Blood Wolf Dawning

As she crawled onto her bed and turned out the light, Sayre could have sworn she heard a voice in her head murmur, How will you know if you never give yourself a taste?

Chapter 5 (#ulink_e98b4652-1ac5-52ca-ad4b-96ef680263f0)

For Sayre, the following morning put the phrase leap of faith in a whole new light. One that was up close and personal...and as exciting as it was terrifying.

Cian had prowled outside the cabin until just after two in the morning, then finally dragged himself inside. Sayre had dozed off at that point, too, awakening later than usual after a restless night’s sleep. Dressed in soft cotton shorts and a tank top, she padded out to the living room and stopped at the end of the hallway when she saw that he was still asleep on the sofa. His long legs hung over the end, one powerful arm thrown across his face to block out the morning sunlight flooding in through the French doors.

As she stood there with her shoulder propped against the wall, staring at his sunlit body sprawled across the off-white cushions, she knew she’d made her decision. Knew what she wanted. And while things usually went to hell in a handbasket when people started making decisions based on what they felt they deserved, rather than on what was smart, she didn’t care. She figured this was her one shot at joining the masses and being a “normal” girl. Even if it were just for a brief moment in time.

But there was more on the line here than her need for sexual discovery and satisfaction. More than her need to finally get herself a “little somethin’” before she ended up a crazy old recluse who had nothing but chipmunks and squirrels for company. She needed to think about what the right answer was for their current safety situation. Not so much for herself, because she knew that while Cian might be an ass when it came to women and relationships, he would do whatever it took to protect her. His coming back to the States was a clear indication of his determination to keep her safe from this unknown brother of his. But she was most likely putting him in a dangerous situation by making him face it alone, with only her to help him. If they went back to the Alley, he would have others to watch his back and ensure his own safety.

And as long as he was there with her, she had a feeling she would be able to deal with the issues her powers created. When she’d mentioned how difficult it was for her there during their argument the night before, she’d been thinking more of the emotional strain it would put her under—not the physical one. Being there with Cian, when everyone knew how he’d just upped and left her, was going to be anything but peachy. She didn’t plan on actually spelling any of this out for him, though. It would simply be a lie by omission, and she could live with that.

Plus, she knew most of the others were on vacation at the beach with their kids, enjoying a summer getaway, so the group would be small. Brody and Mic were there, and Jillian had had to stay behind, because she was needed in town to help deal with several premature babies who had been born within the last few weeks. Sayre was aware of the details, because her sister had been blowing her phone up with texts since yesterday. Instead of calling Jillian back, like the texts had begged, she’d replied that she was fine and would be in touch, and left it at that. Yeah, it was bitchy, but she didn’t have the energy for the guilt she knew she’d feel when she heard the worry in her sister’s voice that was always there whenever they spoke.

And God only knew Jillian would have a lot to say about Cian showing back up in her life. Cian’s leaving had drastically altered her sister’s perception of the Irishman. Words like bastard, selfish and coward were the ones Jillian used to describe him these days, whenever he happened to come up in conversation. And Sayre had always agreed with her.