I loved it. I loved it so much I pulled my old T-shirt off and put the new one on right beside the gas pump. Jules got a faraway look in his eyes and his jaw dropped open ever so slightly. I knew that look.

“Sully, once we hit the road, I’m gonna need you to find a secluded spot to pull over.”

“Really?” I teased. “And why’s that?”

“’Cause, big boy, I need a load for the road.”

Giving Jules a load for the road proved to be a very sensible idea. It calmed us both down considerably. Our bond hummed in shades of blue until we were less than forty miles from the homestead. Anxiety started to flicker in Jules, and I followed suit quickly.

“It’ll be okay,” I said several times. Each time I said it, I felt more like a liar.

We rounded the bend and caught the first glimpse of the only place we’d ever called home. Eight run-down cottages dotted on either side of a dirt road. Broken-down vehicles parked here and there. The intention was always to use them for parts, but somehow it never seemed to work out. It was a tumble-down place. It was in dire need of maintenance. Being away and seeing it again only drove that point home. At the same time, it was lovely. It was the charming little backwater haven that housed most of my memories. I was relieved when I saw no evidence of vampire activity. Perhaps they’d given our town a wide berth. I felt sick when I thought of leaving this place. In my heart I truly believed it was the last day Jules and I would call Clearwater Valley our home.

I brought the GMC to a standstill at the top of the hill. Mrs. O’Malley was leaning on her porch railing. She was looking her best. Her hair was puffed up into what she liked to call “my Marilyn curls” and she was wearing her blue-and-white dress with a busy floral design and a stiffly starched white collar. She usually saved that dress for special occasions. She must have let everyone know we were coming because a good-sized crowd had gathered on the lawn down at the pack house. Jules’s parents were standing under the cottonwood tree with the omegas, and my parents were headed up the drag to meet us. Jules and I got out and used the truck to shield us as we undressed. It was our pack’s custom for newly shifted pack members to show off their wolves. It was an honor we’d looked forward to for years. In all the times I’d imagined it, I never once thought it would feel like it did; terrifying.

“You go first,” I said to Jules. I didn’t want to upstage him with the crazy size of my wolf. Despite the circumstances, I wanted him to have his moment.