Chapter 5: The Gypsy Wolf

Chapter 5: The Gypsy Wolf

Kayleigh

The weekend went by fast. Maybe because I spent most of it locked inside my room, catching up with sleep and video-calling my family back in Ireland. Cillian knocked on my door on Saturday but I literally begged him to leave me alone so I could sleep the weekend away. He walked out, reluctantly, and I haven’t seen him since. Andrei also called and tried to convince me to go out with him so he can show me around, but I asked for a rain check. Told him maybe we could do it next weekend.

 I was a little nervous about today, the first day of Wolf Blood Summit. Other than several girls I met at the dining hall, I haven’t really made any friends. This morning we attended a briefing about our schedule. Basically, from Mondays to Thursdays, we’re supposed to be at the pack’s ranch for the summit activities. We can either ride the shuttles, arrange our own car service, or car pool with those who drove their vehicles here.

The ranch is huge, with state-of-the-art facilities built especially for wolf-blood events. It has a basketball court, tennis court, swimming pool, and acres of open land. Perfect for wolf runs. It even has a small man-made lake, complete with paddle boats. There’s also a decent size pond with a small walkway bridge. We have to sit through lectures in the mornings, go for lunch, and do some sort of team building workshops in the afternoons. Fridays are rest days, but we are mandated to go to the bonfire and wolf runs at night. We can spend the weekends however we want as long as we follow the host pack’s rules and behave ourselves. I already know that weekends are going to be my favorite. 

The briefing took longer than it should have. I was picking music to listen to on my phone while walking through the corridors to head to the stairs, when big strong arms pulled me to the side.

“Kayleigh cakes… are you hiding from me?” Icy-blue pools that remind me of Billie Eilish’s song “Ocean Eyes” stare into my own blue eyes.

“Andrei! Where have you been? And why would I hide from you?” I chuckle. Still not breaking away from his tight hold of me, I rest my hands on his shoulders to steady myself.

“I’ve been stuck with the other Alpha heirs. You know we have a different schedule than you guys. We were already here at six for the morning run. I’m starving. Wanna go get lunch?”

“Yeah, sure. Wanna go to the dining facility?”

“Nah, let’s take my ride. I wanna take you to this hole in the wall place that has the best hotdogs ever. I’m pretty sure since it’s the first day we’re off for the afternoon.” He winks flirtatiously at me.

“Umm, no we’re not. We have to be here this afternoon for the workshops. You’re not going to get away from the schedule, Andrei. Not while I’m here,” I tease.

“I’m joking, I’m joking. Let’s go. We’ll be back in time for the workshop. We have about two hours to burn anyway. Please? I’m so bored here.” He lets go of me and gives me a pleading look. I roll my eyes but give in, as always.

We head to the parking lot where his car is parked. His hand is on the small of my back while we walk. He doesn’t miss when I look around to check out the vicinity for a certain Alpha-hole. 

“He’s not here. Kinsley picked him up after our run this morning.” There’s a hint of bitterness in his voice.

“Who’s not here? Who did Kinsely pick up?” There’s my poor attempt at pretending I didn’t know who he was talking about.

“Hmm. I like how you think I don’t know what goes in your mind…and in your heart, Kayleigh.”

“Andrei, I really don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Weren’t you just looking around, hoping to spot Cillian nearby?” He opens the door to his car and helps me in. Even with a hint of jealousy in his words, he’s still very caring to me.

“No. The thought of anything Cillian hasn’t crossed my mind until you mentioned him.” Seeing that he is already upset, speculating that I am thinking about Cillian, I lie.

He starts the car and reverses so we can get on the road. I stare at his very handsome face. He has this bad boy look/mysterious aura. Must be the Romani gypsy in him on his mom’s side. If Cillian has the Jacob Elordi look going on for him, Andrei looks like a more sinister version of Hero Fiennes Tiffin. Tall, trim but muscular, and sinfully handsome.

Wanting to break the silence, I clutch his hand and entwine our fingers. “So, what’s special about the hotdogs that you’re talking about? Are they fancier and with better toppings than Irish hotdogs?”

