1. Briony

Apparently, I've reached the point in my life where I receive dating advice from ninety-four-year-old women.

I can't decide if that's sweet or intensely pathetic.

Either way, the old woman in question smiles at me from where she's sitting in her chair.

"You know, there's a meet-and-greet happening at the brewery after the Blue Moon Bash. Why don't you go? See if you can find some young man who makes you happy."

I grit my teeth but smile back. "Thanks, Mrs. Bortles. I appreciate that."

"You're not getting any younger, you know," she says, her eyebrows wiggling at me for emphasis. "You'll need to find someone soon if you want to keep shifting!"

"I'm aware of that, but I appreciate you looking out for me."

She sighs and settles back. "I just wish that young man of yours would come to his senses. You're going to be a lovely mate, and all he needs to do is stop being so afraid to recognize it."

I would argue that Will's problem was not that he was afraid to be with me. It was that he decided he wanted to be with me while also sleeping with my friend, Kelly. He engaged in a little non-ethical non-monogamy, and that's why we broke up.

Also known as… he cheated on me.

The thought still makes the corners of my eyes burn, so I look down into my teacup. "What type of tea did you say this was?"

"Oolong, pup," the older woman says with a sigh. "It was my Davey's favorite."

I'm not entirely certain that she means her husband or her son, both of whom are sadly deceased. Mrs. Bortles is a regular on my caseload, someone I check in with every other day since she's at a high risk. Within a human world, she might have no one to look out for her, but here in the Oakwood pack, we take care of our elders.

Even ones with questionable dating advice.

As her social worker, it's my job to make sure Mrs. Bortles is keeping up with her medical appointments, to help her clean her house a little, and to evaluate whether she needs any help. She's actually one of my favorites, and until recently she's been pretty good about all of her self-care routines.

The slip on Davey, though, seems to indicate some dementia.

That and the thirty-seven salad dressing containers in her fridge, thirty-five of which were growing something that could have been mold or a nightmare fungus.

Either way, I'm starting to worry.

"My Davey, he loved his teas after the war."

Ah. Davey the younger was also a veteran, but he didn't serve anywhere they would have oolong tea.

"Of course, in Iraq they don't drink tea like they do here."

Dang it. "Mrs. Bortles, which Davey are you talking about?"

She blinks at me, her head tilted to the side. "Why, my husband, of course. Is there another one that I should know of?"

Ah. "Your son," I say gently. "Davey Junior."

"I have a son?"

Oh, dear. My heart sinks. "He was also named David. He was born in May, nine months after your husband came home from where he was stationed in Guam. Remember?"

She screws up her face, her eyes searching. "Oh. I think I do," she says faintly.

My heart sinks even more. "It's okay, Mrs. Bortles. Tell me more about the event at the brewery."

Breaking into a wide smile, she beams at me. "Oh, it's going to be lovely. The day after the Blue Moon Bash at the alpha's house, all the ladies in the society are going to set up a dance for the young folks. You know, the unmated ones," she winks.

I reach for my notepad and take some notes. At this point, I'm ninety-nine percent sure she's remembering an event that happened years in the past, not something that is coming up for this year's Blue Moon celebration at the alpha's house. We do, however, also have a brewery here in Oakwood. There is no ladies society, so I definitely need to listen in to find out.

Ten minutes go by, and when Mrs. Bortles finishes, I know for sure that she's remembering something that happened years ago.

I don't know why, but that… hurts.

It's not that I was looking forward to going to a singles event at the suggestion of a woman so old, she's lived in a world without cars. It was more that… Well, okay, maybe I was looking forward to it.

But there's no point. After Will, I'm not sure that I can open my heart to anyone in a romantic sense, let alone someone I would meet at a mixer. Besides, the Oakwood Pack isn't enormous. I know most of the other wolves, and they fall pretty firmly into two camps: taken, and assholes.

I've had my fair share of assholes with Will as my ex.

Still, it would have been nice, I guess, to just have the hope of moving forward. I've always wanted a mate.

But I'm not on board with a mate who treats me like dirt.

I finish my tea and thank Mrs. Bortles for her time. I'll come back in two days, the day before the Blue Moon party. Checking my phone, I see that my friend Amira texted me.

Amira: Once you wrap up, meet me for drinks in town! The library bar is open!

That will be fun. The library holds quarterly nights when it stays open after dark, offering cocktails and the opportunity to peruse the stacks in the darkness. It's a little spooky, but I love it. I text Amira back quickly, then smile at Mrs. Bortles. "Keep taking your medicine, okay? I'll be back in two days."

