My muscles were tense, my wolf alert as we buckled in and maneuvered the car onto the street. Lou put the address into my phone for me, turning on the GPS. I followed the human-sounding robot voice telling me which way to go, and with each passing second, I relaxed more and more. This was Lou.

Lou won’t hurt us. The wolf’s tone was amused as it lay down, putting his head on his paws. Calm. Which made me calm. I let out a slow breath, and with it, the last of my tension.

Lou was quiet. She always was around me, like she was trying to calm a feral animal. No quick movements. No loud noises. Trying so hard to gentle the world around her. Even her scent was soothing now.

Lou always smelled a little wild, like all the animals she encountered, as well as an underlying note of cedar and her own natural scent. By now, both my wolf and I associated her with home, just like I’d wanted.

My shoulders hunched up momentarily as I worried that this was part of her process, putting me at ease so she could work her magic. Which I knew was just my paranoia talking, but my paranoia was that loud talker in a restaurant who drowns out everyone else’s conversation. Shut up and eat some breadsticks, paranoia. Breadsticks were delicious.

My wolf chuffed a laugh.

Lou’s stomach rumbled. “Quiet, you.” She poked her belly as she grumbled.

I reached over, popping open the glove compartment, which was full of jerky, peanut butter cracker packs, and mixed nuts. “Help yourself.”

She perked up, grabbing a pack of crackers. “You know, most people keep paperwork in there. Spare napkins. Even maps sometimes. You’ve got a tiny convenience store.”

“Maps are under your seat. I need food more often than I get lost.” But I still kept a map or two around. Every once in a while, I drove some place where I didn’t have good service and I liked knowing I had a backup plan.

I watched her eat out of the corner of my eye and something inside me relaxed. Not in a calming way, like earlier, but more like I’d been trying to accomplish something, meet some goal, and I’d suddenly done it. A mix of relief and…satisfaction? What was that about?

She pulled her reusable water bottle out of her bag, unscrewing the lid so she could take a sip. “You’re my hero right now.”

I couldn’t help it, I laughed. “That’s all it takes? Crackers and a lift?”

She took another sip, and I realized I was watching her again, so I snapped my attention back to the road.

“You clearly don’t know me yet. You had me at crackers. I’m feral—you feed me, I’m yours.”

Another wave of satisfaction. I’d think about it later. Right now, I was maxed out, mentally. “Go nuts.” I waved one-handed at the glovebox. “I can always use another person in my debt.”