About Face (Wolf Within) Read Online Free PDF

the floor since the music started. He’d had a different partner for nearly every song, including me once. He was full of confidence, brimming over with excitement.
    “I’ve met more people tonight than I have my entire frigging life, Stanzie,” he’d confided to me as we’d danced together.
    “Found a hunt partner?” I’d teased, and he blushed.
    “ She asked me ,” he whispered, awestruck, as if the thought of it was too weird to be possible.
    He’d changed so much from the frightened, sheltered boy he’d been when I’d visited Mayflower two months ago.
    “Who’s initiating your wolf?” I’d asked him and he’d grinned.
    “Dorothy. Can you believe it? She asked me if she could. She remembered when I’d asked her and she’d turned me down because of the pack bond. But there is no pack bond now, so she asked me. It’s going great, Stanzie.”
    I remembered I’d told Scott about Alan’s preference for a teacher and wondered if he’d had a hand in Dorothy’s recent offer. I suspected he had. He was a good Alpha.
    The slice of cheesecake was the last one. Bright red strawberries decorated the creamy frosting, and I could smell their juice above all the other desserts. My mouth watered at the thought of sinking my teeth into one of the plump, ripe berries.
    “Not tonight.” Jason’s voice was cold, as if he didn’t even know me and I was some stranger who wanted an audience when he had better things to do. Right now better things to do translated into what dessert should he choose now that he couldn’t have the cheesecake.
    “Take it.” I pushed the cheesecake in his direction. “I bet you’re getting it for Wren. Cheesecake’s her favorite. She never got it much. Paul preferred chocolate cream pie.”
    He pulled his hand back from the piece of chocolate cream pie he’d selected and I walked away.
    * * * *
    I needed air so I pushed open the reception hall door and walked out into the salty breeze.
    A wooden deck overlooked the sandy beach. Moonlight streamed down upon the glassy black waves and made a path of shimmering silver.
    A woman stood by the stairs that led down to the sand and gripped the rail, her head bowed. She had pixie-short brown hair highlighted with streaks of dark gold and wore a nude-colored sheath dress with a black colorblock hem and black Jimmy Choo pumps. Diamond drop earrings glittered from her earlobes.
    She’d taken off her ceremonial robe and looked small and vulnerable as she huddled against the rail.
    “Kathy,” I whispered and she swung around guiltily as if she’d committed a crime instead of gazed at the ocean.
    “I did the right thing.” She made no pretense that I hadn’t caught her almost in tears. “But it’s still hard to watch the way he looks at her. He used to look at me that way.”
    Before I could stop myself, I went to her and put my arms around her. The strength of her return embrace hurt, but I held her as she buried her face in my neck and we rocked together.
    Our eyes were wet when we drew apart, but some of the wild sadness had lifted from her face.
    “It would never have worked.” Her tone was conversational as she slipped her shoes from her feet and waited for me to do the same thing. We left them on the deck and descended the wooden stairs to the rough sand.
    In common accord, we moved toward the black expanse of the restless ocean, which muttered secrets to itself that grew louder as we approached.
    “He wanted me and Matt to leave Darkhunt and join Silverlake. I would have had to leave the New England Regional Council. He told me he believed I would be appointed to the First Western Regional Council, but he couldn’t guarantee it. He knew damn well Matt wouldn’t leave Darkhunt. He was counting on that, counting on us severing the bond. He had no real interest in a triad but was willing to compromise on that for me. His exact words. Can you just hear him saying it, Stanzie? The colossal gall of the man.” Kathy linked her arm