Hidden Wolf

Esmeray jumped out of the shower, dried her body, applied body lotion of Mojave Ghost, the smell was amazing: the mix of magnolia with sandalwood and Cedar wood was gorgeous and she always felt more confident when she was wearing it, today was the day she needed all her confidence.

She put on the black pencil dress from Karen Miller called Forever Bar, a double V-neck, three-quarters sleeves dress with a belt, a timeless piece, and the black stilettos accentuated the right curves in the right places.

She dried her hair and noticed it was longer than she usually had it, it was over her shoulder, she made a loose side French braid and rolled it in a messy bun, the small strands that were loose framed her face perfectly, she applied make up, opting for barely any eye shadow, but crimson lipstick, had a last look at herself in the mirror and felt she was ready.

While grabbing the car keys and her bag she thought of how much her life had changed in the last few months.

Esmeray had grown up with her adoptive mother and owner of the book shop she was now going to manage.

Growing up on the shop floor, Esmeray read her first books sitting on its corners, developed her love for literature in the shop and could not imagine closing it down or having a stranger manage it, she decided she wanted to take over from her mother Malou if this was something she would accept and trust her to do well:

-I cannot let you do that, you have your career, and you’ve been with the Imperial London College for 7 years now. No, it’s decided, you will not throw it all away… - said Malou

-Exactly, I have been with them for 7 years, I’ve grown comfortable and I was honestly thinking of a career change, it’s not challenging and exciting anymore – reiterated Esmeray and it was in fact true she was hired freshly out of university where she had graduated with extinction and went on to do a masters in animal welfare, but her other passion had always been literature and she had taken a sabbatical year to study it.

-But Esmeray what if you regret it and want out? I could not live with the thought of making you unhappy! – argued Malou.

-We’ll compromise, if within a year of me taking over, the business is not at least doing as well as now and I’ve grown tired of it, I promise I will let you know, and we will start looking for someone more competent to take over. – Esmeray declared with a determination that Malou knew too well, this was already a fact in Esmeray’s head, and she was just not about to be persuaded.

There was no point on trying to make Esmeray change her mind, so the arrangements were made to have her take over, there were changes she wanted to implement as she was aware the business wasn’t doing as well as before the social media age, so that was the 1st measure: a relevant, edgy social media presence, the shop needed an updated look and to become a brand so totes, mugs, book markers and pens were ordered.

Esmeray dived in with enthusiasm and determination, Reigate was not the biggest community in Surrey, but they had always been faithful customers and a re-launch of the shop needed to be the talk of the town, marketing was done, but the biggest feat Esmeray was immensely proud of was managing to convince her favourite writer Leona Woodcroft to be at the reopening for a book signing, she was a world renowned folklore writer and happened to be Scottish, Leona didn’t usual leave Scotland for book signings, the fans were the ones coming to her.

When Esmeray took her sabbatical, she remained at the University of St Andrews in Scotland and did a special course in Literature, the course had the duration of 9 months, similar to any academic year, but only lasted for that year and Esmeray did not want to miss the opportunity to study with Leona Woodcroft.

She was top of the class and her assignments were noticed by the writer as she was one of the regular lecturers and since then they had developed a friendship.

When Esmeray arrived at the bookshop, Malou was already there, giving the goody bags a final overview, but as soon as she saw Esmeray, she came smiling:

-Hi, you look gorgeous, it’s rare to see you in such feminine formal attire! – Malou commented.

-You look amazing too! – Esmeray replied with sincerity.

Malou was wearing a long wrap dress in a beautiful deep green, burnt yellow dots and burgundy flowers formed a pattern on the dress, Malou’s medium length salt and pepper hair was side parted and had a classy golden ring hair clip, her moccasin tanned ankle boots were just so her, but also complimented her bohemian style.

Malou’s family had been booksellers and friends of the local werewolf’s pack for centuries, passing books down from generation to generation and writing about the werewolves’ history.

The re-opening went very, very well, the locals came to show their support and a lot of people came for the book signing too, Esmeray was happy the marketing and social media presence had been noticed and there was a lot of comments being made as well as purchases.

That’s when the most amazing, exciting, exuberant smell hit Esmeray, her wolf that had been quiet for months, but nearly took over and Esmeray was so surprised she could barely walk, she tried leaving the shop floor quickly, and right before she left she looked at herself in the mirror, her eyes were turning a dark yellow, she had to stop herself for a few seconds, she managed to stumble out and around the back of the shop, but the smell here was even more intense, she knew she was close to it, and her wolf just screamed: MATE!

Esmeray struggled to keep in human form and had to lean onto the wall to get a hold of herself, she took a deep breath while her wolf Eva was scratching and screaming: Go after the smell, follow it!! It’s our mate, what are you waiting for?

She replied: I need to control myself, you never behaved this way, I can’t shift here, someone could see us!

Eva was fighting to take over, and Esmeray could see her nails turning into claws and her bones extending, she took a deep breath and tried walking, while Eva was still screaming: Follow it, look for our mate!

After a few deep breaths she sniffed the air trying to figure out where the smell was coming from, but it was faint now, she tried following and was back on the high street again, she looked around and was surprised with that her wolf which had been so far a very passive voice on the background was so forceful, that was not usual at all, to be precise she had hardly felt her nowadays.

-The smell is gone - she stated to herself and her wolf, but Eva was now going round in circles, very crossed, saying: You need to find the smell, it’s our mate man, or woman, we need it!

Eva had read about mates, but give it very little importance, she had a distance relationship with Eva and for most part Eva tended to ignore her, when she was a child, it had been a lot harder to control her emotions and Eva, but as an adult she couldn’t remember Eva ever trying to take over.

A few more minutes passed while Esmeray kept trying to pinpoint the amazing smell she felt, it was still around, but just a nuance now, she followed it and nearly bumped into someone, he had long very straight nearly white hair that hit the end of his back, plaited neatly, he was wearing a black t-shirt and fitted black jeans, his blue water eyes met Esmeray:

-I’m sorry – he said while raising his hand for a handshake – your shop is wonderful, I bought more books than I care to admit, but it’s so full of treasures. – he smiled – My name is Kalil, nice to meet you.

Esmeray could smell the sandalwood and coffee, but not from him, Eva was trying to push herself forward again, while saying – He smells of our mate, ask him who’s he here with, ask him!

-Esmeray: thank you so much! – was the reply, while forcing Eva to submit – It’s lovely meeting you too. – she extended her hand to shake his – Did you have a chance to meet Leona?

She was trying to keep her feelings and her wolf at bay and be polite, but he stared at her, and she felt under scrutiny.

Kalil looked at the younger shop owner with interest, she was clearly a werewolf like he was and was struggling with something, she was a beautiful woman, hazel eyes, dark brown hair, and an amazing body, not too toned but with and amazing silhouette.