Vesper narrowed her eyes slightly as the dark wolf settled down onto her stomach, but she made no move again. She didn’t like to be the one to provoke a fight unless she had severe emotional stock in it; defense was the best way to test out and tire out the opponent. She let her gaze flicker over the female’s form again, this time looking for signs of experience. She was somewhat slender, but she seemed to carry the same compact muscles that the hybrid had.
Evane’s demeanor changed again when Vesper answered her question; she turned either serious or disappointed, the loner couldn’t tell. What kind of reason had she been expecting Vesper to stick around? As interesting as the black wolf was, she wasn’t the only interesting canine Vesper had ever met. She was just one of hundreds that lived around ’Souls.
There was silence as those sky blue eyes dropped to the rabbit, and then the bejeweled wolf stood. She turned away with a halfhearted farewell, and Vesper stared at her back in confusion until Evane added—almost uncertainly, shyly, hesitantly—that she could use her cave.
“No, no, no—” The coywolf quickly trotted after her, walking at a pace where her shoulder lined up with the dark wolf’s hip, a safe distance behind those formidable jaws. “Do you have multiple personalities or something?” She flicked her torn ear and snorted. “Though I have no doubts you’d slit my throat in my sleep if I roomed with you in your cave.”
She broke out into a canter, her lope bringing her in front of Evane, where she swung around to meet her gaze. “First you’re hostile, and now this. Don’t make the mistake of assuming I’m a fool, Evane. You’re trying something.”
Why didn’t she just walk away? Vesper didn’t know the answer anymore.
