I took a silent sniff of the air. The tantalizing scent was coming from him and I felt my wolfie knees go weak. Guess it's a panty dropper in this form too, I chuckled, carefully laying down to watch him.

I watched as he inhaled deeply, his muscular chest swelling before letting out a heartbreakingly lonesome howl. I knew that kind of pain, it was the pain of losing a mate, and I felt a lump in my throat. His grief called to my own, bringing it to the surface after being forced down for so long. I had to bite my tongue to keep from joining his howl. As his call and its echoes died out, I could feel myself breathing again. Great. Now I was grieving and crushing at the same time. Real healthy, Allison.

My head felt heavy and I laid my head down on my paws, eyes drifting closed as I watched the male. With his size, he's either alpha stock or a damn good warrior. Maybe both, I thought dreamily. He's the stuff she wolves drool over.

The male sat still for several moments before turning slowly to head back down. I sighed, content, as I watched the way his muscles rippled under his fur.

Sadly, my sigh seemed to have broken the spell as the male whirled to face me, lips curled back to reveal large, dagger like teeth. A deep, menacing growl rumbled deep from his chest and I suddenly realized I was an idiot and in deep trouble. Adrenaline spiked in my body, making my hearing buzz and my heart beat against my ribs like a trapped bird.

The male stalked forward a single step, growling loud as thunder and eyes like twin fires. My ears went back and my own hackles raised to try and make myself look bigger and I backed up.

The other wolf blinked, as if that wasn't what he was expecting, lips drooping slightly and his growl dying out.

That's my cue! I thought as I turned tail and ran like a bat out of hell. I could hear him crash after me, but I used my smaller size to my advantage. I wove around trees and leapt over anything that could get me further away from him.

My claws scratched hard against a boulder as I scrambled on top of it. I didn't dare to look back to see where he was but he sounded close - too close for comfort.

What I could see though was that directly below me was the river. One good jump and I should be free.

I could hear him breathing hard as I tensed my muscles. I wasn't going to stick around to see if he was friendly or not. With a small yip of triumph, I closed my eyes and leapt. The wind whipped through my fur as I fell and I could almost picture myself soaring through the air.

Ok, I should be landing in the water any minute now... I thought, feeling gravity pull me down. Any minute now...

Still no splash.

What the hell? I thought, opening my eyes to see where I was. I was only halfway down, nowhere near the water. Oooooh this is bad.

I started to panic and gave a horrified cry, legs flailing gracelessly. That seemed to break the spell of slowness and all at once I found myself immersed in the cold river. I wanted to inhale but thankfully my brain screamed it was a bad idea to try with my head underwater.

My back feet found a rock and I used it to shove me up to the surface. As soon as my muzzle reached the cold air, I took in deep, gulping breaths. It took a second to orient myself before paddling to shore and shaking out my drenched fur.

If I don't catch a cold, it'll be a miracle, I thought with a snort to expel water from my nose. I looked up to the boulder that I jumped from and saw the dark wolf standing there, watching. It was too far to make out any semblance of an expression and I wanted to keep it that way.

With another shake of my fur, I turned tail and ran through the trees once more.

I jogged harder, trying to outrun the way my pulse wouldn't settle.

Nothing like almost dying to ruin a perfectly good crush.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Author's Note:

Ah yes, the chapter where Allison goes for a midnight jog and immediately makes terrible decisions. Proud of her consistency.

Fun fact: her reaction to falling from a good height was my reaction the first time I jumped from a high dive. I thought I should have hit the water... looked down... and I was still way too high up and nowhere near the splash.

Happy Black Friday, by the way. I hope you didn't empty your bank account today — good news, this chapter is completely free. Emotional damage, however, is complimentary!

Tune in every Tuesday and Friday at noon Pacific for more emotional chaos and questionable life choices!