boyfriend, right? Yeah, he got into drugs
and moved off to Illinois; haven’t heard from him since!” Well, Harper
thought, some things never change. Her friend might look older, but she
still talked the same way.
Two
hours later, they were still sitting on the couch. Harper had a sudden thought.
“Wait, so what happened to your boyfriend, Gregory?”
Gabby
held up her hand, showing off a large diamond ring. Harper squealed, leaping
off the couch. “Oh. My. Gosh. You’re married!”
They
hugged again, laughing. “We got married four months ago, and the wedding was crazy. Okay, so there was this slut there who was all over Axel, and you got so
pissed. After she didn’t take the hint, you dumped champagne all over the front
of her dress and it was the most hilarious thing ever.”
Harper
smiled, but she couldn’t imagine herself doing that. Throughout Gabby’s recap
of her wedding, Harper began to notice small changes from the girl she
remembered.
The
woman sitting next to her was more self-assured and a bit more arrogant. She
talked haughtily, taking special amusement from the stories where someone else
had been humiliated. Since the funniest of these memories had happened in the
second half of her senior year, Gabby was flipping back and forth between the past
two years, confusing Harper terribly.
“And
then he told me he was a werewolf! Can you believe it? No? Well, you couldn’t
believe it when I told you, but then you turned 18 and apparently became one
too. I was completely shocked. You were angry at your parents, of course.
Anyways, I had better get going. I’ll be back soon to fill you in some more!”
They
hugged goodbye, and Harper’s head reeled after she closed the door. Gabby had
talked nonstop, and it was disorienting to compare the two versions of her best
friend. The Gabby she could remember had been sweet and accepting of everyone.
This new Gabby was such a different person, with no sympathy. In fact, it
seemed like she was glad that Harper had lost her memories, because then it
meant she had someone who would listen to her rehash the past few years.
She
shook her head, deciding to worry about it tomorrow. The grandfather clock
chimed 11:00, and Harper began wandering down the hallways in search of a
closet with clothing. She wasn’t picky, but she needed something to wear
after her shower-to-be. All she wanted to do was wash off those hospital germs.
It
took her three tries, but she finally found a pair of grey sweats and a
matching sweatshirt. Turns out she would have to go without a bra and
underwear.
Now
time to find a bathroom, she
thought. Any help, Wolf? You remember your home, don’t you? she asked
herself while feeling silly.
Wolf
stirred, taking control. Harper let her, knowing her wolfy-self could maneuver
the house better. She brought them to the master suite and didn’t pause before
opening the door. Harper prayed that Axel either wasn’t inside or, if he was, fully
clothed. Luckily, he was nowhere in sight. She made it to the bathroom without
any problems.
Thank
you, Harper thought to her wolf,
wanting to regain control.
Wolf
ignored Harper, refusing to relinquish command of Harper’s conscience. Giving a
mental shrug, Harper let Wolf have her way, content to sit on the backburner as
Wolf took a shower. Stripping shamelessly, her wolf turned on the shower to hot
and stepped inside the steam.
Harper? Axel asked inside her head.
Yes? Harper tried to send back, but
couldn’t. Wolf had control of her thoughts as well, and that knowledge was
scary.
Wolf
sent Axel an unmistakable feeling, sex .
Harper
thought at her wolf, Are you freaking kidding me? If you hijacked my
body for sex, then that is so wrong.
Harper
could feel Wolf’s amusement. Axel chuckled deeply, his voice reverberating in
their head.
Little
wolf, that wasn’t kind, he told her.
Harper
began fighting to regain control, but Wolf was adamant.
Now, Wolf thought at Axel.
All
in good time, Axel