“This is just my room?” I confirmed on a small exhale.
He offered me a curious head tilt. “I can show you the others if you want, if you don’t like this one.”
“No!” I squeaked, feeling alarmed at that concept. “This is fine. It’s beautiful, actually, I’m just bad with change.”
His lips pulled into a full-dimpled smile as he walked over to my bag and brought it over before placing it in the center of the room. “I’m guessing you need to pick up some stuff?”
I fidgeted with my hands and nodded, wondering how much everything was going to cost. I hated that I was being so quiet right now, but I honestly didn’t know what to say to the man. I just needed some processing time. That would fix me. Hopefully.
“Let’s eat something and we can go from there. I promise you will get used to it.” He wrapped an arm around my shoulders, pulling me into his side as I inhaled his scent, feeling far better. Was it normal to feel physically better when someone like Julian was touching you? We left the door open as he led me towards the kitchenette, dropping the bag from the Student Union down onto the counter.
The kitchen was missing an oven, but it had everything else, including a dishwasher, fridge, microwave, and even a long island. Honestly, it was double the size of the kitchen in our apartment back home, and it wasn’t even a full kitchen. I wondered if I could find a way to bake in here? I knew Christmas season was over, but I hadn’t even had a chance to bake this year because we had been so low on money that we had only been able to purchase essentials.
“What are you in the mood for?” he asked curiously.
“I’ve never had most of these,” I answered honestly, looking over the brightly colored packages that we had purchased. Well, he had purchased. Which reminded me, I needed to figure out a way to pay him back...
Before he could say anything else or we could decide what to eat, the elevator dinged open, and Julian’s entire body froze. My gaze moved towards the elevator column, curious to see who would round the bend. I didn’t like how tense the person made Julian, so I was already finding myself frustrated with them. Before I saw anyone, though, the scent of vanilla and fresh cut wood filled the space. It had been one of the scents from before, but it was so much stronger now.
My wolf let out a soft whine as my breathing picked up.
“Effie.” Julian’s voice was edged in caution, his eyes moving over my shoulder as I looked back at him.
“Julian, you back?” A deep voice had my entire body softening, my knees almost breaking from where I was leaning against the island…
…and that was all before I actually saw our new guest.
5
Effie Harlow
Holy crap. He was possibly the largest man I’d ever met.
Seriously, there was an absolutely massive man standing frozen at the corner bend of the room that faced towards the kitchen. It was almost comical the way he paused mid-step before his entire body seemed to go rigid, a pair of icy blue eyes narrowing on me. I wish I could tell you I wasn’t intimidated, but considering the look was not only tinted with surprise but also something that seemed like anger, I could feel my wolf freaking the heck out. My pulse jumped as I tried to keep my breathing even.
Julian wouldn’t let him hurt me, right?
Why was that my first thought? I had never assumed someone would protect me before, and I didn’t expect it to start now. I just needed to keep both my eyes on this man because he was literally the definition of a predator. I also could feel an odd pulse of lust in my core that came from his massive, intense presence, my breathing going slightly rough as I blinked, trying to keep focused on him.
“Tore.” Julian’s voice had a warning edge. “This is Effie.”
The man blinked upon hearing his name, seeming to shake himself of something, his gaze darting from me to Julian before sliding back over to me.
“When?”
What was with this ‘when’ question? I felt like this was a common question between the men around me. I didn’t like feeling out of the loop, and I had to admit, despite not having a right to know, some of the looks they exchanged had me feeling off.
It was also possible this was my ridiculous urge to somehow connect with Julian… and now Tore? I barely knew the man’s name! What was going on here? Was it possible I was just hyper-focusing on the few first people that wanted to spend time with me? That didn’t treat me like crap? Or was this an authentic connection I felt to them? My brow dipped, not liking the confusion there.
“Around an hour ago. I met her at the train station, she just transferred in.” Julian’s voice was soothing, and I found myself physically relaxing to it, something I couldn’t currently afford without knowing who Tore was or if he was a threat. I knew there was a different side to Julian as well, I could sense it, but right now he was sweet and relaxed. I just wish it could remove the fear this other man was inspiring.
“Effie.” Tore said my name with interest before stepping forward. My wolf instantly had me stepping back, hitting into one of the barstools as I gripped the counter. Not only was this man massive, like 6’6’’, but he was extremely built and dangerous-looking, like some vicious warrior. Like the Vikings I had seen illustrated in some of my books come to life.
His hair was a dark blonde, with almost caramel undertones, messy and pushed back slightly to highlight his intense predatory gaze. The man was wearing a dark leather jacket and motorcycle boots with his shirt and jeans, adding a darker edge to his overall appearance. It probably didn’t help that he had tattoos running up his neck and onto his fingers, making him appear all that more deadly. I mean, he was gorgeous… but terrifying.
He was also a fenrir wolf.
An extremely powerful alpha, if I had to guess, far more powerful than my uncle, and his entire air was vicious and almost primal. I couldn’t help but feel cornered like prey, something that not only came from my recent past but the natural dominance he exuded without any of Julian’s sweetness to counteract it. Honestly, sometimes it truly surprised me that fenrir wolves couldn’t shift into a full wolf form, because their magic made it feel as though there was a vicious creature waiting right under the surface to make an appearance.
A small whimper broke from my throat as I began to feel the same pressure that I felt around my pack, that fear and intimidation coursing through my veins. It was confusing because there was something underneath all of that, a familiarity trying to push through, but it wasn’t strong enough.
Julian made a worried noise but didn’t move as Tore stopped after a second step, his eyes flashing with confusion and something that looked like hurt.
Had I hurt his feelings?
Frustration filled his face as he ran a hand through his hair, looking confused on how to handle this. I didn’t know either. I wanted to both snuggle up next to this man and run for my life. I was pretty sure the first part was just my wolf… I’m pretty sure. Honestly, it may have been both of us.
“Effie grew up in a pack of fenrir wolves,” Julian explained as Tore snapped his gaze around towards him.
I wish I could tell you I hadn’t used it as an opportunity to literally turn and run. Julian called my name in warning, but I didn’t listen. Where the heck did I think I was going to go? I almost slid on the floors as I went to turn the corner around the elevator, panic moving over me in a tidal wave caused by my wolf and the previous memories of everything that had happened with men like him.