Free Embracing the Wolf - Book #2 (Anna Avery) by Stephanie Nelson Page B

were that easy. I could deal with bitchy in-laws and their upturned noses. What I couldn’t handle, what tortured my mind, was the fact that I was worse than a poor girl who’d captured the prince’s heart; I was a liability.
    I closed my eyes for a moment and sucked in a deep breath through my nose. When I exhaled, I imagined all of my problems floating out of me. I couldn’t worry about this shit right now … not when Anthony was in our midst. When Adam rescued me from Eve’s torture chamber, Anthony had promised it wasn’t over between the two of them. For some reason, I wanted to believe we’d all misjudged Anthony. Maybe it was my mind’s way of hoping everything would be okay. I could pretend for only a second, though. I knew Anthony had a motive. I also knew how much he loved Eve, though I couldn’t understand why. I’d never met anyone so disturbed in my life. I still thought of the humans she’d killed. Their screams echoed in my head when I remembered the dreams. With Eve out of the picture, I couldn’t fathom Anthony not wanting retribution for her death. Like he’d said before—“love makes you do crazy things.”
    I shook away my thoughts and tried to concentrate on the shopping list Elle had given me. Focusing on something so normal was a nice change of pace. I placed more paper plates into the cart, the fancy ones, per Elle’s instructions. She was making a huge deal out of the visitors, as though the Queen was visiting. Maybe it was my young age and lack of pack dynamics, but I didn’t get it. So far, all the new wolves I’d met had been either pretentious or slutty. If it were up to me we’d be eating hotdogs off the grill with cheap beer and generic chips. Adam was impressive in his own right—freaking royalty. They should be catering to him. Fanning him with banana leaves and shit. I giggled at the thought, and a woman next to me eyed me with wariness. I smiled sweetly at her, and she quickly averted her eyes, feigning interest in flushable wipes.
    I headed down the aisle. Making a detour to the dairy section, I picked up a tub of whip cream. Maybe if I made a bikini out of it like in Varsity Blues , Adam would be tempted to lick each sweet dollop off me. My wolf purred with anticipation.
    * * * *
    Back at the house, I lugged the multiple bags into the kitchen and set them on the table. The house was fuller than before. Wolves occupied every inch of the space. In the living room, the sectional was full of them as they watched EPSN on our flatscreen. Elle stood by the sink, her hip resting against the counter as she talked to a woman with an auburn bob. The woman smiled and laughed at something Elle said, making me smile, too. I wanted so badly for her to find someone to share her life with. She was too great of a person to spend it alone, cooking for an army of wolves.
    “Anna,” Elle says, seeing me for the first time. “This is Jill Baker, a wolf from the Nevada pack.” Elle stared at her, besotted. Blinking, she remembers herself and looks at me again. “And, this is the slave driver, Anna,” she said to Jill.
    I scoff. “ Slave driver ? Who sent me all the way into town to pick up supplies?” I retrieved one of the packages of paper plates from the bag and held it up. “I think you might be a tad OCD, Elle.”
    Elle came across the kitchen to pluck the plates from my hand. “These are the strongest ones.” She held up the package. “And they’re even pretty to look at.”
    I shook my head with a laugh, ignoring her obsession with disposable dishes. I stepped around her and held out my hand to Jill.
    “It’s nice to meet you.”
    Jill clasped my hand and smiled. She was a good two inches taller than I was and had eyes the color of scotch, a perfect balance of caramel and brown. Her thin nose sloped at a flawless angle, and her Cupid’s bow lips were full and as red as a poppy.
    “Anna Avery,” she breathed, clasping my hand and giving it a gentle shake. Releasing me,