She'd imprinted on him.
It was the only explanation for the gravitational pull that had forced her out of her wolf form and brought her towards him. She'd felt a glowing heat within her at that moment, and everyone and everything else, including the primary assignment that had drawn her into the woods, became secondary.
That was bad enough.
Passing out, and waking up to find herself in his bed the next morning, was worse. She was in his clothes--a big t-shirt and short briefs--but he was not in the room.
As carefully as possible, she inched to the side of the bed and slipped out from under the sheet, trying to be as quiet as possible. She shifted her weight from the bed to her feet one at a time as she decided to flee--not that she could actually stay away with what had happened now. She had to complete her assignment and figure this whole imprinting thing later.
Glancing around, she took in the arrangement and furnishings of the bedroom. It was a nice room, decorated and fitted for a man who lived alone. She tiptoed into his bathroom to use the loo. It had been a while since she had a decent bathroom break. When she was done, she glanced at her reflection in the mirrored cabinet above the sink with chagrin.
She could really use a bath, but she couldn't decide too. The house was deathly quiet, yet she still tiptoed around it, making sure he wasn't home before she rushed back into the bathroom. She found toothpaste and used her index finger to scrub the bad taste from her mouth. After which she shampooed her hair and took a bath in a tile enclosed stall with a large, round shower head mounted into the ceiling.
When she was done, she dried off her body, used his hairbrush to smooth out her wet hair, and went through his wardrobe. She couldn't exactly leave the house in the baggy t-shirt and black briefs he'd given her, without calling attention to herself.
She settled for his white button-up shirt and jeans pants, which were fastened in place with one of his belts. Just as she was about to shut the wardrobe, she heard the sound of a vehicle outside and bolted out of the room. The front door came open, and he stepped in with two bags of groceries, which he'd picked up in a little market forty-five minutes away. But he wasn't alone. A young woman helped him with a carton of beer.
She froze as their eyes jammed in the living room, but recovered quickly and ran. The sun blinded her as she opened the back door of the house and raced through his driveway to the sidewalk by the main road. She wondered if leaving that way was a cowardly thing to do. Technically, it was, but no way she was ready to face him--in his clothes. The last time she'd seen him, she was naked and alone in the woods.
Again, she wondered if there was a good reason for being in that kind of situation. Especially since the dead body of Tamara O'Neill alias, Lily, laid cold somewhere in that same location. Any excuse she could have conjured up probably would have sounded weirder than the truth, so she had to run.
Her heart felt heavy as she continued to pound the pavement. Running as a human was never her favorite pass time. A car would've been much better when it came to fleeing her future.
"Holy shit, he's my future!" She thought.
Whoever this person was, she was stuck with him. And so was the memory of their first meeting. A series of questions ran through her head as she fled--how, would she explain herself? How would they move past this? Could she reject him?
She was just about to cross a busy street when she felt a hand on her shoulder.
"Jesus, lady. Slow the fuck down."
She flinched, her heart nearly pounding out of her chest.
When she turned around, his steely blue eyes pierced through her, and she wondered how she'd ever thought she could escape having to face him.
*******
'If only I'd left without using the stupid bathroom. What the hell was I even thinking, using the bathroom and putting on his clothes like I owned the man?!' She thought to herself.
'Well, technically, you do.' Her wolf Layla grumbled. 'You just had to pick a human, didn't you?'
"Just shut up!" She said out loud, regretting it the moment he whipped his head around from the pantry where he'd been arranging the groceries and eyed her strangely. "I didn't say anything."
"Err… Yeah." Her face went beet red. Thankfully, it was just the two of them in the house. When he'd coaxed her back in, the other woman had already left. "I think I'm hearing voices. Did I…hit my head when I fell?"
"No." He squinted and came to join her by the kitchen counter, a bit worried. "How do you feel?"
"Just a bit off." She tried not to bend her head down in shame as she said. "I'm sorry I wore your clothes.....and used your bathroom and your shampoo." She rambled on. "I wasn't going to run off with your clothes, I swear. Well, I was leaving with them, but I was going to return it."
His lips dip at the sides as though he was fighting a smile.
"I also used your toothpaste, but I didn't touch the brush. My hair was kind of a mess, so I used your hairbrush, but I took out the little hair that got trapped in it, and I'm happy to disinfect it for you before I leave. It's terrifying. This has always been a big fear of mine, and now it came true."
"Fear of talking too much?" He teased.
'No, fear of being stuck naked and without my clothes in sight.' She wanted to say, but her face flushed, and she glanced away.
"I'm truly sorry about this situation, but thanks for that."
He chuckled.
"I talk too much when I'm nervous." She grimaced.
"I was just kidding." A wide grin splits his cheeks and renders her breathless. "What's your name?"
"Kyla. Kyla Odin."
~`~