Chapter 5: Poof?

Thea's POV

“Magic?” I repeat to Hudson. I can’t hide the snort of laughter that sneaks out of me at his statement. I quickly repress my smile.

“Are you really going to laugh at me after you just repeatedly hit an invisible wall that knocked you on your *ss?”

I huff in frustration, knowing deep down that he is right. So I shook off his comment as if I hadn’t heard him.

“How long have you been watching me. Did you follow me out here?” I try to cover the heat pooling in my cheeks. I don’t know if I’m blushing from embarrassment or anger.

“I heard you leave the house. I followed you because I figured you’d try to get back home. It’s not safe for you to be out here on your own.”

My cheeks were definitely burning from embarrassment. He had obviously seen the whole scene. My embarrassment adds fuel to my anger regarding this entire situation.

“Okay, fine. If there is magic, then why don’t you just ‘poof’ me over this force field and let me go home.” I said with a little more snark in my voice than I anticipated.

“Poof?” Hudson said, clearly trying to hold back a laugh. “What do you think I am, some kind of wizard?”

“You’re the one who brought up magic, not me.” I glared at him.

“I guess that’s fair. This is all new to you.” Hudson says as he runs his fingers through his hair, clearly trying to figure out what to say. I stay quiet, hoping he will continue.

He sighs, obviously trying to figure out what to say. “Look, I can’t just ‘poof’ you back over the barrier. Don’t you think I would have done that last night if I could have?”

I still say nothing while waiting for Hudson to fill the awkward silence. “You were somehow able to cross at the full moon. I didn’t even know that was possible. I thought only my kind was able to do that.”

“Your-kind? Full Moon? Hudson…What are you implying?”

“I’m a shifter, Thea.”

I scoffed, “Oh well, that makes everything make sense.”

“Well, Yeah. I didn’t think you’d accept it that fast…”

He clearly did not catch the sarcasm dripping from my last statement.

“Like turn into a monster on full moons and kill everything in sight, a werewolf?” The words slipped out before I could stop them. As soon as the words were in the air, I wished I could pull them back.

I could tell I hit a nerve as the edges of Hudson’s eyes clouded with anger. I’d better be careful with what I say. Clearly, this man was losing his mind, or maybe I was.

“Sorry,” I muttered, barely more than a whisper.

“I wouldn’t call us monsters, and we definitely don’t go on killing sprees. Also, we can turn whenever we want, not just at midnight. We prefer the term shifter rather than werewolf. See, this is the fear and lies that caused humans to come after us.”

“I must have hit my head harder than I thought,” I say more to myself than to Hudson.

“Look,” Hudson sucks in a breath, clearly trying to take control of the conversation. “I know it sounds crazy, but I feel like you deserve the truth because…well, you’re stuck here until the next full moon. I am a wolf shifter, Thea. It’s not just me either; Emma and the kids are too. There’s a whole pack of us.”

I suck in a breath trying to slow my racing heart. My mind races through that one psychology class I took as part of my nursing degree. How do you deal with a crazy person who believes they are mythical creatures? Even if I had passed psychology, I still don’t think I’d be prepared for this. I quickly decide to play along because, well, what other choice do I have.

“I don’t know if I can wrap my head around all of this unless I see it for myself.”

“We’re not really supposed to shift in front of humans.”

“That seems like an excuse,” I say and fold my arms in front of myself. I figure Hudson won’t back down from a direct challenge.

I watch his mind race through his options. Clearly, I was right, and he does not want to back down. Then, just as I guessed, he gives in.

“You’ll have to turn around. Em, will kill me if I rip another pair of perfectly good jeans.”

The redness returns to my cheeks as the realization hits me. I am not sure what I just got myself into, but I nod in agreement and quickly turn my back to him.

I hear Hudson shuffling behind me in the dirt. I fully expect to turn around to find a full-grown man on all fours pretending to be a wolf, hopefully not butt naked.

The low deep bark startles me. I turn quickly to find a beautiful auburn-colored wolf in the place where a man just stood. The wolf was the same color as Hudson’s hair.

“Hudson? Is that really you?”

The wolf stared back at me with Hudson’s eyes.