Page 83 of The Lunatics

Why couldn’t we catch a break? Why did it always feel like we were only a heartbeat away from the next disaster? I knew the bond was supposed to test us, but this level of constant stress felt like overkill.

I sent my gaze heavenward.A little help here? Just, like, five minutes of peace and quiet?

If the Goddess heard me, She didn’t respond.

I wrapped my arms around the waist of the wolf she’d tied me to and hugged him, setting my chin on his shoulder so I could whisper back to him, “I have faith in you. The only reason you just reacted was because you were caught off guard. Now that you know it can happen, you’ll do better. You’re so good at masking what you feel from people that I know you can do this. That you’ll be just as good at pretending you can’t hear and see and smell as much as you do.” I leaned back to look at him, lifting a hand to tap at his temple. “And that big brain of yours will find some way to use it to your advantage.”

Warmth radiated from him, off his wide frame and also through the bond. He caught my hand out of the air and kissed the sensitive skin on my wrist. “Just like that?”

I nodded. “Just like that. You’re magic.”

He shook his head and rested his forehead against mine. “So are you.”

I leaned into him and grabbed his butt.

He chuckled. “Don’t start that again.”

“What’s two times seventy-six?”

“You’re not funny, Mom,” I said.

“One hundred and fifty-two,” Dad answered. Mom and I looked at him. He shot me a victorious grin and reached out to ruffle my hair. “We haven’t played math games since you were in high school.”

“Yes. That’s what we’re doing,” I said. Playing math games. Not being mercilessly teased by the woman who was supposed to love and cherish me unconditionally.

Mom leaned forward, elbows on the dining table, dark eyes sparkling with mirth. “Eight times ninety-seven.”

I curled my fingers around my fork and bared my teeth at her. “I am going to stab you one of these days. And I’ll probably get off with nothing but a warning. Any rational judge would agree that I’d been driven to it.”

She leaned back in her chair and laughed uproariously.

Dad looked between us, confused. So did Michael. Good. They didnotneed to be in on this joke.

Instead of critically injuring my mother, I chose to ignore her in favor of the hash browns Dad had brought home from my favorite breakfast joint. They were crisp and warm and perfectly seasoned. We sat around the small table in my parents’ dining room. Up until Mom started lobbing equations at me, we’d shared a nice meal together. Clearly, the five minutes of peace and quiet I’d prayed for were now over.

“What are your plans for today?” Dad asked. He was so used to my and Mom’s weirdness that at this point, he moved past it like a pro.

“Not sure yet,” I told him. “Food, then sleep. Then we can go from there.”

“How far did you two roam last night?”

“To the cliff cave.”

He whistled. “You must be wiped out after that.”

I must have absorbed some of Michael’s control, because I managed not to blush or fidget in response. “I am.”

Across from me, Mom grinned like the Cheshire Cat. I lifted my fork in idle threat and stared at her until she stopped.

Dad turned to Michael. “It’s beautiful out there, isn’t it?”

Michael nodded and finished chewing his bite of pancake before responding. “It is. Quite the change of scenery from the city skyline I’m used to.”

Dad frowned. “I always wondered how you city wolves got away with shifting in such close quarters with humans.”

“We have a strict policy against wolf form within city limits,” Michael said. “Between smartphones and security cameras, the risk of exposure is far too great. Our pack holds several large swaths of land in the state that any of our members are welcome to use when they want to shift.”

Dad looked at Mom. “Imagine having to plan out when you want to shift instead of just walking out the back door.”