“Malyshka, they’re not even the same level. You’ll see.” His smile replaces the cloud of gloom on his face. I like when he calls me Malyshka. I don’t exactly know when he started calling me that, but I like it so much. I like that it kinda gives me a sense of pride that I’m someone to him. What am I to him? I really don’t know. Through the years, we’ve fallen into this deep friendship that lingers between friends and almost-lovers. He flirts with me—a lot. And I’m not gonna lie… I like it and I even encourage it most of the time.

We were busy catching up and don’t even notice when we arrive at the place. It’s a gas station. I mean, it looks like a fancy-looking gas station, but it’s a gas station. A big sign above the small building reads, The Embassy Travel Center. Eyebrow arched, I give him a curious look.

“I promise, they have good hotdogs here. Nothing like the ones you’re used to back home,” he sniggers as he reaches for my hand.

It takes us only a few minutes to get several kinds of hotdogs from the hotdog roller. We grab some drinks and head to a table. Andrei can’t stop grinning. He is so excited for me to try the hotdogs. “After you, my lady.” He signals for me to take the first bite.

“Ummm… this is good. So simple but yet so…beefy. So juicy.” I can’t believe I’m enjoying American hotdogs. We usually put slices of corned beef and sauerkraut on our hotdogs back home. Andrei smeared our hotdogs with a lot of mayo and a little ketchup, and I’m so surprised by how good it turned out. “Never thought that mayo would go so well with hotdogs,” I mutter in between chewing.

“Mayo makes everything taste better,” he says, grinning. His eyes gleam like a child’s.

“Of course you say that—Russians love mayo,” I tease.

“I’m not even going to deny that,” he says, nodding with a smirk.

I surprise myself by eating more than one hotdog. I’m not a big red-meat eater. I usually stick with chicken or fish. Either I really like these American hotdogs or I’m really famished. I’m so glad Andrei is here in Missouri, at the Wolf Summit. I’d probably die of boredom or loneliness if he wasn’t.

We clean up our table and get ready to leave, when a group of young men enters the building. Sometimes I feel like I’m a magnet for bad luck because, of all the people inside the place, the burliest one sets his eyes on me and saunters towards where I’m standing. 

“Looky, looky, what do we have here?” I detect an odd accent in his voice.

Not that I’m scared of them, but I know that Andrei is a hot-head. I don’t want him to get in any fights for my sake, so I immediately loop my arm around his and coax him to leave. “Let’s go, Andrei.”

“Oh, hey. It’s the Russian Alpha heir.” One of the guys points at Andrei. So they’re werewolves, too. It sucks not having my wolf—I would have scented them.

“We’re about to leave. We don’t want any trouble.” Andrei wraps his arm around my shoulders and veers me toward the door.

“Too late for that. If you didn’t want any trouble why did you come in this area, outside the Blue Blood territory?” the burly one asks.

“Last I checked, this area is neutral town. We’re not breaking any pack laws, especially not any of your rogue pack’s laws.” Andrei knows that these guys are rogue wolves. Or can he smell them? I really wish I had a wolf I could rely on in times like this.

“Oh, you’re right. No rules were broken. That doesn’t mean we can’t greet this beautiful lady here, though. She doesn’t smell like a human, and I don’t sense any wolf in her. She smells something, different… what is she?” He sniffs the air and slants his eyes on me. The other men follow suit and start sniffing the air, all eyes on me.

Andrei’s jaw hardens. Not looking pleased he stretches his neck sideways, looking like he is ready to get in a brawl. “Listen, guys, I’m gonna forget about all this disrespect to my girl if you let us walk out now.”

“And if we don’t?” The burly man grins, showing his rotten teeth.

“If you don’t, I will hurt all five of you.”

“There’s six of us, dumbass.” A laugh breaks from the men.

“I won’t touch the sixth guy, because he will have to drive you back to your pack so you can go cry to your rogue Alpha about the gypsy wolf who maimed you.”

“What the fuck? A gypsy wolf’s bite or scratch is lethal. We could die before we heal,” the short guy at the back mumbles to his friends.

“No fucking way. Gypsy wolves are myths. You’re fucking lying,” one of them blathers.

