“I don’t want you to be disappointed if this doesn’t work.” She wipes her face and looks away from me.
Careful not to step on any of the stones, I walk over to her, lift her chin, so she’s looking at me, and give her a reassuring smile. “You could never disappoint me,” I promise her. “Please, don’t ever think that.”
I kiss her forehead before pulling her in tight against my chest and holding her close, then she wraps her arms around me, and I place my chin on top of her blonde head. I close my eyes and savor the moment. It’s simple moments like these I always thought about when I would picture our life together. These are the moments I mourned, and now they’re the moments that make my heart swell with emotion.
“Okay, I’m ready,” she whispers after a couple of minutes.
“You have to drink that stuff first,” I tell her as I release her.
“Can’t be any worse than the cheap tequila I was drinking last night,” she chuckles.
“What?” I exclaim. “Did you see that sludge? It’s going to be disgusting.” I shake my head at her.
She slaps my arm. “You’re not supposed to say that. You’re supposed to say it’s going to be fine.”
I pull the bottle out of the bag and hold it up. Even in the moonlight, the brown muck still looks vile. “I’m sorry, but I can’t lie about this.” I pop the lid off and take a quick sniff of the liquid. “Oh, yeah, that’s going to suck… Bottoms up!”
Pru rolls her eyes at me before taking the bottle from my hand. “You’re lucky I like you,” she snaps at me, a smirk on her face.
“You more than like me, and you know it, baby.” I wink at her.
“No one likes a know-it-all.” Her eyes narrow at me.
“But I’m not wrong.”
“No, you’re not wrong.” She shakes her head at me, an amused look on her face.
“I’ve more than liked you for most of my life,” I tell her. “You’ve got some catching up to do.”
21
Pruitt
Ryker wasn’t wrong. Esme’s drink was absolutely disgusting. He had to hold my hair back when I thought I was going to throw it up. It was a struggle, but I was able to keep it down, thank God.
I’m standing in the circle with my arms crossed and eyes closed as I wait for something to happen. “Do you feel anything yet?” Ryker whispers from his spot outside of the moonstone circle. Esme left explicit instructions that once the ritual begins, no one is allowed to cross the moonstones.
“Nope,” I sigh. “Did she write in her notes how long it’s supposed to be before I feel—” I suck in a breath as a wave a pain washes over me. It starts at my scalp before spreading down to my toes.
Every single part of my body feels like it’s on fire, and I fall to my knees, no longer able to keep myself upright. The pain in my limbs and torso is terrible, but the agony that wracks my skull is horrifying. I grab my head and clench my teeth, trying desperately not to scream out in pain.
“Pruitt!” Ryker rushes forward.
“No!” I gasp, throwing my hand out to stop him from crossing into the circle. “Don’t!”
“What can I do to help?” I don’t have to look at him to know he’s panicking. I hear it in his voice.
I shake my head at him, no longer able to use my words.
Another intense wave of pain washes over me, and I’m no longer able to hold back the howl of pain that escapes me. I hear Ryker speaking to me, but I can no longer understand what he’s saying. My brain is too occupied by the pain to comprehend his words. My hands reach down and dig deep into the dirt, searching for something to hold on to.
That’s when I feel it, a wall of sorts starts to shatter in my brain. A rush of power drapes over me, making my chest vibrate and my skin sting. I sense another presence in my head, one I now know has always been there, but locked away. I also sense the delight it feels being freed and the nudging it makes at my mind, asking for control.
“Ryker!” I gasp as even talking hurts at this point. “I think… I think something worked. My wolf… I think she’s free. I can feel something inside my mind…”
I hope he can understand what I’m saying because I don’t know how else to explain it.
“That’s your wolf, baby.” I open my eyes long enough to see that Ryker is crouching in front of me on the other side of the circle. “Let her take over. Don’t fight her.”
“I’m not trying to,” I growl between clenched teeth.
“I know it’s hard to hand over the control, but she knows what to do.” His voice calm, and I find comfort in his soothing voice.
“It hurts,” I sob as sweat drips down my back.
“I know, but look,” he says, pointing at my hands that have been on fire since this whole thing started, “You have claws.”
“Wh–What?” I stammer as I bring my hands closer to my face so I can see them through the tears in my eyes. Sure enough, razor-sharp claws have replaced each one of my fingernails.
“And your fangs came in too.”
I carefully run my tongue over my front teeth and, yep! Two elongated pointy teeth now sit there. “It’s working…” I breathe, feeling some relief.
“Let your wolf get you through the rest,” Ryker says, reassuring me. “You’re doing amazing, Pru.”
I close my eyes and focus on the other presence that now occupies my