"Bring your young man with you!" Mrs. Bortles says cheerfully.

I shake my head. "I don't have one, Mrs. Bortles, but thank you for the invite."

"Oh, such a shame. You'd make a fine mate!"

Politely, I nod and exit her house.

Mrs. Bortles' words linger, and they swirl around in my chest, bouncing off of feelings that flare up easily lately.

I would make a darn good mate.

To someone who wants me just as much as I want them.

After Will, I made myself two promises:

First, no more assholes.

Second, only settle down with people who match the energy that I give to them.

As with most social workers, my background is in therapy, so I am pretty proud of the boundaries that I finally set for myself.

Will's betrayal feels like a scar, and I don't know that my heart will ever feel the same again. But at least now it feels like it's healing, and not like a gaping wound.

I get into my car and head to the library. There are a few people gathered around, and I head inside.

Amira is waiting for me in the fiction section, martini in hand. "Hey girl. Ready to get weird in these stacks?"

I shake my head and accept the drink. "Not too weird, though. I still have to work tomorrow."

"Boo. That's boring. No late-night mysteries for you then?"

I sip my drink. "Do I seem like a late-night mystery type of person?"

Amira scrunches up her nose. "You could be. People grow and change."

"Not people like me, unfortunately."

"Babe," Amira shoots me a look, and her voice is soft. "You don't have to believe that."

I shut my eyes. Without thinking about it, I'd said something that Will had told me.

You're boring. You've always been boring. She's exciting.

"I mean, it's not wrong. I'm not the life of the party. I'm definitely more of a like… help the person who is in the bathroom, helping the person who is throwing up, you know?"

She holds up her drink. "As the person who is usually puking, cheers to that."

We clink our glasses together, and I take a bigger sip. Normally, shifters need a pretty high proof (and high volume) of alcohol to get drunk. I'm a little bit of a lightweight, so two drinks will probably get me at least a little buzzed.

"So, who was on the docket today?"

I'm about to tell Amira about Mrs. Bortles when a loud, and uncomfortably familiar, laugh sounds nearby.

Immediately, I grimace and turn.

Ugh.

Evander Alderwood.

He's sitting over in the main library area, and as usual, he's surrounded by his goonies, AKA the other ranked wolves in the pack, AKA the Frat Pack, a name that I've given them based on their overall asshole-y behavior. As the pack's beta, he definitely has to maintain those types of connections. However, the overall impression of the group is definitely "Bros on the loose," especially since they're currently trying to throw martini olives into each other's mouths over the library's signature fish tank.

Gross.

If he's here, Will has to be nearby or on the way. Evander and Will have been besties since they were pups, and Evander's sort of like Will, with more power and less of a filter.

He, along with the rest of the Frat Pack, liked to tease me about my ‘big heart' and my boring job.

"Sorry. I didn't know he was coming until he showed up about ten minutes before you got here," Amira sighs.

"It's fine. We can stay over here, and they won't notice us at all."

"What are you going to do about the Blue Moon Bash?"

I wrinkle my nose. "Same strategy. Hide and hope for the best."

Shaking her head, Amira looks at me over the rim of her glass. "I wish you didn't have to though, Bri."

"I wish I didn't either," I say with all the bitterness I feel.

This is the other part of breaking up with someone in the pack. You can't get away from them. Evander, and likely Will, will be at the Blue Moon Bash. They're also at the grocery store when I need to go. They're at the library. They're in the woods when I want to change into my wolf form and run. They're at every pack town hall. I can't get away from either of them, and I hate it.

"What packs are near here?" I ask Amira.

She blinks. "What do you mean?"

"Like, if I got a job in Steamboat, do you think I could live here and work there while I apply to a new pack?"

Her eyes go wide. "Briony…"

"I'm serious, Amira. I can't do this much longer. Evander is the beta. Will is his friend. They're literally everywhere I look. I don't want to see them, and I can't get away."

She stares at me for a long time, and I down my drink. The Frat Pack bursts into raucous laughter again, and I shut my eyes.

"I have to get out of here," I whisper.

Amira grabs my hand and leads me out of the library, but I know in my heart that's not enough.

If Will and his friends are going to be around here forever, then there's only one course of action for me.

No assholes.

It's boundary number one.

And in order to enforce it, I only have one option.

I have to go.