“Also, it’s against pack rules to shift in public places,” another one retorts.

“Do you want to test that theory? You know, I don’t need to fully shift to show you that I am a gypsy wolf.” Andrei lifts his right hand and shows them his fingers slowly turning into long black claws. Fur starts growing down his arm, right before it hits his elbow.

How did he do that? I flinch from his hold, not knowing what to think of what I’m seeing. I’m stunned. He can control his shifting?

My sudden movement makes him glance at me. His eyes are now a shining royal blue. I’ve never seen his wolf before, so this is the first time I’m seeing his wolf eyes. They’re so mesmerizing. “Are you okay, malyshka?”

I’m speechless, but I nod. I’m startled by the sight of the incomplete wolf transformation on his arm and fascinated by the galaxy of blue specks in his wolf eyes.

The rogue wolves are in shock. I can tell that, like me, they haven’t seen anything like this before. Even in Ireland, gypsy wolves are not common. I’ve known that Andrei’s mom is a gypsy, but I’ve never really known the extent of how that affects him. It’s unknown if gypsy wolves are related to having gypsy heritage.

“Fuck this shit, I’m outta here,” one of them stammers as he starts running out the door.

“You’re a fucking monster. You’re a Russian and a gypsy wolf. Shit, what a double whammy of abnormality!” another exclaims as they all race to leave the building.

 Thankfully, there were not many people in the store. The cashiers were too immersed in their phones to notice anything amiss.

Once the rogue wolves left, Andrei and I headed out to the car. We drive back to the ranch, silently.

“Did I scare you?” Andrei breaks the quietness.

“No. I was surprised, is all. But no, you didn’t scare me.” I hold his hand to reassure him.

“Listen, Kayleigh, back there… No one really knows,” he says softly.

“If you’re worried that I’d tell anyone what I saw, rest assured your secret is safe with me.”

“Thanks. It’s just that, the Blue Blood pack is not very welcoming toward me already. My pack, the Korol Volkov, already makes a big deal out of this… whatever you call it. I don’t really want Cillian’s wolf blood elders to make any issues of my anomaly.” My heart feels a sudden pinch of hurt, hearing him refer to himself an “anomaly”.

“Hey, don’t say that. Everything about you is perfect. At least you have a wolf. If there’s anyone with an anomaly, it’s me,” I say in a somber voice.

“No, no, no. You, beautiful girl, are not going to steal my self-pity moment. You are the one who is perfect, okay?” He pulls my hand to his lips and kisses my knuckles. Butterflies fill my stomach.  

“Really, though, I think you’re so badass to control the way you shift. I’ve never seen anyone shift partially like you did back there. I probably will not experience shifting. I don’t think I have a wolf at all.”

“Don’t worry about it. It is what it is. If you don’t have a wolf, who cares? You’re still beautiful. I’ll still be holding your hand like this.”

“Hah! So only because I’m beautiful? That’s the only attribute I need to be accepted by the Great Alpha Heir Gypsy Wolf Andrei?”

“Well, that, and you can throw down when it comes to eating hotdogs. I like pretty girls who can eat.”

“Oh my gosh, Andrei! Did you just say that I eat a lot? I had two hotdogs!”

“Two and a half!” He arches his eyebrows and grins at me.

“How dare you count how much hotdogs a lady eats!” I playfully hit him while I giggle in embarrassment.

He stops the engine and I realize we are now back at the ranch’s parking lot. Other cars are also pulling over. It seems a lot of the attendees went out for lunch as well. We’re still chuckling when he opens my door and reaches for my hand.

“Kayleigh, I’m serious. Can you please keep whatever you saw today between us?” His pleading eyes are waiting for my response.

I squint my eyes to avoid the glare from the sun as I work my eyes up at him. “I promise.” I make a sign of zipping my lips, which makes him smile. He drops a peck on my nose before opening his door.

We head to the big multipurpose hall where the workshop is scheduled for the day. I ask him a question that’s been lingering in my mind since we left the gas station. “Wouldn’t those guys spread word about the gypsy wolf in the area, now that you’ve exposed yourself to them? I wish you didn’t do that. Now I’ll be constantly worried about you.”

