed to the ground, panting and sweating.

“Kill me now,” Robbie groaned.

“Is this normal?”

That was Nadja. She was still here. For some reason, he had expected her to get him to the pack, turn right back around, and leave. Robbie smiled in spite of his agony.

“Hell if I know, Nadj,” JJ said. “I’m out of my depth here.”

“Well, what do you normally do with people before their first shift?”

“Run them.”

Oh god. Hadn’t Robbie just thought that he wanted to run? His shaking limbs made a liar out of him. He didn’t want to run. He wanted to disintegrate into nothingness. Give my love to Callum and Jory and Esther and Hank and Magda and the World’s End crew. Tell my mama and sisters I love them. Tell my Grandpa he’s a fucking snake. Delete my browser history, please, and whatever you do, don’t open the second drawer on my nightstand. Goodbye, cruel world.

“You can’t be serious,” Nadja snorted. “Run him? He can’t even walk right now.”

But JJ was already taking off his shirt. “Do you mind?” he asked, holding it out for Nadja.

“Do I mind?” she shouted. Robbie winced at the sound.

“The cabin y’all are staying in is just down this path and on the right. It’s got a blue door and some yellow Adirondacks on the front porch. Now, I know you’ve seen it all before, but if you don’t want to see it again, I suggest you look away.”

“JJ, you can’t be serious.”

But Robbie could hear the sound of JJ toeing off his boots.

“Come on, pup,” JJ said, reaching down for Robbie’s hand.

Robbie took the hand, groaning as JJ hauled him up.

“Strip,” JJ said.

“Why?” Nadja asked. “Why does he have to strip?”

JJ sighed.

“Wolves don’t wear clothes. It’s unnatural. He needs to connect to the world around him, feel the sun on his skin, the breeze on his ass.”

Robbie looked up at Nadja in time to see her roll her eyes.

“Plus, if he does decide to shift, it’s a big damn mess to do it in clothes. A literal pain in the ass trying to get your tail free.”

“I can’t run,” Robbie croaked.

“Sure you can,” JJ said.

JJ unbuckled his belt and unzipped his jeans. “Last warning, Nadja,” he said over his shoulder to a glowering Nadja.

“Oh, for the love of my license,” she muttered, turning around.