Chapter 49 A Little Longer
“You mean he actually said that?” Cassie asks in disbelief.
Beth is telling her about the whole Kai situation, and Cassie is the best actor ever, pretending she doesn’t know anything. I know Alec’s told her stuff, and she’s overheard a lot of it. But I guess being a werewolf your whole life makes you into a fabulous actor.
“Yup, that’s when he attacked him, which of course you came in towards the end. How did you hold Alec back so well?”
“I work out a lot, and Alec knows better than hurting me or any girl, for that matter. I would beat his ass if he had turned on me and fought me too much.”
“You got a crazy sleeper build,” I add in.
She smirks hearing that, pulling back the sleeve of her shirt, flexing her arm. She literally has a sleeper build. Her muscles are not really present until she flexes. She is extremely built, which isn’t too much of a shock to me personally, but is a big shock to Beth.
“What the hell. Are you on steroids?”
She laughs, putting her arm back down. “No, like I said, my friends are boys, so we work out together all the time.”
It makes me wonder whether all werewolves are naturally fit, or whether they all work out deliberately to gain muscle and stay in shape. I wish I could ask her right now, but Beth is here. One of these days I’m going ot have to convince Alec to let me tell Beth.
“Do you know how to fight then, too? Is that like something you all do for fun?” She asks.
“Yeah, I guess you could say we do it for fun. We’ve all been learning to fight since we were young, but I guess that’s a normal boy thing.”
“You’ll have to teach Anna and me so we can try to fight you, too. Make it fun for you to fight another girl.” She laughs at that.
I know we could never even dream of winning a fight against her, but Beth’s hopefulness is nice. It makes me happy that she’s actually trying to have a relationship with her again. We keep talking for what feels like hours and probably would’ve continued far longer, but a loud howl makes us stop immediately.
Upon instinct, my whole body freezes, sensing the threat of a wolf nearby. But my brain corrects it, reminding me that I’m literally dating a werewolf. Cassie looks around before looking back at me. Beth is still looking at us both with wide eyes.
“Was that a wolf?” Her voice is barely above a whisper.
“Yes. You guys should probably get back to camp.” Cassie gets up from her chair, making us stand.
“But what about you? Do you have some way to protect yourself?” Beth asks about her concerned for her safety.
“Don’t worry, I got some animal spray, and it’s not too far of a walk for me."
She doesn’t look convinced, but let’s go with it. “Text Anna when you get home so I don’t have to go looking for your dead body again.”
Cassie laughs. “Ok mom don’t worry.” She teases her, but I can hear some of the urgency behind her tone.
I’ve already gathered that the howl came from their pack. I just don’t know what it means. Beth and I don’t linger much longer, walking on the path back to camp with a quick pace.
“Thank you. I really appreciate what you did, and I’m sure she does too.”
“Yeah, whatever, but don’t expect me to go over and beyond right now. I’m still a bit upset about it all.”
“Of course, you can take as long as you need. I just appreciate you even giving her a chance. I know she’s really relieved too.”
I see the slight smile on her face. It was a successful time. They both talked, although Beth is still standoffish, I know it’s only temporary. She’s already treating her better than I could’ve guessed.
I wrap my arm around her shoulder, pulling her close to me. “You’re such a great friend, Bethy.”
She pushes me off softly. “Stop, don’t slow down, what if the wolf gets us?” The seriousness in her tone takes me off guard.
“Don’t worry, animals are more scared of us than we are of them.”
She gives me a look. “But that monsterously large wolf won’t care about some small humans.”
I almost have to stop myself from laughing at her concern. In reality, if I didn’t know it was someone with Alec, I would probably be scared shitless right now.
“Okay, let’s go, we’re almost there.” I don’t slow us down anymore. She breathes a sigh of relief when we step into the camp.
It’s a warm sunny day. The perfect time to go swimming at the pond. It’s the first time I’ve been here since my date with Alec, and it’s a bit weird to see it from this side instead.
“Let’s tan, then we can swim.” Beth says as she applies the sunscreen on her body.
We’re both on beach towels in bikinis with one goal in mind for the rest of the day. Get a beautiful tan.
“It’s a lot warmer than I thought it would get out here.” I lay my head to the side, looking at her.
“This isn’t the usual temps for this area, but I like it. We can finally tan. I’ve been waiting since the first day.” Beth loves to tan, apparently even though it’s hard to do in this climate.
“I’ve never really lain out in the sun to tan before.” I admit. Tanning has never been something I tried to do. But for Beth, I’m giving it a try.
“You’ll love it.” The only noise around us is the splashing of the water and the talking of the people.
It’s a nice way to end a stressful day. Beth was happy when Cassie messaged us before we made it out here. It’s a relief off my shoulders to know they’re friends again.
The sun is warm, maybe too warm, but Beth is happy, a smile almost permanently stuck on her face.
And after everything I’ve put her through, I can bear the heat a little longer.