“I’m sure they will. I’ll call my cousins now and see if they can do something about it; maybe send damage control message to the rogue pack. It should be easy to track those guys. I’ll give my cousin a call after I drop you off inside.”

Andrei had to show those men what a gypsy wolf can do. He didn’t have a choice. There were six of them and only the two of us. Well, just one of him, really, since I don’t have a wolf. He took the risk because he had to scare them off. Because he wanted to keep me safe.

He exposed his secret because of me. That says a lot about him, or about whatever I am to him.

I owe it to him to keep his secret.

I owe it to him to also keep him safe.

We stop in the hall’s entryway. He tugs me closer to him and tips my chin up. For some reason, realizing how tall he is also reminds me of Cillian. I guess they’re both about the same height— about 6’4”. But I don’t want to think about Cillian right now. He’s probably with Kinsley doing goddess-knows-what together.

“I have to go make the phone call in my car to make sure no one hears what I tell my cousins. Be a good girl for me and wait for me inside, okay?” Andrei has this power to make me melt just by his words.

“I’m always a good girl! You’re the one here who manages to always get himself in trouble. Like at the gas station. What a bad boy you’ve been, you… you Russian wolf!” I tease him. Goddess! I almost said gypsy wolf.

That earns me a smirk. “You like the bad boy side of me, though, don’t you?” he asks as he drops a kiss on my forehead. He stoops lower to run his nose to my right cheek. I’m not sure if the pounding I hear is from his heart or mine.

“Well, I like all sides of you… good or bad… I like them all.” Without thinking, I grab both his hands and hold them close to my heart. I look into his eyes and see a flood of emotions.

“You promise?”

“I promise…”

“Even if I’m…”

“Yes, even more so.” My mouth has a mind of its own, just blabbering what my brain doesn’t understand.

He pulls my hands to his lips and kisses my knuckles. One at a time.

Show me a girl that will not melt into a puddle when a guy does that. Well, show me before I melt into a puddle myself.

Or not.

“What the fuck are you two doing?! This is not a make-out-in-public-summit. Have some self-respect. Or get a fucking room!” My eardrums almost pop from Cillian’s loud voice.

Not wanting to stir up any more bad blood between the two, I pull Andrei. I figure I can just wait in the car with him while he makes the phone call to his cousins.

“Noted! That’s a good idea! Thanks for the suggestion, Kill. You’re so smart. What will the whole world do without you? Let’s go, Andrei.”

“Where do you think you’re going? You come here, Kayleigh. Right now!” Cillian growls.

How dare he growl at me!

I stomp my way to Cillian. I make a hand signal for him to bend lower so I can say something in his ear. He does, obediently so. I swear, he even looks excited.

He stoops down to my short height and I place both my hands on his shoulders. I wait until his face is right in front of mine.

“YOU’RE. NOT. THE. BOSS. OF. ME!” I say, loud enough for his friends and everyone around us to hear.

Before I let his shoulders go, I do the unthinkable.

I lift my knee and hit the spot between his legs.

THREE TIMES.

All those martial arts trainings are paying off!

“What the—! Kayle—  Ou—!” No matter how big and strong he is, getting kneed in the balls is not a walk in the park. His face is very red and you can tell he is trying so hard to hold it together. Fruitlessly, though.

Poor guy. He’s beside himself. Couldn’t even finish a sentence. I can’t help the chortle that comes out of me.

I kneed his balls three times!

That’s for the three times he stirred up confusing feelings inside me.

When he kissed me the first time.

When he kissed me the second time.

And whenever he makes me feel like he’s jealous of Andrei but yet plays like a perfect boyfriend to Kinsley. Like today. He was out the whole day with Kinsley but has the audaacity to get mad when he sees me and Andrei having a moment.

Aware that all eyes are on me, I make my way back to Andrei and snake my arm around his so we can leave together.

I throw another smug look at Cillian and see the anger on his face.

Is he angry because I kneed his balls (three times!) or because I’m walking away with Andrei?

Meh! Who knows!

Let him stew in his anger… and sore balls.